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^ 



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^ ♦ • 







THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



MONTHLY MAGAZINE 



OF 



General Literature and Science. 



PUBLISHED BY THE PAULIST FATHERS. 



VOL. LXXX. 

OCTOBER 1904, TO MARCH, 1905. 



NEW YORK : 

THE OFFICE OF THE CATHOLIC WORLD. 

120 West 60th Street. 



1905, 



\ 




CONTENTS. 



'-fp-'^j-^'v . *\^i 



'''ry^,^\ V/ 



.'V 



V 



Abbotsford. — Jf, M, Maxwell Scolt^ . 434 

Anagni, The Outrage of, {^Frontispiece,) 

Andr^, Father, In the Steps of. — D, B. 

Martin, 98 

Australia and New Guinea, A Natural- 
ist in. {Illustrated,) — William 
Setom, LL.D.t 11 

Bond or Free ? — Georgina Pell Curtis , 89 

Boniface VIII. — A Picture and an Anni- 
^rsary. — fames /. Walsh, M,D,, 

r atholic and the Bible, A. — Rev, fames 

/. Fox, D,D,, .... 569, 780 

Christian Beneficence, The Spirit of. — 

Rev, Henry A, Brann, D.D,, . , 653 

Christian Science, Is it Christian ? — 

Rev, Walter M. Drum, S,J., , . 638 

Christmas Story, A. — Grace V, Christ- 

wwj, 3.^ 

Christmas, The Message of. — Rev, /. T. 

Driscoll, S,T.L,, , . . 342 

Columbian Reading Union, The, 135, 278. 

420, 563. 703. 846 
Crashaw, Richard. — Katherine Bri^, 756 
Current Events, 524, 659, 807 

Darwinism on its Deathbed. — K^i7/>aOT 

Seton,LL,D, 348 

Darwinism, The F^atest Defence of. — 

Edwin V. O^Hara, .... 719 

Darwinism, The Present Position of. — 

fames f. Walsh, Ph.D., M.D., , 499 

Devil and his Crew, The. — Very Rev, 

George M, Searte, C.S.P,, , 157 

♦• Devil's Alley, The." {Illustrated,)^ 

M F, Quintan, , , .173 

Divorce. Dr. McKim and the Fathers on. 

— Rev Bertrand L, Conway, C,S,P,, 767 

Dream of her Life, The. — feanie Drahe, 592 

Educational Topics. — Rev, Thomas Mc- 
Millan, C.S.P., , , , , 163 

Education, American, and the Mosely 

Commission. — /. C, Monaghan, , 442 

Education in the United States, A His- 
tory of, 104 

Egyptian Convent, An.— ^. M. D,, , 85 

Fenton Opal, The Famous.— y^»/f<i T. 

Sadlier, 187 

Foreign Periodicals, 126, 266, 409, 557, 

693. 836 
Forest, In the — E Mosby, , , .512 

'♦ Fountain of Youth, The " : A Story.— 

Mary Catherine Crowley, . . 65 

Franciscan Tertiary Conference, A. — 

Father Cuthbert, O S.F,C. , , 324 

Franciscan Wonder- Worker, A. — R. F, 

O'Connor, .... 366, 473 



"French Country Pastor, A."— 5. L. 

Emery 2x2 

French Crisis, Some Lessons of the. — 

WW , A*, o.,* • • * . • 733 

Germany, Industrial Education in. — f, 

C, Monaghan, 799 

Gladstone, An Incident in the Life of. — 

Rev, W, f. Madden, • 57 

Halos, On. — Louise Imogen Gutney, , 294 

Hildesheim, the Capital of the Prince- 
Bishops. — C. 7 . Mason, , , , tj 

Holland, The Catholic Revival in. — A 

Dutchman, 463 

Holy See and the French Government, 
The Rupture of Diplomatic Rela- 
tions Between the. — Rev. fohn T, 
Creagh, D.D., f,U,D., . 141 

Immaculate Conception in Art, The. 

{Illustrated. )— J/. F, Nixon- Ri^^let, 313 

Immaculate Conception, The. {Frontispiece,) 

Japan, The Intellectual Apostolate in. — 

Rev, William L. Sullivan, CS.P,, 283 

Land League, Mr. Davitt's History of 

itie.—Rev, fames f. Fox, D.D,, . 300 

Littlemore, St. Mary's Church, {Frontispiece,) 

Madonna in Glory, The, {Frontispiece.) 

Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr, The. 

— Rev. Bertrand L.Conway, C,S, P., 599 

Moretto— "The Raphael of Brescia." 

{Illustrated.) — M, Russet Selmes, 453 

New Books, no, 253, 382, 538, 669, 816 

On Being Cheerful. — Rev. foseph Mc- 

Sorley, C.S.P., . , , . 745 

One Lately Dead. — Katharine Tynan, 729 

Our Lady's Party.— Violet Bulloch Web- 
ster, 44 

Renaissance Monument, A Forgotten. — 

Charlotte H. Coursen, . . . 225 

Reunion, French Opinions On — Wil- 
liam Stetson Merrill, , , . 358 

Scottish Presbyterians, Difficulties of, . 246 

Shamrock Day's Child.— .S'AiWtf Mahon, 794 

Silvio Pellico. — fames /. Walsh, M,D,, 

Ph.D., 610 

Social Reform, Principles in. — Rev. 

William f. Kerby, Ph.D., 425, 582, 709 

"Strangers and Pilgrims." {Illus- 
trated.)— M. F. Quintan, . 621 

Subjection. — Thomas B. Reilly, . . 376 

Theism, Mr. Mallockandthe Philosophy 

of. — Rev, fohn T. Driscoll, , , i 

Training School for Martyrs, A. — The 

Countess de Courson, , , , 228 

Unexpected Letter, The.— 5'Ai>/a Ma- 
hon, 484 

Vera. — A, T. Edmund, .... 200 



127458 



Contents. 



Ill 



POETRY. 



Beloved, TYat,— Katharine Tynan^ . 581 

Dodona. — C. C Martindale, S./., . 171 

Gratitnde. — /aAm Maryson, . . 523 

Holj Face, Canticle to the. — S. L, 

Emery^ 48a 

Ice-CuttiQ£^ at Nig^ht. — Caroline />• 

Swam^ 234 

lofants. Out of the Mouth of. — Francis 

P, Donnelly^ S./., .... 88 



Light and Shadow. — William /. Fischer^ 637 

Motherhood, The Cry oi.— William J. 

Fischer, 334 

Newman at Littlemore. — Edward A, 

Rumely 156 

Saints of God, Tht,— Brother Remigius^ 

Virgin of Israel, The. — Louise F, liur^ 

P^y* a93 



NEW PUBLICATIONS. 



ft 



Aoetjlene, Reactions of. 

Adolescence, .... 

Affair at the Inn, The, . 

American Literary Criticism, 

American Missionary, An, 

American Short Stories, 

At Lake M inona, . 

Aubrey de Vere, 

Au Pays de ** La Vie Intense, 

Babylonian Talmud, The, 

Bible for Teachers of Children, An In 

troduction to the, 
Bible Studies, . 
Blessed Thomas More, . 
Boyne Valley, The, 

Brown Fairy Book, The, 

Catechism of the Instruction of Novices 

Catholic Church in Japan, 

Catholic Home Annual for 1905, Ben 
ziger's, 

Catholic Ideals in Social Life, 

Catholicism and Reason, 

Catholic Manual, The, . 

Charter Oak, Romance of the, 

Christianity. The Dynamic of, 

Christ, The Yoke of, . . . 

Compromises, .... 

Conscience and Law, 

Crossing, The 

De Nominibus et Verbis Ennodi.Hier 
onymique inter se Collatis, 

Descartes Directeur Spirituel, 

Dolphin Series, The : Course of Chris 
tian Doctrine, 

Educational Theory of Immanuel Kant 

Education, History of, . 
Elizabeth, St.. The Life of, . 
Ellwoods, The, .... 
Erasmus, The Epistles of, 1509 15x7, 
Ethical Teaching of Jesus, The, . 
Eiecetisches sur Inspirationsfrage, 

Fabiola 

Franciscains et I'lmmacul^e Concep 

tioQ, Les, 

Fraucts, St., Social Reformer, 
From Doubt to Faith, . 
Froude, Hurrell, .... 
Gotliwogg in Holland, The, 
Gospel Applied to Our Times, The, 



555 Guerin, Mother Theodore, Life of, 

680 Happiness, A Short Cut to, . 
362 Holy Name, Manual of the, . 
832 How to Pray, . . . . 
838 Idylls of the King, The Meaning of the 
832 Index der Verbotenen Bucher, Der, 
689 In Many Lands, .... 
253 Irish Alphabet and Catechism, An, 

552 Irish Literature, .... 
256 Irishman's Story, An, 

James II. of England, The Adventures 

820 of, 

819 Jerusalem Under the High Priests, 

682 Joan of Arc, Saint, 

691 Koheleth, Words of, . . . 
535 L'Evangile selon Saint Jean, 

692 L'Infallibilit6 du Pape et le Syllabus, 
408 Lost Angel of a Ruined Paradise, 

Mark, St., Studies in the Gospel Ac 
265 cording to, 

681 Marriage, Physical Basis of, . 

691 Hartin, Homer, .... 

553 M6thode Historique, La, 

554 Middle Ages, The, .... 

541 MiI16narisme dans ses Origines et son 

835 Diveloppement, Le, . 

689 Moral Life, Responsibility and the, 

258 Muckross Abbey and the Island of Innis 
405 fallen, 

New Orleans Kneipp Water Cure, 

555 New Testament in the Christian Church 

113 The, 

Old Riddle and the Newest Answer 

670 The, 

On Public Speaking, 

114 Parish Priest on Duty, The, . 
261 Paul, St., The Story of, 

538 Pentateuch, On the, 

124 Physical Geography, Lessons in, . 

004 > le 4\., ... ... 

117 Poems of Henry Abbey, The, 

390 Pomdignan, Jean-Georges Le Franc de 

553 1715-1790. 

Prayer Book for Religious, 

388 Prepositions in Appollonius Rhodius 

555 Private Tutor, The, 

259 Progress in Prayer, "... 
826 Prophets, The Work of the, . 

554 Psaumes, Les, .... 
678 Psychical Disposition, The Theory of, 



1x8 
116 

554 
554 

121 
824 
263 
691 
669 
400 

684 
829 
407 

546 
670 

548 
263 

835 

555 
550 

394 
674 

397 
555 

691 

834 

543 

no 

831 
265 

540 

555 
2O4 

260 

263 

683 
264 

555 
406 

387 
828 

"5 

555 



IV 



Contents. 



Ray, The : A Story of the Time of 

Christ, 398 

Reaction-Time and Movement, Study in, 555 

Readings, A Hundred, .... 835 
B4alisme Chretien et L'ld^alisme Grec, 

Le, 382 

Religion and Literature, Studies in, . 830 

River and Saints* Shrines, The, . . 691 

River-land, 406 

Rock of Arranmore, The, . . . 125 

Rosa Mystica, 830 

Rosary, The, 553 

Rose o' the River, 407 

Royal Academy from Reynolds to Mil- 

lais, The, 399 

Ruler of the Kingdom, The, . . 690 

Sacred Heart, Devotion to the, . . 691 

Santa Croce of Ireland, The, . . 691 

Science and Faith, Ideals of, . . 675 

Science and Immortality, . . . 816 
Scriptures, General Introduction to the 

Study of the 255 

Sea Stories for Wonder Eyes, . . 407 
Short Instructions ; or, Meditations on 

the Gospels, 691 



Sick and Desolate, Night Thoughts for 

the, 835 

Sick Room, Thoughts for the, . . 691 
Soul's Orbit, The ; or, Man's Journey 

to God, 550 

Spiritism, Modem, 823 

Summula Philosophise in Usum Adoles- 
centium Seminarii B. Marise d/e Monte 

Mellario Concinnata, .... 539 
Thesaurus Confessarii, . . . .117 
Traffics and Discoveries, . . .401 

Trinity in Unity, 822 

Trixy, . 8j3 

Tyburn and the English Martyrs, . .119 

Twenty-nine Chats and One Scolding, 689 

United States Bureau of Education, . 125 
United btates of America, History of 

the, . . . 1 . . . X20 

Valerian Persecution, The, . . . 555 

Vergilius, 124 

Wandering Twins, The, . . . 407 

Where Does the Sky Begin ? . . . 547 

Whosoever Shall Offend, . . . 403 

Wisdom, The Beauty of, ... 834 



"Thb Outrage of Anagni."— By Chaklbs Maicman. 



THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



Vol. LXXX. OCTOBER. 1904. No. 475. 




MR. MALLOCK AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF THEISM. 

BY REVEREND JOHN T. DRISCOLL. 

N a recent volume, The Veil of the Temple^ Mr. 
Mallock again returns to a discussion of the 
Theistic problem. The publication of this work, 
following so close on the series in the Fortnightly 
Review, which appeared in book form under the 
title of Religion as a Credible Doctrine, is at least a sign that 
the writer is impressed by the general verdict that his entrance 
into the field of Theistic Apologetics was not crowned by a 
brilliant success. 

In form The Veil of the Temple is a novel of romance. In 
fact, it is an account of discussions concerning religion, philoso- 
phy, and science carried on by a select party of visitors at 
the summer retreat of Mr. Glanville, the principal character of 
the book, on the west coast of Ireland. The different person- 
ages, the introduction of the conversational dialogue, with fre- 
quent interruptions for dinner and tea, give a variety and a 
sustained interest to the story. For many reasons the volume 
can with justice be considered an improvement on the previous 
work. Religion as a Credible Doctrine ; nevertheless, apart from 
the author's express declaration, the form of the work restrains 
the critic from viewing the different characters as counterparts 
of persons in real life. The purpose of the present article, 
therefore, is not to take issue with the opinions expressed by 
any individual speaker, but to view the work on the whole as 
an object-lesson in which certain phases of current thought 
are presented to the reader in a concrete and tangible form. 

Tbk Missionary Socibty of St. Paul the Apostlb iv thb Statb 

or Nbw York. 1904. 

VOL. LXXX. — X 




2 Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism. [Oct., 

The volume naturally resolves itself into two parts. The 
first is an examination of the evidences for the Christian Reli- 
gion in the light of the scientific discoveries concerning the 
antiquity of man and of the results obtained by the study of 
Comparative Religion, especially of Buddhism. The second 
part is an investigation into the grounds of Natural Religion. 
To this part I shall for the present confine my remarks because 
it is a continuation of the discussion set forth in Religion as a 
Credible Doctrine, and because of the new light which this 
later presentation throws on the problem of Theistic Philo- 
sophy. 

I. 

MODERN IDEALISM PRESENTS NO STRONG CONSTRUCTIVE SYS- 
TEM AGAINST THE CRITICISM OF THE SCIENCE-PHILOSOPHY. 

Modern Idealism is a modification of the systems of Ideal- 
istic Philosophy originally elaborated and set forth by Kant 
and Hegel. It is, therefore, called the Neo-Kantian or Neo- 
Hegelian school. With English writers these terms are used 
synonymously, but closer examination shows that the Neo- 
Hegelian school is characterized by the element of evolution* 
This system is accepted to-day by non-Catholic writers as the 
philosophical justification of Christian faith. 

The history of English philosophical thought during the 
nineteenth century presents an interesting subject for study. 
Especially is this true when we investigate the bearing of philo- 
sophy on revealed truth. The one luminous fact presented is 
that throughout these years English non-Catholic apologetics 
suffered from an alliance with philosophical systems which were 
fundamentally erroneous and false. The Scotch school, which 
had so strongly withstood the spread of materialism in the 
eighteenth century, reached its culmination in Sir William Hamil- 
ton. Fifty years ago the writings of Hamilton were the ortho- 
dox text-books in philosophy outside the Catholic Church. But 
Mr. Huxley declares that his own agnosticism was the legiti- 
mate development of Hamilton's teaching, and on the other 
hand Dean Mansel, in the Bampton Lectures on the Limits of 
i<.eligious Thought, tried to effect a close union between Hamil- 
ton's philosophy and the teaching of faith. When the keen 
analytic mind of John Stuart Mill tore into shreds the loosely 



1904.] Mr, Mallock and the philosophy of Theism. 3 

coQstructed system of Hamilton, the non-Catholic apologist 
presented a sorry sight. Left without a sound philosophical 
justification of faith, he could only admit Christian truth by 
doing violence to the accepted principles of reason, or if he 
were gifted with a philosophic mind, the teachings of Christian 
faith went by the board. The doctrines of John Stuart Mill 
blended with the rise of the Science- Philosophy, of which Her- 
bert Spencer was the leading exponent. Then is presented 
the strange sight of sporadic attempts by devout thinkers to 
Christianize the Synthetic Philosophy of Spencer. 

With the rise of the Neo-Hegelian movement a new phase 
of philosophic thought is had. Under the leadership of Profes- 
sor Thomas Green, the new Idealism rapidly spread and gained 
brilliant and able exponents. The long-felt need of a philoso- 
phic basis for Christian truth was thought to have been supplied 
at last Hence, in the hands of English non- Catholic apologists, 
Neo-Hegelianism was welcomed as the ally of Christianity 
in the effort to stem and break the rapid advance of scepticism 
and was put forth as a well-ordered system of thought concern- 
ing the universe and man. 

That these hopes are sadly disappointing is clearly shown 
by Mr. Mallock in his latest work. Mr. Alistair Seaton is the 
exponent of Modern Idealism. Mr. Seaton accepts John 
Stuart Mill's definition of matter as '' the permanent possi- 
bility of sensation." Starting thus from the Phenomenal Ideal- 
ism of Sensism, he proceeds to destroy the notion of matter, 
and, by explaining away the material universe, remove at a 
stroke the difficulties encountered by the advance of modern 
scientific investigation. In his view "the essence of things'' 
is not unknowable. On the contrary, "it's precisely this that 
a true philosophy reveals to us with perfect clearness." For 
" the essence of things is simply the Divine mind, as appre- 
hended by the human mind that is kindled to it " ( The Veil of 
the Temple ^ p. 255). The relation of the individual mind to 
the Divine mind is explained by a Pantheistic merging of one 
into the other (/^., p. 313). 

Against the criticism of the Science- Philosophy such teach* 
ing cannot be sustained. Mr. Mallock has shown this very 
clearly. I am far from taking exception to Mr. Mallock's 
position as the critic of Modern Idealism. Without enterirg 
into a detailed criticism of his strictures on NeoHegelianism, 



4 MR, MALLOCK AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF THEISM. [Oct., 

I welcome the object-lesson which he has presented. Fifty 
years ago the reaction from the extravagant assumptions of 
Hegel's system gave the great impetus to the rise and spread 
of the Science- Philosophy. No modification of this system 
can ever hope to have a permanent abiding place in the human 
mind. In accepting this teaching the Christian thinker volun- 
tarily abandons his position, and instead of a Theism embraces 
an intellectual Pantheism. Mr. Mallock has put the readers of 
his volume under indebtedness to him, and has done a real 
service to Christian apologetics, by showing what I maintain 
and which must be recognized, the sooner the better, viz., 
that modern Idealism is utterly unable to maintain a strong 
constructive position against the criticism of the Science- 
Philosophy. 



II. 



THE BARRENNESS OF THE SCIENCE-PHILOSOPHY. 

In showing the weakness of Modern Idealism the Science- 
Philosophy has also revealed its c^n insifiicicrcy in the fur- 
pose and value ascribed to. human life and conduct. 

In the philosophical history of the nineteenth century the 
strange spectacle is presented of a philosophical system based 
upon the observation of the senses, and confined within the 
narrow limits of sense experimentation, developing into an 
Ethical Idealism. Yet such is the history of the Science- 
Philosophy. 

The term Science- Philosophy is used to designate a philo- 
sophical school which arose about the middle of the nineteenth 
century, and exerted a powerful influence upon human thought. 
Its aim was to explain the universe and man by an appeal to 
the principles of physical science. The doctrine was a philoso- 
phy of physical science, and the contradiction involved in the 
attempt is best expressed by the above title. With a show of 
knowledge put forth in an attractive style, the adherents of 
this school tried to convince readers that religious truth was 
beyond the sphere of exact thought, that science alone could 
verify its assertions, that what was not within the limits of 
scientific methods could not be kno^n. Thus, science beccme 
the ally of unbelief, and no man of disciplined mind was pre* 



1904.] Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism, 5 

sumed to know anything whatsoever about the great truths 
pertaining to God or to the soul. 

But the voice of human nature was too strong to be stifled. 
In doing away with the God of Christianity, Comte was com- 
pelled to invent an Ideal God as the supreme end and purpose 
of human life. In the idea of Humanity we find expressed 
the kernel of Ethical Idealism. How vague and barren and 
powerless is this Religion of Humanity, Mr. Mallock clearly 
sets forth in its doctrine as expressed by Mr. Brock and Mr. 
Brompton, and in the merciless criticism of their views. 

'* So far/' we read, " as the office of religion is to guide 
men, by restraining them, the Religion of Humanity is become 
useless, in proportion as we require to use it. It shows itself 
to be ^ mere toy. But perhaps I may as well make it plain 
to you that it really fails completely to justify the virtues we 
are inclined to, as it does to restrain us from our sins " (t^., 
p. 381). And the final verdict given is that "The Religion of 
Humanity is only worth considering because it illuminates the 
desperate straits which the human mind is put to when it tries 
to find a religion within the prison of science" (/*., p. 386). 

The effect of the Science- Philosophy on the value of the 
individual life is a subject of peculiar interest. Here we have 
the most striking and eloquent passages of the book. The 
levity and cynicism of the speakers pass away, and the pas- 
sionate eloquence of the style betrays a warmth and depth of 
feeling that strikes a responsive chord in our own breasts. 
"When we take into account our nature and our feelings as a 
whole," then we realize, in the words of Mr. Glanville, that 
"the philosophy of science reduces all life to an absurdity," 
that "it deprives the word morality of one-half of its mean- 
ing " {lb , p. 388). " We have moral efficiencies, but no moral 
elevations " (li., p 389). " The entire character of all life's plea- 
sures would alter — their range would contract and their finest 
flavor evaporate" (1^., p. 392). The Science- Philosopher, "in- 
stead of rejoicing in his freedom to seize on everything, would 
be far more apt to lament that nothing was worth seizing " (/^., 
p. 392). " Our husk of facts would thus far remain unaltered, 
but the living kernel, which they now contain, would be gone " 
(ij., p. 396). " Everything would be gone that could invite either 
love or hate" {ib!) "All the great dramas of the world would 
lose their meaning — and indeed could never have been writ- 



6 Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism. [Oct., 

ten — apart from the assumption that they must have some ele- 
ment of freedom in them that could not possibly emanate from 
the order of things known to science " {jb.^ p. 404). '' In all 
great effort, whatever we may accomplish, we see something 
beyond " {ib.^ p. 409). " Whatever this Something is, it is a 
Something which is beyond ourselves, and which } et responds 
to us with a promise of future union " {ib.^ p. 408). *' If it is an 
illusion, it is an illusion of such efficiency that it foims the 
most vivifying element in the civilized life of man, and all 
human morality which is more than the morality pf an ant- 
hill, is radio active with its recognized or secret presence '* 
(td., p. 410). The immortality of the soul "is absolutely neces* 
sary to give magnitude to life ; otherwise, let men choose and 
aspire, succeed or fail a$ they will, they will seem to us little 
better than choosing and aspiring toys, whose success or 
failure will mean nothing when the day's game is over^ and 
they are broken or put back in the toy-box " (id., p. 411). We 
are told that " Science strips us of everything which gives 
worth to us in our own eyes — that it will not let us go till it 
has extracted the last farthing — that it not only desolates the 
religious man but the worldly man also; and finally, that it 
takes the vital force out of civilization at large, just as much 
as it does out of the mind or soul of the individual " (/d., 
p. 426). 

Science- Philosophy, therefore, cannot* account for the dig- 
nity and value of human life. On the contrary, it deprives us 
of what makes life most dear. We are left bereft and deso- 
late. What a wretched substitute for Neo-Hegelian philosophy! 
The object-lesson is not that one system is superior to the 
other, but that both are false. 



III. 

THE METHOD TO BE EMPLOYED IN ATTACKING THE 

SCIENCE-PHILOSOPHV. 

In spite of the barrenness of the Science- Philosophy and 
the disastrous effect a strict application of its teaching would 
have upon human life and conduct, nevertheless the impres- 
sion left on the reader of Mr. Mallock's book is that this sys- 
tem holds an impregnable position. The question therefore 



1904.] Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism. 7 

arises, how shall it be attacked ? Hence we come to the 
problem of method. Mr. Granville is somewhat facetious in 
his reference to " the methods which are most popular with 
the champions of religion to-day" (/^., p. 426), and suggests that 
'' we must abandon the method of direct attack altogether " 
(/^., p. 427). I cannot concur in the suggestion ; in fact I have, 
when treating the subject, adopted a method of attack which 
is direct and scientific, inasmuch as it strikes at the very 
foundation of the system. 

The Science -Philosophy has been variously termed Monism, 
Naturalism, Positivism, or Agnosticism. Its essence consists 
not so much in a set of doctrines as in a method. The 
essence of this method, in the words of Mr. Huxley, lies in 
the rigorous application of a single principle : in matters of 
intellect follow the reason as far as it will guide you, and not 
pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated 
or demonstrable. Unfortunately this principle, simple in itself, 
has been pushed too far by an erroneous interpretation. The 
result Was the formation of a frame of mind, the generation of 
a peculiar atmosphere which permeates modern thought. Men 
to-day grow up under the subtle influence of this atmosphere 
and unconsciously are led to think or to view things in cer- 
tain narrow and restricted ways. Struggle though they may, 
some find it impossible to free themselves from this peculiar 
frame of mind. By repeated acts, influenced by the very 
environment in which they live, deep-set habits have been 
formed by which they are constrained to regard objects from 
a special point of view. Like men standing close to the wall 
of a large building, they live too close to modern thought and 
are unable to obtain a true perspective by which they could 
view passing events with discrimination and a sense of relative 
values. In my work on the Philosophy of Theism {^Christian 
Philosophy^ God, chap, i.. Agnosticism) I have appealed to the 
historical method as the only way out of the difficulty. If the 
essence of the Science-Philosophy consists in a certain habit 
of thought, assuredly the only method that can properly be 
termed scientific is to analyze this habit of thought with the 
view to find the various elements which compose it, their 
sources, and the influences which tend to its formation and 
permanence. Instead of a direct attack on a particular theory 
or principle, we shall trace the principle or theory to its 



8 Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism. [Oct., 

source and observe the process of its development Thus the 
mind is enabled to compare the various stages of the process, 
acquires the idea of perspective, and is gradually freed from 
the slavery of a narrow and restricted range of vision. It 
would thus be seen that the sources of the Science- Philoso- 
phy, as shown by the method of historical analysis, are two- 
fold : the one is scientific, the other is philosophical and reli- 
gious. The former shows whence the positive elements of the 
system are derived ; the latter explains its negative and destruc- 
tive character. 

The positive factor in the development of the modern 
philosophy of science is found in the rise and progress of 
physical science. By observation and experimentation every 
department of nature, day by day, has been compelled to dis- 
close its treasures and its laws. Other sources of knowledge 
were rejected as of no value, and physical science was con- 
sidered the only means by which the mind could acquire the 
possession of truth. 

The influence of the religious element on the spread of the 
Science -Philosophy is had in the false presentations of religious 
truth. With the rise of religious dissent in the sixteenth 
century the great problems of discussion were the freedom of 
the will, the doctrine of grace, i. e., of divine supernatural 
help and of predestination. They assumed a most malignant 
and repulsive form in the creed of Calvinism. The history of 
religious thought shows how bitter was the strife. God was 
described as a being of infinite power who created and destined 
men to eternal damnation without giving any means to enable 
them to reach eternal blessedness. The human mind revolted 
from a religion so terrible. Hence we can understand the 
indignant protest of John Stuart Mill, although we can hardly 
reconcile it with his gospel of Utilitarianism {Examination of 
Sir William Hamilton^ vol. i. p. 131). The result was a reaction 
to an opposite extreme. In England and in this country the 
effect is seen in the Unitarian revival of some years ago. To 
a great extent the movement spent itself with the death of its 
leaders and was merged into the swelling tide of the Science- 
Philosophy. 

Of far greater importance are the philosophical sources, viz., 
Locke and Kant. Their writings, broached at different times 
and under different circumstances, were swelled in the process 



1904.] Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism. 9 

of time with accretions from Hamilton, Comte, and the English 
school of Associationism. The nucleus of the philosophical 
teaching was that the essence of things is unknown and un- 
knowable, that the mind can deal only with ideal or real 
appearances. This explains the Agnostic tone of thought 
which has so widely prevailed in recent years. 

A philosophical system or a tone of thought, which results 
from influences such as these, breaks up before the light of 
historical criticism, and reveals its inherent insufficiency. The 
student is thus enabled to detect the fundamental error and 
prescribe the remedy. We are thus led to the conclusion that 
the solution of the philosophical difficulties so keenly felt by the 
modem mind is to be had in a true and sound Theory of Knowl- 
edge. 

IV. 

In the final chapter of the book under discussion Mr. 
Glanville finds for his hearers a way out of the mental con- 
fusion by recourse to Epistemology. I have repeatedly main- 
tained that a correct Theory oi Knowledge was the only solu- 
tion, and I rejoice that Mr. Mallock's mind has grasped this 
truth at last. I regret, however, to say that whereas he has 
seen the truth, it has been as in a glass darkly, and he has 
utterly failed to point out the sure and true way to the sadly 
confused characters in the book. The Epistemology he pro- 
poses is the blind acceptance of truths, e. £., of science and of 
religion, which he holds to be contradictory. Now, I maintain 
that the trouble is not with the things themselves, but with our 
views of things and our ways of knowing them. To a near- 
sighted person objects run together and intermix. The effec- 
tive remedy is to clear the eye, to strengthen and perfect its 
vision. Again, if we stand too close to a group of things, the 
idea of perspective is lost, or rather, is impossible to be had. 
But by withdrawing a little and taking a higher elevation, the 
lines of the great plan are revealed, and the varying distances 
as well as the relative values of particular objects are laid bare 
to the mind. What was confusing and hard to understand 
becomes clear and intelligible. The mind is not forced by an 
act of faith to do violence to itself by accepting, with Mr. 
Mallock, as orderly what it clearly sees to be a jumble. But 



lo Mr. Mallock and the Philosophy of Theism. [Oct., 

by a change of position and a correct view the seeming dis* 
order and conflict disappear. 

The illustration serves in the present case. To the char- 
acters in Mr. Mallock's volume religious and scientific truths 
are in hopeless contradiction, and the solution of the difficulty 
is to be found, Mr. Glanville says, in our view of things. If 
this be so, why did he not suggest a change in the point of 
view ? A truth of physical science brought out more clearly- 
day by day is that this universe is a universe of order and 
harmony. If, therefore, confusion exists to our limited vision, 
is there not at least an antecedent probability warranted by 
physical science that the fault is in us, not in the things them- 
selves ? 

Furthermore a most suggestive idea is expressed by one 
of the speakers when, in rejecting the Science- Philosophy, he 
gives as a reason that it recognizes only two dimensions, viz., 
length and breadth, and neglects the third dimension, which he 
designates by the term ** moral elevations." Now, elevations 
can only be rightly observed by one who stands at proper dis- 
tance, and considers the various objects from a higher point of 
view. Thus we are led to the conviction that beings in the 
universe about us differ one from another, and that this dif- 
ference is grounded in the nature of the beings themselves. 
There are mental and moral as well as physical objects within 
the range of the mind's vision. They do not merge one into 
the other, but stand forth clear and distinct. There is a mental 
and a moral as well as a physical science. They do not blend 
one into the other, nor is there any confusion, for they set forth 
and explain objects which differ by reason of " moral elevations." 

Thus, a sound Epistemology does not constrain the mind to 
accept contradictions, which is the solution offered by the present 
volume. The contradictions are not real but apparent; they 
disappear when the objects are considered from a true view- 
point, which recognizes physical, mental, and moral science; and 
when, in viewing the particular objects in one or another depart- 
ment of knowledge, the true nature of the mind's activity is 
known and a true explanation is given of the way in which 
the mind conceives things. 



1904.] A Naturalist in Australia. n 




A NATURALIST IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW GUINEA. 

BY WILLIAM SETON, LL.D. 

'FTER the interesting researches of Mr. Bates in 
the Valley of the Amazon and of Wallace in 
the Malay Archipelago, "^t, know no naturalist 
whose scientific journey has been so instructive 
as that of Professor Richard Semon, who, in 
June, 1 89 1, set out from the German University of Jena to 
pass two years in studying the animal life of Australia and 
New Guinea. The great island of Australia, which to the 
zoologist is worth as much as all the rest of the earth, has 
been aptly termed the fossil continent, for here we find ani- 
mals of a most primitive type which have been long extinct 
in other parts of the globe; animals which may be called 
living fossils, for they connect the present life with the life of 
a past geological epoch. Here let the reader bear in mind 
that the class of mammals is divided into two sub- classes, 
namely, Placentals, or true mammals, and non-Placentals, or 
reptilian mammals. The placentals bring forth their young in 
a maturer state, the mother nourishing them before birth by 
means of an internal organ called the placenta, and many facts 
revealed by anatomy and by embryology indicate that pla- 
cental mammals have developed from non- placental forms. 
We must also remember that the non placentals or reptilian 
mammals are again sub-divided into marsupials, which are 
semi-oviparous, and monotremes, which are oviparous — that is 
to say, egg-layers. It is certainly a noteworthy fact that in 
Australia (and the same is largely true of New Guinea) all the 
higher mammals are absent ; we find only marsupials and 
monotremes.* And when the young marsupial is born, being 
m an undeveloped state — semi transparent and almost shape- 
less — the mother instantly hides it in her pouch (marsupium). 
But even lower in the scale of organization than the marsu- 
pials are the monotremes, which are represented by only two 

*The Dingo, or Australian wild dog, is not reckoned among the indigenous Australian 
uiimals. 



A NATURALIST IN Australia [Oct., 



Tub KANCAkoo. 

types — the ornitborhjnchus, or Duck tr.ole, ard the Echidna, 
or native hedgehog. The monotremes, as we have said, 
instead of bringing forth their half- developed little ones alive, 
lay eggs, like reptiles. Moreover, their intestinal, generative, 
and urinary organs open into one and the same cavity, after 
the manner of reptiles, and their bodies are comparatively 
cold; and naturalists consider it highly probable that thty are 
a link between reptiles and mammals, mammals having been 
developed from some reptilian branch. 

It was chiefly in order to study the embryological develop- 
ment of these primitive mammals, marsupials and monotremes, 
that Professor Semon undertook his long journey ; and he also 



E Duck-Mole. 



wished to see a very curious fish, the Ceratodus, which is 
found only in two rivers of Australia, the Burnett and the 



1904.] AND New Guinea. 13 

Hary. The ceratodus not only has gills like other iifh, but it 
has also one lung, and even as monotremes are consideied to 
be a link between reptiles and mammals, so is the ceratodus 
believed to be a connecting link between fishes and am- 
phibians. 

Professor Semon tells us that a solemn feeling came over 
him when, on the 24th of August, he began his wanderings in 
the Australian woods. He had, for companions a native and his 
three sons, whom he looked upon, although they were partially 
clad in civilized costume, as good representatives of the Australian 
race. The father, who was known as Old Torn, had black, 
wavy hair, broad cheek bones, flat nose, and a huge mouth, 
which was partly hidden by a long, unkempt beard, and what- 



Thb Native Hei 

ever we may think of him, the professor did not consider Old 
Tom homely. 

Although it was the month of August it was the beginning 
of spring in Australia, and the forest which they entered 
looked like a boundless park. Nearly all the trees belonged 
to the Eucalyptus family, and as they stood far apart, the eye 
look in a vast expanse of green grass streaked here and 
there with glorious sunshine. But what impressed one most 
was the great height of the trees, many of them towering up 
lor joo feet, while the top of one giant eucalyptus, which 
I'rofessor Semon measured, stood 480 feet from the ground, 
iad this is higher than the highest Sequoia giganUa in the 
Vosemite Valley, California. And their roots, in order to get 
moisture, sink very deep in the earth ; many of them go down 



A Naturalist IN Australia [Oct., 



to a depth of 120 feet, for the climate of Australia is ex- 
tremely dry, not a drop of rain railing sometiires in two or 
three years, and then the country is changed into a perfect 
desert. 

As we have remarked, the forest which Professor Semon 
entered looked like a beautiful, sunshiny park ; but the 
moment the sun went down there was a marked change in 
the temperature, and the profesEor tells us that be felt chilly; 
and when by-and-by be lay down to rest on the bed which 
Old Tom made (or him, and which consisted of a broad bag 
stuffed with grass, he was glad to find himself under a thick 
blanket. Nor did he sleep any too well the first two or three 
nights, and when he did close his eyes it was to dream of 
marsupials and egg-laying monotremes. 

The first marsupial which he met with was what is known 
among the settlers as a pouched bear {Phascolarctus Cinereus). 
But despite its name this animal has no anatomical rela- 
tionsbip with the bear family. It is a true marsupial like the 
kangaroo, and it is a clumsy, slow, moving beast about as big 
as a racoon, with a stunted tail, long, sharp claws, and makes 
its home among the branches of the eucalyptus trees. Kor 
was it easy for the professor to get it even after it was badly 
wounded, for it dropped down very slowly from one limb to 



1904.] AiQD New Guinea. 15 

the other, and on one limb it hucg so long that it was neces- 
sary to fire another shot before it fell to the ground. 

On the fifth day the party camped on the summit of a 
pretty high hill, and here Professor Semon caught his first 
view of the Burnett River, where he meant to settle down 
awhile and try to solve certain problems in zoology and 
embryology. 



Thb Pouched Bear. 

The next morning as tbey were descending the hill they 
disturbed a herd of kangaroos, which made ofiT with astonish- 
ing leaps; but before they disappeared the professor was able 
>o shoot a female, in whose pouch he discovered a half- devel- 
oped young one. While he was examining this tiny marsupial 
they heard the barking of dogs, and at once Old Tom clapped 
l>is hands and said : " Come on, come on ! " and on they went, 
ind after proceeding a short distance further they came to a 
camp composed of seven or eight families of aborigines. But 
only two of them had tents, and thife looktd very old and 
tattered. The other families had made for themselves huts of 
sticks and bark. 



A Naturalist m AUSTRALIA [Oct., 



The back of these primitive abodes was turned to face the 
wind, while in front, by each entrance, a fire was burning; 
and we must admit that these rude dwellings had one marked 
advantage over more solid, pretentious bouses, for should the 
wind suddenly shift to another quarter and drive the smoke 
into the hut, it took only a few minutes to pull the hut apart 
and then rebuild it anew and fronting in another direction. 

As soon as the boisterous greeting was over Professor 
Semen was introduced to Old Tom's sister and her husband, 
who were the owners of one of the two tents, and we regret 
to say that this worthy couple had brought from the nearest 
white settlement a number of bottles, the contents of which 
boded no good to the peace and prosperity of the camp. 

The following morning before sunriEe the professor basttned 
to the river, which here was half a mile broad, for he was 
anxious to catch a ceratodus, or, as it is called by the whites, 
a burnett salmon, from the reddish color of its flesh. But its 
scientific name is ceratodus ForsUri, from the name of its dis- 
coverer, William Forster. And here let us say that this Aus- 
tralian lung-fish, which remains always in fresh water, well 
above the influence of the tide, and which in a former geo- 
logical age had a world-wide distribution, is only one of three 
closely allied genera, and two of these genera (Lepldosiren 



1904.] '^A'^ NEiv Guinea. 



and Protopteius), each represented by a sin}{]e species,. inhabit 
the Amazon River, in South America, and two or tbteb rivets 
in West Africa. The ceratodus is uncommonly sluggiib ; yen 
may actually plunge your arm into the water and touch it 
without causing it to move away; nor does it seem in ordi- 
nary seasons and under favorable conditions to make much 
use of its lung. It may, however, be setn occasionally to rife 
to the surface in order to empty the old air and to inhale 
iresh air, thus showing that it has, fpr awhile at least, been 
breathing with its lung. And Professor Semen tells us that when 
it comes up it lifts the tip of its snout above the surface and 
makes a grunting, groaning sound; but he was not certain if 
this sound was caused by the expiration of the foul air or the 
iospiration of pure air. But although, the ceratodus does make 
use of it$ one lung now and again. Professor Semon assures 
us that it cannot live without its gills, for if a ceratodus be 
left on the bank, its gills soon dry up and it dies. Now, here 
it may be asked, of what special use .to this fish is its one 

VOL. LXXX,— 2 



i8 A Naturalist IN AUSTRALIA [Oct., 

lung ? Well, it is of vital use during periods of prolonged 
drought. The water in the Barnett and Mary rivers then falls 
exceedingly low, so low that there may be only one or two 
water-holes left where the fish may congregate, and these holes 
soon become filled with other kinds of fishes — perch, roullets, 
etc., which being purely gill-breathers, are unable to survive 
in such unsanitary conditions ; the many fishes in this very 
confined space become closely crowded together, there may be 
scarcely room to float them all, and dead mullets and perches 
soon render the water putrid. When this happens the lung of 
the ceratodus comes into play ; it enables the ceratodus to 
survive, for it has only to lift its snout above the surface in 
order to get a fresh supply of air. Here let us observe that 
nearly all fish absorb oxygen from special appendages called 
gills. The gills seem specially adapted to absorb more air from 
a given body of water than the skin can absorb, and thus they 
transmit the air to the blood circulating in the gills; and the 
gills, as we know, are placed on the sides of the head, vihere 
they lie hidden under a fold of skin Called the gill-covering. 
It is an interesting fact, however, thftt animals may absorb 
oxygen (that is to say, may breathe) through different parts 
of the body. 

Human beings obtain oxygen from the air which passes 
through the mucous membrane of the lungs into the bloody 
but many invertebrates and water insects absorb oxygen frcm 
a stream of water which constantly flows in at one end of 
their bodies and passes out at the other end. This is the 
simplest condition of respiration. Here oxygen is taken in by 
the mucous membrane of the intestines. 

But now to come back to the ceratodus. Professor Semon 
tells us that its eggs are outwardly very like the eggs of 
amphibians. Moreover, a study of the various stages of the 
embryo of the ceratodus shows that its development is more 
like the development of amphibians than it is of any other 
fish. Hence many naturalists conclude that in this lung-fish 
we do indeed possess a missing link between fishes and 
amphibians, and that from some of the extinct representatives 
of the modern ceratodus have been developed the amphibians, 
just as from amphibians have been developed the higher ver- 
tebrates. But besides this lung- fish Professor Semon, as we 
have already observed, was especially interested in the "^^Ty 



1904.3 AND NEW Guinea. 



restrtcted order of the monotremes — egg- laying mammalE — 
which are represented, as we know, by only two types — the 
ornithorhynchus and the echidna, and which are even lower 
in the mammalian scale than the marsupials. The ornitho- 
rhynchus is an aquatic animal like the beaver, and it pro- 
cures its food in the water, generally in the early morning and 
after sundown. It is also able to stay a good while under 
water, although its lungs are not fitted for water-breathing, and 
it is forced at length to rise to the surface for a fresh supply 
of air. During the day it sleeps in its burrow on the river 
bank, and the burrow has two entrances, one above water, the 
other below, and the passage-way between them is sometimes 
fifty feet long. This curious animal has a flat, duck>like 
beak, with which it digs into the mud on the river bottom for 
mussels and worms. But instead of immediately swallowing its 
food, the ornithorhynchus stuffs it into its baggy cheeks; then 
when its cheeks can hold no more it rises to the surface, where 
it quietly floats and swallows the food it has gathered. And 
while it is thus engaged it looks very like a flat piece of wood 
one or two feet long drifting on top of the water. Like the 
echidna, the ornithorhynchus is without teeth, but there is evi- 
dence that it descends from animals with teeth, for the young 
ones do possess them (they soon, however, drop out), and they 
are very like the teeth of certain primitive fossil mammals. 
And let us add that the two eggs which the female lays at a 
time, instead of being carried about in the pouch, are deposited 
in an underground burrow. 



20 A Naturalist IN AUSTRALIA [Oct., 

Professor Semon tells us that he would often steal up to 
the river bank and watch these primitive mammals playing with 
one another, and he says that while they play they make a 
squeaking noise; but so keen is their hearing that if he made 
the slightest noise himself they would instantly disappear under 
water and not be seen again for hours. And he also tells us 
that he more than once cooked an ornithorhynchus, but did not 
relish it, for it has a fishy smell ; nor do the natives eat it, 
while of the echidna, on the contrary, they are exceedingly fond. 
Quite as interesting as the duck- mole to our professor was 
the echidna, or spiny ant-eater (sometimes called the native 
hedgehog). As we have already remarked, this other egg- 
laying mammal was in a former geological epoch to be foucd 
in many parts of the globe, and, like the ornithorhynchus, it 
bears not a little resemblance to reptiles. Nor is it an easy 
animal to find in the open, for its home is in the wildest parts 
of the forest ; its habits, too, are nocturnal, and it is only after 
nightfall that it sallies forth in quest of food, which is insects, 
especially ants ; and it catches these by thrusting its long, woim* 
like tongue deep into an ant-hill, where the tongue is soon 
covered with ants, and then, drawing back its tongue, it swallows 
hundreds at a time. On the male echidna (as well as on the 
ornithorhynchus) there is a strong spur attached to the hind 
foot, while on the inner side of the foot is a gland which dur- 
ing June secretes poison, and Professor Stmon believes that this 
spur and the related poison gland may be used by the males 
when fighting for the possession of a female. As soon as the 
female lays her one egg — which is leathery and like a turtle's 
egg — she puts it into her pouch, and it is interesting to know 
that her pouch is only developed at certain seasons; then, 
shortly after the egg is in the pouch,'the young one, half an 
inch long, breaks out of the shell by means of a horny, beak- 
like point at the end of its snout, and as soon as it is free the 
mother removes the broken egg-shell, so that the little one 
may be quite comfortable. But its eyes are not yet open, and 
it feeds itself not by sucking but by licking up the milk vvhich 
is exuded from the female. 

And even when the young echidna is ten weeks old and 
able to catch insects it will often crawl back into the pouch to 
lick up the milk. It is not yet, however, old enough to ac- 
company its mother on her nightly wanderings, and before the 



1904.] AND New Guinea. 21 

latter sets out after ants at sundown she digs a hole in the 
ground into which she rolls her baby for safe-keeping until 
her return. 

Let us now speak of the natives of Australia; but before 
we doy it may be well to say again that on this fossil conti- 
nent, as it has been termed, both the fossil as well as the in- 
digenous living mammals reveal only marsupials and mono- 
tremes. Hence naturalists hold it to be very probable that 
ever since the higher mammals, namely, the placentals, were 
developed from marsupial or non-placental forms, Australia 
must have been separated from the mainland. This immense 
island did not possess the conditions which led to the change 
from the marsupials to the higher mammals.* 

But now to speak of the Australian aborigines, let us ob- 
serve that they represent one of the lowest types of the human 
race, and for this very reason they are a most interesting peo- 
ple to study. Their bodies are conspicuous for extreme thin- 
ness, and this is believed to be owing to their living mainly on 
animal food, which is so devoid of saccharine matter; and they 
eat chiefly snakes, lizards, birds, and shell- fish. It is true that 
the women gather fruits and roots ; but the wild fruits and 
plants of Australia contain little nourishment, and the natives 
have no gardens like the African negroes. The climate for- 
tunately is very healthy ; the air, owing to its dryness, is 
almost free from disease-breeding organisms; wounds heal more 
rapidly than anywhere else; and lung trouble and malaria are 
unknown. Light brown individuals among the natives are 
found occasionally, but the prevailing color of the skin is 
blackish brown ; and both men and women have exceedingly 
prominent eyebrows, very thick and very black hair, while the 
bodies of the men are markedly hairy. The Australian skull 
is of small brain capacity, the forehead is somewhat low and 
retreating, and the nose, while not perfectly flat, has in it 
something that reminds you of the anthropoid ape. 

No doubt the marked uniformity in bodily structure ^hich 
we find among these people is due to long isolation and an 
uncommon sameness in the conditions of life ; and the same 
may be said of their intellectual qualities. They would seem 

•Sec Professor Gaudry's interesting work, Le% AncCtres de nos Animaux dans Us temps 
GMo^ifties. 



22 A Naturalist in Australia [Oct, 

to be to-day in what is called the Stone Age. They know 
nothing of the use of metals; all their implements and weapons 
are of wood, shell, or stone, and in these weapons and imple- 
ments they show an inferior workmanship as compared with 
the Papuans, or natives of the near-by island of New Guinea, 
who are likewise in the Stone Age. But while they possess no 
bows and arrows, they do have one weapon which is peculiar 
to them, namely, the boomerang ; it is an original invention 
of this very inferior race and is used by no other nation on 
earth. It is a flat, crooked piece of wood, whose flatness 
makes it float on the air, as it were, and after rising very high, 
it returns by a gradual descent to the thrower. "The main 
advantage of the boomerang is not, however, its returning to 
the starting point, but its flying farther and higher than any 
other hand weapon." • 

The Australian has not yet arrived at the art of perforating 
stone, nor does he show any artistic qualities, and the scrawls 
which he makes to represent men and animals are exceedingly 
uncouth. On festive occasions, when dancing is kept up all 
night long, they often stick feathers in their hair, generally 
feathers of the white cockatoo, and they may smear their bodies 
with chalk or charcoal, but they never gracefully tattoo their 
skins like the natives of New Guinea. 

Thanks to the abundance of game the Australian can easily 
procure all the meat he needs; no effort is required, nor does 
he ever think of the morrow. But if this mode of life makes 
him very independent, it also bars the way to all advancement ; 
and not having discovered the art of shaping earthern pots in 
which to hold boiling water, he must bake his food in hot 
ashes. Nor, as we have already remarked, does he make any 
vegetable gardens ; he is par excellence a wandering hunter, 
his only domestic animal being the dog, or dingo, as it is 
called. And as the Australian does not look to the future he 
lays up no property of any kind ; indeed he seems incapable of 
any complicated mental process, and he is so devoid of imagi- 
nation that he cannot even construct a well-made lie. Like 
their intellect the language of these savages, or rather their 
dialects (for although closely related, every tribe has a little 
speech of its own), are not much developed. They use words 
with many syllables, and most persons might call it an ugly 

* In the Australian Busk, By Professor Richard Semon, p. 215. 



1904.] AND New Guinea, 23 

• 

language. They have only one name for all kinds of snakes, 
and they have only three words to express the different colors, 
and these three words are "white," ''black," and "colored," 
and this last word is used equally for red, green, blue, and 
yellow. In ability to count they are also very deficient; they 
cannot go beyond 5, and even to express 5 they must combine 
2 and 3 ; while anything exceeding 5 is expressed by a word 
signifying a great quantity. But if a native wishes to tell you 
he has killed 10 birds, and if he has a knife, he cuts 10 notches 
in a stick, for he cannot otherwise indicate the number of biros. 
According to Professor Semon, there is no form of idolatry 
among these aborigines, no kind of prayer. But they do be- 
lieve in ghosts, in witchcraft, in good and bad spirits, and 
through. fear of ghosts they will never go hunting at night. 
Some tribes dry the bodies of their dead by smoke, and then 
carry them about several months before putting them in the 
ground or in hollow trees; while in many places, horrible to 
relate, the kinsmen of the dead person actually eat certain parts 
of the corpse. 

Although fond of dancing and singing, their songs are silly 
and monotonous, and the drum — the most primitive of musical 
instruments — ^is found among very few tribes, and while they 
dance they clap their hands and beat their shields with their 
boomerangs. Their improvised dwellings are little huts made 
of bark and birch wood, and they often move from place to \ 

place, nor do we find, properly speaking, any villages among 
them. They settle down for a brief space where game is most 
abundant, and then move away ; and the only rule they follow 
in regard to where they shall go, is not to wander into another 
tribe's hunting ground. And here let us say that the number of 
persons wandering about together is generally from forty to sixty, 
and this aggregation of families constitutes a horde, and the 
horde may be called the unit of the population ; while a num- 
ber of hordes, all speaking the same dialect, constitute a tribe. 
Every horde takes a certain name, either from the region where 
its tribe generally hunts, or from some plant or animal, and in 
most tribes a child assumes the name or totem of its father's 
horde. Disagreements and fights are very rare among the na- 
tives, and this is mainly owing to the absence of property. 
There are, of course, no rich and no poor, and as long as every 
individual has his belly full of meat and roots he is happy and 



24 A Naturalist IN Australia [Oct., 

contented. Nor can it be said that they have any government. 
The best hunter is chosen as the head of a horde, but obedience 
to him is voluntary. But primitive as these people are, it is a 
very interesting fact that they have discovered the evil results 
of intermarriage, and in order to lessen this evil the different 
hordes occasionally hold talks with each other on this vitally 
important subject. 

In many tribes no two persons whose great-grandfathers 
and great- grandmothers were brothers and sisters are allowed 
to marry, and it is generally forbidden to marry in the same 
horde as one's father and mother. The children, moreover, 
belong to the horde of the male parent, so that when a boy 
grows up he can hunt only on his father's hunting ground ; 
and lest there should be too many hunters and too many 
fishermen, over-population is prevented by certain artificial 
means, one of which is the killing of new-born infants. 

Interesting ceremonies take place when a youth or a 
maiden reaches the age to marry. The youth now has deep 
cuts made in his body and two front teeth are knocked out. 
No woman can be present on this occasion, and it all ends in 
what is known as a " corroboree," or night revelry. The initia- 
tion of a maiden into the marriageable set is likewise accom- 
panied by certain ceremonies which no man is allowed to wit- 
ness ; and as the number of females is not great enough for a 
man to have more than one wife, polygamy does not exist. 
The wife is bought of her father, and the husband is given 
great rights over her. He may and often does turn her into 
a beast of burden, and may beat her cruelly. 

To conclude our brief account of the Australian native, let 
us say that we have here a human being of a most primitive 
type. His civilization, if we may use such a word, is about 
on a par with the Patagonians at the extreme end of South 
America. Nor is there any evidence that he has degenerated 
from a higher state ; nothing in his speech, nothing in his 
traditions, nothing in any work done by his hands points to a 
higher condition in the past. 

Let us now pass to the near-by beautiful island of New 
Guinea, which, as we know, is the home of the bird of para- 
dise. This big island, which is almost 1,400 miles long, was 
no doubt at one time connected with Australia by a ridge of 



1904.] AND New Guinea. 25 

land which to-day lies buried beneath a very shallow sea, and 
in the little islands in Torres Straits we discover a remnant of 
this land bridge, whose length was about eighty miles. That 
these two immense islands, Australia and New Guinea, in a 
former geological epoch did form only one island, is proved 
by comparing the animals which inhabit them. While the 
fauna of New Guinea has a type of its own, all its mammalSi 
excepting the bats and wild pigs (these last having been 
doubtless introduced by man), are marsupials ; and the differ* 
ence between its marsupials and the marsupials of Australia is 
only what a naturalist might expect from a very long separa- 
tion, a separation which probably dates from the middle of 
the Tertiary age, or let us say about a million years ago. 
The Papuans, or natives of New Guinea, are, in the opinion 
of the late Professor Huxley, more closely related to the 
negroes of Africa than to any other race; and Wallace was 
also struck by their resemblance to the negroes. But he tells 
us in his interesting work. The Malay Archipelago^ that despite 
this resemblance, he found a difficulty in accepting Huxley's 
view, and that if the New Guinea and African races ever did 
have a common origin, it must have been at a period far more 
remote than any period that has yet been assigned to the 
antiquity of man. 

It was early in April when Professor Semon pointed his 
little lugger toward Cape Possession, in New Guinea ; and let 
as say that his crew were natives of the Philippine Islands. 
While he was sailing through Torres Straits he passed a great 
quantity of driftwood and large trees uprooted by floods, and 
he remarked — as Darwin had remarked years before — how 
such floating trees, carried far away by currents and winds, 
may be the means of conveying the seeds of plants to distant 
countries, and how oceanic islands never connected with any 
continent may thus receive not only new plant life, but even 
some of their animal inhabitants. In Torres Straits he met a 
number of the aborigines of the little islets which form step- 
ping-stones, ad it were, between the two large islands; they 
were fishing for tortoises in long canoes, and he tells us that 
outwardly these flshermen were distinctly different from the 
natives of Australia ; but on closer examination he considered 
them to be a mixture, a mongrel type between the inhabitants 
of New Guinea and Australia. 



26 A NA run A LIST IN AUSTRALIA [Oct., 

After two days' sail the professor came in sight of Mount 
Owen Stanley, whose topmost peak rises 12,000 feet above the 
sea. But high as it is, it is never capped with snow, for it is 
only eight degrees south of the equator. Hardly had he put 
foot on the beach when he was surrounded by a number of 
merry, laughing people brilliantly adorned; their skin was 
chocolate-colored, and he found them altogether unlike the 
natives of the neighboring island of Australia, who are utterly 
wanting in the artistic sense. The men were beardless, for 
they take pains to pull out by the roots the first sign of a 
beard; but their hair was elaborately dressed, and trimmed 
with feathers and kangaroo tails, and it fell down over the 
shoulders of many of them like a rufSed mane. The women, 
who wore petticoats made of grass, differed from the men in 
having short hair, while some had even shaved their hair 
entirely off. The professor was interested to see the women 
of the first village he visited manufacturing cups and dishes, 
for close by was an inexhaustible store of good clay, which 
they dry, then pound, mix with sand and knead with water, 
so as to make a soft dough, and afterwards burn it in a good 
fire. 

But although the natives of New Guinea are of a higher 
culture than the Australians and know how to make bows and 
arrows, they are still in the Stone Age and do not know how 
to treat iron or any other metal. 

Here let us observe that these first Papuans whom Pro- 
fessor Semon met when he landed were Catholics, and were 
served by missionaries of Le Sacr^ Coeur de J^sus. After 
resting among them a couple of days, one of the lay brothers 
of the mission. Brother Joseph, took the professor in a dug- 
out a long distance up a creek, whose banks were overhung 
by a luxuriant vegetation. But that night sleep .was impossi- 
ble, owing to the myriads of mosquitoes. And Brother Joseph 
said that they were sometimes so thick at the mission that 
even while the priest was celebrating Mass he was obliged to 
pause now and again, and to kick and slap right and left with 
arms and legs, in order to get rid of these horrible pests that 
were attacking his ears and nose and mouth. 

The object of this excursion up the creek was to visit a 
village whose inhabitants made very pretty spoons out of 
^'^oanut shells, as well as fine stone axes and painted shields ; 



I904-] AND NEW Guinea. 



and the professor found these natives, like all the other 
Papuans whom he met, light-hearted and merry, and also of 
a very domestic turn. Man and wife, or rather man and 
vives — for the men have several wives — are exceedingly fond 
of each other, and the women are kindly treated. The men 
bunt and fish, while the women manufactute pottery and take 
care of the gardens. But of one unwholesome custom Brother 
Joseph said it had thus far been impossible co break them, 
namely, the custom of burying their dead under their houses ; 
and this is done in order still to keep near to their beloved 
ones. Before returning to the mission Professor Semon visited 
a large settlement where the dwellings were built on piles not 
Ur from the stiore, and this gave him an idea of how the pre- 



•S' 



28 A Naturalist IN Australia [Oct., 

historic Swiss lake-dwellings must have appeared. Most of 
the houses were built on strong trunks of the mangrove- tree ; 
and this mode of living is adopted for protection's sake, for 
the tribes of the interior are often extremely savage. But 
Professor Semon was told by Brother Joseph that some of the 
natives, besides their usual abodes, make other little dwellings 
high up among the branches of the trees, and that these roost- 
ing places, as they might be called, look like so many crows' 
nests; and in these nests they keep a good supply of stones 
and darts all ready for use if an enemy tried to cut the trees 
down. In none of the Papuan villages did Professor Semon 
find any hereditary ruler, properly speaking, nor any person 
invested with real responsibih'ty, and the only law seemed to 
be the public opinion of the community freely expressed. 
Nevertheless he often found natives who did possess a marked 
influence over the other villagers, and these were men who 
were naturally daring, of quick intelligence, and who were also 
believed to be wizards. Where the Papuans differed most 
from the natives of Australia was in their possessing landed 
property — gardens and houses — and they had not only dogs 
but pigs. But as every one had enough to live comfortably, 
there were no rich and no poor, and the community was 
strongly democratic. They were also fond of ornaments and 
bright objects ; many of the women had their noses and fore- 
beads tattoed with dots and streaks, and the professor met 
one girl who had a big red flower sticking in her ear, and 
this girl he wanted to photograph. But her mother refused 
to let him do it until the following day. Lo ! on the morrow 
at the appointed time the girl appeared ; in her hair were a 
number of parrot feathers, around her neck was a necklace of 
mother-of-pearl, while in each ear was thrust a beautiful scarlet 
orchid, and the professor tells us that she looked like a per- 
fect New Guinea angel. 

What he strongly objected to at first was their mode of 
welcoming him. The moment he entered a village a crowd of 
laughing natives gathered round him and proceeded to salute 
him by rubbing noses. But he says that he soon grew accus- 
tomed to this. He tells us too that they care little for animal 
food, having an abundance of yams, cocoanuts, and bananas. 
But when they do eat meat it usually consists of pig and dog, 
ngaroo and turtle, while in some parts of the island they 



1504.] AND NEW GUINEA. 



A Village or Naw Guima. 

eat human flesh. But it is an interesting fact that the canni- 
bals of New Guinea do not esteem the flesh of a white man, 
and when they kill a European he is never eaten. The most 
highly relished meat is a roasted Chinaman. The Catholic 
missionaries told Professor Semon that although the natives 
are of a happy temperament and that one tribe may easily 
live in peace with another tribe, yet they are given to sudden 
secret attacks and differ from other savage races in killing 
vomen as well as men ; for they look on the women as the 
mothers of future avengers, and once a fight begins there is 
no rest until one of the tribes is utterly destroyed, so as to 
prevent all chance of retaliation. 

The professor found the intellectual standard of the Papuans 
by no means low, and while they are decidedly inferior to the 
A.frican negro, they are much above the Australian. They 
take little interest in religion ; but in many parts of New 
Guinea may be seen wooden images, which represent the 
images of ancestors, and these images receive a kind of wor- 
ship. The Papuans, too, believe in magic ; every sick person 
is thought to be bewitched, and they do their utmost to keep 



30 A Naturalist IN AUSTRALIA. [Oct., 

on good terms with the wizards of their tribe. They have no 
complex marriage laws, as among the natives of Australia; 
polygamy is universal, and while a husband may often send 
away one of his wives, he will at the same time remain a very 
' good friend to her. 

And now as to the question, Who are the natives of New 
Guinea ? Where do they come from ? No certain answer 
can be given. We may say, however, without fear of 
contradiction, that they are in nowise related to Australians, 
nor are they any kin to the Malays. The Papuans, in the 
light of our present knowledge, would seem to be an isolated 
race, unless we accept Huxley's hypothesis, namely, that they 
are related to the negroes of Africa, although between the 
Papuan and the negro language there is not a vestige of simi- 
larity. We believe that the answer to this question must be 
left to the future student of anthropology. 




I904-] A Picture and an anniversary. 31 




A PICTURE AND AN ANNIVERSARY -BONIFACE VIII. 

' BY JAMES J. WALSH. M.D., Ph.D. 

|0R the casual sightseer, at least, there is no more 
striking picture in the Metropolitan Museum of 
Art, in Central Park,, New York City, than the 
one in the north-west corner of one of the west- 
ern galleries which bears the curiosity- arousing 
title " L' Attentat d'Anagni " (The Outrage of Anagni), a photo- 
graphic reproduction of which will be found as the frontis- 
piece of the present number. 

For the amateur in art the picture is sure to be interesting 
because it represents an especially fine example of the modern 
French school of historical painting. The artist, M. Charles 
Maignan, has received practically all the honors that are pos- 
sible at the hands of his compatriots : medals of all three 
classes, a membership in the Legion of Honor, a gold medal in 
1&89, a grand medal in 1892, and finally the distinction of offi- 
cer in the League of Honor in 1895. ^^^ picture in the Louvre 
of Napoleon and Josephine seldom fails to attract the attention 
of visitors. The Luxembourg has his noteworthy '' Departure 
of the Norman Fleet," which from its subject, without the dis- 
tinctive rendition which he has given it, would be certain to 
interest English-speaking visitors to the gallery. His picture 
in the Metropolitan Museum presents the figure of a prelate 
dressed all in white, whose garments as well as his triple crown 
proclaim him a pope, who stands in magnificent dignity and 
noble defiance before an inimical soldiery gathered around the 
steps of the pontifical throne. The hostile purpose of the sol- 
diers is only too clear. They have evidently invaded the 
church to kill the pontiff or to carry him off as their prisoner. 
There is a wonderful appeal to human sympathy in the face 
of the principal figure, and few visitors pass without a second 
look and a wish to know what its story is. The French title 
conveys very little information. The story represents one of 
the great moments of history, and as in this month, October, 
1904, we are just completing the sixth centenary year of its 
occurrence, it seems worth retelling. 



32 A Picture and an anniversary. [Oct., 

The pope in the case is the famous Boniface VIII. He 
has, if possible, been the subject of more slander than any other 
p<^>e that ever sat on the Papal throne. By many people he 
has been looked upon almost as a monster of cruelty, a verit- 
able type of the meanest political trickery. Most of this bitter 
feeling in his regard is due to Dante. The Florentine poet 
was, on principle, politically opposed to him. In 1299 Dante 
was sent by the Florentines on a mission to Boniface which 
failed, and this further embittered his feelings. Besides, Dante 
was an ardent Imperialist. 

When our modern English poet sang of " the poet " as 
" dowered with the hate of hate, the scorn of scorn/' surely 
Dante above all was in his mind. Boniface has suffered from 
the full burden of Dante's hate, though not his scorn. That he 
reserved for smaller men. He does not hesitate to put Boni- 
face in hell, and that, too, by anticipation, the foresight of the 
damned recognizing him as a companion already in the nine- 
teenth canto, though the pope was still among "those who ate 
and drank and put on clothes " on earth, his soul was, as it 
were, by foretaste of its doom with the damned who were to 
be bis eternal companions. 

How thoroughly it was realized even in the Middle Ages 
that Dante's position with regard to Boniface was a personal 
matter, the result of political prejudice rather than honest per- 
suasion, can be judged from the fact that while Dante's treatise 
^* De Monarchia " (On Government) was condemned by the 
church authorities because of the false political tenets it con- 
tained, Dante's Divine Comedy never shared this fate, in spite 
of its unsparing condemnation of Boniface and certain other 
popes, even to the extent of placing them in hell. Bowden, the 
distinguished German theologian, in his introduction to Het- 
tinger's Commentary on Dante's. Divine Comedy y says that in 
thi* iJSLtktt was treated by the church somewhat as a fond mother 
treats a spoilt child, correcting when absolutely necessary, but 
perCiitting many things to go unnoticed because they are really 
uoX the expression of malice but of pettishness. 

We shall see that Dante in the " Purgatorio/' while not 
taking back his condemnation of the " Inferno/' has a wonder- 
ful note of admiration for the dignity with which Boniface suf- 
fered his adverses, and recognizes the insults put upon him as 
so many indignities to the headship of the church, which, for 



1904.] Boniface VI I L 33 

the moment at least, he represented. It would be unfortunate, 
then, to take the picture that Dante gives without taking into 
account how much of slander, of misrepresentation, of miscon- 
struction of motives, of failure to recognize great qualities of 
mind and heart, there are in the usual historical pictures given 
us of Boniface VIII. 

A very fair example of the slanders against the character 
of Boniface is to be found in most of the histories of medicine 
that have appeared in English. I may say at once that it was 
the forcible bringing of this to my attention that first interested 
me in Boniface's character and made me realize something of 
the significance of Maignan's " Outrage at Anagni," which ex* 
presses in a very striking way the dignity with which the 
old pope (he was about eighty years of age) is pictured as 
meeting his enemies, the personal elements that make the his- 
torical slanders of him most improbable. 

Boniface VIII., who, before his election to the Papacy, had 
been Benedict Cajetan, was one of the most distinguished schol- 
ars of his time. He was a descendant of a Catalonian — that is, 
a native of the district around Barcelona in Spain — uho had 
settled in Gaeta. The surname sprang from that town. The 
family had afterwards moved to Anagni, and it was here that 
the future Boniface VIII. was born about 1220. His towns-^ 
people learned to like him very much, and later on showed 
their aflfection for him by coming to his rescue when he was 
imprisoned by order of the French king. Young Cajetan made 
his studies first at Todi and later at Paris. At Paris he studied 
canon and civil law, and was graduated as doctor of both. 
Later he was to be recognized as one of the most distinguished 
of living authorities especially in canon law. 

There have been few periods in the history of the world 
when a more distinguished body of men was gathered at a 
university than was to be found at the University of Paris about 
the middle of the thirteenth century, when Cajetan was there. 
Thomas Aquinas, Bonaventure, Albertus Magnus, Vincent of 
Beauvais, Arnold of Villanova, Hermondaville, the famous sur- 
geon and anatomist, Roger Bacon, are only a few of the great 
names of those who were students or professors in Paris at the 
time. Under the illustrious patronage and enlightened encour- 
agement of Louis IX. the university prospered marvellously, 
and Robert of Sorbonne's foundation — which still exists under 

VOL. LXXX. — ^3 



34 A Picture and an Anniversary. [Oct., 

its founder's name — made with the generous appreciation of his 
friend and rival in generosity, St. Louis, constituted an addi- 
tional source of attraction for students, men of genius, and pro- 
fessors of every kind from all over the world to spend some 
time in Paris. 

After leaving Paris, Benedict became attached to the papal 
court, and accompanied Cardinal Ottoboni as secretary when 
that prelate went as papal legate to England to act as a medi- 
ator between the English barons and their sovereign, Henry III. 
This mission proved so successful, and the secretary showed 
himself so capable of transacting difficult diplomatic affairs, that 
he was frequently sent as a representative of the papal court 
during the next twenty years. AWhen he was about sixty years 
of age he was created a cardinal. Though on his mother's 
side he was a relative of Gregory IX. and Alexander IV. i 
there was no question of family influence in his appointment, 
"since it is evident that he owed his elevation entirely to his 
own distinguished abilities and to the successful accomplish- 
ment of the important diplomatic duties which had been en- 
trusted to him. As a member of the College of Cardinals he 
was frequently consulted by the Holy See with regard to 
its relations to foreign powers. In a way he came to occupy 
the position now known as Papal Secretary of State, and while 
he possessed evident force of character, he recognized at the 
same time the advantage of diplomacy when the occasion 
demanded. 

While occupying this confidential position with regard to 
Pope Celestin V., the latter, weary of the burden which had 
been laid upon him and wishing ^o retire to the solitude from 
which he had been forced to come, consulted him with regard 
to the possibility of laying down his sacred office. Cajetan, 
who recognized the necessity for a firmer hand as the ruler of 
the church, and who knew very well the pope's earnest desire 
to retire from his dignity, advised him to make ecclesiastical 
regulations sanctioning such a resignation. After Celestin*s 
retirement Cajetan was elected pope under the name of Boni- 
face VIII. His coronation took place in Rome, and was accom- 
panied by the enthusiastic plaudits of the citizens, who recog- 
nized in him a great man. Two -kings, Charles II. of Naples 
and his son Charles Martel, a pretender to the throne of Hungary, 
held his stirrups while he mounted his horse to go to his palace. 



1904.] Boniface VIIL 3$ 

Wearing their crowns, they served him with the first dishes at 
the coronation banquet, and then retired to their humbler seats 
among the cardinals. ' 

These circumstances have been very much emphasized by' 
modern historical critics of Boniface as serving to show the 
ambitious character of the man. They really have no such' 
significance, however, and at the time must have been con- 
sidered as no more than usual. Robert and Charles were at 
that time, because of the relation of Naples to the popes, 
actual feudatories of the Holy See, and were only fulfilling the 
ordinary duties of mediaeval homage usual under the con- 
ditions. 

Another feature of the early part of his reign supposed to 
indicate Boniface's ambition for worldly power is his addition 
of the second circlet to the papal crown, symbolic of the tem- 
poral sovereignty of the popes. This was, however, only the 
canonist insisting on the formal expression of what was and 
had been a fact for many years. It is an index of Boniface's 
character in another way, for it shows his unwillingness to 
allow no right of the Holy See to go without formal expression. 
Other popes had been content to exercise their rights without 
demanding the open recognition that seemed so necessary to 
him. 

Boniface's reign fell in troublous times, and it was not long 
before he felt all the weight of his position. Philip the 
Handsome, of France, was trying to enlarge the boundaries 
of his kingdom and was constantly at war with his neighbors. 
England was at war with Scotland, and England and France 
had become embroiled in war that was not only costly in 
men and money but threatened to interfere with the progress 
of the church, the proper development of educational institu- 
tions, and the progress of civilization. 

Boniface's idea was to put an end to war between Chris- 
tian nations, and if possible to secure peace and prosperity to 
the people. He was many, many centuries ahead of his times 
in this respect, for now, after more than six hundred years, 
we are only beginning perhaps to have some assurance that 
the peaceful settlement of quarrels between nations is in sight. 
Endeavoring to accomplish this object of securing peace, Boni- 
face soon found himself embroiled with the monarchs of 
Europe, and especially with the French king. 



36 A Picture and an Anniversary. [Oct., 

Wars were costly proceedings. Very few of the king^'s 
subjects had ready money. His vassals among the nobility 
were bound to furnish the sinews of war in the shape of their 
own vassals and men-at-arms, fully equipped, and consequently 
could not be asked for large contributions to the war fund 
necessary for the support of troops in the field. When the 
king wanted money he had to levy taxes on church property, 
and contributions on church and monastery treasuries, and 
this bad become a very serious abuse. Consequently Boniface 
VIII. thought he saw an opportunity to prevent an abuse of 
ecclesiastical rights, and at the same lime put an end to the 
constant wars, by issuing a bull forbidding the levying of taxa- 
tion on church property. Philip answered this by a proclama- 
tion requiring foreigners to have his permission to stay in his 
kingdom, thus aiming a blow at all foreign clergymen, even 
papal legates and other ofGcials, and forbidding the export of 
anything out of his kingdom without royal permission, thus 
preventing the sending of the papal revenues usually contri- 
buted to the support of the pope from France. 

After many vicissitudes in the war of words and deeds 
between the Pope and the King of France, Nogaret, vice- 
chancellor of Philip the Fair, and Sciarra Colonna, with their 
followers, in August, 1303, surprised the pope in his palace at 
Anagni, whither he had fled after suffering defeat at Rome. 
Forcing their way into his presence chamber, they found the 
old man seated upon a throne in his pontifical vestments, bis 
head bent over a golden crucifix which, together with the 
keys, he held in his trembling hands. According to a note in 
Hettinger's Dante, '' for a moment his venerable age and 
majestic silence disarmed his foes. Then they broke out into 
violent invectives, which he bore with calm dignity." 

It is this feature of the scene especially that the French 
painter has expressed so well. It constitutes the redeeming 
element in the sad affair, and even Dante was won by it to 
an expression of supremest sympathy for Boniface in one of 
the most famous passages of the '* Purgatory." Meantime the 
poet himself had ascended far up the mountain of purgation, 
amid the sufferings of his exile since he wrote the " Inferno," 
and his spirit of hatred had softened into a more sympathetic 
mood. 

He had placed Boniface in hell for political reasons in that 



I904-1 Boniface VII I. 37 

earlier period ; now he can scarce find words too strong to 
condemn the insult offered to the Vicar of Christ in the per- 
son of the pope by the outrage at Anagni. The old name of 
the town is Alagna. He compares in these famous lines of the 
twentieth canto of the " Purgatory " the treatment inflicted 
by Philip the Fair upon Boniface to that of the Jews upon 

Christ, and places it in the same category with the crimes ccm- 

mitted later by Philip upon the Templars: 

" I in Alagna see the fleur-de-lys, 
Christ, in His Vicar, captive to the foe. 
Him once again as mocked and scorned I see; 
I see once more the vinegar and gall, 
And slain between new robbers hangeth He ; 
I see the Pilate new in such rage fall. 
This sates him not, but, all law put aside. 
With pirate sails he sacks the Templars' hall. 

— Purg , XX. 81, 

Dante even adds a hope that he will yet see the ven- 
geance of the Lord for the insult to His Vicar, upon earth: 

*' Sovran Master ! when shall I rejoice 
To see the vengeance which Thy wrath, well pleased, 
In secret silence broods. — Pt*^gf xx, 8jf. 

The traditions still preserved among the people cf Latitm, 
and especially of Carpineto and Anagni, with regard to the 
outrage upon Boniface at the latter city are stated in a note 
upon this canto of the ** Purgatorio " in Moore's lectures upon 
Dante, one of the recent valuable contributions to Dante litera- 
ture in English: 

*'The present inhabitants of this ancient stronghold of the 
Hernici are a people still antique in appearance and manners. 
They wear sandals like their ancestors, and cloaks that make 
one think of the ancient toga. They are poor, strong, moral, 
and religious, devoted to their country as the home of the 
ancient Latins who once ruled the world; but even more they 
point with pride to the Latium as the home of so many popes. 
There were St. Hormisdas, Popes Silverius, Vitalian, Innocent 117., 
Gregory IX., Alexander IV., Boniface VIII., all brilliant names, 
who were among the strongest and most worthy of the wearers 



38 A Picture and an Anniversary. [Oct., 

of the tiara, and who suffered in turn for the defence of the 
church and her rights imprisonment, exile, and even death. 
The name of the last mentioned especially is beloved in the 
land, for not far from Carpineto is Ahagni. It is the capital 
and the see city of the province,' and it was here that the 
vigorous, energetic Boniface VIII. was born. It was here as 
pope that he came, and waited for his enemies among the 
people who had known and loved him all his life, and it w^as 
here that Nogaret and Sciarra Colon na and their brutal foUo^vers 
put upon him those unspeakable insults which have gone down 
in history as one of the most wanton outrages upon the 
Papacy. The words of Dante are still repeated to the children 
here: 

'' And in his Vicar, Christ a captive led ! 
I see him mocked a second time." 

The most recent historian of the subject, William Barry, 
D.D., in his Papal Monarchy echoes these feelings, which any 
one who knows the circumstances well can scarcely fail to 
share. 

Dr. Barry's description of the scene which the French 
painter has depicted so well, emphasizes, as might be expected, 
Boniface's manly maintenance of dignity under extremely try- 
ing circumstances: 

''In this hour the sense of his sacred office did not desert 
him. Arraying himself in stole and crown, bearing the cross- 
keys, he sat in the papal chair to await these French ambassa- 
dors. They approached and did no homage. With insult they 
told him he must abdicate. ' Here is my neck/ said the 
dauntless old man. Nogaret threatened him with the Council; 
Boniface cast in his teeth the name of Paterine. But Sciarra, 
like the ruffian he was, would have killed the Pope with his 
own hands had not the less brutal Frenchman interposed. It 
is said that he struck Boniface on the cheek with his iron 
gauntlet Then they put him on a restive horse, paraded him 
about the streets, and plundered his treasures. At length, after 
a pission which lasted three days, the people of Anagni came 
to his relief, when the soldiers were gone. * Good people,' he 
said, * give me a morsel of bread and a cup of wine ; I am 
dying of hunger,' He had yielded nothing ; but in his deso- 
late palace» which was stripped bare of all it contained — infinite 



I9Q4-] Boniface VIII. 39 

riches, as the tale went — he found no one except the crowd of 
peasants on whom to bestow absolution." 

There was a very curious bit of criticism written on Dr. 
Barry's Papal Monarchy in The Independent (New York) of 
November 12, 1903. The reviewer says that Dr. Barry 
"scores" Boniface VIII. as "the most miserable of popes." 
This would seem to indicate that Dr. Barry found no possible 
defence for Boniface's character. As a matter of fact, the 
word miserable as used by Dr. Barry refers to Boniface's 
misfortunes, and not at all to his guilt. He says ''most 
miserable of popes " — not, therefore, most guilty ! " His remem- 
brance will never fade ; long, long he will be blamed and 
scarcely at all find apologists in the opposition which his pre- 
tensions, even more than his acts, cannot cease to provoke." 
It is a sample of the unfair reviewing which takes passages 
out of their proper context, thus perverting their meaning 
until, while presumably giving an author's opinion, it is really 
misstated and at times even contradicted. 

Dr. Barry's chapter is really an excellent defence of Boni- 
face's character. 

Even the famous bull *'Clericis Laicos" is not difficult to 
understand when one considers the circumstances under which 
it was issued and the conditions that called it forth. It was 
evidently an attempt on the part of a peace-loving man to 
take the only means he saw in order to prevent the forcing 
of revenues from the church to be used for carrying on war. 
With regard to this famous bull "Clericis Laicos," ''thrice 
unhappy in name and fortunes," Rev. Dr. Barry, whose story 
of the Papal Monarchy in the " Stories of the Nations Series " 
has given us the latest discussion of this difficult subject, has 
this to say: "As far as regards the condition of affairs that 
developed in England after the promulgation of the bull, our 
general familiarity with English history will enable us to 
understand the situation better than in other countries, and 
will make clear the reasons for and the actual effect produced 
by the bull." 

He then goes on to show that far from being a tyrannical 
measure subversive of popular liberty or civil rights, it has 
proved the basis of most of the modern declarations of rights 
as against the claims of tyranny : 

" Imprudent, headlong, but in its main contention founded 



40 A Picture and an Anniversary. [Oct., 

on history, this extraordinary state-paper declared that the 
laity had always been hostile to the clergy, and were so no^v 
as much as ever. But they possessed no jurisdiction over the 
persons, no claims on the property, of the church, though they 
had dared to exact a tenth, nay, even a half, of its income 
for secular objects, and time-serving prelates had not resisted. 
Now, on no title whatsoever from henceforth should such 
taxes be levied without permission of the Holy See. Every 
layman, though king or emperor, receiving these moneys fell 
by that very act under anathema; every churchman payings 
them was deposed from his office; universities guilty of the 
like offence were struck with interdict. 

" Robert of Winchelsea, Langton's successor as primate, 
shared Langton's views. He was at this moment in Rome, 
and had doubtless urged Boniface to come to the rescue of a 
frightened, down-trodden clergy, whom Edward I. would not 
otherwise regard. In the Parliament at Bury, this very year, 
the clerics refused to make a grant. Edward sealed up their 
barns. The archbishop ordered that in every cathedral the 
pope's interdiction should be read. Hereupon the chief- justice 
declared the whole clergy outlawed; they might be robbed or 
murdered without redress. Naturally, not a few gave way; a 
fifth, and then a fourth, of their revenue was yielded up. But 
Archbishop Robert alone, with all the prelates except Lin- 
coln against him, and the Dominicans preaching at Paul's cross 
on behalf of the king, stood out, lost his lands, was banished 
to a country parsonage. War broke out in Flanders. It was 
the saving of the archbishop. At Westminster Edward re- 
lented and apologized. He confirmed the two great charters ; 
he did away with illegal judgments that infringed them. Next 
year the primate excommunicated those royal officers who had 
seized goods or persons belonging to the clergy, and all who 
had violated Magna Charta. The church came out of this con- 
flict exempt, or, more truly, a self-governing Estate of the 
Realm. It must be considered as having greatly concurred 
towards the establishment of that fundamental law, invoked 
long after by the thirteen American Colonies, *No taxation 
without representation,' which is the corner- stone of British 
freedom." 

What a curious juxtaposition is this placing of the much 
maligned bull, *' Clericis Laicos " — the supposed apotheosis of 



1904.] BONIFACE VI I L 41 

priestly power and denial of true frecdcn: — as the veiy fcunda- 
tion stone of the principle upon which what we Americans, at 
leasty are accustomed to think as the freest government in the 
world's history has been so successfully built up. Verily, in 
measuring historical influences it is necessary to "look before 
and after*' for the causes and effects of events. 

On the other hand, if we consider for a moment the chief 
opponent of the pope in the great politico- religious quarrel in 
which Boniface was engaged, we shall be sure on general prin- 
ciples that the pope has been too harshly blamed by historians 
only too ready to curry favor with secular rulers for selfish 
motives. Philip the Fair, of France, is one of the most un- 
worthy monarchs that ever sat on the French throne, and, 
needless to say, this gives a large latitude in possibilities of 
evil. Those who would attribute much to heredity, and who 
are constantly seeing traits of the father in his son, and other 
immediate descendants, have a good opportunity provided in 
this period to explain how Philip the Fair, the grandson, and 
Philip the Rash, the son of St. Louis, ever possibly came to 
have the lamentable characteristics so constantly exhibited 
during their long reigns. 

Money was Philip's crying need, and the modern govern- 
mental apparatus for taxation not having yet been invented, 
Philip used every possible means, just and unjust, to increase 
his revenues. In summing up his character the Ettcyclopcedia 
Britannica says : " Philip seized what he could, wronged the 
Jews, confiscated the wealth of the Templars, turned eveiylbirg 
into hard cash, sold privileges to towns, tampered with the coin 
of the realm, and by sumptuary laws succeeded in taxing even 
his nobles." With regard to his differences u^ith Bcniface the 
same authority says: "It is no wonder thai Philip's melhcdsof 
levying taxation acquired a bad name. The phrase watote^ old 
French for * levying,' was invented for them by the popular 
voice, and has secured a place in history as the best possible 
record of the feeling of his subjects towards his impositions. 
It was a many-sided struggle, that of the temporal and the 
spiritual, that of the civil against the canon law, that of the 
lawyers against the clergy, and that of France against Italy. '^ 

Boniface's place as one of the first formal peacemakers who 
hoped to secure for the people freedom from the evils and 
exactions of war should redeem his charscter, in cur generaticn 



42 A Picture and an Anniversary, [Oct., 

of serious attempts at arbitration, as a means of setthment for 
international differences of opinion. Our experierce at the 
peace congresses, however, shows that the motives of the peace- 
maker are almost sure to be aspersed and he may easily be led 
into regrettable recourse to arms in spite of good- will and desire 
for justice rather than national satisfaction. 

As a matter of fact Boniface's mediation secured a truce for 
a time between England and France. After Boniface's death, 
however, and the transfer of the Papal See to Avignon, the 
power of the popes was broken, and there was no longer any 
tribunal to interest itself in the conservation of peace betiveen 
nations. As a consequence there came the long years of i^ar 
between England and France which entailed so much suffering 
on both nations, deprived several generations of all proper 
opportunity for culture, interfered with the intellectual develop- 
ment which had become so prominent during the thirteenth 
century, and eventually led to that lack of great literature which 
characterizes the end of the fourteenth and the beginning of 
the fifteenth centuries, as compared with the periods just before 
and after the thirteenth, the end of the fifteenth, and the begin- 
ning of the sixteenth centuries. 

Boniface's career as one of the grand old men of the Mid- 
dle Ages in his capacity for work, the breadth of his accom- 
plishments and the lasting character of his influence, should 
not be without its effect upon a generation that prides itself 
on strenuousness. It is to Boniface's interest in canon law 
that we owe the sixth book of Papal decretals (Liber Sextus 
Decretalium), which contains all the constitutions issued by the 
popes from 12 34- 1298. This is a very valuable collection of 
papal documents, for it must not be forgotten that the thir- 
teenth century, with its magnificent Gothic cathedrals as monu- 
ments of the intense piety of the people, with its great univer- 
sities as an index of the intense desire of the century for 
learning, and with the many original discoveries in art, 
science, and letters which it represents, is one of the most 
important periods in history, and that the popes of the cen- 
tury were worthy of their times. It is to his practical piety 
that we owe the establishment of the feasts of the evangelists 
and of the doctors of the Latin Church as Festa Duplicia. To 
his personal devotion we owe two of the most popular prayers 
in the liturgy of the church since his time, the Ave Virgo 



1904.] Boniface VI I l 43 

Gloriosa and the Deus Qui Redemptione Mundi — the ** Hail, 
Glorious Virgin," and the " God who by the Redemption of 
the world " — which have always been considered masterpieces 
in this form of literature. Finally, it is to him that we owe 
the establishment of the custom of celebrating the Jubilee. 
How well he understood the temper of his times can be 
understood from the popularity this celebration achieved at 
once. Rome was so crowded that people could pass in the 
streets only by keeping to their own side of the way/ 

When Boniface VIII. ascended the papal throne he was 
over seventy years of age. His personal greatness may very 
well be measured by the amount of work that he accomplished, 
and the influence he had over his generation in every impor- 
tant political question during this less than a decade of papal 
sovereignty. Any one who reads his life, apart from the 
prejudices so likely to be engendered by a knowledge of the 
fact that Dante condemned so bitterly, will surely find much 
more in his career to commend than has usually been the case 
on the part of historians. We are beginning now at the open- 
ing of the twentieth century to have some slight hopes of a 
possibility of continued peace between Christian nations. Boni- 
face, six centuries ago, faced, as the Vicar of Christ, this 
problem of universal peace among Christian nations, and tried 
to enforce its solution by what seemed to him the only practi- 
cal method, subjection of the nations to the spiritual supremacy 
o( the pope, even in matters political. He failed in his great 
purpose, and his name has been a byword in history ever 
since. But surely our geixeration will sympathize with his 
efforts, even though it does not always approve of the methods 
he attempted to employ. Not even those who condemn the 
pope, however, can fail to admire the brave old man who in 
the midst of defeat and in the presence of victorious threaten- 
ing and unscrupulous enemies maintained the dignity of his 
high office, nor derogated in the slightest way from what he 
considered its k>fty privileges. It is this that the painting in 
the Metropolitan Museum brings home to visitors more than 
anything else, and in this it is a great representation of one 
of the very great and most worthily human events in history. 



Our Lady's Party. [Oct, 



OUR LADY'S PARTY. 

BY VIOLET BULLOCK WEBSTER. 
I. 

tIERE is something I should like you to do for 

roe," said the dearest and best old lady I have 

ever known, when I went to see her on her 

death-bed. " And although I should hardly 

have ventured to mention it, if you had not 

first made the suggestion," she continued diffidently, " I must 

confess that I have been troubling a good deal about it lately 

— wondering if any one would take my place when I am gone. 

How Toolish it is of one ever to worry I I ought to have felt 

confident that Our Lady would provide a substitute, since 

after all it is her party." 

" Our Lady's Party ! " exclaimed I in surprise. 

She smiled and blushed. "That is what I have always 
called it to myself, as an encouragement," she explained. " You 
see there are so many parties on Sunday afternoons, nearly 
all one's friends elect to be ' at home ' that day, and sometimes 
it was a little difficult to adhere to one's resolution of only 
going to the workhouse ; so I fortified myself with the thought 
that Our Lady gave her party there, and the poor, lonely women 
whom I went to visit were her honored guests," 

" How perfectly sweet of you ! " I thought, but I did not 
dare to say it, because her humility was such that my out- 
spoken admiration would have caused her pain. I had known 
her ever since I was a child, and every time I saw her the 
beauty of her mind and the sweetness of her disposition pre- 
sented themselves to me in some new light. But she was very 
reserved, and not until her last illness did she talk to me 
about herself. People who only knew her slightly supposed 
her to be frivolous and pleasure- loving. She was seen driving 
in the Park each afternoon, going to the theatre nearly every 
evening, and reading all the latest novels from Mudie's library; 
but those with whom she was more intimately acquainted could 
not fail to notice that if she read the latest novels she also 



1904.J Our Lady's Party. 45 

read the Office of Our Blessed Lady every day, and if she never 
missed a popular play, neither did she ever miss her morning 
Mass. Also, and this was perhaps the most remarkable feature 
of her character, although she mixed so much in society and 
was so fond of conversation, she was never heard to give 
utterance to an uncharitable remark. 

Her own estimate of her character was not a high one. " I 
am naturally very worldly," she said, " and I have led an idle, 
useless life; partly because my husband left me a comfortable 
annuity, and partly because my health was never equal to any 
real work, even had I been clever enough to do anything. 
During the first years of my widowhood I felt v^xy dissatisfied 
with myself, and my 6ne dread was of becoming selfish. I 
never seemed to be able to do anything for any one." 

''Dear lady, think of all that you have done for me," I 
could not help interpolating. 

''That was a pleasure," she answered quickly; "what I 
mean is, I wanted to do some good act that would cost me a 
little effort for our Lord's sake, and I used to beseech Him to 
send me some poor person to whom I might be really kind. 
When I asked at several of the London churches, they told me 
they had their regular visiting ladies, and there was no spare 
work which could be given to me ; and when I asked the sisters 
at various convents in my neighborhood, they promised to let 
me know if they ever heard of anything — but they never did ; 
9uid I began to fear that our Lord did not consider me worthy 
to minister to Him in that paiticular way. Of course I was 
able to subscribe to charities, but I longed to get nearer to the 
poor, to be more in touch with those that suffer, like St. Eliza- 
beth of Hungary, whose life by Montalembert has always been 
my favorite book." 

(Her casual acquaintances, seeing her exquisitely dressed in 
her victoria in the Park, would never have guessed that this 
was the wish nearest her heart ! ) 

"Well, at last, one bleak March day, as I was getting out 
of the carriage and going up the steps into the house, with a 
prospect of fire and tea awaiting me in the drawing-room, a 
poor, thin, cold, miserable woman stretched out her hand, and 
begged me to take pity on her for the love of God. * Deo 
gratias!' I cried. I had never been so grateful in my life. 
She not only wanted money, as so many other people had 



46 Our Lady's Party. [Oct, 

done before, but she wanted food, and clothing, and sympathy 
as well. We went up to my room together. Her skirt was in 
rags, she possessed no petticoat, and her feet, were only shod 
in torn felt slippers. Fortunately, however, she was about my 
height and size, and I was able to make her feel quite com- 
fortable before we settled down to tea. I could hardly help 
being glad that she was hungry — really hungry — it was such 
a pleasure to watch her devouring all the toast, and thin bread 
and butter, and little buns that usually went downstairs again 
untouched. I kept expecting to wake up and find that it had 
only been a dream, and when in telling me her story she men- 
tioned that she was a Catholic my joy reached such a pitch 
that I threw my arms around her neck and kissed her on both 
cheeks — ^such pale, worn cheeks ! If she had not been an ex- 
ceedingly nice, right-minded woman she must have thought me 
perfectly insane; but from the very beginning we understood 
each other — both realizing that our introduction came from 
God. She had been praying all day that He would send her 
a friend before it was too late, and I had been pleading for 
years for somebody to* whom I might be kind." 

" Dearest and sweetest ! " said I, stroking her hand. It 
seemed incredible that she should fail to see the lovableness 
of her own nature. 

'' It was her intention to go into the workhouse, after taking 
one last look at her child's grave; and when I learned that 
outsiders were allowed in on Sundays I promised to visit her 
regularly, and have done so ever since. Her name is Clara 
Withington, and one has to ask if one may see her, at the 
porter's lodge as one goes in. You will find all the directions 
in my note book, and there are still blank pages for more entries. 
I used to take it with me, and jot down the little things that 
they would like, or what they wanted one to find out for 
them." 

(I took possession of the manuscript book, which has since 
become one of my greatest treasures.) 

** So it began, and one thing led to another ; before very 
long I got to know everybody in Clara's ward, and God 
blessed my old age by giving me many opportunities of doing 
acts of kindness. It was remarkable how, after I had once 
found my way into the workhouse, I always seemed to be 
hearing of some poor person going in, and I made an agree- 



1904.] Our Lady's Party. 47 

ment with Our Lady that the mere mention of a case should 
be equivalent to an introduction; ' My old nurse has had to 
go into the infirmary/ some one would say, ' and I really 
ought to look her up sometimes; it seems so sad for a re- 
spectable servant like Harriet to have to end her days in that 
way; but Sunday is my busiest time, and somehow I can 
never manage to get away.' If one begins to listen with this 
intention there seems no limit to the sad cases which are 
brought before one's notice. And one need not feel at all 
anxious as to how to get to know them, or what to talk 
about — they are all so ready to be friends, and so thankful 
for a little interest and sympathy." 

I gladly undertook to do my best, and she leaned about 
amongst her pillows with a happy sigh. After a few moments 
I took my leave, gazing for the last time upon that beautiful, 
contented face. Never in the days of her girlhood — and she 
was said to have been a noted beauty in the years gone by — 
could I believe that she had looked more lovely than now in 
the immediate expectation of meeting her Redeemer face to 
face! — that Redeemer whom she had never failed to recognize 
under the extremest garb of poverty. 

As I bent down and kissed her forehead I felt she could 
not need my prayers; so loving a soul must have gone 
straight to God. 

Her death left a void in my life which no one else could 
fill. She had done so much for me, both in the way of 
material kindness and in the example of her gentleness, and 
I felt so glad that there was one little thing that I could go 
on doing for her after she had passed away. Though at first 
it did seem a very little thing — ^just to accept her invitation 
to " Our Lady's Party." 

n. 

I wonder if I may extend the invitation? Not that it will 
be necessary to tell you exactly where this workhouse is, 
(or I fancy that in whatever town you live, and whatever 
the building may be called, the way to Our Lady's Party is 
always and everywhere the same. ** You must enter through 
the gates of Humiliation, walk along the Courts of Sympathy, 
climb up the Stairs of Perseverance, and sit beside the. beds 



48 Our Lady's Party. [Oct., 

of human kindness " ; at least so my dear old friend \i^FOte at 
the commencement of her note-book, and I believe that she 
was right. 

As a preliminary mortification you find that the regula- 
tions at the porter's lodge annoy you very much. Vou tell 
him distinctly who you are, and whom it is that you have 
come to visit, and on the occasion of your first appearance 
the old man who keeps guard over the outer gate will be sent 
to conduct you to your destination. You will take careful 
notes of the intricacies of that long, winding way, expecting 
on future occasions to be allowed to pass unchallenged ; but 
not so : the porter always requires to be told who you are 
when you enter, and to assure himself that you are not a 
patient attempting to escape before you may pass out. " Whom 
do you want to see ? '* he will ask you Sunday after Sunday, 
looking suspiciously through the window of his office, till you 
begin to feel for that little girl in Kensington Gardens who 
wearied of the old gentleman who, for the sake of making 
conversation, continually asked her name. *' You know who I 
am, and I know who I am," she replied at last, with an air 
of great finality, "so there is no use in my going on telling 
you." But it would serve no purpose for you to lose your 
patience with the porter, and your entree to the Party soon 
becomes firmly based on this preparatory humiliation. When 
he has looked up Clara Withington's name in his book, and 
satisfied himself that such an inmate has been correctly de- 
scribed as occupying Block C, Ward 4, you may pass on : 
first through the men's court, dotted here and there with half 
a dozen solitary, despondent creatures, who glance in your 
direction wonderingly ; and if your time will allow of a little 
lingering, and if you have had the forethought to provide 
yourself with a few ounces of strong black tobacco, they will 
receive it gladly. Then on you go through the women's 
court, deserted save by that cheerful young person who wears 
no hat but an extraordinary smile, as she paces up and down 
in all weathers with a determination worthy of a better cause. 
She never speaks, and never seems to feel the cold, nor rain, 
nor glaring sunshine, and you cannot find out anything defi- 
nite about her ; but you imagine that she must have had 
some fearful mental trouble in her early youth, and that her 
friends assured her if she kept her spirits up and took plenty 



I904-] Our Lady's Party. 49 

of exercise she would soon be all right. She is incurably in- 
sane, but you feel glad that they have not sent her to a lunatic 
asylum. A holy picture, or a bunch of violets, or a few acid 
drops will please her very much, though if you only smile 
and say '' Good afternoon," she will beam upon you with the 
same delight. 

After leaving her you go up a few steps, and find your 
way rouod several sudden angles, startling the timid creatures 
who endeavor to efface themselves in shadowy recesses, until 
you come upon the draughty corridor where the more hopeful 
of the inmates sit patiently awaiting the arrival of their friends. 
Usually five old women, and always one blind girl, are waiting 
there — waiting for the friends who never come ; and Sunday 
after Sunday you tax your, vocabulary to its utmost limit, seek-i 
iog new words in which to say you trust they may not bq 
again disappointed. They say they trust so too — without a 
suspicion of sarcasm. And you commend them silently to St. 
Catherine of Siena. How she, who so admired '' the Queen 
Patience/' must sympathize with them ! 

After this you pass the Board-room door, which acts as a 
landmark, and from there your way lies up hill. Stair after 
stair, flight after flight — but you need not count; you go on 
till you come to the girl with the weak heart, who gazes in* 
tently out of the passage window at the blank wall opposite. 
You wonder if she knows every brick by heart ? She is too 
shy to look at you, and would rather not be spoken to, if you 
do not mind. The only way in which you can comfort her is 
to drop a flower, by accident, as you pass, and though she 
appears to take no notice at the time, it gratifies you to 
observe, on coming away, that she has pinned it to her shawl, 
and is bending towards it lovingly. 

They do not like her in the ward, and she does not care 
(or them. The only one with whom she tried to fraternize 
was the blind girl, being about her own age; but she realizes 
now that it was a mistake to offer to do her shopping. The 
temptation to deceive over the value of small coins was irre- 
sistible, and when the other inmates discovered it all chance 
of popularity was gone. 

The half paralyzed little dressmaker, who presses her face 
to the glass panels oi the door in the hope of seeing some 
one come up the stairs, appeals to you more readily. She 

VOL. LXXX.— 4 



so Our Lady's Party. [Oct, 

admits, quite frankly, that she never had a friend in all the 
world, and she is so grateful for being shaken hands with and 
spoken to. You need only say, '' I knew I should find ycu to 
welcome me ; how do you feel to-day ? " and she will do the 
rest of the talking for as long as you like. It will take you 
at least ten minutes to listen to her answer, but the satisfaction 
she experiences in the recital of her ailments is so enoimcus 
that you cannot feel you are throwing time away. With a few 
lumps of sugar and a packet of tea you give her the impres- 
sion that the world is not such a hard place after all, and in 
reality her well-to do fellow- mortals are very generous. But it 
may bring tears into your eyes the first time she tells you so, 
and you had better huri'y on to Clara Withington's corner by 
the fire before the compunction of your heart becomes too 
obvious. 

III. 

On entering the ward one is immediately struck by the 
cheerful aspect of the room : the green distempered walls, red 
table-cloths, faded blue counterpanes and dresses, red and brown 
shawls, and the white frilled caps which all the inmates wear. 
Clara is the most precious gem in this treasuie-house; but thcvgh 
perhaps that was already guessed, one was not prepared to find 
her such a sufferer and helpless cripple. She can only move 
about by leaning on her chair and pushing it along before 
her, and even this feat is accomplished with great difficulty and 
fatigue. However, she feels very thankful for being able to get 
about at all, and thinks the improvement she has made during 
the last five years quite marvellous. It used to take her t^o 
hours and three-quarters to get round from her corner to the 
farther side of the room, and now she is able to cover the same 
distance in less than two I But if one is shocked at discover- 
ing her to be so great a cripple, the excessive beauty of her 
face comes as a compensating surprise. 

She speaks in a soft, sweet voice, begging one to draw a 
chair up close to her in the two foot space between the curtain 
and the bed, to which she merrily refers as ** my sitting- roc m." 

** It is the coziest corner in the ward," she says, "and I 
feel very selfish monopolizing it. I'd gladly give it up to poor 
Miss Crawford, opposite, who complains very much of the draught 



1904.] Our Lady's Party. • 51 

from the window, only the regulations are very strict, and we 
must not change places." 

"There is not much furniture in your little sitting-room," 
one says, by way of making conversation and entering into the 
joke. 

Clara points triumphantly to the bed-post, where hang three 
print bags made of the same material as the inmates' clothes. 
" What more does one need ?" says she ; " one for needle- 
work, one for books, and one for letters." 
The letter-bag seems burstingly full. 

" Then you have a great many friends !" one exclaims, hastily 
jumping to conclusions. 

" A grreat many letters, but only one friend," replies she ; 
*'they are all from the same dear lady." 

Selecting one, she presses it to her lips, and offers it to be 
read. Such a wonderful, beautiful letter, concerning the glory of 
God, the interests of Jesus, and the salvation of souls, interspersed 
with many tender, sympathetic passages about little Margaret, 
who died. " Little Margaret," one gathers, was Mrs. Withing- 
ton's only child, buried in Willesden Cemetery more than twenty 
years ago. This explains one of the entries in the note-book : 
"April 27, anniversary of Margaret's First Communion; put 
madonna lilies on her grave." There are many entries respect- 
ing Margaret. All her anniversaries seem to have been remem- 
bered and marked by special visits to the cemetery with flowers. 
Her birthday, her Confirmation, her Patron Saint, the day of 
the last Sacraments, and then the day she died. 

Clara never speaks about her daughter, but from those letters, 
which she lets one read, one learns all about her past life and 
her overwhelming sorrow at the loss of her only child. That 
dear old lady, who had never had any children of her own, 
entered intuitively into the depths of maternal affection which 
cluDg round the memories of the long-dead little girl. What 
those letters must have meant to the poor lonely mother, and 
how all the tender, sympathetic advice contained in them must 
have helped her over the darkest days of her life, one can only 
imagine. She was on the verge of despair when she first met 
that dear lady, she admits, not having even the courage to go 
into the workhouse in her ill-clad, broken-hearted state. Los- 
ing faith, hope, almost losing reason, God saved her from a 
fearful crime by giving her a friend. 



52 Our Lady's Party. [Oct., 

One finds it hard to realize her description of herself a score 
of years ago. As one sees her now, the broad white brow« 
deep-set, thoughtful eyes, and sweet, firm mouth prove singularly 
attractive. 

" It does one good to look at Mrs. Withington, let alone the 
things she says," remarks her next-door neighbor. 

Such perfect resignation to the will of God is certainly re- 
markable. She never cares to talk about her illness, and when 
the pain is very bad she tells one she can always bear it by 
offering her sufferings to heal the wounds of Christ. If she 
would complain to the nurse in charge they would have her 
moved to the infirmary, where perhaps some remedy might be 
found to give her relief. 

" But, really, it is too absurd not to catch at every \itx\^ 
cross one can during this short life," she says. 

My friend had taught her that one act of patience was as 
a jewel beyond all price, and she loves to dwell upon the kind- 
ness and advice which she received ever since that first meet- 
ing, when from the brink of suicide she was brought back to 
thoughts of God and hopes of heaven by the affectionate sym- 
pathy of that beautiful old lady who treated her as a long-lost 
sister whom she was welcoming home. She had offered to rent 
a cottage for her, and give her a little pension ; but this Clara 
would not allow.' 

'' I do not want luxury ; all I ask for is a friend,'^ said 
she, " a few good books, and a skein or two of wool to 
knit." 

She takes great interest in her fellow-sufferers, especially in 
the old lady two beds away, who was a doctor's daughter and a 
solicitor's widow, and whose early education has unfitted her 
mind for the conversation of her ward-mates. This explains the 
notes : " Find out if Lord Byron was an atheist." " Who 
founded Babylon? Is it in Africa or Egypt?" "What was 
the state of Poland during the Middle Ages?" "Did Millais 
or Holman Hunt paint the 'Shadow of the Cross'?" "What 
were 'the hairy ones who danced'? (Isaias xxxiv.) " 

Her thoughts run in unexpected channels, and one is seldom 
able, on the spur of the moment, to find an answer to her ques- 
tions. She had been at a first-rate school, "a school where 
there were only officers' daughters, who never wore anything 
that had been mended,^^ she tells one, and the contrast which 



1904.] Our Lady's Party. 53 

the workhouse presents to Mrs. Heath's former associations in 
this particular alone is very marked. 

She came of a good family, but she and her father were 
supposed to have been drowned on the way out to India, and 
her people lost sight of her in consequence. She has tried to 
write several times to an aunt whose address is somewhere in 
Winchester, but her joints are swollen, getting worse all the 
time, and when she does manage to scratch a line she feels 
ashamed to send it — to any one but Father Kelly, who is just 
like a son to her, and whose sermons afford her reflection for 
a week. 

Having travelled about the world so much when she was 
young she is very appreciative of picture postcards. 

The old lady shivering by the window next claims one's 
attention. She says she finds the fresh air very trying, having 
made it a rule in her own house alt her life to keep the win- 
dow shut. When her bronchitis gets a little worse she hopes 
they will send her back to the infirmary. She fears she is a 
wicked old woman, far too fond of the gaieties of this life, and 
she prefers the infirmary because there is always something 
going on : patients are brought in during the dead of night, 
screens are put round their beds, and the doctor's lamp 
sheds a mysterious light. Frequently there is a death in 
the small hours of the morning. There is never any excite- 
ment in the Blocks, and she finds it too quiet for her taste 
up here. 

Mrs. Cuchullen, on the contrary,, finds it peaceful and pleas- 
ant. She reads her Messenger of the Sacred Heart through a 
powerful magnifying glass until her eyes feel strained, and 
then she says her rosary. At her time of life she thinks that 
is all a poor old woman needs. She always prayed the dear 
Lord to let her end her days within hearing of Mass, that was 
all she ever asked — and He has granted it. When He calls her 
, she will be ready to go to Him. 

Near her sits an old blind woman, who, although she has 
lost all sense of smell, is devotedly attached to flowers ; she 
thinks them '^tender little things," and likes to feel the petals 
between her finger and thumb. One finds her repeating verses 
very softly to herself, verses that her brother cut out of some 
paper, and which she committed to memory half a century 
ago. They sound pathetic coming from her now under her 



i 



54 Our Lady's Party, [Oct., 

altered circumstances, and one lays the lesson of her poem 
to heart: 



a 



Speak gently, kindly to the poor. 
Let no harsh tone be heard; 

They have enough they must endure 
Without an unkind word. 



" Speak gently to the erring one ; 
For is it not enough 
That innocence and peace are gone. 
Without thy censure rough ? 

" Speak gently to the aged one. 
Grieve not the care-worn heart. 
The sands of life are nearly run; 
Let such in peace depart J 



f» 



If she had been able to use her needle, and had not been 
so childish, the neighbors say her daughter-in-law would never 
have turned her out. She lived with her son till he got mar- 
ried, and he was very good to her; but afterwards, when the 
baby came, they found her in the way. 

Then there is " the Country Woman." This is her own de- 
scription of herself, after more than two-thirds of a long life 
spent in London — her thoughts still playing round the meadows 
of her Devonshire home. She never so much as knew there 
was a workhouse, she says, until she came to marry ; but her 
husband was a poor afflicted creature, who brought her to 
poverty and died. And when her savings were all gone the 
guardians ordered her in here. She does not like the atmos- 
phere of London, and finds the grayness ugly and depressing. 
Vainly may one point out the exquisite background which it 
affords for almond blossom ! What does she care for almond 
blossom ? She is thinking of the sunshine on the apple orchards 
down at home. She fancies that she hears the voices of those 
who were very dear to her crying round the Blocks at night, 
and she wonders whether the souls of her brothers and sisters 
have passed into the wind ? One is able to comfort her a little 
on this point; but her faith is even less than elementary, and 
at the advanced age of ninety- five it is not easy to acquire 



1904.] Our Lady's Party. 55 

new ideas. To the Giver of the sunshine, and the Creator of 
the apple orchards, one commends her ignorance. 

The frequent entry " apples for the Country Woman," in 
the note-book, conveys the impression that my dear old friend 
thought more of her material than spiritual necessities. 

Also one gathers from the constant " ask Clara and Har- 
riet to pray for So-and So's conversion," that it was her habit 
to rely more on prayer than argument. ** There is nothing," 
she used to say, " which is in accordance with God's will, 
that may not be obtained through the prayers of the poor." 

The ringing of the great bell of the house warns one that 
it is nearly time for visitors to take their leave; only between 
the hours of two and four are they allowed in the building ; 
and one prepares to say a general farewell ; not having bad 
time to speak to all of them, not having said one-half the 
things one came prepared to say, nor half the things that one 
will wish one had said on thinking the " Party " over after- 
wards ; but although one is obliged to depart with a keen 
sense of personal inefEciency one carries away a distinct im* 
pression of the merits of the honored guests. Having cnce 
known them one can never forget that sufferings may be nobly 
borne and virtues exc^ently practised. Perhaps what strikes 
one most is their resignation to the will of God, their patience 
under terrible afflictions, and their marvellous charity towards 
those whose selfishness and pride deserve no excuse. 

It is the exception, one finds, and not the rule for the in- 
mates of the workhouse to be destitute of near relations ; there 
is always some one whose duty it is, and whose happiness it 
onght to be, to brighten the last days of the aged and poor. 

"I Ve got a daughter, but she's married well, and she feels 
ashamed for her husband's family to know her mother 's in 
the House." 

"I had a son, but whether he's alive or not I'm sure I 
cannot rightly say." 

The difficulty of communicating with the outside world is 
increased by swollen joints, a scarcity of writing paper, and 
the uncertainty of the correct address. 

In their helplessness and loneliness those famished hearts 
turn back to God, and how far the health and happiness, and 
ultimate conversion of their dear ones, depend upon their 
prayers only He can know. 



56 Our Lady's Party. [Oct, 

The clock strikes four I 

With newly awakened understanding one glances up at all 
those dreary windows as one passes out, wondering about the 
lives which go on day after day behind the unopened doors. 
How many places there are, in that huge building, which one 
does not see ! . Where are the younger women ? the children ? 
the babies? Shall one also ever receive an invitation to their 
quarters ? 

On reaching the draughty corridor one finds that the five 
old women have departed, but the blind girl sttll sits on. 

"Are you not perished, dear child ?" one says, chafing her 
thin, cold hand, and pinning her shawl more closely at the 
neck. "Why do you wait down here so long? Your friend 
cannot come to-day." 

" Yes, my friend always comes," she says, turning towards 
one beautifully. " You are the friend I wait for now. You 
never fail me." 

Perhaps a tear, which is not hers, falls on the hand one 
holds. 

Again the great bell rings for the closing of the outer 
gate. One must not stay. Into Our Lady's keeping one com- 
mends her guests ; and going home one fully realizes that it 
was an honor, and a special privilege, to have been invited to 
her Party. 



1904.] An Incident in the Life of Gladstone, 57 




AN INCIDENT IN THE LIFE OF GLADSTONE. 

BY REVEREND W. J. MADDEN. 

[T would be too much to expect that every inci- 
dent of the long and full life of Mr. Gladstone 
should have been included even in . the three 
bulky volumes in which Mr. Morley has with 
willing and laborious hands built up, I venture 
to say, a monument are perennius to his friend and hero. 

I confess, however, to a feeling of surprise, on closing the 
third volume, that no room was found for one of the most 
touching and significant tributes paid to Mr. Gladstone by 
grateful hearts in Ireland at a moment when both he and 
they were keenly suffering from the defeat of their most cher- 
ished hopes. 

When in the summer of 1886 the first Home Rule Bill of 
the great Prime A^inister was thrown out in the Commons, a 
multitude in Ireland, forgetful of their own indignant sorrow, 
felt that it might bring balm to the feelings of their defeated 
champion to express to him in some special way their deep 
and grateful acknowledgment of his immense labors in behalf 
of their forlorn cause. 

Out of this came the Irish Pilgrimage to Hawarden, which 
Mr. Morley entirely omits, and cujus minima pars fui. 

Mr. Morley was not present, and I suppose Mr. Gladstone, 
who travelled abroad a good deal after his resignation, forgot 
to jot it down in the "Journal of Seventy Years." But it was 
a most interesting occasion. Many cities in Ireland voted Mr. 
Gladstone the " freedom " of their ancient burghs, and a 
tentative wish was expressed that he should come to receive 
the grateful compliment in person. But there were obvious 
reasons against such a journey. He had just finished one of 
the most arduous campaigns of his arduous political life. At 
that time it might well be said of him, as Wolsey said of him- 
self, " he was weary and old with service " — he was nearing 
Ws eightieth year — and the journey meant for him a tri- 
umphant progress. It meant addresses and speeches, banquets 
and toasts galore. Mr. Disraeli dreaded for him "inebriation 
'^om the exuberances of his own verbosity." It was nothing 



58 An Incident in the Life of Gladstone. [Oct.. 

to his danger, in Ireland, of being drowned in hospitable 
''punch/' It was not to be thought of. Besides, the dire 
days of drastic Tory coercion had set in, and if a glance of 
Mr. Gladstone's "eagle eye" happened to fall on the com- 
monest Irish policeman, said policeman could bring him before 
the nearest "stipendiary," swear "intimidation" against him, 
and get him six months of bread and water and a plank bed 
in one of Mr. Balfour's jails — as many a good man got after- 
wards for just as little. 

No, it would never do to bring the good old man to such 
a country as that. So, as Mohammed could not go to the 
mountain, the mountain must go to him. Five Irish cities 
ordered their mayors and municipal officers to pack up, brave 
the autumnal waters of the Irish Channel, betake themselves to 
Mr. Gladstone's home — his " Temple of Peace " — and lay at his 
feet the grateful tribute of a million brimming Irish hearts. 
Thousands were eager and ready to go, but by previous nego- 
tiations with Hawarden the numbers were rather strictly lim- 
ited. I got included by a legal or illegal fiction. My brother. 
Alderman Paul Madden, was in his second term as mayor of 
Cork. I suggested that he get his secretary to look up the 
musty records of that old Danish stronghold for a precedent 
of a mayor employing a chaplain to attend' him at public 
functions. Whether it was found or not I cannot say. But as 
no one was ever known to do anything illegal in Ireland — you 
could not if you tried, there are so many laws — I took my 
commission " to come along as mayor's chaplain " as perfectly 
proper, and so I joined the Cork deputation. When I was 
subsequently presented to Mr. Gladstone as " my brother, sir, 
and my chaplain,** I thought I saw the old war-horse of 
"legality" rear a bit— but that may have been fancy. At any 
rate, as they say here in my new country, "I got there," and I 
was very glad. I was the only priest in the whole expedition. 

I regret that now this super- subtle distinction between the 
priest and the man or citizen must be dragged in here. But 
it must needs be. The days of anonymous writing seem to 
have gone by, and I cannot be insincere enough to allow it 
to be thought that it was as a Catholic priest I coveted 
presentation to Mr. Gladstone. I fully shared the shock and 
the hurt he did us all when he bitterly and (many said) venom- 
ously attacked the central and venerated seat of our church 
a*'' *n his Vatican pamphlets. I was in a position to 



1904-] An incident in the Life of Gladstone, 59 

know that the great majority, if not all, the Irish priesthood 
resented his dabbling in a theology in which he was very 
poorly equipped. This was clearly shown by his woful deficit 
of technical knowledge in the Neapolitan marriage case which 
he paraded with such a flourish against "Roman teaching." 
As a priest, then, I differed, toto ccelo, from Mr. Gladstone's 
whole religious position, and could not as such have moved 
one step to show a regard for him I did not feel. Charity 
binds us to kindness and forgiveness, but does not order 
approval or condoning of what we think to be utter wrong- 
doing, no matter how mistaken. 

But as a native of the " distressful country " where fortune 
cast my lot, I felt impelled to do all possible honor to the 
eminent statesman who had lived laborious days,^ only as he 
could live them, to bring his countrymen to do tardy justice 
to the luckless land they had despised so long and ruled so 
badly. For the man who had the splendid candor to tell 
Englishmen, steeped in age- crusted prejudice and misinforma- 
tion on the subject of Ireland, that " the most disgraceful and 
dishonoring page in their history " would be England's dealings 
with that country, I had a great admiration. For the man 
who gave the highest proof a politician could give of disinter- 
estedness by suffering the wreck of brilliant and assured political 
prospects and pre-eminence for himself, rather than drop the 
cause of Ireland, I felt, as an Irishman, the profoundest and 
sincerest gratitude. His overthrow and fall from power were 
due solely to what he tried to do for us, and the very stones 
would cry out were we voiceless to thank, to cheer, and to 
console him if we could. Therefore I was glad to go on this 
veritable pilgrimage of grateful devotion. 

Our rendezvous was at Chester. When forgathered, I must 
say we made a very presentable and respectable appearance. 
My Lord Mayor of Dublin and the four provincial mayors 
looked brave in their shining hats and frocks. They wore 
flowers in their coats, except the man from Cashel, who I was 
told carried a shillelagh — not to break heads with but as a gift 
for the Grand Old Man and a fitting symbol of his head- 
breaking oratory. Their municipal functionaries might have 
come from Bond Street. There were some ladies there — noH 
many — friends and wives, smuggled in like the chaplain by 
some fiction of the law. Among them was one weird personage 
from " the West," an American " newspaper woman " with 



6o An Incident in the Life of Gladstone. [Oct., 

short, loose hair, dowdy dress, square, squat figure, and 
masculine features, to report for the great Republic. The 
British press was also largely represented. In fact, we looked 
so respectable that the quiet denizens of that dull old Roman 
relic did not know what to make of us. Some thought we 
came from Birmingham, some said Manchester, others Liver- 
pool, on business of Free Trade. A few took us for Scotch- 
men on kirk matters; but no one dreamed of Ireland and 
Home Rule. The Chester folk missed the tattered hats, with 
dirty pipes stuck in them; the brass-buttoned swallow-tails, 
the knee-breeches, and short sticks in our hands. No such 
genteel people — " real swells " — could come from that land of 
semi-savages — poor Ireland ! So off we went in brakes and 
drags and carriages along the road through that rich and 
lovely country towards the Welsh border in the bright sunshine 
of an early autumn day. Oh 1 the freedom and the joy of it 
as we thought of the coercion-ridden land we had just left 
behind. There was not the shadow of a Castle detective or a 
" peeler " with his, ' note-book of " intimidation," and Lord 
Salisbury had the grace not to disturb Scotland Yard. When 
Mr Gladstone, surrounded by his family, received us on- the 
green sward in front of his fine mansion and he bared his 
head, his venerable white hair was to us like a flag of truce 
unfurled, drawing us under the asgis of that redoubted champion 
of rational and legal liberty. 

Now, if anybody looks for a description of any rude haste, 
or vulgar rushing or " mobbing " of any kind, from that crowd 
of forty or fifty Irish people, he will be very much disap- 
pointed. They displayed, on the contrary, the well-bred, easy 
demeanor of people moving about a drawing-room. If there 
was any enthusiasm it was on the part of our kind host, who 
greeted each of us with a courtly warmth and then presented 
us to his gentle, gracious wife, to his daughters, to his sons 
and sons-in-law. 

'* Now," he said, " for the business of the day you will 
please come to the library." Then followed an impressive scene 
that, for me at any rate, nor distance nor life's lengthening 
shadow has made less clear. When we had taken our places 
in that large and fine apartment, where the lore of many 
ngues and ages lined the walls, the ranking lord mayor read 

ingle address in the name of the Irish people. Short, 

ct, and earnest it was: telling how they valued at the full 



I904*] An Incident in the Life of Gladstone. 6i 

and to the highest his unsparing labors in the cause so dear 
to them ; that defeat did not lessen their gratitude to him-r- 
only added thereto a sympathy with him in '* love's labor 
lost"; how on that account they thought it little to have left 
their homes and entered upon this long journey to present to 
him in person the best and highest honor, poor as it was, left 
in their power to bestow — the *' freedom " of their cities. 

Then five officials advanced and laid on the long table, 
behind which Mr^ Gladstone was standing, five handsomely «- 
wrought, silver- mounted bog- oak caskets, all of Irish workman- 
shipf containing the parchments. As he bent over them in 
momentary scrutiny a mingled look of pride and tenderness 
overspread his face, as if he heard within the beatings of many 
{grateful Irish hearts. Then he drew himself up for the reply. 
What a lesson indieed was there for the young amongst us. . 
There was a man of seventy- eight, whose labors in public 
life for fifty years were the marvel of friend and foe, as erect 
and alert in body and in mind as the youngest there. He had 
no need in that room to call to any extent on the powers of 
the fine voice that so often charmed a listening senate and 
stilled an outdoor multitude ; but in the calm, full, distinct 
tone we heard the softened echo of its grandeur. It was one 
of those speeches that cost the hearer no trouble to listen to, 
because it seems to cost the speaker so little to speak. It 
was a speech whose easy, unbroken flow came in upon the 
mind as a pleasing melody fills a delighted ear. It was the 
music of a perfect rhetoric. The kind gratitude of his Irish 
friends was very welcome and very soothing to him, for he 
confessed that of late he had had much to rufHe and to try 
him. It was more than that; it would be a stimulus to him 
in future action. Let them not part with hope ; he did not 
regard his labor, though it fell short of success, as all lost; 
he had driven the idea of righteous justice to Ireland an inch 
or two deeper into the English mind, and it was there to stay 
until, if the Almighty spared him, he could wield his hammer 
again. He had to drag his countrymen like the boy unwilling 
to take his physic; he had hopes to drag them again, and for 
a fuller dose. He then took for his text a recent magazine 
article by Mr. Goldwin. Smith condemnatory of himself and his 
Irish policy ; and when he had done with that library- states- 
man, amid flashes of his old fire, there were very few frag- 



62 An Incident in the Life of Gladstone. [Oct., 

ments of that gentleman left to be gathered up. Then, with a 
few graceful words of hearty welcome to his roof*tree, he 
wound up a speech of nearly an hour as fresh as when he 
began — a great treat ! 

" Now, gentlemen," said our youthful host of seventy- 
eight, '* let us adjourn for luncheon." I noticed he ignored 
the women and the chaplain — they were plainly illegal. In the 
dining-room we found a bounteous repast set out. But ivhat 
was this? Where were the trim waiters and liveried butlers 
one naturally looked for in this baronial hall ? Not a^ flunky 
in sight. Who were those quiet people who glided about 
attending to our wants ? Why, they were Mr. Gladstone's. pars on 
son, and his parson son-in-law, and his son Herbert, M.P., and 
^iss Gladstone his daughter I They were serving their gue£t5. 
The American woman said the Gladstones put her iii mind of those 
Puritan families we read of in the eighteenth century — she felt 
transplanted by her visit into an older and simpler time. Pure 
phantasy ! No Puritans would have given us haunch of veni- 
son and the best champagne. Our banquet, too, would have 
been enlivened with little speeches and songs had it not been 
intimated to the guests that a member of the family (Mrs. 
Drew) lay critically ill upstairs. But, perhaps, the lady from 
Chicago did not quite understand the incident of waiting on 
table. To most of us it seemed the most delicate and tactful 
compliment that Mr. Gladstone could pay his guests. It 
admitted them to membership with his family, thus thought- 
fully reciprocating his own admission to the freedom of their 
cities. Our kind attendants, after our wants had been cared 
for, sat down and ate with us. 

Lunch over, our host made us free of all the lower apart- 
ments and grounds to stroll about as we pleased. I, for one, 
was attracted at once to his smaller library, where he did all 
his reading and work. It was a room fit to fill a student's 
dream. The long, low windows looked upon a neatly-trimmed 
lawn, rich in parterres of beautiful flowers. Beyond was the 
deepening shade of the wooded park. The soft carpet, the 
easy chairs, the books on swivel stands — accessible without 
reaching high or stooping low, a great desideratum in a 
library — the walls hung, not crowdedly, with some good paint- 
ings — landscapes and scenes of foreign lands — a few objets d'art 
here and there, — all invited to the student's calm. At one end 



1904] An Incident In the Life of Gladstone. 63 

of the room, carefully set out in a stand of polished wood, was 
a collection of axes, all of the finest workmanship, gifts from 
Mr. Gladstone's mechanic admirers — mindful of bis foible for 
tree-felling. On the writing-table was the latest copy, just 
opened, of the member for Louth's weekly paper, the Irish Nation. 
I h^d just finished this rapid survey when Mr. Gladstone 
came in. "I am glad," he said, ''to find you interested in 
this room. It is my favorite room. It cost me a good deal of 
work, though. For instance, you see here between five and 
six thousand volumes. I placed them all with my own hand, 
arranged in departments: here is history; here the classics — 
Greek and Latin; here, works in modern languages; here, 
biography ; here, miscellaneous and light literature ; here, poli- 
tics and finance; and here (with a bow) is your department — 
Theology." One could be in no better place than that one 
room to understand the " infinite variety " of this wonderful man. 
'' Now," he said, '' I have asked the guests to accompany 
me on a walk to the old Castle — it is not far; it stands right 
in the grounds, but there is an ascent of some four to five 
hundred feet to the top; if not too much, I should like you to 
come." Then I took a small liberty. '' Mr. Gladstone," I said^ 
'' we have all heard of your feats in cutting down trees ; if not 
asking more than I ought, would you mind showing me a 
specimen of what you have done." " Come," he said. And 
away we went through the garden out into the park a few 
hundred paces. " There," said the kind and simple hearted old 
man, " I cut that down last week." It was an ash or elm cut 
to almost a foot to the ground — clean and. nearly even. It 
measured three to four feet in diameter! When eight years 
later he carried his second Home Rule Bill through its third 
reading in the House of Commons, to the wonder of every one, 
1 thought of that day in Hawarden when he stood by that old 
tree-trunk and said to me so simply, ''And you know I did 
it all by myself." It taught me to understand why he had 
been able to do so many more difficult things of a different 
sort "all by himself." 

We rejoined the waiting crowd and set off for the Castle. 
It is a dismantled relic of the old feudal fighting times, and 
stands on the borders of Wales, wrapped all round in its 
mourning vesture of creeping weeds and ivy. Peace to the 
cruel times when a man's home was also his fortress! — may 



64 AN Incident in the Life of Gladstone. [Oct., 

they never wake again; and I was glad to think that he ^who 
was now walking at my side was the man of all others in his 
time who contributed most to deepen their slumbers and chant 
above them the gospel of brotherhood and peace. 

Mr. Gladstone led the way up the old winding stone stair* 
way with an easy, buoyant tread. Half way up he said to me : 
"Come this way first. I "have discovered a chamber that must 
have been the chapel of this old stronghold — very interesting; 
they practised religion with all their fighting." " Here," he 
said as he entered it, " was the place where the altar must 
have stood, those two small windows indicate it ; and this 
niche or recess was for some kind of a statue or emblen)/' 
'' Pardon nie/' I said, '' that is what, in liturgical phrase, is 
called ^'€redenc€ table ^ where the requisites f6r Mass are laid 
until the end - of the Credo — hence its name." That was the 
only word at all approaching controversy that we had^ It had 
large possibilities in it touching the old Catholic times on his 
own estate in the days before the Reformation -fever raged. 
But whether it was he felt a little nettled at this slight correC'> 
tion, not at all rudely offered — it was well within my province 
•to^lhake it — or that he simply did not believe me, he said, rather 
abruptly, " Let us now go up higher and view the country ! ^ 
So we went to the highest parapets It was a glorious day and 
there was certainly a glorious view. The Welsh mountains 
rose on the right, and all around lay the garden land of 
England. 

"There," said Mr. Gladstone, pointing eastward, "is the fine 
seat of my neighbor and one time friend, the Duke of West- 
minster — Eaton Hall." " Yes," he continued with a sigh, 
" Home Rule for you cost me that friendship among many lost 
— and I valued him more than all the rest!" "But," he 
added cheerily, " I regret nothing, and am prepared to sacri<- 
fice more than that for what I deem to be the right and only 
upright course." We thanked him warmly and began to de- 
scend. Our carriages were now waiting, and when we took 
our places, on the same green sward as in the morning stood 
Mr. Gladstone and his family to bid us a kind farewell. Our 
men waved their hats and the women their flags of distress, 
and we were borne on our different ways. 

A memorable day ! 

Oakland, Col. 



1904.] " The Fountain of youth'' : a Story. 65 




THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH": A STORY. 

BY MARY CATHERINE CROWLEY. 

OW, mother, it is not necessary for you to do a 
thing but* get strong ; my salary is large enough 
to take care of you too, and if it were not I 
would manage in some other way." 

Kate Rollan said this proudly, standing be- 
fore the elder lady on the veranda of the little white cottage, 
and shaking her finger emphatically, as she shook it at the 
boys and girls in the frame school-house when she desired to 
impress them with her authority. ^ 

Mrs. Rollan, half reclining among the gay-colored pillows 
of the hammock, sighed that her days could not be as filled 
with work as her daughter's; yet the next moment she smiled 
as though a burden were lifted from her shoulders. 

"After awhile, dear, perhaps I shall not be so useless," 
she replied. 

" Useless ! " echoed Kate, darting over to her with an 
embrace — " you will never be that, mother, for you are home 
and love to me. You must remember, too, that you are not 
so very old — only forty-five — and when our fine Texas air 
brings the roses back to your cheeks you will be handsomer 
than ever." 

"Flatterer!" laughed Mrs. Rollan; but the faint blush of 
pleasure that stole, over her usually pallid face told that her 
daughter was right — a glow of color made it beautiful. 

A year before the selectmen of the town of D , being 

wide awake in educational matters, had sent to Boston for a 
teacher, and Kate, having graduated with honor from ** the 
Normal," was so fortunate as to obtain the position. 

Yet it parted her from the one being to whom she fain 
would have clung — her mother. The months of separation had 
been very long to both of them, but now that weary trial was 
past " How happily Providence arranged it all," Kate said. 
For, when the widow broke down in trying to do reporting 
for the newspapers, the doctors declared Texas would be the 

VOU LXXX. — 5 



66 •• THE Fountain of Youth'' : a Story. [Oct., 

best place for her to go to recuperate, and almost at the 
same time Kate's salary was raised, so that she was able to 
take the cottage and engage black Azalia as gtneral factotum. 

Mrs. Rollan had been in her new home only a week ; it 
was now an afternoon of October, Kate had come home from 
school, and there was yet an hour left of the bright day. 

" Mother," she said, drawing a wicker chair up beside the 
hammock, '* I want you to tell me the story of this keepsake 
that you brought me. See, I am wearing it for the first time ; 
it gives quite an aristocratic air to my plain frock. But who 
is this, dear ? " 

As she spoke she touched the spring of a locket that bung 
from her neck by a fine gold chain, and revealed a treasure 
that evidently had once been far more precious to some one 
than the jewelled ornament. 

Mrs. Rollan unmistakably started. 

Kate unclasped the chain and held the trinket in her hand. 
The other woman took it from her and said hesitatingly, as 
she bent an eager gaze upon it, " I — I intended to take out 
the picture." 

The exquisitely painted bit of ivory represented a good- 
looking young man of twenty-jive or six, smooth-shaven and 
with fairly regular features. The eyes were frank and kind, 
the mouth was smiling yet firm, the hair was worn a trifle 
long, in the fashion that is now returning, and the dress was 
of the style of a generation ago. The face bore no resem- 
blance to the "counterfeit presentment" of the late Edward 
Rollan, which, large as life and framed in heavy gilt, hung 
within doors in the little drawing-room; nor yet was it like 
the old photograph of her mother's brother enshrined in the 
family album. Obviously, it was some one of whom the girl 
had never heard. 

As Mrs. Rollan looked at the miniature her eyes grew 
misty. Kate's attention was apparently fixed upon the beauty 
of the sunset sky, but she more than suspected that her com- 
panion not only caressed the locket but furtively kissed it. 

" Mother gave it to me in its small velvet case, without 
looking at it, and she said it was the only bit of jewelry left 
from the wreck of her fortunes. I know only too well that 
the rest was pawned, piece by piece, in the years before I was able 
to help replenish our finances," reflected the daughter bitterly. 



1904.] ''The Fountain of Youth'' : a Story, 67 

The ruin she deplored had been wrought by the dissipatioa 
and extravagance of the husband and father. 

After a moment Mrs. RoUan became self-possessed once 
more; yet she said nothing as she returned the trinket. 

Not only was Kate's curiosity aroused, but her woman's 
heart was touched. Sliding down upon her knees beside the 
hammock, she wound her arms around her mother affec- 
tionately. 

*' Dearest, was this young man in the picture some one who 
loved you, some one whom you might have loved had you 
chosen differently ? " she asked with half-teasing earnestness. 

The mother patted the encircling arms, and then with a 
sudden resoluteness disengaged herself from them. 

"Nonsense, Kate," she answered in her accustomed tone of 
prosaic cheerfulness. '' It is a portrait of Arthur Terriss, your 
father's step-brother. You know your grandmother married, 
for the second time, a widower with one son." 

"But Arthur Terriss gave it to you," persisted Kate, loath 
to relinquish the idea of a romance.. 

"You are mistaken. I found it among the things your 
grandmother left by will to me as Edward's wife." 

Kate was puzzled and, consequently, by no means satisfied. 
She slipped back into her chair again, and for a few minutes 
the two women sat silent. Then the younger hazarded softly: 
" Mother, where is Arthur Terriss now ? " 

Mrs. RoUan brought back her thoughts to the present with 
a difficulty which betrayed that they had been far afield. 

" Child, he went away long ago," she rejoined with a shade 
of impatience. "He has not been heard of for years, and I 
doubt if he is still living." 

Rising from the hammock, she picked up the red and yeU 
lofv cushions, and making some excuse about smoothing her 
hair before supper, went into the house. 

''Mother has a secret, and I am sure the miniature is 
associated with it," soliloquized Kate, as she again fastened 
the chain about her neck and disposed the locket so that its 
three tiny diamonds would show best against her white throat. 

Time seems to fly doubly fast in the enterprising State of 
Texas, and the young school-teacher had her hands full of 
duties. Not only was she occupied with her scholars during 



68 ''THE Fountain of Youth'' : a Story, [Oct., 

the week, but she taught in the Sunday-school of the growing 
Catholic church of the town and was interested in all its 
societies. Moreover, if no one among her friends was more 
light-hearted than she, perhaps it was because, regularly before 
the altar of this humble church, she prayed for strength and 
courage, and literally for the "daily bread" necessary to keep 
her mother and herself from want. 

Yet, life was not all a dull gray monotone. There were 
holidays filled with sunshine when, by forgetting yesterday and 
taking no thought of to-morrow, she might be as care-free as 
her youth sometimes demanded. Kate was a favorite in the 

society of D , and the winter passed pleasantly. "Where 

young people are gathered together there Cupid is alert and 
active, and some authorities declare that down in Texas he 
uses a 'lassoo instead of arrows. However that may be, he 
managed to entangle a manly stranger and led him captive to 

Kate. David Cranston had come to D to visit his chum 

of the years spent at the Jesuit University at Galveston. He 
had since studied mining engineering and was on his way to 
his home in the Republic of Mexico, where his father had 
interests in certain mines. 

David soon showed that he was in earnest, and Mrs. 
Rollan contemplated his courtship rather sadly. He was a 
suitor against whom she could offer no valid objection, yet she 
wished he would go away. This only daughter and she had 
been everything to each other for so long that she could not 
welcome any one who might take Kate from her. 

The girl reassured her. 

" Do not worry, mother," she said ; " David has asked me 
to marry him, but of course I said ' No.* I have my work 
and you, and what more do I need to make me happy ! " 

Thereupon, mentally reproaching herself for her selfishness, 
Mrs. Rollan became as unwilling that Kate should banish 
David as before she had been eager for his exile. 

When the visit to his chum drew to a close he called to 
take leave of his sweetheart. 

" I am going down to Mexico, but I shall be back here 
before long," he said as he glanced around the little drawing- 
room, and then once more at the girl, who had never seemed 
to him prettier. 

" Your people will be glad to see you again," stammered Kate. 




1904.] '• The Fountain of Youth'' : a Story. 69 

"Yes, and there are many friends whom I shall be glad to 
see also/' he rejoined ; " especially one who has always made 
much of me — our neighbor Seiior Teressano. Have I never 
spoken to you of him ? " 

"No, I think not/' she said. 

"He is a typical gentleman of the Spanish school, yet by 
birth he is an American/' continued David with boyish enthu- 
siasm; "his name was originally Terence, or something like 
that." 

A wildly improbable thought leaped into Kate's fertile 
mind. 

" Could it possibly have been Terriss ? " she suggested, 
half idly. 

" Terriss ? That is it, by Jove I " he ejaculated. " How the 
deu — pardon me. Miss Rollan, but how in the world did you 
know ? " 

"It was only a hazard," she replied evasively. "What is the 
Christian name of your friend ? " 

"Arturo. He is the Seiior Arturo Teressano," David 
answered. 

Kate's brain grew confused. She shivered with nervous- 
ness, and straightway felt a hot flush steal over her, as she 
tore the locket from her neck, and, opening it, held out the 
miniature to her lover. 

" Does your seiior look anything like this ? " she inquired 
with tense interest. 

David regarded her in speechless surprise as, taking the 
locket, he scrutinized the portrait. 

" There is a faint likeness certainly," he admitted ; " only 
Senor Teressano is over fifty years of age. But" — and the 
young man's voice was not altogether steady, for, being a 
lover, he was jealous to the point of absurdity — " may I ask 
why you wear this picture ? " 

Great as was the tension of her nerves, Kate smiled ; and, 
having no wish to torment him, she told him as much of the 
story of the locket as she had been able to gather from her 
mother. 

''Miss Rollan, I indeed believe the seiior is the same Arthur 
Terriss whom you call your uncle," exclaimed Cranston; 
"because the first time I met you I had an impression that I 
had seen your face before, and now I know where. It was 



70 " The Fountain of Youth'' : a Story, [Oct., 

your portrait that I saw, a large painting in oils, which hangs 
in Sen>r Teressano's house." 

"Ah, it cannot be; he went away before my mother was 
married ; he does not know of my existence," she sighed, fear- 
ing she had been too confident. 

"Well, psrhaps it was your mother's portrait? At your 
age she must have looked very much as you do now ? " 

"So I have been told," Kate responded, her spirits again 
in the ascendant. 

"Mr. Cranston — David, is the Senor Teressano married?*' 

"No, he is a bach.elor, but one of the gentle, kindly sort." 

" And is he, uh— well oflF ? " 

The young man hesitated. Then, with some unwillingness, 
as if he regretted to demolish the air-castle he had helped her 
to build, he answered: 

" Oh ! you know one can live on so little in that tropical 
country that what would be a small income here is compara- 
tive wealth in Mexico." 

The girl's face absolutely brightened. 

"Since he is poor, he is not so far removed from us," she 
said contentedly. 

" I dare not inform my mother of our discovery until I 
have positive proof. But you will speak to the Seiior Teres- 
sano of us? You will write and tell me what he says? We 
have no near ^ relatives ; and, although he is not really related 
to us, I think it would make mother happier to see, or even 
communicate with him. I am almost sure he is connected 
with some romance of her girlhood." 

" Miss Kate, I will make it my first duty to tell him, and 
you shall hear from me promptly," promised David, only too glad 
of the opportunity for correspondence thus offered to himself. 

A few days of waiting followed the departure of Cranston. 
Then came a letter from him that set Kate's heart aglow with 
exultation. 

He had seen and talked with the Senor Teressano, who w*as 
indeed no other than Arthur Terriss. The senor was overjoyed 
to hear that his stepbrother's widow was living in the great 
Gulf State, and that she had a daughter who was so charm- 
ing, energetic, and independent. 

David enclosed the address and advised Kate to write to 



I904.J " The Fountain of Youth'*: a Story. 71 

the senor. Still, she dared not reveal, to the one most inter- 
ested, what she had done. She wanted first to guard against 
any possible disappointment. So she wrote Arthur Terriss a 
long letter out of the impetuosity of her warm young heart, 
and asked him to come to D to renew the early friend- 
ship with her mother and make her own acquaintance. 

The missive ended with a little sentence, framed with much 
care and delicacy, lest she should hurt the feelings of an old 
man, and saying that if he felt he could not afford to make 
the journey she would be only too glad to send a post-office 
order to defray part of the expense ; her salary had been 
raised a second time, and she would not miss the amount of 
the little present. 

Poor Kate 1 This idea was a wild extravagance, but she 
was willing to offer the sacrifice at the shrine of family affec- 
tion. 

Terriss — or, as he was now known, the Senor Teressano — 
did not keep her long in suspense. His reply was an odd 
combination of stilted Spanish courtliness and American sincerity. 
" He had heard years ago that Mrs. Rollan was not living," 
he said, '' but he was rejoiced to learn from Kate that, gracias 
Dios, the climate of Texas was fast restoring that most esteemed 
lady to health. He would come north to visit them very soon, 
probably in a few weeks; he thanked his dear niece — so he 
asked to be permitted to call her — for the offer of the post- 
office order, but he thought he could manage to pay for the 
trip. He would gladly give his last ' piastre ' for the happi- 
ness of seeing her mother again." 

Now that Kate had time for reflection she hoped she had 
not been rash in inveigling a man who was well on toward 
sixty years to make an inroad upon his small savings for the 
sake of a memory of his early manhood. 

" But no," she soliloquized, " if he spends his money I will 
try to make it up to him. Mother is lonely sometimes out 
here in Texas, and it will be a joy for them to talk over the 
days of their youth." 

It was late in the summer. 

Mrs. Rollan still loved to linger at the corner of the veranda, 
but now she was always enga'ged with her embroidery; a New 
York firm bought all of her beautiful needlework that she could 
send them. 



72 ''THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH'' : A STORY. [Oct-, 

Kate sought her in her favorite retreat and, with true femi- 
nine diplomacy, led up to the great surprise by talking of 
David Cranston. Perhaps she revealed more of her heart than 
she intended, for her dark lashes glistened suspiciously as, 
breaking off abruptly, she said with tender artfulness : " Now, 
mother, I have given you my confidence, won't you give me 
yours ? Tell me about the portrait in the locket ! " 

Mrs. Rollan dropped her work and buried her face in her 
hands. How could she refuse to unburden her memory to the 
daughter who was so devoted to her? 

'' It is a simple story, my dear," she said at last, raising 
her head, and gazing absently before her. 

"When I was a girl my home was in New York. My 
mother's friend, Mrs. Terriss (who had been Mrs. Rollan, you 
know), was very fond of me, and often had me with her. 
Thus I became acquainted with her son Edward Rollan and 
her stepson Arthur Terriss. Edward was soon my lover, but 
I liked Arthur better; and it seemed as if he loved me. He 
and Edward, although not related, were brothers in affection, 
and his stepmother had been kind to the lonely boy. Ed- 
ward, however, soon became madly jealous of Arthur; Mrs. 
Terriss also grew cold to him, for she wished me to marry her 
son ; and the end of it was that Arthur disappeared, leaving 
a letter in which he said he had accepted a position in the 
Central American branch of a New York business house that 
deals in tropical products. There was not a word of farewell 
to me. My pride was hurt that I had given my love to one 
who thus cast it from him. Edward wooed with redoubled 
ardor. He was very prepossessing, and the future promised 
him much. I grew to care for him in a milder way, and after 
awhile we were married." 

Mrs. Rollan passed over the ensuing years in silence ; but 
Kate understood. The two women always refrained from speak- 
ing of the faults of Edward Rollan, the one from wifely, the 
other from filial, loyalty. 

'* After old Mrs. Terriss died," the older lady continued, " I 
found the locket among her belongings. I kept it, but did not 
trust myself to look at the miniature. One trinket I did not 
find — another locket containing my portrait, painted when I 
was a very young girl, which my mother had given her. 

" As a faithful wife I banished the image of Arthur from my 



1904.] " The Fountain of Youth'' : a Story. 73 

mind, and even when death broke the bond that bound me I 
would not suffer my thoughts to dwell upon the first love of 
my youth. But since I have been here in this southern coun- 
try» since I looked at the miniature and have seen you wearing 
the locket, I have been haunted by recollections of the days 
when I was a girl. And yet for years I have believed Arthur 
Terriss dead." 

" No, no, mother, he is alive I ** Kate broke out eagerly, un- 
able longer to keep back her story. " You have thought of 
him so much, perhaps, because he has been nearer to you 
than for years before. Mother, he is in Mexico. David knows 
him." 

Mrs. Rollan started to her feet. 

" Arthur is living ? " she repeated in a dazed way. 

"Yes, I have written to him and have received a reply. 
He is coming to visit us. Dearest ! what have I done ? " 

Springing forward the girl stretched forth her arms just in 
time to prevent her mother from falling. Mrs. Rollan had fainted. 

"Of course mother and Arthur Terriss are past the age of 
romance now," Kate said to herself with the positiveness of her 
twenty years. 

Nevertheless, anxious that he should see that her mother 
had not altogether lost her comeliness, she persuaded the gentle 
lady to smarten up her frocks and to turn her wavy hair back 
from her face in a soft roll, as she had worn it long ago. The 
result was that she did not look a day over forty. 

At last the expected guest arrived, and with him came 
David Cranston. On the surface everything was absolutely 
commonplace. From behind the vines of the veranda Kate 
saw them nonchalantly walking from the station. As they ap» 
proached the house, however, and the senor caught sight of 
the ladies on the porch, he quickened his pace and sprang up 
the steps as agilely as David. 

Mrs. Rollan, hospitable, gracious, but self-possessed, hastened 
forward to greet him. 

" Margaret," he cried, and his voice had the softness of the 
Mexican accent as, taking both her hands in his, he raised 
them to his lips. Was the impulse but a Spanish courtesy or 
something more ? 

With a stately formality he led her back to her chair, and 



74 *' THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH'' : A STORY. [Oct., 

then turned to Kate, who was ready to forgive his tardy notice 
of her, since she in turn had been engrossed in welcoming 
David. 

The Senor Teressano did not appear nearly so elderly as 
she had supposed him to be. He was tall and of fine physique, 
with blue eyes, and although his hair was gray, his clean- 
shaven face and slightly sunbrowned complexion showed him 
to be a well preserved man ; " good for twenty years yet," as 
he laughingly said of himself. His clothes were of fine cloth, 
if not perhaps quite up to date, and he had not only an air 
of distinction but of the perfect neatness that bespeaks refine- 
ment. The girl decided that he was one who, under all cir- 
cumstances, would prove a gentleman. 

The hotel of the town was the headquarters of the visitors, 
but every evening saw them at the little house of the Rollans ; 
and often during the day the sefior was there too, for he 
loved to chat with Kate's mother while she worked at her 
embroidery. 

A month had passed, when one evening Kate, who was 
watting for David in the drawing-room, caugTit a few words 
that were wafted in from the corner of the veranda by the 
September breeze. 

** But, Arthur, why did you go away?" queried the sweet 
voice of Mrs. Rollan. 

The tender earnestness of the senor*s answer surprised the 
girl, and made her forget that she was playing the part of 
eavesdropper. 

" Senora mia,** he said, " it was because I loved you, yet 
Edward had wooed you first. I thought you were indifferent 
to me. Had my rival been any one but my stepbrother, I 

« 

would have remained and striven manfully to win you; but I 
could not try to wrest from him the treasure I believed he 
was on the point of gaining. Sometimes, however, I have 
wondered if my going was a mistake." 

He paused, but Mrs. Rollan did not answer. 

Yet Kate, as she held her breath, felt intuitively that her 
mother would fain have cried out with passionate directness, 
that he might well doubt. Had he done right or wrong to 
go ? Was his idea of honor the true one ? He had sacrificed 
his own happiness in the name of friendship ; but had he been 
just to the woman he loved? 



1904.] *'The Fountain of youth'' : a Story. 75 

And yet Margaret had acknowledged to her daughter that 
it was of her own free will she had married Edward Rollan. 
Why did she marry at all ? At the cross-roads of life, when 
she found herself separated from Arthur, she had voluntarily 
chosen her path ; how then could she blame him for the sorrows 
of her way ? 

"If I had stayed would you have loved me ? '' he urged. 

Still she did not speak. Even though she had been long a 
widow, the memory of the years when she was a wife pre- 
vented her from admitting that her young heart had at first 
been given to Arthur. The past, from the first day she had 
seriously listened to Edward's wooing until his death, belonged 
to the man who had been her husband. Since then life had 
been the succession of gray days that sometimes follow a 
storm. 

The seiior sighed with disappointment but persisted. 

"It is needless to tell you of my varying fortunes, except 
that I came northward from Peru. Your portrait, painted 
from the miniature I took away with me, has been the only 
woman's face I cared to see in my home. Well, we will 
not speak of the past but of the present and the future ; 
your future and mine, at least, are in your hands. I love you 
still, I can keep you from want. Margaret, will you love me 
now and hencefotth ; will you be my wife ? " 

Kate heard the woman who had been the love of his life 
tremulously answer "Yes." 

Then she stole out of the house and walked down the 
road to meet David. Neither the senor nor her mother seemed 
as elderly to her as they had half an hour earlier. For love 
is the true fountain of perpetual youth, and he who quaffs of 
its waters grows young again in all that makes the joy of living. 

The announcement of the approaching marriage of the Senor 
Teressano and Mrs. Rollan was received with pleasure by all save 
one of the friends whom Kate and her mother had made in 
D . To their astonishment, David Cranston was unmistak- 
ably gloomy over the news. He avoided the Rollans for days, 
and when he finally called to offer his congratulations the 
elder lady good-naturedly gave him a chance to "make up" 
what she supposed to be a lover's quarrel. 

The few minutes alone with Kate which he usually so 
prized now threatened, however, to be an awkward quarter of 



76 " The Fountain of Youth'" : a Story. [Oct., 

an hour for both. The girl chatted gaily of the coming 
wedding. 

'' The senor will take his bride beyond the Rio Grande, and 
they have made me promise to go with them/' she volunteered. 
'' Of course my mother's marriage will make quite a difference 
to me." 

She was half-ashamed at venturing to hint to him thus that 
now, with her mother provided for, she herself was free. 

But to David her words were as a match to a fuse, and an 
explosion succeeded. 

'' That is just it," he cried, jumping up and pacing the 
floor in excitement. '' In bringing about the reunion of my 
friend and your mother, I have defeated my own hopes. I 
love you, I want you for my wife, but they will take you 
away." 

*' And will it be too far for you to follow ? " inquired Kate 
with a touch of scorn. 

** Miss Rollan, is it possible that you do not understand ? " 
he exclaimed, facing her. '' The Senor Teressano is one of the 
wealthiest mine- owners in the southern republic. Can it be 
that your mother is not yet aware of this ? " 

" Mother thinks he has only a little property," she exclaimed 
aghast. " Why you, yourself, told — or at least let me suppose 
— that he was poor." 

** I only wanted to test you," he admitted. 

'' Well, at any rate, David, what has his position to do with 
us?" 

'' Don't you see, dear," he said, melting as she uttered the 
little word that seemed to link them together, "the senor will 
be able to make a brilliant marriage for you ? Your mother 
will naturally want to see you well settled ; you yourself — why, 
every woman likes luxury, and I am only a mining engineer, 
with good prospects, it is true, but a small income." 

" Yet you love me ? " Kate repeated in a voice that thrilled 
him. " You still wish to marry me ? " 

"I love you, and will marry you to-morrow if you are 
willing," he answered, forgetting everything else. 

''Then, David," said the little school-teacher bravely, "your 
love is more to me than all the wealth of Mexico, because I 
have prayed, not for riches but for happiness." 



1904.] HILDESHEIM, 77 




HILDESHEIM, THE CAPITAL OF THE PRINCE-BISHOPS. 

BY C. T. MASON. 

'LTHOUGH Hildesheitiiy the capital of the Prince- 
Bishops, has increased in size on the north-west 
side, in the vicinity of the railroad station, in 
the new portion where the houses are all of 
brick; although it has acquired a certain indus- 
trial importance, yet the interior of the town has remained 
precisely as it was in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. 
Speaking generally, only the churches and the public monu- 
ments are of a date more ancient, or else more modern, and 
in a different style. In all the streets of the centre are houses 
with pointed gables, roofs curving inward or bulging upward, 
stories overlapping each other, buildings with their casements, 
rafters, and panels all richly carved. The reliefs recall scenes 
taken from the Old and New Testaments, or scenes from life, 
mythological episodes, symbolic compositions, and allegorical 
figures, such as Justice, Charity, Prudence, Temperance, and 
the like ; or portraits of the prophets, kings, and emperors. 
The best preserved of these carvings are painted and gilded, 
and are covered with inscriptions taken from the Bible, with 
sentences and dates. Some of these belong to the sixteenth 
century, but the majority are of the seventeenth. 

It is a peculiar charm that the visitor experiences in stroll- 
ing through these quiet, winding streets, refractory every one 
of them to the laws of modern alignment, deciphering the 
inscriptions and the reliefs on the fa9ades. He goes from one 
surprise to another, admiring everywhere the ingenuity and 
the patience of these "artists of the chisel," who knew so 
well how to decorate their structures with so original a taste. 
Later generations have respected the venerable work of their 
forefathers to such an extent that, in the interior of the 
town, they have erected but few houses of stone and very 
few modern structures. The sensation of the past which the 
visitor experiences is not even disturbed by the passing of a 



7 8 HILDESHEIM, [Oct. , 

tramway, for Hildesheim is one of those rare towns in Ger- 
many where tramways are unknown. 

The most characteristic feature of the town is the Market 
Place. In the centre, in front of the Rathhaus, is a fountain 
of the sixteenth century, surmounted by a statue of Roland in 
armor. The fa9ade of the town hall (the Rathhaus), with its 
statues, its little tower, its pointed doors, and sharp gables 
surrounding the belfry, forms the groundwork of the pictuie; 
the sides of the square are the frame, to the right being the 
high, severe facade of the Templarhaus (house of the Tem- 
plars), separated by a lane from the Wedekindhaus, a wooden 
structure with three gables. On the west side, above a pas- 
sageway, flanked on either side by two small shops, its five 
stories overlapping each other, is one of the most picturesque 
houses in Hildesheim, the Boucherhaus, or house of the 
Butchers. In the Osterstrasse, behind the town hall, there 
stands a corner house perhaps even more noticeable as a fea- 
ture of ornamentation. 

Interesting to art-lovers as is this collection of houses, 
respected by time and the hand of man, this merit is not 
peculiar to Hildesheim alone ; for its neighbor, Brunswick, is of 
as characteristic an aspect, and, indeed, the same may be said 
of many other towns in Germany whose churches and con- 
vents bear tangible witness to a past devoted to the Catholic 
Faith. Even the founding of Hildesheim has a religious ori- 
gin. The story goes that the Emperor Charlemagne, after his 
defeat by the Saxons, in 815 A. D., proposed to erect an arch- 
bishopric in the country adjoining his residence at Elze, as he 
had done on previous occasions in other parts of Saxony. 
He died, however, without fulfilling this intention. His son, 
Louis the Debonnaire, an ardent lover of the chase, found 
himself one day on a hunting expedition in this part of the 
country, in company with his chaplain. The latter, having 
said Mass in the open air, forgot on his departure to take the 
relics of the Virgin from the altar. Returning in haste, he 
found them on the trunk of the tree on which he had placed 
them ; but, in spite of his efforts, he was unable to remove 
them. In the face of all this it was taken as being the will 
of God that a sanctuary should be erected on the spot, and 
accordingly a chapel to the Virgin was built upon the site now 
occupied by the present cathedral. Bishop Altfried, the first 



1904.] THE Capital of the Prince-Bishops, 79 

• 

incumbent of the diocese established at Hildesheim, built the 
choir of the new church on the ancient chapel, which then 
became the crypt. This church, consecrated in 872 A. D., was 
in existence for one hundred and sixty-six years. In 1032, 
under Bishop Ditmar, it was destroyed by fire, along with a 
portion of the town. 

Dating from the eleventh century, the history of the cathe- 
dral and of the other sanctuaries of Hildesheim is the same as 
that of the bishops, and especially of St. Bernward. This bish- 
opric was given to him in 898 A. D., under the reign of Otto 
III., whose preceptor he had been. The Empress Theophanie, 
wife of Otto II., had brought with her from Byzance, her 
native country, a number of workers in metals (gold and silver), 
as well as artists in mosaics and oils. Introduced to the court 
of this sovereign, Bernward was able to develop his natural 
taste for the arts and to initiate himself in the matter of tech- 
nique. The models which he saw increased his disposition in 
this direction, so that later he established an art school at 
Hildesheim. Several of the subjects from his chiset are still 
preserved, some in the treasury of the cathedral, others in the 
church of St. Madeline. Notable among these are, a silver 
cross ornamented with 250 pearls and precious stones, a crucifix 
of somewhat primitive design, two silver chandeliers, some 
reliquaries, and a chalice, the interior of which represents the 
scene of the Supper, the foot being adorned with subjects en- 
riched with gems, among these subjects being the Three Graces, 
nude, inserted " without malice " by the saintly bishop among 
the religious subjects.. He had probably acquired this chalice 
at Rome, during the visit which he made there in looi with the 
Emperor Otto III. The sight of the Trajan Column inspired 
him, doubtless, with the idea of erecting at Hildesheim a similar 
column in bronze to the glory of Christ. This column, recov- 
ered in 1810, was at first erected in the cathedral close, but 
later it was removed to the sacristy to make room for a statue 
of St. Bernward. 

Twelve feet in height, formed by a band of metal rolled 
eight times from right to left, and representing twenty- eight 
scenes from the life of Christ, from his birth to his entry into 
Jerusalem, this column is of a sculpture superior to that of the 
famous doors of bronze with which St. Bernward decorated the 
cathedral. These doors are sixteen feet in height and seven in 



8o HILDESHEIM, [Oct., 

width, and are divided into sixteen panels, containing as many 
episodes from the Bible. Those of the left leaf are taken from 
Genesis, while those of the right are borrowed from the Gos- 
pels. These bas-reliefs are of a clumsy and yet ingenious 
workmanship, sadly lacking in perspective but revealing quali- 
ties as natural and true to life as possible. To St« Bernward 
is also attributed the conception of the large bronze lustre, in 
the form of a crown, which hangs in the cathedral, although 
the execution of it is posterior to his time. In a series of 
metallic niches the apostles and prophets are here represented 
as supports of the spiritual life. 

St. Bernward also encouraged works of construction. The 
most beautiful monument built under his episcopate was the 
church of St. Michael, with its crypt. The original plan of 
this church, the greater portion of which has been destroyed, 
is still in possession of the town. It shows the church to have 
been a basilica with three naves, double transepts, choirs facing 
east and west, and six belfries, four of which were surmounted 
by towers symmetrical in form. These towers are no longer in 
existence, the church, since the eleventh century, having been 
several times modified and restored. Of the primitive con- 
struction there remains to-day no more than the pulpit above 
the altar, this pulpit having a balustrade ornamented with fig- 
ures. In the following century the wainscoting of the plat- 
form was decorated by a monk of the name of Rathmann, an 
abb^ of the cloister of St. Michael adjoining the church, and 
built by St. Betnward. The paintings represent the Tree of 
Jesse, the prophets, and Jesus, the Saviour of the world. In 
the crypt of the church is the tomb of St. Bernward. 

It was also St. Bernward who had the lower town adjacent 
to the river surrounded by a wall. The upper town, comprising 
the cathedral, the palace of the bishop, and the adjoining 
houses, were already protected by an enclosure. At this period 
the diocese was very important; bounded by those of Hilde- 
sheim on the east, by Minden on the west, by Verden on the 
north, and by Mayence on the south, it comprised no less than 
two hundred and seventy- one villages. 

The successor of St. Bernward, Bishop Godehard, an abbot 

of a Bavarian monastery, called by the Emperor Henry to the 

"^e of Hildesheim, built the churches of St. Bartholomew and 

Andr6 (the second of which alone remains), added an 



I904-] THE Capital of the Prince-Bishops. 8i 

entrance to the cathedral, and built there a gallery with colon- 
nade and high towers. Dying in 1037, he was buried in the 
crypt. The cathedral was rebuilt under Bishop Hezilo (1054- 
1079), who bequeathed a new nave to the ancient choir of the 
church contemporary with Altfried, and covered the roof with 
copper. Barring the modifications which were introduced in the 
sixteenth century, and especially in the eighteenth century, in 
the style and interior decoration, the church is the same to- 
day as it was originally planned. In the twelfth century a 
cloister was added to the cathedral with a double row of 
arcades, enclosing the cemetery of St. Ann contiguous to the 
arch and transept, and which contains two chapels of a pos- 
terior date. While this cloister is overgrown with ivy, the 
exterior wall of the arch is invaded by a thick growth of vege- 
tation, a foot in depth, from a rosebush. Growing out of the 
ground in the midst of the tombs of the bishops, its branches 
reach to the roof, thirty- five feet above. A legend makes it 
contemporary with Louis the Debonnaire, and asserts that the 
tree on which his chaplain had forgotten the relics was changed 
into a rosebush, although the ancient manuscripts all speak of 
an ash. The question has often been gravely discussed, as has 
also the antiquity of the rosebush at Hildesheim. A congress 
of botanists has lately decided that the tree cannot be more 
than three hundred years old. 

The cathedral contains other objects of curiosity ; first, a 
little column placed in front of the entrance to the choir and 
often mistaken for the pedestal of Irminsul, an idol of the 
ancient Saxons; a magnificent stone gallery of the sixteenth 
century, representing the scenes of the Passion, and, at the 
entrance to the church, fonts of the twelfth century and panels 
of sculptured wood — all very remarkable. The treasury, be- 
sides the souvenirs of St. Bernward, also contains some 
specimens of the goldsmith's art; among others a bishop's 
crosier of the fifteenth century, very finely executed. 

At the end of the town, near the fortifications, now con- 
verted into promenades, is the church of St. Godehard, built 
in the twelfth century, in the Romish style, by Bishop Bern- 
ward, and finished by his successor, Adelog. 

Not far from here stands the ancient church of St. Paul, 
now transformed into a restaurant, and, further to the west, 
the ancient ponvent of the Carmelites, St. Martin's, now a 

VOL. LXXX.^6 



82 HiLDESHEIM, [Oct., 

museum. A portion of the church of St. Andi^ has also been 
similarly desecrated. It contains some sculptured woods, 
mouldings of ancient sculpture, and plans and shvfches of old 
houses. The other portion is assigned to Protestant worship, 
the austertt)' of which must contrast oddly with the rococo 
ornamentation of this Gothic pile. 

The dozen or more churches which still exist, the nutner- 
ous convents whose battlements are still preserved, all attest 
that Hildesheim, under the government of the prince -bishops, 
must have been essentially an ecclesiastical city. So well has 
she preserved this character that, even at this distant date, she 
seems to know no other sound than that of her bells t 

As the visitor strolls through the quiet and deserted streets 
of Hildesheim, down the shady walks that have replaced the 
fortifications, from the Gagen Thor to the Goschen-Thor, as 
he looks around him on the smiling landscape, to the distant 
and verdant horizon, where the red-tiled roofs of houses appear 
like dabs of paint upon the trees ; as he saunters by the 
ancient dikes that have now become ornamental pieces of water 
in the public gardens, in which the swans swim ; as he passes 
along the banks of the Innerste, a river whose waters seem to 

know no other duty than that of turr' " --•"- <--- ->-- 

arms of which an islet, formed from a 
serves for a cemetery where the dea 
he might easily imigine that this little 
always enjoyed the peace of a provinc 
religious contentment. But, alas! few 1 
have had destinies as agitated and as tu 

Strifes of the communal council i 
the prince-bishops; quarrels between th 
and, in the sixteenth and seventeenth 
sions on the introduction of the Refoin 
part the story of Hildesheim. The his 
(that of the Reformation) bears witr 
which the evangelical worship was proi 

The new religion endeavored by 

1530) to insinuate itself at Hildesheii 

driven away. Eleven years went by be 

ing could establish itself there. Durin] 

— ^ the inhabitants, won over to the do 

v the ancient council; its succes^t 



1904.] THE Capital of the Prince-Bishops. 83 

ing of the new faith by the teachers sent from the neighboring 
towns ; the churches were closed, the use of the bells pro- 
hibited. In 1543 Hildesheim even entered into the Leagiie of 
Smalcald, formed by the Reformed princes and by the cities 
adherent to their cause, to resist the authority of the Emperor 
Charles V. The Landgrave Philippe of Hesse was proclaimed 
protector of the town. 

And now, from being the oppressed, the ministers of the 
new religrion became the oppressors. In 1542 the convents for 
men were closed, the ornaments taken from the altars, the 
monks required to abjure the Catholic Faith, to lay aside their 
religious vestments, and to recognize the authority of the 
council. The cloisters were sequestered ; that of the Domini- 
cans (St. Paul) was closed by municipal authority, and a 
printing establishment installed therein. It was the same with 
the cloister of the Carmelites, where a mill worked by an ass 
was installed. In 1546 even the convent of the Chartreux 
was demolished, with the exception of the brasiery. The con- 
vents for women were also menaced, the council desiring to 
appropriate the rights of the monks to manage their own 
affairs. 

The churches, in their turn, underwent the same outrages 
at the hands of the " converted." At St. Godehard the orna- 
ments and the stalls of the choir were broken ; at St. Michael's, 
the shrine of St. Bernward (a piece of workmanship in gold 
and silver, executed in the fourteenth century by a goldsmith 
named Galle) was forced, the relics placed on the altar, the 
gold, the silver, and the precious stones taken to the Rath- 
baus. It was the same with the church of St. John. The 
cathedral was further maltreated ; the council tolerated the 
destruction and the degradation of the altars, the dispersion of 
the relics. Despoiled of its ornaments, St. George, St. James, 
and St. Lambert's were assigned to Protestant worship. The 
cathedral itself was closed. 

Bishop Valentine had tried to resist the introduction of the 
Reformed faith in his see. Sterile 'efforts, vain appeals to the 
emperor, vain injunctions to the city to obey the episcopal 
authority I For some, years longer the affairs of the empire 
prevented Charles V. from taking more personally under his 
own care the cause of the Catholics. When, having resolved 
to subdue by force the league of the Reformed princes, he 



84 HILDESHEIM. [Oct, 

defeated their troops at the battle of Muhlbcrg, on April 14, 
15479 executed their leader, the Elector John Frederick of 
Saxony, and took prisoner the Landgrave Philippe of Hesse, 
the citizens of Hildesheim, secretly exulting in the defeat of 
their co-religionists, pretended to be constrained by force. 
The council believed it wiser to enter into negotiations with 
the victor, and emissaries were accordingly despatched to the 
emperor. Charles V. received them with favor; a capitulation 
was signed, by which the town agreed to pay a war indemnity 
of 26,000 florins, and to restore to the bishop and clergy the 
possession of their ancient authority. The cathedral was 
reopened to Catholic worship, the goods and chattels of the 
convents were returned to their owners. Some years later 
freedom of worship, accorded by the treaty of Augsburg, put 
an end to confessional divisions. 

During the last century Hildesheim has had destinies no 
less changeful. Secularized, the capital of the prince- bishops 
was ceded to Prussia, 1802. After the disasters of i8c6 it 
became, on account of its geographical position, a province of 
France. Count Daru, in the name of the emperor, took pos* 
session of the principalities of Hildesheim and Halberstadt. 
On August 29, 1807, after the battle of Tilsit, the king of 
Prussia released the inhabitants from their oath of fidelity, and 
the town was incorporated into the kingdom of Westphalia, 
created for the benefit of Jerome, brother of Napoleon. Fol- 
lowing the reverses to France, succeeding the battle of Leip- 
zig. October 30, 181 3, the allies quarrelled over it in their 
turn. The Congress of Vienna awarded it to Hanover. The 
absorption of this kingdom by Prussia in 1866 made it once 
more a Prussian town — this time, doubtless, definitely. 



1904*] AN EGYPTIAN CONVENT. 85 




AN EGYPTIAN CONVENT. 

BY E. M. D. 

|HERE exists among the Copts an ancient tradi- 
tion, found also in certain early writers,* stating 
that during the period of Our Lady's residence 
in Egypt a number of Jewish maidens, attracted 
doubtless by the Divine Mother's winning 
modesty and virtue, quitted their homes in order to dwell 
within the neighborhood of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The 
tradition furthermore asserts that when the Holy Family 
departed out of Egypt these pious women formed themselves 
into a community and retired to dwell at Babylon, an ancient 
city built 625 years before Christ, and which, according to 
John of Nikius, a writer of the seventh century, was built by 
Nabuchodonosor, who, having entered Egypt by reason of a 
revolt on the part of the Jews against him, conquered the 
country and called the fortress and the city by the name of 
his own town, Babylon. 

About the year 117 A. D. Trajan erected a new fortress 
close to the site of the one just mentioned. The wall of this 
later building still exists, and encloses the remains of the 
Christian and Jewish town which is all that is left of Babylon 
now. 

There is no doubt that long before the birth of our Saviour 
a Jewish colony existed in this neighborhood, and the greater 
number having become Christians at an early date, their syna- 
gogue, which is said to contain the tomb of the prophet 
Jeremias, was turned into a Coptic church. Later on the Jews 
had an opportunity of buying back this place, which they have 
ever held in extreme veneration. Visitors to Old Cairo are 
still shown, in the body of the modern synagogue, a curious 
old tomb wherein are said to rest the bones of the great Jew- 
ish prophet. 

On reaching Old Cairo our guide led us through a labyrinth 

* Quartzimus Elucidatio Terra Sancta, vol. i. page 48,. quoting Tostat of Avila. 



n 



86 AN EGYPTIAN CONVENT, [Oct., 

of obscure and ruinous narrow streets until we reached the 
entrance to a small court, where were seated on the ground a 
number of women dressed in black and occupied in sewing 
and grinding coffee in large bronze mortars such as are used 
by the Arabs. 

The superioress at once advanced to greet us, covering her 
mouth in Mussulman fashion on seeing our guide in the back- 
ground. She made no difficulty as to our admittance. We 
were invited to sit down, offered cigarettes, and all our questions 
answered with amiable readiness to impart information. " Our 
convent,'' said the superioress, " exists fifteen centuries. It 
was built by a certain Constantine for his daughter Alexandra, 
who wished to retire from the world. Our number is at pres- 
ent only twenty. Virgins and widows are admitted whatever 
be their age. It is the patriarch who receives subjects, and it 
is he who appoints the superioress. We sleep in cells ; at mid- 
night the bell awakens us, and we make three hundred and 
fifty or five hundred prostrations according to the day of the 
week. Each religious says morning prayers in the solitude of 
her cell. Three times a week, on Wednesdays, Fridays, and 
Sundays, we hear Mass in our chapel. Evening prayer is 
also always recited there, and we allow poor invalids who live 
near to assist thereat. The meals take place in common. We 
are allowed to eat meat twice a day except on fast days. The 
rule permits smoking, but the convent does not provide 
tobacco. A postulant is not required to bring a dowry to the 
convent, the revenues of the community suffice for our support. 
^ye are not bound to wear a religious habit, but merely dress 
like poor working- women in memory of Our Lady, who once 
dwelt as a humble daughter of the people in our country." 

We thanked the superioress for her kindness in receiving 
us, and asked leave to visit the chapel. It was clean and suf- 
ficiently furnished with carpets, hangings, and old pictures. 
Here, as in all the Coptic churches we visited during our stay 
in Egypt, we were impressed by the total absence of all 
ghastly pictures of martyrdom and torture, which in our 
opinion disfigure the walls of so many churches in Europe. 
No country suffered more terrible persecution than Egypt, but 
it is not consistent with the traditional gentle nature of the 
Egyptians to dwell on scenes of suffering and bloodshed. A 



I904-] AN Egyptian Convent. 87 

Coptic priest to whom I once made the remark that the scenes 
which took place in the days of early persecution in Egypt 
are never displayed on the canvas cf painters, replied to me 
as follows : " The sacrifice of our God on the Cross was so 
tremendous, we adore and recognize it with such sacred fear 
and astonishment, that any martyrdom and sacrifice offered by 
the creature seem but feeble in comparison to the infinite 
sufferings of Christ." 

Before taking leave of the superioress wc asked permission 
to photograph her, together with her two principal companions. 
The result afforded a rather ludicrous picture of these, poor 
women as they stood, half curious, half abashed, in front of the 
kodak. 

We pressed an alms into the hand of the superioress, will- 
ingly given for the sake of all she represents in the history of 
the world. It is impossible to look at these Copts without 
profound interest. There is something pathetic in the way 
they still speak of their church as " the Nation." The nuns 
we visited appear to live together in peace in their humble 
dwelling; the neighbors take no interest in their doings, and 
many are even unaware of their existence. The life they lead 
can be termed neither active nor contemplative. There is a total 
absence of all the works of zeal, and charity to which so many 
orders and religious congregations devote themselves in the 
Catholic Church. It would even be difficult to say how the 
nuns spend the long hours. An Oriental woman does not feel 
the need of constant occupation ; her little household duties 
done, she sits placidly in the sun with idle hands. As to con- 
templative life in a Coptic convent, how can it flourish in a 
community deprived of frequent Communion and the presence 
of the Blessed Sacrament? These nuns never hear a sermon 
nor read a spiritual book. Their priests would not know how 
to preach, and Coptic women can rarely read. Moreover, by 
schism they are a branch severed from the trunk which alone 
gives health and vigor. 

A number of most interesting Coptic churches are situated 
in the vicinity of the convent we have described. A few 
priests, their families and servants, are to be seen wandering 
like ghosts among these once venerable sanctuaries where now 
reigns the silence of death. Here we behold the Rome of the 



88 OUT OF THE MOUTH OF INFANTS. [Oct,, 

Coptic schismatics ; but a Rome solitary and sad like a de- 
serted battlefield ; Christian Rome devastated, ruined ; her 
master the Patriarch without power to save. Her children 
abandon her, strangers for the most part ignore her existence, 
but the Hand of God arrests the spoilers who are ready to 
complete the work of destruction. Let us hope and pray fer- 
vently that ere long our Divine Lord will grant his grace to 
the Coptic race, and, by renewing their life, enable them to 
rejoice once more in him. Dens, Tu conversus vivificabis nos^ et 
plebs tua Icstabitur in Te (Ps. Ixxxiv, 7). 




OUT OF THE MOUTH OF INFANTS. 

BY FRANCIS P. DONNELLY, S.J. 

|HEN some great wonder meets an infant's eyes 
Ere yet his growing powers are unbound 
From slowly loosening fetters, then full round 
Open his eyelids in alarmed surprise ; 
And struggling with his feebleness he tries 
To give this wondrous truth thus newly found 
Full utterance in one word, one crowded sound, 
Scarce different from his first unmeaning cries. 
We struggle, too, O God, with thoughts of Thee 

To give them tongue, to bring within our reach 
Tne few, faint rays flashed from Thy mystery. 

In helpless volumes darkly mirroring each. 
Our infant minds of Thy infinity 

Can only babble in weak human speech. 



1904.] BOND OR Free? 89 




BOND OR FREE? 

BY GEORGINA PELL CURTIS. 

ALF way up the bare, sandy road that ran in a 
straight line across the. plain, and then was lost 
to view in the distant hills, stood a stone farm- 
house, the only one in sight for many miles. 
The afternoon sun had just emerged from behind 
a bank of clouds when a young girl came to the door of the 
house and, shading her face with one hand, looked out across 
the broad plain below. The elevation on which the house and 
surrounding land stood was crossed by a small stream which 
flowed down from the mountains, and which in the spring, 
after the melting of the winter snows, became three times its 
usual size. It furnished irrigation for the farm lands, and 
made the task of cultivating them comparatively easy. 

There were men at work in the fields, but the young girl 
who stood so motionless in the doorway had been for five 
years sole owner of the farm, or ranch, as it was usually called, 
her only companion an elderly woman who had come out to 
Colorado with her mother many years ago, and who, although 
bent with age, still worked as well as any man on the farm, 
milking, churning, and attending to the dairy. 

The rough ranchmen and cowboys of that region knew and 
respected Maggie's ability, and her sturdy,- fearless independence. 
The farm had prospered since her father's death had left 
Maggie, at nineteen, in sole possession, and the young girl was 
even well to do. 

As she stood in the doorway this June evening, the red 
light of the setting sun shining on her dark hair, and tinting 
her shapely arms and hands, she was a striking figure. 

"Sam is late this afternoon," she said, half aloud, scanning 
the plain in vain for one of her men, who that morning had 
started to drive some fifteen miles to the nearest town. 

There was a sound of approaching footsteps, and the girl 
came down the steps of the veranda. Could it be Sam coming 
'roip the direction of the stables? 



90 BOND OR Free? [Oct., 

A figure emerged from around the comer of some bushes, 
and stood in the sunlight in front of the open farm-house door. 

" Jim ! " 

'' Maggie ! " 

For a second neither moved ; then the woman dropped the 
arm that bad been shading her eyes, and at the same time the 
man advanced, their hands met, and a pair of careless blue 
eyes looked into the girl's sta:tled dark ones. To Maggie it 
seemed as if the past six years had been blotted out, and she 
was a young girl again standing on that very spot, saying 
farewell to Jim. She had loved him, poor Maggie ; but at that 
time her father was very ill, the farm was paying badly, and 
to leave home under such conditions was impossible. Jim had 
been impatient of delay, and finding he could not move her, 
had departed for Utah, where he had a brother who had 
married and settled near Salt Lake City. And now Jim 
stood before her with the same straight, handsome figure, and 
the same sunny head that Maggie had known and loved of 
yore. 

Older now, perhaps, more compactly built; but the same 
laughing, light-hearted Jim. Had he come back for her? 

" Tell me of yourself, Jim," said Maggie, after the first 
surprised greetings were over. Her eyes were shining like 
stars; and nothing loath the man followed her up to the broad, 
comfortable veranda, and seating himself, poured forth an 
account of the last six years: his woric with his brother, his 
success, all the homely little details a woman loves to hear. 
On one subject he was silent; he said nothing of their past 
relations to each other, or whether he had come back now to 
claim her, and she, brave soul, put the thought aside for the 
time being. 

Jim explained he was camping a few miles away with some 
friends who would expect him back at night ; but he would 
come over as often as possible to see Maggie. They were 
prospecting, he said, and might have to stay in that neighbor- 
hood two or three months. 

'' Bring them here," said Maggie hospitably ; but although 

Jim himself came constantly, it was always alone, and by and 

by Maggie ceased to wish or care for the sight of any one 

Uh him. It was enough that Jim came nearly every day, 

iging with him his sunny smile, his gay manner^ asdi 



1904.] Bond or Free? 91 

love that it was soon plain he felt for her — Maggie. The men 
on the ranch saw and heeded. There would be a master there 
soon, they thought. 

It was two months later, and nearing harvest- time. The 
work in the fields was so absorbing that Maggie and Jim had 
joined the hands, and worked with a will. The man seemed 
possessed of a tireless energy, and Maggie was too happy and 
too absorbed in her work to notice that now and then a cloud 
overshadowed her lover's usually sunny, careless face. 

It was one morning when they had paused in their work 
to sit down in the shade of a large corn stack that Jim asked 
her if she would marry him. Maggie was prepared for 
that; but not for her lover's request that she should sell the 
farm and go somewhere in the vicinity of Salt Lake City with him. 

"Can't we stay here, Jim?" she said. "The farm is pay- 
ing well, and will make a living for us both." 

" Impossible," he answered. " I have had work in Salt 
Lake City for five years, and Will depends on me» It was 
only because he sent me prospecting in this region that I was 
able to come, and in another month I must go back." 

" Suppose," said Maggie, " that instead of my selling out, 
you sell out. This has been home to me, Jim, since I was born. 
I know nothing of cities or their ways ; but it seems to me 
we could never have such a place of our own there as this 
would be." 

She arose as she spoke and looked around — passionate love 
in her eyes. Love for the man near her, love for the wide sweep 
of country, the distant mountains, the air and sun and sky, 
that seemed all her own. 

" I wish I could do as you want, Maggie," he said ; " but 
I cannot, my girl, I cannot. I am bound hand and foot, and 
only in Salt Lake, or nearer to it than here, can we live 
together." 

His tone was strange, the glance he gave her one of long- 
ing and yet regret. Her love for him was too pure, her thought 
of evil too remote, for her to suspect anything. She saw that 
one of them must yield ; and that that one must be she. 

" I will go with you, Jim," she said simply ; " but I will 
not sell the farm. Tom Knight, my overseer, can run it for 
tne, and some day we may want to come back." 



92 Bond or Free? [Oct., 

He smiled, recognizing the feminine ingenuity of her deci- 
sion. She would go with him — yes ; but she could not alto* 
gether give up her own way. 

"Knight will do well enough," he answered. "He seems 
trusty and true, and can report to us once or twice a year." 

" He has been with us since before I was born," she said. 
"He is silent and taciturn, but with a heart of gold, poor 
Tom; and he is absolutely honest and fair in his dealings. I 
will have a talk with him to-night " ; which she did. Rugged 
Tom, tanned and lined by years of hard work, though he was 
only a little over forty, listened to her in silence, at the end 
only asking, in a voice that seemed even and quiet, how soon 
she was to leave them. 

" In a month," answered Maggie. " I trust everything to 
you, Tom, and perhaps before long we can come back and live 
here." 

"Silent Knight," as the men called him, answered nothing; 
but once outside in the darkness he uttered a groan that 
seemed wrung from him. 

" God forgive me for what I suspect," he said ; " but that 
camp down by the canyon, and the children I Would she go 
with him if she knew? — and I promised her father to protect 
her — his little Maggie.". 

The man struck his hands together, and shook his fist in 
the direction of the plains. 

" At least he cannot take her without first telling her all," 
he said ; " and then God Almighty help her I " 

Two days later, and Maggie was sitting early one afternoon 
alone on her veranda. Jim had told her not to expect him 
until the following day, as he must attend to some prospecting 
in the interior of the canyon that was about five miles from 
the ranch. 

The sky overhead was blue, the air was clear and bell- 
like ; but Maggie seemed restless and out of harmony with her 
surroundings. 

" What ails me ? " she said, giving herself a little shake. 

" I will saddle Skyrocket," she thought, " and ride down to 
the canyon, where I may find Jim. It will be a surprise for 
him, and we can have a little talk before nightfall." 

She went to the barn end led out Skyrocket, her own par- 



1904.] Bond ok Free? 93 

ticular horse and special pride. Quickly she placed the saddle 
on his back, fastening the straps, the while the horse arched 
his beautiful black head. His glossy coat shone smooth as 
satin, bearing witness to the care the girl bestowed on him. 
Ten minutes later she mounted on his back after telling 
Rebecca, her aged companion, where she was going. 

'*Dja*t expect me home till nearly dark, Becky," she 
said, *' and have supper ready. I know I '11 be hungry." 

Maggie was a superb horse-woman, and Skyrocket's name 
was not a misfit, so they cantered rapidly over the plains, and 
presently the stupendous rocks of the canyon, visible from her 
ranch, l6omed near them, and the five miles were nearly 
traversed. 

Maggie turned the corner of a high, moss-covered boulder 
surmounted by some scraggy fir- trees, and as she did so Sky- 
rocket swerved violently, almost unseating her. 

Reining in the horse, and patting his neck to quiet him, 
the young girl looked ahead, and saw, standing in the middle 
of the road, waving a flag, a very little boy, happily indifTer- 
ent to the danger he had escaped. 

Who could the child belong to? There was no farm or 
settlement near by, not even a plainsman's hut. Maggie \ias 
lost in wonder ; but with her, uncertainty meant action. 
Springing from her horse she tied him to a tree, and advanc- 
ing, knelt down by the child. 

" What is your name, dear ? " she said, '' and where do you 
come from ? " 

He was a practical person^ this boy of three years; and he 
answered straight. 

"My name ith Jim," he said, ''and I tum from Thalt 
Lake." 

'' Jim ! " said Maggie in innocent wonder ; '' but what are 
you doing here — where 's your mother?" 

As if in answer to her question, the bushes that grew 
between the rocks parted, and a woman stepped forth carrying 
a baby, the while a chubby girl of five clung to her skirts. 
Something seemed to strike Maggie's heart with a cold chill. 
If the child had been comedy, this woman was tragedy. Dark, 
sombre eyes looked out from a small w^hite face; the mouth 
was drawn and thin, while the slight, worn frame, in a dark 
calico gown, spoke better than words could do of care and toil. 



94 BOND OR FREE? [Oct., 

The woman advanced. ''You are Miss Owen?" she said. 

''Yes/' answered Maggie. That she was recognized and 
called by her name caused her no surprise. She was known 
to every one within twenty miles of her ranch. But who 
could the woman herself be? 

The dark eyes before her, with their haunted, appealing 
look, took on an almost agonized expression. She glanced 
half fearfully over her shoulder, then laid a hand on Maggie's 
arm, and with gentle insistence drew the young girl after 
her until they were sheltered under a heavy growth of trees 
and shrubs. The two elder children had run away, and, plac- 
ing her sleeping infant on the ground, the woman extended 
her hands in front of her as if she would cast off every burden 
before she could speak. 

" What is the matter ? " said Maggie, who had divined that 
here was trouble. "You are in sorrow; cannot I help you?" 

The irank sweetness of her face, its glowing health and 
beauty, seemed to nerve the sad eyed woman; but all the light 
went out of Maggie's face as, bending forward and laying an 
almost appealing hand on her arm, the woman said: 

** Miss Owen, I am Jim Sutliffe's wife ! " 

" Yes," she continued, as Maggie did not speak, " I have 
been his wife six years. These are his children, and he is a 
Mormon. He has kept us down here in the canyon while he 
has been courting you. But it is only the position of second 
wife that he can offer you." 

" And you are a Mormon, too ? " said Maggie. Pride had 
come to her aid and she had found her voice. 

" Oh ! my God, no," said the woman passionately. " It 
was not as a Mormon that Jim married me. I am his only 
lawful wife, and if he marries other wives I shall take my 
children and leave him." 

In her voice was all the intensity of outraged womanhood, 
sure of its God-given rights. 

The dark eyes that Maggie turned on the woman were 
drawn and strained, and she looked years older than when she 
rode away from her ranch only two short hours ago. 

"Do not be afraid," she said, and there was a quiver in 
her proud, sweet voice. " Do not be afraid. I will never 
marry Jim now. You and your children are safe as far as I 
— — cerned." 



1904.] Bond or free t 95 

"May God bless you, Miss Owen!" the other said. ''I 
was sure you did not know." 

Maggie mounted her horse and turned its face homeward. 
She scarcely noticed the children who stood watching the 
handsome lady in childish awe. Afterward she dimly recalled 
that the girl was like Jim ; but the boy was his mother all 
over, with the same haunting eyes. Quickly she cantered 
northward. If Skyrocket felt that his mistress sat her horse 
more heavily than usual, he gave no sign. Twilight descended 
and deepened; but still the girl rode on. She scarcely guided 
her horse, and took no heed of the magnificent sunset that or- 
dinarily would have called forth her passionate admiration. 
Her hands lay loose on the bridle ; and her dark head, that 
had never yet bent for fear, was now bowed with shame. Ob, 
the ignominy of it ! And it was Jim, sunny, careless Jim, 
whom she had loved so faithfully and truly, who had offered 
this outrage to her purity and honor ! 

"I could not help it, Maggie; I loved you." 

The girl threw back her head in superb scorn. 

"What is love of your kind?" she cried. **It is unworthy 
of the name. To have married, Jim, that was as it pleased 
you. You were not bound to me after you left here six years 
ago. But to come here as a Mormon, to deceive me, to ask 
me to marry you, not even telling me the conditions — oh! for 
shame» for shame ! " 

" I meant to tell you," he said. 

"When?" she asked. ** The proper time to tell me was 
in the beginning. You know what my answer would have 
been. But you meant to wait until the last moment ; to let me 
make all preparations, even to sell my ranch, if I would have 
done so — and all this time you had your lawful wife and her 
children not five miles from me ! " 

" Listen to me, Maggie," he said doggedly. ** You are 
talking of this matter from your point of view ; but, according 
to our Mormon belief, I have done no wrong." 

"Jim," she answered, "you have shown clearly that in 
your inmost heart you knew you were wrong, else you would 
not have kept me in ignorance of your Mormonism, leaving 
me to find it out by accident; you would not have proposed 
to me in the supposed role of a single man." 



96 BOND OR FREE? [Oct., 

" I was only deferring to your scruples/' he answered, 
''until a fitting time arrived when I could overcome them." 

The girl took a step forward, and then paused. 

"You will never overcome them, Jim," she said; "nor will 
you ever silence the inward doubt that I know you feel. Do 
not go back to Salt Lake. Take your wife and the children 
and go far from Utah. Live a clean and honest life." 

She arose as she spoke from her seat on a ledge of one of 
the hills, overlooking the ranch. 

" I must go now, Jim," she said, " and so must you. I 
met you here, so we could talk it out quietly ; but there is no 
more to be said between us. Our paths henceforth lie apart." 

She sprang down the rocks as she spoke, and turned up 
the road. She had not offered her hand to him, nor did she 
look back. The man stood a moment gazing after her. Be- 
cause of pride and selfishness he had lost Maggie six years 
ago, and from the consequences of our actions there is no 
escape. He had thought to win her a second time in the one 
way open to him, but the nobility of the girl's nature had 
triumphed over her passionate love. 

The man untied his horse, which had been fastened to a 
tree, and vaulting into the saddle, commenced galloping down 
the road. He would start back for Salt Lake City that very 
day. Perhaps if he could put miles between himself and Mag-- 
gie he would forget his shame. 

That night there was a furious storm. The thunder rolled 
down the mountain, and the lightning flashed wildly. It was 
late in the season for such a severe disturbance, but not 
wholly unusual. 

Maggie, alone in her room, could not sleep. A dozen times 
she went to the window and looked out, trying to see during 
the flashes of light if anything was visible on the road that 
wound up the mountain. 

Could Jim be there, so high up and unsheltered ? In her 
restlessness and anxiety the girl knelt and prayed. 

The morning broke with high winds and dazzling suns|)ine. 
Maggie was up early, and saddling Skyrocket was soon gal- 
loping up the mountain. Some instinct, she knew not what, 
urged her on. Everywhere she saw traces of the wind and 
lightning; large trees had been struck, and lay across her 



1904.] BQNDVRfREEfr. \ $7; 

path; and here and there huge stone boulders had been dis- 
lodged, and had come crashing down the mountain side. Even ^ 
the girl, used to Western storms, was appalled. It was some 
six miles up the mountain, at a point where the road begins 
to descend into the valley on the other side, that her search 
came to an end. 

A sound of crying reached her ears as she drew near. 
Again she saw the figure of little Jim on the road — the soli- 
tary living soul beside herself in that vast region. 

"They ith all athleep," said little Jim between his sobs. 
"Me wanth me mudder to wake up and give me thum break- 
futh." 

The girl, with a set face, walked on a few yards till she 
reached the spot where the lightning had, done its work. The 
canvas- covered wagon toiling up the road in the storm had 
met instant destruction. By what miracle the child had 
escaped, Maggie never knew. Both the horses, as well as the 
other occupants of the wagon, had been killed by the electric 
current, and the wagon itself was a wreck. 

The girl, a devout Catholic, knelt and prayed for the souls 
*so suddenly hurled into eternity ; then the child demanded 
and claimed all her attention. She gathered the sobbing little 
creature in her arms, with words of tenderness and love. Lit- 
tle Jim nestled close to her. Some instinct told him that if 
he had lost one mother here was another whose devotion would 
never fail him. 

Maggie arose, and with one backward, shuddering look, she 
placed the child on the saddle before her and started for 
home. Knight, with a dozen men from the ranch, was sent 
up the mountain, and by night Jim, his wife, and the two 
children had been given decent burial. 

It was little Jim who brought the first comfort and healing 
to Maggie's heart ; but as time passed other and deeper joys 
were hers. 

A year rolled by until one evening, when she sat in the 
gathering twilight after the day's work was done, looking out 
on the great purple mountains, and over the wide plains, while 
near her was a strong, honest, rugged face — the very antithe- 
sis to poor Jim — that beamed now on her, and now on the 
child; for "Silent Knight" had reached out beyond the dark- 
ness, and finding his own happiness, had made Maggie's also. 

▼OL. LXXX. — 7 



IN THE STEK OF FATHER ANDR&. (Oct., 

IN THE STEPS OF FATHER ANDRE. 

BY D. B. MARTIN. 

i USSUAMIGOUNG sleeps in sunshine. Softly 
our yacht steals toward the shore, urged on by 
a wandering breeze that has rounded the screen 
of Long Tail Point, a narrow, sandy spit of 
land that stretches a slender green finger of 
waving marsh grass for a mile's length to the south-eastward, 
and makes this corner of Green Bay a sheltered harbor. 

The anchor rattles sharply, the gliding motion of the yscht 
ceases, and we put off in small boats for shore, pushing through 
ranks of bullrushes. So still it is, so void the landscape seems 
of human life and action, that except for a fisherman's cot- 
tage, the great reels with their burden of nets hanging black 
against the pale sky, and the distant outlines of Green Bay 
City, one might think it a day of long ago, when Father Louis 
Andre established a mission here in what was then the Indian 
village, Oussuamigoung. 

Green Biy, Wisconsin, is rich in history and tradition, but 
no page in its fascinating story is more varied and remarka- 
ble than the religious movement instituted by the Jesuits in 
the seventeenth century for the conversion of the Indians 
inhabiting the Great Lakes region. As time elapses that move- 
ment stands out more and more vividly, as a systematic effort 
toward civilization, and the salvation of souls — an effort of 
courageous zeal and willing service, in what the priests recog- 
nized as their high duty. 

A very large Algonquin population 

lying along the Fox-Wiscoasin waterwaj 

to the southward ; and along the shores 

the Green Bay of modern times — were 

permanent, occupied by 6sher folk belong 

All were in a semi-savage state, but 1 

the head of the " great bay " were dee 

-e and idolatry. They worshipped r 

', and their daily lives, given to 



I904-] In the Steps of Father andrjS. 99 

chase or preparations for war, were shaped according to dreams 
resulting from long days of fasting. They were cannibals, 
feasting on the bodies of murdered captives taken in battle; 
and among these abnormally savage creatures came Father 
Claude AUouez, bearing the standard of the cross^ on the seo* 
ond day of December, 1669. 

The mission of St. Francis Xavier, established by Allouez 
in the winter of 1671-72, at the Rapides des Peres, speedily 
became an important centre for mission work in the North- 
west. The priest was efficient as an organizer, and wide 
experience had taught him right methods in controlling the 
childish but wily savage. More help was urgently required, 
however, and precisely the right person came to Father Allouez's 
assistance when, in December, 1671, Father Louis Andr^ 
joined the mission 

The priests agreed to divide the field, Allouez to pass 
through the river villages to the prairie- dwellers, the Miamis 
and Illinois, while Andre went to those Indians living on the 
bay shore, the nomadic fisher population, who built their reed x 

lodges close to the water's edge, and speared through holes 
in the ice the great sturgeon and muskelonge, or set nets for 
smaller fry. 

Tather Andr^ was at this time forty- one years of age, a 
native of southern France, strong of body and intellect, and 
with decided views as to the best way of reaching the savage 
conscience. His recital of daily work, sent to his superior in 
Paris, is most picturesque in the telling, and through its pages 
we see this Western country as in a picture: the Indian lodges 
clustered at intervals along the shore, the stretches of corn- 
field bounding them on either side, heaps of fish drying every- 
where, within and without the low cabins — an industry that 
often made it impossible to hold service in the church, and 
drove the priest to the outside air, so close was the interior 
with this all-pervading fishy odor. 

Father Andr^ set forth from '' the house/' as he designates 
St. Francis Xavier Mission, in the autujnn of 1672, reaching 
Chouskouabika — *' the place of slippery stones," as it is trans- 
lated— -on the 1 6th of November. It is impossible to locate 
this village, and no vestige of its Indian name remains, as in 
Oussuamigoung, Suamico, and many other towns of to-day, to 
give hint of their prehistoric title. 



^oo In the Steps of Father Andr£, [Oct.* 

Six aatioDS inhabited this upper bay region in the thirty- 
odd miles extending between the present cities of Green Bay 
and Menominee. The population of these villages varied from 
150 to 500 souls, while to the eastward on Cape Illinois, and 
tp the northward where the bay meets the lake's blue waters, 
were still other distinct and separate bands of dusky 
Algonquins. These latter the good father purposed to visit 
later, for the work in hand proved sufficient to keep heart and 
hand active. 

*' Father Andre/' writes AUouez, '' by his firmness has suc- 
ceeded in subduing the minds of the savages, who were most 
ferocious and superstitious, by gradually, and with unswerving 
constancy, subjecting them to the yoke of the- Faith." To gain 
insight into how Father Andr^ accomplished this remarkable 
change we must look over his shoulder as he writes, in his 
little reed hut at Chouskouabika. " The fire that broke out in 
my cabin on the 22A of December destroyed my writing case 
and journal," he notes down, and then proceeds to tell how 
the calamity really turned to good, for the savages immediately 
set about to remedy the loss by building him one according 
to their own methods, using straw to the height of a man, then 
above this mats which they wove from the long grass of the 
marshes bordering the bay. 

The mats were laid with a slight slope, so that the water 
ran from their smooth surface. " They afford greater protection 
against cold and smoke than do bark cabins," Andre writes, 
" and one need fear neither rain nor snow within their com- 
fortable shelter." 

The reference of Father Andre to the burning of his cabin 
leads one to wonder whether possibly at this time the priest 
lost his sole scientific instrument, a bronze compass and sextant 
combined, for two hundred and thirty years later, in the 
autumn of 1902, some hunters tracking over the site of an 
Algonquin village on the east shore of the bay, found one of 
these ancient instruments, blackened and discolored from the 
centuries it had lain in the earth. The interesting relic was 
made in Paris, and bears upon its face the names and latitude 
of the most important French forts and mission stations in the 
seventeenth century from Montreal to La Baye. There is no 
name to give clue to its possible owner, but it undoubtedly 
K«iii%qged to one of the early missionaries, in all probability 



1904.] In the Steps of Father Andr£. ioi 

Father Andre, as these bay villages were his especial field of 
labor. 

As the priest writes in his journal, or rather on such scraps 
of paper as he has rescued from the conflagration, Indians 
enter his cabin, young warriors with faces terrible to behold, 
blackened and daubed with coarse paint, and looking more 
like fiends than men. 

'' I found no better way of compelling them to clean their 
faces than to show them the painting of the devil, to whom 
they made themselves similar, and to refuse them entrance into 
my cabin when they came to pray to God." A nation of 
dreamers indeed were these poor savages, and Andr^ complains 
that the women, to save themselves the trouble of preparing 
food, encourage this evil practice, and teach their little children 
to fast like dogs and to eat only at night. Their sleep was in 
consequence disturbed by visions which, should they chance to 
be favorable, would, they thought, give them confidence and 
success in the chase and war. 

But the father possessed a gift that aided him greatly in 
gaining an influence over the children of his flock, and that 
was a cultivated taste for music. He set to fascinating airs of 
old Provence pious teaching framed in such simple language as 
the savage youngsters could understand. The experiment 
proved most successful, and the little wild, swarthy creatures 
followed the priest with devotion, playing on their rude instru- 
ments, and chanting the melodious tunes he had taught them. 
With his singing children Father Andre passed up and 
down the shores of Baye des Puants, '' making war against the 
jugglers, dreamers, and those who had many wives; and be- 
cause the Indians passionately loved their children and would 
suffer everything from them, they allowed the reproaches, 
strong as they were, cast upon them in these songs." 

The cold in that winter of 1672-73 was intense, and the 
straw cabin was not proof against its inroads. When Father 
Andr^ said Mass at daybreak in order to avoid possible rude 
interruption, he thawed the wine by the smoky fire in the 
centre of the cabin ; but it would freeze again before the con- 
secration, and the chalice stuck to his lips. Yet no word of 
complaint escapes him ; it is but an interesting incident to be 
recorded in the day's story. 

On the first day of Lent, 1673, Father Andre proceeded to 



102 IN THE Steps of Father Andr£. [Oct., 

Oussuamigoung, where a village of sixteen cabins had been 
established a month previous. A sandy plateau close to the 
water*s edge is strewn thick to- day with debris of that for- 
gotten time, and it is comparatively easy to locate the village. 

Suamico River bounds it on the north, hills rise irregularly 
to the westward — in Father Andre's time were covered with a 
thick tangle of forest — and the broad bay with its stretches of 
waving marshland fringing its waters, flows to the eastward, 
close to where the villages stood. As we stroll along we find 
arrow-heads in all stages of manufacture mixed in with the 
sandy soil, from the rough bit of flint chipped a few times and 
then discarded by the cutter as worthless, to the perfectly 
shaped arrow- point, with its barb for attachment to the strong 
sapling. 

The arrow- cutter was a busy man to judge from the scores 
manufactured of these flint implements, and where his cabin 
stood the earth is peppered with flinty chips. Here too are 
spear-points beautifully fashioned, and used in Andre's day to 
spear the mighty sturgeon, or to be thrown javelin- wise with 
sure aim at a deer or bear. 

The worship of the bear was indeed one of the most obsti- 
nate idolatries that the priest bad to combat, but he was a 
man of resource, keen of wit and with a vein of humor which 
aided rather than proved a detriment to his success. He de- 
scribes his interviews with the haughty young warriors, who 
appeared decked out in paint and feathers in preparation for 
taking the war- path in pursuit of the Sioux. He tells of how 
they skinned the sacred bear whole, and set it up, a grotesque 
effigy, in the centre of a lodge selected for the purpose ; the 
animal's snout painted a brilliant green; and how around this 
absurd image the warriors who besought the good offices of 
the fetich gyrated and danced, " yelling all night long, like 
one in despair." 

The story of Oussuamigoung in Father Andre's narrative 
ends with the return of the priest to the central mission house 
of St. Francis Xavier. "I believe,** he writes, "that I could 
have baptized many more than at the previous mission, had I 
been able to remain a month longer at Oussouamigoung. But, 
as I had given my word to Reverend Father Allouez that I 
would proceed to the house at the beginning of March, I started 
on the sixth of the same month, notwithstanding that the gout 



I904-] In the Steps of Father andr£. 103 

had attacked me on the previous day. For that reason I was 
compelled, after walking two leagues, to have myself dragged 
by a dog from the mouth of the river to the house. When 
the elders heard that I was to leave they came to n^e and 
begged me to stay, saying : " Now that all pray, thou leavest 
us." 

Although the faithful pastor left, he returned again year 
after year, to Oussuamigoung and the village of the Malomines, 
to Pechitak, or Peshtigo, and to many other Indian settlements 
that are as yet unidentified. He had found the people fierce, 
proud, superstitious; he left them altogether changed, never 
again to sink into the depths of their former barbarism. 
Above all, as says the quaint chronicle, " he peopled Paradise 
with many children, who died after baptism.'' 

After the terrible hardships endured in his missionary work, 
the narrow escapes from assassination by infuriated savages, 
the close approach of deatli so many times, and by such diverse 
ways by sea and land. Father Andre died peacefully in his bed 
at Quebec, aged ninety-two years. He could look back to a 
record few can equal, in the courage exemplified to uphold 
all that is best and worth striving for in this human existence. 

As we wander over the site of our vanished village we pick 
up mussel shells of the same species as those from which the 
missionaries fashioned spoons for their table, and portions of 
clay bowls, each one showing the particular weave of the bas- 
ket in which it was fired for use, and we know that in all 
probability it was with this same pottery that Father Andre 
laid out his simple repast in the wattled hut in which he dwelt 
two centuries ago. 

It is all plain, so that he who runs may read, the story of 
that long ago time, and the self-sacrificing and noble person- 
alities, who thought great thoughts, and suffered for the faith 
that was in them, still haunt the shores of river and bay. 



A History of education [Oct., 



A HISTORY OF EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES.' 

tIE great interest which is being taken in the 
American system of education, as proved by the 
Mosely Commission, gives to a work of the 
character of Dr. Dexter's a special value at the 
present time. America looms large now btfore 
the world's eyes, and if there is any one distinctive American 
institution it is the American school system. It is noteworthy, 
too, that another country which has attracted the world's atten- 
tion by its surprising and unexpected successes has also an 
organized system of education to which much of this success 
is ascribed. It is in her schools that Japan has learned to 
make the sacrifices involved in the war upon which she has 
entered, and it is to them that her success is due. In another 
respect there is a likeness between Japanese and American 
schools : in both the education given is purely secular, and 
that for both patriotism serves for religion. 

So far as this world goes it would seem, therefore, that 
both countries are on the right road, and an opportunity to 
study with a reasonable hope of mastering the subject is one 
to be embraced by all, whether they are friends or opponents 
of that system. 

The subject is of vast extent, as Dr. Dexter recognizes. 
Libraries have been written, and every day additions are being 
made to the books which have appeared. A complete narra- 
tive is out of the question. But a report of progress is a cry- 
ing need in order to give students definite facts instead of 
philosophical discussion ; or rather, to render philosophical 
discussion fruitful by furnishing the basis on which all true 
philosophy must be built. Dr. Dexter's aim, therefore, has 
accordingly been to give the facts, to record the origin, develop- 
ment, and the outcome so far as we see it, of the nation's 
educational endeavors. The book is meant not merely to be 
read, but to serve as a text- book for class-rocm work; and to 
form an introduction to a study of the subject more or less 
_ thorough according to the wishes of the reader. For this 



1904.] IN THE United States. 105 

purpose it is provided with classified bibliographies. In the 
First Part the author gives the 'history of the growth of the 
People's Schools; in the Second, of Higher Education and 
Special Education, in which he includes the history of the 
Professional Colleges of Law, Theology, Medicine, and Tech- 
nical and Agricultural Schools, Colleges for the prepara- 
tion of Teachers, schools and colleges for women, for the 
Negro and the Indians, and for Defectives. The Third Part is 
devoted to the means employed to extend Education Libraries 
in their various forms. Newspapers and Periodicals, Summer- 
Schools, Evening and Correspondence Schools, Learned Societies, 
Lyceums, Popular Lectures and Museums. In the Appendix 
are included various matters of interest, such as the Colonial 
School Ordinances, Courses of Study in Selected Educational 
Institutions, Tabulations of Facts interesting to Teachers. 
Several^maps, of a very sketchy character however, enable the 
student to see the location of the colleges, universities, and 
special schools. 

The work covers so large a field that it cannot give detailed 
accounts, although its bibliographies serve as guides for those 
seeking further information. There is nothing which indicates 
any animus against Catholic schools and colleges. In fact, 
there is a very fair, and even full, account of the Catholic 
Summer- School. Only one Catholic college or university is 
mentioned by name, although it is stated that they are 64 in 
number. The ten lines devoted to St. Mary's Seminary at 
Baltimore form the extent of the space accorded to Catholic 
efforts in the field of Higher Education. No mention is made 
of the numerous convent schools and academies, although the 
efforts made in the past are not altogether ignored, for credit 
is given for the important part taken by the Catholic mission- 
ary and the parochial schools in the educational history of 
Maryland, and reference is made to the schools established in 
connection with the missions in California. That in Texas the 
missionaries looked upon schools as equally important with 
churches and forts, and that strong efforts were made to edu- 
cate the Indians, are facts noticed by Dr. Dexter. The im- 
pression, however, derived is that all these early efforts of the 
Catholics were very feeble and in the end fruitless and barren. 
But this is not a fair impression. To those who have studied 
Ae matter there can be no doubt that in those parts of the 



io6 A History of Education [Oct.. 

United States which were first colonized by Catholics (and it 
is well to remember that this includes far the larger part of 
the country) schools generally formed a part of the work of 
the missionaries. For instance, Cardinal Richelieu, i^ho had 
become a partner in a company for settling Acadia, transferred 
in 1640 all his rights to the Capuchin Fathers as a fund foi 
the foundation and maintenance of an Indian school ; and so, 
as Dr. Gilmary Shea points out, the great Cardinal of France 
was actively interested in the Christian education of New 
England Indians before Plymouth or Massachusetts Bay had 
paid any attention to it. The first Sunday school ever opened 
seems to have been due to Catholics — the one at St. Mary's, 
Maryland. The penal laws, however, deprived Catholics of all 
power and influence, and these, together ^ith political everts 
and the results of the wars between France, Spain, and Eng- 
land, deprived the Catholics of the fruits of their labors, and 
have handicapped them up to the present time. But to the 
present efforts of Catholics Dr. Dexter does less than justice. 
The parochial schools are mentioned only once. When it is 
remembered that in Greater New York alone there are no 
fewer than 1 16 school buildings with 75,000 pupils in attend- 
ance, and that Catholics spend $3,000,000 a year in support 
of these schools in addition to taking their share in support* 
ing what Dr. Dexter would call the People's - Schools, it will 
be seen that we cannot look upon Dr. Dexter's work as an 
adequate and complete History of Education in the United 
States. 

In the volume shortly to be issued by the United States 
Bureau of Education there will appear a chapter on the 
Catholic Parochial Schools of the United States by the Rev. 
Morgan M. Sheedy, in which both a defence of the principles 
held by Catholics with reference to education is given, and an 
account of the results attained, together with the methods of 
teaching adopted. From this chapter we extract the following 
statement as to the present position of Catholic schools and 
colleges, from which it will be made evident that what Catho- 
lics are doing deserves more attention than it has received : 

"Within the last thirty years in the dioceses of New 
England Catholic educational institutions have multiplied three- 
fold. To-day there are 352 such institutions as against 100 a 
quarter of a century ago, and 142,000 Catholic pupils in 



1904.] IN THE United States. 107 

attendance at these schools as against 2d,cxDO in 1875. In the 
archdiocese of Boston the Catholic schools almost equal in 
number those which were flourishing in the entire province (86 
as against 100), while the number of children in the parochial 
schools, colleges, and academies of the archdiocese far surpasses 
the total attendance of the Catholic schools of the New England 
of thirty years ago — 46,000 as against 20,000. 

"In the archdiocese of Philadelphia the same marked growth 
of parochial schools is to be observed. In 1869 there were 42 
parochial schools, with an enrollment of 15,232 pupils, while 
last year (1902-3) there were 113 schools, with an attendance 
^^ 45t352 pupils, showing an increase over the preceding year 
of 1,029. The same steady growth can be witnessed in almost 
every diocese throughout the country. 

" In endeavoring to ascertain the present numerical strength 
of Catholic education the sources of information I have made 
use of are the Catholic Directory and the Report of the Com- 
missioner of Education, supplemented, so far as possible, by 
private inquiry. The following statistics exhibit the results of 
the investigation, the attendance being summarized, for the 
sake of comparison, under the titles '' Elementary," " Second- 
ary," and '' Higher Education," in accordance with the well- 
known classification adopted by the United States Bureau of 
Education : 

Catholic School Enrollment, 

Elementary, 967,518 

Secondary — boys (high schools, academies, and preparatory 

departments of colleges), H)i27 

Secondary — girls (high schools and academies), .... 20,874 
Higher Education (colleges and universities, not including 

seminaries), . 4,010 

Total, . • 1,006,529 

'*If we assume as the normal the ratio which the total 
school attendance in the country bears to the total population, 
we can ascertain roughly the relative numerical strength of 
Catholic education by comparing with this normal the ratio 
which the Catholic school attendance bears to the total Catho- 
lic population. In the following table I have attempted to do 
this. Taking the Catholic population as 10.774,989, as given 
in the Catholic Directory for the year 1900, the ratio of 
attendance in each class of Catholic schools to the Catholic 



io8 



A History of Education 



[Oct., 



population is compared with the ratio of attendance in all 
schools of the class in question throughout the country to its 
total population. As the ratio of percentage would be too 
small for the purpose of this comparison I have chosen as 
more convenient the ratio of i to lo^ooo. It appears, then, 
that there are for each 10,000 of respective population : 



In Catholic institutions, 
In the entire United States. 



Elemen- 
tary stu- 
dents, male 
and 
female. 


Secondary stu- 
dents. 


Male. 


Female. 


898 
a.143 


13 
39 


19 
49 



Students 
in higher 
educa- 
tion, male. 



4 
8 



Satisfactory as this work is within its own sphere, it is there- 
fore wrongly called a History of American Education; a truer 
title would be a History of the existing American School System. 
For, as we have indicated, there has existed from the beginning 
and there exists now, if not so showy yet a more perfect 
system of education of which the supporters of the^ American 
system take no account, which by many is despised and 
contemned, or at all events ignored, and which there are not 
wanting tokens of a strong desire to suppress and destroy. 
For the support of the public- school system is being made 
a test of loyalty to the country itself. The Outlook for the 
loth of September, for instance, ventures to say that the 
letter of Archbishop Elder raises anew the question whether 
Roman Catholics can be loyal Americans in their support of 
the public-school system. There is something of audacity in 
assuming that support .of the present system is the test of a 
loyal American. On the contrary, we hold that the American 
school system as it exists, excellent though it be in many 
respects, is fraught with danger for the future well-being of 
the country, and is a departure from the principles and the 
practices of the first colonizers of this country. As in Europe 
so in America, the motive for founding the school was a reli- 
gious motive. Proof of this is to be found in this work. 
Speaking of Virginia, on the second page. Dr. Dexter says 
that "the very earliest school of which there is any evidence 
originated largely as missionary ventures of the English Church." 
"In 16 16," four years before the arrival of the New England 



1904.] IN THE United States. 109 

settlers, "the king ordered the Bishop of London to collect 
money for a college to be founded in Virginia, and during 
the next three years ;£'i,500 was raised and sent over." It 
was the king's order that a college should be built and planted 
for " the training up of the children of those infidels in true 
religion, moral virtue, . and civility, and for other godliness." 
Ten thousand acres were granted, of which a thousand was for 
an Indian college, the remainder for the foundation of a semi- 
nary of learning for the English. The aim was distinctively 
religious, although the massacre of 1622 prevented the project 
from being realized. 

We need not say anything about the colonizers of Massa- 
chusetts or of the other New England States, for every ere 
knows how inseparably allied in their eyes were their churches 
and schools. As Dr. Dexter says, the clergy were the acknowl- 
edged educational leaders, and civil and religious interests were 
closely united. The Bible was used as freely in the courts as 
in the pulpit ; it was the foundation of their civil as of their 
religious laws, and so the schools were naturally and necessarily 
religious. 

Who, then, are the present representatives of the early 
founders of this country — the Catholics who maintain the in- 
dissoluble alliance of religion and education, or the Protestants 
who in the system established and maintained by them divorce 
the two? Which is the rightful mother of the child, the one 
who is willing that its life should be destroyed by depriving it 
of the knowledge of God, in which knowledge every Christian 
recognizes that eternal life consists, or the Catholic Church, 
which at any and every cost insists upon this knowkdge being 
imparted ? And who are the loyal Americans, the faithful pre- 
servers of the principles of the first settlers of every part of '.this 
country, those who make such laws as the following enacted 
by the Legislature of New York State : " No school shall be 
entitled to or receive any portion of the school moneys in 
which the religious doctrines or tenets of any particular Chris- 
tian or other religious sect shall be taught, inculcated, or prac- 
tised,*' or those who look upon Christianity as a divinely revealed 
religion, for which every sacrifice is to be made, and to the 
belief and practice of which every man and every nation is 
called, and who maintain that wilfully to neglect these divine 
teachings is a mortal sin? 



i9( « Zhc Uatcdt Boohs. ^ 



To Father Gerard's book* in 

THE OLD RIDDLE AND refutation of atheistic monism and 

THE NEWEST ANSWER, in criticism of Darwinian evolution 

By Father Gerard* we give unstinted praise and our 

most cordial recommendation. 
Whether we regard the scholarly dignity of its argument, or 
the fatal keenness of its criticisms, or the honorable recogni- 
tion which it accords to the other side, or, finally, the simple 
purity of its English style, we shall have to account it one of 
the most useful pieces of apologetic that has appeared in our 
language since the rise of the great controversy which it dis- 
cusses. Its primary purpose seems to be the one suggested 
by its title, namely, to criticise Haeckers Riddle of the Universe. 
This notorious production has gone through edition after edition 
both in its original German, and also, we fear, in its English 
translation. It is a book utterly abominable; and if the harm 
it has done is at all in proportion to its unworthy^ unscientific, 
and repulsive qualities, then indeed is its track sown with mis- 
fortune. Haeckel is a great scholar in the field of biology; 
and against any scholar we shrink from flinging harsh words. 
Never should we permit ourselves to use them, however dis- 
tasteful to us any man's views might be, if only the upholder 
of such views lived honorably up to the standard of criticism 
which he applies to others, and if in his strictures upon vener- 
able and sacred beliefs he showed that reserve, caution, and 
even reverence, which in such a case truth, modesty, and 
decency seem to demand. But when a man lays it down as 
fundamental in his system and method that he will accept 
nothing save what can be verified by evidence, inasmuch as 
nothing else deserves the name of science ; and then fills a 
volume with statements which he proclaims with dogmatic final- 
ity, and with anathema for whosoever questions them ; but for 
which, nevertheless, there is not the smallest grain of evidence; 
when a man flings aside free will with a sneer, because no 

• The Old Riddle and the Newest Answer, By John Gcratd. S.J., F.L.S. New York: 
Longmans, Green & Co. 



1904.] The La test Books. i i i 

evid«ice supports it ; and straightway gives us a gienealogy of 
man containing twenty-one animal ancestors, absolutely not one 
of which has ever been seen, either living or fossilized, by 
anybody; when a man refuses i priori to credit any historical 
evidence in favor of Christianity; and then when / confronted 
with a geological difficulty which seems to annihilate his 
scheme of transformism, deliberately fabricates imaginary 
geological periods, which he claims will correct the testimony 
of actual geological periods ; when finally a man, in his vulgar 
mania to destroy a high and holy faith, invades the province of 
biblical criticism whereof he knows simply nothing, and pub- 
lishes an unclean blasphemy against Christ the Immaculate, 
for which there is not the very least pretence of proof ; when 
a man is guilty of these offences against scholarship, tiuth, 
and justice, we are justified in characterizing him as intellect- 
ually and morally a monster. And this is Haeckel. He is 
discredited even by men who sympathize with his conclusions. 
Huxley could not endure his dogmatism ; and Du Bois- 
Raymond says that his genealogy of man is worth as much 
for scientists as Homer's heroes are for historians. Still, Ike 
Riddle of the Universe is read and applauded, and is doubtless 
every day confirning in infidelity a host of the semi-educated 
to whom everything that is said against religion is true, and 
nothing that is proclaimed in the name of science and with 
strong lungs is false. 

Father Gerard's criticism of this man is all that could be 
desired. Not that the able Jesuit takes up every conclusion 
of Haeckel's book ; but he pulls the pillars from beneath it 
nevertheless by showing that the main positions of the monism 
which it teaches are entirely unproved, and are confronted with 
difficulties to which they can give no word of answer. It must 
be kept in mind that modern scientific atheism is constantly 
boasting that its first principle is proof, evidence, verification. 
Only theologians believe things without proof; and only re- 
ligion holds a set of doctrines unsupported by experiment. 
Your monist, do not forget, rests upon the rock of certainty in 
his philosophy; and if we are to believe his most repeated 
assertions, we may say of his creed that it is bounded on the 
north by the tape measure; bounded on the south by the 
microscope; bounded on the east by the test-tube ; and bounded 
on the west by the Bunsen-burner. Now, disregarding the 



112 The Latest BOOKS. 10<Jt., 

npn-essontials of the monistic faith, here are the ultimate aod 
essential propositions on which all evolutionary materialists 
are as one: i. Matter and energy have eixisted and will exist 
for ever. 2. Life began by production from non-life. 3.. All 
forms of life are radically the same, inasmuch as there is no 
observable physical difference between the protoplasm of a 
lizard, a mushroom, and a man. 4. The order of the universe 
is all accounted for by the forces inherent eternally in. matter. 
Of these dogmas not one has been proved, and candid believers 
in them assure us that not one of them ever will be proved ; 
and moreover every one of them is in open conflict with 
certain facts and tendencies of Nature which, if they do not 
demolish materialism, ought certainly to diminish the preten- 
sions of infallibility assumed by too many materialists. 

Who knows anything about matter ? Who can say that it 
is eternal ? The very last man in the world to come forward 
with a dogmatic answer to these questions is the man who 
says he believes nothing that has not been experimentally 
demonstrated. Experimental demonstration of the eternity of 
matter is an eternal impossibility. And that this universe will 
last for ever is contradicted by such a fact as the dissipation 
of heat-energy, which will finally — according to Lord Kelvin's 
prediction — bring about a period when, with all paits of the 
universe at a dead-level of temperature, all work, all life, all 
beauty, and all order must perish. And in the recent re- 
searches into radio-activity scientists have been amazed and 
confounded at finding not only that atoms, hitherto considered 
imperishable, decay and disintegrate, but that this deadly 
process is a general tendency of nature ; so that Sir William 
Crookes foretells the dissolution of matter and the annihilation 
of the world. And as lor producing life from non-life, the 
thing has thus far been shown, after exhaustive researches and 
frantic endeavors, unprovable and unscientific. Yet spontaneous 
generation is a cardinal belief of men who make sport of others 
for holding to unproved convictions. A third monistic truth 
is that a man is radically no different a being than a tad- 
pole, because the physical life-basis of both, namely, proto- 
plasm, is chemically the same. But the protoplasm of man 
and the protoplasm of a tadpole cannot be the same; for 
never yet has a human protoplasm become a tadpole or a 
tiidpolc protoplttsm become a man. Whatever resemblances 



1904.] THE La test Books. \ 1 3 

chemistry may show, there is in each primal life- form a fatal 
tendency to become a being of its own kind ; and therefore, 
even as protoplasms, they are as totally distinct and as widely 
separated as the mature forms into which the protoplasms 
develop. And, finally, the old catchword that Force explains 
the order of the universe, is fast losing its power to charm 
intelligent minds. The cosmos reveals something more than 
force. It reveals force marvellously determined to ends of 
great utility, inexhaustible beauty, and limitless law. For us 
to understand the universe requires highly-developed mind. 
Therefore in the universe mind must be. Certainly, even from 
a scientific point of view, it is »more justifiable to regard the 
Universe as sprung from an intelligent Will, than from non- 
intelligent, blind, and unimaginable Chance. 

Such criticisms, of which these observations are but an 
unsatisfactory summary, are passed upon evolutionary atheism 
by Father Gerard with extraordinary cleverness and unfailing 
good-nature. We venture to say that no more beneficial book 
is yet available to put into the hands of one who has been 
disturbed and stunned by the warfare of science against the- 
ology. The one regret that we would express arises from the 
small attention given by Father Gerard to the argument frcm 
conscience and the moral sense. Not only is that argument 
of overwhelming power in itself, but it is admirably fit for 
popular exposition and proof. The volume concludes with a 
scientific criticism of the main evolutionary doctrine of the 
transformation of species. This is quite as good a piece of 
work as the apologetic part, equally simple, temperate, and 
fair. To the author of a book so useful and so needed we 
would express gratitude and congratulation. 

Such a title of a book as "Des^ 

DESCARTES AS SPIRITUAL cartes as Spiritual Director '' • 

DIRECTOR. rather astonishes one at first 

By Victor de Swarte. glance. But looking into the vol- 

ume one soon discovers that the 
designation is inexact, and that our first misgiving that the 
great metaphysician had just been found out as a mystical 
theologian, is entirely groundless. The book simply contains 
the philosophical correspondence which passed between Des- 

*Dacarta Dittcttur SphitueL Par Victor de Swarte. Paris : F6lix Alcan, Kditeur. 
TOL. LXXX,*8 



114 The LATEST BOOKS. [Oct., 

cartes and two distinguished women, the Princess EHzabeth of 
Bohemia, and Christiana, the celebrated convert- queen of 
Sweden. These illustrious ladies cultivated in high station a 
love for deep speculation which seems to have been in the 
Princess Elizabeth genuine, scholarly, and ardent, but in her 
more famous .contemporary the mere whim of a brilliant 
woman. The principal points on which these twain question 
Descartes, and in discussing which, by the way, he shows that 
a philosopher can be a very gallant fellow with compliments, 
are, how the spiritual soul can act on the material body; the 
nature of love and hate, and the Sovereign Good. The letters 
are interesting to lovers of philosophy ; though they are hardly 
full enough to throw any new light on the general system 
associated with the name of Descartes. An occasional sentence 
hints at the accusations which, in the name of orthodoxy, 
were flung all his life against the Doctor of Methodic Doubt. 
For example : " One Pere Bourdin believes himself justified in 
calling me a sceptic; probably because I have refuted scepti- 
cism. And a minister has undertaken to demonstrate that I 
am an atheist ; for what reason I cannot imagine except that 
I have endeavored to prove the existence of God. What 
boots it that my opinions are in perfect accord with religion 
and of utmost utility to the state? These fellows will insist 
that I am the enemy of both." 

Excellent biographical sketches and many admirable foot- 
notes add greatly to the general value of the book. Perhaps 
it will not be carrying criticism too far to remark that Kenelm 
Digby is a better spelling than Kelhemn Digby, and that the 
great Quaker is William Penn, not Peen. 

Good service has been rendered 
EDUCATIONAL THEORY OF the cause of pedagogy by a well- 

KANT. edited translation* of Kant's 

By E. F. Buchner. ^/^^^^ Pddagogik. German, and 

especially Kant's German, has been so fatal an obstacle to any 
attempt at acquaintance with the original work on the part of 
a multitude thoroughly anxious and fit to make use of what the 
great master of Konigsberg has written about education, that 
the ne^ book introduces American teachers to a practically 

* The Educational Theory of Immanuel Kant, Translated and Edited with an Introduc- 
tion by Edward Franklin Buchner. (Lippincott Educational Series.) Philadelphia and 
K">ndon : J. B. Lippincott Company. 



1904.] THE La test Books. i 1 5 

unknown field. We presume that every one interested in peda- 
gogical literature is aware of the notable influence that Kant's 
ideas have exercised in every department of modern philosophy ; 
and likewise that all such readers understand it to be well 
worth their while to spend considerable time in meditation up- 
on Kant's educational views. We have but to note, therefore, 
that the present editor has wisely planned his work for the 
benefit of serious and patient people. Whether for good or 
for ill, the fact is that in this matter Kant's doctrines were 
left in imperfect and more or less desultory form ; and the 
translation presents us only with an opportunity of getting 
hold of the Kantian principles of pedagogy by dint of persistent 
critical study. Kant himself was never at pains to smooth 
difficulties from his disciples' path ; and the volume before us is 
anything but a nicely arranged series of axioms, discussions, 
and conclusions. It is not a book to be raced through in the 
hope of astonishing folk with a display of easily acquired 
superficial information ; but it contains a good translation of 
the Treatise on Pedagogy, and moreover such additions in the 
way of notes and collateral selections that the student will find 
every facility for a most profitable piece of work ready to his 
hand. Any one who does what this book aims at helping him 
to do will find his mind the stronger for it, and his grasp on 
the great principles of educational theory vastly widened and 
deepened. 

M. d'Eyr agues has done a service 
THE PSALMS. to both scholarship and piety by 

Translated. his translation of the psalms di- 

rectly from the Hebrew.* The 
many imperfections in our Vulgate version of these sublime 
songs are too well known to need insisting on. Venerable, of 
course, that version is; but, as M. Vigouroux remarks in a 
letter h propos of M. d'Eyragues' translation, venerable as it 
IS, it is very imperfect. Often it quite misses the exact 
sense of the Hebrew original, and oftener still it expresses it 
obscurely. Every one admits that we greatly need an authentic 
version directly from the Hebrew, and not misled, as our pres- 
ent Vulgate rendering is, by the defects of the Septuagint, 
Such a version M. d'Eyragues has given us and he deserves 
our gratitude. All who read French easily will find in his 

*Us Psaumts, Traduits de I'Hdbren. ParM. B. d'Eyragucs. Paris: Victor Lccoffrc. 



Ii6 



The La test Books. 



[Oct., 



translation the rich pleasure that comes from a sense of being 
brought near to the mind and heart of the great psalmists of 
Israel. 
. Take these words of the second psalm for example: 

" Les rois de la terre se levent, 
Les princes tiennent conseil 
Contre Jahveh et contre son Messie ! 

Brisons leurs Hens, 

Secuons leur joug ! " 

II rit| celui qui habite dans les cieux, 
Adonai prend en pitie leurs desseins. 

In the very form of this the awful words acquire a highly 
dramatic power. And then the retention of the Hebrew names 
of God, "Jahveh" and "Adonai," deepens the solemnity of 
the mighty poem, in a way altogether impossible to the 
" Lord " of our common reading. A very slight instance this 
is to be sure, but it indicates the immense advantage of re- 
maining close to the Hebrew. One thing is certain : no one 
who has ever used such a translation can ever again prefer 
the psalter of the Vulgate. An excellent work for some of 
our own Scripture scholars would be a true translation directly 
from the Hebrew of the psalms and of that other glorious 
masterpiece of the Bible, the book of Job. 

The author of The Catholic Church 
A SHORT-CUT TO HAPPI- from Wtihin^-a book which we 
I'^SS. have praised highly for its attrac- 

tive and studied explanations of 
Catholic doctrin^ and practice — has published another volume,* 
entitled A Shorts Cut to Happiness. The preface of this volume 
is written by the Rev. B. W. Maturin. The object of the author 
is to show that the shortest and quickest way to happiness is 
through renunciation and self-sacrifice. It is a study in the 
basic truth of Christianity that one must seek his own salva- 
tion first, yet that in this love of God all thought of self, even 
of one's own happiness, is lost. The universal craving for hap- 
piness which possesses us is to be satisfied only, so to speak, 
in its denial, in the death of the self and the consecration of 

• A Short Cut to Happiness. By the Author of The Catholic Church from Within, with 
preface by Rev. B. W. Maturin. St. Louis, Mo.: B. Herder. 



1904-] THE Latest Books. 117 

the soul to Jesus Christ, his faith, and his commandments. 

The example of that renunciation and its superabundant reward 

have been given completely, and given once and for all, in the 

pission, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

The author has given us a praiseworthy book of devotion, 

and we sincerely wish it many readers for its truths are of 
the spirit and eternal. 

This Thesaurus Confesarii"^ is a 
THESAURUS CONFESARII. very handy volume in size and 

binding, and contains a brief but 
accurate summary of the whole of moral theology. As a book 
of ready reference and a help for those who have not the 
time to consult more exhaustive works, it will be found useful. 
A short appendix on the Bull S. Conciatae is added, together 
with a supplement on the special laws for Latin America. 
The author of this last is the Rev. Nicolao Marin Negueruela, 
of the same congregation as the writer of the volume. 

The pleasure that comes from 

THE ETHICAL TEACHING reading the theological writings! 

OF JESUS. of Dr. Briggs is due, to some ex- 

By Dr. Briggs. ^^^^^ to th^ fact that they were 

originally prepared for his stu- 
dents at Union Theological Seminary, and that the presenta- 
tion of his erudite views is made with a charm of language 
and a lucidity of expression that make the reading of his 
chapters comparatively easy. There is an added pleasure in 
the conviction that possesses the reader that the writer is not 
one who has old-time theories to defend, but he readily yields 
his own mind to the forcefulness of the truth as he grasps it* 
The frankness that leads him to make the following statement 
in the preface to this last volume is captivating, to say the 
least: ''This inductive study of the Ethical Teaching of 
Jesus brought a great surprise to me. Ethical opinions which 
I had held for the greater portion of my life vanished when I 
clearly saw what Jesus himself taught. His teaching as to 
Holy Love came upon me like a revelation from God." And 

*Tkesaurms Con/eiarii. Auctore R. P. Josepho Busquet e Cong. Filiorum Imm. 
Cordis B. M. V. £ditio Tenia locupletior atque emendatior. Barcinoria: Libraria Mont- 
•etrat. 1902. 

^Tki Ethical Teaching of Jesus, By Charles Augustus Briggs, D.D., D.Litt., Pro- 
lessor of Theological Encyclopaedia and Symbolics in the Union Theological Seminary, 
New York. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 



ttt The Latest Books. [Oct., 

fO too, he says, was the case with some other opinions which 
had to be, and readily were, sacrificed to deeper study and 
more profound research. He does not expect that every one 
OX hli Protestant readers will see his conclusions as clearly as 
be now does, inasmuch as they will have previous ethical train- 
ing and long cherished opinions to overcome. But there is 
nothing novel in them, at least to the Catholic theologian. In 
(act, one by one he casts aside the old theories of Protestant 
theolo({y, and in a most beautiful and lucid way makes an 
exposition of the traditional teachings of the church without 
eayloK or in any way hinting that they are the teachings of 
Catholic theologians. His chapter on the Counsels of Perfec- 
tion is a striking instance of this. It is an exegetical exposi- 
tion of the higher life as based on the Counsels of Per- 
fection that' might easily find a place in Catholic manuals 
of ascetical theology. His defence of a life of poverty, celi- 
bncy, And obedience will be a morsel very difficult for the old 
ichool of Protestant teachers to accept, yet it seems so con- 
vincing because so easily the outcome of the teaching of Jesus 
that the wonder is that any other theories were ever taught. 
The same might he said of his exposition of works of super- 
erogation, and the commandments of Christian love as opposed 
to the Ux talioms of the Mosaic law. 

The great work that Dr. Brig^s is doing by these later 
books of his is the harmonizing of the many schools of theo- 
logical teaching and the moulding into a homogeneous way of 
thinking and believing of the many dissident schools of Protest- 
ant thought We can readily believe that all his disciples 
will accept his way of thinking, and their ministerial pro- 
fessions as far as they are definite and dog^matic will be along 
his lines. This is the open door to Christian Unity. It may 
not be long before these students will realize that they have 
no preconceived opinions to give up before they accept the 
traditional teaching of the old Mother Church. 

The foundress of the well-known 
LIFE OF MOTHER GDERIN. convent of St. MaryVof- the- 

VV^oods, in Indiana, lived a life 
well worthy of a biographer's pen,* Mother Guerin was a 

/*>)lAA.-i yijyi.j^xT^.r^y.-fj^TJ). ^\ * Mrr. ber c: :hc CcrpYi:,\: >.^^, N em- York : B^niiger 



1904.] The Latest Books. 1 19 

woman of lofty character and a religious of unusual holintss. 
Leaving France in 1840, she arrived with a handful of sisters 
in Indiana, there, in the midst of an almost untrodden wilder- 
ness, to establish a work for God and souls which was destined 
to extend its influence over the entire United States. Like 
nearly all other vessels of election, Mother Gu^rin encountered 
many and grievous difficulties. A hasty bishop held different 
opinions from hers as to the proper management of her commun- 
ity, and almost without warning he strove to crush' her by ex- 
communication, of all exercises of power the one whose use 
is least often called for, and whose abuse is most tyrannical. 
Added to this came troubles from unworthy religicus, the pres- 
sure of poverty, and even the burden of anti-Catholic persecu- 
tion. All this Mother Theodore sustained with rugged forti- 
tude and invincible patience. The dark hours ended at last ; 
and when the venerable foundress died, in 1856, she left her 
congregation in prosperity and peace, and so actively at work 
in many fields as to bear witness that it was blessed from on 
high. 

This is an inspiring biography well and temperately written, 
and we wish that it may help in extending the fftme "Md the 
usefulness of the Sisters of Providence. 

Tyburn brings at once to the 

TYBURN. memory the story of the English 

By Rev. Bede Camm. martyrs, for in Tyburn stood the 

gibbet on which so many Cathc- 
lies offered their lives in sacrifice, when to be a Catholic in 
England was a penal offence. Dom Bede Camm, O.S.B., in 
this small volume,* Jylurn and the Evglish Martyrs^ has given 
us a valuable historical essay and a devotional work also on 
these martyrs for the faith. The volume comprises the ser- 
mons preached by the author in the convent chapel at Tybutn 
on the feast of the English martyrs, and during the triduum 
which preceded it in May, 1904. These sermons have all been 
rewritten carefiilly for publication. Dom Camm thinks that 
the exact spot where the gallows stood of old may be ider.ti- 
ficd with a high degree of probability, and on this spot, he 
writes, there is now an altar raised where the Holy Sacrifice 
of the Mass is continually pleaded for the conversion of Eng- 

^Tyhum and the English Marfyts. By the Rev. Dom Bede Camm, O.S.B. Lonclon . 
Art and Book Company. 



I20 THE Latest Books. [Oct., 

land. A body of religious, who have made their home at Tyburn, 
devote themselves to prayer with the same intention. The ser- 
mons are five in number, and include " The Martyrs the Consola- 
tion of the Heart of God," in which special attention is paid to 
the martyred members of the Carthusian Order ; "The Martyrs 
as Champions of the Holy See," with particular reference to 
Blessed Thomas More ; " The Martyrs as Witnesses to the Mass, 
as the Glory of England and the Hope of England's Con- 
version." 

The work was written and is published in the hope that it 
may further the conversion of England, and while congratu- 
lating the author we also join sincerely with him in his devout 

wish. 

The expressed intention of Mr. 

HISTORY OF THE UNITED Elson, in writing this one-volume 
STATES. history of the United States,* was 

By Bison. x,o " combine the science of histori- 

cal research with the art of his- 
toriciil composition." He has aimed to produce an elementary 
hUtory, but not to make it too elementary; to write succinctly, 
luit not at the expense of style. He has succeeded more than 
ti)lrrMbly well. He has evidently been a conscientious student 
ol Aiuorican history, his work in scientific accuracy and scholar- 
ship In immeasurably above the multitude of hastily thrown 
(oijrthar, newspaperish, jingo volumes on American history with 
wlil< h we have been so familiar since the Spanish war. As far 
Mb wa can determine from a pretty thorough perusal of the 900 
piyoH of the work, Mr. Elson has been uniformly just and sane 
Hiul cHutious in his statement. This does not mean, of course, 
I hut ho hai never erred in judgment of men and events; he not 
iMfr^^lMcntly makes disputable statements and renders debatable 
i\tn.W\ii\\% concerning persons and facts; but the avoidance of 
HIM h M iSrAtcK, if defect it be, was certainly an impossibility, 
r(<hbj(lr;ring the scope of the work and the necessity of abbre- 
\/\a\\\\^. In general he has rather successfully maintained the 
iHir. hJbtorian'fi attitude of an interested but not prejudiced 
iy\i$u \fi\hr iil events, but he has not felt it his duty to carry his 
$.t\mt\\\u\\\y to the degree of colorlessness. He has stated facts 
it t\t\\y ii\\(\ »<|uarely ; he has not, to cite an important example, 
hM-'l lo Mind his readers, to the persistent element of personal 

* ttitiut^ u/ Iht Ifnited States of America. By Hcnr>' William Elson. New York: Mac- 

//,Ml>/i i '/(<.(. 1/1/ 



1904.] The Latest BOOKS. , 121 

and political machination that has entered into all our history 
and has tarnished the heroic beauty of even its greatest epochs. 
No one can forget, reading Mr. Elson, that the United States is 
a great political machine as well as a nation ; the double- itiinded 
purpose, selfish and patriotic, of many of the men who have, 
while serving their own ends, directed their country's destiny, 
and while directing their country's destiny served their own 
ends ; this is honestly and unblushingly set forth in the present 
work. Therefore it is truer than the so-called "patriotic," 
indiscriminating, injudicious works that generally result frcm 
a desire to write an American history that will please the 
American people. 

The author's conscious effort to write agreeably and pleas- 
antly is sometimes too evidently conscious; he has occasionally 
resorted to rhetoric that is commonplace ; but these trifling 
defects are scarcely worth mentioning in the face of the fact 
that Mr. Elson has succeeded in making his work interesting 
throughout, and in not a few places has given evidence of con- 
siderable dramatic power indicated rather in reserve than in 
exercise. 

For these things, then, without being able for lack of space 
to cite examples in proof of our judgment, we commend this 
American history. It is scholarly in tone and temperate and 
jast in statement, and faithful to the truth even in those ugly 
spots of our history where either religious or political preju- 
dice has led the majority of writers astray. 

The present volume* on Tenny- 
IDYLLS OF THE KING. son's Idylls of the King is a fuller 
By C. B. Fallen. and further developed interpreta- 

tion of that which the author, Mr. 
Fallen, sent in 1885 to Tennyson, and which received the poet's 
thanks and warm commendation. The fact that Tennyson him- 
self wrote that Mr. Fallen had grasped the meaning of the 
Idylls more thoroughly than most commentators should itself 
be the best guarantee of the merit of this present work. 

We doubt if Tennyson has produced anything more endur- 
ingi more creditable to his name as a poet, save perhaps some 
passages in the "In Memoriam," than these wonderful Idylls 
of the King. In them his usual expression of problematic 

* Thi Mtanm^ of the Idylls of the King, An Essay in Interpretation. By Condtf Beaoist 
Fallen, LL.D. New York: American Book Company. 



122 



THE Latest Books. 



[Oct., 



doubt, of uncertainty and oftentimes of bewilderment, has gone. 
He speaks here in the accents of unfaltcnrg faith ^cd as be 
grasped the ethical message of that Catholic inheritance of the 
middle age, so does he also re-echo its poiKcr and its strength 
of peace and of love. 

The Catholic revival had begun in England, but it was only 
a poet of Tennyson's genius that could have made England 
listen so attentively, so enraptuicd, to such a distinctively 
Catholic message as the Idylls impart We might say that 
with his magic hand he drew back the curtain of the centuries 
and England saw again the picture of light, and beauty, ar.d 
spiritual truth which had once roused to enthusiasm the best 
of her sons. And the highest compliment that can be paid to 
Tennyson is that he himself was a second Arthur to the age in 
which he lived. 

Mr. Fallen shows the inner message of these Idylls, shadow- 
ing sense at war with soul. But he protests at too great a 
length that there must be such a message, that the Idylls are 
not mere imagery, since to express their inner content he has 
but to repeat a line of the epilogue. One who would deny an 
inner message to the poem after seeing that expressed purpose 
of the author, does not know how to read. Nor is anything 
gained by the author in heaping abuse on this present genera- 
tion of the twentieth century of the Christian era. Theie have 
been far worse ages in the world's history, and there is much, 
very much in the moral sense of men to-day to which such a 
Christian message as the Idylls contain will appeal. 11 Mr. 
Fallen looks for a large number of readers, or expects to in- 
fluence many by this interpretation, so admirably conceived, ^e 
can give him but a weak assurance indeed il he writes '* to a 
generation sunk in the steaming valleys of sense." 

Mr. Fallen groups the eleven Idylls into one epic poem 
with one definite message to mankind, the war of sense against 
spirit, the beauty and the value of bodily and spiritual purity. 
'*It is the crime of sense," writes the author, "which breaks 
the harmony of the virtues into the discord of sin and crin:e, 
and disrupts the order Divine Wisdom has established amongst 
men. Against it the spiritual man, despite of the sin, the 
crime, and the treachery about him, stands proof, passing from 
the old order in the flesh to the new order in the spirit. The 
Idylls are simply the drama of the new- old truth, sense at war 



I904-] The Latest Books. 123 

with soul, the old battle and the ever- renewed strife between 
the old and the new man." 

Beginning with the coming of Arthur, Mr. Fallen with care- 
ful insight unfolds the development of that theme. The author's 
own spiritual sense has certainly aided his discernment, and 
one cannot but feel that at times he has seen a meaning in 
the lines that Tennyson himself never intended. This in the 
interpretation of a master mind is almost inevitable. The com- 
ing of Arthur is the coming of the spiritual man. To the 
spirit as to right reason are all the things of sense to be sub- 
jected, not necessarily stamped out but guided to their true 
and proper object. 

In Gareth and Lynette we are shown the growth of the 
individual, the increasing strength of the spiritual man and his 
successive victories in youth, in middle and in old age, and 
lastly over death itself. 

In Geraint and Enid comes a discordant note begotten of 
sin, which sounds the eventual downfall of the Table Round. 
Balin and Balan tells of the evil effects of malice. Envy and 
traitorous jealousy reach their climax in Merlin and Vivian, 
where wisdom, the guardian of the soul, yields itself to the 
allurements of sense. In Lancelot and Elaine the hellish work 
of sin continues. The Holy Grail teaches that only such as 
are called, and are without the stain of sin, may seek for the 
far-off spiritual city. But here we think that Mr. Fallen 
should have given some measure of his interpretation to the 
office of Sir Fercivale's sister. It was a woman who had seen 
the Holy Grail and it was a woman who gave the inspiration 
to Sir Galahad, sent him forth on his mission and told him he 
would be crowned in the spiritual city, and " he believed in 
her belief." As the Holy Grail sums up, so to speak, the 
whole purport of the Idylls, so have we always thought that 
this woman. Sir Fercivale's sister, had a very Catholic and a 
very essential office in the poet's scheme. 

Pelleas and Ettarre is another proof of the dire effects of 
sin, and in the Last Tournament that great sin of impurity does 
its final work of destruction. Guinevere speaks of war and 
chaos, and then comes the passing of King Arthur. 

These Idylls of the King are to be numbered among the 
most beautiful and inspiring writings of English literature. We 
sincerely congratulate Mr. Fallen on his work and on sound- 



124 The Latest Books. [Oct, 

ing those still wider and more detailed notes of that sweet, 
immortal harp of Arthur. The circumstances surrounding the 
publication of this work are most happy and most promising, 
and we wish for it every success in its intended field. 

One of the most noteworthy of 
VERGILIUS. recent productions in fiction is 

By Bacheller. Irving Bacheller's Vergilius.^ In 

this instance Mr. Bacheller has 
abandoned the haunts of Eben Holden and sought his episodes 
and characters in Rome during the reign of Augustus, just 
prior to the birth of Christ. The story is of two young 
Roman patricians whose love leads them through the momen- 
tous events of this exciting period. The theme has been han- 
dled by many writers, but few have succeeded so well as Mr. 
Bacheller, from a purely literary point of view. He draws his 
pictures with the fewest possible strokes, thereby gaining sim- 
plicity, clearness, and dramatic strength. His characterization 
of the emperor is remarkably keen, and it will cling to the 
reader's memory. But the overshadowing thing in the book is 
hi9 dencription of the Holy Night in Bethlehem. Vergilius is 
not M pretentious story, but it is beautiful, thrilling, and re- 
frviihini; to the jaded reader of up-to-date romance. 

The Ellwoods^\ by Charles Stuart 

THE BLLWOODS. Welles, M.D., touches the depths 

By Welles. of dulness. It is heralded by 

more than a dozen English news- 
iiH|>tiiii an '*a novel with a purpose." Its purpose is the expo- 
rt! ioM o( theories held by the aubhor on religion, marriage, 
iMili(l(4l and •ocial economy, and kindred subjects. The writer's 
titli^HtiiM) it* to reach ''that portion of the public which cannot 
Ulvi> i(M time to ppecial study," but it is to be hoped that this 
VHil ^hMlrut body will seek a more profound and authoritative 
•HiihM (mi it« information on matters religious, political, and 
AIM Ul t ho iMiok is egotistic to the point of stupidity, and its 
|4M.'(i liiiiu« Ml*' generously interspersed with Biblical quotations 
n*iM»HlMiti|p fnr their inaptitude and misinterpretation. As a 
i(iM»l ih^ t.lUiwds has very little to recommend it 

•iw.i'.o, H, ImIiii; h.utirllrr. Ncw Vofk; Harper & Brothers. 

I / ', ' /// ..wi Hy ( li.iilr» Stuart Welles. M.D. New York: Morgan M. Reooer; 

( ,, t ., • iM.i'Mtt M.4(«ii-ill, M«tihilion Kent & Co., ltd. 



1904.] The Latest Books. 125 

The revival of interest in all 

THE ROCK OF ARRANMORE. things Gaelic is no doubt respon- 

By O'Neill. sible for The Rock of Arranmore^^ 

a dramatic poem in blank verse 
by John O'Neill. It is a fact that most of us have become 
lazy in our reading, and want our books, like our breakfast 
food, predigested. Consequently The Rock of Arranmore is far 
too complex and laborious for our inert minds. Gaelic itself 
could scarcely be more difficult to master than the ponderous 
verse in which the poem is wriften. The subject of the drama 
is the finding of judgment by the celestial spirits on the future 
events of one hundred and forty-seven years, from Yellow 
Ford to Fontenoy. Queen Eire, representing the nation of the 
Gael, her sister Banba, representing the Island of Inisfail, and 
Saint George are among the characters of the drama. Care- 
fully compiled notes are furnished to make clear the numerous 
mythological and historical references which in number and 
remoteness rival the masterpiece of Milton; Though sincerity 
and the power of picturesque imagery are gifts of the author, 
his poem lacks the first requisite of true poetry — simplicity. 

The Report of the United States Commissioner of Educa- 
tion for 1903 includes some pages f on the Catholic Parcchial 
Schools of the United States. The chapter was written by 
the Rev. Morgan M. Sheedy, and will be of particular import- 
ance to all Catholics and all writers on, or students of, the history 
of education in the United States. Father Sheedy explains 
the mind of the church on the education oi the young ; how 
the church favors popular education, and the growing demand 
among all classes for some religious education in the schools. 
He tells also at length of the rise, growth, and development of 
the parochial schools; their number, courses, efficiency, and 
results. The pamphlet is of timely and permanent value. 

• The Rock of Arranmore. By John O'Neill. New York : O'Shea & Co.; Dublin : M. H. 
GiU ft Son. 

t United States Bureau of Education. Chapter from the Report of the Commissioner of 
Education. Chap, xxi., The Catholic Parochial Schools of the United States, by Rev. Mor- 
gan M. Sheedy. Washington : Government Printing-Office. 



ft • Xibrar^ XTable. • » • 



/ (6 Aug.) The rumor that thcfc is aa immediate 
tpcct of the beatificatioii of Scotns is not accepted 

the editor, At a recent session of the Committee 

Supply opportnoity vas gircn to discuss the Irish 
iveraity Question. Mr. CUncy adrocatcd the estab- 
ment of a house of studies such as Irish Catholics 
Jld resort to. Mr. Su HcXciJ opposed the present 
tern because, as he said, Calh<^cs would no more 
er A Queen's College than they vodM a Protestant 
cc of worship. Hereupon Mr. Wyndham objected to 

matter being raised and denounced the dd»ate as 
demic. For this he was severely criticised. No sat- 

i^tory resulu were obtained. The Roman Corre- 

•ndent writes that M. Combes has decided that the 
le has come for giving the £m/ de grmce to the nnion 
Church and State in France. The Holy See, some 
IC ago, demaoded the attendance in Rome of two 
ench bishops to answer certain accnsatioos. Because 
• mandate was not delivered through the government, 
. Combes claimed that the Concorde bad been for- 
illy violated. Thereupon be required the withdrawal 

the order under penalty of an immediate break with 
e Vatican. The Holy See declined to comply with 
e minister's request. In the opinion of the corre- 
ondent, the rupture is irretrievable and the days of 
e Concordat are likely to be short. 
3 Aug.) : Cardinal VannateUi completed his splendid 
>ur ot Ireland with speeches at Thurles, Cashel, Coik, 
id (^ueenstown, also Killarney and KiEgstowo, where, 
ter giving solemn Benediction of the Blessed Sacra- 
cut, he delivered his farewell address. As the steamer 
ft the pier there was everywhere a scene of tremen- 
i,ijs cnlhufciasm; ringing cheers were again and again 
:licwe'l. The cardinal was extremely pleased with his 
ibit, upid rcjjeatcdly acknowledged his high esteem for, 
„4 h>i> yratilude towards, the Irish people. Parents 



1904] Library Table. 127 

in the diocese of Waterford and other maritime dioceses 
of Ireland have been asked to restrain their sons from 
entering the Royal Navy, where they are continually 
deprived of the rites of their church and the consola- 
tion of their religion. 

(20 Aug.): In the June number of The Fortnightly Mr. 
W. S. Lilly maintMfted that the doctrine pronouncing as 
lawful the assassination of excommunicated sovereigns 
is in accordance with the highest teaclniig of Catholic 
theologians, and the practice of the highest ^authorities 
of the church. Suarez was quoted in support of this 
statement. The Very Rev. Bishop of Limerick took 
exception to Mr. Lilly's statement, and in a series of 
letters proved quite conclusively that Suarez taught ex- 
plicitly the contradictory doctrine. In the present num- 
ber Mr. Lilly is answered for hts statement that St. 
Pius V. meditated the assassinaticn of Queen Elizabeth, 
by letters from Fr. J. H. Pollen, S.J., Montgomery Car- 
michael, and " Aliquis " — all of which are strong in 
opposition yet well-meaning and kindly in spirit. 
The Month (Sept.) : Continues the review of The Veil of the 
Temple. The discussion turns on natural religion — belief 
in any revealed religion being, untenable from a scien- 
tific stand-point. Theism, to be a religion, entails a con- 
ception of a good God and a conception of a human 
soul ; but these Theistic conceptions involve elements 
which science pronounces as inadmissible. The death- 
dealing calamities in the world and the internecine strife 
between animal and animal for bare existence tell against 
the Theist's God whose moral goodness the order, 
beauty, and immensity of the Kosmos are supposed to 
demonstrate. As regards the soul's free-will, our con- 
sciousness of this power is but an optical illusion ; and 
as for immortality, we are shown that the soul lacks the 
attributes which enabled theologians to infer that it is a 
distinct entity, independent of the body and capable of 
surviving its dissolution. After disposing of Theism, 
Mr. Mallock's characters create three substitutes in lieu 
of the dethroned God of the Deist — the Hegelian theory, 
the scheme of Herbert Spencer, and the Ethical Church. 
But before the advance of science these are found to 



roct., 

LIBRARY TABLE. »- 

^ in one respect or other. Next is set ^;*^ ^^Jj 
Mallock's own theory through his spoUes.a. Mr^^I-^ 
viUe. The reviewer finds this ^^^ fj"^;^^^^ eon- 
book misty and insufficient, but gives us wh-t >» ^^ 
ceives to be Mr. Mallock's meaning. He sets »« 

Zr,.^^^ whereby *. .«.bo,. "-J-^'irrraWe: 
I, religious beliefs in .he name o saence. __^ ^^^^^^ 

to restore them m the name oi \ . ^^ jVfr. 

Smith on several points makes -"-^^^^"^^ """,i,*: eer- 
Mallock's line of argument and to his assuming tn 
tainty of materialistic conclusions. ^^^^^j^ Abbe 

QuinJn.K^ Aug.): Ap-pos of Pr-^^^^^^^ 

C. Mano contributes an article en itled J>t^«" ^^^ 

The writer praises Mr. Roosevelt's ideas in general 
fails to see how some of his opinions ^^'".^^.nt^s 
easily applied. In Mano's opimon the Presidenc 
?.|Lard of Life." his love for manly virtues are de- 
serving of praise and his work is a " magnificent Sursum 

aT Aug ) : Abbe J. Wehrl^ undertakes to discuss an 

irticfe by M. le Baron von Hugel. which appeared in 

the QuLaineoi June i. .904. Even the title of the 

article is said to involve incertitude »"a^'°"'^ _^' ' 

speaks of " the eternal Christ and our successive Christ- 

olugies." Just as if. writes Wehrle. Christ, "who did 

not exist on the eve of the day on which his mother 

cunceived Him. was eternal ; and as if the church had 

more than one Christology. Von Hiigel's words seem 

"to invite us to admit the existence of two distinct 

Chrlsts; one the Christ of the mortal life, the simple 

Kovealer of that which he knows only imperfectly; t e 

other, the Christ eternal, who resembles so strongly tJje 

purely spiritual Word of God living in the bosom o 

tttP Father that he deserves to be called eterna/. 

Moreover Von Hugel seems to imply that " St. John is 

lit t>ontrudlction with the truth of history in presenting 

lo w* M Christ absolutely holy and impeccable." These 

lw*» ((uvHtions are not only important, but are the"Key- 

«tono« of Christian dogmatics." Wehrl^ protests against 

iliM lll.nty which Von Hiigel takes in "going beyond 

{<\\K% ill iMAlcr to find something other than facts." "e 



I904 ) LIBRARY TABLE. 1 29 

concludes his article by warning us not to say or to 
insinuate anything which would implicate the univer- 
sality of the Redemption ; to adhere firmly to the teach- 
ing of the church, the sole heiress of the permanent 
reality of Christ. 

(i Sept.): Despite the fact that many "prophets of 
evil" declare a "yellow peril" for the future, Gabriel 
D'Azambuja predicts rather a "yellow assistance." The 
Chinese and the Japanese, in his opinion, have in the 
past been of immense good to white nations, and there 
is no fear that in the future a China, aided by Japan, 
a " panmongolism " will, with armies of several million 

men, crush "poor little Europe." George Fonsegrive 

begins an article on " Catholicism and the French 
Policy." In this number he reviews the troubles be- 
tween Rome and the French Republic, after the visit of 
President Loubet to Italy. He dwells especially on the 
cause of the final outbreak between these two powers, 
namely, the summoning to Rome of the two French 
Bishops, Geay and Nordez, and on the outcome of this 
action. 
Le Correspondant (10 Aug.): J. B. Fiolet concludes his article 
on Protestant Foreign Missions. He shows the extent 
and influence of the leading Protestant organizations, 
such as the Y. M. C. A., the Students* Volunteer Mis- 
sionary Union, and the Epworth League. Statistics 
show that Protestants are much more liberal than Catho- 
lics in supporting foreign missions. The number of 
schools, orphanages, asylums, etc., managed by Protest- 
ants is given. The article shows the vast amount of 
literature that is given out by Protestant societies. The 
number of men and women engaged in the work is also 
given. Still, considering their numbers and resources, 
the results obtained are small. This is due, the writer 
believes, to the diversity of Protestant teachings, and to 
the fact that most Protestant missionaries are married. 
In concluding, the writer tells us what we are to learn 
about missionary work from our non-Catholic brethren: 
1st. That Catholics all over the world should be per- 
sonally interested in the work and ready to help it 
along. 2d. That the societies engaged in this work 

▼OL. LXXX.' 



I30 



Library Table. 



[Oct., 



should give better accounts of the work performed; and 
3d, that a central museum and library of Catholic mis- 
sionary work should be established. A very interest- 
ing description of the Vatican is given by Marc H^Iys. 
With the different halls, chapels, statues, etc., the writer 
connects many historical events and persons, telling 
particularly of the work done in the Vatican by Nicho- 
las V. The improvements made by Leo XIII. are noted. 
Knowing the great love of Pius X. for the gardens of 
the Vatican, one feels greatly interested in the descrip- 
tion given of them in this article. 

Revue du Monde Catholique (15 Aug.): In this number M. M. 
Sicard continues his argument to prove that Gaul received 
the Christian faith during the apostolic era. Did Mary 
Magdalene and her companions carry the faith into 
Gaul? The tradition says. Yes. In support of the tra- 
dition, the writer admits, there is a complete lack of 
contemporaneous witnesses, but urges that there is good 
reason for believing the legend, on account of the uni- 
versality of the tradition in Europe even as early as the 
ninth century, and because the tradition is in a way 
confirmed by one of the martyrologies, and by the 
Divine Office in use by the Dominicans in 1250. 

Etudes (20 Aug.) : '' French Catholics : Their Rights and 
Duties," is the title of a vigorous and instructive arti- 
cle by Henri Berchois, on the present religious crisis in 
France. After a brief discussion of the rights of Catho- 
lics as .men, citizens of the republic, and members of a 
religious organization — rights which have been so 
repeatedly infringed upon and violated by the hostile 
minority which controls the government — the writer goes 
on to consider some of the duties of French Catholics, 
in view of the conditions which at present confront 
them. The first duty of every true Catholic is to strive 
to be a worthy member of the Church of Christ — to sec 
to it that the principles of faith and of the Gospel shall 
more and more dominate and rule his individual life and 
conduct. But besides this the Catholics of France must 
rouse themselves to united and energetic action. God 
does not save us without our own earnest co-operation; 
and this applies as well to the temporal welfare and 



1904.] Library Table. 131 

salvation of societies as to the eternal salvation of the 
individual soul. The inertia and indifference of Catho- 
lics themselves have been a fruitful source of weakness 
and failure to the Catholic body in the past. Ener- 
getic effort, then, is an indispensable condition of suc- 
cess. But effort to be effective must be united ; dis- 
union means weakness — failure; unity, strength and 
success. Catholics must learn to waive their political 
differences, and lay aside their petty personal ambitions 
and jealousies for the sake of the higher interests of 
religion. In conclusion, the writer outlines briefly a 
practical plan of campaign, and expresses the hope that 
through united, energetic, and intelligent effort the 
Catholics of France will pass successfully through the 
present crisis, and, in the struggle for their rights and 
liberties, march to certain victory. 

(4 Sept.) : " A Divorce " is the title of a novel by Paul 
Bourget, reviewed in this number by Pierre Suau. This 
masterpiece, writes the reviewer, pictures strongly how 
far divorce is a " permanent temptation, and a sad maze 
for the modern family." The plot of the story runs 
thus: Mme. Albert Darras — ^who has been married to 
M. Darras for twelve years, after having been divorced 
from her first husband, M. de Chambauld — being smitten 
in conscience at the event of her daughter's First Com- 
munion, realizes that her divorce stands between her 
and God. Darras had allowed her to bring up her 
daughter in the Catholic faith, while he made Lucien, 
her son by her first husband, a copy of himself — an 
irreligious but honest man, obeying only '' his individual 
and independent conscience." Lucien falls in love with 
Bertha Planat, who, like Darras and Lucien, believes in 
a '' morality founded on biology." Lucien, though he 
finds out that Bertha had once been betrayed, feels that 
she has not lied in conscience, and decides to marry 
her. Darras and his wife oppose the marriage, and 
Lucien gets t)ie consent of his father, M. de Chambauld, 
who dies shortly after. There is a quarrel between 
Lucien and his mother, the outcome of which is, that 
Lucien leaves her home and marries Bertha Planat. 
Mme. Darras is now convinced of the "irregularity of 



132 



Library Table. 



[Oct., 



her second union/' and, unable to find anything to 
relieve her, gives herself up to a misfortune without 
end, brought upon her by " that law of anarchy and 
disorder which promised her liberty and happiness, and 
gave her only slavery and misery." Finally, she realizes 
that return to religion is the necessary condition of 
her happiness. 
Rivue Thomiste (July-Aug.) : M. Waddington, in a work on 
ancient philosophy published during the present year, 
revived the question of the authenticity of the Aristo- 
telian ethics, holding that Aristotle was the author of 
three treatises: the Nicomachean Ethics ; the Eudemean 
Ethics ; and the Magna Moralia ; and he put forward 
the hypothesis that another work, " The Virtues and 
Vices," was also of the same authorship. Rev. M. St. Gil- 
let, O.P., in this issue gives a resume of the findings of the 
critics on this question during the last fifty years, and 
sums up in four conclusions: First, That the Nicoma- 
chean Ethics is certainly of Aristotelian authorship ; 
Second, That the " Eudemean Ethics " is posterior to 
the Nicomachean, and is a copy of the latter with some 
personal retouches made by Eudemius or : some other 
disciple of Aristotle; Third, that the "Magna Moralia" 
is certainly not the work of Aristotle, but seems to be 
a large r^sum^ of the other two ; Fourth, That the 
treatise on Virtues and Vices cannot be admitted as of 
Aristotelian origin, or at least such origin is very doubt- 
ful. ^The second instalment of M. B. Schwalm's article 

on the controversies of the Greek Fathers upon the 
knowledge of Christ shows the development which took 
place in this question from St. Athanasius' theory of a 
special economy of progress in Christ to the theory of 

innate science held by St. Cyril of Alexandria. The 

Rev. Thomas M. Pegues, O.P., takes exception to Father 
Billot's theory that the Sacraments are merely disposing 
causes and not immediate causes of grace. After a care- 
ful examination of the writings of St. Thomas bearing on 
this point, Father Pegues finds the Angelic Doctor un- 
questionably on his side, and in favor of the immediate 

. causality of the Sacraments. " Le Miracle d'apres St. 

Thomas D'Aquin " is the title of an article by the Rev. 



1904.] Library Table. 133 

J. D. Folghera, O.P., in which the writer has gathered 
the ideas on miracles set forth by St. Thomas in various 
parts of his writings. In introducing his subject the 
writer says that the article will be of use if it shows 
that ''in the ages of faith, to believe and to believe in 
miracles was less an effect of credulity than of reason 
itself." For those who wish to know St. Thomas' 
opinion on miracles this article presents his argument in 
convenient form. 
Razon y Fe (Aug.) : P. Murillo reviews a book in which P. 
Delattre, S.J., assails La Mithode Historique of P. La- 
grange, O.P. The reviewer says that the book and the 
method it represents have been practically killed by the 
criticisms of the learned Jesuit, at least so far as 
moderately instructed Catholics are concerned. He 
draws attention to the fact that the Catholic Institute of 
Toulouse was not responsible for the publication of . the 
volume, and that P. Fonck said it was unworthy of serious 
refutation. P. Delattre, however, has judged otherwise, 
since P. Lagrange's position on the Biblical Commission 
might lend him undue influence with half- educated rea- 
ders. The reviewer remarks that, although some Catbo* 
lies may look unfavorably upon P. Delattre's book, 
that fact will be to their discredit rather than his. 
(Meanwhile P. Lagrange's book has gone into a third 
edition.) 



134 iV^W BOOKS. [Oct., 



NEW BOOKS. 

Bknzicer Brothers, New York: 

General IntrodmctUm to the Study of the Holy Scriptures. Bv Rev. Francis £. Gigot. 
S.S., D.D. Pp. 347. Price $2.50. Frayer Book for Reli^ous. By Rev. F. X. 
Lasance. Pp. Z155. 

B. Herder, St. Louis. Mo.: 

The Ray: A Story of the Time of Christ, By R. Monlaur. Translated from the French 
by Rev. J. M. Leieu. Pp. 203. Price 45 cents. 

Richard G. Badger, The Gorham Press, Boston : 

Introduction to Dante's Inferno, By A. T. Ennis. Pp. 141. 

Alphonse Picard et Fils, Paris : 

Le Palais de CaXphe et U Nouveau Jardin Saint-Pierre, Par Le P. Urban Coppens. 
O.F.M. Pp. 94. Le MilUnarisme dans ses Ori^ines et son Diveloppement. Par L^on 
Gry. Pp. 136. 

LiBRAiRiE Victor Lbcoppre, Paris: 

£m Mithodt Historique, Par M. J. Lagrange. Pp. 259. 

George Barrie & Sons, Philadelphia: 

The History of North America, ao vols. By Guy Carleton Lee, Ph.D. Vol. I. Dis- 
covery and Exploration, by Alfred Brittain. Vol. IL The Indians of North America in 
Historic Times, by Cyrus Thomas, Ph.D. Vol. IH. The Colonization of the South, 
by Peter Joseph Hamilton. Vol. IV. The Colonization of the Middle States and Mary- 
land, by Frederick Robertson, Ph.D. Vol. V. The Colonization of New England, by 
Bartlett Burleigh James, Ph-D. Vol. VII. The Colonization and Development of the 
Constitution, by Thomas Francis Moran, Ph.D. Printed for subscribers only. 

Open Court Publishing Company, Chicago : 

Readings from Modem Mexican Authors, By Frederick Starr. Pp. 490. 

Harper Brothers, New York : 

Ver^ius. A Tale of the Coming Christ. By Irving Bacheller. Pp. 279. Price $1.35* 

Art and Book Co., London : 

Immacuiata. Pp. 18. Catechism simply explained. By H. Canon Cafferata. Pp. i73> 
Tyburn and the English Martyrs. By Rev. Dom Bede Camm, O.S.B. Pp. 128. 

J. B. Lippincott Company. Philadelphia : 

History of Education. By E. L. Kemp. Pp. 384. JCant's Educational Theory. By 
Edwin Franklin Buchner, Ph.D. Pp. 309. 

Macmillan Company, New York: 

A History of Education in the United States. By Edwin Grant Deleter. Ph.D. (Colum- 
bia.) Pp. 656. Price $2. 

Government Printing-Office, Washington, D. C. : 
Daily Consular Reports. 

GiNN ft Co., Boston : 

Elementary Woodworking, By Edwin W. Foster. Pp. 133. Price 75 cents. 

Houghton, Mifflin '& Co., Boston and New York : 

The Affair at the Inn, By Kate Douglas Wiggin and Others. Pp. 2sk>. Price $1.25 
Words of Koheleth, By John Franklin Genung. Pp. 361. Pnce $1.25. The Dt 
Monorchia of Dante Alighteri. By Aurelia Henry. Pp. 216. IMce $1.25. j 

Catholic Truth Society, London : 

Motu Proprio of Pope Pius the Tenth on Christian Democracy and Sacred Music. Pp. 24* 
Are Indulgences sold in Spain (The Bula La Cruzada) ? By the Rev. Sydney F. Smith, 
S.J. Pp. 24. A Tale of Mexican Horrors. By the Rev. Herbert Thurston, S T. Pp- 
24. A Spanish Heroine in England. By Dona Louisa De Carnival. Pp. 3^* 
Rome's A^cUling Record: or^ the French Clergy and its Calumniators. By Rev. John 
Gerard, S.J. Pp. 16. 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 135 



w 



THE COLUMBIAN READING UNION. 

7TH much pleasure we give space to the excellent woxds of advice con- 
tained in a paper prepared for the opening meeting of a most progres- 
sive Catholic Reading Circle. It will furnish a theme for profitable discus- 
sioaio many home circles, where intelligent Catholics can meet and exchange 
opinions without formality. This is a phase of the Reading Circle movement 
not represented on any printed list. Yet the Home Circle is to be regarded 
as the model type. Rules of procedure are needed for the larger gatherings, 
and are always somewhat irksom#- bjc rqajressing spontaneity. On behalf of 
the readers of this department the manager of The Columbian Reading 
Union hopes to get many papers like the following: 

In all things, said Thomas i Kempis, have I sought peace and found her 
not, save in corners and books. It would be delightful, and I am sure profit- 
able, to dwell on this theme; but so many admirable things have been written 
and read by everybody about this wonderful man, or rather about the won- 
derful book this elusive genius has bequeathed the world. It is the greatest 
boon after the four Gospels. The best way to do homage to this practical 
mystic of the fourteenth century is to adopt the practice of the daily reading 
of, at least, one passage from his book. It may be a random passage, but it 
will always startle us with its timeliness. It helps us through the day as 
nothing else from a human pen can — a joy to the heart, a light to the soul, a 
staff for our wearines3 to lean upon; try it, and then you will have for a 
certainty a soul-tonic proof against the ''cares that infest the day," and 
tend to depress us. 

This opening paper purposes to run on from one thing to another, with- 
out rhyme or measure, but, I hope, with some reason. Let us call it a chat 
about books to read, and what the holy man above mentioned advised us 
not to read, fivt hundred years ago, has been repeated in varying phrase from 
his day to our day. We have heard much, and perhaps felt somewhat of 
the friendship of books, of the companionship of books, of the blessedness of 
books; all kinds of wise sayings are recorded of how books are the means by 
which we make the great and good of other generations our personal 
friends; and in this, our day, who can number the clubs, ciicles, unions, all 
sorts of associations for courses of reading? It is a fad for many, a fashion 
for some, a craze, perhaps, for a certain number ; the moralizer can here 
tent his venom or his wisdom on a generous scale. 

Aggressiveness is not our chief characteristic, hence we shall not attack 
the fads, nor the fashions, nor the crazes ; they can do no harm except to 
those who wish to be harmed; we merely make a note en passant of the signs 
of the times, to be interpreted ad libitum. We hAve all been impressed 
during the past few years by the large space given in the periodicals, even in 
the newspapers^ to the lists of best loo books, according to the best judg- 
ment of some of the greatest literary authorities in the world. Many bishops 
complied with the editor's request, as to what their lordships had to give in 
the shape of a list. Cardinal Newman, the undisputed master-mind of the 
^i^t vent into the making out of those lists, and so did Mr. Ruskin and Mr. 



The Columbian Reading Union. [Oct., 

ghty authorities Ibese— nor can we doubt of the intereiting 
its in themselves furnish; much instruction may he obtair.ed 
arison of these lists, for there is this peculiarity about the 
at even if it cannot do a thing, it likes to know how it can be 
:e probable that many hundreds out of the many thousands 
in looking over catalogues of books would not make an effort 
of the many valuable works suggested. In fact it is to be 
y of us lose time trying to decide what book to read first, 
uld tell us that "it makes no more difference what book a 
tban it does what foot he puts into his shoes first." " Read 
'e hours a day, and you will become learned!" That's all 

■ Johnson and forBozzy; and with all due respect for the 
'i and taking it (or granted that when he said "any book" 
»'aluable book, we cannot dream of the leisurely luxury of 

■ We women could not conscientiously dispose of our time 
indeed, five hours a week would be, perhaps should be, as 

count on. Of course, there are exceptional weeks when it 
cr of more or less reading lime. Madame Swetchine says, 
'S to mention what the motive should be, that every woman, 

busy her life, can find, if she wishes, time every day for 
Lll reading was study for Madame Swetchine; she is an 
>oks and life no less infallible than lovable, 
the choice of bsoks, for there must be a choice, for reasons of 
ntellectual profit, as well as of moral support, and of mere 
:vere choice even in our reading for amusement and rest. We 
selecting our friends with an exclusiveness that might limit us 
one in a thousand"; even our bowing acquaintances should 
kan many, and all this, without in the least damaging the uni- 
rhich is the beginning and the end of the Law. 
It the world of books? It isa world, and ate we to go about 
? Are we allowed a hail- fellow- well met sort «f camaraderie ? 
ited we have the instinct of all that is proper and healthy and 
. This instinct will say the right thing. Barring all those 
y with them the odor of sin, however disguised; barring, too, 
•ational fiction, completely ignoring the tons of trash served 
.oad in the vulgar markets of the uneducated. Among the 

hundred books from which we are to choose, what shall we 
I the rub 1 It is no small difficulty to say to one's self, do and 
latters permissible. Our leisure for reading being so valuable 
seems a sin against ourselves to waste even a moment with' 
t. Spiritual reading is the daily bread of the soul, therefore a 
y day ; if not a goodly slice, let us make sure at least of a few 
mbs; say, for instance, a verse or so from the New Testamtnt 
1 of Christ, which isa sort of sequel to the Gospels. Then why 
land one well-writien life of some saint, or one volume from 
en ? Wisdom and true profit in this kind of reading lie rather 
than the quantity. One saint whom we would adopt not only 
It as a study, would go further in making saints of us than a 

acquaintance with the whole of them. If fifteen minutes can- 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 137 

not be given every day to this spiritual nourishing, well then ten minuteSi or 
let us say five ; no one can be so hurried as not to find^ at least, that mini- 
mum of the waking hours of each day. 

Now for the books that are literature. Possibly the old books are the 
best Thomas ^ Kempis thought so in his day, and in every age of the world 
mankind has looked to the past for wisdom. While Shakspere was writing 
his plays, the polite world of his day was looking to the preceding age for its 
poetry. Time winnows everything, and, as a rule, whatever lasts has merit — 
with books as with men. The survival of the fittest seems the invariable 
law. When Shakspere's works were a hundred years old people began to 
read them. When they were two hundred years old they began to quote 
them; now they are an essential of education. Milton did not live to hear the 
world call him master. Leaving out our great spiritual writers as sure of 
iibmortality, it is curious to inquire as to ifihat wotlcs of our time will survive 
the flight of time, survive the Booms. What are the chances of C/uIyle, 
George Eliot, Matthew Arnold being called teachers, not in the thirtieth 
century but ten years hence ? May we not answer at once, and say no teacher 
who sets out with the melancholy assurance that he knows not the issue can 
be called by that great name. Carlyle groans : '< Whence, and, Heavens ! 
whither?" Matthew Arnold sounds some cheery notes, but always before the 
end he ''brings the eternal note of sadness in"; and as for George Eliot, 
why trouble to quote. No, these, nor their disciples and imitators, are not 
teachers; they have taught some things, but not to the final issue, and their 
books can benefit us only in connection with studies that do not bear closely 
on life. 

Among the healthy literary signs of our times is the demand for biogra- 
phies, autobiographies, letters (some letters). The novelists have so abused 
realism, and we are so tired of an unfounded idealism, that the truth within 
us cries out for the reality. The novelists, great and small, earliest and latest, 
French and English, have given us unto satiety idealistic and realistic men 
and women who fail us in- our personal struggles. We want the real men 
and women who have gone through the combat, who are struggling side by 
side with us. With them only do we feel sure of a profitable sympathy. 
Realism is not reality ; idealism of books is not the idealism of life. Hence 
let us have well-written biographies and such letters as will enable us to come 
closer to our fellow-men and women. Alas ! that even with the best-written 
biographies, with the most confidential letters, we should still be so far of! one 
from the other ! Who that has ever looked long and carefully at a picture of 
Cardinal Newman can fail to understand what he means when he speaks of 
''the impassable gulf that separates man from man"? If we cannot pass 
that gulf we can look into it. In this sense let us understand Pope's line : 

" The proper study of mankind is man." 

Not the dreaming man of Jean Paul Richter, not the caricatured man-^ 
nor woman — of so many of our so-called dramatists and of our " up-to-date" 
novelists. Thackeray and Dickens have wrought much and well, still 
their x^ien and women do not interest so much as personalities ; they only 
serve to carry the argument that is to expose some sham, or point a 
moral ;|nd paint a tale. As for Hugo's and Daudet's men and women — 



138 THE Columbian Reading Union. [Oct., 

tealistic ? Yes ; real ? No. Those are not our own kitiai and kin. Thank 
God they are not! Walter Scott's men and women? Yec, as quaint asd 
fanciful tapestry figures to complete the charm of the castles he so loves. 
There is great human charm in all these types, but we are not satisfied. 

Let us conclude that fiction alone cannot be our reading. And 
we must not fear to be too exclusive in the ''world of books." Mrs. 
Browning says : 

" Behold the world of books is still the world, 

And worldlings in it are less merciful 

And more puissant; for the wicked there 

Are winged like angels; every knife that strikes 

Is edged with elemental fire to assail 

A spiritual life. The beautiful seems right j 

By force of Beauty, and the feeble wrong 

Because of weakness. Power is justified. 

Though armed against St. Michael. 

MaYiy a crown covers bald foreheads. 

In the Book- World true 

There 's no lack neither of God's saints and kings 

That shake tli« ashes of the grave aside 

From their calm locks, and undiscomfited 

Look steadfast truths kgainst time's changing mark. I 

True, many a prophet teachvs in the roads; 

True, many a seer pulls down the flaming thunder 

Upon his own head in strong martyrdom. 

In order to light men a moment's space. 

But stay ! Who judges ? 

Who discerns at once the sound of the 

Trumpets, when the trumpets blow ' 

For Alaric as well as for Charlemagne? 

Who judges prophets and can tell true' seers 

From conjurers? The child there? 

Would you leave 

The child to wander in a battlefield I 

And push his innocent smile against the guns? 

Or even in the catacombs? 

His torch grown ragged in the fluttering air 

And all the dark a* mutter round him? 

The World of Books is still the world. 

And both worlds have God's providence, thank God ! 

To keep and hearten." 

• • • 

The time having arrived for printing the four-thousandth number of 

The Athenaum, the editor indulges in a few appropriate remarks. He is 

pessimistic. Born in 1828, his paper has reached an age which might 

command respect, if respect were in fashion. Present criticism, in his 

opinion, is in a bad way. Its general tendency, he believes, is to deal io 

personalities rather than first principles, impressionism rather than logic, 

and to silence that comparative sense which acquaintance with the master- 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 139 

pieces of the world encourages. Immortality is so frequently and rashly 
promised to the writer of to-day that such praise has almost become a 
farce, and it is necessary to remind readers that restraint in expression does 
not mean disparagement, nor a high standard a personal grudge. The 
Aikitutum could get some comfort from recognition of the fact that, after 
ally present criticism suffers a good deal for sins with which it has really 
nothing to do. Just as the craze for fiction has produced a kind of book 
that is simply a thing of commerce, having no literary significance whatever, 
$0 the irruption of hordes of ignoramuses into the field of criticism and the 
complaisance of foolish editors have led to the creation of the notice nhich 
has nothing to do with criticism. This pernicious hodgepodge of personali- 
ties, treacle, and illiteracy undoubtedly does much haim; but the people 
who know the difference between it and sane criticism are not all dead yet, 
and they are constant enough in their appreciation of the real thing to justify 
the editor of The AtA^tutum and all other advocates of a high standard in 

keeping up their courage. 

• • • 

Rev. John B. Tabb is professor of English literature at St. Charles 
College, on the outskirts oi Ellicott City, Mar>lar.d. This college is one cf 
the many landmarks situated among the wheat-laden hills of that grand 
old State. 

It is in this place we find Father Tabb, the grammarian, the poet. He 
is not an old man, but still we cannot call him young. From his appear- 
ance he seems to have borne his years with more difficulty than most of his 
fellow-men, for his form bespeaks the absence of vigor and strength. His 
face is meagre; two eyes look out from shaggy beetle brows; his nose is 
thin and of the Semitic form, and his cheeks are hollowed. He is very often 
found in a cassock long past the ordinary period of usage, and his frock- 
coat and oddly-shaped hat have long since gone out of style. 

He is very affectionate ; his heart is a vast ocean of love and charity. 
His goodness is wide-spreading. He is a man of God; his piety is deep ; 
his devotion edifying. Those not acquainted with him consider him erratic, 
and even those who know him well pronounce him erratic. 

He is never known to have used the word good-by. When vacation 
comes around his scholars are wont to go to his room to wish him a happy 
vacation, but never has it been said that they stole a march on him. '* When 
jou are going to die," he says, '*come, and then TU bid you good-by." 
If anyone has reached the stage of pre-eminence he is barred frcm access 
to Father Tabb*s apartments. These incidents illustrate a few of the roan's 
characteristics, but when we study his verses we readily forget these for the 

^sential characteristics that have given him deseived f£me as a poet. 

• • • 

Simply as pure reading matter such a work as the American Newspaper 
Directory is not without interest, and seme of its pages reveal plots ard 
counterplots that are very tangible. The 21,451 periodicals published in 
the United States and Canada cover a field just as wide as humanity. The 
progress and backslidings, the strength and weaknesses, the enlighterment 
^nd illiteracy of mankind are all faithfully shadowed in publications. 
Almost as soon as an idea is born, in this age of printing, wbetl^er it be gocd 
^^ bad, healthy or diseased, it is embodied in some sort of periodical. 



I4P The Columbian Reading Union. [Oct., 1904.] 

One of the first headings that strikes the eye is anti-Roman Catholic. 
The denominational literature of the United States embraces seme thirty 
creeds, but the religion of the Pope appears to be the only one that has 
aroused opposition. Three publications are listed under this head : Antiri- 
can. Citixefiy Boston (weekly) ; Converted Caiholicy New York (monthly) ; 
and Primitive Catholic^ Brooklyn (semi-monthly). An examination of the 
directory for five years past shows that the opposition is decreasing, for 
there were more than a dozen publications devoted to this cause when the 
American Protective Association movement was z\ its height. The Roinaxi 
Catholic Church is credited with i,6i publications, and seems to be in little 
danger of extinction. 

Another curious bit of plot appears in the anti-prohibition periodicals. 
Under temperance and prohibition are listed 107 publications. Evidently 
this active prosecution has made John Barleycorn turn like the proverbial 
worm, and give expression to his side of the question in three weekly jour- 
nals. Four publications are listed under the head of anti-saloon. 

Occultism and theosophy are represented by seven periodicals — which 
is said to be an occult number. New Thought is said to be a semi-occult 
form of faith, and is representf^d by five periodicals. Alchemy has dis- 
appeared before the discoveries of modern chemistry, with its radio-active 
substances, but astrology is represented by one monthly. Clairvoyance^ 
palmistry, and phrenology are credited with five periodicals. 

Weather is a subject of universal interest, and would seem to be en- 
titled to more than three journals. These are all monthly. 

The ancient institution of matrimpny has been transfoimed into a dis- 
tinct industry, promoted by seven monthly journals with symbolic names. 

The subjects of undertaking, embalming, cemeteries, and cremation 
aire treated in seven monthly journals. 

Fifteen fraternal societies are each credited with from three to several 
dozen publications, while many more are ranged under miscellaneous so- 
cieties. Some of these organizations have queer names and queer journals. 

Dogs are well represented. Cats are treated in a single paper. Stamp 
collectors have fifteen journals, and coin collectors have three. Taxidermy 
and ornithology have five journals. The science of collecting and preserving- 
birds' eggs has one journal. 

There is One Clas^ of periodicals who^e publishers must have difficulty 

in keeping track of subscribers, even though they pay in advance. These 

are the papers devoted to agents, street fakirs, folloi^ers of fairs, expositions,. 

.,and conventions. This peripatetic public is seived by four papers that 

^ive advance information concerning large meetings and events. 

Publications devoted to history, biography, and genealogy are usually 
leisurely, appearing every three months, as a rule. 

Seventeen publications are issued for detectives, policemen, and fire- 
men. Among the less conspicuous foreign language papers are one Arabic, 

two Armenian, five Chinese, three Croatian, eight Finnish, two Gaelic, two 
modern Greek, four Hungarian, three Icelandic, two monthly journals in 
a dialect of the Nebraska Indians, two Japanese, five Lithuanian, five Portu- 
guese, two Russian, one Seivian, ten Slavonic, two Slovenian, and four 
Welsh. Th^e is also a monthly in Boston printed in classic Latin and 
Greek. M. C. M. 



St. Maxv's Church, Littlbmo&s. 



THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



Vol. LXXX. NOVEMBER, 1904. No. 476. 




THE RUPTURE OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN 
THE HOLY SEE AND THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT. 

BY REVEREND JOHN T. CREAGH. D.D.. J.U.D. 

FRENCH publicist, writing in the Independent of 
September 22, stated that it is difficult for those 
who live outside the borders of France to under- 
stand the reasons for the war on religion which 
is being waged with such bitterness by the party 
in contro] of the republic at the present time. Mr. Guyot 
could have found a rather striking confirmation of his view in 
the editorial columns of the same issue in which his article 
appeared. He had explained the government's treatment of 
religious congregations as well as any sympathetic commen* 
tator could, and precisely for the benefit of the American pub- 
lic. The editor adverting to the same matter, and probably 
acquainted with Mr. Guyot's justifkation, makes the unfeeling 
pronouncement " that it is hard for us to understand such 
tyranny." The view is a correct one. The ways of the French 
government do appear to the American mind strange and in- 
explicable, but it is doubtful if they ever appeared so unrea- 
sonable as in the recent rupture of diplomatic relations 
between the Holy See and Prance. 

Here is a transaction which is not veiled in obscurity, or 
which we may be asked to attribute to causes mysterious and 
potent and beyond our discernment. Mr. Combes himself, 

THB MlMIONAlT SOCIBTT OV ST. PAUL THB ApOSTLB IN TMB STATB 

OB NBW YOBK, 19i4. 
VOL. LXXX.— 10 



J 42 The Holy See. [Nov., 

publishing the correspondence that bears on his most recent 
triumph, presents for our consideration and our judgment an 
object which is accurately defined and which we can see and 
touch. He tells us that he broke off diplomatic relations with 
the Vatican, because the Pope in his treatment of two French 
bishops disregarded the rights of France and violated the Con- 
cordat. We might have been tempted to regard the rupture 
as only one phase of a general attack on things religious, but 
the President of the Council informs us that it is a phase 
complete in itself. He has acted for certain specific reasons, 
which completely justify his course. We are relieved from 
even the necessity of estimating the possible effects of Mr. 
Loubet's visit to Rome and the events which followed close 
upon it. Mr. Combes excludes everything except what bears 
on the conduct of the Holy See in reference to two recalci- 
trant prelates; and he enables us to judge his case without 
fear of error by placing in our hands his Journal Officiel of 
August I. The Vatican also has published a collection of the 
pertinent documents, but to this we need not recur. 



As we approach the study of the diplomatic battle which 
preceded the government's decision, we bring with us some 
very clear convictions on the question about which disagree- 
ment arose, convictions generally accepted in America by both 
Catholics and Protestants, and the correctness of which we 
believe to be beyond dispute. As these convictions have a 
certain bearing on the matter in hand, it may be well at once 
to call them to mind. 

One of these convictions relates to the requirements of life 
and conduct in those who are charged with the spiritual care 
of others. We are all familiar with the high character of the 
bishops and clergy of France; it has furnished a beautiful 
theme for many a novelist and many a writer on French in- 
stitutions ; it is one of the hopeful features. in a prospect which 
ofiFers so gloomy an outlook for religion. But, however noble 
the life of any episx:opate may be, it never surpasses the ideal 
set by the New Testament and the discipline of the . Catholic 
Church; it never surpasses the concept which the episcopal 
character suggests to the minds of all men. The guide of souls 



i$04.] THE French Government. 143 

must be himself possessed of those virtues which it is his duty 
to inculcate in others. The bitterest flings in our literature 
are rightly directed at unworthy pastors. If a shepherd be 
discovered faithless, the only step possible, in the judgment of 
every reasonable man, is his immediate removal from the high 
society of which he declares himself unworthy, and from the 
sacred trust which he violates. His efficiency is at an end. 
He has become a menace, a power for evil; and the more 
exalted his office and the greater his responsibilities, the more 
urgent will be the call for his repression. 

Another conviction that obtains in the American mind is 
that the responsibility of watching jealously the characters of 
those to whom is entrusted the safety of souls, rests with re* 
ligious bodies. These, as represented by their superior authori*- 
ties, must punish infractions of their discipline, must act in 
matters in which they ate primarily concerned. The civil arm 
does not intervene except to coerce offenders against its law, 
and one may satisfy the code of the state and yet be a very 
poor bishop or minister or priest. It is necessary, then, for 
religious authorities to act, and act they do, for one reason or 
another, for inefficiency or immorality or maladministration. 
With us they act without let or hindrance from the secular 
power; nay, with the approbation of our laws. More than 
one eminent judge in our courts has expressed the desire to 
have church matters, of whatsoever kind, confined to ecclesias- 
tical judicatories, and this view is without doubt the popular 
one in the United States. ' 

These convictions, however, represent more than mere 
national feeling, more than a sentiment which is the outcome 
of our particular circumstances. They are the expressions of 
a law of reason which is operative everywhere. In eveiy 
country the same demands are laid on those who would lead 
men to Christ; in every country the need of safeguarding 
souls and removing influences detrimental to their welfare is 
as great as it is with us; in every religious body, whatever its. 
name and wherever it may be found, there must reside the 
duty and the power of coercing unworthy officials. 

We say that this law is as reasonable and as operative 
everywhere as it is with us. But we are told that there is an 
exception. Recently in France, charges were brought against 
two members of the episcopate. These charges were, accord- 



144 The Holy See, [Nov.,. 

ing to an express declaration of Cardinal Merry del Val and 
by the admission of Mr. Combes^ purely ecclesiastical in char- 
acter; they had no political bearing. In other words, these 
bishops were brought within the exclusive competency of an 
ecclesiastical tribunal. The tribunal for such cases is, accord- 
ing to the law of the religious society of which they were 
members, the court of the bishop of bishops. His Holiness, 
Pius X. The Pope proceeded to exercise what would appear 
to be his lawful authority, not to the extent of removing the 
suspected prelates, but in attempting to investigate the charges 
brought against them, charges that were notorious and of long 
standing. What is our surprise to learn that it is precisely this 
perfectly reasonable procedure which Mr. Combes denounces 
as an offence to France, and a sufficient reason for breaking 
off diplomatic relations which had been maintained for three 
hundred years. A century ago the Holy See and France 
entered into a mutual agreement, a Concordat, for the regula- 
tion of certain matters of religious discipline, and the Papal 
action, which in itself appears so proper, has violated this 
venerable treaty. We can learn from the pages of the . Jour- 
nal Officiel how grievously the Pope sinned when he en.- 
deavored to interfere in the interests of morality and religion. 



The first case mentioned is that of Monsignor Geay, Bishop 
of Laval. So far back as 1900, this prelate's conduct had 
attracted the attention of the authorities, and he had been coun- 
selled by Rome to resign. For those who know the slowness 
with which the church undertakes dny act looking to the de- 
privation of ecclesiastical office, this counsel will be significant 
enough of the fact that interference had become necessary; 
but even more significant was the bishop's answer. Within 
five days he placed in the hands of the Pope an unconditional 
renunciation of his see. The inference to be drawn from this 
complete submission is clear; there was justification of some 
kind for the suggestion to resign. This inference is not weak- 
ened by Monsignor Geay's subsequent insistence that, if his 
resignation were accepted, the Holy See should appoint him to 
some other diocese, " even the poorest in France," to use his 
own phrase. At this stage the affait was allowed to rest tern- 



1904.] The French Government. 145 

porarily. The church acts with deliberation and mercy. The 
bishop had received an admonition, grave enough, surely, to 
lead him to take measures to dispel suspicion and demonstrate 
his worthiness; he had acknowledged the justice of the warn- 
ing; there was reason to hope that all cause for complaint 
would disappear. This hope was disappointed. The Nuncio 
at Paris had occasion to speak again and again to the govern- 
ment of the sad condition of the diocese of Laval, and of the 
necessity of administering some remedy ; but his representa- 
tions were without fruit. It therefore became necessary for the 
Pope to take up the case again. Four years from the date 
of the first communication another counsel, identical in char- 
acter, was sent from Rome, with the added clause that if a vol- 
untary resignation was not forthcoming, it would be necessary 
for the authorities to proceed to further steps. This time the 
bishop manifested an unwillingness to resign. He was cited, 
consequently, to appear before a competent tribunal to excul- 
pate himself, if possible. 

We can understand what has been done so far, and it would 
seem that all that savors of offence or broken faith is entirely 
absent from the letters addressed to Monsignor Geay. A 
suggestion to resign voluntarily may come from any one, from 
a layman, a priest, a brother-bishop, a pope; it does not 
require the exercise of authority. Few would regard it as 
other than a laudable act in a case like Monsignor Geay's. So 
also does it seem that there is no cause to take umbrage at 
an invitation given to an ecclesiastic to appear before an eccle- 
siastical tribunal, and answer charges relating solely to ecclesias- 
tical matters. Especially inoffensive does the Pope's course 
appear in a country where, as in France, the free exercise of 
the Catholic religion is expressly guaranteed by law. 

Why did the French government find in these inoffensive 
proceedings a grievous affront ? Why did it, as soon as it was 
informed of what had been done, enter formal protest and 
demand the immediate revocation of the letters addressed to 
Monsignor Geay? 

The government protested first against the counsel to resign, 
AB given without its consent; and, as if to allege the ground 
of its protest, declared that the powers of a bishop cannot be 
withdrawn without a decision of the government of the republic. 
But, leaving aside all question of the truth or falsity of this 



146 THE HOLY See. [Nov., 

latter statement, we feel bound to ask where has there been 
any withdrawal of episcopal power? A prelate who has be- 
come useless and harmful in his diocese was asked privately to 
renounce his see. The advisability of such a course is apparent. 
It spared the reputation of the bishop; it prevented public 
dissensions and discussions that could serve no good purpose ; 
and it was an act which did not necessarily suppose authority 
in its source. It could have come, as was remarked above, 
from any of the bishop's inferiors. It is evident, therefore, 
that the suggestion to resign cannot rightly be considered as 
a withdrawal of episcopal power, or as an act which supposes 
preliminary consent of the French government. 

The government protested secondly against what it desig- 
nated as undisguised pressure exerted m order to compel the 
bishop to comply with the counsel of the Holy See, which undis- 
guised pressure is detected in the threat to take further steps in 
case the bishop did not resign. The language in which this pres- 
sure is exerted is interesting. The secretary of the Holy Office 
earnestly begs Monsignor Geay not to make further steps 
necessary, which steps will certainly be taken, he says, if the 
bishop retains control of his diocese. It seems to us that what- 
ever pressure is brought to bear in these words is already con- 
tained in the circumstances of the case; An unworthy bishop 
ought to resign. If he does not, he renders action of one kind 
or another necessary. Even if the Holy Office had not employed 
this so-called threat, further proceedings would have been in- 
evitable. Its use does not introduce a new element into the 
discussion, such as might serve as foundation for an accusation 
of bad faith against the Holy See, 

A third protest was entered because the Vatican had acted 
through an authority not recognized by the French govern- 
ment. It appears that the letters sent from Rome to Laval 
bore the signature of the secretary of the Holy Office. But 
the French government cannot be ignorant oi the fact that, 
while this congregation is not the same physical person as 
Pius X., it is in certain matters legally identified with bis Holi- 
ness, whose authority it is commissioned to exercise. So long 
as the French government recognizes the Pope, it must also 
recognize his agents. To fail to do so would gQ counter to a 
recognized principle of international law, by making it impos- 
ile for a sovereign to act through intermediaries. 



1904.] The French Government. 147 

ThuB far we have discovered no reason to justify a sever- 
ance of diplomatic relations between the. Holy See and the 
French government. 

In accordance with the facts» we have, not felt obliged to 
take into account the dttty* which might- have been incumbent 
on the Holy See in regard to France, if authoritative removal 
frpm office had been actually attempted. The Holy See has 
not, up to the point we have reached, gone in the ways of 
positive coercion beyond expressing a demand for an investi- 
gation, which might or might not have resulted in a determi- 
nation to prosecute the bishop in a formal trial. As we shall 
see, it had gone no farther when Mr. Combes reached his 
decision. Notwithstanding this, we shall perhaps understand 
better the attitudes of both principals if we keep before us the 
assurance given by the Cardinal Secretary of State, in a letter 
of July 10, that if a regular canonical process were instituted 
'Mue consideration would be had for the terms of the Con- 
cordat "; and, in a letter of July 26, that in case of deposition, 
the Holy See would have conferred with the government. 

The bishop's subsequent course tended to thicken the plot 
of which he was the central figure. He had been asked to 
appear in June. He pleaded for delay and promised to come 
in the autumn. In view of the publicity and seriousness of the 
charges which had been preferred, the Holy Father considered 
that a greater anxiety for exculpation would have been more 
appropriate. Gentle measures were evidently out of place with 
one who, after four years of patience on the part of his supe- 
riors, had answered a summons to present himself in June, by 
writing that he might possibly come in October. We are not 
surprised th^t on July 2 a formal order was sent from Rome, 
citing Monsignor Geay to appear within fifteen days to answer 
the charges brought against him. This lawful summons was 
answered by an extraordinary letter from the bishop, in which 
he stated that he had communicated the Pope's letter to the 
government ; that the minister of public worship forbade him 
to go to Rome; and that any objections to be made on the 
score of his failure to appear for investigation would have to 
be addressed to the French government. He promised, how- 
ever, to be bound by what might be arranged between France 
and the Holy See. The Pope, as might be expected, answered 
this impertinence by an instruction to the Cardinal Secretary of 



148 THE Holy See. [Nov,, 

State to compel Monsignor Geay's appearance on ^\x\y 20, 
under penalty of suspension from all powers of orders and 
jurisdiction. 

We cannot help pausing for a moment to reflect on what 
the conduct of most governments would be in such a case. 
The refractory cleric would be sent about his business if he 
appealed to the civil power, and would be obliged to settle for 
his ecclesiastical delinquencies with an ecclesiastical tribunal. 
But the present French government does things differently. It 
took this fugitive from ecclesiastical justice under its protection. 
There might be every reason to believe him unworthy of his 
high office and to consider him an obstacle to religion and a 
stumbling block to souls; every consideration of reason and 
religion might demand a judicial consideration of his case; but 
his proper superiors should not be allowed to investigate his 
character and take measures to combat his pernicious influeoce. 
The government immediately demanded the revocation of all 
the letters addressed to its prot^g^. 

Strange as is this demand, stranger still are the reasons 
advanced to justify it. We find them in a letter to Mr. de 
Courcel written on July 23 : " In summoning to Rome, directly 
and un)^nown to the government, a bishop who in his character 
of administrator of a diocese depends on the Minister of public 
worship, the Holy See disregarded the rights of the power 
with which it signed the Concordat; in menacing this bishop 
with the penalty of suspension, and intimating that if he did 
not appear in Rome by July 20, at the latest, he would incur by 
that very fact and without need of any further declaration a 
suspension from the exercise of orders and jurisdiction, the 
Holy See disregarded the disposition of the Concordat, by virtue 
of which a bishop cannot be suspended or deposed without the 
agreement of the two powers which contributed to his creation." 

If Mr. de Courcel's first statement be true, that the simple 
call to Rome implied a disregard of the rights of France, the 
Concordat has endowed his government with the most extra- 
ordinary of prerogatives. The Pope cannot, without its con- 
sent, even investigate ,the conduct of his subordinates. His 
authority over the episcopate of France becomes absolutely 
null. He may not even ask a bishop to come to Rome to 
mitke certain necessary explanations, without the consent of 
men who are enemies of all religion, and who may or may not 



1904.] The French Government. 149 

lend their co*operation, as the spirit moves them. What be- 
comes of the Pope's charge to tend the fold of Christ, to keep 
all ranks of the faithful up to the measure of Christian per- 
fection, to display a particular solicitude in regard to those 
who share his authority ? We see at once that the first reason 
of Mr. de Courcel amounts to a complete denial of Papal 
power, a denial which must seek its warrant elsewhere than 
in the Concordat. The Concordat was an agreement to which 
the Pope was a party; and the Pope did not, and the Pope 
could not, subtract the episcopate of any country completely 
from his power. The summoning of Monsignor Geay cannot be 
shown to violate the letter or the spirit of any section of the 
Concordat; it in no wise manifested a disregard of the rights 
of France. 

The second statement of Mr. de Coutcel accused the Holy 
See of violating the Concordat b/ threatening an ipso facto 
suspension in case the bishop did not appear on an appointed 
date. The Concordat, says Mr. de Courcel, provides that a 
bishop cannot be suspended without joint action by the 
civil and ecclesiastical authorities. We search the Concordat, 
and we do not find a word referring to suspension. But we 
know that ever since the Concordat was entered into, every 
bishop at the time of his consecration has sworn to receive 
and diligently execute all Pontifical commands; and has pro- 
fessed his obedience to Pontifical authority and Pontifical law. 
And in this Pontifical law, penalties such as Monsignor Geay 
is threatened with, have long had a recognized place. The 
salvation of souls is the great purpose of all church legislation, 
and in the interest of souls the law must often act speedily 
and without formality. The crime is committed, the penalty 
immediately attaches itself to the offender. Such self-inflicting 
penalties are a permanent part of Catholic Church discipline, 
and the church of France, being a part of the Catholic Church, 
is and always has been acquainted with their theory and 
practice. Examples are not difficult to find. The famous Bull, 
"Apostolicae Sedis," is made up of a long list of punishments, 
many of them being suspensions, that are incurred by the mere 
fact of certain transgressions without the necessity of a sentence, 
Md no bishop in France can consider himself exempt from 
those provisions of that Bull which apply to his order. There 
is also a well-known law which obliges the bishops of French 



ISO The Holy See. [Nov., 

dioceses to visit Rome once every four years, under penalties to 
be incurred ipso facto^ and no bishop in France can believe 
that the Concordat afFects this law in any way. This latter 
example is precisely to the point in the present argument, for 
it is nothing else but an order issued to every bishop to 
appear before the Pope for the purpose of rendering an account 
of his pastorate. Down to the year 1869 disobedience to this 
order carried with it suspension from temporal and spiritual 
administration. Down to the year 1869 this suspension did 
not violate the Concordat. A similar suspension does not 
violate the Concordat in 1904. Here we have an ancient law, 
differing in no wise from the precept addressed to the bishop 
of Laval; a law which by its very nature was a matter of public 
knowledge, and could not have been unknown to previous 
French governments; a law which operated freely after the 
Concordat had been established, and which never was regarded 
as a violation of that agreement. In the face of such an 
example, which is only an example, representing a very con- 
siderable body of legislation and, what is more, evidencing the 
right of the legislator to act by way of such penalties, it is 
impossible to maintain that the summons to Monsignor Geay 
sufficiently substantiates a charge of violated faith. The Con- 
cordat was never intended to effect the excommunication of 
French bishops. They remain members of the Catholic Church 
and subject to its law. 

The reader will probably be surprised to learn that at this 
point we have exhausted the case of the government against 
the Holy See in so far as Monsignor Geay is concerned. The 
case is weak enough, so weak that there is no doubt to which 
side a verdict will incline. 



It is not often that, while the Holy See is embarrassed by 
the unwelcome duty of recalling a bishop to a sense of the 
demands of his office, another case of similar character requires 
its attention. But this happened during the present spring 
and summer in France. The bishop of Dijon, Monsignor Le 
Nordez, became the object of suspicion and grave charges. 
The first public manifestation of unhappy conditions came 
about in a most unusual way — a refusal of seminarians to re- 
ceive sacred orders from the hands of their chief pastor. 



1904.] The French Government. 151 

Those who are acquainted with the character of the youth in 
Catholic seminaries, who know the deep piety and docility and 
thorough discipline which prevail there without exception, will 
realize that the cause of a rebellion of such seriousness must 
have been grave indeed. Amazement is a poor word to denote 
the sentiment which such action aroused in Catholic minds. 
We can imagine the feelings of superior ecclesiastical authority 
when this fact was brought to its attention. 

This rebellion of the seminarians was in itself a sufficient 
charge, but it was only the manifestation of a strong feeling 
which was not confined to the seminary.* This state-named 
prelate had, like his brother of Laval, rendered himself liable 
to investigation. The nature of his offences does not concern 
us, except to the extent that they had no political bearing. 
In other words they concerned not the state, but the church ; 
the only tribunal before which he could properly be expected 
to appear was an ecclesiastical one; he was a bishop, and in 
the Catholic Church bishops are judged by the Pope. 

The Pope, as was his duty, acted at once. The seminary 
incident demanded his intervention first, and he directed the 
Nuncio at Paris to notify Monsignor Le Nordez of the Pope's 
wish that the ordinations should be deferred. The bishop 
obeyed and acknowledged the wisdom of the Papal decision. 
Bat the mere suspension of ordinations did not rehabilitate 
him. It was still necessary that he should be exculpated or 
removed; and about six weeks later he was summoned to 
Rome. In a letter couched in the most respectful terms, he 
pleaded the excuse of certain diocesan functions, and prom- 
ised to appear towards the middle of June. This promise, 
however, was not kept, and a new ordet was necessary on 
July 9, requiring appearance within fifteen days and, as in the 
case of the other bishop, under penalty of ipso facto suspension 
from the exercise of orders and jurisdiction. Monsignor Le 
Nordez replied to this grave mandate ten days later with the 
information that ^e had disclosed its tenor to his government, 
and, while he does not state what instructions he had received, 
the result of his loyalty soon became manifest. The Charg^ 
d'affaires at the Vatican directed to Cardinal Merry del Val a 
formal note of protest. He objected first to the order defer- 
ring the rite of ordination, and declared that France was 



^i^ 



w 



1 52 The Holy See. [Nov., 

obliged to protest against such an act done without her con- 
sent ; to protest *' against its substance because any measure 
tending to diminish the prerogatives of a bishop, and to in- 
flict on him partial deposition, is opposed to the Concordat; 
and against its form, because the Nuncio at Paris has not the 
right to communicate directly with French bishops." 

Protest was also made against the simple summons to 
Rome, and against the summons with penalty attached, but as 
we have already seen that these cannot be regarded in any 
way as injurious to the concordatory rights of France, we are 
free to confine our attention to the objection based on the 
Pope's request that ordinations be delayed. The government 
sees therein an act which cannot be done without its consent, 
because it tends to diminish the prerogatives of a bishop and 
to inflict on him partial deposition. It is difficult to believe 
that the writer of this note really thought that this reason 
seriously applied to the case in hand. The time had come for 
the conferring of sacred orders in the diocese, it is true, but 
who would say that in the circumstances the bishop, even 
consulting only his own interests, ought to have proceeded to 
the ceremony. It is easy to picture the scandal and disorder 
which would have followed. Everything counselled a delay; 
and if the bishop ever needed the advice of a counsellor to 
whom he would listen it was at that moment; not to deprive 
him of any power or prerogative, not to inflict o^ him a par- 
tial deposition, but to induce him to defer ordinations until a 
time when spirits should be more calm, and public opinion 
con:ected if it were false. The Papal note was not a depriva- 
tion of power; it was the dictation of a course which the cir- 
cumstances rendered necessary, and which, it is important to 
remark, Monsignor Le Nordez himself approved. 

To maintain that the Pope cannot issue such an otrder in 
circumstances of this kind, without the permission of the French 
government, is equivalent to a declaration that he possesses no 
authority over the church in France. It is in vain that we 
seek for this declaration in the Concordat. On the contrary, 
the first article of that celebrated treaty provides that ''the 
Roman Catholic Apostolic religion shall be freely exercised in 
France." The few restrictions of Pontifical authority, made 
with Papal consent, are clearly defined, and leave in their in- 




1904.] The French Government. 153 

tegrity all other Papal rights. None of these restrictions is 
so sweeping as to annihilate the disciplinary relations between 
the French episcopate and the Holy See, which pertain essen- 
tially to the free exercise of the Catholic religion. 

The exception to the form of the order to suspend ordina- 
tions was based on the employment of the Nuncio to commu- 
nicate the Pope's desire to Monsignor Le Nordez. "The 
Nuncio -of the Pope has not the right to correspond directly 
with French bishops." We might dismiss this protest at once 
by saying that it is a question of violations of the Concordat, 
and nowhere does the Concordat, either explicitly or implicitly, 
forbid the Nuncio to correspond directly with French bishop^. 
But we understand that the government would hold that some 
one of the Organic Articles places limitations on the Nuncio's 
activity. It is difficult to see how this alters the case. The 
Concordat, we must remember, was a bilateral contract, and the 
Holy See, one of the parties to that contract, has never recog- 
nized or con^nted to the Organic ArticlesT On the contrary, 
from the time of their first promulgation by Napoleon, protest 
has repeatedly been made against them, and in 18 16 the Pope 
secured their abrogation. They were re-enacted later by the 
government, but they are not a part of the Concordat. Some 
of the provisions contained in these articles are curious enough. 
The twelfth enacts that archbishops and bishops may add to 
their name the title of Citizen or Mister; all other titles are 
prohibited* The forty-third ordains that all clerics shall dress 
as French laymen, but that bishops may add to this costume 
a pectoral cross and violet stockings. Like these wise regula- 
tions, the article regarding the Nuncio's correspondence has 
lost its force through perpetual non-observance. Not only is 
the prohibitive ordinance alleged by the government against 
Monsignor Lorenzelli not a part of the Concordat; not only 
has it never been sanctioned by the common agreement of any 
Pope with any consul or emperor or president of France ; more 
than this, no such rule has ever been observed. The different 
Nuncios have always corresponded directly, as occasion arose, 
with members pf the French episcopate. 

The reader will probably expect us to prosecute our study 
and develop the real reasons for Mr. Combes' action. We are 
unable to do so. The case terminated here. There is no jus- 



154 The Holy See. [Nov., 

tification for the rupture of diplomatic relations between the 
Holy See and the French government save that contained in 
the protests which we have been considering. We need not 
formulate the only judgment possible on the validity of that 
justification. Our pronouncement has been anticipated by 
Monsignors Geay and Le Nordez, who have considered the 
government's position untenable and betaken themselves 
to Rome. 



There is only one conclusion to be drawn from a reading 
of the documents bearing on the severance of diplomatic rela* 
tions between the Holy See and France, and that is that if all 
of Mr. Combes' measures be similarly motived he has slight 
claim to our respect and sympathy. One who does not limit 
his attention to the essentials of these documents, and has 
the patience carefully to explore the extensive correspondence 
which flashed between Rome and Paris, will probably think 
that we have not put the case for the Vatican as strongly 
and fully as was possible. But our purpose from the beginning 
was not to plead in behalf of the Holy See, but to weigh the 
arguments of the French government. To conform to this 
purpose, we neglected to dwell on the striking contrast between 
the conciliatory tone of every communication from the Cardi- 
nal Secretary of State, and the uncompromising, irritating lan- 
guage of the French embassy. We did not mention either that 
when Mr. Combes presented his case to the world, apparently 
with the hope of securing its favorable opinion, he was guilty 
of an act which cannot be called other than contemptible, he 
suppressed one most important paper, the long note sent by 
Cardinal Merry del Val on June lo. This note covers four full 
octavo pages ; it is a careful history of Monsignor Geay's case, 
with full explanations of the course adopted by the Holy See ; 
it is absolutely necessary for a correct understanding of the 
diplomatic discussion ; and Mr. Combes kept it back. With 
this evidence of bad faith before us, we look with some leniency 
on the other faults which may be detected in his arraignment 
of the church's representatives. There are more than one. 
Some of them it is true are less serious than others, as, for 
example, some ridiculous mistranslations of Latin phrases, which 




1904.] The French Government. 155 

kept Paris in good humor for several days. It is easy to over- 
look or smile at an ignorance of Latin, but dishonesty is 
another thing. To lay stress on defects of form would not, 
however, be the method that would lead us to a correct judg- 
ment on the present issue. It might, in fact, prejudice us in 
regard to one party or the other. The substance of the case 
formed the legitimate object of our consideration, and on this 
we concentrated our attention. 

Mr. Combes made a mistake when he offered diplomatic 
battle to the Vatican and invited the public to witness the 
combat. He should have continued his iavorite policy of ac- 
complishing his purposes with majorities within the chamber or 
force without, and giving no reasons or ioyenting such as will 
appeal only to persons who share his peculiar views on religion 
and government. The world has a very real and profound 
respect for the Cardinal statesmen of Rome, and when a record 
of their doings in an encounter of this kind is published, it 
will be read in a spirit of fairness and with a desire to know 
what- was said and done by them as well as by their opponents. 
The verdict after reading the record here will be that the 
French government had power to break off relations with the 
Vatican and did so, but for a reason which was worse than 
none, because ecclesiastical authority, in the interest of all that 
is good and sacred, interposed in a matter in which it alone 
was competent. 



iS6 Newman at Uttlemore. [Nov., 



NEWMAN AT LITTLEMORE. 

BY EDWARD A. RUMELY. 

Not there in lyondon, where the toil and din 
Of empire surges round the church of peace 
That loved him well, and saw his sorrows cease, 

Then crossed his hands, the victor's palm therein ; 

Nor in. his early, church of Mary, where 
The air grows dim, in long extended aisles, 
And sin and care forget themselves somewhiles, 

« 

So near is God beneath those arches fair ; 

But here in this small church, so damp and dim, 
Where few, if any, ever come to pray. 
There lingers in the shadows soft and gray. 

Somehow, to me, a truer sight of him. 

• 

For here is where he struggled for the light 
Through those sad days that seemed to never end, 
When all the paths appeared to him to tend 

Across the hills into a deeper night. 



1904.] The devil and his Crew. 157 




THE DEVIL AND HIS CREW. 

BY THE VERY REVEREND GEORGE M. SEARLE. C.S.P. 

|HE existence of a host of bodiless, purely spiri- 
tual beings, enemies of God and man, and 
commonly known as devils, cannot be doubted 
by any one who believes in the truth of Scrip- 
ture. Every Catholic who thoroughly under- 
stands his religion must, therefore, believe in it, however 
strange it may seem that Almighty God should allow such a 
state of things. Of course it is strange and mysterious ; but 
not more so than his allowance of evil in any form, and par- 
ticularly of the great and terrible sinfulness of man himself. 

Catholics, tben, have no right to entertain serious doubt on 
this subject. But many do not think seriously about the mat- 
ter at all. And there never was a time in which it was more 
necessary to do so than this in which our lot is cast. For 
there never was a time in which doubt or denial as to the 
existence of the devil and his crew was so general in the 
world at large. Some, of course, deny the existence of spiri- 
tual beings of any kind, even of the human soul itself. They 
are simply materialists. It is, however, probable that this 
materialism is on the decline; and what may be called spiri- 
taalism on the increase. Still most of those who call them- 
selves spiritualists, especially those who believe that they are 
ia constant communication with bodiless spirits, seem to 
assume as a matter of course that the spirits with whom they 
communicate are not only bodiless, but disembodied ; that is, 
that they are what they represent themselves to be, the spirits 
of departed human beings. As such, of course, they uniformly 
do represent themselves. 

Perhaps I hardly need to say that I am not claiming that 
all the so-called spiritualist or spiritist manifestations of mod- 
em times are spiritual in any sense. A great deal of the 
buiioess is simply business ; that is, simply a scheme to make 
moaey by imposing on the credulous. The professional medium 
ill of course, very open to suspicion of this kind; and, in 
many cases, the trickery resorted to has been more or less 

VOL. LXXX.— II 



iS8 The Devil and his Crew. [Nov., 

triumphantly exposed. The very adjuncts of darkened rooms, 
and what may be called machinery, connected with the regular 
seances, are often of themselves sufficient to condemn them as 
frauds, without further examination. And it is this profes- 
sional work which has generally been the subject of examina- 
tion; a good deal, certainly, has been wasted on it. But 
there is a great deal of spiritism of a different kind; which 
has no character of public exhibition about it; which is not, 
as it were, on tap at any time you please. In this many 
phenomena occur which are certainly difficult to explain on 
any theory, except that the effects produced are due to the 
agency of something outside the will or ability of the human 
beings who witness them, and that this something does not 
work with the order and regularity characteristic of physical 
law. I do not mean to say that there may not be an expla- 
nation of some even of these phenomena without resorting to 
the intervention of spiritual beings different from ourselves; 
but I do say that the reality of such intervention is the jxiost 
reasonable explanation of them as a whole; and to deny the 
possibility of such intervention is simply an assumption which 
does not deserve the name of reason. And it is one which, 
of course, no Christian can be guihy of for a moment ; for it 
is contrary to the ^teaching of Christ and of his Apostles in 
very many places. 

Strangely enough, however, it never seems to occur to 
spiritists that the phenomena, which they quite reasonably 
ascribe to spiritual intervention from the unseen world, may 
be due to other beings than those in whose names they are 
produced. They seem to labor under the strange delusion 
that no bodile^ spirit could ever, by any possibility, tell a 
lie. If you grant that the phenomena are really produced by 
spirits, you seem to them to grant their whole religion. But 
we know, or ought to know, that the devil is the father of 
lies, and that the mere proof, however conclusive it might be, 
that a revelation comes from a purely spiritual source, is no 
guarantee whatever of its truth ; and the possibility, at least, 
of serious error in such a revelation ought, one would think, 
to be evident even to them. They may, indeed, claim that 
many things told them are true; but again, it does not seem 
to occur to them that evil spirits may have great knowledge, 
and that they can tell the truth when it suits their piitpO)if^ 



1904.] The Devil and his Crew. 159 

which they do, of course, in order that we may believe them 
in their lies as well. 

It is important for Catholics to understand this matter, 
and to realize the danger involved in it. Many of us are in- 
clined to disregard it, to think knd to say that these mani- 
festations and seances ' are all humbug and nonsense. But they 
are not; not all of them; and you can never know when you 
will meet the real thing. You will say that " even if we do, 
we are on our guard against it; it is not going to shake our 
faith." Perhaps not; still one should not play with fire. And 
' even if it were absolutely certain, not only that our faith 
would not be weakened,, but that it would even be strength- 
ened by so doing, still the sin of mixing ourselves up with 
work of this kind would remain the same. The real sin con- 
sists in having dealings wantonly and needlessly with the 
devil; and in these affairs there is always grave danger of 
this; and it is not lawful, even though good may come of it; 
we must not do evil that good may come. 

The same may be said about another matter; and it is 
one to which Catholics are more inclined than they are to 
spiritual seances, or table- tipping. The matter to which I 
refer is what is known as fortune-telling. This seems to have 
an overpowering fascination for great numbers of Catholics, as 
well as for those outside the church. 

It is not so very strange that it should be so. Curiosity 
about the future is very natural; especially about the impor- 
tant affairs of life. If fortune- telling could be taken literally ^ 
that is, if by it one could tell how to make a fortune, or — 
what would be better — know infallibly that a fortune was to 
be ours without the trouble of making it, who would not be 
glad to have the information? Many people would even like 
(or think they would like) to know beforehand of trouble or 
disaster to come. At any rate, certainty, even of evil which 
has actually come, sometimes seems much better than suspense. 
''Tell U6 the worst at once," is often said. And if we knew 
of trouble that was coming, it seems that we would be better 
able to prepare for, or even diminish it. 

No doubt, then, most of us would like to have our fortune 

told, if it could be ; and especially if it was a good one. But is 

it possible; and if so, how ? These are questions we ought to ask. 

Certainly it is possible for Almighty God to tell our fortunes; 



t6o The Devil and his Crew. [Nov., 

He knows them ; it is a necessary part of his omniscience. 
But can we seriously believe, even for a moment, that the 
Lord is going to do this by means of tea- leaves, or a pack of 
cards, or any other part of the fortune teller's outfit? No one 
surely does or can imagine such a thing. Nor can we imagine 
that the holy angels or the saints in heaven, who share to 
some extent in the knowledge of God, are going to use such 
means. No ; a thousand times no ! If God wills to reveal 
anything to us, he will do it by means of prophets evidently 
inspired by him, or at any rate in some way worthy of his 
glory and majesty. 

Only one alternative, then, is left. If God and his holy 
angels and saints do not work through fortune-tellers, who is 
there that can work by them ? Evidently only the devil and 
his crew. They may do so. They have a great sagacity, 
belonging to their angelic nature, which remains to a great 
extent, fallen angels though they be. They are also in 
possession of much information which is concealed from us. 
When it comes to the future, they have not, of course, the 
infallible foreknowledge of God; but they are able to forecast 
many things with great probability ; and, moreover, if we sur- 
render ourselves to them, they are able to shape our future 
very much as they will. They can predict an event for us, 
and, if we allow them, they can themselves bring it about. 

We may then confidently say, that any real or genuine 
fortune* telling is the work of the devil. By fortune- telling I 
mun all forecasting of the future, which does not come from any 
real scientific or expert knowledge of the subject in general; 
such knowledge as the astronomer, the weather man, or the Wall 
Street man obviously has. To try then, seriously, to ascertain 
the future by fortune-telling, is implicitly to invoke the devil. 

But it will be said, of course, that it is often only done in 
joke or for fun, without any serious expectation of getting at the 
truth. This is, no doubt, true ; but there are many cases where 
it is not all a joke. People, especially if they are poor, will 
hardly pay fifty cents or a dollar for a joke, especially when 
there is no one to share it with them. No; the professional 
fortune-teller is not consulted for a joke. And even if such 
were the case, what does St. Peter Chrysologus say? He says, 
that ''he who wishes to joke with the devil, will not be able 
to reign with Christ." 



1904.] The Devil and his Crew, 161 

It is time that what I say should be backed up by the 
words of Scripture, that you may see that it is not a mere 
private opinion. We find very conclusive ones in the book of 
Deuteronomy, xviii. ii. We find there that Moses said to the 
people of Israel, just before their entrance into the promised 
land : '' Neither let there be found among you any one that . . . 
consulteth soothsayers, or observeth dreams and omens, neithei 
let there be any wizard, nor charmer, nor any one that con- 
sulteth pythonic spirits, or fortune tellers, or that seeketh the 
truth from the dead. For the Lord abhorreth all these things." 
This is strong enough language. And let no one, imagine 
that this was merely part of the ceremonial law, to be abrogated 
by the New Testament, as those were which regarded sacrifices 
or forbidden foods. No ; these and such things, if wrong 
once, are wrong always. The law forbidding them can no 
more be abrogated than the Ten Commandments. 

And it will be noticed that other things than those of 
which I have spoken are also foibidden by them; that is, the 
observing of dreams and omens. By this is meant of course 
the regular and formal observance of such things. A dream is 
not always to be disregarded as of no consequence ; God 
revealed very important matters to St. Joseph by dreams, and 
also to other saints. But a dream may come from the enemy 
of God also ; every night in the Office of Complin, we pray 
against them. They may be merely natural wanderings of the 
inin<l; but if they are anything else, the presumption is against 
them; and unless there are special and extraordinary signs of 
their Divine origin, we should never act according to them. 

And as for omens, like the thirteen at table, lucky and 
unlucky days, etc., it is evident that we should never pay the 
slightest attention to them, or be governed in the slightest degree 
by them. Remember, ''The Lord abhorreth all these things.'* 
St. Peter tells us, in the words selected by the church for 
the beginning of Complin, that "the devil as a roaring lion, 
goeth about, seeking whom he may devour." But he does not 
mean that a lion is always roaring. If he did, there would 
not be much difficulty in avoiding him. When the lion is 
waiting for his prey, he takes good care not to roar. He lies 
very quiet, and hides himself. So does the devil, in these 
matters of which I have principally spoken. He has no desire 
to be recognized. He wishes to pass himself off for some- 



i62 The Devil and his Crew, [Nov., 

thing merely natural, and quite harmless ; for some unknown 
law of nature, quite worthy of our investigation ; or perhaps 
for one of our dearest friends, as in the so-called spiritual 
manifestations which have been mentioned. If we do not 
believe that, he would have us believe that there is some 
occult power — call it telepathy, call it clairvoyance, or whatever 
you please — by which a man or woman is able to know matters 
beyond his or her natural knowledge, such as, for instance, 
some language he or she has never learned. The devil goes 
about, seeking whom he may devour; that is, one whom he 
can deceive until he has him safely in his power. When his 
victim has lost the faith, or fallen into immorality, his object 
is gained. 

But it is not only in these matters that we should be on our 
gu ird against him and his follo>Ving of fallen angels. We ought 
to understand that at every moment of our lives they are likely 
to interfere. Not all of our temptations are originated by them, 
though many are. But they are always ready to increase and 
intensify those which come from other sources. They do not 
come openly to the attack; if they did, we should of course 
avoid them. In all things, as in the special matters which 
have been spoken of, they pass themselves off for what is 
innocent, good, and praiseworthy. As St. Paul says: ''Satan 
transformeth himself into an angel of light." If, for instance, 
they would induce us to their own special sin of pride, they 
represent it as only proper self respect. What belongs to mere 
sensuality the spirits of evil do not, perhaps, so well under- 
stand, not having experienced it in themselves; but they have 
learned a good deal about it, and know also how to represent 
it in a favorable light. 

Even in the temptations of our lower nature, our " wrest- 
ling/' as St. Paul says, 'Ms not against flesh and blood — i,e.^ 
not only against that — but against principalities and powers"; 
that is, against angels, fallen it is true, but still naturally 
superior in wisdom and power to ourselves, and ready to use 
all they have to our eternal ruin. And how does St. Peter say 
we must resist them? ** Whom resist ye," he says, "strong in 
faith." Yes, if we are strong in faith, most of the danger is 
gone ; especially if we are strong and fixed in our faith in the ex- 
istence and malice of these our most dangerous enemies. Their 
greatest danger to us is in our forgetting that they exist 



1904.] Educational Topics. 163 




EDUCATIONAL TOPICS. 

BY REVEREND THOMAS McMILLAN, C.S.P. 

ERE is an evident desire in certain places to 

know more about the Hon. Andrew S. Draper, 

recently selected for the new office -created by 

act of legislature, by which he is designated 

" Commissioner of Education of the State of 

New York." According to the large delegation of power 

given to his office he has new opportunities to do substantial 

service for the advancement of education. Final judgment on 

the value of his work must be reserved till a later date, when 

his plans and specifications shall have been put in evidence. 

At present the assurance is not wanting that he is giving 

careful personal attention to all the factors in the complicated 

problem entrusted to him, and that he is willing to consider 

justly the claims of all citizens engaged in promoting the 

cause of public education. 

In the October Educational Review^ edited by Nicholas 
Murray Butler, President of Columbia University, Dr. Draper 
contributes a paper entitled " Government in American Univer- 
sicieSp" which indicates broad lines of thought, and accurate 
judgment in practical affairs. There is nothing suggestive of 
the mere theorist in education. He deprecates " narrowness 
or bigotry," and affirms his belief that " toleration and public 
spirit are all that are needed to win the support of the 
masses" for an American University. Many will appreciate 
his caustic allusion to the "freshman trustee" in the following 
passage : 

The authority which is decisive in a university is that of 
the board of trustees. In an institution privately endowed 
this board is practically self- perpetuating; in one supported 
by taxation it has little to say about the succession. Each 
system has its advantages. It reminds one of Emerson's ob- 
servation that government by an aristocracy is like the ship 
which rides the sea in safety and comfort to all on board 



EDUCATIONAL TOPICS, [Nov., 

e strikes a rock, when she goes down with all hands ; 
'ernment by a democracy is like a raft — it never sinks, 
ir feet are wet a good deal of the time. It is often 
iiTicult to assimilate a freshman trustee than a thousand 
n students. But trustee or student must assimilate; he 
make the institution over; other people do not move 
ause he came. When he has really learned so much 
be becomes useful, and influential, and has a most 
lie time. 

ifHcult question in any large educational policy consists 
recognition of the autonomy of different departments- 
olute ruler may destroy all initiative in a mad desire 
re a senseless uniformity and a slavish subservience to 
n whims. Dr. Draper's view on this 'matter ts quite 
tory, as shown in these words : 

irersity effectiveness rests upon departmental effectiveness, 
nent effectiveness turns upon the man at the head of the 
lent. Each department must be given autonomy of its 
th resources and freedom to work out its success, or prove 
Jequacy of the professor in charge. An administration is 
wrong- headed if it does not give heads of departments 
;ely, and all others in its service as freely as it may, 
:erials to work with, and the freedom to use them just 
lly, and a trifle more so, as capacity for safe and sound 
ment shows itself. . Much would be gained 

ersity administration if teachers could learn that stu- 
re likely to judge teachers quite as quickly and accu- 
Ls teachers judge students. There are more students 
achers; they see the teachers at every angle, and they 
: notes; they have full information, and their combined 
It is generally accurate; they will have treatment 
ntends to be fair and just, or they will make trouble, 
y ought to; they will not tolerate emptiness, or stand 
is, without resentments which they will make effectual, 
r know that these things have no place in a university; 
11 not suffer the loss of substantial rights which seem 
) the world, but mean much to them, unless they are 
way in due process by a tribunal which acts judicially 
nmands respect. 



1904.] Educational Topics. 165 

A general principle which is capable of wide extension to 
many departments of educational work is thus stated by Dr. 
Draper in his closing paragraph: 

The corner stone of efficiency (in an American university) 
is absolute justice where rights are at stake, and relative jus- 
tice, or the sanest wisdom, where rival interests, or policies, 
are involved. It is to sympathize with the aspirations of every 
human soul ; it must give every one his free chance ; it must 
help every force which makes for the uplifting of the mass; 
. . . and it must be a positive and aggressive force for 
quickening every good purpose and uplifting human society. 

Commissioner Lummis, of New York City, has had a long 
and varied experience in the Board of Education. As chair- 
man of the finance committee he recently presented, for the 
first time, a statement showing the steady increase of school 
population in the Borough of Manhattan from the year 1886. 
After consolidation, in the year 1898, the figures represent 
the five boroughs comprising the Greater New York. 

1886 — Average attendance of children (Manhattan), 125,000; 
teachers' salaries averaged $640 per annum; average annual 
cost, per pupil, $30. 

1890 — (Manhattan) Average attendance, 136,000; cost, per 
capita, $30; teachers' salaries averaged $690. 

1898 — ^Year of consolidation. Average attendance, 325,000; 
average cost, per capita, $30. 

1899 — ^Teachers' salaries averaged about $830 (10,049 
teachers) ; average attendance, 347,676 ; cost, per capita, about 

$33.50. 

The Davis Law, increasing teachers' salaries and providing 
for annual increase, went into effect May 3, 1900. 

1900 — Teachers' salaries averaged about $1,000 each (10,555 
teachers); average attendance, 378,211; on register, 418,95 1 ; 
cost, per capita, about $37. 

1901 — Average attendatice, 398,391; on register, 440,286; 
total number of teachers, 11,389; cost, per capita, for each 
pupil, $4r. 

1902 — Average attendance, 405,925; on register, 43i>49i ; 
number of teachers, 11,741; average salary, about $1,170. 

These figures include not only the teachers in the elcmcn- 



Educational Topics. [Nov.. 

schools, but also in the high schools and every other 
irtment. 

:903 — Average attendance, 439,928 ; register, 456,730; cost, 
capita, about $42. 

\t the opening of the schools on September 30, 1903, the 
berof children on register increased to 533,521. This was 

to the amended law requiring all children over six years 
ge to be registered, and to the fact that provision was made 
the pirtial education of all who applied. The greatest 
iase in average attendance of this year was in Manhattan, 
68. In Brooklyn the increase was 5,125. The number of 
hers increased to 12,696. 

\ is evident from these figures, first : That the operation 
te Davis Law has been the chief cause of the large increase 
>er capita cost since the consolidation. The high schools 

special schools have also added considerably to the cost, 
md : The registration of the children is an unreliable 
>r. A large portion of the registration is undoubtedly from 
icate applications, and in estimating the proper amount of 
ey needed for the coming year, the average attendance 
t be borne in mind, and not the registered number. 
The City Superintendent of New York Public Schools,' 

Maxwell, furnished many problems for discussion by his 
-ess before the International Congress of Arts and Sciences 
t. Louis. Philanthropists engaged in aiding various forms 
ducational work among the people will, no doubt, present 
ig arguments against some of the proposed immature 
;estions. Dr. Maxwell said in part: 

3nly in recent years has the conception of physical edu- 
m as an essential part of a child's training found its way 
educational theory and practice. Hence the people's schools 
)ur large cities are, as a rule, very inadequately equipped 
any of the forms of physical education. 
\. partial solution of the problem is to open the school 
lings and yards in the afternoon and evening for purposes 
aanual training, gymnastics, athletics, and free play. Even, 
ever, if every school house in the city were used at all 
onable hours for purposes of recreation and improvement 
measure would still fall far short of counteracting the tene- 
t house evil. 



I904-] Educational Topics. 167 

Nothing short of a revolution in the existing tenement 
house system will restore the life of the poor in the city of 
New York to something like normal conditions. The tenement 
house, as it has been known in New York City, must be eradi- 
cated. University and other social settlements are doing good, 
small parks afford some relief, and the public schools are doing 
a good deal, and may do much more, but none of these instru- 
mentalities goes to the root of the matter. 

The municipality should employ its credit to purchase 
tracts of unoccupied land upon which to erect model homes 
for workingmen amid pleasant and sanitary surroundings, and 
rent or sell them at a moderate profit. 

Education, whether physical or mental, is seriously retarded, 
if not practically impossible, when the body is improperly or 
imperfectly nourished. The schools of Paris provide a simple, 
wholesome mid-day meal for their hungry children. In many 
places in the British islands the same thing is being done. 
Should we do less in the cities of democratic America? In 
no other way can we be sure that the schools will, as far as 
education may, provide equal opportunities for all. . . . 

To overcome the wide-spread opposition to compulsory 
school attendance the speaker suggested: (i) Governmental 
registration and inspection of all private and parochial schools, 
to the end that no school may be permitted to exist which 
does not teach its pupils the English language and the ele- 
mentary duties of citizenship; (2) Registration of children in 
large cities; (3) Education of society to a realizing sense of 
the necessity of a reasonable compulsory education law. 

In conclusion Dr. Maxwell said : 

Attention has recently been attracted by the report of 
the Mosely Commission to what has been called the feminiza- 
tion of American schools, because the great majority of public 
school teachers are women. It was an economic reason, in the 
first instance — the fact that women work for smaller wages than 
men — that led to the present preponderance of the feminine 
element in the teaching force. 

It is more than doubtful, however, whether American 
schools and American education have deteriorated in conse- 
quence. It is quite certain that the refined woman of to-day. 



EDUCATIONAL TOPICS. [Nov., 

a» been thoroughly trained, is a much belter teacher than 
arse, ignorant, pedantic schoolmaster of fifty years ago. 
ixcited no feeling but contempt, hatred, or terror in the 
I of his pupils. 

e London Glebe has directed attention to -the significant 
lat Ireland was the first part of the United Kingdcm to 
B a system of national education. As a fact, however, 
•ter island had a national board and was beginning to 
irered with state-supported schools exactly forty years 

Mr. Foster's act became a law in England, and about 
ars before Parliamentary school grants had been established 
gland. The Irish system was what is now called unde- 
ational, and two bishops— Dr. Whately, in the Church of 
nd, and Dr. Murray, in the Church of Rome — took a 
nent part in setting it up. Both these prelates fondly 

that they would not only teach Irish children their 
I, but that, as the consequence of their work, succcedicg 
itions would grow up with less of religious prejudice than 
predecessors. We are reminded by the report for last 
which has just been published, that Ireland has become 
ly better educated country. Even in 1851, when the 
lal Education Act had been in force for twenty years, 
Ish illiterates amounted to 47 per cent, of the popula- 

in 1891, after sixty years' working, the proportion had 

to 14 per cent. The commissioners justly take credit, 
ore, for a very substantial improvement. They complain, 
>er, that the board has always been hampered by want 
mey. Successive governments have been asked to make 
provisions for the schools in the annual estimates, but 

in vain. 
le Daily Consular Reports from the Department of Com- 

and Labor, at Washington, D. C, have recently con- 
1 an interesting series of papers on industrial education 
rmany, written by Ernst C. Meyer, Deputy Consul of the 
d States in Chemnitz. Americans may and should learn 

lessons from the Germans in the line of national educa- 

progress. Within the last thirty years revolutionary 

es have taken place. Church schools are fully recognized 

llowed to share in the funds raised by taxation according 

standard of public examination. A useful element of 



1904] EDUCATIONAL TOPICS. 1 69 

competition is thus maintained, and experimental tests are made 
at a minimum cost to the public treasury. It is stated as 
positively certain that in the establishment of industrial schools 
private initiative took the lead. The state generally held back 
until the private schools had proved their usefulness. Then 
followed a state subsidy and a general supervisory power, and 
finally most of the industrial schools of higher rank passed 
over entirely into the hands of the state. The German deserves 
great credit for his enterprise and discerning powers in the 
field of industrial education. Many important trade and com- 
mercial schools of to-day were, at the time of their establish- 
ment by private individuals, attacked as wild fantasies. Not 
infrequently state aid was refused, and the individual was com- 
pelled to make the best of his own educational views until 
time vindicated his course. It is not too much to say that to 
private enterprise probably belongs the greatest credit in the 
development of Germany's unrivaled system of industrial 
schools. It was the chambers of commerce, the commercial 
organizations, the special trade organizations, the guilds, public- 
spirited benefactors, and men of wide educational discerning 
p3wers that contributed most in the construction of the splendid 
system of industrial schools. 

Nor can this reasonably be interpreted as a criticism against 
the attitude assumed by the state. Records show that this 
attitude from the first, though not aggressive, was not hostile 
or condemning, but highly favorable to the establishment of 
industrial schools. It was probably great wisdom on the part 
of the state to avoid criticism at a time when criticism against 
iadustrial schools was particularly severe, to hold back and let 
private enterprise prove the value and efficiency of the schools 
before extending its own powerful aid and protection. To day 
every government in the Empire is intensely interested in the 
welfare of the industrial schools. The time of experimentation 
as to their value is past. It is now a question of how most 
economically, most efficiently, and most rapidly to further 
develop these schools Though private initiative in the early 
days broke the way, the state is to-day not delinquent in 
following out the advantages of early private experience. 

The various governments exercise a powerful influence over 
the organization and work of the industrial schools and the 
dispensation of their subsidies. The allowance of a subsidy is 



I70 



EDUCATIONAL TOPICS. 



[Nov., 



generally conditioned upon the meeting of certain requirements 
in organization, entrance-requirements, curriculum, and grade 
of work. Schools which conform to the stipulated require- 
ments enjoy financial aid, while others are assured of like aid 
as soon as the demands of the state are met. By this means 
it has been possible to introduce great uniformity into the 
numerous private institutions. The adopted standards are 
maintained and enforced by the state through an efficient system 
of inspection. Lagging institutions are threatened with the 
withdrawal of their subsidfes, while efficient work receives 
recommendation. The public is kept informed of the entrance- 
requirements, work, aims, and discipline of the schools through 
the systematic publication of complete catalogues. Every 
industrial school, from the lowest trade school to the technical 
high schools, annually issues its courses of study, entrance- 
requirements, tuition fees, final examination regulations, dis- 
ciplinary codes, and all other matter of interest and importance 
to those who contemplate sending their sons or daughters to a 
trade school. Where a strict discipline is maintained, and no 
academic freedom permitted, as in all the lower trade schools, 
the catalogues invariably contain all the school statutes regula- 
ting the conduct of students in attendance. Special notice is 
given to parents that by sending their son to the school they 
imply an agreement to abide by the disciplinary code of the 
institution which, while not over severe, is generally quite 
rigorous and keeps the young student within strict bounds of 
life. 



r:i 



1904] DODONA. 171 



DODONA. 

BY C. C. MARTINDALE, S.J. 

He crouched expectant on the marble edge ; 
Close at his feet the shuddering waters fled 

Headlong from their black source down the black hill ; 
And overhead 

The dreadful oak tree stooped, and was so still 
That the quick waters' rush, the sombre hymn, . 
Jarred on the silence and seemed sacrilege. 

But still he sate and waited at the brim, 
Till, to his prayer, a breath 
Struck upwards from the surface suddenly 
Into the sacred oak's obscurity, 

And ran with rapid gasps among the leaves 

Till the tall temple reeled 
And all heaven clouded down upon its eaves 

And, tossing, swaying, as God's thunder pealed. 
The tree spoke out strange words of life and death. 



What were the words, poor Greek, that shook thine oak? 
Words lost among the leaves, or echoing where 

The hanging bronze gathered the delicate notes — 
The words indeed are there, 
But thou, canst thou discern what secret floats 
Upon the thunder? Through the startled shrine 
Came clear the message that the branches spoke? 
Or was all mystery in things divine ? 
And have the ages trod 
Bewildering paths to an unlooked-for end, 
(As sang the poet thou hadst made thy friend) ? 



172 DODONA. 

Or where no way seems, shall God find a way? 

And, where we dreamt our hand 
Had held Him in its hollow, shall He say 

That we at least may never understand 
The many seemings of the things of God ? 



[Nov., 



Ah speak, Thou God from whom all voices come, 

Thou Word wide-borne and far, Thou God that art 

Truth's self, and break the silence and the pain 

Of this my heart. 

For loud enough the noises of the brain 

Break round about the hearing of the soul; 

But if Thy lips be closed. Thy voice be dumb, 

I know no more than when far thunders roll, 
Or seas sound on the sand, 

Or winds move whispering along the leaves. 

One word from Thee, and all my life receives 

Passion and plan and vision of an end; 

So may it answer Thee 

As lives may answer God; and comprehend 

Enough to live, nor pass in agony 

Through voices that it cannot understand. 




1904-] " The devil's alley." 173 




"THE DEVIL'S ALLEY." 

BY M. F. QUINLAN. 

lARK'S PLACE was its real name/ But what the 
place had in common with St. Mark, or why it 
was called after any one so respectable, was left 
to conjecture. Christianity could not be said to 
flourish there, for flowers can hardly bloom in 
darksome cellars where the toad-stools and the rank weeds 
grow. So the tender shoots of Christianity drooped in the 
gloom of the alley, and the weeds sprang up and choked them, 
and the air was foul with earthiness where the light of heaven 
did not penetrate. But here and there among the shadows, 
as if to strengthen one's faith in the existence of the Divine, 
a pure white lily raised its head, and, undismayed by the filth 
and the squalor, it would pour out its fragrance wherever the 
place was rankest. And never, I wean, did God's flower smell 
sweeter than it did in the depths of Mark's Place. 

The length of the court I know not, but the width of it 
was four feet. It had a mouldy wall on one side and a string 
of damp hovels on the other; and it lay deep down in the 
earth. 

Wnen the capitalist of that day cast about for a safe invest- 
ment for his money, it is thought that the evil obe came and 
whispered to him: 

** If thou wilt yield up the souls of thy fellow-men to me, I 
will increase the rent of thy property, and thou shalt be rich 
exceedingly." 

'' And the conditions ? " asked the capitalist. 

** Build me a court and dig me a trench," said the devil. 

''And there shall be an entrance to a public- house from the 

court; and the trench shall be four feet wide; and therein 

shall thy fellow-men dwell." So the capitalist built the hovels 

and dug the trench wherein his fellow-men should dwell, and, 

the devil still tempting him, he called the court after the holy 

man Mark who, two thousand years ago, wrote on the scroll 

of time: "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." " For this 
VOL. Lxxx. — 12 



i i 






h "! • 



I , 






■1 



« 
rf 



11 A 



" The DevWs Alley:' 



[Nov., 



18 a greater thing," said St. Mark, " than all holocausts and 
sacrifices." 

Meanwhile the rent of the hovels has increased by leaps 
and bounds, and the denizens of the alley drag out their lives 
in want and misery, while Christian laws are suspended in their 
midst. Half way down the court, in the mouldy wall, there is 
a doorway, over which a sign-board swings. This is the private 
entrance to " The Bubble and Squeak," where the weary and the 
sorrowful repair ; for to drown the ills of life in the lethe of gin 
is the accepted practice to-day in every East End Court. 

I was passing along Mark's Place one morning when I heard 
the hum of voices. The hovel door being ajar, I tapped lightly 
and pushed it opened. 

'' Politics ? " I asked laughingly. 

The women who sat round the fire, with dishevelled heads 
and arms akimbo, looked over their shoulders and chuckled. 
As well ask if they were discussing the philosophy of Aristotle. 
" Yuss, pol'tics ! " said one of the group, in answering satire ; 
and she huddled herself up in her old brown shawl while she 
crouched over the fire. 

" 'Ave you 'eard the news ? " said another 
woman who sat by the chimney comer. 
^' No ; what is the latest ? " I asked. 
"W'yl" said she, " thet this ain't Mark's 
Place no longer. They sez 'tis the Devil's AK 
ley ! " And she laughed again. 

" May the Lord defend us and keep us from 
evil," said the next woman earnestly, '' an' its 
truth they do be talkin'. It ain't no fit place 
fur no human bein'." 

" Fur a 'uman bein' ! " muttered another 
one bitterly; **W'y, it ain't fit fur a dawg 1 " 

Mark's Place is not easy to find. Viewed 
from either end, it looks like a fissure caused 
by an earthquake — a narrow rent in the world's 
"Wy,it AIN'T Fir crust. The first time I went there I found it 
pu^adawg!" easily; the second time I lost it. Then I asked 
a policeman. "Mark's Place?" repeated the guardian of Law 
or Order; "I ought to know it. It is somewhere in this 
neighborhood, but jes' where I can't say." I had walked on 
when the policeman called after me. 




1904.] 



" THE DEVIL'S ALLEY." 



m 




"I OUGHT TO KNOW IT.' 



"The entrance looks like a doorway," said he, "an* ft 
ought to be close up." 

I stopped. " Is n't this it ? " I asked, pointing to an aper- 
ture within five yards of us. 

" That *s it, sure enough," was the answer. " I 'm new to 
the beat." 

To get into Mark's Place from the other end, one has to 
walk along the main road and then plunge down a side street. 
There is a public-house at this corner, though this is no land- 
mark, as there is a public-house at every corner. But in turn- 
iug this particular corner some adroitness is necessary to avoid 
catering the bar whose door swings ever incessantly. It might 
have been from force of habit, or it might have been from its 



1 7^ 



" THE DEVIL'S Alley:* 



[Nov., 



long experience of human depravity, but it seemed as if 
Ithe door of this public-house used to swing open instinctively 
^whenever a human being loomed in sight. I always passed it 
\>y with an involuntary apology, for most people went in. 

Then, after leaving the public-house, you have to follow the 
street as straight as the bend will allow, and if you look over 
^be railings to the left you will see a crack in the bricks and 
iortar; and this is Mark's Place viewed from the other end. 




MvR«;'$ Tlack was amazed with a great amazement. 

Vv^ ^t^t vts>wtt into it, you have to walk on for ten yards, then 
a^^s^v^usl the flight of stone steps that lead down to a flagged 
vvuaw^j^Y wher«. in spite of all the laws of hygiene, certain 
vvsivtm<>ut* <>( hwmAuity strive to exist. From there you take a 
t5^w rT?WAvuvug *ttps that go down even lower, and finally you 
Av^ *ur^nUcvl to ftnd yourself in Mark's Place. 

Ouv^ iu the depths of the court I told them, as an item 
vvi vutv^5^< thAt I hAd met a policeman who did not know where 
MaiK'* tn^^v^ WA.< Whereupon the people of the alley looked 



k. 



^904] 



" THE DEVIVS ALLEY." 



in 



at one another blankly and were amazed with a great amazement. 
And, all things considered, so was I ; for it was one of the 
toughest courts in the length and breadth of the East End. 

The door of 32 was shut. I had just passed it by, when I 
heard some one singing. Songs were uncommon in the Devil's 
Alley — no one having the heart to sing. So I went back and 
knocked. 

" Training for the operatic stage ? " I asked with solemnity. 

" Bless me I " said Mrs. Smith, '' w'y, who should it be but 
yerself! I 'eard yer go by, an' scz I ter mesilf, 'wot 'ave I 
done,' sez I, ' thet she never comes nigh me ? ' " 

" And now that I 've come," I said, " why not sing me the 
end of the song ? " 

"Wot d' you think?" said Mrs. Smith diffidently, and 
she went on peeling her potatoes. 

" Work bad ? " I asked, knowing that the Settlement had 
sometimes to supplement the larder. 

"Yuss"; replied my friend with stoicism.^ "But wot's the 
good o' grumblin'? it'll all be the same in a 'undred years! 
an' grizzlin' don't make things no better; so I sez ter mesilf, 
'make the best of it,' sez I, 'an' be as 'appy as yer can.' So 
I've jes' been, aht ter pawn a few rags — an' theer 's the 'taters ! " 
It was therefore a question of 
cause and effect ; and I gazed 
with a new respect at the old 
potatoes. 

A grimy baby was sprawl- 
ing on the floor and chal- 
lenged my, attention. 

"Where did you get the 
baby ? " I asked. 

"B'longs to the lidy as 
lives rahnd the top o' the 
court," answered Mrs. Smith, 
"and 'er havin' a bit o' charin' 
to-day, she gives me a few 'alfpence fur ter mind the kid." 

The baby at this moment dropped its lower jaw and gave 
forth a howl, whereupon Mrs. Smith gathered it to her ragged 
but ample bosom. And as she rocked it to and fro, she crooned 
over it the end of her song. 

"This kid likes singin'," she explained, as she replaced 





^i< iir 



^^ 



The baby dropped its lower jaw 
and gave forth a howl. 



" THE DEVIL'S ALLEY." [Nov., 

among the potato peeliDgs and the gvaeral 

an' o' comio' up ter see yer," said Mrs. Smith 

I, " what for ? " 

ter o' petticats," was the laconic reply. 

: any to be bad," I said, " you shall have some." 

leaess of my intention fell under suspicion, for 

: me up with severity. 

a't no good a-talkin' ! 'cos yer Ve got 'eaps o' 

T like ter give "em." 

said I, uDCOnscions of my possesaioos. 

said Mrs. Smith reassuringly, 'e^>s t — up at tbe 

>u know?" I asked, for the subject was gaining 

rou 'ave," replied my friend dogmatically, " 'cos 
ly four petticats fur 'er bids, wot lives in Tub 

I remonstrated with a laugh ; " never have I 

to Tub Covrt. I don't go there." 
1 the imperturbable Mrs. Smith, "somebody did. 
So yer see," she added incoosequently, " I knows 
:tttcuts, fur yer can't give away wot yer 'aven't 

*u have what you 've given away," I su^;ested; 
rt having received so many, perhaps Tub Court 
i«m all ! " 

Mrs. Smith followed the new line of aigu- 
omy interest, she totally . disagreed with my 

lul," I said reassuringly, " I won't forget you." 

r*. Smith nodded. 

w$ you won't forgit me) "said she with touch- 

ap^Tt from petticoats, it would be difficult to 
' 1 wrile a vUion of Mrs. Smith ris^ up in my 

tt\At simply dcl\(^s my power of reproduction. 
r »4U)n-; and Mrs. Smith refuses to be trans- 
K Inu^iuv. thcTefore, a vision that is made up 
I »m\tts, Alt ti^ailequaie skirt, and a red blouse - 



I904.] 



" The Devil's alley. 



>f 



»79 




" I KNOWS YSR won't FURGIT ME I " SAID MRS. 

Smith with touching confidence. 

without a belt. Her proportions are vast and her figure bulky. 
To connect the blouse in front a sturdy pin does duty, as a 
solitary outpost, in place of the buttons that have fled ; and 
across the shoulders a large rent gapes in derision at the hyper- 
critical. One sleeve hangs by a thread, in defiance of all 
natural laws, and a sense of continuity is roughly conveyed by the 
speculative parts being held together by a grimy hand of dis- 
cretion. If you add to this the warmest heart and the most 
dishevelled head in the alley you will have a dim outline of 
my friend, Mrs. Smith. 

Some weeks later I found myself again at No. 32. Her 
husband, whom I had not seen before, was at home. 



i8o 



" The Devil's Alley. 



t» 



[Nov., 



" I want you to go to church to-night/' I said, address- 
ing Mrs. Smith. '* A great preacher is there just now." 

"Yuss; so I 'ear. The lady nex' door but one was tellin' 
me abaht it." 

" Perhaps Mr. Smith wiJl go with you," I ventured. 




*'Blow me!" said Mr. Smith, "so I might I" 

"Well, I won't promise yer, lady," said Mr. Smith with 
politeness. 

" No " ; I agreed. " See how you feel when the time comes. '^ 

" 'E won't go," said his better half agressively. 

'* How do you know he wont ?" I asked, for. I was favorably 
impressed with Mr. Smith. 

" I knows 'e wont, 'cos *e never goes nowhecr — 'e don't 
b'long to us," she remarked in parenthesis. 

Then, turning upon the luckless husband, she flung down 



1904.] " The Devil's alley:' 181 

the challenge : " Yer knows as well as I do, as yer dotCt mean 
tcr go, so wV d' yer tell lies abaht it ? " 

" Who 's tellin' lies ? " he demanded loudly. 

" W'y you o' course ! " 

Mr. Smith became purple in the face, when I broke in. 

"He didn't tell me a lie. He might go I Who knows?" 

'' Blow me ! " said Mr. Smith, struck with a sudden idea, 
so I might ! " 

"G'arn!" ejaculated Mrs. Smith unceremoniously, as one 
who has a profound knowledge of the depravity of his kind. 

" One or other of us will be right," I said to Mrs. Smith ; 
'' I '11 ask which it is next week ! " 

The following week I put the question. 

''Did your husband go to church?" 

" Not 'im, replied Mrs. Smith. '' I knew 'e wouldn't whin 
'e was a-tellin' yer as 'e would." 

Not being able to convince her, I laughed instead. 

"You can tell him I asked." 

"Yuss; said she darkly. "You jes' leave 'im ter me. I 
knows wot ter say ter 'im." 

I paused. " What will you say ? " was my query. 

" I 'II tell 'im as you come 'ere ter-day, an' thet you carried 
cfn abaht it, somethink hawful I " 

" But," I remonstrated, " that would not be true." 

'* P'heps not," said Mrs. Smith with unblushing candor, 
"but it'll fetch 'im any'ow." And Mrs. Smith, with a cheer^- 
ful countenance besmeared with soot, gave me a wink of good 
fellowship. 

The woman at No. 25 had a cracked head — the result of 
misadventure — and to refer to her battered appearance needed 
the entire outlay of a limited diplomacy. 

"How are you?" I asked as we shook hands. 

" On'y pretty middlin'," said the philosophical Mrs. QuilU 
" 'Ow 's yerself ? " 

I said I was well. 

" Glad to 'ear it ! " was the cordial rejoinder. " Sit dahn," 
she went on hospitably, "we ain't seed nuthink of yer lately; 
'ow 's thet ?" 

"I've been very busy," I said in extenuation. 

" Same 'ere," said Mrs. Quill. 'Ere 's this bit o' manglin' 



tSz 



" T//£ DEVJVS ALLEVr 



[Nov., 




"We ain't sbbd nuthink of ybr 
lately ; 'ow 's thbt ? " 

wot 'as jes' come in, an* the people they sez as they wants it 
back in a shake, they sez.** 

I had had a narrow escape from this same bundle of wash- 
ing only ten minutes before. Other people's back yards lo<^d 
down upon the alley, literally as well as figuratively, and from 
between the palings on the heights above, the neighbor's dogs, 
even those destitute of breed, barked at us in scorn. I had 
been trying to bear up against this studied insult from an 
absolute mongrel, when somebody's mangling was flung pro- 
miscuously over the • top of the palings, and, after exp*ending 
its force in mid-air, it came hurtling down through space, to 
land at my feet. It just missed knocking me on the head, 
for whicK dispensation I felt grateful to a beneficent Providence, 
that ever tempers the wind to the shorn lamb. 

As regards the alley and its denizens, no etiquette is con- 
sidered necessary. The people who live above us fling their 
mangling down into our court without ceremony. They can- 
not mangle, and they know we must. For at No. 25 we either 
mangle or starve. When one thinks of it, the question involved 



Cf 



1904.] " The Devil's alley:' 183 

is not so much one of local etiquette, as of capital versus labor. 
So Mrs. Quill was constrained to tu-rn the mangle for a pit* 
tanccp and our conversation was seasoned with the grinding 
thereof. 

'' I 'm afraid you 've had an accident/' said I, referring 
obliquely to the crack in her head. 
Yuss " ; said Mrs. Quill stolidly. 
Why did n't you go to the hospital ? " I asked. 
I'nx thinkin' I will whin its better/' she replied evasively. 

" I 'd wait till it is well, if I were you/' I suggested 
ironically. 

''To be shure, an' I might do wuss/' said the owner of 
the split head with cheerful pessimism. 

*' You ought to have it seen to/' satd I. 

'' Musha ! " {ejaculated Mrs. Quill, goaded to an extremity ; 
"aa' wud yer 'ave me go through the streets like this? An' 
wud yer like me neighbors to think it was the drink ? " 

'' You could have worn a hat/' I said relentlessly, " and no 
one would have noticed it." 

" A hat is it ! Hiven presarve us ! " And Mrs. Quill threw 
back her head and laughed the idea to scorn. "Bless yer 
'eart f " said this representative of local tradition, " I wud n't 
be seen in sich a thing ! " 

" What do you wear usually ? " I asked. 

*• W'y me bonnet, o' course 1 — 'cep' whin I pulls me old 
shawl over me 'ead, which is most times." 

Then there was heard nothing but the creaking of the 
mang'Ie; and, by the expression of Mrs. Quill's back, she 
seemed discouraged at my ignorance. 

"Well!" I began, making a fresh start, "when did it 
happen ? " 

" Whin ? Well, it was whin I was after finishin' me las' 
job. I 'ad jes' taken 'ome the bit o' manglin', an' I was 
walkin' along the alley — doin' nothink to nobody, do yer 
mind! — whin some childer begins a-jawin'. An' sez you, wot 
wonder, sez you, whin they lives in a 'ole like this ? An' be 
tke same token," said Mrs. Quill in awe- struck tones, " the 
lengwidge, an' the goin's on dahn 'ere, is somethink crool 1 
Well! as I was sayin', I was walkin' along this, this beautiful 
avenoo, as the manner is of speakin'" — and, in her scorn for 
the reprobate alley, Mrs. Quill's satire was biting — "whin all 



1 84 



" THE Devil's Alley:' 



[Nov., 



of a suddent, if one o' thim little divils did n't throw a rock 
at me 'ead ! Did yer ever know the like of it ? " 

« 

" Well, of course," said I, " it was wrong of the chil- 
dren." 

"Jes' wot I sezi" replied Mrs. Quill. "But wot kin yer 
hexpect of 'em livin' dahn 'ere! B'lieve me, or b'lieve me 
not," and Mrs. Quill appealed first to me and then to heaven 
with earnest gesture, ''but this place is a den o' 'orrers. 
Thet's wot it is, straight, an' theer ain't no denyin' the 
same. 

"Apart from the children," I ventured, returning to the 
main thread, "were you all right, or was there the light of 
battle in your eye ? " And I gazed deprecatingly at Mrs. Quill. 
It was a risky stroke, but she accepted it with edifying 
meekness. 

"I didn't 'ave too much," said she with caution, "but I 

tell yer wot it is," she went on confidentially4. 
" Wot it is wid the Irish is, thet their 'earts 
is too light. Thet's wot's the matter wid 
'em — theer 'earts is too light ! " 

And in this condemnation : I knew I was in^ 
eluded. For, in the Devil's Alley, did I not 
stand or fall by Tipperary ? " 

" Now wot it is wid me," she explained, 
" is like this 'ere. Whin I 've 'ad a few 
glasses — that's ter say," she added in amend- 
ment, "not a few glasses, p'heps, but a few 
glasses ixtry — I begins ter feel proud. It 
like elevates me mind and — well, theer y' 
are ! " And Mrs. Quill shrugged her shoul- 
ders to the inevitable, and to me as a fellow- 
sufferer. 

To give a more graphic illustration to her defence, Mrs. 
Quill rose to her feet. "Fur argymint's sake," said she, "say 
you was ter meet me comin' along the court, an' sez you, 
civil like, ' Mornin', Mrs. Quill ! ' sez you. I 'd bow me 'ead 
as proud as yer please, an' I 'd say, ' Mornin' Miss ! ' " Here 
Mrs. Quill bowed, partly to me and partly to the mangle, 
with the air of superiority that is bom of real spirit. "An' 
I 'd think in me own mind, an' ter mesilf : ' Mrs. Quill ! 
yer 're second ter none! 




"B'LIBVE MB, OR 
B'LIEVB MB NOT/' 

SAID Mrs. Quill. 



» >» 



1904.] " The Devil's alley." 185 

The spectacle of the inimitable Mrs. Quill standing before 
the mangle, impartially mimicking first me, in my everyday 
manner, and then herself, in her irresponsible moments, under- 
mined my gravity, and I went into a peal of laughter. In 
Mrs. Quill's eye there was an answering twinkle. 



^ 



cT^ 



"It ain't every one, mind ye, as I'd speak familiar wid," 
Mid she. "But I likes talkin' to yersilf, 'cos yer're wot I 
calls intilligint — an' the Lord knows," she added gloomily, 
"tbeer's lots as ain't! Shure, 'tis the English thet 's dull!" 

Here Mrs. Quill heaved a sigh of commiseration at the 
stupidity of the conquering race. "An' 'tis mesilf," said she, 
" as would n't hold no conversation wid the Hkes of 'em ! 
They ain't got no sense o' humor, has the English. . . . 
Ah ! glory be ; they're a poor lot entirely I " 

Mrs. Quill took up the handle of the mangle ; and, as she 
did so, she threw me a glance over her shoulder. " But the 
divil takes care of his own," she muttered fiercely. 

The scene is still with me — the - gloomy hovel that was 
buried in the squalid court; the damp wall opposite that shut 
out the sunshine; and above the wall the dilapidated fence of 



' The Devil's alley." [No- 



the tenements; while inside the hovel the ragged Irish washer- 
woman flinging deflance at the English nation. 

What matter was it to her that she dwelt in the enemy's 
stronghold — what matter ? Except that the sight of the God- 
forsaken court kindled her race-hatred afresh. But her enmity 
dated not from to-day, nor from yesterday; it went far back, 
as straight as an arrow, to the eventful reign of Henry II. 
The blood of the Irish chieftains coursed in her veins — of the 
Celtic heroes who, to a man, died fighting. And as she stood 
there in the dark hovel, this wild looking figure with the 
flash of awakening passion in her eyes, she seemed to be sil- 
houetted, against a background of history, as the living sym- 
bol of the untamed and unconquerable Celt. For, as some 
one has wittily expressed it, "The Conquest of Ireland began 
in 1 1 72, and has continued ever since." 



1904.] The Famous Fenton Opal. \%^ 




THE FAMOUS FENTON OPAL. 

BY ANNA T. SADLIER. 
I. 

tOCIETY was considerably exercised that year — it 
was some five seasons previous to the occurrences 
about to be set down — concerning the famous 
Fenton opal. The sole survivor of the direct 
branch, Maria Laurentia, had just come of age, 
and a special interest attached to her possession of the stone, 
because of an ancient prophecy which pointed to some special 
good fortune to befall the third female inheritor. 

In the five years that had intervened there had been, as 
yet, no sign of the promised good fortune, and the white, 
emaciated hand upon which the jewel rested, sharply empha- 
sized a tale of suffering and of ill-health, and offered a remarkable 
contrast to the brilliancy of the truly superb ring. The opal 
caught and held, as it were, every gleam of warmth and color 
in its iridescent depths, flashing forth at unexpected moments 
with an almost vital power. It was surrounded by a circlet of 
diamonds, each one a gem, perfectly cut and glowing like living 
fire. It seemed as if it ha^ concentrated every atom of blood, 
every pulsation of life, into its tiny circumference, leaving the 
hand of the wearer cold, lifeless, and unresponsive. 

Human life is for ever offering contrasts, and Maria Laurentia 
had already known many vicissitudes, just as the jewelled 
bauble had been the silent witness of startling events in the 
lives of its possessors. It had come originally from the East, 
having belonged to one of those inscrutable and dark-skinned 
Orientals who glide through the pages of history and romance, 
wise in forbidden lore and deeply immersed in occult arts. He 
had bestowed it upon a Crusader, who had brought it back 
into Christendom and left it an heirloom to his race. 

The shining circlet had been commonly held, by a super- 
stition passed from generation to generation of the Fentons, 
to bring misfortune to its inheritor, with a few fortunate ex- 



jg3 THE Famous Fen ton Opal. [Nov., 

ceptions, who, it is said, were clearly indicated in the original 

prophecy. 

ThuSy one who wore the ring had been beheaded in a revo- 
lution for conspiracy against a reigning monarch ; another had 
been executed by a mob for loyalty to a king; a third had 
been captured by Barbary pirates, and lingered out many years 
of life in intolerable captivity ; still another had fallen upon 
bloody battlefield, in defence of a. lost cause, and his son and 
heir had laid down his life upon Tyburn Hill for the profession 
of the Catholic and Apostolic faith. 

The Ai's^ female possessor of the ring, a fair and beautiful 

woman* had languished and died in prison upon an imaginary 

charffc, arising from the jealousy of her sovereign ; the second 

had become a nun in a convent at Bruges and had renounced 

the ieweU with many other possessions, in obedience to the 

olden invitation to sell all. Of her nothing further is recorded, 

but the convent wherein she made profession was sacked and 

burned by a heretical soldiery. 

So the ring had finally reached the worn and wasted finger 
of Maria Laurentia, the daughter of Arthur Fenton and a 
beautiful Italian, who had left her child scarcely a trace of the 
maternal beauty, save in the softness of a pair of brown eyes. 
Arthur Fenton had died abroad, and his widow had re-married 
while Maria was still a child at the convent, and had presently 
followed her first husband to the grave. She had made it a 
special request, in dying, that at the age of eighteen, her edu- 
cation being completed, Maria Laurentia should pass under the 
guardianship of her stepfather, Harvey Mainwaring. 

Maria Laurentia, pale and insignificant to the last degree, 
sat shivering over a grate-fire, though it was early autumn, in 
her apartments in a Roman palazzo, and recalled very vividly 
and with considerable bitterness the evening of her coming-out 
ball, five years before, in New York. It had been a clear, frosty 
night in January; the sky of deepest aqua- marine was strewn 
thickly with stars, brilliant, scintillating, glowing in their sidere- 
al magnificence, proclaiming infinite heights, infinite greatness 
somewhere; with it Maria's youthful soul, then full of the 
fervor of her conventual existence, felt more akin than with 
the purely terrene splendors, by which she was presently to 
be extinguished. 

She had been engulfed, as it were, in a " creation " of 



I904-] The Famous Fenton Opal. 189 

satin, and accordion-plaited chiffon, heavily sequined, and had 
been driven, with her chaperon, the wife of a cousin, through 
streets, lightly powdered with snow, towards that mansion on 
Fifth Avenue, where the reception was to be held. She re- 
membered distinctly the halls and stairways, lined with gor- 
geous plants and masses of bloom, and the orchestra playing 
dreamy, half- melancholy music, and how her chaperon, who 
knew every one, introduced many people to her. They had all 
regarded her as curiously as their good breeding permitted, 
and had stolen many a glance at the superb heirloom on her 
finger. 

But the circumstance which had impressed itself most that 
evening upon her memory was her introduction to her step- 
father, who had but recently arrived from abroad. The Fentons, 
amongst whom Maria had lately lived, had never taken very 
kindly to the match, and so had seen nothing of Harvey 
Mainwaring, though he had made quite a sensation in their 
particular set, possessing many superficial elements of popular- 
ity and a knack of taking the social bull by the horns. 

Maria had been, therefore, introduced to her future guardian 
among a crowded assemblage, and had been led away by him 
into the conservatory, for a chat over their future plans. It 
must be owned that this man, who had so fascinated her mother, 
was repellant from the very first to Maria, and she shuddered 
even now as she recalled the aspect of that conservatory. 
The lamps, yellow shaded, and the odor of the innumerable 
plants came back to her with sickening distinctness, as well as 
the face of her stepfather, its glittering, furtive eyes and heavy 
jaws. 

II. 

Almost immediately after that reception Maria, accompanied 
by a single attendant — a faithful Irish girl, Norah Flynn — had 
been taken abroad by her stepfather, and had never been 
permitted to remain long anywhere. Mr. Mainwaring seemed 
possessed by a very demon of restlessness and he never per- 
mitted his young charge to make any acquaintances whatso- 
ever. In fact, his chief aim seemed to be to isolate her from 
society. So that she had spent whole weeks, shut up with her 
maid, in an inaccessible tower on a Scottish coast; she had 

VOL. LXXX — 13 



I90 The Famous Fenton Opal. [Nov., 

occupied for six whole months a native hut on the west coast 
of Africa, where she had contracted the fever so dreaded by 
foreigners, and had been nursed back to health by the faithful 
Norah. Thence she had been hurried off to Egypt and had 
been hidden in a village, consisting of a sand-bank, a handful 
of huts, and a few stunted pines and sycamores. 

On all of these occasions Harvey Mainwaring had absented 
himself, wandering about the country engaged in pursuits of 
his own, and had usually reappeared for short intervals, merely 
to remove his stepdaughter to some new place of abode. His 
arrival, which was nearly always unexpected, filled mistress and 
maid with dismay, and kept them during his absence in a 
state of feverish unrest. His temper, always moody and uncer- 
tain, grew more and more violent as the years sped on, so that 
Maria Laurentia scarcely dared to speak or move in his 
presence. 

Once, during their stay in Egypt, there had been a fearful 
scene. Whilst the two women had been alone they had been 
chased home at dusk by a drunken Egyptian, who had after- 
wards stood without the hut, threatening to beat down the 
door or to set it on fire, while he brandished a weapon and 
declared that he would kill them both. They were rescued 
from this peril by a young American, who had chanced to be 
in the neighborhood, and who introduced himself as Walter 
Nesbitt, of New York. He had felt himself curiously attracted 
by the pale, wistful face and the pair of brown eyes belong- 
ing to the girl he had rescued, and had delayed his departure, 
from day to day, for that fascinating expedition up the Nile 
for which he had come to Egypt. He had been quite unaware 
of Miss Fenton's name and history, and, after her meeting with 
the drunken Egyptian, the girl had carefully concealed the 
ring which had drawn that unwelcome attention upon them. 
The unusual circumstances of their meeting, and the fact that 
they were the only two Americans in the vicinity, no doubt 
drew the young people together, and there were a few days 
which poor Maria regarded as an oasis in the desert of her 
existence. 

Harvey Mainwaring suddenly returned, and, having learned 
something of the truth, flew into a violent rage. All his pre- 
vious paroxysms of anger paled before the fury which then 
poisessed him, and he struck his defenceless ward a blow in 



1904.J The Famous fenton Opal. 191 

the mouth which caused the blood to gush forth and knocked 
her senseless. At dawn, on the following morning, he removed 
Maria Laurentia from Egypt, and after a brief stay in Algiers 
and a lonely month in the quaint Moorish town of Granada, 
he had suddenly brought her to Rome. He had engaged 
rooms in an ancient palazzo, looking forth upon a rectangular 
courtyard ; but she might as well have found herself in the 
heart of Sahara, so close a watch did he keep upon her move- 
ments and so completely did he isolate her from society. 
And this was the more remarkable that he himself entered 
with something of his former zest into the social life of the 
place and became as popular as ever in the American colony 
there. He always referred to his stepdaughter as a chronic 
invalid, who had never entirely recovered from a fever she 
had contracted during their sojourn in Africa. 



III. 

So Maria Laurentia, shivering in a dressing gown and sit- 
ting near a grate- fire, had scarcely had a glimpse of the 
wondrous city, and had been led up the marble stairs of the 
loggia as though it had been the path to prison. She was 
reflecting, too, as she sat there that, for the greater part of 
five years, she had been shut out from all those spiritual ad- 
vantages, which had once seemed to her so indispensable. For 
she had inherited something of her mother's fervent devotion, 
together with the sturdy faith of the Fentons, and she had 
scrupulously observed all that had been possible under the cir- 
cumstances. 

She had assisted now and again at a stolen Mass or a for- 
bidden Benediction, and had said her daily Rosary, and knelt, 
night and morning, with Norah, to offer up the accustomed 
prayers. But here in the very centre of Catholicity, sur- 
rounded as she knew she was by numberless churches, the 
churches of which she had long ago read with eager enthusi- 
asm, it made her soul sick to be shut out from their portals, 
and she longed for an opportunity once more to receive the 
Sacraments. 

Norah entered the room suddenly, with a flurried air and 
on tiptoe. Drawing near, she confided to her mistress in a 



192 The Famous Fenton Opal, [Nov., 

whisper, as though her stepfather were listening, that Mr. Main- 
waring had gone to Naples for a day or two. She had heard 
him mention the circumstance to a group of friends, and had 
herself seen him off at the railway station. And it had 
occurred to honest Norah that here was the opportunity, so 
long sought, to steal away to church. Maria Laurentia was on 
her feet in an instant, her pale face flushing pink with excite- 
ment, while Norah arranged her hair and helped her into a 
handsome, but unobtrusive, walking costume. It chanced that 
the church of the Capuchins in the Piazza Barberini was the 
nearest to their lodgings, and the two women hurried thither 
with trembling eagerness. 

A priest was summoned to the confessional, a well-known 
preacher and celebrated English friar, Father Bonaventure. 
With a. joy and thankfulness indescribable, Maria took her 
place within the sacred tribunal, and poured forth her soul in 
a general confession. After the absolution she told the con- 
fessor enough of her history to enable him to perceive that 
vhe was the victim of unusual circumstances, and she begged 
of him to call upon her, and to force his way in, despite all 
denials from the servants, whom her stepfather had set to 
watch over her. It was her intention, should Mr. Mainwaring 
be present, to confront him with the friar and make public her 
itory. In the event of her stepfather's continued absence, she 
resolved to ask the Capuchin's advice and to be guided by 
him implicitly. 

This being settled, Maria went forth with Norah, rejoicing 
in the soft beauty of the Roman twilight, which seemed to 
harmonize with the spiritual peace and joy which flooded her 
spirit and made her feel strong for any trial. The rare Italian 
sunset streamed over the hills, and lights began to gleam 
out over the classic Tiber. The majestic figure upon the cas- 
tle, of San Angelo caught the girl's eye and seemed to sug- 
gest the heavenly protection extended to the weak as to the 
strong. 

As mistress and maid hastened along, and while 'Maria's 
eyes were still fixed upon the statue of the archangel, a young 
inan, turning the corner hastily, ran into the pair. He raised 
hU hut with a hasty apology, but in so doing the button of 
hlrt iilrrve cAUght in the lace of a mantle which Maria carried 
over her Arm. It was most embarrassing; the young man 



1904.] THE Famous Fenton Opal. 193 

struggling with the refractory button seemed to make confu- 
sion worse confounded, when all of a sudden, by a happy in- 
spiration, he began to search in his pocket for a pen- knife, 
exclaiming: 

" I will cut it off ! " 

At the same moment Maria's heart gave a joyful leap and 
Norah uttered a delighted cry. 

"Mr. Nesbitt! sure it's Mr. Nesbitt ! And to think that 
we didn't know you." 

After the first surprise of the unexpected meeting. Miss 
Fenton declared that they had just been to the church of the 
Capuchins. 

"To the Capucinif' echoed Walter; "why, that's where 
I also go myself, and I wonder if you chanced to meet my 
good old friend. Father Bonaventure." 

This mention of the monk gave a new impetus to the con*^ 
versation and another excuse for lingering in that enchanting 
twilight, which is like no other in the world. Presently the 
vivid coloring began to fade and the landscape was wrapped in 
a soft, silvery haze, which added an ethereal beauty to all 
things and seemed to enfold the two young people in a world 
of their own. At last people began to stare, and prudent 
Norah, ever fearful of the untimely reappearance of the erratic 
Mr. Mainwaring, began to remind her young mistress that th<: 
air from the marshes was dangerous after sundown, ar.d that 
strangers ran the risk of malaria. Walter then asked when he 
should see her again, and Maria shook her head sadly, declar- 
ing that it was very hard to tell. She shuddered when she 
remembered the violent scene which had followed their last 
meeting, and Walter cried out in alarm: 

" Why, there you are taking a chill ! How thoughtless I 
have been ! " 

And despite all denials he wrapped Maria in the mantle 
which hung over her arm, and advised Norah to bring her 
mistress home as briskly as possible. In the young girl's ears, 
however, blended with the melodious sound of the Angelas 
pealing forth from every campanile in Rome, was Walter Ne&- 
bitt*s assurance that he would see her soon again. 



194 The Famous Fenton Opal. [Nov., 

IV. 

A day or two after his return from Naples Harvey Main- 
waring, strolling about in his aimless fashion, stood watching a 
group of tourists surrounding the immortal Fountain of Trevi, 
and throwing coin over their shoulder into the sparkling water. 
He observed them with cynical eyes and heard their laughing 
allusions to the olden prophecy that those who drank of the 
water and paid tribute to the presiding spirit should see Rome 
once again before they died. He beheld, too, as they scrambled 
for the coin, the group of ragged urchins, graceful and pictur- 
esque, having escaped, as it might seem, from immortal can* 
vases to disport themselves in the transparent air and the 
exquisite brightness of the Roman sunshine. A passing acquaint- 
ance stopped to speak to Harvey Mainwaring, remarking in 
the course of conversation : " I see that your stepdaughter is 
with you and seems improved in health." 

"She is with me," replied Mr. Mainwaring, ''and her health 
is a shade better; but may I ask how you know?" 

" Well, truth to tell," explained the other, " I recognized 
Miss Fenton by her remarkable ring. I remembered having 
seen it upon her finger at a reception some years ago in New 
York. Society was agog just then with the romantic history 
of the Fenton opal." 

''Yes, yes, I remember," assented Mr. Mainwaring drily; 
"but I am curious to know how you chanced to see the ring 
at the present juncture, for my ward has been a perfect hermit 
since our arrival in Rome. I am quite in despair about her." 

" When the cat's away the mice will play, old fellow," 
laughed the acquaintance, " and I chanced to see Miss Fenton 
twice in the course of the same afternoon. She was coming 
out of some old church, in the first instance, and my eye was 
caught by the gleam of the ring. By the way, it would be 
more prudent for her to glove that hand." 

" I quite agree with you," said Mr. Mainwaring, "but young 
women are so very imprudent. I do hope she did n't fatigue 
herself, for I think you mentioned having met her again in the 
course of the same afternoon." 

" So I did, so I did ; and, if it isn't telling tales out of school, 
she was talking next time to an uncommonly good-looking 
chap. I know him, too, or, at least, his people. He's a New- 



1904.] The Famous Fen ton Opal. 195 

Yorker, his father 's on 'Change — Nesbitt of the stock-brokerage 
firm of Nesbitt & Sons." 

"Ah, yes, yes — Nesbitt; I think I have heard the name," 
put in Harvey Mainwaring blandly. 

Well, this Nesbitt 's a fine fellow, I 'm told, and ev^n the 
Fenton heiress might do worse; and there were Miss Fenton 
and he billing and cooing in the twilight. Heighho ! boys will 
be boys and girls will be girls." 

And the loquacious American hurried away, leaving Harvey 
Mainwaring to digest his pleasantries as best he might, and to 
work himself up into a very storm of rage, equalled only by 
that tornado which had burst upon Maria's defenceless head in 
the Egyptian wilds. 

All that superstitious terror, that implicit belief in the 

old cibalistic maledictions, which had been invoked upon 

Maria and upon her guardians, her aiders and abetters, in any 

disregard of the conditions laid down for the possession of her 

fatal fortune and ill-omened jewel, now filled the darkened 

soul of the wretched stepfather. He had never professed nor 

practiced any religion, and had allowed the occult belief, which 

he had picked up during his long wanderings in the East, to 

darken and obscure his natural intellect. When he had married 

Maria's mother, attracted partly by her beauty and partly by 

her wealth, he had heard the whole story of the jewel and 

had been put into possession of all the weird predictions 

connected with its ownership. It had become almost a mania 

with him to enforce all those regulations which he believed to 

have been laid down by the original donor of the jewel, and to 

compel Maria by their strict observance to attain at a given 

date the good fortune, which her guardian was to share, and to 

avert the disasters, which might otherwise overtake them both. 

He reached the palazzo in a condition of mind bordering 

upon frenzy and found Maria alone and engaged harmlessly 

enough in embroidery. He snatched the frame from her hand 

and threw it to the other side of the room. He stormed and 

he swore, circling round her like some bird of prey who is 

about to pounce upon a harmless dove. Hurling invectives at 

her, loading her with opprobrious epithets, he declared that he 

would take her away from Rome on the morrow, into the 

heart of Siberia, and that he would send Norah to the other 

ends of the earth. 



196 The Famous Fen ton Opal. [Nov., 

Roused by these threats, the poor little heiress rose and 
attempted to assert her dignity, declaring that she would refuse 
to leave Rome and that nothing should part her from Norah. 
As the frail figure stood thus confronting the great, bulky 
Hercules, with his flaming face and eyes which had taken on 
an awful suggestion of madness, the stepfather raised his arm 
in which was a loaded walking cane, and would have brought 
it down, with probably fatal results, upon his ward. Suddenly 
his arm was seized from behind. He turned furiously and in 
the dim light of the apartment felt a thrill of superstitious 
terror at the white, resolute face and tall form which confronted 
him. He gazed helplessly an instant and then recognized, as 
Maria likewise did with a totally opposite sensation, the brown 
robe, the rope, and sandals of St. Francis. He demanded with 
an oath how the triar had gained admittance, and for a few 
moments stood irresolute, still blinded by his rage and fear. 

But, as reason returned, Harvey Mainwaring bent instinc- 
tively to an idol which he bad worshipped all his life, that of 
public opinion. He muttered some sort of excuse for his late 
violence, which he attributed to a crisis in their family affairs, 
brought about by the headstrong folly of his ward. The 
Franciscan, who had met in his time with many curious situa- 
tions, accepted the apology and presently put Harvey Main- 
waring as much as possible at ease, and gave Maria Laurentia, 
who was trembling and exhausted, sufficient time to recover 
herself, before any topic of importance should be broached. 

Father Bonaventure's keen eyes rested an instant on the 
ring and he observed: 

" I have always taken a peculiar interest in opals, which is 
a strange admission for one vowed to my Lady Poverty. But 
I once came across a curious document relating to an opal 
and concerning which I have since had many misgivings." 

Harvey Mainwaring, who was at first but little interested, 
finally warmed into eager excitement as the monk related how 
in Palestine, in the sixties, he had devoted himself to the study 
of Arabic, by order of his superiors. About the same date 
he had become acquainted with an Englishman who, as it 
turned out in the course of the narrative, had been Arthur 
Fenton, and no other than Maria's father. He had begged of 
the monk to translate an ancient prophecy, which formed an 
actual xi%\xmi of the history of the ring and of its relation to 



1904.] The Famous Fen ton Opal. 197 

the Fenton family. It was vague and incoherent at the best, 
largely interspersed with cabalistic curses and allusions to for- 
bidden arts, and a couple of its pages were exclusively devoted 
to the fortunes of the third female who, in the course of cen- 
turies, should possess the Fenton jewel. 

This hypothetical lady, who had actually materialized in 
the person of poor Maria Laurentia» was, according to the 
translation which the monk had made, to remain unmarried 
until she was thirty, to travel over land and sea, visiting every 
continent and innumerable cities, rather than marry one of her 
own race. She was to eschew the society of women and 
clerics and was, in fact, to lead a solitary existence. And all 
this under the direst penalties, such as loss of fortune, failure 
in undertakings, misery, and an untimely death ; the same 
chastisements were to strike those connected with her, and es- 
pecially her guardians or those having authority over her. 

Father Bonaventure, while laughing heartily at these prog- 
nostications, declared : 

"Now I very much fear that in my imperfect knowledge 
of the Arabic tongue, in which I have since attained pro- 
ficiency, I may have completely reversed the prophecy. Not 
that it matters in the least, since all things are in the hands 
of an over- ruling Providence, which shapes man's destiny in 
his own despite." 

He glanced at Harvey Mainwaring, who sat restlessly lis- 
tening, his whole face lighted up by an intense interest in the 
utterances of that friar, whose band had, forty years before, 
transcribed the very parchment by which the stepfather had 
been ordering his own and Maria's life. 

''As a matter of philological interest," went on the priest, 
"and, if you will, of poetic justice, I should like to have the 
opportunity of comparing those two documents, the original 
and my translation." 

Harvey Mainwaring without a word jumped up from his 
seat and rushed to a writing desk, whence he presently pro- 
duced the identical parchments. Father Bonaventure gave 
them a cursory attention, begging permission to ts^ke them 
home to the monastery for closer inspection. Mr. Mainwaring 
consented somewhat reluctantly, his Protestant mind still im- 
bued with a distrust and dislike of the clerical profession. 



198 The Famous Fenton Opal. [Nov., 

V. 

The sequel to that curious story, and what made the 
Fenton opal more than ever celebrated, can be told in a very 
few sentences. Father Bonaventure had, as he said, by the 
bungling of participles and the wrong use of cases, completely 
changed the character of the prophecy. The third female in- 
heritor of the ring was, in truth, ordained to marry early and, 
under fearful anathemas, to marry one of her own race, from 
whom neither cities nor continents, nor travels by land and 
sea, should ultimately separate her. Her happiness was to 
come through a woman and a cleric, and much good fortune 
was to accrue to guardians or others who helped her to carry 
out her destiny. 

Harvey Mainwaring, who, it may be said, from that time 
forth much improved in character and disposition, was still 
disposed to tremble at what he had escaped. For following 
the erroneous translation, he had unwittingly violated every 
law which the mysterious document had laid down. Father 
Bonaventure laughed heartily at his fears, crying: 

" ' What shadows we are ! what shadows we pursue/ as 
regards this earthly life of ours. Why, man, that old sage of 
the Orient put down a few wise axioms upon paper and 
called them a prophecy, giving them the sanction of a few 
Arabic maledictions. And here was I, giving a false interpre- 
tation of the matter in the confident, student fashion, and here 
were you striving to carry out, not the old fakir's instructions, 
but my worthless rendering of them, and here are [we all in 
the city of Rome, in this year of grace, .foreseeing a very 
happy ending to the whole business." 

And this happy ending certainly came to pass. Father 
Bonaventure's services were once more called . into requisition, 
and the quaint church of the Capuchins was filled to over- 
flowing, especially with the members of the American Colony, 
on the occasion of a fashionable wedding. Walter Nesbitt, by 
the eloquent pleading of the Capuchin, assisted by a still more 
skilful advocate. Young Love himself, had put aside his objec- 
tion to marrying an heiress much wealthier than himself, on 
the ground that he had sought an insignificant little person- 
age entirely for herself and when quite unacquainted with her 
history. 



1904.] The Saints of God, 199 

The young couple had sailed at once for New York, where 
the bride came into an additional fortune, which had been 
quietly waiting in the hands of the family solicitors till she 
should contract a suitable marriage. She had settled a hand- 
some sum upon her step-father, towards whom she bore no 
malice, and had given Norah a place of honor in the new 
household. From the very first the Fenton heiress became 
conspicuous in every good work, seeming anxipus to expend 
as much as possible of her fortune for the welfare of others 
and the promotion of Christ's kingdom. 

Both she and her husband were very popular in society, 
which was once more agog over the romantic history of Maria's 
family, and, in particular, that portion of it which related to 
the bride as the third feminine inheritor of the famous Fen- 
ton opal. 




She Saints op God. 

BY BROTHER REMIGIUS. C.S.C. 

S one who, walking in the twilight gloom, 
Hears distant voices sweetly toned that bring 
Surcease to saddest heart, the while they sing 
Of faith and love — God's choicest gifts the bloom- 
So list'ning to our holy friends for whom 
The church's portals wide to-day we fling, 
I hear their aisles and fretted arches ring 
The victor's song of triumph o'er the tomb. 

Yet they were of our kin, our weakness shared, 
The cup of pleasure they were not denied ; 

While we its captives were, these heroes dared, 
Enamored of the cross, to turn aside. 

They heard His voice and followed in the way. 

Till on their vision broke eternal day. 



VERA. 

BY A. T. EDV1LXD. 

UITE the handsomest girl in the room," said 
Ralph Everton, glancing critically at the lady 
under discussion. "Absolutely ripping I Intro- 
duce me, old chap, do I " 

Charlie Langton caught his breath sharply. 
It pained him to hear this girl discussed, as though she were 
some beautiful piece of china. She was something almost 
sacred in his eyes. It was hateful, he thought, that women 
should be compelled by fashion to display themselves to the 
critical gaze of any and everybody. 

"Say!" went on Ralph Everton, "she is lovely. To win 
her will be something to be proud of." 

They were crossing the room towards the beautiful Miss 
Rushleigh as he said this. But Langton made no reply, 
though any one looking at him could see that he was none 
too pleased at the request. 

He, a big, broad-shouldered Yorkshireman, with a fair, 
good-humored, and strong face, was a complete contrast to the 
slender, thin-lipped, dark- haired friend, whose weak vacillating 
chin boded ill for the happiness of any one who was entrusted 
to his keeping. And the characters of the two men were, if 
possible, even more dissimilar. But young Everton possessed 
one advantage over the other — that he was the owner of Ever- 
ton Towers and ^^4,000 a year. Langton had nothing but his 
wits to depend upon. 

Everton and Miss Rushleigh appeared to get on splendidly. 
They danced and talked together as if they had known each 
other for years, instead of hours. 

Langton looked on in amazement. His friend, in an hour, 
had accomplished what he had taken months to do. This 
brought a strange and sudden pain to his heart. The hope of 
many weeks suddenly fell from him, and numbness and empti- 



1904.] Vera. 201 

when later on she was sitting out with him ; '' you look as if 
you had seen a ghost and did n't like it. How glum you 
arc ! " 

" Am I ? " he replied. " Nothing 's amiss with me that I 
know of." 

"Oh! Come now; something has put you out. Have I 
done anything ? " she asked with a coquettish glance. " If so, 
Vm sorry, for we have always been good friends, and I 
haven't so many that I can afford to lose one." 

''Oh! Miss Rushleigh," cried he, not a little ashamed of 
his ill-humor« " you have been awfully good to me — talked to 
me, danced with me, which was more than I deserved, for I 
know I am a stupid fellow at best. ..." 

" Now I am not going to allow you to backbite yourself in 
this way," she interrupted laughingly ; " neither am I going 
to enumerate your good points, because," and she turned her 
eyes full upon him, " you might grow too conceited, and be 
spoiled altogether." 

A deep flush mounted to his brow. Words of admiration 
rushed to his lips ; but the recollection that he was a penni- 
less barrister, and, alas ! a briefless one too, checked them. 
What would the imperious beauty beside him say to such pre- 
sumption, he wondered. 

" I don't like you at all to-night," said the girl suddenly. 
" I have never known you to be so stupid. Please take me 
back ? " 

The words were spoken almost scornfully. But a keen ob- 
server might have noticed a shade of disappointment upon the 
girl's countenance, and a twitching of lips, that did not spring 
from annoyance alone. 

Would she have thought a declaration too presumptions ? 
As he rose to accompany her to the ball-room, a red rose that 
she was wearing at her bosom fell at his feet. And as Charlie 
stooped to pick it up, the flower, which was too full blown, 
shed its petals — "Like our life," thought he bitterly. 

After this evening Langton resolutely avoided Vera. And 
so Ralph Everton had every opportunity of pressing his suit. 
For the moment he was desperately in love and lost no 
time in bringing things to a head. He had been sure that 
Langton was as deeply smitten with Miss Rushleigh as he was 
himself, and he also guessed that the girl was not entirely in- 



202 Vera. [Nov., 

different. This, however, did not keep him from haymaking 
during the sunshine; rather the reverse, it only incited him. 

So well indeed did he play his part that when, in due 
course, he proposed for her hand, few of their set were sur- 
prised to find him ins,talled as the accepted lover. 

Vera Rushleigh, since her parent's death, had lived with 
an aunt, Mrs. Dalmaine. She was left penniless, but it was 
known that whatever Mrs. Dalmaine had would be bequeathed 
to her only niece. 

When the engagement was announced it was looked upon 
as a very lucky one. To be mistress of a fine estate was not 
to be despised. And if there were ugly rumors about gam- 
bling and other drawbacks on the part of the bridegroom 
elect, they were speedily hushed with the cynical remark, 
that a man had better sow his wild oats before marriage than 
after. 

As to differences . of religion between them, well, no one 
in their circle considered that much of a drawback. 

To Vera herself the engagement, however, did not bring 
entire satisfaction. Though she knew she was making a bril- 
liant marriage, and one that would ensure her holding a good 
position in society, she could not but fear that a man could 
never make a woman happy with the religious opinions, or 
rather the want of them, which Everton proclaimed. 

Whether the sudden withdrawal of Charlie Langton's atten- 
tions had helped her to decide upon accepting his friend's pro- 
posal, no one ever knew. It was noticed, nevertheless, by 
Mrs. Dalmaine, that, as the time for her marriage drew near. 
Vera began to show signs of fear and apprehension. Her 
lover, she explained, upon being questioned, had expressed 
himself strongly against having the ceremony performed in 
the Catholic Church. 

He was so obstinate, that his objection threatened to stand 
in the way of the marriage altogether. He used every argu- 
ment he could think of to convince his fiancee that she ought 
to conform to his wishes in this matter. Vera, however, stood 
firm. She would break off her engagement rather than begin 
her married life with a sin. To a man of his temperament 
this only made her appear the more desirable. If it proved that 
she would sooner forego all the advantages of such a marri 
^han act against her religious scruples, it also shower 



1904.1 Vej^a. 203 

was not so ready to throw herself into his arms as he had 
supposed. This only strengthened his .desire. Besides, might 
not his friend Langton return after all and win the prize ? So 
he withdrew his objection, and the marriage took place. 
Charlie Langton declined to be best man on the occasion, or 
even to be a guest at the wedding ; and he dropped completely 
out of their circle. 

In her new life Vera found very little leisure in a con- 
tinual round of gaieties. Their country house, Everton Towers, 
seemed always to be full of guests. So she saw as little of 
her husband as falls to the lot of most fashionable wives. 
This was scarcely regretted, or hardly realized, in the constant 
excitement of her new position. But it was not long before 
she noticed that Ralph often had fits of irritability which 
he called "nerves." They were noticed after the visit of a 
certain Mrs. Gurney, a beautiful and most fascinating Creole, 
who was a frequent visitor at Everton. 

Her society seemed amazingly agreeable to her host. 
Indeed, it was so to most men. Her Titian red head was 
generally the centre of a group of admirers, whom she alter- 
nately amused and snubbed. It mattered not if all the other 
women declared that her hair was dyed and her complexion 
enamelled. Men worshipped the idol whether painted or not. 
Ralph Everton*s demeanor towards her was as discreet as is possi- 
ble between a frivolous woman of the world and a good-look- 
ing, none too scrupulous host. Nevertheless, Vera, as well as 
other members of the house party, knew that this woman held 
over her husband a charm that no other possessed. 

The truth was that Mrs. Gurney, like Ralph, had scarcely a 
serious thought in life. Both lived for pleasure, and pursued 
it in every phase. While Vera, whose strong principles com- 
pelled her to look with scorn upon many of the frivolities in 
which her husband and the lively Creole found so much amuse- 
ment, had a seriousness and loftiness of character as far removed 
from theirs as could well be imagined. 

Cards and gambling were the business of the day at 
Everton, and none but bridge players ever received an invita- 
tion. It began to leak out also that the turf claimed the 
young squire's attention to a considerable extent. Rumors of 
heavy losses presently reached Vera's ears, and she gently 



204 



Vera. 



[Nov., 



ventured to remonstrate; but her husband met her with a half 
jest and an impatient assurance that there was no fear of his 
coming to any harm. Her peace of mind was not seriously 
disturbed, therefore, until ready money began to grow scarce. 

Just at this time her immediate attention was taken off 
other matters by the birth of a son and heir. At first her 
child brought rapture untold to his mother's heart, and she 
hoped fervently that he would be a salutary influence upon 
Ralph's life. 

But Vera never sounded the limits of her husband's shallow- 
ness, until the time came for him to keep his written promise 
that his children should be baptized and brought up in their 
mother's religion. 

" No son of mine shall ever put his foot inside your idola- 
trous churches," he said vindictively, when the subject was 
broached to him. 

Except on the occasion of his marriage, Everton had never 
entered the doors of any church ^ince he was a boy ; so his 
convictions were of no more value than his knowledge of the 
amount of idolatry practised in the Catholic Church. 

" Once I was beguiled into going into the accursed place," 
he went on without daring to look at the proud dark eyes 
which he knew were fixed upon him in wistful reproach. 

** I swore then it should be the last time. My children 
shall not be baptized at all, until they are old enough to decide 
for themselves. I am not going to have any opinion on religion 
cut and dried for them. When they are old enough it will be 
time for them to use their own discretion in such matters." 

A shudder of horror convulsed Vera ; tears filled her eyes. 
'' But Ralph," she pleaded, with one hand outstretched to grasp 
his as he passed the sofa restlessly pacing up and down, " you 
promised; you gave your word, you cannot go back." 

" Can 't I ? " he answered sneeringly, his face in a shamed 
sort of way still turned from her. " I was inveigled into 
writing that rot. Jt is not worth the paper written upon, as 
far as the law goes. So put a smooth face on it. Vera. My 
mind is made up on that point, and nothing shall alter my 
decision." 

The poor mother began to despair. ** Oh Ralph ! And I 
thought you would be so pleased at having a son, that in very 
gratitude you would listen to me for once." 



1904.] Vera. 205 

Her eyes sought his with desperate pleading. Her babe, 
their babe, slept peacefully upon her breast, all unconscious of 
the struggle his coming had called forth. 

" It would make me so happy to have him brought up in 
my faith. You never even hinted to the contrary. . . ." 

'* Not I ! " he interrupted fiercely. " What was the good ? 
You would only have been whining and pining about it, and I 
was not anxious for a sickly child. And as for being grateful 
— bless us, you are not the only woman who has borne her 
husband a son," he finished brutally. 

Vera's stately head drooped upon her infant, as though she 
would shield him from his father's baneful words. 

A sickening dread pierced her heart. 

*' And mark my words. Vera," he continued without giving 
his wife time to speak; "if you deceive me in this, and attempt 
to play any tricks upon me, I shall put a stop to your going 
to your church at all." 

Another shiver crept through the beautiful woman before 
him, and big tears of bitterness forced their way through her 
downbent lids. A horrible conviction seized her that the little 
influence she once had held over this self-willed man had 
slipped from her for ever. 

It was useless, at any rate for the present, to say more on 
the subject Everton so watched her movements that, even if 
she attempted to disobey him, it was doubtful whether she 
could have succeeded. 

Another year went by. Much of Vera's beauty was fad- 
ing. She had grown thin and wan, and an expression of fear 
and despair played havoc with her eyes. Her mouth, too, 
lost its sweet, tender curves, and a tenseness, painful to see, 
now marked it. 

In truth Ralph Everton had long since tired of her, and 
she knew it For him no woman compared with the fascinat- 
ing Mrs. Gurney, who not only captivated his fancy, but also 
what he was pleased to call his heart. H« made no secret of 
neglecting his wife, or that he admired her rival. Meanwhile, 
during the last few months, his gambling debts had compelled 
him to mortgage his estate, which unfortunately was not 
entailed. Before Vera's second child was born Everton Towers 
had been let, and the family took up their abode in a small 

VOL. LXXX.— 14 



2o6 VEJ^A. [Nov,, 

house in the neighborhood. It had become difficult to find 
money for the household bills. 

Their little son, now fifteen months old, was still unbap- 
tized. His broken-hearted mother realized that her baby girl, 
too, would also be thrown upon the treacherous world with no 
religion and no faith to guide their faltering footsteps. In an 
utter helplessness, which was fast goading her to despair, the 
ppor mother almost prayed that God would take her little 
ones. What would be their fate if anything happened to her? 
The thought appalled her. Her heart yearned over them in 
their sweet innocence, their appealing little ways. But for the 
curse under which their father had placed them, what happi- 
ness might they not bring into her life ? As it was, their 
very beauty, their very appealing helplessness, smote her at 
every turn with an unspeakable dread for the future. 

Gambling had gone on unchecked, and now ruin, absolute 
ruin, stared .them in the face. She was powerless to stay his 
downward course. Remonstrance was useless. It only drove 
him into violent passions. He resented any interference on her 
part with a bitterness totally undeserved; for Vera had done 
all that a wife could do to reclaim him. The fact was that 
she was as incapable of descending to his level, as he was of 
appreciating her higher and nobler qualities. Had she been a 
creature of impulse, caring for nothing, heeding nothing, but 
the excitement of the moment, her hold over him might per- 
haps have lasted longer. 

The blow came. Everton Towers was for sale. Their 
creditors, hungry, grasping, and perhaps needy, seized it. 
Nothing was left for them to live upon but Vera's small in- 
come. 

Ralph went about with lowered brow and darkened counte- 
nance, cursing his luck, cursing his marriage, cursing even his 
children ; calling them '' a drag upon him, and a nuisance." 
He became more and more desperate, now that everything was 
lost. He would listen to no one. The gambler's conviction, 
that luck was bound to change, was now his. Some grand 
" coup " might set him right again. 

Accordingly, he left the house one morning in the highest 
spirits, declaring that he would bring back great winnings from 
the race. 

It was a relief to his wife to know that he would be absent 



1904.] Veha. 207 

for several hours. Now was her opportunity. The distracted 
mother, long since convinced that the hand of God had fallen 
upon them, could but attribute her misfortunes to yielding in 
the matter of her children's religion. 

In spite of the risk she determined to seize the first chance 
that presented itself, and take them off to the church and have 
them baptized. 

Her husband had no sooner left the house than she began 
preparations. Should heaven befriend her she could easily 
get home before his return. 

But this was not to be, for the first person she encountered 
on her return was the one of all others she least desired to 
meet. 

" Where have you been ? " he shouted hoarsely. Vera saw 
at once that he had been drinking heavily. "Where did you 
take the brats to?" 

His wife cowered under his menacing look, and she mur-- 
mured something about a drive. 

"A drive! Rubbish! You have been to your idol- wor- 
shipping church. I saw Peters, the cab-driver, outside when I 
passed, but I little thought he was waiting for you. If you 
think you have done me, you will find yourself mistaken. The 
children shall be sent away. I have won some money to-day, 
and I shall use it to remove the brats from their mother's evil 
influence." 

"Oh!" cried Vera with a shudder; "do not speak so be- 
fore Bertie, I entreat. The child is old enough to understand. 
Let me take him to bed, and we can discuss this afterwards." 

She rang for the maid to carry the sleeping babe upstairs, 
while she turned to take her little son in her arms ; but her 
husband, striding hastily forward, thrust his aim between them. 
The child, alarmed at the sudden movement, rushed to his 
mother with a wild cry, and clutched hold of her gown. 

" So you are trying to steal my boy's affection from his father, 
that's part of your little game. Well, we shall see who is 
going to be the winner " ; and he pushed her out-stretched 
arm violently on one side. 

The poor child, thinking his father meant to strike him, 
stepped suddenly backwards and fell with a terrible thud against 
the fender. 

"Curse you!" shouted the infuriated man. "You don't 



VESA. [Nov., 

ne with impunity"; and he again gave his wife a vio- 
fi- But she was too quick for him this time, and had 
>or little Bertie from the floor ere he could get past 

sh, oh ! hush, for God's sake! " she whispered brokenly. 
vc you have killed your child." 
terrified and sobered gaze the loaa stood for a moment 
«d at the white, still face of Sl=s son. Then, without 
word, he turned and fled. 

never saw her husband ^gxrt.. H«r child never rallied 
e shock. In less thax a iTriifTi-=T his mother, broken- 
laid him in his little g r awtt . 
fallen rose was sbedda^ js setais. 

gh the yoiiEg =:;-:itsr ia«x bvz « anall income she felt 
i manage, witi 3is stua .-t some work, to keep herself 
babr girl 

her tzst atEttTT vsc zi juaat as ^mt a distance be- 
ic cili arc i>=r ia^as: «s jussTcie. Her one dread 
,MZ US wit^'Z. tats CB- rjme vxd carry her darling 

Sjcrssi "K^ ?-"• rer niiv a»ra> consolation. To 
t Mr wr^* IlT^^i; it« asc link aae bound her to this 
; al IT-- ?;?■ i«u::i «as rapidly failing her. Only 
::- A w- ==T-".- rc^ T'Jm -rjilapse. But baby Kathleen 
,r:>; t-.- i ■^•I'E:' «'-f:a taiui « mother's Wildest drcams. 
. wij?» x» >-■% iisjfustfcjn. her angelic countenance, 
~.- j-T?vi.* at- :i^)^ ;jit»ncus for this life. When but 
:^, -^ - «:**Ji -e'-cvi ier. aad she gradually faded 

,^ •», >.iv.'- wv^^wf ii^ been praying among the 
,».=;«• .1 ;!^c ^ji^piny ot the little playmate he had 

,.-.* i.'t ^-.i-J .iirs:r;b« the anguish of the mother's 
^ .-v V-5S > A?t ^--tfol. .iriited from her f 
. .^ ,-*..„:!rt^ X!\i wvTie than a widow, was alone. 
s.-. ■: AiW 4 ^jcifc Srasty made her long for the 
■;*.■>. :i;,%.i:i.'i ^^K-aw J*^«5 oolv she could again meet 
K.v; o-w --iig A^ -^'*s awhile. 



>>*.■-. 



r-.T« &::•:«. that Everton and Mrs. 



1904.] Vej^a. 209 

Gurney had fled the country. But this did not make her safe 
from her husband. So she left her present home and sought 
one in London, where she could more easily hide herself. 

Little Kathleen's illness had been a great expense, and now 
her mother could only afford the cheapest of London's dingy 
lodging-rooms. Though accustomed all her life to every com- 
fort, she never murmured at the poorness of her present sur- 
roundings. But the life of the solitary woman, ill and stricken 
with poverty, in the wilderness of London is truly desolate and 
soul-wearing. 

It was perhaps as much from privation as actual disease 
that she fell ill so soon after her arrival. Ashamed of her cir- 
cumstances, she had told no one of her change of address, nor 
had she made any acquaintances. For the same reason also 
she had not called at the clergy-house. 

The people in the house were kind in their rough and 
ready way, though they left her much to herself. In the be- 
ginning of her illness Vera hoped to get better; but, on find- 
ing that she slowly grew worse, she asked two or three times 
that a priest might be sent for. No one, 'however, seemed 
to trouble about sending the message, or it was forgotten. 
It was nobody's business, and the landlady had enough to do 
with her lodgers without going after parsons, she said to her- 
self. 

At all events no priest came, and the poor woman was in 
despair. God's hand was touching her now heavily, and she 
felt the want of his grace to continue the fight to the end 
with courage and resignation. Would God's priest ever come 
on his errand of mercy ? She waited and prayed and hoped. 
Ah, how alone was she at this moment. Alone, calling for 
help, and with no one to aid her ! 

Then at last she called upon her children among the angels 
to obtain this mercy for her; and one night, when the end 
was very near, while the oft-repeated prayer was still upon 
her lips, she seemed to hear a slow, firm footstep halt at her 
door. And lo I a tall, broad-shouldered priest entered and 
gently approached her. 

The dying woman raised herself with a painful effort. She 
could hardly believe the evidence of her own senses. A mist 
gathered before her eyes, and she half wondered whether the 
dreamy languor stealing over her was indeed death. A voice 



2IO 



Vera. 



[Nov., 



recalled her scattered thoughts; a voice, the tone of which 
took back memory to days of long ago. This was an hallu- 
cination, she thought, and a forerunning of the end. 

The priest saw her dangerous condition. He heard her con- 
fession, and gave her the Bread of Life, staying awhile after- 
wards to whisper words of sweet encouragement, words to 
soothe the soul in its agony. 

Breaking off quite suddenly, however, as though following 
a train of thought suggested by his penitent's apparently 
lonely plight, he said with a kind smile : " Child, would you 
not like to have your children with you, now that your con- 
fession is over? Shall I call them to you?" 

*' My children ? " repeated the woman in bewilderment. ** I 
have none." 

And a great solitary tear stole down her wasted cheeks. 
** I had two, but they are in heaven." 

•* But," persisted the priest with a mystified air, "who, then, 
were the little ones who came to fetch me ? Two of the most 
beautiful children I have ever seen. I was struck with their 
unusual beauty — a sweet baby girl of two or thereabouts, and 
a fine manly boy a year or so older — like little angels. And 
they brought me to your door saying, ' Mother is there.' " 

Vera's eyes fixed in solemn awe upon the priest's face 
while he spoke, and then tears gushed forth in a torrent. 

** Father," she sobbed, " you have described the two dar- 
llngi I have lost. God must have sent them for you. I 
prayed so hard to them that a priest might come — and God 
iont my little ones." 

She fell back upon her pillow, even as the words were 
uttered ; and, though the room was in semi-darkness, the priest 
hud little doubt that the end was now very near. He sat for 
M luoincnt in silence. He was, indeed, overcome by a feeling 
of Hwo. In the face of God's wondrous mercy, which he had 
\\\^\ wItntHHcd, it was difficult to collect his thoughts. But he 
wrtkt HroiiMed by Vera asking him for a bundle of letters which 
wnii3 tl(3(l up and addressed to her husband. 

With (lulck, firm tread the kind priest passed round the 
livl ill where the wjman pDinted; and as the light from the 
MoliUry ( andle fell upon the address, which was written in a 
Ui^cj, clo4r hiad, he started almost involuntarily. 

** Kttlph JCvertonI" he exclaimed under his breath. "Can 



1904.] Vera. 211 

this wreck possibly be the once proud, beautiful Vera Rush- 
Icigh ? " 

A gasp from Vera made' him look searchingly at her. She 
too had turned towards the light, and understood now why 
the voice of the priest had brought to mind memories of the 
past. ** Father/' she murmured, " is it you after all who has 
brought me consolation on my death-bed?" 

" Thank God I child, yes " ; he whispered earnestly. 

A change then came over the dying woman's face, and the 
priest knew that the hour had come. 

"Tell him — I forgave him — " she gasped brokenly. 

A tremor ran through her, a happy look lit up her eyes 
and brought back some of their old beauty. 

" Bertie ! little Kathleen ! " she murmured. And with a 
long-drawn sigh she passed away. 

With a hardly repressed sob Father Langton reverently 
closed her eyes. 

And then, with chastened spirit, he sought the people of 
the house to ask whether any children had been sent to the 
presbytery that night. But there were no children living 
there. His inquiries left no doubt in his mind that he had 
been called wonderfully to give the last help of God's church 
to the sorrow-stricken soul of the woman he had known and 
loved in his youth. 




212 "A French Country Pastor." [Nov., 

"A FRENCH COUNTRY PASTOR." 

BY S. L. EMERY. 

HE Letters of a Country Pastor is a charming 
volume published in Paris, in 1894, by the 
house of Victor Lecoffre. This book has been 
translated into English, but as it is the original 
work that has come to our hand, we shall base 
our notice thereupon, translating freely as we write. The 
" Letters " comprise a correspondence carried on between a 

young priest. Monsieur X , in his first parish of Saint>Julien, 

and his friend Jacques Voisin, a Catholic layman of Paris, 
together with a few letters from other sources that complete 
the sequence. 

In the opening epistle the recently appointed pastor pours 
out his heart to his trusted friend. "I am going to keep my 
promise," he writes, " and tell you all about my modest life 
as cur^. . . . When I received my appointment, at the 
close of the ecclesiastical retreat, Monseigneur said to me, in sub- 
stance: 'My dear abbe, I am sending you to Saint- Ju lien, and 
I expect you to do some specially good work there. The 
parish is very much divided, and from these divisions religion 
has naturally suffered. . . . You must try to gain the con- 
fidence of these worthy people, and lead them back to God. 
If you meet with difficulties, I am here to advise and uphold 
you. If your heart grows faint, and sorrow upholds your soul, 
remember then that you are a priest of that God who died 
upon the cross. In giving you a parish, Monsieur le Cur^'^ 
and when Monseigneur said these words he spoke, for all his 
simple kindliness, with a certain solemnity in his tone- — 'it is 
no promotion that I am bestowing upon you; it is only one 
burden the more that I am placing upon your priestly shoulders. 
Go, and may God bless you ! ' " 

The young pastor was much moved; more so, perhaps, than 

he had been since his ordination and his first Mass. He had 

come, light-hearted and smiling, to meet his bishop ; he left 

^*'-i with a strange gravity, and profoundly touched; ho.- 




I904-] '' A French Country Pastor:' 213 

himself burdened with the care of immortal souls, and the 
burden was heavy. His appointment had at first pleased him 
greatly ; he had thought that now he could map out his life ' 
to his own liking, subject no longer to another's will ; that he 
would now be his own master, dividing his time between his 
church, his catechism classes, his library, and his little garden; 
that he would read consecutively the Fathers of the Church, 
and even write learned books ; that he would now be able to 
enlarge his library, subscribe to some periodical, keep in touch 
with the world of studious thought. 

What visits, too, he could make and receive, not worldly 
ones, nor for amusement, but it had seemed to him that it 
would be so delightful to discuss at will the most perplexing 
literary or philosophical or theological questions with his 
friendly brother priests. 

At the seminary he had always had the reputation of being 
a trifle talkative, and, later, he still found it difHcult to think 
without talking aloud. While he knew very well that he who 
puts on the priestly garb puts on at the same time a burden 
and a ministry, and that he is thenceforth consecrated to the 
service of souls, and no longer belongs to himself alone, it had 
not been of these things, however, that he had been thinking 
just at the time his parish was given to him. He had thought 
of his duties, indeed, but especially of himself, and scarcely at 
all of his parishioners. 

But his bishop's words had suddenly reminded him that, 
instead of mapping out his life in a way to suit himself, he 
ought to plan it after a fashion that would be most useful to 
the souls placed in his care. And our French cure in the 
present story is not a Luke Delmege ; he is no man of problems, 
of dreams, of delusions, and of despair. He is an upright, 
simple, straightforward soul, for whom duty is a plain guide, 
and his work in the church's field an honor and a sufficing 
joy. He perceives at once that while the pleasant occupations 
he had anticipated could, after all, be his in moments of rare 
leisure only, and some of them perhaps not at all, this is, 
nevertheless, the priest's peculiar lot. To deny self, to be at . 
the service of others, to think very little about self, it was of 
all this that his bishop's kindly words had reminded him ; his 
injunction had aroused him, his blessing had strengthened him^ 
The youthful pastor retraced his steps, less gay at heart, but 



214 ''A French Country Pastor:' [Nov., 

with a deeper peace; feeling on his shoulders the cross of 
Jesus, and conscious that it was no ill thing to sustain its 
weight >n such a Master's cause. 

The new cure finds but a chilling reception when he first 
enters his new parish ; he even sees some doors and windows 
brusquely closed as he approaches, and his heart catches the 
icy chill. In his new home the cheering words of the old 
nurse of his childhood, who has come to keep house for him, 
fail to rouse him. These people, then, who detest him before 
they even know him, are the flock committed to his keeping ! 
What has he done that they should receive him thus ? He 
has come to serve them and to love them ; yet surely it is 
difficult to love people who dislike you, and who shut their 
doors in your very face! Nevertheless, he is conscious that 
this love cannot be an impossible thing, since his vocation 
itself obliges him to love them. 

This, then, is the priesthood I It obliges to the very cen- 
tre of the soul. It is ndt merely a certain set of outward 
duties that it imposes upon one; it absorbs the entire man 
completely. Because he is a priest, and from that fact itself, 
he owes himself wholly to others, even to the most intimate 
fibres of his being. He can keep nothing for himself without 
wronging those to whom he owes himself. What a task and 
what a burden ! How is it to be met ? How is it to be 
borne ? 

Suddenly rising, and leaving the house, he enters the 
church. My church, "je pdn^trai dans r£glise, dans man 
£glise." He does not even look around him ; he sees only 
the little lamp that shines tranquilly and all alone before the 
altar. Then a great peace all at once takes possession of him ; 
he feels the true love. Love itself, welcoming him from the 
tabernacle; and no longer does it seem to him impossible to 
love and to fulfil his duty. For a long time he kneels and 
prays to his Divine and ever-present Master, who speaks to 
him in the stillness, and strengthens and comforts his soul. 

Luke Delmege strove to subdue his wounded feelings and 
to answer his perplexities under the open sky in a row-boat 
on the sea. The French cur^ conquers himself in church 
before his Lord; and then, with the same simple and practical 
faith, he goes forward in his daily path. With childlike (] 
ness, and yet with a very keen eye for defects. 




I 



1904.] ''A French Country Pastor" 215 

opportunities, he describes his surroundings — his church, for 
instance; his loquacious sacristan, who has to be taught that 
the new pastor does not wish to hear all the old gossip of the 
parish; the school for girls, taught by two sisters of the Holy 
Family, to whom he commits at once that care of the vest- 
ments in which his predecessor had - delighted, and whom he 
relieves at once from the catechising of the boys and girls 
before Vespers, a duty which had formerly been entrusted to 
them. 

"Our predecessor had suffered grievously from rheuma- 
tism," writes the cur^. " Thanks be to God, I am not yet 
rheumatic ! What should I do, then, if I did not hear the 
catechism ? Only take care, my good sisters, that youf little 
girls know it better than any one else ! " 

Sunday comes, the day of the pastor's installation. He has 
gained, meanwhile, some idea of what the congregation will 
be. About thirty families live in the small town, under as 
many separate roofs ; and almost all of them are employed in 
some trade, while farming people live in the country rounda- 
bout. There are also two chateaux, in one of which lives 
the Marquis of Saint-Julien with his family ; in the other, 
a widowed vicountess of seventy years, who is present at 
Mass every morning, and who supports the parish school, 
while, like St. Teresa, she prizes above every advantage of 
wealth or birth her position as a humble child of the Catholic 
Church. 

At his installation, after the cure has been presented by 
the dean to his new parishioners, he enters the pulpit to speak 
to them. He tells them simply that he has come among them 
to be at their service in every possible way, but making no 
pretensions to govern them; that he only wishes to be useful 
to them, and that his most ardent wish is to see them attend 
faithfully at Mass and the sacraments, and lead a good Chris- 
tian life. Nevertheless, he assures them that he does not for- 
get that he is everybody's pastor, and he declares that even 
those who do not come to church will find in him a devoted 
friend in all that concerns their temporal welfare, while he 
trusts that the time will come when they will entrust to him 
their spiritual concerns as well. 

The congregation did not seem ill-pleased, and yet the 
pistor keenly felt all that was lacking in himself when face to 



"A FRENCH Country pastor." [Nov., 

with tbese worthy people. How Kttle he knew of their 

I was brought up in another part or this diocese," he 
s, "where neither the manners nor the customs were like 
: of Saint-Julien. Vainly I seek in my experience at the 
lary for something to put me in touch with them. I know 
ogy, philosophy, canon law; I have carefully worked at 
ases of conscience, but I do not know how to talk to ray 
hioners. I know how to preach to an educated audience, 

the old classic standards, and to treat of a text under 
or three divisions, but I do not know how to make an 
rtation. How am I going to explain the Gospel to these 
peasants, these workmen, these sleepy women, these 
g girls with their heads in the air, these young men little 
lus to hear sermons ? My sacerdotal preparation has been 
ely made in books. Theology will be useful to ne, and 
ips canon law, and cases of conscience ; but what time 
re lost in writing fine sermons after the style of Bourda- 

when it might have been employed in saturating my 

with the simplicity of the Gospel, in order that I might 
: myself understood by the simple souls to whom I am 
Happily I have the homilies of the Fathers. The bar- 
ns to whom St. Hilary of Poitiers preached possessed 
inly no more refinement than my parishioners have," 
: is not, alas ! in the matter of preaching alone that the 

finds himself at sea. What would he not give, in that 
f little place, with its many and daily needs, of which he 
nes speedily aware, if only he had some precise knowledge 
sdicine, hygiene, even of veterinary; if he knew something 
: grafting trees, had some means by which he could enter 
ly into the daily life of his flock ! A man can easily 
; to talk with his pastor, who comes to remind him of his 
;r duty; but he can hardly refuse to chat with the pastor 
brings a remedy for the sick cow, or something to relieve 
ough of a little child. 

verything can be learned, however, even though we have 
' learned it as yet ; and, in any event, the cure bravely sallies 

to become personally acquainted with his people, though 
without some fear. He fears that be cannot speak to these 
e after their own fashion. Nothing that interests them 
iBts him. Yet he must somehow enter into communication 



1904.] ''A FRENCH Country Pastor:' 217 

with them, and how is that to be accomplished ? " Truly," he 
writes, "I do not know; nobody has ever taught me. I am 
going to fling myself into the water in order to learn how to 
swim ; and in a few days I will tell you whether I am drowned 
entirely ! " Si je suis tout a fait noye. 

In a few days he announces joyfully that he is not drowned ; 
that he is beginning to know how to swim, and that it is less 
difficult than he had feared. Of course he makes some mis- 
takes; he visits, for instance, the mayor and other dwellers in 
the little town before he goes to see the marquis, in one grand 
chateau, and the vicountess in the other. But the latter cares 
little, in her true humility, for a wholly unintentional humilia- 
tion; and the really noble marquis soon discovers the sterling 
character of the priest with whom he has to deal. 

" I do not know whether I am a republican or a democrat," 
the young Frenchman says to the old aristocrat, ''but indeed 
I am a democrat, if by that word one means those who love 
the little, the humble, the weak; those who prefer them to the 
great, the rich, and the powerful. And you too, monsieur, if 
I am to believe what is told me of your alms-giving and your 
charities, you too are a democrat in that sense. But if one 
means by democrats those who wish to reverse the entire social 
hierarchy, then certainly I am not a democrat of that sort. 
All the social elements, magistracies, birth, even wealth, have a 
right to deference. It is not I who would wish to be found 
lacking in these exterior relations." 

The marquis is not conquered at once by these manly words, 
but in time he and his cur6 are warm allies in the common 
cause of the Master, of his church, and of his poor. And the 
ardent young pastor acknowledges frankly, in writing to his 
Paris friend, that he recognizes himself to have been not wholly 
in the right in this occurrence. '' Child of the common people 
as I am," he says, I have not been exactly sorry to humiliate 
a marquis. This child of the common people did wrong then ! 
I am a priest ; and, being a priest, the idle echo of human con- 
tests ought not to disturb my heart. The priest must have a 
level head and a strong mind. The priest must see clearly, 
and must walk in a very straight path. My plan ought to be 
to make myself all things to all men; and, while maintaining 
always the priestly dignity, to treat each one as he likes to be 
treated. To give pleasure is the supreme law of politeness, 



2i8 "A FRENCH Country Pastor:' [Nov., 

and it is also the law of Christian charity. I shall always be 
polite enough, if I speak and act in the spirit of charity ; and 
I shall never fail to please if, not thinking much about my- 
self, I am only anxious to do good gently and sweetly to 
others." 

The visits are made. In the farmhouses or the shops, on 
the streets or the hillside, the pastor now knows his flock, at 
least by name, and they know him. And yet he is not satis- 
fied. His day, to be sure, is carefully mapped out; from six 
in the morning till ten at night his hours are filled with priestly 
duties faithfully performed — Mass, meditation, study, careful 
preparation for his simple sermons to a simple people, sermons 
founded on long meditation upon the life of Christ; and then 
visits and walks and talks, but especially to the sick. 

" I have made it a rule to let no one in my parish be ill 
without going to see him at the very beginning of his illness," 
he writes, "and without returning to see him often. I do not 
want my coming to administer the last sacraments to be a ter- 
rifying and brutal announcement of death. The pastor's place, 
when possible, is at the bedside of the sick. I shall not deem 
my time lost if I accustom my people to see in me a consoler, 
a confidant, a friend, and, in case of need, an infirmarian." 

Nevertheless, he is not satisfied. He has literally to convert 
his people, and how shall this be done ? In the town are men 
who pretend to believe in nothing; he must bring them back 
to the faith. In the villages are poor, baptized pagans, to 
whom he must preach the Gospel; but how is he to get them 
to come to church at all ? He goes to visit two of his brother 
priests nearest to him, to tell them of his uneasiness and to ask 
their advice; but he finds that these elder men appear to 
think there is no other thing to do than what has been always 
done. They belong to a class of men, well known in these 
trying times in France, who think themselves well-nigh powerless 
to regain the influence of former times over minds led far astray, 
and who imagine that only a miracle of Divine Providence can 
win a victory like that. 

'' Perhaps all this is on account of their age," writes the 
undaunted cure. "I am not of their opinion. *We are in our 
shell/ a confrere said to me; 'there we have been put, and 
there we must stay. Let us try to do our best; let us be as 
little disagreeable as possible ; but don't let us come out of 



1904.] "A FRENCH Country Pastor:' 219 

our shell. Outside it rains, it blows, it hails ; and sometimes a 
thunderbolt strikes the imprudent. Trust ' me, my dear con- 
frere, and don't be imprudent.' All this gave me a great deal 
to think about ; I shall try to keep the rules of prudence ; but 
really I cannot make up my mind to live in inaction." 

And, as time goes on, what say the earnest people at the 
chateau of this earnest soul ? The letter written by a young 
lady who had been visiting there, to the daughter of the count, 
gives some idea, and a vivid one, of the impression that the 
pastor made on thoughtful souls. 

"The more I think of it, the more natural I find the man- 
ner of being, speaking, living of your cure. He appears extra- 
ordinary only because people do not understand him. When 
one becomes a true follower of Jesus, then one understands 
him; and is then amazed that he should seem extraordinary. 
He speaks neither well nor ill. He speaks like a Christian. 
His words have about them something that reminds one 
of the Gospels. That is his only eloquence. Then, too, as to 
his manners, his actions, there is nothing of self. He says 
what he has to say, simply, distinctly, with clear precision, or 
with reserve, yet most often with reserve, according to the 
color of his thoughts. He does not seek after effect or brilliant 
speeches. He defends truth boldly, even at the risk of causing 
some displeasure ; but he is always careful of the forms of 
courtesy. He never makes himself the centre of a scene, he 
does not speak of himself, and he desires nothing except the 
good of souls. He has the appearance neither of an ascetic 
nor of a saint. His conversation is enjoyable, and he talks on 
all subjects. He is a priest, a true priest." 

And what says the marquis about the pastor? "He seems 
always to have some well-defined object in view, that is known 
to himself alone; and yet he understands how to maintain 
about him something that is perfectly natural and becoming. 
Even his occasionally awkward manners do not stand in his 
way. He is not always exactly tactful,' but he is so perfectly 
good that this goodness transforms and excuses him. All our 
peasants are attracted by him. The children love to talk with 
him and to accompany him on- his walks. He adapts himself 
wonderfully to their childish prattle. He seems to be always 
thinking of others, and never of himself. In the pulpit he 
talks of things that concern the other world. His theory is 



220 "A FRENCH Country Pastor:* [Nov., 

that we are all so many pagans. My wife and Blanche give 
in to all that. As for me, I fight against them all. There 
must be somebody to keep his senses! However, we talk to 
each other of our various affairs ; now we agree, and again we 
argue. He has a level head oii his young shoulders, and he is 
a true friend. His manner is full of simplicity and dignity. 
Despite his youth and his lack of courtly ways, there is some- 
thing about him, whatever it may be, that commands respect 
— a dignity, either acquired, or given him from on high, com- 
pared with which the dignity of the best born in the land is 
truly a very trifling thing." 

It is not, however, without trial, disappointment, suffering, 
unceasing daily endeavor, that the cur^ really wins his people's 
trust and love. And it is the charm of his simple, steadfast, 
onward progress that gives this quietly written story its power 
over the reader. The way in which, with childlike, implicit 
faith, the cur^ combines prayer and preaching with practical, 
work-a-day endeavor to uplift the humdrum and hard life of 
his people, the way in which he steers his course through the 
trying waters of French political movements, the beautiful 
simplicity he shows in bringing together, in plans for the 
common good, the sensitive old nobleman, stung to the quick 
by insult, and the people who have misunderstood and deserted 
him and his, the Christian Unity which the curd, filled with 
Christ-like love for his fellows, awakens likewise in their souls ; 
all this is well worth attentive study, even though France is 
not our home nor our field of labor. The stress laid upon 
frequent, plain, practical preaching would have delighted a 
St. Philip Neri; the care taken of the children in catechism 
classes would have gladdened a St. Charles. There may be 
only fifteen or twenty people at his instruction sometimes, on 
the Wednesdays and Fridays in Advent; but what of that? 

'' However small the number, I still want to speak to them. 
I tell them of the fall of man and of the mystery of the In- 
carnation. I try to be clear; I am a little more familiar than 
on Sunday; I tell them some lovely stories from the lives of 
the saints, trying to make my hearers feel that this was the 
true life that God's servants led; I would make them touch 
with their finger, as it were, the reality of the Gospel and of 
the saints' lives. I would persuade my parishioners that Jesus, 
Mary, the apostles, the saints, lived really a flesh and blood 



1904.] ''A FRENCH Country Pastor:^ 221 

existence like themselves; and where once these simple folk 
saw only history, formulas, precepts, I would make them feel 
the living reality and penetrate the spirit. They seem inter- 
ested, and occasionally some of those dull peasant faces relax 
and a light comes into their eyes. This is the reward of my 
toil and of my anguish." 

It is by the religious regularity of his daily life, sustained 
by Mass and meditation and the Divine Office, that this hum- 
ble priest accomplishes the multiplied and multifarious duties 
he imposes more and more upon himself as the opportunities 
and needs around him make themselves clear to his observant 
eyes and his undaunted heart. God's work, God*s will, God's 
people — that suffices him. He sets himself diligently to rouse 
in his flock the real endeavor to lead a life like that of Jesus 
Christ and his saints ; and for this purpose he prepares care- 
fully his sermons by diligent, prayerful, personal meditation on 
the life of Christ, reduced afterwards into graphic yet simple 
words that shall touch his hearers' hearts. 

He seeks, too, more and more to enter into the daily life 
of his people, not mingling too familiarly with them, yet ready 
to aid and comfort each and all. He becomes a scribe to the 
unlettered ; he finds out for the farmer modern improvements 
in farming methods, and then he makes marquis and farmer 
meet on this common interest, and thus forget their small 
political disagreements. He sends his school sisters among the 
sick and poor, he exerts himself to keep the younger element 
in his parish from dangerous amusements. He endeavors, in 
fine, to realize the teaching of the Master, and to be indeed 
the friend and shepherd and true spiritual father of the flock 
given into his keeping ; to be able to say of them : " I know 
mine, and mine know me," and to draw rich and poor, high 
and low, learned and ignorant, into one family, one household, 
one Catholic love and union in Jesus Christ. 

Yet, as to his great Exemplar, so to him, the hour of 
agony comes; he is insulted, calumniated, publicly hooted at 
and despised. His friend writes to him : 

"Show no ill humor, but also show that you fear no one. 
If conversation turns upon your misadventures, do not avoid 
the subject; speak of your enemies with gentleness mingled 
with a certain compassion. And especially, lose nothing of 
your cheerfulness; any air of melancholy would be fatal to 

VOL. LXXX.^15 



222 '*A French Country Pastor:* [Nov., 

you. In a word, change nothing in your habits or your usual 
way of living." 

This, however, is easier said than done. "I can," he re- 
plies, "read and re-read my Imitation; but it is under trial 
that one finds out how weak one is; and it is then that one 
experiences how necessary for the good conduct of life are 
the virtues that the world esteems the least. If I had been 
more humble, if I had had less horror of public humiliation, 
if I had only had more strength of soul, I would have altered 
in no way my former manner of living, and I should find 
myself, so to speak, less paralyzed. Certainly I should have 
suffered less. Fortunately for me, in this respect at least, I 
am to leave Saint-Julien on September 4, for some weeks, for 
my twenty-eight days of military service. Otherwise, I really 
do not know how I should gather myself together again, so as- 
to resume my work and come into contact with my parishioners 
once more." 

During his absence, the good bishop takes advantage of 
a visit, made by his . vicar<»general to the Marquis of Saint- 
Julien, to bring about a careful investigation of the affairs of 
the parish, with a result decidedly in favor of the young pas- 
tor's methods and work. The vicar-general writes: 

*' In the course of recent pastoral visitations a good deal 
has been said about the cure of Saint-Julien. Rightly or 
wrongly, his methods have excited the emulation of many of 
our young priests, and were no less vigorously blamed by a 
great number of older ones. Your Grace, with that just sense 
that you possess of the exigencies of our times, has long recog- 
nized that our priests ought to emerge from the reserve in 
which they have retrenched themselves, and, without pre- 
occupying their minds with the contingencies of politics, 
should yet work in closer touch with the people for the bet- 
terment of the flock committed to their care." 

He then proceeds to give an account of what the pastor in 
question has done. Among other things, he says : "He has 
carefully organized his catechism classes, and has been very 
CN<^('t in giving Christian teaching from his pulpit on Sunday. 
MII0, HUnci)« de Saint-Julien has sho^n me the notes she has 
t4kon, i\\\\\ I tended my reading of them with a deep sense of re- 
apei t for iho (uirsitly sou) of the preacher. He has laid before 
his proj^lo \\\\^ yr^r the complete ideal of the Christian life, 



1904.] ''A FRENCH Country Pastor:' 223 

making use of the Gospel and of the lives of the saints. In 
Lent, too, and in Advent, and during the month of May, he has 
given special instructions on week-days. He has thus acquitted 
himself of the ordinary duties of his charge with exactitude, 
with zeal, and with piety. ... 

" The only objection that could be made to Monsieur X 

is that the works undertaken by him are too many, too various, 
and that they absorb all his time. But a very simple calcula- 
tion will dissipate that objection. . . . Perhaps it would 
be running a risk to exact from all priests the same amount 
of work, yet one cannot blame a man whose zeal imposes it 
upon him, but who does not appear to fall beneath it. He 
has thus avoided the greatest danger of our country priests — 
the search for occupations exterior to the ministry ; or, which 
is still worse, idleness. Besides, all these occupations are not 
equally absorbing, and their very variety makes them counter- 
balance each other. I see no confusion in these various works ; 
all appear to be useful, and none of them hinders the others. 
The results, besides, prove the value of the methods. . . . 

Finally, Monsieur X is everywhere respected, and in seme 

(gmiiies he is actually venerated. It is true that he has had 
a very disagreeable experience lately at the hands of some ill- 
disposed persons, who dislike him for the good that he is accom- 
plishing; but their action is offset by the unanimous good 
opinion in which he is held on the part of all respectable 
people, even of those who have forgotten the practise of the 
faith. 

•*To sum up everything, your Grace, the cure of Saint-Julien 
seems to me to have given proof of zeal, activity, and intel- 
ligence. I do not believe that he has wasted his energies, or 
done anything that a man of ordinary ability is not capable 
of doing without overworking himself. Possibly his example 
has been a reproach to certain consciences. It does not seem 
to me that the diocesan administration can find anything repre- 
hensible in him for a reason of that sort. 

" Permit me to express to your Grace the profound respect 
with which I have the honor to be your Grace's most devoted 
servant, L , Vicar- General, * ' 

We lay down this simple story, deeply impressed by the 
spirit of peaceful, holy earnestness that pervades it. It pre- 



224 Ice-Cutting at Night. [Nov., 

sents to us the picture of a soul entirely consecrated to the 
Master's work, entirely devoted to his church's interests ; self- 
forgetful and strong; undeterred by any rebuffs; persistent in 
spite of failure and suffering ; wonderfully calm and gentle 
and sweety like a St. Francis de Sales, through all. This vol- 
ume sets forth in strong light not only good works to be done, 
but — and this is far more important — the spirit of love and of 
holiness in which they should be accomplished. There is noth- 
ing, perhaps, more noticeable about the entire book than the 
open and fearlessly expressed love of Jesus Christ and the 
souls for whom he died, a love wholly free from self- conscious- 
ness, unabashed and unashamed, thinking that it is the simplest 
thing in all the world to glory, like St. Paul, in the service and 
the cross of the great High Priest himself. 




ICE-CUTTING AT NIGHT. 

BY CAROLINE D. SWAN. 

OVELY? Yea; lovely, friend, beyond all thought — 
Over the snow-wreathed hills and hollows deep, 
Over the river's pale transparent sleep, 
The mist comes sweeping down ; behold, how fraught 
With ghostly splendor! For to-night is wrought 
Day labor; straining, half-chilled workers keep 
Their fires ablaze, bent, eager-nerved, to reap 
Their icy harvest. Thence the haze has caught 
Its opalescence! *Mid the world's turmoil, 

Her mists of doubt, O Christian ! are thy lights 
Thus burning fair and beautifying toil ? 

Thy torch of Prayer ablaze upon the heights 
And in the valleys though the nights be late? 
lyO, Heaven's sun-glories come ! Thus serve — and wait. 



1904.] A Forgotten Renaissance Monument. 225 




A FORGOTTEN RENAISSANCE MONUMENT. 

BY CHARLOTTE H. COURSEN. 

'LL tourists who have visited Innsbruck remember 
the magnificent tomb of the Emperor Maximih'an 
I. in the Hofkerche, or Court Church, but it is 
safe to assume that comparatively few of them 
are aware that in Innsbruck there is another 
beautiful Renaissance tomb, though far less imposing, which 
was erected to the memory of another Maximilian of the 
House of Hapsburg. 

His tomb is, unfortunately, not placed as it was originally. 
In fact it was, with inconceivable lack of consideration, dis- 
mantled when the parish church of St. James, in which it 
stands, was rebuilt in 171 7-1 724, and it was arranged in separ- 
ate parts, as at present, to suit the architectural demands of 
the new building. 

The objects which we see unexpectedly often make more 
impression upon us than those about which we have heard. 

Straying one day into the church of St. James, I stood 
still in mute surprise before the high altar. On either side of 
this there is a door leading to the sacristy. Each doorway is 
adorned with two bronze columns of masterly workmanship, a 
maze of delicately sculptured grapevines, among which birds 
flit and snails and caterpillars crawl. The columns rest on 
marble bases carved with spiral flutings. Over the doorway 
at the left kneels a grave, mail-clad wariior; over the dooivay. 
at the right stands an ideal Teutonic knight, also in armor, 
while near him writhes a dragon of artistic realism. On the 
four corners of the lintels sit genii holding lighted torches. 
All of these figures are finely cast in bronze. 

"What does it all mean?" I thought. "And is this the 
dragon of Wilten, Innsbruck, about which revolves the legend 
of the giants, Haimo and Thyrsus?" 

No; it is the dragon of St. George, and the young Teutonic 
knight is St. George himself, and the kneeling warrior is the 
Archduke Maximilian, son of the Emperor Maximilian II., 



226 A Forgotten Renaissance Monument [Nov., 

Grand Master of the Teutonic Order, and for sixteen years 
(1602-16 1 8) Regent of Tyrol. Maximilian now lies beneath 
the pavement in front of the steps leading to the high altar, 
but ' originally he was placed, by his own request, in a sepa- 
rate chapel of this church to which he had granted large be- 
quests.> Over his grave in the chapel was erected the tomb 
executed by Caspar Gras and Heinrich Reinhart. The four 
columns supported an oblong platform upon which knelt Maxi- 
milian in adoration before the high altar, while St. George, at 
whose feet the dragon writhed helplessly, stood near him, with 
hand extended in protection. The genii graced the four 
corners of the tomb. 

Maximilian was appointed Regent of Tyrol by his brother, 
the Emperor Rudolph II. He loved the country and was be- 
loved by the people. His life at Innsbruck is interesting from 
its association with the Capuchin convent where, as chief of a 
militant-ascetic order, he spent much time in religious retire- 
ment, although his offi:ial residence was the Hofburg, or 
Imperial Palace. In the convent he had a small suite of rooms, 
a " hermitage," built for his own use. Over the entrance- 
door of the ante- room hangs a portrait of Maximilian, beneath 
which are the words : 

" Kurz ist der Traum der Zeit ! In End* die Ewigkeit ! 
Wie ist mein Herz daran? so dacht 'hier Maximilian." 

" Short is the dream of life ! Eternity endless ! 
What is my share in both ? here Maximilian pondered." 

Beyond is an audience room where Maximilian attended to 
affairs of state during his periods of seclusion. His remaining 
rooms were strictly private, and here he lived as a hermit, 
wearing the Capuchin dress. From one of them a window 
opens into the convent, near the high altar. The oratory is a 
veritable hermit's grotto. In the little kitchen he prepared his 
own simple food, and in a grotto-like cell he slept. Another 
apartment he used as a study. 

The Teutonic Order, so closely connected with the early 
history of Prussia, was abolished by Napoleon in 1809. In 
1840 it was revived in Austria as an honorary order, so that, 
although the same thing was done in Prussia in 1852 — under 
the designation of St. John — Austria is now the true home of 



1904.] A Forgotten renaissance Monument 227 

the Teutonic Knights. The present Grand Master is the Arch- 
duke Eugene. A palace on the Vienna Ring Park, belonging 
to the order, has been placed at the Archduke's disposal, but as 
he is still young, and free to engage in active military service, 
it may be some time before he avails himself of this palace as 
a permanent residence. 

Another important work of art produced by Caspar Gras 
and Heinrich Rcinhart is the so-called Leopold Fountain in the 
Burg Platz at Innsbruck, arranged as it now stands in 1893. 
Until then the only portion of it placed in view was the admir- 
able bronze equestrian statue of the Archduke Leopold V., 
brother of the Emperor Ferdinand IL, who succeeded Maximilian, 
the Diutschnuister, as Regent of Tyrol in 16 19. The six beauti- 
ful bronze statues of sea gods and goddesses were finally rescued 
from the senu-obttvioa which had befallen them at Castle Amras, 
near Innsbruck, and were grouped on a modern marble basin 
as adjuncts to the equestrian statue of Leopold, approximately 
in the manner originally intended more than two hundred and 
fifty years before. 

Would that the too long neglected tomb of the Archduke 
Maximilian could also be restored to its complete and har- 
monious form in a chapel of its own ! The suggestion has 
oiten been made, but never yet carried out. If these few words 
can help at all in the right direction, the writer will feel a keen 
pleasure at the thought that possibly a long cherished wish is 
somewhat nearer to realization. 



A Training School for martyrs. [No^ 



A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MARTYRS. 

BY THE COUNTESS DE COURSON. 

S our readers are aware, the religious condition 

of France at the present day is calculated to 

sadden all Catholic hearts; the expulsion of the 

religious orders, the break with Rome, the cruel 

and crafty persecution that is being waged against 

God, his ministers, and his servants — all these things malte us 

wonder if the future of France as a Catholic nation is not 

irretrievably ruined. Unless Providence chooses to interfere, 

by one of those swift and sudden upheavals of which we have 

many examples in history, it seems humanly impossible that a 

country that is being slowly, but deliberately, unchristianized 

should escape from the moral shipwreck to which it is drifting. 

It is far from our thoughts to ignore or to minimize the 

generous efforts that are being made to stem the tide of evil. 

If the French Catholics, taken as a body, have allowed political 

differences to hamper their activity, individually they continue 

to present noble examples of devotedness and enlightened zeal, 

and we gladly turn to this bright side of a dark picture when 

the clouds ahead tempt us to grow discouraged. 

We remember, too, and this is a powerful incentive to hope 
for better things, that the eldest daughter of the church, what- 
ever may be her errors, is still the mother of missionaries and 
of martyrs, and that, as such, she has a special claim upon the 
mercy of him who is mindful even of a cup of cold water 
bestowed in his name and for his sake. Throughout the world, 
for the last two hundred years, French missionaries have been, 
and are still, to the front among the pioneers of the Gospel, 
and the mother house of the " Society des Missions £trangeres," 
their cradle and training school, is one of the most interesting 
and admirable institutions in Paris. 

It is, however, little known and seldom visited by the pass- 
ing stranger, to whom the more intimate features of Catholic 
- in the gay capital are naturally a "terra incognita," " Lt 
• ne fait pas de bruit et le bruit ne fait pas de bitn," says St. 



1904.J A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MARTYRS. 229 

Francis de Sales^ and the quaint and pithy sentence is curiously 
suited to the Paris of the twentieth century. Its evil aspects 
are loudly and aggressively brought forward, i^hile its better 
features are kept out of sight and have to be sought for to be 
understood and appreciated. 

On the left bank of the Seine, in the part of Paris known 
as the Fftubourg St. Germain, which retains here and there 
certain old world aspects, is a monastic building. It stands in 
a large garden, at the juncture of the Rue de Babylone and 
the Rue du Bac, close to a church, belonging to the same 
institution, dedicated to St. Francis Xavier. On the opposite 
side of the street, in strange contrast to the solemn looking 
edifices, is that huge emporium of modern fashion, the " Bon 
Marche." 

The gray house and church are the property of the " Society 
des Missions £trang^res," and the former is, in a very literal 
sense, a training school for martyrs, one of the noblest founda- 
tions bequeathed to Catholic France by the seventeenth cen- 
tury, "le grand si^cle," as it is fondly called by French his- 
torians. Without ignoring the hidden evils that lay under the 
splendor of the reign of Louis XIV., evils that in the end were 
to bring about the terrific catastrophy of 1793, it cannot be 
denied that the church of France, at that time, was singularly 
rich in wise and holy men. St. Vincent de Paul, Bossuet, 
Bourdaloue, F^nelon, Massillon, M. OHer, and others, were 
model priests, possessing intellectual gifts of a high order, and 
their influence was naturally exercised upon the younger clerics, 
who looked up to them as their leaders. Belonging to this school, 
that represents the French ecclesiastical spirit of the day at 
its best, were the founders of the celebrated society,, whose 
history we are about to relate to our readers. 

About the middle of the seventeenth century, there stood 
in the old Rue St. Jacques, in the very heart of the learned 
quarter of Paris, an inn called the " White Rose." Among the 
students who made this hostelry their temporary home were 
four or five young students between whom there existed a close 
friendship. They seem to have been, one and all, men of 
exemplary life, studious, grave, the stamp of men among whom 
St. Vincent de Paul recruited his Lazarists or M. Olier his Sul- 
picians, very different to the conventional "abbe" of the old 
J'^pme. 



230 A Training School for Martyrs. [Nov., 

One of them, Francois Pallu, was a canon of St. Martin's, at 
Tours ; another, Francois de Laval, was archdeacon of £vreux ; 
a third was Henri Boudon, whose ascetical writings are famouc. 
Their studious habits finally induced them to seek for a more 
retired dwelling place than the "White Rose," and they ended 
by taking a small house in the Rue des Copeaux, whence they 
continued to attend the classes of the university. At-home they 
formed a kind of community, each member being superior in 
his turn. 

Their only object was to sanctify, as far as might be, their 
student's life, and they little thought that they were uncon- 
sciously laying the foundations of an institution whose influence 
would be world-wide, and to whose existence thousands of 
souls would owe their eternal salvation. 

One memorable day the little household received the visit 
of one whose example and whose words were to direct the 
lives of several of these young men into new and unexpected 
channels. The visitor was Father Alexander de Rhodes, of the 
Society of Jesus, one of the most famous missionaries of his 
time. At the cost of almost incredible exertions, he had suc- 
ceeded in establishing a Catholic Church in Tongking, and he 
was now making use of his stay in Europe to give a solid 
foundation to his work. 

He began by describing to his young listeners the misery 
of the heathens who, by thousands, were waiting in darkness 
and distress for the pioneers of the Gospel; then he unfolded 
a scheme that the Holy See had encouraged and approved, 
the object of which was to promote the welfare of the Eastern 
missions. 

Although many religious of different orders, sons of St. 
Dominic, of St. Francis, and of St. Ignatius, were successfully 
laboring for Christ in those far-away lands, it was essential, in his 
opinion, to organize in the missions, as in Europe, a regular, 
ecclesiastical hierarchy, consisting of bishops and priests. Above 
all, he was anxious, in order to insure the stability and de- 
velopment of the work, to recruit a native clergy, the extreme 
usefulness of which could hardly be justly estimated, save by 
.those whose experience had taught them how valuable was an 
intimate acquaintance with the language and customs of an 
unknown country. Moreover, he argued, native priests, in case 
^ a persecution, could exercise their ministry more easily than 



1904.] A Training School for Martyrs, 231 

foreigners, in whom the suspicious Eastern despots were prompt 
to see the political emissaries of a hostile power. But it was 
necessary to find European priests able and willing to train 
these native clerics; priests who possessed the gifts of mind 
and heart that must characterize the organizers and rulers of 
an ecclesiastical community. 

Father de Rhodes had been commissioned by the Holy See 
to recruit these chosen apostles, the future vicars apostolic of 
the Eastern missions, the foundation stones of a hierarchy, 
whose members aspired to the perils and sufferings, rather than 
to the honors, attached to the purple. 

The venerable Jesuit had the matter deeply at heart; he 
spoke with intense earnestness, and, as the words fell from his 
lips, visions of glorious labors accomplished for the honor of 
God, visions perchance of a martyr's crown, passed before the 
eyes of his hearers ; one and all they eagerly proposed to follow 
his lead. On leaving the Rue des Copeaux, the old missionary 
met P^re Bagot, one of his fellow- religious: 'Oh! Father," he ex- 
claimed with tears in his eyes, " I have found my first bishops ! '' 
Alas ! the young and ardent spirits, who so generously 
volunteered to leave their country and their friends for the 
love of Christ, had yet to learn that in all the works of God 
there are periods of darkness and of stagnation. In many 
cases these are but heavenly appointed trials of faith, which, if 
bravely endured, are often followed by unexpected victories; 
it is as though God, before crowning the noblest schemes, 
wished to make his instruments realize their weakness, acd to 
assert his all-powerful and all-wise Providence. 

Father de Rhodes died in Persia, in 1660, without seeing 
the practical result of his earnest appeal; the volunteer mis- 
sionaries seemed at first unable to carry out their vocation; 
delays and obstacles, independent of their will, hampered their 
plans, till, at last, they wisely decided to lay their case before 
Pope Alexander VII. 

They knew that the Spanish and Portuguese governments 
were strongly opposed to the introduction of a French element 
into the Eastern missions, and that this opposition naturally 
weighed upon the decisions of the Holy See. On the other 
hand, they had, in accordance with what they believed to be 
the will of God, consecrated their lives to a work which they 
were loath to relinquish. 



232 A Training School for Martyrs, [Nov., 

Five of the associates started for Rome, where, after long 
waiting, the result of deeply rooted habits of routine, the Pro- 
paganda finally entered into their views, and decided to roake 
use of these eager laborers, whose enthusiasm had been tried 
by delay and disappointment. In 1658, Mgr. Pallu was ap- 
pointed Vicar Apostolic of Tongking, Mgr. de Lamothe- 
Lambert, Vicar Apostolic of Cochin China, and Mgr. Colo> 
tendi, another member of the little group. Vicar Apostolic of 
Northern China, Tartary, and Korea. 

The three left France to take possession of their distant 
posts in 1660, the same year that Father de Rhodes, the ii\- 
spirer of their noble undertaking, died in the far-away Persian 
missions, where he had labored for the last six years. Mgr. 
Pallu was the last to start and, before leaving Paris, he im- 
pressed upon his friends the necessity of founding a seminary 
for the training of future missionaries, who would be capable 
of assisting him and his fellow- workers in their stupendous 
task, and of eventually taking their place. 

The idea was carried out after his departure, chiefly through 
the zeal and generosity of a holy Carmelite monk, Bernard of 
St. Teresa, Bishop of Babylon, who had been a missionary in 
Persia. A pious lady, Madame de Ricouart, having given him 
a large house and garden, situated at the corner of the Rue 
du Bac and the Rue Petite Crenelle (now called Rue de 
Babylone), he offered it to the friends of Mgr. Pallu on one con- 
dition, that the future seminary should provide priests for the 
Persian mission. 

Whatever may have been his faults, private and political, 
Louis XIV. had an instinctive sense of all that might add to 
the outer influence and "prestige" of his country, and this 
made him look favorably upon the new foundation; in 1663 he 
settled a handsome annuity upon the seminary, and the same 
year a group of clerics, under the government of M. de Meur, 
took possession of the house. The opening sermon was 
preached by Bossuet, and from that day, October 27, 1663, 
the " Societd des Missions £trang^res" had a distinct and 
oflicial existence. It is a common saying among the members 
of the society that its founders were ''Christ the Redeemer 
and the Holy Virgin, His Mother"; and in truth it grew up, 
and gained a Arm footing, without having a nominal chief. 
Its inspirer was Father de Rhodes; its organizers, the young 



1904.] A Training School for Martyrs, 233 

priests in whose souls he had kindled the divine spark of mis- 
sionary zeal ; its helpers, the king, the religious, the charitable 
men and women who contributed to the foundation by their 
donations, but, curiously enough, it owed its origin and devel- 
opment to the combined efforts of a group of generous souls 
rather than to the activity of one man. 

The *'Societe des Missions £trangdres" is an association, 
not of religious, but of secular priests, who are bound together 
by a common purpose. Its centre is the old gray house in 
the Rue du Bac; this is, at once, a training school for future 
missionaries, the headquarters of those who return to Europe, 
the centre and the home whence material assistance and fatherly 
counsel are sent to the far-away workers. 

The government of the society is vested in the persons of 
the Vicars Apostolic, the Superiors of the different missions, 
and the Directors of the Paris seminary ; these last have the 
responsibility of the the training of the young missionaries, 
whom they send, according to their judgment, to the posts 
that are vacant. 

Each group of missions is represented at the Paris semi- 
uary by a director, qualified to serve the interests and pro- 
vide for the wants of the particular mission with which he is 
personally acquainted. The young clerics who are trained in 
Paris become members of the society only after three years of 
mission work ; they make no vows beyond those that are com- 
mon to all secular priests, but they bind themselves, the day 
they leave the seminary, to persevere until death in their 
heroic vocation; only the claims of obedience can henceforth 
interrupt their self- chosen task. 

The directors of the Paris seminary are, it is almost need- 
less to state, in constant correspondence with Rome, and it is 
from the Propaganda that they receive their directions. 

The first vicars apostolic, whose departure we have noticed, 
laid the foundations of this organization, and, moreover, gave 
a bright example of generous devotion. Mgr. de Lamothe- 
Lambert labored for twenty years in Cochin China, where, 
alas! the Spaniards and Portuguese, even more than the 
heathen, hampered his efforts; Mgr. Pallu, his fellow- student, 
died in China ; the words he wrote when he felt himself dying, 
give us the keynote of his character : '' I wish to impress upon 
you," he wrote to the priests who worked under him, ''that a 



234 A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MARTYRS. [Nov., 

close understanding and perfect charity must exist between 
the vica.rs apostolic and their priests. . . . Let nothing 
divide us, neither poverty, danger, opposition, nor crosses. 
Let us act in all things with charity and from motives of 
charity." 

The society continued to prosper in the eighteenth century. 
In France the spirit of faith had grown weak, free thinking 
and irreligion were the fashion, and, with few exceptions, the 
men and women of the day were hurrying towards the tre- 
mendous catastrophy of 1793 with a careless gaiety that con- 
trasts painfully with the fate that awaited them. But the 
workers sent from Paris to the distant missions were faithful 
to their vocation ; far removed from the demoralizing influ- 
ences of the age, they carried on their heroic work with undi- 
minished zeal. Mgr. Pottier, in China, of whom his priests 
said that ''he was a golden bishop with a wooden crozier"; 
Mgr. Gleyo, a saint, who was a prisoner for eight years; Mgr. 
Bregot, who sold his episcopal ring to buy food for his starv- 
ing flock ; these and many others did good work for the 
church at the cost of superhuman efforts. 

As our readers know, the revolution of 1789 began by 
suppressing and confiscating the religious and ecclesiastical 
houses in the kingdom ; the methods employed were much 
the same as those of M. Combes at the present day. 

The seminary of the Rue du Bac was pillaged and sold, its 
members were obliged to disperse, some sought a refuge in 
England, some in Rome, but one and all seem to have been 
firmly resolved to resume their work as soon as it was possi- 
ble to do so, and when, in 1805, Napoleon reopened the semi- 
nary, they hastened to take their place in their old home. 

Four years later the house was again summarily closed by 
the despotic emperor, but in 1815 it once more opened its 
doors, and the directors anxiously set to work to build up 
the ruins caused by twenty- five years of political troubles. 

The prospect was anything but promising : in the seminary 
itself there were only four or five recruits, and in the far-away 
Eastern missions, where the members of the society had re- 
tained a footing, thirty priests had to minister to three hun- 
dred and fifty thousand Christians! 

Happier years were in store ; during the first half of the 
ztntvLxy the society developed ^steadily, but slowly; whereas. 



1904.] A Training School for Martyrs. 235 

after 1860, its progress was extraordinarily rapid. In 1822 
there were only five or six seminarists in the old house of 
the Rue du Bac, in i860 their numbers had increased to sixty, 
in 1886 to two hundred. 

The statistics for 1902 inform us that the society now serves 
thirty-three missions; it is represented by thirty five bishops 
and one thousand two hundred and thirty- six priests; all these 
are French, the " Societd des Missions Etrangeres " being an 
essentially French institution. 

To all these missions are attached schools, hospitals, orphan- 
ages, churches, and chapels; in the course of one year, 1902, 
over thirty- four thousand adults and one hundred and thirty 
thousand infants were baptized, either by the missionaries or 
by their catechists. 

The crowning glory of the society are its martyrs, many of 
whom have been beatified ; their memory is kept fresh in the 
home were they received their training, but anything like a 
detailed account of their trials would carry us far beyond the 
limits of this paper. We must be content with gleaning, here 
and there, among the heroic records of the society, a few 
anecdotes and incidents relating to these noble confessors of 
Christ. 

Between the years 1833 and i860, a large number o\ mis- 
sionaries were put to death in Tongking and Annam, and 
the history of their sufferings reads like a page from the 
annals of the early church. M. Marchand, in 1830, underwent 
the horrible torment of the '^ hundred wounds," the mere name 
of which sufficiently expresses its lingering horrors. Another 
missionary, M. Matheron, suffered a somewhat similar torture. 
He worked for several years under Mgr. Retard, one of the 
most remarkable missionaries trained by the society, and of 
whom his fellow-workers used to say that it was a joy and an 
honor to labor under such a chief. 

During the first years of his residence in Annam, Fere 
Matheron was able to exercise his ministry in comparative 
safety, but towards 1857 a violent persecution broke out, the 
missionaries were obliged to conceal themselves in the dense 
forests that covered the country. 

Mgr. Retard and Father Matheron, his faithful companion, 
spent many months in a hut, made of grass and leaves, sur- 
rounded by pestilential marshes and thick jungles, through 



236 A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MARTYRS. [Nov., 

which their faithful Christian neophytes used to force an en- 
trance in order to bring them food. Here in October, 1858, the 
Vicar Apostolic breathed his last, exhausted by fever and priva- 
tions ; Pere Matheron assisted his bishop to the last and buried 
him, with many tears, in the wild spot where he had found a 
refuge. " Our mission loses Mgr. Retard at the very moment 
when his presence is most necessary," he writes. 

Two years later Father Matheron and Father Charbonnier, 
one of his fellow- missionaries, were arrested and imprisoned 
with several native priests and a large number of Christians, 
all sufferers for the faith. The prisoners were fed on rice, but 
in such small quantities that several of them died of hunger, 
and it was afterwards found that they had gnawed the wood- 
en pillars that supported the roof of their prison. Cruel as 
this torture seems, worse sufferings awaited Father Matheron. 
He was tied to a post and, during several days, according to 
the good pleasure of the mandarin who was appointed to judge 
him, large pieces of his flesh were twisted and torn out with 
iron pinchers, or else tiny bits of wood were inserted between 
his fingers, which were then pressed together until the bones 
were crushed. When the excruciating pain caused the patient 
to faint away, the torture was suspended and he was carried 
back to a wooden cage in which he was kept for ten months. 
His sufferings in this cage were even more severe than those he 
had endured in the common prison, where he had the company 
of his fellow- sufferers; it was so built that he could neither 
sit down nor stand up, but had to remain crouched up day 
and night. The cage was placed in front of the tribunal, and 
at some distance was another, exactly similar, in which Father 
Charbonnier was confined. The two priests could see each 
other and, by shouting, were able to communicate, and even 
to make their confession to each other. Their one object was 
to prepare for death, the governor having informed them that 
he was waiting for instructions from headquarters to execute 
them both. One evening they noticed that the native soldiers 
who surrounded the cages were unusually excited, and they 
made sure that the hour of martyrdom had come; they spent 
the night in prayer, and next morning joyfully followed their 
jailers, who conducted them to the tribunal. 

Here they were informed that, in consequence of a treaty 
of peace that had just been signed with France, their lives 



1904.1 A Training School for Martyrs. 237 

« 

were spared; they were to be put on board ship and taken to 
Saigon. 

The scene must have been curiously pathetic; the two mis- 
sionaries, it appears, heard the decision of the judge with 
genuine consternation. They stood silent, bewildered, bitterly 
disappointed, and it required no small effort on their part to 
take back with unmurmuring submission the lives they had so' 
joyfully sacrificed. With heavy hearts they turned away from 
the radiant visions that had already dawned upon their wistful 
gaze, and bowed their heads in obedience to the mysterious 
designs of Providence. 

However, Pere Matheron may be truly said to have given 
his life for the faith; the fearful ordeal he had undergone left 
its mark upon him, he was a sufferer to the end, and died in 
1882, blind, paralyzed, but ever cheerful and resigned. His 
companion became Vicar Apostolic of Eastern Cochin China. 

Other noble sufferers in the same country were M. Poirier, 
a Breton, who, in 1885, was killed in the midst of his Chris- 
tians, to whom he had just given Holy "" Communion ; M. 
Guyomard, who, the same year, was beheaded in Cambodge; 
M. Chatelet, a young missionary, who, at the age of twenty- 
seven, was stabbed to death in Cochin China. 

More lingering was the martyrdom of another apostle, Father 
Garin. As a boy he was obstinate and headstrong, but a 
wonderful sense of generosity lay under these external defects. 
" I must become as gentle as St. Francis of Sales," he used 
to say; and, by dint of heroic efforts, he kept his word. In 
1878 he was ordained, and, shortly afterwards, sent to Eastern 
Cochin China, where he labored for seven years. " I have not 
come here for long," he often said, " I must work for God and 
then die when it pleases him." 

In 1880 Father Garin baptized 260 adults and 3,000 children, 
he built several churches, and with an activity that seemed 
almost miraculous, governed the vast district that had been 
committed to his care. When the terrible persecution of 1885 
broke out, he was arrested and tortured. During three whole 
days he stood, bound to a stake, while the pagans came with 
pinchers, knives, and red hot tongs, and deliberately hacked him 
to pieces, taking care not to inflict a deadly wound on their 
helpless victim. Only the evening of the third day did the 
martyr's soul wing its flight to heaven. 

VOL. LXXX. — 16 



238 A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MARTYRS. [Nov., 

During many years the kingdom of Korea, upon which the 
attention of the world is now concentrated, was, of all the 
missions directed by the '' Societe des Missions £trang^res," 
the most difficult of access. 

The history of the church in Korea is one of singular and 
pathetic interest. It presents an example of a Catholic com- 
munity, deprived of the presence of priests, and consequently 
of the assistance of the sacraments, clinging to the faith through 
long years of desolation, durirg which many of its members 
gained the martyr's crown. The Catholic religion was intro- 
duced into Korea at the end of the eighteenth century by a 
layman who was converted and baptized during his stay at 
Pekin. He made many converts among the learned men of his 
country, and the little community seems to have observed tfce 
practises of the Catholic faith with unswerving fidelity until 
1834, when the first French missionary, M. Maubant, was able 
to force an entrance into the jealously guarded "heimit king- 
dom." 

After him many devoted priests, all of whom had received 
their training in the old house of the Rue dn Bac, succeeded 
in landing on the coast of Korea, but, with few exceptions, they 
were arrested after some years of labor, condemned, tortured, 
and executed. Among these heroic soldiers of God and of 
the church were Bishop Berneux and his coadjutor, Bishop 
Daveluy, both of whom were executed in 1866 with seven other 
French priests, all belonging to the '' Societe des Missions 
fitrang^res." One of the victims, Just de Breteni^rcs, was a 
young man of unusual holiness, whose life has since been 
written by the friend of his youth, Mgr. d*Hulst. His father 
and mother, who had generously consented to their son's sacri- 
fice of himself, were living in their old family "hotel" at Dijon 
when news came that Father de Bretenieres, after endur- 
ing cruel tortures, had been beheaded on March 8, 1866, at 
the same time as Mgr. Berneux, his spiritual chief. The 
Bishop of Dijon undertook to break the news to the berea\ed 
parents; he did so gently and kindly, and, although deeply 
moved, the father and mother proved themselves worthy of their 
son. M. de Bretenieres wept bitterly, but his wife, silent, 
motionless, and tearless, seemed at first not to realize that God 
had accepted the sacrifice of her child. By degrees the truth 
dawned upon her and, falling on her knees, she joined her 



1904.] A Training School for Martyrs. 239 

husband and the bishop in the recital of the " Te Deum " ; 
the oft- repeated words came fraught with a special meaning 
to those, whose son had joined "the white- robed army of 
martyrs." 

The next Vicar Apostolic of Korea, Mgr. Ridel, has left a 
thrilling account of his adventures. He worked for some time 
under Mgr. Berneux. After the martyrdom of his chief, he 
and the two surviving missionaries. Fathers Feron and Calais, 
lived for some time in concealment ; finally Mgr. Ridel was de- 
spatched to China to seek for help on behalf of the desolate 
mission. 

From China he went to Rome, where he was made bishop 
and vicar apostolic, thence he returned to Manchuria and settled 
close to the frontier of Korea, seeking for an opportunity to 
enter his diocese. In 1 875 he made an attempt to land on 
the inhospitable and closely guarded coast, but his efforts proved 
?ain, and he narrowly escaped with his life. The following 
year, 1876, two of his priests were more successful, and, in 1877, 
Mgr. Ridel and two other missionaries at last set foot on a 
soil where the blood of martyrs had been poured forth like 
water for the name of Christ. 

Mgr. Ridel gives a heart-rending description of the mission: 
thousands^of Christians had perished, some under torture, others 
o( hunger and misery, others had been sold as slaves. . Three 
months later the bishop's hiding place was betrayed ; he was 
arrested and thrown into prison. From the conversations be 
overheard he made sure that his hour had come, and in his 
breviary he wrote these words : " In a few minutes I shall 
probably die ; I belong to God. Long live Jesus ! In a few 
moments I shall be in heaven I " 

The crown which seemed within the prisoner's grasp was 
not, in the mysterious designs of Providence, to be his after all ; 
instead of a brief, sharp struggle, he was to experience long 
years of disappointment and weariness, and to be a martyr in 
intention, but not in reality. His imprisonment itself was a 
torture. He was confined, with other Christians, in a tiny, low 
hut, filled with straw, where the sight of the gentleness, patience, 
^xA forgiving spirit of his fellow- prisoners filled him with joy. 
He used to say Mass in spirit, and divided his day between 
his different spiritual exercises. ** It is easy to pray in prison," 
be writes, "God seems, nearer, and one realizes one's utter 



340 A Training School for Martyrs. [Nov., 



lessness." At the end of some months Mgr. Ridel was 
i;ele93ed and expelled from Korea, in consequence of the inter- 
vention of the French Minister at Pekin. 

Although obliged to abandon his diocese, Mgr. Ridel remained 
devoted to its interests ; to the end of his life he never ceased 
to write and to labor on behalf of his faithful Christians, and 
to cherish the hope of being able one day to return to his 
post. This last joy was denied him; he died in 1884, having^ 
by his prayers, his moral and physical sufferings, even more 
than by his ministry, worked for the salvation of his flock, 
and who shall tell what share his long years of patient sub- 
mission have had in bringing about the success that has been 
achieved by those who took up the task that he was forced 
to relinquish ? 

The statistics of the "Societe dcs Missions fitrang^res," for 
the year 1902, inform us that there are now in Korea over 
52,539 Catholics, 44 churches or chapels, one bishop, and 41 
missionaries belonging to the society, 11 native priests, one 
seminary and 33 seminarists, two religious houses for women, 
53 Catholic schools with 623 pupils, two orphanages with 870 
children, one hospital, and two Catholic '' dispensaires," where 
medicines are given to the poor free of cost. 

Times are changed since the evil days when Mgr. Berneux 
landed alone, at night and in disguise, to take possession of his 
diocese, and since Mgr. Ridel, his successor, suffered months of 
weary imprisonment that ended in life-long exile. 

An interesting episode is connected with the work of the 
" Societe des Missions £trang^res " in Japan. 

When, after two hundred years of isolation, Japan opened 
its doors to Europeans, it was to the society that the Holy 
See entrusted this portion of the Lord's vineyard. At first, it 
is true, the missionaries were subject to many restrictions, 
and the utmost caution was needed to avoid arousing the sus- 
picions and jealousy of the government. In 1865 Mgr. Petit- 
jeau, a member of the society, was allowed to open a Catholic 
chapel at Nagasaki, but he was strictly prohibited from preach- 
ing the faith beyond the precincts of the city, the chapel being, 
to all intents and purposes, meant for the use of the Catholic 
traders. 

Although he made it a point of observing the regulations 
which it pleased the Japanese government to lay upon the mis- 



1904.] A Training School for Martyrs. 241 

sionaries, Mgr. Petitjeau, who had not at that date been in- 
vested with the episcopal dignity, cherished a secret hope that 
one day he might be allowed to extend his sphere of action. 
In common with all those who had studied the past history of 
Japan, he believed that the Catholic faith had not completely 
died out of the country, where it had borne such glorious 
fruits of heroism and self-sacrifice. 

When, in the middle of the seventeenth century, a curtain 
fell between Japan and the rest of the world, it was ivell 
known that the native Christians were still numerous, and the 
hearts of European Catholics had thrilled with enthusiasm on 
hearing of the superhuman joy with which men, women, and 
even little children laid down their lives for Christ. 

Several attempts had, at different times, been made to 
reach these isolated children of the Universal Church, but, in 
every instance they had failed. Vague rumors were afloat* 
however, that the divine spark kindled by St. Francis Xavier 
was not completely extinguished, and Mgr. Petitjeau, hampered 
by the stringent regulations that he was forced to accept, 
longed to communicate with the descendants of the seventeenth 
century martyrs. He relates, in a deeply interesting paper, 
how Providence came to his assistance, and how the souls whom 
he was not permitted to seek eventually discovered his where- 
abouts. Only a month after the new chapel at Nagasaki was 
consecrated, on March 17, 1865, the missionary perceived a 
group of men and women, unknown to him, who, standing at 
the door of the chapel, seemed anxious to enter. By a sud- 
den impulse, he went toward them and, opening the door, in* 
troduced them into the church. When they were within the 
building, three elderly women came forward ; kneeling at the 
priest's feet, with their hands on their breasts, they said in a 
low voice: ''The hearts of those who are here are the same 
as your heart; in our village nearly every one is what we 
arc." 

"Be praised, O my God!" wrote Mgr. Petitjeau, '4or the 
intense happiness that filled my soul when I heard those 
words ! " 

His new friends seem to have speedily opened their hearts; 
they informed him that they knew it was then "the time of 
sadness " — Lent ; that they had lately kept the feast of Christ- 
mas; they spoke of "Yaso" — Jesus; of "Santa Maria"; of 



242 A Training School for Martyrs. [Nov., 

St. Joseph, the foster-father of our Lord; and, on leaving, 
promised to return before long and to bring their friends. On 
Holy Thursday and Good Friday, April 14 and 15, they re- 
turned in large numbers, and devoutly kissed the crucifix and 
the statue of our Lady; a few days later the missionaries 
learned that in the neighborhood there were over two thou- 
sand Christians ; indeed their visits became so frequent that 
Mgr. Petitjeau kept the chapel closed in order to avoid at- 
tracting the attention of the officials, and compromising his 
new-found children. 

On the 15th of May came the delegates of a Christian 
colony living in a neighboring island ; the chief of the depu- 
tation was named Peter, and from him the missionaries learned 
all that they wished to know respecting the exact condition 
of the Japanese Christians. They ascertained that the latter 
had kept the words and practice of baptism correctly, and 
were therefore, in spite of their long isolation, truly members 
of the Catholic Church. They had also preserved many other 
iragments of Christian doctrine, which were handed down from 
father to son; thus they inquired who was now "the great 
chief of Rome," and they asked, with evident anxiety, whether 
the priests were married. *' No " ; was the reply, " we are 
not allowed to marry." Peter then bowed down to the ground 
and, in the name of his companions, unhesitatingly acknowl- 
edged the mission.aries as the rightful representatives of the 
former pastors of Japan. 

Three months later Mgr. Petitjeau was in direct communi- 
cation with twenty-five Christian villages, where the essential 
truths of religion, and the practice of baptism, had been pre* 
served through the separation of two hundred years. His work 
among these new-found children of the church absorbed the 
best years of his life, all the more so that, in 1867, the gov- 
ernment issued a decree prohibiting the practice of Chris- 
tianity among the natives. The atrocious tortures inflicted on 
the seventeenth century martyrs were not renewed, but the 
Christians were imprisoned and exiled ; in the space of three 
months 4,500 among them were either sold as slaves or ban- 
ished. 

In 1873 the government seemed inclined to relent and 
Mgr. Petitjeau, who had suffered in sympathy with his spiri- 
tual children, seized the favorable opportunity and proceeded 



1904.] A Training School for Martyrs. 343 

to organize the mission. His efforts in this respect were suc- 
cessful ; he built churches and schools and, when he died at 
Nagasaki, in 1884, there were in Japan two vicars apostolic, 
over thirty thousand Christians, fifty-three European mission- 
arieSy eighty-four chapels, two seminaries, and sixty- five Chris- 
tian schools, which were attended by two thousand three hun- 
dred pupils. 

This wonderful development was the result of only twenty 
years' labor; when, in 1863, Mgr. Petitjeau landed at Nagasa- 
ki, there were four priests in the town, who said Mass in a 
poor room, and who were debarred from exercising their min- 
istry beyond the precincts of the city. 

The latest statistics published by the " Societe des Missions 
Etrang^res" tell us how, since 1884, the Catholic faith has 
continued to expand in a country where the blood of martyrs 
has brought forth its usual harvest; there are now in Japan 
more than fifty thousand native Catholics, a hundred and 
eighteen European missionaries, and more than thirty native 
priests — a marvellous result, when we remember that forty 
years ago the Empire was still closed to outer influences. 

Before closing this brief account of "A Training School for 
Martyrs," we must say a word of the touching ceremony that 
takes place when the young priests, who have completed their 
course of studies^ leave their home in the Rue du Bac, probably 
forever. On the day of their ordination, they are told the 
name of the mission to which they are appointed, and they 
generally start a month later, after spending a fortnight with 
their relations. 

When the hour of their finaL departure dawns, the directors 
and students, with the chosen band of '' Fartants," as they are 
called^ assemble in the garden of the seminary, before a time- 
honored statue of the " Queen of Martyrs," at whose feet 
generations of confessors of the faith have knelt in turn. A 
"cantique/' le "Chant du depart," the music of which was 
composed by Gounod, is sung, a procession is formed and pro- 
ceeds to the church, which by this time is filled with wor- 
shippers. 

. This church itself is impressive in its simplicity ; a large 
wall-painting represents the beatified martyrs of the society, 

» 

bishops, priests, and laymen ; the tombs of several confessors 
of the faith, the portraits of others, keep before the minds of 



244 



A Traintng School for Martyrs. 



[Nov,, 



the young clerics the object of their vocation and the fate that 
may possibly be their portion. 

On arriving in the chapel, the *^ Partants '' place themselves 
in a row on the steps of the high altar, and while the choir 
sings the verse : '' Quam speciosi pedes evangelizantium pacem, 
evangelizantium bona ! " all the men present pass before the 
departing missionaries and, kneeling down, kiss their feet. 
When, only a few weeks ago, we witnessed this ceremony, we 
were struck by the gentle, earnest, calm expression of the six- 
teen young men who stood facing us, while white haired priests, 
old men, soldiers, and children, fathers, brothers, and friends 
of the chosen apostles, reverently kissed the feet that, in a 
few weeks, were to tread the distant shores of Japan, India, 
China, or Manchuria. In the chapel many women were weep- 
ing; there were mothers there whose loving hearts ached at 
the thought of the sufferings in store for their beloved ones, 
while they nevertheless gloried in the heroism that prompted 
the sacrifice. 

After Benediction, during which the " Partants " recited 
their consecration to the task they embraced until death, we 
passed into the seminary court, and realized the atmosphere 
of simple, matter-of-fact heroism that pervades the place. In 
a corner stood the boxes and traveling wraps of the sixteen 
travelers who, a few hours later, were to bid adieu to their 
old home; here and there were the young priests surrounded 
by their families and friends, their faces wore a brave smile 
and their brightness seemed to react upon their relations. One 
group was especially pathetic ; an elderly man and 'woman 
were on their knees on the gravel pathway, with clasped hands 
and downcast eyes, they begged the blessing of their boy ; 
perchance the hand thus raised over their bent heads was that 
of a future martyr. 

A few hours later, a row of omnibuses stood at the door 
of the gray house ; full of ardor and hope, a smile on their 
quivering lips, the "Partants" drove off to tread the thorny 
paths that their elders have trod before them. 

The memory of these confessors, the pride and example of 
their brethren, are kept before the eyes of the future mission- 
aries during the years that they spend at the seminary. The 
" Chambre des Martyrs" is a sight which is» alas! compara- 
tively unknown, even to Catholic tourists. This large room. 



I904.] A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MARTYRS. 245 

which any visitor to Paris may see for the asking, is full of 
painful and precious memorials; it is a perpetual reminder of 
the glorious destiny to which every student of the house aspires. 
Here are kept the instruments of torture, the blood stained 
clothes, the books, pictures, that belonged to the martyred 
missionaries, and a series of realistic pictures, the work of 
native artists, that represent their passion and death. Some of 
these are deeply interesting, not indeed because of their artistic 
merit, but from the thoughts and feelings that guided the 
artist's unskilled brush. Thus, in one picture the martyrs are 
represented as impossibly tall, the apostate natives, who have 
just consented to trample on the cross, as mere pigmies; better 
than any words these contrasts tell us that the painter's heart was 
filled with admiration for the former and with contempt for the 
latter. Scarcely less impressive than these trophies of a glorious 
struggle, is a small silver medal of our Lady that was found 
in Japan when the closely guarded Empire opened its gates to 
foreigners forty years ago. In how many heroic and pathetic 
scenes this tiny medal may have played a part ! As we gaze 
upon it, visions rise before us of the men and women, young 
and old, gently born and bred, who went to martyrdom as to 
a feast, and we wonder, somewhat sadly, what, under similar 
circumstances, would be the attitude of our twentieth century 
Catholics. 

The }'oung priest who serves as our guide is, in himself, an 
excellent specimen of the spirit that reigns in the training 
school for martyrs. Simply and gravely — simplicity and gravity 
are the characteristics of the society— as far removed from false 
sentiment as from self- consciousness or pride, he explains the 
history of the different relics and pictures, enlarges in a matter- 
of-fact way upon his predecessors' sufferings, and, in reply to 
our questions, tells us that in a few months he too will be a 
" Partant." 

« Coming out of the chamber filled with tragical memories 
into the busy, crowded street, we carry away the feeling that 
the labors of these missionary sons must bring down a bless- 
ing, not only on the land of their apostleship, but also on the 
country of their birth. 



iLTtES OF Scottish Presbyterians. [No 



:ULTIES OF SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIANS. 

HE recent deciaion of the House of Lords in the 

appeal made to it to settle the dispute between 

the Free Church and the United Free Church 

of Scotland has many points of interest to 

Catholics, especially as an instance of the peren- 

etween the church and the state. 

e Middle Ages this conflict was waged on such 

[nvestitures ; and in our own times it is chiefly 

lions as the education of the children, whether it - 

ous or purely secular. 

there may not be on either side any animosity, 
to enter upon a conflict, yet it is certain that at 
r upon some occasion there will arise such a 
interests that a decision can only be arrived at 
:ed superiority of one to the other. This is true 
te a union as that between husband and wife; 
it true as between church and state. One or the 
ive the right to decide and to settle the limits 
This is what renders the question in Scotland 
T such an occasion has here arisen. There is no 
r wish to dominate on either side, and yet the 
arisen for an authority. Mow, if the church is 
of subject units voluntarily entering into a society, 
:al that the state, which is a divinely constituted 
:y, should be the authority ; but if the church is 
nstituted supernatural society, with divinely given 
ect religion and morals, the claim of the church 
l;ority is equally right and reasonable, 
history of the movement which led up to the 
ct in Scotland it will be seen that the principles 
Dtained by the Catholic Church afford the only 
In fact it seems to us in the highest degree 
Catholics should give to the religious questions, 
:ussed among the Protestants by whom they are 
more careful and sympathetic study. The church 
y hundred years, and the answers given by her 



1904.] Difficulties of Scottish Presbyterians. 247 

teaching contain the true solution for all the questions which 
are ever likely to arise ; and if we would take more pains to 
make this clear we should be able more easily to help and assist 
those who are in search of truth. 

This mast be our apology for calling the attention of our 
readers to the present troubles of the Free and the United Free 
churches of Scotland. 

In Scotland there are not so many sects as in England. 
Baptists, Methodists, and other denominations have adherents 
somewhat insignificant in number. There is a faithful remnant 
of Catholics, but whatever strength the Catholic Church possesses 
is due to immigration from Ireland. Episcopalians have an 
organization, but do not seem to appeal, with any marked 
success, to the Scottish mind. A fairly large number of the 
nobility and the upper classes: are included in the ranks of the 
Episcopal Church, but the democratic instincts of the Scotch 
people find in the Presbyterian form of church organization the 
system best adapted to their tastes. Presbyterianism, accord- 
ingly, embraces the great majority of the Scottish people. But 
Presbyterianism itself contains in itself, as everything outside 
the true church must do, the elements of disunion ; for although 
it claims authority to teach, it disperses that authority among 
so many persons that there is no definite centre and depositary. 
Accordingly, there are several Presbyterian organizations, the 
Established Kirk, the recently formed United Free Church of 
Scotland, the Free Church of Scotland, the Reformed Presbyterian 
Synod, the Eastern Reformed Synod, the United Original 
Seceders, and, we believe, a few smaller bodies. The Established 
Church of Scotland and the United Free Church of Scotland 
embrace far the greater number of those who profess Presbyterian 
principles, the number of communicants in the former in 1900 
having been 661,629, in the latter the total membership in 1901 
exceeded 495,30a It is with the latter, the United Free Church, 
and the Free Church that we are concerned. 

The origin of the Free Church of Scotland is one of the 
most interesting events of the last century, and affords a strik- 
ing instance of devotion and sacrifice for the sake of principle, 
refreshing in a period devoted to the sordid search for gain, 
in which, as a rule, jreligion is a mere matter of sentiment and 
emotional feelings, and an adornment of a self-indulgent life. 

The Free Church was formed in the year 1843. ^^^ ^^s 



'ICULT/ES OF SCOTTISH PRESSi'TERIANS. [Nov., 

ts mioisters, and elders had been members of the 
d Kirk. They left it on account of the law which 
right to appoint ministers, not to the congregations, 
f patrons. There was absolutely no other point of 
Their claim was that the church had an absolute 
Bve right to govern herself. Rather than sacrifice 

474 mioisters gave up their benefices, renouncing 
ts worth five hundred thousand dollars a year. They 

their homes and the churches, and started life afresh, 
id, as the event proved, not relying in vain, on the 
offering of their followers. But, and this is the 
point to be noted, although they sacrificed state 

and the emoluments of office and became depend- 
ee-will offerings, they did not adopt the notion of a 
h within a free state ; on the contrary, this notion 
i>:[Iy repudiated by the leaders of the seceders. 
ers, who was the moderator of the first assembly 
It Free Church, in his address to that body enun- 

principles of the seceders in unmistakable terms : 
salaries mistake us if they conceive us to be Volun> 
9 h>.>Id it to be the duty of governments to give ol 
rve^ and their means for the maintenance of a Gos- 
ry in the land; and we pray that iheir eyes may be 
as that they may learn how to acquit themselves as 
tors of the church, and not as its corruptors or its 
iVe pray that the sin of Uzziah (Oza), into which 
fallen, may be foi^iven them, and that those days of 
teiuedness may speedily arrive, when kings shall be the 
thers and queens the nursing mothers of oar Zion. 
I, we hold that every part and every function of a 
«lth should be leavened with Christianity; and that 
tionary, from the highest to the lowest, should, in 
v'ttve spheres, do all that lies in them to countenance 
tt it. That is to say, though we quit the establish- 
^o out on the establishment principle — we quit a 
iibliithment, but would rejoice in returning to a pure 
vixjiress it otherwise, we are the advocates of a 
ki^ijuilion and a national support for religion, and 

\'oUiHtaries." 
■p k)t)ott-(l this at length for several reasons: because 
pMily the pt.vsition of the seceders, and was accepted 



1904.] Difficulties of Scottish Presbyterians. 249 

by them as an authoritative statement ; because it forms the 
basis of the decision of the majority of the judges in the House 
of Lords ; and because it shows how Catholic principles are 
held and enunciated by those who are outside its border. 

The seceders who formed the Free Church, as we have said, 
had no difference in doctrine on any point from the members 
of the Established Church which they left, and as the West* 
minster Confession was the creed adopted as being in accord- 
ance with the Word of God before the separation, so it remained 
after the separation, and in particular they accepted the follow- 
ing articles: ''Chapter III. Of God's eternal Decree; III. By 
the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men 
and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life, and others 
foreordained unto everlasting death ; IV. Those angels and men 
thus predestinated and foreordained, are particularly and 
unchangeably designed, and their number is so certain and de* 
finite that it cannot be either increased or diminished." This 
doctrine laid down by the Westminster Confession, which makes 
of God an iniquitous tyrant, was nevertheless accepted, in 1843, 
by the Free as well as by the Established Church of Scotland. 

In process of time the Free Church grew and prospered. In 
numbers it rivalled the Established Kirk, it built new churches, 
new manses, new colleges. It sent abroad foreign missions. It 
formed a sustentation fund for the support of its ministers which 
is looked upon as more, excellent than that of any other body. 
The feeling for union, which has manifested itself of late among 
various Protestant sects became strong in the Free Church and 
led to its absorption of one or two minor subdivisions of the 
Presbyterian form of church government. This feeling grew and 
became ever stronger and stronger. It was not, however, a pure 
love of Christian unity which led to the union with the United 
Presbyterians which formed the cause of the present trouble. 
The rivalry with the Established Kirk and the desire to dis- 
establish her became, under the dominating influence of Dr. 
Rainy, an equally potent motive. The United Presbyterian 
Church — called United because it was itself formed out of the 
coalition of two minor bodies — had become numerous and 
powerful. Union with this church would make a body more 
powerful than the establishment. But how was this to be 
brought about ? The United Presbyterians held contradictory 
doctrines to those of the Free Kirk on the question of Estab- 



350 Difficulties of Scottish Presbyterians. [Nov., 

Hshment. As we have seen, the Free Church disavowed the 
Voluntary principle, holding it to be the duty oi the state to 
support the church by every means. The United Presbyterian 
Church enunciated the opposite doctrine in the following unmis- 
takable language: 

'' It is not competent to the civil magistrate to give legisla- 
tive sanction to any creed in the way of setting up a civil 
establishment of religion, nor is it either its province to pro- 
vide for the expense of the ministration of religion out of the 
national resources. It is Jesus Christ, as sole king and head 
of his church, who has enjoined upon his people to provide for 
maintaining and extending it by free-will offerings; that this 
being the ordinance of Christ, it excludes state aid for these 
purposes, and that adherence to it is the true safeguard of the 
church's independence." From this is seen the direct opposi- 
tion between the Free and the United Presbyterian churches^ 
and that the former asserted the right and duty to maintain and 
support an establishment, the latter asserted that Christ's 
ordinance excluded state aid. 

Not less opposed were the Unite4 Presbyterians to the 
Culvlnist doctrine of the Westminster Confession, to which the 
Frao Church at its formation had maintained its adhesion. 
Tho United Presbyterians maintained that the free offer of 
HnlvHtion to men without distinction was a matter vital to the 
liyMtsm of Gospel truth, that the doctrine of the divine decrees 
und election to eternal life must be held in connection with 
\\\i^ truth that God is not willing that any should perish, but 
\S\aK all should come to repentance; there is a salvation suffi- 
^\t\\i for all, adapted to all, and offered to all. In this point, 
Mi^ii it is evident that the teaching of one church was opposed 
to that of the other. 

This then was the position. The problem was to bring into 
\\\t community of one church two bodies, one of which held 
io \\\c voluntary system, the other was opposed to it, one was 
Arminian in its theology, the other ultra- Calvinistic. After 
i^ci^otifitions, which extended for many years, the problem was 
i»olvcd, not by the conversion of one or the other party, but 
(vy the modern lapse into indifferentism and comprehension 
4ud a mutual agreement to differ. The union was effected in 
the year 1900, and the declaration in which the principle of 
\\\t union was effected, made by the United Church at its 



1904.] Difficulties of Scottish Presbyterians. 251 

formation^ aflfirmed that the union took place on the footing 
of maintaining the liberty of judgment and action theretofore 
recognized in either of the churches uniting, and it was there- 
by declared that members of both churches should have full 
right, as soon as they should see cause, to assert and main- 
tain the views of truth and duty which they had had liberty 
to maintain in the said churches. The peace which they had 
found was not through the truth but from a mutual agreement 
to look upon as non-essential and unimportant, points which at 
the beginning had been considered vital and essential. The 
vast majority of the governing element of the Free Church 
acceded to this plan. The United Free Church was foimcd. 
The property was passed over to the new church. But a small 
minority of the ministers of the Free Church, about thirty in 
number, would not accept the. union. They looked upon it as 
an abandonment of the truth. The majority, however, did 
not feel much concern. In our days minorities must bow down 
to majorities. Not to do so was to exemplify that total depravity 
which they both professed. Considerable injustice was done 
to this minority. They were called upon to give up their 
churches and manses. But, though small in number, they were 
firm in purpose, and were determined to maintain their rights. 
The matter was brought before the courts. Two of the Scot- 
tish courts, a lower and a higher, gave judgment in favor of 
the majority. But, ''Thank God there is a House of Lords." 
To this the minority appealed and, after a hearing of fourteen 
or fifteen days, five against two of the Lords gave judg- 
ment in favor of the twenty- eight who had refused to depart 
from the traditions of their fathers. The ground of the judg- 
ment was that the union of the churches involved a derelic- 
tion of trust, the doctrines of the Free Church which were 
essential, having in consequence of the union and the terms 
on which it was made become non-essential. It was not as 
judges of doctrine directly and of proper right in such matters 
that the decision was rendered; it was only indirectly, but no 
less effectually. The question which the House of Lords had 
to decide was whether the trusts upon which the property was 
held had been violated. To decide this question they had to 
examine, not into the truth of the doctrine, but into the 
question as to which of the two .parties was faithful to the 
declarations made in 1843. 



252 Difficulties of Scottish Presbyterians. [Nov., 

In order to decide this point, however, inquiry was made 
as to what were the doctrines held by the Free Church at the 
disruption in 1843; whether these dootrines were essential; 
whether the Free Church in forming the union in igcx) had 
abandoned anything essential ; whether, too, the church had 
a right to change her doctrines. And the church which had 
to submit to this was the very church which, in 1843, ^^^ ^^^^ 
the Established Kirk because it would not submit to having its 
ministers nominated by lay patrons. The descendants of the 
seceders, whether they keep or whether they give up the 
property, do so in virtue of the decision given by a secular 
tribunal by the very state, the jurisdiction of which they had 
made such sacrifices to escape. 

The decision, if carried out, will cause almost a revolution 
in Scotland. The Free Church brought to the union churches, 
manses, and colleges, the capitalized value of which amounts to at 
least twenty millions of dollars. This property was held by 1,100 
ministers. It is now decided that it belongs in its entirety to 
the twenty-eight ministers who refused to join the union. The 
faithful few are so poor as not to be able to pay insurance 
and taxes on the churches. The decision carries along 
with it the right to several colleges and the administration of 
various funds and the control of the missionaries in fifteen 
fields of labor. Homes and churches will have to be aban- 
doned, and a new start in life commenced, unless some arrange- 
ment can be made. But how can an arrangement be made ? 
The judgment of the House of Lords is supreme. It declares 
that the 1,100 were guilty of a breach of trust, and that they 
could not validly apply the property to other uses ; and if this 
is so, it is clear that the minority to whom it now belongs are 
equally unable to part with it — to give it or any portion of it 
to the majority. To go to Parliament would be to be unfaith- 
ful to the headship 'of Christ, would be invoking the secular 
power, would be an absolute departure from the fundamental 
principles of both parties. How it will be decided remarins to 
be seen; but it is a clear instance of the evil involved in every 
abandonment of the principles of the Catholic Church. Those 
principles, as enunciated by Boniface VIII., are proved to be 
the only principles on which the church can maintain her 
proper place, even in matters of such small importance as the 
possession of worldly goods. 





l> 


XTbe Xatest Boohs. 


^ 


— + 

— * 



The world will be better for know- 

AUBREY DE VERB. Ing the life of that gentle, lofty, 

By Wilfrid Ward. and religious soul, Aubrey de 

Vere ; • and Mr. Wilfrid Ward 
deserves our gratitude for writing it for us. Men of the pres- 
ent day need nothing so much as the fair spectacle of great 
minds to whom unseen and spiritual things are real and familiar ; 
and in whom we may behold a pure and perfect character 
springing from the soil of devoted faith. The world, despite 
a widespread scepticism that would cast ridicule on such an 
argument, is altogether ready to accept at a very high value 
the proof from *' Christian experience " which such lives illus- 
trate. Let one read the sermons of Newman, so quiet, so 
steady, so penetrating as they fall on the inward ear; let one 
explore the thought of Wordsworth; let one follow a specula- 
tion of Malebranche or Pascal ; let one learn from this biography 
what manner of man was Aubrey de Vere; and from such an 
exercise one will come, unless one's soul has been utterly 
crushed and choked and stamped to death, persuaded that these 
finer spirits have seen the realities of the universe of light, 
which surrounds and swallows up' this speck ' of our present 
darkness; and that they are witnesses to those realities too 
sure and stately for any captious, cross-questioning infidelity 
ever to discompose. 

Strange as it may appear, this higher, this apologetic view 
of Aubrey de Vere's calm and well-ordered life, is the one 
that most caught our attention in this memoir. Not that there 
is on Mr. Ward's part any preoccupation to delineate the poet's 
interior and spiritual life as such, but because in Aubrey de 
Vere's writings, correspondence, and mode of thinking, the 
truths of religion were so real and so absorbing, and because, 
together with this, his character was so unworldly and win- 
some, we could not help saying as we laid the book down: 
"That life is a great moral proof of faith." 

Religion, indeed, was the chief study and the greatest 

* Auhriy eU Vere: A Memoir. By Wilfrid Ward. New York : Longmans, Gieen & Co. 
VOL. LXXX.— 17 



The La test Books. [Nov., 

ion of the life of Aubrey de Vere. Visiting Oxford in 
: came under the spell of the great "movement," and 
le charm of its mighty young leader whom he learned 
according to his own phrase, " with a love that was 
dolatry." Heart and soul he entered, though undetnon- 
f at the same time, into the hopes that then watmed 
blood of Oxford. 

Of forms they talked that rose as if in joy, 
Like magic isles from an enchanted foam; 

They prophesied (no prophet like a boy) 
Some fairer Oxford and some freer Rome. 

Aubrey de Vere's mind was too keen not to see that 
itholic tendencies in Anglicanism should be the pos- 
of a mighty historic church, not of an isolated group 
nCs ; and should be safeguarded by a supreme authority 
abandoned to private judgment. With his inborn love 

past, and with his strong hold upon the social as 

to the individualistic view of religion, he could not 
1 Protestant. So in 1S52, at the mature age of thirty- 
; submitted to the Catholic Church, one of the noblest 

tjreat company of converts who during those days 
leuce within her pale. 

a Catholic Aubrey de Vere's interest in religion grew 
:han before. Having found the peace of God himself, 
d ardently to lead others to it also. He studied pro- 
the religious conditions of our time, and in some of 
ya he utters zealous and prudent counsels which it 
I) well for all Catholics to know. He saw from an 
to the grave crisis which modern biblical learning has 
a the face of Christianity; and he desired that in the 
liere might appear a school of critics who should guide 
l|i Into truth and away from disaster and destruction. 
Mthica were with the progressive students of Scripture; 
:ivcr lost sight of the necessity of a supreme authority 
imild not only check excesses but should encoorage 
D research. 

polling as we have dwelt upon the religious feature of 
ite Vere's life, we think we kre taking no far-fetched 
or, Hi we have said, he was predominately a religious 



1 904. ] The La test books. 255 



as he was characteristically a religious poet. However 
we need not say that the literary interest of his career is also 
very great. A firiend, an intimate, a worshipper of Wordsworth, 
a correspondent of Carlyle, a companion of Henry Taylor, 
Hartley Coleridge, and Tennyson, and a great figure himself in 
the world of letters during three-quarters of a century, Aubrey 
de Vere stands out as a very notable man in the history of 
the last century's literature. 

Mr. Ward tells the story of his subject's life chiefly in the 
form of letters. There are many advantages in such a method ; 
bat we think it may readily be carried to excess. We have 
been disappointed somewhat in this volume to find so little of 
the biographer. Mr. Ward is eminently capable of giving us. 

brief critical studies on such matters as Aubrey de Vere's 

* 

poetical ability ; his prose writings ; and a more full analysis 
of his religious development. But of all this we have only 
fragmentary notices. A biographer, as we conceive his office, 
should not only procure and exhibit the material that bears 
on the life of the man he writes about, but should philosophize 
on it a little, should interpret, appreciate, and criticize it. It 
is a loss to us all that Mr. Ward has been so modest in this 
respect. 

In bringing out an abridgment of 

INTRODUCTION TO THE his General Introduction to Scrip^ 

SCRIPTURES. ture^^ Father Gigot has opened 

By Fr. Gigot. ^ ^jder field of influence for a 

highly useful book. Biblical Intro- 
duction occupies in our day a vast field which only an expe- 
rienced traveler therein should attempt to survey. Its subjects 
are generally, the Canon, the Text, Methods of Interpretation, 
and the great problem of Inspiration. To treat all these requires 
profound study, considerable candor, and a large measure of 
prudent reserve and cautious judgment. In all these qualities 
Father Gigot is notably proficient, and his- work exhibits 
throughout the temper and the method of sound pscholarship. 
We are pleased at seeing it in such demand. 

Glancing through the chapter on apocryphal writings, we 
come upon this passage: "It is plain that the two collections 

* General Introduction to the Study of the Scriptures, Abridged edition. By Rev. F; E* 
Gigot, S.S. NewYoik: Benziger Brothers. 



3S6 The Latest Books. [Nov., 

of books, known as the Book of Enoch and the New Testa- 
ment, are not absolutely independent of each other; and since 
it cannot be doubted that the former existed before the latter 
was composed (Enoch was compiled between 200 and 65 B« c), 
the great influence of the Book of Enoch upon the writings of 
the New Testament must be admitted/' We cannot help 
suggesting that Father Gigot has gone rather unwarrantably 
far here. It is not by any means certain that the "Three 
Allegories/' which is the chief portion of Enoch, in which 
there are indications of Messianic doctrine, is a pre-Christian 
composition. Such scholars as Hilgenfeld, Colani, Vernes, 
Volkmar, Drummond, and Tidemann are of opinion that this 
section of the Book of Enoch belongs to the first century of 
the Christian era. And at any rate, whether we approve such 
a view or not, we have not sufficient scientific basis for assert- 
ing that the Enoch literature had a great influence on the New 
Testament authors. As to this sort of apocrypha we may almost 
say of it, in regard to the New Testament, i^hat Jost rather 
extravagantly declares concerning its influence on Jewish his- 
tory : " Sind alle diese Erscheinungen ohhe Bedeutung fiir die 
jiidische Religionsgeschichte." 

The translation into English of the 
THE TALMUD IN ENGLISH, entire Babylonian Talmud • is a 

memorable event indeed for both 
scholarship and religion. Up to the present only selected pas- 
sages of the Rabbinical literature had been put into a modern 
language, notably the Pirke Aboth and some of the Haggadic 
compositions. For Dr. Michael Rodkinson was reserved the 
eminent distinction of bringing out the first complete version 
of the Talmud in any living tongue. The labor involved in 
such a task can be appreciated only by one who has ever 
consulted the tomes upon tomes of Rabbinical Hebrew and 
Aramaic which contain the commentaries and the casuistry, 
the exegesis and the theology of many generations of learned 
scribes. 

When Israel returned from the Babylonian captivity, one 
great lesson had been engraven upon its heart by the sharp 

♦ The Babylonian Talmud. Translated into English. With a Preliminary volume oa the 
History of the Talmud. By Michael L. Rodkinson. vj volumes. New York : The New 
Talmud Publishing Company. 



I904-] The Latest BOOKS. 257 

iron of its fearless prophets. These austere -preachers never 
ceased to drive home to the people that their woes came frcm 
neglecting Yahweh and his righteousness, and from following 
after other gods in ways of manifold unclcanness. Long had 
the prophets thundered forth this message before, and long was 
the heart of Israel hardened. But when in distant Babylon 
they ate the bread of exile; when they hung up their songless 
harps by the rivers of a strange land; when they saw the 
country promised to their fathers of old by the Lord God over- 
run with those that knew not the law, and worshipped not 
Yahweh but abominable Baalim ; then were they at last repent- 
ant ; then they listened and made no reproach or remonstrance 
when God's great servants, the prophets, told them that all 
these griefs had come to pass because of the nation's sin. 
Through the prophets faith in Yahweh was- kept firm; and 
sorrow for infidelity struck deep. Accordingly, when at last, 
after seventy weary years, they were permitted to return to 
Palestine, the children of Israel were almost fanatically deter- 
mined to obey to the very letter the laws of Yahweh revealed 
to Moses. Under Ezra and Nehemia they became a theocracy 
jealous, rigid, exclusive. Of this theocracy, the Thora, the 
law was the constitution. Every line of that law, every word, 
was directly spoken by the Almighty, they believed, and 
only in strict obedience to it tould there be righteousness. 
A passion to learn, to teach, and to apply the law grasped 
hold of Israel; and a book- religion held sovereign sway among 
them. 

Obviously the law when thus made the standard of daily 
life had to be expanded, developed, explained. A literature of 
moral theology inevitably grew up on the one hand, and a 
literature of homiletics on the other. The former, to which 
the name of Halacha is given, covers nearly every possible 
event in public, private, and religious life which can be brought 
under the Thora. The latter, called scientifically the Haggada, 
consists of edifying amplifications intended to illustrate the 
power and the wisdom of the great men of Israel. These com- 
mentaries on the law were called Mishna, and for a long time 
remained unwritten, for the reason that it seemed a derogation 
to the exclusive glory of the Mosaic law that another should 
be written beside it. But the elucubrations of the scribes, the 
theologians of the Thora, became at last an excessive burden 






2 5* ^^^ LATEST BOOKS. [Nov., 

for the memory, and so at the end of the second century after 
Christ the Mishna was codified and written down. 

There came to be two chief centres of Mishna- study, Pa.les- 

r£r»e and Babylon. On the basis of the Mishna a vast amount 

x Juristic discussion arose in turn, which has also been col- 

I^ Loxed and pat into writing. It is this latter collection which 

^ocxstitates the Talmud. There is both a Jerusalem or, more 

r-x>perly, a Palestinian Talmud, and a Babylonian Talmud- 

rr£s latter is about four times as voluminous as the former, 

is oniTersally held to be the more important. And this 

ad it is which Dr. Rodkinson has just put into English. 

OQ another occasion we trust we shall have more to say 

^is mighty work of the Jewish scribes, we shall not now 

.ir apoQ it longer. Let us merely mention, in this place, 

oae of the most fascinating lines of Rabbinical study is 

exteatr to which Christianity affected the writings of the 

As the mighty movement begun by our Lord in the 

of Judaism had filled out the measure of a world-power 

3^ the ralaxttdic literature was settling into final form, it 

^^..s.;*^ tncviuble that many traces of the conflict, and the apos- 

piv?u$ Jews regarded Christianity — should remain in 
t^^Imuii to thi:j day. Just what these traces are THE 
^ V •^ -ioi-c WoKLD will sometime discuss within limits less 
. J ^c^^^'^**^^ ^^***^ tbv>;$e of a book- review. 

t_^i K,>vikia:j*^tt ij introductory volume on the history of the 

t.^ta.^*'*'^^ '^^ baroly 50 instructive as we should have expected; 

^. t ^k--'^*^*^ ^^ c«ri:^a:y cotttains a large store of historical and 

iix^---^^> u.vn«ACv.>a. A curious error is contained in the 

,>:>^ -r^-^- " ^"^ Utt**tic d^^ellator and preacher, Vincent Ferrer." 

^_^ ^^^'^^ ^^^^^ tt^^ke any pretence to an Oriental depart- 

t;>.^^ ^ciu.^^::on 1:$ indispensable ; and equally indispensable 
v>>^ cx^a.<u::in^ of it for students of Jewish religion who 
.^ *.*^-- ^*^'^^ ^^^ ^^f ^i^e Rabbinical original. 

To translate literally sections out 

^^^^'^^^^'^ ^^^^ LAW. of a moral theology manual may 

t*X ^ *^^ar^y. j^^ ^ ^^^y useful if not a strik- 

. ingly original exercise of human 

, V-- - ^^^*''J^^ ^^^^^ ^ book fashioned out of such translations 

_ ^.^v V ^^ vv^ vtc^.Uvr^fcbly stiff and uncomfortable English, 

^^^*>^ ttiue minister to higher needs than our 




M £ 



' * - V 






A* 



V^yK 



1904.] The Latest Books. 259 

need of good style. So if we can say little from the point of 
view of independent thought or literary merit, regarding Father 
Humphrey's book on Conscience and Law,^ we doubt not that 
it will be useful in more practical departments. It consists of 
chapters on Responsibility, Conscience, Law, Dispensations, 
Justice, and Restitution; all translated with utmost fidelity to 
the Latin originals. A far more profitable work on the same 
subject we dare say would be a treatise more psychological 
and less systematise in method and point of view ; that is to 
say a work devoted to the education of the conscience from 
within, rather than to the harnessing of it from without with 
the complicated trapprirgs of innumerable distinctions and 
puzzling technicalities. But as a book should be judged from 
the standpoint from which it was written, rather than from one 
from which it might have been written but was not, let us con- 
clude with saying that those who wish to read fundamental 
moral theology in somewhat easier form than Lehmkuhl or 
Kdnings presents it in, will be helped by Conscience and Law. 

In a little workf of eighty-nine 

FROM DOUBT TO FAITH, pages the Rev. F. Tournebize, S.J., 

By Fr. Tournebize. includes many weighty Mbjfects 

on the relations of intellect to re- 
ligious belief. The book is intended for those who )uiV% lost 
or who never possessed Christian faith ; and with such an aim 
there is no one who will not sympathize. But the treatment 
IS too summary to be very efficacious, we fear. The moral 
considerations given are irreproachable; but the intellectual 
discussion is too scanty to satisfy the downright unbelievers 
for whom the work professes to be written. In assigning the 
causes for the perversion of Renan, the author omits the most 
powerful one of all ; and Father Tournebize's suggestion that 
there was also a lurking immorality hidden among Renan's 
motives contains a most unfortunate charge. It is too bad 
also that our author indulges in the unseemly gratification of 
calling Renan a peacock. 

• Conscience and Law, By William Humphrey, S.J. Second edition. New York : 
Benziger Brothers. 

\FfOM Doubt to Faith, By Rev. F. Tournebize, S.J. From the French, by Rev. J. M. 
Leleu. St. Louis : B. Herder. 



26o The Latest Books. [Nov., 

M. Julien de Narfou's book • on 
Pius X. is as fascinating a com- 
position as has come to this magazine for a long time. Bril- 
liant in style, filled with authentic history, fearless in estimat- 
ing measures and men, independent in criticism, though never 
ceasing to be loyally Catholic, it is, so far as our knowledge 
goes, the truest, fullest, and keenest account yet given us of 
the late Conclave, of the character of the new Pope, and of 
the tendencies which have already appeared in his public 
policy. M. de Narfou had exceptionally fine opportunities to 
do his task well. He is one of the editors of the Gaulois ; is 
highly trained in journalistic methods, as well as thoroughly 
educated ; and has access in Rome to ambassadors, cardinals, 
and Vatican attaches, such as puts him in close touch with 
the subject-matter of his sketch. But he is a man of plain 
speech ; and we dare say that he will be blamed by a great 
many for temerity. He talks frankly about parties, deals, and 
compromises in the Conclave of last year. History, like many 
another science, demands a certain robustness in whosoever 
desires honestly to learn it. Likewise in regard to some mani- 
festations of recent Papal policy, M. de Narfou uses very 
vigorous language ; with which of course we may differ if we 
so desire. Notwithstanding this he is, as we have said, loyally 
Catholic, and sincerely, devoted to the best interests of the 
church as he conceives them. For Pius X. he expresses vene- 
ration and love. He dwells with eloquence upon the Holy 
Father's saintly simplicity, gentle kindness, and apostolic im« 
patience with ceremony, obsequiousness, and splendor. These 
pages confirm the* impression already cherished throughout the 
Catholic world, that in our new Pope we have a true pastor, 
a single-minded shepherd, and a benevolent father. If only 
he is permitted to carry out all the inspirations of zeal and 
all the projects of reform which lie deep in his heart, his place 
in history will be indeed exalted. And as for this first ex- 
tended account of Pope Pius, we repeat, it is a fine specimen 
of historical monograph, brilliant, courageous, and searching, 
for which the author deserves congratulation. There are in 
the book a few minor slips to which it may be for the bene- 
fit of a second edition to call attention. For example, T. Bar- 
ley Saunders should be T. Bailey Saunders; then the Domini- 

^Pie X, Par Julien de Narfou. Paris: Librairie Ch. Delagrave. 



1904.] The Latest Books. 261 

can New Testament scholar is not P^re Rou, but Pere Rose; 
Father David Fleming is not a Dominican but a Franciscan ; 
and finally, we are sure that M. de Narfou is at fault in giv- 
ing the name of one of Merry del Val's English ancestors as 
Brodie MacGhic Wilcox. 

In order to show how the verdict of history is settling 
with regard to a defunct controversy, we will cite, in conclu- 
sion, M. de Narfou's words on Americanism. He says, speak* 
ing of the relations between Rome and America: ''A mis- 
understanding arose concerning the pseudo- Americanism against, 
which the heresy- hunters of France flung themselves in frenzy. 
The Pope's famous letter to Cardinal Gibbons is still fresh in 
every one's memory. The answer sent to Leo XIII. by the 
Archbishop of Baltimore, who had already reconciled the Pope 
to the Knights of Labor, was that the errors condemned by 
Rome under the unwarrantably usurped name of Americanism 
were, so far as the United States was concerned, simply a 
myth. That sufficed. Good feeling continued untroubled 
thereafter between Rome and America; although the heresy- 
spectre cejised not to make night hideous for Delassus, Meignen, 
and others of their clan." 

The need for a consistent text 

BISTORT OF EDUCATION, book in the history of education 

By Dr. Kemp. seems to have been met at last. 

In this book * Dr. Kemp, leaving 
the land of unreality in which many of his predecessors have 
been content to dwell, has devoted his attention to educational 
institutions and educational developments as they have existed 
and do exist in the world of facts. Just as a book, purport- 
ing to be a political history, but in fact given over to the 
record of the dreams and fancies of individual theorists, would 
meet but little favor from serious students in an age like ours, 
so should it be in the field of educational history. The theo- 
ries and the whims of educators, which fill up so many pages 
of books bearing a title similar to the one before us, are in- 
teresting, it is true, and valuable in so far as they furnish 
data for psychological study ; but to students in the history 
of education they are of little worth as compared with a fair, 
conservative, systematic treatise outlining the positive move- 

^ Hiitory of Education, By E. L. Kemp» A.M. Philadelphia : J. B. Lippincott Company. 



262 THE Latest BOOKS. [Nov., 

ments in the progress of education, and giving an account of 
the important efforts of teachers and educational workers that 
have actually contributed toward the perfection of our present 
systems. Such a work Dr. Kemp has given us in his History 
of Education, The book deserves a critical analysis and a 
more extended review; this we hope to give in a future issue 
of The Catholic World. 

. ^ .-. -.*.^ ..,«. Mrs. Wiggin is always delightful. 

THE AFFAIR AT THE INN. cu u «, ^ *u k *. «;/♦. ^i 

' ^ ^ ^ ^ -i xwT- - She has some of the best gifts of 
By Kate Douglas Wiggm , ^ ., , , ^ . 

and Others. ^^^ story-teller; wholesome, in- 

teresting, humorous, easy narra- 
tive, with never a strain on the probabilities, a clever and 
sure touch in character- sketching, and the whole clothed in 
English that is as perfect as it is rare ; these are the qualities 
that have won for Mrs. Wiggin so high a place in contempo- 
rary literature. 

And though the author of lovable, unforgettable Rebecca 
called three of her friends to assist her in the production of 
The Affair at the Inn,* these same qualities are found in the 
book, and the result of their combined labors is a distinct 
success. It is a triumph of collaboration. Indeed, so adroit 
is the workmanship that the book might readily be credited to 
a single writer. Of course the story is not a complicated one, 
nor do its characters call for deep or subtle analysis. Miss 
Virginia Pomeroy, a bright American girl accustomed to have 
her own way in almost everything, is staying with a conva- 
lescent mother at a quiet inn on Dartmoor. There they meet 
with a fussy, self-indulgent old lady, her faded, long suffering 
companion, and the young Englishman known to fiction, 
wealthy, reserved, athletic, and with thoroughly conventional 
views on what is proper for the young woman. Out of these 
elements a love affair very easily develops, yet the authors 
have contrived to give to this simple story an abundance of 
incident that Hows quite naturally out of the circumstances. 
The reader is charmed with the humor of the delightful little 
comedy, as he' is struck by the skill with which it has been 
fitted together by its four writers. 

* The Affair at the Inn. By Kate Douglas Wiggin, Mary Findlater. Jane Findlater, and 
Allan McAulay. Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 



1904.] The Latest Books. 263 

Father Sheehan's little drama* 

LOST ANGEL OF A RUINED shows the practised hand of the 

PARADISE. literary artist in almost every 

By Fr, Sheehan. Hne. The dialogue is perfect; 

the plot excellently contrived ; 
the interest cleverly sustained ; and the denouement attended 
with fine elements of tragedy. The villain of the piece is a 
very subtle rascal, whose character does not dominate so much 
as it pervades the action; his dupe, a jealous wife, is likewise 
feeble rather than wicked; and the two heroines are genial 
enough, but with only a small touch of the heroic. As a 
quiet, well-composed minor tragedy, the work is in a high 
degree praiseworthy, and is a creditable testimony to Father 
Sheehan's literary versatility and skill. The profits from the 
sale of the book are to be given to a Convalescent Home for 
Children in Dublin. 

The fourth edition of the poems 

POEMS. of Henry Abbey f gathers up for 

By Henry Abbey. final presentation all the poems 

which the author cares to retain. 
The volume shows a slight increase over the contents of pre- 
vious editions. Mr. Abbey is not a poet of the first order, 
nor yet of the second, but he has a pleasing way of telling a 
story and of pointing a moral in verse. He fails, however, to 
"add the gleam, the light that never was on sea or land." 
His language is so unmistakably poetic that its forced or trite 
lines detract greatly from the beauty of his sentiments and 
reflections. Wordsworthian simplicity is not a characteristic of 
Mr. Abbey's diction, but in moral sentiments and love of 
nature he follows the great master. 

In Many Lands % is the title of a 
IH MANY LANDS. new book by a Member of the 

Order of Mercy, who is widely 
known as the biographer of Catherine McAuley. It contains 
a minute account of her travels in the British Isles, France, 

^Lfst Angel of a Ruined Parodist : A Drama of Modern Life. By the Very Rev. P. A. 
Sheehan, D.D. New York: Longmans Green & Co. 

t The Poems ef Henry Abbey. Fourth edition, enlarged. New York : D. Appleton & Co. 

X In Many Lands, By a Member of the Order of Mercy. New York : O'Shea & Co. 



264 THE LATEST BOOKS. [Nov., 

Italy, and other European countries, with a running comment 
on all she saw and heard. There is a vast amount of infor- 
mation in the volume, most of which is of the guide book 
variety. There are, however, some exceedingly interesting 
pages, notably her recollections of a visit paid to Cardinal 
Newman just before the great prelate's death. 

Evidently the book was written from journal notes dili- 
gently taken, and gathered into book form without great liter- 
ary effort. The writer is strenuously partisan at all stages of 
her journey and is never sparing of praise or condemnation. 

An interesting letter from the Very Rev. Ferrcol Girar- 
dey, C.SS.R., to the publishers, serves as an introduction to 
the volume. 

When one compares the text 

PHYSICAL 6E06RAPHT. books now put in the hands of 

By C. R. Dryer, students with the school books of 

fifty years ago, the superiority of 
the former cannot be denied by the most pessimistic critic. 
Lessons in Physical Geography^* by Charles R. Dryer, M.A., 
F.G.S.A., of the Indiana State Normal School, embodies all the 
merits of the best of modern text books. Good type, clear, 
well-chosen illustrations, valuable appendices, a bibliography of 
nearly all the geographical literature available in English, and, 
above all, accurate and scientific presentation of the subject 
treated, make this book a valuable one. It has been written 
with a view to the needs of teachers as well as students, and 
the exercises suggested, the exhaustive treatment of certain 
subjects, and the completeness of its list of reference books 
make it a valuable addition to books on this subject. 

Father Lasance's book of prayers for Religious is a very 
useful work.f Within its eleven hundred pages the chief vocal 
prayers of the liturgy may be found; and also extensive 
directions on the Ignatian and the Sulpician method of medita- 
tion. As a handbook of devotion it ought to do a great deal 
of good. 

* Lessons in Physical Geography, By Charles R. Dryer, M.A., F.G.S.A., Professor of 
Geography, Indiana State Normal School. New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: American 
Book Company. 

t Prayer Book for Religious. Compiled by Rev. F. X. Lasance. New York : Benziger 

Brothers. 



1904-] The La test Books. 265 

A small catechetical manual * in English, on the administra- 
tion of the sacraments, is so obviously useful to priests, that 
there is no need of many words in commending it. The one 
before us is written in simple language — although ''funeral 
obsequies" is a reduplication that would pain a purist — ^^and 
takes cognizance of all late Roman decrees bearing on the 
matter it treats. At the end there is a chapter on rites for 
the dead ; and some practical directions de binaiione. 

Benziger's Catholic Home Annual for 1905 is full of inter- 
esting sketch and story, and is excellently illustrated. Reverend 
T. J. Campbell, S.J., gives an interesting account of Catholicity, 
past and present, in Japan ; ^Mary E. Mannix writes on a sub- 
ject always fascinating, the early missions of California ; a group 
of well-known Catholic novelists contribute stories; and there 
is a summary of the leading events of Catholic interest of 1904. 

* Tki Parish Prigst on Duty, A practical maoual for pastors, curates, and theological 
ttndents preparing for the mission. The Sacraments. By Rev. H. J. Heuser. New York: 
Benager Brothers. 



«( «t « Xibrati^ ZTable. » » 9 



The Tablet (17 Sept.): Last Thursday the Holy Father received 
over sixteen hundred French pilgrims, under the leader- 
ship of the Bishop of Toulouse. They formed the four- 
teenth annual pilgrimage instituted by M. Hartnel. 
Unusual enthusiasm was displayed together with the 
utmost reverence and attention. The Pope praised them 
highly for their attachment and loyalty and reminded 
them that, amid the difiScuIties and sacrifices which they 
are to-day called upon to encounter, they should look 
for inspiration to the noble achievements of their coun* 
try when she merited the glorious title of the eldest 
daughter of the church. Furthermore, they were assured 
of the love and deep concern which the Holy See, 
always and in spite of everything, retains for France. 
The pilgrims were deeply moved by the Holy Father's 
words, and departed for their much distracted country 
with strong courage and lively zeal. 

(24 Sept.) : The Matin, a favorite organ of M. Combes, 
recently published certain alleged confidences made by 
Mgr. Geay, formerly Bishop of Laval, to M. Mouthon, 
one of the said paper's representatives. The confidences 
consisted of a very plausible and quite pathetic account 
of the monsignor's sufferings and persecutions prior to 
his deposition, and of his interviews with Cardinal 
Merry del Val and the Pope. The whole purpose of 
the sensational and highly- colored story was evidently 
nothing more than an attempt to discredit the character 
of the cardinal. Shortly after, however, the monsignor 
spread abroad a blank denial of the statements thus 
attributed to him, and wrote to M. Mouthon a letter of 
indignant protest, saying that the reporter had broken 
his promise and done him a most serious injury. There- 
upon Mouthon reaffirmed the correctness of his report, 
and stated that the conversation had been faithfully and 
integrally rendered, and had been published at the ex- 
press wish of the ex-bishop, furthermore he demanded 
a speedy retraction by the monsignor; which retri 



I904-] Library Table. 267 

was made by return telegraph. The whole affair is 

most curious and bewildering. In a speech delivered 

very recently at Lincoln, Lord Rosebery stated that all 
schools assisted by the state must be placed under pub- 
lic control. This is an open menace to the Catholic 
schools, and means that Catholics are to be robbed of 
their right of securing teachers of their own faith for 
the education of their children. 

(i Oct.): The Catholic Truth Society has just completed 
its annual conference at Birmingham. When his Grace, 
the Archbishop of Westminster, the Rev. Bishop of 
Birmingham, and several prelates and laymen of renown, 
entered the hall, the welcome was enthusiastic and the 
cheers of applause most hearty and impressive. The 
proceedings began with a selection of church music 
rendered by the Oscott choir. This concluded, his Grace 
the Archbishop delivered the opening address, choosing 
for his subject, the "Result of the Education Act of 
1902." Next in order was a paper read by the Rev. J. 
Gerard, S.J., entitled " A Leaf from the Enemy's Book." 
The learned father brought out the evil which is being 
done by the cheap press in its propagation of unbelief, 
and insisted that Catholics must offset the pernicious 
influence by publishing cheap works from a Christian 
and Catholic standpoint. The Rev. Herbert Lucas, S.J., 
contributed a thoughtful and very suggestive paper on 
the nature and magnitude of, and the remedies for, the 
education peril. Then followed many other works on 
education, all manifesting the keen alertness and timely 
zeal of the English Catholics. The whole tone of the 
conference was healthy and vigorous, its spirit scholarly 
and fair, and its good results far-reaching and unmis- 
takable. Almost contemporaneous with this great 

meeting was the Council of Free Thinkers at Rome, 
yet very unlike it in effect, the latter being entirely and 
woefully unsuccessful. According to the Roman corre- 
spondent, it was a babel' and pandemonium combined. 
The chief figure in the proceedings seems to have been 
Haeckel, famous in the eyes of many for his strange 
production. The Riddle of the Universe, The gathering, 
at first purely anti-clerical, ended by being violently 



268 Library Table. [Nov., 

revolutionary, and the proposed processions to the 
statues of Giordano Bruno and Garibaldi were sup- 
pressed by the police. That these excursions should 
have been planned was to be expected, but the inter- 
ference of the government was quite unusual and note- 
worthy. 

The Month (Oct.): Devotes an article to Abbot Gasquet's 
book Vita Antiquissima S. Gregorii. The new publica- 
tion is deemed ''a supremely interesting monument of 
English hagiography." After speaking of some inad- 
vertencies in the abbot's text, the reviewer considers 
the relative antiquity of the "Vita" as compared with 

other accounts of St. Gregory. ^The present attitude 

of different parties in the Anglican body towards the 
Athanasian Creed leads Rev. S. F. Smith to trace out 
the growth of the struggle for the retention and aboli- 
tion of the Creed. Dissatisfaction with the "damnatory 
clauses " manifested* itself in the seventeenth century, 
and has since been developing among divines and laity. 
The damnatory clauses denounce in uncompromising 
terms the sin of heresy, and such a formula cannot be 
but distasteful to those who, as upholders of private 
judgment, have come to think more and more leniently 
of dogmatic error. The writer goes on to consider the 
Creed in itself, its history, and antiquity. The author 
of the Creed is not known, but it certainly was not St. 
Athanasius. From external evidence, the Creed seems 
to come from an age previous to Charlemagne's time, 
and internal evidence leads us to suppose that this pro- 
fession of faith is the production of the fifth century or 
thereabouts. The article closes with an exposition of 
the Catholic view regarding the Creed commonly ascribed 
to St. Athanasius. 

The International Quarterly (Oct.) : In describing the critical 
position in which Russia finds itself at the present time, 
Vladimir G. Simkovitch predicts the overthrow, in the 
near future, of the whole system of Russian autocracy. 
T he Socialist party, according to the views of Wolf 
von Schierbrand, has reached its high tide in Germany. 
Henceforth it will gradually lose power, yet it will remain 
in politics and for many years to come will influence 



1904.] Library Table. 269 

Germany and the world. The writer believes that it 
has brought to the German people many valuable advan- 
tages both political and social. In an article on " The 

Religion of America/' Dr. Edward Everett Hale calls 
attention to the signs of union among the different reli- 
gions of the country. He holds that the present century 
will sweep away forever the greater number of the lines 
that now mark off the many ecclesiastical organizations. 

Peter Roberts, in an interesting paper on "The 

Sclavs/' dwells upon their undeveloped capabilities and 
says that the hundred millions of that race await only 
a great master to lead them to magnificent and unsus- 
pected victories in religion, art, and science. 
The International Journal of Ethics (Oct.) A paper on " The 
Bias of Patriotism/' by Dr. Alfred Jordan, is a psycho- 
logical analysis of especial interest. Patriotism is, he 
says, an outgrowth of the affection that the individual 
feels toward his own. It rests, for the most part, on a 
love for native speech, for physical surroundings, for 
national achievements, and for great tnen. One of these 
motives predominates among one people, while another 
is foremost in other nations. The effects of the bias 
of patriotism are both good and evil; yet, in the char- 
acter of patriotism that is usually cultivated among the 
lower classes, the evil results far outweigh the good. 
The beneficial effects are the stimulation of art, the 
inducement for self-sacrifice, the encouragement of sym- 
pathy for individuals of the same country, and finally, 
the emulation for greater effort. On the other hand, 
the evil effects as enumerated are the retarding of knowl- 
edge of other peoples and countries, the hatred of for- 
eigners, the hindering of communication, the concealing 
of the results of discovery and invention, and, most of 
all, by teaching men to accept with readiness evidence 
for enmity; and to hold in suspicion evidence for friend- 
ship, the encouragement of intellectual dishonesty. 

In an article on ''Moral Instruction in Schools/' Herbert 
M. Thompson brings forth argument to prove that a 
logical system of morals may be built on ^ non-theological 

basis. <-Halbert H. Britan shows that music develops 

in the mind a quality which makes for moral progress. 

VOL. LXXX«-i-l8 



270 Library Table. [Nov., 

Ralph Barton Perry discusses the relation of truth 



and imagination to religion. Other articles in this 

number are " Human Pre- existence," by J. Ellis Mc- 
Taggart; "A Japanese View of American Trade Union- 
ism," by Hoito Ito; and '* English Prisons and their 
Methods," by H. J. B, Montgomery. 

The Critical Review (September) : Sabatier's The Religions of 
Authority and the Religion of the Spirit is reviewed by 
Rev. S. D. Salmond, who characterizes it as a work 
fired with a genuine passion for religion, and for the 
religion which is really and vitally inward. Every dis- 
cussion embodied in the work abounds in observations 
suggestive and illuminating. There is, however, in the 
reviewer's opinion, a notable lack of completeness in the 
treatment of such subjects as the Baptismal Formula, 
the Apostolic Symbol, and various questions concerning 
the Bible. He calls attention to the treatment of the 
Puseyite movement as betraying a very inadequate 

acquaintance with the sources and literature. Other 

papers of more than ordinary interest in this issue are 
" The First Sadducees," by Rev. C. H. Thomson ; and 
a review of Wernle's The Beginnings of Christianity^ by 
Rev. David Purves. 

Revue Thomiste (Sept.-Oct.) : Apropos of the disdain which 
modern science usually accords the scientific knowledge 
and a priori reasoning of the Middle Ages, Father 
Gerard, O.P., enters upon a review of the " Cosmography 
of Albertus Magnus" as the illustrious doctor has left 
it to us in his works. The writer finds that the roaster 
of St. Thomas, while following indeed the lead of Aris- 
totle in his. cosmography, has yet been far from blindly 
accepting the Stagirite*s statements, but has sought proofs 
of these from experience and made the best use of the. 

physical sciences possible in his day. '' Extrinsicism 

and Historicism " is the title of an article contributed 
by Father Alio, O.P. These two formidable neologisms 
were used by M. Blondel, writing in the Quinzaine 
early this year, to designate what he considered to 
be two very dangerous tendencies of modern Catholic 
apologetics in France. The " Extrinsicist," accoidirg to 
M. Blonde], endeavors to construct all religious histciy 



1904.] Library Table. 271 

upon a plan dictated exclusively by the convenience of 
dogmas, while the " Historicist" would, on the other 
hand, trim down and even suppress dogmas according 
to the demands of an historical criticism; the results of 
which would finally be incompatible with the fact of a 
discernible supernatural revelation. Father Alio in this 
article doubts the existence of the tendencies described, 
but adds that Historicism and Extrinsicism are not 
altogether phantoms, and neither are inoffensive. He 
then .goes on to outline a method of apologetics which 
will strike a happy medium and will be proper for 
our age. 
La Quinzaine (16 Sept.): Abb6 Klein, continuing the sketch of 
his last year's visit to America, tells of his experiences 
at Baltimore and Philadelphia. Writing on the exist- 
ing religious condition, M. Fonsegrive says : France is 

no longer a Catholic nation. The Baron von Hugel 

replies briefly to M. Wehrle's criticisms, says the dif- 
ference is one of viewpoint, and that it is not advisable 
at present to attempt to develop an agreement, 
(i Oct.): "The Evolution of a Sect," by A. Koszul, 
is an account of the " Catholic Apostolic Church " 
founded by Edward Irving. The article, beginning with 
a sketch of the Scottish preacher's life, is concerned 
mostly with his doctrines. The constitution of this sect, 
perfected by the successors of Irving, claims to be the 
perfect development of that of the early Christian 
Church. Its characteristic feature is the fourfold ministry 
of " apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastors," of 
which St. Paul speaks in his Epistle to the Ephesians. 
Following out this text, confirmed in an especial manner 
by the Holy Ghost, their twelve " restored apostles " 
were chosen. Then under the direction of the " apostles," 
the inspired " prophets " were charged, under the inspira- 
tion of the Holy Ghost, " to predict future events and 
to console and edify their brethren." Next in order 
came the twelve " evangelists," whose duties were to 
look after the "salvation of the Gentiles, the twelve 
tribes of humanity," and finally, the twelve pastors, 
guardians of "the flock of saints," thus "completing 
the great apostolic college." The ritual^ was composed 



272 Library Table. [Nov., 

of portions of those of the Greek, Roman, and Protest- 
ant churches. The great hope of all the members, who 
believe in a second coming of Christ, is to live for that 
coming. Needless to say none have seen the realization 
of that hope. The sect has spread from Scotland to all 
the British Isles, to Germany, Switzerland, France, 

Sweden, and to the United States and Canada. ** Is 

France Sufficiently Preoccupied with the Actuai Com- 
mercial Evolution ? " is a question treated by Georges 
Blondel. The writer reviews the recent transformation 
in commerce; shows the relation between France and 
the other great nations; and cites the new obligations 
of the French republic in the commercial line. 
Revue du Monde Catholique (i Sept.): Contains an article by 
Mgr. Justin Fevre on the ** Restoration of Church 
Music." The writer's object is to set forth the principles 
upon which a distinctive sacred and religious music has 
in the past been established, as well as those which 
should underlie and direct its present reform and restora- 
tion. R. Pere At contributes an interesting article 

on the " Apologetic " of Pere Gratry. Though not a 
born apologist, the gentle but sterling character of Fere 
Gratry, his clear perception, his fairmindedness and 
sympathetic disposition, made him a very efTective 
defender of the Truth. His able work against such men 
as Hegel, Scherer, Vacherot, the dangerous errors of 
whose systems he pointed out and refuted, gives to Pere 
Gratry a place of honor amongst the Catholic apologists 
of the nineteenth century. 

(15 Sept.): "Socialism or Catholicism" is the title of a 
lengthy article by M. J. Santoni, called forth by a recent 
controversy between M. F. Bruneti^re, the distinguished 
writer and convert to Catholicism, and M. Renard, one 
of the leaders of socialism in France. M. Santoni treats 
with unconcealed disdain the efforts of M. Brunetiere to 
effect a reconciliation between the church and socialism, 
characterizing as puerile his attempt to prove that the 
opposition which at present exists between Catholicism 
and the socialistic movement is not in reality an essential 
or irreconcilable opposition, but only an apparent and 
temporary one, due largely to exaggerations and mis- 



1904.] Library Table. 273 

understandings which can easily be removed. The writer 
goes on to prove (in his own broad- minded and masterly 
manner) that there is on the contrary a necessary and 
irreconcilable opposition between the two organizations, 
and that to undertake the reconciliation of socialism and 
Catholicism is, like the squaring of a circle, to attempt 
the impossible. Socialism, far from having any affinity 
to the Catholic Church, is, in the mind of M. Santoni, in 
essential antagonism to it, being founded upon principles 
' which are the negation of the basic principles of Catho- 
licism. As the synthesis of all the force of evil and 
error it stands in essential opposition to the Church of 
God. One or the other must survive. The struggle 
between them, the writer remarks, will be terrible, but it 
is inevitable. He predicts the final overthrow of social- 
ism and victory of the church. 

t,tudes (20 Sept.) : Augustin Noyon writes of the origin in 
Europe of the feast of the Immaculate Conception, and 
traces its development throughout European countries 
during the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries. By 
way of introduction the writer says that the feast was 
observed in England before the time of William the 
Conqueror. The coming of the Normans seems to have 
suppressed the feast. The legend of the Abbot Helsin 
is the cause commonly assigned for the revival of its 
observance. The writer tells how the feast spread from 
England to Normandy and the other continental countries. 
The opposition of St. Bernard to the observance of this 
feast is explained on the grounds that he regarded it as 
an unauthorized and uncalled-for innovation. A great 
storm of controversy arose, in which figured the strenu- 
ous Abbot of Clairvaux, Comestor, Jean Beleth, and 
Pierre de Celle. Despite all controversy the feast spread 
among the people, the popular faith developed gradually, 
thus paving the way for the definition of 1854. 

Hibbert Journal (Oct.) : Professor Percy Gardner has an article 
on Loisy, declaring that there are certain vital weak- 
nesses in the great Frenchman's method and conclu- 
sions. In the first place M. Loisy is in a perilous posi- 
tion in maintaining that a truth of faith, for example, 
the Resurrection, can be without a respectable locus 



274 Library Table. [Nov., 

standi^ from the standpoint of criticism, and yet be the 
object of infallible certainty from the standpoint of faith. 
Dogmatic certainty falls to pieces if its support in his- 
toric authority is destroyed. And in the second place, 
M. Loisy is too advanced in some of his critical views. 
For example, his statement that the apocalyptic dis- 
courses of Christ are as certainly genuine as Christ's 
existence itself, is utterly extravagant. These sections 
of the Gospel show indications of the evangelists' in- 
ability to grasp a certain thought oi the Master, and 
indications consequently of an undue elaboration of our 

Lord's words. Sir Oliver Lodge answers some of his 

critics who object to his ''re-interpretation of Christian 
dogma." He insists that too much is made of a literal 
blood- redemption; likewise there is too much insistence 
upon certain literal conceptions of the Trinity. Mystery, 
in Sir Oliver's view, should be pushed as far back, and 
clothed in as vague terms, as possible. This especially 
holds in the matter of attributing human passions to the 
Deity, such as anger, repentance, jealousy. Finally, the 
author repudiates in formal terms the atonement and 
piopitiation of the Cross, as ordinarily understood.— 
"A Catholic Priest," animadverting upon Sir Oliver's 
recent articles, explains the Catholic doctrine of sin and 
sacrifice, and incidentally declares: ''The Catholic 
Church, it is scarcely necessary to point out, rejects the 
doctrine of evolution in the form in which it is stated 

by modern science." Mr. Edmund Gardner says that 

Dante and Savonarola are two mighty prophets oi 
Catholicism, but that Dante's aspirations were higher, 
more spiritual, and more primitive than those of the 

Florentine Dominican. Professor Goldwin Smith 

points out that the Anglicans and other Protestant 
bodies are presenting to their candidates for the minis- 
try creeds which these candidates falsely swear to. This 
insincerity is rapidly moving on to a crisis of utmost 
moment for these sects. 
Church Quarterly Review (Oct.): Religion in Cambridge: in 
type a strong contrast to Oxford's; Roman Catholics 
not strong numerically, but liked and respected ; many 
scientific students agnostic, but Cambridge science not 



1904.] Library Table. 275 

antagonistic to Christianity ; a thoughtful roan's faith 
will be tried, but if unscathed will be all the stronger. 
Christina Rossetti : deserves to be admitted as an equal 
to the company of poets like Herbert, Vaughan, Keble, 
Hebcr, Milmsfti, Trench. Return of the Catechist : six- 
teen recent catechetical publications aie the little cicuds 
forecasting rain after a long spiritual drought ; the clergy 
are beginning to carry out the duties of their office and 
to instru.ct diligently. Oxford School of Historians : no 
other university can claim so many recent historians 
among her alumni as have appeared at Oxford since the 
appointment of William Stubbs in 1866. The Virgin 
Birth of Christ: those who suggest that the church 
should declare belief in this article not essential for 
Holy Orders forget that to do so would cut her off 
from the rest of Christendom ; she will guard this belief 
both because the fact has not been demonstrated to be 
impossible, because the evangelists must still be reck- 
oned with, and because close study shows the intellec- 
tual coherence of this doctrine and the' Incarnation. 
Le Correspondant (10 Sept.): The article by E. Hourst is a 
moving recital of the dangers to which he and his com- 
panions were exposed while navigating the numerous 
rapids which must be met between Shanghai and Tchou- 
'King, in a vessel badly fitted for accomplishing such a 
task. The writer praises in the highest terms those who 
contributed to the success of his voyage, while he 
speaks with admirable indulgence of those who, through 

hatred or jealousy, raised a thousand obstacles. 

General F. Canonge, in " Le Sentiment religieux dans 
Tarm^e de Crim^e," demonstrates by many extracts 
from private letters of the officers and soldiers, and from 
leading articles on the war, that the sense of religion 
was very deep in the French army, and showed itself 
in a thousand circumstances, especially at the hour of 
danger; and that in consequence of this sincere faith, 
made practical in daily life, the times bred heroes who 

were the honor of their country. In " Colonies de 

Vacances," Paul Delay sketches the foundation, organi- 
zation, and working of this important branch of the 
Christian apostolate. He urges the necessity of increas- 



276 Library Table. [Nov., 

ing the number of Catholic Fresh-Air Societies, so that 
their influence may surpass that of non- Catholics, and 
do away with the prejudices against this charitable 

work. J. E. Bourg, in " Enlevement economique de 

I'Espagne/' more than hints that Spain has not lost but 
gained by parting with Cuba and the Philippines, since 
from these losses date the awakening of the national 
conscience and the turning over of a new leaf. More* 
over, it gives capital and labor to the much distressed 
agricultural districts at home, and, thanks to important 
reforms in drainage, improved methods of irrigation, and 
similar indispensable conditions of good farming, the 
country will soon supply the home market and dispense 
with imported produce. Commerce and the industrial 
arts, says M. Bourg, have progressed beyond the ex- 
pectations of the most sanguine. 

(25 Sept.) : A well informed writer, (Andrd Chdradame), 
with more than a trace of sympathy for the Russian 
side, compares the economic conditions of the tuo 
countries, and the results achieved thus far in the war; 
he reaches the comforting conclusion that Japan cannot 
utterly crush Russia, and Russia cannot utterly crush 

Japan. Commandant Hourst continues his narrative 

of the French relief expedition, under his command, 

during the Se-Tchouen revolt in Central China. A 

series of extracts, ably edited, from the unpublished 
diary of Baron de Hiibner, Austrian ambassador to the 
Court of Napoleon III. (185 7-1 859), is replete with that 
shrewd diplomatist's estimates of the events of the times, 
especially of the signs which preceded the Italian war. 

M. TAbbe C. Marchand furnishes a typically French 

estimate of religious conditions in London.-^ — M. 
Raffalovich submits some observations that he has made, 
during a recent visit to Chicago, on the ways and means 
of the workingman, chiefly the workingman of German 
blood, as he is to be seen in the metropolis of the lakes. 

The movement in Bretagne for the restoration of 

the old popular drama is discussed by M. Anatole Le 
Braze. 
Razon y Fe (Oct.) : P. Murillo defends the traditional methods 
of dogmatic theologians against modern criticisms, and 



1904.] Library Table. 277 

shows the fatal conclusion that can be deduced from P. 
Legrange's admission that the Synoptic Gospels repre- 
sent the ideas of an obscure multitude who received the 
apostolic preaching and transmitted it to the evangelists. 

La Instruccion Primaria de Habana (10 Sept.): This fortnightly 
publication of the Cuban Secretary of Public Instruction 
contains several articles of interest. Dr. Solares shows 
how closely one's success in life is proportioned to the 

thoroughness of one's education. M. Najera writes 

enthusiastically on the flag. To the Teachers* Asso- 
ciation is addressed a manifesto in which they are 
exhorted to unite and strive valiantly — with Love as a 
starting-point; Morality and Justice for means; and 
Work as an end. 

Civilta Cattolica (i Oct.): Criticism of Loisy continued. 

The corner-stone of scientific socialism is declared to be 
" historical materialism/' or the principle which finds 
the economic structure of a society to be the basis of 
its political and juridical institutions.-^— Describes the 
evidences of Catholic achievments to be found at the 
St. Louis Fair; a testimony less prominent but really 
more significant than that of the Chicago Fair, which 
was intended to commemorate the deed of a Catholic. 

Rassegna Nazionale (1 Oct.): G. Prato writes on recent phases 
of agricultural progress in the United States.* Lud- 
wig Pastor's discussion of the frescoes in the Sistine 

Chapel is translated into Italian by C. G. C. G. 

Gino Anas exposes the social causes of the Russian- 
Japanese war. 



278 THE Columbian Reading union. [Nov., 



THE COLUMBIAN READING UNION. 

OUR Clergy and the Reading Circle is the title of the leading article in 
the October number of the ever- welcome Ecclesiastical Rcvitw. It is 
written by the Rev. Morgan M. Sheedy, of Altoona, Pa., whose study of this 
important movement has been continuous for many years. He advances 
strong arguments to show the intimate relations between the Champlain 
Summer School, when started in the year 1892, and the most devoted 
workers for Reading Circles. No. other movement aims at doing so much 
for intellectual and social advancement among Catholics, for its purpose is to 
awaken an interest in the rich heritage that is ours in the world of letters, 
philosophy, and art ; to create a love of good reading among our people, and 
to encourage the diffusion of sound literature. It is especially designed for 
the period of development that should follow after school days ; or to meet 
the requirements of those who have had limited opportunities for education, 
and are desirous of self-improvement. Such a movement is of the highest 
importance, and must appeal strongly to the Catholic clergy of the world 
at large. Without their continued and earnest support it will not have the 
full measure of success which it deserves. In one way the Catholic Reading 
Circle may be considered the most available force against the spread of per- 
nicious literature which endangers faith and morals. 

According to Cardinal Manning, a bad book is falsehood and sin in a 
permanent and impersonal form; all the more dangerous because disguised 
and tenacious in its action on the soul. There are books professedly against 
Christ and the teaching of the church which may be less harmful than the 
furtive, stealthy, serpentine literature, penetrated through and through with 
unbelief and passion, false principles, immoral whispers, and inflaming 
imagery. It has been well stated by another writer that the outward action 
of the church upon the world, the incidental details as distinct from the 
principles of her apostolic organization, the literature through .which she 
impregnates an age or a country with Christian ideas, the methods by which 
she Christianizes education, the degree in which she commands the homage 
of art, the relations maintained with ruling powers, are all subjects in which 
progressive improvement is possible, and to be desired. For this broad 
scope of work the Catholic Reading Circle may be utilized. Intellectual 
assimilation takes time. The mind is not to be enriched as a coal barge is 
loaded. Vigorous antidotes are needed to check the modern habit of swift 
and careless reading. As print grows cheaper, thinkers grow scarce. Prop- 
erly fostered the Reading Circle movement will help to give us more 
scholars, writers, and thinkers to appreciate truth and add new glories to 

the record of Catholicism in the literature of the age. 

• • • 

A very interesting paper was read at the recent meeting of the F^nelon 
Reading Circle of Brooklyn, by Miss Rosemary Rogers, on the Growth and 
Development of Catholic Literature. It opens with a rapid review of the 
history of Catholicity on this continent, and suggests reasons for the slow 
rrrt^'ai\\\ of a Hteraturc among Catholics. Miss Rogers regards Bishop Eng- 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 279 

land as a pioneer in this donMiiii^of intellectual activity. He labored for the 
first Catholic periodical printed in the United States, 7ke United States 
Catholic MisctUany. He also wrote important works on religious subjects, 
and stands forth as one of our brightest writers. 

The debt which literature, as well as religion, owes to Archbishop 
Hughes is strongly emphasized. His pastorals, addresses, and writings, as 
well as his oral discussions, were infused with vigor, n^anliness, and a sense 
of the greatness and dignity of Mother Church, and he is still ranked as one 
of the master minds of the Catholic Church in the nineteenth century. 
Miss Rogers gave expression to some pertinent remarks on the utility of 
novels as an agent of culture, as indicated by the following: 

The novel, in the hands of a conscientious writer, becomes a power for 
good ; and in the hands of an unscrupulous author, a power for evil. Good 
novels, then, are stepping-stones to higher things, for they teach the reader, 
lifting his mind, and elevating his thoughts. An author should have a 
purpose in view when he begins his story. He should have accomplished 
that purpose before the last line of his story is finished by, the reader. One 
who writes thus will live in the minds of his readers. Beauty of form, 
genius, and inspiration must all be combined, and the author must preach 
in his works without appearing to do so. Our Catholic novelists have been 
most conscientious, most brilliant in descriptive writings, most psychological 
in character sketching, most correct in scientific research, most just in criti^ 
cisms, most reliable in historic writings, yet they are not given the recogni- 
tion their works deserve by outsiders even in these days when the boast of 
broad-mindedness is made. Let us see if we, too, are not to blame. Our 
Catholic books should be much cheaper. This is a well-known fact. Catho- 
lic book firms charge more than the department stores. Cheap literature is 
one of the signs of the times. It brings good works within the reach of all. 
If our books were cheaper, there would be more sold, thus benefiting the 
reader, the publisher, and the author. 

The influence that Catholic thought has exerted on modern literature has 
been wide-spread. At the beginning of the nineteenth celitury, when the 
philosophy of Kant was leading men to materialism, his followers spread his 
views, and rationalism began to reign. The influence of Catholic writers 
has convinced modern thinkers of the dangers of Kant's doctrine. For 
awhile it was quite the fad among educators to quote such men as Kant, 
Richter, and Spencer. Now these men have been relegated to their proper 
places, and principles always propounded in Catholic philosophy prevail. 
Before the Reformation nearly all the writings were in a Catholic vein. The 
ideas of modern authors can be found in the early works of our church. 
Since the Reformation those ideas have been used by non- Catholic writers 
who, separating the mind and the soul, have in their study of the workings 
of the mind become agnostics. Pope Leo XIII. influenced modern thought 
by the profundity of his encyclicals. He urged the study of the writings of 
St. Thomas, and he changed many modes of thinking outside of our own 
faith to more Catholic thought. 

Perhaps Miss Rogers goes a little too far in her statement that Catholic 
writers are not recognized by outsiders. Certainly there area good many 
exceptions. Not to speak of Crawford and Harland, it is doubtful whether 



28o The Columbia^ Reading Union. [Nov., 

such authors as Miss Repplier, Miss Tinckner, Miss Guiney, and a number of 
others, have much reason to complain of their reception by the public. It is 
unfortunate that books issued by Catholic publishers should be so dear ; but 
are the Catholic publishers to blame ? Cheap editions are only possible when 
they are sure of a large circulation, and there are still Catholics so intellec- 
tually defective as to regard the name of a Catholic author, however dis- 
tinguished, on a book- cover as anything but a recommendation. In fact — 
and the writer knows whereof he speaks — certain Catholic authors are much 
read by non-Catholics. There are very few private libraries belonging to 
studious young men, with a taste for the more elevated kinds of poetry, in 
Yale and Harvard, in which the works of Aubrey de Vere are not to be found. 
American non-Catholics, with some pretention to culture, are familiar with the 
leading Catholic poets of the age, and numerous copies of Father Sheefaan's 
two great Irish novels have been purchased by American Protestants. 
Indeed, we have heard it stated that they have a wider circulation in France 
and Germany — into the languages of which countries they have been trans- 
lated — than even in Ireland itself. 

We have no doubt that when cheap editions of Catholic books have a 
moderate prospect of being renumerative Catholic publishers will be ready to 
supply them. In the meantime the Catholic Reading Circles are doing a good 
deal to bring about this wished-for consummation, and such papeis as that of 
Miss Rogers will be effective contributions to the work of showing that Catho- 
lics have, in the English language, a noble literature, and that no mean part 
of that literature has its origin in the United States. 

Miss Rogers deserves cogratulation for her industry in compiling an 
extended list of the books written by Catholic authors, and published on this 
side of the Atlantic. She then gives a number of useful suggestions to akl 
friends of Catholic literature in these words: Among the names mentioned 
are many famous for their works on religion, art, history, literature, philoso- 
phy, science, travel, politics, and controversy, as well as writers on social 
topics. How many of these authors do you know through their books? If 
you, in your heart, cannot say all, or at least some, begin now to look them 
up. Ask for their books in the public libraries. Ask and ask again, thus 
creating a demand for them, until our Catholic authors are given the place 
before the public which their meritorious work deserves. See that these 
books are placed on file amid those of other authors whose works are given a 
prominent place because they are non-Catholic. Remember that these 
Catholic authors are inspired by the grace that comes from purity of life, and 
that they preach to us as poets in their songs. They wish to convey to us 
some of the gifts with which the Lord has endowed them, and .this good will 
only be felt when each reader who has received entertainment or instruction 
from a book or poem will pass the good word on to his neighbor. Some- 
times one sentence, one single thought, will cause you to think seriously 
about a subject hitherto uninterestmg. Do not let it pass by, but turn it over 
in your mind, read about it, and think of it until it broadens your under- 
standing, thus enlarging your power of appreciating the good, the beautiful, 
and the true. 

One of the evidences of literary advancement is the revival of the Gaelic 
This study has been stimulated by publishing poetry, essays, plays. 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 281 

and stories in the language of the olden time. This is really a revival of a 
moVement started as far back as 1857, when a professor in Maynooth College 
compiled a Gaelic grammar to aid the students. To Father O'Growney 
much credit is due for the present interest. A visit to any of the Gaelic 
schools in New York is well worth the trouble of getting there. One is 
charmed by the simplicity of the method of teaching, the aptness of the 
scholars, and the earnestness of both teacher and pubils. Songs, long 
familiar in English, have been translated into Gaelic, and are sung with an 
ardor that only the Irish can feel. 

A word more; Catholic literature has developed in proportion to the 
education of our people, but it has not grown in proportion to the increase 
in population. There should be more co-operation between the press and 
the readers. Catholic papers are needed, and more up-to-date ones, dealing 
with live topics of interest. The secular paptrs deal broadly with religious 
questions, and, with some exceptions, are careful not to hurt the religious 
feelings of their readers. What is needed is a Catholic daily paper, with an 
enterprising man at the head, assisted by bright writers on the events most 
pertinent at the time. The daily press is a powerful weapon for defence, 
far-reaching in its influence. Our Catholic people are in the front rank to- 
day, needing but our own efforts to put into prominence our best men and 
women, and compel the public recognition of their worth. Co-operation is 
needed. Let us co-operate with the public, the press, the writer, and the 
reader. 

The praise of the Edinburgh Review may be here quoted in regard to the 
works of Cardinal Newman : 

It is impossible to open a page of Dr. Newman's works without being 
carried away by the delightfulness of their style — clear, easy, direct, expres- 
sive, felicitously executive in all its turns. They stimulate the mental taste 
by their literary finish — a Rnish which evidently comes not from effort but 
from the natural play of a mind that instinctively clothes itself in the happi- 
est forms of expression, exactly fitting the thought and brightening it with 
the finest effects. A writer like Dr. Newman will always reach above the 
theological or ecclesiastical world in which he may move, and take his place 
in the world of letters. 

Thomas Arnold thus wrote : 

For all the ordinary purposes of prose style. Dr. Newman's manner of 
expression, considered as a singularly direct and lucid medium of thought, 
has probably never been surpassed. 

• • • 

For some time past the History of Ireland, from the earliest times to the 
death of O'Connell, by Dr. P. W. Joyce, has been welcomed for supplemen- 
tary reading in Parish Schools. By its excellent typography and attractive 
pictures it appeals to the child's mind, though it may be read with profit by 
grown folks as an invaluable handbook containing a most attractive narra- 
tive of the different epochs of Ireland's wonderful history. The latest 
approval for this book has come from the New York Catholic School Board, 
which recommends that it be used in every school, particularly among the 
children of Irish descent, to encourage appreciation for the heroic struggles 
of theii forefathers for faith and fatherland. By the special discount allowed 
to patrons of The Columbian Reading Union the publishers, Longmans, 
Green & Co., No. 91 Fifth Avenue, New York City, will send, postpaid, a 
copy of Dr. Joyce's History of Ireland for one dollar and five cents ($1.05). 

M. C. M. 



NEW BOOKS. 

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TBB IHHACUUTB COKCBPTION.— BV VBLASQCBZ. 



THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



Vol. LXXX. DECEMBER, 1904. No. 477. 




THE INTELLECTUAL APOSTOLATE IN JAPAN.* . 

BY REVEREND WILLIAM L. SULLIVAN, C:S.P. ' 

|HE Pilot of October 15 gave an account of a 
French missionary to Japan, who is now in 
this country in the interest of one of the most 
remarkable enterprises ever undertaken for the 
conversion of a pagan people. Father. Claudius 
Ferrand is the name of this priest; and he is an alumnus of 
that seminary of heroes in the Rue du Bac, which has given 
to the church and to heaven so many legions of converts, and 
so glorious a company of martyrs unto blood. Father Fer- 
rand's project is this: to build in Tokio and Kioto, the two 
university cities of Japan, students' dormitories, which shall be 
homes of Christian morality, and, by means of frequent con- 
ferences to be delivered there, centres also of Christian instruc- 
tion for the young men who are to be the future scholars and 
statesmen of the empire. Already one such house has been 
built in Tokio; and so notable a moral influence has it ex- 
erted, that it has received the commendation of high govern- 
ment officials ; and so excellent a missionary instrument has it 
provjed that many of the names entered upon its register have 
• later been* inscribed in the baptismal record of the Tokio 
mission. 

* For the information contained in this paper, special recognition is due to an article by 
Francis Marre, in the Corresfondant of July 25 ; and to two articles by the Abbd Verret, in the 
Rrvut du Ctergi Frangais of May i and June 15. 

The MiftsiONABT SociBTY or St. Paul thb Apostlb in the State 

or New York, z904. 
VOL. LXXX.— 19 



284 THE Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. [Dec, 

But such a plan seems certainly, at first sight, a strange 
device for converting to the faith a people whom, but as yes- 
terday, we hardly recognized as civilized, and who to-day are 
pagans. Moreover, a very roundabout and tedious way of 
working it would appear for a church so deplorably poor in 
resources and so insignificantly small in numbers as Catholicity 
is in Japan. For of the kingdom's entire population of 
44.000,000, the Catholics can count only 59,000, little more 
than one- tenth of one per cent. Why consume so slender an 
energy in cultivating a very narrow field ; a field too that has 
ever been of ungrateful soil and of scant harvest ? Why de- 
prive the teeming towns of a single one of the one hundred 
and twenty-one European or of the thirty-one native priests 
in Japan, in order to attempt the forlorn hope of a university 
apostolate? Is it wise? Is it like anything ever done in a 
foreign mission before? 

Like anything done before ? No. Wise ? Yes. Wise we 
might indeed know it to be, whether we saw it so or not, 
since those seasoned veterans of heathendom, the priests of 
the Foreign Mission Society, have thought it best to adopt it, 
and are asking our help to complete it. And wise we shall 
certainly convince ourselves that it is from evidence incon- 
testable; if we give a little study to the present condition of 
Japan, we shall find this remarkable nation in a very fever of 
ambition to be educated. Gifted with keen minds, indefatiga- 
ble energy, indomitable courage, and robust physique, the 
Japanese are flinging themselves into the strife of intellect with 
all the elan which characterizes their superb onslaughts on the 
battlefield. They are determined to be as influential a factor 
in the higher elements of civilization as in the lower; to be 
cultured as well as pov^rful; to have schools, no less than 
armies and navies, which shall be unsurpassed. To day they 
are working towards this end unwearied and' tireless. They 
have been, and still are, sitting at the feet of masters from the 
West. They are pupils of the Occident as yet; for they are 
but children in that new life of which the schools, the books, 
and the laboratories of Europe and America mark the stages 
of mature age. But their fixed purpose is to be independent 
of foreign teachers. Their own Japan must have great univer- 
4ties, learned societies, crowded libraries, and every facility 

research. And then some day, not very far distant, they 



1904 1 THE INTELLECTUAL APOSTOLA TE IN JAPAN. 28$ 

hope to say to the Western world: "All the gains of civiliza* 
tion^ which you have been wearily hewing out of the rough 
for more than a thousand years, we have achieved in the span 
of a single life. We have learned your methods; we ask no 
more. For as we always had our warriors equal to any you 
have produced, so now shall we have our teachers, scientists, 
philosophers, and poets, as illustrious as the greatest of great 
names upon your scroll of fame." 

That this is an honorable ambition no one c^ gainsay. 
That the Japanese are capable of following it to success few 
will venture to deny. The educational progress already made 
in Japan is astonishing; and, as past achievement is always a 
sare ground for estimating future possibilities, it must be clear 
to every one that the highest prizes of intellectual excellence 
are fairly open to the ardent students of the Mikado's empire. 
A scientific system of popular education did not exist in Japan 
QQtil about thirty years ago. Not till 1871 was a ministry of 
public education created ; and from about the same time dates 
the admirable legislation on the subject which is now in force. 
This legislation provides for three grades of instruction — pri- 
mary, middle, and university. The primary training comprises 
eight years of study, taking the child at the age of six, and 
fitting him for the middle schools at fourteen. Attendance at 
the primary branches is obligatory, delicate health and extreme 
poverty being practically the sole grounds of exemption. 
However, even very poor children may find a way of going to 
school; for in a community or municipality of fairly flourish- 
ing finances the public treasury, in the stead of such pupils, 
pays the small assessment levied upon nearly all school- 
children. Free instruction is also offered, it will not. surprise 
us to learn, to children whose fathers have died for the flag. 
The support of these schools is derived from the contributions 
of the pupils, the appropriations of the local commune, and 
the subsidies of the imperial government. This last- mentioned 
source contributed, in 1902, the sum of eight million dollars 
for primary schools alone. 

The middle grade of schools corresponds to our. high school 
and college courses. It takes the pupil through six years of 
study, and places him at the threshold of the university at the 
^e of eighteen or twenty. During this period he is made 
to study hard, a large part of his labor being expended on 



286 THE INTELLECTUAL APOSTOLATE IN JAPAN. [Dec, 

French, German, and English. As the expenses of a Japanese 
boy can scarcely be less than eighty to one hundred dollars 
for each of these six years, only the sons of prosperous fami* 
lies can as yet profit by this intermediate department. How- 
ever, the time seems to be approaching when, by the increase 
in the number of burses or, by what is still more likely, the 
general lightening of the burden of tuition-fees, every young 
Japanese of bright mind and energetic ambition may find a 
way open to the advantages and honors of a collegiate educa- 
tion. 

There are two universities in Japan ; one in Tokio, founded 
in 1877, the other in Kioto, founded in 1897. In each there 
are six main departments, science, engineering, agriculture, let- 
ters, medicine, and law. The course in letters, science, agri- 
culture, and engineering lasts three years, except that at Kioto 
engineering lasts six; law extends through four years; medi- 
cine through five at Tokio, and eight at Kioto. The schools 
of medicine are the most thorough and scientific of all. Not 
in the most highly specialized colleges of Europe and America 
is better work done for the theory and practice of medicine 
and surgery than in Japan. The recent report of Major Sea- 
man, U. S. A., on the astonishing skill of the Japanese army 
surgeons at the front gives timely testimony to this. 

Besides all these schools, which, properly speaking, fall 
under the general scheme of national instruction, there are 
many private schools of both middle and superior grades. 
Some of these are cheaper than the corresponding public insti- 
tutions, and in many branches their education is fully as gocd. 
A fine example is the Senmon School, founded and still gov- 
erned by Count Okuma, where a young Japanese may learn 
law, literature, political science, or journalism, at an expense 
of only four dollars a month, including board and loc^girg. 
Naturally an economy so rigid is hand in hand with hardship; 
and if the minds of the students may range through fat pas- 
tures, their bodies have to pick up a scant subsistence from 
rice and vegetables, with dried fish only rarely, and meat less 
than once «a week. Still we may feel sure that in Japan, as 
elsewhere, genius will win in the strife with poverty, and that 
many a future hero of Nippon will owe his best training io 
these schools of courage, and will have learned his most use- 
ful lessons from the manual of misery. 



1904. J The Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. 287 

We trust that the bearing of all this upon the missionary 
problem which we are chiefly interested in studying is per- 
fectly obvious. A nation which can build, organize, and equip 
a system of schools, colleges, and universities within thirty 
years from the time when it first adequately learned what 
these things are; which at the end of only three decades of 
mental emancipation is educating five million children in its 
lower schools ; which can boast to-day of its capital city being 
the home of one hundred thousand human beings exclusively 
occupied with study; such a nation will demand of any man 
or institution that comes to it in behalf of social scheme, 
political reform, or religious creed, the one supreme recom* 
mendation of intellectual superiority. And if those who would 
set themselves up as guides and teachers to such a people, 
hold aloof from the mental activity now predominant among 
them, they will be guides without followers, and teachers who 
will vainly listen for any response save the echo of their own 
voices. No religion of sluggish intellectual endeavor can long 
hold the attention and respect of the modern Japanese. A 
similar state of affairs would not of course astonish us in the 
Western nations of older civilization and of long- established 
Christianity. But that it should prevail in a pagan country ; 
that a struggling foreign mission should need nothing more 
urgently than printing presses ; that a recent writer on the 
church in Japan should have ground for saying that the coun- 
try calls for '' une elite sacerdotale ayant en surabondance non 
seulement de la force morale et du devouement mats du savoir^** 
that is to say, the most learned priests that our seminaries can 
produce; this is a phenomenon altogether unique in the intel- 
lectual and religious history of the world. 

The Catholic Church in Japan, therefore, however poor in 
means and small in numbers, must do intellectual work which 
shall be respectable both in amount and in merit, as a condi- 
tion of permanent progress. On this point the Archbishop of 
Tokio, Mgr. Osouf, uses language which would be considered 
wanton exaggeration from the pen of any one less competent 
in the matter. He says in his report for 1901 : 

"To speak of the press in a mission like ours, seems to 
many only idle talk. Nevertheless the fact is indisputable that 
nearly every one in Japan is reading; and that, in conse- 
quence, there is not a pernicious error known in two hemi- 



288 The Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. [Dec., 

spheres which these people tnay not learn. Never mind send- 
ing us missionaries, it costs a good deal to come here; and 
after all a preacher can reach but a small number; and how 
Kttle a grain of seed is an hour's sermon 1 But a book goes 
everywhere; and it costs hardly anything to send it to some 
one with a card of introduction. Its pages, if well-written, 
contain matter that sermon after sermon could not give ; and 
it admirably prepares the way for a personal meeting with 
the missionary. Our countless foes here have deluged the 
country with publications for the last twenty years, and they 
have profited well. Some of our own confreres have been 
unsparing of themselves in a similar work for Catholicity.' 
And one of Mgr. Osoufs most zealous priests writes back to 
France saying that Tokio is a city of the mind, like Alexan- 
dria of old, and that like Alexandria it urgently needs an 
Origen. 

The brave little band of priests at work in Japan have not 
been behindhand in meeting the situation thus portrayed. 
Indeed, considering their number, their poverty, their discour- 
agements, and their missionary labors, their work with the 
pen confronts us with inspiration and reproach. Mo isolation 
for them; no running away from the challenge of science; no 
closing of -the doors against the modern spirit; no dismal 
repining for ages that have gone. Missionaries they are in 
the very substance of their souls; and missionaries are ever in 
the forefront of their time, fearless, vehement, modern ; at 
work always, at rest never; seeking what is good in the life 
around them, that they may build thereon foundations of the 
life to come; lifting their voices in clear calls to holy duty, 
but opening not their lips to be prophets of despair. If any 
one of us have lost hope; if any one of us have contracted 
the disease of dissatisfaction ; if any one of us be giving his 
love to the past and only his lamentations to the present, let 
the example of these priests of Japan set us right and hearten 
us. The past will not live for our tears; and the present is 
psrishing for the help of our right arms. 

Glancing at the intellectual work accomplished by the 
Japanese missionaries, we may consider the year 1881 as the 
starting point of this peculiar apostolate. In that year the 
mission of Southern Japan began publishing apologetic and 
devotional literature, and also a semi-weekly paper called the 



1904.] The Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. 289 

Catholic Monitor. At the same time a school was founded in 
Tokio for -the instruction of catechists, which has done great 
good. In 1885 the Monitor was enlarged, and much space was 
given to essays on philosophy, politics, and history. As a 
result it bscame a regular exchange of the leading Japanese 
journals, and its articles have been frequently reproduced in 
them. The next step was the establishing of a monthly pub- 
lication for catechists, also in 1885. This paper is happily 
named The Soldier of God, In 1891 a bi-monthly magazine 
was founded in Tokio, which gives especial care to the counter- 
acting of the anti- Catholic influence created and sustained by 
the heretical books, pamphlets, and periodicals, which swaim 
from the presses of the sects. In 1898 a monthly magazine 
was set on foot which publishes papers of such scholarly merit 
that from its first issue it stepped into the front rank of 
Japanese reviews. 

Besides all these enterprises which sufficiently witness both 
to the priestly devotion and to the intellectual ability of the 
missionaries, there have been other projects of similar character 
eloquent with heroism, sanctity, and pathos. Since 1881 the 
missionary press has been issuing books and brochures to the 
limit of its slender capacity. In that renaissance year were 
published an enlarged catechism ; an Introduction to the Chris^ 
tian Religion; the Lives of the Japeuuse Martyrs; ^Et Explana^ 
tion of the Sacraments ; and a Life of Our Lord in four vol- 
umes. And in almost the quarter-century from that time to 
the present, every succeeding year has seen greater growth, 
wider development and richer results in the apostolate of the 
printed word. Meritorious as are all of the small band of 
workers in this field, one seems to call for special mention. 
Father Ligneul, the superior of the seminary at Tokio, has 
done a work of writing and translating which, considering the 
other labors which incessantly beset him, seems hardly credible. 
In 1902 this heroic priest wrote to a friend in France : " We 
are now engaged on our forty-second work." The "we" 
refers to one or two priests and seminarists who assist him; 
but he has been himself the chief factor in this enormous 
labor. Not all his books have been distinctively religious. He 
has wisely aimed at winning attention and respect in the purely 
intellectual order, so that his words may be twice- charged 
when he speaks formally for Christian faith. Accordirgly he 



290 THE Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. [Dec, 

has written an Abridgment of Philosophy ; an Introduction to 
Philosophy ; The Influence of Wofnan on Civilisation/ and two 
books which have given him wide reputation in Japan — T/te 
Ideal Youth and The Ideal Family, 

''The ablest controversialist in the Christian Church of 
Japan/' a newspaper in Tokio recently called Father Ligneul; 
and so well established is his reputation for scholarship that, in 
1901, he was invited to give a series of lectures before the 
Imperial Educational Society of the capital. He took for his 
subject, "The Philosophy of Teaching," and in treating it he 
showed himself thoroughly familiar with the methods and con- 
clusions of modern experimental psychology. The lectures 
were taken down in shorthand, and published by the society. 
A month later Father Ligneul was asked to give another course 
before the students of philosophy in the University of Tokio. 
Needless to say, he gladly accepted. He spoke on " The Place 
and Function of Philosophy in Modern Society " ; and the con- 
ferences appeared later in the Tokio Philosophical Review, So 
pleased was the Imperial Educational Society with one priest- 
lecturer, that it shortly afterward secured another. Father 
Clement received the second invitation, and he addressed them 
on " Human Character." He too brought honor to himself, 
his vocation, and his faith. 

We have not yet reached the end of this strange and in- 
spiring story. The missionaries, observing the great desire of 
the Japanese to learn European languages, determined to turn 
it to the advantage of religion, by becoming teachers of these 
languages. To-day, as a result, the apostolate of teaching is 
in full career throughout Japan. Father Ligneul writes to a 
friend in France : " I am teaching French to some young men 
between twenty and thirty years of age, who are journalists 
and public officials. I find them thoroughly informed on Euro- 
pean affairs and in the higest degree eager to learn ; especially 
to learn philosophy, history, and literature. I take occasion 
of the theme assigned for French composition, to let fall a 
few remarks that may enlighten them, at least to the extent 
of removing their prejudices." 

Another priest of the diocese of Hakodate writes : " One 
evening I was invited to the barracks. A corps-commander 
and a brigadier- general, to whom the colonel presented me, 
received me with positive affection. I am teaching French 



I904-] The Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. 291 

to several officers, army surgeons, engineers, public officials, 
and to some professors in the normal school and college here." 

And this extract from the report of a native Japanese 
priest of the diocese of Nagasaki, tells its own story of holy 
courage and pathetic zeal too sublimely for comment: "To- 
day unbelievers know perfectly well that Christianity is the 
true religion of civilized man. Especially are our young stu- 
dents aware of this. But from that to conversion is a long 
road. In order to get these young men to come to us we 
must first draw them by the prospect of material advantage. 
Hence nearly every day I devote the afternoon to teaching 
English to a number of students ; at present I have twelve. 
During the lesson I speak of religion ; and as a result some 
are already catechumens. Then in the evening I visit their 
homes, and generally manage to lead the conversation around 
to some religious subject, which gives me opportunity for use- 
ful explanations of Christian doctrine." 

In connection with this matter of teaching languages, there 
occurred a few years ago an extraordinary incident. A Fran- 
co-Japanese association for the study of French was established 
in Tokio, and was .taken up by the highest society, both 
native and foreign, of the capital. The inaugural meeting 
was attended by a brilliant and distinguished audience. Six 
hundred Japanese of high station were present ; two state 
ministers and a prince imperial among the rest. We need not 
be told that in the midst of these great ones of the world, 
were our humble missionaries seeking souls. An infidel Euro- 
pean ambassador made the first address. The style of his 
silly speech may be judged from his opening sentence : '* Gen- 
tlemen, in my Western country, our creed is to worship 
women." After him a French scholar rose to give a lecture 
on political economy. In the course of his observations on 
the factors of national progress, he spoke in the highest teims 
of the Christian religion. 

The missionaries were enraptured. " Citait un triontphe^'* 
wrote one of them afterward. The Japanese were favorably 
and profoundly impressed; when suddenly a group of French- 
men leaped to their feet, protesting vigorously against this 
eulogy of the faith into which they had been baptized. The 
speaker continued, undaunted by the blasphemous interruption. 



292 The Intellectual Apostolate in Japan. [Dec, 

aad, in still stronger language than before, he emphasized the 
position he had taken. 

Whereupon, to the amazement of the cultured pagans, the 
mulierose ambassador just referred to cried out: '' T am a 
freethinker and a Freemason, and I will not tolerate that 
Christianity be thus advocated in my presence." When the 
disorder had calmed down, some one arose with the motion 
that for the future the society forbid the speakers addressing 
it to make any mention of religion. This proposition was 
vigorously combated by many of the Japanese themselves. 
But the greatest eagerness was manifested to hear one of the 
missionaries on the subject. Father Ligneul came forward, and 
in words of noble simplicity he told the meeting that religion 
was the greatest earthly concern of himself and his confreres, 
and that if the motion before them was intended to cast con- 
tempt on the Christian faith, he must protest against it ; but 
that if, thus understood as a blow to his belief, it should be 
passed, he would not shrink from the blow; for he was the 
successor, upon the soil of Japan, of missionaries who had been 
glad to suffer greater things for the sake oi the Lord whom 
they preached. The motion was at once, rejected, and Father 
Ligneul was asked on the spot to be the principal speaker at 
the next session. 

Is there in the whole history of missions any incident of 
more shocking infidelity or more abandoned apostasy than 
this ? 

We might continue with many similar illustrations of how 
great is the need of an intellectual apostolate in Japan, and 
how well the heroic priests there are responding to the need. 
But we must pass over all such instances save one, which is 
too unusual not to notice. In the diocese of Osaka a mission- 
ary discovered that the ilite of his district, officials, professors, 
and others above the common lot, were kept away from his 
conferences and sermons simply by human respect. How 
could he reach them? A letter of his to his bishop tells of 
his extraordinary device. He writes: ''I have just founded a 
society. Don't be alarmed though ; it is not a society that it 
requires money to manage. It is a tea-drinking society ! The 
higher class of persons, whom human respect keeps away from 
my sermons, meet at my house on certain days, and we talk 



1904.] The Virgin of Israel. 293 

freely together over a cup of tea. I reserve the right of the 
^naX word in all discussions on religion." 

It is one of these mission heroes that is now, or has been 
recently, among us. Enough surely has been said to prove 
that Father Ferrand's scheme for reaching university students 
is not only practical, but that it is the best possible project 
for converting the people of Japan. To win to the faith these 
Japanese, to whom learning gives its immense prestige, means 
the transformation of public opinion, means the downfall of the 
fortified prejudices still standing across the path of Christianity, 
means the speedy conversion of multitudes, and means, ulti- 
mately, the gaining of this new world-power to the sovereign 
truth of Christ. With all our heart, therefore, we second 
Father Ferrand's appeal for help in his apostolic purpose; ax.d 
we trust that our country will not be without some share in 
cultivating as fertile a field of souls as exists in the whole 
wide vineyard of the Lord. 



THE VIRGIN OF ISRAEL. 

BY LOUISE F. MURPHY. 

Long did the royal maids of Israel hold 
Rare visions of the virgin of their line 
Who would fulfil Jehovah's great design, 
As David and the prophets had foretold : 
Oft in their dreams her beauty would unfold, 
Upon her breast they saw the jewels shine ; 
They saw her clad in robes surpassing fine. 
Soft-woven with the purest threads of gold. 
But heaven's envoy came unto a maid 
At humble prayer — in simplest garb arrayed ; 
He saw the gentle beauty of her face, 
Made glorious with Jehovah's added grace ; 
Her richest robe, her sweet hui^ility ; 
Her rarest gem, her virgin purity ! 



[Dec, 



ON HALOS. 

BY LOUISE IMOGEN GUINEY. 

I HE narrow golden ring, or (uU golden disc which 
we see painted around the sacred personages of 
Christian art, is implicitly accepted, we know, 
as a mere early convention, invented by some 
bold hand, then admired, and generally adopted- 
We do not necessarily paint our saints thus nowadays. No; 
but that we do not attests our sheer lack of observation. 
With the spread of irreverance and materialism, the senses 
have grown grosser, not finer. We have become blinded to 
the circumambient light of human bodies. It is a sort of per- 
sonal equation existing in nature, and only asking to be faith- 
fully copied. Certain passers-by in a city street give off an 
even dry light, abrupt as a glow-worm's, but diffused. These 
come into a room at evening, and all the candles go pale. 
The clean effulgence of them, the unpremeditated little spiritual 
rockets, like Chatterton's orchard fruit, 

" Do dance in air, and call the eye around," 

It would seem as if some sort of spark is frequently kindled 
at the core of character, which shoots outward, and would, 
perhaps, shape itself into a complete life- sized nimbuf, were it 
not for the unfortunately non-transmittent nature of polite 
attire. So it com;s about that only hands and faces tell 
truth ; we know our stars of the morning only by their faces 
and hands. Such persons are quite unconscious of their beau- 
tiful translucency, without being in the least irresponsible for 
it: there must be tinder in their bosoms, though the flame, and 
the fanning of it, came from without, or rather, from above. 
If, as Spenser thought, " soul is form and doth the body 
make," it would seem as if any sort of genuine superiority 
must inevitably tell upon its carnal sheath, and must produce, 
let us say, an expressiveness unique both in kind and in degree. 



I904-] ON HALOS. 295 

And so indeed it does. Great expressiveness in faces of itself, 
in fact, conveys to us the idea and effect of light. Evety one 
must notice, at one time or another, the stolid, moveless, un- 
educated rural countenance, and how it spreads (in a singularly 
correct indication), like the void blackness of the heathen 
underworld. But towards genius or great goodness we who 
approach it feel as if we were nearing a beacon across our 
own low- lying sea- mist. It is to be doubted, however, whether 
that aspect as of white fire be ever an attribute of genius, 
independently of some distinct ethical elements kneaded in 
with it ; and just what these are, who shall say ? The sub- 
ject is one for an expert psychologist at play, and the specu- 
lations of us others are likely to be in vain. The point to be 
kept in mind is that halos are rather common, and sacred to 
no class. Children often have them, as well as most men of 
supreme intellect ; enthusiasm, or health, or mere human good 
fellowship, may be seen wearing that ethereal vesture, which 
ought, we think, to pertain only to the saints. And it ulti- 
mately does pertain only to them, because they are the only 
persons who have it inalienably and always. Dr. Watts, in his 
Remnants of Time^ broaches the very widely-held theory that 
there is nothing in the figure or countenance of saints to dis- 
tinguish them. That cannot be the verdict of those who know : 
for upon a saint there is ever a distinct seal of light, to all 
who can really see. It is unlike any other light in being 
deeply and perfectly fixed and serene, like a lamp shining 
evenly through a wide globe of thinnest opal. It is light, 
and not heat. It would simplify matters if illuminated bodies 
belonged to saints only; but clearly they do not. They are 
as common to all sorts of men, as natural virtues are, and with 
quite as startling a difference in the development and the 
application. One cannot imagine a saint without the natural 
virtues, nor without a certain physical subdued brilliance which 
may be, or may not be, beauty. Both of these possessions, 
far from marking them off from humanity, serve to confound 
them with it. 

Many, to this day, are in the case of Mr. Vavasor Powell, 
the Welsh itinerant evangelist of the seventeenth century : 
"his head," we are quaintly told, "did ever throw out a 
strong bright Smoak when hee preached." Is it irrational 



296 On HALOS. [Dec, 

to conjecture that this welUattested exhalation from a presence 
not of especial dignity, has, in its inferior measure, some 
kinship with that which of old made Moses seem horned, 
and Stephen's face to be, as it were, the face of an angel? 
But there need be nothing supernatural, nothing even depend- 
ent upon moral excellence, in the look which glorifies 
very many historic and not a few living persons. The origin 
of it is as whimsical as it is varied and secular. Individual- 
ism, emotional mood, or habit of mind, must help or hinder 
the generation of interior light, and much of the latter must 
waste away before it reaches the surface. Strange compounds 
go towards its making. A sense of humor (as against the mere 
narrow sense of comicality) would certainly promote it; so 
would disinterestedness, that daring, blithe, abstract quality 
which lies next to humor, and can be only as heroic as that is. 
Several selfless revolutionaries, it cannot be denied, are brighter 
beings, to the eye, than their fellows : Camille Desmoulins is 
one modern instance; Robert Emmet is another; Shelley 
(much more radically mistaken than either), is a third. The 
sweet mouth and the steady lids are mtrepid and caie-frce in 
these young faces, and show what they are in a sort of smile 
in which a never unwise scorn is yet all inblended with pity, 
and eventually lost in it ; thus they look forever on a world 
which could not rest until, by murder, it had saved itself from 
them. 

The supernatural element, even the element of moral excel- 
lence, as we have said, may be counted cut when we ccme to 
enumerate the necessary qualities which give a real lustre and 
a half- mystical attractiveness to men. But some preoccupation 
with the things of the spirit, whether the outcome be doubt 
or faith, would seem a prerequisite: it is most curious to note 
that Erasmus, Voltaire, Pascal, Wesley, Priestly (snd indeed 
all the early Unitarians, notably Channing, Martineau, Emerson), 
Clough, Manning, Leo XIII., have much the same keen vital 
gleam. But likewise, by way of partial contradiction, Locke 
had it. Nelson had it, Alexander Hamilton had it, Poe had it, 
in rags and tatters. And, on the other hand, Goethe has no 
shed-out splendors, despite his Olympian comeliness; nor 
Renan ; nor Carlyle ; nor Browning. Surely it is difficult to 
dogmatize upon elusive subjects! 



1904.] On halos. 297 

The natural halo belongs, like most graces, to spectral persons 
rather than persons of Falstaff's and Luther's build. Fethaps 
your selC-Ut flame is a shy thing, and refuses to break through 
any huge barrier of flesh and bone. Perhaps the thin and fair 
have ^eir innings here. The English, with their persevering 
racial tints of rose, gold, and blue, are now, as iu the slave- 
market of the great Gregory's time, of somewhat unduly 
angelic look. Were any celebrated Englishman (chosen among 
those of whose appearance we have accurate knowledge) to be 
called up from the near past as an example of a born halo- 
wearer, — were some revered head to be shown, by whom the 
dullest of us, once the hint were given him, could not fail to 
be, as it were, dazzled, who would not name one or other of 
the great Oxonians of seventy years ago? 

We need but glance at Richmond's long gallery of por- 
traits of the Tractarians in their youth and prime, to see the 
exact truth of Mr. Mozley's remark — or was it Dean Church's ? 
— that they were men of '' unearthly radiance," to see even 
the explicit justification of Newman's boyish fancy that he 
himself might be an angel among fellow- an gels, conspiring to 
cheat one another with the semblance of Georgian human- 
kind. When one gazes into the eyes of these gentle, fearless, 
poetic, and potent spirits, Dcntittus illumifiatio wea, the motto 
of their loved university, comes interpretatively to the lips. 
It is true of them all, and truest of Newman. Richmond 
limned them as he saw them, with a silver wand. They glisten 
and flow. Like Lovelace's Amarantha, they 

''Shake their locks, and scatter day," 

and long will do so, hurling their own lovely, victorious 
weapons against the ugly strongholds of Cranmer's Reforma- 
tion. Newman's is the perfect pattern of a haloed face, in its 
candid austerity, its dedicated power, its unborrowed ray, 
eoeigized from within, and impossible to confine. 

In art, one can but remember that there are the most 
singular incongruities between some halos and the imagined 
brows under them. Any of the earlier Madonnas which has 
no indicatory diadem yet may need none, can never be taken 
for a mere mother of a child; and the walls of the Salon 



298 On HALOS. [Dec, 

now, as we all know, may be "covered with so-called Madon- 
nas which fail, despite every pictorial and traditional adjunct, 
to approve themselves as holy. It is a baffling trick of Leo- 
nardo's that he put almost every head he so divinely drew, 
into a halo of thin beaten star-gold; did it, like the sorcerer 
he was, in a way to baffle scrutiny, and awaken curiosity and 
debate for all time. The unfathomed mystery of his great 
type, the Monna Lisa, — what is at the heart of it, if not this 
wild sweetness of the light which clothes her, and has never 
been earned? It is a seamless- woven amicius amoris ; her 
eyelids and finger-tips are arrowy moonbeams, her hands like 
asphodels in dew; but her heart is a dark heart. An unaf- 
fected critic cannot but guess at something wrong in that in- 
finitely alluring and infinitely perplexing masterpiece, at the 
malign element in that faery beauty. It is Master Leonardo's 
sleight-of-hand, his delicate Uranian jest, that he has made 
his Lilith sit like a virgin anchoress forever. He has given us, 
through her, implications which are so many lies; for he has 
dipped her, steeped her, in a subtle effulgence she never could 
have borne, alive. He has endowed her with a true saint's 
halo (the more so because not localized, not labelled), when 
he knew perfectly that not for one moment could her strange 
intelligence ever have been preoccupied innocently, or even 
exclusively, with the things of the spirit. 

There are diabolic halos about, because devils were, and 
are, angels. But we shall learn, in time, to see the million 
others which adorn our fellow- creatures, . and may at any 
moment give us visions, despite wigs and matinee hats, of the 
New Jerusalem. It is a haunted place, this Presence-chamber 
of earth. A mortal may go about under his "strong bright 
Smoak " of immortality for a whole lifetime, and escape un- 
catalogued, thanks to our general dulness and crass inattention. 
But once he is dead, and there is, as it were, nothing of him 
now but the aureole, lo ! we begin to chatter : for every man 
jack of us somehow, thinks that he has seen that property be- 
fore. It is as though a Catholic should come suddenly upon 
one of the modern copies of Holbein's More, in which the 
great Chancellor appears with the added emblems of his mar- 
tyrdom, and a frank ring of light painted about his unforgetta- 
ble face : and that is so fit, so becoming, so indigenous to 



1904.] On Halos. 299 

him, that the spectator falls to wondering half angrily why 
Holbein did not draw and color that in the very first instance, 
even at the cost of omitting some furred velvet which might 
be anybody's? So with older painters and older saints. The 
touch added on canvas is our premise for some odd arguments. 
That meek countenance set in that oval glory, conveys so 
powerful an impression of not being for the first time thus! 
The collocation is actual; it ts not the vagary of a romantic 
imagination. If there is anything established by the hagiolo- 
gies, it-is that the saints were quite literally a burning and a 
shining light. In every century, at one juncture or another of 
their lives, be it at prayer, or going the common round of 
daily doty, "thy flaming- breasted lovers" are caught at white 
beat, transfigured, aglow. Witnesses who have so trapped una- 
vares the darlings of eternity are as sure of the physical fact 
as they would be of capturing living summer fireflies from a 
hedge. To them, no halo of saints can be merely a symbol. 
By origin (though plebilied and debased since, as everything 
high is likely to be, in this world), the halo must have been 
nothing less or more than the beatific smile, the centrifugal 
kiss, of some rapt soul at peace with God and man. Sva lute 
u signat. 



Mr. Davitt's History of [Dec, 



MR. DAVITT'S HISTORY OF THE LAND LEAGUE." 

BY THE REVEREND JAMES J. FOX, D.D. 

E Story told in Mr. Davitt's great book will 
arrest the attention of the philosophic student 
of democracy ; but it will have a still greater 
interest for the student of Irish history. It 
records a struggle that, in many respects, 
stands alone, with nothing like to it among the many strug- 
gles that make up the history of Ireland since the English 
invasion. The Land League movement effected a union of all 
parties and factions for one common end ; this was not a 
characteristic of Irish endeavor. The tmen engaged in it, one 
and all, proved faithful to the trust plfced in them ; no de- 
fection of leader or followers disgraced its course and defeated 
its purpose; this was still less Irish. And, what is least Irish 
of all, it has been gloriously successful. It has wrought, by 
constitutional, if not always by technically legal means, what 
had over and over again been vainly attempted by force of 
arms. By it the tongue and the pen have reversed and recti- 
fied the decision delivered by the sword at Tredagb, Wexford, 
the Boyne, and Aughrim ; it has undone the work of Oliver, 
and given back the land to the Celt. In short, to avoid fall- 
ing into the dithyrambic, its achievement may be concisely 
put by borrowing, sneer though it was, a pithy phrase from 
an institution that has a flawless record of uncompromising 
hatred towards Ireland, the London Times: Now Paddy at 
last has got his wish; (or Paddy is the landlord. 

The result of the conflict in which, to quote again the 
authority just referred to, Irishmen have dared and done as 
they never did before, is not confined to the sphere of eco- 
nomics; it has wrought a psychological change in the people. 
The spirit of self-reliance and optimism which is abroad in the 
■J^nd, finding vent in the industrial and literary revival, is, in 



1904.] THE Land League. 301 

great part, a result of the land revolution. In the bad old 
times the sense of insecurityi the danger of eviction, the ever- 
present spectre of cureless ruin, incarnate in the land agent 
and the bailiff, stifled in the peasant's soul every germ of 
initiative, and blighted every budding desire to improve his 
condition. Not till he had some security that his industry 
siiould not be turned into a claim for laying a heavier burden 
on his oppressed back, was it possible for the Irish farmer to 
make any resolute effort towards improving his condition, 
either economically or intellectually. Furthermore, the agra- 
rian agitation taught, the people the much-needed lesson of 
self-reliance, and the resources that lay in self-help and 
organization. Some promoters of the Gaelic revival, and at 
least one of the most efficient leaders of the present industrial 
movement, have expressed some disparagement of the value 
of political agitation in the past. But had not the political 
agitator played his part so persistently, from the year 1879, 
in union with the agrarian agitator, it is safe to say that there 
would be neither an industrial nor a literary national revival 
to chronicle to-day. 

I. 

With one possible exception, no man was so well qualified 
to become the historian of this memorable conflict as Mr. 
Davitt. No one was better acquainted with everything that 
concerned the League, its inception, its spirit, and the many 
complicated phases and vicissitudes of its career. To him, 
more than to any other man, was due the direction of Irish 
effort into the fresh channel, which, when it was first entered 
upon, became known as the New Departure. This intimate 
personal acquaintance with the genesis and genius of the 
League has conferred on his narrative that grasp of the 
sequence and significance of facts which the late Lord Acton, 
who is an authority on the subject, declared to be the very 
essence of good historical writing. It was his personal influ- 
ence that enlisted and retained for this '* moral-force " move- 
ment the support of the revolutionary party which, but for 
the persuasive presence of the man who had suffered penal 
servitude as a Fenian, and was known to be still in sympathy 
with the policy of physical force, would have broken out in 



302 Mr. DavitTs History of [Dec, 

other forms of activity that would have imperilled, if not 
nullified, the efforts of the ultimately victorious organiza- 
tion. 

In his Preface Mr. Davitt refers to the movement as one 
which sprung, without leaders, from the peasantry. This mod- 
est expression must be interpreted in a large sense. Not to 
mention others, he himself deserved the title of leader. He 
was a very efficient one; and, though at a supreme crisis he 
was withdrawn from the field to be again lodged safely in pri- 
son for more than a year, his personal energy in the move- 
ment was not exhausted before he again returned to the lists. 
If Mr. Davitt was never, strictly speaking, an Irish peasant, he 
is of the peasantry, flesh of their flesh and bone of their bone. 
A victim of landlordism, he left Ireland at the age of four, to 
face, with his parents, the utmost rigors of destitution in an 
English manufacturing town. The recollection of the eviction 
scene, the homestead levelled to the ground, the family ard 
its poor belongings flung into the gutter by the officers of the 
landlord and the law, burned into the mind of the child, fill- 
ing him, as similar memories tilled thousands the wide world 
over, with a quenchless hate of the system which, for genera- 
tions, had perpetrated such atrocities on a colossal scale in the 
name of justice. At an early age he had lost an arm in a 
mill; so when the Fenian attack on Chester Castle was made, 
as he could not carry a gun, he converted his pockets into an 
ammunition wagon for the party, with the result that he was 
sentenced to fifteen years of penal servitude. He was released 
in time to become the father of the Land League, of which he 
is now the biographer. In the book before us, although he is 
by no means preoccupied to conceal his feelings to\(ards land- 
lordism, he does not permit them to bias his estimates of men 
and events. If he does not invariably maintain himself on the 
plane of absolute impartiality, he at least tells his story in a 
straightforward, honest fashion. Only with reference to one 
body of men does prejudice seem to take control of his pen- 
but of this more anon. 

As a necessary introduction to his proper theme, Mr. 
Davitt devotes a few chapters to the various phases of Irish 
agitation and its results during the close of the eighteenth and 
the flrst half of the nineteenth centuries up to the great fam- 
ine. The next chapter, dealing with that event, is one of the 



1904.] THE Land League. 303 

most important in bis book ; for it was amid tbe ferment of 
ideas to wbich tbat catastrophe gave rise that appeared the 
germ from which the Land League subsequently sprung. That 
terrible calamity aroused the civilized world to pity for the 
victims, and indignation against the system which made such 
an occurrence possible. For, while the people were dying by 
thousands from hunger, grain sufficient to feed the entire 
population was shipped out of the country through the opera- 
tion of land laws that bled the people for the benefit of the 
land owners. In 1847 food to the value of ^^44,950,000 was 
grown in Ireland, and a million persons died of famine. 
Meanwhile the bailiff snatched from the starving peasant every 
stook of oats, every calf, or pig, or fowl, that he could lay 
his hands upon to satisfy the claims of his honor, the agent. 
The priests preached submission to the will of God ; till, in 
distant New York, Archbishop Hughes protested against the 
blasphemy of saddling the Almighty with the crimes of men. 
In the steps of the famine followed the crowbar brigade; one 
hundred and ninety thousand families were evicted; one hun- 
dred and ninety thousand rooftrees were pulled down, to make 
way for the shorthorn and the southdown. State trials, by 
packed juries, followed by the gallows or transportation for 
life of the men who raised a voice against these doings, were 
the epilogue of this terrific drama. The closing years of the 
famine saw the Tenants' League established, whose programme 
was popularly expressed as the three F's — Fair rent, fixity of 
tenure, and free sale of tenants' interest — to be obtained by 
parliamentary effort. But the land question was made sub- 
ordinate to the question of repeal of the Union. One man 
only, with a fiery soul lodged in a dwarfish, deformed body, 
James Finton Lalor, urged that the true policy for Ireland 
was to attack landlordism without waiting for legislative inde- 
pendence. His plan was neglected ; but years after, when the 
little hunchback was in his grave, the seed he had planted 
blossomed forth as the Land League. 

IL 

A series of bad harvests, culminating in 1879, threatened 
to renew the scenes of '48. The people were unable to pay 
the rents. The Land Act of 1870, contrary to the expectation 



304 Mr, Davitt's History of [Dec, 

of its author, Gladstone, had failed to provide the tenants 
with any adequate security against eviction ; clearacces had 
been going on as usual, and now the landlords were preparing 
to take advantage of the prevailing distress to get rid of ten- 
ants and their newly created limited right to compensation for 
disturbance. From 1870 the Home Rule Party, inaugurated 
by Isaac Butt, who was soon compelled to abdicate the leader- 
ship to a younger, abler, but not more devoted leader, was, 
by a persistent, systematic employment of the tactics of ob- 
struction, making some impression on the English parliament, 
and raising hopes in Ireland. But were the peasantry to be 
decimated again while waiting for the problematical issue of 
the political agitation ? 

The practical answer to this question was the Land League. 
An immediate agrarian agitation, organized on an effective 
plan, the promoters argued, could alone save the people. " It 
is exhibiting a callous indifference," said Mr. Davitt in a 
famous speech at Mechanics' Hall in Boston, \vhen the propa- 
ganda invaded America, '' to the state of social degradation to 
which the power of the landlords of Ireland has sunk our 
peasantry to ask it to plod on in sluggish misery from sire to 
son, from age to age, until we, by force of party power, may 
free the country." He and his associates argued — and the 
event has justified their wisdom — that a popular movement 
against the land system would appeal more strongly than the 
political issue to the Irish people at home as well as to their 
kin abroad. The grinding injustice of the land system had 
eaten into the souls of thousands whose interest in legislative 
independence was merely sentimental. The farmer, to whom 
the prospect of a restored parliament in College Green was 
little more than an abstract idea, saw inestimable concrete 
benefits in the prospect of a modification, not to say an aboli- 
tion, of landlordism. With his usual penetration Parnell saw 
this fact; he once said that if the land question were settled 
the peasanty would be but little concerned in the political one. 
The present leaders of the Home Rule agitation have some 
reason to believe that this opinion was correct. 

The struggle lasted about a decade, and had many phases. 

It became linked with the parliamentary agitation, and the 

united energy of the two movements was greater than the sum 

C their separate forces. After some time, the Land League 



1904.] THE Land League, 305 

was suppressed^ but its soul, like John Brown's, went marching 
on in the Ladies' Land League, the National League, and the 
Plan of Campaign. Its successive war cries were : Keep a firm 
Grip on your Farms ; Hold the Harvest ; Boycott ; Pay no Rent. 
Resistance to the landlord's clainis was met on the part of the 
government by coercion acts that suspended every constitutional 
safeguard of personal liberty. Evictions were met by boy- 
cotting ; boycotting by further coercion ; and from this fell 
conjunction issued social disorder and a myriad of crimes, rang- 
ing from dastardly maiming of cattle to open assassination, per- 
petrated, to-day by the people, tp-morrow by the upholders of 
the law. In every instance the government yielded ; and 
partial success encouraged the people to press for full justice. 
It was the curse of the situation that, as Gladstone acknowl- 
edged, by the English parliament no concessions Were given 
tmless Ireland had just reached a stage bordering on revolution. 
Then some measure would be urged through the Houses by a 
Liberal or a Tory minister, on the ground that the Irish land 
tenure was essentially pernicious and unjust. 

At critical periods, English leaders appealed to Rome for 
assistance, and Rome intervened. The people, at different 
times were ordered to abandon Parnell and all his works and 
pomps; to desist from the uncharitable conduct of boycotting, 
and from loading distinguished persons with insult ; to pay the 
rents, which were just debts; and to submit to their rulers; 
for Rome had confidence in the wisdom and integrity of the 
men in charge of the country. But the Dark Rosaleen was in 
a naughty mood. She took pattern from St. Paul, and resisted 
Peter to his face. A new hope was dancing in her eyes; and 
her soul was thrilling to a different Gospel, that had found 
lyrical expression from Miss Fanny Parnell : 

Now, are you men, or are you kine, 

Ye tillers of the soil? 
Would you be free, or evermore 

The rich man's cattle toil ? 
The shadow on the dial hangs 

That points the fatal hour — 
Now hold your own ! or, branded slaves, 

Forever cringe and cower. 



3o6 Mr. Da vitt's History of [Dec., 

The serpent's curse upon you lies — 

Ye writhe within the dust. 
Ye fill your mouths with beggar's swill, 

Ye grovel for a crust ; 
Your lords have set their blood-stained heels 

Upon your shameful heads, 
Yet they are kind — ^they leave you still 

Their ditches for your beds ! 

Oh I by the God who made us all — 

The seignior and the serf- 
Rise up ! and swear this day to hold 

Your own green Irish turf; 
Rise up ! and plant your feet as men 

Where now you crawl as slaves, 
And make your harvest fields your camps, 

Or' make of them your graves. 

The birds of prey are hovering round, 

The vultures wheel and [swoop — 
They come, the coroneted ghouls ! 

With drum-beat and with troop — 
They come, to fatten on your flesh, 

Your children's and your wives' ; 
Ye die but once — hold fast your lands, 

And if ye can, your lives. 

Three hundred years your crops have sprung, 

By murdered corpses fed ; 
Your butchered sires,;;your famished sires, 

For ghastly compost spread ; 
Their bones have fertilized your fields, 

Their blood has fall'n like rain ; 
They died that ye might eat and live — 

God ! have thej' died in vain ? 

This was the spirit which animated the movement- from first 
to last ; its persistence convinced English politicians of both 
parties that it would not down until the land question had been 
finally settled in favor of the people. The Home Rule cause 
WAi shattered, for a time, by the Parnell tragedy; Gladstone 
ilf voted in vain his closing years to its prosecution; Parnell 
|m«ir<t away ; Gladstone followed him. But before they went 



1904.] THE Land League. 307 

they had written the doom of landlordism. The passing of the 
Wyndham Act in 1903, by which one hundred and twelve 
million pounds sterling were voted by parliament for the ex- 
tinction of the system, was the final capitulation to the demands 
of the people, which, if it had come, as it ought, two genera- 
tions earlier, would have spared the muse of history the task 
of recording a page that she has written in blood and tears. 

III. 

How much would the land agitation have achieved without 
the co-operation of the parliamentary agitation, under the 
leadership of Parnell, is a question that may be left to the 
otiose who delight to voyage in the realms of unverifiable con- 
jecture. The value of Parnell's actual services can scarcely be 
overestimated. From the moment of his appearance the great 
leader is the central figure in the drama; planning, directing, 
achieving; turning the contempt of opponents into fear, fear 
into respect; and the hesitating approbation of friends into 
boundless confidence. He made every temporary defeat a 
stepping-stone to subsequent success. He compelled the most 
powerful conspiracy of implacable enemies against his character 
and authority but to strengthen his hands and set his integrity 
in a more conspicuous light. With matchless courage, skill, 
and determination he steered the ship of his party's hopes 
through numberless storms, in and out of parliament. Then 
when the haven was in sight he wrecked the vessel upon the 
rock of his own insensate pride ; and, after teaching his 
countrymen the irresistible power of union and organization, 
he bequeathed them as his final gift a suicidal faction fight the 
most squalid and rancorous in their history. 

The picture of Parnell drawn by Mr. Davitt is, probably, 
the truest that posterity shall have of him. It is to be seen 
only by a perusal of the book; though there is one chapter 
devoted entirely to an appreciation of him. The author does 
not permit hero worship to restrain him from adverse criticism 
where there are solid grounds for it ; at the same time he 
recognizes the greatness of the man. He analyses the many 
anomalies in the character and career oi that striking person- 
ality. 

A Protestant, a landlord, a man of haughty reserve, cold. 



3o8 MR. Davitt's History of [Dw., 

calculating, and indifferent to public opinion, except when it 
affected his purpose; treating his docile and reverent followers 
as we might conceive Cxsar to have treated the plebeian soldiers 
of the Tenth Legion ; without a single Celtic quality in mind or 
manner, he was trusted and obeyed unreservedly by emotional, 
impulsive, unpractical, Catholic Ireland. He was, in fact, as 
Mr. Davitt observes, "a paradox in Irish leadership, and will 
stand unique in Irish history as bearing no resemblance of any 
kind to those who handed down to his time the fight for Irish 
nationhood." The secret of his power is conciseiy stated : 
"He was above and before everything else a splendid fighter: 
He had attacked and beaten the enemies of Ireland in the 
citadel of their power. It was here where he loomed great 
and powerful in Irish imagination. As Wendell Phillips put it 
on one occasion, Parnell was the Irishman who had compelled 
John Bull to listen to what he, on behalf ot Ireland, had to 
say in the House of Commons; and the personal force which 
had done this, and flung the Irish question and representatives 
across the plans and purposes of English parties, in a battle 
for the Irish people, appealed instinctively to the admiration 
of those in whose name this work was accomplished." For the 
traditional policy of making Irish party efforts wait upon the 
convenience of some English leader, and of accepting small and 
deceptive mercies with almost servile thankfulness, he substi- 
tuted agressive boldness and calculating disrespect. 

It was not to him, however, that was due the invention of 
the instrument which he used to bring the British legislative 
machinery to a standstill. The policy of systematic obstruc- 
tion was started by "the hunchback pork butcher of Belfast" — 
wee Joe Biggar, as his townsmen called him — Biggar, who, 
when Butt was still leader, began, to the consternation of the 
Irish, and the amazement of both English parties, the famous 
policy of obstruction. Undaunted by the authority of the 
Chair, the threats and sneers of an exasperated House, and 
torrents of abuse from the entire English press, Biggar per- 
sisted, night after night, in moving irrelevant resolutions, 
which had for their sole object the delay of public business; 
and in making, for the same purpose, interminable speeches, 
" sometimes," as Gladstone in disgust once said, " rising to the 
level of mediocrity, and more often grovelling amid mere trash 
in unbounded profusion." Parnell elaborated the method to a 



1904.] THE Land League. 309 

system. Some collector of curious coincidences, or some 
philosopher advocating the superiority of brain over brawn, 
may, perhaps, one day, make something of the fact that the 
Irish people, who are almost extravagant in their appreciation 
of muscular manhood, owe the idea which won their parliamen- 
tary and the idea which won the agrarian agitation to two 
physical nonentities, Joseph Biggar and James Finton Lalor. 

IV. 

# 

One note that vibrates steadily through Mr. Davitt's epic 
will grate harshly on a large section of his audience: it is his 
censure and disparagement of the Catholic clergy. Every- 
where that an .opportunity seems to offer he interrupts his 
narrative to make faces at them; and one. entire chapter he 
turns into a pillory for the highest ecclesiastics of the Catholic 
Church. When dealing with facts, indeed, he does not set 
down aught in malice that is not true ; but he fails to notice 
much that extenuates ; and his interpretation and inference are 
often one-sided. The judicial spirit which prompts him to 
acknowledge handsomely the good qualities of his arch enemy, 
W. E. Foster, and to express eloquently Ireland's spacious 
debt to Gladstone, deserts him when he weighs the deeds of 
Irish priests and, especially, of Irish bishops. True, he does not 
fail to recognize the merits of individuals who conspicuously 
assisted, at one time or another, the national campaign. But a 
stranger can scarcely read the work without carrying away the 
impression that, on the whole, the influence of the clergy was 
thrown against the interests of the people. 

The opposition of the bishops to the various secret combi- 
nations violent in purpose, during the earlier part of the cen- 
tury, is presented as evidence of pro- English sentiments. Mr. 
Davitt does not state, in his charge, that the bishops were 
aware that these societies invariably swarmed with traitors and 
spies; so that they resulted in attempts characterized by reck- 
less folly, and ended by bringing great numbers of their mem- 
bers to the gallows and the prison. The policy of the bishops 
who favored the Union because English ministers had promised 
that a united parliament would grant the Catholics relief from 
their chains, is held up to odium. Nobody would attempt to 
say a word of apology for what Gladstone termed the base- 



3IO Mr. Davitts History of [Dec, 

ness and blackguardism of the Act of Union. There is, how* 
ever, in the kind of oratory which Mr. Davitt once wittily 
designated as sunburstery, a great deal of sentimental fustian 
about the old House at home. But, as Mr. Davitt knows very 
well, that same old House was, even more than the English 
House of Lords, the Urbs intacta, the impregnable citadel and 
home of the landlordism whose downfall he celebrates. The 
landlords and their parasites who composed it regarded the 
Celtic peasantry in much the same light as the Southern plan- 
ter regarded his slaves. When they asserted the liberties of 
Ireland, they no more intended in the phrase any rights of the 
tillers of the soil, than the signers of the Declaration under- 
stood their proclamation of human equality to include social 
and political equality for the negro. And if Irish bishops did 
think that the destruction of an institution that had forged, 
and continued to maintain on the Catholic Irishman, the most 
galling of his chains, would be no very extravagant price to 
pay for religious emancipation, they were but interpreting the 
deepest feelings of the people who, like every other people, 
prized liberty of conscience as the first and most precious gem 
in the crown of freedom. 

Again, Mr. Davitt lashes the clergy because they did not 
stir up the people to resistance in '48 and '49, as the Land 
League did in '79 and '80. It was scarcely the part of the 
clergy to take the initiative in exciting an utterly disorganized, 
dejected, helpless population to try conclusions with a merci- 
less antagonist, who had behind him a merciless law backed up 
by all the forces of a kingdom. Besides, if Mr. Davitt makes 
anything plain, it is that the Land League was victorious be- 
cause it was supported by a mighty moral force, at home and 
abroad, that was created chiefly by the memories of the fam- 
ine. It would be mere officiousness to undertake here any 
defence of the Irish clergy ; they can look with serenity to 
the calm judgment of history. 

Some prelates are marked out for special denunciation — 
Cardinal Cullen and his successor, Cardinal McCabe. Yet even 
Cnrdinal Cullen was a patriot in his own way. The hardest 
\\\\\\^ that can truthfully be said of him is, not that he loved 
ItrUnd IcMrt, but that he loved Rome more. As to Cardinal 
MiC'rthp, nulurc never intended him to be a hero; and neither 
rplmopdl roturcration nor the scarlet hat is wont to work any 



1904.] THE Land League. ' 311 

great psychic change in the recipient. It might, however^ be a 
tactical blunder to press Mr. *Davitt too hard for his severity 
towards Archbishop McCabe, for the harshest reference to him 
that the volume contains is the following regarding his con* 
demnation of the Ladies' Land League : " His Grace will not 
be allowed ^in future, I apprehend, to use his lance so freely 
as he has hitherto done, or to ventilate unquestioned the 
peculiar political theories which he is known to possess in 
opposition to the cherished convictions of a great, and, indeed, 
overwhelming majority of the Irish people." These are, how- 
ever, the words, not of Mr. Davitt, but of a brother prelate, 
the great Archbishop of Cashel. 

When the name of John McHale entered his story Mr. 
Davitt lost a splendid opportunity of exhibiting his chivalrous 
superiority to petty personal grievances. At the rise of the 
Land League, the venerable archbishop of Tuam, O'Connell's 
'' Lion of the Fold of Judah," was a very old man, with fifty 
years of patriotic endeavor, and, it might be said, fifty years 
of disillusionment behind him. He knew little of the new men ; 
but he knew enough to fear that the advocates of physical 
force might get the upper hand in the party ; he remembered 
the issue of every former violent activity ; he remembered the 
oath of Keogh and Sadlier, and what came of it. And in a 
letter that appeared over his name, there was a very unde- 
served attack upon the motives of the Land League promot- 
ers. Now old age is not plastic ; it looks askance at new 
methods ; it is inclined to suspect men with panaceas for evils 
which itself had failed to cure. Butt did not take kindly to 
Biggar and Parnell. Yet, to his honor, Mr. Davitt has ade- 
quate praise and a word of tender remembrance for the noble 
heart that has moldered into dust in the obscurity of Strano- 
lar churchyard. Surely, even though Archbishop McHale lacked 
the apocalyptic glance necessary to detect the sterling quality 
of men and measures whose worth was yet to be proved, his 
long and honorable devotion to Ireland might have saved him 
from being adjudged, in Mr. Davitt's court of history, a foe to 
the people's right to deliver themselves from the scourge of 
landlordism ! 

The charge advanced against the Irish hierarchy of failing 
to counteract English influence at the Vatican is one that will 
not carry much weight with those who know just what Irish 



312 Mr. Da vitt's History of the Land League. [Dec, 

bishops have done in that respect, and the obstacles which they 
have encountered. Roman statesmen, very wisely, have never 
permitted themselves to think that their absolute confidence in 
the Divine promise to the church absolved them from employ- 
ing in her secular concerns all the astuteness of the secular 
diplomatist. Hence they have always endeavored, as far as 
principle would permit, to make to themselves friends of those 
whose kingdoms are of this world. From this point of view a 
handful of Irish bishops, rich only in faith, weighed but light 
in the scale against even an unofficial representative of mighty 
England, especially at a time when the air was bright with 
the rosy hope that some kind of diplomatic relations might be 
established between the Vatican and St. James's. Space does not 
pemrit to consider Mr. Davitt's remarks about the papal inter- 
ventions. Suffice to say that Cardinal Manning's reflections* 
on the rescript issued against the Plan of Campaign anticipate 
most of Mr. Davitt's criticism. Apart from, or rather, in spite 
of, the blemishes which we have noticed, Mr. Davitt's volume 
is a splendid contribution to Irish history, and it will help to 
deepen, if possible, the feelings of respect with which he is 
regarded by his countrymen. 

^Life of Cardinal Manning. By E. S. Purcell. Vol. ii., pp. 625-6. Macmillan. 1896. 




1904.] 'The Immaculate Conception in Art. 313 




THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION IN ART. 

BY M. F. NIXON-ROULET. 

•• . . . The surplice of the mora, 
As pure as the vale's stainless lily, ^ 

For Mary the sinlessly born." 

|0 artists the idea of the Immaculate Conception 
has always been peculiarly attractive. Sevil- 
lian art students of the seventeenth century 
always met each other with the salutation 
" Praised be the most holy Sacrament and the 
pure Concepdon of our Lady." Spanish art is rich in paint- 
ings of the Conception, and perhaps the most famous portrayer 
of this glory of our Lady was Murillo, often called " £1 Fintor 
del Conception." The Sevillian artist, himself pure, noble, and 
deeply religious, was fitted to portray the sanctity of the Blessed 
Virgin Mary. He never began a picture without fasting and 
prayer, and the spirituality of his conception of artistic themes 
is the exponent of his own beautiful nature. 

There were accepted rules as to the portraying of our Lady 
laid down by the Congregation of the Inquisition ii) Spain, but 
io some degree Murillo departed from its canons and gave his 
brush freedom, painting the Mother of God sometimes as fair- 
haired, sometimes as dark, yet ever showing his own personal 
devotion to her perfections. 

One of the sweetest of his Virgins is that in " The Con- 
ception surrounded by Cherubs," a painting in the famous 
i&useum of the Prado in Madrid. Our Lady is represented as 
very young, very sweet, and distinctly Spanish in type. Like 
9 soft cloud her dark hair floats back from an oval face, part- 
ing above a broad and perfect brow. The arched eyebrows 
and long black lashes frame eyes of liquid brown, large and 
beautiful, raised heavenward with deep thanksgiving in their 
expression, as of one who realized her high destiny. In the 
&weet-lipped but resolute mouth there is the courage of one 
of high race whose will is to meet all valiantly and well. 
Resignation there is also in this virginal face, but it is not 



The Immaculate Conception jn Art. [Dec, 



the resignation of a chastened soul, saddened by the trials of 
life ; rather is it an acceptance of God's will, with the coura- 
geous purpose to carry it out though the cost is unknown. 

The crescent moon so often seen about the figure of our 
Lady in representations of the Immaculate Conception comeE 
from the vision of St. John in the Apocalypse, when he saw 
" a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her 
feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars." It is more 
frequently used in Spanish art, because it symbolizes the 
triumph of the Christians over the Moors of the peninsula. 

The misty little cherubs which surround the figure of our 
Lady are some of the nifios Murillo dearly loved to paint — 
and they are charming little creatures, only equalled by those 
of the Immaculate Conception in the Louvre. These are 



I904-] THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION IN ART. 



graceful beyond description, chubby little darlings, in every 
attitude imaginable. Their expressions as they gaze toward 
the Blessed Mother are in every shade of infantile emotions of 
tenderness. 

Painted by the same artist this picture has not a great 
deal in common with the former, save that the general subject 
is tike same. The style and handling are quite different, and 
the Blessed Virgin seems more of a maiden than the wistful 
tittle Madonna of the Prado. Here her graceful figure is given 
full length, her soft-hued draperies float about her, covering 

TOU LUtX.— 21 



ii6 TjfE rjfjfAcvzATE Conception in art. [Dec., 



li.cri S-er. her cloudy brown hair is soft and 

,.v. ■-. .-^. WixfS 4r« ciasp^d opon her breast. The expris- 
V- -. ,-. ■»^-- '-tv^ ;s m«st g«ntle. yet awed by the greatness of 
N. .<-,^ 'V iJixi saJO^ned by its weight. She is that one of 
■* '^•. . i"^' .-•^'<* *«'*g as 

*A oiu4u ■ »S>%-e all iromea glorified, 

„^u :a-;iwa nature's solitary boast, 

■•-i-ci ;>aj cdswra ski«s at daybreak strewn 

-.V •;i a:-v-*v.i Tv-***v than the unblemished moon, 

"iiv^ If : i« **■«- Srs,--;«! oa tackTen's blue coast, 



3i8 THE Immaculate Conception in art. . [Dec, 

The warm, soft coloring of this picture proclaims it of 
Murillo's calido style, but another Conception — that in the 
K.oyaI Gallery, Madrid — is in his later style, the vaporoso^ warm 
and soft, yet cloudy, almost misty. This Virgin is far older 
than in Murillo's other Conceptions; equally graceful, and of a 
Spanish type of beauty rare and exquisite, she seems less 
spiritual in type. The magnificent hair is a soft, curling chest- 
nut, with warm lights of the sun through it. Her eyes are 
large and dark, her features beautiful, the mouth in perfect 
curves, the expression pitifully sad in its intensity. Studying 
these three Conceptions it seems as though each Madonna 
looked with a different feeling upon her life and destiny. One, 
the youngest, merely goes forth with childlike faith and youth- 
ful courage to meet whatsoever comes to her, knowing it comes 
from the hand of God. The second, loftier, borne up on the 
wings of the supernatural, is resigned to the adorable will of 
God. The third, more of a woman, with wider knowledge of 
the world's sufferings and the meaning of life, bows to the 
will of the Almighty ; yet upon her is the sadness of greater 
suffering to come. " Pierced with many sorrows " is this flaw- 
less queen, yet meek, sweet, submissive. 

Chaste and exquisite are all these portrayals of our Lady 
in the still whiteness of her Immaculate Conception. Ribera's 
famous picture is one of the fairest representations of the 
'^ Lily of Purity." In the foreground are the fragrant white 
lilies which symbolize her spotlessness, and which the French 
call " la fleur de Marie." 

The " Rose of Sharon," the " Lily of the Valley," these and 
kindred titles have been applied to the Blessed Virgin, and an 
English poet has sung to her. 

What shall I liken unto thee ? 

A lily bright, 
Whose -virgin purity and grace 
Fulfils thy soul, as doth thy face, 

With all delight. 

Crowned with the twelve stars to symbolize the twelve 
tribes of Israel, standing upon the crescent, crushing under 
foot the prince of darkness, surrounded by bewitching cherubs, 
second only to those of Murillo, our Blessed Lady stands in 
an attitude of lovely grace, her hands clasped, her eyes raised 



1904] THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION IN ART 



Cabi. MUlleb. 

to heaven, her dark hair floating behind in spUndid wavts. 
seems as if Alfred Austin must have had this painlirg 
mind when he wrote his exquisite lines: 

The Virgin Mother stood, 

Down from her flowing hair to sandal-shoon 

The mystic type of maiden-motherhood ; 

Below her feet there curled a crescent moon, 

A.nd all the golden planets were her hood. 

In comely folds her queenly garb was moulded, 

And over her pure breast her hands were folded.^ 



320 The Immaculate Conception in Art. [Dec, 

The face of our Lady in this painting of Ribera is less 
beautiful than many of the pictures of the Immaculate Con- 
ception. It is Castilian in type, the eyes very dark and fine, 
the lashes long, the brows arched, the forehead broad, the 
features excellent ; but the face is too long for perfection of 
contour, and not sufficiently expressive of the story which it 
portrays. The tout ensemble of the picture is superb; in 
grouping, handling, and coloring the execution is masterly, 
and, though a trifle heavier than Murillo's Conceptions, it is 
exceedingly devotional. 

Of the modern painters of the Immaculate Conception, 
Carl Miiller has left two pictures, both of great merit. 

Miiller is a German artist of the Dusseldorf school, a school 
much influenced by Wilhelm von Schadow of Berlin. Von 
Schadow was one of the pre-Raphaelites who did so much for 
art in the early part of this century. The characteristics of 
this school — a careful study of nature, delicate, harmonious 
coloring, and marked refinement of sentiment — are clearly dis- 
played in Miiller's work, which shows besides a deep religious 
feeling. 

In one of his Immaculate Conceptions, the Blessed Virgin 
is represented as very young, standing simply with clasped 
hands, beautifully attired in graceful, modest robes and veil, 
the twelve stars about her head. Her hands are particularly 
beautiful, long, slender, and shapely, and the poise of her 
head upon the column-like throat is full of the gentle dignity 
of innocence. The girlish face is sweet, the features classic in 
outline, the eyes clear as limpid pools, the expression one of 
wistful sadness. There is a great simplicity about the picture, 
and the same element appears in Miiller's other Immaculate 
Conception, now in the Dresden gallery. Many critics consider 
this the finest modern painting of this subject, and it certainly 
has claims to consideration. Caught up in the clouds, the 
earth beneath her feet, the sun as a background bathing her 
blue and white robes with refulgent light, crowned with stars, 
our Lady seems to float aloft; one foot rests upon and presses 
down the dragon, emblem of satan, in whose claws is an apple, 
the emblem of sin. 

The contrasts of this picture is one of its strongest points. 
The chiaroscuro is excellently well managed, all the light fall- 
ing radiantly upon the figure of our Lady, and the darkness 



The Immaculate Conception in Art. 



— Dkesdsn Gai.l 



of earth as opposed to the light of the upper ether is signifi- 
cant of the brightness of heaven contrasted with this weary 
world. The fierce figure of the dragon, from whose mouth 
flame issues, is in marked contrast to the graceful figure of the 
Blessed Virgin with her meek attitude of adoration, her gen- 
tle, girlish face, so pure and innocent of all the evil which the 
cruel beast typifies. Very striking is the picture, very beauti- 
ful, very chaste, is our Lady. 

Of all 'portrayals of the Immaculate Conception, that of 
Grass-Buessel is to many the most satisfying. Enthroned tn 
cloud she stands, half-circled by her crescent moon, a figure 



THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION IN ART. [Dec, 



of pure grace and dignity. From tnilk-while throat to kirtle's 
hetn she is enwrapped in modest garments falling in soft lines, 
her long blue mantle sweeping behind her as if to accentuate the 
embracing sweep of her arms, which seem to take the sad 
world to her heart. The figure is simplicity ilself. She wears 
no crown; there is no jewelled border to her mantel; no 
glorious panoply for heaven's queen. The star of chastity is 
upon her brow, hers are the jewels of sweet thoughts, the 
glorious garb of truest womanhood. 



1904.] THE Immaculate Conception in Art. 323 

There dwells sweet love and constant chastity, 
Unspotted fayth and cornel}* womanhood, 
Regard of honour and myld modesty, 
There vertue raynes as ^lieene on royal throve. 

There are more beautiful faces than this one of our Lady, 
but there is no picture of the Immaculate Conception which 
seems so thoroughly satisfying. The Virgin's face is calm, 
sweety modest; it is not the radiant face of the glorified 
queen, with eyes in ecstatic vision, but that of spotless wcman, 
untouched by any hint of evil, filled with high thoughts, with 
ripest charity, with tenderest pity for all erring ones, with 
truest womanhood, with motherhood. 

There is so much of the highest beauty in the type, beauty 
of mind and soul, that we feel it was painted by one. who 
loved both his art and his ideal. Within this painter's breast 
must have dwelt great faith in womanhood, great reverence for 
motherhood, great love for the one sweet pattern and example 
of all true women, whom the chivalric old knights vowed to 
defend, '' that most sweet Lady, Mary the Immaculate." 



J^ 




324 A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. [Dec, 

A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. 

BY FATHER CUTHBERT. O.S.F.C. 

HE Conference oi English Franciscan Tertiaries, 
which was held at Leeds on September 20 and 
2 1 last, was an event which may yet prove 
noteworthy in the history of the Franciscan 
Order in England and in English-speaking 
countries. A similar conference had been held in Liverpool 
six years ago, which was marked by much enthusiasm, and 
for the first time brought English tertiaries from various parts 
together for purposes of consultation with each other touch- 
ing the welfare of their order. But the Leeds Conference was 
far more representative in character — upwards of two hundred 
delegates were present from various congregations of the order, 
and a large body of the clergy, secular and regular, represented 
the directors of the congregations. 

For the sake of those readers who are unacquainted with 
the Tertiary Order, it may be advisable to set forth briefly its 
character and object, before we proceed to describe the work 
of the conference. 

The Third Order of St. Francis is the great lay-order of 
the church. It is a religious order designed, not for the 
cloister but for the world ; its members do not give up home 
or family, nor withdraw from secular affairs; they live in the 
world. The majority of them are married men and women; 
and they are found in all ranks of society. The present 
Sovereign Pontiff, Pius X., like his predecessor, Leo XIIL, is 
a Franciscan tertiary; so too was the late Cardinal Vaughan 
and his great predecessor, Cardinal Manning. When the late 
Earl of Denbigh died the English people learned for the first 
time that he had been for many years a member of the Third 
Order. At the present moment one could mention names of 
well known members of the highest class who, beneath their 
robes of. state, wear the symbolic cord of St. Francis. In like 
manner tertiaries will be found in the commercial class. The 
writer knows many a man of business who, before he sets out 



19040 A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. 325 

to his office in the morning, recites his tertiary prayers; and 
amongst the working class the tertiaries may be counted in 
their thousands^ No rank or station in society excludes a 
man or woman from membership of the Third Order, provided 
they have the necessary qualifications of faith and character; 
for the Third Order is designed for men and women who, 
without entering the cloister, or otherwise cutting themselves 
adrift from the world's ordinary life, yet desire to live up to 
the Gospel as closely as they can. 

It is a mischievous fallacy to think that one can be a per- 
fect Christian only in the cloister, and that if he is to live in 
the world he must resign himself to a less perfect standard of 
life. The Gospel is not meant simply for monks and nuns; it 
is meant equally, and in all its integrity, for the world at large. 
Some are called by God to the life of the cloister or the priest- 
hood ; but these are necessarily the few who have a special 
function to fulfil in the economy of the church on earth. But 
all mankind is called to the perfect realization of the Gospel ; 
each man in the way God calls him. No error has done more 
mischief to souls than this, that the perfect fulfilment of the 
Christian life is attainable only under the three vows of the 
religious state. It has tended to depreciate the value of a 
truly Christian Irfe in the world — the life to which the majority 
of Christians are called — and at the same time to set the reli- 
gious state itself in a false light. For it would make the 
religious state to be a sort of ultimate degree at which all 
Ctiristians must aim if they would be true disciples of our Lord ; 
instead of being a special state set apart for those who have a 
special function in the church ; it makes the idea of the church 
at large subordinate to the idea of the religious state, instead 
of making the religious state subserve the general economy of 
the church. By way of reaction against this error we have 
seen of late years a certain tendency, on the part of some, to 
declaim against the religious state itself, as though it were 
inimical to the general welfare of the church. Thus we have 
been told that a Christian life in the world is more akin to 
the mind of Christ than is the life of the cloister. The 
reaction was to be expected ; but it need hardly be said that 
this teaching is as erroneous as the error against which it tilts. 
The religious state belongs to the economy of the church and 
will always remain, and blessed are they whom our Lord 



320 A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. [Dec, 

elects to walk in this way. Yet at the same time let us 
remember that all Christians, in the words of the apostle, are 
called to be saints; and they are called to be saints, whether 
their vocation keeps them in the world, amidst the world's 
ordinary avocations, or leads them into the way of the three 
vows. 

Yet to live a perfect Christian life in the world is peculiarly 
difficult ; and the difficulty has driven many a man and woman 
to seek security in seclusion and solitude, and has led many 
more to throw up the attempt to lead a Christian life at all. 
It has also driven many to seek strength and encouragement 
in associations which have for their object the fostering of a 
more perfect Christian life. Association with others, in the 
furthering of a purpose, often adds immeasurably to one's own 
individual strength ; what we cannot do alone we can often 
accomplish when we are united with others. " Union is 
strength," says the old adage; and it is true in the spiritual 
life as well as in this visible world. Hence the value of the 
great lay- order of the Tertiaries, in which each member strives 
to live a truly Christian life and realize in himself the teachirg 
of the Gospel, even in the midst of the world. The Third 
Order is in fact a consecration of the Christian life in the 
world ; in sanctioning the Third Order the church has empha- 
sized the truth that men and women can be perfect Christians 
even in the world; and in the organization of the Third Order, 
the church has placed what she considers a helpful means before 
the faithful of realizing the perfect Christian life in the world. 

In becoming a member of the Third Order a man therefore 
professes his desire to be a true and loyal Christain and 
purposes, in union with all the other members of the order, to 
carry out, as far as human weakness will permit, this high pur- 
pose. He does not profess to be a saint [heaven preserve us 
from those who do!] he only professes his desire to arrive at 
sanctity, and his sincere purpose to strive after it. In other 
words, the tertiary is one who takes his baptismal vows seriously 
and is anxious to give effect to them. To this end he finds in 
the Third Order various helps. In the first place he has a 
Rule of Life which is a constant reminder to him, in the midst 
of his worldly cares, of the higher purpose to which as a 
Christian he is consecrated. It is not a difficult Rule to observe ; 
'ndeed there are some who think the Rule too easy and not 



1904.] A Franciscan tertiary Conference, 327 

sufficiently exacting. But the purpose of the Rule is merely 
to assist the tertiary to fulfil his proper duties as a Christian 
in the world, and not to supplant these duties. The tertiary's 
obligation is primarily not the observance of his Rule ,but the 
falfilment of all Christian duties which fall to his lot. The 
Rule is designed not to take the place of these duties, but merely 
to stimulate the tertiary to their better performance. Hence 
the Rule exacts but few and light duties beyond those imposed 
by the ordinary Christian precepts, since its very purpose is to 
emphasize these ordinary precepts and bring about their better 
fulfilment. In the mediaeval days the Rule of the tertiaries was 
more exacting than it is to-day, in the way of specific devo- 
tions; thus the tertiaries in those days were obliged to attend 
the Divine Office or our Lady's Office, if they could read. 
But then, most devout Christians did that in those days, and 
the tertiary's Rule therefore did but impose a common practice; 
and, moreover, life was not so complex then as now and people 
had more leisure. In the.<:e days, a tertiary fulfils this duty by 
substituting twelve Paters, Aves, and Glorias for the Office, 
and thus uniting himself in spirit with the daily service of 
praise offered to God by the church. Again in mediaeval days 
tertiaries generally wore a distinctive dress or habit. To-day 
the Rule obliges the tertiary to dress simply and without extra- 
vagance ; but otherwise to dress as other people. Only beneath 
their ordinary dress they wear a scapular and cord to remind 
them of the fact that they are tertiaries, and as such must 
avoid inordinate luxury. Thus in their daily Rule of Life they 
are constantly being reminded of their Christian profession, 
and a check is put upon man's innate tendency to forget the 
spiritual in the presence of the material. 

Besides this, however, a tertiary is assisted by association 
with his fellow- tertiaries. Wherever there is a canonical con- 
gregation of tertiaries established in a mission, monthly meet- 
ings are held at which the members come togethei for prayer 
and to hear a discourse upon the tertiary life from the Father 
Director, who is usually the parish priest or his delegate. If 
a tertiary is sick or in need, the others are bound to see that 
he is cared for; for they are a fraternity, bound together in 
a special manner by the Gospel precept of brotherly love. 

And yet again is the tertiary helped by the spiritual com- 
munion he enjoys with all the members of the Franciscan 



328 A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. [Dec, 

Order — whether friars, nans, or tertiaries — in whose prayers 
and good works he shares. In these ways does the Third 
Order assist a man to the attainment of true Christian per- 
fection. 

I have said the object of the Third Order is to assi£t men 
to live truly Christian lives in the midst of the world. But 
the Christian life fulfils itself in many ways; in the sanctifica- 
tion of one*s own particular self, of one's home, of the social 
circle in which one lives, of one's nation, and so forih. And 
it is in all these ways that the Third Order operates. As a 
tertiary a man is made to realize not merely one part of his 
Christian duty, but his entire duty. He is taught that if he 
would be a good Christian, he must be a good citizen, a good 
parent or child, a loyal friend ; and it is in this sense that 
the Third Order is said to have a social mission. Wherever 
the Third Order is rightly operative, it quickens in its mem- 
bers the sense of their social obligations as well as of the 
obligation incumbent upon all Christians of personal probity. 
A tertiary congregation wherever it exists— if it properly 
realizes the intention of its seraphic founder acd the church — 
is a centre of Christian life in the fullest sense of the word; 
sanctifying not only its own members, but influencing the 
world around it according to the measure of its opportunities, 
for the fashioning of a more Christian way of life ; and this it 
does, not by preaching at others, but by the force of personal 
example. Thus, in every properly organized tertiary congre- 
gation, the members are encouraged to look after the poor, to 
visit the sick, to instruct the ignorant, and discharge the other 
works of mercy, both spiritual and corporal ; they will be 
taught to take their proper part in civic and national life; 
they are the parish priest's willing co-opeiators in the organi- 
zation of his parish; each tertiary doings hat lies to his hand. 

Such in brief is the purpose of the Third Order of St 
Francis — the greatest lay* order which has ever existed in the 
church. It was this order which more than any other brought 
about the reformation in Christian life in the thirteenth cen- 
tury when, in the words of Pope Innocent III , the edifice of 
the church seemed tottering because of the corruption of 
morals and want of faith amongst the Christian peoples. 
Without the tertiaries the friars would never have effected 
ll)f« convfr»ion of mediaeval society; it was this order of men 



I904-] A Franciscan Tertiary Conference. 329 

and women living in the world which gave effect to the 
preaching of the friars. And to-day there are many who are 
of opinion that if modern democracy is to be saved to Chrif-^ 
tianity, it will be chiefly by means of a lay- order of earnest 
Christians, such as the Third Order is. 

We have clerical orders in abundance preaching the word 
of God ; but the priest without the layman is helpless. We 
want badly at this day a lay-apostolate to complete the cleri- 
cal apostolate ; else we shall make but little headway against 
the masses of infidelity and worldliness to which the church is 
opposed. The late Pope, Leo XIII.» did not hesitate to point 
to the Third Order of St. Francis as the organization best 
fitted for the present need. In this order he saw the nurser)r* 
of a new lay-apostolate, such as the church needs to-day; and 
for that reason he wrote an encyclical letter to the bishops, 
urging them to take up this order and propagate it through- 
out the Catholic world ; and at the same time he remodelled 
the Rule, bringing it into accord with modern life. But in re- 
modelling the Rule he, with his keen foresight, made it as 
simple as possible, leaving a wide latitude for its adaptation 
to local needs. It was the intention of the Pontiff that the 
tertiaries in each province and country should make themselves 
an effective organization for the propagating of a higher 
standard of life and the maintaining of the faith. In the Rule 
he did little more than indicate the general lines upon which 
they were to run ; leaving it to the tertiaries themselves, and 
their ecclesiastical superiors, to adapt these principles to local 
needs. 

To give effect to this intention of the Pope has been the 
object of the national conferences of tertiaries, held of late 
years in most European countries. At the Leeds Conference 
a two-fold object was present in the minds of the organizers : 
to bring the order into touch with the larger needs of the 
church in England, and to discuss certain questions of inter- 
nal organization. Yet another object, apart from the confer- 
ence proper, was to bring the tertiaries of England together, 
that they might know something of each other and be made 
to feel they were all members of a widely spread order. This 
object was felicitously commended by the Bishop of Shrews- 
bury, the Right Rev. Dr. Allen, who presided at the meetings, 
in the name of the Bishop of Leeds, who unfortunately was 



330 A Franciscan Tertiary Conference. [Dec, 

prevented by illness from being present. At the inaugural 
meeting, on the evening of September 20, the bishop said : 
' • This \s not only a conference but a reunion. We have come 
here not merely to discuss matters of importance regarding 
the Third Order, but to meet our fellow-tertiaries from vari- 
ous parts of the country, and to get to know something of 
each other; and I am sure we shall all go home again better 
tertiaries, not only because of the papers we shall listen to 
and hear discussed, but because of our meeting with each 
other." This was in effect the main idea of Bishop Allen's 
address. It was well that we should be reminded of the value 
of personally meeting those with whom we are united in pur- 
pose and calling ; it sounded the dee'p human note of Chris* 
tian brotherhood, without which all discussions are in vain. 
What many of us regretted was that the programme of the 
conference left us too little time to get to know much of each 
other. 

The conference began on the evening of September 20, in 
the Cathedral, with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament 
given by the Bishop of Shrewsbury. After the Benediction 
Bishop Allen, assisted by Bishop Hanlon, of Uganda, formally 
received the delegates in the Albert Hall, one of the largest 
halls in Leeds, which was hired for the purposes of the con- 
ference. The reception was attended not only by the dele- 
gates, but by all the tertiaries in Leeds and the neighborhood ; 
so that about a thousand persons were present, including nearly 
one hundred of the clergy. A lantern lecture on the life of 
Blessed Sir Thomas More, the great Chancellor of England 
who suffered for his faith under Henry VIIL, formed part of 
the evening's programme. Blessed Thomas More, if not a 
tertiary — the point is disputed — was yet a friend of the Fran- 
ciscan friars; and, in any case, his life was one that might 
well be put before any man who wishes to be a true Christian 
in the world. Hence the appropriateness of the lecture on 
this occasion. 

The next morning Mass was celebrated for the tertiaries 
by Bishop Hanlon, and after the Mass a short sermon was 
preached by Monsignor Cowgill, secretary to the Bishop of 
Leeds. Then at ten o'clock began the first session of the con- 
ference. The papers discussed at this session dealt with the 
action of tertiaries in regard to raising the tone of the home- 



1904.] A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. 33 1 

life of our people: to the education crisis^ to tctnperance, and 
to charitable works. On these questions resolutions were sub- 
mitted pledging tertiaries to use their influence especially 
amongst the poor^ to urge people to attend Mass on Sundays, 
to stand loyally by the bishops in fighting for pur schools, to 
support the rescue societies, and to abstain from intoxicating 
liquors at least between meals. 

In the afternoon session the papers dealt chiefly with the 
internal organization of the order. Special stress was laid, 
during these discussions, upon the need of observing regularly 
the annual visitation of the congregations, whereby the spirit 
of the order is kept alive; also upon the adaptability of the 
order to local and parochial needs. Tertiaries were reminded 
that the success of their apostolate depends upon their due 
obedience to their parish priests and the bishops. It was also 
urged that every congregation should, if possible, have its aid 
society, for helping the indigent members of the parish. The 
St. Francis Aid Society — an organization already attached to 
some congregations — was especially commended. This society, 
although controlled by the tertiaries, yet admits to its mem^ 
bership non-tertiaries. It consists of three grades: i. Those 
who give direct personal service to the poor, visiting the sick, 
etc. ; 2. Those who make garments, and indirectly give per- 
sonal service; 3. Those who simply subscribe to the funds of 
the society. The society is under the immediate direction of 
the priest of the parish, who also has control of the funds. 
There is no outside control of the work of the society, which 
is entirely parochial. Such a society would be of incalculable 
benefit in bringing the tertiaries as an order into touch with 
the poor; thus enabling them to fulfil more widely that ser- 
vice of compassion for the sick and needy which St. Francis 
most earnestly commended to his disciples. 

The conference was brought to a close at the evening 
meeting, which was largely attended even by non-tertiaries. 
The principal item at this meeting was an address by the 
Father Provincial of the English Capuchin Franciscans, upon 
the connection of the Franciscans in days past with the Eng- 
glish nation, and the part they took in the making of its his- 
tory, from the days when Simon de Montfort, a tertiary, brought 
About the English House of Commons to the day when Henry 
VIII. divorced his tertiary queen, Katharine of Aragon. It 

TOU LXXX.— 22 



332 A FRANCISCAN TERTIARY CONFERENCE. [Dec., 

was an eloquent address and a fitting close to the day's pro- 
ceedings. ' And then the conference passed into the domain of 
history. Any account of the conference, however, which omitted 
the name of the chief organizer. Father Joseph, O.S.F.C, 
would be faulty. But for .the zeal and energy of this father 
the conference would not have taken place ; he was the initia- 
tor and the soul of the whole work. 

In reflecting afterwards upon the' proceedings of the con- 
ference, that which struck the writer most forcibly was the 
earnestness of the assembled tertiaries, and their evident ambi- 
tion to give effect to the full to the design of the order. 
They referred but little to the glories of the order in the past, 
that foible of institutions which have lost their vitality ; but 
they came with eyes fixed on the future, and intent to learn 
what their order was expected to do to-day. This note of 
actuality was in fact the most promising sign of the confer- 
ence, and shows that with effective leadership the tertiaries 
might easily become a force in the church of the immediate 
future. A well-known ecclesiastic once remarked that the great 
weakness of religious orders and institutions is their tendency 
tu live upon their capital ; to seek recognition, not upon the 
utreuKth of their merits to-day, but rather upon the glory of 
ihnlr founders and upon, past achievements. Happily the ter- 
tUrtrii at Leeds showed no weakness in that direction. They 
ni0t to learn in what way they might best accomplish their 
f4|)Otitolate in our own time, and not to congratulate themselves 
upun what their brethren of former days had done in their time. 
Indeed, but for the closing address of the Father Provincial, 
(ifie might have said that the legitimate claim of the past to 
remembrance had been too much ignored. And what, it may be 
Hbkad, was the weak spot revealed in the conference? This, it 
W4tt generally admitted, is in the organization of the order. 
Tlia organization is still not sufficiently adapted to the need of 
to- day. Doubtless it will come in time, since the need is felt 
411(1 not ignored. The proper organization of the tertiaries 
domandfi that they be at once under the direction of the local 
clergy, and yet in close contact with their brethren of the First 
Order. This contact with the First Order is absolutely neces- 
to»iry, if the tertiaries are to maintain their proper spirit and 
ti edition. Without this contact the various tertiary congrega- 
\\nu^ svould develop into mere local organizations, divergent in 



I904-] A Franciscan Tertiary Conference. 333 

aim and in character, and thus the order would beccme a mere 
name for a mass of incoherent units ; it would lose that liv- 
ing tradition of Franciscan life, which is of far more value, to 
the tertiary than even the written rule. Hence the necessity 
of the annual visitation, which is to be made always by a friar 
of the First Order. At the same time the tertiaries belong to 
the church and exist for the church, and thus necessarily ccrce 
under the ordinary control of the bishops and parochial clergy. 
Further, the local ''congregation" is the proper unit of the 
Third Order; and each local congregation is practically au- 
tonomous, save for the correctionary power of the visitor, 
appointed to hold the canonical visitation, who, according to 
the Rule, is to correct abuses ; but beyond this he has no power 
of interference in the government of the congregation. The 
bishop, oi course, has his ordinary jurisdiction ; without his 
permission no congregation can be established, and he can, 
for a reasonable cause, dissolve a congregation. Practically, 
however, the direction of the congregation is in the bands 
of the local priest. The diiScuIty is — how to preseive local 
autonomy of the congregations, which is essential to its proper 
organization, and yet bring them into closer relations for com- 
mon objects; and further, to do this in such a way that the 
Third Order will remain closely bound up with the parochial 
organization of the church. What is needed is that the vari- 
ous congregations of a district, or diocese, should be able to 
unite in matters affecting the welfare of Christian society in 
the district or diocese. The liational conference already is 
bringing tertiaries together on questions affectirg matters of 
national importance; but some machinery is needed to bricg 
the congregations into touch with their more immediate neigh- 
bors, without destroying their proper autonomy. Perhaps it 
may eventually come about that the congregations of every 
diocese will be in some way associated under the direction of 
the bishop. Given such an association, there is no reason why 
the Third Order should not become a most effective means of 
fostering Catholic life and propagating the spirit of the Gospel 
in every diocese and parish; and the bishop of the diocese 
would thus be brought into more direct contact with the 
order. The weakness of the order at present is, in fact, that 
the diocesan bishops have no place in the ordinary direction 
of an order which, by its constitution, is a lay- order and inti- 



334 The Cry of Motherhood. [Dec, 

mately bound up with parochial organization. An arrangement 
that would give such power to the bishops would meet the 
difficulty set forth by one speaker at the Leeds Conference. 
He was referring to the fact that not infrequently a tertiary 
congregation will flourish for some years, and then will flicker 
out; and he remarked that this is often due to a change of 
priest in the mission ; a priest who takes a great interest in 
the Third Order will be succeeded by the one who knows 
nothing about it and cares less, and sp no concern is shown in 
the tertiary congregation ; its meetings become merely formal 
and its energy flags. Were the congregation in some way 
under the supervision of the bishop, this would not so easily 
happen* Here, then, is the weak point to be remedied, and 
perhaps, before another English conference meets, something 
will be done in this direction. 



THE CRY OF MOTHERHOOD. 

BY WILLIAM J. FISCHER. 

What have I done that Thou should'st pierce my breast 
With this new grief? O God of pity ! Spare 
This little babe — this angel ! Do not tear 

Life's string — 'tis breaking fast — but let him rest 

In my strong arms, his little heart close-pressed 
To mine ! O God of mercy ! Hear my prayer 
Floating, upon the night-wings, black and bare ! 

Lord ! Let him live — he knows my voice the best ! 

Then, some [day, I will teach his lips, so red. 

To sing Thy praises; should'st Thou take his life, 
'Twould break my heart. 'Tis all that I possess. 

This baby-love of his — all else is dead. 
Ah 1 Thou wilt spare him, Lord ? Then life's fierce strife 
Still holds for me a sweetness, I confess. 



1904.] A Christmas Story. 535 



A CHRISTMAS STORY. 



BY GRACE V. CHRISTMAS. 




;T was Christinas Eve, and one of those dull, leaden 
afternoons which one sometimes sees in the Bay 
of Naples. The ** Syren Sea " lay calm and 
placid as a steel mirror, its opaline tints vanished, 
its white dancing waves at rest. Capri had 
shrouded herself in a thick veil, her fair outlines only faintly 
discernible through its folds, and a gray, gossamer-like mist 
seemed to hang between heaven and earth. Not a ray of sun- 
shine was visible, nor a vestige of blue in the cloudy expanse 
of sky. 

"It does not feel a bit like Christmas," rcmatked M^bel 
Clive as she stood by the window of a private sitting room in 
the Hotel Grande Bretagne at Naples, " don't you wish the 
sun would come out, Mollie?" 

MoUie, otherwise Mrs. Percy Waterton, looked up frcm 
the silk tie she was knitting with an absolutely contented ex* 
pression of countenance. 

" Can't say I care one way or the other," she returEcd 
placidly. ''This thing was bothering me rather yesterday, but 
I have got the hang of it now and I guess I shall worry 
through. Say, Mabs, what afe you looking so doleful about ? 
You seemed to be having a real good time, up to yesterday, 
and last night all of a sudden you got a fit of the blues. 
Come, tell me all about it — you will feel ever so much better 
when you have talked it out. I don't believe in bottled 
miseries, with the cork jammed in so tight that it won't 



move." 



The girl left the window and threw herself into a low 
chair beside her friend. She was a very good type of the 
American girl at her best — delicate featured and dainty, with 
a dazzlingly fair complexion, and that expression of refined 
spirituality which, although frequently existing, is seldcm seen 
in an outward and visible form in the faces of Englishwrn:en. 



33* A Christmas Story. [D 

''I meant to tell you all about it/' she said, "only; oh! 
well, I wanted to choose my own time for it — I wanted to — to 
sort myself a little first. He is here, Mollie ; I saw his name 
last night after dinner in the book, and — and his wife is with 
him ! There, its out now, and I just catCi bear it ! " 

Mrs. Waterton dropped the silk tie into her lap and gazed 
at her companion with amazement ".written large" on her 
bright, expressive face. 

" But, Mabs," she exclaimed, " you refused him last fall ; 
said you were not going to walk through life as an appendage 
to a bDreJ-looklng Englishman's dignity; said — I don't know 
what you didn't say! — and now — " 

"Yes, now; that is just it! . Oh, Mollie! can't you realize 
that it is what a woman has not got, and can't possibly get, 
that she sometimes wants more than anything else in the 
worki? I suppose you can't though," she added impatiently; 
" you accepted Percy the moment he asked you, and the whole 
affair was quite straightforward and commonplace and approved 
of by all parties concerned. There has been no element of the 
— the unexpected, the unattainable, in your life." 

" No ; thank heaven ! " replied Mrs. Waterton with much 
fervor. "I prefer beaten tracks, my dear; you know where 
they will lead you. But I don't see why you dragged Percy 
into the question ; and it seems a pity," she went on reflect- 
ively, "that, as you are now evidently hankering after Major 
Tracy, you did not realize his attractions when he was attain- 
able. You took the news of his engagement pretty coolly, by 
the way, and you must have been prepared for his marriage; 
30 why are you so upset about It to-day ? " 

" It — what was that expression he was so fond of using ? — 
' it rubs it in,' " returned Mabel dolefully ; " and then, when I 
saw their names in the book — Major and Mrs. Tracy — it — it 
made it all seem more real ! It doesn't seem to matter so much 
when a man has a wife at a distance, its the seeing them 
together that — well, that ' rubs it in,' you know." 

" I don't know ! " returned her friend with decision. " As 
you observed before, my love affair was straightforward and 
commonplace ; and I can't picture myself wanting either a thing 
or a person just because it was out of my reach." 

But as she spoke something in the girl's face checked ber, 
%x\i\ nhe put out her hand. 



.1904-] A Christmas Story. 337 

''Mabs, dear child! you don't mean that you really care?" 
she whispered. 

Mabel Clive rose to her feet impatiently and went over to 
the: window again. 

'" Oh \ don't let us talk any more about it," she exclaimed. 
"It can't be helped anyhow, and I am just going to put the 
whole thing out of- my thoughts and enjoy life again. I can 
do it, Molly; so — don't you dare to say I can^t ! " 

But her voice was not quite so steady and self-reliart as 
usual, ;and> Mrs. Watertoh, who possessed the somewhat rare 
gift of understanding that which she had never experienced, 
returned to her knitting and began -to talk about something 
else. 

And as Mabel stood gazing out at the gray expanse of 
sea and sky there came a brightening in the West, the misty 
veil quivered beneath the influence of a tender ray of light, 
aod the sun emerged from his hiding place to shed one last 
smile upon the world before he sank to rest. Under his trans- 
forming touch the solid bank of clouds dispersed a little ; 
Capri, in the form of a recumbent woman, reappeared in all 
her beauty, and the sea shone like burnished steel beneath his 
farewell kisses. 

Table d'h6te that evening was a very crowded affair, and 
as Mrs. Waterton and Mabel made their somewhat tardy ap- 
pearance on the scene, and seated themselves at the little 
table specially reserved for them, they saw that every place 
was full. 

There was also a Babel-like confusion of tongues. A long- 
haired German professor was discussing the " Roman ques- 
tion" with a meek-looking little Pole; a group of French- 
women were chattering together like so many magpies; and a 
sob of Erin, with the unmistakable Dublin brogue, was mak- 
ing himself eminently agreeable to a blue-eyed Swedish widow ; 
and now and then were heard the low tones of Englishmen 
and women exchanging languid remarks with the members of 
their own particular party. Near the door sat a tall, dark 
nian of about thirty-five, with "soldier" written all over him; 
^nd as Mrs. Waterton's gaily roving eyes fell upon him she 
glanced anxiously at her companion. 

" Have you seen him, Mabs ? " 



3J8 A Christmas Story. [Dec, 

"Yes"; was the reply uttered in a totte of would-be in- 
difference; ''and his wife, too. She is rather nice-looking, is 
she not ? " 

It was a mild epithet to apply to the fatr^ graceful woman 
who was sitting beside Major Tracy. A black gowA showed 
off the* da2zling pink and white of her cotaptexion, her some- 
what dreamy gray eyes were shaded with drooping lashes, and 
a mass of ruddy brown hair was piled high on her dainty 
head. 

''Nice-looking!" returned Mrs. Waterton dubiously; "I 
should rather think so. But, all the same, I should doubt 
his finding her amusing— 'and he is a man who likes to be 
amused. How he used to laugh at some of your speeches, 
Mabs! What a pity—" and she broke off abruptly and 
became all at once deeply interested in her sole a la maitie 
d'h6tel. 

" I was a little fool ! " remarked Mabel with conviction ; 
'*but that is all over, and don't remind me of it again, 
Mollie t " 

When dinner was over Mrs. Waterton glanced inquiringly 
in Mabel's direction. " Shall we go out first, or wait till ihey 
have gone ? " she asked. 

" Oh, wait ! I — I don't feel that I can speak to him, 
Mollie." 

As she spoke Major Tracy rose; and, after a low- toned 
remark to his companion, they both left the dining- room. 

"They must have got upstairs by now," said Mrs. Water- 
ton a momenr or two later. Her thoughts were turning lov- 
ingly to her silk tie and the peaceful seclusion of her sitting- 
room. " Come along, Mabs ! " 

When they had reached the hall, however, Mabel cast a 
reproachful glance at her^friend, and uttered a half- stifled ex- 
clamation, for Major Tracy was standing alone at the further 
end in the act of lighting a cigarette. 

" If you pinch my arm like that, Mabs, I shall scream, and 
that will inevitably attract his attention," murmured Mrs. 
Waterton. " Come, there is no help for it, you must ' face 
the music,' my good girl"; and then the cause of their 
dismay advanced to meet them, his dark eyes alight with 
pleasure. ^ 

" Miss Clive I what a fortunate chance ! How d'ye do, Mrs. 



1904.] A Christmas Story. 339 

Waterton ? I did not think I should spend Christmas Day in 
SBch pleasant company." 

The elder woman held out her hand with a conventional 
phrase of i^reeting, and the rosy color rushed to the girl's 
(ace and then receded, leaving her deadly pale. Major Tracy 
looked at her curiously ; he had eyes which saw things and 
people, and they are quite different to those which merely 
look at them. At their last meeting, and parting, some eigh- 
teen months before, her expression and her whole manner bad 
betokened a calm indifference, mingled perhaps with a touch 
of amused disdain — for the pretty American girl was quite 
accustomed to rejecting admirers, and could never (altogether 
bring herself to believe in the sincerity and depth of their 
protestations. But now there was a change, and as he stood, 
"making conversation" about the weather and the scenery, 
he mentally resolved to find out the reason why. 

''I am going upstairs, MoUie," remarked Mabel with a 
touch of defiance in her voice. And without another word she 
made her escape. Robert Tracy watched the slight, graceful 
figure as it disappeared, and then he turned eagerly to the 
somewhat discomfited lady at his side. 

" What is the matter with her, Mrs. Waterton ? " he asked 
eagerly. "Tell me — you were always my friend in the old 
days — has she altered at all; with regard to me, I mean?" 

Mrs. Waterton turned to face him, an indignant flash in her 
eyes. 

" I don't understand you," she said, a most unusual gravity 
both in her tone and on her features. You have extraordinary 
ideas, you English, on a good many subjects — that fact I have 
quite a firm hold on after my many visits to your country — 
but I should have given you credit for being a better judge 
of character than you apparently are. What difference can it 
make to you now whether Miss Clive has ' altered,' as you call 
it, or not ? " 

She paused for a reply, and her auditor gazed at her in 
a surprise which momentarily deprived him of the power of 
speech. 

She was " cutting up rough," he reflected, and she had 
always been such a cheery, easy-going little woman too in 
the days that were. 



340 A Christmas Story. [Dec, 

'VBecause she refused me, do you mean?" he inquired in 
a far meeker tone than any of hi9 friends or acquaintances had 
ever heard from him. 

** What has that to do with it ? ** snapped Mrs. Waterton, 
who had arrived at the end of her patience — a fact which in 
her case was invariably accomplished with much celerity. *'If 
you imagine/' she went on, her wrath rising with every syl- 
lable sKe uttered ; " if you imagine that Mable Clive is the 
sort of girl to embark upon .a quasi-sentimental, quasi-platonic 
friendship with a married man, you are making a greater mis- 
take than you ever made in the whole course of your leisurely, 
dawdling existence. And you are a Catholic, too," she ended 
reproachfully ; '' and you used to be such a nice fellow, with 
limitations of course — like most of your countrymen— but nice, 
notwithstanding — " 

She turned to leave him, and at her movement Major 
Tracy's bewilderment gave way to speech : ** I say, stop an 
instant, Mrs. Waterton, you are taking things altogether too 
much for granted ; and besides — well, hang me if I know quite 
what you are driving at I In the first place, I did not know I 
was a married man, and — " 

" Not married ? " shrieked Mrs. Waterton. " Heaven grant 
me patience — what will the man say next ? Why, she was 
with you at dinner — a regular statuesque Erglish beauty, with 
that ' don't presume to address m^ ' expression which they 
always put on for a table d'hote, and your names are down in 
the book, Mabs saw them last night — Major and Mrs. Tracy — 
not married, indeed I " 

Robert Tracy's former expression of injured surprise was 
immediately replaced by one of intense and relieved amuse- 
ment. 

" Jove ! " he exclaimed, " that is a good one ! Mrs. Tracy 
is my sister-in-law, my elder brother's wife, and she has come 
here with me to meet him on his return from India." 

" What ! " exclaimed his dismayed listener. And then the 
full humor of the situation overcame her and she went off in- 
to a fit of helpless laughter. 

" Mabs has made a mountain out of a molehill this time ! " 
she gasped out when she could speak coherently. "And to 
think how I have been improving the occasion 1 Its just too 



1904.] A Christmas Story. 341 

lovely for anything! But surely/' as a recollection occurred 
to her, '* you got engaged to some one, I forget the name ; 
we saw it announced, Mabs and I, in one of your silly little 
society papers ? " 

" That was my cousin, Rupert ; we are in the same regi- 
ment, too, and are always getting mixed up in people's minds. 
I have never had the faintest wish to be engaged to any one 
since — since last autumn ; and you can mention that fact to 
Miss Clive, if you like," he added in a lower tone. 

''Perhaps 1 will," returned Mrs. Waterton with a quizzical 
glance at his. grave fac6. " And — in the nieantime, I will wish 
you a very happy Christmas I " 

And with another irrepressible laugh she left him. Up* 
stairs in their sitting-room Mabel Clive was standing again by 
the window. A perfectly clear night had succeeded the dull 
gray day. Capri lay bathed in moonlight, and the placid 
waters of the Mediterranean were one sheet of silver. The 
silent stars kept watch and ward over noisy Naples from the 
sapphire-hued sky above, and the peace and rest of the holy 
season stole softly into the girl's troubled soul. 




|43 THE MESSAGE OF CHRISTMAS. [Dec., 

THE MESSAGE OF CHRISTMAS. 

, BY REVEREND J. T. DRISCOLL, S.T.L. 

ORY to God and Peace on Earth," is the 

Christmas hymn, chiming bells ring ont its pure 

music on the crisp morning air. It speaks the 

" glad tidings of great joy " which heaven brought 

to earth or angel voices that first Christmas 

night. It sounds as sweet and as soul-stirring to-day, as it 

did to the shepherds who watched their flocks on the hillsides 

of Judea. In spirit we kneel at the crib of Bethlehem ; the 

light from the divine Child shines around us and warms our 

cold and hardened hearts. In bumbling acts of adoration we 

rise nearer to God and feel our souls expanding with sympathy 

and good will to our fellow-men. 

Christmas never grows old. In anticipation we look for- 
ward and prepare for its coming. Young and old, rich and 
poor, share its hallowed joys. The humility and poverty of 
the Infant Redeemer appear glorified by an inborn radiance. 
The shepherds and Magi felt it and adored. Like thera we too 
are conscious that before us are revealed a higher and more 
sacred law and order of being. This sense of a hidden power 
in the person of the Infant Redeemer, which casts its subtle 
influence over our whole being and generates a purer moral 
atmosphere, explains the peculiar charm and hold of Christmas 
on our lives. 

The central truth of Christmas is the incarnation of the 
Son of God. From it radiate the light and warmth which 
give to the day its transfigured glory. The human mind can- 
not penetrate the counsels of divine wisdom. The only attitude 
is of awe and humility before the omnipotence of God's mercy. 
The prophecies of the Old Testament, the words and acts ol 
our divine Redeemer, furnish the reasons of faith and give the 
assurance for our assent. We adore the Word made flesh, 
though our eyes are holden to the splendor of the divine 
majesty which lies veiled under the vesture of human nature. 



1904-] THE Message of Christmas. 343 

Not so much what Christinas is in itself as its message to 
us claims attention. The latter results from the former, yet it 
is closer and effects us more readily. The peculiar atmosphere 
of Christmas D^ awakens elevated and joyous feelings, and we 
yield to them without clearly knowing why. There is a light 
in our minds, a peace in our hearts, a glad ring to our voice, 
a happy welcome on our face. Is it because we near the day 
on which the Saviour's birth is commemorated ? This is the 
great reason for rejoicing, but there are other reasons springing 
from this with a more sensible, appeal to our minds, even 
though at first we do not readily translate them into words. 

Christmas reveals to the world the sublime dignity of 
human nature. In the crib of Bethlehem the Incarnate Son 
becomes like unto us. In taking upon himself that which he 
was not, writes St. Augustine, he did not lose that which 
he was. The temporal sonship of the Eternal Word implies 
the glorification of our common humanity. Heaven and earth, 
the Wise Men, and the shepherds bore witness to this first 
act of redemption. And, with the dawn of each recurring Christ- 
mas morning, rich and poor, high and lowly-born, feel their 
souls thrill in responsive answer to the glad tidings of a 
redeemed and exalted humanity. We are not on a level with 
the brute ; in the beginning, by the law of creation, God made 
us according to his own image and likeness; in the fulness of 
time the divine seal was placed upon his work, with the 
assumption of our human nature by his own] Eternal Son, 
who is "the express image oS the Father." In the Infant 
Redeemer we get an insight into the humility of the Son of 
God, and the sublimation of mankind. It is the outpouring of 
"the riches of grace" and of "the riches of glory." The mind, 
elevated and glorified by its union with the Divine, is impressed 
with the conscious realization of an inborn dignity. On our 
lips the angel hymn of Glory to God, wells forth with more 
conscious melody, for the deepest feelings of our hearts breathe 
through the words and give to them a peculiar timbre and 
tone. 

The dignity to which our human nature was raised in the 
crib of Bethlehem is not a nameless one. The apostle calls it 
"the adoption of sonship." In the supernatural covenant of 
the Incarnate Son we became sons of God, and brethren of 
Christ; Jesus is our elder brother by participation in our com- 



344 THE Message of Christmas. [Dec, 

mon humanity ; in the designs of God the human race becomes 
one great family. Class distinctions fade away and disappear; 
there is no Jew or Gentile, Greek or Barbarian, bond or free. 
We are all children of one Father. The seal <A our sonship 
is the Christ- child in the manger. The spirit of brotherhood 
is the spirit of Christmas. It is not a kinship with the lower 
creation which fills our souls with warmth and gladness; 
Christmas uplifts and purifies. The good tidings of great joy 
is a message to redeemed humanity. By our own efforts we 
could not rise so high ; God becomes our Immanuel and dwells 
with US; in becoming like to us by the assumption of our 
human nature, that we should rise and become like to him by 
the participation of divine grace. God is not at a distance; 
he is very near. And as the Christmas bells ring out the- 
joyous carol, we seem to feel the heavens open and the glad 
light of God's presence shining round us, and the music as the 
music of heavenly voices penetrating our souls with the sense 
of our new-born heritage, and the awe that steals over us, as 
the effect of close contact with the divine presence. 

A new order of redeemed and exalted humanity, therefore, 
is the message of Christmas. It commemorates the initial act of 
a life which has redeemed and uplifted mankind. Every circum- 
stance of the day bids us remember our sublime dignity ; the glad 
bells ring it out far and near, the hymns and the liturgy express 
the lesson in heaven-inspired words; the humble crib in the church 
pictures it vividly to our eyes ; we can understand how the 
scene impresses us, how Christmas above all other days gladdens 
our hearts. The marvelous message of a transfigured humanity, 
so wonderful yet so appealing, lifts us out of and above the 
heavy toil of daily life, and opens up before our gaze a new 
sphere of boundless possibilities, stretching out beyond the limits 
of earthly existence, and losing itself in the immensity of 
eternal joys in heaven. " Behold I bring you glad tidings of 
great joy, for this day there is born to you a Saviour, who is 
Christ the Lord." 

Christmas not only reveals this higher order of being in the 
adoption of sonship ; it teaches a more exalted law of life. 
A new ethical code was revealed to the world, and its procla- 
mation dates from the crib of Bethlehem ; a new ideal of 
human endeavor was presented to the minds of men, ar.d took 
concrete shape and form in the life of the Incarnate Son. 



I904.] THE MESSAGE OF CHRISTMAS. 345 

The Christ* child marks the dawn of a new era by the mani- 
festation of a new and higher life, and by the revelation of 
the principles and laws of this life. Hence \ie speak of Chris- 
tian civilization and of the Christian spirit whote expression it 
is. In the crib of Bethlehem is found the source of this new 
moral atmosphere which has purified and transfornred man- 
kind. There we behold the initial act of a life \ihich has im- 
pressed the world as none other; the revelation of the sub- 
lime perfection which human activity could attain was first 
unfolded to the eyes of men. 

On that first Christmas night the angels sang " Peace on 
Earth." Long years before the prophet had foretold that the 
Messiah would come as " the- Prince of Peace." Peace, there- 
fore, is a characteristic of a Christian life; it welcomed the 
birth of the Redeemer, and it is a .factor in the last testament 
of Christ to his apostles on the night before his passion: 
" My peace I leave, unto you, not as the world giveth, do I 
give to you." And the apostle in speaking of this peace, 
" which surpasseth all understanding," tells us that it is had by 
"keeping our minds and hearts in Christ Jesus." In the at- 
mosphere of Christmas peace we are conscious of a higher 
law than human instinct or natural reason. The perfect mani- 
festation of this law is seen in the life of Christ, and obedi- 
ence to it is had in the following of Christ. He becomes our 
model, and in every act of his life is discerned not the 
majesty of brute force, but the splendor of moral perfection. 

Peace means unity and harmony of action. Human nature, 
as revealed in our own conscious experience, or in the lives 
of those we meet in daily converse, presents a strange medley 
of warring elements ; we are the prey of desires and ambitions. 
We cannot stifle our feelings, for they are a part of our 
being, but we can direct them to a proper subordination. 
This is done by a just appreciation of the objects we seek, 
and by the possession of true ideals. Thus habits of conduct 
are formed which give character and spirit to life ; the color 
and tone of our lives are imparted by the purposes and aims 
of our actions; we look out upon the world and ask what it 
bids us seek after? Content, exclaims the pagan philosopher; 
pleasure, wealth, high position, and honors, answers the 
worldly man. These cannot give the peace our souls long 
for, cannot impart the harmony and poise which we are dimly 



346 THE Message of Christmas. [Dec, 

conscious should reign within. The human heart is too broad 
and deep to be satisfied with what this world can o£Fer. We 
turn to the crib of Bethlehem. No cold, passive content is 
there; no wealth, or pleasure, or high worldly position meets 
our eyes ; but a light, a joy, a peace radiate from the divine 
Child, pervade the air, and penetrate into the depths of our 
souls. In the Christ-child is beheld the supremacy of the 
ethical ideal, the perfect manifestation of the supernatural life. 
Human ideals and life purposes shrink into insignificance. We 
stand in the presence of something higher and holier. The 
spirit of Christmas awes and overshadows us. By following 
the divine ideal, first exemplified in the Infant Redeemer, 
with God's supernatural help do we rise to the full stature and 
perfection of our manhood. Only thus is obtained the full 
and perfect synthesis of the various activities which cause 
conflict, bitterness, and despair in the life of the individual. 
By reaching out and up to God, in the effort to imitate the 
life of the Incarnate Son, may rich and poor, high and low, 
share to their fulness in the Christmas joys. Whether we 
stand with the Magi in richness and splendor, or with the 
shepherds in poverty and suffering, we each alike gaze upon 
the Infant Saviour and behold the glorification of our common 
humanity. Moral perfection and holiness of life can be attained 
by all; we are called to be children of God, and we must 
make our ' calling sure by the perfection of our lives. The 
blessing of the Christmas peace falls with more unction upon 
us the more faithfully we strive to be influenced by the spirit 
of Christ. 

Akin to the message of peace, and partly its cause, is the 
beautiful lesson of charity. Christmas is the feast of God's 
mercy, and God's mercy is the expression of divine love for 
sinners. The reason why the Eternal Son became man is 
hidden in the ineffable depths of God's goodness and loving 
kindness. The spirit of divine love envelops the crib of 
Bethlehem. In the birth of the Incarnate Son we not only 
received the adoption of sonship, but also the law whereby 
we should act as sons of God. Charity is the end and sum- 
mary of all God's precepts regulating human conduct. The 
angel hymn, " Peace on Earth to Men of Good- will," is the 
first promulgation of the new law which reigns in the new 
covenant between God and man made in the person of the 



1904.] The message of Christmas. 347 

Infant Redeemer. ' We are to love one another as Christ hath 
loved tts; and the love of our brethren is the effect and proof 
of our love of God; divine charity is the bond and the spirit 
of redeemed mankind — it expresses in human action our adop- 
tion of sonship. We thus act as sons of God and brethren 
one of another, after the model of Christ, our elder brother. 
The glad greeting of Merry Christmas is a pledge of brother- 
hood. We are one great family, members one of another, and 
the head is Christ. Instinctively our hearts rise and expand 
at the thought. We are conscious of our great dignity and 
the consciousness begets feelings of sweet humility and joy- 
ous helpfulness. 

No wonder that Christmas is above all others the family 
day. The scene at Bethlehem brings vividly to mind family 
ties and affections. A transfigured atmosphere of peace and 
love breathes around the home. The gifts and tenders of affec- 
tion cement more closely the sacred ties of family life. The 
peace and love of this hallowed time shines like a halo around 
us; it goes with us as we hasten through the crowded streets; 
it brightens and cheers those we meet. There are no strangers 
on Christmas Day ; we are all brothers by virtue of our kin- 
ship with the Christ-child. There is no enmity, or strife, or 
hard and cold resentment; but peace and joy, and loving 
kindpesB to all. 



VOL LXXX- 23 



348 Darwinism on its Deathbed, fDec., 



DARWINISM ON ITS DEATHBED. 

BY WILLIAM SETON, LL.D. 

IT may perhaps interest some readers of THE 
Catholic World to know what naturalists 
think to day of Darwin's hypothesis of natural 
selection — a hypothesis which certain well-mean- 
ing persons, to whom the wish may be father to 
the thought, would have us believe is no longer in favor in 
acientific circles. And here let us say, with all due respect, 
that in opposing the Darwinian theory as one of the efficient 
causes of organic evolution, the worthy gentlemen who have 
r.ecently presented to the Catholic public a book, entitled At 
tht Deathbed of Darwinism,* are, in our opinion, protesting in 
Viin. rh;y are crying down a theory which has been, and is 
■ till, stronjly upheld by miny min of scientific attainment. 

But, before we begin our inquiry into the present standing 
of Darwin's celebrated hypothesis, we must declare that too 
much praise cannot be bestowed on the book above-mentioned 
for what it says of Haeckel's production. The Riddle of the 
Universe. We heartily thank Mr. Edwin V. O'Harra for scoring 
Haeckel as he does in the preface, page 24 \ nor do we for a 
moment believe that Charles Darwin would have countenanced 
Haeckel's superficial, exaggerated. Godless view ; f and this 
makes us all the more regret that so many pages of this book 
should be devoted to the utter condemnation of the theory of 
natural selection. 

But here we must observe that Darwinism and evolution 
arc not synonymous terms. Evolution, or the doctrine that all 
living beings are the descendants of some few originally created, 
is very ancient ; it comes down to us from the Greeks, and 
we know of no better history of the evolution idea than Pro- 
fessor H. F. Osborn's From the Greeks to Darwin. But while 

■ Tht Dtathiii *f Darminism. By E. Drunerl. Translated by E. V. O'Ham and Jofag 
&, Peschgei. Burlington, U. : The Gennan Liierary Board. 

f See Rev. J. Gerard, S.J., on ■■Darwinism and the Origin of Species" in Tlu Tttlit, 
October t, 1904, p. 551. 



1904.] Darwinism on its Deathbed. 349 

certain thinkers in the past were inclined to believe that the 
different forms of animal life might have been gradually 
developed through the forces of nature, instead of being 
specially created just as they are by the Almighty, they could 
not show what law of nature might have brought development 
about. But in the middle of the last century Darwin formulated 
a hypothesis which has been held by many to ofTer a reason- 
able explanation of such development. And here we add a 
quotation from Bishop Hedley's interesting article in the Dublin 
Review for October, 1898, entitled " Physical Science and Faith." 
On page 246 the bishop says : "... It should be well 
borne in mind that the foremost Catholic men of science of the 
day not only hold a theory of , evolution, but consider that 
there can be no doubt on the matter." And on page 255 he 
adds: " Not only is it true that there is nothing in the Darwin- 
ian argument that makes design less probable, or that is antagon- 
istic to the idea of the Creator's guiding and directing hand, 
but the whole discussion has had the effect of manifesting most 
thoroughly the dogma of creation." 

Now, as we have said, we wish to ascertain how naturalists 
of the present day view the Darwinian hypothesis of natural 
selection or survival of the fittest, which some persons would fain 
make us believe is a passing theory. And we shall take our 
authorities in chronological order, beginning with the late 
Stanley Jevons, who is better known perhaps as a writer on 
logic and political economy. 

In Principles of Science^ published in 1874, Vol. ii., page 
461, Jevons says: "... I venture to look upon the 
theories of evolution and natural selection in their main features 
as two of the most probable hypotheses ever proposed, har- 
monizing and explaining as they do immense numbers of 
diverse facts." 

Nearly twenty years afterwards, in 1893, Samuel H. Scud- 
der, in The Life of a Butterfly^ speaking of mimicry says, 
P^ge 95 : '' The more we contemplate so strange and per- 
fect a provision, the more are we impressed with the capa- 
bilities of natural selection, and begin to comprehend how 
powerful an element it has been in the development of the 
varied world of beauty about us." 

In Lectures on the Darwinian Theory, published in 1894, 
Arthur Milnes Marshall, Professor of Zoology in Owens Col* 



3 so Darwinism on its Deathbed. ^ [Dec, 

lege, England, says, pages 226-227: "... Not merely has 
he (Darwin) changed the whole aspect of biological science, giving 
it new aims and new methods, but the influence of his work has 
spread far beyond its original limits. Principles and laws firsts 
established by him for biology are now recognized as applying 
to all departments of science. ..." 

In Habit and Instinct^ which appeared in 1896, C. Lloyd 
Morgan, F.G.S., speaking of natural selection as a factor in 
race development, says, pages 335-336: "By natural selection 
was meant by Darwin, and should be meant by us, a process 
whereby in the struggle for existence certain individuals are 
either killed, or, what is reaUy the essential point, prevented 
from begetting offspring. . . ." 

In this same year, 1896, Edward B. Poulton, Professor of 
Zoology at the University of Oxford, in a book entitled Charles 
Darwin and the Theory of Natural Selection^ says, page loo^ 
" It was Darwin who first brought together a great body of 
scientific evidence which placed the process of evolution be- 
yond dispute, whatever the causes of evolution may have 
been." Again, speaking of Huxley's views, he says: "When- 
ever he (Huxley) was called on to write or speak about Dar- 
winism, as he was on two occasions within a few months of his 
death, his writings and speeches left no doubt about his thoughts 
on the subject. Furthermore, in the preface to Danviniana, 
written in 1893, he (Huxley) expressly denied that he had 
recanted or changed his opinions about Darwin's views. . . ." 

One year later, in 1897, there appeared in Natural Science 
(an English publication) an article by G. W. Bulman, M.A., 
B.S.C., entitled " Bees and the Development of Flowers," in 
which the author concludes thus : " It remains a fact that no 
alternative explanation of the origin of the color, scent, aod 
form of flowers on Darwinian principles has yet been brought 
forward. In this fact indeed we have the only, if insufficient, 
reason why the theory has been so long retained." 

In Footnotes to Evolution, published in 1898, David Starr 
Jordan, Ph.D., President of Leland Stanford Junior University, 
iAyii^ page 17: "There is no statement of fact of any import- 
MfM a, which, during the nearly forty years since it {The Origin 
(if ^ipuits) was first published, has been shown to be false. In 
llto titisoretical part there is no argument which has beenshoiiin 
IH h» unfair or fallacious. . . . The progress of science has 



J904-] * Darwinism on its Deathbed. 351 

bridged over many chasms in the evidence/' And, on page 65, 
he adds : " Without the theory of organic development through 
natural selection the biological iscience of to-day ^ould be 
impossible." 

Also in 1898 appeared a work by Alfred Russell Wallace 
(co- discoverer, as we know, with Darwin of natural selection), 
entitled The Wonderful Century. Speaking of Darwin's book. 
The Origin of Species^ by means of Natural Selection^ the 
venerable and distinguished naturalist says, page 142: ''That 
book • . . has so firmly established the doctrine of pro- 
gressive development of species by the ' ordinary processes of 
multiplication and variation, that there is now, I believe, scarcely 
a single living naturalist who doubts it." 

In the year 1899 appeared a work by Professor Max Ver- 
worn, of the University of Jena, entitled General Physiology 
(translated from the second German edition by Professor F. S. 
Lee, of Columbia University), ih which, speaking of the three 
greatest discoveries of the nineteenth century, Verworn says, 
page 28 : " The third discovery is that of descent in the or- 
ganic worlds And, on page 185, he adds: " Darwin's immortal 
work consists in explaining naturally the surprising purpose- 
fulness in the organic world by revealing the mode of Phyletic 
adaptation. According to Darwin's theory of selection this 
adaptation of organisms to external conditions takes place not 
by the immediate change of the single individual, but by 
natural selection among many individuals in the same manner, 
as in the iitiprovement of the race by artificial selection on 
the part of the breeder." 

Also in 1899 WilKam Keith Brooks, Ph.D., Professor of 
Zoology in the Johns Hopkins University, published The 
Foundations of Zoology ; and, on page 187, he says: "Natural 
selection seems to me a strictly scientific explanation of the 
fitness of living things. . . ." 

And in this same year, 1899, J. Lionel Tayler, in an arti- 
cle which appeared in the August number of Natural Science^ 
entitled "The Scope of Natural Selection," says, page 129: 
"The objections to the selectionist theory do not appear, 
. . . when examined, to be valid." 

In the October number of Natural Science for 1899, R. F. 
Licorishf M.D„ writing on "The Influence of the Nervous 
System in Organic Evolution," says, page 253: "The majority 



352 Darwinism on its Deathbed. [Dec, 

of biologists may be at present divided into two schools, Neo* 
Darwinian and Neo-Lamarckian. ... Of the two leading 
schools the more numerous is, undoubtedly, that of the Neo- 
Darwinians, who see in natural selection an all-sufficient c^use 
for organic evolution. The members of the other school, that 
of the Neo-Lamarckians, consider natural selection as merely 
one of the factors of organic evolution. . . ." 

Also in 1899 George H. Carpenter, coriultitg critcmolo- 
gist to the Royal Dublin Society, in a work entitled " Insects, 
their Structure and Life," says, page 147 : " While the author 
of this book believes that the Darwinian theory is largely 
supported by facts, and that the alternatives* which have been 
proposed to supersede it rest to a great extent on unproved 
theories, he cannot subscribe to the all-sufficiency of natu- 
ral selection. The insect world presents us with such varied 
and complicated features that it is hard to believe that the 
origin of its myriad kinds can be explained by any one 
agency."* 

. In 1901 F. W. Headley, who is an authority on the sub- 
ject of birds, says, in Problems of Evolution^ introduction, page 
7 : '' Darwinism led men to believe in evolution. A majority 
of naturalists are still Darwinians, etc." Again, on page 152: 
" . . . Darwinism is nothing but this — the very probable 
hypothesis that the highest species of animals have been 
gradually evolved from the simplest forms, at any rate, mainly 
by the action of natural selection." 

And in July of this year, 1901, Sir William Turner, in bis 
presidential address to the British Association, alludes thus I0 
Darwin: ''The signification of these variations had not been 
apprehended until a flood of light was thrown on the entire 
subject by the genius of Charles Darwin, who formulated the 
wide-reaching theory that variations could be transmitted by 
heredity to younger generations. The Darwinian theory may, 
therefore, be defined as heredity modified and influenced by 
variability." 

It was also in 1901 that we put to Professor L. P. Grata- 
cap, of our American .Museum of Natural History, several 
questions, one relating to organic evolution and another to 
Darwin's theory of natural selection. In reply he wrote as 

* Dan%'in himself did not believe that natural selection was the sole factor in change of 
specici. Let the reader bear this in mind. 



I904-] Darwinism on its Deathbed. 353 

follows: "Any precise enumeration of the naturalists who 
to-day do not accept the doctrine of organic evolution is im- 
possible. But it can safely be said that, of all the influential 
and successful workers in natural history, less than ten per 
cent., at a most liberal- estimate, still retain any faith in the 
doctrine of innumerable special creations." In answer to my 
other question Professor Gratacap wrote : " Natural selection 
as a factor in organic evolution would, perhaps, with fifty per 
cent of working naturalists, to- day merit a conspicuous posi- 
tion among the many causes at work in the evolution of 
species, while almost certainly with an equal number it would 
be relegated to a quite subordinate position. But in no case, 
or at least in very few cases, could it be imagined that a 
naturalist, familiar with the widest group of facts relative to 
the development of forms in all departments of natural history, 
would consider its complete effacement reasonable or even 
possible." 

In A Reference Handbook of the Medical Sciences (new and 
revised edition, 1902),, edited by Albert H. Buck, M.D., we 
read, page 23 : '' We are indebted to Darwin for the first 
presentation of a theory of evolution that carried with it con* 
viction to the scientific mind." 

In The American Naturalist for April of this present year, 
1904, is a brief review of a late German work by Professor 
Plate on "Theoretical Evolution"; and the reviewer says, 
pages 321-322: "The immediate purpose of the work has 
been to . . . show that whatever limitations the theory 
of natural selection may have as a complete theory of the 
origin of species, it remains the only satisfactory theory of 
adaptation. ..." 

Not many weeks ago we wrote to Angelo Heilprin, Pro- 
fessor of Invertebrate Palaeontology at the Academy of Natu- 
ral Sciences of Philadelphia, asking his view of the Darwinian 
theory. He replied as follows: 

Philadei^phia, 

September 2, 1904. 
William Seton^ LL,D, ; 

My dear Sir : . . . I think that I can say, without 
fear of serious contradiction, that not since the publication 
of The Origin of Species, in 1859, has the general theory 



354 Darwinism on its Deathbed. [Dec* 

• 

of organic evolution, that can properly be associated with the 
name of Darwin, been so generally accepted by biologists as it 
is at the present time. It is immaterial whether new factors 
governing modification or change have been discovered, 
immaterial if some of the principles enunciated by Darwin 
cannot be proved to be operative, or are even proved to be the 
reverse ; the broad conditions of organic change and of adap- 
tive recreation do exist, and he would be a bold and lonely 
biologist who to-day would venture forth to expound a pre- 
Darwinian or a pre-Lamarckian view of organic creation. 

Very truly yours, 

Angeu) Heilprin. 



We also wrote to Doctor H. Woodward, Fellow of the 
Royal Society, and for more than forty years on the staff of 
the British Museum. Here is his reply: 

13th September, 1904. 

Dear Doctor S^ton : • . . It is just because the 
theory of evolution has been of the very greatest help to 
naturalists, in clearing up obscure things and explainiflg 
difficulties, that it has been adopted universally by all 
naturalists of all nationalities. . . . Darwin^s theory 
of evolution has helped on biological science more than 
any other theory ever put forward, because it is based on 
facts. ... 

Yours very sincerely, 

Henry Woodward. 



Professor W. B. Scott, of Princeton University, to whom we 
wrote, answered as follows: 

Princeton University, 
Department op Pai.-«ontoi.ogy, 
Princeton, N. J., 
September 30, 1904. 

William Seton^ Esq.^ LL,D.^ New York; 

Dear Sir : . . . Naturalists are practically unanimous 
in holding that the theory of evolution is true, but concern- 
ing the factors, or efficient causes of evolution, there is con- 
siderable divergence of opinion. At the same time a very 



1904.1 Darwinism on its Deathbed. 355 

large number, probably a large majority, of those entitled 
to speak upon sucb a question believe that natural selec- 
tion, or the *' Darwinian factor," is an exceedingly im- 
portant agent in the process. So far as the present trend 
of opinion goes, therefore, you are certainly correct in main- 
taining that Darwinism is not a ''passing theory." 

Very truly yours, 

W. B. Scott. 






Th^ Johns Hopkins University, ' 
Bai^timorb, M. D., 
pkvsiCAi, Laboratory, 
October 3, 1904. 
To William Seion, Esq,; 

Dbar Sir : . . . Certainly, so far as I know, all 
students of zoology and biology believe in the essential 
features of Darwinism. 

We have had here several Catholic priests studying 
zoology, and they all believed in Darwinism. 

Very truly yours, 

J. S. Ambs. 



W. A. Herdman, Professor of Zoology at the University of 
Liverpool, wrote to us as follows: 

Thb Univbrsity of Livbrpooi,, 
September 24, 1904. 

DsAR Sir : Darwinism, in its general principles, is un- 
shakable and is universally held by English authorities ; 
but there has been great activity since Darwin's time, espe- 
cially in connection with heredity and the study of varia- 
tions, and a good deal of detail has been added to our evo- 
lutionary views. Natural selection is not the only cause of 
evolution. Darwin never said it was. There are other less 
important, secondary factors, such as isolation, physiological 
selection, and others, some of which were discussed by 
Darwin, though we know more about them now. The result 
is that there are different schools of evolutionists, differing 
in the relative importance they assign to these different pro- 
cesses ; but all of them evolutionists, and all acknowledging 
that Darwin laid the foundations. . . . Some disciples 



356 Darwinism on its Deathbed. [Dec, 

of Darwin in this country — ^more loyal than the king^ — ^have 
gone beyond Darwin in claiming natural selection as not 
only the supreme, but the sole factor in evolution. This 
position has been attacked by other evolutionists. So there 
. is a good deal of controversy, but it is mainly on points of 
detail or secondary importance. . • . 

Yours very truly, 

W. A. Hbrdman. 



The last letter we present to the readers of The Catholic 
World is from a high authority at Harvard University. It is 
dated October 4, 1904. But by special request we refrain 
from giving the distinguished writer's name. 

My dear Sir : . . . You may safely say that Dar- 
win's view is held by the great majority of naturalists as a 
true cause at work in accumulating variations in specific 
differences. 

It appears to me, however, that naturalists are attaching 
less importance to the view than they did twenty years 
ago. While still looking upon it as a true and efficient cause 
in the origin of species, they are disposed to regard it as 
only one element in that process. (Italics are ours.) 

Yours very truly, 



Here we conclude our inquiry into the present standing of 
Darwin's theory of natural selection. To some of our readers 
it may be a very uninteresting subject; but those who are 
fond of natural history will surely be glad to know what many 
naturalists think nowadays of a hypothesis which a genera- 
tion ago startled the scientific world in a famous book called 
The Origin of Species, The student of nature, however, may 
well be surprised that Mr. Edwin V. O'Harra, in the preface 
to the book At the Deathbed of Darwinism (on the whole an 
entertaining book, written to prove that the friends of Dar- 
win's theory — '' are solicitous only to secure for it a decent 
burial " *), does not once mention Alfred Russell Wallace, co- 

*Ai tht Deathbed 9/ Darwinism, p. 28. 



1904.] Darwinism on its Deathbed. 357 

« 

discoverer with Darwin of the famous theory. A little space 
given to this venerable naturalist might have calmed the timid 
ones who, through want of study, do not understand the 
meaning of natural selection, and may even look on it as a 
temptation of the evil one. In the American monthly Review 
of Reviews for October of this year, 1904, page 499, they will 
find Wallace quoted as saying: ''Darwinism is a very differ- 
ent thing from The Origin of Species. Darwin never touched 
beginnings. Again and again he protested against the idea 
that any physicist could arrive at the begin ninjg of life. Nor 
did he argue for ^^^ common origin of all the variety of life. 
He speaks of ' more than one ' over and over again ; and he 
also speaks of the Creator. It is only a few of his followers 
who have presented Darwin to the world as a man who had 
explained the beginning of everything, and who had dispensed 
altogether with the services of a Creator." And not many 
persons knew Darwin better than Wallace. 

And now, as a very last word, let us bear in mind what 
Bishop Hedley says in the Dublin Review for October, 1898. 
He tells us that there is nothing in the doctrine of organic 
evolution and its main factor, natural selection, that is opposed 
to Catholic faith, provided the student of nature holds fast to 
the truth that the Creator planned the universe from the begin- 
ning and that the unfolding of organic life takes place by the 
operation of laws laid down by the Divine will. 



3s8 FRENCH Opinions on Reunion. [Dec, 



- FRENCH OPINIONS ON REUNION. 

BY WILLIAM STETSON MERRILL. 

I HE August and September issues of La Revue, 
Paris, are taken up largely with an interesting 
symposium upon the question of the reunion of 
churches — whether it is possible or desirable; 
and if so, upon what lines it should proceed. 
The discussion takes the form of replies to a circular sent out 
by La Revue to a number of representative Catholics and 
Protestants of France and other European countries, a few 
even being addressed to Americans and Englishmen. The cir- 
cular proposed two questions, namely: " i. Is a reunion of the 
Catholic and Protestant churches possible — and desirable? 2. 
If so, upon what basis may reunion be realized ? " 

The list of those who are contributing to this symposium 
includes the names of some of the foremost thinkers of the 
day, both Catholic and non Catholic. Among the Catholics 
appear the names of two cardinals, two archbishops, one bishop, 
members of the French Academy, vicars, abb^s, and professors 
at Citholic universities; while upon the Protestant side are 
ranged Professor Harnack, of Berlin, Professor James, of Har- 
vard, Fairbairn, of Oxford, Ernest Naville, and a number of 
French pastors well-known abroad. Some of the replies 
received by the Revue are brief, while others take the form of 
disquisitions on the relative positions of Catholicity and Piot> 
estantism at the present time. M. E. Morsier edits the con- 
tributions, tactfully toning down by his introductory remarks 
expressions of opinion likely to give offence to either party- 
The replies of the Catholics were published tn the issue of 
August 15, those of the Protestants in the two issues of Sep- 
tember I and 15. 

Viscount D'Adh^mar, master of conferences at the Univer- 
sity of Lille, is the first of the Catholic contributors. Com- 
paring at some length the respective characteristics of Catho- 
licity and Protestantism as regards intellectual progress, he 



1904.] French Opinions on Reunion. 359 

says : '' Science does not give us final and definitive explanations 
of things. • . . Each science is fragmentary, and science 
as a whole regards the world from one point of view, but it is 
not the only point of view — common sense has another; 
philosophy a third." The Church steps in where science halts; 
she alone can teach us how to live and how to reach spiritual 
perfection. Her authority is exercised solely for that end. 
"The true Catholic believes in the church, because in her he 
perfects his moral character, and for him the acceptance of 
her teaching is to find himself most fully." Protestants, by 
becoming Catholics, will not lose that individuality upon which 
they lay such stress ; they will rather raise their personality 
to greater heights of power. 

The Abb^ Bricout, editor of the Revue du Clergi Franfais^ 
sees no possibility of union save by a sacrifice of principle. 
"Catholicity is and must remain," he insists, "a religion of 
authority; while Protestantism will become more and more a 
religion of free thought." 

M. Brunetiere, the accomplished editor of the Revue des 
Deux Mondes — whose submission to the church several years 
Ago gave such gratification to Catholics and such umbrage to 
the infidels of France who seek to represent the highest cul- 
ture of the day as necessarily anti* Catholic— sees "in the ten- 
dency of the great churches to become nationalized" the 
greatest obstacle to reunion. In Christian democracy, how- 
ever, he perceives an agency which cannot fail, sooner or 
later, to '^ work a profound revolution in the heart of the Prot- 
estant communions." "The necessity of social action must," 
he believes, " turn attention sooner or later, to the idea of 
authority, of i^hich the only practical definition insensibly 
approaches the Catholic notion of infallibility." 

M. G. FoQsegrive, editor of La Quinzaine, sees two pos- 
sible lines of convergence for the two theologies : for Protest- 
ants, the recognition that the individuality upon which they 
base their religious position is not the social ideal of Chris- 
tianity; for Catholics, the recognition of the supremacy of 
conscience. 

Abb^ Gayraud, the successor of the late Mgr. D'Hulst in 
the Chamber of Deputies, points out that the Reformation, by 
cutting itself loose from Rome, " was, for the Christian society 
of western Europe, the cause of an arrest of ini^ard and cut- 



36o FRENCH Opinions on Reunion. [Dec, 

ward development in civilization. Had it not been/' be says, 
''for the ruin of religious liberty and for the i^ars i^hicb uere 
its consequence, with nationalities at strife in creed and in 
politics, I love to believe that, thanks to the counterpoise of 
Catholicity, the inevitable spread of the principle of liberty 
and the principle of human brotherhood would have produced 
in the modern economic world that union of peoples which is 
the dream of socialism." No union but that of plain accept- 
ance of the Catholic faith is to his mind possible. 

Cardinal Lecot, Archbishop of Bordeaux, sees no room for 
reunion, but only for submission to the authorized representa- 
tive of the church in France, the Archbishop of Paris. 

Deputy M. J. Lemire believes that social reform offers a 
fruitful field for co-operation, though not for corporate union, 
between the churches. So, too, the Archbishop of Albi points 
out that Catholics and Protestants may do much in common 
'' to promote material welfare, to propagate fundamental ideas 
of morality, and to defend religious liberty against the excesses 
of naturalism." Even in the realm of speculation, and within 
the pale of Catholic dogma, Protestants may find room for an 
exercise of the religious conscience. " It is this very con- 
science," he holds, '^ which is now working so profound a 
renovation within the Catholic body ; it is an indication of the 
vital ' energy that still subsists in it, and proves better than 
anything else what a precious safeguard is authority." 

Cardinal Perraud, Archbishop of Autun, can only refer his 
questioner to the encyclicals of Leo XIII. on the subject of 
Christian unity, and to the latter's establishment of an arch- 
confraternity to promote the return of the separated churches. 

Last of the Catholic series, and in the opinion of the 
French editor one of the most important of the contributions, 
is that of Mgr. P^chenard, Vicar-general of Paris and director 
of the Catholic Institute. " Is the reunion of the Catholic 
and Protestant churches desirable?" he exclaims. '-'Yes; infi- 
nitely so ! more so to-day than ever before. It is not too much 
to say that it is absolutely necessary, necessary in every way 
for the defence of our faith, for the development of civiliza- 
tion, and for the maintenance of the peace of the world. . . . 
The individualistic spirit has, in fact, so far developed, has 
reached such a stage of self-sufficiency, that it constitutes in 
Its ideals and projects a menace to Christian [order. As it 



1904.] French Opinions on Reunion. 361 

knows well how to look after itseU in everything, it opposes 
as an usurpation and an intrusion every act of authority, 
whether emanating from the father of a family, a political ruler, 
or even from God himself. . . . There is no safety for 
society unless it succeeds in reviving a itruly social spirit and 
in restoring society and the individual to their respective 
places; unless it makes the individual realize what he has 
received from society, what he owes it, and the need that he 
has of it. Now, the Catholic Church ardently desires a reunion 
with herself," he continues; ". . . why should it not be 
possible:? Only in case Protestants should think themselves 
bound to cling to their system of private judgment, and refuse 
to bow before the principle of authority in religion." 

Yet, as the abbe tries to show, Protestants both recognize 
and act upon some principle of authority in their own corporr 
ate life. ''What do we see," he asks, "throughout those vast 
regions where Protestantism reigns supreme ? Everywhere 
shepherds and their flocks. What do these shepherds do ? 
They read and expound the Bible to their flocks. And what 
do the sheep do ? They hear and accept dutifully the exposi- 
sitions of their shepherds. And why not ? The sheep have 
not usually the time or the means of studying the Bible and 
of formulating therefrom a personal belief. . . . Well and 
good ! I now ask whether there is so great a difference in 
practice between these Protestant people and the Catholics who 
are their neighbors ? Is it not rather the system of authority 
and the teaching of the Catholic Church which prevail by force 
of a tradition which has survived despite contrary theories ? 
The greatest difference that I can see is that the Protestant 
population hear the word of an individual who has never 
received the divine comniission to teach, while the Catholic 
population bow dutifully before the legitimate authority of the 
pope and of the bishops instituted by Jesus Christ to form a 
teaching church." 

It is not the principle of authority, the zealous abb^ holds, 
that is in the way of reunion, but *' four centuries of educa- 
tion hostile to that reunion." A return to the true church 
will be made, if at all, not by corporate reunion but by indi- 
vidual conversions. 

Turning now to the Protestant and independent contribu* 



362 French Opinions on Reunion. [Dec, 

tors to the symposium we must content ourselves with sum- 
marizing their replies, in their most salient points, rather than 
quoting them ; otherwise the present survey might be unduly 
extended. 

Pastor Babut, of Ntmes, sees great danger in the spread of 
irreligion, and would like to see common action against it in 
the form of a great Christian federation. M. Bonet-Maury, 
historian of the congress of religions held in Chicago in 1893, 
believes that the two principles of infallibility and the autonomy 
of conscience hopelessly exclude each other; but he suggests 
as common ground for co-operation three lines of action : '^ first, 
moral influence upon the infidels at home; secondly, common 
labors in Biblical study, which is sure to be promoted, he 
believes, by the Biblical Commission appointed by Leo XIII. j 
and lastly, foreign missions." 

Professor Chapuis, of Lausanne, points out the failure of 
all previous attempts at reunion, and thinks that Catholic and 
Protestant piety differ too widely to come together without 
profound mutual transformation. Principal Fairbairn, of Oxford, 
somewhat superciliously confesses to a lack of interest in the 
questions proposed; nor does he find any general interest 
therein on the part of Englishmen. Infallibility means to him 
** the negation of religion." Pastor Fallot thinks reunion impos- 
sible and all efforts in that direction thrown away. Pastor 
Goulden favors Bruneti&re's plan of a federation for the purposes 
of charity and fraternal helpfulness. 

The most prominent figure in the field of Protestant theology 
to-day is unquestionably Professor Harnack, of Berlin. His 
untiring energy and industry, coupled with critical pcweis of 
an unusual order, have gained for him among Protestants a 
very authoritative position. Hence one turns to his answer to 
the queries propounded with some interest; to find, alasl only 
that he has failed or chosen not to recognize their serious 
import and has framed his answers in an almost frivolous tone, 
as the French editor, evidently with some surprise, is obliged 
to confess. Harnack compares the Catholic Church to an 
ancient stone hospital and the ProtesUnt Church to wooden 
barracks. In the stone hospital "there is little either of air 
or of light," he says; but the patients who lodge in either "may 
IMomenade together in the sunlight of God" before they retire 



1904.] FRENCH Opinions on Reunion. 363 

to their respective domiciles, which neither is inclined to 
exchange for the other. 

M. J. Hocart, pastor at Brussels, cannot see the need of a 
common front against socialism, inasmuch as he is a socialist 
himself! William James, the eminent psychologist at Harvard, 
thinks the proposed union neither desirable nor possible, '' save 
for a small fraction of Anglicans." This opinion is to have 
been expected from James's well-known dualistic and individual- 
istic views in philosophy. Professor Kuyper is of a similar 
opinion. 

Pastor Lafon, editor of the Vie Nouvelle^ exhibits a marvel- 
ous ignorance of Catholic teaching and principles which we 
will not reproduce. He makes one significant admission, hew- 
ever, to the effect that Protestantism is perhaps destined to 
pass away as an organized movement, leaving behind '' only 
its religious method." 

Professors Lobstein, of Strasburg, and Luzzi, of Florence, 
see a possibility of personal association between Catholics and 
Probestants in matters outside of particular dogmas, but no 
possibility of organic union. Pastor Monod, of Rouen, advo- 
cates a form of Christian socialism evolved out of his inner 
consciousness, which he entitles '' Messianisme." Ernest Naville, 
a well-known writer on religious topics, holds that reunion of 
all Christians " under the fatherhood of God " ought to be 
possible, but sees no prospect of it under present conditions. 
He prescribes three lines of mutual improvement for Catholics 
and Protestants, however, which he thinks might pave the way 
for such a consummation: first, a broadening of view; secondly, 
mutual acquintance with each other's beliefs; and lastly, 
emphasis to be laid more upon points which both sides hold 
in common. J. E. Roberty professes to rejoice at the doughty 
blows that V religious psychology," whatever that may be, is 
dealing at the ancient fabric of authority^ and announces its 
early fall. Edmond Stapfer, dean of the Paris (Protestant) 
faculty of theology, goes so far as to say that " a confession of 
faith, to deserve the name at all, should be constantly revised ! 
For it is the momentary expression of the interior life of the 
believer, and this life is constantly changing just as all life 
changes." Truly the Protestants have proved to be a strange 
"chosen people" to whom God should commit the oracles of 

revelation 1 

VOL. Lxxx«— 24 



364 French Opinions on Reunion. [Dec, 

P. Vincent, a French Baptist preacher, has discovered the 
glory of Protestantism to consist on its multiplicity of sects, 
"which encourage a mutual and noble emulation in spiritual 
progress and religious truth ! " Hence, he declares, that the 
absorption of Protestantism by Catholicity at this stage would 
be a catastrophe for the human race. The late Henry Ward 
Beecher, if we mistake not, held a similar view about the 
multiplicity of sects redounding to the glory of God. 

We notice, in reviewing the foregoing discussion, two points 
of similarity to the Congress of Religions held in Chicago in 
1893. First, no definite or new principle of religious unity is 
enunciated, the quiet claim of the Catholics to possess that 
principle in the papacy as the centre of unity for the universal 
church stands alone as a sufficient answer to the question ; 
secondly, the motive of the Catholics and their attitude was 
the same in 1893 as in the present symposium, namely, to 
avail themselves of an opportunity to present the church 
before the world in her true colors, and to invite our separated 
brethren to accept her teaching and her authority. While 
there is no suggestion of compromise with Protestantism on 
the part of the church, there is obvious effort to allay unjust 
suspicion and to lessen prejudice against the church. The pre- 
vailing tone of the Catholic contributors is one of charity and 
of apostolic zeal. They represent the universal mission of the 
church to be to embrace all mankind " in the unity of one spirit 
and in the bond of peace." Protestants are not blamed for 
staying outside of the true fold, if they be in good faith in so 
doing ; but they are earnestly invited to accept a complete 
Christianity in place of their own fragmentary form of Christian 
belief. 

The Protestant contributors, on the other hand, exhibit not 
infrequently a desire to justify themselves for remaining where 
they are, and to expose the essential errors of Romanism, 
rather than to seek a mode of reunion between the two churches. 
Their replies lack the fervent missionary spirit as well as the 
verene faith of the Catholics. Scarcely one even suggests the 
iicceptance of Protestantism by Catholics, partly perhaps because 
At a loss which one of the multitudinous forms of mutilated 
Christianity known under that title to recommend for Catholic 
j^y-vcptance. 



1904.] French Opinions on Reunion. 365 

Reunion along dogmatic lines is recognized by all to be 
quite out of the question, save through individual conversion. 
Two opportunities for co-operation and mutual helpfulness are, 
however, pointed outf by both Catholics and Protestants. The 
first is the field of social reform and charitable work, and the 
second is a uniting of all the forces of Christendom against 
the growing^menace of socialism and infidelity. Practical details 
as to the methods to be followed in carrying out these forms 
of co-operation are indeed lacking in the suggestions offered. 
But such detail can hardly be looked for in a general discus- 
sion of this kind. The importance of these suggestions of co- 
operation lies in the fact that they emanate from both Catho- 
lics and Protestants, including some Catholic prelates who are 
in a position to speak for the church, and have, therefore, a 
fair chance of receiving further discussion and elaboration 
through other channels of communication. 

The whole symposium seems significant in one further respect, 
namely, that it occurs at a moment when France is on the 
verge of a great religious crisis. Is it possible that the 
threatened withdrawal of state support from the Church of 
France, an4 from the Protestant sects alike, may lead to a uni- 
fication of the religious factors in France as a means of mutual 
defence against the forces of secularism and socialism ? 



366 A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. [Dec, 



A FRANCISCAN WONDER-WORKER. 

By R. F. O'CONNOR. 

' is from among the poor the saints^of God are 

chiefly chosen, was the observation of an Irish 

priest * who once declared of himself : " I vas 

born in poverty, I have lived in poverty, and t 

trust in God I shall die in poverty," and who, 

when dying, was found to be the possessor of only sixpence. 

True, saints have lived in palaces, have been found seated on 

thrones and tn courts, cabinets, and camps, ruling kingdoms, 

governing empires, and leading armies, have been born in and 

to high stations, and nursed in the lap of luxury ; but their 

surroundings were not contributory to their sanctity, rather an 

opposing element, while poverty, compulsory or voluntary, 

when worthily endured or embraced, creates an atmosphere in 

which the Christian virtues best flourish and bloom and bring 

forth fruits of holiness. 

Such was the atmosphere or environment, an atmosphere 
which strengthens the moral fibre of human character, in which 
the Italian Franciscan lay brother, Frat^ Egtdio di San 
Guiseppe, or, as we would say. Brother Giles of St. Joseph, 
grew from childhood to manhood. He was the son of a poor 
shoemaker, Cataldo Pontillo, who, with his wife, Grazia Pro- 
caccio, occupied a humble house in Tarento, a town of Otranto, 
which once formed part of the kingdom of Naples " when 
still," as Beranger sings, "the Bourbons held the throne." 
Born on November i6, 1729, and dying in 1S12, he belongs 
both to the eighteenth and nineteenth centurfes; to an epoch 
when impiety, engendered by false philosophy and scepticisni, 
reached its climax, when the great torrent of the French revo- 
lution swept away thrones and altars in its devastating flood; 
to an age when Lutheranism, Calvinism, Jansenism, and French 
philosophism were followed by inevitable moral decadence and 

•Archdeacon O'Keeffe, P.P., of Si, Finn Barr's, Cork, during (he episcopate of Diihop 
Murphy. 



I904-] A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. 367 

social disturbance; an age which felt the scourge of war by 
which providence chastised and chastened the nations for their 
unbelief; an age which witnessed the suppression of religious 
orderSi the secularization of sacred edifices, the prohibition of 
divine worship in public, the exile, deportation and execution 
of priests and religious. ''It is thus/' says a French writer, 
*' that God always begins to regenerate his sanctuary by tribu- 
lations and trials. More than five millions of men thus expi- 
ated, by a premature death, the crime of impiety and unbelief 
which had invaded the land. After this sanguinary expiation 
we have been the happy witnesses of a reaction of which 
heaven's benediction has been the principle. While a few in- 
heritors and successors of eighteenth century scepticism dare 
even to deny the miracles contained in the holy Gospels, and 
have had the odious temerity to transform them into myths, 
as if they had never taken place, on the other hand faith is 
resuming its ascendency and influence in the world." 

To aid in this religious renovation by proving the con- 
tinuity of miracles in the Christian Church, to give the great 
world of modern philosophy a living example of the actuality 
of the supernatural, a world which fondles and cherishes specu- 
lative illusions as if they were tangible things and scornfully 
rejects the truth, seeking for the origin of life in the very 
slime, groping in the mud like Holman Hunt's symbolical man 
with the muck-rake, looking downward instead of upward, 
"with a broad clown's back turned broadly to the glory of 
the stars"; — such was evidently one of the reasons' why God 
at such a time added to the cloud of witnesses who testify to 
the supernatural grace and power existent in his church. 
Another reason, it may be- presumed, was to give the poor 
and the mendicant orders, primitively established to minister 
to the poor, a genuine example of real holy poverty — not the 
artificial poverty which sometimes is its specious counterfeit. 
Such a witness and such an exemplar was this poor Franciscan 
lay brother of the Alcantarine Observance of the Minorites. 

His parents lived from hand to mouth, or, like the birds 
of the air, on what they could pick up from day to day; 
having nothing to depend on but the little earnings which 
their work brought them, that is when they could get work to 
do. Baptized on the same day he was born, he received the 
names of Francis Anthony Paschal — three saints of the order. 



368 A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. [Dec, 

one of the later glories of which he was destined to be. He 
was confirmed at the age of ten, when he also made his First 
Communion. A childhood during which the only things that 
could attract his eyes or his heart were pious objects, and a 
youth spent as an apprentice to the trade of a worker in 
plush — a kind of apostolate of the workshop where he edified 
his employer and his fellow-apprentices by his example- 
prefaced a manhood, first laboriously spent as the prop of the 
humble household after his father's death until his mother re- 
married, and then as a lay brother in the most austere refoim 
of the Franciscan order, instituted by the great Spanish 
ascetic, St. Peter of Alcantara. 

There were very early foreshado wings of what he was to 
be. From the moment he made his First Communion he 
ceased to be a child and was noted for a certain unusual 
gravity and recoUectedness. Piety and the duties it imposes 
were his sole delight. When he passed from the control of 
pious parents, who carefully safeguarded his innocence, to that 
of his employer, a good Christian, the latter was not slow to 
perceive that a precious treasure had been confided to him. 
He spoke with astonishment of him to his friends as a marvel 
of grace, and declared that the shoemaker's son had changed 
his workers into a congregation, and his workshop into an 
oratory. He ventured to prophecy that one day he would do 
great things, and when, as a very old man, he heard that 
Francis, his former apprentice, had become an Alcantarine, had 
acquired the reputation of a saint, and was filling the whole 
kingdom of Naples with the fame of his miracles, he was 
thrilled with joy and said: "I told you, when he was here, 
that there was the making of a little saint in that boy." 

The habit of prayer and the life of faith, the interior reali- 
zation of the actuality of the unseen, made him a contemplative, 
and the union of prayer and labor, the hearing of daily Mass 
before he went to work, and assiduity in seizing every oppor- 
tunity that presented itself for the practice of virtue, never 
losing sight of personal sanctification, joined the active to the 
passive. Among the hours of the day, the evening hours 
were those which he loved most. Eveninsr seei 
delightful image or forecast of hea 
workers of the noisy town of Tareni 
there in search of distractions and 






I904-] A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. 369 

toil, Francis thought only of retiring to bis scantily furnished 
room in his humble home to pass a few hours of quiet thought, 
absorbed in prayer. Nothing could draw him away frcm this 
but to join the little procession which usually accompanied a 
priest on a sick-call when he took the Blessed Sacrament to 
some poor dying creature. At the first sound of the bell he 
left everything, whether he was at that moment employed in 
the workshop or in his father's house, and ran to form part of 
fche guard of honor to the Sacred Host. Neither his virtuous 
father nor his religious employer offered the least opposition j 
on the contrary, thejr kft him the fullest liberty to satisfy his 
devotion and afford such a striking example of faith. 

He was in his eighteenth year when his father died and, 

though bent on entering a strict convent where regularity and 

fervor prevailed, he felt it would be an act of inhumanity to 

leave his widowed mother, and worked hard to support the 

family until his mother's re- marriage set him at liberty. His 

confessor put the sincerity of his vocation to a singular test. 

Fearing that his resolution might be the result of new-born 

enthusiasm or exaggerated fervor, he directed him to confine 

himself to his house for a whole year, without ever leaving it, 

not even to go to the parish for his habitual devotions, except 

on Sundays and holydays of obligation. It stood the test, and 

several other priests, to whom his confessor, distrustful of his 

own lights, referred him, unanimously decided that his vocation 

came from heaven, but differed as to the particular order he 

should enter. During the night, on the seventh day of a 

novena to our Lady, he dreamed he saw two religious clad in 

the habit worn by Franciscans of the Alcantarine reform who 

invited him to enter their order. As soon as he could he made 

his way to the convent which the Alcantarines had recently 

founded at Tarento and asked who were the two religious who 

had appeared to him in a dream. The brother-porter did not 

know at first what he meant, but, when he understood, replied 

with a burst of laughtet and sent him away as a weak-witted 

idiot. The other friars present smiled at his excessive simplicity. 

Disconcerted by this unexpected reception, and troubled in 

mind, he entered the convent church and in the statues of St. 

Peter of Alcantara and St. Paschal Baylon, at either side of the 

sanctuary or choir, he recognized the two figures he had seen 



370 A FRANCISCAN WONDER-WORKER. [Dec, 

in his dream. By the advice of his confessor, who recog- 
nized in the coincidence the finger of God, he sought and 
obtained admission to the Alcantarine branch, and was first 
sent to the convent of the order at Lucca, in 1754, from which 
lie went to the novitiate house at Galatone where, on receiving 
the habit, he took the name of Brother Giles of the Mother of 
God. He soon became an object of astonishment and admira- 
tion to all the religious and a model to his fellow- novices, 
particularly of the beautiful virtue of simplicity, as understood 
in its strictly spiritual or ascetical sense, so often recommended 
by St. Peter of Alcantara. 

The practice of fraternal charity, which St. Augustin calls 
the principal penance of a religious, presented no difficulty to 
him, for he truly loved his neighbor as himself, while his hu- 
mility rendered him insensible to affronts. His soul resembled 
certain musical instruments which, whatever way they are 
touched, give forth harmonious sounds. Following the usage 
of the Alcantarines, when he made his profession, he substituted 
for the name of Mary that of St. Joseph. 

From Galatone he was sent first to the convent at Squiz- 
zano, a small town in the neighborhood of the city of Nardo, 
where he was given the humble office of assistant cook, and 
then to the monastery of St. Paschal Baylon, at Naples, to dis- 
charge the same lowly duties. At that time the contagion of 
sophistry and irreligion had infected the kingdom of Naples, 
and it was this poor Franciscan lay brother, who could neither 
read nor write, whom providence used to confound the proud 
learning of the impious. In the position of brother-porter of 
the convent of Chiaja, to which he was promoted from the 
kitchen, he was brought into contact with seculars, to whose 
corporal and spiritual needs he ministered, until the convent 
door was besieged all day long by all who were afflicted in 
body or soul. His name was soon on every lip, and was noised 
abroad as that of a saint whose powerful prayers had obtained 
health for the sick, prosperity for those whose worldly affairs 
were desperate, and the grace of conversion for the most hard- 
ened sinners. The opulent families of Naples wanted to have 
him in their palaces, and the malady-stricken at their bedsides. 
The office of brother- quester, or begging-brother, which com- 
pelled him to daily scour the streets of Naples in search of 



1904.] A Franc/scan Wonder-Worker. 371 

food and clothing for the community, extended his sphere of 
action and influence, and marks the beginning of his career as 
a wonder-worker, and of the almost incredible number of mira- 
cles he wrought for over fifty years in the city of Naples. 

His special devotion to our Lady and St. Joseph was the 
most distinctive characteristic of his religious life. He had a 
faithful copy made of the picture of our Lady of the Well 
veaerated in the Alcantarine convent at Canussi, and enshrined it 
opposite the choir of the convent at Chiaja. This holy image 
plays a great part in the life of the venerable lay brother. 
It was the centre of all his actions, and in it he reposed all 
bis hopes. To it he attributed all the miracles he wrought in 
every quarter of the city, and in its honor begged all the year 
roixod for the celebration with all possible splendor of the 
feast of our Lady of the Well, observed in the convent on the 
fourth Sunday of August, ah event he looked forward to with 
great solicitude. 

He was no less devout to St. Joseph, whose protection he 
experienced on a very critical occasion. Once having forgotten 
to recite, as was his wont, a rosary in his honor, exhausted 
after a fatiguing day's quest, he fell asleep, without having put 
out the light, on the poor planks that served him as a bed. 
He was suddenly aroused and shaken by an invisible hand, and 
heard a voice saying to him : " Get up and say the little rosary 
for me ! " He awoke and, to his amazement, saw his cell on 
fire. It was at the approach of one of those great feasts which 
the community were in the habit of celebrating with special 
solemnity. A benefactor had made him a present of a quan- 
tity of powder to fire off a salute announcing the advent of 
the feast to people at a distance, and the flame had already 
reached the place where he had placed it. He bounded out of 
bed, invoked St. Joseph, and in a moment succeeded in ex- 
tinguishing the fire without any one's assistance. In the con- 
viction of the evident protection of his name- saint, he fell on 
his knees, made his thanksgiving, said the beads, retired to bed, 
and slept soundly. The next day he told every one what had 
happened to him, as an incentive to that devotion to St. Joseph 
which he loved to propagate. " See," he said, " to what danger 
we were exposed ; in a moment it would have been all over 
with us and with the whole convent. If the fire had reached 



372 A Franciscan Wonder- Worker. [D«., 

the vessel containing the powder the whole house would have 
been blown to atoms I " 

He had a very great devotion also to St. Francis, St. 
Peter of Alcantara, and St. Paschal Baylon, a lay brother like 
himself, and, like him, particularly devout to the Blessed Sac- 
rament. Brother Giles lived, as it were, in their company; 
his vivid faith realizing the communion of saints, not as an 
abstract expression of a subjective truth, but as an objective 
reality as familiar to him as anything within the reach of the 
senses. 

When, by order of his Eminence the Cardinal Archbishop 
of Naples, the ordinary process or diocesan inquiry into the 
cause of his beatification was instituted, and the first evidence 
as to his virtues and miracles was taken, all the religious who 
had the happiness of living with him were unanimous in their 
praises of his admirable charity. He delighted in making him- 
self the servant of all, and getting all, fathers and lay brothers, 
everything they wanted. His little cell was like a general 
office, where all sorts of commissions were received and as 
promptly executed. Even when half paralysed with sciatica, 
during the closing years of his life, he dragged himself, as 
well as he could, here and there to do the bidding or supply 
the wants of the brethren. The Alcantarines use neither mat- 
tresses nor paillasses, but sleep on bare boards covered with 
sheepskins, using in winter coarse coverlets to protect them- 
selves against the piercing cold. To beg these sheepskins 
and coverlets he had to walk from Naples to the fair at 
Salerno, a journey he often made, trudging along the rough 
roads even in his old age. 

Rigid only to himself, he was all kindness and considerate- 
ness towards others, and an angel of consolation to the sick, 
inside or outside the cloister. His charity embraced the whole 
city. There was not a poor creature in the entire capital who 
did not turn to him for never- failing succor. Little wonder 
that he was beloved by the people and that the miracles, 
which he often worked in the midst of the multitudes who 
thronged around him, filled them with enthusiasm. The alms 



1904.] A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. 373 

His mortification wa$ on a par with his other virtues. But 
his greatest mortification, although his whole life was a silent 
martyrdom, was to see himself the object of popular venera- 
tion, which reached such a degree that people used to crowd 
round the convent door to see him and, as he passed through 
the streets, furtively cut off bits of his habit, which he had to 
get almost daily pieced and patched and mended by his fellow 
lay brothers, until they began to grumble at his not keeping 
out of the way of religious fanatics, said he would ruin the 
convent, and was wanting in religious povert}». Even the 
guardian joined in the reproaches of the fathers and brothers; 
he was deprived of the office of quester, and forbidden to leave 
the monastery, a punishment he had thrice to undergo. Then 
when the Neapolitans grumbled in turn when they did not see 
him going his customary rounds questing — for the shrewd 
dealers profited by the blessing that rewarded them for their 
generous alms — he was allowed out again, with a caution from 
his superiors to be more careful. But when he returned to 
the convent the habit was in no better condition. Whenever 
he surprised any one in the act of committing this pious lar- 
ceny he tried to be angry, and raised his stick menacingly as 
if he meant to strike the delinquent ; but more often he neither 
heard nor saw, for his ears had become deaf and his eyes dim 
in his old age, or he was so absorbed in God as to be uncon- 
scious of what they did. 

Candor personified, he carried frankness of speech to the 
utmost limits. More than once this extreme candor alarmed 
the community. When Napoleon I. had placed his brother 
Joseph Bonaparte on the throne of the two Sicilies, a rigorous 
system of police espionage was established by the French. 
Dubious of popular support for the new regime, they were 
disquieted by the smallest incidents. Above all things they 
dreaded assemblages of the populace, fearing an effort on the 
part of the recently conquered country to throw off the yoke 
of the foreigner. Observing that wherever Fra Egidio went 
an immense crowd followed him, and anxious to put a stop to 
it, they resolved to intimidate the lay brother and compel him 
to forbid the people to be following him, instead of doing so 
themselves, for fear of irritating the Neapolitans. They sum- 
moned him to their presence and tried to impress him, pomp- 



374 A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. [Dec, 

ously demanding why he had such multitudes following him» 
and asking him if he was not aware that such assemblages were 
illegal. The Franciscan simply replied that he could not help 
it, and that if they would take steps to put an end to it they 
would be doing him a great service. Not satisfied with his 
reply, one of the police officers said loudly and angrily: 
" Don't you know that we are going to take proceedings against 
you ? " " Proceedings against me I " exclaimed the lay brother 
quietly ; '' it is against you they should take proceedings, not 
against me." ^ Not knowing what to say, they sent the good 
man back to his convent, where the religious were anxiously 
awaiting his return; for the government, like the French 
government at present, was suppressing many convents, and 
the Alcantarines were apprehensive of some severe measure. 
The citation of Brother Giles only increased their alarm, for 
they knew his fearless freedom of speech, and were afraid he 
would irritate the authorities. When they heard with dismay 
what he had said they thought their convent was doomed. 

On another occasion the liveried servants of the minister, 
Saliceti, knocked at the convent door and asked for Fra 
Egidio. Saliceti was one of the most ardent partisans of the 
new regime, and when the guardian heard his name he felt a 
cold chill. He sent for the lay brother and impressively incul- 
cated prudence and circumspection ; but Egidio*s frankness put 
the climax on his fears. The minister was seriously ill, he had 
been given up by the doctors, when it occurred to him to send 
for the Franciscan lay brother of whom he had heard so many 
wonderful things. Egidio, as soon as he saw the liveried 
lackeys, said to them: "Is it now you come for me? Why 
didn't you come sooner ? He is dead ! " The guardian 
trembled. He would have shut the lay brother's mouth, but it 
was too late. All he could do was to look severely at him 
and say in a tone of authority : " Go where obedience sends 
you." Tae lay brother replied : " Father, as you wish it, I 
am going ; but what am I to do ? He is dead ! " He went, 
but the minister had expired when he put his foot on the 
threshold of the palace. 

There was none, even the king himself, who did not wish 
to see Fra Egidio, whose name and good deeds filled the whole 
city of Naples. He was sent for by his majesty. The humble 



1904.] A Franciscan Wonder- Worker. 375 

Franciscan went, ascended the grand royal stairs, passed 
modestly through the long series of sumptuous apartments, and 
finally reached the king's antechamber. The court officials 
regarded with curiosity this poor old begging friar, and tried 
to guess what there was extraordinary about him that a king 
should want to converse with him privately. Introduced into 
the royal presence, he asked the king what he wanted with 
him. The king, not expecting such a question, was for a 
moment surprised ; then he said : '' Do you think I will die on 
the throne ? " Fra Egidio answered :. " Were you born there, 
your majesty?" "No"; said the king. "Well," said Egidio, 
"since you weren't born there, why do you wish to die there ?" 
The king, to whom this kind of logic was displeasing, said : 
"You're a madman. Go back to where you came from." 

When the community heard from his own lips an account 
of the interview, and the way he treated the king, they were 
pale with terror; but they were somewhat reassured when they 
were told that he treated Fra Egidio with contempt and dis- 
missed him as a lunatic. 

(to be concluded.) 



376 SUBJECTION. [Dec., 

suBjEcrroN. 

BY THOMAS B. REII.LY. 

turned from the shop-window to look toward 
Union Square, thab urban oasis, cool and rest- 
ful, with its translucent greens and brimming 
fountain. A rank smetl of whisky circled his 
presence. It flooded from his miserable rags 
and fouled the clear, sweet air of the June day. Its repulsive 
dominance was broadly published on the whole man, and he 
wore the tyranny with cringing submission. 

His thought confirmed itself with difficulty. He shook bis 
head sadly, as if the reference to trees and crisp, singing 
waters lacked some particular and crowning emphasis. He 
turned again to fix his eyes on the vision in the window. He 
was unconscious of the frank curiosity that gleamed from the 
face of the urchin at his side. Something much like a wakened 
and stirring soul claimed the man's regard. Memory fluttered 
under the rags oa bis boiom ; he was fascinated, disturbed — 
thrilled I And the mute cause — a landscape that bore the 
superfluous title " La Frimavera." It was the glimpse of a 
country-side dreaming under the still, white profusion of a 
spring day. It revealed a thousand nuptials, effected or pro- 
claimed — a stretch of apple blooms; the radiance of youog, 
sweet grass; woods dense and brimming with seasonal color; 
meadow land and pasture; the thin sparkle of a valley stream ; 
a pathway winding over warm slants; and a flock of timid 
sheep that favored sun and slender shadows. Across the valley, 
through transparent air, lurked the gentian blue of great hills. 
In the near distance was a human habitation-~free, generous, 
inviting. Over all was a vast, dim peace with silence. 

" Say, mister, it ain't always the same, is it ? " 

The man, with perceptible effort, turned from the picture, 
and, looking down into the quick eyes of the youngster, 
Slid: " Naw, kid, nuthin' ain't the same — now"; and after a 
pause : " You 'n' me ain't always the same." He turned to 
feed again upon the vision. 

Springtime I Its wine was in bis blood when he swung, 



1904.] Subjection. 377 

with altered words and accent, to demand: "You've never 
lived in the country, have you, boy ? No; poor devil ! They've 
starved your soul, child — starved it. Come here; do you see 
that ? Do you know what that is ? That's an orchard, boy ; 
yes, apples — apples larger than both your hands ! Their scent 
hangs in that roadway for miles. And those ? No ; those 
are sheep, sheep. And that ? That's a mountain. Yes ; larger 
than anything you've ever seen in this — in this hell ! And 
here, here's the valley. This is the path where lilacs and wild 
cherries fling out their signals for — for — here, boy, see where 
it leads — down through the cool, wise trees to the brook. 
Listen ! Can't you hear the singing of the waters and the 
birds, can't you smell the meadows and the wild roses ? Look ! 
It's miles and miles across that valley to the blue mountains. 
And there — there ! — no ; not a house — a home, boy, a home. 
Do you know what that means — a home ? — Dear God ! " A 
lank, bony hand, smutched for lack of care, and stained from 
wind and sun, passed irresolute across two swollen eyes. 

A shrewd light sprang to the urchin's face. A fleet sus- 
picion prompted the keen, blunt words : '' Do you know any 
place like that, mister?" 

The man's countenance underwent instant change; he tried 
to laugh, but failed. Sud<jenly he blurted out: " G'wan, kid; 
I was jes' stringin' you." 

"But — " began the youngster. 

The man turned on the boy fiercely and, with an oath, 
snarled : '* It's a lie, I tell you ; I never lived there — never ! 
You git ! " 

The perplexed youngster drew away and, with many back- 
ward glances, made off down the avenue. The man wound his 
course among the mass of vehicles and across the roadway. 
On the opposite curb he turned and, if for another glimpse of 
the picture, a brute, noisy bulk of traflic foiled the purpose. 
With a shrug he made for the park, chose a bench and sat 
down. His neighbor, after a fleet scrutiny, rose and moved 
away. Another time the man would have been impervious to the 
implied suspicion, now he was not even conscious of it. His head 
sank forward, till the stubble of his chin touched his breast; 
his eyes were wide against sunlight that he did not see; his 
ears were tingling with that late challenge: "Do you know 
anyplace like that?" His teeth ground against each other 
till his ears hummed, but he could not still the words. He 



378 Subjection. [Dec, 

stiffened ; then, with an oath, the old denial leaped to his lips. 
The frank young wind in the trees above him, the clear speech 
of the curving waters of the fountain, the confused babel of 
street sounds — these, like his heart, were in conspiracy against 
him ; they drove the assertion back in his teeth with an insist- 
ent "You did, you did!" One by one the barriers went down. 
He fought the rising flood with a final, intense effort The 
evidence of a struggle was visible in two lank arms stiffening 
against the iron braces of the bench; in the steady glare of 
two eyes ; and in the beaded sweat upon a human face. One 
supreme wrench and the current swept him far out. And 
there he drifted. 

Memories, for years subjected, tapped freely against the 
unshuttered windows of his soul. One by one they made 
entrance into the dusty, echoing chambers. After a blunder- 
ing search through the darkness they came forth bearing an 
immortal fragment, a mere spark, yet luminous and sufficient. 
With it they lit the man^s passage into the kingdom of dreams. 

Around him were the sweetness and silence of an upland 
morning. He was conscious of a dim remonstrance in the 
white light. The cedared lane, that dipped steeply into the 
valley, flung its memorable invitations to each sense; he saw, 
through the thin mist and upon the lower levels, aging fiiend- 
ly homesteads; signal smoke from early fires crept upward 
straight and steady ; shadowy forms were moving about the 
distant doorways; a score of (amiliar tones called and called 
in his ears; and down that white, fragrant valley the man's 
soul went on a long-forefended quest. Like a thief of the 
night he hugged the hedge and the shadows. Twice he 
paused, but retreat was blocked by a deathless countenance 
that smiled at him from the distance. He came to a dead 
halt. The perfume of an old fashioned garden gave him greet- 
ing. He dared not drink its pure breath; something in the 
flrst taste choked him, made him wince at his own pollution. 
He raised his eyes. They were jerked into a wide, motion- 
less stare. He heard her voice. His heart gulped, then stum- 
bled and drove fast against his ribs. The vision, framed by 
an open doorway, was blurred by a scalding mist that scarfed 
his eyes. Her face was full of peace and beauty when she 
came down the garden path to meet him. It was burned by 
fire into the core of his soul when he heard : "John — oh I John! ** 

With a start the man drew himself together. He ndicd 



1904.] Subjection. 379 

his eyes first to the blue cloth, then to the shining badge, 
then dumbly to the round, red face of the officer. 

" You've had yer nap, eh ? Move on, move on out o' here ! " 

The man felt no antagonism, but rose like one in great 
weariness. The strident roar and rattle of the streets assailed 
him; they were slim undertones to another voice that scorned 
betrayal. Once on the sidewalk, he looked up and down the 
avenue, but not across at the window. He struck out north- 
ward; at every cross-street, a blinding lance of light leaped 
toward him. The West was a pool of intolerable fire. The 
flagstones that had for houts sucked in the heat now dis- 
charged it in puffs and waves; it entered the thin, broken 
leather of his shoes, and smouldered against the bottoms of 
his feet ; it curled upward and licked his face ; beads of sweat 
oozed from his skin to trickle in wet courses down his face ; 
his hands were swollen and heavy with a dead weight of blood. 

Finally he turned a corner to the left, crossed the avenue 
and swung straight down into the scorching glare of the West. 
A sheet of flame quivered in the distance — it was the river. 
Half way down the next block he drew up sharply; his nos- 
trils bulged, his eyelids stiffened — he heard the soft feathery hum 
of the electric fans and the cool, moist click of glasses. The se- 
duction was overwhelming ; he gulped — once — twice; his throat 
was a blistered sluice. The old desire, with all its terrors aud in- 
sistent demands, leaped upon him. Through him, from head to 
foot, shot a strain of ice pursued by singeing fires ; a thousand 
devils brawled in the closet of his ears; and he found himself 
clinging to the bar- rail. A human hand was pushing toward him 
a grimy, worn nickle, and a human voice was saying : " Go home I 
you can't spend that here." Home ! he was still trembling when 
he sat down in the shadow of the empty cars at the river side. 

AJl through the smouldering phase of twilight he fought — 
with alternate curse and prayer — the tempter and his gift 
The nickle still lay moist and stained in the palm of his hand. 
He looked at it; he heard a voice — her voice; his arm hesi- 
tated in mid-air ; then the counsel of another tongue prevailed. 
He dropped the coin into his pocket and glanced shiftily 
about him, half expecting to see her disappointed face. The 
steady, long, even roll of a slow-moving freight train brought 
him to his feet. Somewhere midway its length he swung him- 
self up and between the cars. 

VOL. LXXX.— 25 



38o Subjection. [D 

" You're going home ! You're going home ! *' He heard 
(he words in the grinding click and swing of the wheels. He 
shut his lips. Thirty miles! thirty miles ! and then — he shouted 
hoarsely against the night ; but a swoop of wind through the 
draughty passage of the cars flung the cry back against his 
face. Through swirling clouds of dust and cinders he saw the 
blurred lights of the river towns flash and vanish. The miles 
kept dropping back into the darkness — like his strength. The 
ride, like the thirst that was again upon him — a swarm of 
stinging vermin — seemed never-ending. Racked, numbed, 
blinded, he felt the sudden articulated shocks, the relaxed 
speed, the rattling of made switches, and the slow drag of the 
train on yard -tracks. Then the hurried chuff, chuff — chuff, 
chuff — of the engine. 

The man dropped from between the cars and, crossing the 
tracks, paused to glance about him. Opposite the dingy station 
a hill towered blunt and dark and forbidding. At the base a 
bleared, yellow eye lurched drunkenly out through the shadows. 
It challenged the man's will, the efforts of his heart, and all 
the resolutions of his soul; it held him vise-like to the spot. 
On the immediate air hung a thin, sour, beery smell — the 
tavern door was open. From it there coiled outward a gray 
stream of 'smoke ; and this became a lithe, living arm that 
reached out to throttle him. He cursed the feeling into sub- 
jection; his fingers closed with swift assertion on the solitary 
coin in his pocket ; he was amazed to think that he had once 
been tempted to cast it away. He understood it the next 
moment when invisible arms bore him bodily toward the light 
He felt the horrible slip and tightening of muscles against his 
own, and shuddered. He damned the yellow eye even as it 
leered down his weak protest. His foot was on the shop 
step, when he recoiled and staggered from the doorway; her 
face, full of beseechment, floated between him and the saloon. 
On his hot, grimy face he thought that he felt the cold purity 
of her kiss. It was a wet wind sweeping out of the northern 
quarter of the river; a point of fire touched his forehead — a 
rain-drop flung in advance of its fellows. Her tears would 
burn like that. A thrill shook him from crown to sole. He 
swung away into the night and toviHj^^e hills. His shamed 
and naked soul a guide, the por " jjiom pressing and 

oulding his face, he y- ^ ^^^Mt him was a 



J 




1904] Subjection. 381 

hage bulk of hills, their granite sides and firm, gross hearts, 
making rare sounding boards for the volumcd thunders. Lean, 
lithe» switching pines whistled along the crests in the gather- 
ing winds. Foot by foot, fighting down the intolerable temp- 
tation, he drew near and gained the level. A hundred yards 
beyond, in the fork of the road, he knew — God ! — there was 
the light; the window panes were luminous against the 
oppressive blackness of the night. As he paused at the crotch 
of the toad, the whole weight of his temptation seemed to 
fall away. He shot a fleet glance behind him, expecting to 
see its embodied horror speeding down through the gloom^ 
At the gateway he sank to his knees and, with his hot fac^ 
crushing the cool, sweet grasses, kissed the ground. It was 
holy with her foc^t-steps — that evening. From the croft be- 
yond came the maddening perfume of roses — her favorite 
flower. He staggered to his feet and slunk along the hedge 
till the light of the unshuttered window was full upon him. 
Then he saw, and, for a moment, stiffened with an indescriba- 
ble sensation. Awci terror, pity, remorse, despair — each in 
turn gripped his heart. But none with such significance as 
that final clutch of despair. He saw her ; she was sitting in 
her rocker; her hair, he could not understand that it should 
be white, was decently composed under a cap of lace; he 
searched the features for some similitude of the portrait shin- 
ing in his soul, ahd found — none. He saw the flash of her 
spectacles when she moved; he could not see her eyes, but 
he guessed their contents. The thought wrung an involuntary 
cry from his lips. With sudden resolve he burst through the 
hedge and stood trembling on the garden walk. He took one 
step forward^ stopped abruptly and gripped at his throat. A 
blinding fire faced across the valley. Shrill, resonant cracks 
of thunder split and- rattled down the precipitous walls of the 
night. Rain surged and swayed, then poured in dense, reso- 
lute floods upon the earth. For an instant the woman's face 
was framed in the window glass; the sad, questioning eyes 
were veiled by a drawn curtain ; the light disappeared from 
the window. A momet later— with the roar of the hills about 
him; the fleet, white lightnings biting at his heels; and, int-o 
the flesh ci one palm, fingers crunching a nickle — the man 
went in full flight— ^ his eyes seared with alternate visions, 
the dim, smoking drinking- den, and the face of — his mother. 



^ 


'^ 


XTbe Xateet Boohs. 


« 






Several months ago we gave an 
CHRISTIAN REALISM. account of P^re Laberthonniere's 
By Abbe Laberthonniere. volume of essays in Religious 

Philosophy, and stated how wor- 
thy they were of serious attention from readers interested in 
the religious topics most widely discussed and vitally impor- 
tant at the present day. This new book* deserves equal con- 
sideration ; and in view of the numerous issues, raised by 
recent publications as to the Catholic conception of Christ, 
the function of criticism in apologetics, the relation of Scrip- 
ture to the church, and similar matters, the work seems espe- 
cially timely. It will be wisest, perhaps, to content ourselves 
here with a brief outline of the contents of his two hundred 
pages, referring readers to the book itself for a more satisfac- 
tory development of the topics introduced. 

At the outset an attempt is made to clarify the conception 
of the Christian religion by means of contrasting it with the 
ideas entertained by the Greeks. 

Although in Greek philosophy, says our author, it is possi- 
ble to recognize a beginning of those aspirations of the soul 
which Christianity aims at satisfying, the Greek attitude of 
mind was totally different from the Christian. The interest of 
the Greek centred in the explanation of the visible universe, 
and his way of explaining it was the substituting of a world 
of ideas for the v^orld of [things. Abstraction was the instru- 
ment of truth, and the way of salvation ; and happiness was 
to be secured by rising above the realities of experience — not 
through asceticism, but through dialectics-^and contemplating 
pure ideas. The world of sensible experience was but a poor 
place, ruled over by a blind fate, and God dwelt entirely 
apart from it 

Iri contrast with this, Christianity is preoccupied primarily 
with life itself, and not with the explanation of things. It is 
not a system of abstract ideas, but a practical instruction to 
man to be biisy with his own inner life and the shaping of 

•Z./ Jiiaiisme CkriHen tt VIdialunu Grec, Par I'AbW L. Labertbonnifere. Paris: P. 

Lotbit'Uciix, 

I I • ■ • 



1904.] The La test Books. 383 

his destiny. Built upon actual historical events, Christianity 
is, at the same time, much more than a history; it is a doc- 
trine in the concrete. Its Bible is essentially an interpretation 
of life, a definite religious conception, which, like a rich seed, 
is planted in the bosom of humanity to grow and flourish. 
While truly historical the Bible is, in a great measure, inde- 
pendent of literal accuracy, since it records facts not for their 
own sake, but for their spiritual significance. Events are re- 
lated because in them is disclosed an animating purpose, a 
divine intention full of moral meaning, the activity of God 
mingling with the activity of man. The spiritual lesson is 
primary, the history secondary ; hence it is useless to look for 
orderly and scientific narratives in the pages of the Bible. 
For example, in Genesis the essential point is the fact of the 
creation of the world by God. In the Gospels, the aim is to 
tell not the external details of our Lord's life, but what he 
was in himself, what his actions signified, what his words 
meant, what part he was playing in the life of humanity. 
That he was a divine person dwelling amid men, and that by 
various acts he shaped human destiny, this is the main point 
in the Gospel story. 

The contrast of Christianity and the Greek philosophy is 
then that of realism as against an abstract idealism. The 
Christian God is not a mere ultimate idea, but essentially an 
active power creating and sustaining all existences; and the 
world is not independent of him,- nor connected with him by 
a mere logical nexus, but it is the actual outcome of his 
energy and his love, and is, so to speak, morally bound to 
him as the Being of beings and the Life of lives. 

Christian doctrine, it is true, is in a certain sense tradi- 
tional, inasmuch as the Christian concept of life is conditioned 
by past events, and affected by the testimony of others as to 
the interpretation of these events; yet at the same time 
Christianity must be more than a tradition, for it is of real 
value to an individual only in the measure that he acquires 
and assimilates it by personal thought and personal activity. 
This part must be done by each one for himself and only in 
virtue of attempts at it can Christianity become a reality in a 
life. Thus taken hold of by the individual intelligence and 
will, however, it is capable of indefinite growth and develop- 
ment in each soul. The Greek ideal requires intellectual- con- 




384 The Latest Books. [Dec, 

templatian ; the Christian, a contiaual struggle to adapt oae's 
^If to the Gospel interpretation of life. The affirmation sA 
Christianity is moral rather than intellectual. Our oatologi- 
cal relation with God is a fixed natural necessity; but to be 
a Christian one must freely accept this relation and further it 
with all the strength of his soul. In one sense it is true that 
we have only what we receive; but in another sense we have 
nothing but what we win. The dualism of Christi^ity is, 
then, not a dualism between God and creation, but between 
the wills that side with God and the wills that oppose him. 
All sincere effort is acceptable to God; it all helps on the 
process of moral development, and in the last analysis we shall 
find that there is no opposition except between the spirit of 
self-sufficiency and the recognition of one's dependence on 
God. Which side is right ? There lies the real religious 
problem, and much confusion will be avoided once this issue 
is clearly seen. 

The great vital question then, is, what attitude shall we 
assume in our conduct ? Unfortunately the fact that Christian- 
ity has a historical aspect, too, distracts men's attention, so that 
they forget that the most important issue is this one just 
stated. Apologists sometimes speak as if men could be reasoned 
into Christianity. They say that the divinity of the Christian 
religion is as demonstrable as the existence of Alexander or 
Cssar. This is false ; it implies that a scientific, historical 
training is requisite and is sufficient to make a man a Chris- 
tian. Now history may teach us that Jesus Christ has existed, 
but between doing that and proving that he is divine yawns 
an abyss. Historical proofs do not implant Christianity in 
men ; Christianity is instilled by the echo which Christ's teach- 
ing awakens in the soul, by the sight of his life and the sound 
of his words, showing him to be the way, the truth, and the 
life. Converts find their first motives for believing in the 
satisfactory answers given by Christ to the problems presented 
by life. Faith in Christ's divinity comes not from study alone, 
but from divine grace, from a deep-felt inner need, and from 
a good-will to believe. All that history can teach us will 
never effect this result, just as St. Peter's familiar acquaintance 
with Christ — the knowledge — ■ ^-^ by " flesh and blood " — 
could not be the «niice* q ^on of Christ's divinity. 

tory proves Sc believer, however, 




I904-] THE LATEST BOOKS. 385 

the point is not, <'Did he exist?" but, "What was he?" 
How foolish it would be for us to say that scientific history 
gives us the motives for accepting Christ, and at the same 
time to forbid a critical historian to make abstractions of his 
fi^ith. The Gospel is not really a mere chronicle; it is an 
i]itei:pretation, a doctrine; it shows us what Christ was to the 
apostles* But alongside the apostles, who believed, we find 
others who did not believe. Which side sh^U we take, and 
what motives shall determine our choice ? History, indeed, 
takes no man either into or out of the church. As a matter 
of fact the opposition which history reveals, between those who 
believed and those who did not believe, is being repeated 
to-day, here, under our very eyes; and we can choose sides 
here, just as well as off yonder, in the i^sue related by 
history. In truth, before we can really take sides at all, we 
must have motives of our own ; the reasons of one $ide or the 
other must become our reasons, in order that we may honestly 
make a choice. Now Christ's truth, is not to be limited to the 
temporary manifestation qf it recorded in the p^ges of history ; 
it is here as well as there; perhaps it is here more than there, 
for there the faith ly^as only in its beginnings, and since, then 
the mustard-seed has become a tree, the piety of the faithful, 
the meditations of saints, the speculations of theologians, and 
the discussions of councils, together with a thousand kinds of 
contradictions having helped to elaborate the originally simple 
teaching. Now to adhere to the truth of Christ means know- 
ingly and voluntarily to be incorporated in the church which 
brings him to us and us to him. And, if we do not welcome 
and attempt to assimilate the truth that is thus presented to 
us, we shall hardly discover it in the testimony of a dead 
past. 

At the same time we must admit that historical criticism 
is neither useless nor superfluous. Christ presenting himself 
as the life of our life is the real motive that draws us, but 
history must come to our help if we are to get acquainted 
with the facts of his life, to see with our eyes, and to touch 
with our hands, the Incarnate God, and to learn to tread in 
his footsteps. History again must be called upon to introduce 
us to communion with all those who at any time and in' any 
place have welcomed Christ, explicitly or implicitly, and have 



ee: JL^rzrr 3co£S. [Dec., 

rmdi in its living totality, 
zsts. one most be able to centre 

even formalate 
[irj sich as would dispense 



.XI. _ 



elaboration; yet it is no 
iHhiiHt if s ixse7 3e had by learning the con- 

idief prevalent in past ages. 

bat, like a man for- 
each day, would have 




.a^ 



:±:zs £ar at least, that it 
2ar used to obtain: first, 
ji r:Tr-<=rafT tr^th coold be gathered 
\ snir^ j£ Scripmre; and again, the 
ssanisnsd at the beginning as it 
rnsEu iiiscirrtional and hierarchical 



irsuj-d .n Ttner wcrds, that it has remained 



urs :=frrurT^^ ike st nnnoA-aiiie block of granite. 
TiC z3r=t* ra sarta :xi j^re lbs, sid only by thinking his 
3^ in^ -iv:--^ iis life ill we miy receive him. The 
r.^^s- :z:£!r-.'ru:v:a jia sac esiisast the fullness of that 
-::trr i:^ ui^ir rrr'-ru^-ir:? i^Taiwit tbe foDness of Christ's 
T^s rr^iia Ji J!tr-<t: i»astsd in the church like a 
:^ It n^c v^^^mc ^t ajmaiT.ry: and, as critical study 
r >.:c^. r 1025 se^Tsr 3<e!i lik« a. aiere register or transmitter, 
v^i- :jj5^ - ?^^r : -;:icr-j'ai^i aiediaalcally. Instead of handing 
^ :^.,a:^^ >c i >ctr-ae. -e she receives them, the church 
;.- ^x?«.i ::e ^i-'^^s ^rjaa c£ the living truth of Jesus 



«. •«»* -^ 









r,.r-M-vt r^-^uxe c£ aa i:itcresting work, the well- 
.vx :: * .1 ,*<'C^i''t* :m ^u^^estion of numerous principles 
,i 'v' ^v->,:sN»5i z'!^: irr* b^i3^ cLsc;issed very hotly within the 
^v. v^ 4: ' ^^ v.-^r^i^frt: ::3i«?. I: would be too much to say 
:*vi Ov d..:'^v^ \av^:> us 20 rv?cm for question, problem, or 
Yv.-'v V. vNt iccvic. vMi b :? cwti showiug, such a result would 
X*^ iNw: ,. » O.V.: ^a:^ Fut he does stimulate us vigorously to 
, V ,^ 1 ro :v* ; ^ ^< ::i A way that will help us both mentally 
* » i X *. • ,.vi N rc>ib:'<;^ this is the end that he aimed at 



■|.',''v s'i ^ 



1904.] The Latest Books. 387 

Progress in Prayer^ is a spiritual 

PROGRESS IN PRAYER, book of altogether remarkable 

By Fr. Caussade. value. Not in many a year has 

the devotional literature of our 
language been enriched with a volume so simple in method, 
so lofty in purpose, and so deep in principle, as this brief 
work of less than two hundred pages. And it attains to this 
distinction because Its teaching on prayer is the teaching of 
the church's greatest doctors of the soul, and the teaching of 
the church's greatest epochs of sanctity. In those old days 
the monastic saints taught men to pray by sending them straight 
to God, by training their eyes to see God, so far as. he can 
now be seen, and by cultivating their wills to go forth to God 
in the simple act of unitive love. It was a straightforward 
and simple method, not above the ambition of the lowliest 
earnest soul, and yet capable of illuminating the interior path- 
ways of the very highest. But, like many another holy thing, 
it fell under some suspicion because its name was coveted by 
an unsound and condemned method which, however, differs 
from it, and is as easily distinguishable from it as night from 
day. Quietism arose, and because of it, contemplative prayer 
came to be distrusted, openly spoken of as dangerous, and to 
a very great extent was forbidden by directors. Yet contem- 
plation is the glory of Catholic devotion, and to abandon it is 
to leave the highway where saints have trod. There is begin- 
ning now, it would appear, a revival of this simple and free 
method of mental prayer. Conscientious directors are perceiv- 
ing that many religious souls, whether in the world or in the 
consecrated state, reach, by a normal growth of soul under 
the illumination of the Holy Spirit, a condition wherein methods, 
exercises, forms, and formalisms of meditation become a hin- 
drance to their progress. Instead of reaching God after by- 
journeyings through points, sub-points, reflections, applications, 
and divers '' compositions," they possess at once a vivid sense 
of the intimate presence of the all-Holy, and are impelled 
toward him by fervent and simple acts of will. And in the 
interior union with God thus permitted them they perceive 
more comprehensively, and feel more keenly, the convictions 
and conclusions which ordinary meditation is an instrument for 

^Progress in Prayer. Translated from Imiructwns Spiriivelles^ par le R. P. Caussade, 
SJ'i by L. V. Sheehan. Adapted and Edited with an Introduction by Joseph McSorley 
C.S.P. St. Louisa B. Herder. 



3M THE LATEST BOtHES. [Dec, 

prescntiiig to the mind; {or example, that sin ia. above all 
thia^s kitefiil» that God is worth all sacrifices, that our Sayiour 
the soul's entire devotion. With penitents of this 
it would surely be wrong to check the impulses of 
gracaw to forbid direct union with God, and to insist upon 
retaining aa iroa method, when its main purpose of assisting 
dhe SQol has been loag siace fulfilled, and its usefulness more or 
Itfss £flumshed. 

In aa thi^ we intend no imputation against set exercises 
afti rules of dtscarsiTe aieditation. Such helps are indispensa- 
ble fv^r aeariT all ia the beginning, and for some during an 
eacnt liietime probably. But to -make of these aids a barrier 
t« all pn^i^^ess beyond^ is unjust and harmful. So declare 
;tti«t:3fccc;SLT all the church's greatest doctors of interior sci- 
MBiaa. C«m«i;:reatlT» we need spiritual book^ which will teich 
$citt!^} *s$ ct the higher sort of prayer; we need them most 
•^c-^ttttf^ tcow For even to-day, distant as we are from the 
s^u .it<::>t:c Controversies, there remain widespread misunder- 
$c^ui^*:<^ about all contemplative aspirations, aad, as a direct 
r^^It,. $oai$ called to higher things are kept fastened by obe- 
ci'^ucit in lower P. Caussade.'s book is a manual of this rare 
v*>^rdicc^r« and deserves the most earnest commendation that we 
si&u ^^\^ it. Simple in language and made still easier by the 
v^^^^s h^ttcal method of question and answer, it is adapted to all 
vvuvtuum^i and capacities of mind, and it will become, we feel 
x\ji\^ \\\ predicting, God's instrument for leading many chosen 
ixHiU to that higher and freer enjoyment of divine union whicfa 
km vsk ^x^9X a gift of grace, and the most perfect life of prayer. 
it\«> tri^nslator's work has been extraordinarily well done; and 
v^m K^r Father McSorley's historical and explanatory introduc- 
luM^ it is such an essay as one finds only once in a long span of 
\ v>4ra« To read this clear and scholarly paper would be of itself 
v^vutgh reason and enough reward for procuring this little 
vv^Uuuo, and for going back to it again and again. 

This jubilee year of the promul- 

THE FRANCISCANS AND gation of the Immaculate Con- 

THB IMMACULATE CON- ception has seen at least one work 

CEPTION. upon the doctrine of very high 

By Fr. Pauwcls. scientific merit. This is the vol- 

ume of Father Pauwels, O.F.M., 
roUtlon of the Franciscan Order to the development of 



1904.] The Latest books. 389 

the dogma.* The sons of St. Francis, as every student of the* 
ology knows, were, from the time of Duns Scotus, the inde-r 
fatigable defenders of Mary's unique and glorious privilege. 
As Father Pauwels admits, however, the earliest theologians of 
the order, Alexander of Hales, St. Bonaventure, and Richard 
Middletoa, agreed with St. Bernard, Albert the Great, and 
Thomas Aquinas in calling into question the Immaculate Con- 
ception. But Duns Scotus, the wonderful young Irish minorite, 
soon, let us hope, to be made both saint and Doctor of the 
Church, drew to the support of the doctrine his cntite order, 
and, from almost his lifetime, the opinion which he illustriously 
defended became known as sententia Franciscana. Ranged 
against the Franciscans upon the point were the Dominicans, 
and for five hundred years a continual and bitter debate raged 
between them, constituting one of the most ^extraordinary 
chapters in the history of theology. 

We can imagine the intensity of the controversy from such 
a fact as that for a time the monks who presided over the 
Spanish Inquisition flung into prison as heretics those who 
defended the Immaculate Conception. At times civil magis- 
trates had to interfere between the disputants for the sake of 
the public peace; and more than once, the opponents oi the 
Franciscan school had to be called to book for not sufficiently 
respecting the papal letters that leaned ever more and more 
positively toward the definition finally proclaimed by Pius IX. 
It is this celebrated controversy, and especially the eminent 
and honorable part taken in it by the Friars Minor, that 
Father Pauwels describes. He does his task with a masterly 
hand. He is not a mere eulogist, but is a critical and im- 
partial historian. At times he openly dissents from an opinion, 
such for example as that St. Bonaventure favored the doc- 
trine, which would naturally appeal to his religious sympa- 
thies. Also in narrating the vehemence of the objectors against 
the Franciscan thesis, and their pertinacious hostility to an 
opinion — as it then was — dear to devout hearts, he is calm, 
cautious, and charitable. Altogether, h^ has given us an ex- 
cellent work, for which all students of theology will be sin- 
cerely grateful. 

One is impressed anew, in reading a book like this, with the 
inestimable blessing of an unerring church. Think of the con- 

* Lts Franciscains etVlmmacuUe Conception, Par le P. Pierre Pauwels, O.F.M. Mallnes : 
L'lmprimerie S. Francois. 



390 The LATEST BOOKS. [Dec, 

troversies that have arisen since the deposit of faith was first 
given to men. Is Christ consubstantial with the Father ? Did 
Christ have a human as well as a divine will ? Does the 
Holy Ghost proceed from Father alone or from Father and 
Son ? These and many other questions, which are inevitable 
once men start reflecting on dogmatic Christianity, have arisen, 
have divided schools, have produced literatures, and have, in 
providential time, been set at rest by the infallible voice of 
God's teacher to mankind. So with the Immaculate Concep- 
tion : doctors disputed ; universities argued ; preachers af&rmed 
and denied ; human passions were aroused ; domestic tradi- 
tions seemed at issue; and perhaps even soundness of faith 
imperilled. At last the oracle of the Lord ! Roma locuta est ! 
And at once the way is clear ; the controversy is ended ; the 
perplexity is made plain ; the certain truth shines forth ; and 
all are one in acknowledging and in exalting the glory of the 
Immaculate. Only in Catholicity can there be full freedom to 
discuss, because there alone is final authority to decide. 

We assure those of our readers 

INSPIRATION. who are interested in Scripture- 

By Fr. Hummelauer. study, that they will miss one of 

the most remarkable essays of re- 
cent years if they omit reading Father Hummelauer's pamphlet 
on Inspiration.* The author, long known as one of the pro- 
foundest and boldest of Catholic Scripturists, has often aroused 
interest and controversy by his published views; but we feel 
sure that in this latest work he will be the centre of a more 
energetic discussion than has ever yet surrounded him. He 
deals here with the question of Inspiration in those practical 
aspects which alone are of interest to people of our time. For 
it is possible to study the problem in very many impractical 
aspects. Learned papers might be written, perhaps even whole 
volumes penned, about, for example, the psychological effect 
of inspiration on the sacred writer, how far his choice of words 
comes under inspiration, or whether he is always formally con- 
scious of being inspired. Useful, of course, are all such specu- 
lations ; but we have ventured to call them impractical, just at 
this present period of biblical stu ^ "•*'^- the reason that nowa- 

*Exe^eHsches Mur Impiratic ~ HiGht auf das Alte Testament. 

Von Franz von Hummelauer, i "^llidluiig. 




1904-] THE Latest Books. 391 

days people want one, and practically only one, question 
answered in this matter of Inspiration. And that question iSy 
In what sense are all the statements of the Bible true ? 
Directly, and almost exclusively, with this difficult and delicate 
problem is Father Hummelauer's brochure concerned. He can- 
not, at the very outset, be too highly praised for his cour- 
ageous advance upon a matter so hard to treat. It would be 
more comfortable, obviously, for a Catholic student and scholar 
not to touch those thorny points; and not to go out as a 
pioneer into an uncertain region dangerous with quicksands, 
wherein many previous explorers have lost their way and been 
destroyed. But go into the place of danger and disquiet we 
must. We are summoned by the imperative call of souls in 
need. For to-day, as surely it would be superfluous to prove, 
men are becoming unbelievers by many thousands, because they 
have lost or are losing faith in the Bible. The Old Testament 
writings are receiving new light from Oriental discoveries, and 
are subjected to a searching process of critical examination, 
which has brought forward fresh problems absolutely unknown 
to the fathers of the church or to the theologians of past gener- 
ations. And out of the many voices which are raised, and 
the manifold difficulties which are urged by this recent science, 
one interrogation seems to be most clearly heard and most 
earnestly uttered: Is the Bible true in all its statements; and 
how, in what manner, is it true ? 

This question, we said, we must endeavor to answer. Our 
advanced students must teach us how to answer it. And those 
among them who give us light upon the difficulty, who accord 
full, honest, and generous recognition to science, but show at 
the same time that science is not at all hostile to our genuine 
belief, are doing the most timely missionary service that can 
at present be rendered to the church. Honor, then, in high 
measure is due to Father Hummelauer, the honor of apostolic 
effort, as well as the distinction of eminent erudition. He has 
written in these brief pages a work which contains principles 
for answering the main difficulties of Bible-study, and for recon- 
ciling higher criticism and traditional faith, so long and disas- 
trously in conflict. 

It is not easy to give an adequate and safe r^sumd of a 
book like this. The reasoning is so .close that it ought to be 
studied as a whole; and the necessary distinctions are of such 



3^ J The Latest Books. [Dec, 

vital mofment that they should not be hazarded by abbreviation. 
Still, we think it possible to state at least th^ principles of our 
author's position. In answer to the question, Is every state- 
ment of the Bible true ? Father Hummelauer answers decisively, 
Yes. Then comes his distinction: It is true in the sense in 
which the inspired writer meant it to be true^ and in that sense 
alone. It may not be true in some sense which we wish to 
thrust into it; then we are at fault, not the inspired writer. 
If the inspired author writes a parable, his composition has 
the truth proper to parables ; if he writes a poem, it has the 
truth proper to poetry ; if he should even write an extensive 
haggada, or religious novel, to use a modern word, it would 
have the truth proper to these literary forms. Consequently, if 
we read a biblical parable, and complain because it has not 
the truth of critical history, it is we who are wrong, since a 
parable has its own kind of truth as well- as critical history; 
and it was the former that was intended by the author, and 
not the latter. Likewise, if we read a biblical poem, and cry 
out against the inaccuracy of Scripture, because we find in the 
poem a statement scientifically inexact, we again are the blun* 
derers. The inspired author of that poem had no intention, 
no care, perhaps no thought at all just then, of writing scicn^ 
tific truth, but only poetic truth; and to censure him would be 
as stupid as to charge a man with not knowing anything about 
architecture, or common-sense housebuilding, because he bad 
put up a stable which possessed neither dining-room nor bed- 
chambers. For example, if the author of the first chapter of 
Genesis wished in his creation-narrative simply to represent, 
pfctorially and poetically, the truth that God made all things 
that are, surely it is evident that it is the utmost unreason- 
ableness to gibe at his geology. The last thing in his mind 
was geology; perhaps he knew nothing at all about it. His 
narrative is true, perfectly and irreproachably true, with the 
truth that he intended to have it express; viz., the religions 
truth, clothed in the language of figure and metaphor, that God 
created heaven and earth. And ' he should not be judged, 
therefore, by the standard of some other order of ttttth, which 
he took no thought for whatever. 

From all this Father Hummelauer's fundamental principle 
may be seen to be this: Every kind of literary compositiM 
has a truth proper and peculiar to itself; and every stMe^ 



1904-] THE LATEST BOOKS. 393 

ment, proposition, or narrative should be judged singly and 
solely by the truth proper to the literary category to which 
such Bfeatement, proposition, or narrative belongs. Poetry, 
parable, historical fiction, even folk-lore — all these are true, 
but with a far wider and looser truth than the truth of chem- 
istry, mathematics, or critical history. Multitudes of the erro- 
neous ideas prevalent about the Bible arise from the illogical 
application of the standards of strictly critical and scientific 
truth, to statements which ought to be judged by the stand- 
ards of less rigid kinds of truth, since it was according to 
these latter standards that the inspired authors wrote and in- 
tended to be read. 

But who shall tell us in what literaty category a statement, 
a text, or even a whofe book belongs ? How shall we know 
whether we are reading tribal tradition or rigid history? 
poetical amplification or a plain account of what happened ? a 
chapter in history or a devout haggada? If we knew which 
of these the inspired author intended, no doubt would arise of 
course ; but in many cases we do not know this, at least at 
first sight, and who shall guide us ? Outside the strict province 
o{ faith, answers Father Hummelauer, this is a matter to be 
settled by criticism. When exhaustive studies have been made 
— should they be necessary-^both into the testimony given by 
the text or book to itself, and into the evidence concerning it 
which may be supplied by outside sources of contemporary 
history, we are in a position to decide upon its literary char- 
acter, and consequently upon the canons by which tb judge it. 
Questions as to authorship and literary quality, he insists, are 
i^ot in the competence of theologians, but must be left to 
techaical and professional Scripture-students. 

It must not be thought for an instant that any literary 
species of composition is unworthy to be inspired of God. All 
literary forms may convey his truth, his precepts, and his 
promises ; and why should he not employ all ? Does the truth 
that he is merciful suffer from being expressed in the parable 
of the prodigal son ? Is his omnipotence obscured because 
voiced in the poetry of the psalms? It rather adds to the 
richness of God's message and to the condescension of his 
communications to us, that he should speak in these divers 
ways, and should leave the human instruments of his utterance 
so free in their mode of expression, while yet so constrained 



394 The Latest Books. [Dec, 

to deliver his intended word. We need never fear that some 
portion of revelation will escape us, because we may not at 
once discover the character of the composition which contains 
it. The church is ever with us; and the church is God's 
appointed custodian and interpreter of his written word, and 
will ever lead her children in ways of light and understanding. 

We have sketched here the merest outline of Father Hum- 
merlauer's fundamental position. How he develops, applies, 
and proves it ; what keen critical observations he makes in dis- 
cussing it ; and how well he shows its relation to traditional 
and theological teaching, one must read his pages to perceive. 
It is only just to say that the learned Jesuit is not the 
first to put forward this view of Inspiration. It was stated 
two years ago by an anonymous writer in the Studi Religiosi 
of Florence; and has been implicitly advocated by such schol- 
ars as Father Prat, the Jesuit, and P. Lagrange, the Domini- 
can. Still, Father Hummelauer has more scientifically and 
extensively unfolded the principle than any one else; and for 
this he deserves, let us say once more, the gratitude of all 
Catholics. For it appears to us, that only on some such 
ground as he has chosen, can the Bible be replaced in the 
affections of the men who are slipping away from Christianity, 
and made to appeal to them as God's word, against which 
science can have no legitimate complaint. 

In conclusion we cannot help remarking on the clearness 
and fluency of Father Hummelauer's German style. As a rule 
German books on scientific subjects are a sore trial to a reader 
to whom German is not a mother-tongue. But this work we 
found as straightforward and transparent as the best French; 
and this is an additional reason for hoping that it will be 
widely read and deeply studied. 

Father Lagrange's lectures* on 

THE HISTORICAL METHOD, the general method of the higher 

By Fr. Lagrange, criticism of the Bible have gone 

into a third edition. We have 
already given favorable notice in this review department to 
the two former editions of this remarkable little book; and 
once again we are glad to recommend it most cordially. 

^ La Mithode Historique. Parle P. Marie-Joseph Lagrange, O.P. Edition Augment^. 
Paris : Victor Lecoffre. 



1904.] The Latest Books. 395 

Father Lagrange is a straightforward critic, but he is not car- 
ried away with radical views. Of course he is too 'modern 
not to displease a great many people. His concessions to the 
achievements of advanced biblical study have often aroused 
conservative ire; in fact they have just been distinguished 
with a published attack. But, despite all that, Father Lagrange 
is regarded by Catholics, who understand the situation from 
having made biblical studies themselves, as the foremost repre- 
sentative of that school of Catholics who wish to deny to 
higher criticism nothing to which it is justly due, and wish at 
the same time to stand for no unnecessary hypothesis which 
would even seem to disturb the essential things of faith. 

In this volume our author goes to the heart, of many an 
urgent problem, as these titles of his lectures will signify: 
Dogma and Exegesis ; The Evolution of Dogma ; Inspiration ; 
The Critical Method in Bible Study; The Historical Character 
of the Civil Legislation of the Jews ; and Primitive History. 
To these studies a new essay is added in this edition, entitled : 
Our Lord and Gospel Criticism. This study is in the form of 
a letter to Mgr. Batiffol, of Toulouse, and is an examination 
of certain features of the Abbe Loisy's recent theories in 
U£vang%l€ et V£glise. Pere Lagrange differs from M. 
Loisy, and expresses his difference decisively. The objection 
now common to all opponents of the learned abb^, that a doc- 
trine cannot be held fast by faith if its historical basis is 
destroyed, is strongly stated by the scholarly Dominican. He 
also implies that M. Loisy's reconstruction of our Lord's 
actual words and acts in those cases where Loisy considers 
our Gospel-narrative to be defective, is colored by a precon- 
ceived theory which deflects the plain white light of sound 
criticism. Going straight to the Gospel- record, says P. La- 
grange, we find a sincere setting forth of the best information 
that the Evangelists possessed. This information, whatever its 
minor variations, is the substantial deposition of those who 
saw the Lord and heard him. Consequently about such mat- 
ters as the Resurrection or the Eucharistic Institution, it is 
impossible to question that we have a true account. These 
mighty factors of Christ's religion, testified to by eye witnesses 
of the Saviour's life, must have that direct connection with 
his person which our Gospels say they have. Any other sup- 
position — once more remembering that it is beyond dispute 

VOL. LXXX.— 26 



396 THE Latest Books. [Dec, 

that our Gospels contain, whether at first or second hand, a 
record of eye-witnesses — is inconceivable. This plain and sen- 
sible view of the Gospels, a view which the character, style, 
and structure of the sacred narrative support, gives us proof 
demonstrative of our Lord's divinity. But if, instead of this 
simple reading of the Evangelists, we begin our investigations 
with a set theory of " tendencies,*' of " dogmatic preoccupa- 
tions," of " Pauline theologizings," and so on, then we shall 
throw the whole portrait out of perspective, and shall only 
add one more to the already long list of grotesque guesses 
which may be ingenious, but are not critical, and cannot be 
true. 

We think that in this consideration P. Lagrange has uttered 
a wise counsel and a timely warning. We have had Gospel- 
theories without end, and without much profit either, if the 
truth be told. Perhaps now if the evangelic records be re- 
garded in the light of the large and simple principle just 
enunciated, we shall come at last to conclusions which shall 
be as beneficial to science as they are helpful to faith. We 
speak of this principle in its substance of course. For when 
applied to every detail of the New Testament history, it would 
have to be so interpreted as to allow for many minor difficul- 
ties and obscurities. 

Upon some other questions, brought to the front by M. 
Loisy's book, P. Lagrange briefly comments. Many indeed of 
these comments are so summary as to leave with the reader a 
regret that so capable an author did not extend and develop 
them. For example, P. Lagrange barely refers to the immense 
problem of scientia Christu He says enough, however, to in- 
dicate that in his opinion it is a question that should be 
studied by the critical Scripturist and the dogmatic theologian 
working fairly and sympathetically together. And he implies, 
moreover, that the speculative theologians have not been 
prompt in meeting this controversy, and in taking account of 
the new light which Scripture science has thrown upon it. 
Taken all in all this new essay of the erudite Dominican is 
very valuable, however much we may regret that it is not 
longer, and, in regard to some momentous matters, more thor- 
ough; and it adds a new merit to an already indispensable 
book. 



1904] The Latest Books. 397 

The eschatology of the Jews in 

ESCHATOLOGY IN THE the time of our Lord, of the 

EARLY CHURCH. Gospel itself, and of the first 

By Leon Gry, generation of Christians, seems to 

be at the present hour as widely 
discussed as any other single problem of Christian origins. 
The question is full of obscurities, and is of large importance. 
When we put such interrogations as : What was the Kingdom 
of God ? How was the idea of the Kingdom related to Jewish 
Messiahism ? How shall we interpret those texts, which seem 
to indicate a near approach of the end of the world and the 
imminent advent of the Messiah's empire ? When we put such 
queries, we repeat, we are striking close to matters which 
are fundamental in religion and in criticism. One side of this 
eschatological controversy has been treated with scholarly 
ability in a doctorate dissertation just brought out by M. 
L^on Gry, priest of the diocese of Rennes.* The millenarian 
idea is the main purpose of M. Gry's research ; but, in his 
discussion of that feature of early apocolyptic beliefs, he touches 
upon many of the larger interests of escliatology. For example, 
he has an excellent summary of the development of the Mes- 
sianic idea among the pre-Christian Hebrews, and brief but 
suggestive notiticB upon the Messianic teaching of the extra- 
canonical literature of the Jews about the time of the birth of 
Christianity. It is an important matter which still divides 
scholars into many groups, how far these early apocalypses 
represent current popular beliefs, and how far they influenced 
these beliefs. To discuss this formally was hardly within the 
scope of M. Gry's work, though he gives a few words to it, 
leaning strongly to the view that these writings are of con- 
siderable significance in the history of Jewish religion. 

Our Lord's eschatological utterances, says M. Gry, were 
based upon ideas common to all his hearers. He adopted the 
current notions of Messianic kingdom and of the great assize 
which is to precede its establishment, but spiritualized and 
immeasurably dignified these ideiU in conformity with the gen- 
eral spirit of his exalted teachings. The question of how to 
interpret those sayings, which seem to point to a near approach 
of the judgment and of the kingdom, M. Gry does not discuss. 

^Li MiiUnarism€ dans ses OrigiHes et son Divelofpement, Par L^n Gry. Paris : A« 
Picard et Flls. 



398 THE LATEST BOOKS. [Dec., 

The similar problem in St. Paul's earlier writings is also left 
unconsidered. Of the Apocalypse of St. John he admits that 
there is much in its symbolism to astonish us, but maintains 
that it is not imbued with millenariaki ideas, although it makes 
use of prevalent millenarian thoughts and expressions. In a 
footnote, too, our author contends strongly for the literary 
unity of the Apocalypse. Such disputes as concern the author- 
ship and teaching of this remarkable book which closes our 
Christian Scriptures are, of course, too vast to be adequately 
dealt with in a brief work like this one before us. Suffice it 
to say that what M. Gry says upon those subjects is always in 
fine scholarly temper and is based upon very wide and con- 
scientious reading. Three especially interesting chapters are 
given to the millenarian ideas of the early church — St. Irensus 
believed that the happy reign of a thousand years was a dogma 
of faith ; and a concluding chapter briefly discusses the rela- 
tion to faith of this strange opinion which was fixed so fast in 
primitive Christianity. M. Gry has given us a splendid study 
on a timely subject, and his excellent work deserves commen- 
dation. 

In presenting to us an English 

THE RAT. translation • of this story of Christ, 

By R. Monlaur. a story beautiful in its simplicity, 

and in this savoring of the Gos- 
pel narrative itself, Father Leleu has merited our gratitude 
and praise. 

The chief characters of the story, besides the Divine Mas- 
ter, are Gamaliel, the most learned and tolerant of the Jewish 
rabbis, and the noble Susanna, his sister, a woman of high in- 
telligence, whose soul, groping in the darkness of Pharisaism, 
is at last wonderfully illumined by the transcendent light of 
the Sacred Ray. In each chapter M. Monlaur draws a picture 
illustrative of the tender sympathy and loving kindness of the 
Saviour. He would, indeed, be a cold and unsympathetic 
reader who could peruse the simple and unaffected description 
in which Nicodemus tells Gamaliel of the wonderful wisdom of 
the Master's words, and of the still more wonderful loveliness 
and magnetism of the Saviour's presence, and not long to have 

• The Ray : A Story of the Time of Christ, By R. Monlaur. Translated by Rev. J. M. 
Lelcu. St. Louis : B. Herder. 



1904.] The Latest BOOKS. 359 

been with the narrator and to have seen the All Holy One 
face to face. 

It is the relating of such home-like incidents of the Mes- 
siah's life as the meeting of Jesus and Susanna, or the raising 
of Lazarus, which will endear this little book to every Chris- 
tian heart; and we feel warranted in predicting for the Eng- 
lish version the splendid success which the French original has 
already won for itself. 

The English, or more properly, 
THE ROYAL ACADEMY, the British school of art, taken 

lis a whole, has achieved its most 
notable distinction by appeal to the taste of the general public 
of Great Britain. Artificial means of encouragement to artists 
of standing or promise, such as obtain in France and else- 
where on the continent, and usually in the form of purchase 
for the galleries maintinaed by the government, is unknown in 
England. Indeed the Royal Academy is something of a par- 
adox, because, while in itself a private institution, it yet holds 
a public position. 

Hence there can be no true concept of British art which 
fails to take account of its dependence on the public, its close 
kinship with the actual life and taste of the people. Portraits, 
ministering to family pride ; pictures that " tell a story " ; 
works that give an exact copy of contemporaneous manners, 
customs, dress, characterized often by a labored touch in 
details, but effective because of the sincerity of purpose in the 
patient handling; pictures of games and sports; battles by 
land and sea, in which historic accuracy is often more remark- 
able than the more artistic qualities for which a French painter, 
for instance, would strive; river scenes, coast and open sea 
pictures, showing an astonishing understanding of the life, the 
movement, the majesty, but not the mystery of soch scenes; 
landscapes of which the most impressive are those found at 
home, and even when the subject belongs to other lands, the 
painting is usually marked by qualities, not easy to define, 
which gives it a pronounced English character; and finally, 
classical subjects, which often betray a deep knowledge of 
Greek and Roman literature, but are frequently more literary 
than painter-like in quality, and always compelling attention 
hy the thoroughness of the work. This classification marks the 



400 The Latest Books. [Dec, 

character of British art, and shows us the strength of the 
influence of English public life on that art. 

And in the beautiful volume * brought out by Mr. John 
Lane as a special supplement to The International Studio^ this 
characteristic of the British school of art is evident. All the 
notable examples of that school in the Royal Academy, from 
the time of Sir Joshua to that of Millais — from 1768 to 18681 
— are reproduced with a fidelity and a careful regard for artistic 
values for which the work issued by this publisher is conspicu- 
ous. The reproductions, whether in photogravure, color, half- 
tone or lithograph, are numerous and beautiful, and in artistic 
excellence rival the best productions of the famous art pub- 
lishers of continental Europe. 

The letter-press, too, is worthy of the art value. The 
history of the Royal Academy, covering its most important 
period, is treated in a lucid, judicial manner which will do 
much to correct the mistakes and prejudices which are so often 
met with in appreciations of British art. Many are too prone 
to forget that this art has been conditioned on English life. 
It is the glory of the Royal Academy that its note-worthy 
examples are a faithful transcript of that life, the index of its 
taste. 

Mr. Justin McCarthy's volume of 

AN IRISHMAN'S STORY, reminiscences! is occupied natu- 

By Justin McCarthy. rally with personal recollections 

rather than with general history; 
but when a man's life has been so long and so eminent as Mr. 
McCarthy's, it is often difficult to see the difference between 
the record of the individual and the larger annals of his time. 
One who knew Father Mathew; who was prominent in the 
Young Ireland movement; who counted as American friends 
William Cullen Bryant, Bayard Taylor, Wendell Phillips, and 
Charles Sumner; who was in the van of the fight for Home 
Rule, and succeeded Parnell as leader of the Irish party and 
as Gladstone's associate; such a man, when he writes auto- 

* Th* Royal Academy from Reynolds to Millais. Edited by Charles Holme, with articles 
by W. K. West, W. S. Sparrow, and T. Martin Wood. Illustrated with six special full-page 
plates in photogravure, nine in color, etc ; twenty-five portraits of academicians and one 
hundred and ten other reproductions, many in full page ; with a chronological list of Associates 
and Members of the Royal Academy. 4to. London and New York : John Lane. $a. 

t An Irishman's Story, By Justin McCarthy. New York : The Macmillan Company. 



1904.] The Latest Books. 401 

biographically, must have much to say that is worthy of a 
place in the history of his country and his century. Still, the 
matter and form of this book suggest only the quiet recollec- 
tions of a venerable public man. It tells of many friendships; 
great enterprises; a hard struggle with the world; several 
triumphs; and some sorrows. And all this is told in a calm, 
humble, and very human way, which appeals graciously and 
pleases while ft mstructs. It is not an ambitious work at all, 
and pretends not to be full of infotmation or oinate in style, 
but it is of goodly merit and worth reading. 

The wide interest awakened by 

TRAFFICS AND DISCOV- any new book by Rudyard Kip- 

ERIES. ling is proof of the hold he pos- 

By Rudyard Kipling. sesses on the great reading public. 

And he has vindicated his right 
to that interest. No matter whether one is in agreement with 
his ideas or not, whether in the cause of force and imperialism 
he be regarded as an eloquent Mrs. Caudle to easy-going John 
Bull, as some declare, or whether he be esteemed in the cause 
of his native land as " worth a whole army corps,*' to use the 
frequent phrase of some of his champions, there can be no 
doubt of his power, his mastery. His stories are alive. 

Kipling writes what he knows. And if his tales show so 
wide a range in subject, it is his knowledge, his thorough 
knowledge, that gives opportunity to his art; it is this, too, 
which marks his limit. Thus in his new collection, to which 
he has, after his manner, given the odd title of Traffics and 
Discoveries^^ the sea stories are based upon an intimate, technical 
knowledge of the British marine service; in this alone they 
differ widely with the usual nautical tale. These new stories 
may not add any new element to Kipling's reputation, but they 
certainly sustain it. This must be conceded by all his critics, 
friendly or hostile, he is a master in his art ; he knows all the 
tools of his trade, and uses them with singular dexterity. Two 
or three of these tales will be labelled " queer " by some 
readers, and one entitled ''They" has already furnished material 
for extended controversy as to the author's meaning. 

But the South African war stories are likely to prove the 

* Traffia and DiscoveriiJ, By Rudyard Kipling. New York ; Doubleday, Page & Co. 
8vo. $1.50. 



402 The La test Books. [Dec, 

most popular in the book, for these all will understand, and 
many will enjoy. In these one finds an embodied patriotism 
— not the cheap popular concept, but the noble, lofty ideal, 
realizing to the full the English patience, ethics, honor, and 
strength. In " The King's Task " he proudly shows the deep 
foundation-stones on which is reared the fabric of England's 
greatness : 

'* Over the graves of the Druids, and over the wreck of Rome, 
Rudely but deeply they bedded the plinth of the days to 

come ; 
Behind the feet oi the Legions, and before the Northman's 

ire. 
Rudely but greatly begat they the body of state and of shire; 
Rudely but greatly they labored, and their labor stands till 

now. 
If we trace on our ancient headlands the twist of their 

eight-ox plough." 

The naval stories in the book, especially "The Bonds of 
Discipline," place a heavier tax upon credulity and verisimilitude 
than is usual with Kipling, even in his most startling tales; 
yet we have his distinct assurance that he has understated the 
actual occurrences. After all this should not surprise us when 
we remember that certain writers in the daily press gravely 
and deliberately hold one of these stories as indirectly respon- 
sible for that horrible affair in the North Sea, when the guns 
of the Russian fleet were trained on peaceful trawlers. Surely 
extravagance could go no further. 

These sea tales introduce a new character to Kipling's 
readers, a second-class petty officer, called Pyecroft. He is a 
naval Mulvaney, and has a boon companion in Hinchcliffe, a 
marine Learoyd, one whose skill is such that "hand him a 
drum of oil, and leave him alone, and he can coax a stolen 
bicycle to do typewriting." But Pyecroft will never come up 
to the stature oi Mulvaney. He is somewhat out of .drawing, 
and lacks something, though not all, of the Irish soldier's 
spontaneity. Generally speaking, however, this collection of 
tales will be welcome to the many who find delight in Kip- 
ling's stirring narratives. 



1904.] The Latest Books. 403 

The scene of Mr. Crawiords's lat- 

WHOSOEVER SHALL est novel,* as of most of his other 

OFFEND. books, is laid in Italy. Italy is the 

By F. Marion Crawford, j^nd of his birth and of his resi- 
• dence for many years. Its people 

have had a great charm for him, and he knows them well; he 
knows them physically, geographically, morally, socially, reli- 
giously. Mr. Crawford is so well known now to American readers 
that it would be but whitening the lily or attempting to redden 
the rose to speak of the clearness and the simple directness 
of his style ; the delicate portrayal of the characters whom he 
presents; his intimate knowledge of the world and its wisdom; 
and his dramatic power of working up a crisis. All these 
things Mr. Crawford, as of old, has evidenced in his latest pro- 
duction. 

But when a critical reader comes to the question of the 
actual story, its origin, its development, and its finale, when he 
comes to consider thoughtfully the characters that walk through 
it — and then considers the ethical and the elevating office of 
good literature — he must candidly confess that the story at 
hand will furnish some hours of very exciting reading, and but 
little more. 

Stripped of the name and the adorning style of Marion 
Crawford, it would show a philosophy as superficial, a sermon- 
izing as shallow, and blood-thirsty climaxes as cheap as the 
dime-novel of yauthful days. 

We would not deny that in many respects it furnishes an 
instructive insight into Italian character, or rather some Italian 
characters, but that it is a faithful picture of Italian life — why 
if that were so Mr. Crawford would hardly be safe dwelling in 
such a land. 

The moral of the tale is that the offender against God's law 
will surely be punished. But, according to the book, the 
offender must go to unspeakable depths before he is punished. 
Every character in the book — save one Signora, and she is 
murdered early in the volume, and the chaste Aurora, who 
thinks nothing of marrying a man who has lived openly with 
a mistress — offends and offends grievously. When speaking 
of sins of the flesh, Mr. Crawford dogmatically states: ''He 

* Wkotoevtf Shall Of end. By F. Marion Crawford. New York : The Macmillan Com- 
pany. 



TEST BOOKS. [Dec, 

^tta las JEse Itcel nr^ogi sscfi times and outlived them 

acr iiaiaelL" Mr. Crawford is wcl- 

DctL pessbnisdc, and unclean phi- 

=^7, determined, persevering, 

:s die beginning of the book 




vi?< 



!» " ■ '^^ ' 2C -ca^ ms 5iizL ai:xrdcr and lived an impure 

3e at once casts his adulterous 

23 wife; he almost succeeds 

y perseveres in his endea- 

a woman who had 

V^ .esse hizi in despair, under the 

■ ■iiiffTfi. .jgiCT^ -gii^ir 

peasant girl, his 

Sie also can hate in 

is oi coorse unknown 

and^ tf need be, she can 

t-^w/m ^B^ £. xHt 3EBI aad her mother grossly 

aiTxrdcred. Her father 
He may do it 
said in antici- 
rie wrong time and then 
3^7^ I.3m^ :ruc: r.cir: 3ur SLegina has seen that her 

love aio' any longer — though 

tt really loves Aurora. And 

sigTXC firom her window the 

i et c e Italian hate, leaving 

:%YSt3jfies him, and freely bares her 

:*« -^r^se^^ iz^^ rt :rre moonli^t, and begs him 



^ ^^ ^ ^•^s' «i-T :>ft crL:e be has so often honed since 



^r^ -vcmd have done so except for 
1 ::> i^^a^ ic^ wixc« low as he was, had 
«*>.-«rv^ ^:. ««^«s S his master had not. In 



■ix'i 



^- ^ vc*-- ■<*. :r^:^;i:adesBiv^— or rather overcome 
x-r- -si^.'s^ -•- '-^ ^^•^^ scones in the damp night 
^A.^"- V >=f ixwne. 3te contracts a fever, 
^.x-'^-c* -'-t 5UC ^ou called for the priest, 
J, ,: >. .^ -.^ ^^ir r*v;ii^ and begs forgiveness 
V4 'T. >.^ct ^ ItiTceilo; Marcello is the 
, ^ .t.w r^i 5itu»icca wcttid have presented 
o>.'*.» v:;^*.sA i>«^: so conveniently the 
* v% •>i X^y awctt ** rested in the sweet 



I904-] The Latest BOOKS. 405 

earth a Tery loyal heart; and a small marble cross cast its 
shadow upon young roses and violets and growing myrtle." 

The mother of the heroine is a Contessa, and, to descend in 
language to the level of this plot "has seen better days." 
Her daughter enters but little into the story, and nve know 
nothing of her character save that she loved Marcello. One 
can hardly see how, after such a murderous, sinful time, into 
which they entered so closely, this couple could live in peace 
and quiet. But they did ; and under the same May moon they 
went down to the Roman shore and both looked at the sea 
for a time. Then they turned to each other and deliberately 
"put out their hands and then their arms and c1a<!^ed each 
other silently and kissed." 

The Crossings* recently issued from 

THE CROSSING. the press, is a worthy successor 

By Winston Churchill. to Richard Carvel and The Crisis^ 

in a series of American historical 
romances by Winston Churthill. By his own statement Mr. 
Churchill gave three years to the labors of this book, which 
deals with the conquest of Kentucky and Tennessee by the 
pioneers, and the events leading up to the Louisiana Purchase. 
The literary markets have been so glutted with racy fiction, 
based on historical episodes, that the discreet book- lover holds 
up his hands at the very name of historical novel. But Mr. 
Churchill's books belong in far different and far better 
company. 

This story of Daniel Boone's Kentucky has some faults, 
but dullness is not one of them. Its setting covers so vast a 
territory, and the types represented are so numerous, that 
rapidity of action becomes a difficult matter, but the author 
has preserved the element of unity to a notable degree. There 
are some long journeys back and forth through primeval for- 
est and up and down the Mississippi, which in the hands of 
a less capable artist might have proved wearisome, but Mr. 
Churchill never loses his charm, and his long pages of de- 
scription glow with the fascinating poetry of pioneering. 
David Ritchie, the central figure, is not a new character in 
fiction, but he is a captivating fellow for all that, and we fol- 
low him eagerly through his trials and triumphs, from the day 
he leaves his mountain cabin as a boy until he marries a 

* Thi Crpssin^, By Winston Churchill. New York : The Macmillan Company. 



4o6 The Latest BOOKS. [Dec, 

vicomtesse. Tom McChesney and his Polly Ann are admira- 
ble types of the first Kentuckians. Colonel George Rogers 
Clark*s campaign affords enough of border fighting to please 
man or boy, and the author has taken pains to give an accu- 
rate account of this historic event in the development of the 
Republic. It is probably the most' brilliant feature of the 
story. 

The Crossing is a noble book, clean, entertaining, inspiring, 
and beautifully written. It bears the indelible stamp of litera- 
ture, and is recommended to all lovers of that rare product. 

The Private Tutor* by Gamaliel Bradford, Jr., is a novel 
more to be commended for its style and character delineation 
than for merit of plot or episode. Indeed the lucid, graphic 
writing of the book is worthy a better story than the author 
had to tell. The scene is laid in Rome, and the descriptions 
of familiar places in and about the eternal city can perhaps 
be truly appreciated only by those who have lived in Italy. 
In the portrayal of the character of the hero and of his boor- 
ish charge, of the melodramatic countess and of the American 
tourists, Mr. Bradford has done clever work, but the charm 
of his book must be attributed to the purity and clearness of 
his style. Mr. Bradford makes in this novel his first essay in 
fiction. As a contributor of literary and critical articles, to 
the Atlantic Monthly and other magazines, he has already 
made a reputation. 

Robert W. Chambers has written a third Nature book, 
River- land,\ to supplement his earlier volumes, Outdoorland 
and Orchard^land. In River-land a yellow butterfly, a grass- 
hopper, a sandpiper, a marsh hawk, a mosquito, and other 
little living creatures, talk entertainingly and instructively to 
Peter and Geraldine, the little boy and girl who appeared in 
the companion volumes. If butterflies and grasshoppers can 
talk, it is to be hoped that they express themselves as Mr. 
Chambers interprets their language, for his style is simple and 
happy. The charm of the book is greatly augmented by the 
beautiful full-page illustrations in color of Elizabeth Shippen 
Green. 

* Thi Prvvati Tutor, By Gamaliel Bradford, Jr. Boston and New York : Houghton, 
Mifflin & Co. 

t River^land, By Robert W. Chambers. New York ; Harper and Brothers. 



1904.] The Latest BOOKS. 407 

Another Nature book, far less pretentious in form, but no 
less charmingly written, is Mrs. A. S. Hardy's Sea Stories for 
Wonder Eyes.* In its hundred and fifty pages there is a vast 
amount of information, which will be appreciated not only by 
''little girls who wonder," but by grown-up boys and girls 
whose schooldays were over before Nature study, in its pres- 
ent form, was introduced. The book is accurate in its state- 
ments and is abundantly illustrated. It can be used with ad- 
vantage in classes as supplementary reading. 

Few books written for boys and girls are as absorbing in 
interest as Mary Bourchier Sanford's The Wandering Twins,f 
A simple, well-sustained plot, clearly- defined characters, and 
an abundance of thrilling incidents are among the book's 
merits, but as a picture of life in a fishing settlement on the 
coast of Xrabrador it is of quite unique interest. Little use 
has ever been made in literature of the peculiar conditions of 
life in that scarcely known land. The author of the present 
volume proves herself perfectly familiar with that environment, 
and it is to be hoped that further stories fiom her pen will be 
laid among the same scenes. Among the characters introduced 
is a Dr. Greville, who is the portrait of Dr. Wilfred Grenfell, 
medical missionary for the mission to Deep Sea Fishermen. 
Dr. Grenfell has done great work in the cause of temperance 
among the sailors, and the introduction of his character into 
the story both points a moral and adorns a tale. 

The Century promises for 1905 a novel from the pen of 
Kate Douglas Wiggin, to be called Rose 0* the River; another 
novel is promised from Mrs. Humphrey Ward ; and amongst 
the short story writers is to be numbered Rudyard Kipling. 
The publication is also announced of a series of very promis- 
ing articles on his German Mission, from 1897 ^^ 1902, by 
Andrew White. 

Mr. Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) has of late been 
making a thorough examination of the original documents bear- 
ing on the life and trial of Joan of Arc. In Harper's Maga^ 
zine^ for December, he writes in this (for the author,) surprising 
and extraordinary language of the Maid of Orleans : 

*Sia Storiis/or Wonder Eyes. By Mrs. A. S. Hardy. Boston: Gii>n & Co. 
\The Wandering Twins, By Mary Bourchier Sanford. Chicago: A. C. McClurg 
& Co. 



4o8 The Latest Books. [Dec. 

''All the rules fail in this girl's case. In the world's his- 
tory she stands alone — quite alone. Others have been great 
in their first public exhibitions of generalship, valor, legal talent, 
diplomacy, fortitude; but always their previous years and 
associations had been in a larger and smaller degree a prepa- 
ration for » these things. There have been no exceptions to 
the rule. But Joan was competent in a law case at sixteen, 
without ever having seen a law book or a courthouse before. 
She had no training in soldiership and no associations with it 
yet she was a competent general in her first campaign ; she 
was brave in her first battle, yet her courage had had no edu- 
cation — ^not even the education which a boy's courage gets 
from never-ceasing reminders that it is not permissible in a 
boy to be a coward, but only in a girl ; friendless, alone, igno- 
rant, in the bosom of her youth, she sat week after week, a 
prisoner in chains^ before her assemblage of judges, enemies 
hunting her to her death, the ablest minds in France, and 
aMBwered them out of an untaught wisdom which overmatched 
tlieir learning, baffled their tricks and treacheries with a native 
sag^citr which compelled their wonder, and scored every day 
a victonr against these incredible odds and camped uncbal- 
ler^:^ oa the field. In the history of the human intellect, 
untrjiitte^i. inexperienced, and using only its birthright equip- 
«ft«it c'iP uatried capacities, there is nothing which approaches 
thi^ Jvvia v>{ Arc stands alone, and must continue to stand 
aU^t)(e. by r^isott ot the unfellowed fact that in the things 
wh^K^<tt ^^ w^ks great she was so without shade or suggestion 
v^t St^'^^ t>vHU pnep^uratory teaching, practice, environment, or 

1"%^ b»t«iu4tu^tt^ Catholic Truth Society has just published 
^ t\''i<v (M(^^ (Hiut^^htet oa the Catholic Church in Japan. It 
^x %t*\wu b^ tK^ Reverend Dr. Casartelli, welll known as. an 
A,*Av»^ 'V* s^» C^tbv^Uc missions. He gives an interesting account 
W ^^^ ^JKWSfct cKutch in Japan when millions embraced the 
yCvs^v* V^>^*» tv^JUvw* a description of the terrible persecutions, 
^■*v^ A s^V'W* »* *vWevt on the present condition of the church. 

^^^ v%'»»^ tvsK'ty hA:j^ published also a timely and exhaust- 
i\y % ^-N^v^ bv vN* Count de Mun on the Religious Crisis in 



Jlfonth (Nov.): Rev. S. F. Smith comments on the mode 
in which his countrymen reason on the question of 
belief. After exposing some current misconceptions of 
the term belief, he shows that a belief in the truth of 
the dogmas, and in the obligation of the moral code 
of the Christian religion, does not necessarily draw after 
it consistency of conduct. He further considers to what 
extent the spirit of unfaith has infected the English 
community. He concludes by giving the different mo- 
tives which tend to spread unbelief in the different 

classes of society. ^Though devoted to the solution of 

a philological problem, Rev. Herbert Thurston's article 
contains valuable information about the "month's mind." 
The practice of celebrating Mass for thirty days con- 
tinuously, with a view to the relief of departed souls, 
grew out of an incident in the life of St. Gregory the 
Great. This observance was known as a trental of 
Masses. The month's mind was the " mensiversary," a 
single celebration at the month's end. Fr. Thurston 
follows the trental in its evolution, and recounts the 
peculiar ceremonies in vogue in different places. The 
thirtieth day was marked with feasting and the distri- 
bution of alms. In time the repasts became sumptuous, 
and doles were given with a generous hand; thus in the 
popular imagination the month's mind came to be a 
day of a big function and profuse hospitality. This 
' fact would seem to indicate how the phrase ''to have a 
month's mind" was once used to signify to have an 
ardent desire. 
The Tablet (15 Oct.): At a recent educational meeting in Man- 
chester, Dr. Clifford strongly urged the English Catho- 
lics to close their ranks in defence of their schools. He 
absolutely rejected the theory of some, that the Educa- 
tion Act could be offset in any other way than by a 
bold resistance, and, in conclusion, asserted that it lay 
in the hands of the democracy to terminate the present 
reign of tyranny and persecution. The text of Mr. 



4IO Library Table. [Dec, 

R. R. Terry's Birmingham address on Church Music is 
reproduced in full. The speaker made it plain that 
many subjects, hitherto open to discussion, have been 
once and for all removed from the region of contro- 
versy to the region of obedience by the very precise 
and definite pronouncement of the Holy Father. Catho- 
lics are pressed to realize their duty and to revive the 
ancient glories of English choral music. 
(22 Oct.) : M. Combes has been endeavoring for some 
time to find a plausable pretext for the expulsion of 
the Sulpician Fathers. This congregation has been 
unaffected by the laws under which so many religious 
communities have been suppressed, the reason being 
that they are specially authorized for the work of teach- 
ing in the ecclesiastical seminaries. The indefatigable 
French Minister has finally adopted his modus agendu 
Consequent upon the troubles which arose at Dijon 
with Mgr. Le Nordez, the Sulpician Fathers, teaching 
in the diocesan seminary, were dispersed. This action 
was considered a sufficient precedent, and letters were 
addressed to all the bishops of France employing the 
• fathers, commanding that they be replaced by secular 
priests within a year. This is but another stupid piece 
of passionate an ti- clericalism for which M. Combes en- 
joys a world-wide reputation. ^The first American 

citizen chosen to rule one of the great orders of the 

» 

church, is Fr. Dominic Reuter, General of the Conven- 
tuals. Father Dominic was born in Germany, but was 
taken to New York at the age of two or three. He is 
now a comparatively young man, thoroughly American, 
zealous, and progressive. 

(29 Oct.) : The Roman correspondent notes the marked 
consideration accorded to the American Church at the 
Vatican. The Holy Father has been informed of a 
great pilgrimage to Rome that is to be made under the 

leadership of Bishop McDonnell, of Brooklyn. ^The 

American College opens this year with a register of 
over one hundred students. This seems to be an ex- 
traordinary increase. The December Consistory will 

be occupied exclusively with the solemn canonization of 
the Blessed Gerard Majella and the Blessed Alexander 



1904.] Library Table. 41 r 

Sauli. It will be interesting to know that the Pope, 
some time ago, instituted an examination into the de- 
tails and expenses of canonizations, the result being that 
the coming ceremony will cost less than half the amount 
hitherto expended. One item is mentioned in particu- 
lar, viz., a sum of two thousand dollars for a magnifi- 
cent set of vestments to be worn by the Pontiff on the. 
occasion. Still, the writer observes, the canonization 
will be a very costly function, and will tax the resources 
of the Redemptorists and Barnabites, to whose congre- 
gations the new saints belong. 
Le Correspondant (10 Oct.): "L'figlise et le Divorce," by P. 
Pisani is an able refutation of malicious insinuations made 
by certain writers of concessions made by the church to 
divorced persons, the fabulous sums paid for dispensa- 
tions, etc. The author knows the spirit and letter of 
the church's laws regarding Christian marriage. He 
proves that the church has the right of annulling certain 
marriages, which, although blessed by a priest, violated 
the law or laws which applied to the special case; that 
the formalities essential to a Christian marriage are far 
less irksome than those exacted by the state; and that 
these very formalities are more onerous for the church 
than for the contracting parties. In " L'Effort accom- 
pli par la Russie," the anonymous author tells us that 
Russia, having begun the present war without adequate 
preparation, has more than repaired her fault by the 
genius of General Kuropatkin and the bravery of her 
soldiers. The retreat effected by the Russians since the 
end of June is one of the finest military manoeuvres ever 
witnessed. As all heroism has its reward, the writer 
believes that Russia will soon reap hers. Everything 
leads to hope that the future reserves for her a triumph 
in proportion to her prodigious efforts. 
(25 Oct.) : " Ce que vent T Alsace. — L'^volution de son 
Patriotisme," by J. F. R^gamey, is both an historical 
study of the vicissitudes of this country, her sufferings, 
hopes, and disappointments since being annexed to Ger- 
many, and an exposition of her present situation, rent 
by opposing parties, and the separation from France 

becoming more and more evident. The antagonism grows 
VOL. Lxxx. — 27 



412 Library Table. [Dec, 

so pronounced that the moment seems not far off when 
Alsace will shake off the detested yoke and assert her 

independence. M. de Nadaillac, in " Les Japonais 

chez eux/' tells the origin of recent changes in the gov- 
ernment of that country, in politics, commerce, and the 
army and navy. He describes the home life and religion 
of these people, introduces us to the court, still Japan- 
ese in spite of many superficial changes, and of the many 
festivals, national and other, celebrated in the countiy. 
With all these, young America as well as old Europe 
may soon have to . reckon. Japan is to the front for 
public notice. 

Anuales de Philosophie Chretienne (Oct.): Gabriel Prevost, dis- 
cussing the problem of moral progress, thinks that Chris- 
tianity is only at the beginning of its conquests, and 
that, when it shall have attained a certain degree of 
universality, we shall see the laws of atavism and of 
selection operative in this as in other respects, so that 
the law of love will obtain increasing sway in each suc- 
cessive generation. P. Turmel contributes a descrip- 
tion of St. Polycarp's letter to the Philippians, and the 
account of his martyrdom written by the church of 

Smyrna. A translation of Father McSorley's article 

"The Unconverted World," in THE Catholic World 
of January, 1904, is presented to the readers of the 
Annales. P. Denis, continuing his articles on the so- 
called Reformation of the sixteenth century, sums up 
the reasons for its failure in the sentence : '* It was too 
empty of means for calming the heart and pacifying the 
spirit to succeed, even humanly speaking. 

La Quinzaine (16 Oct): Is there a real conflict between 
scientific theology and positive criticism ? This question 
is asked and ably answered by V. Ermoni. He says 
that there may be an apparent, but that there can be 
no real conflict. The rapid advances made in biblical 
study, history, and patrology may point to a conflict, 
and possibly they do oppose, in some instances, some 
form or other of theology, or the " ancilla theologiae." 
But opposition to the explication of theology is not 
always opposition to theology itself — often it is a help 
to theology. The writer would have us know that even 



1904- ] Library Table. 41 j 

if critics are bold, theologians are not always infallible. 
If the theologian makes free and wide use of Scripture 
for proofs of Christian revelation, or claims a rigorous 
historical proof for certain dogmas, or condemns any 
scientific theory, surely, in such cases as this, the scrip- 
tural scholar may have a word about genuinity, the 
historian about facts, and the man of science about 
truth. This is the extent of the conflict. There is no 
warfare between theology itself and honest criticism. 
The concluding part of the article treats of the develop- 
ment of dogma. An outline of two theories is given : 
Newman's and Sabatier's. The latter must be rejected, 
for it has no guarantee of truth from the historical point 
of view. In Newman's theory the writer distinguishes 
two interpretations, that of the " Maximists " and that of 
the " Minimists." This latter school places the initial 
germ of dogma in the faith of the early Christians. 
This, the writer shows is logically and historically un- 
tenable. The Maximists— ^the strict followers of Newman 
— place the initial germ in the Gospels. This explana- 
tion is the best of all and most secure from all the 
attacks of criticism. A striange incident of our Ameri- 
can life is discussed, in this number, by Abb^ F^lix 
Klein. It is an account of Dowie and his mission to 
New York. The writer tells of the religious conditions 
that make possible the presence of an Elias III. ; account- 
ing for it in the fact that so many Americans are with- 
out any definite religious belief, and, being naturally 
Christian, are easily imposed upon by a charlatan like 
the "prophet of Zion." The life story of the "prophet" 
is narrated, in which special reference is made to his 
undeserved success in Chicago and his well-merited 
failure in New York last year. 

(i Nov.): Addressing his readers in a preface for the 
eleventh year of the Review's existence, M. George 
Fonsegrive conclicly states its object and policy. In 
the midst of a world rapidly becoming de- Christianized, 
Catholics must either segregate themselves from modern 
life, a procedure which means the paralysis of the church's 
influence, and which, besides, is impossible; or, they 
must become fit to thrive in this modern atmosphere, 



414 Library Table. [Dec,, 

without sacrificing faith and conscience. The method of 
isolation, or '' water tight compartments/' has been work- 
ing havoc in the church. C^h^ics educated in it have 
staked their faith on the efficiency of old systems of 
defensive apologetics; and, when these systems have 
proved unavailing, they have abandoned this faith. 
Education needs, at present, not merely to teach truth, 
but also to teach how to discern the truth from the 
errors by which it is surrounded. Education must be 
of a sort to act as a vaccination against the errors to 
which Catholics, who must come in contact with the 
age, find themselves exposed. The editor protests against 
the arrogance of opponents who presume to formulate 
anathemas against a method and views which have not 
been condemned by legitimate authority ; this arrogance, 
he continues, has not hesitated to address indirect intimi- 
dation to authority itself — witness the reception of Pope 
Leo's letter regarding the republic. After expressing 
his unwavering loyalty and obedience to the church M. 
Fonsegrive, encouraged by the good fruits home by his 
past work, assures his readers that the Quinzaine will 
continue to regulate its policy by the spirit of the 
church herself, and not by the narrower views of cliques 
or " chapels " ; a policy which is summed up in a few 
words: In divine things^ discipline and tradition; in 
human affairs^ method and criticism; in everything^ 
charity. 
£tudes (5 Oct) : Contains the first instalment of an article on 
"The Absolution of Henry IV. at Rome," by Yves de 
la Bri^re. In this number the author relates Henry's 
excommunication by Pope Sixtus V. ; the opposition of 
Urban VII. and Gregory XIV. to the French govern- 
ment; the many fruitless attempts at reconciliation with 
Clement VIII. ; the enmity between Philip II. and 
Henry IV. ; the assembly of theologians at Saint-Denis, 
in which Henry was absolved after* the pope's repeated 
refusals to acknowledge the sincerity of the French 
king, the discouraging results of the work of the em- 
bassy sent to Rome to have the decision of the assem- 
bly of Saint-Denis ratified ; the proclamation of Henry, 
in which he pledged himself loyal to the Roman Catho- 



1904.] Library Table. 415 

lie and Apostolic Church ; and finally, the gradual in- 
clining of Gregory towards the cause of Henry. 
Pierre Suau begins a biography of St. Francis Borgia, 
considering him chiefly as a courtier. 
(20 Oct.): Under "Le Fin et le Fond de Renan," 
George Longhaye reviews briefly the chief works of the 
French theologian, commenting on the extent and im- 
portance of his views. Yves de la Bri^re concludes 

his article on " The Absolution of Henry IV. at Rome." 
After many impediments and delays, caused chiefly by 
the intrigue of the Spanish court, Henry, on September 
I7> iS9Si was absolved by Clement VIII. The ques- 
tion of mixed marriages is the first contribution of 
Henri de Bigault on "The German Catholics of the 
Nineteenth Century." During this century, writes the 
author, the number of Catholics, relatively to the whole 
German p<^Mila|ion, has steadily decreased. In support 
of his claims he gives several tables of statistics taken 
from the most important states of Germany. The chief 
causes of the decrease are mixed marriages, instigated 
first by Emperor Frederick William III. 

Revue des Questions Scientifique (20 Oct.): An earnest appre- 
ciation of the life and labors of M. Louis de Bussy is 
written in this number of M. A. de Lapparent. Along 
with the ordinary events of his life are told the extra- 
ordinary successes he gained in the art of naval con- 
struction. The great -services rendered France by M. 
de Btissy, as Minister of Naval Engineering, are told in 
detail by the writer. Public recognition of these ser- 
vices was made in making him an officer of the Legion 
of Honor. He was, also, a member of the Academy of 
Sciences. The writer is enthusiastic, and justly so, in 
telling of one who united great learning and patriotic 
zeal with sincere piety and purity of life. 

Revue Binidictine (Oct.): A new theory of the origins of the 
Roman Canon of the Mass was lately presented by Dr. 
Baumstark in a work on Roman Liturgy. The chief 
points of his theory are, that the Roman canon, as we 
have it, is neither homogeneous nor primitive; that in 
the process of its formation two influences — Alexandrine 
and Syrian — were at work and contributed to it; that 
the fusion of these two elements took place as late as 



4X6 LIBRARY TABLE. [D 

the end of the third or in the course of the fourth cen- 
tury, and finally that the final fixing of the canon is to 
be attributed to St. Gregory. D. Germain Morin, criti- 
cising this theory, accepts the first point, namely, that 
the canon is of a composite nature and also that there 
were Alexandrine and Syrian influences in its make up, 
but rejects the other points of the theory as resting on 
insufficient and conflicting evidence.— —Relying upon a 
quotation of Clement of Alexandria, given by Eusebius 
(H. £. vi. 14), it has been customary to hold that 
Clement gives as the tradition of the ancients that the 
Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Luke were written be- 
fore that of St. Mark. Dom John Chapman, discussing 
this point, shows that the quotation of Clement, given 
by Eusebius, is drawn from different sources, and that 
Clement never meant to say ivhat is thus accredited to 
him. The writer also considers Clement's connection 

with the sources of the Muratorian fragment. Other 

articles in this number are: ''The Auxiliary Bishops of 
Tournai " ; " The Collaborators of St. Hildegarde,'' 
"Questions concerning the Philosophy of Nature. 
Science Catholique (Oct.): Contains an interesting article on 
the " Historicity of the Fourth Gospel," by the Abb6 
J. Fontaine. After a criticism of the views of M. Loisy, 
whose method and main conclusions he rejects and 
severely condemns, the writer goes on to prove the 
absolute historical character of the Fourth Gospel, as 
well as its. Johannine authorship. This he does in the 
usual way, by appealing to the intjcrnal and external 
evidences of the author's knowledge and reliability, as 
well as the simple, straightforward truthfulness of the 
facts and miracles there recorded. M. Quievreux con- 
tinues his discussion of the principle of " Anthropomor- 
phism," tracing the evidences of its existence in the 
Gospels, as well as in the theology, niysticism, and 
liturgy of the church. As the necessary expression of 
the divine in terms of the human, anthropomorphism is 
an essential element of religion, being the only possible 
meeting-place of the human soul and its creator -^— 
The Abb^ G. Bourlon writes in defense of P. Denifle, 
whose recent work on " Luther and Lutheranism," has 
been severely criticized by M. Harnack. 



1904.] Library Table. 417 

Stiminen aus Maria Laach (Oct.) : Rev. Joseph Knabenbauer 
defends the historical character of St. John's Gospel. He 
' cites the concluding verses of chapter xx. in support of 
his contention. He then goes on to show that the 
accounts contained in the Fourth Gospel, of such events 
as the baptism of Christ and the calling of the twelve, 
answer all the requirements of true historical narrative. 
A considerable portion of the article is devoted to a 
criticism of the views on this question advanced by 
Abb^ Loisy in his '' La quatri&me £vangile." 

Civilia Catioliea (15 Oct.): Publishes the Pope's letter of protest 
against the Free Thought Congress in Rome with the 
comment : It is dignified, calm, free of all bitterness, but 
on that very account all the more moving. It has been 
received the world over with unspeakable affection and 
splendid demonstrations oh the part of faithful Catho- 
lics. Continuing to refute Loisy, some one writes that 

he utters historical falsehood when he says that the 
divinity of Christ is not expressly formulated in the 

Gospel. Welcomes the translation of Hergenrother's 

Church History into Italian, made by P. Rosa, S.J. 
(5 Nov.) : A Roman prelate gives a complete description 
of the Catholic protectorate exercised by France in the 

East and the Far East Describes as a splendid piece 

of work the four volumes on Canon Law recently pub- 
lished by P. Wernz, S.J., for twenty-five years a pro- 
fessor in the Gregorian University. 

Rassegna NazionaU (16 Oct.): Tancredi writes on the Free 

Thought Congress and its clearly erroneous views. 

Teresita Friedmann-Coduri reviews the published lecture 
of Gallarati Scoti on the political and religious idealism 
of Mazzini, and points out its significance as being a 
return, on the part of the new generation, to the ideas 
of Mazzini, and reclaiming for all the nation a person- 
ality which had been appropriated by a party.-<^^E. S. 
Kingswan reviews conditions in Europe and America. 

Razon y Fe (Nov;): P. Hernandez, writing on Isabella the 
Catholic, tells what Spain did in that day for the tem- 
poral and eternal happiness of her American subjects. 

L. Frias, in an article on Philip III. and the 

Immaculate Conception, describes the efforts made in 



4i8 Library Table. [Dec, 



Spain to promote the definition of the doctrine.* 



N. Wagner writes in behalf of the wisdom and expe- 
diency of the law of Sunday rest, so violently atfkcked 
as ultramontane, clerical, and reactionary, in the Span- 
ish public press. 
Studi Religiosi' (Sept-Oct.) : Padre Salvatore Minocchi writes 
extensively on the Bible in Italian history. The first 
Italian version of the Bible, made in the thirteenth 
century, was not, he says, the work of Jacopo da Vara- 
gine,.or Jacopo Passavanti, or Domenico Gavalca, but 
was an anonymous work produced by many collaborators. 
It bears such resemblance to contemporary heretical 
French versions, that it is very likely it proceeded from 
some community of Tuscan poverty who flourished so 
numerously after St. Francis's death. It is not true 
that Bible- reading was unknown in Dante's time. History 
will show that in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries 
the Scriptures were in daily use among the people. 
This happy condition was due very largely to the 
Dominicans and Franciscans. From the same orders 
came the spread and triumph of Catholicity in the 
Middle Ages. Looking back from this distance of time 
we must say that the Inquisition was not the factor in 
the growth of religion that its founders hoped it would 
become. From the decree of Pius IV. in 1564 prohibit- 
ing the reading of translations of the Bible — a decree 
issued on accotint of the heretical versions then spread- 
ing everywhere — dates a great decadence in Bible- 
reading among Italians. In 1757 Benedict XIV. revoked 
this decree, against the will of many cardinals and bishops. 
In 1769 the Abate Martini began publishing a version 
of the New Testament. In spite of incredible efforts to 
put his work on the Index this devoted priest continued 
until he had translated the whole Bible ; and, as a 
reward for his great work, Pius VI. made him Arch- 
bishop of Florence in 1781. E. Buonainti sketches 

the history of scholastic philosophy, from the time of 
Pius IX., with a view of bringing into prominence the 
present work in neo-Thomism done in the University 
of Louvain. 



i<)04-] NEW Books. 419 



NEW BOOKS. 

Bbnzigbr Brothers. New York: 

CaiM^tie Ideals in Social Life, Bv Father Cuthbert/ O.S.F.C. Price $1.35 net. Sir 
Tkowuu Mere (The Blessed Thomas More). By Henri Bremond. Translated by 
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Deming Hoyt. Pp. 491. Price $2.50 net. American Literary Criticism, By William 
Morton Payne. Pp. 3x8 Price $1.40 net. The Worhs of the Prophets. By Rose £. 
Selfe. Pp. 170. Price — . Jerusalem under the Hi^ Priests, By Edwyn Be van. 
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trated by Henry Ford. Pp. 350. Price $1.60. The SouVs OrHt: or, Man*s Journey to 
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The Lost Jewel of the Mortimers. By Anna T. Sadlier. Pp. 258. Price $z. Hereafter, 
By Rey. J. Laxenaire, D.D. Translated from French by Rev. J. M. Leleu. Pp. 104. 
Price 30 cents. The Catholics Manual. By Tilmann Pesch, S.J. Pp. 708. Price 
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Lectures on the Present Position of Catholics in England. Delivered in Z85Z by John Henr^ 
Newman, D.D. Introduction by William Barry, D.D. The Heal St. Francis of Assist, 
By Father Paschal Robinson, O.F.M. Paper. A Manual for the JuMee of the Immacu- 
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The Divorce Problem in the United States. By Patrick L. Crayton, S.T.L, Paper. The 
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Exhibit of the Bureau of Labor at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, Bulletin No. 54. 
September, 1904. 



4?o The Columbian Reading Union. [Dec, 



THE COLUMBIAN READING UNION. 

PROFESSOR W. F. P, STOCKLEY, in the Queen's QuarUrly, pubUshed by 
the faculty of Queen's University, at Kingston, Canada, contributes a 
most interesting study to sustain the opinion that ** Henry the Eighth " is a 
composite play, not exclusively the work of Shakspere. He argues that the 
opening is not well connected with the other parts ; that there is evidence of 
shreds and patches. The speeches especially represent detached specimens 
of fine writing, while in other Shakspere plays to take from the context is 
harder, and something more is required to complete the setting. By a number 
of well-chosen quotations the real metre of Shakspere is contrasted with some 
of the other passages of "Henry the Eighth," probably written by Flejtchcr. 
Queen Katharine, Cardinal Wolsey, and Oliver Cromwell have leading parts 
in this play, and the words assigned to them may be studied* with reference to 
the perplexing question of Shakspere's religious convictions. 

Two important articles bearing on this topic were published April, 1900, 
in the American Catholic Quarterly Review y under the titles : " Cardinal 
Wolsey," by Rev. Ethelred L. Taunton; "The Religion of Shakspere," by 
Very Rev. William L. Canon Gildea, D.D. In a volume devoted to the sub- 
ject, Rev. Sebastian Bowden, the London Oratorian, gives a critical summary 
of the points of Catholic doctrine found in Shakspere's writings ; shows that 
his mother was certainly a Catholic, and that there is proof that his father 
was of the same faith. Until the contrary is proved it seems assured that 
both parents were very positive in their Catholic devotion during time of 
persecution, and hence the inference is hard to escape that Shakspere him- 
self was a Catholic. AgainM this conclusion no satisfactory argument has 
been produced, and there is no proof that the greatest mind in English litera- 
ture ever accepted the reformed religion promulgated by royal decrees. Rev. 
Richard Davies, in the latter part of the seventeenth century, distinctly 

stated the current opinion that Shakspere " died a Papist." 

• • • . • 

In the same number of Queen^s Quarterly Dr. J. M. Harper, of Quebec, 
has an article on the report of the Mosely Educational Commissipn> which is 
not at all flattering. He affirms that Mr. Mosely had the misfortune to fall 
into error regarding education by ''some of his pre-judgments"; and that 
there is no hiding the fact that his instinctive test had its origin in what edu- 
cation does for a people materially, rather than from what it is as a mental or 
spiritual asset in the individual. His standard of excellence was limited to 
the earning power of education in dollars and cents. The over-enhancing of 
the bread-winning faculties, not to mention wealth-pampering notions, inevi- 
tably tends to a neglect of higher studies which have a well-grounded scien- 
tific warrant and universal sanction among the best educationists. 

• « • 

Count de Mun has lately published, in the Figaro^ his opinion of the 
recent changes in France. He thinks that under the present conditions the 
separation of church and state can be nothing but a divorce, pronounced by 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 421 

the state in its own favoii and against the church. That divorce, fatal in it- 
selfy will inevitably lead the Jacobin sectaries who demand it to persecute reli* 
giouj which is already deprived of an important part of its liberty by the 
destruction of the congregations, and to enslave the clergy by subjecting them 
to a Draconic legislation. The draft bill for separation presented to the 
Chamber by M. Briand, in the name of the Parliamentary Committee, which 
is accepted by M. Combes as ''an excellent base for discussion," is a clear 
proof, especially in the clauses relating to the police regulations for public 
worship, which, in fact, organize the supervision of the^Catholic clergy. The 
certain consequence of this revolution in the institutions and manners and 
customs of the country will be religious wat, in most of the communes of 
France, between those who desire to continue the exercise of public worship 
and those who, with the support of the administration, will seek to hinder it. 
It is impossible that those who desire to make an exact forecast of what the 
reality will be can be blind to the situation which would be created. For any 
politician worthy of the name there can be no sort of doubt that the church, 
by her inexhaustible activity, will find means to resist that persecution, and 
finally issue victorious from the struggle after many trials for herself and for 
France; because a reactionary government will surely be led, by stress of cir- 
cumstances, to conclude a new accord between the French state and the 
Papacy. That is why Catholics should contemplate the future with firmness 
and hold themselves ready to make every sacrifice. But that the separation 
in itself can, as a certain number of Catholics seem to think, be a good thing 
on account of the mirage of liberty it offers is an illusion which it is very 
necessary to dissipate. 

A recent report states that General Andre's vote of censure is now fully 
explained. Figaro publishes indisputable evidence of the existesce of a spy 
system in the French army and of discrimination against officers on religious 
and political grounds. Indeed, the Minister of War admitted frankly that 
the roster of officers was being purged for non-military reasons, and defended 
the blacklist. He maintained that Jesuitical and Nationalist plotting in the 
army justified such extreme measures as promoting free-thinking officers 
systematically over the heads of Roman Catholics. It has been clearly 
shown in the press that General Andr6's information has been largely obtained 
from the Masonic lodges, which issued an official questionnaire and practically 
supplied the War Office with a religious and social census of all its officers. 
In other words. General Andr6 has planned and conducted against bis 
brothers in arms precisely the sort of anti-clerical campaign that M. Combes 
wages in the country at large, pleading, with M. Combes, urgent peril from 
Rome. The army, like the state, is to be laicized. 

• • • 

Some historians do not fully realize that Saint John Baptist de la Salle 
was one of the very first in France to appreciate the great need of a system 
of free Christian education, long before the idea of popular education was 
evolved as we have it to-day. One of the greatest tributes ever paid to this 
teacher-saint was delivered within the present year, in the French Chamber 
of Deputies, by M. Buisson, a representative of the government. Among 
other things he said: A young man, the eldest son of a rich, great, and 
noble family, had established relations before the end of his studies with 



423 The Columbian Reading Union. [Dec., 

men like Olier, Bourdoise and Denina, who even in the time of Louis XIV. — 
for there were such men then — recognized that there were vast numbers of 
wretched children left without education and instruction. When this young 
canon became a priest he heard, ever ringing in his ears/ the words of a 
friend at St. Sulpice who had just returned from a miserable quarter in 
Paris: Instead of going as a missionary to the Indes to preach to infidels, 
I feel it better in my heart to go begging from door to door to maintain a 
school-teacher for our abandoned children. It was then that the young 
canon began to act as the rich act whose hearts are in the right place — 
he gave up his canonry to live with the poor. As there happened just then 
to be a famine in the city, he distributed day after day to the poor all that 
he had. And when he had nothing, he thought he had then a right to 
preach self-sacrifice to his teachers. If that were the only thing in the 
life of John Baptist de la Salle, he would be entitled to our respect ; but 
the man who so acted in the beginning gave forty years of the most per- 
sistent, the most patient, the most unwearied devotion to the obscure 
work whose importance and grandeur he alone in France seemed to divine ; 
for he alone saw the need of a system of free education, and he pursued it 
at the cost of sacrifices that cannot be described. These words, coming from 
such a source, ought to make us anxious to know more about the great 
Christian teacher canonized by Leo XIII. on May 24, 1900 — one of the 
closing acts of his glorious pontificate. To-day the fruit of De la Salle's mis- 
sion is rich and abundant, as will appear from a perusal of the pamphlet 
the Newest Saint, 5 cents a copy, at International Catholic Truth Society, 
Arbuckle Building, Brooklyn, New York City. 

• • • 

Students of English literature will have to view some parts of their 
work from a new angle henceforth if they wish to get a just appreciation of 
the beauty of the subject. There is now published a work in ten volumes, 
which will be a revelation to thousands who have not made a study of 
Ireland's contribution to literature. 

Before Irishmen were forced to express themselves in English they had 
a literature of which the wealth and the wonder have been revealed in these 
later years by Dr. Whitley Stokes, Standish Hayes O'Grady, Dr. Kuno 
Meyer, Eugene O'Curry, John O'Donovan, Miss Eleanor Hull, Lady Gregory, 
Dr* Douglas Hyde, and others. 

After all, however, the great bulk of Irish literature consists of the con- 
tribution of Irishmen and Irishwomen to English literature. For the first 
time they are given their due in this library, and Irish people themselves will 
be astonished to find how the Irishmen and the Irishwomen who have written 
in the English language, and have never been credited with their work as Irish, 
but have ever been classified under an alien name, have preserved an indivi- 
duality, a unity, a distinctive characteristic, a national spirit, and a radical 
fiavor which entitle their work to a place apart. 

The continuity of the Irish genius in its literatuie for nearly two thou- 
sand years is very clearly shown in these volumes. The rich, full, and elabor- 
ate vocabulary of the Irishmen who have written and spoken in English ior 
the last three centuries had its taproots in the Gaelic of a far-oflP past. This 
will at once be seen by reading the " Description of the Sea," taken from The 



1904.] The Columbian Reading Union. 423 

BatiU of Magh Leana^ translated from the ancient Gaelic by Eugene O'Curry 
— almost Homeric in its form and Titanic in its phrasing — and comparing it 
with the best of Irish-English prose and verse, or even with the literary efforts 
of any modem Irishmen. The same power of glowing description, the same 
profusion of cumulative, adjectival phrase, the same simple yet bold and 
powerful imagery, the same rythmic sense, will be found to underlie them alL 

The nationality of Ireland expressed in her literature is the noblest 
monument she has reared, and to exhibit this monument to the world in all 
its beauty is one of the objects of this work. The Irish is the most readable 
literature in the world; it is entertaining, amusing, bright, sunny, poetical, 
tasteful, and it is written with an ease and a fluency that have been the salt 
which has seasoned the whole body of English literature. 

Dr. Douglas Hyde has stated the position of Irish literature and Irish 
scholars of the early centuries very forcibly, and yet with a simple direct- 
ness and absence of the usual, over-zeal that cannot fail to make what he 
says impressive. Here are some typical sentences: 

There are two points about the native literature of Ireland which 
entirely differentiate it from the rest of the vernacular literatures of Europe, 
Greek excepted. The first of these is the extraordinarily early period at 
which it took its rise, and the enormous length of time during which it 
flourished. The other is the absolute originality of this literature, which 
was self- evolved, which was utterly unaffected by classic models, and in the 
syntax of which scarcely a trace is to be found of those Latinisms upon which 
are really founded and built up so many other modern languages. 

To those unfamiliar with the extent of influence exerted by Ireland on 
European literature, Dr. George Sigerson's essay on that subject will prove 
full of surprises. The genial doctor does well to make use of quotations, 
mainly from English sources, in order to give point to what he says in the 
short space that could be devoted to so large a subject. Perhaps the most 
striking of these quotations is Professor Morley's statement that <' the story 
of English literature begins with the Gael,'' and ''but for early, frequent and, 
various contact with the race, which in its half barbarous days invented 
Oisin's dialogues with St. Patrick, and that quickened afterward the North- 
men's blood in France and Germany, England would not have produced a 
Shakspere." Almost as startling, ho«%*ever, is the story of how much Spen- 
ser owes to Irish sources. 

The essay on the Irish School of Oratory, by Mr. J. F. Taylor, presents 
a magnificent subject. His discussion of the work of such men as Burke 
and Plunkett and Grattan and O'Connell, while laudatory, is thoroughly 
critical and illuminating. The characteristics of these orators are suggested 
with nicety of distinction and the elements of ^their effectiveness admirably 
worked out. Plunkett particularly has received merited rank among the 
great Irish orators from Mr. Taylor. As he says very well in conclusion : 
The language cannot afford to lose them by neglect, and the literary taste is 
very uncatholic that will not include Burke, Sheridan, Grattan, Curran, and 
Plunkett in the array of those masters of resistless eloquence, who have added 
force, charm, dignity, and elevation to human speech. 

In the general introduction the editor-in-chief, Justin McCarthy, says : 



424 The Columbian Reading Union: [Dec, 1904.] 

The object of this library of Irish literature is to give to the readers of 
all countries what I may describe as an illustrated catalogue of Ireland's 
literary contributions to mankind's intellectufil ;^stores. The readers of these 
volumes can trace the history of Ireland's mental growth from the dim and 
distant days of myth and legend down to the opening of the present cen* 
tury. . • . I desire especially to call the attention of readers to the fact 
that throughout that long course of Irish literature it has always retained in 
its brightest creations the same distinct and general character of Irish 

nationality. 

• • • 

The Japanese go at their reading with as determined a spirit as at 
everything else they are attacking. Mr. Bolce states in the Bcoki&vet^s 
Maganine that in Tokio the most popular foreign author is Charles Darwin. 
This is not a mere impression, but an actual fact, as determined by a voting 
contest, in which, at the instigation of a leading publisher, several thousands 
of citizens engaged. The educated classes give their days and nights to the 
Origin of Species, Another work which entrances the Japanese mind is 
the Encyclopaedia Britannica, and Nut tail's Classical Dictionary has reachc d 
a circulation over there of more than half a million copies. 

The Japanese are impervious to Western humor; even Mark Twain does 
not attract them. Mr. Lorimer's Self- Made Merchant^ however, is one of the 
best known characters in the kingdom, but quite from a business point of 
view. Baron Shibusawa introduced him after a visit to the Chicago stock 
yards. He concieved that this text-book, as it appeared to him, was just the 
kind of adiponition the youth of his country needed, and forthwith recom- 
mended the distribution of the book of letters in a Japanese translation. It 
was not long before 200,000 copies were disposed of, and read with a sense 
of great profit. Not a single passage of this excruciatingly funny book, so 
far as anybody knows, has upset the gravity of a single Japanese reader. 

The literary ethics of these Orientals is, in some respects, peculiar. It 
detects nothing wrong, for instance, in the practice of plagiarism. On the 
contrary, it is looked upon as an indication of extensive reading and tenacious 
memory. The more a writer can interlard his story or essay with ideas, 
phrases, and even paragraphs from the works of masters, foreign or domes- 
tic, the greater the proof of his scholarship. To advertise a borrowod ex- 
tract by the parade of quotation marks or their equivalents would be an 
exhibition of questionable taste ; it would seem to indicate that the writer had 
recourse to this vulgar expedient to announce an erudition which he feared 
might otherwise escape attention. 

The whole nation is daft over poetry. Even the geisha girls and th6 
rickshaw men are bards. The favorite household pastime, somewhat akin 
to our game of authors, is played with epigrammatic couplets. 

• • • 

It is stated that the real name of Marie Corelli is Eva Mary Mackay. 
We are unable to settle the question sent by a correspondent as to whether 
she claims to be a Catholic. Judged by her works the answer should be in 
favor of the negative side of the dispute. 

Ma C* M. 



Ths m&dosna in Gi,oky.— Morbtto. 



THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



Vol. LXXX. JANUARY, 1905. No. 478. 




PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 

BY THE REVEREND WILLIAM J. KERBY, Ph.D. 

[T is remarkable that we Americans are very much 
in earnest about our civil and social rights^ 
but careless about our civil and social obliga- 
tions. We are keenly conscious of what society 
owes to us, but forgetful of what we owe to 
society. Democratic institutions depend for their ethical power 
on this social sense which we fail to develop adequately. 
Hence we are actually confronted by many grave problems, 
which had not been so serious, had we developed a strong 
social conscience. Nor would they be so threatening now 
except for the fact that this conscience cannot be produced 
when we need it ; it requires time, cultivation, protection. We 
believe too much in the individual, and too little in the social 
being. We insist on freedom from legal restraint, and ignore 
the moral restraint which liberty is not supposed to diminish. 
The burden of our thinking is on opportunity, rather than on 
results ; on definitions, rather than on facts. Rights as such 
are really not very sacred to numbers of people ; it is their 
own rights which alone they revere. Thus, social rights, the 
rights of a community as such, or of a city or a people, do 
not possess the same power of appeal to conscience which 
individual rights possess. When individuals live in a democ- 

VOL. LXXX.— 28 



426 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL. REFORM, fJ*"* 

racyr, and guide themselves by individual ethics, ignoring 
social ethics, it is no extreme statement to say that difficult 
times await them. 

One cannot deny the success of our institutions as a 
whole. Whether that success be due to our wisdom, to natural 
resources and limited though vigorous population, or to divine 
providence is beside the point. When, however, we look into 
the details of our life, when we see city, state, and federal 
democracy, as expressed in the actual concrete daily relations 
of the people, we find failures which are disappointing. Pos- 
sibly the very fact that we ar^ strong as individuals hinders us 
from developing a powerful sense of social obligation, through 
which chiefly we may hope for power to solve our social prob- 
lems. 

The number and complexity of our problems have begun 
to attract attention, with the result that social service receives 
more honorable recognition than heretofore, and communities 
commence to care for integrity and honesty in public service 
more than formerly. Men of wealth give endowment, men of 
talent give services, and men of power lend prestige to works 
for social betterment and to the development of institutions 
whose aim is the adequate protection of social interests. 
Efforts are made to protect the weak against their circum- 
stances, and to protect the strong against their opportunities. 
The variety and earnestness of healthy reform sentiment are an 
interesting revelation of the power of self help which the peo- 
ple possess." Once they become conscious of this power, zeal 
in its exercise will not be wanting. 

What is first needed is, naturally, the ethical impulse to- 
ward social service and reform. One must realize that social 
interests, as such, are one's own interests as well, and that one 
should give of one's abundance of wisdom, power, or fortune, 
in order that others who are weak may thrive. Next, we need 
intelligent appreciation of the factors in social life, of the 
nature of social problems, of the laws and limitations which 
mark every social situation. Finally, we need always definite 
direction of our social service toward a practicable, reasonable 
end. It is not enough to feel that service or reform is neces- 
sary ; we should know exactly what we wish to do. Impulse 
may give us momentum, but reason should govern it. 

As a rule, the impulse to reform is present in society, but 



I90S.] PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 42 J 

not always in those who might obey it most safely. Many oi 
our reformers are generous and unselfish toward society, but 
they lack the knowledge and wisdom necessary to safe and 
useful social service. The hopeful sign to-day is that this im- 
pulse toward Social service and reform work is spreading; that 
schools foster it, strong men feel it, wise men and women 
obey it, public opinion welcomes it and accords to it scm« 
recognition. Social service is understood .to be delicate, exact- 
ing, and complicated ; the need of accurate knowledge of social 
facts and forces is admitted ; the necessity of working in obe- 
dience to known social laws is no longer overlooked as it once 
was. 

When a city is about to construct a bridge, it consults ex- 
pert engineers. These study topography, drainage, absorption, 
evaporation, and rainfall as they affect the volume of water in 
the river. The volume and velocity of flow are computed, 
extremes of heat and cold are noted, and the structure is 
planned with due regard to all of these pertinent facts. The 
stress to which the bridge will be submitted is computed, and 
is distributed throughout in a most exact manner. Nothing is 
left to chance. Selection of material is carefully watched, and 
every safeguard is taken to insure a perfect piece of work with | 
safe and enduring service. Yet the same city will leave to 
chance, or evil scheming, the selection of a city council. It 
exercises no care over the membership, it is indifferent whether 
a boodler or a noble, strong man be selected ; it trusts all ol 
the complex interests of the city to such chance selections^ 
and when it sees selfishness triumphant and bold, corruption 
defiant, and trickery supreme, it scarcely knows how to go 
about the work of rescue. We need a profession of social 
engineers, who will give expert advice and appreciate the 
sacredness of public interests and the need of wisdom in build- 
ing up all social institutions. 

The suggestions contained in the following pages are in- 
tended for those who are interested in social service. While 
any discriminating social worker will find them commonplace, 
that is no serious objection. In fact, the commonplace char- 
acter of the principles to be discussed is the best excuse for 
the discussion, because it is customary for us to neglect the 
commonplace. Discriminating persons do not, it is true, 
neglect a truth because it is ordinary and evident ; but there 



428 Principles in Social Reform. [Jan., 

are few who discriminate. Mallock in writing Is Life Worth 
Living merely aimed to "kneel in the mud and to pick up 
the truths that are being trampled into it." 

Systematic observation of reform efforts will show that 
those who engage in such work do not always manifest the 
insight, power of organization, command of resources, and 
knowledge of motive and feeling which social leadership really 
demands. Possibly it would serve well to try to develop a 
comprehensive set of principles in reform work by which 
leaders might be directed as an engineer is guided in his bridge 
building. The principles proposed here illustrate that thought. 

/. A social problem is a process rather than a condition, 
A social condition is in effect a set of relations among per- 
sons, which relations concern some interest of social life as 
such. These relations have been produced by definite social 
processes, which alone explain them. That a given condition 
exists is not vital to society as a whole, for it could pass 
away with the individuals in it. The reason of the condition 
is vital, for the process which perpetuates the condition is part 
of life, and it furnishes new victims as rapidly as old ones 
disappear. Many, in undertaking reform work, think only of 
the condition of certain individuals or interests which are con- 
cerned, and they ignore the process which is the real problem. 
We may take a city council by way of illustration. 

A dozen men are elected to the honorable post of alder- 
man, and the financial, moral, political interests of a hundred 
thousand jpersons are committed to their care. A majority of 
them betray public interests, commit gross offenses against 
social decency, and demoralize public service. This we may 
take as the condition. It is not, however, the real problem. 
Hence to throw out the eight or ten corrupt men and elect 
others, does not solve the problem. A given social process 
made the corrupt men venal ; another social process brought 
them into office; another social process deprived public ser- 
vice of prestige and honor and emolument, in such a way 
that the strong, brave, noble men of the community do not 
and will not enter it. If then processes are at work by which 
the moral and intellectual strength of the community are di- 
verted from public service, and the inferior members arc 
attracted to it, it is quite evident that the individuals who are 



I90S.] PRINCIPLES IN Social Reform. 429 

concerned at a given time are incidental. We may banish the 
corrupt men, but we do not thereby terminate the corrupting 
process. 

The bribe taker supposes the bribe giver, A definite com- 
plex process in society produces men who are willing to bribe. 
If a strong social process were sending noble, high-minded 
men regularly into city councils, the bribe giver would be 
checked. But there is harmony everywhere in the processes, 
each one complementing the other in a way to make the path 
clear for corruption and theft. Thus, in most cases, the indi- 
viduals are incidents, the process is the problem. 

The Civic Federation of Chicago, in a report to the pub- 
lic some years ago, concerning the aldermen of that city, con- 
tained such views as these: One was "regarded as a joke"; 
of another it said: "The ward must search diligently to find 
a worse representative"; of another: "He respects neither 
public interests nor his own word"; of another: "A deliber- 
ate enemy of the republic"; of another; "A nuisance"; of 
another: "No possible excuse for his retention in cfHce"; of 
another : " Out of place in a reputable council." Appalling 
as such a condition was, it merely gave evidence of a danger-* 
ous process at work, and the process was the real problem* 
The indifference of the voter, the degradation of public ser- 
vice, the unethical affection of the masses for a friendly man, 
be he good or bad, the systematic avoidance of public service 
by the best men, are factors in such a condition, to ignore 
which hinders any successful reform. 

We find illustration in the police problem. Policemen are 
the custodians of peace and order. Safety of property against 
theft, of life against violence, of decency against bad morals, 
gambling and drink is largely in the hands of the police. 
Hence the forces of darkness, the burglar and the thug, the 
gambler, the dive keeper, and the law breaker, are willing and 
eager to bribe the policeman in order to secure immunity from 
arrest. The duties of the police are noble, exacting to the 
highest moral degree, and of vital importance. Yet we give to 
the profession no prestige, to the members, little recognition, 
poor pay, frequently long hours, and severe penalties for neg- 
lect. Hence men of strong character and real ambition, who 
are needed in such a position, seek elsewhere for employment, 
and the service is robbed of the very strength on which its 



430 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. [Jan., 

usefulness depends. There are involved here many social 
processes which ponstitute the real problem. 

We might in the same way analyze gambling, drinking, 
s.\veat shops, unsanitary housing, the work of children, divorce, 
betrayal of confidence in public and private service, into a 
series pf complex social processes until we discover, as is really 
the ca^e, that the condition is rarely the problem. It is the 
complex process, and consequently reform must reach it, or 
f4ilure awaits the reformer. 

One may not overlook the importance of a social condition 
nor deny that, it may be at times an important factor in a pro- 
Gfias. The tendency in social conditions to perpetuate them- 
selves is of vital importance, but in fact it is due mainly to 
the stability of the social process; from which it results. A 
reform should always take cognizance of a: condition, test it, 
m )dify it if possible, and rest content if that alone brings 
order. But to rest there in every case, to be content with 
4 change of social condition, or with substitution of a new 
dozen for an old dozen of individuals, would doom reform to 
tenaporary results and cheat progress of most valuable ; service. 
Our growth in social knowledge depends on our realization of 
this dynamic character of our problems, and the development 
of social conscience, one may say, depends absolutely on this 
growth in social knowledge. If the individual realizes that 
he is nearly always a factor in social processes behind our 
problems, when not a factor in the actual condition, he may 
b3 stimulated to a sense of social responsibility, uhich can in 
no other way be developed. Hence the accurate knowledge 
9nd sense of social responsibility needed for reform work 
<}epend largely on the belief that our problems are processes 
a»nd each of us is a factor in them. 
< 

\, 2. A social reform should inaugurate a social process rather 
than a mere change of condition. 

This is implied in the foregoing. Social problems vary. 
S,ometimes any one of several factors might hinder it. Often 
^ supply of social evil is a response to a demand for it; if 
we suppress the demand, the supply ceases. Many evils are 
inspired by the hope of profit ; that ceasing, they vanish. 
Much evil thrives because it enjoys secrecy; if it be exposed, 
it is destroyed. Whenever any circumstance is vital, reform 



I90S.] Principles in Social Reform. 43-1 

will accomplish much by modifying it alone, but generally a 
thoroughgoing reform will extend to the processes' which pro- 
duced the circumstance itself. Thus in city government; 
the process that diverts our best citizenship from public 
service should be neutralized; the process that sends weak, 
venal men into offices of trust should be destroyed, and the 
interest of the public should be awakened and sustained in 
any adequate reform of municipal corruption. "Whether or not 
all of this is possible or impossible does not alter its relation 
to the problem, though it may affect very directly our hopes of 
reform and the manner of it. 

In other problems we see the same need of prpcess to 
eflfect reform. A sanitary house is not necessarily a sanitary 
hoiQe, unless sanitary minds make it so. A social process 
gives us unsanitary minds, another social process gives ;US 
unsanitary houses. The sanitary house is really not n>uch mor^ 
than an opportunity, the reform' is in the mental ^ppr^ci^ticn 
of it. One can easily find unsanitary conditions in; sanitary 
houses. A New England employer once built good hous.^£i fpr 
his men and installed bath tubs which the tenants refu^^d: jbe 
utilize. They preferred the space for storage purposes. •• 

Whatever the problem then, it is well to seek out the 
processes involved, and to organize reform effort in a way tp 
master them, and introduce such normal and desirable prpcesses 
as may insure relatively permanent results. This necessity m^y 
tend to discourage those who realize it, but on the other hand 
it may stimulate greater efforts than we now behold. Were 
we to investigate the whole series of social problem,s, with a 
view to verify this statement, we would probably discoyer that 
an age can rarely solve problems inherited from an unwise 
past, and that it cannot radically solve its own. Wisdom is. ivjl 
foresight. The safe way is to work through education, prepar- 
ing to-day in the young the elements of character, social con- 
science, social knowledge, and faith, which will give to th^ 
oncoming generation the insight and power needed to direct 
popular institutions wisely in advance of failure. 

We might discover, too, that reform is dependent on co- 
ordination and co-operation. Where public opinion, law, the 
wisdom of strong men, and the service of true men are needed 
to accomplish a certain result, it is useless to attempt it when 
one or two of these factors are lacking. Much of the failure 



432 Principles in Social Reform, [Jan., 

of reform is due to the fact that we ignore this need of co- 
operation, or knowing, we fail to command it. 

J. The problem to be met should be carefully classified. 

When we classify a problem, we locate it ; when we locate it, 
we discover its relations to life and institutions. We then dis- 
cover the processes involved, the factors and the responsibility 
for them, and we thus fix properly the duty of action and 
reform. There are many centres of social consciousness ; to 
each of these should be referred all problems which con- 
cern it directly. Possibly all social problems are one prob- 
lem, and any one problem is potentially all problems. Some 
problems are primarily political, others primarily industrial ; 
some fall within the domain of the law, and some are beyond 
it; some problems seen in a city are, in fact, state or national 
in cause and relation ; some problems concern principles, others 
are merely institutional, while many are purely personal. There 
is little value in appeal to religion, where law is needed ; or 
to law, where conscience is needed ; or to conscience, where 
enlightenment is needed ; or to enlightenment, where stern 
measures are needed. It is useless to attack principles, where 
only institutions are at fault; or institutions, where merely 
their relation of co-ordination is at fault; or this co-ordination, 
when individuals alone are to blame. The advantage in care- 
ful classification is' that our knowledge is accurate and our 
direction of reform effort is wiser. 

Above all, we secure more detailed knowledge of social 
processes, and we realize how many of them, each in itself a 
problem, may be concerned in a complex fact. The concrete 
situation of a laborer's family may epitomize a whole epoch of 
history. The home may be in an unsanitary tenement, restricted, 
offering no privacy or protection ; low wages and high rent 
make better impossible. The father may have work irregularly, 
because times are dull and immigration has increased the sup- 
ply of labor far beyond demand. The wife may be ignorant 
of cooking, sewing, and housekeeping, because she spent her 
time learning useless things at school, or because she had to 
work and did not go to school. Mrs. Florence Kelly quoted 
recently the superintendent of schools in New York as stating 
that 40,000 school children in the city are hungry, " not from 
poverty, but because the mothers do not know how to prepare 



I905-] PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM, 433 

foojd to give proper nutriment." The morals of the children, 
in the imaginary family described, may be ruined because of 
association and example to which the circumstances of life 
expose them, from which they neither hope nor expect to 
escape. In this concrete condition of a family, there appear 
many far-reaching social processes, each of which is a vast 
problem. There is need, consequently, of careful classification 
and analysis, so that judgment of facts may be accurate and 
knowledge of social processes complete. Once we know and 
realize how we are factors in these processes, which mean life 
or death, virtue or degradation to so many, there is hope for 
the development of judgment and conscience to bring speedy 
reform. 

The three suggestions presented refer to the point of depar- 
ture in reform activity. We should look to social prccessts to 
discover real problems, we should aim to modify these pro- 
cesses in our reforming, and we should know the nature and 
relations of the problem accurately before undertaking to refotm 
them. The limitations and difficulties of reform work will be 
referred to in a subsequent article. 



ABBOTSFORD. [Jan., 



ABBOTSFORD. 

BV M. M. MAXWELL SCOTT, 
(af Abbotifardj. 

" I have seen much, but nothing like my ain housR."— 5i> Walttr Stotl. 

E words we have quoted above, spoken by Sir 
Walter during the last days of his life, show 
us something of the love felt by him for his 
home, and all who are familiar with the Life 
know what constant references there are in it 
to Abbotsford. 

As Mr. Lockhart says: "To have curtailed the exposition 
of his fond, untiring enthusiasm on that score, would have been 
like omitting the Prince in a caste of 'Hamlet.'" 

If I may be permitted to say so. Sir Walter's descendants 
have inherited this love for the home he built, and it is a 
great pleasure to me to endeavor to give a short account of the 
place, from the time Sir Walter first became the Laird of 
Abbotsford till the present day. I trust I may be excused if, 
in writing of the early days of Abbotsford, I quote freely 
from the Life and Sir Walter's letters, familiar as the story may 
be to many of my readers ; for the latter portion of the narra- 
tive, the history of my father's life, and my own recollections, 
will serve to complete the sketch. 

Sir Walter became the possessor of Abbotsford— or, as it 
was then called, Clarty Hole — tn 1811, but the spot had been 
known to him from childhood. Mr. Lockhart relates having 
often heard him tell that, when traveling with his father from 
Selkirk to Melrose, " the old man suddenly desired the carriage to 
halt at the foot of an eminence, and said: 'We must get out 
here, Walter, and see a thing quite in your line.* His father then 
conducted him to a rude stone on the edge of an acclivity, 
about half a mile above the Tweed." This marks the place still 
called Turn Again, where, at the battle of Melrose, 

". . . Gallant Ccssford's heart-blood dear 
Reek'd on dark Elliott's Border spear," 



1905.] ABBOTSFORD. 435 

The names o{ other localities between Abbotsford and Melrpse, 
such as Skirmish Field and Charge Law, also to this day recall 
the fight. 

Sir Walter, we imagine, never forgot this incident, for when 
he determined to become a " Tweedside Laird " he chose the 
little property which, though " not a very attractive one to the 
general observer, had long been one of peculiar interest" to 
him. On May 12, 181 1, he announced his intention, in a letter 
to Mr. James Ballantyne, as follows : " My attention has been 
a little dissipated by considering a plan for my own future 
comfort, which I hasten to mention to you. My lease of 
Ashestiel is out. ... I have, therefore, resolved to pur- 
chase a piece of ground sufficient for a cotta'ge and a few fields. 
There are two pieces, either of which would suit me. . . . 
They stretch along the Tweed near half way between Melrose 
and Selkirk." Of these two adjoining farms, Sir Walter bought 
the one comprising Turn Again. The person from whom he 
bought the property was a valued friend of bis own, Dr. Robert 
Douglas, Minister of Galashiels. He had never resided on the 
property, and the only embellishments he had effected had been 
'' limited to one stripe of firs, so long and so narrow that Scott 
likened it to a black hair comb. It ran from the precincts of 
the homestead towards Turn Again, and has bequeathed the 
name of the Doctor's redding kame to the mass of nobler trees 
amidst which its dark straight line can now hardly be traced."* 
Clarty Hole was in truth a most unattractive spot, undrained, 
wretchedly enclosed, the farmhouse small and poor ; but to 
Sir Walter the Tweed was everything, and from the moment 
be took possession '' he claimed for his farm the name of the 
adjoining ford situated just above the influx of the classical 
tributary Gala. As might be guessed by the name of Abbots 
ford all these lands had belonged of old to the great Abbey 
of Melrose."! 

The neighborhood also of two antiquarian remains of interest 
lent an additional charm to the property in Sir Walter's eyes; 
namely, the old Roman road leading down to the ford; and, 
on the opposite hill, the remains of the Catrail so often alluded 
to in his letters to Mr. Ellis. By August, of the same year, 
everything was settled, and Sir Walter wrote to his brother- 
in-law that he and his wife were "not a little proud of being 

• Lockhart's Life^ vol. iii. p. 339. f Idem.t p. 340.. 



436 ABBOTSFORD, [Jan., 

greeted as Laird and Lady of Abbotsford. At that time Sir 
Walter's plans for his house were of the simplest. He thus 
describes them to Miss Joanna Baillie : '' My schemes about 
my cottage go on ; of about a hundred acres, I have manfully 
resolved to plant from sixty to seventy ; as to my scale of 
dwelling, why, you shall see my plan when I have adjusted it. 
My present intention is to have only two spare bed-rooms 
with dressing-rooms, each of which will, on a pinch, have a 
couch bed; but I cannot relinquish my border principle of 
accommodating all the cousins and duniwassals who will rather 
sleep on chairs, and on the floor, and in the hayloft, than be 
absent when folk are gathered together." 

' Sir Walter was determined, as he tells Mr. Morritt, that 
his cottage should be in his garden (then still a ''kailyard"), 
and that the "little drawing-room shall open into a little con- 
servatory." There exists a pleasing drawing of the Abbotsford 
of 1812, where the cottage appears with a pillared porch and 
walls covered with creepers, and *'a good garden wall and 
complete stables in the Haugh" were added in the following 
year. In 1814 Sir Walter pressed the Morritts to visit him, 
promising them "chamber in the wall, with a dressing-room 
and everything handsome about you." And so the building 
gradually grew and developed, aided by Mr. Blore's valued 
advice and drawings. 

By the September of. 181 7 the portion of the house which 
extends westwards to the square tower was about to be roofed 
in; "and a comical concern it is," wrote Sir Walter. The 
projected tower seems to have suggested some criticism from 
Sir Walter's friend, Mr. Terry, to which he thus replied : " I 
agree with you that the tower will look rather rich for the 
rest of the building, yet you may be assured that, with diagonal 
chimneys and notched gables, it will have a very fine effect, 
and is in Scotch architecture by no means incompatible." A 
few months later he refers to the stability of the new building, 
•' I have reason to he proud," he writes, " of the finishing of 
my castle, for even of the tower, for which I trembled, not a 
stone has been shaken by the late terrific gale which blew a 
poof clean off in the neighborhood." 

Mr. Lockhart, who saw Abbotsford for the first time during 
this autumn of 18 18, confesses that the building then presented 
'^ fantastic appearanim the new and old buildings by no means 



k. 



1905.] ABBOTSFORD. 437 

harmonizing; but the description of his ascent of the famous 
tower must not be omitted. " When we rose from table," he 
says, "Scott proposed that we should all ascend his western 
turret, to enjoy a moonlight view of the valley. The younger 
part of his company were too happy to do so; some of the 
seniors, who had tried .the thing before, found pretexts for 
hanging back. The stairs were dark, narrow, and steep; but 
the sheriff piloted the way, and at length there were as many 
on the top as it could well afford footing for. Nothing could 
be more lovely than the panorama; all the harsher and more 
naked features being lost in the delicious moonlight ; the Tweed 
and the Gala winding and sparkling beneath our feet, and the 
distant ruins of Melrose appearing as if carved of alabaster. 
. . . The poet, leaning on his battlement, seemed to hang 
over the beautiful vision as if he had never seen it before. 

. . The piper was heard tuning his instrument below, and 
he called to him for ' Lochaber No More.' John of Skye 
obeyed, and as the music rose, softened by the distance, Scott 
repeated in a low key the melancholy words of the song of 
exile." 

In the spring of 1820, when Sir Walter was on a visit to 
London, he wrote to Lady Scott thus about another — and 
final — addition that he was planning : " I have got a delightful 
plan for the addition at Abbotsford which I think will make 
it quite complete and furnish me with a handsome library, and 
you with a drawing-room and better bed- room. ... It 
will cost me a little hard work to meet the expense, but I have 
been a good while idle." The plans for these new buildings, 
including the wall and gateway of the courtyard and the grace- 
ful stone screen which divides it from the garden, were made 
by Mr. Blore, although the screen — with its carvings taken 
from decails of stone work at Melrose Abbey — was originally 
devised by Sir Walter himself. 

The work took some time, and during the summer of 1822 
Sir Walter says the house was like a ** cried fair " with the 
masons busy at work and visitors from the South who, after 
witnessing the king's reception in Edinburgh, hastened out to 
see Abbotsford. In the August of 1823, when the place was 
completed. Miss Edgeworth paid Sir Walter her first visit, and 
meeting him at the archway to the courtyard made her well* 



436 
greeted 



^ Lr 



''scribes r 
"'y cottag 
'eso/ved 

% pr 



. * 



[Jan., 
..J /5 exactly what one 



••^ 



coucf 
^cco 
slee 
ab> 



^ (•<< 



'c.3gf 50 agreeably described 

• ^jtf « doubly joyful occasion, as it 

/.•^emcflt of Sir Walter's eldest son 

.K»nr. To tis, looking back, it is also 

>:' K^utward prosperity in Sir Walter's life. 



««io> 



• • »* V -^W^ "^ 



* »l 



«.w. 



^va to be clouded both by sorrow and 

Ue find these sad words written by Sir 

1^*^/0/ December 18, 1824: "Sad hearts at 

the cottages of Abbotsford. ... I have 

"^ I "j aevcr to see the place again. How could I tread 

; w'f/J such a diminished crest ? How live a poor, 

co^^*vi in«n where I was once the wealthy — the honored." 

Aivi ot<^in, on January 22. 1S26: "I have walked my last on 

Mc KiSmains I have plaated, sate the last time in the halls I 

.iJtve built, but death m-culd have taken them from me if 

misfor-tune bad sparec t::e2r. 

These inclaiicii.:ily rr«v~.>:oas were happily not realized. By 
Christmas D^y 5Lr Wx.^tr was able, under more cheerful cir- 

T>^c:e i $ return to Abbotsford, addicg these 

<>r ri:2? --"ai^r cc jitficral devotion I have a particular 

1 ic»r irrx: M'*^ V ^ri srary quietly happy days were still to 

<iT«ri ^J>^^ - < ^ It ixrr^ those years — the noblest of his 

.f^_L,r. »^'-^^ ^ «'-''=J^ > :r:$elt out in trying to retrieve his 

i^^555t^^ ){%' :r^ S-5VT? .^. .-c^^r§. As we know, also, when the 

c-T>r. <'-^''^ ^^ ^"-^^ ^ -x-a$c:ation of dying in his beloved 

^i:*' < '^ -*•-■ >^ -"^v»/:>. ;a 1S32, Abbotsford was for some 
v-- -.V. >. :'^tf family. The sense of mournful 



».;, 



■: *. 



Gibson * ' 

to my 5»>^*^ 
third sen <^ 
John, seCvNf>v. 



-. ■♦ 



>5; 






Vw c 






V- 



^.:v 



1* • X 



* K*<*e it difficult for thtm to return 

>v-^?S Sir Walter and his wife were 

r>; tt<at to India, and it was on his 

m: he died at the Cape. He left no 

V. involved on my young uncle. Walter 

^.Kt^r* eldest daughter, and Mr. John 

- s. «M:y death, in 1853, the place came 

^>*^= a»<irried, in 1847. Mr. likes Hope, 

^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^SCJ» cf 




1905.] ABBOTSFORD. 439 

with the terms of Srr Walter's will regarding the possessors of 
Abbotsfordy added Scott to their name. By this time both 
my father and mother had become Catholics. My father^ as is 
well known, being one of those most closely connected with 
Cardinal Newman and the Oxford Movement* He entered 
the church some years later than the cardinal, being received 
on the same day as Cardinal Manning, on Palm Sunday, 185 1, 
by Father Brownbill, S.J. 

My dear mother could not yet see her way, and shed tears 
to think that she would not be able in future to pray with 
my father as hitherto ; but a few weeks later, after much 
prayer and study, she too received the grace of conversion, 
and from that moment seemed to be like an old Catholic, so 
quickly did the faith take root in a heart naturally Catholic 
as was hers. My parents' first care was to arrange a private 
chapel at Abbotsford. At first a vaulted room on the ground 
floor was chosen, but when my father added to the house, in 
1858, he built a beautiful room on the west side with a high 
pitched roof, and to this the chapel was eventually removed 
and now remains. How many memories cling to both chapels 
— Cardinal Newman and Bishop Grant said Mass in the old 
chapel during their visits to Abbotsford, and how many other 
holy bishops and priests besides! In this connection I may 
be permitted, perhaps, to recall a trifling incident regarding 
my little brother's baptism, which took place at Abbotsford. 
Por some reason the chapel was at that time temporarily re- 
moved to one of the sitting-rooms, and one of my earliest 
recollections is of this occasion and of the quantities of lilies 
of the valley which adorned the altar. My brother was chris- 
tened Walter Michael, in honor of the great Archangel, to 
whom my father had a special devotion ; but this was cause 
of distress to Sir Walter's old keeper, then still alive, who 
feared he was named after our famous ancestor, Michael Scot, 
the Wizard. To allay his fears my dear father, using the 
Scotch idiom which he could well do on occasion, remarked : 
"John, you maun remember there was an archangel before 
there was a wizard." 

After their conversion my parents lost no time in endeav- 
oring to assist to their utmost the scattered Catholics of the 

• In Life of James Robert Hope Scott, By Robert Onnsby. London : John Murray. 



440 ABBOTSFORD. [Jan., 

neighborhood, and in building the churches and schools which 
remain to testify to their zeal. My father ever bore in mind, 
we believe, the desire of making reparation for the devasta- 
tions wrought by the reformation, and the fact that Abbots- 
ford itself stands on what was church land. To realize the 
great and happy change since 1851, we must glance at the 
then position of the church in the border counties. The few 
Catholics of the neighborhood at that time were either Irish, 
who had come over to seek work, or of Irish descent, and the 
only church [built in 1844] was at Hawick; from there Father 
Tagart, affectionately known as the '' Patriarch of the Border," 
evangelized the neighborhood, saying Mass also occasionally 
at Galashiels, Kelso, or wherever' a few of the faithful could 
be gathered together. About this time, however, the erection 
of Tweed Mills and the work of new railways brought a great 
increase of Irish Catholic workmen to Galashiels and Selkirk, 
and my father at once built school chapels at each of these 
little towns; and from these beginnings two large missions 
resulted. Simultaneously almost with my parents' conversion, 
we may record that of the late Dowager Duchess of Buc- 
cleuch, the late Dowager Lady Lothian, and of my uncle, the 
late Lord Henry Kerr, and his family, who all joined in the 
good work of bringing back the faith to this part of Scotland. 
After the church of Selkirk was finished the duchess sup- 
ported that mission until her death. Jedburgh owes its pretty 
church to Lady Lothian's munificence, while Lord Henry Kerr, 
ever a zealous co-operator in the works at Galashiels and else- 
where, opened the private chapel at Huntlyburn, which was 
for years to be a great centre of Catholic life.* Galashiels, 
being in the Abbotsford parish, was of course the special 
object of my father's care, and while at Selkirk and Kelso 
pretty churches soon replaced the original school chapels, at 
Galashiels a large and stately church grew up, to be finally 
completed just before my father's death in 1873. His great 
wish had been to make it a centre of missionary work, and to 
have it served by a body of Religious, in order that the 
neighboring stations of Lauder and Earlston, and others which 
he foresaw would exist, should be served from there. At first 

f See Life of Madame Henrietta Ketr; and Lije of Rev, H. S. Kerr, Sailor and Jesuit. 
By Hon. Mrs. Maxwell Scott. 



I905-] Abbotsford. 441 

the Oblates of St. Mary's undertook the mission, but in 1863 
it was transferred, according to my father's original desire, to 
the Society of Jesus, who served it with devoted zeal until 
1 90 1 ; at which date, owing to the father-general's wish to 
withdraw them from country missions, they left to our im- 
mense regret. Before this an additional station had been 
opened at Melrose, where a church is now much needed. The 
happy changes we have noted in the neighborhood of Abbots- 
ford are, we are thankful to say, a sample only of what has 
taken place and is still in progress all over Scotland, to which 
the conversion lately of several Scotch ministers lends addi- 
tional hope for our beloved country. It is a pleasure to recall 
that, during his fatal illness at Abbotsford, some of Sir Wal- 
ter's last conscious words were those of one of the great 
hymns of the church, the "Dies Irae." His Abbotsford now 
belongs to Catholics, and the faith which he in many ways 
helped to bring back to the hearts of his readers is, we may 
l^ope, gradually spreading throughout the country. 




VOL. LXXX.-*29 



American education. [Jan., 



AMERICAN EDUCATION AND THE MOSELY COMMISSION. 

BY J. C. MONAGHAN, 
Htad ef U. S. Cfuimtar Strvitt. 

'HEN the Mosely Commission came over to study 
our educational institutions, a fear was felt by 
quite a large number of respectable, loyal, and 
patriotic Americans that Mr. Mosely and bis 
associates would be feted and feasted until any- 
thing like a fair, honest, and strictly objective view of our 
educational system would be out of the question. That fear 
seems to have been well founded. Be it far from me to find 
fault with the words of praise showered upon our educational 
system by Mr. Mosely and his Commission. Patriotism, according 
to Dr. Johnson, is the last resort of a scoundrel; sometimes it 
seems to me to be the first. Patriotism ts a very much used and a 
very much abused word. If it stands for silence when truth 
ta demanded, it is dangerous. At no time tn many years was 
there so great a need as now for a strong word against the 
efforts of those who, ignorantly perhaps, but assiduously, are 
trying to blind us to the facts that stick out all over our pub- 
lic school system. It is no part of my purpose to point out 
all the weak spots in that system — that would take too much 
time. It would demand all the pages of one issue of The Catho- 
lic World to point out the wickedness, unfairness, and iniqui- 
ties connected with a system that refuses religious education 
to its pupils, and is unwilling to pay for the education of the 
millions who desire and demand religious training for their 
children. What a curious condition of mind is that which 
c in not see the injustice of making one part of the com- 
munity, and the very part that will ultimately have to save 
linciety and the Republic, pay twice for the education of its 
cliildren I In the German empire religious education is as 
iiiiii'li u part of the public school system as the three Rs. 
|ti:.iiili!H, It ia paid for by the public. May not some of the 
BUI I rnn Hr<'urr<l by the empire in recent years owe its origin 



i9osO The Mosely Commission. 443 

to the stability that always comes to a religiously trained 
people ? 

But it is no part of my purpose, in this article, to deal 
with that phase of the educational problem. At this moment 
I am very much interested in the report of the Mosely Com- 
mission, and of the visitors who, after running rapidly from 
one end of the republic to the other, are telling us what a 
wonderful people we are.. I am anxious lest the American 
people be led to believe all that Mr. Mosely and his colleagues 
say. 

All talk of American superiority in production deserves 
very careful investigation and consideration. As a matter of 
fact, we produce very few of the world's fine ^grade goods. 
The weavers of the East lead in silks and carpets; France 
leads the world in tapestries; almost every country in Europe 
is ahead of us in china, porcelain textiles, scientific instruments, 
etc., etc. The workers in wood, iron, brass, etc., etc., in this 
country, the men who do the really fine work, the designers 
and decorators, are, as a rule, foreigners; they certainly were 
until quite recently. The boss spinners, weavers, bleachers, 
dyers, etc., etc., of New England were, for a long time, and 
are now to a certain extent. Englishmen, Irishmen, Scotch* 
men, etc., etc. Wherein then are we efficient, and along what 
lines have we achieved a success sufficient to merit the words 
which the Mosely Commission has uttered ? 

Let us see. We are rapidly rising to first place among the 
world's iron and steel workers. Granted ; but what are the 
facts ? We possess a land richest in the resources or raw 
materials that make iron production on a large scale possible. 
In the Mesaba iron range, or region, all we have to do is to 
scrape and scoop up the rich iron ore with steel shovels; 
^rom the mines it is carried to the docks of Duluth and 
Escanaba, to be transported by water to Cleveland, Toledo, and 
Pittsburg, where it comes together with the world's cheapest 
coal and limestone.' But some doubting Thomas asks for the 
facts. 

The accompanying statistics set forth the production and 
consumption of iron ore and pig iron and the production of 
steel in the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany, for 
the years 1900, 1901, and 1902. The figures for the United 



444 



AMERICAN Education. 



[Jan., 



States and the United Kingdom represent tons of 2,240 
pounds; those for Germany, metric tons of 2,204 pounds. 



Production and consumption of iron and steel by the three leading countries y 

I goo to I go 2, 



1 


1900. 1901. 


1903. 


Products and countries. 


Produc- 
tion. 


Consump- 
tion. 


Produc- 
tion. 


Consump- 
tion. 


Produc- 
tion. 


Consump- 
tion. 


IRON ORE. 

United States. 
United Kingdom, 
Germany, • 


Tons. 

a7.553.000 
14,038,000 
18.964,000 


Tons. 

28,400.000 
20.318.000 
19,834.000 


Tons. 

38,887,000 
13,275,000 
16,570,000 


Tons. 

39.789,000 
17.813,000 
18,550,000 


Tons. 

35554000 
13.436.000 
17.964,000 

66.944.000 


Tons. 

36.631.000 
19.847,000 
19.053.000 


Total, 

PIG IRON. 

United States. 
United Kingdom, 
Germany, 

Total, 


60.545.000 


68.542.000 


57,733,000 


66,151,000 


75.531.000 


13.789,000 
8.960,000 
8,507.000 


13.554.000 
7,705,000 
9.105.000 


15.878.000 
7,939,000 
7,867.000 


15.860.000 
7,385,000 
7.985.000 


17,831.000 
8.680.000 
8.518.000 


18.419.000 
7.798,000 
8.314.000 


31.356.000 


30.364.000 


31.674.000 


31.130,000 


35,019.000 


34.531.000 


STEEL. 

United States, 
United Kingdom. 
Germany, 


10.188,000 
4,901,000 
6.362.000 




13,474.000 
4.904.000 
6.211.000 




14.947.000 
4,849,000 
7.423,000 




Total. 


21,451,000 


24.589,000 


37.318,000 





A brief review of these figures reveals the singular fact 
that, whereas the United States, twenty- five or thirty years 
ago, was behind Germany or England in iron ore, pig iron, 
gnd steel, its production to-day is nearly as large in each class 
as is the combined production of the countries named. It is 
actually more than the total of both in pig iron and steel. Is 
it not at once apparent that it is our cheaper coal, iron, and 
limestone, rather than any greater skill, that has made our 
progress possible? 

Reverse the facts, give Germany, France, Belgium, Hol- 
land, or Italy the marvelous mines of coal, iron, and lime that 
have been given to us, and we would see a success fully equal, 
to say the least, to any recorded in Pennsylvania, Ohio, or 
Alabama. It is doubtful whether Essen and the Krupps have 
been equalled by Pittsburg and Carnegie. A curious fact in 
this connection, however, must not escape us — Germany's pro- 
portionate^ increase in the production of steel, in 1902, was 
greater than that of either the United States or the United 
Kingdom. The iron yield of the Mesaba range increased 



I90S.] 



THE M OS ELY COMMISSION. 



445 



from 4,245 tons, in 1892, to 13,342,840, in 1902, and 12,892,- 
542 tons, in 1903. It must be remembered that this is the' 
iron that is scooped into cars by means of steam shovels, is 
carried, or can be carried to the lakes by gravity alone as 
"the roads from the mines to the lake at Duluth and Two 
Harbors are short and on descending grades." It must be re- 
membered also that the lake transportation is the cheapest in 
the world per ton mile. 

Europe's total coal area is only 23,166 miles; that of the 
United States is 225,000. Europe's mines are, many of them 
at least, particularly those of England, nearing exhaustion. 
The coal area of a single section of this country is far larger 
than the total area of Europe. Pennsylvania and Ohio to- 
gether have a greater area than Europe, for they have 15,800 
and 12,000 square miles respectively; Missouri alone has 
23,000; our Northern Appalachiap region has 57,740; the 
Southern Appalachian 13,067; the Northern Interior coal 
fields cover 11,300 square miles; the Eastern Interior 58,000; 
the Western Interior 66,200; the Southwestern 27,876; the 
Rocky Mountain area 43,610. The other square miles are di- 
vided up among other parts of the country. 



Coal production of the principal countries in igoiy 1^02, and iqoj. 



Country. 


X901. 


1902. 


1903. 


United Kingdom. - - . - 
Germany, ----- 

France, ------ 

Belgium, - . . - - 
United States, 


Tons. 

219,047,000 

108.539,000 

31,634,000 

22,213,000 

261,374,000 


Tons. 

227,095,000 

107,474,000 

29,365,000 

22,877,000 

269,277,000 


Tons. 

230.334.000 

116,638,000 

34,318.000 

23,912,000 

320.983,000 



Incidentally I may point out here, in passing, as perti- 
nent to the discussion of national capacity, so often misrepre- 
sented by careless writers, that much if not most of Italy's 
difficulties, those that led to her so- called ** decline ^** were due 
to the absence of just these two great raw material factors of 
industrial life — coal and iron. Now that we have entered upon 
an era of electricity, and Italy is getting what the French 
have poetically named " white coal " — water power, with which 
to generate electricity — Italy is giving evidence of another 
renaissance. 



446 



American Education. 



[Jan, 



T*he coal production per miner, as given in the following 
table, would seem to bear out the claims of those who insist 
upon American superiority. 

The average number of miners employed, and the tonnage 
production per miner, for the five countries were as follows: 



Country. 



United States, - 
United Kingdom, 
Germany, 
France, 
Belgium, 



Year. 



1902 
1902 
1901 
1901 
1901 



Average 
number of 
miners em- 
ployed. 



518.307 
805. xoo 

448.000 

159.957 
134.092 



Average 
produc- 
tion per 
miner. 

Toms. 

Sao 

278 
242 
198 
166 



This table shows the productive capacity of the American 
miner to be far superior to those of other countries. This is 
partly accounted for by reason of improved coal-cutting 
machinery used in the mines of the United States, and to the 
fact that the mines worked are nearer the surface; conse- 
quently more horizontal shafts with car haulage are operated 
than in other countries. 

As a matter of fact we have little more than scratched the 
iiurface of our vast coal deposits, while England, Belgium, 
and other parts of continental Europe are down thousands of 
feet in the bowels of the earth. Jevons, Wallace, and other 
English scientists have seriously discussed, and are now seri- 
ously discussing, the danger of England exhausting her coal 
mines in a short time, in less than two hundred years. 

'' But look at American boots and shoes," is shouted. 
Granted our superiority in mining machinery ; granted our 
superiority in boot and shoe making; granted all the facts 
which the advocates of our superiority are able to advance; 
and the principal fact is not disturbed, viz., that we are far 
behind Europe in a large number of industries in which skill 
and expert knowledge count for a great deal. We raise some- 
thing like seven-eighths of the world's raw cotton, and yet we 
import cotton textiles of all kinds for millions of dollars. If 
we had had a system of industrial, industrial art, and technical 
education equal to that of the German empire, does anybody 



1905] 



The M OS ELY Commission. 



447 



believe that the story told by the subjoined table would have 
been told in the years indicated ? 

Importation of cotton manufactures into the United States during the years 

igo2y JQOji and igo4. 





1902. 


1903. 


1904. 


Cotton Cloths: 

Unbleached, - - 
Bleached, dyed, colored, etc., - 


86,386 
6.934.393 


156.545 
9,013,092 


159.102 
8.144.383 


Total Cloths, - - - - 


7,020,779 


9.169.637 


8.303.485 


Finished goods and yarn : 
Clothing, etc., - . - . 
Knit goods. .... 
Laces, edgings, etc.. 
Yam, warps, etc., - - . 
All others, - - . . . 


* 656.513 

5.363.515 
22,449.314 

1. 921. 748 

6.048,957 


2.247.903 

6.157.744 
25,110,081 

2,421,729 

7.355.661 


2.505.035 
6.044,691 

24.848,764 

2.261,924 

5.560,347 


Total other than cloths, - 


37.439.347 


43.293,118 


41,220,761 


Total cotton manufactures, ... 


44.460.126 


,52,462,755 


49.524.246 



There is not a university in this great land that does not 
have to send to Paris or Berlin for its fine instruments. 
Thousands of the men that are making the republic first among 
productive nations came to us from the British Islands or from 
some part of continental Europe. Ericsson, Pupin, Steinmetz, 
and many of the leaders of our great industries give evidence 
of this. 

Now, the fact is, our education^ along industrial lines, has 
been as abominably bad as ignorance, stupidity, greed, and in- 
difference could make it. For a long time we did nothing in 
our schools to develop the native genius that had become pro- 
verbial. Year after year we were willing to work along in- 
ferior lines, making coarse grades, importing expert labor, 
when we needed such, from Europe, and common labor from 
Canada, continental and insular Europe. The student of 
sociology, who will cut down deep into American society, will 
find lamina after lamina of different people. Among the 
working classes he will find, at the bottom the early settlers, 
then English, then Scotch and Irish, then French Canadians, 
and now Italians, Greeks, Armenians, and fifty other nation- 
alities recruited from the lowest lamina of European society. 
But I will be told that Boston has its Massachusetts School of 
Technology ; Worcester its Clark University ; Brooklyn its 



448 American Education. [Jan., 

Pratt's; New York City, Colonel Auchmuty's School ; Yale, 
Sheffield ; Cornell its Sibley Institute, etc., etc. 

But what of these? For whom were they built, for whom 
were they intended ? Who was able to take advantage of 
them ? Were they part of the public school system ? By no 
means. Not nearly so much as were Harvard, Yale, and Brown 
proper. 

The abundance of our natural resources, the peculiar forms 
in which they were found, made inventions not only necessary 
but inevitable. Take the case of Eli Whitney and the cotton- 
gin, and every contrivance for handling coal, iron, and steel. 
Besides, many of these called for little or no very great indus- 
trial or educational training. Then again there was much of 
mechanical genius in the' mixed population of the country, and 
genius often acts independent of education. I must not be 
misunderstood. I would not for a moment maintain that edu- 
cation is not needed by men of genius. It is needed, and by 
them sometimes much more than by others, particularly if 
their full powers are to find play. It is curious what mental 
somersaults we are willing to make at the whip-snaps of the 
ringmasters of the world. For a long time we were told that 
we were better off and smarter than others, even though we 
had no technical schools; now we are told, because Mr. 
Mosely and his Commission have said so, that our schools are 
nearly perfect. Many and many a time writers and speakers 
were forced to advance argument after argument in favor of 
industrial, and industrial art education, so as to keep alive 
the fires from which the torches in the technical schools of 
every state of the country were, afterwards to be lighted. 
Every one will remember that it was often urged that the de- 
cision in regard to such schools must not depend upon what 
we are or upon what we have done without such an educa- 
tional system, but upon what we would have done and where 
we would be to-day had we had such a system. It is no 
argument against their value to say that ** without them we 
have walloped Germany," as I heard an educator proclaim only 
yesterday. We haven't walloped Germany. We haven't wal- 
loped anybody very badly. We haven't begun to equal that 
empire. We haven't begun to be as big by any means as we 
might have been long since. We will have to begin, as the 



1905.] The Mosely Commissiojsi. 449 

German empire began, at the very basis of all great national 
efforts, among the people, if we are to be what we ought to be. 
Germany's system of industrial, industrial art, commercial and 
technical schools is to-day one of the world's wonders. They 
have done more, in my opinion, for the empire's agriculture, 
commerce, and manufactures, than all other factors put to- 
gether. Here, if Mr. Mosely or anybody else is eager to build 
up an argument in favor of education, is a field full of rich, 
ripe grain ready for the sickle. Germany, beggarly poor, com- 
pelled to buy her cotton, wool, a large part of her corn, her 
copper, tin, some iron, and some coal, all her raw silk, etc., 
etc., outside, has built up an industrial and commercial result 
that reads like romance. Colonel Mason, our Consul General 
in Berlin, thus writes of it: 

At the dedication of a technical college for the textile in- 
dustry at Sorau, Herr MoUer, the Prussian minister of com- 
merce, spoke with great earnestness and effect upon the pecu- 
liar importance of technical education to the present and espe- 
cially to the future of German industries. He emphasized 
the fact that competition and other difficulties in the way of 
foreign trade are steadily increasing, and gave warning that 
the future holds a struggle for German export trade. Con- 
tinuing, he said : " Those whom we have been pushing out 
are beginning to defend themselves. Our former markets are 
becoming producing countries, and we shall doubtless have 
to see certain branches of our business decline and pass over 
to other countries which have cheaper labor than we. Hence 
we shall be more and more obliged to perfect our industries, 
and not only to follow up promptly all novelties and changes 
of taste, but to take the lead in creating such changes.'' In 
a word, Germany, being mainly dependent upon foreign mar- 
kets, requires the highest technical development to maintain 
her place in the competition. 

The lesson embodied in these words of the minister of 
commerce finds many illustrations in the various fields of 
German industry, but in none is the demonstration more strik- 
ing and conclusive than in the department of chemical manu- 
facture, of which the total annual product is valued at about 
$300,000,000. The organization of chemical study and 
research in Germany for industrial purposes was begun by 
Professor Justus von Liebig. . . His example and 



4SO AMERICAN Education. [Jan,, 

achievements had the important result of convincing the sev- 
eral state governments of Germany that it was wise and would 
in the end prove profitable to found and maintain advanced 
schools for scientific study. 

From these technical schools and the laboratories of Ger- 
man universities have come, the army of young chemists who 
have made applied chemistry the most vigorous and success- 
ful, as it is the youngest, of German industries. ... It 
is these men, who now number between six and seven thou- 
sand, who are willing to work in original research, in labora- 
tories provided by the great chemical companies, for small 
salaries and an interest in whatever of value they may dis- 
cover, who have brought the chemical industry of Germany 
up to its present leading position and kept it there. . . • 

The careful analyses of soils and the skilful use of 
chemical and other fertilizers to meet exactly the deficit in 
essential elements has revolutionized agriculture in this coun- 
try. It is due largely to the work of expert chemists that the 
percentage of saccharine content in sugar beets has been 
raised from 5.72 per cent., in 1840, to 13 percent, in recent 
years, whereby the whole German sugar industry was saved 
from collapse. Similarly in the iron and steel manufacture, 
and in the whole long, varied schedule of textile production, it 
is only the possession of a vast army of skilled chemists, 
metallurgists, designers, dyers, weavers, and spinners, re- 
cruited year by year from graduates of the universities and 
technical and industrial art schools, and backed by salesmen 
and merchants elaborately educated and trained for commer- 
cial work in foreign countries, that has enabled Germany to 
practically monopolize certain special forms of manufacture, 
and, despite limited natural resources, to conquer and main- 
tain a place in the front rank of industrial nations. 

Frank H. Mason, Consul General. 

Beri<in, Germany, September 2, 1^04, 

Can any one connected with the Mosely Commission, or 
any one interested in advancing the arguments about our 
efficiency and , superiority, point to any such picture as that 
painted by Mr. Mason ? And yet one great, very important 
factor was omitted by Mr. Mason. He does not tell us, as he 
might have told us, that the most of the raw material used in 
the m\nufacture of the empire's chemicals had to be imported. 



1905] The Mas£LY Commission. 451 

He did not tell us that, before Bayer's time, English and French 
chemists had discovered the presence of analine colors, etc., 
etc., in coal tar, but that neither England nor France were 
fitted to secure the results; and that Germany was, because 
of her superior system of education. In connection with the 
matter of color, he might have called attention to the history 
of Hermsdorfs dyeing, a most successful system of combining 
the laboratary chemist with the workman dyer, and getting 
results beyond any other part of the world's best. He might 
have told of Hermsdorf having to dye for England, Ireland, 
and this country. If such a story can be told by anybody in 
this country I have failed, in spite of long and careful investi- 
gation, to find it. I do not deny its possibility, or even its 
probability ; I doubt the ability of any one finding it as easily 
as the Mosely Commission seem to have found our supe- 
riority. 

The fact is, we have foolishly allowed ourselves to take 
the bright, light, polite literature of the English Commissioners 
and Mr. Mosely for more than it is worth. What could the 
Commissioners find out in so short a time, and in a trip 
like the one under consideration ? Little, very little; and surely 
not enough to justify us in sitting back with an air of supe- 
riority. What is to be feared, and what is to be avoided con- 
cerning this report of the Mosely Commission, are the fatal 
results to our own people from a too literal, hence too stupid, 
interpretation of what Mr. Mosely and his associates undoubtedly 
intended for polite praise ; and the customary " thanks, thanks, 
and ever thanks ! " for a very pleasant trip through the United 
States. To say that our great success, whatever that really is, 
judged from the highest standards, is due to our educational 
system is all nonsense ; and the sooner we see that it is 
nonsense the better will it be for ourselves and the worse for 
others. 

Another time I shall be pleased to present an article deal- 
ing with what we should do in order to make the most of our 
marvelous opportunities. 

It is commonly urged that we have done wonders in the way 
of invention. How many Pasteurs, Darwins, Huxieys, Tyndals, 
Wallaces, Spencers, have we had ? For the one Agassiz, or 
the one Edison, Germany, France, and England have had 



452 AMERICAN EDUCATION. [Jan., 

epoch-making men. How many Austins or Savignys have we 
had in law ? How many Helmholtzes, Humboldts, Du Bois Ray- 
monds in the sciences, etc., etc. ? Those are the higher fields. 
Even in the lower, in electricity, engineering, etc., etc., it is 
doubtful whether, since 1878, we have surpassed Germany. 
Prior to that time it was necessary to take out patents, in 
Germany, covering inventions, in every petty duchy and king- 
dom in the country. To do this was not only very expensive, 
it was tiresome and very troublesome. Before 1878, because 
of the trouble caused by the vexatious delays, criticism, dtc, 
etc., many failed to take out patents, preferring to go on risk- 
ing exposure or the dishonesty of assistants. At that time 
Germany was far down in the list of inyentive nations, to-day 
she is number two — the United States alone excelling her. 
I question whether we would lead were we to eliminate German 
names from our lists, and were we to have our inventions 
subjected to as rigid an examination as the one to which per- 
sons seeking patent rights in the German empire are forced to 
submit. Anyway the record for Germany, since 1878, is 
certainly one of marvelous success; and much of it is to be 
traced back to what in my opinion is, all things considered, 
the best system of education on earth. 





1905.] MORETTO.—'' The Raphael of Brescia." 453 




MORETTO-"THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIA." 

BY M. RUSSELL SELMES. 

|W0 thousand years of valor and industry have 
crowned the little city of Brescia with many 
distinctions. Unhumbled by alien domination, 
unwearied by mediaeval tumult, presenting a 
defiant front to imperial encroachment on the 
one hand and to rival pretensions on the other, undaunted 
Brescia still proudly points to her ruined castle, the old " Falcon 
of Lombardy," as the symbol of long leadership in Northern 
Italy throughout the Middle Age. 

"Dying game" in terrible contests with French conquerors, 
rising phoenix- like from exterminating cruelties of Austrian 
tyranny, she stands to-day a centre of many activities, bearing 
the new title, "Armory of Italy," since from her comes the 
supply of fire-arms for the vast army which enables the king- 
dom to maintain the crushing burden entailed by the Triple 
Alliance. 

In contrast to these distinctions Brescia has memories and 
memorials, born of widely differing sources. In the history 
of art no school of painting received her name, but, like so 
many Italian communes, she was richly productive in able 
artists, who worked on lines tributary to the great schools. 

Mediaeval art began to flourish at Brescia in the tenth cen- 
tury. It received its principal impetus from Venice, and hence- 
forth it gradually developed talent, that finally culminated, in 
the sixteenth century, in the beautiful canvases of Ferramola 
and Romanino, and the perfected creations of Alessandro Bon- 
vicino, generally known as Moretto.* 

He was born in 1498, that year so crowded with memorable 
events, when the Renaissance, by an awakening of long- slumber- 
ing powers, was already stirring the civilized world. 

Recent investigation has conclusively proved that Moretto 

* " Moretto" was a family name, and not a nickname or descriptive appellation, as some- 
times supposed. 



454 MORETTO.—'' THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIAr [Jan., 

first saw the light within Brescian walls. His entire life was 
spent in his native city, and the greater part of the heritage 
of beauty which he has bequeathed to the world remains in her 
keeping. 

So absorbed was he in his appointed tasks, so unassertive 
of personal claim, so content to work apart from his peers, 
that he was little heeded, during his lifetime, outside of his own 
province, and fame tarried long before she adorned his name. 
Vasari makes slight mention of him, and it was not until the 
last century that he was recognized as ranking among the 
noblest masters of Italian painting. Signor Zanardelli published 
a paper, in 1855, arousing his countrymen to more appreciative 
attention to so elect a genius, and in 1893 inaugurated the 
enterprise of erecting a monument in Martincngo Square, to 
commemorate, in 1898, the completed round of four centuries 
since Moretto's death. The designing of this monument was 
entrusted to the Brescian sculptor, Pietro Ghidoni, and is one 
of the creditable productions of recent Italian art. 

The unveiling of this monument, on September 3, 1898* 
was the occasion of never-to-be-forgotten festivities, in the 
rejoicing community, which is perennially vivacious and lively, 
but seldom showed such great enthusiasm as on this festa of 
national interest. 

Visitors of every taste had reason to rejoice in Moretto's 
birth. Crowds from far and near gathered to attend the art 
exhibitions and the musical fetes, which were of particular 
interest, for the Brescian philharmonic society is regarded as 
the finest in Italy. Many pictures by Moretto were obtained 
from other sections of the country for a Loan Exposition to 
be open for several weeks. 

It was notable that this celebration was almost exclusively 
attended by Italians. Brescia is not a spot where tourists ever 
congregate. Art lover, antiquarian, and historian may find 
occasional, and unnoticed way there, but, as a rule, Brescians 
are pursuing their industries and cherishing their treasures 
without a distracting dependence on the alien largess of irre- 
sponsible passing throngs. The Moretto celebration was one 
of those outbursts of genuine local sentiment, unvitiated by 
covert appeal to tourist patronaj 



Alessandro Bonvicino wa? it by inherited faculty, 

^s well as by edu<" * '^'^ ^^njanifestly cumulative 



1905. J MORETTO. — "THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIA." 455 



The Madonha ii 



456 MORETTO,— ' THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIA :' [Jan., 

through generations of artistic endeavor, in that epoch of mag- 
nificent achievement. 

Moretto's father and uncle were painters, and the boy un- 
doubtedly had early instruction in the management of the 
brush and in the mixing of colors, before he was placed, at the 
age of fourteen, in the studio of Ferramola, then the foremost 
of Brescian artists, whose leading pupil was Romanino. The 
last named was several years older than Moretto, and was 
destined to gain equal fame among his contemporaries. 

In 1509, when Moretto was only eleven years old, Louis 
XIL sent a French army to besiegCL Brescia, which, after 
an obstinate resistance and great suffering, finally surrendered. 
It remained under the French yoke with apparent submission 
until 1512, when a violent revolt caused Gaston de Foix and 
his forces to wreak vengeance on the heroic community, by 
massacring forty thousand of the inhabitants. The pillage, 
rapine, and atrocities perpetrated by the French soldiery were 
of exceptional horror, even in those bloody days, and left a 
deep impression on the mind of the sensitive boy, Moretto. 
His soul was more and more confirmed in its purpose to turn 
from all worldly ambition and struggle, and to occupy itself 
solely with the holiest ideals of religion. 

The only instance of Moretto's attempt to depict a scene of 
tumult and tragic movement is the " Massacre o{ the Inno- 
cents " in the Brescian Church of St. John the Evangelist, a 
painting wrth no conspicuous defect, but lacking the inspira- 
tion which marks his other work. 

Like the Umbrians, to whom scenes of blood and violence 
were constantly familiar, and who lived in a social atmosphere 
dominated by martial sentiment, but who were impelled to the 
opposite pole of feeling in art, ever portraying rapturous piety 
and mystic calm, so Bonvicino turned in spirit from spectacles 
of martyrdom and of warring human forces, such as his youth 
witnessed, and consecrated his genius to evoking the highest 
types of saintly beauty. He gives no suggestion of the ascetic, 
for sumptuous adornment and palatial settings are always a 
feature of his pictures, painted with a d||j||^ sense for the 
fineness of texture. These accessories a|^^^^uduly empha- 
sized, but are presented a^MfeMious^^^^^^Bp the court 

the heavenly King. l^^^^lBli^^^^^^ftDF " * 

•In the 



1905.] MoRETTQ. — " The Raphael of Brescia." 457 



St. Nicholas op Bari. 



TOL. LXXX — 30 



458 MORETTO,—'' The Raphael of Brescia:' [Jan., 

plays embroidered surfaces and gorgeousness of robe that are 
unsurpassed on Venetian canvas. The cloth of gold and vel- 
vet damask of the two bishops' vestments are treated with 
consummate skill. The superb brocades of his " St. Justina in 
Vienna " ; the silks and velvets and fabrics wrought with sil- 
ver and gold in the '' St. Nicholas of Bari " ; the ermine, vel- 
vet, and plumes in the portrait of Count Martinengo ; ard the 
rich robes and armor in the great Madonna over the high altar 
of San Clemente, testify to his skill and taste, and also to his 
restraint, when they are compared with the Venetians in gen- 
eral and their dealing with luxurious appointments. 

The last-mentioned painting received singular tributes of 
admiration from three European celebrities, whose exclama- 
tions were overheard by Luigi Gaddola, at one time priest in 
charge of San Clemente. Dumas, after gazing long at the 
canvas, suddenly exclaimed: "It is a Greek Jdyl!/' Dis- 
raeli murmured : " It is worth a kingdom ! " '^ It is beautiful 
as a victory ! " cried General Wolf. 

The upper part of the painting shows the Virgin and Child 
anid a shower of garlands. Roses and lilies are tossed among 
the clouds by cherubs of infantile grace and charm. The 
spring-like freshness of color, the wealth of opening blossoms, 
the auroral tints of silvered rose and azure, blending with the 
youthful loveliness of the Virgin, are of indescribably joyous 
effect, as of a May morning in paradise, opening above five 
majestic figures of enraptured saints, who stand in a sanctuary 
of subdued lights, where the rich depth of color gives a 
strength of perfected harmony to the delicately- toned, silvery 
upper spaces. 

Moretto's paintings have been called " prayers on canvas," 
and the ''confidences of a pure soul." One of the most nota- 
ble instances of his earnest piety and self- surrender to each 
work, is found in the story 6i his famous ''Paitone Madonna," 
so admired by artists for its rare beauty, and so revered by 
the people as perpetuating the loved memory of a miracle. 

The' hill hamlet of Paitone, about twelve miles from Brescia, 
was stricken by pestilence in the summer of 1532. One 
August day a deaf-mute peasant boy, named Viotti, wandered 
from his Paitone home, in search of berries^ on Mount Lavig- 
none. As he was busily filling his basket, he suddenly beheld 
a gentle lady, dressed in white. The boy knew it was the 



iposO MoRETTo.—" The Raphael of Brescia." 459 



TKB COKONATrOH O 



46o MORETTO. — " THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIA:' [Jan., 

Blessed Virgin, the "Santissima Maria/' for she blessed him 
and endowed him with the powers of speech and hearing. In 
tones of tenderness and pity, she then commanded him to 
return home and tell the people of the village that the pesti- 
lence would cease, if they promptly built a church on the 
spot where she was standing. 

The church was built, and after its completion, Moretto was 
commissioned to paint the child's vision of the Virgin to 
adorn the high altar. The artist toiled for days to no pur- 
pose, until it occurred to him that he was not religiously dis- 
posed for so sacred a task. He threw aside his brush and, 
after three days of prayer and fasting, went to confession, 
received Holy Communion, and then began his work anew. 
The beautiful picture that thereupon grew under his hand 
was declared by the little shepherd, as the mute Viotti is 
called in some versions of the story, an exact likeness of 
the Madonna as she appeared to him on the mountain. The 
Madonna is represented in a white, nun- like garb, and over 
her head floats a veil; her hands are folded upon her breast, 
and her face, with downward gaze upon the child, expresses 
gentle sadness for the affliction she is yearning to telle ve ; 
the boy, holding a basket of berries, stands beside her, looking 
up wonderingly into her eyes; in the background is a glimpse 
of the rugged slopes which guard the . L,ombard plain, con- 
trasting in their austerer lines with the type of landscape 
among the nearer approaches to Brescia. 

Smiling valleys, castled hills, abundant .streams, fresh 
springs, rich woodland, with their gleaming lights and bal- 
anced masses, attuned Moretto's eye to a varied gradation of 
brightness and shadow, differing from the infinite iridescence 
and golden splendors of Venetian water and sky, which re- 
flected such glories on the canvas of Titian, Veronese, and 
Giorgione. 

It is a matter of dispute whether or not Moretto ever 
visited Venice and entered Titian's studio as a pupil. Those 
who cherish the theory of his Venetian apprenticeship, rest it 
upon an exclusively speculative basis. But there were opportuni- 
ties'for studying the great Vecellio without journeying far from 
home. Before Moretto was twenty- five years old, the Brescian 
church, St. Nazaro, had secured two pictures by Titian's 
hand — a " Resurrection," and a " St. Sebastian." The latter is 



1905.] MORETTO.—" THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIA." 461 



known to have been copied by Moretto, whose assimilative 
power was alert to receive impetus and widened range from 
all that came in his way. He undoubtedly derived advantage 
from serious study of Titian's work. Raimondi's engravings 
of a number of Raphael's important pictures are supposed to 
be all that Moretto knew of the Umbrian genius, so akin to 
bis own in conceptions of nobility and grace. 

In Moretto's " Coronation of the Virgin " " the figure of 
St. Michael is equal in style, and in a certain melodious beauty 
of line and pose, to anything Raphael ever painted, and is 
reminiscent of Raphael's manner. 

The "Annunciation" t has the mellow glow, the soft efful- 
gence of lighted background, the ample type of womanhood, 
characteristic of the Venetian school. 

The "Feast in the House of Simon," deemed by many 
authorities Moretto's masterpiece, hiding in an upper gallery 
of the bare church, Santa Maria del Pieta, of Venice, is a large 

* tn tbe Church of St. Naiaro, Bresda. t In the Brescia Pinacotfca. 



462 MORETTO.—'' THE RAPHAEL OF BRESCIA:' [Jan., 

work, where we find wealth of color and accessofy worthy of 
Paul Veronese, combined with an elevation of sentiment never 
attempted by that portrayer of luxurious festivities. 

In endeavoring to trace the influence of other masters upon 
Moretto's work, we are increasingly impressed with his indivi- 
duality and detachment from contemporaries, while still respon- 
sive to developing suggestion from any source with which he 
chanced to come in touch. He never saw Rome or Florence, 
and but twice visited Milan. There is no evidence that he 
ever sought or desired contact with the world outside his pro- 
vincial home. He was an active member of religious sodalitie.% 
and never-failing in his charities. For many years he gave 
support and shelter under his own roof to an invalid cousin, 
"for the love of God," as the old record expresses it. His 
marriage occurred late in life, and four years afterward, in 1554, 
he died, in the fifty-sixth year of his age, when his powers 
were seemingly in the unabated vigor of a. prolonged prime. 

Gentle and shy, Moretto clung to the repose of familiar 
surroundings, where in pureness and holiness of life, and in 
tranquil content, his mind mirrored ever more and more 
clearly the celestial beauty, which he set forth to men, in 
sweet human forms, aglow with the light, which kindling fire 
of love 

'' Is heavenly-born and cannot die, 
Being a parcel of the purest sky." 



1905.] The Catholic Revival in Holland. 463 




THE CATHOLIC REVIVAL IN HOLLAND. 

BY A DUTCHMAN. 

[HE year 1903 was a glad year for Dutch Catho- 
lics, a year of new hope for the future. It 
was the fiftieth anniversary of the liberation 
of the church in Holland, which took place in 
1853. It is rather difficult for an outsider to 
appreciate the importance of this event ; neither is this the 
place to enter into historical details; yet it is necessary to 
state briefly how matters stood with the church in Holland at 
that time. 

The influence of the French Revolution upon religious parties 
in the Low Countries had not been to the advantage of the 
Protestants; and though Louis Napoleon, who was well dis- 
posed to the Catholics, upheld the liberty of the church 
against her enemies, his reign lasted so short a time that its 
results need not here claim our further attention. In 1813, 
when Holland threw off the French sovereignty, the Protestant 
party began to recover ground again under William the First; 
and the war of 1830, which withdrew Belgium from his rule, 
made the situation, for the now smaller bcdy of Dutch Catho- 
lics, more critical. As for William, whatever may be the 
opinion of historians of his talents as a statesman, to his 
Catholic subjects he was a cause of great discontent. His son. 
King William the Second, who succeeded him in 1840, was 
welcomed by Protestants and Catholics alike. Honest and fair- 
minded, he was not blind to the sincere affection which his 
Catholic subjects showed towards him. By a revision of the 
Constitutional Law, in 1848, every congregation was allowed to 
organize itself according to its own principles, and the church 
in Holland was enabled to pursue her work under the $ame 
conditions as any of the sects. 

The time for action had come. The sighs and prayers 
sent up to God, year after year, from hearts silent and trustful 
under their sufferings, had not been in vain. The seed sown 



464 The Catholic Revival in Holland. [Jan., 

in secret had begun to appear above ground, and, though the 
enemy was on the lookout, there was one thing which he had 
not taken into account — that the sower of the seed was God 
himself. 

On March 13, 1853, the papers reported an allocution by 
the pope in consistory, announcing that the hierarchy in 
the Netherlands had been restored. In this allocution the 
pope speaks of the church in Holland, of the < misfortunes 
which heresy had caused, and was still causing, and expresses 
his joy at the friendly attitude of the government towards the 
church. He thanks God, also, for this promise of the return 
of a people to the true way of salvation. 

In the same document we read : " We have accordingly 
established a spiritual province, and have decreed that there 
shall be ^ five episcopal sees — at Utrecht, Haarlem, S. Herto- 
genbosch, Breda, and Roermond. Moreover, mindful of the 
glorious history in the past of the church of Utrecht, to which 
our predecessor, Paul the Fourth, granted the privileges of an 
archbishopric, and having taken into consideration that it would 
be greatly to the benefit of religion, and suitable to present 
conditions, we have not hesitated to restore to Utrecht the 
dignity of an archiepiscopal see, and to declare the four other 
bishoprics subordinate to it." 

The hierarchy was restored I How can we describe the 
rejoicings of the Catholics ? Henceforward their talents and 
their energies, until now forced by unjust laws to remain in 
obscurity, were to be united, and drawn up in the open 
under the captaincy of the legal successors of the Apostles. 
Courageous and enthusiastic as the Catholics were in 1853, 
all their enthusiasm was, and is still, needed to maintain a 
social and political warfare against the prejudices and hatred 
of heresy. But the true Catholic spirit is not easily discouraged. 
We may recall the well-known words of De Bonald : " I return 
thanks to my century, because, by the very fierceness of its 
attacks upon the Church of Christ, it has given new proofs of 
her veracity. It is only truth that can arouse such furious 
hatred ! " 

We may divide the camp of our adversaries into two 
parties: those who recognize the rights of the Catholics, and 
those in whom passion, bigotry, and false zeal have extinguished 
all sense of justice. Against these last what attitude were 



I90S.] The Catholic Revival in Holland. 465 

• 

Catholics to adopt? Their leaders understood the task before 
them. It was far from their aim to resort to fierce recrimina- 
tion. Truth is powerful, and even when hard pressed can 
defend itself without violence. Truth, too, is humble ; and in- 
deed it is its humility which finally makes its possession loved 
and esteemed. How, then, could the defenders of truth better 
show themselves equal to the work before them than by let- 
ting these qualities of truth appear in their actions and in their 
writings? And so, we may fairly say, has it been. The con- 
troversial works in which they defend themselves against the 
slanderous attacks of the enemy witness to their composure, 
their dignity, and to the solidity of their cause. Their whole 
conduct has been marked by that invincible calmness which 
becomes the upholders of truth for truth's sake. 

And now to consider, more in detail, some of the aspects 
of the Catholic revival in Holland. The conditions of a 
spiritual improvement are often in great part material, and we 
may, perhaps, begin by saying a word about the Catholic 
churches of Holland. In their zeal for the glory of God's 
house, our Dutch Catholic ancestors had imitated their fellow- 
Christians of other countries ; but many of the beautiful 
churches which they built were lost at the time of the Refor- 
mation, and are still retained by the Protestants. Yet, during 
the first twenty years that succeeded the restoration of the 
hierarchy, Catholics spent no less than 60,000,000 guilders in 
building new ones; and altogether, since 1853, five hundred 
and sixteen new churches have been consecrated to religious 
worship, and the number is still increasing. 

Of course a visitoi: to Holland must not expect to see 
cathedrals like that of Cologne, or of Notre Dame at Paris, 
though the cathedral of S. Hertogenbosch, which has remained 
in our possession, is a noble example of the old architecture. 
Yet, among those of modern structure, one will find not a few 
which are real works of art. The Protestants themselves 
recognize all this evidence of material progress. In a Prot- 
estant review, of the year 1887, we find a writer describing 
himself as standing upon the tower of an old Protestant church 
in Amsterdam, and gazing about him at the numerous spires 
of the. Catholic churches of the city. While he cannot with- 
hold a meed of praise from them as material structures, he 



466 THE Catholic Revival in Holland. [Jan., 

yet adds : " This fair wreath of spires, of which Catholics may 
well be proud, may well avail to stimulate us to union among 
ourselves." Amsterdam is constantly growing; new suburbs 
are being built all about the city, and the ecclesiastical authori- 
ties are careful to secure sites for churches in view of future 
needs. May the time soon come when their foresight shall 
have its reward. 

As we have spoken of the churches, it may next be of 
interest to the reader to learn something of the clergy who 
serve them. In 1853 there were fourteen hundred priests in 
Holland, and their number has since doubled. Every diocese 
has its own church- school and seminary, and those who are 
being educated in these institutions are exempt from military 
service. It is noteworthy that the connection of the clergy 
with public life is not as it was in 1853. Even thirty years 
ago the priest confined himself strictly to the management of 
his parish. The influence of the church on social and politi- 
cal life was not of such a nature as to require that priests 
should concern themselves with questions that affected society 
at large. 

At that time Catholicity, though on the increase, was not 
yet a power in the country, The priests were good and 
zealous men, but their lives were very obscure. The church 
attracted little attention among Protestants, though already, in 
1853, an important Catholic daily paper was in existence. 
The labor question was then in its infancy; but now that 
socialism has everywhere gained so much ground, and irre- 
ligious teaching in the state schools deprived the poor of their 
only treasure — their faith and trust in God — now while the 
spirit of the time has doubled ot trebled their wants, and the 
workingman hears incessantly that the rich are oppressors, the 
priests tyrants, and religion but a fable ; now, in these days, 
the Catholic priest must assume a new role. 

He has to be not only a preacher of the gospel, but a man 
possessed of a practical knowledge of the questions of the 
day, and able to marshal the faithful, in all their social rela- 
tions, as an army of Christ against the army of Satan. In the 
performance of this high and priest-like duty, his part is the 
maintenance of the principles laid down by the church,* whilst 
encouraging laymen to the greatest freedom of action. And 



1905.] The Catholic Revival in Holland. 467 

we may say, happily, that in Holland we have many zealous 
and learned priests, who, in union with and under the direc- 
tion of the bishops, carry out the great plan of the late Pope, 
Leo XIII., and fulfil with no little success the noble work to 
which they are destined in these modern times. 

We see them as spiritual advisers in every department of 
public life, especially in the "Volksbond" — an association of 
Catholic workingmen in ninety-nine divisions established 
throughout the country — which has for its object, in the 
words of the encyclical letter, " Rerum novarum " to keep up 
the dignity, and to ensure the prosperity of the working 
classes, while condemning the principles of the socialists. We 
see our priests at the head of temperance societies, founding 
military clubs where, in garrison towns. Catholic soldiers find 
a safe refuge in the midst of surrounding corruption ; we see 
them at the head of the confraternities of St. Joseph, of guilds 
for young people — everywhere organizing and working to 
secure the victory of sound Catholic principles. For they are 
thoroughly convinced that now, if ever, earnest work must be 
done, if the enemies of religion are to be prevented from 
ovei throwing the good already accomplished. 

It is very consoling to be able to add that our priests find 
among the laity many talented men who, in one way or 
another, possess greater influence than the clergy, and who 
employ the same in the promotion of Catholic interests with 
marked success. 

I must regret that space does not permit me here to enter 
into further details, that might show what union and associa- 
tion between clergy and laity, with perseverance and sacrifice, 
are able to effect. But I may note that the irritation dis- 
played by our enemies is a clear proof of the good which has 
resulted from the intervention of our priests in the social life 
of the country. 

The influence of Catholicity upon public affairs in Holland 
is supported by thirteen Catholic daily papers, sixty-six 
weekly papers, thirty papers which appear two or three times 
a week, and forty-flve periodical reviews. Catholic political 
associations are to be found in every borough constituency, 
and they give their votes, according to circumstances, either 
to a Catholic or to a Protestant who will uphold sound princi- 



468 THE Catholic Revival in Holland. [Jan., 

pies, to the exclusion of a liberal or socialist candidate. In 
cases where a Protestant is supported some tact is required, 
but the reasonable conviction that only union can produce an 
effective opposition against a common enemy has enabled 
Catholics to work in harmony with those outside the church, 
often with very satisfactory results. Indeed we have lately 
seen Protestants voting for Catholic candidates, and Catholics 
for Protestant ones. 

The result of the elections of 1901 was that in our Second 
Chamber — which may be compared to the English House of 
Commons, or to the French Chambres — a majority has been 
obtained by Catholics and Protestants together against all 
other parties combined. In the First Chamber also — which 
corresponds to the House of Lords, or to the Senate and is 
elected by the members of the Provincial Councils — the periodi- 
cal elections have of late resulted in a victory for the Christian 
parties, and thus, after a fierce attack, the last fortress of 
liberalism has fallen. So that Holland enjoys nowadays the 
full blessing of a Christian, if not an exclusively Catholic, 
government — as great a blessing, perhaps, as can be looked 
for in a country where every kind of religious opinion has 
complete freedom of action. 

But the church has other objects to aim at, besides the 
purifying and ennobling of public life. She is of divine origin, 
and we may not say that she is flourishing when only wot Idly 
glory is her share. Christ founded his kingdom on earth, but 
his kingdom was not of this world, and the spirit that he sent 
was not the spirit of this world. The worth of the Catholic 
revival in Holland must be put to other tests before we can 
be assured that it is genuine. 

Now, as a general rule, it may be said that the numbers 
of those who adopt the life of the counsels is a proper test of 
the prosperity of religion in a particular country. Happy, in- 
deed, is the land where there are many vocations to the religious 
life. Good earth brings forth good fruit, and the good fruit 
of the counsels presents infinitely varied qualities, according 
to men's needs — but always sweetness and strength, freshness 
and loveliness. 

In the Holland of to-day the religious life is in full vigor, 
in the cloister, in the hospital, and in the school. We see its 



1905.] IHE Catholic Revival in Holland. 469 

followers uniting prayer with work, instructing others in pro- 
fane sciences as well as in the knowledge of religion, laboring 
in the fields or studying theology, preaching God's word from 
the altar or addressing meetings in public halls, giving and 
consecrating themselves entirely to the happiness of their 
neighbor, and, in fine, devoting their whole lives to the greater 
honor of our Lord. In 1853 there were 711 religious men in 
Holland, and 1,943 religious women; in 1903 these numbers 
had increased to 4,000 and 13,000. The schools founded by 
these orders, as well as those erected by Catholic laymen and 
Catholic school-societies, enjoy the fullest freedom. Of the 
thirteen thousand religious women, five thousand are employed 
in education, three thousand are in the colonies, seven hundred 
lead a contemplative life, and the rest are employed in differ- 
ent works of charity. As to the orders of men, no branch of 
religious activity is neglected by them. The success of their 
schools has played a most important part in recent Catholic 
progress. Not only in Holland, but in Belgium, England, 
America, South Africa, China, Palestine, the West Indies, 
Australia, and Hindustan, Dutch religious are to be found. 
Of these some have their mother-house in Holland; others 
form the Dutch province of congregations of foreign origin. 

The perfect freedom of their brethren in Holland has caused 
many religious orders, driven out of their own country, to take 
refuge there. Indeed, the flourishing state of Dutch Catholicity, 
while due, doubtless, in great measure, to the living faith and 
zeal of its followers, may surely be set down in part to the 
special blessing of God given in reward for the hospitality 
which the country has so generously extended, and is still ex- 
tending, to the poor exiled religious of other lands. 

It will now be of interest for the reader to hear something 
of the condition of Catholic schools. The question of education 
IS so intimately connected with the future of Catholicity that 
we must endeavor to find space for a few words concerning 
it. The fight for the souls of the children is the great strug- 
gle of to-day. Our century understands well that they who 
succeed in moulding the present generation will be masters of 
the next. Accordingly as the child belongs to God, or knows 
him not, so will it be with the man. 

This has been clearly perceived and acted upon by the 



470 THE Catholic Revival in Holland, [Jan.^ 

Dutch liberals. In 1857 they forced upon the Christian parties 
a new law, by which religion was totally divorced from edu- 
cation. Private religious instruction might be given to the 
children, but in the schools there was to be no word of faith. 
Those whom our Lord would have suffered to come to him, 
on whom he laid his fatherly hands in blessing, were to be 
snatched from his embrace. This iniquitous measure filled 
every Christian with dismay. What was to be done? 
Many Catholics, weary of fighting, and shrinking from new 
troubles — perhaps, also, in a few cases, not perceiving the 
grave consequences of the new law — were content to yield for 
the present, and look forward to better times. Not so our 
bishops. They saw and understood the danger; they knew 
the enemy better ; and, foreseeing that passive resistance would 
lead to utter defeat, took every means to lessen the impend- 
ing ruin. Finally, in 1868, they issued a pastoral, in which 
they urged Catholics to erect their own schools at whatever 
cost. This pastoral bore fruit. In 1868 we had only forty- two 
schools; in 1899 we could count 550, not including many 
which are in private hands. Thus Catholics have to pay for 
the support of the state schools, and in addition to this defray 
the cost of the education of their own children. Until 1889 
their own schools never received the smallest subsidies from 
government. In that year, in which the liberals for the first 
time lost their majority in Parliament, subsidies were granted, 
and have since been considerably increased. 

To set all the schools upon the same footing is now the 
aim of the united Catholic and Protestant parties. If the new 
Education Bill, which will give grants to the secondary as well 
as to the primary schools, becomes law, the vexed question of 
school subsidies will have been, in great measure, solved. The 
establishment of a free university is now engaging the consider- 
ation of the government ; and we may expect a favorable out- 
come of the matter after the recent changes in the balance of 
parties in the First Chamber, the Second Chamber having 
already given its approval. 

Even now Catholic students at the universities do not lack 
the necessary instruction in their religion, which is ensured to 
them by societies. More lately similar associations have been 
established among intelligent Catholic laymen, who take an 
interest in the great scientific questions which have an immediate 



1905.] THE Catholic Revival in Holland. 471 

bearing on religion. At present their number is fifteen, and all 
have the approval of the bishops. Negotiations are now on 
foot to obtain more united action among these different bodies, 
with a view to promote their mutual prosperity, and, in principle 
at any rate, the plan has already gained acceptance. Consider- 
ing what welUequippsd scholars the leaders and spiritual advisers 
of these learned bodies are, we may take it that a successful 
future is assured to them. Such is at present the state of Catho- 
lic education in Holland, obtained, after heavy sacrifices and 
prolonged and incessant exertion, by the co-operation of the 
Catholics with their Protestant fellow-countrymen. 

From all that has been said it will be clear that the church 
in Holland is enjoying a period of peace and of enviable free- 
dom. We see its members in Parliament, defending orthodox 
principles; we see election societies established everywhere, 
and organized with reference to the needs of the district; we 
see the Catholic ''Volksbond" existing throughout the coun- 
try, and forming a body with which all politicians must reckon; 
Catholic military clubs have been founded in garrison towns, 
as we have already mentioned ; education is free, and learned 
Catholic associations flourish ; the press is doing its utmost 
to place Catholic newspapers on a position of equality with the 
liberal journals. 

Besides all this, many other institutions might claim our 
further attention if we could give them the space they deserve: 
associations of lay Catholic schoolmasters, temperance societies, 
agricultural societies, societies for the spread of Catholic litera- 
ture, Catholic libraries, etc. Special mention, too, must be 
made of an organization instituted lately, the object of which 
is to bring together the various other bodies. It is called the 
Society for the Organization of Catholic Social Work, and by 
uniting all existing societies into one great corporation, but 
leaving to each its own particular sphere of action, it ainls at 
perfecting more and more the hold of Catholicity upon the 
public life of the country. 

One other matter demands a few words — Catholic alms- 
giving. Is there any Christian charity in Holland ? — in that 
cold, prosaic land where, as the southerner sometimes seems 
to suppose, men never lift their eyes to heaven because the 



472 THE Catholic Revival in Holland. [Jan., 

sky IS not blue, or where, because the land is flat, men have 
no hearts, and cannot feel the influence of tender ideals t 
Not so; the Dutch nature, if practical, and quick, perhaps, to 
criticise, is, above all things, true and tender and prompt to 
sympathize with those who suffer and are in need of consola- 
tion. This natural trait is consecrated and ennobled by religion, 
and as fair a crown of charitable works adorns the head of 
Christ's bride in our dear Netherlands as in other countries. 

This is not the place to speak of private charity. The 
land, though, is full of such public institutions as the Society of 
St. Vincent of Paul, which has 201 different centres; guilds for 
boys and girls ; free Catholic hospitals, which admit all patients 
without any payment, whatever their religion; orphanages; 
homes for the blind; the societies for the Propagation of the 
Faith, of the Holy Infancy, the "Claverbond" society, and 
so on. I remember that some years ago, while abroad, I 
was talking with a Frenchman about charity in Holland, and 
without paying me a French compliment, he acknowledged 
the liberality of my countrymen, and their readiness to spend 
their money freely upon works of mercy. " But," he added, 
" Holland is rich." Well, let us say rather " Holland is gener- 
ous." Yes ; practical, prosaic, heretical Holland is a charitable 
and generous nation. 

And now, in conclusion, what are my desires for my own 
dear country? First, that true piety of heart be more deeply 
ingrained in its people, and especially in their leaders, for this 
alone can save them from a merely external Catholicity. Mere 
external religion is only too possible a danger in a country 
which now enjoys full freedom of worship, and in which the 
rising generation will reap advantages for which they have not 
had to labor. I desire, too, for my fellow-countrymen the 
preservation of the grave and solid character of their ancestors, 
in union with all that modern progress in science and art has 
done for the elevation of society ; and, most of all, I desire for 
it that spirit of faith through which a people feels itself invinci- 
ble, not because of pride in its own strength, but because it has 
set its ideal in the fulfiling of God's will. 



1905. J A FRANCISCAN WONDER-WORKER. 473 




A FRANCISCAN WONDER-WORKER. 

II. 

BY R. F. O'CONNOR. 

|HE religrious of St. Paschars, Chiaja, seeing the 
new government continually suppressing convents 
throughout the kingdom, daily trembled for them- 
selves. Egidio did not understand this alarm. 
When the brethren, surprised at his tranquillity, 
tried to make him realize the danger to which they were 
exposed, he replied smilingly : " You're afraid of being expelled 
by the French; but first of all they should at least say, ^if 
God wills it: " 

The government of that time, although foreign and revolu- 
tionary in its principles, respected the Chiaja convent, and 
the religious were left at complete liberty ; but the government 
in our time, although national, has not had the same regard 
for the holy place. The convent, which the Venerable Egidio 
fillad with the odor of his virtues, has been suppressed like 
others, and his precious remains which repose there could not 
save it from the general proscription. 

Various instances are given in his biography of his gift of 
prophecy, of his knowledge of events which took place at 
a distance, his discovery of hidden objects, his revelation of 
the secrets of consciences, his power over inanimate as well 
as animated creatures, which acquired for him the title of the 
thaumaturgist, or wonder-worker of the eighteenth century. 

We are told how he cured numerous sick people whose 
cases were given up as hopeless and past remedy by the 
doctors; how he predicted the death of sinners who had 
abused all the means of salvation; how he discovered hidden 
crimes ; how tradespeople who refused to give him alms or 
asked exorbitant prices were punished, and how those who 
were generous were rewarded; how at his word the meat for 
a festival day was multiplied, and plums and plum-tree leaves 

VOL. LXXX.-»3I 



474 A Franciscan Wonder-Worker, [Jan., 

were procured in midwinter; how on two occasions eggs which 
had fallen and been broken were made whole ; how he stopped 
a duel between two soldiers by causing the sword blades to 
break in fragments, leaving only the hilts in their hands ; how, 
like the apostles, he gave sight to the blind, and raised the 
dead to life, the crowning miracle of all. 

The old man seems to have singled out women and little 
children as the special objects of his tenderest charity. Many 
a poor woman, at that trying and critical moment when two 
human lives are in jeopardy, was fortified and consoled by 
his prayers. At other times he fixed a mother's thoughts 
on the life beyond more than upon life in this nether sphere. 
"Oh, what a beautiful angel for heaven!" was the expression 
he usually employed to predict the death of little children. 
He always displayed great joy when he foresaw such deaths ; 
he knew by a heavenly odor the place whence these pure 
young spirits had fled heavenwards. He was going upstairs 
one day at the house of Gaetano Clementi, to stand godfather 
to a newborn child, when he exclaimed : " Oh, what ah odor 
of paradise above and below ! " There was, in fact, a child of 
dementi's dead, while another was coming into the world ; 
and a poor man who lodged on the ground floor had just 
lost a young son. 

A story is told of a miraculous draught of fish which 
reminds one of St. Anthony of Padua and the miracle of 
Rimini. The religious of St. Paschal's were keeping one of 
their feasts on a fast day or day of abstinence. The guardian, 
having issued several invitations, said to Brother Egidio: '* Go 
and quest some fish, and try to bring us something good." 
The servant of God pondered for awhile and thought of 
where he was likely to find some excellent fish. It occurred 
to him that he would catch none better than in the pond near 
the Royal Palace, and he bent his steps in that direction. On 
reaching it, he said to the king's servants that he would want 
some fish of good quality for a solemnity they were about to 
observe in his convent. The servants replied that they could 
not fish in that place on that day. He answered that he did 
not want them to fish, but that he would catch 4hem himself. 
They asked him with what, and he replied, with his hands. 
This reply was met with a loud laugh. ** Go," they said, '* and 



1905.] A Franciscan Wonder-worker. 475 

fish with your hands as much as you please ; we give you all the 
fish you can catch in that way." Satisfied with this permission, 
he went straight to the pond or lake, drew from one of his 
pockets a little bread, crumbled it in his hands, and cast the 
crumbs on the surface of the water, inviting the fish to come and 
eat. On the instant a multitude of fishes of all kinds and sizes, 
coming up from the bottom of the lake, passed, as it were, in 
review before his eyes. He examined them attentively ; when he 
saw one that suited him, he put out his hand, saying : " For 
St Paschal 1 " At these words, the fish stopped and Fra 
Egtdio seized it without any difficulty and put it into his basket. 
He thus continued fishing until he was fully provided, and then 
joyfully returned to the convent. The guardian, seeing what 
he brought, exclaimed in amazement: ''Who gave you such 
beautiful fish ? " " No one," said the lay brother, " I took 
them myself"; and he told the story of this miraculous 
draught. 

Having so good a quester as Egidio it would seem that the 
community of St. Paschal's did not need a better beggar; but 
they actually pressed into service a young cow, whom they 
called Catharinella. The cow was a present from a rich cat- 
tle merchant. They trained her to go alone through the city, 
and every morning loaded her with a brace of big baskets. 
Fixed to the cow's forehead was a brass pl.ate on which was 
engraven an image of St. Paschal. Pious persons put their 
alms into the baskets, and at evening the faithful animal 
found her way back to the convent. The Neapolitans became 
very fond of the young cow, and vied with one another in 
feeding her, until she became very fat. 

A butcher in the Strada della Pigna Secca, seeing such a 
fine animal wandering about the streets without any one to 
take care of her, made up his mind to steal her, secretly 
slaughter her, and sell her meat. He took into his confidence 
one of his boys. On a certain day they drew Catharinella 
into a cellar and slaughtered her. 

The religious waited in vain that evening for the animal's 
return. The guardian went in his uneasiness to Fra Egidio 
and said: ''Catharinella has not come back." The servant of 
God replied : " Make your mind easy, I know where she is, 
and I shall go myself and bring her back to-morrow." 



476 A Franciscan Wonder-worker, [Jan., 

Early next morning, taking another brother with him, 
he went straight to the butcher and said : " Bring a light 
as well as the keys of the cellar and come with me." At 
these words the thief, feeling he was discovered, was so terror- 
struck that he let his butcher's knife drop. Egidio, to calm him, 
told him not to be afraid but to do what he was told. The 
butcher signed to the boy to go with the brother, which the 
latter promptly did. When they reached the cellar, Egidio asked 
the servant where Catharinella was. The boy pointed to the 
different quarters, hung up here and there, ready for sale. 
The lay brother said : •' Bring me the hide." The boy 
brought it out of the place where it had been deposited, and 
laid it before the servant of God, who asked: "Where is the 
head?" The boy got it, and put it on the part of the hide to 
which it corresponded. Brother Egidio then asked for the 
forequarters, next the hindquarters, and placed them, as well 
as he could, in their natural order. When all was done, he 
said : " The entrails are still wanting." The boy brought them 
out of a corner of the cellar, and put them in the middle of 
this mass of flesh. Then Egidio bent down, took the four ends 
of the hide, folded them over the beast and strove to re-cover 
the whole. He next rose, paused, prayed, and taking the end 
of his cord blessed the animal, saying: "In the name of God 
and St. Paschal, Catharinella, arise." At that moment the 
cow lowed, shook herself violently, and bounded upon her feet. 
Fra Egidio said to the boy: "Attach the image of St. Paschal 
to her forehead." The lad, having found the brass plate which 
the animal had previously carried, hung it on Catharinella*s head. 
Egidio added: "Throw a cord around her neck, and lead her 
after me." When this was done, Egidio walked towards the 
door, the boy following, leading out the cow thus miraculously 
restored to life. 

God would not leave such a great miracle thus hidden. 
A man belonging to that quarter of the city, having seen 
Brother Egidio enter the cellar, was curious to see what he 
was going to do. He slipped into an obscure place where he 
could observe everything without being seen. When he saw the 
cow so marvelously restored to life he could not restrain his 
admiration; hurrying from the place where he had hidden, he 
want through the city proclaiming what he had just witnessed. 




1905.] A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. 477 

News of so extraordinary a prodigy of course passed from 
mouth to mouth, and instantaneously a multitude of persons 
iiurried to the place from all parts of the town. At the sight 
of Egidio and Catharinella, whom safe and sound and full of 
life the boy was leading along, the crowd gave expression to a 
thousand exclamations of enthusiastic wonder. The most ardent, 
in the fervor of their veneration and excess of their indiscreet 
devotion, would have cut his habit and mantle into bits, but 
fortunately some of his friends came to the lay brother's assist- 
.ance, and rescued him from the crowd who, in their blind 
enthusiasm, would have left him hardly anything to wear. 
Twenty men came forward and carried Egidio and his com- 
panion bodily and put them into a cab which proceeded 
slowly through a dense crowd to the convent, Catharinella 
being led after it by some men who formed a cortege. It was 
a triumphal progress, the only cool and collected person being 
the object of this popular ovation. From that day Catha- 
rinella, resuming her office of quester without running any risk 
of being stolen and slaughtered, became doubly famous through- 
out Naples. 

Filled with the spirit of compassion, which is of the essence 
of the genius of Christianity, and its purest and most unallo) ed 
expression, Egidio not only cured all manner of diseases, seme- 
times by a word or by the simple signification of his will, but 
he raised the dead to life, an unequivocal and indisputable 
evidence of the possession of miraculous power. Heperfoin:ed 
this miracle iirst on a stillborn infant, the child of Donna 
Gesualda Calveria and Andrea di Scaffa of Torre dell' Annun- 
ziazione, near Naples, one of the benefactors of the convent. 
It was raised to life in the name of St. Paschal, and received 
that saint's name at its baptism; it lived to reach the age of 
seven, and may be said to have been indebted to Fra Egidio 
for the life of nature by its miraculous resuscitation, the life 
of grace by baptismal regeneration, and the life of glory by 
passing away in all the freshness of its innocent childhocd. 
The second was Luke Perella, who had died of fever contracted 
in the pestilential atmosphere of Mazzoni, near Capua. The 
child, who had already been laid out for burial, survived his 
restoration to life by Egidio twenty years. 

These marvelous deeds acquired for the venerable lay 



478 A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. [Jan., 

brother the well-founded reputation of a saint, a wonder-worker, 
a man powerful with God. He enjoyed universal confidence to 
an extraordinary degree. Personages of the highest rank, mem- 
bers of the royal family, regarded it as a favor to converse 
with him and receive his advice. Rich and poor, princes and 
peasants, alike venerated him as a saint, and received his words 
as oracles. Several bishops and archbishops, the families of 
the Marquis del Vasto, Prince della Torella, Count di Policastro, 
the illustrious houses of Maresca, Mastrilli, Fiorizzi, and maay 
others, gloried in having relations with him, and loudly pro- 
claimed that he was a saint and friend of God. The highest 
personages desired to have him stand godfather to their chil- 
dren, undertaking to obtain the authorization of the Holy See 
for that purpose. The little sacristy of St. Paschal's was often 
full of priests, lawyers, and members of every profession^ wait- 
ing for the servant of God to come down from his cell, or 
return from questing. 

The people were so eager to possess something that belonged 
to him, that the brethren had to wind iron wire and even small 
iron chains round his habit to prevent them cutting it ' ofiF 
piece by piece. The French police, employed under the Nea- 
politan government, alarmed at seeing this mendicant friar fol- 
lowed by such a multitude, forbade his superiors to let him 
appear in public. The guardian obeyed, and Fra Egidio, ensured 
a tranquil life, passed happy days in labor and long prayers. 
But the great families, unable to have him visit them, made 
such complaints to the government, that the latter authorized 
him to go whither he was wanted, provided he went in some 
-vehicle, and avoided as much as possible showing himself to 
the people. 

When one who had ministered commiseratingly to so many 
who were sick and suffering, was himself stricken down 
with a mortal malady in iSii, and the doctors, having ex- 
hausted all the resources of medical science, gave him up, 
great was the consternation in the convent and the city. Fra 
Egidio was apparently on the brink of the grave, and the com- 
munity had assembled around his poor pallet to recite the 
prayers for the dying — those solemn words with which the 
church bids the Christian soul go forth through the portal of 
death into the "house not made by hands" — when, in pres- 



1905.] A Franc/scan Wonder-worker. 479 

ence of the weeping religious, the sick man smiled and said : 
'' Fathers and brothers, do not weep ; the hour of my death 
has not yet come; I must even be healed of this malady. 
The Blessed Virgin has told me that I shall live some time 
longer, to take care of her altar and see that the lights are 
kept burning before her holy image." Knowing well that these 
words were not lightly uttered, they withdrew, not doubting 
their fulfilment. The cure took place and the old man was 
restored to his community and to the love of the Neapolitans, 
who were transported with joy. 

But it was only a temporary respite, a flickering of the 
flame before it went out. At last the saintly old lay brother 
came to lay him down to die, worn out in the service of God, 
his brethren, and the people. Although suffering severely from 
acute sciatica and asthma, he made light of his bodily infirmi- 
ties, lest his superiors, through a sentiment of compassion, 
should dispense him from any duty imposed by the Rule, or 
hinder him from serving his brethren to the last. His activity 
and devotedness to his work made him forget *that he was more 
than an octogenarian, until he was forced to take to his bed, 
never to rise from it again. 

When the Brothers-infirmarian carried him to the ward 
reserved for invalided brethren whose cases were incurable, he 
took leave of his poor cell with the words: ''Good-by, little 
room; I shall not return to my little room again." He asked 
for the statuettes of the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, which 
had formed the only adornment of his cell. They placed them 
on his bed, and every moment he took them in his hands, 
covered them with kisses, and clasped them affectionately to 
his heart. Then he said : '' Begin a novena for me to the 
Blessed Virgin, because after the novena I shall die." To one 
of the religious who asked him how he was, he replied with a 
smile: ''I am going home." They began the novena that 
very evening, and he answered the prayers as well as if he 
were in complete health, although enduring great pain. 
When the Holy Viaticum was brought to him, he could not 
restrain the transports of his love in the Eucharistic Presence, 
and, getting out of bed, prepared to receive the Blessed Sac- 
rament more respectfully, kneeling on the bare floor, until the 
guardian ordered him back, when he instantly obeyed without 



48o A Franciscan Wonder-Worker. [Jan., 

uttering a single word. Loving and practising holy poverty 
all his life, like a true Franciscan, he was faithful to the last 
to the mystical bride whom the founder had espoused, calling 
her " my Lady Poverty." Having asked pardon of the com- 
munity with such humility that it moved them to tears and 
sobs, he asked the guardian to select the worst and most 
worn habit in the house in which to lay him out after death. 

The last trial to which his humility was subjected was 
when the brethren brought an artist from the palace to paint 
his portrait, being anxious to preserve his venerated features 
on canvas; but, although the artist concealed himself behind 
a compact circle of religious, Egidio defeated the strata- 
gem by turning from side to side and making . it impos- 
sible to sketch either his face or profile ; and it was only after 
his death, when they took a cast of his face, that the por- 
trait could be painted. 

When the last day of the novena, February 7, 181 2, came 
he asked what o'clock it was ; and they told him it was 
twelve. The novena having closed, the religious expecting 
his immediate death, although it was the dinner hour, did not 
like to leave him ; but Egidio, with that consideration for 
others which he always displayed, slowly raised himself up 
and calmly said : '' Go and dine, I shall not die for half an 
hour, and I shall let you know when the moment has come." 
They went down to the refectory and took their meal, and 
half an hour afterwards the little bell of the infirmary was 
rung by the direction of the dying lay brother, and all has- 
tened to witness his edifying death. 

Egidio had lost the use of speech, but his lips moved in 
prayer when he heard the names of Jesus and Mary, and when 
they presented the crucifix he kissed it, and, pressing the 
statues of the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph to his heart, peace- 
fully expired. The body remained flexible for the five days 
preceding interment. The doctors, who witnessed this unusual 
phenomenon, bled him twice, and on each occasion bright, 
limpid blood flowed from his hand and arm, as if he were 
alive. 

The Neapolitan government was still in the hands of the 
French, and on th^L account the monks resolved to bury 
Brother Egidio ^^e next day; but before the day 



»905-] A FRANCISCAN WONDER-WORKER. 481 

passed the whole population of Naples, hearing of bis death, 
crowded to St. Paschal's to gaze for the last time on the face 
of the friend of God. The monks had to leave his remains 
exposed for several days in the church to satisfy the people's 
devotion. In their eagerness to procure some souvenir, they 
would have cut away every bit of even the poor worn-out 
habit of the dead man ; two strong, robust brothers were de- 
tailed to guard his cofBn, but these not sufficing, recourse was 
had to the police. The religious distributed, in small pieces, 
his habit and fragments of the linen used during his illness, 
and allowed the people to touch the body with their beads, 
medals, and other objects. 

The enthusiasm having abated on the fifth day, the reli- 
gious took advantage of it to inter the remains in their com- 
mon burial place. In 1836 these remains were exhumed and 
translated to the church, a modest monument being erected 
near the entrance. Numerous miracles have been wrought 
through his invocation since his death, and the cause of his 
canonization is in progress. 



482 Canticle to the Holy face. [Jan., 



CANTICLE TO THE HOLY FACE. 

Translated, by S, L, Bnury.from the French of Sister Teresa of the Child Jesus 

and of the Holy Face. 

Jesus ! Thy dear und holy Face 

Is the bright star thtat guides my way ; 
Thy gentle glance, so full of grace, 

Is my true heaven on earth to-d«y. 
My love finds out the holy charm 

Of Thy dear eyes, with tear-drops wet ; 
Through my own tears I smile at Thee, 

And in Thy griefs my pains forget. 

Oh ! I would gladly live unknown, 
Thus to console Thy aching heart! 

Thy veiled beauty, it is shown 
To those who dwell from earth apart. 

Pain would I fly to Thee alone ! 

Thy Face it is mj- fatherland; 

It is the sunshine of my days ; 
My realm of love, my sunlit land, 

Where through the hours I sing Thy praise. 
It is the lily of the vale, 

Whose mystic perfume, freely given. 
Brings comfort when I faint and fail. 

And makes me taste the peace of heaven. 



I905-] Canticle to the Holy Face. 483- 

Thy Face, in its unearthly grace, 

Is like divinest myrrh to me, 
That on my heart I gladly place; 

It is my lyre of melody ; 
My rest — my comfort — is Thy Face. 

My only wealth, Lord ! is Thy Face ; 

Naught ask I more than this from Thee ; 
Hidden in the secret of Thy Face, 

The more I shall resemble Thee ! 
Leave on me the divine impress 

Of Thy sweet, patient Face of love. 
And soon I shall become a saint. 

And draw men's hearts to Thee above. 

So, in the secret of Thy Face, 
Oh I hide me, hide me, Jesus blest ! 

There let me find its hidden grace, 
Its holy fires, and, in heaven's rest. 

Its rapturous kiss, in Thy embrace ! 



484 THE UNEXPECTED LETTER. [Jan., 

THE UNEXPECTED LETTER. 

BY SHIELA MAHON. 
I. 

■AT-TATt The postman had just left a large, 
important* looking sealed letter at Mrs. 
O'Dougherty's. The little woman stood look- 
ing at it with perplexed eyes, and a rather 
harassed expression on her pretty face. Around 
her the children were playing noisily. Her eldest hope, a 
bright-eyed urchin of three, had clambered to the top rail of 
a chair and, at imminent peril of life and limb, was stretching 
forth a grubby hand towards the sugar bowl, while his little 
sister, noting his performance, and not being a participant, 
screamed at the top of her childish lungs: "Oor a bold, bad 
boy, Jemmie ! " 

The breakfast things still lay on the table untouched, 
although it was nearly ten o'clock. This was a most unusual 
state of affairs in orderly Mrs. O'Dougherty's household. To 
add to the general confusion, the baby had got hold of the 
little woman's knitting, and was busily engaged taking out the 
needles, to the delight of a frolicsome kitten, who made sad 
havoc of the scarlet ball, winding it in and out round the feet 
of a chair in an intricate maze that would be bard to 
undo without breaking the wool, a thing Mrs. O'Dougherty 
hated. - 

Yet all this went on unheeded while she scrutinized the 
letter. She twirled it up and down in her trembling lingers, 
held it towards the light of the window, as if that would help 
her, but, strange to say, never attempted to open it, though 
the address bore in large, bold letters, her own name, and had 
an American postmark. 

The truth of the matter was Mrs. O'Dougherty could 
neither read nor write, a fact she had carefully concealed from 
her husband during four years of happy wedded life. Fortune 
had favored her wonderfully in the matter, and up to now. 



I90S.] THE UNEXPECTED LETTER. 485 

when Nemesis stared her in the face in the form of the 
American letter, and threatened to destroy her domestic happi- 
ness, her life had been as smooth as a barque on sunlit waters. 
Now a sudden wave threatened to engulf the frail craft of 
happiness, and it would require all her brain power at the 
tiller to steer it safely to land. 

When honest John O'Dougherty married her, it was under 
the firm impression that she was a scholar. In his youth 
education in Ireland had been bought at too dear a price, the 
cost of faith, the jewel bead in the Irish rosary. But with 
Mary it was different. She was ten years younger and had 
had opp3rtunities; but, alas! had 'not taken advantage of them; 
preferring to run wild over her native' heather than to mas- 
ter the subtle difficulties of the ABC. The consequence 
was her present predicament. For John, like most of those to 
whom it was denied, had a great idea of learning; and had 
vowed never to marry a woman who was not a scholar. 
Pretty Mary's letters during their brief courtship had not 
tended to undeceive him on this point; for Mary had a 
friend. Miss Norah Fitzgerald, the daughter of a wealthy land- 
owner, a harum-scarum schoolgirl, who had taken a fancy to 
her, and to whom she acted as a sort of companion. Norah 
volunteered to act as Mary's amanuensis and, if the truth must 
be told, enjoyed it immensely. But, madcap though Norah was, 
she had sensibly enough tried to get into Mary's giddy head 
the necessity of breaking the news to honest John once the 
knot was tied ; and Mary had promised to perform faithfully 
the disagreeable task as soon as possible. 

On the marriage morning, following the suggestion of 
Norah, Mary had a violent pain in her hand, and went to 
church with it bandaged, so that when the signing of the 
register came, she made a creditable enough X in lieu of her 
nam:; and simple John was so happy that he never doubted, 
and, with a flourish, signed his own big X. 

If Mary had told him there and then, no doubt in the first 
flash of happiness he would have forgiven her, and forgotten 
his disappDintment; but, alas! Mary was weak; and when she 
overheard him whispering regretfully to Anthony Carroll, the 
schoolmaster, who was John's amanuensis: ''You know it's 
herself is the illigent writer; it's a pity her hand is so bad," 
she checked the rising impulse to tell him of her deception. 



486 The Unexpected Letter. [Jan., 

The schoolmaster, who had a shrewd idea that Mary never 
wrote the scholarly epistles he had read to the e maplm e J 
lover, nodded his head in sympathy, and remained wisely 
silent. 

Strange^ as it may seem, four years had elapsed, and hon-* 
est John was none the wiser as to his wife's educational 
deficiency. Any odd time when discovery seemed inevitable, 
Mary had skillfully warded it off. Letters were few and far 
between in the little household, and when one did come Mary 
would fly to her friend to learn its contents by heart, and 
then, like the diligent scholar she was, read it glibly to her 
unsuspecting husband, who would listen to her so proudly that, 
as time went on, she found it more aiid more difficult to unde- 
ceive him. 

But, alas ! matters this morning had come to a climax. The 
American letter had arrived, and Norah was away in Dublin, 
and there was no one within the radius of a mile to whom 
Mary could appeal. The poor little woman was in a state of 
mind bordering on distraction. She thought of burning it ; 
but she knew that would be useless, for John and the postman 
were great friends, the latter usually dropping in for a smoke 
and a schanachie to the little house. He would be sure to 
pass a remark about the letter, just as he had done when he 
was handing it to her ! " Who knows but there is a fortune 
in that letter, Mrs. O'Dougherty," he had said jokingly; "don't 
forget to invite me to the feast." 

Mrs. O'Dougherty, with rather a wan smile, had assured 
him in the same tone: "Sure an' its yourself will be welcome; 
but fortunes don't grow on haystacks " ; and had hurried away 
from the door, afraid that he might await the opening of the 
letter. 

And, as if to worry her still more, Mrs. O'Rorke, the great- 
est gossip round the country-side had dropped in when she 
saw the postman, and had evinced a very pardonable curiosity 
as to its contents, until the little woman was nearly at her 
wit's end as to how to get rid of her without giving offence; 
finally she murmured something about having such a terrible 
headache that she thought she would have to take a rest. Mrs. 
O'Rorke saw through the device, but politeness forbade her 
expressing what she felt. And with a snort that told plainly 
that she suspected something was up, and eyeing the letter 



1905.] The Unexpected Letter. 487 

that lay carelessly on the breakfast table with a sour glance, 
she departed without deigning to suggest a remedy. 

Added to all, Mrs. O'Dougherty herself was devoured with 
an all-consuming desire to know what was in the letter, and 
whom it was from. She had no friends in America save an 
uncle whom she had never seen, and the wildest ideas shot 
through her brain concerning him, almost overshadowing the 
misery of being found out in her deception. Perhaps the 
creature had died and left a fortune to wee Jemmie, who had 
been named after him. Already she saw her eldest joy in all the 
glittering paraphernalia of wealth. Visions, too, of John and 
herself seated in a brand-new cart, drawn by a fine horse to 
market, instead of the modest donkey that hitherto had been 
the height of her ambition. 

'' ril get new clothes for the childer," she murmured, lost 
in a golden dream, "and a new square of drugget carpet for 
the kitchen, and fresh muslin curtains for the windows." 

By this time Jemmie, seeing that his depredations passed 
unnoticed, became bolder, and toppled the sugar bowl on to 
the floor, breaking it in two. The crash was the first thing to 
awaken Mrs. O'Dougherty from her reverie. 

" Ye little thief o' the world," she cried, catching the child 
and giving him a shake. 

Jemmie set up 'a howl, in which his little sister joined in 
token of sympathy ; while the baby, open-eyed, watched the 
pair in wonder. 

" God help me ! " said the poor little woman, " but that 
American letter is bringing the bad luck. There is my good 
sugar bowl gone, and himself will be in shortly, and what am 
I to say to him about the letter. Goodness knows it's the 
worried woman I am." 

She never stopped to think that it was her own deliberate 
deception that led up to this train of unhappiness. Like many 
another poor mortal she trod the broad and flowery path with 
such ease, that it never occurred to her to seek the narrow 
one and confess the whole matter to her husband, relying on 
his love for forgiveness. Now that discovery seemed imminent, 
the little woman, with a face like death, and a heart like lead, 
tried to prepare herself for it. She hastily plit away the 
breakfast things, tidied the kitchen, put clean tuckers on the 
children, prepared a tasty dinner for the arbiter of her des- 



488 The Unexpected Letter. [Jan., 

tiny, and then went to the window to watch for the first sign 
of his coming. 

" What on earth is the matter with you, Mrs. O'Dougherty, 
you look like as if the end of the world was coming ? " said a 
gay voice. 

The poor woman started as if a pistol had been fired at 
her head, and a gleam of hope lighted up her pale face as she 
recognized Terence Fitzgerald, Norah's twin brother, whom 
she had often assisted out of numerous scrapes in his younger 
years when, as a frolicsome schoolboy, he had been the delight 
and terror of the neighborhood. 

" Mr. Terence," she gasped, *' will you do something for 
me?" 

" What is it ? " said the young man smiling. " 1*11 do my 
best, but don't ask too much. I am just off the train and 
dead tired." 

"Read this letter for me before John comes in." 

Then, noticing his bewilderment, she tried to explain in 
short, gasping sentences her dilemma. 

" Is that all ? Poor little woman, I wish I had never 
learned to write my name ; there would not be so many I O Us 
flying about with that interesting appendage to them. How- 
ever, here goes," and with a quick motion of his hand the 
young fellow opened the letter and read aloud the following 
extraordinary epistle : 

Dear Madam: 

Enclosed find a copy of the last will and testament of your 
uncle, the late James O'Reilly, of Broad Street, New York, 
who died on the loth of June last, leaving you the bulk of 
his fortune, amounting to one hundred thousand dollars. For 
further particulars apply to our London agent, Mr. Tuites, of 
Lincoln Inn Fields. We are, madam, your obedient servants, 

Grass & Grosmith, New York. 

With a low whistle of astonishment, Terence read and re- 
read this most astounding intelligence. " Do you realize what 
this letter mean*? " 

" Not f t Oman, trembling," but I am 

so glad yc >e!rore John came " ; the red 

coming ba rightness t^ i ■■ u^es. 



1 90S.] THE UNEXPECTED LETTER. 489 

" By Jove ! " said the young man, " it doesn't matter much 
whether you can read or write, as long as you are the pos- 
sessor of a cool one hundred thousand. It is like a tale out 
of a fairy book." 

"We will be able to get the horse and trap now, and new 
things ior the children/* said Mrs. O'Dougherty practically. 

** My good woman, you do not realize your good fortune. 
Wait until your husband comes in. Hello 1 here he is/' as the 
stalwart form of John O'Dougherty came into the kitchen. 
" Lucky beggars," murmured the young man. 
" Oh, John ! here is a wonderful letter from America. I 
have just been reading it to Mr. Terence. We have fallen 
into a fortune. Uncle James is dead, and has left me all his 
money." 

"Which amounts to only a hundred thousand dollars!" 
supplemented Terence. 

"A hundred thousand what?" said John, his ruddy face 
turning pale. " Sir, you are joking." 

" No " ; said the young man gravely, in answer to an 
appealing look from Mrs. O'Dougherty, " I will read it to you 
myself." 

Gallantly guarding the little woman's secret, he read again 
the wonderful letter. Suddenly his eye caught a postscript 
which had escaped him in his hurried perusal. 

" Mrs. O'Dougherty," he cried, forgetting all about the 
little woman's secret, " Did you read the postscript ? " 
" No " ; stammered Mrs. O'Dougherty. 

" Read it, wife, read it," quoth honest John, thrusting the 
letter into her unwilling fingers. 

The red burned in the little woman's face, then faded 
away and left it deathly pale. 

"John, she murmured faintly, the tears running down her 
face like rain, " I have deceived you. I can neither read nor 
write." 

"Tut, tut, woman, you are fooling me. Haven't you read 
many an illigent letter to me ? Sure an' it's herself is bashful. 
Don't be afraid, Mary." 

"I can neither read nor write," wailed the poor woman"; 
" and I am a wicked woman for deceiving you so long." 

" Don't mind her, Mr. Terence, she is just the best little 
woman in the world," said John staunchly; "but she some- 

VOL. LXXX. — 32 



490 The Unexpected Letter. [Jan., 

times takes notions, an' it's hard to put her past them. Talkin' 
about her schoolin', sure an' it's herself wrote me the illigent 
letters." 

" Don'ti John, don't ; you will set me mad," almost screamed 
Mrs. O'Dougherty. '*Amn't I the hateful woman to have such 
a good husband. I can't either read or write." 

" Hush, mavourneen, an' if you cannot, what's the differ- 
ence ? " said John soothingly, frightened by this hysterical 
outburst ; " sure an' I .married you and not the letters. Why 
didn't you tell me long ago, and not keep troublin' that purty 
head of yours ? " 

" Sure an' I hadn't courage," murmured Mary, as she buried 
her head on his breast. '' I thought you would cease to love me." 

"Well, well, but women is foolish," was John's answer. 

"As to the postscript," broke in Terence, "which I most 
unpardonably alluded to," with a penitent glance towards Mrs. 
0*Dougherty, " it is merely an intimation that Mr. Tuites, the 
agent, will be in Ireland in a few days, and give himself 
the pleasure of calling on you, thereby saving you a journey 
to London." 

" Don't be blaming yourself, Mr. Terence. It's me that is 
the happy woman," said Mrs. O'Dougherty with shining eyes. 
" Sure an' it was the one skeleton in my cupboard, and kept 
frightening the life out of me; and only for you it would 
never have come out." 

" I am sure I am much obliged to you, Mr. Terence, for 
your kindness in reading the American letter," said John with 
a simple dignity that sat well on him, " but I don't know what 
we will do with the money." 

"You will soon learn," said the young man smiling, " money 
soon takes wings, as I know to my cost." 

" But you are used to it, we are not " ; said John dolefully. 
"The little woman an' me was quite happy here. Now she'll 
be wanting silks and satins, and I would rather see her in 
that pink cotton gown, with her white apron on, than the 
grandest dress in the world." 

" Keep to those sentiments, John," said the young man 
gravely, "and you will never regret the day you received the 
American letter." 



igos] The Unexpected Letter. 491 



II. 

After Terence's departure, John O'Dougherty and his wife 
stood staring at each other, neither of them able to realize 
their good fortune. The little woman was the first to recover 
herself, and it was astonishing how quickly sh^ adapted her- 
self to their changed circumstances. She did so much more 
readily than John. Truth to say, he felt more flurried than 
pleased at the coming of the totally unexpected fortune. He 
was an easy-going mortal, and his practical little wife nearly 
set him wrong in his mind with her talk of what they would 
do, and what they wouldn't do. 

The next morning her first question staggered him. " John," 
said she, "how many pounds of our money is in one hundred 
thousand dollars ? " 

*' I don't know," answered the honest man, a puzzled ex- 
pression stealing over his face, " I never was good at figures. 
Sure an' I can ask Mr. Terence." So away he went with his 
question in arithmetic to the big house, about a mile distant. 

"Is Mr. Terence at home, Mike?" he inquired timidly 
enough of the butler, who was an old friend of his. 

"Just step this way, sir," said the man, as if he had never 
seen John before. Evidently the good news had travelled 
quickly, judging by Mike's demeanor, for he drew himseh up 
stiffly, with the grand air on him "just as if he were speaking 
to one of the quality," as John afterwards expressed it to his 
wife. " Come this way, Mr. O'Dougherty," Mike repeated, 
with a stress on the Mister, "and I'll see if Mr. Terence is 
disengaged." 

"Mr. O'Doughcrty," repeated John with labored polite- 
ness, " who, might I ask, is he?" Then suddenly changing 
his tone, and putting his brawny fist right up into Mike's eye, 
he added: "If you mister me, my fine sir, I'll break every 
bone in your body I " 

Mike's face relaxed into a broad grin. " It's yourself, 
John, that money can't spoil"; and he shook his old friend 
heartily by the hand. 

" Don't be going an' making such mistakes again," said 
John grimly. 

When Terence came into the room, he found John sitting 



492 The Unexpected Letter. [Jan., 

on the edge of a chair, evidently very ill at ease, not a trace 
of his usual natural dignity about him, and a very perturbed 
expression on his good-natured face. 

''Master Terence/' he said earnestly, "it's myself is the 
unhappy man since I came into this pile. I have only had 
one night of it, an' how an' ever am I to spend the rest of 
my life in such misery, I don't know. The little woman is off 
her head," he declared ruefully; ''the silks and satins have 
commenced already. She was down in the village this morn- 
ing ordering a blue dress with pearl trimming like Miss 
Norah's." 

The young man carefully smoothed his moustache to hide 
the smile playing around his mouth. "Are things really so 
bad as that ? " he said gravely. " I thought Mary had more 
sense." 

"Troth an' she hasn't," said honest John. "Not but she 
is the best little woman in the world," he added loyally. 
"By the same token, I came to ask you how much it is?" 

" How much what is ? " said Terence mystified. 

" I mean how many pounds of our money is in a hundred 
thousand dollars ? " 

"Twenty thousand pounds," said the young man promptly. 

John's face fell. " If it had been about five hundred now, 
I could have managed it all right. We could have bought a 
little farm and had a horse and car." 

" Instead of that you can drive your carriage," broke in 
the young fellow with a smile. 

"That's where the trouble comes in. She's ready enough 
{(^x that, but I am not. I never was one for making a fool 
o{ myself," he added, with unconscious irony, "and I can't 



(C/ymmence now." 



$i 



There are very few," said the young fellow gravely, 
** who would take such good fortune the way you are doing. 
I admire your sentiments; but when you become accustomed 
to it, I am afraid you will change your views." 

" Never," said John earnestly ; though I know most of the 
neighbors will envy me being a warm man." 

" And even that consideration doesn't attract you ? " 

" Well," said John smiling, "I wouldn't be too sure of 
that, I'm only human." 

" A piece of advice before you go. Naturally your wife, 



J9os0 The unexpected Letter. 493 

woman-like, is dazzled with her future prospects ; but she has 
a good heart, and is pretty practical. Allow her full scope, 
deny her nothing, and she will soon regain her senses." 

Terence threw out his hand, which John grasped earnestly, 
and with many good wishes on either side they parted. 

^ When John reached the house he found Mary absent; but 
old Mrs. 0*Rorke and rosy-cheeked Mrs. Ryan, the post- 
mistress, sat waiting in the little kitchen. They had just lifted 
the latch and walked in, country style. 

"John," said Mrs. O'Rorke, "is it true the news I hear of 
you falling into a big American fortune ? " 

" It is," said John modestly ; whereupon both women 
shook him heartily by the hand. 

" I happened in the day the letter came, but I heard no 
word of it then," said Mrs. O'Rorke, with a sniffling of her 
nostrils, like an old war horse; and she glanced suspiciously 
at John. Your mistress had a headache and could not read it. 
Is it better?" 

" Is it Mary have a headache, sure an' she never had such 
a complaint in her life," said John incautiously. 

"Just what I said," returned Mrs. O'Rorke, looking tri- 
umphantly at the postmistress with an " I told you so " air. 

" Bedad, I have put my foot in it now," thought John, as 
^ he perceived the old gossip's drift. " Is it Mary have a head- 
ache," he said with an air of not altogether understanding, 
which didn't deceive Mrs. O'Rorke in the least. " Now, when 
I come to think of it, she was complaining one day; but I 
think she imagined it." 

" As if I was going to let them know how deceived I was 
in thinking Mary such an illigent scholar," said John after- 
wards. " Sure an' I would be the laugh of the parish if they 
knew I had been married four years, and never found out that 
she was as great an omadhaun as myself with regard to the 
reading and writing, and me always boasting so much about 
marrying a scholar. Please God, the childer won't have to 
complain about want of eddecation, anyhow." 

At this moment in came Mrs. O'Dougherty laden with par- 
cels, the two children clinging to her skirts, while a small girl 
carried the baby. 

" John," said she, " I am quite exhausted," and she sank 
down on the nearest chair. " How are you, Mrs. O'Rorke, 



494 THE Unexpected Letter. [Jan.. 

and you, Mrs. Ryan ? It is very kind of you to come and 
see us " ; there was a condescending note in her voice. 

'* We both came to congratulate you on your good for- 
tune/' said the postmistress hastily, seeing a wild look in 
Mrs. O'Rorke's eye, and fearing that she would commence the 
assault, — and in fact she did afterwards assure Mrs. Ryan that 
she was at '' boiling point.'' 

" Yes ; we are very fortunate. John and me can live on 
our money. Uncle James died and left us one hundred thou- 
sand dollars," said Mrs. O'Dougherty proudly. 

Both the visitors uttered an ejaculation of surprise. 

" How much might that be ? " they inquired simultane- 
ously. 

Mrs. O'Dougherty looked at her husband. 

** About twenty thousand pounds," he answered briskly. 

" My, oh, my ! " cried Mrs. O'Rorke, lifting up her hands 
in astonishment. " It's a power of money. You will never be 
able to get through it." While Mrs. Ryan's round, rosy face 
pursed itself into an expression of wonder. 

"That remains to be seen," said John. "The little woman 
there has been out buying already. Look at the parcels." 

" Yes, indeed " ; said Mrs. O'Dougherty, with a mincing 
air totally at variance with her usual manner, " I was just 
down ordering a few things. Of course the money hasn't 
come yet, but John's lawyer is to be here shortly, an' I didn't 
want myself and the childer to disgrace him. They haven't a 
dud that they can wear. As for myself," she looked disdain- 
fully down at her pink cotton gown, " I would be ashamed to 
appear before the gentleman." 

" Troth an' you needn't," said John, *' there is nothing I 
like you better in." 

Mrs. O'Dougherty pretended not to hear this outburst, and 
continued her conversation. " So I just went into the big 
drapers in Ballyvaghan, and ordered an elegant silk to be 
trimmed with pearls." 

John groaned. 

" With what, did you say ? " inquired Mrs. O'Rorke, who 
was a little bit deaf. 

"With pearl trimming," repeated Mrs. O'Dougherty, with 
intense satisfaction. " And I am going to get it made laced 
up the back like one I saw in a pattern book." 



1905.] The Unexpected Letter., 495 

" And who^ might I ask, will lace it for you ? " said Mrs. 
O'Rorke sarcastically. 

Mrs. O'Dougherty looked a bit nonplussed, but soon 
recovered herself. " Of course," she said grandly, " our cir- 
cumstances being changed, I will have servants to do that for 
me. 

" Servants, did you say ? " almost screamed Mrs. O'Rorke ; 
then she whispered in an audible undertone. '' Put a beggar 
on horseback and she'll ride to the — you know where, Mrs. 
Ryan." 

"Talking about horses," said Mrs. O'Dougherty, who had 
only caught an odd word of the impertinent remark, '*John, 
you must buy a couple. I cannot abide a one- horsed affair; 
and there is the loveliest little trap that will just hold our- 
selves and the childer. I'm near about tired walking to church 
of a Sunday." 

" She has lost her head completely," whispered Mrs. Ryan 
to her crony as they left the house. ** I'm about sick." 

"So am I," repeated Mrs. O'Rorke. "John is a decent 
man and a good neighbor, but she is an upsetting hussey. 
She never so much as offered us a cup of tay. I don't believe 
all I hear," she said darkly. " Didn't you notice how con- 
fused John was, when I spoke about the American letter ? Oh, 
never a headache had she I " 

"There is something going on that we don't know about," 
said Mrs. Ryan cutely. " Not but I always thought John 
O'Dougherty an honest spoken man, with no double dealing 
connected with him. I wonder is the fortune as big as they 
say." 

" Oh, it's true enough about the money ; but there is 
something strange behind it," said Mrs. O'Rorke, angrily; 
"and I'll find it out. Katherine O'Rorke will not be made a 
fool of for nothing. Headache, indeed!" With the last ex- 
clamation she bade her companion good- by, and each went 
her way. 

In the meantime John and Mary were having it out, to 
use a homely expression. When the visitors had gone, John 
said quietly in a voice of concentrated wrath: "What do you 
mean, woman, by forgetting yourself so far, an' talking in that 
upsetting manner to decent neighbors?" 

"Woman, indeed 1" said Mrs. O'Dougherty, with a saucy 



^/> THE Unexpected Letter. CJan., 

toss of her head. "I'll thank you, John, to call me by my 
right name." 

John stared at her in astonishmenL Was this his humble, 
loving ^vife? Truly, the world was going upside down. 

" And I think it's better," said the little woman," to call 
me Mrs. O'Dougherty before strangers. The quality all do it.'* 
" What have we to do with the quality, I would like to 
know ? " cried John aghast 

** AVcll," said the little woman wheedlingly, '' we are goings 
to be quality now, and it's better to begin early." She 
nestled her brown, glossy head on her husband's shoulder acd 
looked at him with feverishly bright eyes. 

John remembered his promise to Terence, and stifled back 
a cutting retort. ** Well, well, Mary," he said softly, " I sup- 
yon must have yc^r way/' 
*• TT*-*^ Mrs. O 5.-rkE is a spiteful old cat, and Mrs. Ryan 
as zx^LT sti Mrs. O'Dougherty. " I don't believe 
^..^ tr hear our good news." 
r^;. T<rix cazTLot expect people to be like your- 
I wc did giTe a good deal that the letter 
;1 zDanrr wk a. x^ * ^.-!: : fcr it seems to me we had very little 
s:n;s c «ss frrsc atentfoned." 

tAnc '^JTu. .KPT 3&Bi ' ; said little Mrs. O'Doughterty in- 

u^r :rr.2K ^t the grand times we'll have when the 

I jox .cxxging to see a good broadcloth on you 

1 ttii ^ia frieze. Seven years you are wearing it 




k a . 



*t. •-.-:•* ''•tjar a shiny cloth coat to save my life. I 
r --.it T^T* ^ joliry. Frieze is good enough for me." 

' ^-*«? *-"u ^u Oigaia now," said the little woman testily. 

- ur i;^ 5,ov>u x$ the quality any day." 

**--.-r*^ :?^?ct^r '' said John, with a sly wink. "Anyhow, 

< .:v.t* ^-t 3iy<^?u than some of them does. Begor, here 

c^ .^ »v^ .^; t^^:tt. lt*s herself from the big house, and here 

•x>ista I -^^ -g ;^^ her heels," cried John, as he stood at 

^ .vv^^ •♦^fc:^ :ro^ M:$s Xorah Fitzgerald leisurely coming 

'^^ctjt^;*, the postman following at a respectful 



.K* 






'^^''tct .^ry tcore letters- I wonder what's bring- 

- •*' - ^^ SJivi Miss Xorah's home," cried the little 
^1^ A- 



1905.] The Unexpected Letter. 497 

"Good-morning, Mary; good-morning John. I was de- 
lighted to hear of your good fortune/' said the lady as she 
lifted the baby, who was named after her, and sat down quite 
at home in the little kitchen. " What do you intend to do ? " 
she inquired. 

Rat-tat ! 

" God bless me ! I'm not easily startled, but that made me 
jump," said the little woman, whose nerves were upset with the 
excitement of the past two days. 

John opened the door. " Is it another American letter, 
Pat ? If so, you can keep it. One of them is sufficient to last 
a lifetime," he said jokingly. 

" How did you guess it, John ? " said the postman in sur- 
prise. "It has the American postmark. But I'm off; I have 
to go to Widow Flannigan's, an' it's a good tramp." 

When the door closed John held the letter towards the 
young lady. " Miss Norah, I would feel obliged if you would 
read it. I know Mary is no scholar," and he looked at his 
wife who stood with downcast head and shamed face. "Not 
that I mind, but I thank you all the same for keeping her 
secret." 

Miss Norah blushed as rosy red as the little woman. " John, 
she said simply, " you are a man in a thousand. She took the 
letter and read the following: 

Dear Madam : 

We regret very much, owing to an error on the part of 
our clerks, that you should be under the mistaken idea that 
you are the heiress of the late James O'Reilly of Brooklyn. 
By a strange coincidence, there are — or rather were — two 
James O'Reillys, and still more singular, each had a niece 
called Mary O'Dougherty. Both men were clients of ours, the 
only difference being that one lived in New York, and the 
other in Brooklyn. The estate of James O'Reilly of New 
York, your esteemed relative, realized one thousand dollars, 
while his namesake in Brooklyn realized one hundred thousand 
dollars. By some mischance the letters got mixed. Hoping 
you will overlook this carelessness, we are, madam, 

Your obedient servants, 

Grass & Grosmith, New York. 



498 THE Unexpected Letter. [Jan-. 

" Thank God I " said John heartily. ^* \ can grapple well 
enough with that, it means about two hundred pounds; the 
other was too much for me." 

Mrs. O'Dougherty turned white and red alternatively, then 
finally burst into a flood of tears. Miss Norah sat a quiet, 
sympathetic spectator. ''Mary/' she said gently, perhaps it is 
all for the best." 

" It will take me a long time to get over it," said the 
little woman. " How that spiteful old gossip, Mrs. O'Rorke, 
will laugh when she hears the disappointment I got." 

" Them that laughs last, laughs longest. " said John oracu-> 
larly. " I wouldn't say she would turn up her nose at a 
thousand dollars." 

" The little woman dried her eyes briskly. "You are right, 
John, as you always are; it's me that is the foolish woman," 
and she threw her arms round her husband's neck, while Norah 
quietly slipped away. 

Mrs. O'Rorke's remark when she heard the news, consisted 
of the one significent sentence — " I always knew there was 
something queer in that American letter — headache, indeed!" 



1 90S. J The Present Position of Darwinism. 499 




THE PRESENT POSITION OF DARWINISM. 

BY JAMES J. WALSH, Ph.D., M.D. 

IN the December number of The Catholic World 
Dr. William Seton, in an article on ''Darwinism 
on its Deathbed/' discusses the question oi the 
present position of Darwinism in the world of 
science in order to show that this popular sys- 
tem of biological thought is not so near its last gasp as some 
of its critics would say. There have been in quite recent years 
at least three books which have suggested that the end of 
Darwinism has come. When Hartmann's book, Der Niedergang 
der Darwinismus — The Passing of Darwinism^ appeared last year 
in Germany, it was even said by one of the critics that Hart- 
mann had written the inscription for the tombstone of Darwin- 
ism. It is with regard to Dennert*s At the Deathbed of Dar- 
winism that Dr. Seton protests, and gives a series of quotations 
from prominent' men of science, in order to demonstrate *'that 
the Darwinian hypothesis, which certain well-meaning persons 
to whom the wish may be father to the thought, would have 
us believe is no longer in favor in scientific circles," is still 
quite as important a factor as ever in biological thought. As 
an added demonstration of the present position of Darwinism, 
he quotes certain letters that have been received from promi- 
nent teachers and writers on scientific subjects. 

It may be said at once that Dr. Seton's statement is emi- 
nently fair, and contains most of the grounds on which the 
Darwinian system may lay claim to occupy men's attention 
for some time to come. 

It is not with any idea that natural selection, the real 
essence of Darwin's theory, contains any dangers overt or 
covert for orthodox thinking, but entirely because of the sci- 
entific interest of the question that I have ventured to gather 
some quotations that seem, to me at least, to point to a con- 
clusion directly opposite to that which Dr. Seton's article 
suggests. 

It may be said at once that any fancied opposition between 



500 The Present Position of Darwinism. [Jan., 

Darwinism and revealed truth has been seen only by those 
who did not realize the supremely tolerant spirit of the great 
English biologist, and who did not know his works at first 
hand. 

It has often* been said that Darwin considered that there 
was no evidence for the existence of a purpose in the creation, 
and that consequently, for followers of his school, the princi- 
pal truth of the existence of a Creator fell to the ground. I 
have often wondered how many of those who argued thus from 
Darwin's supposed teachings had ever read these last few sen- 
tences of his most important book, The Origin of Species: 

To my mind it accords better with what we know of the 
laws impressed on matter by the Creator that the produc- 
tion and extinction of the past and present inhabitants of the 
world should have been due to secondary causes, like those 
determining the birth and death of the individual. When I 
view all beings, not as special creations, but as lineal de- 
scendants of some few beings which lived long before the first 
bed of the Cambrian system was deposited, they seem to me 
to become ennobled. All the living forms of life are the liifeal 
descendants of those which lived long before the Cambrian 
epoch, and we may look with some confidence to a secure 
future of great length. 

There is a grandeur in this view of life with its several 
powers, having been originally breathed by the Creator into 
a few forms or into one ; and that while this planet has gone 
cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity from so 
simple a beginning, endless forms most beautiful and most 
wonderful have been and are being evolved. 

This is as supreme a tribute to the Creator as might come 
from the most sturdy of orthodox philosophers. It is not be- 
cause of supposed opposition to religion that Darwinism has 
lost prestige, but because its hypothesis fails to stand the test 
of observation. So many quotations might be given to prove 
this that it is hard to know where to begin and where to leave 
off. 

The decline of Darwinism in estimation among the serious 
men of science is not a recent event. Nearly twenty-five 
years ago Huxley, who was considered in his time a very 
ardent Darwinian, and to whose marvelous power of scientific 
controversy and brilliant polemics the Darwinian theory owes 



iQoj.] The Present position of Darwinism. 501 

much more of its popularity than is usually realized, had be- 
gun to hedge with regard to the all-pervading importance of 
natural selection in evolution. It is a very curious reflection 
on Huxley's state of mind that when, in 1880, he delivered 
his famous address on The Coming of Age of the " Origin of 
SpecieSy^ he did not once mention the term or the supposed 
factor, natural selection. There is a passage in that address 
which was delivered at a time when men of science generally 
(apart from a few commanding geniuses) were rather enthu* 
siastic in their adhesion to Darwinism, which must be re- 
called now, if we wish to realize the beginning of the failure 
of Darwinism to satisfy minds well versed in science. 

History warns us that it is the customary fate of new 
truths to begin as heresies and to end as superstitions ; and, 
as matters now stand, it is hardly rash to anticipate that, in 
another twenty years, the new generation, educated under 
the influences of the present day, will be in danger of 
accepting the main doctrines of the Origin of Species, with 
as little reflection, and it may be with as little justification, 
as so many of our contemporaries, twenty years ago, re- 
jected them. 

Another passage still more striking, in showing the failure 
of the Darwinian theory to satisfy Huxley's acute and exact- 
ing logic, is to be found in his book, Man^s Place in Nature : 

Our acceptance of the Darwinian hypothesis must be 
provisional, so long as one link in the chain of evidence is 
wanting ; and so long as all the animals and plants cer* 
tainly produced by selective breeding from a common stock 
are fertile with one another, the link will be wanting. For, 
so long, selective breeding will not be proved to be compe- 
tent to do all that is required of it to produce natural 
species. 

Huxley then admitted that Darwinism as a system was 
unproved, and even left a loophole through which scientists 
might escape the consequences of their concessions already 
made with regard to it. All this occurred twenty- five years 
ago, when no one who wished to be considered familiar with 
science, dared breathe a word against Darwinism. In the last 
few years " natural species " seem to have been produced, but 



502 The Present position of Darwinism. [Jan., 

their production has been the severest blow that Darwinism 
has received. Father Mendel, a monk of Brtinn, Austria, has, 
by observation, not theory, shown certain true principles of 
heredity. His work was performed nearly forty years ago, 
but only during the last five years has it attracted the atten* 
tion which it deserves. Since then there has been something 
to replace Darwinism for those who must have a theory to 
cling to, and if Dr. Seton's quotations had been taken from 
more recent volumes on biological science, he would have 
found it more difficult to get passages frankly accepting Dar- 
win's teaching. 

The present position of working biologists was stated very 
well by Professor Loeb, of the University of California, in an 
address delivered at the Congress of Arts and Sciences in St. 
Louis last September. Professor Loeb, selected for the special 
purpose, spoke to his hearers, men of science assembled from 
all over the world, with regard to the present outlook on que.<s- 
tions of development and heredity. Professor Loeb said : * 

The theory of heredity of Mendel and De Vries is in 
full harmony with the idea of evolution. The modem idea 
of evolution originated, as is well known, with Lamarck, 
and it is the great merit of Darwin to have revived this 
idea. It is, however, remarkable that none of the Dar- 
winian authors seemed to consider it necessary that the 
transformation of species should be the object of direct ob- 
servation. It is generally understood in the natural sciences, 
either that direct observations should form the foundation 
of our conclusions or mathematical laws which are derived 
from direct observations. This rule was evidently considered 
superfluous by those writing on the hypothesis of evolution. 
Their scientific conscience was quieted by the assumption 
that processes, like that of evolution, could not be directly 
observed as they occurred too slowly, and that for this 
reason indirect observations must suffice. I believe that 
this lack of direct observation explains the polemical char- 
acter of this literature, for wherever we can base our con- 
clusions upon direct observations, polemics become super- 
fluous. It was, therefore, a decided progress when De Vries 
was able to show that the' hereditary changes of forms, so- 
called '* mutations," can be directly observed, at least in 
certain groups of organisms ; and secondly, that these 

• See Sciemct, December 9, X904. 



igosO The Present Position of Darwinism. 503 

changes take place in harmony with the idea that for defi- 
nite hereditary characteristics definite determinants, possibly 
in the form of chemical compounds, must be present in the 
sexual cells. It seems to me that the work of Mendel and 
De Vries and their successors marks the beginning of a real 
theory of heredity and evolution. If it is at all possible to 
produce new species artificially, I think that the discoveries 
of Mendel and De Vries must be the starting point. (Italics 
ours.) 

It should be noted that he says the work of Mendel and 
De Vries and their successors marks the beginning of a real 
theory of heredity and evolution — the beginning of a work that 
Darwin, according to the popular expositors of his theory, is 
supposed to have finished long ago. 

How much Mendel's work meant for biology may be ap- 
preciated,- to some extent at least, by those unfamiliar with 
the recent revolution in biology, from what Professor Bate- 
son, of Cambridge, in his book, on Mendel s Principles of 
Heredity^* writes with regard to this subject: 

In 1868 appeared the first edition of Darwin's Animals 
and Plants^ marking the very zenith of these studies, and 
thenceforth the decline in the experimental investigation of 
Evolution and the problem of Species has been steady. 
With the rediscovery and confirmation of Mendel's work by 
De Vries, Corens, and Tschermak, in 190O1 a new era begins. 
Had Mendel's work come into the hands of Darwin, it is 
not too much to say that the history of the development of 
evolutionary philosophy would have been very different 
from that which we have witnessed. 

Professor Loeb's declaration is not the only authoritative 
one with regard to the necessity of beginning all over again 
in every department of biology, and casting aside the impedi- 
menta of theory with which we have unfortunately been cum- 
bered as the result of adhesion to Darwipism. The following 
quotation is the more interesting because it occurs just after a 
passage which, if quoted alone, would seem to show that the 
writer was an enthusiastic follower of Darwin. Professor Har- 
gitt, of Syracuse University, as Vice-President of the Ameri- 
can Association for the Advancement of Science, and chair- 

• Cambridge University Press, 1902, 



504 The Present Position of Darwinism. [Jan., 

man of the section on Zoology, delivered the address before 
the section at the meeting held early in 1904. 
That address began as follows : 

With the advent of the Origin of Species became current 
the naturalistic interpretation of organic nature, epitomized in 
such phrases as ** natural selection/* ''survival of the fit- 
test," etc. So rapid and general was the acceptance of this 
conception as a working hypothesis, that in thirty years, 
or within a single generation, Wallace made bold to claim 
for it universal recognition in the well-known and oft-quoted 
declaration. **He (Darwin) did his work so well that 
descent with modification is now universally accepted as the 
order of nature in the organic world.'* 

As a general statement of the fact of evolution, as the 
phrase may be literally interpreted, it may, after fifteen 
additional years of intense biological activity, be as vigor- 
ously claimed and as readily conceded. If, however, it be 
so interpreted as to include the full content of Darwinism, 
and the all-sufSiciency of natural selection as the prime fac- 
tor, with its details of endless adaptations to environment, 
whether physical or physiological, it need hardly be said 
that consent would be far less general or prompt. 

The speaker's gradual departure from assent to Darwinism 
should be noted. Two paragraphs farther on he continues: 

The recent impulse which has come to biologic progress 
by recent experimental methods, and the remarkable results 
which have been attained thereby (the reference is to the 
Mendelian movement), may, without exaggeration, be said 
to have raised anew many an earlier doubt as well as 
brought to light problems apparently quite beyond the 
scope of the older explanations. It may not. therefore, be 
an extravagant assumption to announce the entire question 
of organic adaptations as open for reconsideration^ in the light 
of which no apology will be necessary for directing atten- 
tion to certain phases of the subject upon the present occa- 
sion. 

The italics are ours ; but Professor Hargitt, it will be seen, 
considers the whole subject, which Darwinism was said to 
have had settled once and for all, to be again open for con- 
sideration. 



1905.] The Present Position of Darwinism. 505 

Although until quite recently biologists generally harbored 
many doubts with regard to Darwinism, it was quite difE- 
cult to secure a definite expression of their opinions in the 
matter. Professor Thomas Hunt Morgan, in the introduction 
to his book on Evolution and Adaptations^ has stated one of 
the reasons for this difficulty. Professor Morgan is one of our 
best known working biologists, and in this, and in his other 
recent book Regeneration,^ has impugned completely the sig- 
nificance of Darwinism : He writes : 

The unsophistipated man believes that all other animals 
exist to minister to his welfare; and from this point of view 
their adaptations are thought of solely in their relation to 
himself. A step in advance was taken when the idea was 
conceived that adaptations are for the good of the organ- 
isms themselves. It seemed a further advance when the 
conclusion was reached that the origin of adaptations could 
be accounted for, as the result of the benefit that they con- 
ferred on their possessor. This view was the outcome of 
the acceptation of the theory of evolution, combined with 
Darwin's theory of natural selection. It is the view held 
by most biologists at the present time ; hut I venture to 
prophesy that if any one will undertake to question modem 
zoologists and botanists^ concerning their relation to the Dar- 
winian theory s he will find that^ while professing in a gen- 
eral way to hold this theory ^ most biologists have many reser- 
vations afid doubts^ which they either keep to themselves or^ at 
any rate^ do not allow to interfere either with their .teaching 
of the Darwinian doctrine^ or with the applications that they 
may make of it in their writings. 

The italics are again ours, and Professor Morgan's expres- 
sions represent so exactly what has been our own experience 
in conversations with prominent biologists, that we break the 
quotation to say that among workers in biology we have never 
in the last five years met an enthusiastic Darwinian. They 
were common enough during our study of medicine in the 
early nineties, they are frequent yet among the popularizers 
of science; but in laboratories in Dublin, in New York, in 
Naples, in Paris, in Philadelphia, we found only half-hearted 
followers of Darwin, ready to admit the many shortcomings of 

* Macmillan, 1903. t Macmillan, 1901. 

VOL. LXXX.— 33 



5o6 THE PRESENT POSITION OF DARWINISM. [Jan., 

the theory, though they had not as yet reached that state of 
mind which would recognize that the theory had practically 
ceased to be the working hypothesis of the laboratory, an 
honor which it has unfortunately so long retained. Most of 
them seemed to harbor an inner dread of being thought re- 
actionary or, save the mark, influenced by teiidencies to ortho- 
doxy as regards the relations of Creator and creature if they 
should openly express their feelings. 

These words may seem to express a great deal, but remem- 
ber Huxley's expression made nearly twenty- five years ago, 
with regard to the possibility of Darwinism becoming a 
'' superstition," and being accepted with as little justification as 
that with which it was rejected when first proclaimed. Professor 
Morgan writes further: 

The claim of the opponents of the theory that Darwin- 
ism has become a dogma contains more truth than the 
nominal followers of this school find pleasant to hear. 

It is indeed interesting to know that a biologist should 
think that his fellow-biologists are influenced by a doctrine 
that is accepted on authority, for that is the sense in which 
the word dogma is used here. What modern writers on natural 
science have most deprecated has been just such an acceptance, 
and it i$ amusing to find that the unconscious tendency of the 
human mind to lean on authority has brought them into what 
even their fellows in science consider a self- contradictory 
position. 

Even Professor Morgan himself would not have us reject 
Darwinism entirely. He merely wishes it relegated to its 
proper plane, that of a theorjr with some significance, but none 
of that preponderance in biology, the hasty acknowledgment 
of which has beeg the cause of much lost time. He says: 

But let us not, therefore, too hastily conclude that 
Darwin's theory is without value in relation to one side of 
the problem of adaptation ; for while we can profitably reject, 
as I believe, much of the theory of natural selection, and 
more especially the idea that adaptations have arisen because 
of their usefulness, yet the fact that living things must be 
adapted more or less well to their environment in order to 
remain in existence may, after all, account for the wide- 
spread occurrence of adaptation in animals and plants. 



igos.] The Present Position of Darwinism. 507 

As a matter of fact« and as any biologist will realize, this 
statement robs Darwinism entirely of the place that has been 
accorded it as the basis of evolution. 

We have seen the two words superstitioxi and dogma used 
with regard to Darwinism. If we wish to carry out one of the 
thoughts suggested by these words, it might be interesting to sug- 
gest that there are also legends connected with the development 
of Darwinism, and that some of these have been believed quite 
as firmly, and accepted on just as little real evidence, as some 
of the legends which scientists delight to make fun of and 
to ridicule. Every one knows the story of a butterfly which 
so closely resembles a dead leaf that when it lights, is pro- 
tected by similarity to the leaf from the attacks of all maraud- 
ing enemies. This very protective simulation enables it to 
propagate its species while many other forms of butterflies 
have disappeared. In the course of time natural selection has 
made this particular butterfly resemble the leaf so closely, that 
it possesses even certain defects of dead leaves in a way quite 
inexplicable, except, of course, on the principle of progressive 
simulation. 

Unfortunately the butterfly story is only a legend. The 
popularizers of Darwinism have used it so often that it has 
come to be looked upon as one of the most interesting confirma- 
tions of the Darwinian theory. Lately, however, "the higher 
criticism " has taken the field in science and insisted that obser- 
vations are wanted and not theory. Since then it has been 
found that the butterfly resembles the dead leaf at the time 
when leaves are green, and that therefore its color would make 
it conspicuous for its enemies rather than protect it. Then it 
was found that this kind of butterfly apparently has no winged 
enemies, and it is after all only bird enemies that it could be 
expected to escape by lighting among leaves similar to itself — 
if the leaves were similar. Finally the whole process of 
pigmentation in butterflies has been studied, and it has been 
shown that temperature and feeding, and not any vaguer 
factors, regulate the pigmentation of the butterfly's wings. So 
much for this wondrous legend of the butterfly that has proved 
such a never-ending topic for popular lectures, and which now 
must go the way of all the other good stories, from Tell's hat 
to Washington's hatchet. 

This whole subject of coloration has proved a trap for ur- 



So8 The Present Position of Darwinism, [Jan., 

wary followers of Darwin. Lopg agjo Darwin himself said that 
th;e thought of the peacock's tail always made him sick. It is, 
of course, in its regal splendor utterly incapable of explana- 
libri on any theory of protection, or simulation, or survival, or 
any other phase of natural selection. Now the chapter on 
Coloration particularly must all be re-studied by the observer, 
because of the too-ready acceptance of theories in the past. 

Professor Hargitt, already quoted, after calling attention to 
the fact that books on Darwinism are very much occupied 
with the subjiect of coloration, and indeed that more than one- 
third of Wallace's latest book on the subject is occupied with 
it, says that this whole subject must now be studied from the 
standpoint 'of observation and experiment and not from that of 
theory. 

It cannot be questioned that in some cases we find 
among these forms what would seem at first sight to be 
splendid illustrations of protective coloration. If, however, 
we trace in detail their distribution and variable habits 
we shall often find, as did Semper in the case of Myxicola, 
that the supposed case of marvelous mimicry resolves itself 
into merest coincidence. This case cited by Semper is de- 
scribed in detail in Animal Life, and its careful study by 
some of our over-optimistic selectionists would prove a healthy 
exercise, conducing to a more critical scientiHc spirit and, as a 
'consequence, to saner interpretations of appearances in the 
light of all the facts. 

The words are italicized in order to emphasize what the 
abandonment of 'Darwinism in this field is expected to lead 
from and to. 

The Darwinian superstition has even its relics which have 
been honored far more than they deserve and have been given 
by devoted adherents to Darwinism a significance quite other 
than that which on historical grounds can really be attached 
to them. I refer, of course, to the show horse of evolution, 
the supposed demonstration of the evolution of the horse. 
Professor Fleischman, of Erlangen, has, in his recent book on 
the Darwinian theory, especially insisted on the total absence 
of convincing evidence for the supposed development of the 
horse, which has been so often appealed to as the greatest 
confirmation of evolutionary ideas. As a matter of fact we 



1905.] The Present Position of Darwinism. 509 

have, as some of the supposed links in the chain of the develop- 
ment of the horse, only the teeth. According to the story 
the horse began as an animal about the size of a hare, and 
gradually developed to its present size. It is easy to under- 
stand what a field for theory and speculation is offered in the 
intermediate animals of a series like this, especially when there 
remain at most only a few bones of many of the animals. 

This whole subject of the evolution of the horse is very 
well reviewed in Father John Gerard's book. The Old Riddle 
and the Newest Answer* a book to which we are very glad to 
be able to express our acknowledgment for many of the points 
of the present paper. Those who still seriously think that our 
nineteenth century biologists have come any nearer to answer- 
ing the old riddle of life, will do welt to' read this excellent 
review so rich in quotations from acknowlec'ged authorities, 10 
thoroughly conservative in its treatment of the difficult sub- 
ject, and demonstrating so conclusively that in the Darwinian 
explanation of evolution we have had only one phase of a dis- 
cussion that is .almost as old as the world. Each successive 
step has, perhaps, brought us a little nearer the truth, though 
each generation has been apt to feel that it was the only one 
that had truth in its fullness. 

A very striking summary of the vicissitudes of the Dar- 
winian theory is to be found in an article by Edward von 
Hartmann, which appeared last year in Oswald's Annalen dcr 
Natural Philosophies with the striking title Der Niedergang 
der Darwinismus, Hartmann is known as a rather bitter 
opponent of Christianity. He has not been brought to his 
conclusion, therefore, from any possible idea of opposition be- 
tween Darwinism a.nd revelation. He writes: 

In the sixties of the past century the opposition of tht 
older group of savants to the Dattwinian hypothesis was stili 
supreme. In the seventies the new idea began: to igain 
ground rapidly in all cultured countries. In the eighties 
Darwin's influence was at its height, and exercised an 
almost absolute control over technical research. In the 
nineties, for the first time, a few timid expressions of doubt 
and opposition were heard, and these gradually swelled int<^ 
a great chorus of voices aiming at the overthrow of the 

• Sec Catholic World, October, 1904, " The Latest Books. "—[^^.] 



5IO The Present Position of Darwinism. [Jan., 

Darwinian theory. In tlie first decade of the twentieth cen- 
tury it has become apparent that the days of Darwinism are 
numbered. Among its latest opponents are such savants as 
Eimer, Gustav Wolf, De Vries, Hoocke, von Wellstein, 
Pleischman, Reinke, and many others.* 

A scientific theory that has gone through such vicissitudes 
has never been known to count for much afterwards. The 
present tendency, as regards Darwinism, is to give it ever less 
and less consideration. With conservative scientists and re- 
viewers foreseeing the ehd, there may yet be a resurrection, 
but it seems unlikely. 

In conclusion, as to the actual position now occupied in 
scientific opinion by Darwin's hypotheses, we cannot do better 
than recall principles insisted on with such logical completeness 
by Professor S. H. Vines, in his presidential address to the 
Linnasan Society, May 24, 1902. 

1. It is established that natural selection, though it may 
have perpetuated species, cannot have originated any. 

2. It is still a mystery why evolution should tend from 
the lower to the higher, from simple to complex organisms. 

3. The facts seem to admit of no other interpretation 
than that variation is not (as Darwin supposed) indeter- 
minate, but that there is in living matter an inherent deter- 
mination in favor of variation in the higher direction. 

A word on the second part of Dr. Seton's article, which 
consists of letters from more or less distinguished working 
scientists of the present day with regard to their ideas on 
Darwinism. In order that this part of the article should 
have its proper value, we ought to know whether other men 
besides those whose answers are given were consulted, how 
many there were who refused to answer, either because they 
were dubious about their position in the matter, or did not 
care to put themselves on record, or felt that at a moment of 
transition like this, it was better to avoid the discussion of 
the subject. Finally, we should know whether there were any 
letters of reply in which perhaps Darwinism was spoken of so 
lightly that it was not deemed proper to publish them, since 
they did not make in favor of the proposition that was to 

• Translated by the Literary Digest, New York, January ^3, 1904. 



1905.] The Present Position of Darwinism, 511 

be demonstrated. Almost any working scientist, when asked 
bluntly if Darwinism is on its deathbed, would reply that it 
is not. Even those who realize most the weakness of many 
positions of the Darwinian system, are also persuaded that it 
is as yet a fair, working hypothesis, and that it must be kept 
for the moment at Jeast. 

Besides there are many biological workers who, realizing 
the value of Darwin's contributions to science quite apart from 
hi& theory of natural selection, and not wishing to be considered 
as failing to recognize Darwin's merits as a biological observer, 
would prefer to state that they did not consider Darwinism to 
be on its deathbed, than by assenting to such a radical pro- 
position, apparently deny to Darwin the merit of the great 
work he has done; though too zealous disciples have undone 
it and made the theory accountable for more harm than good 
in nineteenth century biology. 

Some of the authors I have quoted, while distinctly dis- 
avowing the influence of Darwinism in their own special field, 
still do not like to make their proposition of dissent universal. 
It is a little bit like what was said of Herbert Spencer. Most 
scientists thought him a great original thinker except in their 
own special department. The most striking factor in the 
present position of Darwinism is the decreasing number of its 
advocates. Darwinism has not vanished entirely as yet; but, 
oh ! how changed it is from the tyrant that dominated bio- 
logy in the eighties of the last century. 



IN THE FOREST. [Jan., 



IN THE FOREST. 

BY E, MOSBV, 



, tap, tap ! Just so had the fairy oak sounded 
1 the forest of Normandy when the storm- 
rind blew its branches against the casement 
tut the oak had been overthrown, split to the 
ore by lightning. Spring had seen it full of 
nests and songs, and thick with tasseled blossoms. Autumn 
had witnessed a kind of second blooming, so rich was the 
crimson of the foliage when the sunshine poured through. 

Tap, tap, tap! "Trees have no ghosts," said Alyse, the 
undernurse, to herself, as she moved to the window. It was 
snowing fast, and she saw nothing, but on hearing the slow 
steps of the old nurse coming along the gallery she took cour- 
age and unfastened the casement. 

" Perchance it rs some bird, frightened by the old owl," 
she murmured. At the very instant a fierce gust tore the 
casement from her hand and threw it open, scattering the ashes 
oh the hearth. 

Ah, Alyse, tfure is the spirit of the oak I See its fagots 
blaze, leaping higher and higher; the flames hovering over the 
hot coals, or rushing up the chimney in a triumphant roar. 
Alyse, with a struggle, fastened the casement again, not heed- 
ing a little figure, which flitted like a shadow behind the 
boughs of evergreen and holly that decked the room. 

"A strong wind," said the old nurse as she entered, "there's 
a chill in the air." 

She crossed softly to the curtained bed, and looked in at 
the childish face on the pillow, and the flaxen curis just escap<- 
ing from the lace nightcap. 

" She is like her uncle Guy, the young lord who loved the 
forest so well. Sweetheart," she called in a low tone, but the 
child did not stir. 

" She sleeps well," the nurse said, and moved to the fire. 
" A night for good company." 

" And old stories," added Alyse, drawing up a big chair 
for her. 



igos.] IN THE Forest. S-13 

" If the oak could talk it would tell us stories — of the boar, 
and the stag, the wolves " — and then she shuddered — " and 
of Master Fox and his tricks 1 " she ended with a chuckle. 
" See how the dry wood burns ! *' 

'* 'Twas an old tree," answered the young nurse. " Was it 
here when Sir Guy went to the Holy Land ? " 

" I know not, but 'twas a great tree when I was a girl. Is 
P'tite lonely ? " she asked, looking again towards the bed. 
** Poor babe ! Twas hard — her father wounded in the wars, 
and her mother called away to nurse him ; and she, poor child, 
left here alone ! But I will wish no playmates for her — the 
family have been over-quick to find companions outside castle 
walls, if old tales be true ! As for me, I like not the edge of 
a forest" 

Alyse gazed at her with wide-open eyes. 

" Do you think there is danger ? " and her voice trembled. 
'' I thought the robbers had been put down with a strong 
hand." 

" Ah, bah 1 " cried the nurse. " Robbers, indeed ! Do you 
know all the creatures that lurk in the forest and cross its 
glades by mooonshine ? Some are more than flesh and blood 
of our kind, I know." 

" The ' wild boars — there's a fierce one, still in the wood, 
Tete-BleUf Peter calls him; but we inside need not fear the; 
beasts." 

" Ah," and old Margot shook her head, *' once — I have 
heafd the cur^ say " — and Alyse drew nearer, '' strange gods 
were worshipped under the oak, and, routed by our blessed 
church, dwindled into fauns and satyrs, and hid inside the 
trees." 

The green boughs were suddenly stirred. 

'' How the wind blows I " said Alyse, glancing fearfully to- 
wards them. "The little one to-day wanted to know why at 
the castle the boughs were brought within the walls at the 
first fall of the leaf, while the church waits until Yule?" 

"Why, see you, now," answered Margot, "long years ago 
it was so done by the pagans to give shelter to the wood 
sprites." 

A soft sigh caused Alyse again to look toward the case- 
ment. "Is it wrong, then?" she asked. 

" Our good cure said not, only a kindly superstition ; and 



S 14 IN THE FOREST. [Jan., 

folks have forgot the reason long ago. The dryads and the 
fauns have dwindled into fairies now." 

" But however can you remember the strange names ? " 
asked the younger woman with some awe. 

"I have been much with my lady, and my lord's mother 
before her/' answered old Margot with a superior air. ''Be- 
sides, I always loved to hear of strange things. But the old 
superstition is all forgotten, only a fairy oak or a fairy pool 
in the forest to remember it by. The blessed Christmas Babe 
rales the world." 

" I thought I heard a sigh," murmured Alyse, going to 
the bed, " but the little one sleeps. Did you speak of strange 
playfellows? My granddame — " 

" Old dames tell too many idle tales," broke in Margot, 
suddenly cautious. '' I'll to bed, and hold my tongue." 

" Is there no hope of heaven for the wood spirits ? " fal- 
tered Alyse, her voice full of pity. ''The good God made 
them too." 

" Well," said the old nurse, " they say, if a fairy saves a 
mortal child for love's sake, that fair)' will be born at Yule, a 
human child itself, though in lowliness and poverty like the 
Child of Christmas." 

Next day it was bright, and Sylvie played in the picture 
gallery. " Is this his portrait ? " she murmured, pausing before 
the picture of a beautiful boy blowing upon a rude musical 
instrument, fashioned of reeds. " My father said he learned 
music in the green forest where he played with — what was 
thatf^* she called suddenly, as a shadow fell across the floor. 
Startled, she looked behind her, and her gaze met two smiling 
eyes, half-mischievous, half-wistful. 

But before she could see the small figure distinctly, it 
seemed to glide swiftly toward the stairway and invite her to 
follow. 

Away ran Sylvie in pursuit, crossing the bars now of 
shadow, and now of sunshine — beneath the windows — and out, 
through the great doors, across the terraces, down the marble 
steps into the rose-gardens, white with snow. Breathless was 
the chase, which grew more earnest as Sylvie caught a glimpse 
of a flying form, or of a small hand waving to her to con- 
tinue. 

" Who are you ? " exclaimed Sylvie enchanted, when at last 



1905.] In THE Forest, 515 

there was a pause beside the fountain sparkling in the 
winter sun. 

" Your playfellow-^your comrade/' replied a silvery voice ; 
and Sylvie held out her hands in rapturous eagerness. 

'' Yes ; and your name ? Your name, dear playfellow ? 
How can we play together until I know what to call you ? " 
And the little mortal maid waited impatiently for a reply; 
but the other answered slowly and almost in a whisper : 

"You may call me Desir^e." 

" Did you come in a coach ? " continued Sylvie. " If so, 
I did not hear it." 

" Nay, nay " ; said Desir^e, moving away out of Sylvie's 
reach. '' Why should I need a coach ? " And she laughed 
with pretty, scornful mirth, which Sylvie could not help echo- 
ing; for, indeed, every motion was as light as thistle-down, 
so light that the idea of a heavy coach seemed absurd. 

" But you did not trudge through the snow like the wood- 
men and the charcoal-burners ? " asked Sylvie, noticing how sil- 
very and delicate the garments of her companion were. At 
this moment the blare of hunters' horns, and the baying of 
hounds, sounded nearby, and there came a crash from the 
bushes, as if a large stag had broken through, and was mak- 
ing for the forest. 

Sylvie, excited, ran to the top of the marble steps to see 
which way the hunt went, calling once or twice : " Desiree, 
Desir^e ! " 

But no one answered. Sylvie returned to the fountain and 
searched, but not even the slightest trace or footprint of her 
mysterious comrade could be seen. Old Trumpeter, the stag- 
hound, came at last, and walked beside her, looking curiously 
at her as she searched, but Sylvia did not see her new friend 
again that day. 

It was some days after, and the Angelus bell was ringing. 
Sylvie had just finished the prayer when, looking up, she saw 
her former playmate at the edge of the forest. She was sway- 
ing back and forth as if in a slow dance to the tolling of the 
bell, and a mischievous, elfin smile lit up her face. 

"Oh!" cried Sylvie, shocked, "you mustn't dance to the 
Angelus bell, Desir^e; it's wrong!" 

" I don't like the bell," replied Desir^e wilfully. " I used 
to play with a boy once — in the forest. Sometimes the bell 



5l6 IN THE FOREST. [Jan., 

called him away." And she pointed a tiny finger towards the 
little church near the village. 

** Oh, that must have been on Sunday/' and Sylvie climbed 
over the garden wall and ran across the bridge. All the poplars 
—now bare — seemed to shake their heads in the wind. " Was 
it my great- great-great-uncle Guy?" she asked eagerly; and 
then she llughed merrily. " But how silly ; he would have 
been an old, old man to-day." 

Her companion did not heed. " Once we saw the last faun 
— oh, so wrinkled and hairy, with big ears and rough horns 
and funny legs like a goat's," she said. 

" 'Twas one of Master Peter's goats at the farm," commented 
Sylvie with practical directness. 

"No"; replied Desiree impatiently. "No; we were afraid, 
and hid behind a great beech, and he looked down into the 
crystal pool — oh, what an ugly thing he saw I " 

"You said a fawn," exclaimed Sylvie puzzled, "but it 
sounds like a goat." 

"You know very little," replied the stranger gravely. 

Sylvie flushed. Why should this little maid, who did not 
go to church, or have nurses, or any lessons apparently, talk so 
to her ? " I do know," she answered indignantly. " / know about 
heaven and the dear angels, and the Christ Child I They sing 
of him on the blessed Christmas days. I wonder if jny mother 
will come then ? " And all at once big tears shone in her blue 
tyts and ran down her cheeks. 

Desiree looked at her wonderingly, but not unkindly. " You 
are — crying, Sylvie ? " she said. 

" Yes ; do you not cry when — ? Oh, there is nurse calling, 
and I must go." 

She ran back to the garden, and her companion frowned, 
as she was left there alone. 

"I may if I will," she thought. "The old nurse said so. 
At the gatekeeper's lodge a little human child will be born — 
I heard his wife tell the other women — but it will be poor and 
humble — " she paused, pondering, until she felt a little nip at 
the hem of her skirt, and turning swiftly saw a little red fox, 
with twinkling eyes, begging for a frolic. In an instant they 
had disappeared in the old wood. 

Sylvie often played with this strange creature afterwards, 
usually it was at the forest's edge, but sometimes they entered 



1 90S.] IN THE Forest. 517 

farther into its depths. Once Sylvie was delighted to find 
herself on the brink of the Pool of the Beeches, and to see 
within its crystal waters a reflection of the blue sky. 

For the first part of December, though cold, had been 
filled with sunshine, and now and then the little green wood-, 
peckers tapped on the old tree trunks, or the small wood 
creatures ventured forth from nest or burrow. Sylvie heard 
her playmate at dusk sing a slumber song to the noiseless old 
owl, her arm around his soft, downy wings, as he perched 
beside her, blinking his honey-yellow eyes sleepily, in com- 
pliment to her lullaby, although really he was just waking up. 

Again the brownish-gray hares and the bright-eyed wood- 
mice would sit around the little forest maid and Sylvie; and 
the latter grew quite cross with Trumpeter when he came 
dashing through the bushes. * 

She knew he had come to look for her, however, and she 
turned back .home with the faithful old hound. Did she not 
owe it to his guardianship that she was allowed to run out- 
of-doors without an attendant? 

Nor did the nurses dream how much of her time was thus 
spent. Alyse thought that she was with Margot, and M argot 
believed her to be with Alyse ; and, with the curious reserve 
that children often show, Sylvie never once spoke of her com- 
panion to either. 

But at last the winter storms swept down from the moun- 
tains, and Sylvie was kept within doors. 

Once at church she had a delightful surprise. Looking up 
at the stained glass window, Sylvie saw Desir^e's face, with eyes 
fixed so earnestly on the Divine Child in th« Mother's arms, 
that she did not see Sylvie. An old oak stood outside, close 
beside the church window, and doubtless Desiree had climbed 
up by its branches. Once or twice again Sylvie saw Desir^e's 
light figure flit by, at the edge of the forest, but her face was 
thoughtful, and there was no mockery in her shining eyes. 

However, one day the sun shone out after a storm. Joseph- 
Marie, Margot's son, was going to the forest for the Yule log; 
would not P*tite, the little one, like to go with him ? Sylvie's 
feet and eyes danced together, and her tongue kept pace with 
both. It was but a rude vehicle to which the huge log was 
to be attached by strong chains, and it would be drawn by 
broad-backed Percheron draught-horses. The outfit was as 



5i8 In the Forest. [Jan., 

little fitted for lady's service as was good old Joseph- Marie 
himself, in his blue blouse and clinking sabots, but Sylvie 
heeded not. She went to the forest. 

Hardly had they started, when they suddenly halted. 
Joseph- Marie bared his head, and Sylvie bowed hers rever- 
ently. 

The passing bell was ringing — a tinkling melody, rippling 
in waves above yonder hills, the blessed bell which the peas- 
ants believed would protect the dying from evil spirits, and 
guide the rising soul on its right way. 

"Is it in Martain?" asked Sylvie, as they started once 
more. 

"No, no; P'tite ma'm'selle, Martain is too far. 'Tis from 
St. Martin's in old Belleme. Sound carries well to-day. Soon 
we'll hear our own Angelus from Belleme itself." 

Almost with his very words rang the sweet Angelus bells 
near by, and from old Belleme as well, and Sylvie fancied she 
could hear the Martain Angelus too, far, far away, but so 
sweet. Hardly had the noon prayer ended, when down came 
a shower of dry snow from the oak close by the road. 

Joseph-Marie looked up amazed. " Not a breath of wind," 
he muttered, but smiled when Sylvie's ringing laugh pealed 
forth. She knew whose roguish fingers had set the snow fly- 
ing ! Desir^e was gay again. Sylvie caught a glimpse of her 
in the branches above; and again, saw her tripping over the 
snow, pointing meriily where an empty nest hung, or a hole 
in a dead tree told of Master Woodpecker's work. 

Sylvie clapped her hands. " Next year I'll see where the 
little foxes play ! " she cried. " Oh, Joseph," she urged, 
" here's the log ! While you fasten it, put me down on the 
snow, and let me run a bit. Hear the fox calling." 

Sylvie knew it was Desiree's mimicry, but Joseph-Marie 
listened and was puzzled. However, he lifted Sylvie from her 
high perch, and then he stared with open eyes. She had dis- 
appeared among the white trees, and all around him, were little 
frogs peeping, big frogs croaking, just as they do over a 
marsh when the year begins to wake and stir. 

" My faith ! " exclaimed the old man, crossing himself 
devoutly. "Never, never did I hear the frogs in frozen forests; 
surely it is magic — and where is the little maid ? " 

He searched and searched, hearing sometimes mocking 



i9osO IN THE Forest. 519 

laughter, and again little spring voices, peep, peep, as if coming 
from the very ground. 

He fastened the log securely, for the Yule log was to be 
blessed by the church and, he thought, might be a defence. 
In his despair he thought of Trumpeter, and whistled, and sure 
enough the good old hound appeared. With him came Sylvie, 
but she was very cross, and she was striking the dog upon 
the head with a long, thorny bramble. 

Trumpeter remonstrated at last with a low, rumbling sound, 
which was hardly a growl ; but Joseph-Marie, alarmed, caught 
the bramble out of Sylvie's hand, and swung her up into her 
warm nest of wraps, brushing the snow from her feet and 
shoulders. 

Sylvie rebuked him rudely, and called him a stupid boor 
who knew nothing. She ordered him to drive home at once. 
He had no politeness, and she was tired; and she laughed, a 
hard little laugh, as the slow tears of age gathered in his pale 
blue eyes, because of her reproaches. Never had any one 
thus spoken to him before. He was the son of my lord's 
foster-brother and of Margot, my lord's nurse. He would have 
given his life without a murmur for one of the race, and 
his loyalty had been known and valued — until now 1 He hung 
his head in stupified, sorrowful silence. 

All at once they heard a voice singing a Christmas hymn. 
It came from a peasant who was carrying home fagots, and 
at whose side ran a child. The hymn led Sylvie to think of her 
own mother; for she had often heard her mother sing this very 
hymn, which told of how the Lord God had pitied the miserable 
and the poor and the comnon people; how he had chosen to 
be born among them ; and now Sylvie had despised these 
truths and had thought them unworthy and contemptible, be- 
cause Desir^e mocked ! Desiree did not know anything of love, 
poor Desiree ! 

Sylvie had a tender heart, and she began to sob : " Joseph- 
Marie 1" she cried, " Joseph-Marie I I was ungrateful to you, 
and wicked. Forgive me, Joseph- Marie ; I was a little beast 1 " 

It hurt the old man to hear his beloved P'tite blame her- 
self, and he tried to explain. " But, no, no ; ma'm'selle was 
cold and tired, and no doubt hungry. It is all right. Soon 
we will be at home," for the Percheron horses, remembering 
their warm stalls, were moving along briskly. 



520 In the Forest. [Jan., 

As they emerged from the forest, and the outer gates closed 
behind them, the old man asked timidly : '' Does ma'm'selle 
know that evil spirits are in the forests ? " 

" Oh, no " ; cried Sylvie with energy. " The forest is 
beautiful. Think of the purple tree-trunks and how the golden 
furze shines at their feet; even the fallen leaves are pretty, a 
soft, rosy brown ; and the earth smells so sweet, Joseph-Marie, 
and there are such stirs and rustlings; oh, everything there is 
beautiful." 

Old Joseph -Marie shook his head, and the many wrinkles 
on his face deepened. He had quarreled with Pierre, the goat- 
herd, because Pierre had said that he saw, deep in the forest, 
two children playing, one of whom was P'tite. It could not be, 
but Joseph's breast was filled now with vague alarms. 

"Yes"; he murmured, '* P'tite, strange things are there. 
Once I saw — by the setting moon — " 

"Oh, Joseph-Marie, what? Tell me what you saw?" 

But they had reached the house, and Alyse hurried out for 
her darling. 

"Come to-morrow, and Margot will mend, your blouse," 
Sylvie called back in her childish treble. "Come to morrow — 
surely — Joseph- Marie." The men came to help unfasten the 
Yule log. It was a noble log, indeed, and they hoped that 
their lord would see it blaze on the old hearth. 

" Desiree, Desir^e ! " cried the castle child in rapture, enter- 
ing the long picture gallery a few days later, as she eagerly 
ran towards the pretty figure, half hidden among the ever- 
green boughs. 

How they danced under the old portraits of the ancient 
lords and ladies of Belleme, some in armor, some in ruffs and 
brocades, frowning haughtily, or smiling languidly, from their 
splendid frames, as these two small figures pirouetted and 
stepped gracefully to an old air that Desiree hummed, a quaint, 
merry air, with many swift changes ! 

Then they played hide-and-seek, in which game Desiree so 
far excelled that Sylvie cried out, laughing, for another dance; 
but she suddenly paused. " I hear — footsteps — on the stair- 
way. They are coming here. Ah, now they shall see you, 
Desiree! " 

But no; when the cur^ opened the door, followed respect- 



1905.] In the Forest, 521 

fully by Alyse, and Sylvic ran joyfully to greet the kind old 
man, and receive his blessing, Desir^e had disappeared. 

" Father," she had exclaimed, " I want to show you — " but 
as she looked around there was no one — not a stir of the 
green branches, not a sign ; . Sylvie understood, and ended 
quickly with — ' this new dance," and she hummed the air 
that had been on Desir^e's lips, and showed a step or two. 

"You must have a light heart, my child, to dance alone''; 
and the old cur^ smiled, but suddenly a troubled look crossed 
his face. 

^^Kfuw air? But, my little one, you cannot read music. 
No; impossible — " and he glanced at the baby face and di- 
minutive ^gure; "and no one has been here?" His eyes 
sought those of Alyse. 

" No one," she answered respectfully, " has entered these 
doors since — " 

'' Ah, well, well, I forget I grow old ; but, my daughter, 
I saw that air last written on paper yellow with age — here it 
is, if vay old eyes do not play me false," and he examined 
the portrait of Sir Guy, the happy boy with the pipes in his 
hand. On the side of the portrait was a half-open scroll with 
some musical notes. "The same, I am sure; but I never 
noticed that it was inscribed there too." 

At the same moment, the air sounded through the gallery, 
so silvery, so fine, so delicate, so full of airy mirth, that each 
listener smiled as he or she held the breath to listen — all be- 
lieving it Sylvie's voice, except Sylvie, who knew it was 
Desir^e's. 

"You have a true ear, my child," nodded the curd with 
delight, as the silvery music ceased ; " but I am forgetting 
the letter; a letter full of good news, my daughter, from your 
mother. It was for that I braved the rude wind this cloudy 
day"; and he took out the precious sheet, and went nearer 
to the light. 

Sylvie's cheeks burned, her feet could hardly keep still, 
her eyes danced with eagerness. " Father," she exclaimed 
suddenly, " my father's nurse, Margot, would be so glad to 
hear this letter. May I bring her? She loves us well." 

"It is a kind thought, my daughter. Go, and I will try 
to get my breath again. The wind was rough." 

VOL. LXXX. — 34 



522 IN THE FOREST. [Jan., 

The cur^ was weary; so weary that when Sylvie had gone, 
and Alyse with her, he lost himself in a sort of reverie. Sud- 
denly he heard a timid voice behind him asking: "Father, is 
this love — the service of love — the best thing ? " 

"The best thing/* he replied earnestly, "and blessed are 
they who — " but he was interrupted by a clacking of sabots 
and the noise of a cane and a great shuffling outside, and in came 
the old hound first, and Sylvie leading her nurse, and Joseph- 
Marie, looking as old as his mother, but radiant over the 
privilege bestowed upon him of hearing his lady's own words. 

The letter was full of thankfulness for her lord's recovery, 
and her joy in brihging him to Belleme for the blessed Christ- 
mas feast. She added that the three orphaned children of my 
lord's sister, for whom he was now sole guardian, would 
accompany them. The daughter was but two years old, but 
the twin boys were of Sylvie's age, and would be as brothers 
to her own little daughter, who had been so much alone. 

Sylvie was overcome with expectant happiness during the 
next few days, which were to bring to her Yuletide, her be- 
loved mother, her . father, and the two new strange brothers. 
She did not miss Desir^e, but she loyally included her in all 
her dreams of spring games in the old forest. 

Sylvie never heeded the anxious queries of the women 
about the road from Martain, the bridges, and the fallen trees. 
She only remembered that to-morrow would be Christmas Eve, 
and her mother would watch with her the blaze of the old oak 
in the wide chimney. 

But Desir^e knew the danger. She had laughed as the 
bridge had been whirled from its base, and many a boat 
crushed like an egg-shell in the foaming current. Man's work 
against the storm — how unavailing! J)esir^e knew well whose 
coach entered the forest. Again and again had it seemed as 
if the wind from very malice would block its way with fallen 
boughs. If that coach and its occupants perished, naught was 
left for Sylvie but the forest. Its spell then would be strong 
upon her soul, and Desiree had been lonely so long! 

"The gust sounds like wicked laughter," said a woman's 
voice withiri the coach. "Give me the babe, nurse. I will 
not heed the wind*s mocking tones when I hold the little one 
on my breast." 



1905.] Gratitude. 523 

A softy low, cooing sound, '' as if love spake with a tongue" ; 
a huge tree rocked above them — ^barely did they escape being 
crushed beneath its weight. 

" Pierre," called a man's voice, " Mind you take the upper 
fork of the road soon. My God, if the bridge be gone, and 
we follow the lower road, we will perish ! " 

" It grows strangely light," said Pierre. " I see a glimmer, 
as of a white robe. Good horses, they take the upper road of 
their own will ! " 

No one had remarked that ju^t as the far-dff elfin laughter 
died, and the horses paused, there had been the same soft, 
exquisite cooing, the 'dearest utterance of infaiicy ! Love had 
conquered then ! 

The next day the carols rang out, NoH^ Noel! The smoke 
rose from every fire in cabin and hall; and in the gatekeep- 
er's lodge the old granddaitie warmed on her breast a new- 
born babe — a little human soul born to poverty and lowliness, 
but also to love, earthly and eternal! 



GRATITUDE. 

BY JOHN MARYSON. 

The lordly sun looked kindly on a wave^ 
A tiny wave that tan upon the sea; 

And, lo ! the wavelet brake with joy, and gave 
A very shower of grateful brilliancy, 

A thousand timid sparkles, every one 

An image of the sun ! 



Current Events^ 



' Of the many movements for the 

International Arbitration, improvement of the present con- 
dition of the world, moral, eco- 
nomical, and political, the movement for the promotion of Inter- 
national Arbitration has of late been the most successful. 
Twenty-five years ago its promoters were looked upon as 
well-meaning, but altogether impracticable enthusiasts. When, 
in 1888, the representatives of the Society came from England 
and were granted an audience by the President, he received 
them indeed with courtesy, and addressed to them appropriate' 
platitudes; immediately afterwards, however, he proceeded 
to an inspection of the National Arsenal. This was generally 
taken as a clear intimation of the degree of trust reposed by 
him in their proposals. The fate of the arbitration treaty, subse- 
quently negotiated between the United States and Great 
Britain, told the same tale. But the past eighteen months have 
proved that among those who have sown in tears, to reap 
afterwards with joy, are to be ranked the promoters of Inter- 
national Arbitration. 

No less than twenty-five treaties of arbitration have been 
made between various powers greater and less, and a few 
weeks ago Mr. Choate informed Lord Lansdowne that the 
United States was prepared to enter upon negotiations for the 
making of a treaty with Great Britain. 

The Foreign Secretary of Great Britain, speaking at the 
Guildhall banquet, on which occasion the government is ac- 
customed to give an indication of its policy in the immediate 
future, gave in his adhesion without reserve to the principle 
of settling disputes by arbitration, and spoke of war as a clumsy 
and brutal method of settling differences. Our own Secretary 
of State, Mr. Hay, recently declared war to be the most futile 
and the most ferocious of human follies. 

These opinions as to war are, it is true, not universally 
accepted. Count Moltke has written : " War is sacred. . . . 
It upholds the great and noble sentiments among men — honor, 
disinterestedness, virtue, courage, and, in a word, prevents 
them from falling into dreadful materialism. The world with- 



1905.] Current Events. 525 

out war is not conceivable ; if it were, it wouljl be far from a 
beautiful dream." And, to descend from a sublime authority 
to an almost ridiculous one, we have a certain Dr. Miller 
Maguire declaring, at a recent meeting of an army institution, 
Mr. Hay's condemnation of war an unbelievable statement, and 
Lord Landsdowne's speech futile and silly, enough to make 
him, Dr. Miller Maguire, sick for a week. While it is true 
that luxury, effeminacy, and political chicanery are worse than 
war, it is not at all necessary that these evils should be the 
offspring of peace. War is a judgment of God in punishment 
of wrong-doing and injustice. Peace is the work of justice. 
Holy Scripture declares, and, improbable as we may think 
any great progress of the human race to be, it is the duty of 
Catholics, upon whom the well-being of the universe depends, 
to foster and encourage everything which makes for progress, 
and to welcome every sign of it. 

The recent Convention made between England and France 
is another indication of the same spirit of conciliation which 
is shown by the arbitration treaties, of that spirit which is 
ready to make mutual sacrifices in order to remove difficulties. 
This Convention was made several months ago, and it would 
be out of place to describe it particularly. And perhaps 
it is more valuable for what it indicates than for itself; for it 
is a step towards the formation of a friendship which must be 
fruitful for good in many ways. In fact, there cannot be any 
reasonable doubt that it has already been the means of avert- 
ing, or at least of postponing, a terrible war between England 
and Russia. In both countries there are strong war parties, 
anxious to bring on a struggle, and willing to use any means 
to effect their purpose, and to avail themselves of every mis- 
understanding. France, on this occasion, stepped in as an 
intermediary and found the way of settling the dispute. This 
was done by adopting one of the provisions settled at the 
Hague Conference held in 1899. This again has strengthened 
the peace party's hopes in every country. The Conference at 
the Hague was looked upon by many as an amiable aspiration, 
a merely academical project, sure to be of no practical con- 
sequences. The scoffers and pessimists treated it with undis- 
guised contempt. But the five years which have elapsed since 
its meeting have proved that pessimists cannot, as they claim, 
have even the poor glory of seeing things as they are. 



536 Current Events. [Jan., 

The Hague Conference ba^ already been the means of set* 
tling the Venezuela question, and now it has proved a means 
of preventing what would otherwise have been a terrible inter- 
national struggle. 

If to the Emperor of Russia the credit is due of initiating 
this method of effecting peace, to the President of the United 
States will, we hope, be due the credit of the extension and 
confirmation of its labors. Certain questions were left un- 
settled on the adjournment of the Conference, questions of a 
more or less technical character. For the settlement of these 
Mr. Hay has issued a letter to the powers proposing a second 
Conference. 

To this proposal several powers have already responded, 
and there is but little doubt that, sooner or later, it will reas- 
semble- Although not mentioned in Mr, Hay's letter, there 
are hopes that on its reassembling the question of the disarma- 
ment of the great European nations may be settled, or at 
least discussed, and that it may result in Europe being no 
longer, as it so long has been, an armed camp, and that its 
people may be left to devote themselves to the pursuits of 

civilized life. 

Although the initiation of this movement is due to Russia, 
and its furtherance more especially to France and England, 
this country is now well to the front, owing to the Conferences 
at St. Louis and Boston, and to the action of the President 

Of all European countries at the 
Reforms in Russia. present time the Russian empire 

deserves the closest study ; not 
merely on account of the war which is being carried on with 
jupan — although it, and still more the results of it, will be of 
ih«s gravest moment both to the combatants themselves and to 
lite world at large — but especially on account of the efforts 
wtii'h are now being made for the attainment of constitutional 
«rly. 



While the rest of the civilized world has been making more 
hf l^oA close approximation to self-government, while in them 
Mi« (lower of the ruler has been greatly limited, in theory 
Ml ^11 t:vents, the Russian Emperor's absolute rule over tens of 
^ffilM/iHS of men has not been diminished. On the contrary, 
hii nolo will has, within the past year, been more actively 



igos.] Current Evevts. 527 

exerted in the restriction of rights previously recogpized and 
solemnly guaranteed. Of this the Russification of Finland has 
been but one instance, and the arbitrary regime of M. de 
Plehve another. For both a remedy h^s been sought in assassi- 
nation ; and in the second case, at least, has been, to a certain 
extent, found. The newly appointed Minister of the Interior, 
Prince Svietopolk-Mirski, holds opinions quite opposed to those 
of his predecessor; and the presumption is that he has been 
appointed for this reason. He has declared that he will guide 
his conduct by a trvie and broad liberalisip; in so far, however, 
as that liberalism is not of a nature to change the established 
order of things — a qualification which seems to nullify, in a 
large degree, his proposals. He declares biniself a determined 
advocate of decentralization. All questions ought not to be 
referred to St. Petersburg. To the Zcmsivos, that is the pro- 
vincial and district assemblies elected for the purposes of dealing 
with local affairs, are to be given the largest possible powers 
for the regulation of these affairs, in accordance^wi^ the wishes 
of the people, in all things affecting schools, local affairs, and 
railways. The prince proposes to do this, not as leading to 
the establishment of a. Parliamentary regime y butJn order to 
avoid it. In common with ~ nxrt- a f ew pol^tieal observers of 
the present time, the proceedings of the already established 
Parliaments do not commend themselves to those who seek the 
well-being of the commonwealth. 

The prince rejects also any idea of the appointment of 
ministers in any way responsible to the people, or in any way 
dependent upon them; it is upon the Tsar alone, the sovereign 
by the grace of God, that they are to be dependent. This is, 
of course, the theory oi autocratic governments, and as a theory 
is ideally perfect ; but in practice it works very badly, especially 
in Russia and at the present time. It is edifying in this age, 
from which reverence for authority seems to have departed, 
to hear the Tsar addressed by his ministers as august and 
sacred, and to listen to the expressions of profound respect 
and submission. But, as a matter of fact, this is, to a very 
large extent, lip-service and self-seeking. In no civilized coun- 
try is there more self-will on the part of subordinates, more 
confusion and disunion even in government circles. There is 
but little doubt that the Tsar was opposed to the war with 
Japan, and that he wrote a letter which, if it had been promptly 



528 Current Events, [Jan., 

• 

obeyed, would have prevented the war. In the recent con- 
troversy with England, the Foreign Office and the Admiralty 
were so opposed, one to the other, that no information could 
be obtained by the Foreign Office from the Admiralty. So 
great is the want of harmony between the various departments 
that the new war loan, to be issued in Germany, is said to 
have been negotiated without the knowledge of the Russian 
Minister of Finance. 

There is, however, no doubt that the absolute rule of one 
single individual is the weakest and least beneficial of all forms 
of government; it is also evident that, in proportion as the 
influence of the church and of Christianity becomes greater, 
that rule tends to disappear. At the present time, at all events, 
it is in the Catholic countries that the authority of the crown 
is most strictly limited. England may appear to be an ex- 
ception ; but the principles of the English Constitution were 
laid in Catholic times. The_jchurch, by her very existence^ is 
the destroyer of tyranny the world over. 

The divisions and dissensions between the various Russian 
departments have only been accentuated by the appointment 
of the new Minister of the Interior. An advocate of pro- 
gress, such as the prince openly declares himself to be, he has 
met with such determined opposition that he has already 
^ given in his resignation. It has not yet been accepted; 
time only will show how long he will be able to hold his 
ground. Perhaps, however, his worst enemies are his would- 
.be friends. Changes and reforms, if they are to come, must 
be gradual ; any sudden change will be as suddenly reversed. 
' One thing at a time is all that a man, or still more a nation, 
can do. For this reason the proceedings of members of vari- 
ous Zemstvos seem to be premature. Elaborate programmes 
have been drawn up by the members of several of these 
bodies. These programmes comprise a constitution giving the 
people elective representatives with legislative fights, com- 
plete liberty of conscience, of the press, of association, and of 
meeting; the participation of the people in public affairs, the 
representation of the people in the Zemstvos without distinc- 
tion of classes, and various othei concessions. All and each 
of these proposals are undoubtedly good, but to demand them 
all at once increases the number of the opponents in direct 
ratio to the number of the demands. ' 



1905.] Current Events. 529 

If, however, the statement is true that the inenibers of the 
Zemstvos^ in making these proposals, have done so at the re- 
quest of the Emperor, with a view to their being presented 
to him, the prospect of a practical outcome is more hopeful, 
especially as the bitter opponents of all change have resigned 
— those who look upon the peasantry as, in their own words, 
*^ of no more account than so many fleas on the body of a 
dog." 

It is due to the new Minister of the Interior that any 
exercise, even of power of talking, has been accorded to the 
Zemstvos. M. De Plehve's policy was to curtail their powers, 
and to bring them under stricter control; in one province he 
had suppressed them. It is to be hoped ibat they will act 
with great prudence, and thus become the means -of the re- 
striction and ultimate abolition of that personal bureaucratic 
rale which is next door to anarchy. Their existence is due to 
Alexander II., and they were founded in 1864 as part of the 
reforms instituted by that emperor. They were at first re- 
garded as destined to receive further powers ; on the con- 
trary their powers have been curtailed. In 1 880-1 a general 
revision took place, and in 1890 the franchise was raised 
and the number of peasant deputies reduced. Better days, 
however, seem now to be at hand. 

Events in Germany offer but lit- 
Germany. tie subject upon which to com- 

ment. The personality of the 
Emperor is more predominant than in any other country of 
Europe, but he is held in pretty strict bonds by the Consti- 
tution and by his brother-sovereigns of the empire. He has 
been guilty of only one indiscretion of late, that of a threat- 
ened interference in the Lippe-Detmold succession ; the tact 
of the Chancellor of the empire, however, prevented the con- 
sequences from being serious. The Imperial Chancellor is not 
in any way the man of blood and iron which the first Chan- 
cellor was willing to be thought. His ideal of the German 
empire is that it should be based on the concord of '))rinces 
and peoples, that it should assure to small and great the 
measure of their rights according to the law and constitution, 
that it should suc^r tlie weak, safeguard the growth of 
domestic prosperity and order, and offer a free opening to 



530 Current Events. [Jan., 

honest labor. Even the fleet., for tbe strengthenicg of which 
so many efforts are being devoted a^d ^acrific^s made, is not, 
as many in England would think, meant as a challenge to 
any one. The German empire takes its stand among the 
friends of peace all the world over. It has no wish to deter- 
mine the course of the destinies of the world. Such are the 
Chancellor's ideas; and they forma striking contrast to certaiR 
utterances of the Emperor, such as " The trident ought to be 
in our iist"; "Up and at them with our mailed fist"; "noth- 
ing can qow be decided^ on the sea or in distant lands beyond 
the sea, without Germany or the German Emperor " ; " May 
the "Gern^an empire in future times become as powerful, as 
firmly united, and as authoritative as was the Roman empire." 
Whether the ideals of the Chancellor or those of the Em- 
peror are the truer representatives of those of the German 
people is not, at the present moment, ascertainable. In the 
meantime the Emperor i$ doing all that is compatible with the 
most benevolent of neutralities to help Russia in her struggle 
with Japan ; and when the war comes to an end he undoubt- 
edly will have something to say in the settlement of the tern^s 
of peace. Rumor says that he aspires to the restoration of the 
Holy Roman Empire, of which empire he is to be the supreme 
head. To obtain this, Protestant though he is, he looks to the 
Sovereign Pontiff, and for this reason it is that he has of late 
been so deferential to his Holiness. To the United States, too, 
he has been trying to make himself acceptable, by the present 
'of the statue of Frederick the Great, recently accepted with 
much ceremony by the President at Washinton. How far his 
efforts have been successful we must leave to the judgment of 
others better informed. 

While all lovers of progress, and 
Austria. of the well-being of Russia, wish 

for the success of the efforts that 
are being made for the attainment of a measure of self- 
government in that country, the achievements and performances 
of the Parliaments, both of Austria and of Hungary, prevent 
them from unalloyed satisfaction with the use made of the lib- 
erty attained. In fact the Austrian Reichsrath, like the legis- 
lative bodies of all the countries on the continent which have 
parliaments, is suffering from the factious spirit, due to that 



199$.] Current Events. 531 

tx^!ggtT^Xtd nationalism, which is now so widely dominant. 
These bodies are not, as in this country and in Credit Britain, 
divided int:o two great parties, one in power and one in oppo- 
sition, but into many small parties. The government, existing 
by dexterous manipulation of a sufficient number of these fac- 
tions to form a majority, makes concessions for this purpose. 
It is not reason which prevails ; in fact it is something akin to 
brute force; and were it not for the Emergency Clause in the 
Consticution of Austria, which enables the Emperor to govern 
at bis will in certain defined cases, the country would have 
reverted to chaps. Germans are at war with Czechs, an(} 
within the ranks of each are divisions and sub-divisions. Eigh- 
teen months ago a poalition of the German parties was sol- 
emnly formed to give support to Dr. von Korber, the Pre* 
mier. German radicals united with the German Constitutional 
party, Christian Socialistic, Anti-Semites, and German Progres- 
sives banded together. The coalition has, however, been brought 
to an end by the disturbances which have recently taken place 
at Innsbruck, and the German Radicals have determined to go 
into ppposition. These disturbances at Innsbruck show to what 
lengths the national spirit exists in the Empire of Austria. 

The Italians in the empire have long desired to have a 
university. To this the government have not yet acceded, but 
they instituted, at the University of Innsbruck, lectures for 
Italian law students alongside of the lectures for German stu- 
dent^. The German students regarded this as an encroachment 
on their rights. They would not tolerate the innovation. 
They attacked a meeting which was being held by the Italian 
students. The Italians defended themselves with revolvers ; 
nine or ten Germans were wounded and one killed ; in return 
the Germans demolished a hotel and thrashed all the Italians 
they could catch. This is an illustration of the antagonism 
which exists between the various nationalities of \vhich the 
Austrian empire is made up, and which penetrates into the 
Reichsrath. On the opening of the Reichsrath the Premier 
was greeted with cries of " Pfui Korber/' by Germans who 
object to concessions recently made to the Czechs. The crown 
itself is not spared. By one member the Hapsburgs were de- 
scribed as the ruin of Austria, and individual members of the 
imperial family were assailed in terms of incredible vulgarity. 
In fact, the language used by some members was so coarse. 



532 Current Events. [Jan., 

and the sentiments given utterance to so treasonable, as to 
disgust all who are not convinced that, bad as some parlia- 
ments may be, they are better than personal autocratic rule. 

The growth of the personal power of monarchs within the 
last few years is one of the significant signs of our times. It 
is well known, and is an established fact that such unity as the 
Austrian empire possesses is due to the respect and reverence 
paid to the wisdom of its Emperor. His personal influence is 
the strongest, almost the only dominating force. In England, 
too, the personal influence of the King has made itself felt in 
a remarkable way, not in internal affairs — for there it would 
not be tolerated — but in international relations. There is no 
doubt that the recent rapprochement between France and Eng- 
land, the effects of which have already made themselves so 
widely felt, was due to the visit paid by him to France. That 
this personal influence of the king will grow in England itself, 
so that Edward VII. should govern as well as reign in the 
same way as George III., is not to be expected; although 
there is no manner of doubt that the Parliament is losing in a 
large degree the respect in which it was once held. This is due 
to its inability to do useful work ; the desire of members to 
speak is so great that laws cannot be made. It is quite cer- 
tain, too, that the power of the crown, as represented by the 
cabinet, is growing at the expense of the Parliament as a 
whole, and that it is impossible for anything to be done if the 
cabinet is unwilling ; but as the cabinet represents rather the 
majority of the people than the royal authority, the fact of 
the increase of its power does not indicate the growth of the 
king's power; he in fact is bound to defer to it. 

If obstruction has been the cause of great difficulties in 
Austria, in the other half of the dual monarchy it has brought 
the machinery of government almost to a standstill, and this 
not for a few weeks or months, but for nearly two years — 
from October, 1902, until March, 1904. The present Hungarian 
Premier, Count Stephen Tisza, regarding, and it would seem 
Justly, this practice of deliberate obstruction, which is rendered 
possible by the existing standing orders, as perilous to the 
national life, has determined to strike a decisive blow and to 
revise the standing orders which * render it possible for an 
insignificant minority to rule by means of wanton obstruc- 
tion. 



1 90S.] Current Events. 533 

His proposals have met with the most determined opposi- 
tion. All of the various factions of which the Hungarian Far- 
liamenty like those of most other continental countries, is com- 
posed have banded together in defence of what they term the 
liberties of the Parliament. The Banffy, or New pafty, the 
Independence party, the Clerical Independents, the Clerical or 
People's party, and the National or Apponyi party, have all 
united and have declared that they will not recognize the 
decision of the majority as of any validity, and will treat it 
as non-existent, inasmuch as, according to them, it will be a 
breach of the Constitution. Count Tisza, however, undeterred 
by this opposition, introduced his motion in the midst of great 
tumult. His opponents made a rush in order to drive the 
president of the chamber from the chair; liberal deputies ad- 
vanced in his defence ; inkstands were thrown ; books were 
hurled ; chairs swung ; until the house somewhat resembled a 
battlefield. Count Tisza's proposal having been carried, the 
president declared the session closed. The minority have pre- 
pared a manifesto to the king in which they declare that the 
premier and the president have laid sacrilegious hands upon 
the guarantees of that Constitution which is the only founda- 
tion of his majesty's royal power, the inviolability of which he 
had sworn to respect. They went so far as to say that it had 
been done in a way and under circumstances which, if unre- 
dressed, would affect his majesty's royal repute. A bitter con- 
flict is being waged; whether the count will be supported by 
the crown in the struggle is not yet known. He has been 
abandoned by many distinguished members of his own party, 
including Count Julius Andrassy and a former premier, M. 
Koloman de Szell. Count Tisza, however, is a manly man 
and will fight to the end. 

The reforms in Macedonia, which 
Macedonia. the governments of Russia and 

Austria demanded of Turkey, are 
being carried out in a very perfunctory way. The friends of 
Macedonia, and those who hope that the Christians dwelling 
therein may soon be delivered from the degrading tyranny of 
the Turk, are waiting patiently in the hope, although it is a 
small one, that some good may be the outcome. The families 
who were ruined during the outbreak last year have been 



5 J4 Current Events. [Jan., 

helped by benevoletit offerings ; a great deal, however, remains 
to be done. 

The most pitiable and the shameful part of the whole 
Macedonian question is that the Christians living in this region 
seem to hate one another ttiore than they do their common 
oppressor. The hand of the Greek is against the Bulgarian, 
and that of the Serb against both. Whether the recent visit 
of the King of Servia to Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria will 
bring about greater unity it is hard to say. The exaggeration 
of national feeling is working evil here as in so many other 
parts of the world. 

« 

Italy has recently passed through 
The Italian Elections. a somewhat serious crisis. The 

general elections have been held 
and the question involved nothing less than the subversion of 
the Constitution. The Socialists have become a power in the 
kingdom, owing to the oppressive taxation which has followed 
upon the establishment of the kingdom and the policy adopted 
by its rulers. The Triple Alliance and the maintenance of a 
large army, necessitated by this alliance, have made the peo* 
pie groan under the burdens imposed, and they long in mimy 
places for the old regime. Like the rest of the continental 
parliaments the parties are so numerous as rather to be fac«- 
tiond than parties. Signor Giolitti, the present premier, is 
himself a member of the Left, but to the depths there are 
lower depths, and his opponents also of the Left are divided 
into some three or four divisions, and these into sub- divisions. 
The extreme Left, to give merely the genera, consists of Radi* 
cats, Republicans, and Socialists. Such is the state of the Par- 
liament. The state of the country, after thirty-four years of 
the present rigime^ may ^ be given in Signor Giolitti's own 
words : '' The country is profoundly disturbed by disorders, 
artificially produced without any reason; and this created a 
state of things which hardly allowed the Chamber of Deputies 
to discuss with any serenity matters of vital importance to 
the country." He has learned by experience the wisdom of 
the church's teaching, and finds it necessary, for the sake of 
liberty itself to promise to take energetic action for the coer- 
cion of his opponents. The result of the election has been to 
vindicate his policy. The extreme party has been defeated. 



i9o^] Current Mv£^ts. 533 

This result is due tb the fear inspired by th6 strike which 
took place last September. The promoter^ of this strike, and 
of the wide-spread disorderly by Which it Was attended, were 
the Socialists, and it was supported by thetti as a manifesta- 
tion of hostility to the monarchy. Signof Giolitti's own pro- 
gramme embraces what would be considered in this country a 
socialistic proposal — the nationalization of the railways, there- 
by placing them under the control of the state. 

The part taken by Catholics in the elections is not quite 
clear. The Germanid, the organ of the Catholic party in the 
German Parliament, announced that the Pope had empowered 
the bishops in special cases to allow Catholics to take part in 
the elections. This was very improbable on the face of it, 
and was denied by the Osservatore Romano; the tton expedit 
was declared to be in full force. No solemn official declara- 
tion, however, was made to that effect, and it seems clear 
that in a few places there were Catholics who voted, arid in 
one or two places they seem to have exercised a decisive influ- 
ence on the side of order. In the flnal result the Socialists 
have lost three seats in the new Parliameht, and the extreme 
Left, as a whole, has been reduced in number to ninety-one, 
losing sixteen seats. 

With reference to foreign countries, the relations of Italy 
to ally even to France, are now cordial. There is, however, 
one exception — Austria. There is no doubt that beneath the 
surface there are questions which may prove serious in the 
immediate future, and which may lead to a conflict. The 
riots which lately took place at Innsbruck, have not con- 
tributed to a satisfactory solution. 

Of the political events which have 
France tod the Chutch. recently taken place on the con- 
tinent, those of which the French 
Parliament has been the scene are the most interesti<)g to 
Catholics. In the French Premier the church has, at all 
events, an open enemy ; he does not conceal either in word 
or deed his animosity; he is, and glories in being, an em- 
bodiment of the spirit of the age. He expelled the religious 
orders, as he himself declared, because they were opposed to 
that spirit. France, even in protecting the Christians in the 
East, was not inspired by Christian ideas; she was acting in 



536 Current Events. [Jan., 

obedience to the maxims of a more humane, a loftier, and a 
more liberal philosophy. 

The embodiment of these loftier ideals is the state ; it no 
longer requires the help of the church. He has, accordingly, 
introduced the long expected bill for the separation of church 
and state. Such is its avowed object, but it should rather be 
looked upon as a bill for the subjection of the church to the 
state. It provides for the complete suppression of every kind of 
public expenditure for the church, and after two years deflrives 
her of the gratuitous use of all the cathedrals, churches, s€ie- 
inaries, and residences of bishops and priests. The bill gives 
power to lease these buildings to associations to be formed for 
the exercise of religion on the payment of rent; reserves to 
the state the right to inspect all books, and to inquire into all 
accounts ; it forbids placing any religious sign or emblem on 
any public buildings ; and inflicts fines and imprisonment upon 
any minister of religion who shall say or do anything which 
may be construed as an insult to or a slander of a member of the 
government or of the chambers, or of a public authority, or 
who shall try to influence the vote of electors, or to deter- 
mine them to vote or to abstain from voting. All churches 
or other buildings, which may be considered as not needed by 
the church, may be leased by the state to other religious 
bodies or put to secular uses. 

Such are the proposals dictated by the spirit of the age 
and the tender mercies of those imbued with it. The bill has 
been referred to a committee, and is now under its considera- 
tion. 

Another opportunity of studying the spirit of the age, of 
which M. Combes and his ministry are the embodiment, has been 
presented by the series of events which have led to the fall of 
General Andre, and almost to the destruction of the ministry 
of M. Combes. They form a useful object-lesson of what the 
so much vaunted liberty means in reality. It has been proved 
by documentary evidence, which is undeniable and no longer 
denied, that ever since General Andr^ has been in power all 
promotions in the army have been subject to and ruled by a 
detestable system of delation ; officers have been watched and 
watched by Freemasons, and not once in a while but regu- 
larly and systematically. Espionage of the most odious kind 
has reigned supreme. Within the army the most zealous in- 



1905.] Current Events. 537 

former has been the most sure of promotion. Nor has this 
odious system been confined to the army. The Freemasons 
by means of their organization kept the authorities informed 
as to the doings of their victims in civil life ; whether he went 
to Mass or not ; or eveii whether his wife went ; to what 
newspaper he subscribed; to whom he entrusted the education 
of his children. These and similar proceedings were made so 
clear that even the assembly, which has so long been domi- 
nated by M. Combes, almost passed sentence of condemnation 
upon him. The ministry was saved by only four votes; and 
had it not been for the foolish action of a certain M. Syveton, 
who in the midst of the assembled members struck General 
Andr6 two blows in the face as a mark of contempt, the min- 
istry might have fallen. It has been saved by the folly of its 
foes rather than by its own virtues. The feeling excited by 
the revelations of his subserviency to Freemasonry, and the 
hateful consequences of that subserviency, has forced General 
Andr^ to resign. His place has been taken by a stockbroker. 
Whether, after France has learned by this example what state 
domination means, she will be ready to place the church be- 
neath that domination, is what remains to be seen. 



▼ou Lxxx.— 35 



flew Books. 



Montalembert's great Life of St, 
ST. ELIZABETH, Elizabeth"^ has been put into 

By Motttalembert. English by Mr. Francis D. 4foyt, 

and our spiritual and historical 
literature is thereby genuinely enriched. There is much in 
this work of Montalembert's own heart and soul : his poetic 
love for the Middle Ages, his knightly loyalty to the church, 
his scrupulous honor to verify every statement, and his noble 
zeal to present to the modern world a defense and apologia of 
Catholicity. Listen to these words of the Introduction to this 
book, wherein Montalembert utters the hope that is in him for 
the return of the world to the church, its abandoned mother : 
'' And yet I firmly believe the day will come when humanity 
will demand its release from the dreary waste in which it has 
been enthralled; it will ask to hear again the songs of its 
infancy; it will long to breathe again the perfumes of its 
youth; to present its thirsty lips at the breast of its mother^ 
that it may taste again before death that milk, so sweet and 
pure, which nourished its infancy. And the prison doors of 
that mother will be broken by the shock of so many suffering 
souls ; she will come forth more beautiful, more powerful, more 
merciful than ever. It will no longer be the naive and fresh 
beauty of her young years, after the painful labors of the 
first centuries ; but rather the grave and saintly beauty of a 
courageous woman, who has r^ad again the history of the mar- 
tyrs and confessors, and has added thereto her own page. In 
her eyes will be discerned the trace of tears, on her brow the 
furrows wrought by her sufferings; but because of these she 
will appear only the more worthy of the homage and vene- 
ration of those who, like her, have suffered." 

The Life of St. Elizabeth did great good when it first ap 
peared in France. We trust that a similar fortune will attend 
this English translation. 

• The Life of SL Elizabeth. By the Count de Montalembert. Translated by Francis 
Deming Hoyt. New York : Longmans, Green & Co. 



igos.] NEW BOOKS. 539 

We have received the second 
A SUMMA OF PHILOSOPHY, volume of the philosophical course 

now issuing from Mount Melleray,* 
and find in it the same good points for which we recently 
commended the volume on "Logic." The subject-matter of 
the present manual is " Cosmology and Psychology." The 
author or authors of this Summula deserve praise for their 
effort to bring their work into contact with the thought of 
modern times. The extensive footnotes often in English, 
though the language of the book is Latin, which give the 
opinions of men in close touch with the intellectual needs o| 
the hour, are a refreshing and helpful innovation which wc 
trust will be imitated by other scholastic authors. A most 
agreeable gleam of modernity too shines out from the chapter 
" De terrae nostras efformatione." There the nebular hypothesis, 
with the consequent evolution of the inorganic world, is dis^ 
tinctly maintained; and a citation from Bonney is given with 
approval, to the effect that our* earth must be about one 
hundred million years old. Not only that, but the theory that 
God created, talia qualia^ the fossil remains in the earth's 
strata is mildly discountenanced. The epithet "absurd," dear 
to the schola^ might well have been used in rejecting this decay- 
ing opinion rather than as designating certain other conclu- 
sions on which our author has fastened it. 

As to evolution, the question is put : " Is organic evolution 
opposed to faith ? " So far as materialistic evolution is con- 
cerned, which denies Creation and Providence, of course the 
answer is affirmative. But what of evolution which admits 
Creation and Providence? "C<^«/r^«/^r/rV«r"/ answers our author. 
With all respect, we would suggest that the controversy is 
over. It is impossible to hold any longer, and furthermore, it 
is of utmost injury to religion to pretend to hold, that moderate 
evolution is opposed to faith. It is not opposed to faith ; and 
thousands of loyal Catholics are evolutionists. As for the old 
notion of Lamy and Urraburn that Genesis disproves evolution, 
the whole thinking world is aware by this time that Genesis, 
apart from the affirmation that God is Creator, says nothing at 
all about the question one way or the other. Genesis pictorially 

* Summula Philosophia Scholasiica in Usum AdoUscentium Seminarii B. Maria de Monta 
Miliaria CoucinHota, Vol. II. Cosmologia et Psychologia. Dublinii: Apud Browne c( 
Nolan. 



S40 NEW BOOKS. [Jan., 

states the doctrine that God created the universe. That is a 
dogma of faith. Genesis is not a treatise on geology. We 
must express our regret that this manual, in many points the 
best that we possess, has left the impression that every theory 
of organic evolution is doctrinally unsound. 

Professor Bacon's work on St. 

THE STORY OF ST. PAUL. Paul,* although intended for popvi- 

By Bacon. jar reading, is less a life of the 

great Apostle than a critical in- 
quiry into the disputes and controversies connected with his life. 
It is a popularization of the higher criticism of the Acts of the 
Apostles and of the Epistles, almost as much as a biography 
properly so-called. It summarizes the biographical material for 
St. Paul's life, it is true, and has a suggestive chapter on the 
formative influences in the ApDstle's education and character; 
but still it is predominantly an essay in criticism. Professor 
Bacon, in this as in his other works, shows himself an adherent 
of the more advanced critical views, although his tone is rever- 
ent, and his hold upon some fundamental ideas of supernatural 
religion seems positive and firm. He has not a high opinion of 
the historicity of the Acts, with the exception of the " We-section," 
or the " Diarist's contribution," as he calls it. He contests the 
unitary authorship of the book ; and maintains that the Lucan 
or non diaristic portion is constructed with the purpose of 
concealing the unedifying dissensions in the early church be- 
tween the Judaizers and the followers of St. Paul. On the 
subject of St. Paul's conversion Professor Bacon does not seem 
sure of his ground He endeavors to explain that event by 
almost entirely natural causes, and at the same time to make 
some small allowance for miracle. The outcome of the effort 
is not by any means the most creditable thing that Dr. Bacon 
has written. He gives the usual reasons for supposing that 
Paul's Pharisaism was already weakened ; that he had been 
powerfully wrought upon by Stephen's bloody death ; that he 
was in interior torment on the matter of personal righteous- 
ness; that he had come to doubt the efficacy of the Mosaic 
ordinances ; and finally that the glare of the sun upon the 
desert sands as he rode to Damascus brought his quivering 

^ The Story 0/ St Paul, By Benjamin Wisner Bacon. Boston and New York : Hough- 
ton, Mifflin & Co. 



I90S.] New Books. 541 

nerves to the verge of hallucination and ecstasy. With con- 
siderations like these Dr. Bacon all but closes the door upon 
any supernatural element in the conversion.- We hardly need 
say that this is entirely uncritical; as uncritical as the author's 
astonishing statement that, " if the conversion had no rational 
preparation, Paul must have gone back to his previous convic- 
tions and beliefs as soon as the immediate effects wore off." 
Why, St. Paul's whole after life is inexplicable, his repeated 
assertions about his conversion are untrue, the argument on 
which he bases his call to the apostleship is either falsehood 
or folly, unless wc credit the history of Christ's real appear- 
ance, and of Saul's instantaneous and miraculous change of 
heart and creed. True criticism does not devise theories ; it 
studies facts. And every shred of fact that we can gather 
about St Paul is opposed entirely and absolutely to explana- 
tions of his conversion which would eliminate a real vision of 
the glorified Savior, and a real miracle in the breather of 
** threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the 
Lord.^' 

The latter part of this volume consists of historical side- 
lights upon the Epistles. Professor Bacon's wide reading in 
the apocryphal and apocalyptic writings, which so abounded 
among the Jews when Christianity arose, enables him to give 
us many hints of great value for the understanding of the 
Pauline letters. Those who think that here also he is too 
prone to theorize upon non-Jewish and non-Christian influ- 
ences, and to push certain resemblances into dependencies, will 
make due allowance accordingly. 

In the great harvest of books pur- 
THE DYNAMIC OF CHRIS- posing to reconstruct Christianity, 
TIANITY. to invent a new or to account 

By Chapman. for the demise of the old Chris- 

tianity, Mr. Edward Mortimer 
Chapman's volume * stands out with a certain measure of dis- 
tinction. In the first place, its style is excellent, possessing 
the easy dignity of true culture, and the simple directness of 
a finished instrument of English expression ; in the second 

* The Dynamic of Christianity , A study of the vital and permanent elements in the Chris> 
tian religion. By Edward Mortimer Chapman. Boston and New York : Houghton, Mifflin 
& Co. 



S42 New Books. [Jan., 

place, the book shows wide reading in the modern literature 
of religious experience and criticism. Many of its quotations 
and illustrations are, in consequence, extremely happy, and so 
striking as to linger long in a reader's memory. But we can 
not say that it is a deep book. Rather must we declare that 
the author has failed to embrace his thesis comprehensively, 
and many of its profounder implications he has left quite un- 
considered. Mr. Chapman's philosophy is not solid enough, 
and his histoty is totally inadequate. 

The point of the work is briefly this: The Christianity of 
fixed creed is dead, never to live again. And it has died be- 
cause everything static must die — evolution is the law of life; 
and evolution means change in the organism to correspond 
with change in the environment. Creeds cannot survive, for 
they are unadaptable ; how then will Christianity live ? By 
the doctrine of the immanent spirit in each soul. The race 
must go through its varying religious experiences, age after 
age, and these experiences, if we trust ourselves to the onward- 
leading, future -regarding spirit, careless of doctrine and lieed- 
less of the past, will be successive phases of truth; each 
phase proper and sufScient for its day. Nothing in religion 
can bs permanently fixed, for that which was fixed in one age 
may be useless in another, and if useless it must perish. 

It is to be feared that Mr. Chapman, in describing a reli- 
gious process, has forgotten all about religious substance. He 
will admit that there is something of finality, something of 
imperishable truth and decisive authority in Christianity, the 
religion taught by God, over and above any merely human 
system ever devised by man. Now this given, definite deposit 
of divine truth left us by our Lord must be presented to human 
minds, and consequently clothed in human language. And 
hence in its mode of expression that truth may be and must 
bs adaptable. What better proof of this than the church's 
borrowing of Platonic and Aristotelian terms for the clothing 
of ideas given originally in Semitic forms ? 

This much is required by normal growth, by orderly change, 
by (let the word not give offense) evolution. But the primal 
substance of God's truth cannot change. When it speaks to 
Jew, it will speak Hebrew ; to Greek, it will speak Greek ; to 
Roman, it will speak Romanwise. But in se it is forever the 
self-same Christ; to the Jew he was Messias;' to the Hellene 



1 905 . ] Ne w Books. 543 

he was the eternal Logos ; but to both he was God our Savior. 
So, while there may be change in terminology, there can be 
no change in essence. Now from recognizing the fact that a 
change in terms is to a degree necessary with the succession 
of centuries, Mr. Chapman has missed the far more important 
matter, that in the substance of the faith once delivered to the 
saints no change is possible. He has told us much of the 
changeable, but hardly anything of the permanent, in Christian- 
ity. If he examines the subject somewhat more deeply, he 
will find, we hope, that for the preservation of the immutable 
element of faith, a divine authority external to changing years 
and changeful man is absolutely necessary — ^just as necessary 
as providence is for the preservation in the physical order of 
God's original plan amid the destructive and wanton forces 
that sometimes seem to disfigure it. If he admits, as he seems 
to, that Christ brought to us an objective truth, higher, deeper, 
and richer than any human philosophy could ever teach, he 
will be driven to concede, if he pushes his thought to the 
logical issue, first, that this truth is eternal ; and secondly, that 
it must be protected by infallible authority from changing with 
the fashions of men. The great misfortune is that the super- 
natural has so far vanished from men like Mr. Chapman, that 
they speak of adapting and modernizing Christ's religion pre- 
cisely as they would speak of adapting and modernizing Plato's 
philoso|>hy. The idea of our Lord as a final and absolute 
authority, and of his truth as de^nite and immutable doctrine, 
has withered away. Their Christianity is not an evolution 
from the primitive Gospel, but a complete divorce from it. 
Another generation and it will be bald and dismal infidelity. 

Professor Moore's Lowell Insti- 

LECTORES ON THE CANON, tute Lectures on the Canon of 

By Moore. the New Testament* have certain 

features about them which make 
them a noteworthy contribution to the religious thought of the 
day. Not that the author has made new discoveries on the 
problem of the Canon — the age of new discoveries in that field 
is probably over — but that throughout his discussion, and 

* Th€ New Testament in the Christian Church. Eight lectures by Edward Caldwell 
Moore, Professor of Theology in Harvard University. New York : The Macmillan Com- 
pany. 



544 ^^^ BOOKS. [Jan.f 

especially in the last three chapters on the Church and on the 
Idea of Authority, he gives a striking indication of the modern 
state of mind with regard to the supreme question of religious 
certainty. In fact we cannot now recall a better presentation 
of that state of mind than these chapters contain. Let us first 
say a word on the more technical part of the book, and then 
return to this matter. 

Professor Moore is acquainted pretty thoroughly with such 
writers on Christian origins as Harnack, Spitta, Zahn, Sohrn, 
and Holtzmann, and is generally in accord with them in their 
main positions. However, his critical views are. always tem- 
pered with a spirit of devout reverence, and are dominated by 
the desire not to destroy but to establish faith. 

Naturally in a popular treatment of such a subject there 
must be a certain insufficiency and incompleteness, and some 
conclusions are apt to be stated with an appearance of finality 
which really are still matters of debate. For example, St. 
Justin's importance in the history of the Canon is, we think, 
rather inadequately described ; and the incidental remarks that 
Justin had but little sympathy for the fourth Gospel, and a 
positive antipathy to Paulinism, may easily be uncritically and ' 
harmfully interpreted. The opinion too that the existence of a 
Gospel according to the Hebrews, and a Gospel according to 
the Egyptians indicates that the four authentic Gospels were 
then unknown in Palestine and Egypt, should, if stated at all, 
be giyen along with the great difficulties against it. Then to 
say that the first Christians were held together by no external 
bond of authority, that they had no " book, bishop, or creed," 
as a principle of unity, but only "a bare being commmitted 
to the following of Jesus Christ," is to forget the Council of 
Jerusalem, the intense anti-heretical feeling of the Apostolic 
age, and such striking proofs as St. Paul's enumeration of the 
church's organized leaders in the Epistle to the Ephesians, and 
his ** how can tHey preach unless they be sent ? " in the let- 
ter to the Romans. 

But the most significant part of Dr. Moore's volume is 
that in which he studies the nature and function of church 
authority. His investigations into the history of the Cannon 
have brought him face to face with this question; for, as he 
himself in so many words declares, the New Testament did 
not form the church, but the church formed the New Testa- 



1905.] New Books, 545 

ment. We should not have had our New Testament but for 
the voice of a teaching church, solemnly deciding that these 
writings and these alone were inspired, and should be re- 
ceived as of God. Of course this elementary fact of history 
destroys the contention on which Protestantism is based ; inas- 
much as that contention maintains that the Bible is the sole 
authority in matters of faith. Dr. Moore admits that this 
platform on which the originators of the Reformation took 
their stand, is shattered. What will replace it ? Indeed this 
question is a searching one. Dr. Moore feels the solemnity 
of it and the gravity of the issue which will follow from an- 
swering it. Protestantism's original charter is invalid. Catho- 
licism's title to the allegiance of modern men is precisely the 
same as the title of the primitive church to the allegiance of 
Greek and Roman. Why is not the obligation of the nine- 
teenth century to obey, as urgent as was the obligation of the 
second century and the first? The way of escape provided by 
Dr. Moore is this: The Papacy, and in general the whole 
apparatus of an authoritative church, were necessary and 
providential in the early ages, but now the seat of authority 
has shifted from the Ecclesia docens to the individual conscience. 
Each of us must pray and study and use all the resources of 
advancing scholarship to find the true meaning of God's word, 
and God's word will then be what each of us thinks it is. 

Apart from the speculative and philosophical consideration 
that this method would absolutely destroy the objective truth 
and the inherent authority of Christianity, and would make 
man not a learner and disciple, but a teacher and final judge 
in Christian doctrine, we would ask how Christ's religion 
would have fared, if such a rule of faith existed from the 
beginning ? Would the church ever have settled on a Canon ? 
Would it ever have survived the Greek heresies? Would it 
ever have possessed either the spiritual dynamic or the dog- 
matic consistency necessary for the conversion of civilized 
man ? Never, most certainly. The Christian religion has for 
its purpose to enlighten the mind with the light of substantial 
truth, and to empower the will with the energy of moral 
enthusiasm. Imagine either light or enthusiasm in a method 
which answers man's instinctive prayer for guidance with send- 
ing him back to his own insufficiency, which he thought it 
the very purpose of Christianity to supplement and to assist; 



546 NEW BOOKS. [Jan.. 

with bidding him to seek truth amid the tumult of discordant 
doctors; and with telling him that religious certainty exists 
not in Christ the Lord, but in an indefinite futurity, which we 
can plod on towards reaching, but can never hope to see. 

If this is true Christianity, Professor Moore will be obliged, 
we fear, to abandon the Christianity of history, the religion 
of sure statement and of boundless inspiration, and give him- 
self to a drift of sentimentalism confessedly unable to do aught 
for souls that cry for truth, and most mournfully incapable of 
producing either an apostle or a saint. Still while thus ex- 
pressing our conviction of the shortcomings of Dr. Moore's 
method, we would wish also to express our grateful apprecia- 
tion of his sincere and devout attitude in the face of these 
great problems. He is a seeker for the kingdom of God. He 
has come to see that traditional Protestantism holds not the 
keys of the kingdom. He looks to the mighty church to 
which was spoken : " Tibi dabo claves rtgni coelorutn " / but 
he shrinks from her claims; chiefly, perhaps, because he 
dreads the rulers who hold the keys. So he has built him- 
self a refuge; it is a refuge we think which would as effectu- 
ally keep him away from Christ as from Catholicity, if he 
-applied it to the Master as he has applied it to the master- 
piece. Souls like his will some day learn, even though the 
day bs distant, that the authoritative Christ of the Gospels is 
the authoritative Christ of history ; and that means that the 
unfailing church which has led the world to the Savior is 
in these our days the appointed teacher unto men of the 
promises made of old, and renewed forever. 

John Franklin Genung's commen- 

A STUDY OF ECCLESI- tary on Ecclesiastes • is not a 

ASTES. critical but a philosophical study 

By Genung. ^f the words of the preacher. 

Mr. Genung, in fact, rather dis- 
parages criticism, a very unusual attitude for any man who 
can study the Hebrew scriptures in the original. Thus he 
dismisses as hardly worthy of notice the view of the com- . 
posite authorship to Koheleth. Nevertheless, such a view is 

• Words of Koheleth. Translated anew and accompanied with a study of their literary 
nnd spiritual values. By John Franklin Genung. Boston and New York : Houghton, 
Mitflin & Co. 



1905. J New Books, 547 

not at all fantastic, and deserves its own measure of respect. 
The very first condition necessary to the understanding of this 
remarkable book of our canon, is a knowledge of Jewish 
thought and history before and contemporaneous with Kobe* 
leth. We venture to think that Mr. Genung has not adequately 
met this condition. He dwells but slightly on t^e historical 
background, and then introduces us to the theory that Kohe- 
leth was a reaction against the immortality doctrine, recently 
adopted from the Greeks and pushed into prominence by the 
Pharisees. The preacher contends against living for a vague 
futurity, and insists upon living this present life to its utmost. 
Not that he speculatively denied a future life, says Mr. Genung, 
but that he feared that such a conception would induce his 
countrymen to accept a sordid view of religion, to forget the 
function of belief as a moulder of character, and to throw 
present duties into disarray by an unnatural preoccupation for 
a life to come. 

We question whether this interpretation can stand. The 
vigorous, work-a-day Walt Whitman sort of philosophy, which 
it supposes in Koheleth, is very hard to find in him. And as 
for the opposition to Hellenism, it is impossible even to think 
of such a motive in Ecclesiastes. Mr. Genung would have 
done far better to have examined the book without a philo* 
fiophical theory as to its nature, but with a critical openness 
of mind for straightforward evidence. Such expressions as that 
Koheleth teaches the "higher biology" show how far uncriti- 
cal preconceptions have led our commentator astray. Still, in 
the introductory portion of the volume, and in the exegetical 
notes accompanying the translation, there are useful sugges- 
tions. It pains one 1k> read in a serious work of "sizing up'' 
a situation. One or two such lapses occur in the book ; and 
who will say that they are not unpardonable ? 

Where Does the Sky Begin? is 

SERMONS. the fanciful title of a volume of 

By Washington Gladden, sermons,* by the Rev. Washing. 

ton Gladden. They are good ser- 
mons from the points of view of easy style and sincere moral 
enthusiasm; but very saddening sermons from their feeble 

• Where Does the Sky Begin t By Rev. Washington Gladden. Boston and Nesv York : 
Houghton. Mifflin & Co. 



548 New Books. [Jan., 

content of doctrine. Dr. Gladden thinks that such truths as 
original sin, an atoning sacrifice, and the absolute divinity of 
Christ have passed from human thought forever, because they 
are unreasonable, and offensive to the modern conscience. Yet 
these are the very substance of the Christianity of the Gos- 
pel of St. Paul, and of nineteen centuries of exalted sanctity. 
Was it left for us to convict St. John and St. Paul of super- 
stition ; and to say to the saints of every age: "We of this 
day and hour have found a higher principle of holiness than 
you possessed " ? No error of this age is more charged with 
disaster than the delusion that pure Christian morality is sepa- 
rable from strict Christian doctrine. A marvelous cleansing 
out and setting in order would take place in the minds of 
men if they gave a little thought to the difference between 
holding to an ethiral code and believing a revelation from 
God. 

M. Paul Viollet's pamphlet of one 

INFALLIBILITY AND hundred and ten pages,* devoted 

THE SYLLABUS. to a historical and theological 

By Viollet. gt^dy ^f p^pal infallibility and of 

the Syllabus, is a rather remark- 
able document. The scientific side of the work is guaranteed 
by the author's distinguished position as Member of the Insti- 
tute, knd as Professor of Civil and Canon Law at the £€ole 
des Chartres; and its orthodoxy is attested by the Imprimatur 
of the Archbishop of Besan^on* It is dedicated, '^ aux Chre- 
tiens que des notions inexactes sur la Papauti retiennent en de^ 
hors du Catholicismey Now, as these notions inexactes may all 
practically be reduced to this, that an infallible papacy leaves 
no room for independent thinking among Catholics, M. Viollet 
proceeds to give in his own pages an exhibition of a very 
striking sort of independent thinking. He lays down the limits 
of Papal infallibility according both to history and to the Vati- 
can decree, and shows how very wide a field is left for the 
exercise of the individual Catholic's judgment even in matters 
wherein the pope has spoken. He says that in the last three 
hundred years there is only one papal utterance which is surely 

• L InfaillihiliU du Pape et U Syllabus ; fijude Histotique et Thiologique, Par Paul Viollet. 
Paris : P. Lethicllcux. 



igosO ^^^ BOOKS. 549 

and beyond doubt infallible, and this is Pius IX.'s definition 
of the Immaculate Conception. Not that every utterance of 
the supreme pastor is not to be reverentially received. Cer- 
tainly it is to be so received, but there are plain privileges foi 
our own minds, says M. Viollet, in cases of papal pronounce- 
ments of a non-infallible character. This he supports with 
some striking episodes in history. 

As to the Syllabus, he shows to demonstration that it does 
not meet the requirements of an infallible pronouncement. 
That collection of previous censures and condemnations was, 
as a collection, not the work of Pius IX. at all, but| as Car- 
dinal Newman said, of some anonymous compiler. It has re- 
ceived special papal recognition on four or five occasions since, 
it is true, but it has never been infallibly proclaimed. And as 
to the contents of the Syllabus, M. VioUet makes the point 
that it is absolutely impossible to understand some of the con- 
demnations without going back to the content of the allocution 
in which they were originally delivered. For example, take 
the proposition condemned in the Syllabus, that the Roman 
Pontiff ought to reconcile himself with modern progress and 
civilization. Of all the propositions of this celebrated collec- 
tion, this is the one that has most scandalized non-Catholics. 
M. Viollet maintains that this condemnation standing alone is 
a grave injustice to the papacy and to Catholicity. For, going 
back to the allocution in which it was first pronounced, we 
find that Pius IX. explains at length that the civilization with 
which he refuses to be reconciled is a civilization wherein reli^* 
gion should be persecuted and atheism triumphant. And cer- 
tainly, if that is the meaning of his terms, no upright man lyill 
differ from him. M. Viollet*s point is assuredly well taken. 
No man should comment upon the Syllabus, either in praise 
or censure, who has not read the expositions of its condemna^- 
tions which, unfortunately, are not contained in the Syllabus 
itself. Not only fairness would dictate such a procedure, but 
the common elements of scientific method as well. 

This is a thought-provoking little work of M. Viollet's, and 
those who have been prepared to understand it by a sufficient 
reading in theology and church history, will receive from it a 
mental stimulus of unusual vigor. 



S50 New Books. [Jan., 

Mrs. Martin's biographical sketch 
HOMER MARTIN. of her celebrated husband, Homer 

Martin, the landscape painter,* is 
an exquisite monograph. In the distinction of its perfect Eng- 
lish, its reserve where there might have been enthusiasm, and 
its sincerity where there was room for flattery, it is a very 
model for biographers. We are sorry though that it is so brief. 
In that residence in England, in those meetings with famous 
artists, and in the happy months of that stay in France, there 
must have been ample matter for a delightful volume of remi- 
niscences, of which we are vouchsafed but the faintest glimpse. 
So well-trained a pen as Mrs. Martin's should have been more 
generous with us. But what it has written is a beautiful 
memorial to a rare genius who, like so many others of great 
gifts, entered into his deserved repute only after he was dead. 

"The following pages," says the 
THE SOUL'S ORBIT. prefatory note to The SouPs Orbit,\ 

''may on the whole be designated 
as a compilation or redaction, although some of them are, both 
in form and substance, from the compiler's own pen ; some others 
in form,though not in substance ; others again in neither. For 
the most part they are filled with the expanded notes of sermons, 
exhortations, and addresses ; in some cases derelict MSS. have 
been redeemed from destruction, re- arranged and supplemented.'^ 

So the volume before us offers an opportunity for a pretty 
little piece of work in higher criticism. Who are the unknown 
contributors ? Which portions belong to them, which to the 
nominal author ? What are the reasons for this unusual method 
of procedure ? 

Towards the solution of this problem — which like all prob- 
lems in criticism must, of course, remain unanswered for a 
considerable time — we can contribute one or two items that 
will at least suffice for the construction of a theory. 

I. Note the character of a few extracts: "When we re- 
member how rare and unusual is the power of psychological 
self-analysis; how the mere attempt at such an unwonted feat 

* Homer Martin, A Reminiscence. By Elizabeth Gilbert Martin. New York: William 
Macbeth. 

\The Soul's Orbit ; or, Man's Journey to God. Compiled with additions by M. D. Petre. 
London, New York, and Bombay: Longmans, Green & Co. 



C905.] NEW BOOKS. ' 551 

leads the ordinary soul from darkness to darkness, and from con-* 
fusion to confusion, through all the mire of self-occupation, and 
the tangle of scrupulosity ; when, further, we recollect the utter 
inadequacy of even the most delicate wording to give truthful 
expression to what is before the eyes of conscience ; and again, 
the unskilfulness of all but a very few, in the proper choice 
and adaptation of language, and the tongue- paralysis from which 
most suffer in expressing anything pertaining to the world of 
ideas and sentiments ; remembering all this, we must allow that 
the confessor's aspect of the sin is, to a great extent, quite 
external and indirect, so far as it depends on the penitent's 
presentment." 

''A schoolboy poking in the works of a valuable watch, 
with his pen-knife, can do little mischief compared with the 
quack doctor who dares to meddle with the infinite complexity 
of the human organism — pouring drugs, of which he knows 
little, into a body, of which he knows less. Yet the complexity 
of a watch is less distantly removed from that of a living 
body than the latter is from that of the soul and conscience." 

"The aim of this work is to prepare such a devotional 
attitude of mind as will be undisturbed by any intellectual 
cataclysm." 

"A fault on the right side is the defence alleged in favor 
of those whose eagerness for the rights of authority makes 
them deaf to all suggestions of its limits; who seek a short-- 
sighted remedy for the long-standing evil of license in an 
overdose of its antidote. Nor do they understand that such 
overdosing in the past is responsible for some of the existing 
reaction." 

"By love the soul lays hold of God and clings to him as 
ivy to the oak, without which support she would crawl help- 
lessly on the earth." 

2. Reference made to Maeterlinck, Zarathushtra, Plato^ 
Dante, Whitman, Browning, Tennyson, Laberthonniere, Keble, 
Clough, evinces a breadth of sympathy and reading which con- 
fines the chance of authorship to a very limited group among 
known writers. 

3. A certain luminious way of interpreting Holy Writ, 
allusions to fathers, saints, and theologians, occasional quotations 
in Latin, a dash of the method known as " the new apologetic," 
and a decided partiality for the '' philosophy of action," all 



552 New Books. [Jan., 

these remind us very forcibly of a scanty group of recent 
Catholic writings which display these characteristics. 

4. Miss Petre is, we have been assured by an American 
traveler, closely associated with the English Jesuits ; and to 
our own knowledge one of the most prominent members of the 
society, Father Tyrrell, signed a preface to a preceding book 
of hers« 

These items we advance as the possible supports of a theory 
that this most charmingly original and really valuable piece of 
spiritual writing must have been constructed with the assistance 
of some member or members of the Society of Jesus in England. 
To tell the truth, many of the pages might have come direct 
from the pen of Father Tyrrell himself. Possibly he is seeking 
to discover if his books would be read with equal avidity, were 
their author's name unknown ; and if this is his motive, and 
the present volume is his work, we are inclined to think that 
the American sale of the book will be large enough to con- 
vince him that his American admirers know a good thing when 
they see it, and are hungry for spiritual books of the sort he 
writes, whether he himself be actually, virtually, interpreta- 
tivcly, or only in a reviewer's fancy, the author. 

This book on America, ^written by that keen observer and 
trained literateur, the Abb^ Klein, as an outcome of his recent 
visit to this country, will be delightful reading for all patriotic 
Americans. For the abb^ is an enthusiastic admirer of our 
people and our President, and of the " Vie Intense** so char- 
acteristic of both. He seems always to have fallen into hos- 
pitable hands, and to have enjoyed nearly every experience 
of his tour; and so his account of us is pervaded with a 
genial good- nature, and is pointed^ of course, with a French- 
man's subtle wit. It is not, however, because he happened to 
meet kindly friends that he speaks well of us, but for reasons 
far deeper, and more creditable to us. He is captivated with 
our liberty, our progressiveness, and, above all, with the vig- 
orous Catholicity of our American church. The church here 
is not legally tied to the state, and hence is not molested by 
the state. It is the church of the people; they support it; 
they love it; they are proud of it. The priests are not a 

• Au Pays de'' La Vie Intenser Par TAbb^ F^lix Klein. Paris : Ubrairie Ploa-Nouirit 
et Cie. 



1905.] New Books. 553 

caste in another world from the laity, but they mingle cordially 
and affectionally with their people; and the result is mutual 
friendliness and trust. And this, as is natural, powerfully af- 
fected the Abbd Klein, and seems to have turned his mind 
toward his beloved France with greater hopefulness for her 
future. Perhaps there too, his words sometimes imply, the 
church's salvation will be in cutting a bond which has been a 
captive's chain, and in committing her to the sustenance and 
care of the common people. Cardinal Perraud, in a compli- 
mentary letter to the author of this book, expresses the hope 
that French Catholics will take heart from seeing how the 
faithful in America have made their church prosper; and 
will themselves make sacrifices to save their stricken mother 
from her present mournful plight. Whether the Catholics of 
France have anything to learn from us or not, nfiay they soon 
enter upon brighter days, and assert themselves with the sturdy 
vigor which we Americans hold to be so vital an element in 
individual and national character. As for our recent visitor, 
the Abb^ Klein, we thank him for his kind account of the 
United States, and cannot forbear wishing for him a speedy 
return and a longer stay. 

The Messrs. Benziger Bros, have done a service to good 
literature in bringing out a cheap paper-covered edition of Cardi- 
nal Wiseman's great story, Fabiola.* Years have done noth- 
ing to drag this little classic from its honorable rank as one 
of the greatest novels ever written about the early church. 

A Prayer Bookf with the name of Father Tillmann Pesch, 
S.J., upon the title-page, we might antecedently know, makes 
a special feature of the dogmatic foundation of devotion. This 
expectation is abundantly fulfilled ; for in the course of the 
manual, proofs, answers to objections* and many deep hints 
upon the Christian philosophy of life are mingled with the 
exercises of prayer. It was a book well worth translating. 

Father Garesche's readings and meditations upon The 
Rosary X are admirable. They throw fresh light upon the 

* PahUia* By Cardinal Wiseman. New York : Benziger Brothers. 
t Tk€ Catholic Manual, By Tillmann Pesch, S.J. St. Louis : B. Herder. 
% Tkt Rosary, Scenes and Thoughts. By Rev. F. P. Garesche, S.J. New York : 
Benziger Brothers. 

VOL. LXXX. — 36 



554 iVS»" BOOKS. [Jan., 

great mysteries commemorated in the chaplet^ and will be 
gratefully appreciated by devout souls. 

A revised edition of the Manual of the Holy Name has 
been issued by Benziger Brothers. It contains all the prayers, 
litanies, offices, etc., proper to the Society; and the prayers 
for Mass are printed in large, bold type. 

A new edition has been published of How to Pray, by Abb^ 
Grou, S.J., translated by Teresa Fitzgerald, with a preface by 
Father Clark, S J., London : Thomas Baker. This praisworthy 
and most useful treatise on prayer has been known for many 
years, and has often been recommended most heartily by THE 
Catholic World to its readers. We take pleasure in welcom* 
ing this second edition. It is a volume that ought to be known 
and studied by Catholics. 

We take great pleasure in recommending again the now 
famous story. The Romance of the Charter Oak \ • and we are 
pleased to say that a second edition of this story has been 
published. The book received many praiseworthy reviews on 
its firit appearance, and it has won a definite and high place 
of honor among literary works for the young that deal with 
the early history of our country. We think it sufficient to 
repeat here the words of review published in The Catholic 
World, concerning this book, in 1871 : "The delineation of 
that remarkable incident in Connecticut history, the seizing of 
the state charter from under the very eyes of the British 
authorities, and its secretion for many years in the famous 
Charter Oak, and the picture of the regicide Goffe living in 
perpetual fear of detection are well drawn. . « . No one 
who takes an interest in our early colonial history can fail to 
find, in reading these volumes, both pleasure and much his- 
torical information." 

Longmans, Green & Co. have brought out two holiday 
books that will delight the little folk. Florence and Bertha 
Upton have written another GoUiwogg book — this time it is 

* Romtnce of the Charter Oak, By William Seton, LL.D. New Edition. New York: 
O'Shea & Co. 



.19^S'] ^^^ BOOKS. 3SV 

T/u Golliwoggin ffa/land ^^^axxd the verses and pictures are 83 
fantastic as ever. Then Mr. Andrew Lang, of course^ could ndt 
let a Christmas go by without a new instalment of his *' color '* 
fairy books. We tremble to think what Mr. Lang will do 
twenty or thirty years hence, when he shall have run out of 
colors. At any rate we are safe for this year, and TAe Brawn 
Fairy Book\ is in our hands. It is enough to say of it that \% 
is as entertaining as the Green, Yellow, Red, Blue, and we 
Jtnow not how many others of its predecessors. 

We have just received word of some volumes which are in 
press, or in immediate preparation for printing, by the Catho- 
lic University of America. These volumes are: "Dr. Melody's 
Physical Basis of Marriage; Dr. Butin On the Pentateuch/ 
Dr. Oswald's Prepositions in Appollonius Rhodius ; Dr. Healy's 
The Valerian Persecution ; Responsibility and the Moral Life, by 
Dr. O'Connor; St. Francis, Social Reformer, by Dr. Dubois; 
and Dr. Dubray's The Theory of Psychical Disposition. During 
the past year the University published three important con- 
tributions: Dr. Moore's Study in Reaction-Time and Move^ 
ment ; Dr. Trahey's De Nominibus ef Verbis Ennodi Hierony- 
mique ' inter se collatis ; and Dr. Nieuwland's Reactions of 
Acetylene. This creditable array of recent publications illus* 
trates the earnestness of the professors of the Catholic Uni'- 
Versity of America in their efforts for the realization of the 
hopes oi the University's founders, and indicates the dis- 
tinguished character of the work which will be done to a 
much greater extent when the plans of the trustees for in- 
creasing the number of its students are in practical operation. 

It is gratifying to learn that the trustees of the University 
have decided to proceed at once with the full development of 
undergraduate courses of study. Two motives impelled to this 
action: the desire of increasing the productivity of the Uni- 
versity in all its departments, by the better preparation of 
young men for subsequent scientific investigation and research 
in the graduate classes and in the learned professions ; and the 
urgent necessity of doing something to prevent the continued 

* Tht GoUiwgg in Holland. By Florence K. Upton and Bertha Upton. New York ; 
Longmans, Green & Co. 

t The Brown Fairy Book, £dited by Andrew Lang. New York : Longmans. Green ft 
Co. 



556 NEW BOOKS. [Jan. 

increase in the number of our young men attending non- 
Catholic institutions. 

A gratifying recognition of the eminent standing of the 
Catholic University of America among our celebrated educa- 
tional institutions has been received recently from the Univer- 
ity of Berlin. A communication from that famous educational 
centre includes the Catholic University of America among the 
few American institutions whose bachelor's degree is accepted 
as the equivalent of the German requirements for admission to 
work for the doctorate in philosophy. Moreover^ the three 
years' term of residence hitherto rigorously required there of all 
candidates for the doctorate has been shortened to three 
semesters^ or one and a half years, for students who receive 
the baccalaureate degree from any one of these universities 
and who do some graduate work at them. In virtue of this 
privilege, American students who desire to obtain the doctor's 
degree at the University of Berlin may do a large part of the 
work at one of the recognized home institutions, and obtain 
credit for the same in Berlin. 

These concessions are made only to the institutions in the 
Association of American Universities. This organization repre- 
sents the highest attainments of American scholarship, being 
composed of Harvard, Clark, Yale, Columbia, Princeton, Penn- 
sylvania, Johns Hopkins, and the Catholic University of 
America in the East; ai\d Michigan, Chicago, Wisconsin, Call* 
fomia, and Leland Stanford in the West. 



J^oreian IPetiobicala* 

The Tablet (12 Nov.): A very remarkable embassy was re- 
cently admitted to the Papal presence. It consisted of 
a number of the citizens of Lucca. Their intention was 
to advise the Holy Father as to the kind of archbishop 
he should choose for them. Inasmuch as theirs is a 
very select city^ they explained that only a prelate of 
aristocratic lineage would be suitable. Doubtless they 
did not consider the fact that the Pontiff himself is the 
son of a peasant, and that their suggestion could easily 
be interpreted as an insult. The Holy Father was not 
at all pleased, and bade the petitioners return to their 
homes, prepared to receive whomsoever he might choose 

for them. More excitement has been aroused in 

France by revelations concerning the iniquitous system 
of denouncing officers. It is shown that General Andr^ 
and M. Combes have debarred men from the Legion of 
Honor, simply because they were declared wanting in 
devotion to the republic, and found guilty of the 
heinous crime of going to Mass and sending their 
children to Catholic schools. These chi^rges were set 
down in writing and signed by Gen. Andr^. 
{19 Nov.): The Archbishop of Westminster delivers an 
address to the Catholic teachers of his province. He 
defines the position of teachers in the present educational 
crisis, explains clearly their relation to the ecclesiastical 
and civil authorities, also their duties to both, and 
finally, urges them to uphold bravely the cause of re- 
ligious education. 

(26 Nov.) : The clergy of the archdibcese of Westmini- 
ster have been reminded that it is clearly contrary to 
instructions that women should form part of the official 
church choir. 

(3 Dec): In this and the two preceding numbers, there 
appears a series of articles in which the Rev. Dom 
Andr^ Mocquereau states and ably defends the position 
assumed by the Solesmes school of Plain Song. He 
contends that the integrity of the Gregorian melodies 
has been tampered with, and thereby ruin has been 
brought upon the Roman Plain Chant. 



558 Foreign Periodicals. [Jan,, 

The Month (Dec.): Outlines^ relative to the Immaculate Con- 
ception, the attitude and development of early English 
devotion. The writer quotes from manuscripts whose 
antiquity is beyond doubt. As early as the eighth 
century, the Saxons " greeted Mary with a warmth and 
tenderness which left little room for development in 
the times which were to follow." The insistence upon 
the two ideas (though not peculiar to England) of 
Mary's sinlessness in general, and the antithesis between 
her and Eve, paved the way for a more explicit pro- 
nouncement in the matter of original sin. An element 
further effecting devotion to Mary was the legendary 
history of our Lady's birth, as told in the Apocryphal 
Gospel attributed to St. Matthew. The Conception 
feast, which had begun to be kept before the Norman 
Conquest, was moreover made popular by the wide 
circulation of the narrative relating the Abbot Elsi's 
vision. But the festival celebrated in Saxon times on 
December 8, was simply a commemoration of the sup- 
posed historical fact of our Lady's birth, after an angel 
had been seen to visit her parents. Up to the time of 
Eadmer, it may be said that we hear nothing, at least 
explicitly, of the Immaculate Conception as we now 
understand it. Eadmer's treatise, De Conceptione BeaUt 
MaruB, seems to have been written for the purpose of 
vindicating the Conception feast from the attacks which 
had been made on it. However modestly propounded 
by Eadmer himself, it is his doctrine which, after being 
attacked in the twelfth and following centuries, has at 
last received the seal of the church's dogmatic defi- 
nition. 

Li Correspondant (lo Nov.): In ''Les Origines du Journal- 
isme," M. Henry Bordeaux describes how public opinion^ 
so powerful in the seventeenth and eighteenth centu- 
ries, was formed and controlled when newspapers, strictly 
so-called, did not exist. The organization which then 
took their place in furnishing food to public curiosity 
was the nouvellistes. At their head must be placed 
Madame de S^vigne, whose letters form a faithful pic- 
ture of the seventeenth century. The state, the thea- 
tre, travelers, the army, each had its corps of nouveU 




190$'] FOREIGN PERIODICALS. 559 

listes^ or couriers, who informed and directed public 
opinions. These forerunners of modern journalists had 
their regular meeting places, sometimes the Luxem- 
bourg, sometimes the Pont Neuf, or even the lobby of 
the palace. La Bruyere, Montesquieu, and Mercier 
speak of them more or less satirically, but without ques* 
tioning the fascination they exerted upon the restless 
crowd which was soon to overthrow altar and throne 
alike. M. Paul Mimaude brings to a close his inter- 
esting articles on '^ Le Mamoul." The present install- 
ment gives his impressions of the social and religious 
life of the Hindoos, of which he has made a close study 
during prolonged visits to all the large cities of India. 
He represents these people as unchanged by all the 
political changes that have taken place in their coun- 
try. And the reason is that for the Hindoo the word 
country represents no reality. He is the same to-day 
as he was in the time of Zoroaster or Confucius. The 
masters set over him trouble him not, so long as they 
leave untouched his religion and the superstitious cus- 
toms which are ingrained in his nature. Nevertheless, 
in spite of this tenacity to the immemorial order of 
things. Catholics are allowed to practice their religion 
in peace, and need fear no disturbance in their cere- 
monies or their mode of life. 

The Critical Review (Nov.): This number contains an article 
on recent tendencies in American philosophy, con 
tributed by Professor W. Caldwell, of McGill University. 
He first treats of the rise and spread of " Neo-Kantianism " 
in this country, and says that Dr. W. T. Harris was un- 
doubtedly its first and most celebrated expounder. The 
principles of Herbert Spencer's Philosophy were popular- 
ized and widely disseminated by the writings and lec- 
tures of John Fiske. Among other prominent psycholo- 
gists the writer mentions Ladd, Hall, Royce, Mtinster- 
berg, Titchener, and J. M. Baldwin, indicating briefly 
their respective views and special fields of labor. 

La Quinsaine (i Dec): V. R. d'Adhemar has an article on 
" Science and Philosophy," apropos of the discovery of 
radium. The writer shows that the province of science 
is restricted to facts, discoveries, and appearances of 
things, and insists on the necessity and rights of philoso- 



56o FOREIGN Periodicals. [Jan., 

phy to take these facts and discoveries for the purpose 
of reducing them to general laws. The law of the oon- 
servation of energy is an instance cited in proof of this. 
Science and philosophy should not oppose — rather^ should 
assist — each other. 
Annates de Philosophie ChrM$nne (Nov.): M. Denis, by means 
of the '/deadly parallel/' convicts the official ''Decla- 
ration " of the recent Congress of Free-thinkers in Rome 

of gross and stupid plagiarism. ^M. A. de Meissas 

opens up an unusual problem of etfrly church history 
in an inquiry into the ecclesiastical senate of the Roman 

church up to the time of Constantine. M. £mile Bau- 

daire utters some sharp censures of the methods of 
training and study now in vogue in the French semi- 
naries. He says that the admission of a young man into 
a grand seminary by no means proves that he has the 
elementary culture which would be required of him if 
he presented himself at any other professional schooL 

Dr. Koch continues his explanation of the "moral 

presence " of Christ in the Eucharist. M. Denis criti- 
cises the theological systems called into being by the 
Protestant Reformation. 

(Dec.) : Discussing whether Diderot has a moral system 
or docrine, M. Roger Charbonnel answers in the affirma- 
tive : passing beyond deism he arrived at evolutionist 
materialism, upon which he endeavored, in vain, to found 

an ethical system. M. Leclerc, Professor of Scripture, 

boldly treats the question of error in the Bible. It is 
now necessary, he contends, to face the actual situation, 
and, abandoning current subterfuges, admit the existence 
of scientific and historical error in the Bible. The 
dogmatic teaching of the Councils of Trent and the 
Vatican is not touched by the admission, consequently« 
he maintains, there is no dogmatic statement opposed to 

it. M. Emile Baudaire continues his appreciation of 

the present system of intellectual formation in vogue in 
French seminaries, and suggests various improvements 

demanded by the conditions of the day. M. Charles 

Denis continues his study of the origin of French Prot- 
estantism, dwelling chiefly on the opposition offered by 
the Parliaments. He contributes also an aperfu of the 
recently published work, Goethe en France. 



^905-] Foreign Periodicals. 561 

£tudes (5 Dec): This number is almost entirely given over to 
articles bearing on the Blessed Virgin and the dogma 
of her Immaculate Conception. In the September 
number of this year was an account of the feast of the 
Immaculate Conception and its rapid development in 
Europe. In this number an article on the dogma is 
contributed by Jean Bainvel. Scriptural and patristic 
references he does not insist upon ; but he treats of the 
dogma as a part of the original deposit of faith handed 
down to the church by Christ. It has been a living 
idea transmitted by the living church. The definition of 
1854 may well be considered the triumph of tradition. 
The writer mentions the names most prominent in con- 
nection with this dogma. He shows how controversy 
served to clear up men's ideas on the question, and in 
that way made ready for the final definition of 1854. 

Revue Thomisti (Nov.-Dec.) : In reply to a correspondent, who 
points out that the periodical LAmi du Clergi seems to 
claim infallibility for the encyclicals of Leo XIIL, Father 
Th. M. Fugues examines the value of encyclicals in the 
light of the principles of St. Thomas. He restricts very 
carefully the exercise of infallible authority on the part of 
the Fope. His conclusion is that the authority of the 
encyclical is not at all the same as that of the solemn 
definition. Its authority is no doubt great, it is even, in 
a certain sense, sovereign ; it is to be received as the 
teaching sovereignty accepted in the church ; but this 
adhesion is not the same as the adhesion demanded by 
the formal act of faith : ^* II se pourrait, ^ la rigeur, que 

cet enseignement f{it sujet i Terreur." Dom Renaudin 

discusses the definability of the Assumption. — = — M. T. 
Richard treats of the evils which have resulted from the 
abuse of scholasticism. The ancient scholastics never 
passed outside the school, and thereby missed a general 
culture ; hypertrophy of the literary faculties ; a ten- 
dency to pursue speculation without regard to fact; a 
supreme indifference to the paternity of literature, so 
that spurious and interpolated books have been received 
without question ; these are some of the deplorable 
results which have come from undue devotion to the 
scholastic method. In the scientific department there 



$62 Foreign periodicals. [J 

is a synopsis (P^gues) of the recent wco-k of P^re La^ 
come^ who severely criticises the contemporary school of 
exegesis, especially for its claim to pursue its critical 
work without seeking guidance from the theologians* 

Razdn y Fe (Dec.) : P. Minteguiaga writes on the relations of 
church and state, against the exaggerated defenders of 

the civil power. P. Murillo criticizes a German 

writer's view of the principles used in repelling the neo- 

critical school of Scriptural science. P. P. Martinez 

& Sons write of religious conditions in Russia and Japan. 

Rivista Internazionale (Nov.) : S. Solano gives the views of 

the fathers of the Church upon slavery. E. Agliardi 

describes the attempts to institute international protec 
tion of labor, beginning with Owen in 1811. 

Rassegna Nazionale (1 Nov.) : Reprints from the Manuftuturer^s 
Record^ of Baltimore, an article on the striking success of 
Italians as farmers in the southern part of the United 

States. Cetre writes of all the reasons why the non 

expedit should be revoked, and says the persistent stand 
of the Curia Romana in this regard hinders the church's 
influence on the souls of the people. 
(16 Nov.): J. reviews the Life of Helen Keller^— one of 

the most beautiful and most useful of modern books. 

£. S. Kingswan writes eulogistically of the Abb^ 
Klein's Au fays de " La Vie Intense "/ and says that 
Robert Dell's appeal in the Fortnightly Review (Nov.) 
for an adaptation of ecclesiastical methods to the changed 
conditions of the age, deserves to be studied. 

Stimmen aus Maria Laach (Nov.) : Fr. Joseph Braun, S.J., 
concludes his series: ''A Vanished Treasure of the Four- 
teenth Century." In this last paper he summarizes the 
description given in the Inventory of Prague of various 
sacred vessels, vestments, etc., the material of which 
they were made, the precious stones and metals with 

which they were adorned. Fr. Pesch discusses, in a 

very lengthy article, some phases of the labor problem 

that have lately appeared in France and Germany. 

Fr. Meschler has an article on the invocation, " Mother 
of Good Counsel," added to the Litany of Loretto by 

Leo XIII. Fr. Baumgartner contributes a poem on 

the jubilee of the Immaculate Conception. 



190$.] The Columbian Reading Union. 56J 



THE COLUMBIAN READING UNION. 

FROM The Catholic Reading Guild of England an illuminated address in 
Italian was recently taken to Rome and presented to Pope Pius X. in 
private audience by the Archbishop of Trebizond. This guild, by the aid of 
donations, has supplied Catholic periodical literature to one hundred and 
ninety public libraries of Great Britain and India, copies of the New Testa- 
ment and the Imitation of Christ were sent to fifty chaplains for distribution 
among the soldiers, together with a six-penny edition of Fabiola. An appeal 
for funds to continue the good work has been prepared by the treasurer, the 
Honorable Dudley Baxter, Shemming Grange, Birch, near Colchester, 
England. 

The same line of service for the difiEusion of Catholic literature, has been 
in operation for many years past among Reading Circles in the United 
States. As a central bureau of information The Columbian Reading Union 
has endeavored to co-operate with various local organizations by preparing 
lists of Catholic authors deserving of special recognition, and by suggesting 
ways and means of proclaiming their merits for the reading public at large. 
This explanation is here given for the inquirer who requested a list of Catho- 
lic books for a public library. Our attention has been called to the defects of 
the A. L. A. Catalogue of eight thousand volumes, prepared by the New 
York State Library, and the Library of Congress, which is put forth as the 
standard for all public libraries. It contains no work on Catholic philosophy; 
under the heading of Catholic Church it has three titles; no mention 
whatever of any book by John Boyle O'Reilly and other Catholic writers. 
The only justification that can be advanced for this exclusion, is that 
public funds may not be used to purchase sectarian literature. It is to 
be noted, however, that the complete set of The Catholic World 
has been admitted as a gift to one public library ; and that many read- 
ing rooms, more or less sustained by voluntary donations, feel obliged in 
justice to keep on file at least one Catholic periodical. We hope that some 
one will find time to make a more complete list of the omissions in the Cata- 
logue put forth in the name of the American Library Association. The 
eminent writers, of what may be regarded as standard literature for American 
readers, should not be boycotted on account of their race or creed, as that is 
plainly against the Constitution of the United States. From this point of 
view alone it can easily be proved that many books intended for the general 
reading public have been placed on the prohibited list without sufHcient cause, 
and with very inadequate knowledge of their worth, simply because the 
writers were known as Catholics. Here is the opportunity for Reading Cir- 
cles to make known the claims of Catholic authors, and to use all legitimate 
means to secure for them equal justice. 

It is to be remembered that the Librarian of Congress is obliged to 
accept every book for which a copyright is given ; hence it is that no other 
library could show an equal number of the books that should be mentioned in 
a complete bibliography of Catholic literature published in the United States, 



564 THE Columbian Reading Union. [Jan., 

and the books of general value written by Catholics. The evidence is not 
wanting that many books containing offensive sectarian attacks on Catholics 
are bought with public funds. Since October 5, 1897, a book has beon in 
circulation approved by the Board of Education in New York City. It is 
entitled, Brave Little Holland and What She Taught Us, written by William 
Elliot Griffisy published by Houghton, Mifflin & Co., of Boston and New 
York. By request of a friend we examined this breezy publication, and feel 
obliged to decide that it is unsuitable for non-sectarian schools. The author 
vomits forth scorn and detestation against Catholics, and unlimited praise 
for their opponents in the days of fierce religious dissension. On page 185 
we are informed that the Dutch Calvinists ''feared God and nothing else"; 
that they were particularly strong in their defiance of ''royal upstarts and 
mushroom- popes." Our friend suggests that cabbage-head upstarts would 
balance the statement better. Elsewhere, on the same page, the author 
makes a strong plea for Calvinism as taught in the Genevan republic by Cal- 
vin himself. For the first time we learn in this book, page 147, that William 
of Orange was "recognized by all parties as the man to keep the peace." 

Surely this is a plea for sectarianism of the most boisterous type. 

• • • 

We have received from the president of the Arthur H. Clark Company, 
Garfield Building, Cleveland, Ohio, the following letter : 

It is with much regret that I have to inform you that the support accorded 
our publication. The Philippine Islands — I4gj-i8g8, has been so inadequate 
that we are facing a serious financial loss upon it. We iiave issued the work 
faithfully from month to month, and expect to complete it and fulfil our 
obligation to those who have supported it, even at a loss to ourselves. 
Thus far, less than one hundred sets have been placed in this country, 
although a larger number have been placed in the important libraries of 
Europe, India, Australia, the Far East, and the Philippines. Of the sets in 
this country nearly all are in public institutions ; the remainder are in large 
private collections, which are not likely to come into the market for many 
years, if ever. 

With much regret we are now compelled to limit the edition to the num- 
ber of sets actually ordered. Beginning with Volume XXII., to be published 
February i, 1905, only enough of each volume will be printed to fill orders 
received before that date. Of the volumes already issued, the excess above 
the subscribed number will then be destroyed, and the work will never be 
reprinted. 

1. It is the only work making these sources available in any language, 
particularly the English, and its usefulness and importance to public men, 
students, and in large private libraries must increase from year to year, 
particularly when the current volumes cover more recent years, and when 
the index volumes make those sources more easily available. 

2. It is the only work giving the complete history of the Roman Catholic 
Church in the islands, and of the work done by its great religious orders. 

3. Archbishop Messmersays: It appeals to American Catholics with a 
twofold power of interest and importance based on their loyalty to church and 
-ountry. The American Catholic Quarterly Review says : It is hoped that all 

cational institutions are placing it on their shelves. 



1 90S.] THE Columbian Reading Union. 565 

4. Readers will be referred to this set by all future writers on the islands, 
and it will have a prominent place in future bibliographies. 

5* Limited to so few sets as the work must now be, it will not be pro- 
curable later ; only seven sets exist outside of public institutions, and all free 
sets for review must be discontinued. 

On account of the expense it will be impossible again to call this matter 
to your attention, and I sincerely hope that we may secure an adequate sup- 
port for this great historical work. We shall not be able to fill any orders 
received after February i, 1905. 

The publishers have acted wisely in making known the facts of the case 
to the reading public. It would be lamentable that their generous undertak- 
ing, which has national importance, should involve financial loss. Catho.Hcs 
especially have much to gain by the correct statement of facts regarding the 
Philippine Islands. It is estimated that the' complete work will require fifty- 
five volumes ; price four dollars a volume. The publishers will furnish on 
application the detailed prospectus, with a list of the questions selected to 
guide this extended historical investigation. 

Beginning with the earliest discoveries of Spanish navigators and the 
descriptions of the early explorers, the history of the islands is traced during 
a period of over four centuries, by means of official documents^ narratives of 
missionaries, and historical works — the original sources for our knowledge of 
the islands and their inhabitants. Of prime importance in this field is the 
history of the missions conducted, since the re-discovery by Legazpi and 
Urdaneta, by the great religious orders in the Roman Catholic Church — of 
which the missionaries have left many and often voluminous reports ; these 
writers, too, have supplied much valuable information on the secular history 
of the islands. Besides the material furnished by them, the series will include 
descriptive accounts of the islands and their peoples, written by the early 
navigators and by travelers from foreign lands; reports and letters from 
Spanish ofiicials ; royal decrees ; and papal bulls and briefs. Few persons 
are aware of the vast amount of material available for Philippine history ; and 
in this enterprise the effort has been made for the first time to render that 
material accessible, not only to scholars but to the general public. 

The necessary limitations of an historical work compel the editors to 
select for publication only the most important documents and books ; but 
these have been chosen with especial reference to the breadth of the field, and 
with the endeavor to allot to each subject space proportioned to its interest. 
Especial care has been taken to depict the social, economic, commercial, 
political, and religious conditions of the Filipino peoples, from their earliest 
relations with European nations until the close of the nineteenth century. 
In the presentation of these documents, and in all editorial comment thereon, 
an entirely impartial attitude will be preserved, free from any personal bias, 
either political or sectarian. It is confidently expected that this matter, thus 
presented, will throw light on present conditions in the archipelago, both 
secular and ecclesiastical, and thus aid in the solution of the difficult ques- 
tions now confronting the American people in the Philippines. 

Rev. Ambrose Coleman^ O.P., author of the book The Friars in thi 
PhUippitui^ gave a lecture in the City Hall, Lawrence, Mass., on Sunday, 



566 THE Columbian Reading Union. [Jan., 

November 27. He dwelt strongly on tke persecution which the church is 
undergoing at present at the hands of the half-breed and Filipino, Free- 
masons, Freethinkers, and Atheists, as well as the Aglipayan and revolution- 
ary elements of the islands. Father Coleman returned some months ago 
from a long tour of investigation which he made in the Philippines, and 
intends bringing out another book on the subject. 

• • * 

To counteract any injurious effects from the report of Miss Helen Gould's 
committee, appointed to decide certain questions relating to the Bible, it 
would be well for Catholics to know that the Right Rev. Monsignor Vaughan, 
Canon of Westminster, England, has already published the best manual for 
the popular study of the Bible in the English language. It was prepared first 
as a series of popular lectures. These took so well and drew out so many 
questions even from non-Catholic hearers and readers — for the demand for 
them led to their reproduction in the press — that, on the urging of Cardinal 
Logue, Archbishop of Armagh, the author has brought them out in book 
form. The cardinal stated his approval in these words : 

Your book furnishes quite sufficient knowledge on leading points to en- 
able the people to read the sacred text with intelligence, appreciation, and 
reverence. 

Father Gigot's excellent books on Scriptural study also deserve a wide 
circulation at this time. 

• • • 

A prisoner has written a most pathetic appeal for reading matter to tke 
.editor of the Pilot. The former editor, John Boyle O'Reilly, in his wonder- 
ful book entitled Moondyne^ presented a strong plea for sympathy to those in 
bondage, especially for political offences. 

Rev. J. W. Maher, Catholic chaplain of the state institution of Rhode 
Island, gave further information in the following letter : 

As Catholic chaplain of the state prison, I heartily endorse the request 
for good literature, such as that found in your paper, for our prisoners. It 
is, as you suggest, a want that can be easily satisfied by good persons if 
brought to their notice. 

The Warden of Rhode Islajid State Prison, Andrew J. Wilcox, gladly 
accepted the offer to circulate a copy of the Boston Pilot among the prisoners. 
This is a question of general interest for all who have Catholic papers at their 
disposal. How often are they thrown in the waste basket? In every diocese 
there is some provision made for Catholic visitors to the prisons. Let them 
arrange to bring specimens of Catholic magazines and papers to enlighten 
those in darkness. For obvious reasons the daily papers, with startling 
headlines devoted to the annals of crime, are not acceptable, and must be re- 

"fused by the prison authorities. 

• • • 

The New Worlds of Chicago, refers to a recent report as follows : 

Some attention deserves to be paid, to the lady's (Marquise des Mons- 

tiers Merinville) statement that since living in Europe her eyes have been 

opened to what the chureh really is. Very well. Two months ago the 

daughter of the Rev. Charles Kingsley, came into the church. She has 



1905. ] THE Columbian Reading Union. 567 

lived in Europe quite as long as the marquise. Marian Crawford, too, is 
surely as familiar with European Catholicism as the marquise can claim to 
be. He came into the church and has remained. Baron Russell, of Kil* 
lowen. Lord Chief Justice of England, must have been pretty familiar with 
the church in Europe; still he lived and died a Catholic. Does the lady 
know Europe better than did Prince Hohenlohe, the Imperial Chancellor of 
Germany ? He never deserted the faith. Last year Frau Hahn, the woman 
suffrage leader of Germany, became a Catholic. Possibly she knows Europe. 
Madame Lindbrog, the Madame de Stael of Denmark, became a Catholic 
last year. Why did she not have her eyes opened ? And the famous critic, 
Ferdinand Brunetiere — is he not as well acquainted with Catholicity in 
Europe as the marquise may dare pretend to be ? Still he became a Catho- 
lic about two years ago. So did Huysmans ; so have at least five hundred 
more eminent in law, philosophy, history, art, literature, theology, science, 
war, and statesmanship. A mere list of their names would fill two pages 
of this journal. 

On good authority the statement is made that one of the stock arguments 
urged for the defeat of President Roosevelt by the A. P. A., in the recent 
campaign, was that he had appointed a Catholic, Charles J. Bonaparte, on 
the Indian Commission. Mr. Bonaparte was a candidate on the Republican 
electoral ticket of Maryland. Maryland went Democratic with just one excep- 
tion. Seven Democratic electors were chosen, but the whole ticket ^was 
headed by the Republican, Mr. Bonaparte. Democrats and Republicans 
united to choose him by a larger vote than was given to any other candidate 
on either ticket. 

His case was unique in this remarkable election, and it speaks well for 
Maryland that her Democratic voters paid such an honor to a political oppo- 
nent. Like the election of Folk, in Missouri, it means that the people are 
placing honesty above party, even in a national campaign. 

That means a great deal. It is a warning to the political bosses that 
they can no longer rely on the voters to follow them blindly in supporting any 
candidate because he represents the straight party ticket. It is another kind 
of straightness that is in demand. It was not even necessary to organize the 
forces behind Mr. Bonaparte. His character and record were enough to win 
the popular endorsement. Similarly the politicians who looked upon the 
Irish vote as a sure asset of one political party, woke up on the day after 
election to find that vote gone over in hundreds of thousands to a candidate 
whose hold on their affections lay all in his honesty and courage and love of 
lair play. He has made it a point always to give every one a square deal. 
When the time came, they gave him a square deal in return. 

It was well known that the A. P. A. organization did everything possible 
to defeat President Roosevelt when he was nominated for Governor of New 
York. The future historian should note the fact that this un-American out- 
growth from the Orange lodges may now be considered officially buried 
under a great avalanche of^patriotic votes. 

M. C. M. 



BOOKS RECEIVED. 



Bbnziger Brothers, New York: 

Studies, By Dr. J. R. Gasquet. Edited by Dom H. N. Birt, O.S.B. Introduction by 
Right Rev. T. C. Hedley. O.S.B. Spiritual C9unsili from the Letters 'of FimeUm, 
Selected by Lady Amabel Kerr. Pp. loi. Price 25 cents. Fabiola. By Cardinal 
Wiseman. Pp. 324. Price 25 cents. Paper. The Ruler ef the Kingdom,. By Grace 
Keon. Pp. 270. Price $1.25. The Middle Ages. By Rey. T. J. Shahan. S.T.D. 
Pp. 432. Price $2 net. Shadows Lifted. By Rey. J. E. Copus, S.J. (Cuthbert.) 
Pp. 2%. Price 85 cents. Letters of Bussed John of Avtla. Translated and selected by 
the Benedictines of Stanbrook. Pp. 168. Price $1.10 net. Vera S^itntia; or, Tmo 
Wisdom. From the Latin of Thomas k Kempis. By Right Rev. Mgr. Byrne, D.D.» 
V.G. I*p. 204. Price 75 cents net. 

B. Herder. St. Louis, Mo. : 

Perfect Contrition. By Rey. J. Von Den Driesh. Translated by Rey. J. Slater, S.T. Pp. 
qi. Price 5 cents. 45 cents per dozen. The Gospel Applied to Our Times. By Rey. 
D. S. Phelan. Pp. 473. Price $a net. 

Longmans, Green & Co., New York: 

The Abbess of Vlaye. By Stanley J. Weyman. Pp. 423. Price $1.50. Adventures of 
King James II. By the Author of A Life of Sir Kenelm Digby, Rochester, etc. Wim 
Introduction by Rey. F. A. Gasquet. D.D. Pp. 502. Price ^.80 net. The Epistles 
of Erasmus. Vol. II. By Frances Morgan Nichols. Pp. 638. Price $6 net, 

Westminster Art and Book Company : 

A Life of Pope St. Gregory the Gteat. By a Monk of the Monastery of Whitby (probably 
about A. D. 713). From MS. Galleu 576. By Francis Aidan Gasquet, D.D. Pp. 46. 

Government Printing Office. Washington, D. C. 

Department of Commerce and Labor. No. 55. November, 1904. Bulletin of the Bureau of 
Labor. Pp. 1491-1692 ; yii. International Union of American Republics. Noyember, 
1904. Monthly Bulletin of the International Bureau of American R^blics. VoL XVIII. 
Pp. xxii. — ^355-702. Eighth Annual Report of the Commissioner of Labor. 1903. Pp.865. 

CHRISTIAN Press Association Publishing Company. New York : 

Twenty-nine Chats and One Scolding. By Rey. Fred. C. O'Neill. Pp. 99Z. 

B. W, HUEBACH, New York: 

Moral Education. By Edward Howard Griggs. Pp. 296. Pi ice $2 net 

Henry Holt & Co., New York: 

The Divine Fire. By May Sinclair. Pp. 597. Price $1.50 net. 

Funk & Wagnalls, New York : 
/ Mrs. Maybrich's Own Story: My Fifteen Lost Years. By Florence Elizabeth Maybrick. 
Illustrated. Pp. yiii.-394. Price $1.20 net. 

John D. Morris & Co., Philadelphia: 

Irish Literature. Vol. X, By Justin McCarthy, M.P., Editor-in-Chief. Pp. xzy.-4x6. 
Illustrated. 

Methuen & Co.. London : 

Hurrell Froude : Memoranda and Comments. By Louise Imogen Guiney. Seyen lUas- 
trations. Pp. xix.-439. Price zor. td. net 

William Macbeth, New York : 

Homer Martin : A Reminiscence. By Mrs. E. G. Martin. Twelye Illustrations. Pp. 
ix.-s8. Price $1.50 net. 

John Murphy Company. Baltimore: 

The Waters of Lethe. By Lida L. Coghlin. With lUustradons by Clara M. Cogfalan. 
Pp. 310. Price $1.25. 

Oliver A. Quayle. State Legislative Printer. Albany : 

Eighth Annual Report of the State Commissioner of Excise of the State of New York, For 
the year ending September 30, 1904. Pp. xliv.-6i6. 

The Macmillan Company, New York: 

Pathfinders of the West. By A. C. Laut. Illustrations by Goodwin, Marchand, and 
others. Pp. xzy.-368. 

La Verdad Company, Guadalajaro, Mexico : 

Miss Diana Vaughan, Priestess of Lucifer. By Herself, now a nun. Translated from the 
Spanish by the Rey. Eugene Rickard, Meath, Ireland. Paper. Pp. xii.-ooa. Price 
21. 6d. 

P Lethielleux Paris : 

VInfaUlibUiti'duPap'eetle Syllabus. Par Paul VioUet. Pp.xxo. 



THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



Vol. LXXX. FEBRUARY, 1905. No. 479. 




A CATHOLIC AND THE BIBLE. 

I. 

BY THE REVEREND JAMES J. FOX. D.D. 

'HEN the tide of agnosticism was at its highest 
in the nineteenth century, many, the enemies of 
supernatural religion, believed that their most 
destructive arguments were furnished to them 
by the physical sciences. A leader, however, 
in sureness of vision vastly superior to his followers, declared 
that rationalistic criticism of the Bible, which had begun before 
physical science had entered upon its triumphant career, and 
which was carrying on its work with but slender aid from phy- 
sical discovery, was the real enemy of Christian faith. 

It will not be disputed that, within the pale of Protestant- 
ism, this has been the case. For Protestantism the Bible was 
the supreme and all-sufficient rule of faith. It was practically 
regarded as a book sent down from heaven. Every page, 
every line, every word in it was vouched for by Eternal Truth. 
Every sentence in it might be detached from its context, and 
laid down as a categorical proposition with the preamble. Thus 
sayeth the Lord, When dogmatic Protestantism was compelled 
to abandon this position, under the fire of what has been 
called the higher criticism, it started 01:1 a path in which there 
was no logical resting place short of it ceasing to regard the 
Bible as anything more than a merely human production. 
. Never, on the contrary, has Catholic dogma presented the 

Bible as a book fallen from heaven and merely registered by 
VOL. LXXX.— 37 



570 A Catholic and the Bible. [Feb., 

men. A double authorship, human and divine, has always 
been recognized in it by the church. And because she has 
done so, she is in a position to accept all the new knowledge 
that the sciences, paleontology, archaeology, philology, furnish, 
without detriment to her unvarying doctrine that the Scrip- 
tures are the inspired Word of God. Notwithstanding all calum- 
nies to the contrary, the church has no dread of the light. 
The most cursory inspection of our contemporary theology 
and biblical literature is sufficient to show how extensively 
they have taken into account the knowledge that has been 
gained from modern investigation of nature, and the resusci- 
tation of the long buried past. No fact that has been indubi- 
tably established, in any realm of research, has been found 
incompatible with our synthesis of authoritative doctrine. In 
many instances, it is is true, some old opinions, even long 
entertained and widely spread, have been dissolved, but dog- 
matic doctrine comes out of the ordeal in clearer splendor. 
^'Our faith," says an eminent scholar, to whom we shall fre- 
quently refer in the course of this paper, "has nothing to fear 
from truth, from whatever side it may come. The objective 
study of the Bible will weaken neither the dogma of inspira- 
tion nor the fact of revelation ; it will merely overturn some 
old system or another, and oblige us to modify opinions ren- 
dered dear by force of habit, by prejudice, or the spirit of 
inertia." 

Many of the old opinions referred to above are in posses- 
sion among the masses of the laity, and have been imbibed 
from the same sources as the truths of religion. The obvious 
dictate of prudence is that the minds of the faithful must not 
be subjected to the shock that would attend any violent dis- 
entanglement of the two elements. Speaking generally, although 
the parasitical growth which once adorned the robust trunk of 
faith and blended with the foliage, now, because its roots are 
cut and its leaves are withering, seems to throw the shadow 
of decay over the imperishable tree of life to which it clung, 
nevertheless its removal were best left to the slow but sure 
hftnd of time. With a zeal belonging to the temperament fos- 
ti;red in the atmosphere of the closet and the library, some 
w<;ll'meaning persons, on the plea that intellectual honesty 
mfA the conditions of the day demand it, advocate an opposite 
if'Ai'y, which would cram the babes and sucklings with food 



1905.] A Catholic and the Bible. 571 

that can be given safely only to mature minds and in judicious 
measure. They would introduce into the Sunday-School Father 
Gigot on Genesis, or even Father Hummelauer's latest expo- 
sition of the doctrine of inspiration, if they would stop short 
of adding to' the lessons on the decalogue and the deluge 
commentaries on the code of Hammurabi and the Babylonian 
dood-myth. The wisdom that presides over our religious in- 
struction will not commit this mistake. 

The practical problem is complicated by a factor which is not 
to be neglected. Usually safety, like virtue, lies in the mean. 
The proportion of Catholics who read serious literature is in- 
creasing. The results obtained by scientists and experts in 
every branch of inquiry are reaching the people through every 
channel of popularization. Not alone the schoolmaster, but also 
the professor of history, of philology, of Oriental archaeology, 
is abroad in the land. Information that was not long ago the 
exclusive possession of the few is becoming the property of the 
many. Not merely in writings, treating directly of religious and 
ethical topics, but in the magazine article, in the newspaper 
editorial, in the public lecture, in half of the novels that appear 
now, one frequently finds the thoughts interwoven with the 
tacit assumption that a supernatural ^ible is among the creeds 
which have had their day and ceased to be. 

In a hundred ways, the fact that Protestants through the 
advance of knowledge have been driven, against all their pre- 
judices, traditions, and inclinations, to abandon their old faith, 
is perpetually dinned into Catholic ears. Our people under- 
stand well enough the essentially different position which the 
Bible occupies in Catholicism. If cross- questioned on the sub- 
ject, they would be found to stand on the principle of St 
Augustine: / would not believe the Scriptures but on the author • 
ity of the church. But most of them understand also that 
authoritative teaching is that the Bible contains no error& 
The sum of all this pressure results often in an uneasiness 
which manifests itself in such questions as : '' Must I believe) 
that original sin was caused by the eating of a real apple; 
that the serpent really spoke to our. first mother; that God. 
was walking in the garden taking the afternoon air; that the: 
deluge covered the tops of Chimborazo and deposited the ark 
on the top of Mount Ararat; that the ark actually contained 
specicnens of all the animals in creation; etc., etc.?" 



572 A Catholic and the Bible. [Feb., 

One rapidly increasing class experiences still more acutely 
the need of more enlightenment than it has usually received. 
Notwithstanding the strenuous efforts of the clergy, an appall- 
ingly large number of our Catholic young men are going to 
non-Catholic universities, in which they breathe an atmosphere 
impregnated with rationalism and free-thought They have not 
learned to distinguish between what Father Prat calls " old 
systems and opinions " and obligatory Catholic truth. They 
find that many oi the former are incompatible with indisputa- 
ble knowledge. This discovery shakes their confidence. Then 
arises a struggle, which, in some minds, is tragically brief, be- 
tween intellectual honesty and religious loyalty. In others, 
the instinct of faith, if the expression may be permitted, to- 
gether with some acquaintance with the history of lost causes, 
bursts its way through the impasse, by reaching the decision 
that any beliefs hopelessly in conflict with scientific truth, 
whatever dignity they may have arrogated to themselves, are 
no teaching of the infallible church. A case of this kind, 
which has recently fallen under the notice of the present writer 
is typical rather than phenomenal. The assurance of a pru- 
dent and experienced missionary, that the publication of the 
following correspondence^ may be of service to many uneasy 
minds, is responsible for its appearance in print. 

II. 

University, 

November 5, 1904. 
Reverend dear Sir: 

I have been recommended by A. to write to you re- 
garding certain religious matters which, for some time past, 
have been causing me not a little anxiety; and I trust that 
you will pardon this intrusion upon your time by one entirely 
unknown to you, and forgive my boldness because of the need 
in which I find myself of some spiritual help. Is not instruc- 
tion of the ignorant ranked among the spiritual works of 
mercy ? To come at once to the point, I am about to be 
graduated from this university. I was raised, and I humbly 
trust I may still call myself, a strict Catholic. Never in my 
life, not even after I was confronted with the difficulties which 
I am going to propose to you, have I had any serious doubt 
about the truth of the Catholic faith. My earlier education I 



1905.] A Catholic AND the Bible, 573 

acquired as a day pupil of N College, in X , which I 

attended until eighteen years of age. In my last year I ob- 
tained the premium in Christian Doctrine. 

As soon as I began to make acquaintances, in my present 
place of study, I observed that alongside of much sincerely 
Christian belief and conduct there existed, I will not say a 
rejection of Christianity, but rather an apprehensive question- 
ing of its claims, and a half-entertained conviction that it is 
underminded by modern learning. Please do not misunder- 
stand me. I do not wish to say that irreligion prevails here, 
that would not be true ; but simply, among the more serious 
of my college friends, there is observable a fear mingled with 
regret that the march of intellect has left Christianity weakened 
and wounded. This feeling is almost entirely directed upon 
the Bible. As soon as I began to talk with my friends here I 
found that they considered the Old Testament to be a collec- 
tion of the literature of the Hebrew people, made up, like the 
literature of every other early people, of myths, legends, tribal 
superstitions, customs, prayers, institutions, and a little history 
on a par with Livy's account of the foundation of Rome. 

In my college days I had hardly any acquaintance with 
the Old Testament itself, but I aways understood that every- 
thing in it was revealed by God, and therefore absolutely true. 
I know that the great doctrine of original sin and the fall of 
our first parents the church teaches to be recorded in a 
chapter of Genesis. When I learned of the information con- 
tained in Jastrow's Religion of Babylonia and Assyria^ as well 
as in other works which are studied here, I found I could no 
longer believe in much of the Bible. I was forced to reject as 
ridiculous the theory that the world and man are of such recent 
origin as the Bible teaches. I was shown a long list of palpable 
contradictions in the text; and could not deny that several of 
them were obvious, such as in the two accounts of the flood, or 
the two accounts of David's meeting with Saul. I am not in 
the least shaken in my faith, and believe there must be some 
way out, but I cannot see it. 

When discussing the matter with my friends I insist that 
Catholics need not be afraid, since they have the divine 
promise of infallibility to the church ; they invariably bring up 
the fact that the church condemned as false the truth of the 
earth's diurnal motion; and they maintain, with Lecky and 



574 A Catholic and the Bible. [Feb., 

Draper and White, that the Catholic Church has ever resisted 
science. 

I went lately to a priest whom I know with the question : 
May we not believe that the Bible is not without errors, in his- 
tory and in its accounts of those affairs which belong to science, 
and still be good Catholics ? He told me positively that Leo 
XIII. had declared that in the Bible there are no errors of any 
kind ; and that to say the contrary was to deny the infallibility 
of the Pope, and so become a heretic. I called next on one 
of the fathers attached to a local college. He assured me I 
could look with perfect unconcern upon any and all advances 
of learning. Whatever was to be the final issue, he said, the 
church would be in perfect accordance with it. He said that 
any discrepancies in the Bible could easily be accounted for by 
errors of those who, in early ages, copied the original manu- 
scripts, or by defects in translations. After some cautions, 
which I recognized to be reasonable and useful, he gave me a 
book written by a member of his order, which professed to be 
a systematic summary of Catholic teaching for the use of uni- 
versity students. I cannot believe that this book is a correct 
statement of our faith ; it has only increased my difficulties. It 
speaks of "The Sacred Books being absolutely free from error " ; 
it declares that man appeared on earth about four or five 
thousand years ago ; and that '' the most ancient nations, Egypt, 
Babylonia, and China, according to their trustworthy history, 
may have had their beginning not far from the year 4,cxx> 
B. c, a date which may be easily reconciled with the date 
given in Genesis.'' Then it dismisses the subject with some 
wretched insinuations to the effect that archaeologists deal in 
uiproved assumptions, and that geologists have abandoned all 
opposition to Moses. It is painful to read talk of this nature. 
It can serve only one purpose, viz., to provide proof that 
Catholics cannot afford to acknowledge the results of modern 
science. This I do not believe ; so I write to you for help- 
Give me, please, the idea of the Bible which, as a Catholic, I 
must hold, and, as a thinking man, I can respect. To help 
me may cost you some valuable time; but you will have the 
satisfaction of knowing that you will have conferred an inesti- 
mable service on me, and that I shall remain ever 

Yours, with the deepest gratitude, 

X. X. 



1905.] A Catholic and the Bible, 575 

III. 

My dear Sir: 

To reply to the enquiry with which you have honored me, 
by offering you any merely personal solution of your difficul- 
ties, would be presumptuous on my part, and unsatisfactory to 
you. A more excellent way will be to introduce you to the 
pronouncements of some of our acknowledged leaders who, 
under the imprimatur of authority, are aligning the position 
of biblical exegesis so as to make it consistent with the mod- 
ern knowledge which you find to be incompatible with old 
interpretations that have reached us from other times. From 
a goodly number of available guides we shall select two whose 
eminence is a pledge that in following them you are treading 
the safe path of orthodoxy. One is the Dominican, Father 
Lagrange,* whose presence on the Biblical commission ap- 
pointed by Pope Leo wins for it the respect of all scholars, 
and ptaces him beyond the range of suspicion. To the name 
of the other, the Reverend Father Prat,t are appended the 
letters, S.J., which carry with them an attestation of uncom- 
promising opposition to any leanings towards liberalism. 

Before taking up your specific difficulties it will be well to 
note how these scholars repudiate the charge that the Catho- 
lic Church ignores science and criticism because their dis- 
closures are fatal to her intellectual position — a charge which 
summarizes all the counts in the long indictment drawn up 
against her biblical teaching. After referring to the paucity 
of the historical knowledge possessed by our old Scripturists 
and theologians, Father Prat writes: ''All that is greatly 
changed now. Civilizations, lost for five thousand years, now 
rise from the tomb ; these mighty monarchs, whose very 
names had perished, live and move again before our eyes ; we 
study their features, we calculate their annals, we read their 
feats and achievements, swollen, naturally, by a naive vanity, 
but perfectly authentic. Paleography, linguistics, ethnology, 
geography, all the sciences ancillary to history have advanced 
with equal stride. These are for us sources of information 
that can amount to certitude; or, at least, to that high degree 

* La Methode HUtorique. Par Le P. Marie- Joseph Lagrange, Des Frferes Pr^cheurs. 
Paris : Victor Lecoffre. 1904. 

t La Bible et VHUtoire, Par Le R. P. F. Prat, _S. J. Paris : Libraire Bloud et Cie. 
1904. 



576 A Catholic and the Bible. [Feb., 

of likelihood formed by a conveyance of probabilities which, 
practically, is hardly to be distinguished from it. Conse- 
quently a historic fact regarded as certain may enter into 
collision with a biblical assertion, or rather with an interpre- 
tation that has hitherto been considered as the true sense of 
the Bible."* Father Lagrange speaks, even more explicitly, 
in a similar strain : " No Catholic exegete may pretend that 
he is not amenable to the dogmatic judgment of the church, 
but no authority can exempt our productions, as far as their 
scientific part is concerned, from the judgment of competent 
men, nor prevent it. from being used against the church, if it 
demonstrates a real shortcoming. What would be put forth as 
Catholic interpretation would do as much harm to our faith as 
rash exegesis would, and would tend to create a mentality 
that would not be worthy of the church." f Immediately he 
goes on to acknowledge that scientific progress necessitates 
the abandonment of many beliefs that have been long enshrined 
in our theology and apologetics, and, as your troubles indi- 
cate, have not yet disappeared : '' Alongside the dogmas of 
faith, which are the life of our souls, and the world's salva- 
tion, and are not to be touched — even by a pious hand — for 
the purpose of transforming them, the exegetes — not the 
church — loaded themselves with a goodly number of pretended 
dogmas, literary and historical, a light burden for the meta- 
physical Middle Ages, since nothing is impossible to God, a 
burden that had already become onerous in Renaissance times^ 
one which Protestantism shouldered with a light heart, as the 
price of escape from pontifical authority, one which grew 
heavier and heavier because constantly increased by the more 
or less happy solutions of commentators, and now decidedly 
intolerable for a century initiated into a knowledge of Oriental 
antiquity."} 

Both of our authors deplore that due attention has not 
always been given to a warning of St. Augustine, repeated by 
St. Thomas in the following terms : " With regard to maxims 
commonly taught by philosophers, I consider it safer to avoid 
equally two courses : one, that of presenting them as articles of 
faith ; the other, that of rejecting them as contrary to the 
sacred Scriptures; so that we may not furnish learned men an 
occasion for deriding our dogmas."^ The passage from St. Au- 

♦ 73., p. 7. \La Methpde Hutorique, p. 17. % lb., preface, p. xix. } Prat, p. 23. 




1905.] A Catholic AND the Bible. 577 

gustine runs as follows : '' It often happens that an unbeliever, 
through observation and investigation, knows with certainty 
the movements, the revolutions, the magtittude, and the dis- 
tance of the stars, eclipses of sun and moon, the nature of 
animals, vegetables, minerals, and such like matters. It is a 
shame and a danger that a Christian should, in the name of 
the Bible, pronounce lightly upon these questions."* In his 
context Father Prat lays down the principle which ought to 
guide the biblical interpreter : " Augustine establishes two 
categories of truths: those which have for their object nature, 
in which savants alone are competent; and those which con- 
cern faith, in which their incompetence is absolute. We accept 
the first kind of truths on their word, when accompanied with 
satisfactory proof, and we show that the Bible properly inter- 
preted is not in conflict with them ; as to the other sort, we 
deny to the unbeliever the right to meddle with them ; they 
form the inalienable domain of the believer enlightened by 
revelation. In dogmatic matter, the rule of morals and the 
analogy of faith guides us; in scientific affairs it is proper to 
avail ourselves of the guidance of specialists." f 

The attitude of our leaders in Scriptural criticism has noth- 
ing in common with the spirit which, while making eloquent 
profession of its willingness to lespect the claims of science at 
large, invariably disparages and rejects, .on some empty 
pretext, every scientific conclusion that comes into collision 
with old opinions. Apologetic literature of the last sixty or 
seventy years furnishes many pages that might be* quoted to 
lend plausibility to his statement by the writer who has said 
that theologians are "persons who profess great devotion to 
the interests of advancing knowledge in general, while the 
particular advance in knowledge at any time going on, some- 
how never happens to be the one which they think fit to 
honor with their favor; of each new trophy which science has 
from time to time laboriously won, these opponents have has- 
tened to declare: 'Behold it is the last.'" The sincerity of 
our best contemporary scholarship will be manifested by a few 
typical extracts, which will at the same time serve to lay at 
cest your perplexities concerning biblical chronology and 
patriarchal tables. 

" In the eyes of the most moderate and the most solid 

•y^., p. 23. Mb, 



578 A Catholic and the Bible, [Feb., 

science the world is much older than people formerly believed, 
no longer is the history of the human race enclosed within 
compass of the patriarchal genealogies ; the deluge has not 
submerged all the surface of the globe, the list of peoples 
enumerated in the tenth chapter of Genesis does not embrace 
all humanity ; the scene of Babel had not for actors all the 
men then living; and Catholic exegetes, most jealous of their 
orthodoxy, do not fear to add to the age of the world, to 
push back the first appearance of man upon earth, to insert 
intermediary links in the chain of biblical genealogies, to admit 
that the word all, in the passages in question, is to be under- 
stood as of a relative universality limited by the visual horizon 
of the inspired author." • 

Here Jesuit and Dominican walk arm in arm. Father La- 
grange writes : '' Humanity is very old and the Hebrew people 
relatively very young. This is a proposition which nobody 
can deny. I do not rely here upon what has been called pre- 
history (prehistoire). I take up but a single argument per- 
mitting us to compare the Hebrews with a great neighboring 
people. And let us remark that independent savants are not 
all the time bent upon swelling the chronology. On reading 
certain apologists one would believe that the savants added 
thousands of years just for fun."t The argument, which need 
not be quoted in full, is based upon the fact that between the 
reign ot the Babylonian king, Nabonnedos, and the reign of 
his predecessor, Naram-Sin, a period of 3,200 years elapsed; 
that, on tlie most moderate calculation, based not upon legend 
or conjecture, but upon written documents, the first Chaldean 
monarchs antedate our era by 4,000 years : " What is the con- 
clusion ? That this civilization, religion, language, writing bad 
then reached a maturity which forbids us to calculate the date 
of their origin. We see only that during the following 3,500 
years the language and the writing had not sensibly changed. 
Judge, then, of the time required for the language to have 
differentiated itself from the other Semitic tongues.'* 

The tactic of rejecting science, because all scientists are 
not in agreement as to details, is not found in Father La- 
grange's manual of arms: "Let us cease to struggle against 
the evidence, to shuffle about Manetho having added contem- 
porary dynasties to his list, to banter the Chinese about their 

* lb., p. 26. t Pp. 196-7. 




1905.] A Catholic AND the Bible. 579 

fabulous antdquity. Here there is no question of geological 
chronometers more or less authentic. All the computations of 
savants may be erroneous; hence the wisest abstain from a 
too precise arithmetic. When all is satd, it is incontestable 
that about 4,000 B. c, there existed, in Egypt and Chaldea, 
two civilizations profoundly different and extremely old. We 
put aside the anthropologists who demand the time sufficient 
to progress from the savage state to an administrative system, 
on many points as complicated as our own. We assume at 
the beginning a race active, intelligent, endowed with the 
social sense; an incalculable time will still be required before 
it can speak this language already age worn, write this alpha- 
bet already transformed, and acquire this civilization and artis- 
tic developmsnt, especially when we remember that in all 
these things three thousand years wrought scarcely any varia- 
tion ; and the argument increases in force when we admit the 
unity of the human race and of primitive language."* 

The above passage occurs in a conference to an audience 
in which the speaker had reason to suspect there were some 
who would fain cling to time- honored interpretation; so he, 
fully alive to the actual value of the warning given by St. 
Thomas against exposing our faith ad irrisiones infideUum^ 
drives home his conclusions: '^ Gentlemen, whether we like it 
or not, an immense empty space stretches between the crea- 
tion of man and the time of Abraham. What took place there 
we shall probably never know. If we wish to extend a little 
the domain of history, we may betake ourselves to Chaldea, 
where we find dynasties that may be classified according to 
their place and time. But it is evident that the first chapters 
of the Bible are not at all a history of humanity, nor even of 
one of its branches, because if they were, we should scarcely 
have one fact for every thousand years, and it we could not 
locate. "t Again: "The people that furnishes us with the 
most ancient documents, anterior by two or three thousand 
years to Moses, the most ancient biblical author known to 
tradition, possesses nothing historic concerning those immense, 
sombre periods (that have preceded Abraham) truly plunged 
in the night of time.") 

Having previously observed that such great men as Bossuet 
and Pascal had looked upon as irrefragable the old argument 

•p. 196. fp. 216. IP. 209. 



58o A Catholic and the Bible. [Feb., 

whicb professed to prove the historic veracity of Moses by 
showing that his witnesses extended in an uninterrupted chain 
from himself to the first man — " Sem, who saw Lamech, who 
had seen Adam, saw, at least, Abraham, and Abraham saw 
some who saw Moses" — Father Lagrange reminds his hearers 
that the great theologian and the great philosopher were 
obliged to think within the intellectual limitations of their age. 
''But," with the broadmindedness of the true historical critic, 
he says: ''do not be so unjust to Bossuet and Pascal as to 
fancy that they would have obstinately maintained their posi- 
tion if they had known as much as we know. In their age we 
should have thought as they, and spoken not so well."* 

You will, I am satisfied, never again experience any uneasi- 
ness relative to the alleged conflict between science and biblical 
chronology. A personal recollection — pardon a reference to 
it^has prompted me, even at the risk of being prolix, to post 
you thoroughly on this point.. Some years ago a friend who 
had gone through college with me, where he was noted for bis 
earnest piety, came to me with a book that he had just been 
reading. The writer began by stating that it was an essential 
part of the Christian faith that about the year 4,000 or 5,000 
B. G. the rising sun on New Year's morning looked down for 
the first time on the newly created Adam in the garden of 
paradise. He then went on to say that, unfortunately for the 
Christian faith, that same rising sun, in the valley of the 
Euphrates, beheld the mighty City of Babylon with its temples 
palaces, public monuments, fortifications built by human hands 
that had already been dust for thousands of years; and he pro- 
ceeded to recount the results of scientific investigation in this field. 
" Is there any truth in this ? " anxiously inquired my friend. 
I could then do no better than repeat the usual platitudes: 
Revelation and true science cannot be in contradiction, for 
revelation is the voice of God ; most of this pretended science 
is mere conjecture ; scientists are led astray by intellectual 
pride ; they contradict one another ; moral corruption is the 
root of reason's rebellion against divinely appointed authority, 
etc. My friend left dissatisfied, with his cojifidence in the 
religious teaching that he had received irreparably shaken. 
He died an infidel. 

'P. 219. 



L905.] THE Beloved. 581 

This letter is already unreasonably long, and, besides, there 
is not just now sufficient time at my disposal for settling your 
other and more general difficulties — no errors in the Bible^ 
opposition of the church to modem science. You will soon, how- 
ever, receive a further communication. Meanwhile believe me, 

Fraternally yours. 



THE BELOVED. 

BY KATHARINE TYNAN. 

They are gone out into the night, 
The young, the loved, the wise and gay; 

Here whence our joys so soon take flight 

Ah, who would stay? — would choose to stay? 

Oh, who's in love with life to be, 
Life so alone when friends are gone ? 

The last leaves on an empty tree 
Trembling alone, trembling alone. 

Oh, who would fear to take the road — 
To stay were rather cause for fear — 

That the beloved feet have trod 
But yesterdaj', but yester-year? 

Beyond the night, beyond the waste. 

Where stars yet lift their diadem, 
Shall we not, if we go in haste, 

Come up with them, come up with them? 

Oh, who would fear the night and frost. 
Beyond whose mirk their faces shine — 

The young, the loved, the early lost? 
Oh, yours and mine ; oh, yours and mine ! 



582 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. [Feb., 



PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 
II. 

BV THE REVEREND WILLIAM J. KERBY, Ph.D. 

T is difficult to hold the terms reform and reformer 

to any given meaning. Those who actually 

reform social conditions are reformers, whatever 

be their party, creed, or motive. They who 

merely talk, dream, and advocate reform are 

called reformers, although they reform nothing. Thus tm- 

pulse and achievement are confused in the use of the words. 

One may avoid this confusion by keeping in mind work rather 

than persons ; the objective situation which demands reform 

rather than the advocates of it. This is to some extent done 

in the following suggestions: 

/. The presumption is always in favor of an established order, 
and against innovation. 

The principle does not by any means imply that an estab- 
lished order is always right merely because it exists, or that 
innovation is always wrong simply because it is innovation. 
The presumption in question merely fixes relations and defines 
courses, just as the presumption of innocence in an accused 
man fixes his relation to law and defines the whole procedure 
in his case. The suspected man need not prove his innocence; 
the prosecution must show his guilt. Thus the relation of reform 
to established conditions is Axed in this, that it must justify 
itself before it can claim acceptance. This principle is the 
basis of all social order. It will be understood easily if seen 
in certain applications. 

ia) In undertaking any reform one should change as little 
as possible, and seek out as much as possble in things as they 
are, on which to base reform. 

(h) No radical step is justified if a less radical step will 
accomplish the purpose sought. 

(c) The analysis of a problem and its relations should direct 



1905.] Principles in Social Reform. 583 

all reform work, in order that radical steps may be avoided 
when they are not necessary, and that they may be justified 
when they are necessary. 

Any social order is made up of circumstances and relations 
which are transient, unstable, responsive ; of customs which are 
somewhat fixed, because social life expresses itself habitually 
through them, and many important relations of life are 
adjusted to them ; of institutions formally sanctioned and 
established, which are the actual guarantee and framework of 
the social order, and are rooted in the life of the people ; and 
of principles which are the axioms of the people, truths which 
spring from its genius, permeate thought and feeling, pre- 
determine judgments and attitudes, and govern policies. It is 
evident that the least fixed of these elements of a social order 
are more safely changed than the most fixed. We shall have 
problems when contradictions arise ; when circumstances and 
conditions of life fail to equal the promises of institutions ; 
when institutions fail to keep pace with changes in principles; 
when a people's self estimate is not realized in life. 

While this is most easily seen in the fate of a whole people, 
it is true in due proportion of any community, of any city. A 
problem should be analyzed into its elements; the circum- 
stances, conditions, customs, institutions, relations, principles, 
which are concerned, should be noted and the problem should 
be clearly located. Thus reform should begin with the least 
fixed factors and work on them, touching no more fixed element 
until need of it is apparent. The failure of an institution may 
be due to those who conduct it. They should be disturbed 
and not the institution. Failure may be due to the circum- 
stances in which an institution operates. The circumstances 
should be corrected, not the institution. Failure may be due 
to the relations among certain institutions. These relations 
should be corrected. The institution may fail because it is 
ill-suited to the spirit and elements of a time and place. Then 
it should be changed, but its principle should not be touched. 
The principle may itself be ill- adapted. Then it should be 
discarded. Thus if the problem be carefully located, and its 
elements be clearly seen, reform may easily avoid mistake. It 
should utilize as much as possible of what is, change as little 
as possible, and in all that is changed, work from the less 
fixed to the more fixed in the social order. 



58a Principles in Social Reform. [Feb., 



PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 
II. 

BY THE REVEREND WILLIAM J. KERBY, Ph.D. 

T is difGcult to hold the terms reform and reformer 
to any given meaning. Those who actually 
reform social conditions are reformers, whatever 
be their party, creed, or motive. They who 
merely talk, dream, and advocate reform are 
called reformers, although they reform nothing. Thus im- 
pulse and achievement are confused in the use of the words. 
One may avoid this confusion by keeping in mind work rather 
than persons ; the objective situation which demands reform 
rather than the advocates of it. This is to some extent done 
in the following suggestions : 

/. The presumption is always in favor of an establishtd order, 
and against innovation. 

The principle does not by any means imply that an estab- 
lished order is always right merely because it exists, or that 
innovation is always wrong simply because it is innovation. 
The presumption in question merely fixes relations and defines 
courses, just as the presumption of innocence in an accused 
man fixes his relation to taw and defines the whole procedure 
in his case. The suspected man need not prove his innocence; 
the prosecution must show his guilt. Thus the relation of reform 
to established conditions is fixed in this, that it must justify 
itself before it can claim acceptance. This principle is the 
basis of all social order. It will be understood easily if seen 
in certain applications. 

{a) In undertaking any reform one should change as little 
as possible, and seek out as much as possble in things as they 
are, on which to base reform. 

{b) No radical step is justified If a less radical step will 
accomplish the purpose sought. 

(c) The analysis of a problem and its relations should direct 



I90S.] PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 583 

all reform work, in order that radical steps may be avoided 
when they are not necessary, and that they may be justified 
when they are necessary. 

Any social order is made up of circumstances and relations 
which are transient, unstable, responsive ; of customs which are 
somewhat fixed, because social life expresses itself habitually 
through them, and many important relations of life are 
adjusted to them ; of institutions formally sanctioned and 
established, which are the actual guarantee and framework of 
the social order, and are rooted in the life of the people; and 
of principles which are the axioms of the people, truths which 
spring from its genius, permeate thought and feeling, pre- 
determine judgments and attitudes, and govein policies. It is 
evident that the least fixed of these elements of a social order 
are more safely changed .than the most fixed. We shall have 
problems when contradictions arise ; when circumstances and 
conditions of life fail to equal the promises of institutions ; 
when institutions fail to keep pace with changes in principles; 
when a people's self estimate is not realized in life. 

While this is most easily seen in the fate of a whole people, 
it is true in due proportion of any community, of any city. A 
problem should be analyzed into its elements ; the circum- 
stances, conditions, customs, institutions, relations, principles, 
which are concerned, should be noted and the problem should 
be clearly located. Thus reform should begin with the least 
fixed factors and work on them, touching no more fixed element 
until need of it is apparent. The failure of an institution may 
be due to those who conduct it. They should be disturbed 
and not the institution. Failure may be due to the circum- 
stances in which an institution operates. The circumstances 
should be corrected, not the institution. Failure may be due 
to the relations among certain institutions. 
should be corrected. The institution may fai 
ill-suited to the spirit and elements of a time ar 
it should be changed, but its principle should i 
The principle may itself be ill-adapted. Thei 
discarded. Thus if the problem be carefully 
elements be clearly seen, reform may easily avc 
should utilize as much as apgs ible of what is, ( 
as possible, and in all *''^^- "hanged, work 
fixed to the more fixe- < order. 



582 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. [Feb., 




PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 

II. 

BY THE REVEREND WILLIAM J. KERBY, Ph.D. 

|T is difficult to hold the terms reform and reformer 
to any given meaning. Those who actually 
reform social conditions are reformers, whatever 
be their party, creed, or motive. They who 
merely talk, dream, and advocate reform are 
called reformers, although they reform nothing. Thus im- 
pulse and achievement are confused in the use of the words. 
One may avoid this confusion by keeping in mind work rather 
than persons ; the objective situation which demands reform 
rather than the advocates of it. This is to some extent done 
in the following suggestions : 

7. The presumption is always in favor of an established order^ 
and against innovation. 

The principle does not by any means imply that an estab- 
lished order is always right merely because it exists, or that 
innovation is always wrong simply because it is innovation. 
The presumption in question merely fixes relations and defines 
courses, just as the presumption of innocence in an accused 
man fixes his relation to law and defines the whole procedure 
in his case. The suspected man need not prove his innocence; 
the prosecution must show his guilt. Thus the relation of reform 
to established conditions is fixed in this, that it must justify 
itself before it can claim acceptance. This principle is the 
basis of all social order. It will be understood easily if seen 
in certain applications. 

(a) In undertaking any reform one should change as little 
as possible, and seek out as much as possble in things as they 
are, on which to base reform. 

{p) No radical step is justified if a less radical step will 
accomplish the purpose sought. 

(c) The analysis of a problem and its relations should direct 



1 90S.] PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 583 

all reform work, in order that radical steps may be avoided 
when they are not necessary, and that they may be justified 
when they are necessary. 

Any social order is made up of circumstances and relations 
which are transient, unstable, responsive ; of customs which are 
somewhat fixed, because social life expresses itself habitually 
through them, and many important relations of life are 
adjusted to them ; of institutions formally sanctioned and 
established, which are the actual guarantee and framework of 
the social order, and are rooted in the life of the people ; and 
of principles which are the axioms of the people, truths which 
spring from its genius, permeate thought and feeling, pre- 
determine judgments and attitudes, and govern policies. It is 
evident that the least fixed of these elements of a social order 
are more safely changed than the most fixed. We shall have 
problems when contradictions arise ; when circumstances and 
conditions of life fail to equal the promises of institutions; 
when institutions fail to keep pace with changes in principles; 
when a people's self estimate is not realized in life. 

While this is most easily seen in the fate of a whole people, 
it is true in due proportion of any community, of any city. A 
problem should be analyzed into its elements; the circum- 
stances, conditions, customs, institutions, relations, principles, 
which are concerned, should be noted and the problem should 
be clearly located. Thus reform should begin with the least 
fixed factors and work on them, touching no more fixed element 
until need of it is apparent. The failure of an institution may 
be due to those who conduct it. They should be disturbed 
and not the institution. Failure may be due to the circum- 
stances in which an institution operates. The circumstances 
should be corrected, not the institution. Failure may be due 
to the relations among certain institutions. These relations 
should be corrected. The institution may fail because it is 
ill-suited to the spirit and elements of a time and place. Then 
it should be changed, but its principle should not be touched. 
The principle may itself be ill-adapted. Then it should be 
discarded. Thus if the problem be carefully located, and its 
elements be clearly seen, reform may easily avoid mistake. It 
should utilize as much as possible of what is, change as little 
as possible, and in all that is changed, work from the less 
fixed to the more fixed in the social order. 



584 Principles in Social Reform. [Feb., 

The average socialist ignores this principle by assuming 
the total failure of institutions and principles, by converting 
the presumption over in favor of innovation, and by advocat- 
ing revolution in the principles of the social order immediately. 
Many who are interested in local reform efforts err by failing 
to analyze problems and by missing their causes. We find 
them advocating reform laws where it is not safe for law to 
enter ; advocating municipal ownership to cure evils which 
private ownership has not caused ; undertaking by local measures 
to correct wrongs whose origin is general; advocating changes 
in city government to cure evils due to processes quite foreign 
to the manner of administration. It is easier to reform a city 
council as it is, than to reform it by changing its constitution, 
since two distinct works are more difficult to accomplish than 
one. 

The restraint imposed by this principle is unwelcome to 
the reform temperament, which is neither analytical nor objec- 
tive, but there is no escape. If it is ignored, failure awaits 
reform ; and every failure of justifiable reform is a real ob- 
stacle to progress. 

2. When a reform is undertaken^ a definite aim should be set 
uff and it should be seen constantly in its concrete adjustment. 

Reform is protest and aspiration ; in both, feeling is more 
powerful than fact. Reform's great tendency is to think of 
things unrelated. By impulse, it would rather advocate a new 
law than secure the enforcement of an old one which is ignored. 
At any time there are actually enacted, laws enough to reform 
many of the more serious of our problems. As a rule the 
reformer misses this fact and appeals for new laws. Were he 
to make definite his plans and purposes, and were he to think 
concretely, he would often be led to the discovery that nothing 
new is needed ; merely the enforcement of the old. 

The shortsightedness of many reformers is due to their incli- 
nation to think of their reform unrelated to the social order of 
which it is part. It may be well to get out of factories boys and 
girU under fourteen years of age, but the main thing to do is to 
(irrivide positively for them, when thus freed. It may be well to 
^\i4bti saloons, but it is necessary to provide in an intelligent way 
\uf the actual human needs of men to which the saloon minis- 
* **'Ken reform places main emphasis on its negative func- 



1 90S. J Principles in Social Reform. 585 

tion of destruction, and forgets in its calculations its main 
function, which is positive and constructive, it gives proipise 
of little real service. This thought is developed from another 
point of view in what follows: 

J. In all reform aims^ due allowance should be made for the 
limitations of life. 

There are three great zones of reform fixed by the laws 
and limitations of social life: needed reform, possible reform, 
prudent reform. 

Needed reform includes everything by which we fall short 
of perfection ; the difference between our best ideals and our 
actual condition. Socialists, anarchists, and idealists generally 
believe that perfection may be attained, and hence the reform 
which they advocate is in this zone. 

Possible reform is that which may actually be inaugurated 
if we will. We possess authority and resources necessary, and 
we can command the result. A large number of reformers 
insist on all that is possible. They think of their purposes 
unrelated to life, forget the limitations which social relations 
create, and demand all reform to which resources are ade- 
quate. 

Prudent reform is that which appears safe and wise in the 
circumstances, and promises to sustain itself by its harmony v 
with factors in life on which its permanence depends. 

Sunday closing of saloons was once found possible in an 
Eastern city. But drunkenness so increased on account of 
Saturday purchases in quantity that the mayor, himself an 
ardent temperance worker, favored the abolition of the ordi- 
nance. To drive vice from any one section of a city is a 
reform, surely needed and actually possible to city authori- 
ties. Yet it might not be prudent, for it could easily create 
new dangers to innocence, health, and virtue far in excess of 
any suppressed by the reform. Good people generally insist 
on principles in such matters. With shortsightedness they 
overlook the deeper nature of certain social evils, and the uni- 
versal facts of human history. It may be better to study very 
carefully what is prudent in such cases, and undertake to 
accomplish it without raising the embarrassing question of 
principle involved. It was once found possible but imprudent 
to close certain factories in Germany on Sunday. Many girls 

VOU LXXX. — 38 



586 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. [Feb., 

who worked in large cities would have had no place of rest 
for the day, as they were able to hire only sleeping quarters 
to which no access was given during the day. Until provision 
was made for their security and rest on Sunday, it seemed 
better to permit them to work. It was found possible to 
abolish the army canteen, but there are many thoughtful and 
intelligent persons who doubt the prudence of it, and some 
disagreeable facts appear to support the doubt. This may 
sound like compromise with sin and wrongdoing, but nothing 
is more evident from the facts of life than this, that a policy 
is sometimes more serviceable concretely than a principle. 
Facts are facts, and the logic of life is rigid. Churchmen 
surely find it advisable to- day to accept the policy of separa- 
tion of church and state, and to be silent about the principle 
of union of the two; yet in the mind of the modern state the 
separation is of principle and not merely a policy. Thus we 
see that needed reform is not always possible ; possible reform 
is not always prudent ; but prudent reform is always impera-. 
tive. No community can escape from the moral obligation to 
inaugurate it and protect it. 

These distinctions are based on the facts of life and its 
limitations. One of the main factors limiting the possibilities of 
reform is the difficulty of co-oidinating social agents in any 
^ given work. When business men, churchmen, statesmen, pro- 
fessional men, the press, and the public unite on any great 
reform, it becomes at once possible and prudent ; nothing in 
the ordinary run of life could withstand such co-operation. 
But when all of these classes are at variance, with divergent 
sympathies, unrelated aims , and antagonistic philosophies, great 
difficulty is experienced in co-ordinating them in any reform 
work. Thus the zone of the possible in reform is considerably 
reduced. Not alone modem society, but even the modern city 
is so divided by party, religion, interest, prejudice, that its 
social power is enormously reduced, and its unity of social 
consciousness is seriously impaired. No part of society or of 
a community can solve a problem which concerns all society. 
Yet this is what modern circumstances force most reformers 
to undertake. 

Another limitation of reform is one of nxfiihod. Virtue and 
truth are not cunning, resourceful, or insistent. They are 
pliin, direct, sincere, unacquainted with the methods of selfish- 



1905.] Principles in Social Reform. 587 

ness and the principles of craft. Thus it is that high minded, 
honest men, who go into reform work uncompromisingly, insist 
on ideal methods in fighting evil. However, virtue and right, 
justice and equity, are by no means as attractive to the masses 
as we at times imagine. Sympathetic villainy, which recognizes 
the foibles of the people, which flatters and is deferential, is 
very powerful with them. Their weaknesses are inherent and 
human, while their virtues are largely acquired. The appeal 
to the former is very often more winning than the appeal 
to the latter. 

The main difference between the corrupt leader and the 
reformer, is one of purpose rather than method. Within the 
limits of principle the reformer may resort to many of the 
popular methods of the villain. But he will not, and as a 
result he loses. Brass bands, excursion boats, cartoons, and 
presents of turkeys at Christmas time, as well as contributions 
for weddings and funerals, are not inherently undignified or 
wrong. The people love such things, follow thtm, and vote 
for them. The reformer refuses to unbend, he scorns such 
methods, and sets up as counter attractions stern lectures^ oa 
social service, the sacredness of the ballot, and the iniquity of 
graft. 

Another phase of this limitation of method, followed by 
virtue and reform, its champion, is seen in connection with the 
police It is well known that they employ small thieves to 
catch big ones. The stool pigeon is an integral part of a 
police force. By being discreetly blind to the operations of 
minor burglars and criminals, the police secure at times from* 
these, reliable information concerning the presence and inten- 
tions of more dangerous men, whose skill and daring enable 
them to baffle attempts at capture. The police are thus put on 
the track of such men, and are enabled to capture them. 
Now, a mayor and a chief of police who were entirely noble 
and uncompromising would probably suppress and punish any 
collusion between police and petty burglars, and insist on en- 
tire integrity. Such a course has every sanction of moral law ; 
yet the good mayor in question might soon find his city over- 
run with criminals and the police unable to cope with them. 
His administration would meet severe condemnation, and very 
probably the people would look for a less virtuous man who 
would give protection against crime, they cared not how. 



588 Principles in Social Reform. [Feb., 

We may recognize the fact without thereby justifying it. 
Thus limitations of individual and of social power, of individual 
and of social will, and of social control, affect all reform work, 
marking its zones, and making necessary great prudence in all 
that is undertaken. 

4., The attitude of public opinion to a social problem and to 
its reform should be carefully determined. 

P ublic opin ion is a great power in a democracy. The feel- 
( ings, views, and principles, fixed and accepted ais axioms of 
life by a community, accepted as true, imperative, and self- 
enacting, generally applicable to all questions of life, exercise 
immense influence on individuals. When the people enjoy 
great liberty and are self governing, it is they uho distribute 
honors or revoke them; who sanction ambitions or check them; 
and hence the attitude of the public in any question of reform 
is vital, ^he relation of the public to the individual is an im- 
portant coefficient in the thought and feeling as it is in the 
interests and reputation of all normal men. 

4 Evils which public opinion tolerates will be with greatest 
difficulty remedied, while all that the public directly condemns 
will quickly vanish, in as far as the attitude of the public 
comes to sustained expression. But the public is not om- 
niscient, nor is its opinion always aggressive for exalted 
virtue. It is due to this that discrimination is necessary in 
defining the relation of public opinion to reform. 

(a) The public may be ignorant of the facts. In this case 
^ the first duty of the reformer is to make them known. 

It is remarkable that the public can be as ignorant, as we 
know it to be, of vital social facts, and that, in spite of uni- 
versal education, participation in public Hie, cheap newspapers 
and magazines, and an all but general habit of reading. There 
are intelligent, strong men and women who do not know what 
a sweat shop is; who have not the faintest notion of the pro- 
cesses of industry and of the fate of the laborers concerned; 
who know nothing of the work of children in factories; or of 
the vice and filth of crowded and unsanitary homes ; who do 
not know whether the motorman or hack drivers, with whom 
they daily ride, work eight hours a day or eighteen. 

Then there are vital facts of social life which are carefully 
hidden from the public ; the facts of political management, cor- 



1905.] Principles in Social Reform. 589 

ruption of legislatures, of so-called high finance, of evasions and 
violations of law by great corporations; methods of deception 
and adulteration in business. In view of this probability of 
ignorance in the public, the first duty of a reformer, in under- 
taking any reform, is to ascertain whether or not the facts are 
known. There are conditions, practices, facts of oppression and 
injustice, which the public will not tolerate. Once they are 
made known rightly and accurately, reform is in so far 
assured. 

(b) The public may know the facts in a social problem, 
but it may be indifferent to them. In this case the work of 
reform depends on the awakening of social conscience, not on 
the publication of facts. This may be a difficult work and an 
unpleasant one, it may be slow and exacting, but it is impera- 
tive. Little can be accomplished where no social conscience 
supports one's efforts. The history of city government in 
American cities furnishes abundant illustration. The public, 
as a rule, knows the more disgraceful facts of municipal cor- 
ruption, but it appears to be devoid of the sense of responsi- 
bility, displaying little ambition to secure more honorable 
government. Sometimes conscience can be awakened by per- 
sistent publication of facts, but, as a rule, appeal must be 
made to the moral sense of a community, if one would make 
active the dormant conscience. 

(c) We will find at times that the public does know and 
does care about the problems of social existence, but it feels 
helpless on account of lack of or ganizat ion. It would do some- 
thing, but it does not know what, or how to begin. The 
problem of organization is mainly one of leadership ; a serious 
problem, since good leaders are not easily found. Not any 
volunteer, not any good man, not any enthusiast is capable of 
organizing powers for reform in a community. Experience, 
large views, tact, insight into situations, and sound judgment 
are essential. The leader must see clearly the possible and 
the impossible, the prudent and the imprudent, and organize 
to secure results. 

Thus the reformer may have at least three kinds of work// 
to do in enlisting public opinion for his reform: if the public" 
is ignorant of the facts, he should make them known ; if the 
facts are known, he must awaken conscience ; if conscience is 
awakened, he must organize and direct its expression. If these 



590 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. [Feb., 

features of the relation of the public to reform be ignored, 
and if the reformer go on without discrimination, as is so 
often the ca^e, he can mset only failure. 

The relation of the individual to the public is a funda- 
mental factor in his life. Social problems are reduced in last 
analysis to individuals. The success of a business man de- 
pends on his knowledge of the public and the prompt adapta- 
tion of methods and forms to public taste. Great knowledge 
is displayed of human nature in modern advertising. The 
concern for public opinion shown by a politician, his deference 
to it, his speedy retirement when he falls out with it; the 
solicitude of a great political party when it finds public 
opinion divided on some pressing question, the shrewdness dis- 
played in forming a platform ; all such features of public 
leadership show us how carefully public opinion is studied, 
flattered, obeyed. When a city, state, or national administra- 
tion wishes to adopt a measure, but does not know how the 
public win take it, a most careful and quiet series of tests is 
inaugurated, in order to discover how public opinion might 
assert itself. The average reformer misses this great truth, 
more or less, and plunges ahead without a thought of the great 
public on which his success depends. 

The principle of publicity, nowadays so earnestly invoked 
as the only available remedy for the main evils of great cor- 
porations, is merely the application of this general thought to 
a specific problem. Every great business depends on the pub- 
lic for patronage. No shrewd manager will ever outrage public 
opinion. He either conducts the business honestly, or, if he 
is dishonest and corrupt, he keeps secret the facts. To com- 
pel great corporations to make public all records and the 
facts of basiness insures honesty, simply because no business 
can succeed if it outrage the sense of decency and honesty of 
A community. Publicity is equally effective for reform in the 
dmaller social vices as well. 

If a law rigidly enforced, required the posting in a public 
^Anfji of the names of all who frequented the haunts of vice, 
HI A if any who sought to evade the law were severely pun- 
ii^,»zf\f one very important reform in social morals would be 
A^^rit.fl, If those who dared to betray the public were 
ff * ,\,rly dibj^raced and ostracised, the interests of the public 
0^ 1 1 4 ^'^ loyally served. If the selfish owners of unsani- 



1905.] Principles in Social reform. 591 

tary houses, which earn large revenues, were publicly listed, 
and their social, religious, and business affiliations were 
made known, such men would very promptly give better 
homes and cheaper rents to tenants. When it vas shown 
in New York some time ago that a great telegraph company 
was in collusion with gamblers, by furnishing direct wires 
and expert operators to them, the public was astonished. 
But the manager of the company was curt and undismayed. 
When, however, the Eastern newspapers published the names 
of the directors of the company, called attention to their 
political, religious, and social relations, and pointed out the. 
shame of their inconsistency, surrender followed, and the com- 
pany gave up the service, sacrificing an annual revenue of 
a million in deference to public opinion. 

Every normal man respects public opinion. His funda- 
mental emotions force him to seek approval, to expect praise, 
to avoid condemnation. When his material interests, his repu- 
tation, prestige, and power depend on his relation to the pub- 
lic, we may be sure that he will respect public opinion. The 
employer will be humane when the public demands it ; the 
labor leader will be loyal, fair, and industrious when the pub- 
lic asks it; property owners will do the duties which property 
imposes when society demands it; the office holder will be 
loyal, sincere, and honorable when the public demands it. 
Hence public opinion is central in all reform work. The re- 
former should realize this truth above all, and should spare 
no pains to enlist popular sympathy in his cause. He may 
safely aim as far as the public supports him, but he risks his 
cause in going beyond the point to which public opinion 
reaches. 

The task is not without its difficulties. The relations of 
party, of press, of religion, of school, to the formation and 
direction of public opinion are complex and varied. They 
must be understood. Whatever they be, and whatever be the 
difficulty, the objective situation remains. Little is possible in 
a free country without public opinion. Little is impossible 
with it. 



The Dream of her Life, (Feb., 



THE DREAM OF HER LIFE. 

BY JEANIE DRAKE. 

was Miss Nora Desmond's custom deliberately to 
intoxicate herself each October. Not with im- 
ported wine of sunny France, which was inacces- 
sible ; nor yet wttb easily accessible local stuff 
of crude, illicit strength. She simply betook 
herself at this season to the mountain's heart, that her eyes 
might brighten at nature's rich, outdoor feast of color ; her 
cheek glow at the inhalation of crisp, cold air, and her voice 
and her soul sing together, as sweetly irrelevant visions intruded 
themselves upon her water-color sketching of an artist across 
the ocean, whose studio would some day be her own. Thus, 
in radiancy of young life's promise, she presented infinite con- 
trast to the ill-clad, worn, and gaunt mountain woman who 
waited mutely behind her camp-stool. 

" Oh, Mandy ! " said the girl, suddenly conscious after some 
silent minutes of this presence, " I didn't see you." 

" I've brung yer wash," said Mandy Driggs concisely. 

" You'll want, of course — oh, well, I'll stop now and go up 
to the inn with you." In her room at the " Willow Tree " 
she laid her sketch aside with a regretful: "I wish you had 
been later, Mandy; I had nearly caught the russet of those 
woods." 

Mrs. Driggs moved awkwardly about without reply, detach- 
ing crisply- ironed, fluttering garments from her load. Then 
she kaned her ill-fed, over-worked, uncouth frame against the 
wall with a reluctant, tired sigh. The girl's heart smote her 
into quick realization of the tragic difference in lives, viewing 
this draggled, wearied woman in faded, scanty calico among 
her own dainty, ruffled belongings. 

" You paints powerful purty pictures," said Mandy, glanc- 
ing towards the sketch, " You's plumb like one yerself. An' — 
an' — " the pale gray eyes in her sallow face roved from one 
bit of filmy lace and frilling to another — " You-all's things is 
miifhty purty." 

" They are quite too many this week for the money," 



1905.] The Dream of her Life. 593 

declared Miss Desmond brightly, and sought to pass another 
coin into the knotted hand. 

But Mrs. Driggs' square jaw took on a certain grimness. 
"I'd ruther earn what I git," she said. "I ain't a-beggin' no 
more'n the price settled on. I. owe ye a nickel back fur the 
tear in thet thar sleeve," and resolutely placed a five-cent piece 
upon the table. She added, hesitantly, taking up her empty 
basket: "You'd orter come up to my shack on Ararat. We 
got a falls back o' the house none o' these. yere boarders ain't 
seen, an' you'd mebbe want to paint." 

" Why, I should love to go up there," said Miss Desmond, 
recovering from her previous discomfiture. "Do you live by 
yourself?" 

The washerwoman set down her basket again, her gro- 
tesquely plain features softening amazingly. " I'm a widder, but 
I got one gal. Hetty, I calls her for short ; her given name's 
Heterogeneous. She ain't reel strong; her paw died o' lung 
trouble. I've built her up some — she's sixteen now." She 
stopped, but Miss Desmond's sympathy compelled the usually 
taciturn woman. "I'm a-gittin' her weddin' things ready. 
She's a-goin' to marry Dave Marcom an' go out to his farm 
in Arizony." 

"To leave you here?" 

" Oh, no " ; Mrs. Driggs softened again. " Heterogeneous, 
she says she kaint live nowhar 'ithout her mammy ; an' I foller 
when I kin sell out here. Thar ain't much to sell. I've put 
eenamost everything in her new calikers and bed-quilts and 
shoes an' sech. She'd fixed her mind on a hat with feathers; 
but 'twan't no manner o' use o' thinkin' o' thet. To hev a 
gret, big hat, with lots o' feathers all a noddin' an' a-wavin' 
an' a-tossin', she says thet's the dream of her life, she says. 
She got them words out o' some poetry book somewhar, I 
reckon; but thet's what she says. An' I says: Don't you make 
yerself sick, honey, a-pinin' fur things 'at don't belong to poor 
folk. Good evenin' " ; and she was gone with an abruptness 
which covered shame at unprecedented loquacity. 

On the very next sumptuous, autumnal day, Nora Des- 
mond asked the way to Ararat of the " Willow Tree's " land- 
lord. Pick Brattle. It was his idiosyncrasy to put a half- 
minute's interval between each word ; but she had learned to 
await results, and it was good discipline. 



594 The Dream of her Life. [Feb., 

" Which ? Mt. Ararat ?— Fust turnin' to the right— offen— 
the Willow road. Mis' Driggs' place, I allow ? — Think — a 
heap — o* her. Worked — like a — willin* — mule — bringin' up lit- 
tle gal. Kep' straight's — a die. Lone widder — hed hard times 
— but don't owe nobody — nothin'. Better — take— the — pony." 

" I shall enjoy the climb," averred Miss Desmond, and left 
him whistling thoughtfully after the demented one who walked, 
for pleasure, when she might ride. Meanwhile the girl 
mounted higher and higher into the ether, looking back now 
and then upon the valley's shining streams and rocks. In her 
flight upward she would have exulted absolutely, but for in- 
trusive thought of one older and under hard conditions, who 
mounted these steeps in summer's heat with dragging bur- 
dens. But when at last the clearing with its cabin came into 
view, and there fell high up on its left a torrent tumbling 
sheer in magnificent cascades over giant boulders, all such 
misgiving was swallowed in pure delight. 

"Howdy," said Mandy Driggs. "You've fit yer way yere. 
Won't ye hev a cheer? Thet thar's Heterogeneous." Her 
unconscious but overwhelming absorption in her child made 
her forget to name the young farmer, loutish, though highly 
soaped and brushed, who leaned in the doorway ; but Nora 
Desmond took him for granted as the bridegroom elect. 

" Why, Mandy," she said, " you promised me scenery to 
paint up here ; but it's Hetty's likeness I must have ! " 

Indeed the daughter resembled nothing so little as her 
mother; being a mountain Gretchen, whose straight, blue 
homespun gown set off long flaxen braids and fair skin, with 
large, clear, child- like blue eyes. It was, perhaps, her dead 
father whose hectic tints were reproduced in her brilliant 
coloring. She fingered her apron, hanging her head, while the 
young man regarded her with an air of proprietorship. 

"You'd ruther set out yere?" asked Mandy hospitably. 
" Hev some fresh water. Git yer cordial, Hetty, an' play 
some fur Miss Desmun'. You've got a pianny to the inn, I 
know ; but it's too rambunctious, 'pears like. A cordial fur 
me, I says." 

Miss Desmond bit her lip as Hetty's braids undulated in 
unison to the wailing of an accordeon which she shyly manipu- 
lated» while her lover beat time, and a sort of rapture spread 
«^v«*r the mother's plain face. 



1905.] The Dream of her Life. 595 

"Now you'll want to see Hetty's pile o' quilts; an' these 
yere's her frocks/' she explained, within the low doorway^ 
"an' six pair o' knit stockin's," and so on, until the poverty- 
stricken little exposition was over. Then: "We got two 
rooms to the cabin," said Mrs. Driggs, with some pride, "an' 
it's jes on the state line. So now, you see, when you step 
through thet thar door you're in Tennessee ; an' then you 
comes back in yere again an' you're in No'th Callina. An ole 
feller hed this house onct thet used to 'still, an' hid the stuff 
yere too. Whenever they come to 'rest him from Tennessee 
side, he'd run over to Callina, an' skip back again when the 
warrant wus from Callina. They do say thar was a heap o' 
folk killed in thet fuss. But he wa'nt no kin to us." 

" He'd better not be," spoke Dave Marcom for the first 
time. "A fambly I jine better hev no folk in jail." A hinrt 
of the stubborn in his face was borne out by the voice. 

After this introduction to the mountain perch on the state 
line; Miss Desmond's visits became frequent and lengthy; for, 
as her vacation shortened, she had pictures to finish of " Crys- 
tal Falls," of " Autumn on Arafat," of "St. Cecilia," with 
accordeon mute and transfigured, of " Marguerite," of half-a- 
dozen other studies. And these were opportunities delicately 
to remunerate the rustic model for these latter, with such 
additions to her poor outfit as were possible from a young 
artist, herself richer in hope than in gear. During this out- 
door preoccupation, Mrs. Driggs was free to come and to go, 
collect and deposit laundry in the young lady's room. 

" Is that cadaverous washerwoman I'm constantly meeting 
about the house honest ? " inquired a wiry, affected boarder of 
Pick Brattle. 

" Waich ? — oh! — I guess — she's — about ez honest — ez you- 
uns," replied the leisurely landlord, rolling wide eyes upon 
her. " I — never — locks — nothin' — myself." 

Once the mother and daughter, being together, witnessed 
the departure of Miss Desmond for some little festivity at the 
county town, and for the first time saw her in a hat wide- 
brimmed and shady, from whose white picturesqueness drooped 
several long, graceful, snowy plumes. " Oh ! " breathed Hetty ; 
and " oh ! " again. Neither spoke a word all the way up the 
mountain until at. the cabin door the mother said abruptly: 
"Strange, ain't it, how uneven things is; you'se purty, too^ 



596 THE Dream of her Life, [Feb., 

honey." That night Mandy stirred so restlessly that Hetty 
waking asked : " What's the matter, mammy ? Kain't ye sleep ?" 

''Ye was a-talkin' in yer dreams/' parried the mother, 
'' somethin' about bein' all in white, an' beautiful feathers 
fioatin'." 

'' Oh, don't, maw I " in plaintive childish treble. '* £f thel 
came true, I'd eenamost die o' joy ! " But she slept again 
presently, while the mother lay awake long hours. 

On the eve of her departure to meet a certain ocean 
steamer. Miss Desmond in packing missed her great, white, 
picture hat, and searched long and vainly, and wondered much, 
for it was a becoming extravagance. Then she descended and 
found a small tempest in the inn parlor. A florid, pompous, 
little man protested in behalf of a wiry, affected wife. " Very 
mysterious, I call it; we might all be robbed and murdered 
in our beds, at that rate ! Maria saw her at our door just 
before she missed her beautiful, real lace collar; and the post- 
boy met the woman in the road with something white in her 
hands. If it's that raw-boned creature — Maria always suspected 
her — I'll put her in jail if it keeps me here for months I With 
her independent look ! I call on you, as a magistrate, for a 
warrant." 

Nora remembered the " real " lace bertha, and felt disdain- 
ful, but she watched Pick Brattle anxiously. 

" Which ? " said their host, with slow impassiveness, " Oh, 
well — ef ye must — hev one — why — Timson's — a — constable." 

But Miss Desmond was in the saddle climbing before Tim- 
son had caught his mule. " I can warn her," she thought, her 
heart beating faster — "save her the shock of unjust accusa- 
tion" — she had for the moment forgotten her own loss. So, 
when she checked her pony on the height, it was with a feel- 
ing of mystification that her eyes rested immediately upon 
Hetty, fair and flushed, a big, white-plumed hat shading her 
flaxen braids. The groom stood awkwardly rustic in village 
store clothes, and the minister had just asked : '' Heterogeneous, 
wilt thou have this man — ?" The artistic value of such flesh 
tints against such a background, yet the incongruity of purple 
calico with costly ostrich plumes;, the minister's shabby coat; 
the roar of the tumbling falls; the shower of golden leaves 
from the great walnut*s overspreading branches, became inex- 
tricably mixed in Nora's recollections thereafter. Then the 



1905.] The Dream of her Life, 597 

ceremony was at an end, and a bashful, roseate bride came to 
her as she slipped from the saddle. 

" I kaint never tell ye how much I thinks of it. Most 
loveliest thing I ever did see. Mebbe maw tole ye how I bin 
a-takin' on for sech ; but I ain't never reely thought it could 
happen." 

Past her young bloom, Nora's gaze was fascinated by an- 
other's face, strained and haggard, whose very lips blanched 
while their eyes met. This one took her daughter's place in a 
swift stride, while the latter went on to such few humble 
neighbors as had come to them. " For God's sake/' she whis- 
pered, "you won't tell her? I jes let on you gave it — like the 
other things. I been a liar and a thief — for her — but never 
before — and you so good ! It was heaven — and hell, too — 
when the child laughed — and hugged me for it — ^she'd pined 
and she'd dremp — " 

Her visitor was almost as much agitated, hearkening to the 
mule's footfalls near below. *' Never mind. It's nothing. I 
give it. But that lace collar — ? " 

'' I picked it up in the road when I was a-carryin' away 
yer hat. I'd a took it back and asked whose it was, but — but 
for hevin' the hat — it seemed like they went together — so — " 

"Take it off quickly. There's a warrant. Here — " She 
stripped the white chiffon veil from her riding hat and aided 
the mother's clumsy, trembling fingers to substitute it for the 
deep lace about the bewildered bride's round neck. Too late, 
for the constable was in their midst to witness the transfer 
and the lace bertha in Mandy Driggs' hand. 

" Howdy, Timson," she called with desperate self-commard, 
and backed towards the inner room of the cabin. "I'm a-goin 
into Tennessee to git you-uns a leetle cider and ginger-cake." 

The constable accepted the situation with philosophy. His 
task, not to his liking, was impossible for the moment. He 
fingered the crackling warrant in his pocket stolidly. " Lemme 
git ye a gourd o' fresh water. Ye don't look so peart," he 
remarked to Miss Desmond, casually, like any other wedding 
guest. 

"That soft stuff is more becoming to Hetty," explained 
the young lady to the groom's questioning look, and passed 
over the state line to where Mandy Driggs, with rigid face, 
handed dish and jug and cups to her daughter. 



598 The Dream of her Life. [Feb.^ 

" Keep her from beggin* me to come forrard," she mut- 
tered. " Git them — off ez quick's ye kin. I'll drap down dead 
ef it comes out before them. I want my baby to hev a easier 
life 'n her mammy ; an' Dave Marcom 'd quit her this minute 
ef he knew. And the child — oh, she mustn't know ! " 

It seemed a weary while before bucolic jokes were droned 
over the cider, and the guests, save the watchful constable, 
went drifting homeward, and at last the borrowed ox- cart rum- 
bled away with the young pair. The bride was a little grieved 
to leave her mother, a little petulant over the latter's keeping 
so strangely in the rear, but irrepressible rapture shone out 
again from the blooming face framed in soft, wreathing, white 
plumes. "Oh," she called, "ain't I jes powerful grand, maw? 
I kaint believe it I The dream of my life come true I " And 
passed away down the steep. 

Then the mother came from the back door through which 
she had watched her go. " She's plumb happy, ain't she — 
mammy's gal? I ain't never been much joyful, myself; — but 
I'd die this minute to hev her so. I wisht I could, for I know 
for sartain Dave Marcom ain't the one '11 ever let me see her 
again or speak to her in this world — after I bin in jail. Yet I 
been straight all my life — tell I seen thet hat ! And you so 
good to us ! " A sob like a groan tore itself upward. Then 
her manner changed td hardness. She gave a hasty smooth 
to her hair, picked up her sun- bonnet and the lace collar where 
she had flung it, motioned Miss Desmond out, and followed 
her. " I've come back to No'th Callina, Bill Timson. I 
mought a-stayed over yander a spell an' gin ye trouble, but 
'tain't wuth while — now. I guess no need fastenin' up the 
place. Folks with us is honest." 

" Thet's so," said the constable, cutting himself a bit of 
tobacco, before taking the trail with his prisoner. 

Miss Desmond, left alone on the mountain clearing, shivered 
a little, though it was hardly cold. The solemn, overhanging 
crags, the rushing cataract, the immense wooded solitudes over 
which a buzzard circled in slow flight, the silence broken but 
by noise of dropping chestnuts here and there upon the leafy 
bed, weighed upon her to depression. With her face against 
the pony's mane, her unformulated prayer ran in this wise: 
" Lord, deny me the dream of my life, if it be not best — for 
others." 



1905.] The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. 599 




THt MASS IN THE TIME OF JUSTIN MARTYR.* 

(About 166 A, D.) 
BY REVEREND BERTRAND L. CONWAY. C.S.P. 

HERE are very few references to the Sacrifice 
of the Mass in the New Testament. St. Mat- 
thew,t St. Mark,{ St. Luke,^ and St. Paul || 
record the fact of its institution by our Lord, 
and both St. Luke and St. Paul mention ex- 
plicitly the divine commandment to the Apostles to celebrate 
the Eacharistic Sacrifice: ''Do this for a commemoration of 
Me." The Acts of the Apostles refer in three passages^ to 
" the breaking of bread " — the early Christian name for the 
Mass — but say nothing of the manner of its celebration. St. 
Paul, in his first Epistle to the Church of Corinth,** speaks 
clearly of the Christian altar, "the table of the Lord," and 
indirectly of the Sacrifice of the Mass offered up thereon, when 
he warns his pagan converts against participating in the sacri- 
fices of the pagans. ** You cannot drink the chalice of the 
Lord, and the chalice of devils ; you cannot be partakers of 
the table of the Lord, and of the table of devils." 

It is certain that the Apostles — obeying the mandate of 
Christ, " Do this in memory of Me " — said and did exactly 
what Jesus said and did at the Last Supper."tt The words of 
the Savior, by which the bread and wine were transubstan- 
tiated into his body and blood, are found in every liturgy of 
the East and West, besides being met with constantly in the 
many liturgical references of the Fathers of the first four 

centuries4t 

It is reasonable to suppose that, as the Apostles founded 

* La LUufgia al tempo di S, Giustino Martine. Roma, 1897. An anonymous pamphlet. 
Th£ First Afology of St. Justin, 65-67. TAe Apostolic Constitutions. Book viii. The Clem- 
entine Liturgy. R. H. Creswell. Die Apostolischen Constitution en. F. X. Funck. Rotten- 
burg, 1891. Ori^ines du cultu Chritien. Mgr. Duchesne. 3 Edit. Paris, 1902. Liturgie 
der drei ersten Jahrhunderte. Mgr. Probst. Messe und Pascha. Bickell, Mayence, 1872. 

tCh. xxvi. |Ch. xiv. $Ch. xxii. || I. Cor. xi. 

If Acts ii. 42, 46 ; xx. 7, 11. ••I.Cor. x. 14-21. tf Cyprian, Epistle 63. 

tt Justin Martyr, ApoL66\ Tertullian. Against Marcion, iv. 40; Apost. Const. Book 
viii. 12 ; Cyril of Jerusalem. Catecheses, xxii. 2. 



6oo The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. [Feb., 

various churches in their missionary journeys, they gave those 
churches the liturgy that they had themselves used in Jerusa- 
lem. But what liturgy did they use? Did they merely repeat 
the words of the institution, or did they add certain prayers 
of their own ? Were these prayers set prayers, or could each 
celebrant of the Eucharistic Sacrifice change them at will ? 

The answer to these questions is found in the existence of 
the sacred liturgies, which prove conclusively that, from the 
beginning, certain special prayers always accompanied the 
Eucharistic Sacrifice. The oldest liturgy we possess is the 
Clementine liturgy of the eighth book of the Apostolic Con^ 
stitutions. Some scholars, like Mgr. Duchesne,* attribute it to 
the end of the fourth century, and regard it as an exact copy 
of the liturgy used in the celebrated churches of Syria. But 
Mgr. Probst and others declare that it dates from the second 
century. He writei^: "We find not only nothing in the 
liturgy which compels us to consider it subsequent to the 
second century, but much that compels us to assign it to the 
beginning of that century.'* f Even Duchesne admits that this 
liturgy was not used by any particular church in the fourth 
century, and that probably it is only a retouching of a more 
ancient one. It is indeed in most striking agreement with the 
liturgical details we glean from the writers of the first four 
centuries. % 

Some of the first Mass prayers and ceremonies were taken 
from the ceremonies and prayers <^ of the Jewish pasch, which 
prefigured the Eucharistic Sacrifice. This was natural enough, 
as our Savior instituted the Mass immediately after the pas- 
chal supper. Besides the church did not separate from the 
synagogue immediately at the death of Christ. For quite 
some time the Apostles frequented the synagogues,|| as Jesus 
had done,^ and took part in the Jewish services, the better to 
win the lost sheep of the house of Israel. These services con- 
sisted of prayers, recited by the reader and the congregation, 
the reading of the law and the prophets, and a sermon.** The 

• Ori^ines du culU CkriiUn, p. 57. R. H. Creswell. The Clememtine Liturgy. 
f Liturgie der drti trsten Jakrkundtrtt, p. 287. 

X Dictionnairt de Thiohgit Catholujut, Art. " Canon de la Messe." Col. 1542. 
% Ps. 113. 117, 135. Apost. Const, Book viii. 12. The Liturgy and Ritual of tJU Ante- 
Nicene Church. F. E. Warren. 

II Acts xiii. 5 ; xiv. i ; xvii. i. f Matt xiii. 54. 

••A History 0/ the ,Wew Testament rimes. A. Hausrath, p. 87. 



I90S-] Th£ Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr, 6oi 

Christians had also assemblies on Sunday, because, as Justin 
Martyr tells us, " Jesus Christ our Savior on that day rose 
from the dead."* These soon supplanted the Sabbath assem- 
blies, especially as the separation between Jew and Christian 
became more and more complete. 

The earliest record of the Eucharistic Sacrifice is found in 
the first apology f of Justin Martyr, who wrote about the year 
i66 A. D. Chapter 65 describes *' the Mass of the faithful," to 
which the newly baptized convert had just been admitted for 
the first time. Hitherto he had been obliged to leave the 
church as soon as the sermon was over. Chapter 66 records 
the institution of the Eucharistic Sacrifice at the Last Supper, 
and asserts plainly the Catholic doctrine of the Real Presence. 
" For not as common bread and common drink do we receive 
these; but. in like manner as Jesus Christ our Savior, having 
been made flesh by the word of God, hath both flesh and 
blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that 
the food which is blessed by the prayer of his word, and from 
which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is 
the flesh and blood of that Jesus, who was made flesh." 
Chapter 67 gives a brief sketch of the entire liturgy, besides 
mentioning the collection that was taken up at its close for 
the sick, poor, orphans, and strangers. 

St. Justin is not a historian or a liturgist, but a defender of 
the faith. He does not pretend to give a detailed and accur- 
ate account of the Mass as celebrated in his time. His pur- 
pose was to present to the Emperor Antoninus Pius as com- 
plete an idea of the teaching and worship of the Christian as 
was needed to refute the pagan calumnies of the day, and to 
show the great injustice of the pagan persecutions. "And if 
these things," he writes, "seem to you reasonable and true, 
honor them; but if they seem nonsensical, despise them as 
nonsense; and do not decree death against those who have 
done no wrong, as you would against enemies. For .we forewarn 
you, that you shall not escape the coming judgment of God, if 
you continue in your injustice." { 

We can thus readily understand why some parts of the 
Mass are only casually mentioned, while others are not even 
referred to. We will try to supply these omissions from other 
writers of his age, and especially from the liturgy of the 

•• ! 

•Apol.&7. tCh. 65-67. %A^oL(^. 

VOL. LXXX.— 39 



6o2 The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. [Feb., 

Apostolic Constitutions^ which we consider to have been writ- 
ten in the second century. 

The tton- Catholics of our day, who marvel at the crowds 
that throng our churches every Sunday for holy Mass, may 
not be aware that the Eucharistic Christ had the same divine 
power of drawing the people in the time of St. Justin. 

'' And on the day called Sunday/ all who live in cities or 
in the country gather together in one place." Even the hour 
was appointed as St. Clement of Rome f informs us. ** God 
has enjoined service to be performed, and that not thoughtlessly 
or irregularly, but at the appointed times and hours." 

THE MASS OF THE CATECHUMENS. 

The Mass began in the first days of Christianity with the 
reading of the Old and New Testament, after which a sermon 
was preached. This was in perfect agreement with the Jewish 
practice in the synagogue on the Sabbath. "And the memoirs 
of the Apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as 
long as time permits ; then, when the reader has ceased, the 
bishop preaches, and exhorts to the imitation of these good 
things," X TertuUian writes : " We turn to the record of the 
divine Scriptures accordingly as the exigencies of the time 
lead us to give any particular warning, or to call anything 
particular to mind." <^ This does not imply that at this period 
there was a special selection of Epistles and Gospels according 
to the different seasons of the Christian year. That was not 
done until the fourth century. The sermon was at the discre- 
tion of the bishop just as to-day. || The people stood during 
the reading of the Gospel,^ but remained seated during the 
sermon.** The bishop also sat while he preached, as a symbol 
of his judicial authority, ff 

THE DISMISSALS. 

After the sermon the deacon made the announcement: "Let 
none of the hearers, let none of the unbelievers remain " ; || 
" for," as St. Justin says, " no one is allowed to partake of 

• Thi Teaching ofthi Twelve. Ch. xiv. Acts xx. 7. 

f First Epistle to the Corinthians, 40. This letter was written either after the persecu- 
tion ot Nero (68 A. d.) or Domitian (lox A. D.) 

tCh. 67. Tertullian. Om the Soul, \x. Cyprian. Epistle 33. ^Ap^Ly^. 

n Origen, /» Saech, Homil. 13. IT Apost, Const, \\. 57. 

••TertuUian. On Prayer, xvi. WApost, Const, ii. 11. t^Apost. Const, viii. 5. 



I90S.] The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. 603 

the Eucharist but the man who believes that the things which 
we teach are true,* and who has been washed with the wash- 
ing that is for the remission of sins and unto regeneration, and 
who is living as Christ has enjoined." f 

In all cases but this first dismissal there are certain pray- 
ers X for those about to leave ; an ectene or sort of litany 
recited by the deacon, to which the people answered : " Lord, 
have mercy," and a prayer of blessing by the bishop. These 
prayers are said in turn for those who are preparing ior bap- 
tism (the catechumens), for those possessed of evil spirits (the 
energumens), and for those who are undergoing the canonical 
penances (the penitents).^ 

THE MASS OF THE FAITHFUL. 

The Mass of the faithful begins with the deacon's announce- 
ment: ''Let none who are unqualified approach," and the 
prayers in common for all the faithful immediately follow. 
These are called the 

COLLECTA OR SYNAPTE. 

St. Justin thus speaks of them: ''Then we all rise together 
and pray." || " We offer hearty prayers in common for our- 
selves, and for the baptized person, and for all others in every 
place, that we may be counted worthy, now that we have 
learned the truth by our works, also to be found good citizens 
and keepers of the commandments, so that we may be saved 
with an everlasting salvation." ^ 

THE KISS OF PEACE. 

" Having ended the prayers," continues St. Justin, " we 
salute one another with a kiss." ** The kiss of peace, frequently 
mentioned by St. Paul in his Epistles,tt always formed part of 
the sacred liturgy. The clergy saluted the bishop, the men 
the men, and the women the women4t It was omitted on 
Good Friday. %% 

* We call this passage to the attention of those High-Church Anglicans who, in our day, 
do not scruple to receive Communion at times in Catholic churches. 

t Ch. 66. X Aposi. Const, viii. ^. 

$ The author of the Teaching of tho Twelve Apostles (circ. 150 A. D.) excludes from the 
Mistafidelium all those at enmity with the brethren. Ch. xiv. 

|Ch. 67. ITCh. 65. ••Ch. 65. 

tfRom. xvi. 16 ; I. Cor. xvi. ao; II. Cor. xiii. za ; I. Thess. v. 26; I. Pet. v. 14. 

tl See the Acts of Saints Perpetua and Pelicitas, Ruinart 21, p. 223. Tert. To kit IVifa, 
il. 4. ii Tert. De Orut, 18. 



6p4 IHE Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. [Feb., 

■ 

This custom lasted in the Western Church until the . thir- 
teenth century,* and even now is given und^^r a different form 
by the clergy at High Mass. In all the Eastern liturgies it is 
still given before the offertory, whereas in the West it is 
given before Communion.' 

THE LAVABO, OR THE WASHING OF THE HANDS. . 

The Apostolic Constitutions^ mentions the washing of the 
hands, a ceremony borrowed most likely from the Jewish 
paschal feast, in a rubric preceding the offertory. "And let 
one of the sub-deacons give an ablution of the hands to the 
priests, a symbol of purity of souls dedicated to God." 

THE OFFERTORY. 

St. Justin continues: ''Then there is brought to the bishop 
bread and a chalice of wine mixed with water." ( The ancients 
generally put some water in the wine they drank at table, and 
the rite of the Jewish passover expressly prescribed it. Bishop 
Abercius, in his well-known epitaph,^ mentions his receiving 
Holy Communion on his travels under the form of bread and 
wine mixed with water. 

St. Cyprian gives this ceremony a mystical meaning, deem- 
ing it symbolic of the union of the faithful with Christ. " But 
when the water is mingled in the chalice with wine, the people 
is made one with Christ." || 

The mixing of the wine and water was done by the deacons 
before the chalice was placed upon the altar. No prayers were 
said at the offertory according to the Apostolic Constitutions. 

THE ANAPHORA. 

The Anaphora, or offering up of the Eucharistic Sacrifice 
consisted of: ist. The Thanksgiving or Preface; 2d. The Con- 
secration; and 3d. The Intercession and Mementp for the living 
and the dead. The introduction to the preface was almost 
,the same as that used in the Mass to-day. The bishop 
first made the sign of the cross If and said : •• " The grace of 

• It is still a part of the Coptic liturgy. 

t Book viii. 13 ; TAe Life of Jesus th* hftssiah, Edersheira. Vol. II. p. 105. - 
tCh. 65. 

% Line 16. CJ. Dictionnairt de TtUologie CathoUqut, Art. " Abercius." i. 58. 
•'' II Ki)istlc 63. • ^ Tcrtullian. De Praes, 40. '*^ Apost. Const, viii. la,- 



1905.] The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr, 605 

Almighty God, and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ, and 
the Communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all." 

The people answered. And with thy spirit. 

The bishop. Lift up your minds. 

The people. We lift them up unto the Lord. 

The bishyp. Let us give thanks unto the Lord. 

The people. It is meet and right. 

THE THANKSGIVING OR PREFACE. 

St. Justin thus refers to the thanksgiving or preface as it 
is first called by St. Cyprian : • " And the bishop, taking the 
bread and wine, gives praise and glory to the Father of the 
universe through the name of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, 
and offers thanks at considerable length for our being counted 
worthy to receive these things at his hands. And when he 
has concluded the prayers and thanksgivings, all the people 
present express their assent by saying. Amen, or so be it."t 

From this prayer of thanks or eucharistia comes the name 
of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. It is based in great part on the 
135th psalm, which was recited at the Jewish paschal supper. 
The longest preface we possess is that of the Apostolic CoH'" 
stitutions. said to have been shortened in the fifth century by 
St. Basil, ** owing to the negligence and imperfection of men, 
who shrank from the length of the liturgy. X 

It began with a declaration of the infinite majesty of Al- 
mighty God, and then set forth the creation of the world 
and of man, the fall of our first parents, their banishment 
from paradise, and their "promise of life by the resurrection "; 
it then proceeded to mention the leading events of the Old 
Testament history, from Noe to the entrance of the Jews into 
the land of promise. 

THE SANCTUS. 

The preface ended as to-day with the sanctus. " And ten 
thousands % of ten thousands of angels worship Thee, crying 
incessantly : ' Holy, holy, holy. Lord of Sabbaoth. Heaven and 
earth are full of his glory || Blessed be he forever. Amen.*" 
The first one to combine these two texts, which always con- 

• On the Lord's Prayer, lo. t Ch. 65. 

tSt Proclus. On the Tradition of the Divine Mass, Migne, P. G., Ixxv. 849. 

(Dan. vii. 10. [{Is. vi. 3. 



6o6 The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. [Feb., 

eluded the preface in the Eastern liturgies, is St. Clement of 
Rome.* , The Liber Pontificalis\ attributes its insertion into 
the canon of the Mass to Pope St. Xystus I4 

The bishop then continued his prayer, mentioning our 
Savior's birth of the Virgin Mary, his public ministry, his 
passion, death, and resurrection. The passion naturally suggests 
that memorial of the passion, the Eucharistic Sacrifice, which, 
as St. Paul declared, was " to shew the death of the Lord 
until he come."^ 

THE CONSECRATION. 

St. Justin thus speaks of the consecration: ''For the 
Apostles, in the memoirs composed by them, which are called 
Gospels, have thus delivered unto us what was enjoined upon 
them; that Jesus took bread and, when he had given thanks, 
said : ' This do ye in remembrance of me. This is my body ' ; 
and that in like manner, having taken the cup and given 
thanks, he said: 'This is my blood,' and gave it to them 
alone." || 

The words of the institution, " This is my body ; this is my 
blood " ; by which is effected the change from bread and wine 
into the living Jesus Christ, are the same in every liturgy 
East and West. In fact, the principal parts of the canon are 
everywhere found in the most ancient liturgies of the fourth 
century. The order and length of the prayers vary considerably, 
but this substantial agreement can only be explained by ascrib- 
ing to them a common apostolic origin.^ 

St. Justin does not mention the prayers that immediately 
follow the consecration, but we can learn them with perfect 
certainty from the Apostolic Constitutions, First came the 

ANAMNESIS, 

or the prayer which " recalled " the passion. " Therefore, 
having in remembrance his passion, death, resurrection, ascen- 
sion, and his second advent, when he shall come to judge the 
living and the dead, and give to every man according to his 
works. •• Then followed the 

OBLATION. 

" For we offer unto God the bread and the chalice, giving 

• F rt» Kj/s'le xxxiv. f Edit. Duchesne, i. 128. % Ii7-xa6 A. D. 

< I Cvr X 26. D Ch. 66. Apost. C^msi. Book tBi. xa. 

*::»■/ I..' ',«:, Om Baptism, iv. 24. ^* ApasL Coiut, vUL za. 



190S.] THE Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. 607 

thanks unto him, for that he has commanded the earth to 
bring forth these fruits for our food, and then finishing the 
oblation."* And the 

INVOCATION OR EPIKLESIS. 

"We invoke the Holy Ghost that he would make the sac- 
rifice the body of Christ, and the chalice the blood of Christ/'f 
''that they who partake thereof may be strengthened in god- 
liness, may receive remission of their sins, may be rescued 
from the devil and his deceit, may be filled with the Holy 
Ghost," etcf 

All the Greek liturgies had this prayer demanding that the 
Holy Spirit descend upon the consecrated species that they 
might be a means of sanctification for all receiving them. We 
know that at the time of Pope Gelasius,^ the Roman liturgy 
also contained a similar prayer. But as the ancient wording 
seemed to imply that transubstantiation was effected by this 
prayer, St. Gregory the Great changed it to avoid confusion. || 

THE MEMENTO FOR THE LIVING. 

After the epiklesis, prayers were said for the celebrant, 
the clergy, the temporal rulers, the virgins, the widows, the 
women with child, the children, the sick, the slaves, etc.^ 
Tertullian alludes to these prayers in his Apologeticus : •• '* We 
pray too for the emperors, for their ministers, and for all in 
authority, for the welfare of the world, for the prevalence of 
peace." 

THE MEMENTO FOR THE DEAD. 

The memento for the dead occurred at the close of these 
prayers : " Let us pray for those who entered into their rest 
in the faith." ft 

Owing to the confusion arising from the one list of the 
living and the dead who were prayed for, and the saints whose 
intercession was asked. Pope Gregory separated these prayers 
as we have them to-day in the Roman missal, {j: 

*St. Irenaeus. />w^. 38 (circ 177 A. D.) \%xAxexi.,ibid, XApoit, Const, \\\\. \^, 

i Letter to Elpidius. P. L., lix. Col. Z43. 

I Probst. 179. Dutionnaire de Thiologie Catholique, xiv. Col. 1546. 
If Apost. Const, viii. 12. *♦ Ch. 39. ft Apost, Const, viii. 13. 

U Dutionnaire de TMol. Cath. Art. " Canon de la Messe." Col. 1544-1547. Duchesne, 
ihid,t p. 63. 



6o8 THE Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. [Feb., 

THE COMMUNION. 

After these prayers, the bishop broke the consecrated bicad, 
took Communion himself, and then gave the Blessed Eucharist 
to all present. • 

The "breaking of bread" is always mentioned in the New 
Testament accounts of the institution f and the references to 
he celebration | of the Eucharistic Sacrifice. In the first days 
of Christianity, the " fractio panis " or *' breaking of bread " 
was a synonym for the Greek word liturgy or the Latin word 
Mass. In- the cemetery of St. Priscilla there is a very precious 
painting of the second century which represents this solemn 
moment of the breaking of bread before Communion. ^ 

According to St. Justin the deacons gave Communion in 
both kinds to the people. "And when the bishop has given 
thanks, and all the people have expressed their assent, those 
whom we call deacons give to every one present the bread 
and wine mixed with water, over which the thanksgiving was 
pronounced, and they carry away a portion to those who are 
absent." || 

According to the Apostolic Constitutions^^ the bishop gave 
Communion under the form of bread, saying: "The Body of 
Christ," while the communicant received the sacred host in 
the right hand,** answering : "Amen." The deacon then gave 
Communion under the form of wine, saying, as he presented 
the chalice: "The blood of Christ. The Chalice of life." ft 
Some of the faithful used to carry the Blessed Sacrament to 
their homes under the form of bread, and give Communion to 
themselves before their breakfast. Tertullian alludes to this 
when he is speaking of the difficulty a Christian woman mar- 
ried to a pagan has in fulfilling the law of Christ : " Will not 
your husband know what it is which you secretly taste before 
taking any food ? " tJ 

We know that the Blessed Sacrament was kept ^^ under the 
form of bread to be sent to the sick and those in prison. 
When no priest could be had, Holy Communion was brought 

• Canons of the Apostles, ix. x. f Matt. xxvi. ; Mark xiv. ; Luke xxii. ; 1. Cor. xi. 

X I. Cor. X. ; Acts ii. 42 ; xx. 7. $ Fractio Panis, Mgr. Wilpert. | Ch. 65. 

^ Book viii. 13. Tertullian. On the Soldiers Chaplet, 3. 
••Tertullian. On Idolatry, 7. Cyprian, Epist. 36. 

tt For a most detailed account of the reception of Communion in the Early Church, read 
St. Cyril of Jer. Cat. xxiii. 

Jt fo hii Wife, ii, 5. ^^ Cyprian. De Lapsis. 



1 90S.] The Mass in the Time of Justin Martyr. 609 

to the absent by laymen. Cardinal Wiseman has made the 
case of the acolyte Tarcissus, familiar to the many readers of 
his novel Fabiola. Eusebius also, in his Church History^ relates 
from Dionysius of Alexander a deathbed Communion given to 
the old man Serapion by his grandchild.* 

St. Justin terminates his description of the Mass with the 
Communion, but we find frequent mention f in the early 
writers of a prayer of thanksgiving after Communion. The 
earliest we know is found in the Teaching of the Twelve : J 

" We give thee thanks, holy Father, for thy holy name, 
which thou hast caused to dwell in our hearts, and for the 
knowledge and faith and immortality which thou hast made 
known to us through Jesus thy child. Glory be to thee for- 
ever," etc. 

The liturgy § ended with a prayer by the bishop craving 
God's protection for his people, while the deacon said: ''You 
are dismissed in peace." 

St. Justin Martyr and the author of the Apostolic Constitu^ 
tions give us together a pretty complete outline of the Eucha- 
ristic Sacrifice as celebrated in the churches of the second cen- 
tury. Many changes ensued in the ceremonies and prayers 
after the Christians came up from the catacombs, and the end 
of the persecutions allowed them to celebrate Mass with 
greater pomp and splendor. The distinction between the Mass 
of the catechumens and the Mass of the faithful was soon 
done away with, as the catechumenate ceased and the peni- 
tential discipline became greatly relaxed. All these changes, 
however, affected merely the externals of the liturgy ; its 
essence has ever remained the same. 

It would be good for the modern non- Catholic, who has 
lost entirely the liturgical idea of Christian worship, to go 
back to the writers and liturgies of the first days of Chris- 
tianity, and compare them with the Mass as celebrated to-day 
in every corner of the globe. Many by so doing have been 
led to acknowledge the Catholic Church as the only true 
guardian of the living Eucharistic Christ. 

* Church History, vi. 44. \ Apost. Const. Bookviii. 15. Eusebius. In Ps. 21. 

I Chap. X. ^/4post. Const., ibid. 



Silvio Peluco. [Fel»., 



SILVIO PELLICO. 

BY JAMES J. WALSH. M.D. Ph.D. 

i February first — there ends the fiftieth year after 
the death of Silvio Fellico, who, with the pos- 
sible exception of Manzoni, is the best known 
Italian writer and the one most widely read out- 
side of his own country. His little book My 
Prisons, or as it has sometimes been called in English, My 
Ten Years' Imprisonment, is a favorite among more people, in 
the sense that they go back and read it over and over again, 
than probably any other little book of the nineteenth century. 
I say this with all the more deliberation, because I realize how 
many favorite books were written at almost the same time. 
Three others at least, which appeared during the first half of 
the nineteenth century, the world will not willingly let die. 
They are Chamisso's Peter Schlemikl ; or, the Man who Lost 
his Shadoiv, de La Motte-Fouqui's Undine, and Xavier De 
Maistre's A Little Journey Round My Hoom. 

Every one who has read Silvio Pellico's My Prisons, how- 
ever, is sure to go back to it, and if read at a time of trial 
and discouragement, it is sure to prove a source of much con- 
solation. Yet My Prisons was written under circumstances 
little calculated to make it a book of consolation for other 
sufFerers. When Silvio Pellico began bis term of imprisonment, 
he was scarcely thirty years of age and was considered one of 
the most distinguished living Italian writers. Great work was 
expected from him. His tragedy of "Francesca da Rimini" 
had created almost a furore of enthusiasm in Italy. Nor was 
the enthusiasm with regard to it limited to Italians; it extended 
to the Latin-speaking people generally, and even Byron con- 
sidered it worth his while to translate the tragedy into English 
verse. It is said that Byron was so intent upon the Eng lish 
version that he devoted all his time to it, scarcely t 
or sleeping for three days until i 

Pellico did not deserve the 
on him, and he came out of pd 




1905.] Silvio Pellico. 611 

with his literary energy almost dissipated forever. One great 
work, however, he completed. He penned this immortal little 
book, which describes in simple language his thoughts and his 
feelings during ten years in prison, and in so doing, gave such 
a complete picture of his true self that it never fails to be 
interesting. Ruskin once said that the hardest thing in the 
world to do was to see something and tell it simply as it 
was. This requires genius. When it comes, however, to recall* 
ing moods and feelings, especially during the hours of suffer- 
ing, it is so easy to exaggerate, or let the conventional hold 
sway instead of the natural, that literary excellence becomes 
almost impossible. 

Because of the fact that Pellico was able to hold the even 
tenor of his narrative with such strict adhesion to simplicity 
and naturalness, his work is a triumph of the true artistic 
spirit. He knew how to eliminate the obvious, the unessential, 
the superfluous, and yet to bring out all that was interesting 
in the details of the picture. Something more than a literary 
flavor marks Pellico's book. It possesses what has recently 
been called the antiseptic quality of style that is likely to keep 
it from the corroding effect of time's destructive processes. 
The author has, however, been more loved than admired, 
looked to more as a personal friend than as a favorite author. 

Silvio Pellico was born at Saluzzo, in the north of Italy, 
on the 24th of June, 1788. If it be recalled that only a short 
time later, on the 14th of July, 1789, the Bastile fell and the 
French Revolution broke out, the historical environment of his 
young days will, in some measure, be realized. His early life 
was passed at Pinerolo, and later at Turin. He was of very 
delicate constitution, and at twelve years of age suffered from 
some serious ailment which caused his physicians to give up 
all hope of his survival; his mother, however, clung fondly to 
her confidence in his recovery, and finally nursed him through 
his illness and back to health, though he was destined never to 
be very robust. 

During his early years, because of delicacy of health, he 
did not attend regularly at school, but wandered at will amongst 
the mountains and along the streams of Lombardy, developing 
a love for nature., which was later to manifest itself in his 
. poetry, and that feeling of sympathy for all '* outdoors," which 
was to make his years of imprisonment all the more poignant 



6i2 Silvio Pellico. [Feb., 

to him, and all the more fruitful in great thoughts. Pellico was 
to learn, and with benefit to his poetic inspiration, the bitter 
lesson of eating his bread with tears. 

Though his education had not been very strenuous, and 
though he was in no sense a precocious child, yet many inter- 
esting developments marked Pellico's boyhood. While he loved 
to dream under the trees of the Italian spring and summer 
time, and had the instincts of a poet even in early years, he 
could and did apply himself to creative or at least imitative 
work. His tendency was always along dramatic lines. Before 
he was ten years old he had become deeply interested in the 
old Gaelic fragments of Ossian, which MacPherson had popu* 
larized only a short time before; Pellico, moreover, had written 
a tragedy on a theme selected from the old-time poet. One 
of his main sources of amusement as a boy was in arranging 
and acting plays with other children, into which patriotic mo- 
tives nearly always entered. The stories of the old Roman 
days, such as later were to be the subjects of Macaulay's Lays 
of Ancient Ronte^ were favorites with him. He was encouraged 
in this line of thought and application by his father, who had 
a strong interest in the patriotic movements of the time. 

The pecuniary circumstances of Pellico's family would not 
permit every one of its members to secure a liberal education. 
So at the age of eighteen, on the invitation of an aged rela- 
tive, Pellico journeyed to Lyons, and practically became a 
member of the household of this cousin of his mother. Here 
he experienced in his old relative all the tenderness of a father. 
His education led him to imbibe all the newer ideas in France, 
and his highest aspiration came to be the hope that some 
time his own beloved country, Italy, would be free and inde- 
pendent. Unfortunately the elderly relative, with whom he was 
staying, had become saturated with the scepticism of the clos- 
ing years of the eighteenth century, and Silvio Pellico was 
brought up a firm believer in those irreligious, rationalistic 
principles that proved so fatal to France during the revolution. 
He continued in this sceptical state of mind with regard to 
religion until after some time of suffering in prison, when he 
realized how little of anything like consolation there was in 
mere stoicism, and how sweet, on the other hand, might be 
the fountains of faith in the midst of adversity. 

After remaining about five years in France Silvio, at tl 



1905.] Silvio Peluco. 613 

age of tvi^enty-two, was recalled to Italy by his father, and 
took up bis residence in Milan, where the family now lived. 
Parini bad been till the close of the eighteenth century the 
literary genius of Northern Italy, and had gathered a school of 
yPMnger writers about him in Milan. Besides the thoughts of 
freedom and independence for Italy, there came to this group 
of young men the ambitious notion of making a new literature 
that would be worthy of their beloved country. Pellico here 
met, on terms of the most inti.mate friendship, many of the 
distinguished literary men of this school. Ugo Foscolo, the 
poet, became his very close friend. Vincenzo Monti and 
.Counts Confalonieri and Forro were among his intimate ac- 
quaintances. The ambition of these young men to create a 
national literature will not be so surprising if it is recalled that 
at this time the spirit of art, blowing where it listeth, had 
aroused Italian minds of the finer types to the expression of 
great thoughts. 

At the end of the eighteenth and at the beginning of the 
nineteenth century, there had been a very interesting period of 
literary development in Northern Italy. Metastasio, who died 
in 1782, had written a series of Italian comedies that attracted 
great attention, and his work became, throughout Europe, the 
popular libretti for the great operas of the time. Goldoni, 
whose principal work was done at Venice, and who represents 
the only Venetian author known outside of his native city,* 
had given literary form to a number of the old Italian folk 
comedies and had written some very clever short dramas, 
mostly of comic character. Many readers will readily recall 
"La Lavandiera," " The Washerwoman," a little comedy which 
was intensely popular during one of the earlier visits of 
Eleanora Duse to thhs country, before she acquired the unfor- 
tunate P'Annunzio habit. This comedy is probably the clever- 
est written by Goldoni. Alfieri, who died in 1803, had him- 
self given to Italian literature a series of tragedies as great as 
the comedies of Metastasio and Goldoni. 

Under the influence of Walter Scott, whom Goethe had 
popularized on the Continent, there arose an Italian school of 

• It is rather .sllrJ)ri^ing to find Goldoni's the only Venetian name of repute in literature, 

.specially when we recall Venice's many notable artists. Commercial supremacy however — 

and we realize the applicability of this expression to our own times — does not, as a rule, favor 

success in the fine arts. Genoa, Venice's great and, in the end, conquering rival, is the only 

one of-the Italian cities that produced no great artists, sculptors, or writers. 



6 14 Silvio Pellico. [Feb., 

romantic novelists. Among these the greatest was Manzoni, 
whose Betrothed is indeed one of the few modern novels that 
one finds popular in all countries. Tomaso Grossi, Manzoni's 
friend, was for a time, at least in Italy, thought to have writ- 
ten a work as great as Manzoni's own in his Galeaszo Vis^ 
conti; but the book, though very popular among the Italians, 
was never read to any extent outside of Italy. 

Under the inspiration of this literary movement Silvio Pel- 
lico's literary genius developed. It is not surprising that the 
work that he did was worthy of the time and of the Italy he 
loved so well. Shortly after his return to Milan, he became 
the tutor to the sons of Count Porro. At Porro's house all 
the distinguished literary people of Europe, who happened to 
be passing through Milan, were accustomed to meet. Even 
those who did not originally intend to stop at the capital of 
Lombardy, frequently turned aside to partake of the count's 
hospitality. During these years Silvio came to be intimately 
acquainted with such distinguished foreign literateurs as 
Frederick Schlegel, and his brother August Schlegel, Lord 
Brougham, and Madame de Stael. 

The literary movement of the first quarter of the nineteenth 
century was marked by the quarrel between the romanticists 
and the classicists. Faction spirit ran high in every literary 
city of Europe, and the movement could scarcely fail to in- 
vade Milan. One might have expected Pellico to decide rather 
wkh the romanticists. It is perhaps, however, the best index 
of our poet's real catholicity of spirit that he refused to take 
sides. A recent biographer says of him : " He had the custom 
of taking the true and the good wherever he found it. He 
used frequently to repeat: 'All the beautiful is beautiful."' 
It was at this time, and under the inspiration of association 
with many distinguished Italian writers, that Pellico composed 
" Francesca Da Rimini." It is hard for us to realize now how 
quickly this became universally popular in Italy. It was not 
in Italy alone, however, but in Germany and France that it 
attracted widespread attention among the literary folk. I have 
already said how much Lord Byron admired it. It is rather 
interesting to find that he did admire it so much, for the story 
of the play, as told by Silvio Pellico, lacks all of the features 
that might be supposed to make it interesting to the English 
poet, especially in the character which he affected most in 



1905.] Silvio Pellico. 615 

Italy. It is typical of a certain refined purity of soul, always 
noteworthy in Pellico's poems, that Francesca and Paolo suffer 
death at the hands of Francesca's husband and Paolo's brother 
just after their first kiss. The story, as usually told, supposes 
a guilty intrigue for some time before Lanciotto discovers the 
lovers in the famous kissing scene. Even Dante's brief but 
wonderful description, " the lily in the lion's mouth," was evi- 
dently intended to convey this meaning. There are authori* 
ties, however, in the old Italian stories that do not entirely 
justify this version, and Silvio Pellico preferred to adopt an 
interpretation that greatly minimized the guilt of the lovers. 

The fall of Napoleon had restored Lombardy to Austrian 
dominion. This was gall and wormwood to the souls of the 
young Italians who had hoped for the freedom of their coun- 
try. Their ambition, thwarted for the time, led to the forma- 
tion of many secret societies, and especially the Carbonari, 
whose avowed object, though of course kept secret as far as 
possible, was the freedom of their native country. One of the 
most prominent members of the Carbonari in Northern Italy 
was Pietro Maroncelli, who was a great personal friend of Pel- 
lico. It ils now well known that Pellico himself was not in 
sympathy with the more radical spirits, who hoped for liberty 
by revolutionary methods ; it is doubtful even if he ever became 
a member of the Carbonari. When this society fell under the 
ban of the Austrian government, however, the mere fact of 
being a friend of Maroncelli's caused Pellico himself to be 
suspected of revolutionary tendencies. He was arrested and 
imprisoned for ten years, though no charges of active associa- 
tion with the outspoken enemies of Austria were ever brought 
against him. 

In order to arouse the spirit of their countrymen, a paper 
called // Conciliatore^ was established, with Pellico as managing 
editor; after scarcely more than a year of existence it was 
suppressed by the Austrian government. For some time be- 
fore the end its editorship had become anything but a sine- 
cure, owing to the unreasonableness of Austrian censorship. 
It contained very little that would in modern times be con- 
sidered revolutionary. Austria, however, was never a govern- 
ment to split hairs over the extent of revolutionary tendencies, 
and in those days of Metternich's rule, was very likely to act 
first and then investigate. Practically the only thing that was 



6x6 ^ Silvio Pellico, [Feb., 

proved against Silvio Fellico at his trial, if we are to dignify 
by the name of trial the legal process by which he was rail- 
roaded to prison, was his connection with and his contributions 
to the Conciliaton. No specially seditious article, thoughj 
could be proved to be his, nor indeed was it considered that 
the young, gentle poet ever penned anything more than prose 
and poetry that breathed perhaps too fervent a love for his 
beautiful country to be quite palatable to its Austrian rulers. 

To those who know how political prisoners were treated 
under the English government, it will be' easy to understand 
something of the processes by which Pellico — who had been 
warned that he was about to be arrested, and whose friends 
advised him to flee, but who, conscious of his innocence, pre- 
ferred to remain and stand trial — found himself, almost before 
he realized it, condemned first to death and then, by the ex- 
ercise of clemency, to imprisonment for fifteen years. When 
political offenses are the subject of investigation, so much of 
liberty of judgment is allowed to representatives of the law, 
that the possibilities of injustice are almost infinite, and all of 
the chances lie against the prisoner. When this is true even 
in courts that are supposed to be guarded by the great prin- 
ciples of Magna Charta, and rendered safe by the English 
common law, it is not so surprising to find a political trial a 
mere travesty of justice in aristocratic and imperial Austria, 
where the rights of the private citizen had never been set very 
high. 

At first Pellico was confined in the prison known as Santa 
Marguerita, in Milan. This had been a monastery of Francis- 
cans that had been secularized, and, as it proved insufficient 
for the number of prisoners, some additional buildings were 
constructed. The cells for political prisoners were below the 
street level, intensely damp and unhealthy, fairly reeked with 
filth and vermin, and were sometimes flooded by sewage from 
the streets. One of the cells, that in which Count Confalo- 
niere was conflned, was so filthy that it was usually spoken of 
as the cloaca maxiYna — the name given by the Romans to the 
main sewer of Rome, the remains of which may still be seen. 
Pellico rejoiced when news came that he was to be trans- 
ferred from Santa Marguerita. But the change was for the 
worse, though it must have seemed to him and his friends 
that it was impossible to be confined under any worse con- 



i 



1905.] Silvio Pellico. 617 

ditions than those which existed at Santa Marguerita. His 
next place of imprisonment was under the leads at Venice, the 
famous cells immediately beneath the roof of one portion of 
the Doge's palace, in which Venetian political prisoners have 
been confined for many centuries. Here the heat was all but 
unbearable. During the day it was like a hot oven; during 
the night the accumulated heat from the sun, beating down 
upon the lead roof for many hours, continued to radiate and 
make the confined quarters almost as unbearable as during the 
day ; besides this, a plague of gnats and mosquitoes made it 
almost impossible to allow windows to be open, and of course 
no provisions were made to protect prisoners from these insects 
during the night. 

Notwithstanding the awful torture of this prison, Pellico 
succeeded in doing considerable writing. He was still under 
sentence of death, and neither he nor any of the officials near 
him knew when the order to carry out that sentence might 
come. Still, under such discouraging conditions, he wrote two 
tragedies, " Esther of Engaddi " and " Iginia of Astii." He 
wrote, besides, a series of poems, all of which were subse- 
quently published. These added not a little to his reputa- 
tion. 

After having been under the leads for over a year and a 
half, definite news came that his death sentence had been com- 
muted to imprisonment for fifteen years (carcere duro — '' hard 
prison "), and that he was to be removed to the fortress of 
Spielberg, not far from Brtinn, in Moravia; here it was that 
he passed eight years. His conditions of imprisonment were 
nearly as severe as can be imagined. The confinement was 
absolutely solitary, and any attempt to communicate with fel- 
low-prisoners was almost sure to be followed by severe pun- 
ishment; the food was poor and insufficient. Pellico, always 
of delicate constitution, soon began to waste away under this 
treatment, until he was little better than a skeleton. As the 
Austrian government had a large number of political prisoners 
at this time, there was fear lest some of them should combine 
to make their escape, and a regulation had been made requir- 
ing all of them to wear irons. When he came to put iron^ 
on Pellico's feet, the blacksmith found him so emaciated and 
so weak that, though accustomed for many years to the work, 
the smith could not help remarking in German, which he 

VOL. LXXX. — 40 



6i8 Silvio Pellico. [Feb., 

thought Pellico did not understand, that death would soon 
take them off. 

To add to all the other hardships of his imprisonment, 
Pellico was absolutely refused the consolation of pen and 
paper. He succeeded, however, in occasionally getting some 
scraps ftom his jailers. Even after he obtained the paper, 
there was still the question of ink. For this Pellico impro- 
vised various substitutes. Some of his poems were written 
with his own blood; some with tobacco juice ; some with soot, 
which he managed to collect and mix with water. This last 
was probably the most satisfactory substitute for ink that he 
had. Some of these scraps of paper are preserved in the 
library of the Chamber of Deputies, at Milan, and consti- 
tute most fondly cherished memorials of the poet. 

The most interesting feature of these sad years, however, 
is the effect produced upon the spiritual side of Pellico's char- 
acter. During the early part of his imprisonment, he became 
intensely discouraged, and practically despaired of any consola- 
tion from earth or heaven. The reading of the Scriptures had 
once been a great consolation to him, but he threw them 
aside and began to sing certain light songs, so that one of the 
jailer's little boys, who frequently passed the cell, said to him 
one day: "You are ever so much gayer since you gave up 
reading that dusty old book." This set Pellico thinking, and 
he returned once more to the consolation that . he had found 
especially in the New Testament. As he said himself: "I 
renewed my 'intention of identifying with religion all my 
thoughts concerning human affairs, all my opinions upon the 
progress of civilization, my philanthropy, love of my country, 
in short all the passions of mind. The few days in which I 
remained subjected to the cynic doctrine did me a great deal 
of harm ; I long felt its effects, and had great difficulty in 
removing them. Whenever man yields in the least to the 
temptation to lower his intellect, to view the works of' God 
through the infernal medium of scorn, to abandon the munifi- 
cent exercise of prayer, the injury which he inflicts upon his 
natural reason prepares him to fall again with but little strug- 
gle. For a period of several weeks, I was almost daily as-* 
saulted with strong, bitter tendencies to doubt and disbeliefi 
and it called for the whole power of my mind to free myself 
from their ^rasp. When these mental struggles had ceased, 



1 90S.] Silvio Pellico. 619 

and I had again become habituated to revere the deity in all 
my thoughts and feelings, I for some time enjoyed the most 
unbroken serenity and peace. The examinations to whic^h I 
was every two or three days subjected by the special com-> 
mission, however tormenting, produced now no lasting anxiety. 
I succeeded in discharging all that integrity and friendship 
required of me, and left the rest to the will of God. I now 
too used my utmost efforts to guard against the effects of any 
sudden surprise, every emotion and passion, and every imagin- 
able misfortune; a kind of pteparation for future trials that I 
found of the greatest utility." 

It is a source of supreme satisfaction to find that Pellico's 
My Prisons had immediately a good effect upon the Austrian 
authorities and their treatment of prisoners. The fortress of 
Spielberg was taken out of the list of places for the confine'* 
ment of political prisoners and, after being remodelled, was 
turned into a barracks. The room in which Pellico had been 
confined, however, was left almost unchanged; and later it 
bscame a place of pilgrimage for Italian visitors. Pellico's 
picture is still to be seen there, and hanging on the wall are 
the chains which he wore as a prisoner; besides, some of the 
scraps of paper on which he wrote while in prison are pre* 
served and exhibited to visitors. No better testimony to the 
improvements that have taken place in the treatment of pri-* 
soners could be given than this frank acknowledgment by the 
Austrian authorities of the mistakes of the past. So long as 
Silvio Pellico's cell remains as a museum, there will surely be 
an inspiration to make the conditions of prison ^life as humane 
as possible. 

The predominant note in Silvio Pellico's life writings, after 
his release from prison, is that of religion. He had entered 
prison almost an avowed atheist; he had found in religion, 
however, the only real consolation in his sufferings. Religion 
was not popular among many of the friends with whom he 
would naturally be associated, especially in political matters, 
after his release, but that made no difference to him; and he 
expressed his sentiments regardless of what men might think. 
Hs subnttted the story of his imprisonment to several friends, 
most of whom advised him not to publish it, because of its 
intensely religious character. Pellico replied, however, that he 
was neither more nor less than just what he was, and that he 



6 JO Silvio Pellico, [Feb., 

would bs perfectly willing to have the whole world realize 
his position as to religious sentiments. The success of his 
book^ its immediate popularity in Italy, its translation within 
ten years into practically all the languages of Europe, even 
into Russian and at least one other Slav language, show how 
perfectly true to his own feelings, and how close to the heart 
of nature, his little book had been written. 

Its power for good can scarcely be overestimated. Even 
as regards the political situation, the influence that it exerted 
was much greater than could possibly have been anticipated. 
Prince Mettemich, the Austrian Prime Ministet, who would be 
a« little likely as any man that ever lived to exaggerate th*e 
Intlu^nce of a book that told so seriously against his govern- 
UEi^ut is said to have declared that Pellico's little book did 
nkuv'h more harm to Austria than would have been accom- 
^liih^d by the loss of a great battle. It was suggested to him 
Ihi^t it might be possible to counteract the influence of the 
«tat9 prisoner's simple story by pamphlets contradicting some 
iif its m^st telling points regarding the Austrian treatment of 
|»i>litical prisoners. Metternich replied : *' Even though the 
|{overnment should stoop to take up a pamphlet controversy of 
Ihis kind, its humiliation would be useless all the same. The 
battle has been lost, and the impression produced by Pellico's 
book can never be removed by any mere controversial answer, 
however complete.'' 

After his release, in 1830, Silvio Pellico lived, for nearly 
twenty-five years, the most honored of his countrymen. Books 
were dedicated to him, patriots recalled his name with emo- 
tion, and his public appearances were greeted with enthusiasm. 
His always delicate health had been broken by his long, hard 
confinement, however, and he withdrew from public notice as 
much as possible. Besides, he had come to realize in the midst 
of his prison reflections the emptiness of worldly honor. His 
last years were those of the simple, earnest Christian which 
the story of his imprisonment depicts, and when he died 
all Italy mourned for a favorite son whose name shall not 
guon be forgotten. 



I90S.] 



" Strangers and Pilgrims." 



62 f 



ii 



STRANGERS AND PILGRIMS." 



BY M. F. QUINLAN. 




NUMBER of factory girls stood at the door of 
the East End Settlement. There was a look of 
expectancy about them. As a matter of fact 
they were going to-day to the other side of 
London. Most of them had never been beyond 
the Minories. Such expeditions to the West End were con- 
sidered to have an educational value, though it was to be 
regretted, incidentally, that there were times when the benefits 
of civilization were rudely repudiated by the denizens of slum- 
land. 

I remember once accompanying a party of factory girls to 
view a collection of pictures. The exhibits were all by 
well-known English artists, and it was thought that art such 
as this could not fail to elevate and instruct the ignorant 
mind. The picture gallery had been specially reserved for the 
evening, and each Social Settlement was invited to bring so 
many East End girls. Certain philanthropists provided refresh- 
ments, and some of the bluest blood of Britain personally 
ministered to the wants of their East End sisters. 

From an ethical and a Christian standpoint it was an ideal 
scheme. But idealism, as we know, does not always work. 
Not that the factory girls were unappreciative of the kindness 
shown to them, for they enjoyed the refreshments as only those 
can who know what starvation is ; that part of the entertain- 
ment was an unqualified success. It was High Art that failed. 

A rope-walk girl entered the gallery with me. At first she 
had no time to look at the walls hung with pictures; she was 
conscious only of the size of the structure and the towering 
palms and the velvet ottomans. So she held her breath and 
kept pace with me. Suddenly she stopped, her eyes wide 
open.' 

" B'li' me, wot's thct ? " was her crude remark. 

"A gentleman of* the reign of Charles II.,'* I answered. 

** Lord save us!" said she slowly, "wot a guy!" And 



622 " Strangers and Pilgrims:' [Ftb., 

acting under the impression that the hanging committee bad 
suspended it there for her amusement, she put her hands on 
her hips and shrieked with laughter. Then she hallooed across 
the marble floor. 

" 'Ere, Bridget ! " And with a twist of her hand she 
beckoned her friend. 

" Wot price ! " she ejaculated. " Look at 'im ! " 

This the second critic did ; and having linked arms the 
jtwo factory girls made. the silent halls^ ring with their laughter. 
It might have been fancy, but it seemed to me that the courtier 
of the time of Charles II. momentarily raised his eyebrows at 
:the sound of such profanity. 

But the New Gallery did more than amuse the factory 
girls; it shocked them. Verily they were as strangers in the 
land of Art. And when they returned that night to the squalor 
of Stepney, some of them looked downcast; to these the New 
Gallery was a questionable place of entertainment. 

Picture galleries had therefore to be tabooed; and High Art 
now gave way to the refining influence of religion. 

The Brompton Oratory was the present place of pilgrimage, 
and the girls crowded up the steps in anticipation. 

The head worker was in charge of the party. She had the 
responsibility and the bulk of the girls ; while it was only as a 
supernumerary that I was pressed into the service. My duty 
was to bring up the rear, and to collect the remnants. 

A cursory glance at the group of girls suggested that some- 
thing unusual was on foot. 

On ordinary occasions woollen shawls adorned our persons, 
and curling pins fascinated the eye; hats were practically un- 
known among us, unless it might be a wonderful erection in 
ostrich feathers, or a picture hat in crape. The latter usually 
began its existence at a funeral and ended its chequered career 
in the pawn shop. 

As for the curling pins, they were ever in statu quo. Some- 
times I have wondered whether any occasion would be deemed 
sufficiently important to warrant their removal; for as the 
ancient Jews were wont to adorn their foreheads with phylacter- 
ies, so did the modern factory girl with pins. 

But on this particular day a spirit of compromise seemed 
to pervade the party. In view of South Ken^|ggf^n we were 
prepared to efface ourselves and our local cui 




X90S-] 



" Strangers and Pilgrims." 



6? 3 




A WONDUrtTL BBBCTION 11 



South Kensington ! That was the place where every one had 
enough to eat? Yes; we had heard of it. There were no 
ragged skirts and no broken boots over there; no bailiffs either ; 
nor was the furniture placed in the open street in default of 
rent. South Kensington possessed no touzled beads; no 
shawled figures glided into the pawn shop on a Monday 
morning; and no woman hurried round the comer, beer jug 
in hand. Indeed there was a rumor current that no lady in 
that quarter ever fetched her own beer. 

This statement concerning the beer was at first challenged. 

" Garn 1 " ' ejaculated a factory girl impatiently. Then she 
turned to me : " Likely as not they git a servint to go to the 
public fur it ? " 

I shook my head. " No ; they order it," I said. 

" Wot'a thet ? " she queried. 

" Well, they write a letter and say they want a dozen bot- 
tles — perhaps." 

"Whew!" was the whistled response; "all tergither ? " 

" All together," I answered. 



624 " Strangers and Pilgrims:' [Feb:, 

It was not for me to state that in the South Kensington 
cupboard there was champagne, too, and whisky and liqueurs. 
No; sufficient for the day was the evil thereof — or, more 
accurately speaking, sufficient for the day was the orgy that 
must inevitably have followed on the twelve bottles of Bass. 
Why, the alley was more moderate. Yes ; one jug did duty in 
every East End hovel. Of course the jug was re- filled. But 
to order in twelve bottles " altogether " — that was sitting down 
to it. 

" Umph I " said one of the group, " they 'ave some money 
over theer." . 

Obviously. Was it not true that every man, woman, and 
child in South Kensington had a hat apiece? Why, a whole 
family might go out together in the West End, without pawn- 
ing a shawl or borrowing the neighbor's boots. 

More than that. Did not each woman, own a spare black 
hat, in anticipation of the next funeral? Was there not a 
second dress on each one's peg ? And an extra pair of boots 
in the corner ? Ah ! luxurious South Kensington ; with its 
twelve bottles of Bass in the cupboard ; and the week's rent 
always behind the oliograph ; where the inhabitants had enough 
to eat; and where the skewer of 'Mights" was never inserted 
in the hall-door knocker. In its fashionable streets no venders 
of cat's-meat ever bawled their wares; no drunken men reeled 
along its * pavements ; and no costers' barrows obstructed its 
thoroughfares. There were no street brawls over there; and 
no "language." The women all looked quiet and sober, and they 
wore fine clothes. It must be something to see — South Ken- 
sington and its refinement. And so we prepared for it. 

Instead of going bareheaded some of us put on hats. As 
hats they were very battered ; but, such as they were, we 
offered them up as holocausts on our altars of propitiation. 
The hat brims themselves looked depressed ; there was a for- 
lorn droop in them, which an occasional and spasmodic up- 
heaval was powerless to retrieve. But no matter to us, each 
hat was the sign-manual of respectability. 

I remember one girl in particular whose appearance was 
refreshing. Her fringe that day enjoyed an unwonted liberty ; 
it was fluffed out into curls which encircled her face and 
skirted her ears — as the manner is in Pump Court. There was 
only one discordant note, so to speak; and that was a solitary 



1905.] "STRANGERS AND PILGRIMS." 




THS SPtKIT or SAtLLIRT WAS 

curling pin which hung suspended over one eye, and seemed 
to defy public criticism. 

After all, I reflected, there are spots on the sun; but this 
blemish, being nearer, showed more. Just then the owner of 
the curling pin nodded to me with a sang-froid that is born of 
self-confidence. 

" Your hair looks nice," I said tentatively. " But you've 
left in one pin." 

"Yuss"; said Annie stolidly, "I knows I 'ave." Where- 
upon I took shelter behind a platitude and lamented my con- 
ventionality. 

Then we started. To go from one end of London to the 
other — from the poverty-stricken East to the luxurious West — 
in a compact mass of nineteen, is a formidable undertaking. 
First we took a horse-tram. At least we tried to, and then 
found that the horse-tram refused to take us ; so we had to 
wait for the next. That was already more than half full, but 
by dint of some squeezing, and a perfect clamor of tongues, 
we were iiaally accommodated. East of the Bank of England 



626 



" Strangers and pilgrims. 



» 



[Feb., 



manners decline and regulations become elastic. Therefore 
each girl sat on some one else's knee, and no official quoted 
the law. Such is the camaraderie indigenous to the East End 
tram. 

At Aldgate we took the underground railway, and while 
waiting for the next train the spirit of raillery was uppermost. 
Every stranger that crossed our path was made the butt of 
Stepney wit, so that I rejoiced when the train came in. Once 
installed in the compartment, the party manifested considerable 
interest in the automatic machine overhead, which set out the 
name of the approaching station. Then one girl, garbed in 
plum- colored velvet, with an elaborate crape hat surmounting 
it all, stood up on the seat and awaited the next click ; after 
which she felt the machine cautiously as though she feared 
treachery. 

Finally we reached the South Kensington station, where we 
alighted. My friend of the solitary curling pin was with me» 




" Hi, MISTEK I THBT FLAG AIN'T NONE O' TOURN 1 



together with another adventurous spirit. Presently the latter 
vanished, I knew not where; but on turning round to search 
for her, I saw two figures engaged in warm parley. One was 



I90S.] " Strangers and Pilgrims:' 627 

a factory girl, in sea- green velvet; the other was the guard 
of the departing train. The girl was thereupon called to 
order. 

"I didn't do nuffink/' she remarked resentfully — "it was 
'is fault ! W'y, theer 'e goes agin ; wavin' the flag of ol' Ire- 
land as if it b'longed to 'im ! Hi, mister I " she shouted, " thet 
flag ain't none o' yourn I " And she shook her clenched fist 
at the astonished railway guard. 

It was her first experience of a train, and the mysteries of 
signalling were beyond her ken. 

'' Yuss " ; said the girl as she watched the train steam 
away, " they'd nick the skin orf a corpse, if yer'd let 'em ! " 
The challenge was flung out into the empty spaces — it was 
the protest of a daughter of Erin, to whom every green flag 
was sacred. 

With what gravity I could assume, I announced that we 
were now in the West End. 

" A' right," was the answer, " I won't say no more." And 
by way of expressing repentance, the offender whistled an air 
from a music hall. 

Meanwhile the rest of the party had gone on some dis- 
tance, and we had to hasten our steps to catch up to them. 
It was pouring in torrents, and we had six umbrellas between 
nineteen of us. To the East End an umbrella is a luxury — 
the first thing to go in, and the last to come out of the pawn 
shop. Consequently they are dusted every week by a thrifty 
Hebrew, and again strung up in the window where they bang 
like pickled herrings in a stiff row. 

Just then a smartly dressed woman passed us by. She 
held an umbrella over a Paris hat and, with a welKgloved 
hand, she raised her skirt. In so doing she exhibited the 
edge of a dainty silk petticoat. 

" My ! " said the girl of the curling pin in a tone of dis- 
approval ; " w'y don't she 'old it up I " 

I'd advise you to do the same," said I. 
Don't like ter," was the diffident answer. This was fol- 
lowed by a pause. " I wouldn't mind so much/' she added, 
" if 'twasn't fur me petticut." 

** Ob, anything does this weather," I remarked reassuringly. 

'•'Tain't thet neither," said Annie with desperation. "The 
fac's is, as I'd 'old it up all right, 'cep' that the folks 'ere 



it 



628 



"Strangers and Pilgrims." 



[Feb., 




(« 



Lord save us 1 " said Annib. 



might think as I wanted to show it orf — me petticut is rea] 
flimh I " she confessed with pride. 

The barefaced effrontery of the West End, that hesitated 
not to show its dainty underskirt, while she of " the sub- 
iiiDrged " modestly hid hers because of its glory, gave me food 
tor reflection as we threaded our way through the rain and 
th0 puddles to Brompton. 

^* By the way/' I said to my companions presently, "we 
btmll go first to the Oratory, and after that to Viscountess 
- — *a — she is expecting us to tea." 

** Lord save us an' preserve us ! " said Annie of the curl- 
\\s^ pin. And her tone was tragic. 

"Why; would you not like to go?" I asked; for of all 

\\k$i workers in connection with the Settlement, Lady was 

H«e most popular with the factory girls. 

'* I wasn't thinkin' o' that," answered the girl, and she re^ 
iMj/ftcd into silence. Then, after another pause, she ejaculated 
|W'^Mbly: *^ Ain't it lucky I put on the jecket, though!" * 

Aj/.iin there was silence. The raindrops hung upon the 



I90S] 



"Strangers and Pilgrims. 



f> 



629 




Two SHAWLVD FIGURES AHEAD. 

leafless trees, and ever and anon they splashed on to Annie's 
cheek. But she paid no heed to the rain, though it made her 
hat look more woe-begone than ever. She only murmured a 
reiterated : " Lord save us ! " The exclamation resounded with 
thankfulness to a Higher Power who had foreseen this con- 
tingency, and she sighed aloud at the narrowness of her escape. 
'* Ain't it jes' lucky I put on me jecket I " Whereupon she 
drew the garment closer and did up all the buttons there 
were. 

"Yuss"; she soliloquized, "on'y ter think of it. W'y, I 
might 'ave put on me shawl, not knowin' like I Fur theer's 
them," she continued, indicating with a nod the two shawled 
figures ahead, "as wanted me ter wear me shawl ter-day, 
Biit I knew better." There was a break in her leflections, 
wherein one guaged the sacrifice. '' Whin yer gits used to 
a shawl," said she, " it feels kind o' funny to put on a jecket." 



630 '* Strangers and Pilgrims:' [Feb., 

She thought it well to explain this, in case I had not 
grasped the situation. But of course it was not a mere ques- 
tion of a shawl or a jacket, there was a principle involved. 
After all, a blue shawl is but a shawl; and it is of the East, 
Eastern ; whereas a jacket, being on a higher plane, is differ- 
ent. The sleeves may be hanging by a thread ; the buttons 
may be off; and the seams yawning; still it remains a jacket 
It is, in fact, the embodiment of Western civilization. It is 
the subtle bridge that spans the chasm which divides class from 
class. Nay, more; it gives the wearer a foothold in society, 
by which she may climb to any height. Such is the virtue of 
the jacket. In its first beginnings Annie's garment must once 
have been new. But what its social status was in those palmy 
days, would be impossible now to discover. 

'' Lucky I 'ave on me jecket," said the girl again. She 
pulled it down carefully, and gave a sigh of absolute reassur- 
ance. Arrayed in the old, buttonless jacket Annie felt she 
could meet the aristocracy on an equal footing. 

So we walked along South Kensington feeling grateful, and 
we had almost reached the Oratory when my companion made 
the irrelevant remark : 

" Me Aunt Kate thinks yer're a' right.*' She spoke in 
the local idiom. 

" I'm glad she likes me," I answered. " I liked her, too." 

"Yuss"; said Annie, without much enthusiasm. "She's 
right enuff — whin she ain't drunk." 

Suddenly South Kensington vanished and the Oratory 
crumbled away. In its place lay the East End alley— deep 
down, embedded in the bowels of the earth. And rising up 
from the evil Court, as from the mouth of hell, there came 
the sounds of blasphemy, while the children played . in the 
doorways. I could see the entrance to the public house half 
way along the damp wall. The sign creaked over the dilapi- 
dated doorway, when through the aperture in the wall a 
shawled figure emerged with unsteady gait. It was Annie's 
aunt, who challenged the alley to single combat. No magician 
could have conjured up a more vivid piece of realism; the 
picture of the East End Court in the background, and in the 
foreground the stately Oratory, whose dome seemed to reach 
even to heaven. And while my feet pressed the marble steps,, 
my mind was with Mrs. Quill in the Devil's Alley. 



I905.] 



*' Strangers and Pilgrims:"^ 



631 




"My, ain't they 'torfs'?" 



Then the girl spoke again and broke the chain of reflection. 
" My, ain't they ' torfs ' ? " 

And she gazed incredulously at the stream of fashion pour- 
ing into the church. Presently we joined the worshippers and 
entered the edifice, whereupon the East End was struck dumb 
with wonder. Its unexpected splendor seemed to weigh upon 
US| depriving us of speech. So we held our breath a;nd walked 
on tip*toe in hushed, overawed appreciation ; words failed the 
East in view of the magnificence of the West. 

Then they went softly from chapel to chapbl, and from 
time to time a hesitating, outstretched finger would be gently 
laid on the face of the polished marble, as though it were a 
sacred thing. Later on, as they gained courage, one factory 
girl would exchange reverential glances with another, and 
a murmur would escape her: '"andsomel" And in the same 
tone the other would acquiesce: '"andsome!" 

Then one girl picked her steps over the tessellated floor, 



632 



'* Strangers and pilgrims." 



[Feb., 




-/^ 



fearful lest ahe should injure it, and remarked solemnly: "Cost 
% 'eap as likely as not?" 

" I believe it did," was my answer. 

"'Ow many pund d'yer think?" 

But anything beyond two figures was above us, and so we 
took our leave of the Oratory without in the least realizing 
the price of it. 

Once outside, there was a general concensus of opinion 
expressive of superlative admiration. 

" It ain't 'alf I " was the public verdict. 

This expression in East End parlance meets every emei^ency, 
tm^Y varying in inflection from the high water mark of enthu- 
liiAsm to the low tide of irony. 

After that the party got into various wet 'buses in seg> 
iticnts. Some of us were mislaid and others were lost; soli- 
\ary individuals being promiscuously picked up en route, wet 
nn'i itedraggled. Our section in particular became thoroughly 



I90S.] " Strangers and Pilgrims.'' 633* 

demoralized. Never did a 'bus loom in sight but they boarded 
it with alacrity. It did not in the least signify which way it 
went. They were confident of getting to the vicinity of Hyde 
Park anyhow. It was late, therefore, when we stragglers 
arrived at our destination, where tea and the hostess awaited 
us. 

The East End was immensely impressed with the tea, and 
equally with the domestics. The hostess seemed rather at a 
discount. But then they knew her, and they did not know 
the servants. Such, indeed, was their appreciation of the lat- 
ter that it was not without difficulty that the factory girls 
wete induced to return home. And even when we had suc- 
ceeded in leaving the house, the girl in the sea-green velvet 
went back to 'shake hands again with one of the parlor- maids, 
and to tell her of the East End shop where sea* green velvet 
costumes were to be had oh the time payment system. She 
had got her's there. But she did not give the address to 
every one. 

As we were hurrying along to the central station (Marble 
Arch), I heard two girls discussing the hostess and the enter- 
tainment. 

"She's the right sort," said one with conviction. 

"Yuss"; assented the other. "And the tea an' stuff 
wasn't 'alf ! " 

"I'm thinkin'," said the first one slowly, "as I'll go an' 
see 'er agin. Or you an' me," she added as an outrider; 
''you an' me tergither, next Benk 'oliday^" 

"A' right!" was the response; '/don't mind if I do." 

After that we reached " the tube," where we all got into 
the lift. For reasons unknown our party expected the lift to 
ascend. Whither? No one knew. Instead of which it con- 
tinued to drop — lower and lower. The result was confusion ; 
for, having welded themselves into a compact mass of seven- 
teen, they clung wildly to one another and shrieked in unison. 
An elevator was new to them, and it was with a feeling of 
safety and relief that we stood on the platform to await the 
electric. 

It was here, however, that my friend Annie, who through- 
out the day had considered herself my specially appointed 
body-guard — having watched over my safety with a jealous 

eye — suddenly turned to me. 
VOL. Lxxx.— 41 



«34 



" Strangers and Pilgrims.*' 



[Feb., 




She stopped and clenched her fists. 



'' Did yer see that feller ? " she demanded. 

"Which?" I asked. 

" The feller wif 'is gel ! " 

" No ; Tm afraid I didn't," was my casual reply. 

" Well," said Annie darkly ; ** 'e looked as if 'e were a-goin' 
to speak ter yen" 

" Oh ! do you think so ? " said I in depreciation. 

" Yuss, I do " ; replied Annie with firmness. " An' if 'e 
/ad — " she stopped abruptly and clenched her fists — " If 'e 
'ad — " and her dark eyes flashed with sudden passion — ' I'd 
'ave knocked 'im dahn ; thrown 'im under the train, I would ; 
an* serve 'im right ! " 

And knowing Annie for one of the most defiant spirits of 
the East End I feared for the man that incurred her wrath. 
Many an enemy had Annie felled with a blow. Sometimes 
she came off with a black eye, but that was not often. For 
the most part she issued scathless from the fray. Not long 



I90S.] " Stbangers and Pilgrims:* 635 

ago, as she had just related, she had been returned as " un- 
suitable " from a convalescent home. 

" What happened ? " I asked. 

" Well, yer see, it was like this,'* she explained. " Theer 
was a gel at the 'ome as 'adn't no religion of 'er own, an' 
she takes to insultin' mine, so, 'avin' nothink in me 'and but 
the slice o' bread I was eatin', I let fly at 'er — I was thet 
mad; 'it 'er straight in the eye," said Annie unabashed. 

••What then?" I queried. 

'' Well, then, I were pulled up afore the matron, an' she 
jawed fur a bit ; but she sez as she'd give me another chanct^ 
me bein' ill like. But that night, w'en we was all in bed, s'elp 
me if thet theer gel didn't begin agin. So I jumps aht o' bed, 
an' I 'ad 'er full length on the floor. She were a bit surprised 
I kin tell yer ! " 

*• By your Christian forbearance, no doubt.?" 

But Annie ignored my suggestion. " I come 'ome next 
day," was her dispassionate remark, " fur the reason as they 
wouldn't keep me no longer." 

At this moment the train whirled in. Some difiiculty was 
experienced in finding seats, and I had barely time to rescue 
two figures from a smoking carriage when the train started 
off. On discovering that one of them was my friend of the 
pugilistic tendencies, my mind was fairly at rest. She seemed 
interested in everything she sa\v> and as I watch^ed her from 
my opposite corner nothing escaped her eye. Her quick 
glance noted the upholstery and the ventilation apparatus, the 
electric light and the advertisements; and having passed the 
passengers in silent review, she sat there ready to give an 
accurate criticism on each. All this time the sliding doors of 
the car were opened and shut with the regularity of clock- 
work ; the conductor announcing punctiliously each approach- 
ing station. Annie sat very still for some time, but I could 
see the conductor was getting on her nerves. By degrees she 
got restless under the strain; and finally a long- suppressed 
murmur arose from her corner. 

"Wot do 'e think"; she demanded aloud, "lost, or on'y 
strayed ? " 

"Umph"; said the other East Ender. "Ain't it like 'is 
impidence ? " 



636 " Strangers and Pilgrims.'* [Feb., 

Meanwhile the man, happily unconscious of offence, con- 
tinued in the discharge of his duty. 

"Tell yer wot," said Annie, "if that feller sez it agin, I'll 
say somethink." 

To my suggestion that she had better leave well alone, 
she smiled back so re-assuringly as to disarm suspicion. 
Again the door opened : 

" Tottenham^Court — Road!" bawled the conductor. 

With a jerk Annie sat upright. Her battered sailor hat 
had been tossed off, but the curling pin still hung defiant over 
her left eye. Then she craned her neck forward. 

" Hi, mister! " she demanded abruptly, "ain't yer got a sore 
throat ? " Her tone of solicitude was permeated with irony , 
and her head remained poised as she awaited his reply. 

But there was no reply. The conductor withdrew in dig- 
nified resentment, while British gravity became undermined in 
the car. 

** Annie," I said softly, "you're a disgrace." 

"Well, wot do 'e keep on 'ollerin' fur? Always 'ollerin* 
at us/** she added resentfully. "Yuss; I'll teach the bloke 
ter mind 'is own bisness." 

The official had offended against all the East End laws. 
His presumption in indicating our whereabouts grated upon 
our finer feelings. Was our ignorance to be exposed in the 
glare of the public eye ? Perish the thought ! And having 
now reached the Bank we shook the dust of the "two>penny 
tube " off our feet and hailed the blue 'bus thiat -went East. 

It was with a returning sense of independence that we 
heard the bell-punch number off our tickets. We felt that we 
were freeborn Britons once more. The 'bus conductor knew 
his place in the economy of things — he said nothing. But at 
the end of each pennyworth he pulled up, and a factory girl 
was dropped at the nearest corner. First one and then another 
— each disappeared down a side street and was lost in the 
great labyrinth of the East End ; while the 'bus jogged on in 
the darkness. 

"Each day is a little life," as Aubrey de Vere truly says, 
" of which the account must be given in at sundown." I 
thought of this as the lumbering 'bus jolted over the stones. 
Mile after mile we journeyed on, with the roar and the rattle 



1905.] Light and Shadow. 637 

of traffic filling our ears ; 'buses and carts, trams and costers' 
barrows, each with their human freight ; it was an endless 
stream that rolled on to the docks. 

Then I looked closer into the night, and I discerned the 
figures of men and women and children peopling the darkness. 
And ever and anon I saw some trip and others fall — for the 
road was rough — and lo ! the air was filled with the cry of 
souls. Some with outstretched hands were groping their way; 
others would fain have dropped out of the mysterious 
pageant; each was weary; not one but had his burden. 

" Strangers and pilgrims " all ! They were treading in the 
footsteps of the mighty dead ; pressing down the dust that 
their fathers had trod, while they scanped a naked heaven for 
a beacon of eternity. 

Thus does the great human brotherhood pass along life's 
highway, of which the end touches the bourne whence no 
man returns. 



LIGHT AND SHADOW. 

BY WILLIAM J. FISCHER. 

Joy came to me in garments snowy-white 

And laid her finger on my troubled soul, 
And creeping Dawn grew fresb and roseate; 
Before me walked young, strong- limbed Hopes. The whole 
Earth smiled — an infant, cradled in the light 
That was on land and sea. Gone was the night. 

Gone was the night of restlessness and pain 
And, in the glitter of the morning shine, 

My heart and I walked leafy lanes grown wild, 
With bright-eyed, anxious Joy as sister mine. 

The sunbeam angels played with us again — 

And O the Sun, that shone amid life's rain ! 



638 Is Christian Science Christian? [Feb., 



IS CHRISTIAN SCIENCE CHRISTIAN? 

BY THE REVEREND WALTER M. DRUM, S.J. 

3. EDDY'S new religion wears the attractive 
mask of Christianity and science. That mask 
should be torn off, for this so-called Christian 
Science is neither Christian nor scientific. In 
this claim we follow the lead of all critics who 
hav« not striven to read into Mrs. Eddy whatsoever things 
Christ taught or did, but have scanned her work in the light 
of the fundamental principles of Christianity and science. The 
statement that Christian Science is not scientific can be made 
good by many arguments; but,, for the present, we shall con- 
fine ourselves almost entirely to the question: "Is Christian 
Science Christian?" 

Mrs. Eddy and her followers assert that their creed is 
Christian ; in the Irst place, because Christian Scientists work 
such cures as Christ wrought. We reply that Christian Scien- 
tists do not work such cures as Christ wrought; and, even 
if they did, such cures would not demonstrate the Christ- 
ianity of Christian Science. 

First, Christian Scientists do not work such cures as were 
wrought by Christ. What cures these would be was foretold 
by Isaias, xxxv. 5 : " Then shall the eyes of the blind be 
opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then 
shall .the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the 
dumb shall be free." Christ referred to this prophecy, when 
summing up his works for the disciples of John. " Go and 
relate to John what you have heard and seen : the blind see, 
the lame walk, the lepers ate made clean, the deaf hear, the 
dead rise again" (Luke vii. 33). The New Testament narra- 
tive is full of such cures. Christ raised from the dead the 
son of the widow of Naim, the daughter of Jairus, and Laza- 
rus. He healed the blind, the deaf and dumb, paralytics, 
Icjiers, invalids, and demoniacs. The healing power of Christ 
was simply without limit — it conquered all forms of disease. 
" Alt they that had any sick with divers diseases, brought 



igos.] Is Christian Science Christian? 639 

them to him. But he laying hands on every one of them, 
healed them" (Luke iv. 40). "Jesus went about all the cities 
and towns, . . . healing every disease, and every infirmity " 
(Matt. ix. 3S). 

Christian Science has not cured any one of blindness, 
deafness, dumbness, paralysis, leprosy — not one who had been 
bedridden for thirty-eight years, not one who was either pos- 
sessed or obsessed by the devil. Mrs. Eddy was offered two 
thousand dollars if she would give sight to one born blind. 
She knew her Scientific Formula would tug and toil in vain 
against such disease, and so she refused to apply that pana- 
cea.* Mrs. Eddy advises her pupils to leave surgery to the 
surgeon. Christ reset the amputated ear of Malchus. 

Christian Scientists fail not only to work the cures that 
Christ wrought, but they fail also to heal in Christ's way of 
healing. Christ healed by a word or by the laying on of 
hands and in an instant, without any ostentation. His cures 
were wrought in public; "neither was any of these things 
done in a corner" (Acts xxvi. 26). Christ used his power 
before the very feyes of his enemies, men of learning, who 
could not deny the wondrous deeds (John xi. 47). Cures 
are otherwise in Christian Science. The Christian Scientist 

* 

does not profess to cure instantaneously ; she " demonstrates 
over" the unreal disease again and again, and maybe after 
twenty unreal treatments, for which real dollars are charged, 
the unreal hysteria yields to that incantation which goes by 
the name of the Scientific Statement. We say incantation^ 
because of the meaningless jargon that makes up the Scien- 
tific Statement. 

Whether we consider, then, the infirmity cured or the way 
of curing, the cures of Christian Science are not such as Christ 
wrought. But even if there were no difference between one 
or two of the cutes of Christ aiid those of Christian Science, 
it would not be at all certain that Christian Science is Christian. 

First of all, Mrs. Eddy denies that her cures are miracu- 
lous — they are, she maintains, according to the ordinary course 
of nature. To be sure, Mrs. Eddy's concept of nature's 
ordinary course is not ours; her concept is very far from the 
ordinary, and consists in the realization that sickness is only 
"an image in mortal mind," and that "mortal mind is unreaU 

^ Miscellaneous Writings, p. 242, 



640 Is CHRISTIAN SCIENCE CHRISTIAN? [Feb., 

ity." If her cures are wrought by purely natural causes, why 
should Mrs. Eddy appeal to them ? Such cures may prove the 
truth of certain natural laws ; but they prove nothing at all 
of Christian dogma. Let us suppose that Mrs. Eddy adminis- 
ters an overdose of strychnine — the result cannot be doubted. 
Would it not be highly ridiculous, if one were to appeal to 
the action of strychnine as a proof of his Christianity ? Yet 
such an appeal is not one whit more ridiculous than that 
which Mrs. Eddy makes to the action of what she considers 
purely natural causes, in order to demonstrate the Christianity 
of her new cult. 

Secondly, even though the cures of Christian Science 
were not wrought by purely natural causes, an appeal to 
such cures would not prove the Christianity of Mrs. Eddy's 
teaching. For Mrs. Eddy's teaching is contrary to the teach- 
ing of Christ; and no number of cures, if wrought in con* 
firmation of a teaching that is contrary to the teaching of 
Christi can ever prove that teaching to be Christian; such 
cures must have been wrought by an agency inimical to Christ 
God cannot confirm the truth of Christ's doctrine by one cure, 
and its falsehood by another. 

We say that the teaching of Mrs. Eddy is contrary to the 
teaching of Christ. Her points of departure are many ; we 
shall not try to catalogue them all — a few will prove our 
statement. Mrs. Eddy rejects the teachings of Christ on the 
immutability of the deposit of faith, the inspiration of the Old 
Testament, the reality of sin and all truths connected there- 
with, and, lastly, the Christian virtues. Such rejection stands 
out clearly in the pages of Mrs. Eddy's writings. 

We say that Mrs. Eddy's teaching is first and above all 
a rejection of Christ's teaching on the immutability of the 
deposit of faith. Christ taught that after the death of the 
Apostles there would be neither increase nor decrease in what 
we call the material object of faith, the sum of revealed truths 
would be constant, no new articles would be added, nor old 
articles lost. All the truths of faith were made known by 
Christ to the Apostles: "All things whatsoever I have heard 
from my Father, I have made known to you" (John xv. 15). 
These truths were more fully unfolded later on by the Holy 
Spirit. " When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will teach 
you all truth" (John xvi. 13). The Apostles understood that 



I90S.] Is Christian Science Christian? ' 641 

the truths of faith were unchangeable. St. Jude beseeches his 
flock to ** contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the 
saints" (Jude 3). St. Paul is ever most solicitous that his 
converts change naught of the faith. He writes to Timothy : 
" Thou hast fully known my doctrine . . continue in 

those things which thou hast learned ** (II. Tim. iii. 10, 14). 
"Keep the good thing committed to thy trust" (II. Tim. i. 14). 
He begs the Romans: ''Mark them who make dissensions and 
offences, contrary to the doctrine which you have learned, and 
avoid them " (Rom. xvi. 1 7). He bids the Galatians to curse 

either himself or an angel from heaven or any one else who 

* 

preaches to them a Gospel besides that which they have 
received (Gal. i. 8). There can be no doubt that Christ gave 
the deposit of faith complete and unchangeable. 

Mrs. Eddy would make it out that Christ reserved for her 
far greater revelations than the Apostles received. All the 
truths of faith were not by any means made known to them. 
To nobody did God quite fully reveal Christ's meaning, until 
Mrs. Eddy discovered Christian Science. The contents of 
her "little book open" are all new revelations.* For nearly 
nineteen centuries we have been in darkness as to what Christ 
wished to say. Did Christ come, then, as light to the 
world only to leave in darkness the souls of the world ? 
Has his teaching been purposeless for nearly nineteen cen- 
turies ? Did he leave even his mother and his dearest 
friends ignorant of what he meant to say ? Did he send 
his band of chosen few throughout the whole wide world 
only to spread gross ignorance ? Did he bid them teach all 
nations falsehood ? Did he lay it down as a law that they 
who believed such falsehood would be saved, and that they 
who rejected it would be damned ? Mrs. Eddy seems to think 
so; for she claims that Christ kept his meaning hidden away 
under words whose secret could not be unlocked save by the 
" Key to the Scriptures," which he led Mrs. Eddy to discover. 
More than that : this nineteenth century discoverer is still on 
the lookout for revelations. Her text- book may grow in bulk 
so long as she lives; it is as adaptable as the Book of Mor- 
mon. Note well her attitude : '' As of old, I stand with san- 
dals on and staff in hand, waiting for the watchword and the 

* North American Review, Vol. CLXXIII., p. 24; also Science and Health, p. 4. When 
we quote from this text-book of Mrs. Eddy, we shall note only the page thereof. 



642 Is Christian Science Christian? [Feb., 

revelation of what, how, and whither."* No man of prudence 
and judgment can assent to all this as the teaching of Christ. 

Mrs. Eddy rejects also Christ's teaching about the divine 
inspiration and consequent inerrancy of the Old Testament. 
Christ gave hearty approval to the esteem in which the Jews 
held the Holy Scriptures. With him these books clearly stood 
as far more than a merely human authority (John v. 34) ; time 
and again he quoted them as documents so reliable that it 
was utterly impossible their words should not be fulfilled. 
'' All you shall be scandalized in me this night. For it is writ- 
ten : / will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be 
dispersed^' (Matt. xxvi. 31). "Behold, we ^o up to Jerusalem, 
and all things shall be accomplished which were written by the 
prophets concerning the Son of Man" (Luke xviii. 31). He 
quotes the Mosaic books as the word of God himself. " Have 
you not read that which was spoken by God saying to you : 
I ant the God of Abraham?^' (Matt. xxii. 31). Yet God did 
not say these words to the Jews except by inspiring Moses to 
write them (Exod. iii. 6). It is precisely because God speaks 
through the sacred writers, that Christ says the principles of 
the Mosaic code cannot be smirched with error, and will last 
so long as truth. " It is easier for heaven and earth to pass, 
than one tittle of the law to fall" (Luke xvi. 17; Matt. v. 18). 
He promises this endurance of the truth of the Old Law, in 
almost the very same words that he applies to the New: 
" Heaven and earth shall pass, but my words shall not pass " 
(Matt. xxiv. 35; Mark xiii. 31; Luke xxi. 33). 

But with Mrs. Eddy the Old Testament must yield to her 
discovery. The statements of the Mosaic code must be pared 
down and twisted into shape with her preconceived notions 
of what they should have been. She does not hesitate to say 
that the Pentateuch is full of error. In this statement she 
does not follow her usual course and fly away into a safe 
obscurity of words, words, words. Her mind is clear. The 
author of the story of the making of Eve has erred. " Here 
falsity, error, charges truth, God, with inducing a hypnotic 
state in Adam, in order to perform a surgical operation on 
him, and thereby to create woman. Beginning creation with 
darkness instead of light — materially rather than spiritually — 
error now simulates the work of truth, mocking love, and de- 

^Miscellaneous Writings, p. 158. 




1905.1 Is Christian Science Christian f 643 

daring what great things error hath done."* Evidently Mrs. 
Eddy does not consider St. Paul to be a Christian when he 
tells Timothy: " All Scripture, inspired of God, is profitable to 
teach" (II. Tim. iii. 16). 

The third point of Mrs. Eddy's departure from the teach- 
ing of Christ is the doctrine of sin and all its consequences. 
To Christ sin was a dreadful reality. He knew that '' by one 
man sin entered into this world, and by sin death ; and so 
death passed upon all men" (Rom. v. 12); and again that ''the 
wages of sin is death" (Rom. vi. 23). The real distinction 
between body and soul in man was pointed out again and again 
by Christ. He bade the apostles: "Fear ye not them that kill 
the body, and are not able to kill the soul" (Matt. x. 28). 
He urged them to handle his glorified body, to feel its flesh 
and bones, and be sure it was no spirit (Luke xxiv. 39). He 
taught the prevalence of the infection of sin, its widespread 
efTects. " If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, 
and the truth is not in us " (I. John i. 8). We that are sick 
have need of the physician not only of the body (Matt. ix. 12), 
but especially of the soul. 

Christ came as the great physician to cure our souls; "to 
save sinners" (I. Tim. i. 15). "He had delivered himself for 
us, an oblation and a sacrifice to God " (Eph. v. 2). " He hath 
borne our infirmities. . . He was wounded for our 

iniquities, he was bruised for our sins " (Is. liii. 4). So com- 
pletely did he take to himself the .flesh of sinners, that St. 
Paul says: " Him, who knew no sin, he (God) hath made sin 
for us" (II. Cor. v. 21). Surely Christ did not think sin an 
unreality, when " he gave himself a redemption for all " (I. Tim. 
ii. 6). He did not redeem us from an unreality, but " from 
the curse of the law, being made a curse for us" (Gal. iii. 13). 
He satisfied for realities when he "bore our sins in his body 
upon the tree" (I. Pet. ii. 24) of the cross. He merited for 
us real grace to save us from real blemish 6f soul and real 
torment of hell. He suffered others to look on him as a sin- 
ner (John ix. 24), to crucify him as a malefactor. 

Not only did Christ merjt for us the remission of sin, and 
satisfy fully for the punishment due us on account of our sins, 
but he left means of applying to ourselves his merits and satis- 
faction. These are the church and its sacramen.ts, prayer, ard 

•p. 521. 



Ss Christias^ Science Christian f [Feb., 

Z.Z is not enoagh that he has suffered, and merited 
:» and suisned for sin; we, too, must take up the cross 
ind :oJ.aw h:m ' Iff a rt . xvL 24). We, too must merit g^ace 
sna aansy :«jr sin. Kc calls the sinner to penance (Matt. ix. 
. . m^ says dxat ^ mere shall be joy in heaven upon one 
Trar icci gcnancr, more than upon ninety- nine just who 
ur aeaznce* ILoke xv. 7). To say that sin is unreal is 



ra ifisrc^" me imtii and the whole purpose of the coming of 
y :Tn:ng in eartii was more real to Christ than sin and 



Vni jptrs. 'L^dj riiere is no such thing as sin. " If the 
:sae wr:ces. '" it would be mortal. . . . Because 
Lc cannot sin/'* Pushing this to its logical 
.isjn. rju.1i a 5^ii:er or more pernicious doctrine be 
:csM ^ I: * me sciil cannot sin,'* and " man cannot depart 
'* mesx tii^re is no sin in theft, blasphemy, adul- 



Mrs. z.z:^ says: ** \^Tien he sins, man must assert there 



^^ « *•' ^ 



I mimr ss sin.** Then the ten commandments are 



^^ 



.- ir-,iSLinis. X>ic all; ilrs> Eddy respects two that arc 
-'irtki ' r*^vm ^aa^c :icc ase tobacco!" "Thou shalt not drink 
?<rv .r^ aniiis * I:i vety truth Mrs. Eddy says right : " The 
: :t^ cr miOiC^rs ias cooicl" But alas, 

• H."* :^w thin.fc rightly of the thinking few, 
H^^w ataar aever think who think they do!" 

>..ro? $i.T is 3CC a reality, there is no death of cither soul 

j^-, ^x*. rtere is ao such thing as disease. ** Disease is an 

■•,'.^?*<?5<.^.t ^^.•'■<:':iar:::§ ia the unconscious mortal mind, and 

>,vx .••.. ' ^: en^ct:^ a ccascious belief that the body suffers/'f 

V v^t 5^ -;<c tile $a3ie whether he go through the delusion 

.. ,-> V. : ,*v >c^- -:i tie unreality called life. Mrs. Eddy tells 

' X f,..! 55^ :'i^ $xiie even after he has been guillotined."]: 

' Vv V Tj 5^ !c >ic*i:i, sc there are no other consequences of 

^ *^v n: a^ 10 i<e .. iJivi no final judgment."^ In fact " God 

v..^ 10 <K .% cc^^c Jt: x^l of sin." II How can he know sin? 

v\xi uii- ^!v rx*^ kaowledge of sin, sickness, and death, 

N. I ..cvi .v ccv^'J^l: $: nee he is . . . without beginning 

sT 10 oi 0JLys."5 "Such terms as divine sin and 
,1 xf vii>.eJLrvi of contradictions — absurdities. But 
. ^ .<,- J p. 425. J p. 187. 

^ II 73., p. 16. . 



^ V .\ "N. 0» 



.\V 



1905.] Is Christian Science Christian? 645 

would they be sheer nonsense, if God has, or can have, a real 
knowledge of sin ? " • " Sin is nothing. Temptations are 
nothing. Diseases do not spread. Suffering is unreality." f 

Why, then, did Christ become man? Mrs. Eddy denies 
that Christ ever became man. He did not die. He did not 
take sin upon himself. He did not redeem us. '' Christ never 
suflfered on the cross, but Jesus did.^j: Mrs. Eddy advances 
the centuries-old theory of Nestorius, of a dual personality in 
our Lord, the seen and the unseen, Jesus and the Christ. 
Christ is eternal, Jesus is mortal. "Jesus is man, not God."^ 
Was Christ God, according to Mrs. Eddy ? It is difficult to 
say. At one time she says the Holy Ghost is Christ ; at 
another, the Holy Ghost is Christian Science. || At any rate 
she admits no Trinity of persons in God.^ What about Jesus ? 
" He was conceived spiritually," ** and therefore was not the 
natural son of Mary. He only thought he died. His suffering 
was but fancy. " Had wisdom characterized all the sayings of 
Jesus, he would not have prophesied his own death." '' He 
did not die at all. " ff Does Scripture err, then, when it says 
that Jesus gave up his spirit? No; the Greek word used by 
the evangelist, means air, Jesus ''gave up aiV" not his soul^ 
and " was alive in the grave." %% " Material sense erred about 
him, until he was seen to ascend alive into heaven." ^^ 

Was there, then, no atonement, no merit or satisfaction of 
Christ for sin ? None at all ; at least, none such as Christ 
taught. ''Jesus came to save sinners, 1. e,, to save from their 
false belief such as believe in the reality of the unreal." |||| 
"The atonement of Christ is redemption from sickness, just as 
well as from sin."Tf1[ How do we know this? By the follow- 
ing characteristic argument: "Atonement means atone-ness 
with God."*** This curious bit of etymology is as delicious as 
Mrs. Eddy's derivation of Adam from a dam, any obstruction 
in a water-way. 

This at'One-ness clearly means that Christian Science teaches 
neither satisfaction nor merit of Christ; in fact, it does away 
with the whole order of grace. " Christian Science is natural. 

• Ib.t p. 19, t Miscellaneous Writing, p. io8. 

t Mr. McCrackexi in North American Review^ Vol. CLXXIII., p. 242. 

$ Pp. 35 and 469. || P. 227. ^ Pp. 237, 464, and 466. ** P. 288. 

tt P. 389. tt P. 589. $(J P. 339. nil Miscellaneous Writings, p. 63. 

iriT /^. . p. 96. ♦«♦ Unity of Good, p. 67. 



646 Is Christian Science Christian f [Feb., 

The true science of God and man is no more supernatural than 
is the science of numbers."* 

As Christ has not merited and satisfied for our sins, he 
has left us no means of applying his merits and satisfaction to 
ourselves. The sacraments, prayers, penance, and merit are 
all unrealties. 

All the sacraments are delusions, even matrimony. Man 
and woman cannot have sexual intercourse ; for " gender is a 
characteristic, a quality of mortal mind, not of matter," and 
"qualities of mortal mind" are qualities of nothing at all. 
Hence God is not our Father, but our Father-Mother ! The 
ideal propagation of the human race is seen in the formation 
of Eve by Spirit. The birth of Jesus from a virgin by Spirit 
is next to this ideal propagation. Mrs. Eddy hopes the time 
will come when there will be no more marriage. "To abolish 
marriage at this period, and maintain morality and generation, 
would put ingenuity to ludicrous shifts; yet this is possible 
in science, although it is to-day problematic. The time cometh 
and now is for spiritual and eternal existence to be recognized 
in science. All is mind. Human procreation, birth, life, and 
death are subjective states of human, erring mind. They are 
the phenomena of mortality, nothingness." 

Prayer also is only a ** phenemenon of mortality," only 
nothingness. " Petitioning a personal deity is a misapprehension 
of the source of all good and blessedness." " If we pray to 
God as a person, this will prevent us letting go the human 
doubts and fears that attend all personalities."! "The highest 
form of prayer is demonstration. Such prayer heals sickness." ( 
A lower form of prayer is statement. Statement is allowed, 
petition is not, for we that are at one with God have no need 
to petition him. Christ left us a prayer of petitions; Mrs. 
Eddy makes so bold as to transform those petitions into state- 
ments. " Deliver us from evil " means only that we are freed 
from such material sensations as disease, sin, and death. 
" Forgive us our trespasses " becomes — we know not by what 
twist of fancy — " Divine Love is reflected in love." <^ And this, 
Mrs. Eddy's own commentary, is to be substituted for the 
. Lord's Own Prayer at every meeting of Christian Scientists. 
Yet, now and then, Mrs. Eddy forgets that there is no such 

* p. 5- t P. 492. X P. 321. J P. 332. 



1905.] Is Christian Science Christian? 647 

thing as prayer of petition. She has written the following 
prayer which she wishes all her followers to buy: 

"Father-Mother, God, 
Loving me, 
Guard me when I sleep; 
Guide my little feet 
Up to thee." 

Christian Science does away not only with the sacraments 
and prayer, but also with penance and all other means by 
which the merits and satisfaction of Christ are applied to the 
soul. A man cannot merit, for he has no will-power. "Will- 
power is but an illusion of belief." • There is no such thing 
as penance, because suffering is only a " phenomenon of mortal- 
ity," only a dream, " a belief without an adequate cause." t 
St. Paul was talking utter nonsense when he dwelt so patheti- 
cally upon his " labor and toil " (I. Thes. ii. 9) ; his tribulations 
and persecutions and self-imposed chastisements of the body 
(I. Cor. ix. 27); and "the sting of the flesh" that buffetted 
him (II. Cor. xii. 7). Mrs. Eddy, however, writes: "You say 
a boil is painful; but that is impossible, for matter without 
mind is not painful. The boil simply manifests your belief in 
pain KVid you call this belief a doil.**i We have not heard that 
Mrs. Eddy ever suffered from boils, but there is a tooth-ache 
of the good lady on record. It was too much for her, the 
suffering was too real to be done away with by theories ; a 
dentist of Concord was called upon to remove the unreality by 
his painless method. This happened in 1900. A mighty 
hubbub arose. Some claimed that the tooth was extracted for 
the fun of it, yet others admitted the truth of the pain and 
the error of mortal mind that led Mrs. Eddy to a dentist. A 
manifesto was demanded from her. Here is her explanation: 

" Bishop Berkeley and I agree that all is mind. Then, con- 
sistently with this premise, the conclusion is that, if I employ 
a dental surgeon and he believes that the extraction of a tooth 
is made easier by some application or means which he employs, 
and 'I object to the employment of this means, I have turned 
the dentist's mental protest against myself; he thinks I must 
suffer because his method is interfered with. Therefore^ his 

♦ Pp. 8, 158, 474. \ P. 342. 

\ J. M. Buckley, in North American Review, September, 1901. 



648 Is Christian Science Christian? [Feb., 

mental force weighs against a painless operation, whereas it 
should be put into the same scale as mine, thus producing a 
painless operation as a result/* 

Enough has been said to show how far Mrs. Eddy is from 
Christ's doctrine on sin and all its dreadful consequences. Her 
next point of departure from the teaching of Christ is the 
virtues that he inculcated and practised. She casts aside what- 
soever we have learned from him about poverty, charity, meek- 
ness, and humility. 

The poverty of Christ is proverbial. He came especially 
for the poor, he brought aid to them ; nor have we any evi- 
dence that he received aught of payment from the poor. 
When he stood up to explain the . Scripture in the synagogue 
of his native Nazareth, he applied to himself the words of 
Isaias: ''He hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the 
poor" (Luke iv. 18; Isaias Ixi. i). He made it a sign of 
his divine mission that "to the poor the Gospel is preached" 
(Luke vii. 22). Christ came as the Good Shepherd to bring 
back to the fold the poor sheep that had strayed away, and 
as the good Samaritan to pour healing wine and soothing oil 
into the gaping wounds of the suffering wayfarer whom the 
.purse-proud had passed by and the self-sufficient had spurned. 

Mrs. Eddy has no mission to the poor, save to pursue 
them with the belief that they are not poor; no mission to 
the hungry, except to din it into their ears that hunger is an 
unreality; no mission to the blind and the lame and the deaf, 
except to insist that blindness and lameness and deafness are 
all a dream — all ''errors of mortal mind." What a parody on 
Christianity ! St. James says : " If a brother or sister be 
naked, and want daily food, and one of you say to them : Go 
in peace, be ye warmed and filled ; yet give them not those 
things that arc necessary for the body, what shall it profit ? " 
(James ii. 15). In its want of love for the poor Christian 
Science is not Christian. 

Again, Mrs. Eddy makes payment a fundamental dogma in 
her faith. Mark Twain is not too severe, when he sets it down 
as a principle in Christian Science that " not a single thing in 
the world is real except the dollar."* Mrs. Eddy never tires 
of insisting that her text- book must be used by every teacher; 
no pupil can possibly get on without Science and Health. 

* \>,*rtA A^iz-ncam Rn-irzc. January, 1903. 



1905.] /-s" Christian Science Christian? 649 

" The opinions of men cannot be substituted fdr God's revela- 
tions." Hence, "at the close of his. class, the teacher must 
require each member to own a copy of this book."* The cost 
is only $3.18. The gain to Mrs. Eddy is only 760 per cent, f 
The work has not yet gone through two. hundred and fifty 
editions. Up to 1902, only 226,000 copies had been sold. 
During 1903, only 63,000 copies were put on the market. 
'^ Centuries will pass before the book will be exhausted." All 
the profit from the book goes to Mrs. Eddy. Every change 
in it is copyrighted. She is constantly haunted by the fear 
that her copyright will be infringed upon. This copyright is, 
of course, only an unreality ; yet there have been several real 
law suits to protect it. Moreover, Science and Health is not 
Mrs. Eddy's only money- making book. Payment is made at 
an exorbitant rate for each of the other works of Mrs. Eddy. 
She is all mind, of course; and money is unreal. She charges 
$300 to each one who takes her course of seven lessons, ) 
receives a ''capitation tax" of one dollar per annum from 
each of her followers,^ and has urged all her students to buy 
a souvenir spoon on which her head is engraved. 

Christ came not only for the poor man, but as a poor man. 
He knew that we should have the poor with us always (Matt* 
xxvi. 11), and they would always need the help of his ex- 
ample. Therefore, the poverty of Bethlehem, Nazareth, and 
the three years during which the Son of Man fared worse than 
the birds of the air and the foxes of the field, nor had where- 
on to lay his head (Luke ix. 58). He wished his disciples to 
be poor as he was, to help the poor, to give freely that which 
they had received freely (Matt. x. 8). He raised poverty to 
the dignity of a supernatural virtue, and made that virtue a 
condition of Christian perfection. /' If thou wilt be perfect, go 
sell what thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have 
treasure in heaven" (Matt. xix. 21; Mark x. 21; Luke xviii. 
22). " Blessed are ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God " 
(Luke vi. 20). Since the coming of Christ, God " hath chosen 
the poor in this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom 
which he hath promised to them that love him (James ii. 5). 

* Miscellaneous Writings, p. 92. 

tMark Twain, North American Review, December, 1902. 

X Christian Science Journal, December, 1888. 

$ Mark Twain, North American Review, December, 1888. 

▼OU LXXX.— 42 



J 



650 IS Christian Science Christian f [Feb., 

Mrs. Eddy defends her money-making schemes as Christian 
by insisting that they are inspired by God, "When God 
impelled me to set a price on my instruction in Christian 
Science Mind-Healing, I could think of no financial equivalent 
for an impartation of a knowledge of that divine power which 
heals; but I was led to name %loo as the price for each 
pupil in one course of lessons at my college — a startling sum 
for tuition lasting barely three weeks. This amount greatly 
troubled me. I shrank from asking it, but was finally led by 
a strange Providence to accept this fee."* We cannot but 
think of the words of Christ: ''When thou makest a feast, 
call the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind, and thou 
shalt be blessed, because they have not wherewith to make 
thee recompense ; for recompense shall be made thee at the 
resurrection of the just" (Luke xiv. 13). Mrs. Eddy will not 
admit the Christianity of waiting for her recompense. *' Chris- 
tian Science has demonstrated that the patient who pays what- 
ever he is able to pay for being healed is more apt to recover 
than he who withholds a slight (equivalent for health." f 
W. D. McCracken deems this revelation to be founded on the 
worldly-wise principle that "people' appreciate more highly 
that for which they pay, than that which is given to them."| 

Such is Mrs. Eddy's attitude toward the poverty of Christ. 
If her attitude be right, then Christ was wrong; the poverty 
of Christ was not Christian. 

In showing how far away Mrs. Eddy is from the poverty 
of Christ, we have incidentally given evidence that she also 
rejects the charity of Christ. The charity of Christ needs no 
demonstration; he, that miraculously fed nine thousand men 
besides women and children, has made charity the key-note of 
the last judgment. They shall be saved that gave meat to 
the hungry, drink to the thirsty, lodging to the homeless, 
clothing to the naked, who visited the sick and the imprisoned 
(Matt. XXV. 35); not they who merely said to the hungry, 
"You are not hungry"; and to the sick, "You are not sick"; 
and to the thirsty, " Drink is nothing " ; and to the naked, 
" Clothes are an rmage in mortal mind " ; and to the impris- 
oned, " Iron bars are an unreality." Christian Scientists speak 
in these terms, and in so speaking they follow the principles 

• Retrospection and Introspection, p, 64. t 

X North American Review, 




I90S.] fs Christian Science Christian? 651 

of Mrs. Eddy. To one who really believes in Mrs. Eddy's 
idealism, it is a waste of unrealities to give any help to the 
sick, the hungry, and the naked. We winder what Mrs. Eddy 
thinks of the charity of St. Paul. He must have been deluded 
during that storm off the island of Melita. Mrs. Eddy never 
would, have urged the sailors to break their long fast of four- 
teen days. Fancy her saying : " I pray you to take some 
meat for your health's sake " (Acts xxvii. 34). Fancy her eat- 
ing with soldiers and sailors 1 These are unrealities she would 
not tolerate. Still, even Mrs. Eddy now and then forgets her 
unrealities; nor is her inconsistent forgetfulness always due to 
the charity of Christ. She calls her critics "evil- mongers."* 
One rascal so arouses her " mortal mind," that she calls him 
" beer-bulged, surly censor ventilating his lofty scorn."t Her 
charity is likewise set forth in what she calls the history of 
Christian Science : 

" Traitors to right of them, 
Pridstcraft in front of them, 

Volleyed and thundered. 
Out of the jaws of hate. 
Out through the door of Love, 
On to the blest above, 

March the one hundred." % 

In Mrs. Eddy's religion, then, we find neither the poverty 
nor the charity of Christ. Two other virtues that are dis- 
tinctly Christian are meekness and humility. Our Lord says 
to us : " Learn of me, because I am meek, and humble of 
heart " (Matt. xi. 29). " Blessed are the meek ; for they shall 
possess the land " (Matt. v. 4). 

Humility finds no place in Mrs. Eddy's "scientific definition 
of immortal mind " ; that is to say, humility is a thing for "mortal 
mind," and may be grouped with such errors as sin, pain, and 
death. Humility is an unreality — a* delusion and a snare. 
Meekness is but a "transitional quality," only a sign of evil 
disappearing," and may not be found in the perfect. We no 
longer entertain any misgiving about the sincerity with which 
she quotes her husband's words as a most concise yet complete 
summary of her life : " I never knew so unselfish an individ- 
ual."^ Neither she nor he meant that unselfishness which is 

^ MiscillamtQUi Writings, p. 239. f Ih.^ p. 297. Xlh., p. zo6. $ /^.. p. 35* 



652 Is Christian Science Christian r [Feb., 

an outcome of the charity and humility that we know of and 
aim at; they had in view an esoteric something which ap- 
proaches quite close to arrogance. Neither we nor any of her 
followers may expect to learn from her any of Christ's meek- 
ness or humility. Her followers accept her word, even when 
she seems to put her word above the word of God. '' Science 
is absolute and best understood through the study of my 
works and the daily Christian demonstration thereof.''* They 
do not think it apart from the humility of Christ when 
she writes : " No one else can drain the cup which I have 
drunk to the dregs, as the discoverer and teacher of Christian 
Science ; neither can its inspiration be gained without tasting 
the cup. . . . No one else could have made the dis- 
covery." t 

But the ** discovery " which she has been pleased to call 
Christian Science, if human language can express truth at all, 
is not Christian. It is diametrically opposed to the fundamental 
teachings of Christ; to that deposit of faith delivered to the 
saints, which he sent his Holy Spirit to guard for all time, to 
those sacred Scriptures which he himself inspired, to the doc- 
trine of sin which he brought home to man in words as real 
as God could make them, to those commandments, the observ- 
ance of which he imposed upon man as an absolute necessity, 
and to those virtues which he preached by word and exam- 
ple, that all men might follow in his footsteps. 

* lb., p. 156. t Retrospection and Introspection, pp. 38, 39, and 44. 



1905.] The Spirit of Christian Beneficence. 653 




THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTIAN BENEFICENCE. 

BY THE REVEREND HENRY A. BRANN, D.D. 

[T is a mistake to state as a universal proposition 
that there was no sentiment of compassion, or 
of benevolence, among pagans before the com- 
ing of Christ. Such a statement would imply 
the heresy of Calvin, that human nature became 
totally depraved by the sin of Adam, that unbelievers are in- 
capable of doing good works, that all their so-called good 
deeds are sins; it would also be contrary to historical facts. 
Some of the ancient pagans took care of the sick as far as 
the undeveloped condition of medical science would permit. 
The temples of iCsculapius had hospital annexes for the sick, 
and the priests of the god were the .physicians. The members 
of the phyle, gens, or clan took care of the orphans; their 
relations were the guardians. Among the Romans the mother's 
brother was the usual guardian; he was preferred to the 
father's brother. In Athens, the state supported and educated 
the orphans of soldiers who had died for their country. In 
Rome the Emperor Augustus established a fund for the sup- 
port of the poor children of free parents; the technical term 
of this support was alimentatio or alimentum. More was done 
for boys than for girls, who were always at a discount in 
paganism. Nerva, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus 
Aurelius followed the example of Augustus, and often gave 
distributions of corn to the poor; but their motive was chiefly 
and primarily political or economic, for charity, as Christians 
understand it, was not known to paganism. Still a vague 
notion of it had filtered through the Roman world after the 
Jews began to wander away from Judea, bringing with them 
their sacred books. As these had the benefit of a special 
supernatural revelation, and as their laws breathe a kindly 
spirit, teach sympathy for the afflicted, prohibit cruelty and 
injustice, their influence on pagan thought and action was 



654 The Spirit of Christian Beneficence. [Feb., 

manifest. The Romans saw .among the Hebrews a condition 
that still exists, that every need of the unfortunate Jew, from 
birth to burial, is provided for by a Jewish charity; and this 
as a legitimate consequence of Mosaic legislation, and of the 
teaching of the Old Testament, made specially known to the 
Greeks by the Septuagint translation. Christian influence also, 
long before the days of Constantine, and before Christianity 
gained the hegemony of the Roman state, toned down pagan 
ferocity, modified pagan customs and habits, softened the souls 
of men and women who, although remaining pagan, admired 
Christian example and Christian character and tried to imitate 
them. It is probable that some of the Roman emperprs who 
founded orphanages were prompted by Christian influence. 
Hadrian gave the name of his wife ^' Faustina " to one founded 
in Rome. Antoninus Pius and Alexander Severus, whose 
mother was probably a Christian, improved the condition of 
slaves; he built several orphanages in the Empire, and named 
one ' " Mamasana " after his mother, Mamaea. The Christian 
slave, the Christian friend, or relative did, in the old Empire, 
what the good Catholic servant or friend is doing in our own 
country to remove prejudice, destroy bigotry, set a good ex- 
ample, and thus to let the unbeliever see the truth in its real 
beauty. 

Still instances of natural virtue, of kindness, and of benefi- 
cence were counterbalanced by evidences of horrible vices and 
extraordinary cruelty. Paganism was the religion of self; and ^ 
self is always cruel and bloody; its *gods and its codes were 
::ruel. The best testimony to the character of a creed is its 
code. The code of Draco was written in blood; the code of 
Solon, "the Wise," permitted poor parents to sell or kill their 
children; a law of Romulus allowed parents to scourge, sell, 
or kill their children, even if they had become magistrates in 
the state. The Decemviri, instead of abolishing this cruel law, 
inscribed it on the fourth of the Twelve Tables. Female in- 
fants fared the worst, for the life of the first girl alone was 
protected, while all the other females might be put to death. 

The philosopher, Seneca, tells us of the pagan custom of 
putting weak and deformed children to death; and Aristotle, 
the greatest of the pagan philosophers, sanctions the custom, 
and authorizes mothers to murder their children at discretion. 



I90S.] The Spirit of Christian Beneficence. 655 

The horrible customs and laws of paganism in this regard were 
common to Asia as well as to Europe. The satires of Juvenal, 
as well as the prose of Seneca, give the strongest evidence of 
pagan cruelty towards the young and the weak. Children were 
exposed by their parents on the roadside to be devoured by 
dogs and swine ; they were mutilated — the hand or leg chopped 
off; and then they were made public beggars. Sick slaves 
were treated in the same manner. Human sacrifices were 
offered in Persia, Phoenicia, and Egypt. Children were immo- 
lated to Moloch; the aged and the useless were put to death. 
When the New World was discovered, it was found that pagan- 
ism was the same everywhere, for in America the laws and 
customs of the ancient Peruvians and Mexicans were found to 
be equally cruel, and their rites similarly horrible. 

Christianity alone made benevolence universal and perfect, 
instead of being limited and national, as it was among the 
Hebrews. The root of the spiritual and corporal works of 
mercy is found in the teachings and in the life of Christ. He 
was God who sacrificed himself absolutely for the benefit of 
others, giving up his glory and power for the sake of otherF. 
He did not die for any transgression of his own. His birth in 
a manger, his death on a cross, the tortures of his passion, were 
all for the sake of others. His life and conduct are models of per- 
fect benevolence, perfect philanthropy, perfect altruism, perfect 
charity. His teaching that all men are brothers, children of 
the same Father in heaven, that we must love our neighbor as 
ourselves, even though they be enemies — a teaching of which he 
set a perfect example on Calvary, by praying for the enemies who 
had tortured him — logically led to acts of charity among his 
followers. The prayer, " Our Father/' the petition to be for- 
given as we forgive, the lesson to look on every sick, hungry, and 
suffering man as his representative, produced the wonderfully 
rapid change which Christianity and Christians made in the 
Roman world. The new commandment to love one another was 
manifested first in his apostles and priests, a body of men 
selected to be the servants of others, ready to sacrifice health 
and life on the altar of duty for those who suffer; a body of 
men halted by no physical dangers, repelled by no loathsome- 
ness of disease, from sacrificing themselves for their fellow- man. 
What religion has produced such wonderful types of self- 



6s 8 The Spirit of Christian Beneficence. [Feb. 

the sick, saving the orphans^ protecting the widows ; by build- 
ing schools, hospitals, asylums, and orphanages ; and maklsg 
laws requiring that all the superfluous wealth of the church- 
benefices should be given to the poor. Every monastery aad 
convent were feeders of the hungry and physicians to the 
sick. Well did the mediaeval Catholic Germans know this^asd 
expressed their esteem and love of the monks in a homely 
phrase : ** Unter dem Krummstab gibt es gut leben." Even Vol* 
tiaire, the rabid enemy of the church, bears testimony to her 
wonderful charity in his Essai sur les Mceurs^ where he says: 
** People separated from the Roman communion have but im- 
perfectly imitated her generous charity " ; for charity does not 
consist in merely building a home for the waif, the stray, and 
the suffering, nor in richly endowing it after it has been built; 
but in conducdog it in the spirit of self-immolation which 
Christ showed at Bethlehem and on Calvary. 



\ 



Current Events. 

■ 

Mr. Frank* A. Vanderlip, writing 
The Aim of " Cttrrent Events." in one of our contemporaries, 

makes note of a marked change 
even within the last half-dozen years. A generation ago the 
average American took no practical interest in questions of 
European public policy. His only .interest was a trade interest. 
A far-reaching change, however, has been wrought by recent* 
military and industrial successes. The fact that America is 
entering into commercial competition with' European nations 
renders necessary an acquaintance with the methods of our 
competitors. The worker in every field of American life must 
henceforth have a more and more intimate, personal relation to 
European conditions, problems, and tendencies. Something 
more, too, than a knowledge of the bare facts is required ; a 
comprehension of underlying causes is necessary. Mr. Vander- 
lip does not, it is true, base this necessity on a very lofty or 
worthy motive, although perhaps upon tbe most potent one. 
This study is rendered necessary, he says, because it is of 
''matters directly affecting our pocket-books, matters with 
which our material prosperity must henceforth have definite 
concern." With a modesty, too, which is as refreshing as it is 
rare, he says: "The more rapidly we lose some of our self- 
complacency, and come to recognize that, while there are many 
things that we do better than other people^ there are many 
other things that we do worse, the sounder will be our under- 
standing both of our own resources and the strength of our 
competitors in the international industrial development.'' 

We have referred to these observations because, to a cer- 
tain extent, they indicate the lines on which these notes are 
made, and the purpose they have in view. There have not 
been wanting those who would erect between America and the 
rest of the world a kind of Chinese Wall, and who have con- 
sidered America all-sufficing and self-sufficient. Nothing could 
be more inconsistent with the facts of history or with the 
conduct of the framers of the Constitution. They scught light 
and guidance wherever it could be found, making a most care- 
ful study of every political system of which the world had 



66o Current Events. [Feb., 

had experience. The real secret of American success has its 
being in the open-mindedness of its leaders and guides, who 
have been ready to adopt everything proved to be good, 
wherever found. This is the spirit in which these notes are 
written. We do not Wish, however, to lead our readers to 
think they will find a solution of the underlying causes of 
current events — our ambition is not so lofty; all we wish is to 
call their attention to these events, to lead them on to fur- 
ther study, '^here is an ample field for this last Political, 
social, -and economical questions of every kind are being keenly 
'discussed; nowhere is there stagnation; movement, either 
backward or forward, is the condition of life. 

Russia affords the most interest- 
Russia, ing subject of study; not so much 

on account of the war with Japan, 
although this of course is to a large extent the occasion of the 
presen^-^crisis, but on account of its being» among civilized 
nations, \he last sjirvival of despotic rule. This rule has been 
overthrpwiringreater or less degree in every Christian coun- 
try. Will_.it be overthrown in Russia i; Is it being overthrown 

' now? Are we to be witnesses of the death- throes of the last 

[ • of the despots ? 

~~~fe""Kussia, there is every reason to believe that wide-spread 
discontent exists. Contrary to what has happened in other 
countries, it is not in what is called the proletariat that this 
discontent appears. The vast mass of the population of Russia, 
some ninety per cent., are peasants used to a life of hardship 
and privation ; in fact, they were mostly serfs before the reign 
lOf Alexander II. If not content with their lot they are resigned 
to it as inevitable ; and to the Tsar they are entirely loyal. 
There is another class, too, which is quite loyal — the office- 
holders ; but their loyalty is a selfish loyalty, the love of power 
and of money. It is among the upper classes, and the classes 
which have had a liberal education, that the dissatisfied are 
found; among the newly-formed industrial classes also; and 
of course among the Jews, who are so cruelly treated, there 
are large numbers of the advocates of change. As we said 
last month, elaborate schemes of reform have been formed, and 
hopes were entertained that they would* be adopted by the 
Tsar. His feast day was coming, and it would be solemnized 



I90S.] Current Events. 66 i 

by the promulgation of a Constitution. Such were the hopes. 
The day came and went^ and no sign was made. Despair be- 
gan to settle down, and fear for the worst; a few days later, 
however, the decree appeared. It deserves careful study and, 
we think, a better welcome than it has anywhere received. It 
does not give very much; bbt what it gives, supposing ordi- 
nary good faith on the part of the giver — we hope not an 
extravagant supposition — will form the germ out of which a 
more reasonable form of government may spring. The Tsar 
assures his people that he is thinking unceasingly of the wel- 
fare of the realm entrusted to him by God. He looks upon it 
as the duty of the governmejit to take untiring care for the 
needs of the country. While there must be undeviating main- 
tenance of the immutability of the fundamental laws 6l the 
Empire, this immutability is not absolute. The Empire's laws 
are not like the laws of the Medes and Persians, but they 
admit of change when the need of change is shown to be 
mature, even though this change involves essential innovations 
in legislation. The Tsar appeals to the well-disposed section 
of his subjects, that is, to those who seek the true prosperity of 
the fatherland in the support of civil tranquillity and the un- 
interrupted satisfaction of the daily needs of the people. The 
Tsar's first thought is for the greatest happiness of the great- 
est number of his people, and he proceeds to state the prac- 
tical steps which he is taking in the way of investigation for 
the most numerous of his estate — the peasant population. 
Various bodies of Commissioners have been appointed to elab- 
orate remedies for the evils under which they suffer, but no 
definite decree has yet been made. The Tsar, however, sol- 
emnly recognizes the decree of the Tsar Liberator — which 
made the peasants free citizens in the full possession of citi- 
zenship—and commands that the laws affecting them should 
be brought into unity with the general legislation of the 
Empire, ensuring thereby the permanent security of this estate. 
Equality of all before the law is the next thing which the 
Tsar wishes to secure. Effective measures of safeguarding the 
law in its full force he declares to be the most important pillar 
of the throne of the autocratic Empire. All authorities in all 
places are required inviolably to fulfil it, and this is to be 
regarded as a first duty ; all arbitrary acts are to bring with 
them legal responsibility ; every person who has suffered wrong 



662 Current Events. [Feb., 

by such acts is to be able to secure legal redress. This will 
be a shock for Admiral Rozhestvenski, who claims the right 
to throw overboard every one who is not pleasing in his eyes. 

The next step is the decentralization of-power, giving to 
local and municipal institutions as wide a scope as possible in 
matters affecting local welfare; all necessary independence 
within legal limits is to be conferred upon them, and repre- 
sentatives^ of all sections of the population interested in local 
matters are to be called upon to take part in these institutions. 
This strengthens the already existing governments and Zemstvos^ 
and increases theit number by establishing similar institutions 
in smaller districts. It introduqee the word representatives, yet 
does not say that they will be elected by the people, but that they 
will be called upon, not explaining the manner of this calling. 
It is, however, in these institutions that many look for the 
germ of representative institutions. 

As another step to secure the equality of all classes before 
the laws, steps are to be taken to bring about the necessary 
unification^ of judicial procedure throughout the Empire, and to 
assure the independence of the courts; for the workmen in 
factories, the state insurance of workmen is not promised, but 
attention to it as a question is to be given. The exceptional 
laws made in the time of the Nihilistic efforts to overturn the 
government are to be revised, and the discretionary powers then 
given to the administrative authorities are to be brought within 
the narrowest possible limits. 

There follows a confirmation of the Imperial Manifesto of 
March 3, 1903, in which was expressed the Tsar's desire that 
tolerance in matters of faith should be protected by the funda- 
mental laws of the Empire; for this purpose he directs that 
the laws dealing with the rights of communities and of per- 
sons belonging to heterodox and non-Christian confessions 
should be submitted to revision, and that measures should be 
taken for the removal of all limitations in the exercise of their 
religions not directly mentioned in the law. How far the 
Catholic Church will benefit by the favor conferred on every 
form of heresy and unbelief is not yet clear. 

The Jews and other foreigners come next under con- 
sideration, but what benefits they are to receive is left very 
doubtful, for all that is said is that only such limitations 
as to residence are to be imposed in future as are required 



I90S.] Current Events. 663 

by the present interests of the Empire and the manifest needs 
of the Russian people. 

As to the Press, all unnecessary restrictions are to be re- 
moved from the existing laws, and printed speech is to be 
placed within clearly defined legal limits. The object of the 
removal of the existing restrictions the Tzar declares to be 
that to the Press may be left the possibility of worthily fulfill- 
ing its high calling, which is to be the true interpreter of 
reasonable strivings for Russia's advantage. 

The Tsar sees that, in accordance with these principles a 
series of great internal changes is impending in the early 
future. The Council of Ministers is charged with the duty of 
inquiry as to the best way of giving effect to his purposes, 
and to submit to him its decisions. 

Such is the most important state-paper issued in Europe 
during the past year. As tjjiings are in Russia,' its whole 
validity depends upon the imperial will, which alone can give it 
force, interpret it, and even recall the paper when it so pleases. 
It seems, therefore, weak in its root and origin, and still weaker 
on account of the corrupt surroundings. Moreover, that which 
was most desired by Russian reformers is left out — there is no 
provision for any representation of the people in the Council 
of the Empire. Everywhere, therefore, as we have said, it has 
met with condemnation, even in the most conservative circles 
of Germany; and yet, if honestly carried out, it gives the 
promise of better days for Russia; it promises a limitation of 
personal rule, and opens out a prospect for the growth of the 
reign of the law. 

The most notable occupation of 
Germany. German public men is the keep- 

ing upon friendly terms with her 
neighbors, while securing for herself a position such as will 
give her, on the conclusion of the war, a potent voice in the 
arrangement of the terms of peace. There are many. in Eng- 
land who look upon Germany as a foe and the worst of foes, 
one who is preparing to strike a blow in secret. In fact there 
are those who think that the attack made by the Russian Bal- 
tic Fleet upon the fishermen on the Dogger Bank, was due to 
German machinations, and that the German Fleet was ready 
to co-operate at once with the Russian if hostilities had fol- 
lowed. There is little doubt that a part of the British Fleet 



664 Current EVENTS. [Feb., 

was detached/ during the week after the outrage took place, to 
act against Germany ; and it is certain that in the new dis*^ 
tribution of the British Fleet, which has just taken place and 
which, according to M. Hanotaux, enables England to domin- 
ate everywhere, special arrangements have been made to ward 
off an attack from' the newly- formed German Fleet; or, at 
least, to prevent the possibility of such an attack. German 
statesmen are trying to remove the distrust of Germany which 
is entertained by many in England^ For this purpose the 
German Chancellor, Count von Biilow, has allowed the 
Nineteenth Century and After to publish an interview, in which 
he manifests a friendly disposition and strives to remove all 
misapprehensions. 

The financial position of Germany is so weak as to render 
it necessary to pay current expenses by raising a loan, but this 
has not prevented the govemn^nt's demanding a further in* 
crease of the army by some fifteen thousand men. The supreme 
anxiety of the Emperor is, however, for a large addition to 
the navy, in order that his World Politics may be supported 
by the requisite force. The war between Russia and Japan, 
and the way a settlement is to be made when the end comes, 
are already forming an anxious theme of discussion. During 
the past six months the German Emperor's benevolence to- 
wards Russia has almost gone beyond the bounds which neu- 
trality requires; and in other respects every effort has been 
made to secure Russia's friendship. This indirectly might bring 
about, at least for a well-defined purpose, the co-operation of 
Germany and France, the latter country being the ally of 
Russia. It is therefore thought to be possible that Germany is 
seeking to bring together Russia and France, for the purpose 
of securing the lasting control of the situation in the Far 
East. An effort is to be made, when the psychological moment 
arrives, to convince Japan of the advantage of making peace 
with Russia, and forming an alliance with France, Germany, 
and Russia, thereby breaking with England. In this event all 
the four powers are to unite their efforts for the purpose of 
ousting British and also American influence from the Far East 
This, however, is mere speculation ; there is no doubt however 
that, although the war in its progress is deeply interesting, 
the bringing of it to an end and the consequent arrangements 
will be still more interesting. 



igos.] Current Events. 665 

The Austro- Hungarian Empire has 
The Austrian Empire. on one side of the Leitha enjoyed 

a fair degree of peace, while those 
who dwell on the other side of the river are in a state of 
frenzied excitement. Not that Austria has passed an unevent- 
ful life ; the Premier, Dr. von Korber, has been forced to place 
his resignation in the hands of the Emperor. For five years 
he has held the reins of power. His task was, with impartial- 
ity towards all, to carry on the legislative and administrative 
functions of government ; he did not succeed, and had to make 
use of the Emergency Paragraph, which supersedes and dispenses 
with ordinary constitutional procedure. It was necessary to 
make concessions to the Czechs; this displeased the Germans. 
In the end they both combined and voted against one of his 
proposals in the Budget Commission. This would not have 
affected a minister of the German Empire ; but in Austria the 
power of the Parliament is greater; Dr. von Korber felt that 
his power was gone, and has resigned. 

His successor has been appointed by the Emperor. That 
of his policy nothing is known, shows how great is the 
power of the Emperor. In strictly constitutional countries, the 
Premier must be the most influential representative of the well- 
known and accepted policy of the strongest party. Baron 
Gautch von Frankenthurn is not, however, an unknown man, 
as he was Premier for three months in 1897. The Cabinet is 
the same as that of Dr. von Korber, with the addition of two 
new ministers. 

As an exception to the world-wide movement towards the 
secularization of schools, it may be recorded with satisfaction 
that Austria has taken a step in the opposite direction, and has 
given to the clergy fuller powers. 

Entirely different is the state of things in Hungary. Never 
in the annals of Parliamentary history was such a scene enacted 
as that which took place on the 12th of December last. In 
reading of it, the question is forced on the mind whether it is 
possible for a whole nation to become insane. The opponents 
of the government's proposal form a minority ; on no democratic 
theory can the minority be entitled to rule, it is bound after 
having presented its case with all the cogency possible, to 
submit; it has the right, however, to re- open the case be- 
fore the nation at the elections, and to form a majority by 

VOL. LXXXa— 43 



666 Current Events. ]^r«i. 



argument and discussion; failing this, it is bound to sxc 
How did the minority in Hungary act ? By bmte xydtssx 
they sought to render all Parliamentary action impossible. Tic 
legislators in their fury broke every piece of funutcre. :::e 
down the Premier's arm* chair, broke up the Deputies' benches, 
belabored the heads of the policemen. On the top ci it 
heap of broken furniture a clerical deputy, uc arc ashamed :c 
say, climbed and Seated himself on the bottom of the Premier's 
upturned chair exclaiming : " The clericals sit in triumph cpcs 
the ruins of the Magyar Parliament." It would setm as if , as 
in the case of M. Syveton in France, the church suffers most 
from her would-be defenders. Although among the many 
groups which make up this riotous minority there are soice 
sections which are either wholly or partly clerical, yet in both 
Hungary and Vienna many sincere and eminent Catholics have 
publicly and privately come out in favor of Count Tisza. 

While there can be no justification of such outrageous 
breaches of the habits of civilized life, is there any explana- 
tion of it? The government is seeking to take away f rem any 
minority the power to nullify, by systematic obstruction, all 
parliamentary action. The evil has attained portentious pro- 
portions ; for the minority has for two years attained its end 
by those means. The present Premier is a young man, and it 
is looked upon as almost impudent on his part to persevere in 
doing that which three or four of his predecessors have 
resigned rather than attempt. It is also maintained that the 
party in power is, on account of the undue and corrupt influ- 
ence it exerts over the voters, elected under a restricted fran- 
chise — there being only 900,000 voters out of a population of 
17,000,000 — secure of remaining permanently in power, and 
that the minority have no other way, except obstruction, of 
securing anything. It is maintained, too, that it is a violation 
of the Constitution for Parliament to change the standing 
orders, under the protection of which obstruction is pos- 
sible, and they seek to make the King himself responsible. 
The government, however, has stood firm and dissolved the 
Parliament and appealed to the country. Here, again, the 
opposition has shown itself impracticable, for it has refused 
even one month's provisional supply, and the country has 
thereby been forced into what is called the ex-lex predicament; 
that is to say, the elections take place although supplies' have 




1 90S.] Current Events. 667 

not been granted. This, Count Albert Apponyi maintains, will 
be a violation of the Constitution; Parliament will have been 
illegally dissolved, the new members illegally elected, the old 
members will legally constitute the Parliament. Such is the 
state of things in Hungary, and grave apprehensions exist, not 
only of excitement and turmoil but even of bloodshed. 

The Balkan States still remain in a 
The Balkan States. state of suspended war. In Mace- 

donia a Bulgarian band extermin- 
ates a Greek band, and, by way of counterpoise, a Greek band 
routs and partially destroys a Bulgarian. Albanian and Turk- 
ish freebooters, Greek, Bulgarian, Servian, and even Roumanian 
bands, hold the field. The Turkish government looks calmly 
on, rejoicing in the divisions of its Christian subjects, and the 
destruction which they are bringing upon one another. The 
Porte has, however, been compelled to give way, and to yield 
to the demands of Austria and of Russia that the numbers of the 
foreign officers of the gendarmirU should be increased. Some 
little, and only a little, alleviation of the condition of the 
Christian population has been brought about by means of 
these officers; but in the remoter districts violence and extor- 
tion still flourish. 

In France the attack upon religion 
France. has remained in abeyance, the 

only active steps which have been 
taken consisting in the removal of M. Brunetiere from his 
lectureship in the £cole Normale, and the introduction into 
the assembly of a bill to abolish the monopoly of conducting 
burials, which has hitherto been possessed by religious bodies. 
This is meant by M. Combes as a step toward the separation 
of church and state. The removal of M. Brunetiere, an 
academician and the editor of the Revue des Deux Mondes^ 
shows that the greatest literary ability will be no protection if 
associated with zeal for religion. The cabinet of M. Combes 
has at last fallen. The contrast between its pretentions to be 
the expression of the best spirit of the age, and the vile means 
it took to carry out its policy, were too great even for the 
present assembly. The worst of it is that there is small rea- 
son to hope that a better class of men will come to the front. 



668 Current Events. [Feb. 

The declared aim of the successor of General Andre as 
Minister of War was to purge the army of politics ; it seems 
a pity that there is no hope of purging the nation of the ex- 
isting political methods. 

By the arrangement with England, Morocco was given up 
to France as an uncontested sphere of influence, and France 
has come to a satisfactory agreement with Spain, by which 
their respective claims are adjusted. There is an urgent call 
for interference in Morocco, for tyranny, anarchy, and misery 
of every kind are rife. The French have formed a plan for 
peaceful penetration ; but Morocco has no desire to be pene- 
trated, either peacefully or otherwise. Strange to say, she seems 
to like her own ways; and so has dismissed all Europeans 
from her employment, and taken other measures to maintain 
her national institutions. The mission to the capital, which 
France had been on the point of sending, was stopped for a 
time. Whether France, if she is not able to penetrate peace- 
fully, will carry out her policy of penetration in some other 
way, is the question which she has now to decide. Changes of 
cabinet have taken place in Servia, Roumania, Greece, Spain, 
and Denmark; but no question of more than local interest 
seems to have been involved. 



flew Books. 

The purpose of these ten volumes • 

IRISH LITERATURE. is to give a comprehensive view 

Edited by Justin McCarthy, of the gradual development of the 

literary art of Ireland, both in 
prose and poetry. Such a work must necessarily be unsatisfac- 
tory. To attain the purpose desired, a philosophy of the his- 
tory of Irish literature should have been constructed. Selec- 
tions taken from Irish authors, from earliest times down to 
the present, can never be considered a scientific work. The 
real good to be derived from the books before us will come 
when some efficient scholar shall use them as a means for 
building a great philosophic work of Irish literature, such as 
Ferdinand Bruneti^re has done for France. 

It must also be considered a defect by some to have placed 
the authors in alphabetical order, and without regard to the 
time in which they lived and produced. How much more 
interesting and helpful to the student it would be to have 
begun with the myth and legend of the dawning history of 
Irish literature, and then to have concluded with these young 
authors of the Neo-Celtic movement who are striving to pre- 
serve that peculiar and ancient temperament which is charac- 
teristic of Irish literature. However, the work before us will 
always be of service to the reading world, and no library of 
Irish literature can be complete without it. Specially service- 
able are the translations from the Gaelic. Then, too, there is 
much of the bardic literature, not often seen, and not often 
put together, contained in this work under consideration. Even 
from a rapid glance at these books one must arrive at the 
conclusion that what is called Irish literature has certainly a 
character all its own, and can rest on its own intrinsic merits. 
It would seem to be a reasonable claim vouched for by Irish 
scholars that the ballads, stories, legends, and dramas of their 
country, compare favorably — if not in number, then certainly 
in merit — with other national literatures. It is of value to 
have, as is contained in these volumes, a series of special 

* Irish LitenUnn. Justin McCarthy. M.P., Editor-in-chief; Maurice F. Egan, LL.D., 
Douglas Hyde, LL.D., Lady Gregory, and James Jeffrey Roche, LL.D., Associate Editors; 
Charles Welsh, Managing Editor. Philadelphia: John D. Morris & Co. 



670 New Books. [Feb., 

articles prepared by writers well known in their own depart- 
ments of literary history. The following subjects are treated 
by the following authors: "General Introduction," by Mr. Justin 
McCarthy; "Modern Irish Poetry," by Mr. William Butler 
Yeats ; " Early Irish Literature," by Dr. Douglas Hyde ; " Ire- 
land's Influence on European Literature," by Dr. George 
Sigerson ; " Irish Novels," by Maurice Francis Egan ; " Irish 
Orators and Oratory," by the late J. F. Taylor ; " The Sunni- 
ness of Irish Life," by Mr. Michael McDonough ; "Irish Wit 
and Humor," by Mr. D. J. O'Donoghue ; "A Brief Glance at 
Irish History " and " The Fairy and Folk Tales of Ireland," 
by Mr. Charles Welsh; and "The Irish Literary Theatre," by 
Mr. Stephen Gwynn. 

Of book-making and artistic illustration these volumes are 
certainly splendid specimens, and would be an adornment to 
any library of finely made books. We commend the work. It 
is a work never done before. All who love Ireland must thank 
the men who have done it. It is the first positive development 
of that great movement which is coming to bring to life a litera- 
ture buried away from a knowledge of the world. 

The aim of the new Sunday- 

A COURSE OF CHRISTIAN School Manual,* issued by the 

DOCTRINE. Dolphin Press, is, as stated in its 

preface, " to bring the ' New Edu- 
cation' to bear on the old sacred and unchangeable truths, 
and to lead the children not only to know, but to love and 
practice them." To accomplish this end, the author recom- 
mends the use of every new method and appliance that in 
other branches of study have helped to make learning pleasant 
and understanding sure for children of the present day. The 
book itself suggests such new features as blackboard work, his- 
torical tablets, the use of the sandboard, pictures, poems, and 
the like, and teachers are urged to introduce anything else 
that may occur to them, be it never so original, so long as it 
serves the one essential purpose of vivifying in the child's 
mind the desired impression of the day's lesson. 

The course mapped out is divided into eight grades, each 
including instruction in prayers, catechism, Bible history — both 

• The Dolphin Serits : Course of Christian Doctrine. A Handbook for Teachers. Grades 
"'.inclusive. Pp. xiv.-i66. Philadelphia: The Dolphin Press. 



1905.] New books. 671 

Old and New Testament — and Catholic devotions and prac- 
tices; so that even the first year's work will leave the child 
with an orderly, if brief, outline of the fundamental principles 
of his religion, to be developed with more and more complete- 
ness in each succeeding year. By thus opening to the pupil's 
view, at the very outset, the wide and varied character of the 
field in which he is working, the teacher employing this method 
will almost certainly awaken an interest that, properly stimu- 
lated, should lead the normal child to follow the entire course 
with eagerness. We shall then see fewer of those quaint lit- 
tle pedants, who can "say" their Catechism, and who think 
their religious education . is complete ; and, better still, we 
shall see a reduction in the numbers of the sad little failures 
who have been used to lag behind under the old **Q.** and 
**-/i." regime, and finally to leave Sunday- School with practi- 
cally no conception of religion as a vital force in a workaday 
boy or girl's life. "The test of the master's success is the 
child's willing co-operation," quotes our author, and a study 
of her method convinces one that its followers * are likely to 
be able to stand the test. 

The first four grades comprise Part I. of the course. This 
takes the pupil through a selected abridgment of the Balti- 
more Catechism, whose bare definitions are correlated with 
Bible stories, and tales of the saints and martyrs emphasizing 
the truths taught, and are further supplemented by recitations 
and hymns bearing on the subject of the lesson. In this half 
of the course, the most important prayers of the church are 
also taught, as well as the proper way to assist at Mass, at 
the way of the cross, the rosary, and so on. After completing 
this series of lessons, any child ten or eleven years old should 
be able to follow intelligently the principal devotions of the 
church. 

To satisfy the natural craving for variety and activity, 
objective teaching and "seat work" are strongly recommended 
for these early grades. The smaller children are shown how 
to make little crosses, triangles, and circles, and told what 
should appear on each. They learn that God's name, sur- 
rounded by a circle, signifies he has no beginning and no end. 
For the larger pupils there are drawings of symbols, altar ves- 
sels, etc., and such attractive tasks as the filling out of ellip- 
tical words and sentences, relating to the subject in hand ; 



672 NEW Books. [Feb., 

exercises which excite a healthy spirit of competition, and 
will be a spur to both memory and observation in the future. 

A tablet scheme for Bible history work is proposed. Thus 
far no text>book is used, and the children are simply taught 
to make tablets for the Old and New Testament, to rule them 
off into sections representing the four principal divisions of 
the period studied, and then to add in its proper column each 
new fact learned. The Old Testament sections are headed: 
"Adam to Noah"; "Noah to Abraham"; "Abraham to 
Solomon"; "Solomon to Christ"; with the approximate 
dates of each period ; and the pupil, having in this way the 
principal epochs always clearly before him, must very soon 
acquire a fair idea of the general movement of history before 
the coming of Christ. A similar division of our Lord's life is 
made, and quotations from the New Testament are taught by 
means of pictures; the children learning the persons, time, 
and place associated with the words of the sacred text, and 
thus acquiring one more link with which to bind a truth 
already given them under a different form in the Catechism 
or history lesson. 

One lingers, charmed, on these first chapters ; the promise 
of success seems so sure. For where is the little child who 
could resist the happy influence of a lesson given in accord 
with the following original directions : 

"Talk about the picture of 'Jesus blessing the Children'; 
lead the children to say Jesus is God; write the word God in 
yellow chalk on the board. Tell the story of the great won- 
der-ball. God made for us a ball that has in it and on it 
everything that we want. ' ChUdren, tell me some of the 
things in the wonder-ball.' 'What do we call this wonder-ball, 
that ^has in it trees and flowers and everything we need ? ' 
*The world.' 'Who made the world?' * God made the 
world.' Tell the story of God's love in making this beautiful 
world for us. Give illustrations on the blackboard of the dayS 
of creation ; same with sandboard and objects, taking the work 
of one or two days at a time, until the children can readily 
name something made each day of creation." 

After a lesson like that, would not any normal child find a 
new joy in reciting " The Wonderful World " ; and have, more- 
over, a very real and personal appreciation of the beautiful 
thought of its last verse ? 



190$.] NEW BOOKS. 673 

'' Ah, you are so g^eat and I am so small, 
I tremble to think of you, world, at all. 
And yet when I said my prayers to-day, 
A whisper inside me seemed to say: 
' You are more than the earth, though you are such a dot, 
You can love and thinks and the world cannot.'" 

In Part IL, the work begun in the lower grades in each 
division of the course is broadened and continued. The Balti- 
more Catechism is finished, and a more advanced work, using 
the same definitions, is recommended. Additional vocal pray- 
ers are taught, and the children encouraged to acquire the 
habit of mental prayer. The liturgy of the church in regard 
to feasts, ceremonies, vestments, vessels, and sacramentals, is 
pointed out and explained, and quotations, pictures, and poems, 
which inspire devotion and love of virtue, and at the same time 
avail for developing good taste in art and literature, are 
brought into requisition. 

The tablet idea in the Bible history work is continued 
throughout, the four simple divisions of the first years, devel- 
oping gradually into an elaborate scheme, which presents in 
most compact shape a complete outline of both Old and New 
Testament history. A text- book is introduced in the fifth 
grade, and the Bible itself in the higher classes; the familiar 
facts of our Lord's life being made actual and present by the 
use of the sandboard, small local maps sketched by the pupils 
themselves, and compositions on biblical subjects assigned for 
work outside the class-room. In this way the children, natural 
hero-worshippers, will grow to love the Bible for its noble 
lives and stirring events, and will indeed soon realize that it 
would be necessary to look far for a more heroic tale of ad- 
venture than Saint Paul's famous journeys made ''in perils of 
waters, in perils of robbers, in perils from the Gentiles, in 
perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the 
sea, in perils from false brethren." 

In short, the scholarship and . originality which mark the 
first chapter prevail throughout the work, and in the hands of 
an enthusiastic teacher, possessing the pedagogical virtues of 
patience and perseverance, it would seem that the system out- 
lined must command success. 

One lays down this most interesting book with a feeling of 



674 N^y^ BOOKS. [Feb., 

gratitude to the author for much light and encouragement, and 
with the hope that it may fall into the hands of every one 
interested in this most important subject, at last beginning to 
receive the attention it deserves. It is hard to imagine a Sun- 
day-School teacher to whom the work will not appeal, although 
its very richness of suggestion might perhaps tempt some to 
regard it as impracticable. It is true, the complete course laid 
out is intended for a day school, but the flexibility of the 
system employed makes the course readily adaptable to the 
narrower limits of the Sunday- School, and the author herself) 
while citing the fact that " the work has been done and well 
done under diverse circumstances," proclaims the necessity of 
arranging the course to suit the special needs and conditions 
of each individual case. Furthermore, if the work as it stands, 
seems beyond the capacity of the average Sunday- School 
teacher to undertake at once, at least it may serve to draw 
attention to the possibility, say rather necessity, of forming 
adult classes, and a teachers' training class, from which to draw 
material for the Sunday-School of the future. 

Happily Dr. Shahan has now 
THE MIDDLE AGES. written so much, that we can tell 
By Dr. Shahan. by anticipation what the charac- 

teristics of any new volume of 
his shall be.* We shall be fairly sure to find that they con- 
sist in a profound, varied, and easy mastery of historical 
erudition ; a rich and copious style lit up with an imagination 
which learning has not darkened ; and a decided turn for the 
useful and the apologetic. Rare gifts these, and the possessor 
of them may be assured that his writings which exhibit them 
shall always be warmly welcomed, and shall always do great 
good. All this is illustrated and borne out by Dr. Shahan's 
latest work, which is a collection of essays intended to throw 
light upon the church history of the Middle Ages. Some of 
these studies are closely- compacted summaries of long epochs, 
such as "Catholicism in the Middle Ages"; the "Results of 
the Crusades"; and "The Italian Renaissance"; and others 
are specialized researches, for example, " The Book of a 
Mediaeval Mother"; "The Christians of St. Thomas"; and 

• The Middle ^ges: Sketches and Fragments. By Thomas J. Shahan. S.T.D., J.U.L, 
New York : Benziger Brothers. 



1905.] New Books. 675 

^'B^ths and Bathing in the Middle Ages." But to whichever 
class they belong, .they are always informing, and suggestive, 
and. when, taken, together, place before us the mediaeval period 
of Catholic history in a light in which it is not often studied. 
We would mention as an unusually valuable chapter, the one 
entitled: "Catholicism in the Middle Ages." This is a brilliant 
piece of historical condensation, and as strong a weapon of 
Catholic defense as we have read in a long time. It tells how 
the church grasped hold of the individual and public life of 
the Middle Ages, and infused into it the elements of a high 
Christian civilization, giving mercy to legal codes, an exalted 
station to woman, an asylum to the slave, and an inspiration 
that has produced imperishable monuments to poetry, architec- 
ture, music, and painting. For this paper alone we should be 
in Dr. Shahan's debt for this volume. We suggest to Catho- 
lic higher schools and colleges, that they put these fine essays 
to constant use in the class-room of history. 

The book entitled Ideals of Science 
.IDEALS OF SCIENCE AND and Faith,* is conceived after an 

FAITH. admirable plan. It purposes to give 

the views of ten or twelve eminent 
men, in science and in theology, on the be.^t method of clos- 
ing the lamentable gap between modern learning and religious 
faith. Thus one man gives a suggestion for the great " ap- 
proach " from the side of biology ; another from the side of 
physics; one from the side of Presbyterianism ; another from 
the side of Catholicity ; and so on. The result is an extremely 
useful and illuminating book. Not that all the essays are very 
valuable. The truth is that the greater number of them are 
utterly outside the scope of the volume, and are hardly of any 
use at all, so far as achieving the purpose of the compiler is 
concerned. But the minority of essays, which are good, are 
so thoroughly good, that they lift the work up to a high rank 
as a sadly-needed eirenicon. And the essays which we have 
in mind, in making this latter observation, are the contributions 
of Sir Oliver Lodge, who speaks as a physicist, and of Wilfrid 
Ward, who appears for the Catholic Church. If any other 
essay deserves to be added to these, it is the joint chapter of 

^, Ideals of Science and Faiths Essays by various authors. Edited by Rev. J. E. Hand. 
New York : Longmans, Green & Co. 



676 NEW BOOKS. [Feb., 

Professors Thomson and Geddes on '' The Biological Approach." 
The reading of this book deepens within one's mind the two 
impressions, first, that there is a terrible distance between men 
of science and Christianity ; and secondly, that bright indica- 
tions are appearing that the separation is beginning to be 
diminished, and promises to be some day destroyed. Christians 
and scientists have not been speaking the same idiom for fifty 
years at least; they have become unintelligible to each other. 
The scientist's mental world is filled with the visible universe, 
on which he experiments and meditates. It is a universe of 
fatal law testifying to nothing beyond itself, and pointing in 
its entirety to no more personality, or providence, or benevo- 
lence, than the killing of a lamb by a tiger, or the process of 
animal digestion points to such things. The Christian, on the 
other hand, speaks of the same universe in transcendental terms 
which exist in the vocabulary of no positive science. His 
world view and life philosophy include a superintending person- 
ality, just, fatherly, and good, who has often dealt with the 
physical order in the manner of miracle, and still oftener has 
come into conscious relation with men by conscience, inspira- 
tion, and revelation. 

The separation of the two mental states seemed decisive ; 
the sign ** No thoroughfare " fixed for indefinite time. It was 
once thought that those who accept geology must depart to 
the left hand, and those who accept Genesis will foregather on 
the right. The lines were drawn, the challenge interchanged, 
and the order of " No quarter ! " passed down the lines. For- 
tunately the combatants are resting now, though still under 
arms no doubt, and emissaries from both sides are trying to 
find each other to arrange for peace. Theology has accepted 
and assimilated much in science that was suspected at first 
Biblical criticism has taken account of palsontology, moral 
theology is glad to avail itself of some results of empirical 
psychology, and systematic dogma is almost sure to give a 
seat of honor at its hearthstone to evolution, a name once 
male sonans. 

And on its side science is beginning to listen with respect 
when religion speaks. Transcendental terms are acknowledged 
to have not only a coherent meaning, but a deep and sacred 
meaning. Science is concerned with a process, nothing more; 
and it sees at last that stretching out beyond the field of that 



I90S.] New Books, 677 

process is a real and vast world, which is no longer to be 
denied because not shut up in a test-tube. And so to-day 
"religious experience" is seriously studied by psychologists; 
and in the mysterious phenomena of subliminal consciousness, 
data, with unquestionably transcendental implications, are form- 
ing the basis of an almost new science. The phenomenal does 
not exhaust the real — this is the growing conviction o{ science 
— and in that conviction is contained the first element of an 
approach to belief. 

Wilfrid Ward's essay is an apology for tbe intransigeant 
attitude which the church has seemed sometimes to take 
toward scientific discovery. Mr. Ward reminds scientists that 
the Catholic Church's fundamental claim is that she is the cus- 
todian of God's revelation to man. Her first responsibility is 
to keep that revelation uncontaminated. Now here comes a. 
new advance in science, which seems to conflict with this de- 
posit of faith. The church would be untrue to her mission if 
she did not suspect, and hold aloof from, the novelty. If later, 
the innovation is conclusively proved, then the church makes 
way for it, or even may assimilate it. But the point is, she 
would belie her claim and her consciousness to be God's 
guardian of truth, if she did not instinctively distrust whatever 
even seems of a nature to injure that truth. At times, then, 
her recognition of scientific fact is slow, but it has the merit 
of being sure. The danger, of course, is that theologians will 
consider many of their own deductions from the depositutn, an 
essential part of it ; and hence they will unnecessarily vex and 
antagonize scientific men. To obviate this danger, the church 
must have among her own children scholars in every depart- 
ment of learning. Then, when these men report to the church 
that such and such findings of science are most probably true, 
she will the more readily make room for the new matter, as 
she can trust more fully the reports of her own sons, to whom 
religion is a grave concern. There would be far less criticism 
of the church, for her tardy recognition of science, if there 
existed a fairly adequate understanding of her vocation to 
preserve Christ's revelation inviolate, and of her intense con- 
sciousness of that vocation. 

This is a summary description of the fine chapters in this 
book, which are from the able pens of Sir Oliver Lodge and 
Wilfrid Ward. There are three papers written from a religious 



678 New Books. [Feb., 

standpoint — a Catholic, a Presbyterian, and an Anglican con- 
tribution. The Presbyterian representative makes a rather poor 
showing; the Anglican much better; and Mr. Ward is much 
the most thoughtful of all. For the two essays which we 
have especially commended, the book is well worth reading 
If much of the remaining matter be left unread, we venture 
to say the loss will not be irreparable ; although we cannot 
omit a word of hearty praise for the fine English of Professor 
Geddes' chapter on ''An Educational Approach." It is ex- 
traordinarily well put together, and is in itself a fine and sug- 
gestive sketch. But as it falls outside the plan of the volume, 
saying hardly anything on the great reconciliation, we have 
not mentioned it as worthy a place beside the other two. 

Father Phelan, in his preface, vig- 

SERMONS. orously assails our extant ser- 

By Father Phelan. mon- literature, charging it with 

being unpreachable, because writ- 
ten by monks and bishops who do not know what the people 
want. Leaving these two classes to defend themselves, we are 
glad to testify that Father Phelan's sermons* are preachable, 
and of a kind which, so far as we can see, the faithful would 
be delighted to hear. They are vigorous and homely in style 
and illustration, energetic in their moral appeal, and possess 
ih a general way a breezy and up-to-date spirit which makes 
them as agreeable to read as, beyond doubt, they were pleas- 
ing to listen to. Not that we can agree with some statements 
which they express very positively ; for example, that methods 
of prayer are not of much value; that Protestantism to-day 
occupies precisely the same ground as in the beginning on 
man's total depravity, and that, therefore, " Protestants pay no 
attention to works good or bad"; and that France to-day is as 
Catholic as ever, and probably more so. And in an illustra- 
tion of two dying men, our author says downright that one 
went to purgatory and the other to hell. We should prefer a 
degree of reserve on so serious an issue. But substantially, as 
we have said, these sermons are sturdy and helpful; and we 
think it beyond question that they will achieve a respectable 
share of the good that sermon-books are fitted to effect. 

* The Gospel Applud to Our Times : A Sermon for Every Sunday in the Year. By Rev* 
D. S. Phelan. St. Louis: B. Herder. 



igosO New Books. 679 

The question of the authorship, 

FATHER CALM £S ON THE meaning, and historical value of 

GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. the Fourth Gospel is still, and 

promises to be for a long time 
to come, the greatest problem, das haupt problem^ of New Tes- 
tament criticism. The dogmatic importance of the controveisy 
is supreme. For this Gospel was written, ''that ye may be- 
lieve that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that 
believing ye may have life in his name." And whoever regards 
the work as of apostolic authorship and authentic as history, 
must inevitably conclude that Christ is divine, the Word made 
flesh, the via, Veritas^ it vita to every human soul. In favor 
of the traditional thesis a work of distinguished merit has just 
appeared from the pen of a trained veteran in biblical scholar- 
ship. Father Calmes, the Dominican.* It is a volume of nearly 
five hundred pages, and contains, besides a translation and 
commentary, an introduction, in which are discussed the prob- 
lems of higher criticism which rise out of the Fourth Gospel, 
such as, for example, the authorship, date, and [nature of the 
inspired work. 

To' speak first of the commentary, let us say that it is emi- 
nently well done. Every resource of accurate learning for 
illuminating the text is at P^re Calmes' disposal, and he 
employs it with masterly skill. His literary, theological, and 
historical notes are copious and apt, and freshen every line of 
the sacred text with new interest and deeper meaning. 

But, from the point of view of criticism, the introduction 
is the most interesting part of the volume. To put Father 
Calmes' position in one word, he is traditional in his conclu- 
sions, with minor modifications forced upon him by modern 
learning. He strongly maintains the Joannine authorship, with 
the exception that the last chapter of the Gospel is, in his 
judgment, from a later hand ; the date of composition is 
between 80 and 90 A. D., the place Asia Minor. On the pur- 
pose of the work, Pere Calmes takes no position very positively. 
He considers it improbable that the Gospel is an an ti- Gnostic 
document. Neither is it clear that it was written against the 
Docetists, the Corinthians, or the Nicolaites. This much is 
certain, it is strongly anti-Jewish. For the rest, we can only 
say that it is a great work in dogmatic and mystical Christology. 

* L'£vaH£ile selon Saint Jean, Traduction Critique, Introduction et Commentaire. Par 
le R. P. Calmes. Paris : Librairie Victor Lecoflre. 



68o NEW BOOKS. [Feb., 

* 

On the crucial question of historical validity, the learned 
Dominican ta,kes a firm stand for the orthodox view, with, 
however, a notable courtesy to some modern theories. His 
contention is that the incidents and the discourses are authen- 
tic, but that they have undergone some working over in line 
with the general theological purpose of the whole. Nicodemus, 
for example, was a real person, exactly of the kind described 
by St. John, but in the great discourse on baptism, he is made 
a itype rather than an individual; a type, that is, of all who 
need to have presented to them the necessity of the Christian 
sacrament. So with the Samaritan woman. Our Lord really 
talked with such a one at Jacob's well, but, with the allego- 
rizing tendency characteristic of this Gospel, it presents her as 
a type of the world to be won to our Lord's Messiahship. In 
this way we have solid history as a framework for profound 
conceptions of our Lord's life and words. 

Connected with this latter point of historicity, there is much 
on which, as no one acquainted with the Joannine problem 
need be told, it is very hard to get satisfaction. Pere Calmes 
hardly clears up some of the great divergencies between St. 
John and the Synoptics; for example, the difference in the 
narratives concerning the Precursor; but, as we must not 
expect a solution of the unsolvable, P. Calmes is not to be 
blamed for this. Although speaking of the accounts of the 
Baptist, we wish that our present commentator had given a 
more full consideration of Baldensperger's suggestive theory 
that the Fourth Gospel is strongly marked with a tendency to 
counteract a belief held by some when it was written, that 
John the Baptist was the Messiah. One cannot help being 
struck with the evidence in support of this conjecture, and we 
regret that P. Calmes dismissed it so summarily. Again one 
feels, in reading this introduction, that our author had much 
more to say than he has actually said, in regard to the rela- 
tion between the Fourth Gospel and such apocryphal works 
as IV. Esdras, and the Book of Enoch. To have discussed 
such points adequately would have extended his work to great 
size, no doubt, but unquestionably it would "have been worth 
while. But we are grateful for this volume as it is. It is in 
the best manner of modern scholarship, and a credit to Catho- 
lic learning. We trust that American Catholic students 
help to give it the circulation that it deserves. 




1905.] New Books. 681 

We sincerely thank Father Cuth- 
CATHOLIC IDEALS. bert for these fresh, hopeful, and 
By Father Cuthbert. courageous essays.* He has done 

well to bring them together into 
a volume, for they are needed. The burden of these papers 
is that Catholics must understand modern life better and more 
sympathetically, and enter into it with zeal that it may be 
saved. So, says Father Cuthbert, we must love liberty, we 
Catholics. Liberty is here, thank God, and here forever. To 
us especially of the English-speaking world it is dearer than 
the breath of our nostrils. Individual freedom to its utmost, 
guided of course by the common good and by the external 
law of righteousness, is our political ideal. Other countries — 
we state simply a fact that stands out large in history, not 
wishing at all to disparage any race or nation — have not the 
same sensitiveness as we in regard to personal independence. 
Latin Europe, for example, is without our traditions in the 
matter, and drifts toward rigidity, fixed system, feudal and 
monarchical institutions as naturally as we abhor those things. 
Now in the world's turning aside from absolutism, and in its 
march toward the ideal which is native to us. Catholics must 
give their sympathetic co-operartion to the great cause. No 
looking to the past, no doubt about the providential character 
of democracy, nb toleration for an absolutism which treats the 
individual as though he were a vegetable or a corpse; but 
ever more liberty, both in church and state, within the safe- 
guards of divine right — this is the programme which will do 
more than much preaching to bring Catholicity and the modern 
world together, and to lead back to faith the peoples that 
have gone astray. 

Some such idea as this is the underlying unity of Father 
Cuthbert's book, whether he discusses marriage ; the education 
of women ; the idea of responsibility ; social reform ; or the 
extraordinary revival of the Franciscan spirit. Once again we 
thank him for putting that idea before us so vigorously and 
bravely. There is truly a danger that we shall miss under- 
standing the very first requisite for converting men of to day ; 
and that requisite is that we heartily accept and approve the 
just and lawful features of modern progress and civilization, 

* Catholic Idtals in Social Life, By Father Cuthbert. O.S.F.C. New York : Bcnziger 
Brothers. 

YOU LXXX.^44 



682 NEW Books. [Feb., 

and imagine that the ideal condition of nations and of men is in 
some past age, abandoned now and never to live again. To 
caution us against an error, the cost of which would be the 
irreparable alienation of Catholicity from the world of the 
present and the future, is Father Cuthbert's purpose. He has 
fulfilled it well, and in fulfilling it has done a great service to 
faith. 

Father Bremond's Life of Blessed 

THOMAS MORE. Thomas More is a delightful little 

By Bremond. volume.* In a quiet and very 

human way it portrays one of the 
most natural and genial of saints. In fact few would guess 
from Thomas More's external life that he possessed the- stuff 
that martyrs are made of. He was a scholar, a humorist, a 
devoted husband and father, and of so merry a temperament 
that his face was hardly ever without a smile, or his conver- 
sation without a jest. He spoke out his sentiments with 
straightforward simplicity, and argued against opponents with 
vigor and often with asperity. To his friends he was a charm- 
ing man of the world, learned, kindly, and of a probity that 
no man dared question; but hidden beneath laughter and the 
joy of living, was the spirit of the saint. He went to Mass 
every day; he wrought numberless deeds of charity; he fasted 
secretly; and unknown to every one, until the end, was his 
practise of severer corporal penances. So when he refused to 
take King Henry's oath of supremacy, he was well prepared 
for the supreme trial. With gentle dignity he thrust aside 
every allurement, even the tears of wife and children, which 
would make him ashamed of his own conscience, and with his 
lifelong smile and happy word he laid his head upon the 
block, sweetly trusting that his Lord would receive his soul. 
It is a very noble story, and every one will be better for 
reading it again. Father Bremond, though a Frenchman, is so 
familiar with the character and language of Britain, that he 
makes a biographer of the best type ; and Mr. Child's transla- 
tion is a rare piece of idiomatic English. The volume is one 
of the best in ''The Saints'," series to which it belongs. 

" Blessed Thomas More, By Henri Bremond. Translated by Harold Child. New York: 
Benziger Brothers. 



1 90S.] ' NEW BOOKS. 683 

The AbW Bouvicr's brochure* 

BISHOP DE POMPIGNAN- on Bishop de Pompignan, of le 

By Abbe Bouvier. Puy and Vienne, is valuable for 

the church history of France in 
the eventful years that just preceded the Revolution. Jean- 
Georges Le Franc de Pompignan was by nature a student, 
far more a,t home with books than with the affairs of a diocese, 
and more at ease with ideas than with men. He lived in the 
days of Voltaire, d'AIembert, and Rousseau, and wrote copi- 
ously against them/ He was solid and logical, but, owing to 
a heavy style, he was at a disadvantage in controversy with 
Voltaire. However, he conducted himself against so powerful 
an adversary valiantly and with credit. There are in his writ- 
ings a cettain modernity, and a pre- vision of apologetic needs, 
that are unusual and enough to give him honorable distinc- 
tion. Thus he perceived the necessity of cultivating critical 
and philological studies, especially in the department of 
Scripture; and he uses strong words in depicting the danger 
of leaving such researches to unbelievers. M. Bouvier, in 
praising him for this, says that if theology had followed this 
advice, it would have become a worthy heir of Bossuet, Peta- 
vius, and Richard Simon. Of Petavius this is true ; of Rich- 
ard Simon it is superlatively true. But why should Bossuet 
be mentioned ? The great Bishop of Meaux, despite his genius 
and his vast erudition, was a despiser of the minute investi- 
gations of philology. In his controversy with Richard Simon, 
he has only opprobrium for the grammairien ; and he com- 
forts himself with the reflection that St. Augustine, with no 
Hebrew and but little Greek, became the greatest theologian 
of the church. The wise counsel just referred to from Mon- 
seigneur de Pompignan is contradicted a score of times in the 
writings of his incomparably greater confrere. 

The last days of De Pompignan fell in with the bloody be- 
ginnings of the revolution, and his death was hastened by sor- 
row and anxiety. M. Bouvier tries to clear the prelate's 
memory from the charge often directed against it, of having 
yielded weakly to some of the demands of the fierce democ- 
racy of 1789, to the detriment of ecclesiastical right and 
dignity. 

* Jean-Georges Lt Franc de Pompignan, If I yiy^. Par I'Abb^ Claude Bouvier. Paris; 
Alphonse Picard et Fils. 



684 -A^^JT BOOKS. [Feb., 

Mr. Francis Morgan Nichols has 

EPISTLES OF ERASMUS, brought out another large volume 

By Nichols. of the English translation of 

Erasmus' letters.* These minor 
writings of the great humanist are chiefly valuable for the light 
which they shed upon his intensely interesting career. They 
are strongly marked with the well known Erasmian characteris- 
tics, an easy elegance, a classical spirit, a strong tendency to 
flattery, a decided turn for quiet irony, and an impulse to 
break out once in a while into sarcastic .flings at religious 
orders and the Roman Curia. They are curiously free hem 
religious expressions, showing how greatly Erasmus the scholar 
predominated over Erasmus the priest. A great number of 
these epistles are only the unimportant correspondence of a 
busy man, but some of them have, as we have intimated, a 
larger historical value. For example, this volume contains a 
few letters which show the difiiculties which fell across Erasmus' 
path on the occasion of the publication of his New Testament. 
And two or three others to Leo X. give us a glimpse into the 
work of preparing the edition of St. Jerome. Of the momentous 
change in the religion of Europe, which was just beginning at 
the date of these letters, we have hardly any trace; another 
mstance of Erasmus' habitual reluctance to turn from letters to 
theology. The publication of these Epistles leads us to hope 
that some historian will soon write an adequate and just 

account of the life and studies of Erasmus. Few men so well 

■ 

deserve a conscientious and competent biographer. 

The book entitled The Adventures 

ADVENTURES OF JAMES II, of James I/.f is a good sized 

By Digby. volume of five hundred pages. 

We took it up wondering how 
anybody, even with the help of a vivid imagination and an 
unmeasured spinning out of details, could manage to fill a book 
of this size with an account of the unfortunate James. And, 
adventures ! Were they not confined to an ignominious escape 
from London town, and a still more ignominious flight horn 
the hill of Donore? We expected that the meagre materials 

• TMe FfistUs i»/ Frasmus, i^o^isiy. By Francis M. Nichols. New York: Longmans, 
iJieon & Co. 

t The Ash tm/kf ts of Kin^ J^mes //. of En^and. By the author of SirKenelm Dighy, 
iMo., ou\ With i>n li\trv>d\ution by Dom G.is^iuet. New '\'ork and London: Longmans, 
To. 



1905.] New books. 685 

would be inflated with a lot of court gossip twined around the 
names of Lady Southwark and Catherine Sedley, and that the 
whole would prove but indifferent entertainment. We laid the 
book down — after reading it through in a day, to the exclusion 
of other occupations less absorbing — with the conviction 
established that it is one of the most fascinating, and withal 
instructive, historical works that have appeared for the past 
few years. For, notwithstanding its somewhat flippant title, 
it is a piece of serious work, though not precisely a history. 
The author has given prominence to the romantic, the dramatic, 
and the pathetic, and, though careful to dwell on the general 
course of events sufliciently to keep the reader au courant, has 
merely touched upon other events and doings of that stormy 
time. He does not undertake to defend his hero against the 
judgment that- has been passed upon him as a king. But this 
judgment is based on the events of but a few years in a life 
that extended almost to the span assigned by the Psalmist. 
And the long period almost neglected by English historians 
furnishes to the author data for forming a correct opinion of 
the man. He relates, in picturesque fashion, the story of James's 
•early life, during which he saw, with credit to himself, much 
service on the continent under Cond^ and Turenne. James's 
honorable and useful career in the English navy, of which he 
may be considered a founder, furnishes plenty of grounds for 
modifying the prevalent opinion entertained of him, an opinion 
for which we believe Macaulay is chiefly responsible. The 
events of the last period, too, afford the author material for 
rehabilitating his hero, who behaved neither as a fool, nor a 
bigot, nor a knave. As he is painted on this canvas, James 
appears to be "a straightforward English gentleman, a courage- 
ous soldier, a skilful admiral, and an excellent man of business." 
The great mistakes of the king, who risked all and lost all in 
the cause of religion, and, nevertheless, dealt irreparable hurt 
to that cause, arose from the honesty and loyalty with which 
he trusted to false friends, traitors like Sunderland and zealous 
incompetents like the Jesuit, Father Petre. The narrative runs 
on, from first to last, in a brisk and lucid flow, upon the sur- 
face of which bubbles up from time to time* a flash of the 
humor and good-natured sarcasm that we should expect from 
the pen that has given us the Life of a Prig, A fine intro- 
duction by Dom Gasquet adds another charm to the book. 



686 New Books. [Feb., 

Dr. Hally who is as every one 

ADOLESCENCE. knows a specialist in the study 

By Hall. • of children and youth, has recently 

published what is practically his 
first book. In it he reprints or sums up pretty much all that 
he has ever said or written on the subject, and thus provides 
us with a work of intense interest and of no little value. 
Enormous labor, trained attention, enthusiastic devotedness, 
evidently these have been elements in the construction of the 
two volumes of Adolescence,* which contains very nearly four- 
teen hundred pages of reading matter. The theme is a com- 
plex one; yet there seems to be no aspect of it neglected by 
the author. Statistics collected, compared, and deduced into 
laws ; experiments studied and explained ; questionnaires sub- 
mitted and answers classified ; autobiographies examined ; 
teachers and parents consulted; literature, both general and 
technical, exhaustively mined; in short, everything done that 
a diligent and determined writer could think of doing. Dr. 
Hall had a right, then, to expect that the result of his years 
of Industry would make a useful book. That in this he has 
nucceeded no one who reads his two volumes will doubt; and 
there is, perhaps, no one in a position of responsibility with 
r(»Kard to the young to whom much valuable help could not 
be given out of these two volumes. ''A passionate lover of 
childhood and a teacher of youth," to use his own words, the 
author has sought to assist the young, directly or indirectly, 
toward making the most of the possibilities of their youth. 
His pursuit of this purpose has certainly not been unsuccess- 
ful. Occupy whatever standpoint we may — student, teacher, 
physician, parent, magistrate, legislator, moralist, priest — one 
and all of us can find much precious information, and still 
mort precious suggestion, in Dr. Hall's pages. 

The commendation of these volumes, however, cannot be 
without reservation. The composition is so careless, that most 
readers will be tempted to smile at the author for professing 
to teach pedagogy. The vocabulary is simply atrocious; we 
doubt if any living man could fathom- the book without, per- 
haps even with, the aid of a dictionary. The style — well, to 

* AdaUutnc€ ; JU Psychology and its Relation to Physiology^ Antknfoltgy, Sndoitgy, Sex, 
Cnme. HtU^i^n, and Education. By G. Stanley Hall. Ph.D.. LL.D.. President of Clark. 
.' .' ,•/ ii.<I Pr^(«r^sor of Psychology and Pedagogy. New Yoik: D. Appie to n a Co. 



1 905 . ] New Books. 687 

be brief, there is none. The same might be said of the 
moderation displayed by the author — it is a minus quantity. 
Dr. Hall is as extreme in his rejection of distasteful opinions, 
as he is cocksure and dogmatic in the presentation of his 
own. The gradual evolution of the soul, the development 
of the human race out of lower animal forms, the unques- 
sionable validity and the sacred accuracy of the phylogenetic 
method, these are put forward with a calm confidence and an 
air of finality that almost shakes our faith in the scientific 
character of the author's training. The account of Confirma- 
tion in the Catholic Church, quoted apparently from a corre- 
spondent, and backed with a formidable list of Catholic writers, 
is correct in a general way, and yet it includes inaccuracies 
sure to mislead any one but a Catholic as to the ceremony 
in question. On this one point we happen to be better in- 
formed than Dr. Hall; and we should hate to think that in 
other instances, where his account cannot be so easily con- 
trolled, his descriptions are as unsatisfactory as in this 
instance. 

As B, matter of fact, however, the book contains not a few 
pages that the most elementary sense of prudence would 
prompt one to regard with suspicion. The initial trust in the 
author's discretion, with which one naturally begins the book, 
diminishes somewhat as chapter succeeds chapter; and when 
the second volume is concluded, the reader is apt to be far 
less sure of Dr. Hall's discriminative ability than of his eager- 
liess to substantiate ideas which " are new both in matter and 
in method," and to justify " an extension of evolution into the 
the psychic field (which is) of the utmost importance." This 
does not render the two big volumes useless, but it does make 
us experience a real regret that the immense amount of ma- 
terial, and the unquestioned skill at the author's command, have 
not been used to a little better purpose. Less regard for 
novelties in genetic ideas of the soul, and less concern about 
his own theories generally, would have kept the writer from 
damaging his influence over the unattached and unpiejudiced 
mind. 

As we have said, there are a number of helpful and valua- 
ble characteristics about the book, but carefulness is certainly 
not among them. Without disrespect to an honored name, we 
can, it may be hoped, illustrate from the author's failings in 



688 ^^^ Books. [Feb., 

more superficial respects the weaknesses which, at greater 
length, might be shown to affect his philosophy. His ill- chosen 
words and his clumsy sentences, his abuse of figures and bis 
misapprehension of terms {e. g. viaticum, II., 71), his rambling, 
disconnected, half- unintelligible descriptions, give good ground, 
if there be sense in pedagogical rules, for calling the author's 
mental activity slovenly and confused. As for our dear old 
mother- tongue, a reviewer may, perhaps, be pardoned a pass- 
ing display of weariness when he finds a long series of words 
like acuminated, circummutates, sanification, ephebeites, bathm- 
ism saltatory, euphoria, atrabiliar, senescence, viaticum (used 
wrongly, it appears), dotations, salvability, recallability, meris- 
tic, archeopsychisms, photo- dermatism, psychromes, entelechy, 
catharsis, gerontic, heterochrony, solipsistic, involucre, caducity 

aiid all these, think of it ! packed into a single chapter (X.) 

of a book which the author has tried " to bring within the 
reach of every intelligent reader." 

We have indicated some of the good points and some of 
weaknesses of Dr. Hall's book. What has been said in com- 
mendation* was said sincerely — no one will doubt it,- perhaps, 
and no one will ask for its justification. As to what has been 
said in dispraise, we cannot refrain from quoting a sentence 
(II., 54} which will prove that our reproaches of the author 
have at least not been altogether baseless: 

With all four of the above tendencies, a psychology that 
refuses to evict common sense both in the popular sense and. 
in that of the Scotch philosophy which short-circuits the 
Kantian dStour ; that would regard the chief writers, from 
Descartes to Hegel, as a philosophic intermezzo, which, while 
full of exhilaration and rich in lessons, replete with interest 
and instruction, is not essential for its purposes, save as a 
precious human document and warning ; that seeks a pure 
culture of naturalism and induction ; that believes that 
neither the world nor the soul is lost, and that nature and 
mind have the same root ; that holds that mind is invisible 
nature even though nature be not verified by empirical methods 
as visible mind ; that puts custom above law and convention, 
and instinct, feeling, and impulse above both ; that is not 
a cave of the winds, a hybrid of metaphysics and science; 
that will be neither bastardized nor marooned by morosophs 



1905.] New Books. 689 

who would limit its scope and affect disappointment in its 
work either in the laboratory or with animals or children, 
because it does not solve their scholastic problems — assuredly 
make some havoc. 

At Lake Monona^^ the story which 

LAKE MONONA. gives its title to the book of three 

By M. A. Navarette. short stories, by M. A. Navarette, 

is a romance of the Catholic Sum- 
mer-School. The inevitable young man meets the inevitable 
young woman, and love at first sight is the most unexpected 
result. But the hero is not a Catholic, and the solution of 
this difficulty makes the story. A pilgrimage to St. Anne de 
Beaupre, and one to Lourdes, are effectively introduced. 
Graphic descriptions and some clever character drawing are 
merits of this and the other stories in the volume. Sound 
Catholic doctrine and simple piety make the book a helpful 
as well as an enjoyable one. 

" Giving little sugar-coated pills 

CHATS*. of truth to the younger children 

By Father O'Neill. is, to my mind, the most sacred 

duty of the priest," says Father 
F. C. O'Neill*, in his preface to Twenty-nine Chats and One 
Scolding,^ Accordingly he has hidden away his sermons and 
moral lessons in charming little stories of fairies and flowers 
and birds, in legends and myths. The book is unique in its 
kind, and deserves place in every school and home library. 
The final word upon it is best voiced in Father Pardow's intro- 
duction: ''No one slept, we may be sure, when the Master 
spoke by the seashore of Galilee; no child will squirm on his 
hard chair, or yawn, I warrant, when Father O'Neill's vivid 
pictures pass before his eyes. Every teacher of Christian 
Doctrine will welcome this book with open arms." 

Every one of the fourteen essays 

COMPROMISES. of the present volume shows the 

By Agnes Repplier. author to be, as we know her, a 

lover of books. The great num- 

* At Lake Monona, ' By M. A. Navarette. Milwaukee : The M. H. Wiltzius Company, 
t Twenty-nine Chats and One Scolding, By Rev. Ffed. C. O'Neill. New York : Christian 
Press ABSociation Publishing Company. 



690 New Books. [Feb., 

ber upon which she draws, in order to illustrate the contents 
of this little one, makes the reader feel that he, too, would 
willingly devote as much time as Miss Repplier has to the 
reading of the novelists and essayists if, as a result, he could 
produce such readable and entertaining articles. 

They are not meant for the frivolous, but for those who 
can appreciate good literature. 

One entitled " The Gayety of Life " is a piece of practical 
philosophy ; in " The Point of View," " Marriage in Fiction," 
and " Our Belief in Books," we just stumble over the names 
of authors ; the theme of '' The Beggars " can be nothing else 
than the picturesqueness of poverty ; " A Quaker Diary " is a 
dainty bit of criticism. The last three, " The Headsman," 
''Consecrated to Crime," and '-Allegra," seem hardly to belong 
to the series, they are so grewsome and pathetic. 

We should like to know why Miss Repplier selected Com- 
promises for the title of her book.* Her readers may have to 
do all the compromising; she has her own ideas on the sub- 
jects about which she writes, and states them without hesita- 
tion or qualifications. 

Grace Keon, in The Ruler of the 

THE RULER OF THE Kingdom,^ has given us a collcc- 

KINGDOM. tion of short stories which are 

By Grace Keon. considerably above the average in 

conception, teaching, and style. 
They cover a wide range of subject and varied personalities. 
The pathos of everyday life appeals more strongly to the author 
than its humor, and her sentiment at times does not know the 
fine distinction which should keep it from the exaggerations of 
sentimentality. However, Miss Keon succeeds in infusing a 
healthful optimism into even her saddest incidents, and ber 
writing bears the unmistakable ring of sincerity. The stories, 
are distinctly Catholic, and of sufficient promise to justify the 
hope that, when virility and humor have been gained, her work 
may place her among the foremost Catholic writers. 

An interesting incident, in connection with the unceasing 

* Compromises, By Agnes Repplier. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 

t The Ruler of the Kingdom. By Grace Keon. New York, Cincinnati, Chicago: Ben- 

ziger Brothers. 



I90S.] New Books. 691 

efforts of English monarchs to destroy the Catholic faith in 
Ireland, was the publication of an Irish alphabet and catechism 
in Dublin in 15 71. This catechism is said to be the first book 
printed in Gaelic in Ireland. A facsimile of its title page is 
given in Irish Literature^ the series which we review in our 
pages this month. . The book is entitled An Irish Alphabet 
and Catechism : Instruction in the Christian Doctrine, together 
with certain articles of the Christian Rule which are fit to be 
received by every one who will be loyal to the law of God 
and the Queen in this realm. Drawn from the Latin and the 
English into Gaelic by John O'Kearney. 

The Catholic Truth Society, of Ireland, has lately published 
a pamphlet on Devotion to the Sacred Hearty by Rev. R. J. 
Carberry, S.J., and historical pamphlets on Muckross Abbey and 
The Island of Innisfallen, The Santa Croce of Ireland^ The 
Boyne Valley^ and The River and Saints' Shrines^ by J. B. 
Cullen. Browne and Nolan, of Nassau Street, Dublin, are the 
agents of the society. The International Catholic Truth Society, 
Arbuckle Building, Brooklyn, N. Y., have republished Father 
Carberry's pamphlet, and have also issued lately Thoughts for 
the Sick Room^ and Catholicism and Reason^ the latter by the 
Hon. Henry C. Dillon. 

Father Conklin, in editing this volume * of the short in- 
structions of the Rev. P. Baker, calls attention, first, to the fact 
that the book may evidence to non-Catholics the unchangea- 
blenes.s of Catholic teaching. These instructions were first pub- 
lished in 1834. Seventy years later they are republished with- 
out any, save typographical, change. The instructions are 
based on the holy Gospels for every day in Lent. The Gos- 
pel for the day is given ; then follows a short instruction on 
the same, concluding with a prayer. The instructions are 
practical, and bring home with emphasis and with unction the 
ways and the value of applying the doctrinal teaching of Christ 
to the duties of every day. The prayers are fervid and devo- 
tional, but for the most part too long. The volume is one. 
that the faithful laity will find to be a consoling and profitable 

* Skart Instructions; or, MiditaHons on the Gospels, By Rev. P. Baker. Edited by Rev. 
William T. Conklin. New York : Christian Press Association. 



692 New Books. . [Feb. 

handbook for the holy season of Lent, and priests too will 
gain from it much that is suggestive in the way of sermon and 
instruction. We extend our thanks to Father Conklin for his 
work of republishing, and we trust that his wish, expressed in 
the preface, will be fulfilled. 

This Catechism of the Instruction of Novices • is an abridg- 
ment of The Instruction of Novices^ written by the Venerable 
Father John of Jesus and Mary, of the edition published in Rome 
in 1865. The author had a very extensive experience, great 
learning, and gave evidence of high personal sanctity. Bossuet 
termed him " a great theologian and a great ascetic." The 
present volume has been catechetically arranged by the Rev. 
Father Gerard, of St. Teresa, D. C, and translated from the 
French by an Irish nun of the Carmelite Order. The whole 
volume is summarized under four principal headings: ''The 
Mortification of the Passions"; "Thp Acquisition of the Vir- 
tues"; "The Exercise of Prayer"; and "The Acts of the 
Regular Life." It is all put plainly and simply in the form, 
of question and answer, and is a valuable handbook, not only 
for those who are actually novices, but for all who are think- 
ing of or preparing to enter the religious life. 

* Catechism 0/ tlu InstrueUon of Nwias, By Ven. John of Jesus and Maiy, Third 
Superior-General of the Discalced Carmelites. Dublin : M. H. Gill & Son. 



3ForeiQn perioMcals. 

« 

The Tablet (lo Dec): A leader on the Irish University Ques- 
tion says that the matter is now beyond the stage of 
argument. The oft-^ not twice-, told tale of great wrong 
unredressed, and good intentions baffled by the illogi- 
cal, senseless objections of a bigoted minority, needs no 
further exposition. The only remaining difficulty is- to 
reconcile the present inactivity and wholly inexcusable 
delay of such men as Mr. Balfour, when they have de- 
clared, amid every circumstance of responsibility, that 
''the tame acquiesence of Parliament in a condition of 
things which practically deprives two- thirds of the Irish 
population of higher education, is one serious grievance 
and fills them with dismay." 

(24 Dec): Father Gerard, S.J., points out the increas- 
ing spirit of irreligion as evidenced by the activity and 
success of the Rationalist Press Association. However, 
he continues, the more acute and instant is the peril, 
the better is the opportunity afforded to the church to 
show herself in her strength, and to achieve a signal 
triumph. The call to action is imperative, and the 
larger portion of the battlefield must be occupied by 
the Catholic press. It is mainly through this means 
that the great mass ot people can be reached, and they 
are precisely the ones most needful of true guidance 
and instruction. 

(31 Dec): The results of a recent examination at the 
Urban College, at Rome, show the phenomenal success 
of the English-speaking students. It is extraordinary, 
but why so ? that the Celt has carried all before him 

this year at the Propaganda. Incidents multiply to 

lay bare the odious system of Masonic espionage prac- 
tised by the French War Office. 

The Hibbett Journal (Jan.) : Two competent guides, one a law- 
yer, Mr. Taylor Innes, the other a divine, the Rev. John 
Watson, D.D., take the reader through the historical 
and doctrinal maze to be treaded in order to reach an 
understanding of the present crisis in the Church of 
Scotland. Most outsiders, who will have endeavored to 
grasp the situation as defined here^ will be ready to 



694 FOREIGN PERIODICALS. [Feb., 

agree with Dr. Watson's remark, that the most wonder- 
ful achievement of the Scots' intellect has not been 
Hume's philosophy, or Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations^ 
but the distinctions which separate the branches of the 
Scots' Church ; and the second most remarkable achieve- 
ment has been understanding them. Mr. Pickard, 

Cambridge, '*The Christ of Dogma and the Christ of 
Experience," advocates the expediency of recasting, in 
the Established Church of England (he is an Oxonian), 
the dogma of Christ's divinity, as derived from the 
writings of the Apostles, '' hearers whose enthusiasm 
may probably have exceeded their power to understand 

the full significance of their teacher's message." In 

his plea for mysticism, the Rev. G. W. Allen recom- 
mends that intellectual endeavor should be turned towards 
gaining a deeper hold upon the truths of religion, in- 
stead of concentrating it almost entirely upon critical 
studies of theology and Holy Scripture. The living of 
a divine life, he contends, does not depend, upon settling 
the historical accuracy of the Bible, but upon the knowl- 
edge and love of God: ''While we are wasting our best 
efforts on those really inconsequential points, the world 
remains unhelped, competition increases, injustices and 
frauds of all sorts flourish; the power of money grows 
greater ; and we have to confess that we do not possess 
the power to lift up and convert to a better spirit the 

wastrels and failures of life." Mr. Ifewman Howard 

finds that the perfect concords of 3, 4, and 5, as re- 
vealed in music, " lie at the root of all cosmic structure, 
being in every way fundamental in the progression of 
the 'elements.'" Throughout the entire cosmos, as re- 
vealed to us by chemistry, physics, astronomy, biology, 
he finds the " polyhedro- vortical law of the 3's, 4's, and 
5's everywhere in evidence. And if some views of the 
infinite should impose polyhedral limitations, " then the 
polyhedral limitations may be limitations only of our 
intelligence ; and in that case in- all the successions of 
music, so inevitable, so palpable and perfect to the inner 
«ense — successions that travel beyond the polyhedral 
chord, returning thence as to a rallying point, the floor 
of our present footing — we may be spelling out n^w laws 



1905-] Foreign Periodicals. 695 

of a new being." With engaging frankness Mr. Howard 
acknowledges that this may be only a guess. We refuse 
to go with him when he qualifies it as perhaps a wild 
guess; and for any one who has carefully followed the 
exposition, it is difficult to reserve assent to the conclu- 
sion that ^' whatever may be the undiscovered X which 
squares the inequations of life, when we learn that music, 
the felt reflex of the soul's rightly regulated emotions, 
is also a mirror of the central universal laws, we may 
puc aside the arid and hideous prospect of niaterialistic 
immoralism, and gain assurance in the swift certitudes 
of intuition, believing, not without proof, that ' Beauty 
is truth, truth beauty.' " Professor Keyser, of Col- 
umbia University, contends that the boundlessness of 
the world of mathematical tiuths is proof that there is 
a world of being beyond and above the physical uni- 
verse. As a scientist. Sir Oliver Lodge severely ci-iti- 

cises the position which Professor Haeckel assumes in 
his Riddle of the Universe. *' For a man of science to 
overstep the barrier (between philosophy and science), 
and pretend that he comes with scientific authority to 
take official possession of that territory which it has been 
the long- cherished wish of philosophy to enter, is, so 
to spebk, to take the bit between his teeth and to bolt 
away from his scientific tether altogether; the result 
being that he either loses himself in a mystical region, 
where science is no more feasible, or else he degrades 
and maltreats such portions of philosophic nomenclature 
as he can get hold of; subsequently retiring to his own 
side of the boundary, there to exhibit them as verbal 
representations of some mighty reality which he alone 
can clearly perceive. He may try to fit them as part 
of a coherent scheme of ordered knowledge, but they 
are really fragments of another order of things, and, in 
order to force them into the puzzle map before their 
true place has been .discovered, a whole system of sub- 
stantial facts must be disarranged, dislocated, and thrown 

away." Professor Kirsopp Lake discusses the critical 

import of the manuscripts discovered by Drs. Grenfell 

and Hunt, at Oxyrhynchus. With a paper on the 

indirect internal evidence. Dr. Bacon brings to a close 
his series on the Johannine problem. 



696 Foreign Periodicals. [Feb., 

The Month (Jan.) : Relative to the lectures, delivered by the 
Dean of Westminster, on the Inspiration of the Bible^ 
Rev. Sydney F. Smith, devotes an article to "The 
Nature of Inspiration." After summarizing the Dean's 
theory, the writer presents the Catholic Church's con- 
cept of inspiration. He notes the devdopments which 
our doctrine has admitted concerning the divine action 
on the human writer, and which have been instrumental 
in removing numerous difficulties from the path of the 
biblical student. He proceeds to consider the new 
theory as formulated in Father von Hummelauer*s Exe- 
^etisches zur Inspirations frage. The new theory starting 
from the indisputable position that, though the Catholic 
doctrine does not permit us to see even the smallest 
error in the inspired writings, it does not follow that 
their every statement is in exact conformity with the 
facts referred to as they are, or were, in themselves. 
We must consider whether the writers — and, correspond- 
ingly, the Holy Ghost who spoke through the writers — 
intended their words to have this reference, and not 
rather one less absolute or less immediately objective, 
since it is by thjsir conformity with this proximate 
measure that the truth of their affirmations is con- 
sidered. Father Smith finds the new theory of no very 
easy application in the case of the historical books of 
the Old Testament. For often the Old Testament 
historian had to rely on accounts furnished by others, 
and these were not unfrequently documents or even oral 
traditions coming down from ages more or less removed 
from that of the writer. It may be asked whether or not 
these accounts were free from error, and by what histori- 
cal method did the writer establish the objective truth 
in them, and how far the influence of inspiration upon 
him would have corrected the defects incident to his 
purely natural procedure ? Father Smith, in concluding, 
is not inclined to say that the new theory has already 
established itself, but thinK^ that it offers a fair promise 
of an eventual recognition. 

Inttrnational Journal of Ethics (Jan.) : Mr. John A. Hobson, 
in discussing the '* Ethics of Gambling," distinguishes 
nicely between ** pure " and '* mixed " gambling, and 
again between gambling of either kind and (he fraud 



1 905. J FOREIGN PERIODICALS, 697 

which usually accompanies it. He shows that the game 
of chance, whether at the stock exchange or at the lot- 
tery table, is irrational and consequently immoral. It 
teaches the individual to suppress reason and to look 
for reward, not to labor but to " luck " ; thus it is that 
gambling, whether in game or in business, opposes the 
principle on which all progress in civilization is based. 

Professor Alfred Pearce Dennis condemns lynching 

and recommends, as a remedy for the evil, that the state 
hold the local community legally responsible for loss of 

life, and demand from it a pecuniary recompense. 

Mr. Henry Berkowitz writes an instructive article on the 
moral education of the young among the Jews; he in- 
sists strongly on the importance and necessity of reli- 
gious training. The large percentage, iR France, of 

marriages based on social and financial considerations is 
due, writes Mr. James Oliphant, partly to national tra- 
ditions and partly to the unwise, suspicious care exer- 
cised over the young, both in the home and in the 
school. Other articles in this number are " The Rela- 
tion of the Ethical to the i£sthetical Element in Litera- 
ture," by Professor James Seth; "Carlyle's Ethics," by 
Professor Charles J. Goodwin ; " Pleasure, Idealism, and 
Truth in Art," by Dr. George Reber; and "The Vivi- 
section Problem," by Dr. Albert LefHflgwell. 

Revue d'Histoire et de Litterature Religieuses (Nov.-Dec): M. 
Turmel narrates the history of the reaction that arose, 
even among orthodox writers, against St. Augustine's 
anti-Pelagian position on nature and grace. Hilary, of 
Aries and Cassian, opposed the great doctor of Hippo, 
whose theory, however, was in very large measure 

destined to triumph. M. Croulbois concludes his 

account of the curious secret society, called the Company 
of the Blessed Sacrament, which, in the middle of the 
seventeenth century, tried unsuccessfully to get approba- 
tion from Rome, in order to carry on, in France, a 
hidden mission of great importance, and also of great 
danger, to both church and state. 

La Quimaine (i Jan.): ''The Concordat and the Catholic 
Renaissance," by Eugene Boeglin, is the latest of a 
series of strong and interesting studies, by that able 

VOL. LXXX. — 45 



698 FOREIGN Periodicals. [Feb., 

writer, of the present politico- religious situation in 
France. In view of the threatened dissolution of the 
Concordat the writer draws attention to the unique 
position among the nations of the Christian world which 
France would then occupy in its relation to the church ; 
a relation not of divorce in the sense of mutual disre- 
gard, nor of separation in the sense of independent life 
and mutual autonomy, but of bondage on the one hand, 
persecution and spoliation on the other. After a com- 
parison of conditions in France with those in Italy, Ger- 
many, England, and the United States — a comparison 
far from creditable to the oldest daughter of the church 
— the writer goes on to speak of the future, and the 
hope of a Catholic Renaissance. Concordat or no Con- 
cordltt, he is of opinion, matters little in the last analy- 
sis. What is of vital importance for the life and pro- 
gress of the church is the activity, the intelligent, ener- 
getic, and united action of its members, lay and cleric. 
It is not upon political forms that the salvation and 
restoration of the church in France must depend, but 
upon its own inherent vitality, the generous efforts and 
cordial co-operation of the whole Catholic body. 
£tudes (20 Dec.) : In view of present discussions over the 
Concordat, it is interesting to read Paul Dudon's article 
on the relations existing between Pius VII. and the 
First Consul. The writer confines himself to the events 
of the year 1804. He tells of Napoleon's great desire to 
have the pope come to Paris to confer on him the 
crown, then of the tedious and stormy conferences that 
ensued, in which took part Tallyrand, Cardinals Fesch 
and Consalvi. The pope was finally induced to accept 
the invitation. An account of the ceremony of conse- 
cration is given. Antoine Valmy writes concerning 

religious education in Russia. He tells of their semina- 
ries, and in particular of the higher academies or uni- 
versities. The whole system is based on German models. 
All depend on the state for support. A prominent ele- 
ment at each academy is the paper or journal. Besides 
these, there are numerous other religious publications in 
the country. The second part of the article treats of 
the old Catholic party and of the efforts recently made 



1905.] Foreign periodicals. 699 

toward the union of this party with the Russian church. 
The writer tells of the commission that took up the 
matter. The principal questions under discussion were 
the Real Presence, the Infallibility of Councils, and the 
usual question of the " Fibogue." The importance of 
these discussions is very great. A better understanding 
of all these matters would surely lead to greater reli- 
gious unity in the world. 

Le Correspondant (25 Nov.) : There is a good article by Max 
Turmann on "Les Catholiques Italiens/' showing the 
numerical strength and valiant spirit in the many social 
and religious societies represented at Bergamo. These 
are due to the deep and active faith of this people. 
Their faith was shown still more significantly by the 
part taken in the recent Italian elections.— —M. Gaston 
Varenne has a very interesting paper on " L'Evolution 
des Styles dans I'Art Appliqu^ et le Style Moderne.'' 
The writer is well acquainted with all the work of the 
great artists in wood, stone, ivory, and precious metals. 
(10 Dec): M. Felicien Pascal devotes most of his paper 
on the " Centenaire d'Eug^ne Sue " to an exposition of 
that author's violent anti-clericalism, and the effect it 
has had upon the morals of civil functionaries and theii 
subordinates. The majority of these have never read 
Sue's Juif Errant^ but they know its sentiments, and 
renew in their own persons its impudent calumnies 

against the Jesuits. ** Quelques Letters de L. Corun- 

det et de Charles de Montalembert " are continued from 
the magazine of November 25, and give a charming 
picture of the Christian friendship existing between these 
two courageous Catholics, always ready to battle and to 
suffer for the good cause. 

La Revue Apologetique (16 Dec): In a long article, replete 
with rhetorical beauties, S. Courbe defends the thesis 
that, sooner or later, the entire religious world will 
enter the bosom of the Catholic Church. His first 
argument is an ^ priori one ; every religion, outside 
Catholicity, contains two conflicting elements, truth and 
falsehood, which by their nature tend to dissociate; 
one must eventually expel the other; hence, every 
false religion, by this process of elimination, must ulti- 



700 Foreign Periodicals. [Feb., 

mately gravitate towards either complete truth, that is 
the Catholic Church, or to complete error, that is irre- 
ligious free thought and atheism. The writer then pro- 
ceeds to review the present condition of religion in 
Europe, Asia, Africa, America, and Oceanica, to con- 
firm his view. He promises the arrival of the day when 
''the belfries of Moscow, London, New York, Sidney, 
Pekin, and Calcutta, responding to those of St. Peter's 
of Rome, will envelop the world in their sonorous 
undulations, and call all the nations to intone the 

Roman credo** M. de Pr^martin furnishes an account 

of some spiritualistic seances, in which he took part, at 
a Swiss summer resort. He seems to have been much 
impressed by the messages which he received from the 
invisible agencies that communicated through the medium 

of table rapping. M. Xavier Moisant indicates how 

the study of philosophic and scientific mysteries helps 
to cultivate a disposition favorable to the reception of 
the mysteries of revelation. M. Tiency finds in Can- 
ada further evidence of the magnificent progress of the 
church under the free institutions proper to Anglo- 
Saxon political ideals. 

Stimmen aus Maria Laach (Jan.) : Cardinal Steinhuber gives a 
very interesting historical sketch of the processes of 
canonization and beatification at present before the 
Congregation of Rites. Of the 287 processes as yet 
undecided, Italy claims the greatest number, France 
ranks second, Spain and Portugal third, while Germany 
holds the fourth place. Of the United States he re- 
marks: '' Ganz arm ist America an Dienern Gottes, 

wenigstens das Gebiet der Vereinigten Staaten." 

This number contains a most appreciative review of Dr. 
Wm. Turner's History of Philosophy. "An excellent 
work," writes the critic, "which deserves commendation 
in every respect." 

Theologish'practische Quartalschrift (Jan.): Fr. Weiss, O.P., in- 
dignantly condemns the method of certain critics who 
approve or condemn any work that may come to their 
notice accordingly as it is in harmony or disagreement 

with their own views. Dr. F. Smid disproves the 

charge of " intolerance," so often urged against the 



1 905.] Foreign Periodicals. 701 

Catholic Church because of her dogmatic formulae : 
'' Outside the Church there is no salvation/' and ''The 
Church is a necessary society."— Dr. Ignatius Rieder 
discusses the question of baptising foetus. 

Rivista Intemazionale (Dec.) : G. Tuecimei says we have rea- 
son to be grateful to evolutionism for the great amount 
of activity it has excited among naturalists in the last 
forty years. The theory still remains, according to its 
most representative defenders, in the region of hypothe- 
sis and the attempts to prove species -variation have 
resulted in impressing on us the necessity of being 
cautious in the case of a theory based upon so solid 
proofs. E. Agliardi notes that, thanks to the initia- 
tive of Luigi Luzzatti, Italy now occupies the first place 
in the movement for the international protection of 
labor. 

Civilta Cattolica (17 Dec): Speaks of the Catholic Volksve- 
rein as the last will and testament 0/ Windthorst to the 
German people, and hopes its provisions will be exe- 
cuted in Italy as well. Draws attention to a recent 

statement of the Revue du Clcrge Franfais as implying 
the opinion which is at the bottom of Loisy's views 
about the person, the knowledge, and the works of 
Christ — the opinion, namely, that our Lord announced 
the approaching end of the world. The writer's con- 
clusion is that /' the rationalists, Loisy and others who 
wish to be called critics, attribute to Christ an error 
and a contradiction which would be repugnant not only 
to a legate of God, but to any man of sound judgment." 

Rassegna Nazionale (16 Dec): Paolo Rotta writes a careful 

and appreciative review of Spencer's work. G. B. 

Mazzi continues the translation of Mrs. Humphrey 

Ward's Marcella. L. De Feis contributes an obituary 

notice of General Cesnola, and draws attention to the 
saying of Balbo that a fine history could be written of 
great Italians outside of Italy. E. Pieragnoli de- 
scribes the success of his anti-tuberculosis crusade in the 
schools of Florence, the two great measures being 
segregation and instruction of the pupils. 

Rason y Fe (Dec): A special number — containing 250 pages — 
is issued in honor of the Jubilee of the Immaculate 



702 Foreign Periodicals. [Feb., 

Conception, and is devoted exclusively to articles bear- 
ing on that doctrine. L. Murillo writes on the passage 
in Genesis iii. 15, and says: "If we analyze impartially 
the tenor of the Bull ' Ineffabilis Deus/ and in the light 
of this analyze the ttxt in question, it will be impossible 
not to see the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed 
Virgin foretold together with the coming of the Re- 
deemer." P. Villada shows how reason and faith 

accord in this matter, since the dogma of the Immacu- 
late Conception can be arrived at by reason helped by 
faith working out the implications of the principle, 

Potuit, decuit; ergo fecit. F. Fita devotes a short 

article to the Temple of the Pillar at Saragossa, a shrine 
which F. Fita shows to have been a monument to the 
Immaculate Conception erected by the Apostle St. James 

the Greater. ^J. Aicardo devotes thirty pages to 

Calderon as the poet of the Immaculate Conception. 
(Jan.) : P. Murillo, continuing his critique of the new 
school of exegesis, writes upon the so-called principle of 
" freedom of exposition." At first sight it seems of no 
great consequence to admit that, in remote ages, the 
writers of Scripture explained events or ideas by incor- 
porating into the real history complementary circum- 
stances of their own invention. But if this admission be 
made in the case of the Old Testament, the same princi- 
ple must be applied to the New, and for the same reason. 
For the reason why we stipulate that "freedom of 
exposition" in the case of the historicans of the Old 
Testament is their presumed ignorance of contemporary 
critical methods, and their employment of the processes 
used by ancient historians. That same reason, however, 
would avail for attributing an equal liberty to the 
evangelists, who certainly are not nineteenth century 
writers. 
The Revue de VArt Chritien^ edited by a distinguished com- 
mittee of artists and archaeologists, and published by 
Desclee, De Brouwer & Co., of Lille and Paris, appears 
every two months, and contains articles of great interest 
and of authoritative value on ecclesiastical art and 
sculpture and valuable bibliographies. 



1905.] The Columbian Reading Union. 703 



THE COLUMBIAN READING UNION. 

OUTSIDE the Catholic Parish Schools of America there is a very large 
number of children who, for better or for worse, must get their reli- 
gious instruction in the Sunday-Schools. It is estimated that there should 
be about three millions of children, out of a total Catholic population cf 
fifteen millions in the United States. The recent statistics, compiled by the 
Rev. Morgan M. Sheedy for publication in the report of the Commissioner 
of Education, at Washington, D. C, indicate that the attendance in the 
Parish Schools does not exceed one million. Hence the need of organized 
effort to improve the methods, and to spend more money in the distribution 
of Catholic papers and books for children in the Sunday-Schools. While 
the ideal condition can be realized only by the Parish School, the necessities 
of the case require for an indefinite period the best type of a Sunday-School 
to safeguard the faith of the rising generation. Good literature easily 
accessible is a most powerful aid, and the best plan is to provide ftui it by a 
general collection from all the people of the parish. 

Sunday-School teachers are largely indebted to the efforts of Joseph- F. 
Wagner, No. 9 Barclay Street, New York City, for the following- new. books 
which he has lately published: 

First Religious Instruction for Little Ones; with an appendix on First 
Confession. By the Rev. Albert SchafHer. The Method of the Catholic 
Sunday-School, By the Rev. P. A. Hal pin. Teachers^ Handbook to the 
Catechism. In three volumes. By the Rev. A. Urban. - 

Two books of standard value, published by Benziger Brothers, are : 
The Art of Teaching Catechism, For the use of teachers and parents. By 
the Rev. A. A. Lambing. Explanation of the Baltimore Catechism, By the 
Rev. Thomas L. Kinkead. . * 

The Advanced Catechism, By the Rev. Thomas J. O'Brien, published 
by D. H. McBride Co., also deserves a place of honor for its valuable appen- 
dix and supplementary questions. Under the direct supervision of the Rev. 
Philip R. McDevitt a new Handbook of Christian Pedagogy has been pub- 
lished by the Dolphin Press. This work was designed according to the most 
approved methods of practical instruction, and was tested in advance of pub- 
lication by experienced teachers. 

The teaching of Christian Doctrine is an imperative duty, binding alike 
on clergy and laity. In many parishes the most important work for children 
must be done in the Sunday- School by volunteer teachers. The spiritual 
works of mercy rank first in order, as they promote the welfare of the soul, 
and among these the teaching of the ignorant the way of salvation is second 
to none other. Zealous Sunday-School teachers do valuable service for the 
church and for society. Like the Good Shepherd, they can seek and assist 
in saving the lost ones of the flock. 

Priests see clearly that their efforts, to be profitable and far-reaching, 
must be helped out by many auxiliary agencies. And to such work more 
than ever are the laity at present called and fitted. It is by their individual 



704 The Columbian Reading Union. [Feb., 

effort, by personal contact, by organized co-operation, that much ignorance 
is to be dispelled, the mind refined and enlightened, pleasant and pure sur- 
roundings secured, innocent recreation substituted for vulgar and evil com- 
munications. 

Teachers of experience can do no more profitable work for the glory of 
God and their own spiritual welfare than to become shareholders in the Sun- 
day-School, by giving time and energy to our young Catholics in need of 
instruction. The most interesting phases of child-study may be seen to great 
advantage while teaching the words of Christ to the little ones. 

Is it hard to give time and labor for this meritorious work? Much de- 
pends on good will and zeal for the faith. The greater the effort required, 

the more abundant will be the reward. 

• • • 

Archbishop Farley recently approved the plans for a general meeting of 
Sunday-School workers which were submitted to him by the Rev. Thomas 
McMillan, C.S.P., on behalf of the committee in charge of the conference for 
teachers of Christian Doctrine at recent sessions of the Catholic Summer- 
School on Lake Cham plain. The scope of the proposed conferences was ex- 
tended to directors of Sunday-Schools as well as teachers and parents. Sub- 
jects for discussion included topics relating to the organization and equip- 
ment of Sunday- Schools. Special attention was given to the consideration of 
plans for the advanced classes after the time of First Communion. 

By invitation of the Superior-General of the Paulist Fathers, the Very 
Rev. George M. Searle, C.S.P., the meetings wexe held in the Sunday-School 
Chapel of the Church of St. Paul the Apostle, Columbus Avenue and West 
Sixtieth Street, New York City. Parents and teachers were invited to all the 
sessions, especially the opening and closing meetings, December 27 and 28, 
at 8 o'clock P. M. Two sessions were planned for general discussion, at 10 
o'clock A. M. and 2 o'clock P. M., December 28. 

It is requested that all interested in this movement to improve the 
methods of teaching Sunday-Schools communicate with the Secretary, Mrs. 
B. Ellen Burke, No. 10 Barclay Street, New York City. The general invita- 
tion was extended through the press, as there was no fund available for 
mailing circulars. 

Points for Discussion : Hints and aids in securing regular and punctual 
attendance and perfect records; Duties of parents, children, and catechists; 
On recognizing merit, attendance, study, deportment, and talent; Sunday- 
School graduation and commencement exercises, prizes and diplomas. 

Sunday-School reading; Sunday-School paper; Library, distribution of 
books, papers, and leaflets ; Means of providing funds. 

Speakers : Rev. James N. Connolly, Director of Confraternity of Chris- 
tian Doctrine, 230 East Ninetieth Street, New York City. Rev. Thomas J. 
O'Brien, author of "Advanced Catechism," Whitestone, Long Island, N. Y. 
Rev. John J. Burke, C.S.P., Editor of The Leader, an illustrated monthly 
magazine for boys and girls, published by the Paulist Fathers, 120 West Six- 
tieth Street, New York City. 

Sunday-School Material: Pictures; stereopticon ; maps; charts; where 
supplies may be obtained; samples on exhibition ; reports ; value of diocesan 
conferences and conventions; nee^^i^eachers' meetings. A discussion on 




igos.] The Columbian Reading Union. 705 

city and country Sunday-Schools; Value of child study in the Sunday- 
School ; Need of special preparation on the part of the teacher* 

Progress of the New York Normal School for Catechists, by the Rev. 
John F. Brady, M.D., St. Joseph's Seminary, Dunwoodie, N. Y. Teaching 
Catechism among the Italians, by Miss Margaret £. Jordan, New York City. 
Work of the Laity, by Mrs. B. Ellen Burke. 

Pedagogy and the Catechism ; Correlation as applied to the work of the 
Sunday-School ; Examples to show the process of the Apperception in the 
acquisition of religious knowledge ; The Omnipotent Creator of the Universe 
as a subject of wonder for the child's mind ; The animal world contrasted 
with the spiritual world; Natural interest of children not limited to things of 
the material world; Their appreciation of the eternal verities; Study of 
Christian Doctrine after Confirmation ; Knowledge of the Bible and Church 
History. Discussion under the direction of the Rev. Thomas McMillan, 
C.S.P,, of St. Paul's Sunday-School, New York City. 

The new paintings, recently completed by Mr. O. Pagani, were on exhi- 
bition during the Conferences. As representing the educational value of 
Christian Art, these paintings indicate a new departure in the decoration of 
Sunday-Schools. 

Father McMillan read a letter received from his Grace, Archbishop 
Farley, which was as follows : 

I regret that I cannot be with you at the meeting of the 28th, but send a 
most affectionate blessing to the work in which you and so many other zealous 
ones are engaged. The work of training the teachers of Christian Doctrine, 
of those who are to mould the minds and souls of children, is of supreme 
importance amongst us to-day. It is a marvel to you, no doubt, as well as to 
me, that ue had not taken thought of such an important phase of educational 
work till recently; for surely if system and training in that system are deemed 
necessary for the more subordinate work of imparting secular instruc* 
tion, the methodizing of Christian Doctrine instruction is supremely more 
important. 

It was pointedly asked in a recent public debate on the need of religion 
going hand in hand with education, if you admit, as you do, that morality and 
religion must be the basis of all citizenship, why do you relegate to chance 
the instruction in so necessary an element in education, and make such 
elaborate provisions for the teaching of arithmetic and geography ? I thank 
God that we have already inaugurated and to an extent perfected measures to 

meet this long-felt need in the religious Xraining of our children. 

• • • 

Members of the Alumnse Reading Circle, composed of graduates from 
Holy Angels Academy, Buffalo, N. Y., have arranged a course of Essays on 
Japan, together with special studies of the early missions in New York State, 
beginning with Father Isaac Jogues, S.J. Among the books suggested are: 
Brinkley's Art, History , and Literature of Japan ; Murray's Story of Japan; 
Brownell's Heart of Japan y Knapp's Feudal and Modern Japan j Bacon's 
Japanese Girls and Women; Hearn's Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan ; Oka- 
kura's Ideals of the East; Mrs. Fraser's Letters from Japan; Mitford's Tales 
of Old Japan. 

Essays assigned as follows : "Present Japan — Geography, Government, 



7o6 The Columbian Reading Union. [Feb., 

Agriculture, Commerce/' Mrs. Frances S. Smith; '< Japan Priroa^al and in 
the Early Eras of History," Miss Maud Argus; ''The Religions of Japan," 
Miss Georgia Holmwood; " Manners and Customs," Miss Blanche Kempner; 
" Japanese Art," Miss Josephine Lewis; "Education and Literature," Miss 
Martha Murray ; '' Early Catholic Missions and Missionaries," Miss Mary 
Graham; ''Japan and Christianity in the Twentieth Century," Miss Grace 

Wechter. 

• • • 

At Ottawa, Canada, the January meeting of the d'Youville Circle was held 
in the Rideau Street convent lecture hall. The epitome of the world's most 
startling events, for the year 1904, was briefly presented, with attention fixed 
on the talk of peace and fact of war. The siege of Port Arthur was compared 
with other famous sieges. The oriental study was resumed, the reading of 
the second book of'the Light of Asia was concluded, the comments were purely 
of the literary order. Rev. Dr. Aiken, of the Catholic University, is the 
special authority consulted for the religious and philofophical significance of 
Buddhism. He was quoted in reference to the groundless claim of some critics 
that the four gospels were largely based on the life and teaching of Buddha. 
The beautiful Angel's Hymn, in the first book of The Light of the World, en- 
titled "Bethlehem," was read by Miss J. MacCormac, and Miss Anna Find- 
lay read a Christmas story by Ben Johnson. It was observed that he was not 
as well known as he should be, in this devout composition. The lesson drawn 
from these readings was that : Wisdom and love in secret fellowship guide the 
world's wandering with a finger tip. 

The review notes were devoted to the Abb6 Klein's new book on The Land 
of the Strenuous Life. Of the clever Frenchman's book on America some very 
pleasant things were said. Some strictures were also expressed. Miss 
Gertrude Kehoe presented the note on Gilbert Parker, and the opinion was 
expressed that his Ladder of Swords may be a disappointment to those who 
measure Parker by the Right of Way and Seats of the Mighty, A special 
feature of this programme was a letter, signed Namport Key, to Mark Twain, 
on his delighthtful sketch of Joan of Arc. Namport Key very kindly allowed 
the autograph answer to this letter to be read, Mr. Clemens says : I thank 
you for those cordial good words, and I am very glad to have earned them; 
they have touched me deeply, their eloquence has gone to my heart. 

The exercises were made very near to a personal communication by the 
relation of some anecdotes of the childhood days of Mark Twain, furnished by 
Mrs. J. Patterson, of New York, wha was the guest of the evening. Mrs. 
Patterson was a little girl of eight when Sammy Clemens was a little boy of 
twelve and they were near neighbors, in the old-fashioned pleasant sense of the 
word. His favorite indoor pastime was the managing of theatricals in their 
basement, and the little girl's part was the pounding on the piano in the room 
above, to furnish the distant music. 

To those who remember how the sense of historical reverence was shocked 
by some of his former writings, it seems hard to believe that Mark Twaia 
could write that beautiful tribute to Joan of Arc, reprinted from Harpers 
magazine in The Catholic World, under " New Books," for December, 
1904. 



I 



I90S.] THE Columbian Reading Union. 707 

Cardinal Perraud, the foremost figure in the French hierarchy, and a 
member of the French Academy, has written a letter strongly approving the 
American system of the independence of the church and state, indicating that 
the American system offers the basis for a reorganization of the French sys- 
tem when the forthcoming separation of church and state in France is accom- 
plished. This is the prevailing view in the highest clerical circles, which 
have been attracted to the American system by the Abb6 Klein's recent book, 
dedicated to President Roosevelt, in which the advantages of the American 
system are contrasted with the disadvantages of the French system. 

VUnivers^ the principal clerical organ, advocates the introduction of a 
resolution in the Chamber of Deputies, providing that the future relations of 
church and state shall be the same as those existing in the United States. 

The Abb^ Klein, in the course of an interview, said : 

Separation now appearing certain, it will occur very soon if the present 
cabinet remains, otherwise, it will come after a short delay, for separation is 
inevitable. Therefore, we desire that the futute regime follow that of the 
United States in making the state entirely neutral toward the church. It 
is thoroughly practical to apply the American system to France, and we will 
seek to maintain schools, colleges, and churches at our own expense. 

It is often a matter of great difficulty to ascribe any definite religious 
beliefs to many of the world's greatest men of action, says J. Holland Rose, 
of Cambridge University, in his new volume of Napoleonic Studies. The 
inmost convictions of Hannibal, Caesar, and Charlemagne are almost 
unknown ; while the two prominent religious acts of Alexander the Great, 
recorded by history, were certainly prompted by political motives. In the 
case of Napoleon, evidence as to his belief is thin and vague, and yet the 
uncertainty which has until lately rested over this side of his life is ihe best 
justification for undertaking an inquiry into the religion of so important and 
fascinating a personality. 

Very noteworthy were the reasons with which Napoleon justified, in the 
face of France and the world, the course leading to that most momentous 
change in republican policy, the Concordat of 1801-2. Utterance was given to 
these reasons in an allocution to the clergy of Milan, Just nine days before 
the battle of Marengo established his power. With characteristic boldness 
he defied the infidel sentiments of his army and of France, then, after re- 
marking that philosophers had striven to persuade France that Catholicism 
must always be hostile to liberty, and that this was the cause of the cruel 
and foolish persecution of religion during the Revolution, he continued : 

Experience has underceived the French and has convinced them that 
the Catholic religion is better adapted than any other to diverse forms of 
government, and is particularly favorable to republican institutions. I my- 
self am a philosopher, and I know that, in every society whatsoever, no man 
is considered just and virtuous who does not know whence he came and 
whither he is going. Simple reason cannot guide you in this matter ; with- 
out religion one walks continually in darkness; and the Catholic religion 
alone gives to man certain and infallible information concerning his origin 

and his latter end. 

• • • 

The affiliated organizations, and members of the International Catholic 



7o8 The Columbian Reading Union. [Feb., 1905.] 

Truth Society in the United States, will be interested in knowing that the 
Society has been definitely recognized by the Holy See, as will be seen by the 
following letter received from Rome by the president of the Society : 

The Vatican, Rome, November 22, 1904. 

Rev, Dr, W. /^ McGinnis, President International Catholic Truth Society, 
ArbuckU Building, Brooklyn, N. K.y 

Reverend dear Father : I am much obliged for your letter of Novem- 
ber 7. It is gratifying to learn of the success of your Society in upholding 
the honor oi the Holy See. I have much pleasure in confirming the arrange- 
ment of his Eminence, Cardinal Rampolla, as to furnishing your Society with 
information. I do this all the more gladly as I profoundly appreciate the 
importance of the work carried on by the International Catholic Truth So- 
ciety, and results show that it is administered with as great energy and ability 
as the work deserves. 

The Holy Father sends his blessing to the work, to those who co-operate 
in it, and, in particular, to yourself. Believe me. Yours devotedly in Christ, 

(Signed) N. CARD. MERRY DEL VAL. 

Dr. McGinnis, president of the Truth Society, when asked the meaning 
of the allusion to upholding the honor of the Holy See, said that it had 
reference to the recent action of the Society in translating and publishing 
''The Documentary Exposition of the Rupture of Diplomatic Relations be- 
tween the Holy See and the French Government," and the sending of copies of 
the same to the editors of newspapers throughout the United States and Can- 
ada, and the presentation of copies to over 500 public libraries in this country. 

Asked in reference to the information promised to be furnished. Dr. 
McGinnis said: 

The reference to furnishing information means that the Society has now 
had confirmed by the present Cardinal Secretary of State, the arrangement 
made by his predecessor, in virtue of which the Society will, whenever neces- 
sary, receive by cable, information on any important point that may be re- 
quired by the Society f^r an immediate refutation of false statements deroga- 
tory to the Church or Holy See, and that, coming from the Vatican, this 
information may be regarded by Protestants, as well as Catholics, as abso- 
lutely authentic and as representing the attitude of the Holy See on the topic 

at issue. 

• • • 

The New York Public Library has just been increased by a consolidation, 
which will add 71,000 volumes to its resources, and will greatly strengthen it 
in the interest and sympathy of the Catholic readers of the city. On Decem- 
ber 23, at a meeting of the trustees oi the Cathedral Free Circulating Library, 
of New York, it was unanimously agreed to consolidate with the New York 
Public Library, such consolidation to take effect on Janyary i, 1905. This 
library had a total circulation last year of 373,715 volumes, and was adminis- 
tered at a total cost of $22,053.22, of which it received from local taxation 
$17,274.96. 




THE 



CATHOLIC WORLD. 



Vol. LXXX. MARCH, 1905. No. 480. 




PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 

III. 

BY THE REVEREND WILLIAM J. KERBY, Ph.D. 

N the preceding article reference was made to 
public opinion, as a great and indispensable power 
in reform work. The ease with which one may 
write and speak about it should not be permitted 
to mislead one into the belief that actual control 
and direction of it are easy. On the contrary, public opinion 
is elusive, indefinite, and complex, though not without certain 
stability in its negative as well as in its positive attitudes. 

As regards new problems of social life, and the relation of 
public opinion to them, it appears that the public will develop 
an opinion only in proportion as it feels actually that it has 
a responsibility, or that its material interests are involved. Ameri- 
cans had hoped that universal suffrage would develop the sense 
of social and political responsibility in the masses, but to a 
considerable extent that hope has been disappointed. None 
are compelled by law to vote, as is done, for instance, in Bel- 
gium. Party organization guarantees a certain percentage of 
the vote ordinarily. But great numbers do not vote, or vote only 
occasionally ; great numbers in the lower classes vote faithfully, 
but without any ethical sense to guide them, voting as they 
are bought or influenced. These latter numbers have made 
possible the political conditions which we see in American 
cities. Those who are not inclined to vote or act in public 

Copyright. X905. The Missionary Society of St. Paul the Apostle 

IN THE State op New York. 
VOL. LXXX. — 46 



7IO Principles in social Reform. [Mar, 

affairs, and those who vote with no judgment or care, give us 
in all a considerable number who avail little for reform work. 
Public opinion does not control them, as it does those who 
are frankly and unselfishly devoted to public interests. Even 
among this better and larger class not all is ideal, since the 
rigid formation of political parties, and the keen sense of par- 
tisanship which it engenders, lead the majority to look at pub- 
lic and social questions as partisans rather than as citizens. 
In his inaugural address, our strongest reform governor, Folk, 
of Missouri, recently maintained that the moment a legislator 
entered the halls of the state-house he ceased to be a party 
man and became a citizen pure and simple. Nothing in pres- 
ent day facts or tendencies permits one to believe that this is 
true, though it be surely right. Party organization, party in- 
terest, party view, remain permanently a hindrance to a clear, 
broad, disinterested estimate of problems and reform. This 
does not imply that parties are wrong in themselves, nor does 
it deny the services which they actually render. Whatever 
good they accomplish the student of reform judges them by 
their relation to his work. 

Returning to the thought that there is great power in pub- 
lic opinion, and that reform should utilize it, the following 
suggestions touch on the manner of securing it : 

/. In seeking to gain public opinion for a reform^ one should 
appeal to old principles which are effective, rather than to new 
principles which are not yet assimilated. 

One finds generally that a number of fundamental truths, 
sympathies, and impressions are worked out and applied by 
the people consciously in the ordinary course of life. They 
are the ordinary standards by which men and events are judged 
and related. This consciousness is a bond of union and mutual 
understanding among the people, and in it are fixed the roots 
of public opinion. As Newman says it: "Among all men, 
educated and unlettered, there is a tacit recognition of certain 
principles, as the cardinal points of society which very rarely 
come distinctly into view, and of which the mind is the less con- 
scious because of their being immediately near to it " (Essays 
Critical and Historical, Reformation of the Eleventh Century). 

The 1 public changes its principles slowly, if in fact these 
are changed at all. Progress is as much in changing definitions 



I90S.] Principles in Social Reform. 711 

as principles. Duty, mercyj loyalty, remain fixed principles, 
but the course of life and change of institutions and classes 
modify slowly the definitions of relations to which they 
apply. Clash of definitions alone may make a revolution. 
Naturally, thinkers and leaders are much in advance of the 
people. They see more clearly, interpret more accurately, th^e 
tendencies of a time, discover new laws and see new relations, 
revise definitions and try to teach the adjustment of institu- 
tions to these. On the other hand, there are thinkers and 
leaders who remain stationary, cling to old definitions, aim 
to head off or suppress new sympathies and larger views in 
the people. Progress comes from the former of these two 
classes. A higher opinion is formed among its members, which 
sums up and formulates the better tendencies, and aims to make 
new definitions. In newspapers, magazines, books, organizations, 
in lectures, this newer opinion expresses itself aggressively and 
without interruption. Reform leaders are, as a rule, produced 
in this atmosphere. They appear with the new message, the 
new definitions and principles, and they appeal very nobly, 
very honestly, to the public ; but the public is unmoved. The 
would-be leader speaks a language which it has not yet learned. 

To illustrate. We find to-day that the following princi- 
ples are accepted in these advanced circles : the integrity of the 
office-holder is the corner stone of democracy ; the consumer 
has a moral responsibility to safeguard the interests of the 
laborer where production is competitive ; social conscience, as 
distinct from individual conscience, is the chief asset of a self- 
governing country ; the social duty of wealth and power is 
imperative. Such principles are not yet accepted by the pub- 
lic at large. Reformers are apt to be men whose thinking, 
association, and life experience have brought to them the sym- 
pathetic understanding of these newer principles. But no great 
truth of human existence is understood by the generation which 
discovered it. Propaganda for reform based on new truths will 
not succeed, when it does not touch any feeling which the 
public obeys, or any interest which it really understands. 

Appeal to the people should be based on feelings and im- 
pressions which they obey, and on standards which they 
employ. The public seeks out and follows leaders; but these 
must be men who perceive and express the active, emotional 
life of the people which they themselves cannot articulate. 



712 Principles in Social Reform. [Mar., 

Such men have power^ much as a poet has power who ex- 
presses what we feel in our deeper selves but cannot express. 
New principles must be taught, and new definitions must be 
made. Appreciation will come gradually, and when the new 
has been assimilated by the people, it will answer all appeals. 
The people love justice, but they do not yet define long 
hours and low wages to be an injustice ; they love liberty, 
but they do not define the dependence of the laborer on his em- 
ployer as oppression. Though organized labor fights for justice 
and freedom, the people define the policy of labor unions 
to be unjust and oppressive, and by a strange paradox con- 
demn the unions, totally missing the historical justification and 
actual necessity, as well as the beneficial achievements of 
them. The public is more a slave to its definitions than we 
imagine. 

A curious illustration of the relation of reform to the old 
and the new in public opinion is seen in connection with 
municipal corruption. One meets very good men who do not 
see wherein the iniquity of bribery consists. One meets some 
who see no harm in it, if done for a good cause ; the end only 
condemning the means. Yet, in general, bribery is looked on 
as disgraceful. A test was once made among a representative 
number of well educated men and women, by asking this 
question : '' If an alderman, for whom you had voted, proved 
to be corrupt and disloyal, accepting bribes and serving private 
interests, why would you be indignant at him?" In nearly 
every case the answer showed a purely personal consideration ; 
in two instances only did a social thought enter. Some were 
" disappointed in the man " ; others had been " fooled " ; 
others hated " disloyalty " ; others condemned him as " doing 
moral wrong"; others regretted having given a villain "a 
chance to do evil." Now, bribery is a social crime; its in- 
iquity can be seen only by a principle of social ethics. It 
was not so regarded in the instances in question. If this test 
permit a generalization, one may say that not until the pub- 
lic can advance from such particular and personal judgments 
of bribery, to a social judgment of it, may we hope for a 
strong movement to suppress it. We may show that revenue 
is lost to the city through dishonest councils ; that taxes are 
excessive; the city debt is beyond limits; pavement is poor 
and improvements are backward; that city bonds sell below 




1905.] Principles in Social Reform. 713 

par and capital is afraid to come in. All of these are telling 
considerations, they may accomplish something, but the com- 
munity which relies on them, cannot yet understand the real 
nature of the evil in bribery. 

It would serve no purpose to go into this thought at 
greater length. Few might agree with aptness of illustration 
or accuracy of interpretation. The main thought is possibly 
clear enough for the present purpose. In order to win the 
people, we must appeal to what they already know and feel; 
new principles do not touch and awaken, until they become 
part of the consciousness of those whom they concern. 

2. The role of public opinion is mainly that of support or 
condemnation ; initiative and leadership are from individuals, 

Ruskin, in speaking about the judgment of great works by 
the public, says: ''The question is not decided by them but 
for them, decided at first by the few. • . . From these 
few the decision is communicated to the number next below 
them in rank of mind, and by these again to a wider and 
lower circle ; each rank being so far cognizant of the superi- 
ority of that above it as to receive its decision with respect, 
until, in the process of time, the right and consistent opinion 
is communicated to all and held by all as a matter of faith, 
the more positively in proportion as the grounds of it are less 
perceived." {Modern Painters^ Introduction.) While no hard 
and fixed law concerning the actual historical growth of public 
opinion on social truths need be attempted, Ruskin's words 
contain a suggestion which is not without value, as it aids us 
to fix the relation of the leader to the public. 

The public is not speculative, the individual is; the public 
is not capable of discursive reasoning, or of detailed inquiry, 
the individual is; the public acts on impressions, and knows 
only as much truth as it can feel; it can follow, it cannot 
lead. The phenomena of leadership and following are co-ordi- 
nate. The public is an orderly, institutionalized, sympathetic 
mass, quick and powerful as far as it feels, unresponsive be- 
yond that line, and willing to follow any leader who under- 
stands it. The American people fought for self-govern- 
ment, but they do not actually love it as we think they do. 
They are glad to place responsibility in the hands of repre- 
sentatives, and to leave these largely to themselves, while they 



714 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. [Mar., 

amuse themselves, earn their living, occupy themselves with 
varying pursuits. In this country, in federation, state, and 
city, we have government by representatives, not directly by the 
people; and by party rather than by representatives; and by 
machine rather than by party; and by boss rather than 
by machine; and ultimately by the interests which the boss 
serves. Similarly in our legislatures, we have government by 
committees, not by the legislature. The New England town 
will abandon the town meeting as soon as it can get a city 
charter, eagerly throwing away the single remnant of real 
democracy which we possess. 

Now neither party, nor machine, nor boss created this trait 
of human nature. They merely discovered and utilized it. A 
boss in an Eastern state, which is known for its bad politics, 
once remarked in self-j ustifi cation : "Some one has to run 
things; who can do it better than I?" The public seems to 
feel that it attains to intelligence, will, and self direction 
through party, machine, and boss. We sometimes confound 
our scorn of method with scorn of motive. If the politician 
has discovered the way that the public will be governed, pos- 
sibly reform might learn the lesson involved ; that reform party, 
reform machine, and reform boss may accomplish results for 
which we have heretofore looked in vain. If the political boss 
is "a tyrant without constitutional background," as Munster- 
berg has called him, the reform boss might have ethical back- 
ground at least. 

At any rate, the relation of leader to the public is im- 
portant. Up to a certain point the people are indifferent 
The leader may be self-assertive and positive there. The pub- 
lic can deal with whole truths which it appreciates; the leader 
may arrange details and suggest definitions. He needs the 
sanction and support of the public, he must fear its displeas- 
ure, but the positive and constructive element in the making 
of public opinion will be found in the direction which the 
public receives. 

The indifference of the public to its own institutions, and 
its late awakening to its actual loss of control of them, is seen in 
the United States at present. The demand for the initiative and 
referendum shows the effort to win back control of legislation, 
which control has been to a great extent lost. The effort to 
secure election of United St-^^^'^^^TiAtors by direct vote is 





1905.] Principles in Social reform, 715 

inspired by the determination of the public to make the senate 
more representative of popular feeling. Recently a state 
legislature cited a senatorial candidate to appear and state his 
views on freight rates and tariff revision before be received the vote. 
A beginning is seen of an effort to make tenure in elective 
offices depend on popular approval, so that at any time the 
office-holder may be compelled to stand for re-election. 

The people are not inclined to give confidence to leaders 
who are too deferential or too honest or tender. It is Newman 
who says : " In this world no one rules by mere love ; if you 
are but amiable, you are no hero; to be powerful you must 
be strong, and to have dominion, you must have genius (or 
organization." {Athenian Schools^ p. 85.) Men believe in a 
partisan, they should be trained to prefer an honest partisan. 
A recent writer in the Hibbert Journal (April, 1904), shows 
that Gladstone's intellectual honesty kept him in a state of more 
or less marked indecision, and that, on this account mainly, 
the English public never fully trusted him. 

The need of positive, one may say even bold and assuming 
leadership is increased by fundamental divisions in the con- 
sciousness of the people. 

Three great conceptions of life contend for supremacy. 
The religious conception of the race presents an order of 
rights, obligations, and relations which gives us a co-ordina- 
tion among men with corresponding fundamental principles 
and laws of service. The political conception of the race 
gives us a different ViCw of rights and obligations. The 
industrial order gives us a third conception of human relations 
and of the social order. There are principles common to 
all, it is true, but they are unlike through their setting. Each 
order strives to be fundamental, to subordinate the other 
two to itself. In the Middle Ages the religious was supreme; 
later the political ; now the industrial. The religious and the 
political vainly attempt to assert supremacy to-day against the 
industrial. The contention of socialists is that the industrial is 
absolutely supreme; the admission of most men is that it is 
far too well established. And efforts at reform, at legislation, 
at the reawakening of a spiritual sense — as we see these to-day 
— are all reduced to one mighty attempt to curb the power and 
modify the principles that accompany supremacy of the industrial 
order in society. This condition affects public opinion very 
-extensively. As a rule to-day, the Christian who is in office 



7i6 Principles in Social Reform. [Mar., 

is a citizen more than a Christian, and the tendency is marked 
to become a business man and cease to be a citizen. Then 
divisions in religion, in politics, and in business ; issues, parties, 
sections aid in distracting public consciousness, so that, even 
when many are agreed in intellectual assent to a proposition, 
they are so widely separated in sympathy, interest, and attach- 
ment that it is extremely difficult to secure united action. 

Hence able leadership is required to overcome all this and 
to carry public feeling near to actual issues and attempted 
reforms, to hold it united and to express it so that its power 
may be utilized for the improvements in social life for which 
humanity calls. 

J. The function of a reform law should be to express and direct 
public opinion^ not to create or replace it. 

Many who urge the enactment of laws think of them un- 
related to public opinion. In a democracy, public opinion is 
the raw material, out of which institutions, customs, laws, and 
government are formed. With us, the presumption favors 
liberty and is against law. We look upon conscience, custom, 
social influence, public opinion, and religion as social factors, 
co-ordinate with law in regulating social relations. When these 
may not safely be trusted, then law is made. A law which is 
related to these, and based on them, is vital and effective; a 
law which is enacted regardless of these, is dead at birth. 
Hence the wisdom of developing law out of custom and of per- 
mitting contrary custom to abrogate a law. Bryce said some- 
where: "You must not, however excellent your intentions and 
however admirable your sentiments, legislate in the teeth of facts.'^ 

The main impulse of reform is to ignore conscience, social 
good will, public opinion, the power of religion, and appeal at 
once to law. Hence the failure of so much reform law, its 
lack of relation to life, the need of inspectors and commissions 
and reports, and the persistently successful violation of it. No 
system of laws can be successful in spite of conscience. The 
many virtues which make life tolerable are not fixed in law. 
No civil law forces children to respect and revere parents, or 
compels youth to respect age, or compels men to have self- 
respect and to be honorable. No civil law has secured to 
woman the deference, courtesy, and power that she enjoys, to 
the honor of our civilization as well as to its refinement. No 
civil law made or sanctioned the thousand conventional arrange- 



1 90S.] PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM. 71 7 

ments of society, which contribute so much to the comfort of 
our associated life. Whatever be the power that has secured 
these features of society to us, be it tradition, custom, teach- 
ing, conscience, public opinion, or religion, it is not law and it 
cannot be law. Reform has no need of civil law except when 
these other forces fail to perform their function. They do fail 
and they will fail, to some extent, inevitably, but also because 
not properly recognized and appealed to. Whether or not, as 
one might remark, law is invoked only when these fail, it 
remains nevertheless true that a reform supported by a civil 
law alone is useless. Nor does it enter as a matter of concern, 
whether or not it is the normal compelling duty of religion to 
keep conscience alive and morals pure, of the school to keep 
intelligence awake and standards high, or of our lawmakers to 
understand and direct public opinion. Whatever the duty and 
wherever the neglect, law without public opinion is of little 
value, and reform errs in giving to it so much confidence. 

The current discussion of railway rates illustrates — if, in- 
deed, illustration be needed — the helplessness of law when 
men will not to obey it. Rebates are condemned by the pub- 
lic, yet a common carrier can favor one shipper by rushing 
his shipments, and harm another by retarding his. Or a rail- 
road can with ease, through pretended loss of goods, ficti- 
tious bills of lading, and similar tricks, convey the rebate 
which law so directly forbids. A law forbidding children 
under fourteen from working in factories is of little avail 
when parents will teach younger children to lie about 
their age, and no system of registration enables an in- 
spector to verify answers. The Raines law is techni- 
cally satisfied in New York when one sandwich is placed 
for the whole day on a counter as the companion of each 
glass of liquor sold. The law guarantees to each voter fullest 
liberty, and provides with elaborate care for secrecy in cast- 
ing the ballot. But the employer of two thousand laborers 
can tell his men that the shops will be closed or wages will 
be reduced if a certain candidate is elected. To ask laborers 
to vote by conviction, when they believe that their wages 
will be lost if they do, is to ask of them a degree of 
heroism which few possess. 

Hence the tendency of reform to overrate the value of law 
and to miss the value of conscience, public opinion, and other 
social influences, is one which should be corrected. 



7l8 PRINCIPLES IN SOCIAL REFORM, [Mar., 

Ever/ social group which has a stable existence, and de- 
velops any traditions, gradually produces a public opinion 
within itself, which concerns the associated life of the mem- 
bsrs. There is a public opinion in the Catholic Church, in 
any important school, in a political party, in a labor union. 
Men are at one time members of many groups, which are con- 
stantly interacting on one another. Taking our national 
life as a basis, we find American ideals generally prominent: 
regard for personal liberty is strong, encouragement of self- 
assertion is active, and self-help is almost a law in our public 
opinion. We find it greatly modified from two sides — from 
above, because thinking men, church men, and leaders see that 
these principles fail, to a great extent, of their promises; 
from below, because those in whom the failure is seen, realize 
that they are victims and they are discontented. Thus a 
contrary public opinion is in process of formation — one which 
disregards personal liberty in industry, and finds vain, efforts 
at self-help and self-assertion. This newer opinion strug- 
gles to expression in various forms of reform movement, 
from labor union to socialism. Further confusion arises be- 
cause political parties divide both phases of public opinion, 
and unite these parts across lines. Then differences in religion 
enter to unite where other forces divide, and to divide where 
others unite. 

A minority, strong in position, in wealth, in honors, in edu- 
cation, is on the defensive, and a majority, strong in numbers, 
in conviction, in determination, is aggressive. There is a 
sameness in our problems which cannot escape notice. Whether 
the problem be bribery, housing of the poor, drink, wages, 
work of children, the administration of charity, or the fate of 
salesgirls, the problem is one of human interests against in- 
stitutional forms, wealth, and power. In present confusion, 
the distractions of public opinion prevent it from serving many 
good purposes. But we may hope for a time When issues will 
be clarified and positions will be made plain. If we may be- 
lieve that the voice of the people is the voice of God, we may 
hope that it will soon speak strongly and effectively to bring 
to the weary and suffering the comfort which they need, and to 
the strong the discipline and direction which to-day they miss. 

Some of the difficulties in the way of this are briefly re- 
ferred to in the co.icli''** ^ ' ^^-^ which follows. 



1905] THE Latest Defence of Darwinism. 719 




THE LATEST DEFENCE OF DARWINISM. 

BY EDWIN V. OHARA. 

WRITER, to whose versatile pen the readers o{ 
The Catholic World have been indebted for 
many interesting articles, kindly undertook, in 
the December issue, to give an exposition of 
"what naturalists think to-day of Darwin's hy- 
pothesis of natural selection." By way of introduction the 
writer, speaking of Dr. Dennert's little work, entitled At the 
Deathbed of Darwinism^ expressed his conviction that the 
book voices a vain protest, " crying down a theory which has 
been and still is upheld by many men of scientific attainment." 
He then went on to adduce a number of citations from scien- 
tific works and personal letters, ostensibly to show that Dar- 
win's theory of natural selection still maintains its prestige 
among men of science. 

In view of Dr. Dennert's position as a naturalist, as the 
author of scientific treatises, and as one of the most promi- 
nent religious apologists in Germany, it may not be without 
interest to inquire, briefly, what precisely is his attitude 
towards Darwinism, and whether his position is not capable 
of being defended. Dr. Dennert's purpose in the book re- 
ferred to above, is to show that Darwinism is utterly unscien- 
tific. But what does he mean by Darwinism? 

In his introductory chapter he states very explicitly : '' Dar- 
winism, as understood in the following chapters possesses these 
characteristic traits: (i) Evolution began and continues with- 
out the aid or intervention of a Creator; (2) In the produc- 
tion of variations there is no definite law — chance reigns su- 
preme; (3) There is no indication of purpose or finality to be 
detected anywhere in the evolutionary process; (4) The work- 
ing factor in evolution is Egoism, the war of each against his 
fellows; (5) In this struggle, the strongest, fleetest, and most 
cunning will always prevail ; (6) Man, whether you regard his 
body or his mind, is nothing but a highly developed animal." 



/ M< /UK Latest defence of Darwinism. [Mar., 

\\ iihsnUvi be clear from this statement, that by Darwinism Dr. 
lWiu\<^rt understamls a parely mechanical philosophy, the fun- 
sUmi^ntAl principles of which are utterly incompatible with a 
V'St^^;^t5,ttt view cf th-c world. In "crying down" this theory, 
l"^:. I Vrrm eTt is 2«rc. we sincerely hope, " protesting in vain." 
Tie siseznfc bass rfj'^' j rd for this mechanical world-view 
Vt :^ ft£r^ics=cs :s rxe I^irwiniaB theory of natural selection, 
wr*.::!;^ .-r ^ .liLt^^if.* rrlsrT^s on purely mechanical grounds 
ri^ <^r^a^ snL igg^iirciinftTt of organic species, and of adaptive 
«" Tur-3us*»« sA^iLi li es ia the organic world. Indeed, Dr. 

£ sesois ar ri=cs to indorse this view of natural 
ic xutmss with evident approval the following 
a work "ij Professor Verworn, a colleague of 
^Ti'i ggaLii ct Jena: "Darwin's immortal work 
..amn^ szrcraZy the surprising purposeful ness 
wor^u. * A precisely similar statement occurs in 
.1 -^ T:m Z'tTztfrsr, and certainly should not have 




•^ T^mr nis val;zable catena of tributes to the selec- 
ts*. Sac3 bein^ the claims advanced on behalf of 
"-u^'^is -jj: r^..^-<oi:C7. Dr. Dennert's method of attack is seen 
>a c« \- tf.- ^mtxceffccnable. He sets out to undermine the 
"^"^ "' vi 5^ ••^^^..vrtt l?v siowing that the majority of eminent 
»-•'-' 'i ^> IV.* oi?^T?r ^ree with Darwin in regarding natural 
^---^^^ *-^--s -IS- ,:^« >?!nicrxl. as the paramount, factor in organic 
' ~ » - ■' '^':?. vMricarica gone» what is the Darwinian world - 
-^^ *^ ^^ - 4 >::i5< «? tt tie air ? 

^-u'.»v*>i'^ v^:$ a:id-Christian philosophy from the stand- 
V .^^ •.*.-. ^ 5ci<?ttv:^» Dr. Dennert is not concerned to deny 
t^.-i. 4 ::«:? $t:II look upon natural selection as "one 
,s >4.>ofci:i^te importance in the process of evolution. 
c^ >v^**5r*Tf. . :^rT*n§then his main position by producing 
.s.* .s v» >c-.r^ui$hed witnesses who discard the " Dar- 
/.v vN ,i;v^^cher. Still, it is evident that one may 
ivi« 1. 1. $«r.?fc:ioa as a philosophic formula, and reject 
V ^ vn :>^: :^*^c;on is the cAief fsLCtor in evolution, 

V .o a-c t. 'C'»^ •• iv.Tfrs. Students of the Darwinian theory must 
. > V s , «s v..,.,.-, j..^- %cjutae5s of their dialectic position. What that 

' * ' '"^ '•' ^ *^' '^'^^r> ot the universe by including in it the organic 

> * . «N'»vv v^v ^^ ^.•r\x' into the Darwinian theory is no new thing . 

^ v« vv v s.^-- o,;: :^,^^ . vlirective power* is, as a matter of fact. 

' ' ^ '*'' ^'' • - J** etf tret, wipes out M^ wAtf/r /tfW/i^M 1PMI y^ 

^ '^ ' ^* **•'" •" •• • :>.o:tiost distinguished British botanist/' May 



' V* 



> • V 



% V 



1905.] The Latest Defence of Darwinism. 721 

without implying that selection has no function whatever in 
organic transformation. It is an abuse of language to con- 
found the Darwinian theory of natural selection with the 
theory which regards "the Darwinian factor" as of quite 
subordinate importance among the many causes of evolution. 
With the latter view, Dr. Dennert has no quarrel. 

It is, doubtless, unfortunate that the name of Darwin* has 
come to be associated with the '' superficial, exaggerated, God- 
less'' doctrines of Haeckel, which, it is asserted, Charles Dar- 
win would not have countenanced for a moment. Still, even 
if we restrict the term to those doctrines which Darwin him- 
self explicitly taught, it must not be supposed that Darwin- 
ism may be accepted by a Catholic as a body of scientifically 
established principles and facts. For, whatever Darwin's views 
may have been concerning the existence of God and the dogma 
of creation, he undoubtedly maintained in his Descent of Man 
(p. 126), that "the difference in mind between man and the 
higher animals, great as it is, certainly is one of degree and 
not of kind." It would be hard to show that this view of 
man — denying at once his spiritual nature, his free-will, and 
his moral responsibility — is not really at the bottom of the 
mechanical philosophy. For never is that philosophy so bois- 
terous as when it proclaims in the name of science the de- 
terminist doctrine: 

"Yea, the first Morning of Creation wrote 
What the last Dawn of Reckoning shall read." 

At all events, any controversy as to the propriety of applying 
the name Darwinism to this theory must be fought out with 
the aggressive school which has appropriated the name, and 
not with the opponents of that school. 

To come now to the attitude of contemporary men of science 
towards Darwinism. The writer, to whose defence of Darwin- 
ism we referred above, quotes approvingly from a work by F. 

♦ The veteran Catholic biologist, Father Erich Wasmann, in his recent valuable volume 
on Modem Biology and the Evolution Theory, distinguishes (Chap, viii.) four different senses 
in which the term Darwinism is used : (i) For Darwin's theory of natural selectioti ; (a) For 
Haeckel's generalization of this theory into a philosophic world-view ; (3) For Darwin's doc- 
trine in regard to man ; (4) Finally, for the general theory of genetic descent. Whilst accept- 
ing the theory of genetic descent, with certain restrictions, Father Wasmann rejects Darwinism 
in each of the first three senses as utterly unscientific. His position is substantially the same 
as that of Dr. Dennert. 



• ' 



^r- -•;tr.r»> 



'-: :^A TEST Defence of Darwinism. [Mar., 

:-;iri.-*7. :he :o;iowiiig definition which may be accepted as 
' ^ ^ nothing bat this— the very probable 



/^ ,^r.e^* Hit :ne ^ii^hest species of animals have been grad. 
^.- -r- v^ mm rhe amplest forms, at any rate, mainly by 
.^ .x:r:sn :t -.aturai ariection." Let os see if this theory is in 
.^ : .::.-i3r imcng^ aaturaii^s outside the Haeckelian camp— 
"-.irr^ : iccrsc. .r iiclds ondispated sway. 

7- ctsis^ in niparrial statement of the case, we shall turn 

ircrxs of high authority. In the second volume 

• :' European Thought in the Nineteenth Century 

: t- --^rfi a: -c : , we find a critical record of scienti^c thought 

-ii=x :ie ^rasE icntury. In the chapter dealing with the gc- 

-=i= -saw -r xmue, we read (p. 342): " Now, although 'natural 

^_ — ^ ^ ^ icdoite formula which allows us to understand 

ienne one of the many factors which are at work in 



^ -L ^ 



:2r :j:yes<2pnieat, in the gmesis and growth, of living beings, 
- i -n.^ jnei It is not a prime mover^ . . . it is a checi 
.--:! rue 3 ver- luxuriance of other existing forces of production 
d- ^evetopment." ^ Italics ours.) It is, therefore, no more the 
ta^:: :ausc of evolution than an automatic brake is the main 
Tti^><* n the motion of a railroad train. 

.-.^ain : *' Selection is not, as many * Darwinians ' have main- 
:ameu, :ne true efficient cause of evolution. By preventing motion 
a ^ne iirection, selection may be said of course to cause 
aavance in another, but :r is apparent that this causality is neg- 
itive ind passive, ::r 2 wr-r /:j«i''c' cf speech. Selection . . . 
s .10 morecae .-o-sc :. "irrt lif ^.rrrsental nrogress of the species, 
:aau :ae ::rr-::^ rr ^ -v. r-t trt rr.it^T^ ic^rcr of the vehicle." 

: - ^-^ — '-' ^* "^ ::« 3icIogical Society of 



-. . ** 



* 



- r v.<^ recent Einleiiung in die 

-^, 'tr «. -.r-sencs of an important school 

^ V ncfsntal forces of develop. 

• .^.^ts- :u selection a certain regu- 

o >xi rs- importance is vastly over- 

.c :xL^>iare literally, "can never 

v;. . i xiT adaptation, but at best^ 

-.. • . -c<r of cases within certain 

ti.-. xrs« br adding or subtracting 

*,,-•. ^>c-i.:i:::j the continual presence 



1905.] The Latest Defence of Darwinism. 723 

An able writer in the January issue of The Catholic World 
called attention to another important witness to the decay of 
Darwinism ; viz., Eduard von Hartmann, who wrote in a recent 
article: 'Mn the first decade of the twentieth century it has 
become apparent that the days of Darwinism are numbered'* 
{Annalen der Natur philosophies Vol. II., 1903). In the forroid- 
able array of authorities cited by the distinguished defender of 
Darwinism we find a corroboration of von Hartmann's statement. 
For instance, Professor Gratacap is reported to have said, in 1901, 
that fifty per cent, of working naturalists relegated the Darwinian 
factor to quite a subordinate position. Twenty years earlier the 
same could not have been truthfully affirmed of ten per cent, of 
working naturalists. This can scarcely be said to indicate that 
Darwinism is not a '' passing theory." Moreover, the greatest 
revolt against Darwinism, lead by de Vries, has occurred since 
1901. The personal letters cited, simply state that the Darwin- 
ian factor is " one element " in the evolutionary process. The 
citation of a letter from Professor Ames *, moreover, is extremely 
misleading in this context. Its first sentence proves that, by 
Darwinism, Professor Ames means not natural selection, but 
evolution in general. 

With the exception of thfe citations taken from Haeckelian 
sources, the careful feader will discover, among the testimonies 
which are offered in defence of Darwinism, little evidence that 
Darwin's selection theory prevails very generally to-day. The 
general tendency of these witnesses — some of whom carefully 
avoid all reference to natural selection — would seem to be to 
regard natural selection as " one element " of subordinate Im- 
portance in evolution. Professor Brooks, perhaps the most 
imposing name on the list, is classed by Romanes (Darzuin and 
after Darwin, Vol. II., p. 14), among the Neo-Lamarckian school, 
together with Packard and Hyatt, Ryder and Dall, Cope and 
Osborn, and other prominent American naturalists. 

It is simply a mistake to represent as unscientific the attitude 
of mind which is sceptical about the importance of natural 
selection as a " true cause at work " in the process of evolution. 

• Professor Ames wrote as follows : " Certainly, so far as I know, all students of zoology 
and biology believe in the essential features of Darwinism. We have had here several Catholic 
priests studying zoology, and they all believed in Darwinism." To interpret Darwinism here 
in the sense of natural selection, is to imply that Professor Ames knows nothing of Eimer, 
Wolf, de Vries, von Weitstcin, Flcischmann, B.iteson, Korschinsky, Dastre, Morgan, Naegeli, 
Reinke, and a hobt of others. 



724 The Latest Defence of Darwinism. [Mar., 

On September 17, 1900, an address on the "Progress of Biology 
during the Nineteenth Century " was delivered before the Con- 
gress of Scientists, assembled at Aix-la-ChapelIe,by Oskar Hertwig, 
Director of the Anatomical and Biological Institute of the Uni- 
versity of Berlin, and at present also Rector of that University. 
Speaking of the battle royal over the doctrine of natural selec- 
tion, in which " Darwinists, Anti-Darwinists, Ultra- Darwinists, 
Neo- Darwinists; Haeckelians, and Weismannists mingled in the 
fray,'' Hertwig asks : "How shall we explain such a remarkable 
turmoil about a scientific question ? " His answer follows : " It 
seems to me that not the least of the reasons was that the 
formulae, 'struggle for existence,' 'survival of the fittest,* ' selec- 
tion,' are very vague expressions, . . . With too general terms 
particular cases cannot be explained, or a mere shadow of an 
explanation is given, while the true causal connection remains 
as much in the dark as before. . . . While Weismann was 
announcing the 'omnipotence of natural selection' he found him- 
self forced to admit: 'As a rule we cannot prove that any 
given adaptation is due to natural selection.' Now this is as 
much as to say," continues Hertwig, " in truth, we know nothing 
of the complex of causes which has produced the particular 
phenomenon." According to Hertwig, therefore, natural selec- 
tion, far from being a scientific explanation of evolution, is a 
" very vague " formula which gives a " mere shadow of explan- 
ation," and notwithstanding which, even eminent men of science 
" know nothing " of the actual cause of a particular trans- 
formation. 

At the annual meeting of the Association of German Sci- 
entists and Physicians, in 1901, three of their number were 
commissioned to report on " the present status of the theory 
of descent." The committee consisted of the botanist Hugo 
de Vries, of Amsterdam, the paleontologist Koken, of Tue- 
bingen, and the zoologist Ziegler, of Jena — Haeckel's strong- 
hold. In his report Ziegler, as became a disciple of Haeckel, 
insisted that science had transferred the idea of teleology to 
"the realm of mysticism," and was positive that the concept 
of creation was regarded as mythical by every mind at all 
" aufgeklart." All in all, Ziegler gave an interesting account 
of what is " of faith " in Haeckel's dogmatic system. For the 
teaching of science we must have recourse to the reports of 
his colleagues. 




L905.] The Latest Defence of Darwinism. 725 

Professor Koken, of Tuebingen, confined himself to the 
positive results obtained in his own field of investigation — 
paleontology — during the past forty years. After a few pre- 
liminary remarks on Darwin's merit in arousing interest in the 
study of fossil remains, he stated that ''the purely paleonto- 
logical .method has separated us from Darwin to an extent 
that could not have been considered possible during the first 
decades after his work appeared." Professor Koken then went 
on to cite facts, witnessed by the geologic record, which indi- 
cate an abrupt transition between related organic species, and 
are incapable of explanation on the hypothesis of gradual 
transformation postulated by natural selection. 

The report prepared by Hugo de Vries possesses a double 
interest. It proclaims the failure of Darwin's theory and brings 
forward a substitute for that theory. In speaking of the origin 
of a new species from a parent species. Professor de Vries 
stated explicitly : " For this (transformation) there is needed 
no series of generations, no struggle for existence, no elimina- 
tion of the unfit, no selection." The positive theory which the 
Dutch professor propounds is antithetic to Darwin's selection 
hypothesis in almost every detail. The central idea in the 
theory of de Vries is that new species arise from existing 
species by sudden and permanent modifications or " muta- 
tions" — hence the name. Mutation Theory. This is opposed 
to Darwin's concept of gradual modification. Darwin regarded 
fluctuating variations as the first steps in the formation of 
species. De Vries denies that common fluctuating variability 
can ever lead, even by the most persistent selection, to any 
real transgression of the limits of a species. Darwin denied 
the stability of species; de Vries affirms that species are "like 
invariable unities." It is evident that there is no important 
point upon which the theories are not mutually exclusive. 

The favorable reception which has been accorded this theory 
by naturalists of undisputed eminence, shows clearly that the 
selection hypothesis has not been substantiated by scientific 
observation and experiment. Let us cite a few of the many 
distinguished men of science who have declared for the theory 
of de Vries. 

In the Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution for 

1901, there appeared a paper. on the ''Mutation Theory of 

Professor de Vries," contributed by the paleontologist, Charles 
VOL. Lxxx. — 47 



726 The Latest Defence of Darwinism, [Mar., 

A. White. Dr. White expresses the opinion that de Vries' 
work is destined to modify, in an important manner, the views 
of biologists on the method of evolution — and this, " because 
of its eminently scientific presentation.'' In this regard the 
new theory contrasts favorably with natural selection which, 
the writer informs us, " has necessarily always remained purely 
a theory, unsupported by any practical demonstration or ex- 
perimental observations." After giving an exposition of the 
mutation theory, and of the experimental grounds upon which 
it is based. Dr. White continues (p. 636): "The author (dc 
Vries) supports all his statements with the most minute account 
of his experiments* the results of which he also discusses fully. 
These facts and discussions are of such a character that it 
seems difficult to see how one can avoid accepting his conclu- 
sions without denying his facts. . . . Furthermore, by 
accepting that theory and admitting the facts upon which it is 
based, one must necessarily regard the question of the origin 
of species as thereby removed from the purely theoretical to 
the concrete ; that is, from an undemonstrable hypothesis (1. e, 
natural selection) to a series of concrete propositions and 
practical demonstrations. ... I may add that, for reasons 
I will state further on, I am much inclined to view this theory 
with favor." 

" I have," continues Dr. White, " in my paleontological 
studies, been often confronted with facts with relation to both 
animal and vegetable fossil forms that seem to be quite inccn* 
sistent with the theory of their origin by the slow process of 
natural selection." The writer concludes by mentioning " a 
few of the many paleontological facts " which are incompatible 
with the selection theory, but support the mutation theory. 

Our second witness shall be M. A. Dastre, Professor at 
the Sorbonne, in Paris. The citations are from an article con- 
tributed to the Revue des Deux Mondes for July i, 1903. In 
reference to natural selection. Professor Dastre has this to say: 
" It may be noted that natural selection is not a single hypo- 
thesis; it is a linking together oi three hypotheses. If we 
separate the links of this chain, we can show that not one of 
them will stand test. The first hypothesis is that of the advan- 
tage in the struggle for existence which is given to an animal 
by the possession of small adaptive variations ; the second is th^ 
of a preservation, by transmission, of this acquired chiM^fey 



I90S.] THE LATEST DEFENCE OF DARWINISM. 727 

the third is the progress, always in the same direction, of these 
profitable variations, which, accumulating, finally create a 
specific character. None of these hypotheses will support a 
searching examination." The writer then goes on to show 
wherein each of these hypotheses is opposed to facts. 

Again, after distinguishing between the transformist doctrine 
and Darwinism, Professor Dastre continues: ''Now it appears 
that while Darwin succeeded in establishing the idea of the 
continuity of living forms by means of generation — that is to say, 
transformism — he was much less successful as regards the 
means which he proposed. To speak plainly ^ he failed. There 
are but few naturalists at the present time who attribute to 
natural selection any role whatever in the filiation of species. 
. . . A Dutch naturalist, Hugo de Vries, who has a wide 
reputation among the botanists of our time, has just given the 
finishing stroke to the theory of natural selection^ already much 
shaken, and has proposed in place of it another hypothesis, 
which he calls ' the theory of mutation.' . . . The doctrine 
is founded on observation and experiments which, by the 
sagacity, long and patient effort, and careful criticism of their 
author, deserve to be ranked with the admirable observations 
of Darwin. Moreover, it has been most favorably received by 
many naturalists.'' Professor Dastre then reviews the evidence 
in favor of the mutation theory, and after recounting the 
experiments of de Vries, concludes : " The care devoted to these 
experiments gives them a value which must attract the attention 
of naturalists. Their result furnishes a new and powerful 
argument in favor of the theory of mutation." 

It would be easy to multiply testimonies to the same effect, 
for the general current of scientific opinion is flowing in the 
direction indicated by the remark of Professor Loeb : "It seems 
to me that the work of Mendel and de Vries, and their suc- 
cessors, marks the beginning of a real theory of heredity and 
evolution." It would seem, therefore, that as far as natural 
science is concerned, we are not obliged to accept the selection 
hypothesis. In fact, eminent naturalists deny to it every 
essential character of a scientific theory. Dr. White character- 
izes it as " undemonstrable " ; Professor Hertwig says that its 
ablest advocate was forced to admit the impossibility of prov- 
ing that the theory applied in any given case ; if we may 
believe Professors Koken and Dastre, the paleontologists point 



728 The Latest Defence of Darwinism, [Mar., 

out facts which are " incompatible '* with the selection hypothe- 
sis ; the theory has no basis in direct observation or experi- 
ment, is the complaint of Professors Loeb and Fleischmann ; 
Lord Kelvin refuses to allow such high antiquity to the organic 
world as is postulated by the selection theory ; finally. Pro- 
fessor de Vries claims to give a better explanation of the facts 
— an explanation based on experiment and careful observation, 
and his claim is countenanced by a large and rapidly increas- 
ing body of naturalists. 

It should be very clear then that natural selection, being 
itself a speculative hypothesis and of very limited application, 
is unable to provide a scientific basis for the mechanical world- 
yiew which dispossesses God of his universe and makes man a 
marionette of the cosmic process. Further than this the question 
concerns the religious apologist * not at all. If it be shown 
that environment, acting on individual variability, is " one 
element" in the process of evolution, he will yield assent with- 
out reserve ; if the " mutation theory " renders this auxiliary 
hypothesis superfluous, he will feel no inclination to dispute 
the verdict of science. 

♦The attempt to interpret Bishop Hedley's article {Dublin Review, October 1898). in 
harmony with the mechanical view of natural selection, is singularly infelicitous, as the follow- 
ing citations sufficiently indicate. The venerable Bishop of Newport writes : " As regards the 
human soul, there is no liberty for a Christian. We must hold that each human soul is 
immediately and individually created by God" (p. 250). Again (p. 253) : " It is quite certain 
that the Darwinian idea, that development depends chiefly on mechanical adjustment and 
accidental environment, has ceased to be the prevalent and dominating idea that it once was." 
Finally (p. 257): "Natural ' species' refuse to be proved freely mutable, or to remain per- 
manently changed. Changes seem to occur with much greater rapidity than can be accounted 
for by mechanical adaptation. . . . These and other obstacles have checked Darwinism as 
a theory, and they sufficiently indicate that a wider and deeper philosophy is required before we 
can have anything like a true conception of the history of this universe or of its progress." 



I90S-] Of One Lately Dead. 729 



OF ONE LATELY DEAD. 



BY KATHARINE TYNAN. 




E was the incarnate spirit of youth and adventure 
and laughter and life. He was darkly handsome, 
with the eye of a gypsy, an eye that roamed 
from dull company to look upon free fields of 
adventure. He had the heart of a gypsy, and 
that he ever bent his shoulders to take on the yoke of duty 
must be counted to him as a pathetic heroism. By nature he 
was wild and free, not afraid of the night or the elements. 
Houses had no appeal for him. Broken boots or ragged cloth- 
ing did not daunt him. His brothers and sisters, the wind and 
the rain, were free to work their will on him, and he trusted 
to their kindness of kinship. 

Fate gave him duties and made him a member of one of 
the learned professions. He said to me once that the duties 
made him a solid spot of anchorage on this earth ; and it was 
his fortune to have married a woman as sweet and dignified 
of nature as God ever made, else he had never had that anchor- 
age. He would have been out with the gypsies on the hillside. 
He would have been blown about over the world by the will 
of the wind that was his own will. 

He was friends with the whole world. In Ireland he knew 
almost every one from sea to sea. In that country, where 
laughter counts for more than the solid qualities, every one 
wanted him and held him as long as they might. It was a 
light-hearted world indeed in which he moved ; but I think in 
his heart he had a great tenderness for the gypsies and roving 
spirits of the world. I remember that once he and I walked 
a few miles of a mountain road with a stalwart gypsy man. 
He was of a towering stature, with a shock of black hair sur- 
mounting a big, roguish, cunning, innocent face — the face of a 
nature's man who had never slept in houses. The gypsy talked 
and we listened. He was of a famous Irish tribe, famous espe- 
cially as pipers. His father had carried off the first prize at 



730 Of One Lately Dead, [Mar., 

the Feis. He talked of music and religion and patriotism. 
These gypsies ''go to their duty," and have Christian burial 
when they die. He talked of the Rebellion of '98 in whispers, 
glancing from side to side of the shadowy hedgerows where 
the autumn twilight was falling. The gypsies had fought from 
Vinegar Hill to Ross — on the right side, be sure. An old 
mongrel trotted at the gypsy's big heels. He had offered him 
to us for half a crown as a pedigree dog, knowing well that 
the dog would no more take to the life of houses than he 
himself would, and would follow and come up with him as soon 
as might be. 

When we parted with him he carried off the last half crown 
of the gypsy in professional broadcloth. We watched him up 
the hill-road till the shadows gathered him. My poor fellow 
looked after him with eyes of sore longing. " Did you see the 
big boots of him,'' he said to me, "how they were cut down 
to give him ease in walking ? " He looked at his own decent 
boots and sighed. ''And the dog," he went on, "sure, an 
ancestor of that dog might have been nosing about among the 
dead at Oulart Hollow. They'll sleep out to-night in a cave 
of the hills among the dead leaves and bracken. The dead 
leaves '11 be smelling sweetly." 

Another time I saw the strange look of longing in his eyes. 
He was leaning over a little roadside bridge, watching a 
mountain stream, brown as amber, singing over pebbles of 
gold and silver. Over there in the city, where the exquisite 
stream should presently slip into a polluted drain of a river, 
his professional duties awaited him. He looked at the stream 
and then back at the mountains whence it came. He had the 
furtive eye of one who meditates sudden flight and escape. 

" I wish I had time," he said, " to follow it back to its 
source. I never saw a little stream yet that I didn't want to 
track it. Can*t you fancy it just bubbling up in a little cup 
through the wet grass, and the lark singing above it ? And 
further down in the glens it'll be stealing in and out round 
little green and brown boulders, and in the deepest pools under 
the boulders you*!! see a little trout swimming on his side." 

Vet for all his wild heart he had a great capacity for indus- 
tr>\ so long as the work interested him, so long, one might 
almost say, as the work was done for love. In his young col- 
'Kfi^e days he edited the journal of an archaeological society. 



I90S.] Of One Lately Dead. 731 

contributing to it largel3r himself, and giving it his time and 
his work unstintingly. Anything connected with the history 
and antiquities of his own country interested him passionately, 
as did its folk-lore. While he walked with you he would tell 
you legends by the score. I remember well those walks in the 
golden autumn days when he told me why the peasants hate 
the dara-dioulf the devil's beetle, and will always kill one when 
they see it ; and of what Hugh O'Neill said to Hugh O'Don- 
nell at the Battle of the Yellow Ford ; and how a famous 
warrior of the North of Ireland came to be present at the 
Crucifixion; and many another story. His was a golden 
memory, stocked full of poetry and traditions, and ready to 
unpack itself for the one who really cared to hear. 

" Why don't you write it down ? " I used to say. But he 
was not much good at writing down. He wanted the stimulus 
of the faces and the eyes. Two or three of his folk- legends 
did indeed appear in the Speaker. But at this time all his 
energy was required by his profession, and he wrote no more. 

That profession brought him face to face with his audience, 
and for the few short years it was his he made a meteoric 
success of it. A rising junior indeed. There was no question 
of his rising; he rose. There had not been a success so bril- 
liant and immediate within men's memories. To be sure he 
loved his profession, and his love for it brought him to the 
quiet study and mastery of it. He was not only a brilliant 
advocate, but a fine lawyer as well. There he could not help 
himself that the ,money came to him, but he divested himself 
of it as rapidly and completely as he could. Never was any 
one so generous. He gave with both hands, his benefits fall- 
ing on the just and the unjust. The study he would have 
thought least worth while would have been the study of 
finance. He was a child in everything concerning money. The 
only time he ever troubled himself about the thing was when 
money was to be collected for widows and orphans or friends 
in trouble. The charity of Ireland towards those whose bread- 
winner has gone is wonderful. The charity of the poor to the 
poor; it is, indeed, rather a guardianship than a charity. He 
was always ready to push his own pressing work aside so that 
he migh help in such causes. Never was such a one for gifts ; 
he rained them upon his friends. One knew in what part of 
the country he was by the milestones of his gifts. Beautiful 



732 Of One Lately Dead. [Mar., 

generosity that irradiated the paths of others as well as bis 
own. 

One thinks of him with his giving hands and his laughter; 
now one feels that there is no such laughter left on earth. 
Everywhere he went he spread mirth, young, light-hearted, 
humane mirth. " Wherever he goes," said one who has pre- 
ceded him into the shadows, '' something is certain to bap- 
pen." Gay and mirthful adventures did, indeed, crop up 
about his path. Everywhere he went he made friends and 
drew out the humor in others. You could not be with him in 
a public conveyance, but he was talking to the man at his side 
or opposite to him, discovering odd characters, having the 
quaintest encounters which should afterwards provoke one to 
aching sides. Who cared though he was late for dinner, or 
arrived towards midnight when he was expected to dinner, see- 
ing that he came in and button- holed you to such stories that 
the house roared with them ? He had an affinity for simple, 
roguish folk. The old beggarman of the country roads de- 
lighted him ; and he would extract fun even from a tramp 
plainly marked " dangerous." One never knew what whimsical 
thing he would do next. Once in the old war-days he stopped 
a scarlet and gold regiment manoeuvring about the green coun<- 
try roads : '' If you please, sir," he said, with a winning in- 
nocence, to the amazed officer in command ; '' do you happen 
to be looking for De Wet ? " It passed for a countryman's 
simplicity too. 

One feels to-night as though laughter was dead with him. 
What a good laughter it was! In the thousands of merry 
jests I cannot remember one that one would wish away. 
There was nothing cruel, nothing to hurt the most sensitive 
in that exquisitive laughter. 

He always came home singing. When one listened for him 
to come in the quiet country one heard him far off trolling a 
country ballad, one of the " come-all-ye's " of the fairs and 
market-places, with which his mind was well stocked. He 
lived to suffer much. Although he was young he had lived 
more than a hundred dullards, and to be sure he had used 
up his life before its prime. And still one thinks of him, sing- 
ing and laughing. And all singing and laughter seems gone 
with him. One never knew how good it was while it lasted. 



I90S.] Some Causes of the French Crisis, 733 




SOME CAUStS AND LESSONS OF THE FRENCH CRISIS.* 

BY W. L. S. 

|UR fellow^ Catholics in France are at this mo- 
ment prostrate before a storm of persecution as 
relentless and vindictive — save that, out of 
deference to modern feelings, it is free from 
bloodshed — as any that has ever before devas- 
tated the Christian Church. M. Combesf professes to be work- 
ing merely for a "laicized state." But that euphemism dis- 
guises from nobody his real purpose of destroying religion and 
of creating a nation of infidels. There can be no other ex- 
planation of the elaborate devices of hatred and sacrilege which 
he is employing against the Catholicity of France. From the 
brutal driving out of helpless nuns into the streets, to the . 
shameful spying upon public servants to see that none of them 
shall say their prayers, Combes has not only drawn upon the 
arsenal bequeathed hi.ii by his predecessors in the office of 
Grand Persecutor, but he has contrived new measures of his 
own for the ruin of faith, which for cruelty entitle him to a 
place not far from Nero, and for ingenuity raise him to a 
position by the side of Voltaire. History will present him to 
posterity as the man under whom ancient and Catholic France 
decreed that no virginal life, consecrated to the orphaned and 
the sick, was permitted to exercise mercy and display self- 
sacrifice on her soil, and that no man who knelt to his Crea- 
tor should draw a salary from the state. 

The causes which have fallen together to produce in our 
time such a man as Combes, and such a situation as the pres- 
ent crisis, are many and complicated, and take their rise not 
in to-day or yesterday, but far back in French history, and 
deep down in the character of Frenchmen. To unravel all 
these causes and trace them to their origin would be a long 
task, and perhaps for our generation an impossible one. But, 

* Les Catholiques R/publicains. Histoire et Souvenirs 1890-1903. Par I'AbW P. Dabry. 
Paris : Chevalier et Riviere. 1904. 

fThis article Nvas written before the resignation of M. Combes. [Ed.] 



734 Some Causes of the French Crisis. [Mar., 

whatever be the other elements behind the disaster, of one ele- 
ment we may be certain ; and that is, that Catholics have 
exposed themselves to this attack by some deadly blunder, 
some fatal fault. On the face of available statistics the Catho- 
lics of France number 37,000,000. The professed infidels, who 
hate religion for religion's sake, are an insignificant minority 
of some few thousands. Yet to-day the believing multitude are 
lying prostrate before the unbelieving handful, crushed, humili- 
ated, helpless, and hopeless. Something must have gone terri- 
bly wrong. Some deplorable futility must have been not only 
committed but persisted in. What is it ? How has it been 
allowed to go so far? In no spirit of unsympathizing criticism, 
but with a sincere desire to direct the attention of American 
Catholics to a lesson from which they may have something 
themselves to learn, we shall endeavor to answer these ques- 
tions in a frank manner and in plain speech. M. Dabry's 
newly published book, mentioned at the head of this article, 
will serve us as a guide. 

When France closed her ruinous struggle with Germany in 
1870, and set up her third republic, she was weary unto death 
of war and monarchy, and intensely desirous of democracy 
and peace. Peace from without she had just purchased at a 
crushing price ; but peace within her own borders she could 
not, from the nature of the case, perfectly enjoy. For the 
old, noble, and wealthy families were monarchists, and, with a 
thousand years of kingly tradition behind them, they could not 
be expected to strike hands in fellowship with a government 
of the canaille. We, of course, cannot sympathize with the 
principles of these men, but we should show a measure of 
respect to their prejudices. They thought France in full career 
to destruction as a Republic. They looked back at her superb 
line of kings, and felt justified in disdaining a rule of the 
bourgeoisie, and in maintaining that their country's glory in the 
future could exist only where it had existed in the past — beneath 
the shadow of the sceptre. And so they held aloof from pub- 
lic life; they became voluntarily of no influence in the state; 
they looked upon the Republic as only an hour's fancy of a 
distracted people; they prayed and plotted for the re-estab- 
lishment of the crown. Now on the side of these roy- 
alists were unfortunately arrayed practically all the ecclesias- 
tics of the country; and there the great majority of them 



1905.] Some Causes of the French Crisis. 735 

stand to-day. Not that a French Republic is in itself a thing 
repugnant to religion. The churchmen had blessed the Repub- 
lic of 1848, and had enjoyed its favor. But in 1870 the times 
were bad for converting conservatives to democracy. Demo- 
cracy seemed to them then, far more than it does now, the 
spirit of an evil age ; it meant revolution, violence, the de- 
struction of venerable order, the rule of brazen mob-leaders 
and of unwashed communards. They laid at its door the fall 
of the Temporal Power ; they regarded Pius IX. as its victim ; 
and they were certain that it had been irrevocably banned by 
the Syllabus of 1864. Thus it came to pass that multitudes 
of French Catholics looked upon the Republic as an immoral 
usurpation, and ranged themselves in their traditional position 
around a broken and discredited throne. Yet every election, 
from 1 87 1 until to-day, has been overwhelmingly republican. 
In every year of those three decades, the people have taken a 
new step toward definite and permanent democracy. Church- 
men meanwhile have stood stock still looking toward the past. 
It need not astonish us that if they open their eyes on the 
situation to-day, they find themselves alone in a waste region 
that is depopulated forever. 

In the elections of 1873 and 1877 the royalists made pro- 
digious efforts to elect anti-republicans to the Chamber. In 
the former year the association of Notre Dame du Salut, pre- 
sided over by a priest, flooded the country with monarchist 
leaflets. In the latter, triduums and public prayers without 
number were offered up in churches in the same cause. Marshal 
MacMahon himself had to rebuke the intemperateness of this 
dangerous campaign, and publicly freed himself from all sus- 
picion of sympathizing with it. 

Reprisal was sure to come. It began with the Ferry min- 
istry of 1879, which suppressed military chaplaincies, laicized 
hospitals, and reduced the church appropriations. In 1880 the 
religious orders were attacked. It must be understood that up 
to this time, and indeed for a long time after, the greatest 
political power in the country was in the party of moderate 
republicans, who, while openly avowing their intention to 
restrict clerical influence, had little or no desire to persecute. 
The radicals, who did wish to persecute, and hated religion 
because it was religion, were too few to gain control of the 
state by themselves, but were constantly endeavoring to push 



736 Some Causes of the French Crisis. [Mar.. 

the moderates into adopting the radical programme. The obviotts 
duty of Catholics was to prevent this coalition. And it was 
not in itself a hard task. All that was needed was that Cath- 
olics, on the one hand, should so conduct themselves in public 
affairs as to belie the radical charges against them ; and should, 
on the other, conciliate the well-disposed moderates. If they 
had so acted, they would not have been long in gaining a 
commanding influence in the government of the country. Bat 
they followed darker counsels and perished. 

A proof of the existence of a moderate spirit in France, 
ready to make favorable terms with religion if it had been 
encouraged, may be seen in the interchange of letters between 
Leo XIII. and President Grevy in 1888. The Pope complained 
to M. Gr^vy of the recent anti- Catholic legislation. The presi- 
dent answered that he deplored the extreme measures adopted 
by the Chamber; but pleaded that the anti- republican spirit 
of the Catholics was the cause of it. He besought the Pope 
to bring them to a more safe and tractable mind, and added: 
''I can do very little against the enemies of the church; but 
you can do a great deal against the enemies of the Republic" 

Similar sentiments began to be expressed by Catholics 
themselves, many of whom saw the futility of the royalist pro- 
gramme, and declared themselves openly for the existing 
regime. In 1886 Raoul Duval, a loyal Catholic deputy, rose in 
the Chamber and warned Catholics that they were following a 
politique du feiichisme, which would lead them to ruin. In 
1888 the Marquis de Castellane, a man who had every reason 
for cherishing his inherited love of monarchy, spoke in vigor* 
ous language to the same purpose. Still weightier voices were 
to follow, uttering the same message in words of more solemn 
warning. In 1890 one of the most venerated men of the nine- 
teenth century. Cardinal Lavigerie, the apostle of Africa, said, 
in the course of a memorable speech in Algiers: ''When the 
will of a people has been decisively expressed ; when a gov- 
ernment contains nothing which is in itself opposed to those 
principles by which Christian and civilized nations ought to live; 
when our country needs the uncompromising loyalty of her 
sons in order to be preserved from the disasters which threaten 
her ; then the time has come to dec' " -^^nly that our gov- 
ernment is on trial no longer, ths k^nd our dissen- 
sions, and make ev ""'^e w Tp and honor 



^ 



1905.] Some Causes of the French Crisis. 737 

command us to make for the welfare of France. Some among 
us are still outside the temple of fatherland, and refuse to enter. 
Such men are manifesting to the foes who are watching us, a 
spectacle of ambition and hatred, and are striking into the heart 
of France that despair which is the precursor of final ruin." 

This address of the great cardinal created a sensation in 
France. As soon as the royalists recovered from the first 
shock of it, they began a bitter attack upon its venerable author. 
He was held up to ridicule and insult. Paul de Cassagnac, in 
his caustic style, decried him; Monsignor Freppel, a name hon- 
orable in scholarship, rejected his plea for the Republic with 
indignation ; and in the Chamber of Deputies the Marquis de 
TAngle-Beaumanoir led a concerted attempt to suppress an 
appropriation which would benefit the cardinal's evangelization 
of Africa. 

This disastrous disunion, this politique du fetichisme^ which 
exhausted in domestic strife the vitality of French Catholicity, 
and left the church defenceless before her foes, had long been 
regarded with anxiety and impatience by Leo XIII. For years 
the great Pope forbore to speak, lest he seem hasty in offend- 
ing partisan feeling, and appear rude in dealing with so tender 
a sore as political prejudice. But with repeated reverses to 
religion because it had been harnessed to abandoned institu- 
tions, and with a new election only a twelvemonth away, Leo 
at last determined, in 1892, to disclose his full mind to the 
Catholics of France, and to read them a sharp lesson. In 
February of that year he published his celebrated encyclical to 
the church in France. It is a powerful plea for the Republic. 
The Pope reminds Catholics that a nation may justly and 
lawfully change its form of government — since only the church 
possesses a necessarily fixed regime — and that when a people 
has set up a new form of civil authority, it is the duty of all 
citizens to acquiesce in it and maintain it. As for the church, 
she is committed neither to monarchism nor to republicanism; but 
leaving to every state a free choice in the matter, she is, under 
whatsoever political form, the custodian of morality and the 
safeguard of civilization. Addressing himself to the very 
objection alleged by the royalists as the chief reason for their 
attitude, namely, that no friend of religion could conscien- 
tiously support a Republic which persecuted religion, the Pope 
solves the difficulty with a distinction. We must distinguish, 



738 Some Causes of the French Crisis. [Mar., 

he saySi between the state and the legislation of the state. If 
the legislation is at times bad, let all men of good will unite, 
and it will be an easy matter to mend it. But because some 
laws are wrong, it by no means follows that the established 
state itself is to be radically opposed or seriously threatened. 
He concludes with the hope that his recommendation will be 
dutifully heeded, and that it may be a ground of union and 
pacification whereon all good men may stand against the com- 
mon enemy. 

This wish of the Pontiff came certainly from his heart. He 
saw then what we see now, that upon the realization ot it, 
depended not only the prosperity, but almost the existence of 
Catholicity in France. Probably the result of no other project 
of his entire pontificate was watched by him with so intense 
an anxiety as this appeal to a perishing church and nation. 
He made it in the name of France, glorious in her Catholic 
history ; in the name of himself, whose whole life witnessed to 
his love for the fair land and noble people; and in the name 
of Christ, qui aime les Francs, 

Bitter was his destined disappointment. Within a few 
months he wrote to the Bishop of Orleans and to the Arch- 
bishop of Bordeaux, complaining that the factional spirit among 
Catholics had brought his admonition to nought. He says to 
the Archbishop of Bordeaux: " We protest against and censure 
the efforts of some who, while professing to be Catholics and 
devoted to their faith, are so pertinaciously partisan as to 
spread abroad among the people impudent writings in which 
they attack dignitaries of the church, not sparing the Chief 
Pastor himself. These persons must be aware that they cannot 
by this means promote their political views. The sole result 
which they can flatter themselves with obtaining is that they 
are a hindrance and obstruction to our recotnmendations, and 
a vexation to peaceful men who are sick of discord and sigh 
for union. But rather than that harmony should be brought 
about, and harmony is now necessary for the very salvation of 
France, these disturbers prefer prolonging internal strife and 
domestic enmity which will work havoc for their country and 
their church." 

We must examine how thj^^pen disobedience was brought 
about. The anti-republic" ^t of course formally defy 

the February pncvclical. lOwing edifying deference 



1905.] Some Causes of the French Crisis. 739 

to it, they managed to deprive it of all force. The papal let- 
ter was like certain brands of high explosive which are set off 
with tremendous shock by concussion, but, if a lighted match 
be applied to them, fizzle away and disappear without a sound. 
There was no concussion against the encyclical, no explosion, 
no disagreeable remains. But two lighted matches were ap- 
plied to it, and it flared up, burned out, and injured nobody. 
The two matches were the campaign against Christian democ- 
racy and the agitation for a Catholic party. Let us explain, 

Whenever the representatives of any religion oppose the 
legitimate aspirations and the lawful institutions of the people 
among whom it is established, it needs no great sagacity to 
conjecture what will happen. Those aspirations and institu- 
tions are going to stand, and those representatives of religion 
are going to fall. And, so inevitable is the unfortunate popu- 
lar tendency to identify belief with believer, religion itself will 
also fall with its short-sighted spokesmen, if their intrant 
sigeance lasts long enough. It is easy to apply this principle 
to France. The people wanted a Republic. The majority of 
ecclesiastics anathematized the Republrc and prayed for the 
restoration of the ancien rigime. The result was the deplora- 
ble chasm between priest and people, which is one of the most 
terrifying features of the crisis to-day. There is now neither 
time nor space for the sad proof that such a chasm exists. 
The evidence is overwhelming that it does exist, that it is 
wide and deep, and that radical changes in men and methods 
must take place before a bridge can be thrown across it. The 
priest in France has become a man of the sanctuary and the 
sacristy ; he has lost influence in the public and social life of 
the nation; he is accounted a relic of dead ages, a defender 
of abandoned theories; he is reckoned the one element of in- 
ertia and retrogression in an environment of energy, moder- 
nity, and progress. 

To heal this schism is the first and most critical, in fact 
the absolutely indispensable condition to be fulfilled before we 
can even hope for better days in France. This was perceived 
years ago by a noble band of priests, most of them young 
men, though many were gray veterans in the ministry, and 
they gave themselves zealously to the task. " Allans au peu- 
pie/** was their cry. ** We must go to the people. We must 
mingle with them. We must cease to be merely masters of 



740 Some Causes of the French Crisis. [Mar., 

ceremonies and preachers of homilies. We must live the life 
of the common people and of the poor. We must study their 
social conditions ; must attend their labor meetings ; must sup- 
port their movement for better wages» brighter homes, and 
every other needed and legitimate benefit of civilization. We 
must go forth from the sacristy and fling ourselves into the 
strife and struggle, the hopes and fears of the ordinary lot. 
And above alL must we be one with our countrymen in main- 
taining the government which they have established and love." 
It was an apostolic programme, and venerated be the names 
behind it! Birot, Denis, Lemire, Klein, Dabry, Quievreux, 
and a hundred others, who shall not be forgotten. 

There was, alas! a formidable number of others who asked 
not "How can we help these men?" but rather, "How can 
we discredit and defeat them ? " Since Leo's letter, and be- 
cause of it, the abbes democrates could not be censured outrighti 
as Cardinal Lavigerie was, for republicanism. But there could 
be used against them a deadlier accusation, in the face of 
which many greater men have in the course of history been 
dishonored and laid low. They could be accused of heresy, 
and accused they were. The cry " Unclean ! " was everywhere 
spread against them, especially in the columns of La Veriti 
and VAutorite, We must digress for a moment on the former 
of these journals. It was founded in 1893 by a number of 
men, who withdrew from the Univers because this celebrated 
Vatican organ had decided to give cordial support to Leo 
XIII.'s appeal for the Republic. Auguste Roussel was made 
editor of the sheet so inauspiciously started, and so ludicrously 
misnamed, and the ecclesiastic who said the Mass to invoke 
heaven's blessing on the new enterprise was a man destined 
for later notoriety, the Abb^ Charles Meignen. La Vetite was 
rigidly Catholic and papal whenever it could allege church 
censures against its opponents. But, by a contradiction not 
uncommon in history, it was notably anti-papal in cases where 
the Pope stood in the way of its own ideas. In 1895 Cardinal 
Rampolla wrote a severe letter to Roussel, to inform him that 
his paper was directly at issue with the Pope on the question 
of the Republic, and that it must change its tone and spirit 
if it wished to be considered a sincerely Catholic organ. 

Such was the chief source of the heresy charge against the 
priests who led the movement for ralliemenL They were dc- 



1905.] Some Causes of the French Crisis. 741 

nouaced as dangerous to faith because by their new apostolate 
of mingling with the .people, studying social problems, and 
busying themselves with matters of the temporal order, they 
implicitly maintained the supremacy of natural advantages over 
the supernatural graces of church and sacraments. Their self- 
initiative was attacked as disobedience to the bishops. Their 
modern progressiveness was censured as stark liberalism. 

Charges like these were whetted to the keenest edge by 
two celebrated events : the movement for priestly congresses 
and the agitation on Americanism. In 1896 a congress of 
priests was held at Rheims, and in 1900 another convened at 
Bourges. Hundreds of priests were present on each occasion ; 
and in the spirit of fraternal union which predominated over 
all other feelings, in the vigorous independence of the discus- 
sions which took place, and in the sturdy plea for modern 
methods which was voiced in nearly every speech, these gather- 
ings form, without doubt, the most hopeful indication of renas- 
cence and vitality that French Catholicity has displayed in 
fifty years. These apostolic men saw the needs of the time, 
and courageously went forth to meet them, caring little that 
they had to defy the traditions of men, and struggle against 
principalities and powers. 

But the omen was evil for the riactionnaires. So, as the 
whole world expected, a furious assault was delivered in the 
name of religion against the participants in the Congresses. 
The bishops were warned of dangerous democracy among their 
priests. The people were implored to watch out for the abbe 
dimocrate^ as though this phrase had the sinister meaning of 
''fallen priest." The seminaries were watched with zealous 
vigilance, lest the young clerics of the country should be in- 
fected with the poison of modernity. Then, to make confusion 
worse confounded, came Americanism. 

It was natural for the progressive priests of France to look 
for inspiration to the United States. Here they saw a priest- 
hood that was at the same time strictly Catholic and enthusi- 
astically in accord with our country and our age ; that was per- 
fectly obedient to episcopal authority, and still of sturdy 
independence and self-initiatwe ; that was faithful to every 
sacerdotal duty, and also glad to share in public movements for 
the general good; that finally was held by people outside the 
church in sincere respect, and regarded by the Catholic laity 

VOL. LXXX.— 48 



742 Some Causes of the French Crisis. [Mar., 

with cordial and sublime aiFection. And it was furthermore 
not remarkable that these energetic French priests should turn 
with admiration to the life and works of Father Hecker. He 
is a very prophet in the apostolate of this age. His robust 
democracy, his fearless zeal, his total submission to Catholic 
authority, and his profound spirit of interior prayer, make up 
the ideal preacher of the old faith to a modern and free people. 

When this example of the American priesthood was proclaimed, 
the hostile party brought the charge of heresy against Father 
Hecker. In the course of the agitation two books appeared which 
illustrate the hopeless irreconcilableness of the intransigeants^ 
show to what a depth of hatred for democracy and modern 
ideas, well-meaning men may sink. One is by the Abbe 
Charles Meignen, who invoked the Most High upon La Virite. 
This man had long been an opponent of Leo XHI.'s pro-Re- 
public encyclical; and in the columns of La Verite smA UAu- 
tofiti he had used as strong language as he dared against the 
Pope's directions. In the course of his propaganda he addressed 
to the Comte de Mun, the noble leader of the French Catholic 
laity, a letter so insulting that his bishop removed him from his 
chaplaincy. His book is called: Is Father Hecker a Saint t 
We have no intention of describing it. Suffice it to say that, 
for its intemperate fury against eminent and holy men, it was 
refused the Imprimatur of the Archbishop of Paris. One is 
saddened in reading it, not because its charges hurt its victims, 
but because so venemous a spirit could exist beneath the habit 
of a priest. 

The other book is venemous too, but the poisonous in it is 
so counteracted by the ludicrous, that we read it without hurt 
or pain, ft is called Americanism and the Anti Christian Con- 
spiracy, and was written by Canon Delassus, of Annecy. This 
marvelous work announces to the world the following burden 
of woe: In i860 a certain Jew founded a Universal Israelrtish 
Alliance for the destruction of Christianity. The chief agent 
in the accomplishment of this fell purpose was the Talmudic 
Messiah, Anti- Christ namely, which, however, was not a Person 
but an Idea ; and the Idea is democracy. Now as the Jews 
alone cannot bring about the triumph of this Anti- Christ, they 
must have secret confederates within the church itself. Voila ! 
the conclusion is plain. The Americanists, Hecker, Ireland, 
Paulists, and the French abbes dimocrates are all members, yea, 




igos-l Some Causes of the French Crisis. 743 

and high officers of the Alliance, Freemasons to boot ; and, 
before it is too late, we must loosen their fangs from the throat 
of Catholicity, stamp out their lives, and deliver them over to 
the demon their sire. 

The Abb^ Dabry remarks drily that this book is the work 
of a malade — a very sick man. We think so too, and will, 
therefore, leave further consideration of it to the pathologists 
of monomania. 

Thus the attack on Christian democracy was kept up, and 
it is clear that it was only a subtly disguised onslaught on the 
pontifical directions of Leo XIII. Those directions became 
every day more openly disregarded, and as a result, at the very 
moment when Catholics ought to have presented a united 
strength to their insolent enemy, they marched out upon: the 
field of conflict, not only in scandalous disarray, but with bay- 
onets at each other's breasts. 

And the same story of disastrous folly is to be told of the 
movement for a Catholic party. In the elections of 1898 the 
Meline ministry was before the country for reindorsement. 
M. Meline was a man hated by the radicals for his open hostility 
to religious persecution. He was conservative and strong, and 
as good a premier as Catholics, all things considered, could 
expect. He himself went into the campaign of 1898 confident 
of receiving a large share of the Catholic vote, and feeling 
certain of doubling his former majority of fifty. It was imper- 
atively the duty of Catholics to support him against the 
radicals, who were powerfully organized, and bent upon the 
complete discomfiture of religion if they gained control of the 
Chamber. Yet in the face of this terrible danger, La Croix 
started a fierce crusade to the end that Catholics should with- 
draw from all existing parties and stand alone — "Catholic 
Federation ! '' was the cry raised. It was a cruel blunder. For, 
of all forlorn hopes ever attempted, the election of a Catholic 
Chamber was the most utterly forlorn. In the first place the 
Federation preached by La Croix ^ had in its programme not 
a word on loyalty to the Republic. This alone foredoomed the 
movement to disgrace and death. And in the second place, 
it was an impossible time for a Catholic party in France. France 
as a nation is jealous of clericalism, and determined to keep it 
out of power. In consequence, the attempt at launching a dfs* 
tinctively Catholic party, in 1898, could result in nothing else 



744 Some Causes of the French Crisis, [Mar., 

than forfeiting the bright promise of better times with which 
that year began, exasperating anew prejudices which had fairly 
began to subside, and precipitating into final and hopeless rout 
the reverses which men had reason to think were about to end. 

Owing to this new exhibition of the politique du fettchisme, 
M. M^line was returned with a majority of only sixteen. No 
government could stand on so narrow a margin, and he soon 
vetired. We need only name his successors to show the extent 
of the disaster: Dupuy, Brisson, Waldeck-Rousseau, Combes. 

As was remarked in the beginning of this article, this 
sketch of the ruinous discord and irreparable folly of French 
Catholics, has no aim to criticize or censure. When a victim 
needs our support and sympathy, true charity does not stop 
to ask if he came to be reduced to helplessness by his own 
fault. It is the time now to give our suffering brethren the 
encouragement of good wishes and kind words at least, and 
to spare them any reminder of their mistakes. But it will not 
be amiss, we trust, to mention some of those mistakes, not to 
inflict pain on others^ but to give caution to ourselves. Ac* 
eordingly, in a concluding word, we venture to recall to Ameri- 
can Catholics the lesson which the French crisis contains for 
us. It seems to be this : that we must beware of separating 
ourselves into a class apart; that we must suppress every ten* 
dency which would result in binding us together into a griev- 
ance committee ; that^ we must assimilate the best spirit of 
America and be assimilated by it ; and that we retain the 
utmost personal independence which is consistent with our tra- 
ditional and noble instinct of obedience. French Catholics 
hive been brought to their present plight by distrusting 
democracy, and by remaining in their country somewhat as a 
foreign substance remains in the eye. They have been in the 
Republic as foreigners who refuse to become citizens. We 
shall avoid their misfortunes if we love democracy heart and 
soul, cherishing and practising the independence on which it 
rests ; and if secondly we defeat any purpose, which has 
already appeared or may appear, which would put us, as a 
body» outside the common interests of our country, and give 
ground for the reproach that we are of an alien spirit, of a 
temper more censorious than conciliating, and of a character 
in which whole-souled helpfulness is less conspicuous than in- 
temperate criticism or unwarranted pugnacity. 



1 90S.] On Being Cheeeful. 745 




ON BEING CHEERFUL 

BY THE REVEREND JOSEPH McSORLEY, C.S.P. 
'' Beof G»od Heart " (St. Matthew.) 

E live in a world of defects and limitations, 
where there is no character without a flaw, and 
no life without its tempering of pain. Only oh 
the farther side of the river of death can unal- 
loyed bliss be even hoped for; here, all is 
relative and imperfect; thorns hide amid the roses; bitter is 
mixed with sweet ; and, sooner or later, the coarse, seamy side 
of men and things chafes every one of us. 

To be cheerful means to make little of the hardships we 
encounter. The good-natured man looks on the brighter, sun- 
nier side of his surroundings ; he accentuates the pleasant and 
beautiful features of life ; he smoothes over the rough places in the 
road ; and, in a general way, the smiling aspect of things attracts 
him more strongly than their frown. Incorrigible optimist 
that he is, he fixes attention on the circumstances which give 
most joy and hope to the heart. In memory, as in speech, he 
keeps dwelling on the inspiring, encouraging elements of every 
situation, and on the amiable characteristics of every acquintance. 
In a life, his presence is a ray of sunshine ; as a friend, he is 
a man of men. 

Few people need to be told that cheeriness is a precious 
treasure; that the power to overlook or to smile away some 
of the distressing details of existence is a necessary condition 
of happiness ; that in each life much must be ignored, and in each 
personality much forgiven and forgotten. There are attendart 
circumstances sure to impair the harmony of every situation, if 
dwelt upon. Unless a mind is able to disengage itself from the 
consideration of these, it rapidly becomes morbid and unhealthy 
— like the mind of Swift, who is said to have developed so 
aggravated a cynicism that he could see nothing fair without at 
once adverting to its hidden elements of ugliness, and could 
look on no beautiful face without imagining the loathsome 



746 On Being Cheerful, [Mar., 

appearance it would present under the microscope. The ma* 
who is thus hypercritical and fault- finding soon becomes a 
object of dread to his acquintances. No matter how witty \ 
mind and interesting his conversation, we quickly learn to ft 
him ; we run away from the sound of his approaching footst 
We prefer the less sparkling, but more comfortable speed 
the simple good — the people from whom we part with a rene 
sense of trust in the innate worthiness and kindliness of ht 
nature, the people who inspire conversation that leaves a 
taste in the mouth. One type of this sort is described i: 
following quotation: 

'^ I alius did say,*' remarked Aunt- Mary, *' that He 
Wood had a real royal memory.'' 

Aunt Mary's niece looked up curiously. ** A royp 
ory ? " she repeated. " I don't believe I understand, l 
she ever forget anything ? " 

"That's jest the point," Aunt Mary responded pi 
'* I should say she forgets full as much as she remc ' 

mebbe more. That's part of what I call a royal ' . 

There's folks that don't forget anything ; the way : • . , 
the day everything went wrong, hasty judgments * 
repented as soon as they was made, words that p^^* 
before you knew your mouth was open — there's i 
don't ever forget one of them, nor let you, either, i 
of those memories in mind this minute ; I alius feel 
out the back door when I see it comin' in the gate. 

" But they ain't the only folks in the wot 
others that never seem to remember anything exec 
in people. I'll warrant there isn't a man or . 
Lockport so shiftless or good-for-nothing tba* 
wouldn't remember some good about them. V- 
freshen up when she comes round. I ain't e\ 
explained, but I have my theory. I believe it's 
alius thinks folks up instead of down, an' the\ 
sort of straighten up inside to meet it — that's m> 

The girl did not answer, but in her heart 
wonderful words, " Their sins and iniquities wi 



no more." 



What fitter name for such a gift than "a ro} 
They who possess this characteristic are the best 
in the world. And they are the most loving 



1905.] On Being Cheerful. 747 

world, too ; for as we cannot attract, neither can we be attracted 
to, those whose faults and weaknesses are set down by us with 
all precision. Only when we see through rose- colored glass 

can we truly be said to love; and, if we never view a soul 

• 

through this medium of fond illusion, the chances are that we 
do not belong to the class of those who are privileged to love. 
Vain is the intention to be fond and sympathetic, unless we can 
allow for frailties in a friend; and hopeless the attempt to 
develop perfection, if we faithfully record each fault of a pupil ; 
and futile the effort to revive a waning affection, except we 
find it in our power to forego otrr fancied right to reproach. 
No human heart can be won by harshness or scolded into 
tenderness. As in the old fabled contest between the wind and 
the sun, the buffeted traveler wraps himself tighter in his cloak 
as the blast grows stronger. The genial warmth of fault- for- 
getting love will always triumph over the drasti9 criticism of the 
fastidiousness hard to please; only in the presence of the 
loving look and the excusing word, do we consent to stand 
revealed in all our weakness, to humble ourselves, and to enter 
upon the way of amendment. No; he who desires to teach, 
or who hopes to be loved, must indeed have something of "a 
royal memory." Thus equipped, we shall find that people 
will gladly pardon us the oversights we are guilty of, when 
there is question of our neighbor's faults ; and that our success 
will in the long run be none the less for our having forgotten 
many of the weaknesses of men. 

The foregoing implies that the difference between the cynic 
and the optimist is in the main a difference of mental dispo- 
sitions. And so, of course, it is. A man's sourness is to be 
traced less often to his actual experiences than to the view he 
takes of life. Other women, in the position of " Mrs. Wiggs," 
would have been incorrigible grumblers, and their lives im- 
measurably less happy than hers. Our general view of the 
world and its worth, our estimate of the relative proportion of 
good and bad in men, our final sense of content or dissatisfac- 
tion with life, depends chiefly on our temperament, and on the 
habitual policy we voluntarily adopt. It is well for us to under- 
stand this, and to appreciate the large measure of subjectivity 
in our happiness and unhappiness. After all, pleasure and 
pain are necessarily relative and personal; in great measure, 
a thing is distressing or not, accordingly as we do or do not 



748 On Being Cheerful. [Mar., 

give in to the inclination so to regard it. What hurts the civi- 
lized man is smiled at by the savage ; what depresses the child 
of fortune, raised in the lap of luxury, has little influence on 
the self-made toiler, for whom the air has never been tempered, 
from whom no protecting shield has warded off rude criticism, 
and to whom, therefore, there has come a certain degree of 
indifference to ordinary blows of adversity. Again, a man's 
impressions depend much on the state in which he finds him- 
self at the moment of a given experience — on whether he is at 
ease, or in a condition of excitement and nervous tension. 
These elements all contribute to the forming of his judgment 
about the general pleasantness or unpleasantness of a situ- 
ation or a life; and beside all these, each one has still his 
purely personal fund of underlying emotional consciousness 
tending to flow over to this side or that, at the first impulse, 
and to intensify his sense of content or dissatisfaction. The 
temperament extends a sort of standing invitation to moods of 
a certain type ; and once the mood has come, it tends to diffuse 
itself, and to re enforce the strength of the sentiment which 
invited it. Thus we see how at bottom much of our misery 
may be, or rather actually is, an effect of organic sensitiveness, 
a matter of nervous and muscular tissue. Hypersensitiveness 
to pain is thus the source first of the disproportionate attention, 
then of the unduly strong impression, then of the tenacious 
imagination, and finally of the abiding general sense of misery 
and unhappiness, together with the accompanying amazement 
that our neighbor, who has been through similar experiences, 
is not as wretched as ourselves. 

Unless we exert ourselves to stem the tide, and drive our 
wills strongly in the .direction opposite to our natural bent, 
most of us will find that we are living at the mercy of a set 
of tendencies which drift us down toward an unhappy and 
sour view of life ; usually, we incline to lay overdue stress 
on unpleasant events, to paint in heavily the details which tell 
against a bright and cheerful general effect. 

First of all, it seems plain that what is evil and threatening 
attracts attention more imperatively and irresistibly than what 
is good. Possibly this is a wise provision of nature to secure 
the preservation of man in the lower stages of existence, where 
it is more important for him to overlook nothing harmful than 
to perceive all the good ; since in the one case a single instance 



I90S.] On Being Cheerful. 749 

of insensitiveness would spell destruction, whereas in the other 
there might remain many opportunities of retrieving the error. 
Whether or not we thus class the tendency among nature's 
protective illusions, certain it is that men's thoughts swing more 
readily toward the present evil than toward the present good. 
The breaking down of a single preacher is likely to impinge 
more sharply on the mind than many successful sermons ; the 
one hearer who makes his exit draws more attention than the 
contented thousand who remain ; the long series of correct con- 
structions attracts less notice than the first grammatical slip. 
This is the lesson we learn by observing others. When we 
introspect, the story is no different. Our own hurts and dan- 
gers, the affronts and the disappointments we experience, pene-^ 
trate deeper into our consciousness, and dwell more indelibly 
in our memories than the strokes of good fortune and the little 
courtesies which, in point of fact, are neither less frequent nor 
less significant. It is the old tale told again — evil springs from 
any defect whatsoever, malum ex quocumque defectu ; but good 
demands a situation without even a single flaw, integra causa. 

Now the same things which bespeak our attention thus suc- 
cessfully, also loom largest in consciousness, once that they 
have succeeded in entering in. On this account, they get a 
disproportionate value ; they keep cropping out in conversation ; 
and so they repeat and intensify the original impression. It 
is hard for us to rid our minds of them; meanwhile, the 
obscure little good is hiding away out of sight and out of mind 
as well. 

Take for instance, the impulse to turn thoughts and con- 
versation into the channels of criticism and fault-finding; is 
that not much more dominant in the average man than the 
interests of accuracy would dictate ? Look around and observe 
how what is noticed first, what is talked about most, what 
sticks fastest in the mind, is ordinarily something in the nature 
of an evil, a blunder, or a fault. Note the newspapers, which 
are at once the stimuli and the reflectors of the public mind. 
Does not a casual glance at the headlines of the least sensational 
of them at once flash a vision of crimes and disasters before 
the imagination ? Here and there we may, indeed, discover 
the record of an act of heroism, or the account of a life 

''Serene, and resolute, and still; and calm, and self-possessed." 



750 On Being Cheerful. [Mar., 

But who will pretend that, on the whole, the two elements — 
the good and the bad — ^are presented in anything like a fair 
proportion ? How many a hitherto happy family is unheard- 
of until the " interesting " moment when it ceases to be so, 
because one of its members has gone astray ! To devote equal 
attention to the good and the bad would, of course, not be 
journalism; it would not be giving men the news they want. 
So the press must serve up for our daily contemplation all the 
startling and ugly details of current history which it can ferret 
out; afid, for the most part, happy people may be let alone. 
The very fact that the public appetite demands pabulum of 
this sort proves that, antecedently, men's minds have a pre- 
dominant set toward the less cheerful aspect of things; and, 
undoubtedly, the nourishment they daily absorb helps along 
the prevalence of an untrue, because ill proportioned, view of 
life. 

Note again, how our ordinary daily behavior confirms the 
judgment given above. The absence of some trifling comfort 
to which a man has been accustomed, excites more distress 
than his luxuries cause joy; his ills and aches always speak 
louder to him than his escapes and his lucky windfalls. And 
as the evils impress him more forcibly, so too, they dwell 
longest in his memory, and echo strongest in his speech. All 
in all, then, it seems fair enough to say that the average man 
is accustomed to lay far less emphasis on his pleasant than on 
his unpleasant experiences. 

Thus far we have been concerned mainly with recalling 
that truer valuations would result from an effort to control, 
and in some measure to repress, the prevalence of impressions 
which naturally swarm into consciousness. There is this further 
consideration to be made, that the interests of action still more 
imperatively demand some such interference with the spontane- 
ous drift of things. And — to waive for the moment the issue 
whether or not such interference brings us nearer the truth — 
this much is undeniably certain, that if we allow our minds to 
be a free pasture for ill omens and for depressing thoughts, we 
shall be comparatively inactive and lifeless ; the edge will be 
taken off our interest in life; pessimism will wax strong 
in us. Darwin is a keen enough observer to be trusted, and a 
good enough authority to be quoted, when he points out that 
of all the emotions fear is notoriously the most apt to induce 



1905.] On Being Cheerful, 751 

trembling and helplessness, to numb activity, and to block the 
exercise of reason. The usual and obvious signs of fear imply 
organic derangement; and disturbing thoughts are the begin- 
ning of these signs. The amount of pleasure nullified by a 
sudden fright, or the great cost of restoring the system after- 
wards to a condition of equanimity, might be used as a 
standard for measuring these deleterious influences. In every- 
day affairs people practically recognize this deadening influence 
of cheerlessness ; and in consequence they carefully endeavor to 
ward off ideas which suggest the possibility of failure. They 
assume as a matter of course that discouragement implies de- 
pression, and that depression involves a diminution of power 
and a lessening of the chances of success. Conversely, they 
take it for granted that confidence is an element of victory. 
The athlete leads up gradually to his supreme test of strength 
by first undertaking the lesser tests where success is certain. 
Not only the physiological, but also the psychological predis- 
positions for a record-breaking feat are secured in this way; 
and if a candidate fails in his preparatory trial, the "coach" 
takes care that the real test is not attempted until confidence 
has been restored by a victory of some sort or other. As for 
public speakers and singers, it is proverbial how carefully their 
attention must be diverted from every depressing or ominous 
incident, when they are called upon for their best work. 

The reason for all this is obvious enough. Following the 
general law of mental representations, unpleasant images awaken 
corresponding emotional disturbances of a devitalizing kind ; 
the painful idea suggests and induces depression. Like every 
emotion, this depression in turn reacts upon and re-enforces 
the kindred mental images; it attracts into the field of con- 
sciousness the unpleasant thoughts which harmonize with 
gloomy moods; it repels whatever is hopeful or bright. Thus 
the general set of the mind is toward the prospect of failure, 
and disaster becomes a foregone conclusion. Once the mind 
has been thus depressed — and especially if in the first instance 
failure or misfortune has actually followed — the mind hence- 
forth finds it harder, or perhaps actually impossible, to expel 
gloomy ideas and to calm disturbance. There ensues an almost 
superstitious subjection to the sovereignty of the evil and hate- 
ful elements of life. It seems useless to strive ; and so one 
yields to the stress of circumstances, and becomes their verita- 



752 On Being Cheerful, [Mar., 

ble slave. Perhaps the invalid who is thus progressively los- 
ing strength may never attempt to walk again, unless there 
happens along a physician who will actually drive and bully 
him into making an effort to exercise muscles so atrophied 
from disuse that groans accompany their every movement. 

St. Paul tells us that "We are saved by hope''; and the 
spiritual teachers of the Catholic Church have always laid the 
strongest emphasis on the fact that cheerfulness makes for god- 
liness. St. Philip Neri and St. Francis de Sales, for instance, 
talk of the need of being merry and glad and cheerful, as if it 
were an undeniable and indispensable requisite of true Chris- 
tian perfection that a man should struggle against thoughts 
which tend to make him fearful and depressed. The church, 
it is true, preaches the virtue of fear, too; but every one 
acquainted with the type of sanctity she holds up for the 
imitation of her children, and with the standards by which her 
religious orders determine vocations, and with the principles 
her ministers make use of in the guidance of souls, and with 
St. Ignatius' famous rules for the discernment of spirits, will 
be ready to afHrm that Catholicism is as far away from the 
gloomy ideals of Calvinism as it is possible to be without fall- 
ing into exaggeration at the other extreme. The highest 
motive of all therefore, the pursuit of the supreme ideal of 
spiritual perfection, impels us to the cultivation of a cheerful 
temper. 

The common tendency to dwell upon depressing things is 
fortunately not dominant in every soul. We can find models 
for our imitation in the persons of those who rise above the 
reach of life's ills, little and great, and are always either ab- 
sorbing or giving out fragrance and music and sunshine. They 
know the secret which transforms evil into good, and pain into 
joy ; and on the great mass of their experiences they exercise 
an influence which makes discomforting things amusing and 
commonplaces delightful. Possessing as it were a great surplus 
store of cheerfulness, they can, by a sort of divine alchemy, 
plate dross with gold, and transform into a pleasure what to 
aftother would have been a matter of indifference, if not of 
suffering. To bear thankless burdens and undertake odious 
responsibilities, and suffer unjust reproaches, to serve the neg- 
lected and the impatient, to act as oil on the troubled waters, 
to be as a buffer when collisions are impending, and a break- 



1905.] ^ On Being Cheerful, 753 

water when the waves run high — these are not trials, but 
privileges to some people; or, at least, they are duties easily 
and gladly performed. An inconvenience or a slight is, for 
the most part, but an occasion for the exercise of ingenuity 
in discovering excuses and explanations. Apart from the new 
opportunities of spiritual growth and happiness which they 
enjoy, they have this other advantage, that their reaction 
against the common inclination to emphasize the ills of exist- 
ence, helps them to a more objective view than the average 
man ever attains. 

It is idle, of course, to spend time or energy in wishing 
that we had been gifted as these souls have been, but we may 
hops to profit so.newhat by the consideration of their example. 
They show what a determined will can do toward securing a 
happy disposition and perennial peace of mind. It is true that 
most cheerful men have been born so ; but equally true is it- 
that many have achieved cheerfulness. Not until a man real- 
izes this, does he possess a proper sense of the opportunities 
which are constantly gliding by. But when the awakening 
comes, then, at least, it is to be hoped, he M^ill be inspired 
with the firm determination to be more cheerful, more lova- 
ble, and more happy in the future than in the past ; for surely 
no one should permit his cheerfulness to be cut down without 
making a determined resistance. 

There is one point, more than all others, which needs to 
be impressed on those who, as yet, possess no power to smile 
away misfortune ; namely, their own ability to acquire this 
power and, by its exercise, to brighten very considerably their 
own and their neighbors' lives. It is not possible, at the 
present moment, to go into the whole question of the voli- 
tional development of character, but neither is it necessary ; 
for every one recognizes that persistent effort can do much to 
affect the habitual temper of the mind. A system voluntarily 
toned-up is, within certain limits, capable of throwing off the 
depressing influences to which, in a less buoyant mood, it 
would have offered an inviting entrance. To some extent, a 
resolute will can do by effort what a cheerful disposition effects 
spontaneously. Obviously this is the case, at least with our 
choice of topics of speech; we can avoid the unpleasant, the 
critical, the discouraging. It may require a little self-restraint, 
at first ; but we can succeed if we are willing to pay the 



754 On Being Cheerful. [Mar., 

really inconsiderable price. Then, too, we may do somethiog 
by means of inhibiting the outward expression of unpleasant 
emotions; for it is recognized generally by physiologists that 
an emotion is raised or lowered in intensity, accordingly as the 
physical manifestation of that emotion is forbidden or allowed. 
It is in this way that we often restrain our emotions of anger, 
jealousy, vanity, and fear. Menacing pain would goad the 
will to the conquest of an untimely exhibition by sunraioiung 
up a violent emotional wave calculated to counteract the first 
impulse ; and in some degree, the same office may be per- 
formed by a determined suppressive volition. 

The voluntary control of emotion by restraint of this last 
sort is, in a way, more direct than the control we exercise 
over emotion by means of our thoughts, yet, as it supposes 
the emotion to have already been aroused, it necessarily 
implies that the task is going to be more difficult ; for to quell 
a mutiny is harder than to prevent its outbreak. Preventive 
steps can be taken by the exercise of control over the con- 
tents of the mind. We can modify, alter, quicken, or retard 
the current of images and ideas continually flowing through 
consciousness ; thus we can foster or repress the thoughts 
apt to beget cheerlessness. In this regard, the power of the 
will over ideas is threefold : first, we can interfere with the 
natural association of thoughts, and by sheer force shunt the 
mind off on another line than that which it was following; 
that is to say, we can deliberately swim upstream, we can sail 
outside the channel, we can pursue the less trodden path ; 
again, we can voluntarily elect to form new associations of 
images, by linking ideas in such a way as shall serve the 
interests of cheerfulness, forming and reforming the connection 
until a groove has been made, a habit set up, and a new 
current created which will make for our elation as the old 
made for our depression; and finally, even though unpleasant 
images be forced into consciousness, we still have something to 
say about the amount of attention which shall be given them, 
and we can make the voluntary attention simply nil^ by con- 
centrating it, with all our power, upon some other object* 

It would be idle, of course, to pretend that ability of this 
sort is ready to every man's hand, or that it can be developed 
in a moment; the important point is that it can be developed, 
if we are earnestly resolved to acquire it. A strong determina- 



1 90S.] On Being Cheerful. 755 

tion and persistent effort will soon give us some power in 
such matters, no matter how rudimentary our faculty may at 
first appear to be. As to the means we should employ to 
carry out a course of self-development in cheerfulness, the 
question may be looked at from many points of view; we 
can get suggestions from the hygienic, the pedagogic, the 
ethical, and the religious fields. When all counsellors have 
had their say, it seems to remain clear that each of them 
attributes a good deal of efficacy to the exercise which the 
Catholic Church has for ages recommended and practiced 
under the name oi " meditation," namely, the methodical pre- 
sentation to the imagination and intellect of pictures and ideas 
calculated to awaken beneficent emotions, healthy affections, 
and good resolutions. Among the curious sights presented 
to us nowadays, is the vindication of many a good old 
Catholic practice by means of the new principles which, to 
so great an extent, have been supposed to discredit the 
Church. Meditation is one such practice ; and we find it 
recommended now by the representatives of modern psychology 
as a fine instrument for mental formation and character-build- 
ing.* Among the specific uses it may be put to, is the 
development of a spirit of cheerfulness; and when this is 
undertaken, we shall have at least one good result — men will 
be using their energy in the right direction and on an effica- 
cious means. Even though it be but the human side of 
the process which appeals to them, they will surely be in 
some way the better for it, and, therefore, necessarily nearer to 
the kingdom of God. 

* See for instance Lxi Meditasione, di G. Colozza. Naples, 1903. 



Richard Crashaw. [Mar., 



RICHARD CRASHAW." 

BY KATHERINE BR£GY. 

IARVELOUSis the fecundity of nature, producing 
an orchid upon the dry bark of a fallen tree, 
or the delicate edelweiss amid the snow-tipped 
peaks of the Alps; but history has like phe- 
nomena. One of them is the persistence of the 
Catholic note in English poetry, with all the "powers of the 
world " uniting to drown it. We can hardly imagine a less 
promising soil for things Catholic than England of the late 
sixteenth and middle seventeenth centuries — yet it is a fact that 
th: m>st intensely religious poets of both these eras were of che 
Old Faith. The latter part of Elizabeth's reign was so barren 
in devotional paetry that the palm goes quite unhesitatingly to 
the m irtyred Robert Southwell ; and his successor's claim, 
although on msie disputed ground, is equally assured. For 
Richard Crashaw, if possibly less of an apostle than Father 
Siithwell, WIS even more of a poet — so deeply and transcend- 
eatly a poet that, in his own field, he need fear comparison with 
no English writer before or since. Yet from what a strange 
and troublous background his picture stands out! On one side 
was the Established Church; recognized as so much the bul- 
wark of conservative English policies that Charles I. rose up, 
when about to receive the sacrament from Archbishop Usher, 
to declare publicly bis intention of maintaining "the true reformed 
Protestant religion as it stood in its beauty in the happy days 
of Queen Elizabeth." f On the other hand, Puritanism was at 
that time a tremendous force in national affairs. And naturally 
both sides had their representative poets; but real fervor and 
intensity of religjous feeling is almost as rare with Herbert or 
Cowley as with Milton. Yet the fire of sincerest devotional 
poetry did burn on, tended most lovingly by its gentle high- 
prtest; nor did the light and warmth fail to guide Crashaw 
back to its true altar source, the Catholic faith. 

• Peimi by Richard Craihavj. Ediled by A. R. Waller. Cambridge English Classics. 
New York: Macmillan Company. 1904. 

(Lingard's History af England. Vol. Vlll., chap. I. 



1905.] Richard Crashaw. 757 

Students of heredity may find some curious pros and cons 
in our poet's story. Uis father, William Crashaw, was a clergy- 
man and scholar of pronounced Puritan tendencies — very active 
in the production of '' Romish Forgeries and Falsifications/' and 
anti -Jesuit treatises in general. His imagination also ran into 
the fields of poetry ; his most interesting work (to us) being a 
'' Complaint or Dialogue betwixt the Soule and Body of a 
damned man. Supposed to be written by St. Bernard." These 
literary labors do not seem, however, to have brought much 
remuneration, for we find Queen Elizabeth once proposing the 
elder Crashaw for a Cambridge fellowship, having learned of 
his "povertie and yet otherwise good qualities."* Richard was 
born in London in the year 1612-13; and one of the pathetic 
incidents of his life is its almost entire lack of a mother's care 
and love. Just when she died is not known — nor, in fact, who 
she was; but as early as 1620 Archbishop Usher preached the 
funeral sermon over William Crashaw*s second wife — praising 
her, we are glad to read, for "her singularly motherly affection 
to the child of her predecessor." Of the subsequent life in this 
lonely Puritan home few details have come down; we know 
that Richard was educated at the Charterhouse on the nomina- 
tion of two noblemen, friends of his father ; and that the latter 
died in 1626. But for the most part his boyhood is a blank. 

It is at Cambridge University, where Crashaw entered in 
163 1, that the first clear light is thrown upon his life. The 
dreary loneliness of his youth was over at last; and here, in 
the more friendly High Church atmosphere, among friends and 
tutors alike congenial, our poet's nature blossomed out like a 
flower in the sunshine. 

The death of two fellow-students called from him a number 
of graceful laments, and he contributed several occasional poems 
in Latin to the University collections — a distinct witness to 
his already great talents. In 1634, probably his twenty-first 
or second year, the University press published anonymously 
his remarkable Epigrammatum Sacrorum Liber^ containing nearly 
two hundred Latin epigrams, including the oft quoted one on 
the miracle at Cana ; 



( ( 



Nympha pudica Deum vidit et erubuit.*' 

■ Dictionary of National Biography , " William Crashaw." 
VOL. LXXX. — 49 



758 Richard Crash aw. [Mar., 

It was probably in early youth, also, that he composed 
those charming ''Wishes to His (Supposed) Mistress": 

** Whoe'er she be, 
That not impossible she/' 
That shall command my heart and me " ; 

for the ascetic turn of our poet's mind soon excluded even the 
supposition of an earthly sweetheart. Richard Crashaw's 
whole life was a romance, but we shall search in vain for any 
recorded love story. 

In 1636 the young man passed to Peterhouse, and we must 
thank the anonymous editor of his first poenis for many valuable 
details of his life there. " He was excellent," we learn, " in five 
languages (besides his mother- tongue), viz.: Hebrew, Greek, 
Latin, Italian, Spanish, the two last whereof were his own 
acquisition." Among Crashaw's other accomplishments, /" as 
well pious as harmless" he mentions music, drawing, graving, 
etc. ; and last but not least, comments upon his " rare modera- 
tlon in diet." The poet's religious life during these years seems 
to have been almost monastic. Once again we turn to the 
editor's words : " In the temple of God, under his wing, he 
led his life in St. Mary's Church, near St. Peter's College ; 
there he lodged under TertuUian's roof of angels ; there he 
made his nest more gladly than David's swallow near the house 
of God ; where, like a primitive saint, he offered more prayers 
In the night than others usually offer in the day." There was 
very little of earth in this life at Peterhouse ; but his poems — 
many of them composed in the quiet chapel — show how much 
of heaven. Lines like these speak for themselves: 

' ' Each of us his lamb will bring, 
Each his pair of sylver doves ; 
Till burnt at last in fire of Thy fair eyes, 
Ourselves become our own best sacrifice." 

A subsequent editor* asserts that Crashaw "entered, but 
in what year is uncertain, on holy orders, and became an ardent 
and powerful preacher." Undoubtedly he did contemplate 
such a step, but there is no evidence that it was ever taken. 
The increasing sway of Puritanism in the English Church would 
naturally have repelled and unsettled him; moreover, about 
this time many causes were uniting to lead our poet to a more 

• Rev. George Gilfillan. 



1905.] Richard Crashaw, 759 

Catholic outlook. One of his associates at Peterhouse was the 
gentle Dr. Shelford, whose Five Pious and Learned Discourses 
bore a prefatory poem by Crashaw. Both of these souls pro- 
tested against the unlovpliness of Puritan worship, and the bit- 
terness of Puritan feeling; they were even so radical as to 
question whether considering the Pope as, Anti- Christ were an 
essential point of faith. " Whatever it be/' said our young poet, 

** I'm sure it is no point of Charitie." 

And he often used to ride over to Little Gidding, to com- 
mune with Nicholas Ferrar and his ascetic companions. This 
'' Protestant Nunnery " was a rock of offence to the Puritans, 
but Richard Crashaw, and the more devout Cambridge men, 
found it a very haven of inspiration. Ferrar's household made 
no pretence at being a religious order; it was merely a pious 
family-community of about thirty members ; but the pervading 
atmosphere was decidedly (although not avowedly) Catholic. 
'' If others knew what comfort God had ministered to them 
since their sequestration," Ferrar used to say, '- they might 
take the like course." * 

Meanwhile the mystic lines of St. Theresa, over which 
Crashaw poured in loving ecstasy, wer6 burning their way into 
his very soul. It would be hard indeed to overestimate the 
influence of this newly- canonized Spanish nun, upon his liter- 
ary and spiritual life as well ; for he seems to have paid her 
the devotion of a lover and a religious enthusiast. Strange 
and awesome are the ways by which a soul draws hear to the 
Source of Life; we count the visible milestones, but dare 
only guess at the mysteries of that inner guidance. So with 
Richard Crashaw; we may not too closely trace the gradual 
steps which led him further and further from his past, and on 
to the very gates of Peter's Stronghold. Once there, he 
paused, waiting doubtless for strength to proceed ; like Dante's 
Beatrice, he had ''attained to look upon the beginnings of 
peace " ; but its consummation was not yet I 

The cannons of the Civil War were destined to awake our 
dreamer; cruelly indeed, but kindly in .the end. Crashaw had 
woven the glory of his own visions about the Church of Eng- 
land; he was soon to see her quite stripped of all her beau- 
ties. A few days before Christmas, 1643, Manchester and his 

* Dictionary of National Biography, " Nicholas Ferrar." 



76o Richard Crashaw, [Mar., 

soldiers began their '' reform " of Cambridge, and the lovely 
chapel there was sacked and desecrated. One of the official 
reports describes with evident elation how the Puritans came 
to Peterhouse " with officers and soldiers/' and " pulled down 
two mighty great angells with wings, 4nd divers other angells, 
and the foure Evingelists, and Peter with his keyes, and divers 
superstitious letters in gold."* A few months later the parlia- 
mentary commissioners presented the Solemn League and 
Covenant to all fellows of that university ; Crashaw with four 
others refused to sign, and were formally ejected. The shock 
to a nature like our poet*s must have been terrific — the very 
ground seemed cut from beneath his feet. For twelve years 
Cambridge had been his home ; now its doors were closed to 
him forever. Worse still, he saw his church shaken like a 
very reed before the wind. The two following years of his 
life are veiled in much darkness. ' He is said to have resided 
for a while at Oxford University ; and later he must have 
been in London, where the first edition of his poems, Steps to 
the Temple ; With other Delights of the Muses ^ was published 
in 1646. But one event is quite certain — the morning star of 
his bitter night! Before leaving England, Richard Crashaw 
had been received into his soul's true home. Thenceforth be 
was a Catholic. 

This step was, of course, disastrous to his prospects in 
England. Even the admiring editor speaks of him as '' now 
dead to us*'; and some words of Prynne's, regarding Crashaw's 
'' sinful and notorious apostasy and revolt," show what a pass- 
ing over to " Popery " meant to the Puritans. So the young 
convert tried his fortunes for a while in Paris; and here, in 
1646, Abraham Cowley discovered him — in poverty, it seems, 
if not actually in want. There is something very touching in 
this reunion of the former college mates, both exiles now from 
their unhappy fatherland. Their intimacy was renewed, and 
from this time date Crashaw's modest little lines '' On Two 
Green Apricocks sent to Mr. Cowley." Very characteristic, 
too, is our poet's answer to his friend's verses on "Hope": 

'*Dear Hope,** he cried, **by thee 
We are not where we are nor what we be, 
But where and what we would be ! " 

* Grosart's Life and Poetry of Richard Crashaw. 



1905.] Richard Crashaw. 761 

Moreover Cowley — being officially connected with the suite 
of the exiled English queen, then also in Paris— was able to 
help his brother-poet quite influentially. Henrietta Maria 
received Crashaw with all graciousness, and when, a few years 
later, he determined to visit Rome, she gave him letters to 
several prominent people there. More than this she was no 
longer able to do. It is probable that most of Crashaw*s later 
poems — those of the Carmen Deo Nostro — were written in the 
French capital. They were entirely religious in character, and 
Crashaw himself prepared almost a dozen characteristic illus- 
trations for them; but the publication did not take place until 
1652. The dedication of this volume to the Countess of Den- 
bigh reveals a " friend and patron '' of our poet, whom we 
would gladly know better; but even Dr. Grosart has been 
able to discover little more than that she was probably Susan, 
the sister of Buckingham.* It is interesting to learn that this 
lady did eventually enter the Catholic Church, for in one of 
these poems, '' Against Irresolution in Matters of Religion," 
Crashaw very beautifully exhorts her to take that step which 
has cost him so much. 

About 1648 or 1649 Crashaw went to Italy; and, possibly 
through the influence of Maria Theresa, became private Secretary 
to Cardinal Palotta, the governor of Rome.f This '' good cardi- 
nal" evidently won — and merited — our poet's sincerest admira- 
tion ; but the official life was stormy and uncongenial. Dreamer, 
mystic that he was, Crashaw had little place amid the sin and 
noise and conflict of the world. In time, moreover, he dis- 
covered flagrant corruption in the governor's own suite, and 
fearlessly reported it to his Eminence. This expostulation seems 
to have been entirely just, but it drew down upon the young 
Englishman's head the whole wrath of the offending Italians; 
in fact, the feeling grew so bitter that Cardinal Palotta was 
obliged to And some other refuge for his protege. So Loreto, 
the scene of many a pious pilgrimage, was selected^ and Cra- 
shaw appointed sub-canon of the Basilica church there. 

This last scene in our dreamer's tragedy has been so pic- 
turesquely described by Edmund Gosse % that I cannot refrain 
from quoting his words: 

• Grosart's Eisay on Life and Poetry of Richard Crashaw. 

t These and other details in Dictionary of National Biography, " Richard Crashaw.'* 

i Seventeenth Century Studies. 



762 Richard Crashaw. [Mar., 

We can imagine with what feelings of rapture and content 
the world-worn poet crossed the Apennines and decended to 
the dry little town above the shores of the Adriatic. . . . 
As he ascended the last hill, and saw before him the mag- 
nificent basilica which Bramante had built as a shelter for the 
Holy House, he would feel that his feet were indeed upon the 
threshold of his rest. With what joy, with what a beating 
heart, he would long to see that very Santa Casa, the cottage 
built of brick, which angels lifted from Nazareth out of the 
black hands of the Saracen, and gently dropped among the 
nightingales in the forest of Loreto on that mystic night of 
the year 1294. There the humble Casa lay in the marble en- 
closure which Sansovino had made for it, and there, through 
the barbaric brickwork window in the Holy Chimney, he 
could see, in a trance ot wonder, the gilded head of Madonna's 
cedarn image that St. Luke the Evangelist had carved with 
his own hands. 

But a still greater rest was at hand. Making his journey 
from Rome, in the summer of 1650, the poet contracted a 
fever which quickly broke his constitution ; only a few weeks 
he lingered before the altar, then the church which was to have 
been his sanctuary, became his tomb. 

'' How well, blest swan, did fate contrive thy death ; 
And make thee render up thy tuneful breath 
In thy great mistress' arms, thou most divine 
And richest offering of Loreto's shrine ! " 

So sang his friend Abraham Cowley, feeling that peace had 
dawned at length for one who had sought it most earnestly, 
but whose earthly life had known very little. Born in earlier 
ages, it is easy to picture Crashaw going to martyrdom with 
a smile and a hymn of praise upon his lips ; or, in the quiet 
of a monastic cell, he might have worked lovingly upon those 
heavenly verses — a poetic Fra Angelico. But the thundering 
questions of Cromwell's day woke little echo in his nature. 
All about him men were demanding if king or parliament 
should rule England ; he cared little, providing the Counsels 
of Perfection ruled his own life ; and dreamed on while others 
fought. Crashaw was not, perhaps, a leadei of men ; but he 
was most indubitably a follower of God. And he could act as 



igos.] Richard Crashaw. 763 

well as dream when the crisis came — he could and did act with 
^uch an uncompromising fidelity to truth and his .own ideals, 
that the old world's Story is brighter for its record. 

In the literary estimate of Richard Crashaw it is generally 
the custom to mention George Herbert; a comparison which 
was begun by that editor of 1646, and has persisted ever 
since. Superficially it seems reasonable; their writings were 
almost contemporaneous ; they were said to be of the same 
''school"; both were sincerely religious; the very titles of 
" The Temple " and " Steps to the Temple," imply propinquity. 
But in truth, one might almost as well compare Jeremy Taylor 
with Ignatius Loyola ! In Herbert's work we have the piously 
beautiful fancies of a poetic English clergyman ; in Crashaw's, 
the burning dreams of a genius and a mystic. Speaking of 
this from a wholly literary standpoint, Dr. Grosart declares 
our poet's work '' of a diviner ' stuff,' and woven in a grander 
loom ; in sooth, infinitely deeper and finer in almost every 
element of true singing, as differenced from pious and gracious 
versifying."* But, of course, the stream was fed by tribu- 
taries. The influence of the Italian, Marino, is witnessed not 
only by Crashaw's translation of the " Sospetto d'Herode," 
but by his style in general ; in fact, this elaborate fancifulness 
of writing is noticeable in all the poets of the day. There is 
more than a touch of John Donne's subtlety in our poet also, 
but little of his ambiguity. As for Robert Southwell, I think 
we cannot doubt his influence on Crashaw, and his real con- 
geniality of temperament ; he is, perhaps, the only other Eng- 
lishman in whom we find this peculiar blending of '' conceit " 
with deep sincerity — of emotional tenderness with ascetic mys- 
ticism. But most potent of all were the writings of the great 
Spanish contemplative, St. Theresa. '' From thence," Crashaw 

declares, 

**I leam't to know that Love is eloquence,** 

And again : 

" Thus have I back again to thy bright name, 
(Pair flood of holy fires!) transfus*d the flame 
I took from reading thee.'* 

The Rev. Mr. GilfiUan was not the most illuminating of 
our poet's critics, but he was really happy in pointing out 

* " Memorial Introduction " to Grosart Edition of the poet. 



764 Richard Crashaw. [Mar., 

that 'Mn soaring imagination, in gorgeous language, in ecstasy 
of lyrical movement, Crashaw very much resembles Shelley, 
and may be called the Christian Shelley : 

** His raptures are 
All air and fire." • 

Yes; it is the air of the rose-garden, but the fire of the 
censer! In his religious poems Crashaw rises altogether above 
terrestrial limits, and bequeaths us half- intoxicating draughts 
of fiery, tender beauties. That famous " Hymn to the Name 
and Honor of the Admirable Sainte Teresa" thrills with 
unearthly loveliness. 

'^ Scarce has she blood enough to make 
A guilty sword blush for her sake ; 
Yet has she heart enough to prove 
How much less strong is Death than I^ove," 

• 

he writes, alluding to her childish desire for martrydom ; and 
later breaks into that wonderful outburst : 

**Thou art Love's victime ; and must dy 
A death more mysticall and high. 

His is the dart must make the death 
Whose stroke shall tast thy hallow'd breath; 
A dart thrice dip't in that rich flame 
Which writes thy Spouse's radiant name 

« 

Upon the roof of Heav'n, where ay 

It shines; and with a sovereign ray 

Beates bright upon the burning faces 

Of soules which, in that Name's sweet graces, 

Find everlasting smiles." 

There is no English poet, it seems to me — except possi- 
bly Rossetti at his best — at all comparable to Crashaw in the 
enchanting beauty of his religious emotion. And listen to the 
subtlety of lines like this: 

**Wake, in the name 
Of Him who never sleeps, all things that are, 
Or, what's the same, 
Are musicall." 

• Life and Poetry of Richard Crashaw. 



I90S.] Richard Crashaw. 765 

To be^ in Richard Crashaw's mind, was to be musical ; life 
was a hymn ! And, like St. Francis of Assisi, he included all 
creatures in this universal harmony, the little and weak as 

well as the great. 

*' Nor yields the noblest nest 
Of warbling seraphim to the eares of I^ve 
A choicer lesson than the joyfull breast 
Of a poor, panting turtle-dove," 

he tells us, in that glorious hymn **To the Name Above Every 
Name." 

Crashaw's secular poems are particularly interesting as a 
test of his poetic versatility. The brightest gem is probably 
" Musick's Duel," truly " fraught with a fury so harmonious " 
that it would make the reputation of any lyrist. But whether 
we consider the dainty loveliness of his "Wishes," the tender 
simplicity of that " Epitaph on a Newly Married Couple," 

"Peace, good reader, do not weep, 
Peace, the lovers are asleep," 

or the beauties of '' Love*s Horoscope," we are sure to find 
cause for the highest appreciation. If the title of '' poet's 
poet" had not become so hackneyed, it would be particularly 
applicable to this gentle and imaginative Catholic laureate ; it 
is much for one writer to have taken into his debt such dif- 
ferent men as Milton and Rossetti, Pope and Coleridge.* 

If it were necessary to characterize Crashaw's poetry by 
three words — happily we are not so limited — I think the 
points to dwell on would be his spirituality, his ingenuity, and 
his emotion. In at least the last two he has sometimes fallen 
into excess. This is very evident in poems like the " Weeper " 
— a production that has been much criticised, and sometimes 
ridiculed, even by our poet's admirers. But if Crashaw's meta- 
phors are occasionally strained, we must admit that they are 
beautiful. So also with his extreme sensibility ; it is rather 
un-English, and possibly distasteful at times to the colder 
English mind; but it is certainly not ''swooning" or "lan- 
guishing," as Mr. Gilfillan once complained. Crashaw's natilre 
was as sensitive to each passing emotion as the strings of a 
harp to the musician's touch; and when a note was once 
struck, it vibrated indefinitely. 

^DUtioftary of National Biography, ut supra. 



766 Richard Crash aw. [Mar., 

In fact, as being part of his own life and personality, 
Crashaw's poems have a place quite apart from their position 
in literary history. Strength and weakness there may have 
been, but strength predominated in both the man and his 
work. Our poet was rarely autobiographical, but the seal of 
his individuality is always stamped upon his verse. Its beauty 
is of a very rare and exquisite kind, but it is never glaring 
or insistent. In his own day Crashaw was often misunder- 
stood ; and even now it is possible for the unsympathetic to 
misunderstand the poetry he has left. It may sound pato- 
doxical to say that we must love him a little in order to 
appreciate him, but it is none the less true. And once known, 
he is quite unforgettable. However extravagant his. fancies, 
we may be sure they are the flashes of a mind rushed on by 
the whirlwind of a boundless imagination — never the mock- 
heroics of a mere rhetorician. For Richard Crashaw was 
sincere — tremendously sincere ! And when his verse soars up 
to heights celestial, among fragrant nests of seraphim and fair, 
adoring saints, his own soul breathes in the ecstasy. Can we 
not hear his voice ringing down the years, as he appeals with 
characteristic self-abnegation to his beloved Theresa? 

' * O ! thou undaunted daughter of desires. 
By all thy dowr of lights and fires ; 
By all the eagle in thee, all the dove; 
By all thy lives and deaths of love ; 
By thy larg draughts of intellectual day — 
And by thy thirsts of love, more larg than they ; 
By all thy brim-filPd bowles of fierce desire ; 
By thy last morning's draught of liquid fire ; 
By the full kingdome of that finall kisse 
That seiz'd thy parting soul, and seal'd thee His; 
By all the Heav'n thou hast in Him, 
(Pair sister of the seraphim); 
By all of Him we have in thee ; 
Leave nothing of myself in me ; 
Let me so read thy life, that I 
Unto all life of mine may dy.'* 

And once having heard could we, by any chance, confuse 
this voice with another's ? 



1905.] Dr. mcKim and the Fathers on Divorce. 767 




DR. McKIM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. 

BY THE REVEREND BERTRAND L. CONWAY, C.S.P. 

I. 

REMEMBER seeing in a comic paper some five 
years ago a cartoon entitled " The Confused 
Heathen." It pictured the poor, ignorant savage 
of mid-Africa bewildered at the contradictory 
Gospels preached to him by the missionaries of 
the various Protestant bodies. The artist possessed of that 
sense of humor which characterizes a person or an institution 
in a few words, that remain forever in the memory, thus sum- 
marized the message of the missionary of the Protestant Epis- 
copal Church : " My dear pagan, I will not disturb your 
religious convictions in the least." 

The Living Churchy of January 14, voiced the same opinion 
a fev^ weeks ago in the following story. Two Washington 
ladies were discussing one day the relative merits of their re- 
spective denominations. One of them, the daughter of a 
Methodist minister, who was fully alive to th€ " comprehen- 
sive" character of the High, Low, and Broad Church parties 
in the Episcopal Church, said : " My iather always said that 
if I got religion, I would have it in its mildest form. Of 
course, he meant I would be an Episcopalian." 

In Milwaukee Cathedral one evening, after a lecture to 
non- Catholics, I heard two Episcopalians — one High Church, 
the other Low Church — arguing with considerable warmth for 
and against such fundamental Christian doctrines as the Real 
Presence, the Mass, the priesthood, and the like, while later 
on a member of Mr. Lester's Broad Church congregation 
shocked all around her by questioning the divinity of Christ, 
the trinity, and the existence of a personal deity. 

No form of Protestantism so illustrates the spirit of com- 
promise, no form of Protestantism is so utterly at sea with 
regard to the teachings of Jesus Christ, as this English de- 
nomination, known among us as the Protestant Episcopal 



768 Dr. McKim and the Fathers on Divorce. [Mar., 

Church of America. And the pity of it is that many of its 
members, instead of deploring their lack of unity and authority, 
boast of it under the name of " comprehensiveness/' and " in- 
tellectual freedom." As if, forsooth, man were free to deny 
the fundamental principles or facts of Christianity ; or as if a 
true Gospel could embrace so many contradictory teachings. 

We were, therefore, rather astonished the other day * to 
find Dr. McKim, the late president of the Protestant Episcopal 
Convention in Boston, resent so earnestly the following words 
of Cardinal Gibbons some two months before : " The recent 
convention in Boston apparently made an endeavor to com- 
promise on the subject (of divorce)." f 

Dr. McKim declared that the result of the convention's 
action was not a compromise on the divorce question, but 
''the distinct reassertion of the right of an innocent party in 
a divorce for the cause of adultery to marry again." It is 
not at all necessary to enter into a detailed account of this 
convention. We have only to quote a Protestant Episcopalian 
writing in one of his church papers, ( who, according to the 
''comprehensive" spirit of his denomination, happens to agree 
with the cardinal. The communication is headed strangely 
enough: "The Compromise Canon of Marriage and Divorce." 
The writer says : 

"Now the new canon on marriage and divorce defines the 
lawful conditions under which a man or woman may be mar- 
ried, and yet expressly states that a priest (minister), without 
becoming thereby liable to censure or discipline, may lawfully 
refuse to give the marriage benediction to those who comply 
with the provisions of the canon. Surely this implies that the 
priest thus refusing to marry divorced people may have some 
legal or scriptural right to make such refusal, apart from his 
own personal ideas. Thus, by implication, the canon throws 
doubt on the validity of the very conditions it enacts, and to 
this extent defeats itself. Why should any canon of the 
church define conditions under which a layman may rightly 
demand the benediction of holy matrimony, and then expressly 
sanction the clergy in refusing the demand ? " No wonder this 
writer hopes that "the present irrational compromise may at 
the next convention be displaced by a canon more in harmony 

♦New York Sun of January 8, 1905. f Baltimore 5«», November 4, iQat- 

t The Living Church, November 26, 1904. 



1903.] Dr. MCKlM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. 769 

with the law of the church as expressed in the prayer book." 

In a word, if a Protestant Episcopalian clergyman deem 
that his church is inimical to Christ's Gospel in allowing adul- 
terous unions, he can satisfy his conscience by refusing to per- 
form the marriages of the innocent divorced party. '* How, in 
view of this/' said one of them to me the other day, " is a 
man to learn the teaching of Christ on this point, when his 
own church says plainly : / do not know what to teach,** 

The Catholic Church as a divine teacher and interpreter of 
Holy Scripture does not leave her children in doubt about a 
matter so vital to the welfare of the individual and society. 
Her doctrine is thus declared by the Council of Trent, Sess. 
xxiv. c. 7 : 

'* If any one asserts that the church errs or has erred when 
she teaches or has taught, according to the doctrine of the 
Gospel and of the Apostles, that the bond of matrimony can- 
not be dissolved because of the adultery of one of the two 
married people; and that neither of them, not even the inno- 
cent party who has not committed adultery, can marry again 
during the lifetime of the other; and that he who puts 
away his adulterous wife and marries another commits adul- 
tery, as well as the wife who leaves her husband because of 
his adultery; let him be anathema." 

' Dr. McKim, of course, will not acknowledge the authority 
of the Council of Trent, but he seems perfectly willing " to go 
back to the Gospel" for light on the subject. In this he is 
true to the Protestant principle of private interpretation. He 
believes that the words of Christ, " except it be for fornication " 
(Matt. V. 32; xix. 9), allow remarriage after divorce; but 
many ministers and bishops of his own church see in them only 
the right of separation from bed and board. With no supreme 
court possessing divine authority to decide, a Protestant must 
ever be uncertain about the Savior's meaning. 

We will reserve to another article the full discussion of 
these words in St. Matthew's Gospel, calling attention to the 
fact, however, that Dr. McKim says nothing of the clear pro- 
hibition of remarriage made by our Savior and St. Paul in 
Mark x. 2-12; Luke xvi. 18; Rom. vii. 2, 3; and I. Cor. 
vii. 10, II. 

It is our purpose, at present, to show that the Catholic in- 
terpretation is the interpretation of the first five centuries of 



770 Dr. McKim and the Fathers on Divorce. [Mar., 

Christianity ; and that the Fathers and ecclesiastical writers 
brought forward by Dr. McKim are not " in plain support " of 
the Protestant theory. 

We naturally expect that the first two writers, Hermas and 
St. Justin Martyr, who mention the subject would be ignored 
by the reverend controversialist, for they were good Catholics 
on the marriage question. The Pastor of Hermas was read 
publicly in the churches of the first three centuries, and, 
before the formation of the canon, was regarded by many as 
part of the inspired scriptures. In his second book,* Hermas 
has a special chapter on ''putting away one's wife for adul- 
tery." He says: ''And I said to him (i. ^. the shepherd, or 
angel of repentance) what, then, is the husband to do, if his 
wife continue in adultery? And he answered: Let the hus- 
band put her away, and remain by himself ; but if he has put 
his wife away; and married another, he also commits adultery." 

Justin Martyr, writing his apology from Flavia Neapolis, 
testifies to the same teaching in Syria. After quoting our 
Lord's words about the malice of lustful thoughts (Matt. v. 28), 
he quotes his words against divorce : " Whosoever shall marry 
her who is put away from her husband, committeth adultery" 
(Luke xvi. 18). Then he adds: "So that all who by human 
law commit bigamy, and those who look on a woman to lust 
after her, are sinners in our Master's sight."! 

But Dr. McKim attempts to bring forth a great army of early 
Fathers and writers to support the Protestant position. He says 
'' It is certain that utterances in plain support of the position that 
0uch marriage is lawful are to* be found in the writings of Ter- 
tcjUian, St. Ambrose, St. Chrysostom, Origen, Epiphanius, and 
St. Basil. Lactantius is emphatic in the same sense." 

Let us consider each of these writers in turn, and first of 
all Tertullian. We will quote first a passage from his Single 
Marriage^ which clearly prohibits remarriage after divorce. 
He writes: ''But these arguments may be thought forced and 
founded on conjectures, if there were no teaching of the Lord 
in regard to divorce, which, permitted formerly, he now pro- 
hibits, first, because 'from the beginning it was not so,' like 
plurality of marriage ; secondly, because ' what God had joined 
together, man shall not separate,' for fear, namely, that he go 
against the Lord. For he alone shall separate who has joined 

* Mand. IV. \ApoL I. xv. |Chap. ix. 



1905.] DR, MCKIM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. 77 1 

together, and he will separate, not through the harshness of 
divorce, which he censures and restrains, but through the debt 
of death. ... A divorced woman cannot marry legiti- 
mately ; and if she commit any such act without the name of 
marriage, does it not fall under the category of adultery ? " 

Dr. McKim endeavors to discredit this testimony, by re- 
minding us that this treatise was written after Tertullian had 
become a Montanist heretic. And yet just a moment before 
he himself had cited some disjointed passages from the treatise 
of Tertullian against Marcion.* Has the learned doctor for- 
gotten that Tertullian's treatise against Marciop was written 
after he became a Montanist heretic?! He is not the first 
Protestant who has fallen into the same error. We know that 
as a Montanist, Tertullian held that all second marriages were 
unlawful. If, then, we find him clearly forbidding remarriage 
after divorce in his Single Marriage^ is it not natural to .inter- 
pret the obscure passages in his Against Marcion in the same 
sense ? . . 

In the passage quoted, Tertullian says not a single word 
about remarriage after divorce. On the contrary, he quotes 
the clear words of Christ (Luke xvi. 18) against it, and declares 
that the Mosaic bill of divorce was contrary to the primitive 
law of marriage. His words can be interpreted as referring 
to divorce in the sense of separation from bed. and board, and 
in that case we can readily admit that Christ " permitted 
divorce (separation) when the marriage is spotted with unfaith- 
fulness"; or that "divorce (separation) when justly deserved 
ff. ^., for adultery) has even in Christ a defender." | 

We might mention in passing another writer of the close of 
the second century, Clement, the head of the famous catecheti- 
cal school of Alexandria. In his Miscellanies he writes : % " That 
the Scripture counsels marriage, and that it never permits the 
marriage to be dissolved^ is clearly contained in the law : * Thou 
shalt not put away thy wife, except for the cause of fornica- 
cation ' ; and it regards as adultery the marriage of either of 
the separated parties while the other is alive. . . . And he 
who marries the wife that is put away commits adultery." 
Here we not only have a clear statement of the Catholic doc- 

* Against Marcion. Book IV., chap. xxiv. f Ibid. Book I., chap. xxix. 

\ Against Marcion ^ IV. xxiv. Read To his Wife, I. vi, ; II. i. ; •• On Patience," chap. xii. 

$ Book II., chap, xxiii., " On Marriage." 



772 Dr. MCKIM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. [Mar., 

trine, but the Catholic interpretation of the parenthetical clause, 
''except for the cause of fornication," as in no way dissolving 
the marriage bond. 

Origen's commentary on St. Matthew is brought forward as 
affording clear proof that remarriage after divorce was con- 
sidered legitimate. But Dr. McKim carefully refrains from 
quoting the following words : * '' Certain bishops permitted a 
woman to marry while her husband was living, against the law 
of the Scriptures ; they acted in direct opposition to the Scrip- 
tures, which teach : ' A woman is bound as long as her hus- 
band liveth';.and again: 'Therefore she shall be called an 
adulteress if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another 
man.' " This unscriptural way of acting is, therefore, heartily 
condemned by Origen, who, a little further on, plainly stigma- 
tizes such marriages as adulterous. " For a woman is an adul- 
teress, even if she seem married to another man, while her for- 
mer husband is living ; so also the man, who seems to have mar- 
ried a divorced woman, must in the Lord's judgment be called 
not her husband, but an adulterer." 

No one disputes the witness of St. Cyprian, the martyr 
bishop of Carthage. In his treatise on the divine precepts to 
Quirinus he says, clearly quoting I. Cor. vii. lo, ii, ''that 
a wife must not depart from her husband; or if she should 
depart, she must remain unmarried.f 

The Council of Aries convened by Constantine has been 
very properly considered a general synod of the West, for 
bishops were present from Italy, Sicily, Africa, Gaul, and 
Britain. t We will quote the tenth canon, which has been so 
frequently brought forward in the present controversy. 

"Concerning those baptized Christians, who are also young 
men, and are forbidden to marry, who detect their wives in 
adultery, it is decreed, that counsel as strong as possible be 
given them, that, so long as their wives live, although in 
adultery, they are not to marry others." 

Here is Dr. McKim's comment: "Now as to the clause 
' who are forbidden to marry,' this certainly does not refer to 
the action of the Council. Tue Council could forbid or advise. 
It could not do both in the same breath. In fact, it advised 
against remarriage. Petavius, though a defender of the Tri- 

♦ Origen., Tract VII, in Matt, xix, t Test, ad Quirimum. Lih. III. n x c. 

lAIzog. Ch, Hist,, Vol. I. p. 514. 



1905.] Dr. MCKIM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. 773 

dentine decrees, believed that the true reading was : ' Are not 
forbidden to marry.' However that may be, it is well said by 
Bishop Christopher Wordsworth : ' What ancient Christian 
synod would ever have prescribed dissuasion of sin ? What 
council could ever advise any man to abstain from killing, or 
stealing, or from the remarriage in question, if this were gen- 
erally held to be equivalent to adultery?'" 

We willingly grant Dr. McKim that the clause "who are 
forbidden to marry" does not refer to the action of Aries, 
but to an existing law of Christ's church. These words are 
never given their full value, by the defenders of remarriage 
after divorce, and yet they are most important as telling us of 
the law forbidding remarriage spoken of above by St. Cyprian, 
Origen, Tertullian, Justin, and Hermas. Petavius, as Dr. McKim 
points out, was the one logical man who saw this difficulty, but 
by what rule of textual criticism is a man allowed to add or 
subtract words at pleasure. There is no evidence in any 
manuscript whatsoever to justify Petavius in his arbitrary pro- 
cedure. 

How then must we understand the canon? There was a 
pre- existing law forbidding marriage that the bishops at Aries 
well knew. Certain young men, obliged to separate from their 
wives because of their infidelity, were pleading that an excep- 
tion be made in their case, because of their youth. Instead 
of granting their petition to go counter to the Gospel of Christ, 
the council reiterates the law, and then urges the bishops and 
priests of the time to carry it out. The very titles of the 
canon which are found in all the ancient manuscripts bear 
witness to its meaning: "That he whose wife has committed 
adultery, may not remarry during her lifetime." • 

As for Bishop Wordsworth's argument, it is simply puerile; 
it would apply equally to the words of St. Paul to Titus, 
"Young men, in like manner, exhort that they be sober." f 
No one would dream of arguing that because the Apostle did 
not use the word command instead of exhort^ that therefore 
young men were at perfect liberty to become intoxicated. 

Although some defend Lactantius, t we are willing to 
grant him to the other side, <§ but he has never been looked 

•Perrone, Mat, Christ., Vol. III. p. 286. f Chap. ii. 6. % Perronc, ibid., 277-279. 

^Div. Inst, Lib, VI,, chap, xxiii. ; Epit. div, inst., chap. Ixvi. 

VOL. LXXX.^50 



774 DR^ McKim and the Fathers on Divorce. [Mar., 

upon as a Father of the Church, or of much authority.* 
Besides, as the tutor of Constantine's son, Crispus, he may 
well have fallen in with the court views of the day, and have 
accepted the Roman law of divorce. 

St. Basil's witness is absolutely against remarriage. He 
writes: "A man who has put away his wife is not allowed 
to marry another; nor is it lawful for the woman who is put 
away to remarry." f The text cited by Dr. McKim to the 
contrary is as follows : 

"Wherefore, she that forsaketh (her husband) is an aduU 
teress, if she have gone to another man; but the abandoned 
husband is worthy of pardon, and she who lives with him is 
not condemned. But if the husband, who has left his wife, 
has gone to another woman, he himself is an adulterer, 
because he makes her commit adultery, and she who lives 
with him is an adulteress, because she attracted to herself the 
husband of another." | 

This whole passage is rather obscure, but a little study will 
make it clear. Some have supposed that he is discussing the 
question often put in the early church, whether a man or a 
woman becomes guilty of adultery by continuing to live with 
an adulterous consort Unlike the second century writer^ 
Hermas, St. Basil answers ia the negative. The text quoted 
above supposes that the wife has separated from her adulterous 
husband; but if she marry another man, St Basil terms her 
clearly an adulteress; if, however, she forgive her adulterous 
husband and be reconciled to him, she ought not be con- 
demned as an adulteress, if she cohabit with him.|| 

Others have explained his words as having reference to the 
civil law of the time, which permitted divorce, and declare 
that he is not speaking of the church law on the question. 
According to all the laws of textual criticism, ought not an 
obscure text be interpreted in the light of a clear one ? 

St Ambrose is another Father wrongfully accused of allow- 
ing remarriage after divorce, although we notice that the 
learned doctor does not quote any particular passage. 

* Jerome, Epis. Ivii., Ad Paulinum. \Re^. Ixxiii. |Ep. i. Can. Ad AmpkUockium 

$ Pastor Hermas. Lib. II. Mand. IV.: " If a man shall have a wife that is faithful in the 
Lord, and shall catch her in adultery, doth a man sin that continues to live with her? . • . 
He shall become guilty of her sin, and partake in her adultery." 

II Amort. Dem. Critica. rel. Cath. Part I. qu. xv. p. 86 seq. 



1905.] DR. MCKIM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. 775 

Listen then to his commentary on the words of our Lord 
(Luke xvi. 18): 

/' Do not put away your wife, lest you deny that God is 
the author of your marriage bond. For if you ought to put 
up with and conceal the conduct of strangers, much more that 
of your wife. Hear what the Lord has said : ' He who putt^th 
away his wife, causeth her to commit adultery.' For the de- 
sire to sin may find its way into one who may not marry 
again while her husband is alive. . • . Suppose that after 
being divorced she does not marry. Ought she then to lose 
your favor for remaining constant to you, an adulterer ? Sup- 
pose she does marry. The crime to which necessity urged 
her is owing to you, and what you regard as marriage is noth- 
ing but adultery." • 

Again : " If you are married, do not try to break the 
marriage bond; for it is not lawful for you to marry, while 
your wife is living. For to seek another wife when you have 
your own, is the crime of adultery." f 

Dr. McKim, however, may refer to a commentary on the 
first Epistle to the Corinthians, which in the Middle Ages 
used to be attributed to St. Ambrose, although modern 
scholars assign it to Hilary the Deacon (Ambroslafiter). The 
words in question are : " because a man may marry, if he has 
put away a sinning wife; because the husband is not bound 
by the law (1. e., civil Roman law) as the wife is ; for the 
man is the head of the woman." 

We know that our Savior applied the law of separation 
to men and women alike, as St. Basil says in his letter to 
Amphilochius cited above. But the Roman civil law did not, | 
as we know from the edict of Constantine on divorce in 
331 A. D. If we understand, therefore, that Hilary is speak- 
ing of the civil law, the present text presents no difficulty. 

The only passage in the many writings of St. Epiphanius 
that is quoted as approving remarriage after divorce is the 
following : 

'' But he who is not content with one wife after she has 
died, when she has effected a separation because of fornication, 
adultery, or other crime, if he marry another time, or if the 
woman marry another man, the Sacred Scriptures do not hold 

•In Luc, Lib. VIII. i De Abraham, Lib. I. Cap. vii. 

tPcrrone, Mat. Chtist., Vol. III., p. 304. 



776 Dr. MCKIM AND THE FATHERS ON DIVORCE. [Mar., 

them guilty of crime ; nor declare them outcasts from the 
church or life eternal, but bears with them because of their 
weakness. Not^ however^ that he. lias two wives at once — the 
first still surviving^ but that separated from the one, he may, 
if he choose, lawfully marry the other. Wherefore the Scrip- 
tures and the Church of God have mercy upon such a man ; 
especially if he be devout in all things else, and his life be in 
accord with the law of God."* 

To understand this difficult text, we must remember that 
St. Epiphanius, the great apologist bishop of Constantia, in 
Cyprus (a. d. 367), was writing against the Novatians, who 
refused to receive back the lapsed to penance, and who also 
denied the validity of second marriage, contracted after the 
death of either husband or wife. 

Both these errors are combated by St. Epiphanius, who while 
asserting that deacons and priests are not allowed to marry a 
second time, declares that the laity " because of their weak- 
ness" are to be allowed that privilege, even if one of the 
married parties had committed adultery or any other crime. 
We can understand this last phrase more easily, if we know 
that the penitential discipline of the Westf excommunicated 
all penitents who presumed to remarry on the death of their 
first husband. All his words, therefore, refer to the one case 
mentioned at the outset, separation by deaths and to the law- 
fulness of second marriages even for sinners undergoing 
canonical penance. 

The words therefore " when she has effected a separation " 
refer to the separation made prior to her death on account of 
her husband's adultery ; and the words " but that separated 
from the one he may lawfully marry," means separated by 
deaths for he clearly says in the preceding clause : Not, how- 
ever, that he has two wives at once, the first still surviving.'* 

Two passages of St. Chrysostom are brought forward by 
Dr. McKim. The first is from his XVII. Homily on St. Mat- 
thew. The learned doctor takes good care not to quote the 
words which precede his excerpt, although he might have 
known that other Episcopalian scholars quote them as ex- 
pressive of absolute condemnation of the remarriage of the 
divorced. Commenting on the Savior's words, " He that 
putteth away his wife causeth her to commit adultery, and he 

* Haer. lix. \ Council of Aries. Can. 21. 



1905] Dr. McKim and the Fathers on Divorce. 777 

that marrieth a divorced woman committeth adultery/' St. 
Chrysostom says: "The former, though he take not another 
wife, by that act alone hath made himself liable to blame, 
having made the first an adulteress; the latter again is be- 
come an adulterer by taking her who is another's. For 
tell me not this 'the other hath cast her out'; nay, for 
when cast out she continues to be the wife of him that 
expelled her. Then lest he should render the wife more 
self-willed, by throwing it all upon him that cast her out, he 
hath shut against her also the doors of him who was after- 
wards receiving her. . . . For she who hath been made 
aware that she positively must either keep her husband, who 
was originally allotted to her, or being cast out of that house,* 
not have any other refuge — she, even against her will, was. 
compelled to make the best of her consort." 

The words cited by Dr. McKim, '* but in another way also 
he hath lightened the enactment; for as much as even for him 
he leaves one manner of dismissal, when he saith: except it be 
for fornication " can, when read with the preceding, be readily 
understood' as allowing separation for the cause of adultery, 
but do not at all imply the right of remarriage. The Catho- 
lic doctrine could not be expressed more clearly or forcibly. 

With regard to the words of Homily XIX in the first Epis- 
tle to the Corinthians, " after the act of infidelity, the husband 
is no longer a husband," St. Chrysostom shows clearly that he 
did not mean, as Dr. McKim insinuates, that the marriage bond 
is broken by adultery, for in the preceding paragraph, which 
the learned doctor conveniently omits, he had advised that if 
there be any separation at all, it should be only a toro. " It 
were better that such things not be at all, but if they should 
take place, let the wife remain with her husband without co- 
habiting with him, so as not to introduce any other to be her 
husband,*** 

No one of the Fathers wrote more fully on the subject of 
marriage and divorce than St. Augustine, and his witness is 
overwhelming in favor of the indissolubility of the marriage 
bond. I will quote a few passages : '' It is not lawful for you 
to have wives whose former husbands are alive, nor may you 

* For St. Jerome's clear testimony, read 'Ex>\s.\\x\\\., Ad Oceanvm ; and Comm. in S. 
Matt. x!x. 9, iv. 87. 



778 Dr. McKim and the Fathers on Divorce. [Mar, 

women have husbands whose former wives are alive. Such 
unions are adulterous, not by the law of a human court, but 
by the divine law. Neither may you marry a woman who has 
been divorced from her husband, whilst he is alive. For forni- 
cation alone may you put away a wife, and while she lives it 
is not lawful for you to marry another."* 

Again : '' Wedlock, once contracted in the city of our God, 
where also, from the first union of two human beings, marriage 
creates a sort of sacrament, cannot possibly be dissolved, save 
through the death of one of them."t 

Again: "No woman can begin to be the wife of a second 
husband unless she has ceased to be that of the first; but she 
ceases to be the wife of the first if he be dead, not if she 

commit adultery." t 

As for the passage in the De Fide et Operibus, betokening 
doubt on the question in later life, it seems that Dr. McKim 
does not know that this work was written in 413 A. D., whereas 
the De Conjugiis AdulteriniSy which defends the Catholic doc- 
trine at great length against Pollentius, was not written until 

419 A. D. 

To conclude, therefore, we may state the Fathers are morally 
unanimous on the absolute indissolubility of Christian mar- 
riage, and that the passages quoted in favor of divorce are 
either repetitions of our Savior's words, and therefore capable 
of the same interpretation, or may be understood to refer to 
separation rather than divorce. 

After citing the Fathers, Dr. McKim says : " Some writers 
(Pusey, Bingham, Cranmer) also affirm that the Apostolic Con- 
stitutions (III. i), plainly allowed the right of remarriage, and 
Pope Gregory III. (a. d. 731-741) and Pope Zacharias (a. d. 
741-752) allowed remarriage to* the innocent." 

Whether or not the Apostolic Constitutions "plainly allow 
the right to remarry" we allow the reader to judge for him- 
self. The words are : " But if any younger woman, who has 
lived but a while with her husband, and has lost him by 
death or some other occasion, and remains by herself^ having the 
gift of widowhood, she will be found to be blessed," etc. 

We beg to remind Dr. McKim that the letter to St. Boniface, 

• Serm. \cjii. Ad Conjugatos, t De Baru CpnJMgaU^ vi. 556. 

X De Cenjugiis Adulterinis, vi. 686. 



1905.] Dr. McKjm and the Fathers on Divorce, 779 

the Apostle of the Germans, was written in 726 a. d., and as 
Pope Gregory III. did not become pope till 731, we must 
needs attribute the letter in question to Gregory 11. The case 
proposed was simply one of impotency^ and the pope declared 
the marriage for that reason null and void. '' Quod proposuisti, 
quod si mnlier iniirmttate correpta non valuerit debitum viro 
reddere, quid ejus faciat jugalis? Bonum esset, si sic per- 
maneret, ut abstinentix vacaret. Sed quia hoc magnorum est, 
ille qui se non poterit continere, nubat magis." 

The authenticity of the decree attributed to Pope Zachary 
has been denied by many scholars,* for it distinctly contradicts 
his teaching elsewhere. In a letter written to the bishops of 
France, he quotes the following from the Apostolical Canons, 
a document of the third or fourth century. It says: ''If a 
layman should put away his own wife and take another, or one 
divorced by another man, let him be excommunicated." f 

Next month, we hope to take up the other objections put 
forth by Dr. McKim in his two communications to the New 
York Sun, and discuss at some length the meaning of the 
obscure texts of St. Matthew's Gospel.} 

* Perrone, Mat^^Ckrist,, Vol. III. p. 364, t Canon xlviii. 

tMatt. XV. 32; xix. 9. 



78o A Catholic AND the Bible, [Mar., 



A CATHOLIC AND THE BIBLE. 

II. 

BY THE REVEREND JAMES J. FOX, D.D. 



University, 



November 19, 1904. 
My DEAR Reverend Father : 

Your letter, for which I thank you heartily, has been a 
genuine boon to me. . . . Our circle here takes a deep 
interest in the subject. Some will not accept your proof that 
the church herself never taught anything about the age of man 
as sufficient to exempt her from condemnation. Professor 

M says that Catholics may, perhaps, get out of one 

tight place by creeping through this loop-hole in the case of 
chronology; but they are no better off; for the church, from 
Galileo's time, has committed herself, all along the line, to the 
veracity of the Bible as science and history, and, in conse- 
quence, has fought and persecuted, as far as her waning 
powers allowed, every scientist and critic who demonstrated 
the absurdity of both the science and the history. 

He spoke of Sir George Mivart, whom he knew personally. 
Mivart, he says, was excommunicated because he refused to 
make an act of faith in the fables of Genesis. He has a col- 
lection of letters and articles that appeared at the time. I en- 
close a list which he gave me of sets of passages in the Bible 
which flatly contradict each other. It is, perhaps, unfair to 
make such heavy drafts on your time. I trust that the assur- 
ance I can give you of good to come from your kindness will 
be, in your eyes, ample recompense. 

Believe me, Reverend dear Father, 

Very gratefully yours, 

X. X. 

My dear Sir: 

It is pleasant to receive the assurance that my previous 
letter has been of service to you, and has caused your non- 
Catholic friends to return a verdict of not guilty in favor of 



1905.] A Catholic and the Bible. 781 

the church, charged with teaching error regarding the age of 
mankind. Let us now see whether, from the teaching of the 
church concerning the authority of the Bible, there results for 
Catholics the obligation of accepting as true spurious science 
and false history. 

If instead of saying that the Catholic Church, your friend 

Professor M had said that a long line of eminent official 

and non official theologians committed themselves to the view 
that all the science and all the history to be found in the 
Bible must be accepted as in exact correspondence with fact 
and reality, the task of refuting him would be a much more 
difficult one than that which you have proposed to me. If, 
however, modern knowledge has led our present day scholars 
to modify, very considerably, traditional principles of biblical 
interpretation, what becomes of the charge that Catholics shut 
their eyes to scientific progress? While maintaining as reso- 
lutely as did any of their predecessors everything contained 
and implied in authoritative Catholic doctrine concerning 
revelation and inspiration, th^ new school of Lagrange, Prat, 
Schanz^ and many other leading scripturists, has abandoned a 
great deal of outlying and adjacent ground that was formerly 
supposed to lie within the sacred precincts of faith. Why 
they have inaugurated this departure, or whether they are 
right in doing so, is no concern of you or me just now. You 
want to know, and I propose to inform you,, of the attitude of 
accredited Catholic scholars towards the biblical problem as it 
has developed in recent years. 

The mass of arguments advanced against the inerrancy of 
.the Old Testament may be divided roughly into two classes; 
those which deal with the scientific, and those deduced from 
the historical parts. The latter, again, may be subdivided into 
those questions that relate to the Mosaic books, and those 
that arise from the latter, or, as it is called by critics, the 
official Hebrew history. 

The first point to be observed with regard to the leaders 
of the new school is that they jealously safeguard the dogmatic 
teaching of the Councils of Trent and the Vatican, and "hold 
to the form of sound words" found in the encyclical Provi- 
dentissimus of Pope Leo XIII. Their leading principle of 
interpretation is* that divine inspiration guarantees everything 

• La Bible et I'Hutotre, pp. 19-20. 



782 A Catholic and the Bible. [Mar., 

that is categorically affirmed and taught by the sacred writers; 
and that to judge rightly how far the writer's guarantee and 
responsibility extend, it is necessary to consider carefully what 
kind of literary form he employs to convey his teaching. Now 
in the Bible many literary forms, differing widely in character, 
are to be found — fable, parable, poetry, edifying history, 
ancient history, tribal or family tradition, strict history, etc 
Each of these forms has its own standard of truth, and is to 
be judged only by the one proper to itself. We do not, as 
Father Prat says, expect the same accuracy, for example, in a 
poetic work as we demand from a scientific treatise. And 
here comes the crucial question: Does the Bible profess to 
teach science? Father Prat's reply is less diffuse than Father 
Lagrange's; so we may let him answer: "No inspired work is 
a book of science. Not but that the Bible may. and actually 
does, contain affirmations in the scientific order; but the 
Scriptures could not be, ex professo and primarily, a manual of 
physics or geology, without ceasing to be, ex professo and 
primarily, a reUgious, or inspired, work."* The Bible, then, is 
not written in the scientific form. Hence as the poet or the 
popular writer, in describing physical facts, may with pro- 
priety use language that in a strictly scientific book would be 
falise, so may the Bible. **As its object and raisontVetre is 
not science, it may employ the usual language, with no pre^ 
tension to scientific exactness, describe a phenomenon^ jnst as 
it appears to the senses, whatever may be its real nature, and 
thu4 preserve, through the ages, despite the incessant progress 
of knowledge, some immutable truth." The biological classifi- 
cations found in the Bible have, since the days of Voltaire, 
furnished sneering infidelity with stones to throw at Moses, in 
whose defense orthodox commentators have displayed a 
wonderful, but frequently unsuccessful, ingenuity. The better 
way is staked out in the following passage : f " Since he does 
not pretend to write a scientific book, an author, even though 
he is inspired, may class the cetacea and the Crustacea among 
the fishes, call the planets stars, put the bats among the birds, 
monkeys among the bipeds or the quadrupeds, hares and rab- 
bits among the ruminants, to the great scandal of naturalists. 
These are mere popular ways of speaking, and, except in 
scientific writings, are not errors. They are warranted by 

• p. 20. f lb. 



k 



1905] A Catholic and the Bible, 783 

everyday language. The mere fact that we use them does 
not make us sureties for their accuracy." This argument is 
very reasonable. When our daily newspaper tells us the hour 
at which the sun rises and sets on the current day, we scarcely 
fancy that the editor needs a lesson on the text, e pur si muove. 
Let us turn to Father Lagrange, in whose pages the doc- 
trine stands forth with ample clearness through the penumbra 
that prudence has cast around it* " It is impossible/' he 
writes, ''that God should teach error; hence it is impossible, 
not that the Bible, in which all sorts of people speak in turn, 
should contain error, but that an intelligent examination should 
result in the conclusion that God has taught error." Again 
he observes that everything the sacred authors teach God 
teaches, and it is therefore true.f "But," he adds, "what do 
they teach? Everything that they affirm categorically. Now, 
it has been long ago stated that the Bible is not a collection 
of categoric assertions. There is a literary form in which abso- 
lutely nothing is asserted as to the truth of the facts; they 
are merely used to convey a moral lesson, as in the parables." 
Interpret, then, each kind of writing according to the standard 
of truth proper to it, and the difficulties raised against the 
veracity of the Bible disappear. If a story is used merely as 
vehicle for a moral or religious instruction, then, provided that 
instruction is truly moral or religious — and in the Bible the reli- 
gious and moral element is always true — the author's veracity 
is unimpeachable. In illustration of his principle, Father La- 
grange cites a passage from the pen of his confrere. Father 
Lacome, which had the high approbation of the still more dis- 
tinguished Dominican, the famous Monsabre, a conservative of 
the conservatives:} " To its prophets exclusively this little peo- 
ple (Israel) was beholden for its elevation above all others. 
Through them its idea of God was soon purged of all error. 
But, with the exception of this concept, it was not the prophet's 
affair to meddle with the ideas of his people, and he did not ; 
he took them as he found them, inconsistent as the ideas of a 
child, false pictures of the real, notions fatally incomplete, as 
will always be human conceptions. The Spirit of God, how- 
ever, moved over the surface of our illusions, never adopting 
the errors so as to make them his own. He rested on them, 
or rather glided across them, as the sunbeam across a bad 

* La Methode Historiqut, p 92. t P. 94. X P. 95* 



784 A Catholic AND the Bible, [Mar., 

mirror, or a muddy pool from which it contracts no stain." 
Apprehensive, probably, that some objection based on a par- 
ticular passage in the papal encyclical might be urged against 
him, Father Lagrange anticipates criticism, by reminding us 
that the pope's encyclical affirms also that the Holy Ghost, 
speaking to the sacred writers, did not purpose to reveal any- 
thing about the inner nature of the visible world ; as such 
knowledge would not contribute to salvation. 

The Dominican, then, and the Jesuit agree that the Bible 
writers employed, without guaranteeing their scientific accuracy, 
the crude notions in vogue among the primitive Hebrews, 
just as the savant often uses everyday language in matters 
where he knows it to be, scientifically speaking, absolutely in- 
correct. This method of interpretation is not open to the 
reproach incurred, very frequently, by the older one, which 
was sometimes reduced to strange expedients in order to main- 
tain that the science of Genesis is, in the strict sense of the 
word, true. An instance cited by Father Lagrange is worth}' 
of note.* An eminent writer,! with pathetic loyalty to the 
ancient ways, contended, some time ago, that *' the Bible, relat- 
ing, for example, the formation of the firmament ^ the stoppage 
of the sun, speaks according to appearances, and, consequently, 
is true*' This will never do. ** It is more correct," writes 
Father Lagrange, *' to say that on these points the Bible is 
neither true nor false. For we must remember that the ancient 
authors had no more knowledge than they exhibited. When I 
employ one of these propositions, I know, and everybody else 
knows, it is false ; and, for that very reason, its falsity vanishes 
in a metaphor. But in the times of the sacred authors nobody 
had any inkling of the scientific truth. May we say that an author 
who regards the sky as a solid vault, and uses words that con- 
yeys this impression — for otherwise we should not have learned 
it — expresses himself in language that is exact and true, though 
not rigorously scientific ? Can we, in this matter, draw a dis- 
tinction between science and truth ?*' Then an evident objection 
presents itself. These and many other like propositions are just 
the elements that opponents have used to prove that the Bible 
is full of childishly erroneous notions which make its claims to be 
a divine and infallible book ridiculous. If they are not true they 
are false, and then what becomes of the veracity of the Bible ? 

• P. 105. t p. Bnicker, S.J., Etudes, 1895. p. soa. 



1905.] A Catholic and the Bible, 785 

"It is quite a simple affair," replies Father Lagrange; a propo- 
sition is either true or false, to be sure; but in these cases 
the sacred writer asserts no proposition at all." He is at one 
with Father Prat in holding that the incorrect scientific views 
in the Bible are not taught by the Bible! 

It would be vain to disguise the fact that the method of 
the new school is little less than a revolution in even our 
recent methods of scriptural interpretation. When the modern 
sciences could no longer be treated as mere unproved hypothe- 
ses, and had to be reckoned with, apologists and exegetes set 
themselves to devise interpretations that would demonstrate 
how, after all, the discoveries of geology, biology, paleontology, 
and the sister sciences were in harmony with Moses ; n^y, even 
that Moses had anticipated the physicists of the nineteenth 
century. System after system appeared ; each one in turn was 
prematurely decorated with some such consoling title as The 
Bible Vindicated. But none of them would hold water; and 
the advocates of one were usually the destroyers of the other. 
Each new champion on his arrival in the lists might have 
been heralded as another case of 

" The priest who slew the slayer 
And shall himself be slain." 

Labor in vain, says the new school. Father Prat and his co- 
worker review, somewhat sardonically, the various theories that 

■ 

came out in the course of the last century, and still hold their 
honored place in our text- books. Father Prat consigns them 
to oblivion with the verdict : • " There is no science revealed 
except so far as is necessary for the salvation of man and the 
economy of faith. Hence scriptural interpretations professing 
to be scientific — I will not say savant — of the Holy Scriptures 
are an error and a danger, for they imprudently entangle the 
Bible in questions to which it should remain a stranger." 
Father Lagrange is equally outspoken, and recalls, with a sus- 
picion of what the French call malice^ how it was fashionable, 
when he began his studies, to dilate upon the extensive acquain- 
tance with modern science that had become indispensable to the 
biblical student. 

He ends his observation by reaffirming his principle if" The 

• P. -25. t P. 137. 



^^ A Catholic and the Bible. [Mar., 

. ^^ ppretation oi the Bible is to be made with an eye not to 
^^ern science, which deals with reality, but to the ancient 
^^i^>xis as they are found in the Bible itself. 'What! even if 
tbis a.ncient science is imperfect, insufficient, even false ? If it 
fanoi^^ that the waters of heaven are divided by a solid vault 
ivatxt the waters below; if it takes the stars to be little lumin- 
• ^9 suspended from that vault ; if the rains of the deluge fall 
. torrents when the sluices of the vault are opened; if the 
earth i^ immovable at the centre of the sky — must all this be 
taken ^^ divine teaching?' No; not at all. God has not re- 
v<5aled these things which men have inferred from a hasty 
observation of phenomena ; he has not meant that because 
they appear in the Bible they should be proposed to us as 
cotoX^i from him, said by him, dictated by him. Conse- 
Qucntly the Bible contains no scientific teaching." On receiv- 
'nir the news of the battle of Austerlitz, Pitt is reported to 
have ssX^f in a tone of tragic despondency, that the map of 
Europe might be rolled up and put away for twenty years. 
Somewhat similarly the dissemination of the ideas characteristic 
of the school of our present scholars is a signal that, not in 
ttorroWy hut with a sense of profound relief, we may reverently 
f^gign many classic tomes of apologetics to the shelves re- 
served for the quaint and curious volumes of forgotten lore. 

The idea that the Bible does teach science was long domi- 
nant. From the time of the Council of Trent, at least, the 
doctrine of St. Jerome and St. Thomas was lost sight of. 
Protestantism had made the Bible, literally interpreted, its sole 
rule of faith. Catholic polemists, in order to fight the enemy 
on his owti ground, accepted the postulate for argument's sake; 
and, although the doctrine of verbal inspiration never had the 
sanction of the church, the hypothetical character of the foot- 
ing it had obtained in theology was gradually lost sight of, 
with the result that our apologists found themselves saddled 
with the burden of defending, for example, the literal veracity 
of Josue's sun at Ajalon. You have mentioned Galileo, who, 
like the head of King Charles, always manages to get into 
the memorial. The root of that unfortunate — and fortunate — 
affair was, precisely, the prevailing belief that the Bible, and 
therefore God, did teach a system of the world. When Gali- 
leo proposed his new theory theologians, even the enlightened 
Bellarmine, hastened to declare that all the Fathers of the 



1905.] A Catholic and the bible. 787 

church unanimously interpreted Josue and other cognate bibli- 
cal passages literally, therefore the new theory roust be con- 
tradictory to the Word of God. The defenders of the old 
opinions won the day, and a Roman congregation branded the 
heliocentric theory as heretical, that is, as theologians explain 
the import of the stigma,* directly contradictory of truth 
revealed by God, and proposed to men by the church. We 
need not dwell on the consequences of this official deci- 
sion. Father Lagrange strengthens his position by recalling it 
and its results. He rightly remarks that the authority com- 
promised by it was the authority of an official congregation of 
theologians, not that of the infallible church. The blunder^ 
though prolific of disastrous consequences, contains also a 
precious lesson that perhaps is worth all it costf '' Nobody 
now takes seriously this primitive science, or rather this child- 
ish lisping of ancient curiosity ; the pseudo science of old 
times is gone, and if religion were not something else it would 
disappear along with it.'' But the independence of religion in 
regard to science was not recognized in the seventeenth cen- 
tury, which had inherited, not from the early days, but from 
the Middle Ages, a legacy of philosophical and scientific be- 
liefs that had usurped a dignity to which they had no just 
claim. X " It was an immense error fraught with incalculable 
consequences to suppose that the Bible contains a scientific 
system of the world. It was an error that took its origin 
in the prevailing attachment to Aristotelianism, which, not 
only on the philosophic, but also on the scientific side, had 
been welded to Christian doctrine. . . . For many minds 
modern science begins with Galileo, and there religion vanishes, 
for no religion can survive the destruction of a cosmogonic 
system to which it has been tied." There is, the learned 
Dominican observes, no surer way to ruin religion in the eyes 
of men justly devoted to science than to represent religious 
doctrine as bound to scientific notions. Fortunately the mis- 
take over Galileo could not be hidden, and was not forgotten ; 
but it did not entirely dissipate the old mentality. Until 
lately, exegetes and apologists have displayed extreme reluc- 
tance to acknowledge any advance of discovery that conflicted 
with traditional interpretations relative to such questions as the 

•Sec, e, £. Pralictiones Dogmatics, auctore Ch. Pesch, S.J., Tom. I. p. 335. 
tP. X40. tP. 139- 



788 A Catholic and the Bible. [Mar., 

age of mankind, the formation of the earth, the deluge, the 
tower of Babel, etc. Some writers were very injudicious, not 
to say intemperate, in their resistance to each new advance of 
science, and thereby unintentionally helped the cause of unbe- 
lief. Others, as I have already said, spent their time in com- 
posing schemes of concordance between modern knowledge and 
the contents of the Pentateuch. They did little to increase the 

. respect of scientists for theology. •* A reference to these facts," 
says Father Lagrange,* '' suffices to recall a series of hesitating 
gropings, of triumphs without any morrow, of poorly disguised 
defeats, of concessions made with a bad grace. Apologetics 
may blush for this, but it cannot blot out the memory. It 
would be well now to accept the situation in its entirety. 
Let us loyally preserve the memory of past mistakes, so as to 
turn them to profit by recognizing their causes." 

Painfully and slowly, then, through many a chastening 
experience. Catholic thought has drawn off from other posi- 
tions to intrench itself on this new impregnable base. Recog- 
nize that the Bible teaches no science at all, and you establish 
it serene on the spiritual heights from which religion contem- 
plates with indifference the ant like industry of scientists accu- 
mulating below an ever-growing treasure of knowledge con- 
cerning the world of matter. We may, I think, quit the topic 
with a final quotation from our guide.f " In affirming that the 

J Bible contains no scientific explanation of the universe we 
maintain religion on a plane from which science never can 
dislodge it, for if it is easy to smile at the lispings of Hebrew 
science, it is not easy to show how science satisfies the aspira- 
tions of the soul." 

You will, I am sure, have perceived that the historical 
problem is to be solved, without any difficulty, on much the 
same lines as the scientific one. The principle of solution is 
essentially the same in both matters; nevertheless it must 
receive some qualification and limitation when we approach the 
seemingly puzzling questions of Bible history. Because "although 
we may affirm that the Bible teaches no science, it would be 
more than paradoxical to maintain that the Bible contains no 
history, for it is the history of salvation." Still we but follow 
the directions given by Leo XIII. when we look for the key 
to the enigma in the same principle; his encyclical states that 

•P. 132. t^. 



1905.] A Catholic and the Bible. 789 

what St. Augustine teaches concerning the knowledge of nature 
found in the Bible is equally applicable to history. Fortified 
by this venerable authority, Fathers Prat and Lagriange pro- 
ceed to open, through the maze in which so many Commenta- 
tors have entangled themselves and their followers, a way so 
broad and smooth that not even the blind man Cc^n err 
therein. 

Both our authors premise that as God has not taught any 
science, neither has he revealed any history, except so far forth 
as such a revelation was required for the edifice of faith, that 
is, for the sake of moral and religious truth. Now both, our 
expositors observe* that to constitute a document history it 
is not enough that the writer should have thrown his thoughts 
into the historical " form '' ; and that f ''the value to be attached 
to statements which appear t6 affirm or deny depends entirely 
on the complexion of the literary form in which these seem- 
ingly categorical propositions are found." As you' have seen 
from my first letter to you, Father Lagrange rejects the view 
that Genesis contains anything thai can be called, strictly 
speaking^, a history of early mankind. 

How, then, are we to interpret the various accounts in Gene- 
sis that have been laid hold of by hostile critics to ruin the 
supernatural claims of the Scriptures? The answer is that 
most of the biblical narratives which, in many a fierce polemi- 
cal conflict, assailants and defenders alike have assumed to be 
professedly strict history, are nothing of the sort. The his- 
torical form is but the vehicle for the conveyance of some 
ethical or religious teaching, just like the parables of our Lord 
in the New Testament. Apologists rose in arms when scien- 
tists declared that many of the Bible stories had their parallels 
in the records of the surrounding peoples. The new school 
finds no difficulty in the way of admitting this claim. But 
our scholars part company with the rationalistic wing of the 
higher criticism which, from this correspondence, would infer the 
Bible to be as purely a human production as the religious 
literature of Babylon or Egypt. For, as Father Lagrange puts 
it, with iteration, while the legends in Chaldean or other pagan 
documents are invariably saturated with immoral and polytheis- 
tic ideas, the sacred writer invariably purges them of such 

*Prat, p. 29; Lagrange, passim. t Lagrange, p. 185. 

VOL. LXXX. — 51 



y^O A CATHOLJC AND THE BiBLE. [Mar., 

^^>rrupt elements^ and thereby makes them not unworthy 
^^^kcts for the reception and preservation of the spiritual 
^^4tths which God inspired the writer to impart or record. To 
^t^cn up in a sentence or two Father Lagrange's carefully 
<vir^iS^^^ exposition would not be easy, and might be mislead- 
Ixx^' ^ ^^^ typical passages relative to some crucial topics 
^^ill illustrate sufficiently his principles and method. He raises 
th^ question whether the term fptytA may legitimately be given 
to episodes in the Bible : • "If there is a page in the Bible 
^^iiich literally resembles a Babylonian page it is the episode 
^f the deluge. Now the Babylonian deluge is not a page of 
j^i^tory* It forms part of a poem, it is saturated with mythoU 
^y— ^ifl tt we are in another literary form; so if we wish to 
establish a parallel between the Hebrews and the Chaldeans it 
is I'eady to hand and in a very sjrmptomatic fashion." And 
j^e institutes the parallel :t "The official history of the 
Hebrews coincides tairly well with the official history of the 
/ /^ssyfi^^^' ^^^ most ancient tradition of the Hebrews concern- 
ing ^^^ ^^^^ Si'cat chief of their race fits with the account of 
the grc^^ Chaldean monarch." On the other hand, passing 
from the region of official history into primitive history, 
Hebrew primitive history, "which could easily have bortomtd 
so many facts common to Assyrian and Egyptian documents, 
connects with the Babylonian tradition only in a few instances ; 
in the Babylonian traditions these episodes have at least the 
appearance of religious myths." The suggested inference is put 
interrogatively : " May there, then, be myths in the Bible ? " 
The word is enough to make the cry of "To your tents, 
O Israel I " be raised from Dan to Beersheba. But thought 
marches rapidly nowadays. Let us listen to this member of 
that distinguished order, which enjoys the hereditary privilege 
of having the Master of the Sacred Palace and the General of 
the Inquisition chosen from its sons, as he answers his own 
question :{ "The common opinion rises against this thought 
and will not hear the word mentioned. A number of Catho- 
lic authors, becoming more numerous every day, insists upon 
drawing a distinction. Naturally they do not stickle for the 
word, if the word is offensive. Yet they find it suitable for 
expressing the resemblances existing between the myths and 

• p. 200. t /d. t P. aoo. 



1905.] A Catholic and the Bible. 791 

the pctioitive history. But, they are careful to add, tlie 
mythological etements found in the Bible are sedulously 
'purified of their polytheistic coloring, they serve to clothe 
only lofty religious tfatottghts.' This is the formula <of Dom 
Hildebrand Hopfl, a Benedictine monk, in a brochure directed 
against the rationalistic drift of the higher criticism." 

Waiving aside the question of words and terms. Father 
Lagrange invites his readers to examipe the thing ; and he 
takes up the story of Lot's wife. In the first place, he criti- 
cizes the explanation offered of this passage by Father voa 
Hummelauer, SJ., ''the celebrated exegete," who conceives 
that the poor woman, having been carried away by a wave, 
and drenched in intensely saline water, was covered with*^alt 
and foam, and thus to the eyes of her perturbed husband 
looked like a slab of salt* "Gentlemen,*' says Father 
Lagrange, "this is rationalistic criticism, pure and simple. It 
is the method employed by Paulus in the end of the last cen- 
tury (eighteenth) to demolish the Gospel miracles; they were 
always natural facts badly observed and grossly exaggerated. 
According to the learned exegete the wife of Lot was not 
changed into a pillar of salt."t On the contrary, argues 
Father Lagrange, the meaning of the biblical words is that 
Lot's wife, body and soul, was turned into salt ; the absurdity 
of the statement is for him peremptory proof that the sacred 
writer in relating the legend had not the remotest intention cf 
affirming its veracity.^ " I see no reason," is his soluticn, 

• P. 203. 

f Note. — It is only justice to Father von Hummelauer to notice that he has recently joined 
the school of Father Lagrange, and in his lately published ExegtHschts tur Inspira- 
twmsfragt defends the new system on strict theological grounds. In the English Month, for 
January, Father Sidney F. Smith gives an outline, accompanied with a cautious but unmis- 
takable recommendation of the system as advocated in this brochure. The following passage 
indicates that he expects to hear a note of protest from quarters into which no knowledge of 
the present crisis has yet penetrated. He asks a favorable reception for the new doctrine for 
two reasons: " One is that, as has been said, the difficulties of establishing an absolute agree- 
ment between the inspired writings themselves is very real and affects so many points that, 
unless we can discover some new line of solution, there seems no course left to us save to take 
refuge in St. Augustine's ego non inteUigo, It is true that there is a section of theologians 
amongst us who make very little indeed of all these difficulties, are perfectly content with the 
artificial replies to them that do duty in so many text-books, and can see no other reason for 
the propounding of new theories of solution such as that we are discussing, save that their 
authors are men of perverse mind and lovers of the bizarre for its own sake. But this is, 
perhaps, because the critics in question move in too restricted a circle of ideas and have ai 
insufficient knowledge of the facts." {The Month, January, 1905, p. 53.) 

IP. 206. 



792 A Catholic and the Bible. [Mar., 

" why there may not be in the Bible erroneous views upon 
the nature of things, provided that such views are therie on 
the same footing as is Hebrew science, that is to say that 
they are not taught That the struggle of God against evil, 
and his supreme dominion over matter, should be described as 
a victory over the monsters Rahab and Leviathan, creatures 
of ancient popular fancy, is, as far as I can see, no impro- 
priety. But, just as the Greeks began very eatly to doubt 
the reality of the myth, the prophets of Israel were not duped 
by these allegories ; and, to return to Lot's wife, the author 
no more believed in the truth of the story than he did in the 
incestuous origin of Mpab and Ammon which be relates." 
Similarly, several other episodes^ which were formerly taken 
to be strictly historical accounts of tiemendous events in\ihicb 
Jehovah visibly and almost palpably intervened in human life» 
suffer a like reduction. The stories are legendary; but they 
carry a lesson; and they possess a dignity of character to 
which the pagan myths are strangers. The account of the 
deluge is no mere baseless myth ; * " the general character of 
the biblical legend indicates rather a real inundation, the reli- 
gious significance of which, by the way, far outweighs the 
historic importance. And the tower of Babel is not a pure 
fiction. The biblical author, undoubtedly, had in view the 
unfinished gigantic temple of Borsippa, which Nabuchodonosor 
prided himself on having completed after it had fallen into ruin 
through the defective condition of its gutters. To regard 
Babylon as a proud city in which all languages were spoken 
is not a mere chimera." A final instance. After citing scien- 
tific authority for the opinion that the subsidence of the 
southern end of the Dead Sea took place during an epoch 
when the earth was already inhabited. Father Lagrange argues 
that, therefore, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is not 
to be treated as a mere myth, signifying the sublime desolation 
of the country around the Dead Sea. The upshot is that these 
and similar biblical accounts aie not proposed by the inspired 
writer as history in our sense of the word. 

When this system of interpretation is accepted the thou- 
sand and one arguments leveled against the Bible, from the 
point of view of historical criticism — arguments that have re- 

•p. 214. 



1 905 . 1 A Ca tholic a nd the Bible. 793 

duced former interpreters to fall back on refutations that de- 
manded for their acceptance a large dose of good will and 
uncritical piety — at once become meaningless. At the same 
time the doctrine of inspiration is amply protected. '^ It is 
enough for us that nowhere else do we find the same sobriety ; 
that mythology, properly so-called, is excluded ; and that it 
is impossible for any one who looks at the matter in the right 
light to fall into error." 

I must reserve for another day some important cautions 
regarding the fall of man and original sin. Then, too, we 
can dispose of the syllabus furnished by your friend. Professor 

M . I should be glad to learn whether, after you have 

made him acquainted with the gist of this letter, he will con- 
tinue in the opinion that Catholic eyes and ears are closed 
to science, or if he has in his scientific arsenal any weapon 
that will reach the Bible on the ground where it has been 
placed. You can assure him that his list of errors will offer 
no difficulty ; it bears, by the way, a remarkable resemblance 
to one embodied in an article from a Catholic pen, published 
in the Contemporary Review for April, 1894. The remarks 
relative to the late Professor Mivart may be touched upon 
when we come to consider the allegation that the Catholic 
Church has been the foe of science. Believe me. 

Fraternally yours. 



SHAMROCK Day's Child. [Mar 



SHAMROCK DAY'S CHILD. 

BY SHIELA MAHON. 

> BLARE of trumpets and the measured tread of 
many feet, as a contingent of the St. Patrick's 
Day procession marched on its way to join the 
great parade on Fifth Avenue, heralded the eo- 
' trance of Sarah Ellen Maloney into the world. 
The kind-hearted neighbors had just left. Sarah Ellen's mother 
clasped the little stranger closer to her breast, as her eyes 
wandered round the scantily furnished room on the top 
floor of a tenement house, and burning tears rolled down her 
pale face as her thoughts wandered to the golden-thatched 
cottage nestling midst the Wicklow hills, where her childhood 
days had been spent. And then came the sadder thought of 
the husband who had not lived to S4e their child. Sarah Ellen 
lay in her snug shelter unconscious of the bitter memories that 
Stirred the heart of her mother. The noise and racket would 
have disturbed most babies, but Sarah Ellen seemed to like it 
By and by it ceased, and quietness reigned, broken only by 
the faint tictac of a little clock on the raantel above the 
wretched fire. The hours passed ; shadows filled the room. 
Now and again came a low cry from Sarah Ellen — then a 
strange silence. Later on a neighbor, coming in from her work, 
found her way into the room. One glance at the still figure 
on the bed was enough; Sarah Ellen's mother's troubles were 
over, and Sarah Ellen was wailing disconsolately, as if she 
understood. 

Sarah Ellen's life was gray from the beginning; later on 
the atmosphere was black. Almost from babyhood she had to 
earn her own living. She was named Sarah Ellen by the neigh- 
bors, in accordance with the express wish of Mrs. Maloney, 
who had confided to the next-door roomer that her only sister, 
who lived in Ireland, was called Sarah Ellen. The wish was 
remembered, and the child was taken to the nearest church 
and baptized without pomp or ceremony. Other babies had 
flowers and lace robes and christening cake; but these were 
not for Sarah Ellen. Th^^ant of them didn't seem to bother 



1905.] Shamrock Day's Child. 795 

her in the least. It was only when a tender-hearted Irish girl, 
who was in the church at the time when she was carried from 
the baptismal font, went forward and placed a tiny wreath of 
shamrocks on her baby brow that she showed the least sign of 
feeling. A smile flickered over the little puckered face, and 
her tiny hands instinctively clasped the thumb of the stranger. 

It was decided by the neighbors that the little orphan 
should not be sent to the workhouse. So each of them took 
a turn at bringing her up. " She kind of growed/' like a weed, 
with nothing special to nourish her. She was scarcely more 
than a baby when she was sent out to sell matches; then she 
reached the dignity of shoe laces, two for a nickel ; until finally, 
when she was about twelve years old, a good Samaritan took 
pity upon her, and engaged her as maid of all work. This was 
the first time in her life that Sarah Ellen got enough to eat, 
and was clothed any way decently, in the cast-off garments of 
'Melia Winkle, a niece of the good Samaritan. Sarah Ellen 
hated 'Melia, because the latter would turn up her snub nose 
expressively and call out, ** Here comes Cast-Offs," when she 
met her in the street. The iron rankled early in the soul of 
Sarah Ellen. 

It must have been from her Celtic mother that she in- 
herited her vivid imagination, for Sarah Ellen dreamed strange 
dreams, in which music and flowers and sunny skies and gor- 
geous figures played their parts, and retired after leaving fairy- 
like impressions on her brain. She had never experienced 
any of the things she dreamed ; her life had been so common- 
place and sordid ; and yet they seemed like second nature to 
her. Sometimes it frightened her, these deep plunges into 
space in which her soul revelled, and she was usually aroused 
from these flights of fancy by the high-pitched voice of Mrs. 
Winkle : " Sarah Ellen, have you made the beds ? " or, " Sarah 
Ellen, have you swept the stoop ? *' and sundry other questions, 
all bearing on the one important theme — work. 

*' I was meant to be a lady," she often thought dejectedly. 

The years went round monotonously ; childhood passed, 
giilhood came. At this period her dreams were usually of a 
hero who moved about with lordly grace, a sword hanging by 
his side. She never met a soldier but her heart leapt, and 
wars and battles raged through her brain. In her dreams her 
hero was always a soldier, and she was the heroine, and was 
usually carried off in the hero's arms, a limp rag with long 



796 Shamrock Day's Child. [Mar., 

streaming hair. Yet, despite her romantic tendencies, she 
reached the mature age of twenty- five and had never had a 
lover. Other girls with not half her opportunities had moved 
off, made good marriages, and settled down into happy wives 
and mothers, but Sarah Ellen remained. At night she had 
tragic dreams in which she figured as an old maid with cork- 
screw ringlets and hair plastered down the middle and a big 
tabby cat beside her. 

The truth was, Sarah Ellen's personal appearance was 
against her. She was tall, thin, lanky, and generally woe- 
begone. As a neighbor remarked, she looked like one that 
''didn't get her feed." Perhaps it was the soul-hunger that 
showed so plainly. Once she thought something was going to 
happen. It was when 'Melia Winkle's sailor-brother came 
home for a short time. She was seventeen then, and she had 
walked out with him, and her heart had thrilled when he 
squeezed her hand tenderly, and asked her if she was tired. 
No one had ever shown her that much attention before. But, 
alas ! her dream was rudely dispelled, for 'Melia Winkle, when 
she heard of the episode, had said spitefully, under the pre- 
tence of good advice: 

** I advise you not to be taken in with Josiah, he was kind 
of born with those flirty way^. Every one knows how his 
heart is set on Liza Jones. She is a dressmaker, and makes 
such stylish things, too. Josiah, he just wants to make her 
jealous. It's for your own good, Sarah Ellen, I'm talking. 
I know you are easy imposed upon." 

And Sarah Ellen had hastily disclaimed the soft impeach- 
ment, declaring hotly that she had never had a thought of him. 
In secret she shed bitter tears, and when she met Josiah 
looked the other way. And so ended the little romance. 
That was eight years ago, and nothing had ever happened 
since. It wasn't that she had not as fine clothes as the other 
girls ; her social status had improved, and she was able to 
dress well. She could wear a long ostrich feather in her hat 
now, and pink roses which contrasted none too well with her 
sallow skin. The only thing remarkable about her was her 
eyes. They were haunting eyes of dark gray nearly black, 
with black lashes which . cast shadows on her sallow cheeks — 
eyes which mirrored every passing thought of her soul. De- 
spite her twenty-five years she had the innocent heart of a 
child, yet 9^^r^ eh<» had a woman's natural longing to be loved. 




1905.] Shamrock Day's Child. 797 

They say that into every life some sunshine as well as 
some rain must fall. One day a broad, bright sunbeam came 
into Sarah Ellen's life, and made it beautiful. She was twenty- 
six years old, and her life had been so colorless, that when 
the glory did come, it almost overwhelmed her. When she 
came to think over it, why it almost took her breath away, it 
was so unexpected. To think that her hero, the soldier of 
whom she had dreamed, should come into her life, and in such 
a romantic fashion as to satisfy all her yearnings. In her 
wildest dreams she had never imagined such happiness. That 
Donal O'More, a soldier in the United States army, should 
cast his eyes on her, and it all happened so simply, in her 
humility she could have wept. Who would have thought that 
day when she was coming down stairs dust- pan in hand, and 
her foot had caught in a doll's carriage belonging to one of the 
children, that she should fall into the outstretched arms of a 
big, tall fellow, standing at the bottom. It was a device of 
little Master Cupid to bring two kindted spirits together. 

When Sarah Ellen recovered from the confusion, incidental 
to her somewhat awkward introduction, she blushed rosy red 
and for the moment looked handsome. Like magic the elec- 
tric flame which governs the world was lighted. From that 
day her life was resplendent with the most gorgeous colors, 
untouched by a tiny particle of black or gray. It spread be- 
fore her a fairyland of beauty, and her prince, tall, straight- 
limbed, and stalwart, glowed on her horizon like a star shining 
steadily, a beacon light to her adoring eyes. 

Donal came from Ireland, and wasn't she proud to be able 
to tell him that Ireland had been the home of her parents. 
It was a theme that strengthened the link between them. 
Donal vowed that as soon as it was in his power he would 
bring her to see the beauties of the Motherland. With flash- 
ing eyes and impassioned speech he held her enthralled with 
the story of Erin. Sarah Ellen's one sorrow was, that she 
had not the good fortune to be born there. Donal with mirth- 
ful eyes told her he would crown her with shamrocks on St. 
Patrick's day to make up for the deficiency. 

In all the wide, beautiful world there was no happier young 
woman on the morning of her wedding. Love, the great 
beautifier, had transformed her. A faint flush stained her 
cheeks, and her eyes no longer wore the look of the soul- 



798 Shamrock Da y's Child. [Mar., 

hunger, but were sparkling wells of contentment mirroring her 
happiness. 'Melia Winkle was to be bridesmaid. 'Melia and 
•he were fast friends now; the childish spite of long ago had 
vanished. 'Melia was in the seventh heaven, for Jim Wilkins 
was to be the '' best man/' and 'Melia in her secret heart had 
a soft spot for Jim. 

On that day of days Sarah Ellen wore a warm red dress, 
which lighted up her pale face, and a big bunch of shamrocks 
nestled at her throat. And instead of the proverbial orange 
blossoms shamrocks crowned her dark hair and lay in the folds 
of her veil as in a snow wreath. Just as she had given a shy 
peep in the mirror at her own radiant reflection Donal arrived, 
in all his bridal bravery, accompanied by Jim. Such a happy 
quartette ! 

Jim whispered slyly to 'Melia: "What would she think of 
having a double event?*' 'Melia's happy, flushed face and starry 
eyes seemed to satisfy him, for the pair sat together in a 
happy silence. 

How is it that happiness is so evanescent. God knows 
Sarah Ellen had it in full measure for the short time it lasted ! 
But, alas ! alas ! Afterwards 'Melia could never explain how 
the whole thing happened. It was just after the ceremony, 
and Donal was walking down the cathedral steps proud and 
happy, Sarah Ellen on his arm. Suddenly a band of music 
coming up Fifth Avenue struck up, and she noticed Sarah 
Ellen crane her neck forward and give a startled exclamation, 
then dart from Donal's side. The next few seconds were the 
most terrible that ever 'Melia experienced. There was the 
hoarse roar of a crowd, a woman's scream, the thud, thud, of 
a runaway horse, mingling with the gay mockery of the tune; 
the sound of a child's shrill cry, and shouts of sympathy and 
horror as a white-veiled figure lay beneath the prancing hoofs, 
while a mother held in tight embrace the child who, through 
the heroic effort of Sarah Ellen, had escaped death. 

But Sarah Ellen, alas ! alas ! Donal, with heaving chest 
and eyes despairing in their agony, was the first to raise the 
slight figure. " Sarah ! Sarah ! " was all he could say, and a 
pair of eyes, beautiful even in their death agony, were raised 
to his. " God*s will," murmured the pale lips. " God's will." 
And the soul of Sarah Ellen went forth. 



1905.] Industrial Education in Germany. 799 




INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION IN GERMANY. 

BY J. C. MONAGHAN. 
Head cf U, S. Contuiar Service. 

BOOK bearing the alcove title has just been issued 
by the Division of Consular Reports, Bureau of 
Statistics, Department of Commerce and Labor, 
Washington, D. C. It is from the pen of Mr. 
Ernest C. Meyer, Deputy United States Consul 
at Chemnitz, Germany. Mr. Meyer is also the author of an 
excellent work, indeed the standard authority, on Primary 
Elections and the Primary Elections Law. The present volume 
is the result of some advice given to Mr. Meyer before his 
departure for Europe by an old consular officer, and few books 
of the year have a better record of faithful work behind them, 
and no book of the year has better work ahead of it than 
awaits the pages of Industrial Education in Germany. 

Mr. Meyer begins with a bird's-eye view of the entire sys- 
tem of education in the German Empire. He does this to 
enable his readers to grasp the system of industrial education 
in its true relation to the system of general education, and to 
create in the mind's eye a correct picture of the entire edifice 
of industrial education, *' from the lowest continuation and trade 
schools, its base, to the technical high schools, its crown." 
Exercising excellent judgment, Mr. Meyer selects for his out- 
line a system that is to be regarded as a general type rather 
than as a specific form. This selection is made because the 
educational systems of the different States of the Empire are 
by no means all alike. While there are degrees of great resem- 
blance, there are also degrees of difference. To secure all that 
is best in the resemblance, and to avoid all that is objection- 
able in the differences, ought to be the object of all those 
interested in the solution of educational problems. Mr. Meyer's 
book is bound to be helpful in both directions. It certainly 
succeeds in selecting much of what is best in the one, and it 
is careful to point out, in passing, what, in the author's judg- 



8oo Industrial Education in Germany. [Mar, 

ment, are the highly objectionable features in the other. Tbe 
work is done in such a way as to wound nobody. After a 
brief introduction, the book describes carefully the primary edu- 
cation. At the very beginning, possibly with no ulterior de- 
sign of doing so, Mr. Meyer calls attention to what some say 
is the weakest point in the entire system of German education. 
I refer to the laminated system of primary education. He 
says: *' Through social and financial distinctions the Volksschule 
(at the base of the German educational edifice) has been divided 
into three parallel (not consecutive) classes, the lower, middle, 
and higher. The lower class is attended by children of the 
poorer families, as the tuition fees (Schulgeld) are MnalUst in 
this division ; the middle class, in which a somewhat larger 
tuition fee is paid, contains children from richer families; and 
the higher class, commonly known as the Biirgerschule (citizens' 
school) is attended by the richest class of children. All classes, 
however, are taught by equally well qualified teachers, and are 
given good opportunities. Sometimes, also, a private school 
takes the place of the Volksschule." 

The tenth year in the German child's life is taken as the 
turning-point towards a career. If too poor to aspire to the 
higher lines of life the boy or girl is left to plod along with 
the work of the primary or Volksschule. If the child is to go 
upward he leaves the Volksschule for a gymnasium or real- 
gymnasium ; in other words, he enters a secondary school 
qualified to fit him for the classics or the sciences. The weak- 
ness of the system, it seems to me, is found in the fatal dis- 
tinctions, drawn even in childhood, between the classes. 

The work in the secondary schools, whether in the sciences 
or the classics, is covered by six or nine years' courses. Here 
again the distinctive differences due to wealth work a seeming 
iniquity, for " while the child is pursuing his course in the 
secondary school another decision must be made which involves 
not only the means of the parents, but also the natural apti- 
tudes and abilities of the child." If the means are limited, then 
very likely a course in a six years' secondary school will be 
pursued by the child, beginning with his eleventh year; pos- 
sibly he may pursue a course in a trade or technical school^ 
one that will fit him to follow a trade. He may desire to be 
a mechanic, an engineer, a dyer, bleacher, spinner, or weaver. 
Law, medicine, theology are still reserved for the few rather 




1905.] Industrial Education in Germany. 801 

thaa for the many. As a matter of fact, a very noticeable 
falling off is recorded in the theological faculties, and a more 
than corresponding increase in law and medicine. 

Education, in the Empire, is compulsory. There is no con- 
nivance on the part of those selected to enforce the law with 
those anxious to break it. Boys and girls are comjSelled by 
law to be at school on all school days, unless excused for sick- 
ness or some such legitimate cause, from their sixth to their 
fourteenth year. There is no doubt or deception in regard to 
age, for each child is, or has to be, provided with a copy of 
its birth registration or certificate. Even then the ends of 
compulsory education have not been reached. Boys and girls, 
in most parts of the Empire, are bound by law to attend what 
Mr. Meyer and English writers call continuation schools — the 
German Fortbildungschule, or, further-developing- schools, a term 
which, to my way of thinking, more aptly describes the process 
of education enforced upon the children after their fourteenth 
ye^r. An interesting peculiarity of the system, in some parts 
of the Empire, is. the shifting of the responsibility of seeing 
that the pupils attend school, from the shoulders of parents 
and natural guardians, to the shoulders of employers. These 
have to see to it not only that the boys and girls have time 
to attend the continuation schools, but that they do attend. 

The primary object of the continuation schools is to pre- 
pare boys and girls in the best way possible for their work in 
life. To this end a choice may be made by the boys and 
girls, or their parents, between a general continuation school 
and a particular industrial school. Indeed a trade school may 
be selected and put in the place of a continuation school. 
What the state wants, and works hard to secure, is the very 
best possible education for the people. 

It is important to note that the child first comes in con- 
tact with the system of industrial education after graduation 
from the Volks^chule. In some states it is permissible to sub- 
stitute a special trade school (gewerbliche Fachschule) for a 
continuation school, particularly for persons preparing for a 
profession. Furthermore, a primary commercial school, a 
primary textile school, or school lor mechanics, or for lock- 
smiths, etc., may be substituted for the continuation school. 
As a rule, however, these special trade schools, even, if ele- 
mentary, require the completion of some continuation school 



802 INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION IN GERMANY. [Mar., 

for admission, to insure proper maturity of mind in the study 
of a profession. 

Here, then, is the end of the educational career of a child 
destined for nothing more than a primary education. The 
Volksschule course, plus a compulsory, or sometimes optional, 
continuation school course, or, in substitution, some industrial 
continuation or trade school course, is the sum total of a 
primary education in Gisrmany, which is completed at the age 
of fifteen, sixteen, or at times seventeen years, according to 
the period prescribed for attendance at the continuation school. 
It must be born in mind that the continuation schools, as well 
as all the elementary trade schools, are evening schools, en* 
abling the young boy or girl to get an education while earning 
a living during the daytime. The completion of the evening 
school cuts the last bond of his educational career, except in 
rare cases when a specially ambitious young man takes such 
opportunity as may offer to attend a more advanced evening 
school, such as a master's school (Meisterschule or Meister- 
kursus) in which the masters of a trade gather to discuss the 
more advanced phases of their profession. 

Passing on to the subject of Secondary Education we read 
that at the attainment of the tenth year the child destined for 
a better education, either secondary or higher, enters a 
secondary school, classical, semi- classical, or non-classical, 
according as both Greek and Latin, Latin, or neither Latin 
nor Greek are taught. These secondary schools may have 
either nine years' or six years' courses. 

The Realschulen are of comparatively recent development, 
their history going back only about half a century. Their rise 
was contemporaneous with the commercial movement in Ger- 
many, and they have experienced their greatest development, 
as have German commerce and industry, during the last few 
decades. Though bitterly opposed by an unreasonable and 
fanatical prejudice, on the part of the philosophical adherents 
of the ancient classics, these schools, on the sheer strength of 
their merits, have won their way to the front, aided, also, in 
no mean degree, by the farsighted and broad-minded com- 
mercial policy of the present Emperor, who has bestowed on 
them his unconcealed favor.* To-day they offer an excellent 

^ The Emperor has gone so far, in his fondness for the scientific side of edacation offered ' 
by the so-called real schools, as to put the famous technical school at Charlottenburg in pre- 
cisely the same position in regard to the granting of degrees as that occupied by Bonn-Hei< 
delberg, Leipzig, or the University of Berlin. 



I90S-] Industrial Education in Germany. 803 

opportunity for a broad and practical edubation as a founda- 
tion for a business career. It follows from this that the young 
man who seeks to enter some commercial or industrial career, 
or who intends to complete his education in some industrial 
high school, will attend in his tenth year, as a rule, a second- 
ary non-classical school, either the OberRealschule or the 
Realschule. 

If the means at the disposition of the student are limited, 
and he must end his educational career in the secondary 
schools, he has three general courses open to him. He may 
enter some secondary trade school, usually with a three or 
four years' or, less frequently, with a two years' course ; he 
may choose a six years' course in a Realschule or Real Progym* 
nasium, or Progymnasium ; or, if he can a£ford a longer course, 
he may enter a nine years' school. Since a lack of funds to 
secure an advanced education generally implies a necessity to 
earn one's own livelihood, the father or adviser, if he is wise, 
will probably send the son to a special trade school of second- 
ary rank, or to a Realschule or Ober-Realschule instead of per- 
mitting him to cram into his head what to him are useless 
rudiments of Greek or Latin. 

Mr. Meyer does good service in telling us that the so- 
called " real " schools are not industrial schools in the true 
sense of the term, but supply rather a practical preparation for 
an industrial career. It follows that the German system of 
industrial secondary education, in which we are particularly 
interested, touches the system of general secondary education 
solely through the secondary trade schools, such as the higher 
schools for the textile industry, higher engineering schools, 
higher institutes of technology, higher commercial schools, etc. 

Few persons at all familiar with the facts in German school 
life were without knowledge of this distinction ; but to many 
the term was deceiving. The nearest approach to its significa- 
tion, in English, is in the prefix scientific when applied to 
schools or to education. The " real " schools are supposed to 
deal with life's realities; they are largely responsible for the 
phenomenal progress of the past fifty years. Without them the 
industrial and commercial development that has gone on so 
rapidly and successfully would have been impossible. Mr. 
Meyer does not say so, nor does he even intimate it, but my 
own belief is that the German "real" schoolmasters were 



8o4 INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION IN GERMANY. [Mar., 

behind Bismark in the war with Denmark about Schleswig- 
Holstein, at Sadowa, or Koeniggratz in 1866, in the war agaidst 
Austria and her Saxon allies, and at Sedan and Paris in the 
war of 1870-71. 

Mr. Meyer goes on, in his introduction, to deal with the 
education of German women. He says: ''Attention may here 
be called to the fact that the secondary schools, as a rule, close 
the educational career of German girls, though to-day senti- 
ment is rapidly growing in favor of their admission into the 
higher institutions of learning, which in a number of instances 
has already been accomplished. In the universities they are 
generally admitted as "Hohrer" (listeners), if not as full 
students, in which case they are privileged to attend prescribed 
courses of lectures. The same is true of technical high schools, 
where courses like economics, history, industrial art, etc., are 
open to women. 

In a long paragraph, to which readers are referred, Mr. 
Meyer points out pertinently the connection between German 
secondary education and higher education. He hints at the 
former*s value as a preparation for a boy^s or a girl's life work. 
It is here that one finds a fascinating field of thought. That 
which is only glanced at in the introduction is dealt with at 
great length in the pages following. 

No nation has ever entirely solved the educational prob- 
lem. Perfection has never been obtained, and the causes of 
this are deep down in human nature. Attained ideals ever 
give place to other higher ideals. In education this is par- 
ticularly true. Hence no system of secondary education will 
ever be perfect. To attain perfection is to stand still, and to 
stand still is to stagnate. 

German higher education is referred to by Mr. Meyer only 
for the purpose of furnishing a symmetrical skeleton of the 
entire system Luckily his pages are devoted, after the intro> 
duction, almost exclusively to the forms of education which he 
regards as essential to industrial, commercial, or economic suc- 
cess. He writes that the boys destined for the higher lines of 
professional life, law, medicine, theology, begin work in the 
higher schools in their nineteenth or twentieth year. Boys 
destined for the higher lines of industrial life, engineering, 
chemistry, commerce, finance, architecture, scientific agricul- 
ture, etc., etc., enter an industrial high school such as a 



1905.] Industrial education in Germany. 805 

mining academy, of which the Empire has several, a commer^ 
cial high school, of which four or* five have been opened in 
^ Cologne, Frankfort, Berlin, Leipzig, Sorau, etc., etc. During 
every day of his work in the commercial high school, or the 
technical high school, the student is putting on the best armor 
that modern professional education can provide, and is receiv- 
ing the benefit of instruction in the most advanced technical 
thought that science and persistent application have developed. 

A cursory view of the entire system of education in Ger- 
many, as presented in a general type, has now been com- 
pleted, and we are ready to begin a study of the system of 
industrial education in particular. In conclusion, a word may 
be said on the points of contact of the general system of 
education with the system of industrial education. 

Joined to the general primary schools are the general 
industrial continuation schools, the commercial continuation 
schools, and the countless lower trade schools, such as the 
schools for locksmiths, blacksmiths, butchers, shoemakers, toy- 
makers, millers, gardeners, dyers, bookbinders, printers, textile 
workers, wood-workers, mechanics, plumbers, druggists, clock- 
makers, etc., though some schools teaching these trades and 
callings offer advanced work of a secondary rank. 

Joined to the general secondary schools are all the 
"higher" industrial schools (hoehere gewerMiche Schulen), such 
as the higher textile schools (hoehere TextiUSchulen), higher 
commercial schools (hoehere Handelsschulen), higher engineer- 
ing schools (hoehere Maschinenbauschulen), higher institutes of 
technology (hoehere Technika), etc. Practical industrial ex- 
perience is also introduced as an intermediate three years be- 
tween the six-years' realschule and entry in some industrial 
high school. 

Finally, side by side with the universities stand the great 
technical high schools, the commercial, agricultural, and tech- 
nical high schools, the schools of the future. These are the 
present peers and future rivals of the institutions of ancient 
classicism in Germany — rivals, but obviously not destroyers; 
rivals, because they will attract a large share of public favor, 
but not destroyers, because the classics are essentially the in- 
dispensable leaven of the highest culture in modern civiliza- 
tion, an integral part of every cultivated people's education. 

With such a system of education is it wonderful that the 

VOL. LXXX. — 52 



8o6 Industrial Education in Germany. [Mar. 

Empire has forged steadily to the front? When one is told 
that the nation is comparatively poor, that its soil is, for a 
large part, sandy, that it has to buy all its cotton, silk, wool, 
hides, etc., outside, that it is forced to import many foods, 
some coal, some iron, etc., and thousands of the raw materials 
of commerce, one instinctively asks: "How is it possible?" 
Mr. Meyer and those who believe as he does in this magnifi- 
cent yet common-sense system of education, point quickly but 
proudly to the industrial, industrial art, and commercial and 
technical schools. With all one's heart one has to give them 
the old Latin wish so often heard in their halls on festive 
occasions: "Vivat, crescat, floreat." 

And to that wish I will couple another, that we, aiming 
high, working for high ends and lofty ideals, will soon add 
some such system to the schools of our own country. What we 
are without them should not satisfy us ; we should reach out 
to what we would be with them. 

My purpose in these pages is to point out the marvelous 
opportunities offered to, and the great possibilities possessed 
by, our people. Americans, as a rule, are wonderfully en- 
dowed. The jack-knife genius of the past is still ours. Eye, 
hand, and mind have lost little if any of their cunning. Such 
schools as are here outlined are worthy of emulation ; I might 
add imitation, although I am radically opposed to imitation on 
principle. Once we realize the results that have been won 
with such schools, once we realize what they may mean, what 
they must mean to us, by studying carefully their contribu* 
tions to the success of others, we will wait but a little while 
before adding them to the public school system of the coun- 
try. In another final article on this subject I expect to fur- 
nish Catholic World readers with a most remarkable, unso- 
licited, unexpected confirmation of all that was said about the 
Mosely Commission in the Catholic World of January, and 
about German education in the present article. It is from the 
pen of Consul General Mason, at present serving his country 
at Berlin, but destined for Paris. 



Current Events* 

While in Hungary, France, and 
Russia. Germany events of some import- 

ance have taken place, Russia has 
been the scene of occurrences which have surpasssd in interest 
all others. Riots have taken place in which the blood of inno- 
cent men, and even of women and children, has been shed, 
and the Grand Duke Sergius has been assassinated. A strike 
of workmen took place and, with that pathetic confidence in 
the goodness and the power of the Tsar which is so strong 
in Russia, and which forms so strange an exception to the 
rest of the world in its attitude towards its rulers, the strikers 
and many thousands of the people tried to approach the Tsar 
in order to lay their requests before him in person. They came 
without arms, and preceded by the emblems of their common 
faith, icons and crucifixes and banners and priests in their robes. 
They came as suppliants, and how were they received ? They 
were shot down almost in cold blood. Accounts vary as to 
the numbers of the slain; all agree, however, that the official 
account, as is the case with most of the Russian official ac- 
counts, is altogether unreliable ; on the other hand, the num- 
bers given at first by the newspapers were greatly exaggerated. 
The truth seems to be that some 3CX) were killed and' i,ioo 
wounded. If there had been only one, not to say killed but 
merely wounded, the Tsar would have gone beyond his rights 
in according such a reception to peaceful suppliants. His 
duty is to govern for the well-being of his people, as he him- 
self professes, and especially of the weak, for whose sakes gov- 
ernments are established — the strong being able to protect 
themselves. Especially is this duty incumbent upon the Tsar, 
for he has received from the vast majority of his subjects child- 
like reverence and submission. He is to them both pope and 
emperor; for h^ is the head of the Church as well as of the 
State. But he proved himself unworthy of his trust; instead 
of coming to listen to their petition, he secreted himself — where 
no one knew, except those within his own immediate circle. 
All power to deal with the crisis he gave into the hands of 
the most bitterly hated, the most thoroughly mistrusted, man 
in Russia — his uncle, the Grand Duke Vladimir, the Commander- 



8o8 Current Events. [Mar, 

in-Chief of the army. The reputation of this Grand Duke is so 
bad that when the funds, collected for the care of the wounded 
in Russia's army in Manchuria, were a few months ago appro- 
priated by him no wonder was felt ; the only feeling was one 
of surprl^^that an opportunity should have been given to him 
to touch the funds. He is looked upon, too, as the chief cause 
of the war with Japan, he having acquired estates in Manchuria 
which he wished to protect. For the weakling Tsar he has an 
undisguised contempt, and the belief is widely spread that he 
not merely wishes, but has even taken steps to supplant him. 
For he has one redeeming quality — he is a brave man and a 
thorough soldier; hated by the people, he is popular with the 
army ; and for many years to come we fear that it is by the 
army that the form of the Russian government will be 
determined. 

As to the effect which will be produced by the recent riots, 
and the still more recent assassination, upon the projects of re- 
form, of which we gave an account in the last number, it is difficult 
at present to form an estimate. On the one hand, the prospect is 
very dark. The principal persons who favored these reforms have 
lost power. The Minister of the Interior, Prince Svietopolk- 
Mirski, the best representative of the reforming spirit, has re- 
signed. His successor, M. Buliguine, represents the traditions 
of repression in their most unqualified form. Dictatorial powers 
have been given to General Trepoff over St. Petersburg, as 
its Governor- General; all local and civil authorities and educa- 
tional institutions of all kinds are made subject to him in all 
matters which affect the maintenance of civil order and public 
security ; the military are placed under his control so far as he 
may wish their aid ; all government factories and workshops 
are to be subordinate to him; he is empowered to prohibit 
individuals from staying in his jurisdiction; a strict censorship 
is imposed upon the press, and he is empowered to make 
obligatory regulations regarding matters affecting public tran- 
quillity and order. Such are some of the powers entrusted to 
a man whose only claim to them is based upon the arbitrary 
(and yet not successful) character of his rule at Moscow, of 
the police of which city he was the chief. Such is the imme- 
diate outcome of the riots, and it does not promise well for 
the future. 

On the other hand, it has been definitely announced that 



1905.] Current Events. 809 

nothing which has taken place will stand in the way of the 
carrying out of the reforms promised by the Tsar. The Com- 
mittee of Ministers is at work drawing qp the details necessary, 
in order that these reforms may be practically realized. Moreover, 
the demands made by the strikers were primarily made for the 
bettering of their own condition as working-men, and some of 
these demands were extravagant, and such as would not have 
been granted in any part of Europe or America. The coun- 
try has been reduced to extremity from an economic point of 
view, famine has become chronic, the masses are condemned to 
labor which is beyond their strength, and to a continual lack 
of the first necessaries. Living under the absolute rule of 
officials whose only care is of their own interests, the people, 
who alone knt>w their own wants and how to provide for 
them, have been deprived of initiative, and little is the won- 
der if they make mistakes. Political requirements were, in- 
deed, associated with these trade demands; it was, however, 
primarily a labor question rather than a revolt or revolu- 
tion. The brutal treatment of the working men will undoubt- 
edly have a great effect, and will tend to disillusionize 
the people at large ; the blood of the innocent will call to 
heaven for vengeance, and may, in time, lead to the establish- 
ment of a reasonable form of government. We very much 
doubt whether the riot will have any more immediate effect. 
And it is well that it should not. '* First the blade, then the 
ear, then the full corn in the ear." This is the way in which 
nature works, and it is the only way in which institutions which 
shall last can be established. It may be years before Russia 
will have a constitution placing restrictions upon this one-man 
rule ; the most that can be hoped for is a gradual approach 
towards this end. These riots form an indication of the feeling 
of the working-men who live in the cities, and the cities form a 
very small proportion of the Russian people, of whom at least 
3o per cent, are peasants. Of their feelings and views we know 
practically nothing. Were the factory rioters to triumph, it 
would, we fear, be only the victory of one class over the other 
classes, and although this would undoubtedly lead to a better 
state of things than the one which exists at present, it would be 
so far from perfect that it is better to wait until the larger part 
of every class are made gradually fit for a fuller measure of 
self government. The assassination of the Grand Duke Sergius 



8io Current Events. [Mar., 

is not only a crime but a blunder, and there is every reason 
to fear that the reform movement will collapse. 

The character of the present Tsar, and his system of gov- 
ernment, should contribute greatly to this education of the 
Russian people, if the Grand Dukes, by whom he is sur- 
rounded, allow him to live. For he is one of those men who 
have so high an opinion of themselves and of their abilities, 
as to imagine that they have a mission to reform and guide 
all of their fellow-creatures. Illogical and mystical, his own 
adviser and his own government, he is blind to the effect of 
his actions. The war with Japan was known to be inevitable 
by all except himself. He took or allowed to be taken every 
step which led up to it, seizing his neighbor's property, 
while believing that he would never be brought to account. 
And so he became, and is being recognized by his people as, 
the cause of the slaughter and bloodshed of so many human 
beings, each of whom is far better than himself. 

This, too, is in harmony with his character, for under an 
appearance of gentleness and benignity, and notwithstanding 
many expressions of good will and kindness, he has a heart of 
stone. The Tsar caused his warmest congratulations to be con- 
veyed to the monster who rules Turkey on account of the 
most atrocious of his deeds — his massacre of the Armenians 
in 18^5. Possessed with the notion that he is supreme on 
earth, he has over-ridden the rights of the Finns, not to vio- 
late whose constitution he took a solemn oath on his accession, 
and the Armenians he has despoiled of their schools and 
churches; he has treated the latter so harshly that they wish 
themselves back under the Turk. As to his own people, he 
regards himself not as the trustee and minister of good for 
their well-being, but as their owner and lord. All that some 
120,000,000 of people have to do, in his eyes, is to obey. 
Even though he may mean well by each and every one of 
this vast multitude, if he is incompetent — and it appears clear 
that he is — this incompetence will reduce the nation to such 
straits as to necessitate a thorough change in the present 
system of government. 

" No person shall be deprived of the rights of his social 
standing, nor shall such rights be curtailed otherwise than by 
a tribunal and for a crime/* This is one of the provisions of 
the law of the Empire. Yet members of every class of society 



1 905 . ] Current e vents. 8 1 1 

are arrested, banished, imprisoned, without the least regard to 
this provision. The Tsar violates it, and has the right to do 
so, being an irresponsible, absolute monarch, head of the 
Church and State alike. The best way to get rid of a bad law 
is to enforce it; the Tsar is making this attempt, and let us 
hope it will result in such a system being abolished. " Russia 
is too large and its wants are too various and numerous for 
officials alone to be able to rule it. . . . The people alone 
know their own wants." This is what the working-men of St. 
Petersburg declared on the 22nd of last month. When the 
whole nation shall have seen this truth, the end will have 
come peaceably. It is worthy of notice that where despotism 
rules the power of the church is non-existent; the Catholic 
Church has to struggle hard for bare subsistence in Russia. 

In Germany also the principal 
Germany. recent event worth noting has 

been a strike — that of the miners 
— and it is interesting to contrast the course of events in Russia 
and in Gsrminy. The workmen, the miners of the Ruhr district 
of Westphalia, seem to have broken their contracts and to have 
left work without giving the legal notice. On this account their 
employers, the mine-owners, sought to win to their side the 
public opinion of the country; the miners, however, were able 
to make it clear that for a long time their employers had been 
departing from the terms of the contract by increasing the 
length of time of work, paying inadequate wages, and importing 
foreign laborers, and by the taking away of long- established 
privileges. At first the mine owners took a high and lofty line; 
they would not even negotiate with men who broke contracts. 
The government sent a Commissioner to investigate, but did 
not attempt to use force. In the Prussian Chamber and in the 
Reichstag Catholic members came forward in behalf of the 
miners, and Ca^rdinal Kopp, Bishop of Breslau, and Archbishop 
Fischer, of Cologne, have sent subscriptions to the fund which 
was being raised. The mine owners* refusal to negotiate wiih 
the miners has rendered it necessary that, like the kings of 
an older regime, a limit should be .placed upon their powers; 
their arrogance has been its own nemesis; they have fallen 
under universal condemnation; and a Bill has been introduced 
to restrict their powers and to safeguard the rights of those 



8 12 Current Events. [Mar., 

whom they employ. The German mining laws afFord a 
basis for this intervention, inasmuch as the laws which give 
to mine owners rights, also impose correlative duties. The 
declaration of one of the min« owners, ''My capital is my 
own, and I can do with it what I like/' raised throughout the 
Empire a storm of indignation. The Bill introduced by the 
Government into the Prussian Chamber proposes to regulate 
by law the hours of labor, to establish compulsorily workmen's 
committees which are to co-operate in the administration of 
certain funds; to regulate the shifts of work; to abolish the 
chief abuse which caused the strike ; to limit the exaction of 
certain fines. Thus although Germany is far from having a 
constitutional government, strictly so called, yet the voice of 
public opinion in support of the rights of the working-man 
knows how to make itself felt. 

In another matter, too, the voice of the public has been 
heard. The rising of the natives in Southwest Africa has in* 
volved a large expenditure of money, and this the govem- 
meat made on its own responsibility. Parliament assembled 
and no appeal of Indemnity was sought for by the Govern- 
ments. This was an infringement of right which could not be 
passed over in silence. A Catholic member of the Reichstag 
led the way in declaring the absolute necessity that the Gov- 
ernment should ask for pardon and seek acquittal. The 
Chancellor of the Empire acceded to the demand and sought 
the Indemnity; and thus the rights and dignity of the Reich- 
stag have been maintained. 

The elections have place taken in 
Austro-Hungary. Hungary, and, contrary to expecta- 

tion, the government of Count Tisza 
has sustained a severe defeat. For nearly forty years the Liberal 
party, by fair means or by foul, has retained a majority in the 
Hungarian Chamber, and there seemed no - possibility of its 
losing the control of the government. The only way open to 
its opponents of thwarting it was by systematic obstruction, 
by making use of the standing orders of the House. So good 
(or bad) a use of this means was made that for two years all 
the efforts of various governments to legislate had been ren- 
dered nugatory. Count Tisza determined to break down this 
outrageous abuse of parliamentary forms and appealed to the 
country. The voters seem to prefer liberty to order, and he 




1905.] Current Events. 813 

has been defeated. The Liberals are now in a minority, and 
of course the government has resigned ; but the election has 
opened up graver questions than that of parliamentary proce- 
dure. The Independence party, led by M. Kossuth, son of the 
celebrated Hungarian patriot, forms in the new Parliament the 
strongest group. This party has for its aim the abolition of 
the Compact made in 1867, a Compact which forms the 
groundwork and basis of the Empire and Kingdom. For 
while Austria and Hungary each has distinct Parliaments and 
distinct Cabinets, they have a common economic system, that 
is to say, there is no customs line drawn between the two 
parts of the Dual Monarchy, and there is a common ministry for 
the management of foreign affairs of the army and navy, and 
of financial affairs so far as involved in this arrangement. 
The whole of this arrangement it has long been the object 
of the now most numerous group in the Chamber to abolish, 
and merely to leave the personal bond with Austria. The 
Emperor of Austria will be the King of Hungary ; in all 
other respects Austria and Hungary are to be distinct. The 
result of the election, therefore, is to open up the question 
of organic reconstruction. How it will be solved must be a 
matter of interest to students of the many movements for 
Home Rule. 

M. Combes — the representative of 
France. the modern spirit, as he called 

himself — has disappeared at last, 
overthrown by an assembly which he had disgusted by the 
mean and degrading methods he had sanctioned in order that 
he might retain the power to drive into the street defenceless 
monks and nuns. He celebrated, however, the last week of 
his retention of office by the suppression of some four hun- 
dred religious houses. He departs detested even by those 
who are but little better than himself. It is not often that 
retribution has fallen so swiftly on the evil-doer. The forty- 
first ministry since the establishment of the Third Republic 
has been formed, with M. Rouvier as Prime Minister. It is, in 
the main, of the same character as its predecessor, and has 
the same intentions with respect to the Church, although it 
may be less offensive in its methods. The new Prime Min- 
ister was a follower of Gambetta, and has already been minis- 
ter six times. M. Delcass^ has been retained as Foreign 



8 1 4 Current E vents. [ Mar., 

Minister — an office which he has filled for five years and a 
half, and in which he has undoubtedly served his country and 
Europe well. M. £tienne, conspicuous for his activity in 
colonial affairs, has been made Minister of the Interior. A 
noted Anti-Clerical has been made Minister of Worship. There 
are seven new members, while four formed part of the preced- 
ing Cabinet. It comprises representatives of no fewer than six 
groups and yet there is not a single representative of the groups 
which drove M. Combes out of office. This indicates that the 
Rouvier ministry will rely upon what is called the Bloc^ the 
same men who supported M. Combes, and will have to carry 
out the same programme. 

The experience which, during the past two years, France 
has had of Free Masonry and its odious influences gave some 
little reason to hope that the proposal to separate Church and 
State would be, if not abandoned, at all events postponed. 
This hope, if ever entertained, must be abandoned. The Bill 
for the separation has been introduced, and although some of the 
more obnoxious clauses of M. Combes' Bill have been omitted, it 
makes the separation of Church and State definite and conclusive. 
The Concordat is to be abolished, and all State aid and sub- 
sidies are to be, withheld. The Church is to be organized in 
many civil corporations, and to these the church property is to 
be transferred. Pensions are to be given to the clergy. 
Liberty also is to be given, but this liberty in its exercise 
must be subordinate to what the state officials look upon as 
public order. These are the conditions under which the Church 
will ent^r upon a new era in France. 

The designs for the peaceful penetration of Morocco are 
being prosecuted. The Sultan does not altogether relish, bow- 
ever, the having his territories penetrated in any way soever, 
bsing possessed with the quite common notion that he would 
like to do with his own as he pleases. He seemed to be upon 
the point of using violence to keep the French Envoy out. 
He has, however, chosen a wiser plan. The French Envoy is 
to be received, but the Sultan, seeing himself obliged to place 
limitations upon his own power, has preferred to share it with 
his own subjects than to transfer it to a foreign state. He has 
accordingly summoned two of the chief men from each coast 
town and a larger number from the inland towns to discuss 
the situation. The result will be a long delay, and in the 



1905.] Current Events. 815 

end a refusal of French demands, not made by the Sultan 
himself, but by the whole people, with the accession of popu- 
larity to the Sultan. Moreover, should any reforms be thought 
desirable by those Moorish representatives, it is their inten- 
tion to ask Germany to undertake the task. Such is the 
perversity of the Moorish heart. 

In Italy the question of religious 
Italy. education has been raised, although 

in no very acute form. According 
to the law of 1859 religious instruction is obligatory in elemen- 
tary schools. The law of 1877 makes no mention of religious 
instruction, but enacts that instruction must be given "in the 
first notions of the duties incumbent on a man and a citizen." 
Is the later enactment meant to modify and supersede the first ? 
And if it did, did it forbid religious instruction in the schools ? 
These questions have been referred to the Council of State. 
In other respects Italy seems to be prosperous and quiet; the 
only question in any degree urgent being the relations with 
Austria. A fire is smouldering which may perchance burst into 
a blaze. The opposition to the King's Civil List, a reduction 
of the amount granted to him being demanded by the Social- 
ists, entirely collapsed, and the full amount was confirmed to 
him with the full approval of all parties except a very small 
section of the Extreme Left. 

In the Near East the prospect of 
The Near East. the maintenance of peace is very 

doubtful. The reforms have made 
so little progress that the bands of the revolutionists who 
have been waiting and watching will, it is feared, get beyond 
control. The reverses in the Far East cannot fail to weaken 
the influence of Russia over both the Turk and the Bulgarian. 
The German, also, has shown signs that he intends to have a 
share in any steps which may be taken. 

Spain seems to delight in chang- 
Spain. ing its Cabinets — last month it had 

a new one, and this month also. 
The reason for these changes does not seem to be of sufficient 
importance to be discussed. 



flew Boohs. 

The importance of this little book* 

SCIENCE AND IMMOR- is quite out of proportion to its 

TALITY. size. It is a revelation of the 

By Dr. Osier. frankly agnostic spirit of modern 

non-Catholic Christianity. Dr. 
Osier, the author — we need not speak of his fame, for the 
whole world now knows that he is, perhaps, the greatest of 
contemporary scientific physicians — is, to all appearances, an 
extraordinarily devout Christian. He writes with evident 
honesty ; he would repudiate the idea that he is mocking at 
a sacred doctrine ; his aim is decidedly not satire, but 
sincerity; in fact, he would probably class himself as an 
apologist for the particular Christian belief he is discussing. 

And yet, if he be a Christian and an apologist, he is the 
truest agnostic we have read in many a day. 

He is dealing with a belief that is as essential to practical 
Christianity, as the belief in the existence of God is essential 
to speculative theology, for he treats of the doctrine of the 
immortality of the soul. And the manner of his conducting the 
investigation, rather than the outcome of it, is, we say, a 
revelation. Of course we ' have known that actual faith in 
immortality has long since vanished among scientific non- 
Catholics. But Dr. Osier rises in an assembly of the 
''intellectuals," as he calls them, and states and re- states and 
reiterates the sad fact of modern unbelief in a doctrine that 
really makes or unmakes Christians, and no one rebukes him, 
all agree' with him ; we read that his essay was listened to 
with deep interest, but with no apparent dissent. 

When St. Paul, seizing an opportunity to speak to the 
''intellectuals" of his day, chose this same subject of immor- 
tality, there can be no doubt that he considered its acceptance 
the just criterion of a Christian; it was, in his mind, the 
characteristic doctrine of the then new religion ; and when his 
hearers, after maintaining as long as they could the polite and 
scholarly interest that befits "intellectuals," finally decided 
that Paul was a babbler, we can hardly imagine that the 

•Sdtmce and Immortality. By William Osier, M.D.. F.R.S. Boston and New York: 
Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 



1905.] New Books. 817 

Apostie answered that, if they could not see the proof for 
immortality, they might take their Christianity with or with- 
out immortality. 

Yet here is a modern lecturer, a devout Christian, address- 
ing an assembly of '' Christians,'' and the lecturer and the 
assembly both decide that they will have their Christianity 
without the improbable doctrine. 

Dr. Osier is not a satirist; but he commences this lecture 
with a thrust that rivals Dean Swift's, which he quotes: 

" He gave the little wealth he had 
To build a house for fools and mad. 
And show'd, by one satiric touch. 
No nation wanted it so much." 

Miss Ingersoll, says the lecturer, gave of the wealth she 

had to endow a lectureship on Immortality at Harvard College, 

and showed, ''by one satiric touch," that no other community 

needed it so much as Harvard — and the likes of Harvard ; and 

Christian Harvard chuckles at the mention of its reputation 

for unbelief. 

Now the purpose of " the scientific observer," the lecturer 

declares — and, of course, "the scientific observer" is the same 
man with the lecturer — is to " free his mind, as far as possible, 
from the bonds of education and environment, so as to make 
an impartial study of the problem"; and his method is to run 
over pretty much all literature, ancient and modern, pagan, 
Jewish, and Christian, poetic and pragmatic (and Dr. Osier 
knows literature); hold a kind of general review of all wit- 
nesses pro and contra^ and then decide whether an "impartial 
study" leads to belief or unbelief. Literature, sacred and 
profane, are, by this method, at par as witnesses. What used 
to be called "revelation" had better now be called 
"literature"; and "sacred" means only "biblical." Inter- 
preter there is none; judge or jury there is none; the advo- 
cate is judge and jury and all; and, naturally, what should 
the verdict be but the reflex of the advocate's mind? Plato 
and Stephen Phillips, Aristotle and John Milton, St. Paul and 
Sir Thomas Browne, the Acts of the Apostles and Richard 
Burton, Tennyson, Job, Frederick Myers, Erasmus, Esdras, 
John Bunyan, Montaigne, Omar Khayyam, Dean Swift, and 



8i8 New Books. [Mar., 

Cicero ; they are a goodly, if various, crowd of witnesses, and 
the attorney for the prosecution — for that is the character of 
the author, though he calls himself a judge — knows how to 
make them all tell the same tale; and then he stands back 
and says: "Behold, the world never believed, and can never 
believe in immortality." 

Of course there are those who still have a genuine belief 
in immortality. Dr. Osier calls them the " Teresians,*' aiter 
St. Teresa; why they should not be called ''Paulians," after 
St. Paul, or " Christians," after Christ, does not appear. Then 
there are those who have a professional but unreal belief in 
Christianity, these — ^appropriately enough — ^are the ** Laodi- 
ceans," and most men are Laodiceans, neither "hot nor cold, 
but lukewarm." And finally, there are the " Gallionians " ; 
(see how valuable it is to know your Bible, you could not 
so nicely classify the three groups, unless you knew these 
references) ; and the Gallionians, the agnostics, are the 
" intellectuals," the class to which the lecturer and his hearers 
belong. What made them Gallionians ? The answer is : Modem 
science, which "dispenses with the soul"; but, if the soul is 
dispensed with, how can they be even Gallionians? Biology, 
which tells us that "man is the one far-off event towards 
which the whole creation has moved, the crowning glory of 
organic life, the end product of a ceaseless evolution which 
has gone on for aeons " ; and biblical criticism, which has 
" weakened the belief in revelation, and so indirectly in 
immortality." Thus has Christian doctrine become agnostic, 
and thus is open agnosticism become, to use the doctor's 
words, the "end-product" of the system that started as biblical 
Christianity. 

Finally, though the author Is no preacher, he closes with 
the traditional " let us therefore " of the preacher. And his 
word of practical advice to the young men of Harvard, and to 
the intellectuals of the world is this : " After a careful review 
of the literature of the subject, can an impartial observer say 
that the uncertainty has been rendered less uncertain, the 
confusion less confounded ? I think not. • . . Knowing 
nothing of an immortality of the spirit, science has put on 
an immortality of the flesh. . • • Science minimizes to the 
vanishing, point the importance of individual man/' (th^re are 
those who sa/ that the superiority of Christianity over pagan- 



1905.] New Books. 819 

ism is precisely in the magnifying of the importance of the 
individual man). However, we must not run away from our 
agnosticism; "the man of science cannot be dogmatic and 
deny the possibility of a future state, and, however distressing 
such a negative attitude of mind, he will ask to be left, like 
Pyrrho, reserving his judgment, but still inquiring. . . . 
The man of science is in a sad quandary to-day. As per- 
plexity of soul will be your lot and portion, accept the situa- 
tion with a good grace. The wine- press of doubt each one of 
you must tread alone. It is a trouble from which no man 
may deliver his brother or make agreement with another for 
him. . . . On the question before us some of you will 
wander through all phases, to come at last, I trust, to the 
opinion of Cicero, who had rather be mistaken with Plato than 
be in the right with those who deny altogether the life after 
death ; and this is my own confessio fidei,** 

Cheerful prospect, indeed I Hopeful outcome to the wan- 
derings of a soul! To end with the guessing and hoping of 
Cicero and Plato, when one has begun with the dogmatic 
certainty of St. Paul and of Christ. We have expressed 
wonder, in passing, that the intellectuals imagine this is 
Christianity. We wonder, now, whether they imagine such 
doubtful doctrine and such hopeless questioning can be a 
foundation of any religion whatsoever. 

The little book, again we say, serves an important purpose. 
It is a crystallized statement of much that had been in solu- 
tion, as it were, heretofore; it makes us know where the 
majority of modern scientists stand with regard to the only 
matters that they themselves consider more important than 
science itself. 

This pamphlet* contains biogra- 

BIBLE STUDIES. phical studies of the three most 

By Dr. MuUany. important personages of the Old 

Testament, Abraham, Joseph, and 
Moses. They are written in an excellent style, interestingly ^ 
vividly, and with an evident realization of the dramatic quality 
that attaches to the person of each of these patriarchs. We 
do not mean that Father Mullany has profaned the sacredness 
of his subject by an endeavor after "fine writing" or rhetori- 
cal display ; on the contrary he writes very simply. The 

^BibU StudUs. By Rev. John F. Mullany, L.L.D. Syracuse, N. V. : The Mason Press* 



820 New Books. [Mar., 

studies will be, therefore, valuable to beginners in Bible 
History, as well as interesting to the scholar. We wish that 
the now popular classes in Bible History could have a dozen 
or a score more of such interesting and entertaining pamphlets 
placed in their hands. 

In the present state of turmoil 

INTRODUCTION TO over Bible teaching and interprc 

THE BIBLE. tation, we Catholics often wonder 

By Chamberlain. how the Protestant Sunday-School 

teachers continue their work, espe* 
cially perhaps among children. For it is so evident that there 
is an almost universal denial by non* Catholics of the miracu- 
lous and supernatural element in both the Old and the New 
Testaments, that we are anxious to know whether the children 
of Protestants are being taught the rationalism that is in vogue 
among their elders; and if so, how they can be taught to de- 
velop or to retain any respect for a Bible tha1» needs so much 
explaining away, so much interpretation, and so much apology. 
We have a few of our questions answered by the present 
volume.* And we notice that while there is not a little dis- 
guising of ultra-modern biblical theories, in their presentation 
to children, there is a rather more general bluntness and 
honesty in giving out to them the conclusions of rationalistic 
study. 

The most prominent — and evidently the most purposeful — 
omission is that of any reference to the inspiration of the 
Bible. The children are taught many things that are equally 
hard to learn, but no attempt is made to give them any idea 
of what is the special character of the sacred book they are 
studying. It is put plainly upon a level with any other collec- 
tion of books, historical, fictional, poetical, allegorical, or ethical. 

The bothersome question of inspiration, out of the way, the 
rest is comparatively easy. Genesis, Exodus, and the other 
.'' historical" books, are plainly labelled "books of history and 
story"; and the children's questionings may easily be put to 
rest by the admission of the fictional character of the book, at 
any time when the historical character may be difficult to up- 
hold. 

* An Introduction to the Bible for Teachers of Children. By Georgia Louise Chamberlain. 
Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. 



1905.] New Books\ 821 

Thus the story of creation is ''an artistic reproduction of 
an old national tradition/' put into poetic form to be attrac- 
tive, the narratives of the miracles with which the Old Testa- 
ment is crowded are called ''wonder stories/' which gathered 
around the persons of the great men of the Bible, as in the 
case of Elijah and Elisha, the very patent difficulties from 
ethics, for instance, in the story of Jacob, are avoided, though 
any child who reads the text must feel them ; to avoid the 
difficulty in the story of Jonah, the plain statement is made that 
" many Jonah stories " were in existence, of which this one 
has survived, and this one, presumably, is as incredible as the 
other " wonder-stories " which have perished ; and the author 
remarks rather naively in this connection : " If a question arises 
as to the truth of the story of the great fish, call attention to 
the fact that this is only one of the miracles of the book " (as 
if that would mend matters); and then the writer continues 
with the usual explanation, ''the story was doubtless a current 
one well known to the author of the book," and " he is con- 
cerned only with its possibilities as a medium through which 
he may teach the great religious truth he has in mind." We 
can scarcely imagine the child who can be made to grasp that 
truth. The child-mind is simple and will have only a few 
bothersome questions : " Is the story true, and if not, why is 
it written down in this book as if it were true; and if this 
story is not true, why is any of the marvelous stories true ? " 
The adept in biblical apologetic may explain these matters 
possibly to adults, but certainly not to children. 

Unfortunately, too, almost criminally we Catholics must 
think, the volume, when it comes to the New Testament, en- 
tirely avoids the most important question in the New Testa- 
ment — the personality of Jesus Christ. The inference is, of 
course, that the children are to regard him as a mere man; 
but if so, some word of explanation ought to be given as to 
how the Christian worM (including of course Baptists, for 
whom the book was written) was so long deceived in this 
important matter, and so long given to the gross idolatry, if 
such it be, of worshipping a man. 

These are samples of the all-too-evident objections to a 
book of this kind. The fact is the Bible cannot be honestly 
and profitably taught to children. The Bible is essentially a 
book for adult minds ; and even among adults, happy is the 

VOL. LXXX.— 53 



822 New Books. [Mar., 

one who can read bis Bible intelligently and with a serene 
mind and peaceful conscience nowadays. The wonder is that 
such "enlightened" teachers as those of the University of 
Chicago should still cling to the fetich idea that the Bible 
must be made the groundwork of religious teaching even for 
children. This idea is a survival of the old thought. We pre- 
dict it will not long endure. Soon, Protestant children will get 
their ethical and religious teaching from less cumbersome and 
less difHcult text-books. 

The Athanasian Creed * is again in 
ON THE ATHANASIAN this present day in the Anglican 
CREED. Church, what it has often been in 

By Temple. ^he past history of that com- 

munion, a storm-centre of contro- 
versy. A determined effort has been in progress for the 
elimination of this robust Symbolum from the public offices to 
the church. Its Trinitarian terminology is too crude, its escha- 
tology too brutal, its general spirit too bigoted, according to 
the charges of modern liberal Anglicans. So they wish it 
removed, and instead of hearing it proclaimed in public wor- 
ship thirteen times a year, they desire that it shall be flung 
into the waste-cellar of theology, there to moulder with the 
forgotten heresies which it was written to counteract. Natur- 
ally the conservatives are rising in opposition. One of them, 
the Reverend Henry Temple, a man who seems to have kept 
his lips pure from the unwholesome stream of modern learn- 
ing, some time ago delivered in York Cathedral four lectures 
in ^vigorous remonstrance. The lectures are entitled : " The 
Obscurity and Severity of the Athanasian Creed " ; " The 
Athanasian Doctrine of the Trinity " ; " The Eschatology of 
the Athanasian Creed " ; and " Excuses for and Palliations of 
the Sin of Unbelief." Dr. Temple's effort will not count for 
much, we fear. It is based upon too old-fashioned a founda- 
tion. For although he has collected a formidable mass of 
Scripture testimony in favor of Athanasian theology, he must 
not expect to move modern men thereby, until he first prove 
the credibility of the records which he quotes. It is amazing 
to find that Dr. Temple is apparently in a condition of abso- 
lute unconsciousness that the battlefield of Christian apologetic 

* Trinity in Unity: Four Lectures on Certain Aspects of the Athanasian Creed. By Henry 
Temple, D.D. New York: Longmans, Green & Co: 



igos.] New Books. 823 

is no longer where it used to be. He performs right valiantly 
on the site of the firing-line of half a century ago; but he hurts 
not his enemies, who are not now in front of him, but are 
entrenched in his rear, across his line of communications, 
laughing all the while at his fusilade into blank space. That is 
to say Dr. Temple must validate Scripture, not merely quote 
it, if he is to have the slightest influence with his fellow- 
Anglicans who have gone over to Belial in such numbers, we 
fear, that Athanasius contra mundum is a phrase with a de- 
cidedly up-to-date significance. From all that we can see ot 
the controversy, the Athanasian Creed, in matter and form, in 
letter and spirit, is doomed. 

There are few phenomena in the 

SPIRITISM. history of science more remarka- 

By J. G. Raupert. ble than the change which has 

occurred, in the last twenty years^ 
in the attitude of scientific men towards spiritism. It was 
once almost universal, and even to-day it is not unknown, that 
hard-headed students of empirical method should scoff at the 
pretentions of spiritists, and should make merry over the evok- 
ing of " spooks." That any shred of this whole baggage of 
humbug and delusion, as it was considered, should ever be 
recognized as a proper field of serious investigation, used to be 
ridiculed. Things are far different now. The very foremost 
men in physical and psychological science have looked into 
spiritism, have been amazed and confounded by what they 
have observed, and are now in considerable number subjecting 
these mysterious happenings to profound and anxious scrutiny. 
When men like William James, of Harvard, Professor Hyslop, 
of Columbia, Sir Oliver Lodge of Birmingham, Sir William 
Crookes, the discoverer of thallium, and all but the discoverer 
of the Rontgen rays, Alfred Russel Wallace, forever to be 
associated with Darwin in the history of the evolution theory, 
and other men, almost if not quite as eminent, come out before 
the world confessing that they began their examination of 
spiritism convinced sceptics, but that they have been beaten by 
the facts of the case into a belief in spirits who do actually 
communicate with the living, then it is time to deal with the 
subject soberly and scientifically, and to endeavor to assign it 
a proper place in the scheme of human experience. 



824 N£^ BOOKS. [Mar., 

Mr. J. Godfrey Raupert* has written a serious volume on 
the subject which is worthy to be read and pondered. Mr. 
Raupert is a Catholic, and, unless we mistake, a member of 
the Psychical Research Society. At all events he has had him- 
self a great deal of experience with professional spiritists. He 
writes, therefore, as one acquainted with the facts, and as a 
firm believer in the church. The main point of his book lies 
in a warning against the grave dangers of dabbling in spirit- 
ism. He is not alone in giving such a warning. All investi- 
gators declare their astonishment at the knavery, cunning, 
falsehood, and general low moral standards of the spirits who 
commupicate through mediums. Not that all spirits are thus 
depraved. Frequently the communications are on lofty mat- 
ters and imply a very pure morality. But no one, we think, 
questions that a great majority of the unseen agents in these 
manifestations are of a contemptible and degraded character. 
And furthermore the physical consequences to those who have 
given themselves up to spirit-control, have often been disas- 
trous. Many mediums have undergone a hideous depravation 
of character, and still others have become insane. The com- 
mon sense conclusion to draw from all this, at least, as a 
general rule, is that people should abstain from spiritism. The 
dangers are certainly grave ; and thus far we are not ade- 
quately safeguarded against them. It seems morally certain 
that sometime in the future science will be able to speak with 
decision on these matters. For 'the present the subjeet is 
shrouded in mystery, and Mr. Raupert has done a service in 
warning the curious to avoid it. Mr. Raupert himself, we may 
add in conclusion, does not hold that the mediumistic mani- 
festations are due to the spirits of departed human beings, but 
seems to be of opinion that they are chiefly the work of the 
legions of darkness. 

The Jesuit, Joseph Hilgers, has 

THE INDEX. written a large volume f of six 

By Joseph Hilgers, S.J. hundred pages on the Index of 

Forbidden Books as it exists in 
the Catholic Church. The Index may be studied in two ways, 
speculatively and historically; speculatively by an examination 

* Modem Spiritism ; A Critical Examination of its Phenomena, Character, and Teaching 
in the Light of the Known Facts. By J. Godfrey Raupert. St. Louis; B. Heider. 

t Der Index der Verbotentn BiUher; In seiner neuen Fassung dargelegt und rechtlicb* 
historisch GewUrdigt. Von Joseph Hilgers, S.J. St. Louis: Herderschc Verlagshandlung. 



1 90S.] NEW BOOKS. 825 

of the nature of book-censorship, the binding- force of its laws, 
dispensation from them, etc. ; and historically by following the 
course of condemnations from beginning to end. Father 
Hilgers, as the sub-title of his work indicates, has endeavored 
to embrace both methods. Consequently, although Leo XIII. 's 
Officiorum ac Munerum inspired the book, and occupies a large 
share of its pages, we may expect in addition an historical account 
of the intensely interesting subject with which it deals. In this 
expectation we shall be partly satisfied and partly disappointed. 
Our author does give some attention to the history of the 
Index, but far from enough. It is true that we cannot justly 
look for a complete account of all Index-lists and Index-pro- 
cesses in a work so limited in size. The work of the Index, 
since Paul IV. published the first papal catalogue of prohibited 
books, in 1559, down to the latest condemnation under Pius 
X., is indeed too enormous to be comprised within the covers 
of one moderate volume. But we cannot help regretting that 
Father Hilgers did not give a little space to one extremely 
important feature of his subject; and that is, how the various 
proclamations of the Index were received by the Catholic 
States of Europe. It is charged, for example, that the vice- 
king of Naples would not allow Paul IV.'s Index to be pub- 
lished in his domains; nor the governor of Milan in his. And 
we sometimes hear it said that Count Cosimo, of Tuscany, 
ordered a commission to investigate the results of the Index, 
and they reported to the effect that it had ruined the book- 
trade of Florence, causing a loss of 100,000 gold ducats with- 
in a short time, and that it had been the means of reducing to 
ashes innumerable copies of the classics in France and Germany. 
Several instances of this kind are thrown against us from time 
to time; and we regret that Father Hilgers did not provide 
us with an answer. He writes his book in order that the 
Index may be gewurdigt, justly estimated, and he should, we 
think, have devoted especial attention to such difficulties as we 
have mentioned. 

Other omissions we might notice, for example, whether 
excommunication latce sententice was ever proclaimed against 
those who should retain any proscribed book ; why Sixtus V.'s 
Index was never published ; the question of vernacular Bibles ; 
the reason for the extraordinarily severe condemnation of 
Erasmus in Paul IV.'s Index ; to mention only a few of many 



826 NEW BOOKS. [Mar., 

burning questions. Some of these Father Hilgers has treated, 
but hardly, we should say, as their importance warrants. 

Our author does well to insist upon the mitigation of an- 
cient severity, which appears in Leo XIII. 's edition of the Index. 
For whereas in some of the earlier Index-lists those authors 
alone whose opera omnia were condemned numbered a thousand, 
to say nothing of the far more numerous proscriptions of single 
books, Leo's catalogue, counting all species of condemnation, 
contains only a few more than four thousand names. The late 
Pope removed a large number of books from the Index, and 
if he retained several, like Lord Bacon's De Au^mento Scien^ 
tiarum, Vass's edition of Ignatius Martyr, Descarte's Medita- 
tionSf Locke's Human Understanding, Pascal's Pensees, Oliver 
Goldsmith's History of England, Hallam's Constitutional History 
of England, Ranke's Popes, Balzac's novels, and Whately's Logic, 
he doubtless had reasons of his own for doing so. 

On the theological side of his subject. Father Hilgers takes 
a rigidly conservative view. The old question whether or not 
even Catholic scholars may read prohibited books without 
ecclesiastical authorization, he answers with a stern No \ 
Epikeia in such cases is to be used circumspectly, he adds. 
Altogether this volume is valuable and significant. It is true 
that neither historically nor theologically is it likely to be the 
last word on the subject of the Index; still Catholic students 
will do well to read and study it, and even non- Catholic 
scholars, we dare say, would find it unusually interesting. 

Hurrell Froude as assuredly de- 

HURRELL FROUDE. serves a biography,* as the great 

By Miss Guiney. movement of which he was a part 

merits to be remembered in his- 
tory. It will be recalled that Froude was one of the early 
Tractarians, that he gave his influence whole-heartedly to the 
agitation for a return to the Catholic ethos which Anglicanism 
had miserably lost, that he was a friend, yes, the dearest of 
friends, to Newman, and that he died untimely before he could 
see his principles in all their consequences, or be confronted 
with the solemn issue to which they would have inevitably 
led him. He was a brilliant youth, one of that . fascinating 

♦ ffmrreH Fr^nSf : AfemorjnJa and C>?mments. By Lcuise Imogen Guiney. London : 
Mfihuon & Co. 



1905.] Neiv Books. 827 

group of Oriel men, Newman, Keble, Isaac Williams, Mozley, 
who in the early thirties felt their hearts burning within them 
while they talked of ancient Catholicity, which must be re- 
stored to England, and dreamed of a new Ecclesia Anglicana 
which should wear laurels of sanctity and scholarship not 
unworthy of the old. Hurrell Froude was one of the most 
lovable of the group. He was ardent, boyish, fearless^ caught 
up with enthusiasm, and as eager as a soldier to fight for his 
cause. Newman is outspoken in acknowledging his debt to 
him. In the Apologia he says: "It is difficult for me to 
enumerate the precise additions to my theological creed which 
I derived from a friend to whom I owe so much. He taught 
me to look with admiration towards the Church of Rome, and, 
in the same degree, to dislike the Reformation. He fixed 
deep in me the idea of devotion to the Blessed Virgin, and 
he led me gradually to believe in the Real Presence." 

It is this "lost Pleiad of the Oxford Movement," in Miss 
Guiney's happy phrase, whose biography we have here pre- 
sented to us. It is a work of unusually distinguished merit. 
In the first place. Miss Guiney allows Hurrell Froude to tell 
his own story. Her own words are probably no more than 
one in ten, compared with his. And in the case q€ such a 
character as Froude this method is eminently the best. For 
he was not a public man, he occupies no conspicuoair place, 
in what goes by the name of history ; he was only a brave 
and gifted soul that lived with high thoughts, and in a narrow 
sphere tried valiantly to instil his ideas into the minds of 
others. He has of course a place in history, because his 
ideals became the principles of a great reform, and the men 
whom he influenced, the leaders of a mighty movement. But 
Hurrell Froude himself remains apart, as one of whom written 
chronicle can tell U3 little, and who, therefore, if revealed at 
all, must be revealed by his own word. And so it is with an 
admirable sense of fitness that Miss Guiney holds her own pen 
in reserve, and puts together passages from her subject's let- 
ters and papers which illustrate the qualities of his noble 
character, and tell the story of his brief career. And a second 
feature of this book which calls for praise is that in the pages 
which the biographer has written herself, the style is splendid. 
The lover of good English may be assured beforehand that 
this volume will refresh and comfort him. The second half of 



828 NEW BOOKS. [Mar., 

the book is taken up with judgments of Hurrell Froude, writ- 
ten by many men of many minds — Newman, James Anthony 
Froude — Hurrell's brother, — R. W. Church, J. B. Mozley, 
R. H. Hutton, Cardinal Wiseman, and numerous others. This 
compilation makes a valuable chapter in the history of the 
Oxford Movement. Altogether we have here a volume for 
which we owe the author gratitude. We wish for it a wide 
circulation. 

The life of Father Judge, S.J., 
FATHER JUDGE. who died a missionary in Alaska, 

is a simple and uplifting narra- 
tive • of priestly heroism. It tells of a young Jesuit who asked 
for an appointment to the Yukon mission, labored there with 
cheerful joy and abundant fruit, and died after a brief career 
in his bleak apostolate, loved by every one who knew him, 
and venerated even by non-Catholics for his single-minded 
fidelity to duty. Books of this sort do great good in reveal- 
ing lives so given up to God, so contemptuous of danger and 
of ease, so rugged and robust, and so well fitted to give to 
our age a new stimulus to faith, and a new inspiration to 
charity. 

Why are the Hebrew prophets so 

THE HEBREW PROPHETS, neglected in our religious litera- 

By Selfe. ture ? There are few questions 

which a student of Scripture finds 
it harder to answer. It would not be believed, unless the fact 
was so patent, that those glorious precursors of the Kingdom 
of God could be so unused and abandoned. They are the 
true heralds of the Gospel. They are the highest proof, yes, 
almost the only proof, that a special Providence watched over 
the Hebrew people. Their spiritual teaching is pure and evan- 
gelic. Their passion for undefiled religion stands out a miracle 
in the history of men. Their sublime eloquence, their enrap- 
tured fervor, their far-seeing vision, their castigation of evil, 
their hope for the final victory of good, make up a literature 
that no other people have ever equalled or can ever hope to 
equal. And yet who reads the prophets ? Who studies them ? 
Who pays any attention to the historical situation in which 
they lived and wrote? We trust that this irreparable loss will 

♦ An American Missionary : Rev. William H. Judge, S.J. By a Priest of St. Sulpice. 

Introfluction by Cardinal Gibbons. Baltimore: John Murphy Company. 



1 90S.] New BOOKS. 829 

soon be made good in Catholic literature, and that we shall 
soon have historical, critical, and devotional studies on the 
prophets of which we need not be ashamed. 

An admirable little handbook to the prophetic Scriptures 
has just been written from an Anglican standpoint by Miss 
Rose E. Selfe.* Although intended for young people, it will 
serve even their elders as a good introductory manual. A 
brief sketch is given of each prophet and of his times, a sum- 
mary of his doctrine follows, and finally some of the more 
striking passages are quoted. The tone of the work is whole- 
somely conservative, but there is a rational concession to the 
conclusions of criticism. Thus the author admits that Isaias 
xl. to Ixvi. is the work of an unknown prophet who wrote 
during the Babylonian exile. Likewise she accepts the date 
169 or 170 B. c. for Daniel; and inclines to the opinion that 
Jonah is an allegory or parable. These positions of course are 
now commonplaces of criticism, and are almost certain to stand 
unchallenged. The explanations and summaries are brief but 
pointed, and the spiritual considerations are highly creditable 
to the piety of the author. 

The inner history of Judaism, from 

ANCIENT JERUSALEM. the time of the restoration after 

By Bevan. the exile to the reign of Herod the 

Great, is of the utmost impor- 
tance for the development of Israel's religion. In that period 
it was that the Hebraism of the prophets passed over into the 
Hebraism of the Scribes, and the law of Moses was expanded 
into the perfected priestly code which was spun out by fanati- 
cal exegesis until it applied to every least action of human 
life. And for a second reason is this epoch important; for it 
was then that the Messianic hope of Israel took a clear and 
definite form, and produced a varied and curious literature. 
There is still a great deal of research to be done before this 
era in Jewish history is completely made known to us, and 
every solid addition to our rather scant literature on that time 
helps to fill a real need. We are glad to welcome Mr. Edwyn 
Bevan's small volume f as a very useful handbook to the study 
of those centuries. It is not a comprehensive work ; but a 

♦ The Work of the Prophets. By Rose E. Selfe. New York: Longmans, Green & Co. 
\ Jerusalem Under the High Priests. Five Lectures on the Period between Neheiniab 
and the New Testament. By Edwyn Bevan. New York : Longmans, Green & Co. 



830 New Books. [Mar., 

scholar, who knows a period of history deeply and scientifically, 
can put a great deal of information into a small book. And 
beyond doubt, Mr. Bevan's acquaintance with his subject is 
thorough and methodical. We only regret that he did not 
add a little bibliographical detail to his interesting pages. 

Mr. Lilly's latest volume • is a col- 
STUDIES. lection of nine essays which have 

By W. S. Lilly. already appeared either in periodi- 

cal publications, or (as is the case 
with two of the present papers) in previous works of the author 
which are now out of print. The ground covered is extensive, 
and the skill and versatility displayed are of the unusual order 
that we expect from Mr. Lilly. Some of the subjects treated 
are : " What was Shakespeare's Religion ? " "A French Shake- 
speare (Balzac) " ; "A Nineteenth Century Savonarola (Lamen- 
nais) " ; " Cardinal Wiseman's Life and Work " ; and " Concern- 
ing Ghost Stories." As to Shakespeare's religion, Mr. Lilly 
acknowledges, of course, that we can give no definite verdict, 
but thinks the probability respectable that the dramatist died 
a Catholic. Of Lamennais Mr. Lilly writes with considerable 
sympathy ; of Cardinal Newman with veneration ; and of Car- 
dinal Manning with some disparagement. But whatever the 
topic, or whatever the attitude toward it, Mr. Lilly's work is 
always interesting and instructive reading. 

In honor of the Immaculate Con- 

THE IMMACULATE CON- ception Jubilee the Rev. Kenelm 

CEPTION. Digby Best, of the London Ora- 

By Best. tory, has written a book entitled 

Rosa Mystica,^ which Herder has 
brought out in sumptuous style. It is a very beautiful volume, 
and many of its illustrations are finely done. But beyond this 
our praise, we regret to say, cannot go. Father Best's text is 
such as we are unable conscientiously to commend. It con- 
tains nothing fresh, original, or thoughtful that we have dis- 
covered ; its considerations on the various feasts and mysteries 
connected with the Virgin Mother are not above the level of 
any common sodality manual ; its occasional references to his- 
tory are grotesquely false ; its theology is often repulsively 

• Studies in Religion and Literature. By W. S. Lilly. St. Louis: B. Herder. 
\ Rosa Mystica. By Rev. Kenelm Digby Best. St. Louis : B. Herder, 



igos.] New Books. 831. 

extravagant ; and its general method and spirit make it im- 
possible for intelligent people to read it with either profit or 
patience. We regret to be obliged to speak harshly of a work 
which proceeded from an admirable motive and cost consider- 
able pains ; but a reviewer owes a duty to truth before he can 
pay court to flattery. And besides this, we regard it as high 
time to protest against any additions to that already extensive 
literature which would tell us that we must deny our reason 
before we can become devout. 

We earnestly advise every one that 
PUBLIC SPEAKING. desires to speak in public with 

effectiveness and ease to read 
and study this little work,* which is, we understand, the com- 
position of an Irish priest. It is, all things considered, the 
most suggestive volume on the difficult problem which it dis- 
cusses that we remember ever to have read. The author's 
aim is to get back to nature, and to open the springs of ex- 
pression which exist in almost every worthy man's breast, 
though they are often frozen over with cold formulas and icy 
substitutes for living individuality. System is a curse of our 
age. We have systematized primary education until our chil- 
dren forget to be natural ; we have systematized rhetoric until 
a student writes down no word of speech or sermon until he 
looks up some appropriate rule ; we have even systematized 
devotion, until some directors seem to deny that a soul can 
approach the All-Holy except it take the one particular route 
written down in some celestial guide-book or other. Person- 
ality, direct power, native strength, rot away under such a 
treatment; and the end of it can be nothing else than intel- 
lectual, social, and spiritual mediocrity. 

The author of the excellent manual which we are now com- 
mending feels and expresses this vigorously, and, as we re- 
marked, he throws the student back from dead regulations 
into his own mind, there to conceive something worth saying, 
and to arouse a personal and warm enthusiasm for saying it. 
This is the right method, the only right method, for learning 
anything that calls for utterance, whether the utterance be to 
one's self, one's fellow- man, or God. The author's own style, 

* On Public Speaking : What Eloquence is and How to Acquire It, By a Public Speaker. 
Dublin : James DufTy & Co. 



832 New Books. [Mar., 

in the development of this idea, is extraordinarily fine. He is 
a man of clear thinking and of apt word. Even from the 
point of view of pure English, his work gives one sincere de- 
light. But, as we have intimated, his pages put before us a 
lesson that is wider than any matter of mere style, that goes 
beyond his formal subject of eloquence, and embraces precepts 
and suggestions which are in a high degree valuable for the 
general cultivation of both intellect and character. 

Longmans, Green & Co. have 
AMERICAN LITERATURE, brought out two compilations,* 

which are fitted to serve a good 
purpose in advanced English classes. One volume is a selec- 
tion of short stories of American authorship ; the other con- 
sists of excerpts from American literary criticism. In such 
works there must always be matter for dissatisfaction, since no 
two men will agree on what ought to be put into the collec- 
tion and what ought to be left out. So if the present editors 
have not discriminated always just as we should have done, 
we have not therefore any good reason for quarrelling with 
them. The short stories include Poe's " Fall of the House of 
Usher"; Irving's "Rip Van Winkle"; Harte's "Outcasts of 
Poker Flat"; an exquisite piece of humor by H. C. Bunner; 
and several others. Among the critical selections are R. H. 
Dana on Pope; Emerson on Shakespeare; Poe on the Poetic 
Principle ; Lowell on Thoreau ; E. P. Whipple on Thackeray ; 
W. D. Howells on Tolstoy ; and Henry James on Sainte-Beuve. 
Finally we have an essay by that Southern cavalier, Sidney 
Lanier, from which we are going to quote a few sentences. 
The essay is on the English novel, and Lanier has just been 
speaking of Fielding, Richardson, Smollett, and Sterne. Of 
their works he says: "I cannot leave this matter without re- 
cording in the plainest terms that, if I had my way with these 
classic books, I would blot them from the face of the earth. 
One who studies the tortuous behaviors of men in history 
soon ceases to wonder at any human inconsistency ; but so far 
as I can marvel, I do daily, that we regulate by law the sale 
of gunpowder, the storage of nitro-glycerine, the administra- 
tion of poison — all of which can hurt but our bodies — but are 

* American Literary Criticism. Selected and edited by William Morton Payne. Ameri- 
can Short Stories. Selected and edited by Charles Sears Baldwin. New York : Longmans , 
Green & Co, 



I90S.] New Books. 833 

absolutely careless of these things, so-called classic books, 
which wind their infinite insidiousness about the souls of our 
young children, and either strangle them, or cover them with 
irremovable slime under our very eyes, working in a security 
of fame and so-called classicism that is more effectual for this 
purpose than the security of the dark." Brave words which 
we cordially second. It is a strange and dreadful delusion, 
though common enough with our critics and schoolmasters, 
that if cleverness only manages to be recognized as classic, it 
is to be exempted from the eternal laws of decency and 
purity. 

From a humanitarian point of 
TRIXT. view it is edifying, but from a 

By E. S. Phelps. literary point of view it is peril- 

ous to write a novel on the pathos 
of vivisection. Mrs. Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward has written 
such a story,* and clever artist as she is, we are not prepared 
to say that she has avoided many an ignominous descent into 
the bathetic. 

The young man in the plot is an experimental physiologist, 
and of course with the young woman in the case he is prodi- 
giously in love. They are all but betrothed when the dreadful rev- 
elation comes. He is a vivisectionist, and, moreover, for months 
past he has been making experiments in brain- action upon a 
dear dog which the heroine herself had lost two years before, 
and had mourned as forever departed. The scene that ensues 
is very harrowing. He pleads the necessity of science ; she is 
firm. He protests that he did not know it was her dog; she 
averts her face. In despair he finally cries out that, if she will 
only have him, he will give up his researches forever and become 
a practitioner; with bleeding heart she shows him the door. 
With infinite propriety he dies a few days afterward from an 
infection brought on by his experiments. The heroine then 
marries a young lawyer who previously in the story had 
brought action against the vivisectionists for stealing dogs, and 
had made during the trial an impassioned plea for the puppies, 
which brought handkerchiefs to the faces of all the young 
ladies in the court. After all this we need not wonder if Mrs. 
Ward speaks of a ** poodle who sat like a statuette " ; or talks 
of " the God of little lost dogs." 

• Trixy. By Elizabeth Stuart Phelps. Boston and New York : Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 



834 ^^^ BOOKS. [Mar., 

It was the old fashion for every student to have a '' com- 
monplace book." Now a commonplace book was always 
supposed not to be what it almost always was — a book of 
commonplaces — and when it was not that, it was gener- 
ally something equally bad — a collection of odds and ends 
of literature that had been hackneyed into disrepute. But 
once in a long, long while there happened a man who had 
patience enough, and conviction enough of the worth of the 
idea, to build up a commonplace book that would stand read- 
ing. Such is the present volume.* Mr. de Normandie has 
written nothing but the introduction, and that is only a page 
or two. The authors of the other 404 pages of the book are 
King Soloman, David, Isaias, and the other prophets, Job, St 
Paul, and others of the sacred writers, whose paragraphs are 
given alternately with words from Plato, Confucius, Cicero, 
Euripides, Socrates, and others of the wise ones of ancient 
heathendom. . 

The main, practical purpose of the book, the compiler says, 
is to furnish family reading of the serious kind. An excellent 
idea. If we had the space just here we might give a page to 
a little pious exhortation on this matter; not having the space 
we recommend the reader to Mr. de Normandie's book. Call 
it what you will, ''commonplace book," as the grandfathers 
did, or "anthology," as we say now, it represents a good 
idea, and gives the idea a good expression. 

It seems that F. Rouge is the Pfarrer Kneipp of the 
South. He has established a " water cure ", on the princi- 
ples of the master and has, moreover, written, like his 
master, a volume describing the good results of this method 
of nature-cure.f Like Pfarrer Kneipp's book, too, this one 
is distinguished by an almost childlike simplicity of style, 
by an unabashed straightforwardness of utterance, by a vigor- 
ous contempt for doctors, medicines, and drugs, and by a 
perfect confidence — based, as he declares, upon actual results — 
of being able to cure, or to relieve, every disease under the 
sun, from headache and toothache to consumption, paralysis, 
and heart disease. One-third of the book is given to the 

* The Beauty of Wisdom, By James de Normandie. D.D. Boston and New York: 
Houghton. Mifflin & Co. 

\New Orleans Kruipp Water Cure. By Rev. F. Roug^. New York : Joseph Scfaaefcr. 




I90S.] NEW BOOKS. 83s 

description of cures actually wrought. The large number of 
persons in this country who have come to believe in the 
water cure, and the still larger number who have been driven 
to disbelieve in drugs, will find this book as interesting as was 
Father Kneipp's My Water Cure, 

The English Catholic Truth Society has published four 
volumes • on spiritual subjects by Father Eaton, of the Bir- 
mingham Oratory, of whom many in America retain a pleasant 
memory from his visit to this country two years ago. They 
are very helpful little books and highly to be recommended. 
While they are primarily intended for the sick of body and 
afflicted of mind, they are well fitted for general spiritual reading. 
They are full of Scripture, are written with exquisite feeling, 
and are expressed in a clear, simple, and winning style. The 
Oratory spirit, that is to say, St. Philip's spirit, is in them ; 
the spirit of peace, of holy joy, of quiet courage, and of genial 
recognition of God's presence and God's love. No one can 
read them without pleasure and profit, and we take pleasure 
in bespeaking a welcome for them. 

Mr. Ernest De Witt Burton has composed an admirable 
manual for Sunday- Schools on the Gospel of St. Mark.f The 
text is given first ; to this is subjoined a brief commentary ; 
and at the end of each section is a list of questions for the 
children's written themes, or oral recitations. The work is 
excellently done, and the use of it, we feel sure, would be 
greatly to the advantage of both teacher and pupil. Perhaps 
there are two or three points in Mr. Burton's expositions and 
questionaries to which some would take exception ; for example, 
the suggestion of a purely natural distemper in the demoniacs; 
and a possible inclination to diminish somewhat the dogmatic 
force of Peter's confession. But looking at the work as a whole 
it is devoutly and carefully done. Something similar is needed 
for Catholic Sunday* Schools, and we trust will not be too 
long delayed. 

* A Hundred Readings : Intended Chiefly for the Sick. Night Thoughts f§r th* Sick and 
Desolate. lb. Second Series. The Yoke 0/ Christ : Readings Intended Chiefly for the Sick. 
By Rev. Robert Eaton. London : Catholic Truth Society. 

t Studies in the Gospel Auording to St, Mark, For the Use of Classes in Secondary 
Schools, and in the Secondary Division of the Sunday-School. By Ernest De Witt Burton. 
Chicago : University of Chicago Press. 



jForeian petiobicale^ 

The Tablet (7 Jan.) : Gives a very interesting review of a 
recent work by the distinguished Scripture student, Dr. 
Bonaccorsi, who states that the decree of Trent, with 
regard to the authenticity of the Vulgate, aimed only at 
the setting up of an official, authorized version; and 
who also states that the Hexateuch contains, together 
with history, some elements more or less legendary that 
were current in the popular traditions; and to discern 
these two elements is the office of the critics working 
by means of their scientific studies, and of the Church 
giving her infallible decision with regard to facts con- 
nected with faith. An article, purporting to be the 

account of a conversation in a monastery around the 
year 2000, indicates how the difficulties raised by science 
and history with regard to the teachings of the Church 
may be answered in the light of advanced learning. 
Among the interesting lines we quote the following : 
'' So far as I know, there is for us no revealed system 
of chronology." "There is the hypothesis, now con- 
templated with equanimity by Catholics, that while the 
whole of Genesis is inspired, and every part of it is the 
word of God, yet God in sundry places of the book is 
not giving us history, guaranteed as such, but Jewish 
traditions, quoted as traditions, the reader being left to 
his own sagacity to estimate their historical value." " I 
cannot tell when Adam lived. His date is to me simply 
an unknown figure. Consequently I laugh to scorn any 
taunt leveled against me, as a Christian believer, about 
women found to have been combing their hair ' six 
thousand years before Eve awoke in Eden.'" 
(14 Jan.): An interesting account of the open-air preach- 
ing done in Edinburgh by the Jesuit, Fr. Power. He 
undertook this work independently — despite the fact that 
it seemed at variance with all tradition and brought down 
some ridicule on him — and now that he has been most 
successful his efforts are thoroughly appreciated. He 
walks through the streets hatless and ringing a bell and 
gathering a crowd of two or three thousand people, says 



I90S.] FOREIGN Periodicals. 837 

The Edinburgh Evening Dispatch. Were there a dozen 
clerics with the same personal force and energy as Fr. 
Power, working in that smitten field, the problem of the 
regeneration of the slums would be in a fair way to be 

solved! ^The Abbot of Downside begins and carries 

through four numbers of the Tablet a series of articles 
on Inspiration ; and in the course of bis writing makes 
the following statements: "The teaching which is com- 
monly known as 'verbal inspiration/ and which brings 
all the elements of a book under the influence of the 
divine inspiration, is the teaching of the Fathers and the 
Scholastics, and it remained practically unchallenged 

up to the. sixteenth century That the common 

teaching of the Fathers and the Scholastics on a matter 
so intimately connected with faith and morals as the 
nature and extent of inspiration, should have been put 
aside by any school of theologians claiming to be 
orthodox, is certainly a most remarkable episode in the 
history of theology. The new theory which limited the 
effect of inspiration to the ' res et sententise ' of Scripture, 
is traced by Vigouroux and Mazzella to Suarez ; another 
writer of weight attributes it to Bellarmine. . . . 
For its purpose it may have been successful, but it was 
none the less a departure from a clear traditional teach- 
ing, and in the course of years it has thrown our scrip- 
tural teaching into confusion, and it has issued in errors 
which are now condemned by the Holy See. . . . 
When we are assured that every element in the com- 
position of the sacred books is inspired, and that the 
way of escape from difficulties by the door of theories 
of limited inspiration has been closed by the church, we 
are in a position to enter on the further question which 
is now of such importance, viz., that of the characteristics 
oi an inspired writing. The term ' Inspiration ' is suffi- 
ciently defined by the Councils of the Church and by 
Aquinas; what is needed is a description of the effects 
of inspiration upon the written book, and this can be 
reached not by a philosophical examination of the nature 
of inspiration, but by an examination of the inspired 
literary product. For three centuries this examination 
VOL. Lxxx.— 54 



838 Foreign Periodicals. [Mart, 

has been checked ; with the publication of the ' Provi- 
dentissimus Deus' it has again become possible, because 
the subject of investigation is once again clearly and 
strictly defined." 

(21 Jan.): ''Let us retain the traditional teaching of the 
Fathers and the Schoolmen — that the inspiration of the 
Scriptures extends even to the very words — and let us 
accept the full consequences of the fact that there are 
varieties and defects of style in the Sacred Scripture. 
We then have at least this much light thrown on the 
question: "A divine writing, just as any purely human 
composition, may contain grammatical blunders and errors 
of taste, and may exhibit all grades of beauty and dig- 
nity of style and their opposites. . . . The book 
will exhibit the results of the writer's education, the 
effect of the conditions under which he wrote, his haste 
of temper, his field of experience, his care and diligence 
of composition, the sources from which he has drawn 
his information, the natural consequences of writing in 
a foreign tongue. . \ . Taking the facts as we find 
them, we see at once that verbal inspiration dare not 
involve verbal accuracy, not even when the inspired 
writer is dealing with the most sublime mysteries, or the 
most majestic incident in the history of God's revela- 
tion ; not even when he seems to be relating the very 
words of Christ or of the Father. On the contrary, we 
' see that the inspired writer writes according to his knowl- 
edge and his own feeling and to his own experience; 
that he writes his narrative with a view to his immediate 
purpose ; that his narrative of events, just as his literary 
style, bears the marks of his personal character, of his 
present temper, reveals the deficiencies of his less care- 
ful, or the excellencies of his fuller, inquiry, and indi- 
cates the character of the witness from whom he has 
heard the story, and the circumstances and conditions 
of the people for whom he is narrating- it. These char- 
acteristics not only are compatible with inspiration, but 
they fall under it; in short, they are inspired." 
(28 Jan.) : " The school of theologians previously referred 
to was meeting the rationalists by rationalizing; it is 




1905.] FOREIGN PERIODICALS. 839 

now discredited and its recent developments condemned 
by the ' Providentissimus Deus.' . The Catholic 

student's position is simple. The church, which has 
given him the canon and declared its inspiration, 
goes no farther in defining the characteristics of an 
inspired book than this, that it is free from error. 
. . . As we have no ground for saying beforehand 
what kind of things may be found in an inspired book, 
so neither can we say how they shall be expressed, 
whether with perfect literary form, or in style which 
is plain and vulgar; whether in the form of history, 
or allegory, or poetry, or drama; whether in the exact 
terms of science, or in the vague language of the 
people; whether history shall be wrapped in allegory, 
or allegory clothed in seeming history; whether the 
history that is recorded shall always be political, scien- 
tific, chronological, or only illustrative of some higher 

theme." In this issue of the Tablet^ Fr. Lescher, 

O.P., continues a controversy in which Fr. Thurston, 
S.J., is being opposed by some of the Dominican 
Fathers ; and takes occasion to defend against Fr. 
Thurston the authenticity of an indulgence of 60,000 
years, which had been called ''preposterous" by the 
learned Jesuit. 

(4 Feb.) : The Abbot of Downside, continuing his 
papers, goes on to say that the theory of so-called " ver- 
bal inspiration " is the one which allows the greatest 
freedom in the interpretation of the sacred text. He 
shows how St. Thomas went against the common 
opinion of the Fathers and embraced a non-literal ex- 
planation of Genesis, "because he thought it to be more 
in accord with sciience than was the common opinion of 
the Fathers." If a book containing St. Augustine's 
tracts on Genesis and Aquinas' treatise on the Power of 
God, were to be put for the first time in the hands of 
any layman, or indeed of any student of theology 
familiar with the ordinary text-books of to-day, it is 
doubtful if he would regard the volume as being any 
less revolutionary than Driver's Commentary on Genesis. 
Dublin Review (Jan.) : Mgr. Barnes writes on the importance 



840 Foreign Periodicals. [Mar., 

of the information to be gathered out of the pages of 
Papias with regard to the origin of the Gospels. He 
argues that the Presbyter John, referred to in these 
writings, must be the Apostle John, ^' For he, and he 
alone, had a right to speak and to criticise'* as the 
person quoted by Papias wrote and criticised. On the 
theory that the Presbyter really is St. John : " His 
remarks fit in perfectly. He is explaining how St. Mark 
came to be wrong in these points." ''The criticism fits 
in also with the well-known circumstance that in the 
Gospel according to St. Mark, John does, as a matter of 
fact, differ from, and apparently try to correct, the 

Synoptics in several points of chronology and order.'' 

Fr. Pope, O.P., writes of the yeoman service rendered 
by the Palestine Exploration Fund in surveying the 
Holy Land ; and says that orthodox criticism has noth- 
ing to fear from the witness of modern excavations. 

Le Correspondant (25 Dec): Maurice Barres begins a series of 
articles on the history of an Alsatian in the German army, 

Au Setvice de V Allemagne: ^There are interesting articles 

on " La Delation dans I'Armee en 1793 " ; " La Reforme 
de r Academic de France ^ Rome " ; " Sainte-Beuve et sa 
Methode Litteraire " ; and '' Le Comte de la Forest, an 
ambassador of Napoleon." 

(10 Jan) : There is a charming character-sketch of 
the ideal life companion by Count Renaud de Joyeuse, 
under the title, " Portrait de ma Fiancee," and the sub- 
title, " A Midsummer Afternoon's Revery." 

The Month (February) : Passes judgment on the prerogatives 
of science. Whilst admitting fully the results obtained 
by physical science, and recognizing that it may in the 
future make signal advances, the writer. Rev. John 
Gerard, takes exception to some of the pretensions 
made, in behalf of science, both in and outside its 
proper province. The author shows the inconsistent 
meanings attached in popular treatises to the term 
"Science." Rev. J. A. Cunningham gives some de- 
tails illustrating the generous treatment which the Catho- 
lics of the British army in India receive from the gov- 
ernment. Rev. Herbert Thurston contributes an inter* 



1905.J Foreign Periodicals. 841 

esting article on ''Japan and Christianity"; be confines 
himself in this number to the history of the introduce 
tion of Christianity into Japan. 

Revue des Questions Scientifiques (20 Jan.) : As a result of a 
long sojourn in Japan, Th. Gollier gives an interesting 
account of "The Japanese People." While capable of 
imitating and assimilating the work and thoughts of 
others^ as may be seen in the growth of universities 
and schools, the Japanese have little or no origi- 
nality. The chief exemplars in philosophy are Haeckel, 
Spencer, Mill, Strauss, and Vogt. In religion the 
Jap follows Buddha or Confucius, which fact has 
made Japan a fertile ground for the sowing of the 
atheistic a&d materialistic tendencies of modern philos- 
ophy. His immorality is one of the great obstacles 
to Christianizing the country. "Suppress the sixth and 
ninth commandments/' say the missionaries to Japan, 
" and the conversion of the Japanese to Catholicism will 
be only a question of time." Georges Lechalas con- 
tributes an article on the two well known blind mutes. 
Helen Keller, the American, and Marie Heurtin, a 
French mademoiselle, reviewing their early life and in- 
struction and their success in intellectual education. 

La Quinzaine (16 Jan.): Georges Goyau opens this number 
with the first installment of " Febronianism and Joseph- 
ism." Febronianism, as a doctrine concerning the Church, 
was spread abroad by Nicolas Hontheim. It was con- 
demned by three popes. Hontheim retracted his views, 
but his doctrine continued to flourish. Maria Theresa 
and Joseph II. adopted and developed the principles of 

Hontheim, and applied them to the State. Under 

" Seventeen months of Pontificate " Borgo Nuovo relates 
the facts that have occurred thus far in the reign of Pius 

X., and gives us his estimate of the Holy Father. 

Victor de Clercg tells of the rise and success of the 
trusts in the United States. He does not think that 
France need fear that the trusts will invade her territory, 
(i Feb.): 'A French officer discusses the effect produced 
in the mentality of the German army by the introduc- 
tion of men from the bourgeois class into the ranks of 



842 Foreign periodicals. [Mar., 

the officers.--^— M. Georges Goyau sketches the trend of 

Febronianism as it developed under Joseph II. H. 

Dauphin Meunier, apropos of a recent publication, ana- 
lyzes the mechanism of the Spiritual Exercises of St. 

Ignatius. M. Le Roy relates some impressions received 

in a visit to China. M. de Borsau continues his story 

dealing with the socialistic problem. 

£tudes (5 Jan.) : Georges Longhaye contributes an article 
on Saint-Beuve, apropos of the centenary of that 
great litterateur. The article closes with different esti- 
mates of Saint Beuve — of his life and works, manifesting 
the value of his life to literaturCi together with its 
distinctive effects in religious faith and certitude. 
(20 Jan.): "The Congress of Ratisbonne and Catholic 
Influence in Germany " is an instructive article written 
by Leon Scehniein. He tells of the purpose of the 
Congress, viz., to unite the Catholics of Germany in 
mutual help and protection. 

La Revue Apologetique (16 Jan.): Seasonable tribute to the 
jubilee of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception is 
paid in two articles, one a fine panegyric by Rev. A. 
Vermeersch, SJ., the other a sketch of the dogma's 

historic development by Guillaume Simenon. With 

great earnestness, Canon Memaine attacks Pere Lagrange's 
article on the Messianic prophecies of Daniel {Revue 
Biblique^ October, 1904). He declares that the article of 
the biblical commissioner is stupefying, and supports 

the assertion with extensive argument. M. Xavier 

Moisant, pursuing his theme of the dispositions for faith, 
maintains that scientific and philosophic study of natural 
mysteries by producing in us a sense of the limitation 
imposed upon our intellects, begets an attitude favorable 

to faith. M. E. de Premartin relates further of 

his personal experiences in the uncanny regions of 
spiritism. 

Ihe Church Quarterly Review (Jan.): The writer of the essay 
entitled The Christian Society examines the general char- 
acter of the Gospel contents, to find proof that they 
witness to the establishment of a society by our Lord. 
The decision of the House of Lords regarding 



I90S.] FOREIGN PERIODICALS. 84J 

the Scots' Church is discussed, with a view to pointing 
out some of its momentous consequences.— — The recent 
work of Dr. lUingworth, Reason and, Revelation^ is ex- 
amined. The writer of The Science of Pastoral Theology^ 
advocating a larger place for pastoral theology in eccle- 
siastical training, offers some suggestions as to how the 
study should be pursued on its abstract and practical 
sides; 

Revue Benedictine (Jan) : For some time past it has been ad- 
mitted that the last. twelve verses of St. Mark's Gospel, 
chapter xvi., were written by a hand different from that 
which wrote the rest of the Gospel. Dom Chapman, in 
an interesting article, expresses as his opinion that the 
author of these twelve verses of St. Mark's is Aristion, 
well known as the informant of Papias, and also that 
this same Aristion is likewise the author of the Epistle 
to the Hebrews, commonly ascribed to St. Paul. ■ 
Reviewing a recent work on contemporaneous Catholic 
exegesis, Dom Bastian summarizes the principles which 
should govern the Catholic exegete and critic in his 
scriptural labors. Dom Ren^ Ancel contributes an his- 
torical paper drawn from original sources on tfa^poUtics 
of Cardinal Carafa, with reference to his attitude in the 
Siennese question. 

Razdn y Fe (Feb.) : P. MuriHo continues his criticism of the 
writer who, in the Biblische Studien^ undertook to ex- 
pose the principles of the modern school of Scriptural 
exegesis. 

Rivista Internazionale (Jan.): S. Talamo presents another in- 
stallment of his paper showing that the ideas of the 
Christian Fathers, if well studied, will be seen to con- 
tain a more or less direct reproof of the institution of 
slavery, even in modern times. 

Civilta Cattolica (21 Jan.): Reviews the work of an anony- 
mous theologian who, in the pages of the Rivista delle 
Riviste per il ClerOy attacked the thesis that all the 
dogmas of the Church are of Apostolic origin. The 
present reply gives the opinion which has always pre- 
vailed among theologians, and which affirms that all the 
Christian revelation was confided to the Apostles. We 



844 FOREIGN PERIODICALS. [Mar., 

may hope, continues the writer, that future time will 
make us better acquainted with a point of Catholicism 
now much discussed, namely, the mysterious union be- 
tween God and inspired men in the composition of the 
Sacred Books. Any one who is scandalized at these 
words, is ignorant of the A. B. C. of the economy of 
the Christian revelation, willed by God. If we cannot 
bind men down with our conceptions, and determine a 
priori what they must have done, and determine from 
this what they can have done, much less can we under* 
take to do so with regard to God. 

(4 Feb.) : Reviews the recent work in which Doctor 
Bonaccorsi discusses the publications of Harnack and 

Loisy. An account is given of the letter sent to the 

Holy Father by the Benedictine nuns of Stanbrook, 
England, thanking and congratulating him, because of 
his efforts to revive the old traditional music of the 
Church — to which music thrs community has always been 
devoted. The Pope replied with an autograph letter of 
some length, which is now most reverently preserved in 
the convent. 

Revue cPHistoire et de Litterature Religieuse (Jan.-Feb) : The 
Abbe Loisy considers the .<«ynoptic narrative of the Bap- 
tist's message to our Lord, inquiring if he was indeed 

the Messiah. Pierre de Nalhac, writing of Madame 

de Pompadour's ''conversion," gives high praise to P. 
de Sacy, the Jesuit, for his refusal to admit the courtesan 
to the sacraments unless she abandoned her royal para- 
mour.— M. Turmel describes the predestination con- 
troversy of the ninth century. 

La Rassegna Nazionale (i Jan.) : L. de Feis declares that the 
following reasons convince him that the Holy House of 
Loreto is not the genuine home of the Holy Family. 
I. For two hundred years after the alleged miraculous 
translation, there is no record to show that the legend 
existed; 2. The Papal letters make no mention of the 
miracle of translation ; 3. Only in the second half of 
the fifteenth century did the story of the Holy House 
begin to spread, and the popes of that period are 
careful not to sanction it. 4. Although it is said that a 



1 90S.] FOREIGN Periodicals. 845 

commission appointed by Benedict XIV. went to Naza- 
reth and found that the measurements of the foundation 
of the original house of St Joseph exactly corresponded 
to the dimensions of the Lorettine shrine, we have no 
proof that such measurements were taken, and even if 
we had, they would avail nothing, for during the Middle 
Ages it was not uncommon to build oratories after the 
precise measurements of the holy places in Palestine. 
5. We possess several accounts of pilgrimages to the 
Holy Land, written long after the supposed miracle, 
which tell us distinctly that the Holy House still existed 
in Nazareth. One such account written by the monk 
Suriano, 1480-15 14, rejects the pretensions of the Loreto 
shrine as false. 

Die KuUur (Jan.) : This number contains a paper by Dr. 
Richard Kralik on the relation of the Church to the 
problems of the age. He believes that there is a de- 
cided movement towards Catholicism. The one great 
obstacle to this movement is a lamentable ignorance of 
the Church's teachings on the part of those outside her 
pale — due, in no small measure, to the indifference of 
Catholics themselves. 



846 The Columbian reading Union. [Mar., 



THE COLUMBIAN READING UNION. 

BLESSED THOMAS MORE was presented recently to the Boyle O'Reilly 
Reading Circle, of Boston, in a most attractive character-study by the Rev. 
ThoxnasJ. Gasson, S.J. The lecture was diversified with incident and acec- 
dote illustrating More's life as revealed in various stages of his career. He 
was always a devout Christian ; and we find him as a young barrister, diversi- 
fying his legal practice by giving a series of lectures on St. Augustine's City 
of God^ in the Church of the Carthusians. 

In his young manhood, Thomas More felt a strong attraction to the 
Franciscan Order; but in long and prayerful reflection, he realized that his 
vocation was in the world. When later he thought of marriage, his choice 
was decided rather by his discovery of the young lady's affection for him than 
by his for her, as in his heart his preference was for her younger sister. But 
this marriage with Jane Colte, eldest daughter of Mr. Colte, of Essex, was 
happy enough to reward him for his chivalrous unselfishness. The fruit of it 
was three daughters and a son. Bereaved early of this good wife. More mar- 
ried again, this time a widow. Mistress Alice Middleton, who, though taking 
good care of his children and proving a thrifty housewife, was a shallow and 
worldly woman of somewhat shrewish temper, and utterly unable to appreci- 
ate her high-minded husband. More's father lived well into his son's dis- 
tinguished career ; and the former was always a model of filial piety. As a 
middle-aged man, passing his father's residence on his way to court, he would 
always stop and kneel for the latter's blessing. He was a fearless, incorrupt- 
ible judge; and although, as Master of Requests, he gave ample time even to 
the humblest of his clients, he was so devoted to his work and so expeditious, 
that on a day when the next case being called, the astounding answer was 
returned, << there is no next case." 

The pressure of business and the blandishments of royalty never inter- 
fered with his religious duties. He heard Mass daily; and, when he had a 
particularly difficult case on hand, prepared himself for his decision by con- 
fession and Communion. 

King Henry VIII. became very fond of this great jurist, who was also a 
sociable and genial companion, and delighted to visit More in the midst of 
his family, and make merry with them at table. He even admired the bold- 
ness with which More would take the people's side against the king, when 
justice called that way. But More was not blind to the change gradually 
taking place in the king's character, and his own promotion to the office 
which Wolsey resigned for conscience' sake, filled him with foreboding. 

He also had enemies to lay snares for him. The king was trying to se- 
cure a divorce from the virtuous Catharine of Aragon, in order that he might 
marry Anne Boleyn. More was asked for an opinion on the evidence pre- 
sented to sustain the king's contention that his marriage to Catharine was 



1905.] The Columbian Reading Union. 847 

invalid. The chancellor declared the evidence in his opinion insufficient, but 
left the decision to Rome. Foreseeing the end to which Henry's policy was 
hastening. More, in 1532, resigned the chancellorship and retired, a poor 
man, to his home at Chelsea. In 1533 Henry, who had found an obsequious 
ecclesiastical backer in the time-serving Cranmer, was married to Anne 
Boleyn. More was invited to the marriage, money being sent him for a suit- 
able outfit. He declined the invitation and returned the money ; thus mak- 
ing an implacable enemy of Anne Boleyn. The king, who had not lost all 
affection for his once cherished friend, made further attempts to .win him 
over, while, coincidently, More's enemies sought to compass his ruin. 

In 1534, the king was declared Head of the Church. More refused to 
recognize any Head of the Church save the Pope ; although gladly giving 
his fealty to the king in all other aspects. The brave man was declared 
guilty of high treason and imprisoned in the Tower. Not the least of his 
trials during a peculiarly harsh imprisonment were the importunities of his 
family to compromise with his conscience. It was quite in character with 
his wife, that she should take grievously to heart the loss of her market- 
money, and have no patience with what she regarded as idle scruples. It 
was a sorer trial to More that his virtuous, learned, and most beloved 
daughter Margaret, now the wife of John Roper, should try to show him 
a form of adhesion to the new oath of supremacy by which he could at once 
placate the king and save his conscience. But he was inflexible withal, and 
Margaret's mind was presently cleared of its delusions. On July 6, 15351 
More was beheaded on Tower Hill, going joyfully to his martyrdom. Father 
Gasson briefly reviewed More's literary work and his part in the English 
Renaissance, accounting him, in the classic purity of his English, a worthy 
fore-runner of the greatest writers of Elizabeth's time. But the lecturer's 
highest praise was for the moral and spiritual beauty of the martyred chan- 
cellor's life ; and the example which he has left for men of the world to 
follow. 

The recent volume completed and edited by Dom Bede Camm, O.S.B., 
contains the narratives of forty martyrs declared blessed by Pope Leo XIII. 
Considerable space is given to the testimony of the learned Erasmus regard- 
ing the domestic life of England's greatest chancellor. According to Eras- 
mus Blessed Thomas More was careful to have all his children from their 
earliest years thoroughly imbued, first with chaste and holy morals, and then 
with polite letters. Even in these days, when the higher education of women 
is so much to the fore, we marvel at the learning of his daughters. 

''A year ago," continues Erasmus (To Beza, 1521), 'Mt occurred to 
More to send me a specimen of their progress in study. He bade them all 
write to me, each one without any help, neither the subject being suggested 
nor the language corrected. (Of course they wrote in Latin. Erasmus did 
not understand English.) . . . When they had done so, he closed the 
letters and sent them to me without changing a syllable. Believe me, dear 
Beza, I was never more surprised ; there was nothing whatever either silly 
or girlish in what was said, and the style was such you could feel they were 
making daily progress. ... In that house you will find none idle, no 
one busied in feminine trifles. Titus Livius is ever in their hands. They 



848 The Columbian Reading Union. [Man, 

have advanced so far that they can read such authors and understand them 
without a translation, unless there occurs some such word as would perhaps 
perplex myself. His wife, who excels in good sense and experience rather 
than in learning, governs the little company with wonderful tact, assigning 
to each a task and requiring its performance, allowing no one to be idle or 
to be occupied in trifles." 

When absent from home, as so often happened, owing to his duties at 
court, More still superintended the education of his children. He expected 
each of them to write him a Latin letter almost every day, and he wrote the 
most delightful replies, which were naturadly prized as great treasures, and 
some of which Stapleton has handed down to us. He says the originals were 
almost worn to pieces, so frequently had they been read. One of them is 
headed <' Thomas More to his whole school," another "Thomas More to his 
dearest children, and to Margaret Giggs, whom he numbers amongst his 
own." In one of them he writes (Stapleton, p. 229) : 

" If I did not love you so much, I should be really envious of your happi- 
ness in having so many and such excellent tutors. But I think^you have*Bo 
longer any need of Mr. Nicholas, since you have learnt whatever he had to 
teach you about astronomy. I hear you are so far advanced in that science 
that you can not only point out the polar star or the dog star, or any of the 
constellations, but are able also — which requires a skilful and profound 
astrologer-^among all these leading heavenly bodies, to distinguish the sun 
from the moon I Go forward, then, in that new and admirable science by 
which you ascend to the stars. But while you gaze on them assiduously, con- 
sider that this holy time of Lent warns you, and that beautiful and holy poem 
of Boethius keeps singing in your ears, to raise your mind also to heaven, 
lest the soul look downwards to the earth, after the manner of brutes, while 
the body looks upwards. Farewell, my dearest. From court, the 23d 
of March.*' 

In one of his letters to his beloved eldest daughter he writes : 

<M beg you, Margaret, tell me about the progress you are making in 
your studies. For, I assure you that, rather than allow my children to be idle 
and slothful, I would make a sacrifice of wealth, and bid adieu to other cares 
and business, to attend to my children and my family, amongst whom none 
is more dear to me than yourself, my beloved daughter." 

He was, at the same time, most anxious that their progress in learning^ 
should not make them vainglorious, and writes to one of their tutors 
(Stapleton, p. 228) : 

'< That this plague of vainglory may be banished far from my children, I 
do desire you, my dear Gunnell, and their mother and all their friends, would 
sing this song to them, and repeat it, and beat it into their heads, that vain- 
glory is a thing despicable and to be spit upon ; and that there is nothing 
more sublime than that humble modesty so often praised by Christ ; and this 
your prudent charity will so enforce as to teach virtue rather than reprove 
vice, and make them love good advice instead of hating it. To this purpose 
nothing will more conduce than to read to them the lessons of the ancient 
fathers, who they know cannot be angry with them, and, as they honor them 
for their sanctity, they must needs be much moved by their authority." 



I90S.] The Columbian Reading Union. 849 

His tenderness was equal to his wisdom. What could be more charming 
than this reply to a daughter's request ? 

''You ask, my dear Margaret, for money with too much bashfulness and 
timidity, since you are asking from a father who is eager to give ; and since 
you have written to me a letter such that I would not only repay each line of 
it with a golden Philippine, as Alexander did the verses of Cherilos, but if my 
means were as great as my desire, I would reward each syllable with two gold 
uncix. As it is, I send only what you have asked, but would have added more, 
only that as I am eager to give, so am I desirous to be asked and coaxed by my 
daughter, especially by you, whom virtue and learning have made so dear to 
my soul. So the sooner you spend this money well, as you are wont to do, 
and the sooner you ask for more, the more you will be sure of pleasing 

your father." 

• • • 

That Dutch Calvinists should in a measure help to make a Jesuit 
saint is a strange incident now being brought to public notice in the eccle- 
siastical process through which the canonization of Father Isaac Jogues, the 
first Jesuit missionary to enter the State of New York and the first priest to 
visit Manhattan Island, is to be effected. 

Captured in 1642 by the Mohawks, who were the allies of the Dutch, 
after the most barbarous torture Father Jogues was ransomed from the sav- 
ages by Arendt Van Curler, the Dutch Calvinist governor of Fort Orange, 
now Albany, for one hundred gold pieces. He was sent down the Hudson to 
New Amsterdam, where he was kindly received by the local minister, Domi- 
nie John Megapolensis, and the director-general, William Kieft. They not 
only clothed and kept him until he recovered from the effects of his tortures, 
but sent him back to France with a safe conduct, on board the next ship that 
sailed. 

The romantic and fascinating story of Father Jogues's Indian captivity, 
heroism, and final martyrdom has been studied anew, and many curious facts 
have been discovered and brought out by the ecclesiastical court of investiga- 
tion now sitting in Quebec. Another court will be convened in Paris by the 
cardinal archbishop for the accommodation oi the French witnesses, Father 
Jogues having been a native of Orleans. 

One of the witnesses who recently appeared before the court at Quebec 
to give his testimony in the process of beatification, the Rev. Thomas J. 
Campbell, S.J., will lecture on the career of Father Jogues throughout New 
York State. Members of the Holland Society and others of Dutch descent, 
delegations from the historical societies, and others interested in this chapter 
of the state's early records, have accepted invitations to be present. 

The process for the beatification of two other subjects is now under way. 
They are Mother Seton, who founded the Sisters of Charity, and Bishop 
Neumann, of Philadelphia. Prelates, returning from recent visits to Rome, 
say that the greatest interest is being manifested there over the progress of 
the official investigation into the sanctity of Father Jogues, who will probably 
be New York's first saint. 

• • • 

Dr. Charles H. McCarthy, professor of history in the Catholic University 



850 The Columbian Reading Union. [Mar., 1905.] 

of Atnsrica, has lately written a letter in praise of the book by Thomas Bona- 
venture Lawler, A.M., entitled Essentials of American History, Of special 
value is his account of the early explorers, notably the pioneers from France 
whose method of acquiring supremacy in America is thus concisely described 
by an excerpt from Parkman : Peaceful, benign, beneficent were the weapons 
of this conquest. France aimed to subdue not by the sword but by the cross; 
not to overwhelm and crush the nations. She invaded but to convert, to 
civilize, and to embrace them among her children. 

Dr. McCarthy praises this book for stating clearly the fact that hand in 
hand with the work of the explorer went the labors of the missionary. A few 
well-written pages describe the efforts of these spiritual heroes. The roving 
character of the Indian tribes suggests the magnitude of the task undertaken 
by the Jesuits, and even if in this instance they failed to attain complete sue* 
cess, they established, by deeds of heroism unsurpassed in history, a standard 
of character and of devotion to duty that will not soon pass into forgetfulness. 
The encouraging beginnings, as well as the causes of the decline of the Cali- 
fornia missions, recieve for the first time in a school history anything like 
adequate treatment. 

Without a tolerably complete account of the events preceding the forma- 
tion of the Constitution, the story of our national development is not easy to 
write, and, as we may perceive by his distribution of emphasis, this difficulty 

Mr. Lawler appears fully to recognize. 

• • • 

Lord Rosebery, formally opening a new Carnegie Library in Scotland 
the other day, humorously told his audience a few excellent home truths. 
The reading of a good book, he said, was an end in itself, since it made for 
refreshment and inspiration, but a gluttony of books was just as bad as a sur- 
feit of anything else. The man of vigorous life among men would beat the 
man of books always and at everything in this world. Reading was only a 
partial aid to that knowledge of life which makes the perfection of mankind. 
They should have their hours of study, but should not for their hours of study 
neglect their hours of action. Lord Rosebery found that there were two 
classes of books — the books borrowed from friends and returned, and the 
books borrowed but not returned. The non-returning of books had, in his 
opinion, ended more friendships and terminated more affections than any 
other cause of which he was cognizant. The man who borrowed one volume 
from a set of volumes and never returned it was a man who should be treated 
like vermin — trapped, or shot at sight, or made to endure any other of the 
punishments which might fairly be inflicted upon the last and vilest of man* 
kind. All of which is good fun — and good sense. M. C. M. 



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