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DE MAZENOD, BISHOP OF MARSEILLES, AND FOUNDER OF THE OBLATES OF MARY LMMACULATE, AND 01' THE MISSIONARY LABOURS AND TRAVELS OF IN CANADA, LABHADOH, THE KED KIVEB KEGIONS, SASKATCHEWAIf, ON THE BOHDEKS OE THE GHEAT SLAVE AND THE GHEAT LEAK LAKES, IN THE MACKENZIE REGIONS, TO THE CONFINES OP THE ABCTIC OCEAN, AND IN BBITISH COLUMBIA. By the Eev. EGBERT COOKE, O.M.I. VOL. I. LONDON: BURNS & OATES, 17, POHTMAN STEEET. DrBLIN : M. H. GILL & SON, 60, UPPER SACKVILLE STREET. 1879. \_All nights Meserved,'^ 6k 3iZb v./ 3101 The Author legs to tender his grateful acknowledgments to William Ai^mit, Esq., Secretary to the Hudson Bay Company, and to J. H. O'^eil, Esq., Agent for the Province of Quebec, for their courtesy and Jcindness in allowing him to consult the hooks of the libraries attached to their respective departments, when com- piling the present volume. *.' To THB RIGHT HONOURABLE TEE EARL OF DENBIGH AND DESMOND. My dear Lord Denbigh, With your Lordship's kind permission, I dedicate to you the accompanying pages. At an early stage of your Lordship's Catholic life, the hand of Divine Providence brought you into contact with Monseigneur de Mazenod. In him you beheld a great Bishop of God's Church, and a true Apostle of the poor of Jesus Christ, whose exalted virtues you revered, whose wise counsels you valued, and whose friendship you enjoyed. In your Lordship, at that time, the venerable Founder of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, saw the youthful but intrepid Confessor of the Faith, who had then made the generous sacrifice of class and home feelings, and of much that was to be prized in future prospects, at the shrine of his religious convictions. In later years, when a work had to be accomplished which Monseigneur de Maze- nod had much at heart, and which he had often urged myself to seek to bring about — the establishment of his Missionaries in London among the poor of that metropolis, ly DEDICATION. your Lordship became a providential agent in its further- ance. The leading and generous part which you took in co-operating with the Fathers of Tower Hill Mission in establishing Schools for their poor children, entitles your Lordship to our deep and lasting gratitude. With sentiments of affectionate respect, I remain, My dear Lord Denbigh, Yours ever faithfully, * ROBERT COOKE, O.M.I. CHURCH OF ENGLISH MARTYRS, Great Phescot Street, London, E. June Uth, 1879. CONTENTS. PAOB CHAPTER I Birth and parentage — Traits of early virtue — Foata of charity in childhood — Eugene and the charcoal vendcvr — His parents wisely foster his early spirit of charity — His love of truth — His strong power of sympathy with others in their sufferings. CHAPTER IT. The early home of Eugene — His father's hospitality assembles there some of the first families in France — Religious character of his father's household — Clouds gather round his early days — Outbreak of the Great French Revolution in 1789— Eu- gene's father marked out for death by decree of Robespierre — A further decree orders children of nobles to be put to death — Eugene sent to Italy for safety — He enters College of Nobles at Turin — Proof given by him of great delicacy of sentiment and firmness of character. CHAPTER III. ... ... ... ... ... ... Piedmont threatened by advancing wave of French Revo- , lution — Further flight necessary for safety of etnigres — Totiching incidents cf departure from Turin — The De Mazenod family embark on the Po for Venice, accompanied by many vene- rable ecclesiastics — T\^ fall in on their way with many old friends who arc also fleeing from danger — The joyous resignation of emigres under their trials — Arrival of the De Mazenod's at Venice with remnant of their fortune — Poverty begins to tell on that noble family of exiles — A providential circumstance occurs which is to influence the future career of Eugene — Eugene and Bartolo ZineUi — His holy rule of life and order of studies at Venice — His contempt for the vanities of the world — His life of prayer and self-denial — His first manifestation of a vocation to the priest- hood —Courageous reproof to Infidel scoffers — Dines at Spanish Embassy, conquers human respect on that occasion — His high- spirited protest against words wanting in due respect to the Holy 3eo, spoken in his presence, 12 VI OONTBNTB. GHAFT£H IV> ••■ ••! ••• ••« »tt ••• Further flight of emigrit — The De Mazenod family seek shelter in Naples — Intimacy with the family of the Marquise do Talleyrand — Eugene meets Lord Nelson in the lalom of the Russian Embassy — The Republican army of France approaches the gates of Naples — The Queen of Naples sends a messenger to inform the De Mazenod family of the approaching danger — Great popular commotion in Naples — Angry crowds fill the streets to prevent the flight of the Royal Family — The Russian Consul wounded mortally — A royal courier massacred — Eugene's uncle, Admiral de Mazenod, secures shelter for the De Mazenod family on board a Portuguese ship of war — Eugene heads a small party of Portuguese sailors sent to convey luggage on board — His gallant conduct when confronting a fierce multitude — He rescues a boat's crew in a storm by his presence of mind«and personal daring — Arrival at Palermo — Eugene a great favourite at Court — Ilis ex- emplary conduct — His intimacy with the Duke de Berry, brother of Loxxis the XVI. VAOI 26 CHAPTER V Advent of Napoleon to power — Return of the em^rea to France — Death of Eugene's father — Eugene succeeds to a large inheritance — He devotes himself in his native town, Aix, to works of charity — He spends the chief portion of his time in hospitals and prisons, and in the homes of the destitute poor — The widows and orphans of those who fell in the late wars excite his deep compassion — He grieves especially over the spiritual wil- derness created by the Revolution — Eugene feels that God calls him to renounce the world, to enter the priesthood, and to devote his whole life and means to charitable labours in behalf of the poor — He resolves to follow what he believes to he a call from God. 34 CHAPTER VI » Eugene enters the seminary of St. Sidpice — The Abbf Emery, superior of St. Siilpice, becomes Eugene's spiritual guide and di'^ctor-i— The Abbe Emery and Napoleon — Eugene becomes the fa!ihful copyist of the virtue/i of the great servant of (Jod, the Abb6 Emery — Eugene the constant attendant and com- panion of the Ahb6 Emery during his last illness — Letter of Eugene to his mother, Madame de Mazenod, on the death of the Ahb^ Emer^. 38 00NTBNT8. vii CHAPTER VII After Eugene's ordination aa priest he refuses offers of proferment — He wishes to labour solely for the poor — In his native town, Aix, he seeks a field for his zoal in the prisons of that place— Large numbers of Austrian prisoners of war are in the prisons of Aix — A dreadful plague breaks out in their midst — The chaplain, the physician, and military ofHcer in charge of them oatch the plague and die — The Abb6 de Mazenod volunteers his services as chaplain to the plague-stricken — The civil authorities are ^unwilling to expose a life so precious to the grave danger of catching the plague — The Abb6 de Mazenod insists and receives the appointment he covets — He is struck down by the plague — Universal sorrow in Aix — Public prayers for his recovery in all the churches of the city — He receives the last sacraments and his life is despaired of — God hears the prayers offered for the holy priest's recovery — He aims at accomplishing a greater good than can be achieved by his personal efforts — He seeks association with kindred spirits, men gifted with a spiiit of interior piety, men of action and of prayer, who are desirous to walk in the footsteps of the Apostles for the saving of souls — The Abbe Tempier, the Abbe Mye, and dthers, with Father de Mazenod, form a community of Missionaries — Father do Mazenod chosen Superior. CHAPTER VIII All Christian virtues flourish in the new community — Other disciples range themselves under Father de Mazonod's guidance — Characteristic virtues of Father de Mazenod — First mission is given by the now community — Father do Maze- nod draws up the rules of his new society — His retreat at St. Lau- rent de Verdon — Scope of the rules of the new society. T>AOB 44 56 CHAPTER IX. ... ... ... ... ... ... First vows pronounced by Father de Mazenod and eonfrerea on the first of November, 1818 — Great mission at Marseilles — Assassination of the Duke de Berry — Disturbance prevented at Marseillbo by Father de Mazenod — The saintly Don Carlo Albini enters new community of missionaries — A young church student named Guibert, now Cardinal-Archbishop of Paris, becomes a member of Father de Mrzenod's community — Mission in the Cathedral of Aix — Father de Mazenod, under the counsel of many wise and holy persons, resolves to seek for the solemn approbation of the Holy See for his institute of missionaries — Ho proceeds to Rome — His favourable reception by Leo XII. — His Holiness shows a warm inte^rest in Father d'; Mazenod's work — 69 Tiii COMTKKTS. » PAOI Unexpected opposition to hifl undertaking — Delays and disappoint- ments — His tnist in God — He be(.omo8 more earnest in prayer and in works of self-denial — Final and complete success of his cause — Solemn approbation of the society and rules of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate given by Leo XII. — His Holiness declares to Father de Mazenod his desire to create him Cardinal — His humble refusal of that dignity. CHAPTER X Cardinal Pacca ond Father de Mazenod — Proposal of Cardinal Pacca to establish the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Rome — Devotion of Father de Mazenod to St. Alphonsus — He has an audience with the Holy Father before leaving Rome and obtains the grant of several important privileges for his now 89ciety — He returns to France — First general chapter — An episode — Father Susanne's virtues, labours, and saintly death — Affectionate tender- ness of Father de Mazenod'a charaoter displayed during the last illness of Father Susanne. 94 i CHAPTER XI Monseigneur Fortunatus de Mazenod, uncle of Father de Mazonod, raised to the See of Marseilles — St. Laznrus, whom our Lord raised from the dead, first bishop of thot city — fielsimce — Father de Mazenod named vicar-general of Marseilles — His prodigious zeal and activity in his new capacity, which he combined with the office of snperiorship of his society of mission- aries — Death of his Unole — He is named bishop of Marseilles by the direct appointment of Gregory XVI. — Difficulties with the French government — His holy iiminess, blended with his spirit of wise conciliation, conquers difficulties — His devotion to the ancient saints who were bishops of Marseilles. 118 CHAPTER XII Extraordinary development of the society of the Missionary Oblates — The bishop of Montreal invites them to his diocese — They establish houses in Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec — Their labours among the lumber men in Canadian forests — ; Their labours in Labrador— Testimony of Professor Hind to zeal of the missionaries — Forlorn spiritual conditiin of the Indian tribes in the North West of America — A vast district almost as large as Europe without priests, page 145 — The Canadian bishops make joint application to Monseigneur do Mazenod for a body of Oblate missionaries to evangelize those vftst Nprth-westem 130 CONTENTS. iX PAOB regions, pagf 148— Monsoignour de Mazenod accepts the proposal of the bishops of Canada — Vocation of Father Tach6 to be an Oblate of Mary Immaculate, page 1/31 — Departure from Canada of first Missionary Oblates for the Red Rivfr— Arrival at St. Boniface, Red River, after a journey of 62 days, page 164 — Great missionary success of Father Tache at Athabaska, page 167 — Father Tach6 and Father Faraud at lie ti la Crosse — The latter meets Lieutenant Hooper of the " Plover " Expedition in search of Sir John Franklin, page 160 — Testimony of Sir John Richard- son to the success of the labours of the Missionaries, page 163 — Fnther Tach6 appointed coadjutor bishop of St. Boniface — lie proceeds to Marseilles — He meets foi . .e first time the Founder of the Oblates and is consecrated bishop — He returns to the Red River — Description of an episcopal journey through snovir-clad wilderness, page 167 — Failure of fishery at Lac la Biche — Famine — Great sufferings of Indians and missionaries— Airival there of Monseignenr Tach6 —A Novena in honour of the fisherman, St. Peter — "Wonderful take of fish, page 170 — Monseigneur Tach6 succeeds Monseigneur Proven cher at death of latter — Sad and terrible events at St. Boniface— Missionary lost in snow-storm — Without food for several day^ — Foxind near his dead horse — Feet frozen — Removed to bishop's .louse, St. Boniface — Ampu- tation of both feet found to be necessary — Bishop's house takes fire — Difficult rescue of invalid — A poor blind Indian perishes in the flames — House consumed to ashes — Cathedral takes fire — Burnt to the ground — Burning of Convent of Sisters of Charity and all their stores — Arrival of Bishop Tach6 after a journey, duiing which he slept sixty nights successively on snow in open air — His grief — Death of Superioress of Sisters of Charity — Great flood — Ruins of Cathedral flooded at her funeral — No dry spot for her remains — Submission to God's will, /j«^e 178— The bishop's efforts to re-build cathedral, &c., blessed by God — Professor Hind — The poet Whittier — " Chicago Advertiser," page 183. CHAPTER XIII Father Grandin consecrated coadjutor-bishop of St. Boniface — Undertakes the visitation of the northern regions of that vast diocese — Great Portage la Loche — Athabaska Slave River — The Salt River — A fine old chieftain, Beaulieu, Sir John Franklin's guide and hunter, a devout Christian — Various striking traits of character — His zeal for the sanctification of his family and tribe — The Great Slave Lake— St. Joseph's mission on shoi-es of the lake — Fathers Eynard and Gascon and Brother Kearney — Great privations — Indians of the Big Island — The Mackenzie River — Fort Simpson — The River Liard — Hair-breadth escapes — The 184 C0MTBNT8. r I PAGE bishop saves his life by leaping from one canoe to another to avoid huge boulders rushing from overhanging precipice — Mission to Indians at Fort Liard — Father Gascon sets out to visit Indians on banks of Courant Fort — Runs great risks amidst rapids and eddies — Attempts to scale precipitous mountain — Death stares him in the face at every step — Foiled in his attempt — After several days spent in vain efforts to reach the Indians at Courant Fort is com- pelled to r unce his project for that time. CHAPTER XIV. Mission conducted by Bishop Grandin for tribes assembled at Fort Simpson — Beaulieu's grandson, the bishop's little sacristan, rings his bell in the woods to assemble the Indians to the religious exercises — Arrival of an absent chieftain — Ceremonious solemnity with which he is received — Surprise of bishop at seeing the chief- tain clad in ragged attire — The chieftain's reasons for dressing shabbily — His conversion to Christianity — Many of his principal huntsmen follow his example — The bishop embarks in his birch- bark canoe on the Mackenzie — One of the crew falling ill, the bishop himself has to become oarsman for the remainder oi" the voyage — His great hardships — Icebergs make their appearance in the river — Canoe comes into collision with an iceberg and is wrecked — Bishop and party cast on desolate shores of Mackenzie — Their supplies run short — Painful suspense — A sail appears in sight, their deliverance, page 232 — Arrival at the Mission of Fort Good Hope — Great poverty of the Oblate community in that desolate spot — The sun disappears for two consecutive months — Scarcity of candles — The repairs of their hut performed by the Fathers — The bishop joins in the manual labour — A famine breaks out — Dreadful cases of cannibalism, page 208 — Freez- ing of the great rivers of the north — Journey of the bishop to Fort Norman on the frozen bed of the Mackenzie — They bivouac on the frozen bank — For ten weary days the bishop keeps his place walking on the frozen Mackenzie at the head of his team of dogs — Arrival at junction of Great Bear River with the Mackenzie on its way to the Arctic Ocean — Bishop's life exposed to imminent peril on evening of tenth day's march — A roar and a rush of waters are heard — The ice has given way, page 213 — Arrival at Fort Norman — Mission to Indians at Providence— Summary of bishop's sermon — The bishop and young Beaulieu, his little sacristan, overtaken by violent storm whilst travelling over frozen surface of the Slave Lake— The night comes on — They lose their way — Bishop lamed by striking foot against sharp ice splinter — Cold forty degi-ees below zero, severe enough to freeze roercury— They wander about for hours— Siijk on the ice exhau^- 200 CONTENTS. XI ted — They have little hope of saving their lives — They prepare for death — They make one final attempt for life — Day breaks — They see land in the distance — They reach it with difficulty — Supply of food exhausted — Discover package of tea in luggage — " The cup that cheers but does not inebriate " did good service that morning by the fit)zen shores of Great S'ave Lake, paffe 224 — Mistake of guide — Mirage — Hunger stared the whole party in the face — It was resolved to kill one of the dogs for food — Providen- tial diacovery of footprints in the snow, page 228. FAGB CHAPTER XV. 229 First two-storied house built in the regions of the Mackenzie — Monseigneur Urandin a whole year without tasting bread or meat or vegetables — Fiih, and that often decayed and rott«n, only food for that period — The Rev. C. Grant, in his work " Ocean to . 1 Ocean," bears testimony to zeal of bishop and missionaries. CHAPTER XVI. ... Father GroUior — He enters Society of the Oblates with the hope of being employed among the Indians of North America — He advances on his missionary expeditions far into the Arctic Circle — He meets tribes of Esquimaux and Blackfect — Reconciles hos- tile chieftains — The first to evangelize the tribe of Peaux de Licvre — He advances northwards to the Peel River among the nation of the Loucheux — The extent and success of his labours recall the days of St. Francis Xavier — He suffers from chronic asthma— His great privations during his illness — He wishes to die at his post — Grief of the Indians when they hear of the dangerous illness of their apostle — His holy death — Major Butler, in his work the ♦' Great Lone Lane," on Oblate Missionaries in Saskatchewan. CHAPTER XVII. Father Lacombe — He has devoted himself for twenty-six yeai'S to the Blackfeet, the Crees, and other tribes — He is the first to introduce a plough into the Saskatchewan regions — The first to build a bridge there — His visit to the Blackfeet — Night assault by the Crees, great numbers killed and wounded — Bullets fall like hail around Father Lacombe — He administers last Sacraments courageously to the dying — In the liiorning he advances between combatants with flag of truce — The Crees do not recognize him at first — He is struck by a bullet on the forehead — Not injured — When Crees recognize him they cease firing — lie makes peace — His great hardships — Ho is several days without food — Ho is vis- ited by Viscount Milton and Dr. Cheadle, and afteiwards by Ijord Southesk. 234 .. 243 xu CONTENTS. PAOE 266 CHAriER XVIII Father Petitot— Hi8 visit to the dog-ribbed Indians — Depu- tation from the tribe of the Trakwelotine — Great hardships — A morsel of a candle his only food for three days — Meets tribe — Many think of gratifying their curiosity in gazing upon him — Nobody thinks of seeking to appease his hunger — The tribe on march, strange scene, page 262 — Opposition of sorcerers — A journey over dangerous ice — Plot to assassinate him — Four Indians told off to fling him over rapids — Discovery of plot, page 267 — Arrival of Father Petitot in France — His services to the cause of science recognised — His presence at congress at Na.ncy — Instruc- tions of Monseigneur de Mazenod to missionaries on the part they should takn in advancing civilization of Indian tribes, page 280 — Monseigneur Glut undertakes to convey supplies to the missions of the distant North, page 282 — He leaves Montreal on the 5th of May — Anives at Lac la Biche on the 8th of August — A sister of charity and a little orphan companion join the travelling party — They enter the river of Marshes — Dismay at finding that the waters of the river had subsided — All had to disembark — Forcing the barque up the rapids one of the party swept away by the torrent — Ilis life savod — Painful journey by the banks of the river, which told severely on Sister of Charity and little orphan — They arrive in presence of great rapid — Crew forsake the bishop and his travelling party — How extricate themselves from horrors of perishing in the wilderness — The sister of charity falls seriously ill — Bishop and Father Pourtrier go forward to distant fort to seek another crew — Absent for four weeks — Finds Sister of Charity delirious in the little encampment on solitary banks of Athabaska Enters tlie Great Slave Lake on 18(h of October — Visits Oblate Fathers on Elk-deer Island — Resumes his voyage on the 21st — Great fall of snow — Violent storm — Barque run ashore — Crew refuse to proceed further — They dread being caught in the ice, which is rapidly forming on the lake — On the morning of the 22nd to his dismay he sees sheets of ice spreading far and wide over lake — Persuades crew to set sail — Risk of the sides of the barque being stove in by pressure of ice — Crew again mutiny — His only trust is in God — A partial thaw takes place during the night — They arc able to enter the Mackenzie river — On the even- ing of the 26th of October tliey descend this river in the midst of great floating icebergs — Friglitful night on the half-frozen Mac- kenzie—On the 27th of October they arrive at Providence, and land the supplies — Great rejoicings, page 303. OUAPTERXIX 304 Missionary Fragments— Louis Daze, the Canadian carpenter CONTENTS. m PAGE — His gratuitous services for twenty years to Oblate Missionaries — Lost in a snow-storm — Without food for six days — Found dead with scapular in his hands, and frozen tears on his cheeks — St. Albert's orphanage for Indian waifs and strays — A little orphan of the Blackfeet found lying on dead body of his mother — Paul Fayans the devout Indian sacristan and his holy wife — The Chris- tian chieftain, Louison Montaignais and his holy child — The child predicts his mother's death and his own — Events verify prediction — Father Fourmond and Mr. James Trow, Chairman of the Colo- nization Committee— Small-pox at St. Albert's — Father Fourmond accompanies numerous tribe out of the Great Prairie — The epi- demic pursues them — First victims of small-pox in the desert — A hundred lie smitten at the same time — These victims of small-pox have to be borne from one place of encampment to another — Mel- ancholy march through the wilderness — Father Fourmond the only white man — He is nurse, physician, undertaker, as well as priest in their midst — The prairie takes fire, pa^e 318 — The flames advance from the distance and encircle them — All avenues of es- cape cut off — The Great Spirit alone can save them — All assemble in prayer — Efforts to lescue the plague-stricken from advancing sea of fire — Father Fourmond exposes his life several times in rescuing the sick from the burning lodges — Stifling hmoke, pro- found darkness, heat intolerable — Prayers loud and fervent — All grouped together in narrow circle — The fire reaches the circle and is stopped by the hand of God — Thanksgiving — Further march through a wilderness of ashes and cinders — Small-pox still pursues them — Anival of Monseigneur Grandin — His departure — Starva- tion of the tribe — Timely succour — The Oblates in British Colum- bia — Celebration of Queen's Birthday — The Governor invites missionaries to assemble Indians — Three thousand five hundred Indians led by missionaries— Morning prayer in the forest — Seven hundred canoes launched on the Frazer — Arrival at New West- minster. 1 ■ ■■■; 'ir- CHAPTER XX. ... • ...... Father D'Hcrbomez — Consecrated Bishop of British Columbia — Visits tribes of the interior — Father MacGuckin — Cross the Frazer in the hollow of a fallen tree — Meet Giant River in desert — They seek to cross it on a raft — Raft swept away by impetuous torrent — Great danger of bishop and party — A great tree stretches out a friendly branch — With quick and combined movement Sam the Indian and Charles the half-breed seize the projecting branch — the bishop and party saved, page 333— Great tribe of Indians meet them at Stony Creek — A forest on fire — Lake Stuart — Letter of Bishop D'Herboinei to CaiSadian Government — Father Durieu 329 ! ; \i xiT COMTBNTS. PAOB Tiaita the tribe of the Skeromiah — Meeta Government agent, "who is surpriaed to meet a priest in a spot scarcely fit for wild beasts to inhabit — A series of great risks in travelling — In thirteen villagea visited by him, only three persons refused to become OhristianB. CHAPTER XXL ..:... .. ... X' ... Father Chirouze — Conversion of celebrated sorcerer — The In- dian Christians know how to forgive their enemies and to pray for them — Touching story of the death of an Indian youth, Felix, and of the conversion of his apostate uncle Jacques. 347 CHAPTER XXII Frightful results from the introduction of intoxicating drinks among the Indians of British Columbia — Nearly all the Catholic Indians of British Columbia total abstainers — A ship laden with whisky ordered off the coast by Indian chieftain — The tribe re- sist attempts of crew to land cargo — Whisky barrels emptied into the sea — Ship set on fire — Crew taken prisoners by tribe, page 353 —Refusal of Victor, a young Indian te( totaler, to pilot a whisky- laden barque — -Rejects bribe — Taken i'oreibly on board, his life threatened, beaten savagely — He still refuses — Would die rather than consent — Swift judgment of God upon his persecutors, page 366 — Industrial school for little Indians — Passages quoted from a work entitled " Vancouver Island and British Columbia," by Macfie. CHAPTER XXIII Forty-seven chieftains, with their followers, take temperance pledge — vaccination of fifteen thousand Indians in one year by missionaries — Sudden death of a sorcerer whilst performing incan- tation — Father Lejacq in the lodge of the great chieftain of the Babines — Arrival of delegates from a hostile pagan tribe — Solemn reconciliation promoted and presided over by Father Lejacq — He attends a sick call imder great difficulties — He has to cress the summit of a high mountain covered with pine forest — The forest in flames — He and guide lose their way in the thick clouds of amoke— They wander about for hours during the night in the midst of dangerous precipices — Striking conversion, page^%Z — Great snow> storm — Father Pandosy abandoned by guides in forest — The deep snow has obliterated every trace of pathway — He kneels and • makes act of faith in mystery of Immaculate Conception, asks de^ Uverance through that mystery, rises, finds pathway at his feet 352 00MTENT8. XV FAOB where none existed before he prayed, page 388 — A circumstance in keeping with foregoing incident in curious old volume lately pui'chosed at bookstall in Holbom — Indian procession of Blessed Sacrament — Winnepeg — Father Lacombe — Lord Dufiferiu — Mon- seigneur TachS — The Irriquois — Apostolic Delegate — Father Antoine. > ■ _ ' SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF Mgr. de MAZENOD AND OF THE LAJjuiRS OP THE OBLATES OF MARY. CHAPTER I. pHAELES JOSEPH FTTf^ENE DE MAZENOD ^ was bom at Aix :; ^ 7ence, the 1st of Au[^ust, 1782. His fb ' . ; illustrious by its rank, and by the eminei ^ "txon in the magistracy of that country, occupied at various times with dis- tinction by some of its members. His father was admitted to the intimate friendship of the Dauphin, the father of Louis XVI. Signs of future greatness and sanctity began to manifest themselves at an early age in young Eugene de Mazenod. Whilst yet a child in the arms of his nurse, an infallible means of silencing his cries when he wept, was to take him to a church. There he instantly became calm and still, no matter how excited he was before entering the sacred edifice. "Was this a presage of that deep reverence for the Sanctuaries of God which became a striking characteristic of his after-life ? A great force of will began to show itself in him at a very < i] 2 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. LE MAZENOD, AND early age. He never asked for anything with the sobs or tears of a child, no matter how much he de- sired it ; but with calm resoluteness would he say : " I will have it." Such proud bearing in a child so young often provoked the smile of the cursory looker- on; but more thoughtful observers would predict for him a future, marked by a strong will, either for good or evil. Happily it has been for the former. Sun'ounded by a numerous retinue of domestics, all ready to lavish their services upon him, young Eugene refused to receive at their hands any service that was not absolutely required, or which he could render to himself. He was scarcely six years old when lie began to exercise acts of benevolence to- wards the poor, even at personal inconvenience and sacrifice. One day at this age, he met in the street a poor little charcoal vendor, all in rags. Moved with a sudden feeling of compassion, he quickly divested himself of his jacket and joyfully placed it on the shoulders of the poor half-naked boy. His maternal grandfather, a venerable nobleman of extraordinary piety and great experience of the world, had much to do in forming the character of Eugene. He wisely counselled that a free scope should be given to his childish ardour in relieving the wants of the poor, and that small sums of money should be placed at his disposal for this object. A close intimacy existed between the family of the De Mazenod?^ and that of OF THE LABOURS OF THE 03LATES OF MARY. M. Revest, an eminent lawyer, who resided also at Aix. Ono day Eugene, who was a frequent and welcome visitor of the Revest family, entering their drawing-room, perceived they had no fire, though the day was cold. '' What ! " he exclaimed, "you have no fire on so cold a day." A lady present, wishing to test what she had heard of his compassion for every sort of suffering in others which came under his notice, feigning poverty, said : " We are poor, and wood is dear." Hearing these words, Eugene quickly bowed and withdrew. An hour elapsed, and a knocking was heard at the outer gate. It was young Eugene rolling a small wheelbarrow filled with pieces of wood which he had collected. Ad- vancing with his precious burden, the fruits of his charitable labour, he deposited it at the door of the apartment where the Revests were assembled, say- ing : '^ Now you can make a fire and warm your- selves." Wiping the tiny sweat drops from his little brow, he hastily retired. He was only six years old when he performed this feat of charity. Great was the emotion of those who witnessed that act of juvenile devotedness. Many years afterwards, members of the Revest family related this occurxence with tears in their eyes. His thoughtful parents, whilst yielding to the advice of his grandfather in giving full scope to the benevolent zeal of Eugene, always kept him in view themselves, or had him 4 SKETCJTES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND followed by a tutor, whose eye was ever upon him in their absence, without his being aware of the strict surveillance which was being exercised over hira. He never spoke himself of the good works he thus performed, and his parents acted as if they were in complete ignorance of them. During his whole life a tender sympathy for the sufferings and afflictions of others, and especially of those from whom he had received marks of kindness, was a beautiful feature in his character. When ten years old, being at the College of Turin, he received news of the death of the daughter of the femme de chambre of Madame de Mazenod, his mother. The thought of the grief which this poor woman, who had been very kind to him, would suffer at the death of her child, so afflicted him that he lay for hours upon his bed, bathed in tears and moaning deeply. He manifested from the beginning a frank and upright spirit, and showed an abhorence of every species of untruthful- ness. He never excused himself when he committed a fault. One day, thoughtlessly, he gave to a young boy whom he chanced to meet, a costly article from his mother's toilet table in exchange for some other object. The parents of this boy were frightened when they found in his possession an article of such value. Discovering that it belonged to Madame de Mazenod, they compelled him to go with them to restore to her the article in question. Eugene hear- Of THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. ing the cries of the poor boy, whom his parents were accusing of dishonesty, rushed out, exclaiming with vehemence : " He is innocent ; it is I who com- mitted the fault. Do not blame him, it is I who ought to be punished." Madame de Mazenod, ad- dressing some words of gentle reproof to her son, praised the upright conduct of the parents of the poor boy, and handed back to his mother the article that had been restored tc her, as a gift, in testimony of her appreciation of their conduct in the matter. Eugene, even when a mere child, took no interest in the ordinary sports of children. He showed a preference for the society of grown-up persons, and would listen for hours attentively to conversations upon serious matters, seated at the feet of the speak- ers, and looking up with deep interest into their faces, scanning every expression of their countenances. He amused himself, however, willingly, in erecting mimmic oratories, and in representing with his com- panions the ceremonies of the Church. He did this with groat gravity and composure, and he would show himself much displeased if his companions smiled at his sermons, or seemed distracted or dis- sipated in the functions he assigned to them. 6 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGJt. HE MAZENOH, AND ■"/ .'■' \ CHAPTER II. i: I n Hitherto the days of young Eugene de Mazenod were spent in the sunshine of a happy home. In a human sense, his position was well-nigh eveiything that could be desired ; wealth, rank, refinement, shed their lustre upon his path. The last male heir of an honoured house, he was the object of the fond- c^' love of devotetl and most worthy parents. His father's hospitality often assembled around him some of the most distinguished names of the noblesse of Provence, and other parts of France, But it was the religious character of his father's household that gave its chief charm in the eyes of this pious child to his early home. Good example and inducement to piety encircled him on every side. His soul remained ever pure and unworldly. This was the secret of his unselfishness, of the depth and ten- derness of his friendships, and of his pure attach- ments. If young De Mazenod had been destined merely to fill the place of a christian gentleman in the world, he might have been well formed for his post in such a home as that which we have been de- OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. scribing. But his was to be a loftier destiny. The plant of holiness within his soul has to grow up and become strong as the young oak amidst storms. This happy household is to be dispersed; its members have to seek safety in flight to another land. The Eevolutionary tempest has burst over France. Eugene's father is marked out for death by a decree of Eobespierre. Fortunately he received an early intimation of his intended doom, and saved himself by fleeing to Italy. Another decree is passed by the infamous convention, ordering the children of nobles to be put to death. Eugene's life is in danger. An immediate departure from France is necessary for his safety. A day's delay may be fatal to him. He has not yet reached his ninth year, and he has just risen from a bed of severe illness, when he is forced to set out upou an exile which will continue for several years. The morrow is fixed for his de- parture. All arrangements have to be made in pro- found secrecy ; an indiscreet word might T)rove fatal. The secret is confided to the child, and he keeps it with fidelity. The only favour he asks is, that he may be allowed to embrace his friends of the Revest family before parting from them, perhaps for ever. His request is granted, but on condition that he makes no mention of his departure. He paid his visit, and he kept his secret. But it cost him sorely to do so ; the tears in his eyes and his sobbing breast 8 SKEIVHE8 OF THE LIFE OF MUM. JJE MAZENOD, AND as he bade them adieuy almost betrayed him. The next day they learnt the cause of his emotion, and then it became their turn to shed many tears. Eugene left Aix in the company of his uncle, for Nice, where he sojourned for months, and where he was joined by his mother and his grandfather. In one of his notes, written when a boy, he says, in reference to this occurrence of his life : " As it appeared likely that things would not alter soon in France, my parents decided on providing for my education, by placing me in the College of Nobles at Turin ; my mother and my grandmother under- took to conduct me thither. My mother was then but thirty years old, and my grandmother was over fifty. Everything that reminds me of my grand- mothei touches me to the heart. I loved her as dearly a. T loved my mother ; that is to say, I loved her as much as one can love another in this life." The tenderness of the filial love of this pious child appears in these words. His piety did not interfere with his deep affections for those to whom he was bound by the ties of kindred, nor did his love for them cloud or chill his piety. The college in which he was placed at Turin was conducted by the Barnabite Fathers. Eugene stayed there three years. He made his first Communion on Holy Thursday, 1792. He had not then reached his tenth year. Ho always headed his class whilst in that college. He ■it^-a^ OF TEE LABOUMS OF TEE OBLATES OF MARY. was remarkable for his spirit of regularity and love of rule. The Eector, noticing these qualities in him, assigned to him a certain post of authority over his fellow-pupils. With perfect ease he took up his proper position, and his ascendency was cheerfully acknowledged by those placed under his surveillance. He gave tokens, even then, of being bom to guide and direct others. His father, who never lost an occasion of giving good counsel to Eugene, wrote to him to use wisely the authority confided to him, and to temper it with compassion for the weaknesses of liis companions. The superiors of the college, who always treated him with the greatest affection, often proposed him as a model for the other pupils to imi- tate. In the interval between his first Communion and his Confirmation, he gave proof of great delicacy of sentiment and fii-mness of character. An excres- cence had appeared close to one of his eyes, for the removal of which it was necessary that he should undergo a painful operation, which was to be per- formed by Dr. Pinchinati, the first Surgeon to the King. The day for the operation was fixed, and Madame de Mazenod was to come from Nice on the previous day to be present at it. Eugene wished to spare his mother the pain of seeing him suffer. He begged earnestly of the Eector to fix an earlier day for the operation than that which had been appoint- ed, so that when his mother arrived she might find 10 SKETCHES OF T:f.E LIFE OF MQR. BE MAZENOD, AND it already performed. The Eector was greatly pleased with the delicate foresight of Eugene, and readily consented to his wishes. Arrangements were speedily made for the performing of the oper- ation, which was to take place in the Kector's room. The surgeon arrived, accompanied by several of his pupils. Eugene was complimented on his courage. But what a humiliation was awaiting him ! The poor child's resolution began to fail him at sight of the array of sui'gical instruments which were to be employed in the operation. He begged the doctor and his pupils to retire, and he withdrew, terrified, into his chamber. Presently he began to reflect upon his sudden cowardice, and to seek to discover its cause. A moment's reflection brought to his mind the fact that he had not prepared himself for the operation by earnest prayer, and that he had been trusting too much in his own resolution and courage, without asking God for help. Not losing a m(»ment, he flung himself on his knees in spirit at the feet of Jesus Christ, whom he tenderly invoked. He ad- dressed, also, a most fervent prayer to the Holy Ghost, asking for the gift of fortitude. His prayer was heard, for he immediately felt a new courage kindling within his breast. He returned without delay to the Kector's rooms, and declared himself ready to undergo the operation, and begged that the doctor, who had not yet left the premises, might OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 11 again be asked to perforin it. The operation was very long and very painful ; the heroic child never once winced under it. Not a tear rolled down his cheek, not a sigh or complaint escaped from his lips, for then he was sustained not merely by a human, but by a supernatural courage — by that gift of for- titude which the Holy Ghost, in answei* to his fer- vent prayer, bestowed upon him. His mother arrived that same evening. Her joy was great when she learnt that, owing to the affectiom thoughtfulness of her child, and his heroic courage, -she was spared the pain of witnessing his great suf- ferings under the operation. On Trinity Sunday, 1792, he received the Sacrament of Confirmation at the hands of the Archbishop of Turin. The ardour of Eugene in the practice of piety was not slackened during his stay in the college. ,. .. ~ 12 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. BE MAZENOD, AND CHAPTER III. . i Louis XYI., the martyr-king, had laid his head upon the block. The revolutionary wave was rolling from France towards neighbouring countries. Piedmont was threatened. The emigres who had taken refuge there had to seek for a safer asylum. Eugene had to Hee with the rest. Shelter was to be sought by many in Venice. The departure from Turin was solemn and touching. Many of the first families of France were assembled in this latter place, in comparative poverty. To save their lives they had to quit their homes in haste, taking with them whatever fragments of their fortunes they could collect together in the hui'ry and terror of the moment. Many ecclesiastics, — some of the highest rank, and some far advanced in years — were also amongst the exiles. Let us allow Eugene to de- scribe, in his own words, the departure for Venice : « On the 2nd of May, 1794, my father freighted a vessel of considerable size, in which he embarked with all his family, which was composed of the following members: my father, Charles Antoine OF THE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MART. 13 de Mazenod ; my mother, Marie Eose Eugenie de Joannis; my great- uncle, Auguste Andrd de Mazenod, Archdeacon and Vicar-General of Mar- seilles; my uncle, Charles Fortune de Mazenod, Vicar- General of Aix ; my uncle, Eugene de Mazenod, Vice-Admiral of the king's navy ; my aunt, the Marquise de Pierrefere; and the young Marquis, her son ; and Nanon, the femme de chamhrc of my mother. A great number of emigres begged of my father to be allowed to embark with us, to which request he willingly consented. Amongst these were very many Priests. Our voyage lasted twelve days. "We stopped every night in some place along the banks of the Po. We met everywhere with the most cordial hos- pitality. The revolutionary bands had not yet reached these places. All vied with one another in acts of kindness towards us. At Cremona .the Marquise de Colonia, who, with her husband, had joined our party, was followed in the street by a devoted and generous person, who, touched with compassion at the sight of the misfortunes of so many noble emigres fleeing from their country, - sought to slip into her hand a package containing several pieces of gold, which, however, this lady politely refused. The next day we cast anchor in a delicious spot. Here our party wished to repose under the shade of wide-spreading trees. The 14 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOS. DE MAZENOD, AND joyousness of the scene communicated itself to our hearts : some sang, some engaged in lively conver- sation. No one seeing us would imagine that we were a band of refugees fleeing from tyrants who sought our lives, and had taken possession of our goods. A vessel, also laden with emigres^ among whom were many priests, followed us closely and stopped at the same spot. My parents had here the consolation of meeting many old Mends, amongst whom were the Bishop of Frejus, and the Marquis Grimaldi. They shed tears together over their com- mon misfortunes, and consoled one another as well as they were able." Yenice was at last reached, and lodgings were secured with difficulty. The city was crowded on their arrival, owing to the public festivals which were then being celebrated, and the price for apart- ments was high. Poverty began to tell painfully on this occasion. That noble family of exiles, in- cluding two venerable ecclesiastics, and one faithful domestic — eleven in all — had to crowd themselves into a narrow dingy lodging ; but every heart was resigned, and God's holy will was praised. Here Eugene was schooled by personal experience in the knowledge of the privations which the poor have to endure. It was well that it should be so, for he was afterwards to become the distinguished apostle of the poor. By- the sale of Madame de Mazenod's OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 15 diamonds, his father was enabled to secure a more suitable abode for his family. "We will here draw attention to a circumstance in connection with this new residence, of a most Pro- vidential character, and which had a marked and most decisive influence on the whole of the after career of Eugene. Opposite this residence stood the house of one of the richest commercial families of Venice, which was noted for the piety and muni- ficent character of its members. The name of this family was Zinelli. It consisted of a venerable mother and six sons, two of whom were ecclesiastics — one in deacon's orders, and the other, who was named De Bartolo, was a priest, who died after- wards in the odour of sanctity. It was this holy priest whom God placed in the way of Eugene at a critical and trying moment. The poor boy found himself in Venice without books or professors, and the straitened circumstances of his exiled family for- bade all human hope of his educational needs being soon supplied. He was then in his thirteenth year, and a precious period of hi& life was being spent in forced idleness. The attention of the Zinellis was drawn to Eugene ; even at that early age he had a grave and noble bearing stamped upon him, that forcibly struck beholders. He was tall beyond his years, and a chaste beauty, which distinguished him through ufter-life, was marked upon his features, 16 SKETCHES OF TJTE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND The holy priest, De Bartolo Zinelli, became deeply interested in this modest and intelligent boy, whom he saw frequently passing before his door. He perceived that Eugene was following no course of studies, he guessed at the probable cause of his inaction, and was most desirous to render him assist- ance. One day seeing Eugene listlessly gazing from a window he accosted him, saying : " Master Eugene, are you not afraid of losing your time in thus gazing idly from a window ? " " Alas ! sir," replied Eugene, " I cannot help it. I am a stran- ger here, and I have not a single book at my disposal." " Let that be no obstacle, my child," kindly answered De Bartolo, " my library is well supplied with all the books you may require, and it is entirely at your service." De Bartolo invited Eugene to visit him the following day, which he did with his father's ready consent. Eugene thus describes his first visit to De Bartolo. '' He received me with the greatest kindness. He con- ducted me through his library, and fi'om that to his cabinet where he spent his days in study with his brother, who was then only a deacon. He pointed to a vacant place at the study table and said : * That place was occupied by a dear brother whom God has lately called to Himself. I shall be most happy to see you occupy it in his stead. It will be a great gratification to me to direct youi studies, and OT THE lABOUnS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY, 17 to help you to complete them.' One may well im- agine how great was my surprise and joy at such a proposal. I accepted it with expressions of lively gratitude, being certain that my father would gladly give his consent. When I communicated the good news to my parents, they thanked God for having secured for me so great an advantage. From that day, for four years, I pursued my course of studies with unvarying constancy, under the guidance of my benevolent tutor, whom I sought every morning immediately after hearing Mass. I worked at my studies till mid-day, when I returned home for din- ner. After dinner De Bartolo came for me to join him in a walk to visit some church, where we stop- ped for a while to pray. I then returned to my studies, and continued at them till evening. At that hour several priests in the neighbourhood assembled to recite the Holy Office with De Bartolo, after which all met in the drawing-room, where we joined some friends of the family in an hour's cheer- ful recreation- Coffee was then served round, and everybody but the members of the household, and myself, retired. As I was looked upon as one of the family I stayed behind for supper, and also for the Eosary and night prayers." Such was the man- ner of life led by Eugene for four years, under the judicious and saintly care of De Bartolo, who was a refined scholar and a great servant of God. Under c 18 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. BE MAZENOD, AND such tuition, the soul of Eugene made rapid pro- gress in the most exalted virtues. Ho learned quickly to despise the vanities of the world, for which he hegan to conceive a supreme contempt. Prayer became his chief delight, and he secretly practised extraordinary mortifications. He 3lept on the bare ground and fasted frequently. The inter- vals between his hours of study were spent, for the most part, in prayer or spiritual reading. Ho made his confession every Saturday, and received Holy Communion on Sundays and on tho chief festivals. He served Mass every morning, and recited daily the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin. Such was his method of life between his thirteenth and six- teenth years. The desire of consecrating himself to God, and of becoming a priest, manifested itself about this time. " One day," as he relates himself, " after I had read for my great-uncle, as I had been daily accus- tomed to do, a chapter of the New Testament, he said to me gravely, 'Eugene, is it true that you wish to embrace the ecclesiastical state ? ' ' Yes, Uncle,' I replied without hesitation, ' it is quite true ! ' ' How could you think, my child,' he then said, ' of such a thing ? Arc you not the last link of our family, which will become extinct if you ac- complish such an intention ? ' I was astonished to hear such words fall from the lips of one so venera- IND OF TEE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 19 . pro- arned d, for ;einpt. icretly ept on inter- for the Bmade I Holy stivals. i daily ich was ind six- 1 iself to itself I had accus- ent, he at you ' Yes, quite 16 then list link rou ac- Ihed to venera- ble and holy; I answered with much emotion, 'Uncle, what could be more honourable for our family than to end in a priest/ My uncle had spoken thus only for the purpose of testing my feel- ings. When he heard my answer, he at once ex- pressed his delight that a child of thirteen years should utter such sentiments. He tenderly embraced me, and gave me his blessing." This early vocation was to be followed only after the lapse of several years. Eugene had to pass through many trials, and undergo a long period of exile, before the desire of consecrating himself to God in the priesthood could be accomplished. In the meanwhile De Bartolo proceeded in carrying out the pleasing task he had undertaken, of educating the mind, heart, and inner soul of his holy pupil. The intellectual progress of Eugene corresponded with the high expectations which had been formed of his capacity during his stay at the College of Turin. But what delighted his pious teacher most, was to witness the unmis- takeable signs of his rapid and solid progress in the knowledge and love of God. A short journey that he had to make at this time I gave him an opportunity of exhibiting, on a small scale, that zeal for the divine glory and the good of Isouls, which in after years was to display itself over |so wide a surface. Madame de Mazenod had to re- turn to France to settle some family affairs. Eugene 20 SKSTCESS OF TEX LIFE OF MOM. DB MASSNOD, ANH accompanied her to Tuscany. The great revolution was then extending its ramifications : the overthrow of Christianity was its main object. Eugene longed for an opportunity of publicly declaring his faith in Christ crucified, and even of suffering for it. In starting on his journey he hung a large crucifix around his neck, as a symbol of his belief in the great mystery of the redemption, and of his readi- ness to confess it before the world. The servants at the first hotel at which he stopped on his journey, were tainted with infidel notions. His crucifix was caught sight of, and forthwith they commenced to utter blasphemies against Jesus Christ, and to laugh mockingly at the devout child, who lovingly bore the sacred image. The holy boy, instead of being cowed or intimidated, boldly rebuked tliem for their unbelief, and reduced them quickly to silence. Their scorn was soon changed into admiration by his words, so full of energy and wisdom, and by his courageous attitude in defending, on that occasion, the interests of religion, which bespoke in him the true confessor of the faith. ¥71ien he reached Livomo, his party delayed for some days in that city. Eugene made the discovery, that a poor ser- vant in the house where they were staying, was ignorant of the principal mysteries of religion. Filled with zeal in her behalf, he undertook at once the task of instructing her. This became his chief OF THE LABOVAS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MABT. 21 occupation during the days he remained in that city. He explained the catechism to her in a manner so interesting, and so full of holy doctrine, that the proprietress of the establishment, a lady of good education, came to listen to him, and acknowledged that she had profited greatly by his instructions. This was a prelude to that ministry of zeal which he was to exercise at a future day in behalf of ignorant and neglected souls. He returned to Venice, and resumed his studies under the direction of De Bar- tolo. An accident occurred to him about this time, which nearly cost him his life. One day while taking his recreation after dinner, close to his house on the banks of the Grand Canal, his foot slipped, and he fell into the water, which was twelve feet deep. No one was present to render him assistance, but God was watching over a life which was to be dedicated entirely to His glory. He rose again to the surface, and was able to extricate himself without any help. His great fear was, that his mother should hear of the occurrence before he could assure her himself that he was quite safe. The tender affectionateness of his disposition, which showed itself so frequently thi'ough his life, lessened in no degree that firmness of character, which on fatiiTe occasions he knew how to employ. The following instance will show how ready he was to trample human respect under foot, whenever the f't V2 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOJR. DS MAZENOD, AND fulfilment of a religious duty was in question. One day, being invited to a public dinner at the Spanish Embassy, he perceived that all were taking their places without the usual prayers being said : he re- mained still standing after the company, which was very numerous, had sat at table. Every eye was fixed upon him. Indignant with himself for having hesitated a moment, he openly made the sign of the Cross ; he recited quietly and devoutly the accus- tomed prayers, not heeding what remarks people might make about him. He has been sometimes heard to say, that he never conquered human respect without being interiorly rewarded by our divine lord. It was Eugene's good fortune, when at Venice, to mix in the society of learned and holy men, and to take part in their conversation. He turned this opportunity to the fullest account, and frequently listened to discussions upon questions of philoso- phy and religion. Occasionally he interrogated the speakers in terms that filled them with astonishment. They were amazed that one, who was still a child in years, should display such an amount of knowledge, and such lucidity of thought, on abstruse and diffi- cult questions. The following incident will show how far be was versed in the question of grace, and what a horror he had conceived of the heresy of Jansenism. A OF THE LAUOUMS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 23 little book fell into his hands, entitled " L'ami de la Jeunesse," written by the Abb^ Felasier, which he road with much pleasui-e, but having discovered that its author was suspected of a tendency to Jansenism, Eugene felt it his duty to write a profession of anti- Jansenist faith in the commencement of the volume. The book was lying on Eugene's table, when one day he was visited by Monseigneur de Montenac, Bishop of Tarbes, who happened to open it and read what Eugene had written. The clear and precise terms in which the subtle heresy of the Jansenists was repudiated, and the opposite doctrine of grace set forth in this profession of Eugene's faith, made it difficult for the good prelate to believe that it had been written by a child. That filial reverence and love for the Vicar of Jesus Christ, that readiness to defend the rights of the Holy See, for which he was to become con- spicuous in after-life, as a great Bishop of God's Church, began to appear in his early youth. "One day, ii Canon of Paris forgot himself so far as to )', Iii^f^ 'tr an unbecoming witticism, of which the Holy Father was the object. The high-spirited boy waited to see whether somebody in the com- pany, older than himself, would remonstrate on the impropriety of such language ; but finding that nobody undertook this duty, ho ventured himself respectfully but courageously to do so. He spoke 24 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. LE MAZENOL, AND in tones of fearless energy, that startled the aged ecclesiastic into a sense of the impropriety of his language, and silenced him for the rest of the evening. This incident, which was much spoken of, reached the ears of members of the exiled Eoyal Family of France, and drew words of high praise from their lips. , !i;i II:, ■ r OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 25 -■-j:^^'^-\- CHAPTER IV. : The iirmy of the French Republic hud entered Venice. A further residence in that city was full of danger for the emigres. Eugene's father resolved to remove with his family to Naples. It cost the grateful boy a bitter pang to separate from the Zinelli family, and especially from his beloved pre- ceptor and friend, De Bartolo. The separation was for life ; but an intercourse by letter was kept up till the saintly death of the latter. The journey to Naples was decided upon, partly in consequence of the pressing invitation of the family of Baron Talleyrand, with whom the De Mazenods were on terms of intimacy at Venice. The utmost economy had to be practised on that journey. To travel by land from Venice to Naples would be too expensive ; the route by sea was consequently selected. They left Venice on the 11th November, 1797, in a wretched cattle-boat, and arrived in Naples on the 1st January, 1798, having spent fifty-one days at sea, and suffered fearful hardships. Eugene passed sorrowfully the year he spent at 'U mm 26 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, ANL Naples. He led a retired life in that capital, and did not wish to make new acquaintances. He went occasionally with his father to spend the evening with the Marquise de Talleyrand. Whilst at Naples, and again at Palermo, in the salons of the Eussian Embassy, he met Admiral Lord Nelson. Speaking in one of his notes of this meeting, he says : " Nel- son, no doubt, is a great sailor, but neither his appearance nor his manner is in hio favour." Still onward rolls the tide of Eepublican tri- umph. The French army is approaching the gates of Naples. The royal family is preparing for flight. Nelson is commanding a squadron of the British fleet in the Bay of Naples, to afford a safe means of escape for the King and Queen, and their followers. Some Portugese ships of war are also cruising in the Bay for the same object. The Queen of Naples, who took a kind and deep interest in the De Mazenod family, sent a messenger to inform them of the ap- proaching danger, and to offer them means of escape on board one of the royal ships. On the memorable morning of the 21st of December, 1798, the whole population of Naples and its environs was on the alert at an early hour. A vast multitude advanced tumultuously towards the royal palace. The rumour had spread that the King and Queen were about to flee from Naples, and the people were bent on pre- venting their flight. It was a moment full of dan- OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 27 ger for the French emigres. The Eepublican army, led by General Championet, was approaching the gates of Naples. A further delay in that city on the part of the emigres would be likely to lead to imprisonment or death. The populace, in frantic dread of the approaching invasion, began to treat all foreigners as Jacobins or spies. Departure from Naples was the only chance of safety. This might have been accomplished easily a few days before, but now access to the shipping is cut off. The streets are full of angry crowds, who block up all approaches to the harbour, being determined to allow nobody to embark. Several poor emigre families who were endeavouring to escape, were seized and cast into prison, and the packages containing their goods were broken open and scattered. Some lost their lives ; the Eussian Consul received a mortal wound and a royal courier was massacred on that occasion. The Portugese Admiral, who was an old friend of Admiral de Mazenod, Eugene's uncle, had made arrangements for the reception on board his ship of the De Mazenod family. A few sailors were sent on shore to aid in embarking their luggage. Eugene, who had spent the previous night in packing up, started at day-break in company of the armed band of Portugese sailors, unaware of the tumult that had been suddenly aroused in the city. The news of the rapid approach of the Eepublican army had come 28 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF 'OR. LE MAZENOD, AND during the night, and the city awakened up in terror. Unexpectedly Eugene found himself in the midst of a fierce multitude. His way to the har- boui' lay through the square that fronted the royal palace, where the crowd was thickest, and the ex- citement greatest. Eugene was then a youth of seventeen, but he looked already the full-grown man. A glance of his eyes revealed to him the fall extent of his danger, and in his heart he renewed the prayer which he had made that morning before setting out upon his way. Who can be so brave in the hour of peril as those who feel that God is with them ? Eugene had a something to preserve almost as precious in his eyes as his own life ; it was the last remnant of the household goods of his family. Modest in bulk, yet it contained many souvenirs^ to nearly every one of which was attached some special value. Some were sacred objects, holy vessels of the altar, and vestments which had been in the use of his venerable uncle. Some had a domestic sacred- ness about them. They had come down as heirlooms — as gifts made upon death beds, by the loving to the beloved. Some were of a more homely character, but their loss would impose grave privations, espe- cially in their present straitened oircumstancea, on the members of his family. These Eugene was resolved to preserve as a sacred deposit, even at the risk of his life. Some are bom to sway crowds; OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MABY. 29 they have the gift of fascinating multitudes. Eugene seemed to be possessed of some such gift on that memorable day. Onward he continued to advance, inspiring with confidence the few brave men who carried his effects, though at every step death stared them in the face. The door of the arsenal was seen in the distance; he resolves to reach it through the crowd. Fierce glances are bent upon him, but no one dares to molest him. He arrives at the arsenal gate. He speaks with authority to the sentinel, and is allowed to pass in. He is saved ! That day the rumour had reached his father and his uncle that he had been assassinated. Eugene's presence, happily, dispelled their fears. His first act was to go to the nearest church to give thanks to God for his deliverance from danger, by assisting at the Holy Mass. Tha next day a reaction set in ; the wild excitement that had agitated the popu- lation of Naples, gave way to a stupor of despond- ency. Tlie departure of the emigres was no longer opposed by the people. The King and Queen and royal children took refuge on boprd Lord Nelson's ship, which immediately put to sea and sailed for Pa- lermo. The following day the De Mazenod family embarked for the same port, in the ship commanded by the Count de Puys^gur, the Portuguese Admiral. A violent gale suddenly sprang up. Fortunately Eugene's party had not^ yet left the harbour. But 30 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENl rji the king and his suite were overtaken .e stonn on the high sea. Prince Albert, the kii.^ ^ youngest son, died in the transit from fatigue. For several days the Portuguese ship lay at anchor in the Bay, waiting for the gale to subside. During this delay, Eugene visited the shore to arrange some matters which had been overlooked in the hurry of de- parture. In returning to the ship, an opportunity was afforded him of giving proof of great personal courage and physical prowess, by which probably several lives, including his own, were saved. They had scarcely put oif from the shore, when their little bark was caught in a hurricane. The night had fallen, and it was pitch-dark The sailors gave themselves up as lost. A poor woman who was going to join her husband on board the ship, lay paralysed with fear. Eugene alone retained his presence of mind. Instinct in that perilous moment served him in place of experience. He assumed the command of the boat, and enforced obedience. His voice was heard above the stonn, encouraging the crew to make those desperate efforts that were ne- cessary for their safety. With great diflSiculty the ship's side was reached. The great frigate rolled fearfully. The little boat threatened every moment to disappear in the surf. With rope in hand, Eugene sprang upon the bulwarks of the ship : the distance he had to span in that leap ^ps so great, that those OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLA.TES OF MARY. 81 who witnessed it expected, in the instant, that he would sink midway. Great was their surprise when they saw him emerge from the spray in safety, and proceed heroically to the rescue of the companions of his danger. Palermo was reached on the Feast of the Epiphany, 1799. Eugene had now arrived, in appearance, though not in years, at man's estate. In person he was tall and well-proportioned. A manly beauty shone in his countenance ; his bearing was courtly, with- out being in any way effeminate. A great gentle- ness of manner, combined with a cheerful disposition, graced his intercourse with those around him. He was a close observer of men and things ; in conver- sation he could pass, with easy transition, from the great questions of religion and politics, which were then agitating Europe, to the eloquent critique on works of ancient and modem art. He had a rare power of putting his soul into his words, especially when virtue had to be defended, or the cause of the poor and afflicted pleaded. We need not be sur- prised that he should become quickly the favourite of that distinguished society, which was then assem- bled in Palermo, where the royal family of Naples were holding their Court. He was in particular relationship with the family of Priijce Yintimelli, with whom he was connected by ties of kindred. The holy Princess Yintimelli desired very much that 82 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. LE M.IZEXOD, AXD - ;i '!' her two sons, who were grown-up youths, should be brought, as much as possible, into contact with Eugene, to be benefited by the example of his ex- tmordinary virtues. He had a second home in the beautiful residence of the Prince Vintimelli. It was there that he became the intimate companion and friend of the unfortunate Duke de Berry, brother of the martyr-king, Louis XVI., who was a frequent visitor there, and who quickly entered into terms of close friendship with Eugene. They frequently made excursions together, during one of which Eugene met with a severe accident, which became the occasion of his receiving much kindness on the young prince's part. It required a virtue as solidly grounded as that of Eugene, to resist the false charms and enticements which the world put in his way at this period of his life. He was possessed of those qualities which the world would seek most for in its favourites, — rank, beauty, a noble bearing, sparkling powers of conversation, a winning fascination of manner, ready wit, and the prospect of some day inheriting great ancestral wealth. He might have become one of its idols, had he so chosen. The paths to its honors and pleasures were open to him. Tempters were not absent, who brought all their powers to bear on his young heart and imagination. Those vices which are too often fostered in the atmosphere or THE LABOURS OF THE OBIATES OF MART. 83 of Courts, rose as a stumbling block in his way, but they did not cause him to stumble. His heart ever remained chaste and pure. It was tender to over- flowing, and full of loving sympathies, but it was also as firm as a rock in resisting the torrent of evil. T^lie chastity of the young christian heart under temptation, is a thing not of sentiment, but of faith, f) yes, it is that faith which opens heaven and hell, and the view of the judgment-seat of God, to the cyo of the young soul under temptation, which keeps that soul chaste and pure. It is that faith which reveals God's perfections to the gaze of the soul, and fills it with the love of His eternal beauty, that disenchants it from the spell of earthly fasci- nation. His faith was Eugene's safeguard. Living in the midst of a Court, assailed by the most seduc- tive forms of temptation, sometimes having to battle against special temptations, wickedly and designedly put in his way to cause his fall, he allowed not the innocence of his soul to be sullied. P 84 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOB. LE MAZENOD, AND CHAPTER V. IP I: 'y';!"'! The advent of Napoleon to power enabled the emigres to return to their homes. Eugene is again in his native town, Aix, surrounded by the mem- bers of his family. The death of his father, who died in the sentiments of a devout and humble chris- tian, placed him at the head of his house. From the straitened circumstances of his exile, he passed to ' the sudden possession of great wealth, on the resto- ration of their estates to his family ; but this made no change in the simple and austere habits of his life. It afforded him but greater opportunities of doing good to others. An ample field for the exer- cise of his charity lay before him. The victims of the revolutionary tempest were craving on every side for help. Crowds of homeless wandering poor were to be met everywhere. The widows and orphans of those who had fallen in the recent wars were, in most cases, left to their own resources. The prisons were full. The sight of all this misery deeply affected the compassionate heart of young Of TEE LABOXTRS OF THE 0BLJTE8 OF MAST. 85 De Mazenod; he laboured with all his might to render aid to the suffering poor of his native city. His deepest compassion was excited by the wretched condition of the unhappy prisoners, who had to bear the two-fold torments of close confinement and in- sufficient food. Their rations consisted almost en- tirely of black bread. Eugene took a leading part in a society formed for their relief. He himself had recently passed through the privations of a long exile, and learnt thereby to sympathize with those who were there, under his eyes, suffering from cold and hunger within their blank prison walls. Several times every week he visited these poor captives in their cells, distributing with his own hands portions of bread and meat to each, and supplying to those of delicate health such food as their condition needed. [There was a charm in his manner that consoled and |eheercd them, more than any gift of his, by itself, :!ould do. But his enlightened charity aimed more it benefiting their souls than their bodies. He dis- covered among them many who were steeped in [gnorance of the principal truths of religion. These le would come, day after da-^, to instruct. When le heard of a poor prisuuer being condemned to leath, he would seek access to him, and endea- vour to dispose him to repentance and for the volun- iry sacrifice of his life, by his exhortations and [rayers, especially during the iiight preceding the 88 SKMTCHES OF iT'R LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, A^^D poor prisoner's execution, whioh he ^\?ul(i spend with him in his cell. ? > ' ' Some years of Eugene's early manhood, after his return from exile, were spent in the discharge of these works of devoted charity. But his so't. sighed for a higher form of promoting the divine glory and of doing good to others, especially to the poor and the spiritually abandoned. The temporal desolation which the Eevolution left in its wake, was a small evil to his glance of strong faith, when compared to the spiritual wilderness which it pro- duced on its track. The faithful clergy had been sent en masse either to the scaffold or into exile. Those who managed to conceal themselves were few in number, and broken down by privations. The spiritual abandonment, especially of the poor in country places, was appalling. In sight of these evils, the desire of renouncing the world and of en- tering the priesthood, to devote himself to the salva- tion of souls, which had been so long stirring within his breast, now became irresistible. There was much to keep him then in the world. The charms of a holy and happy home, which had special attrac tions for one with a heart so warm in its affections as his ; his duties as the head of his house, and as| the last male representative of the elder branch oi the De Mazenods ; the brilliant worldly career whicli| seemed to lie before him ; the prospect of the good OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATX8 OF MAET, 87 he might do as a devout layman in the world. All these obstacles to his vocation yielded to the voice which spoke within his heart, saying, " Follow thou Me." , - < ( i -.;*• :,■■.: . i'-:-yi. '-.< J. .1' ;■,'.! ^ .j.^.> :'.„ , .. vva]; -•»'.'!■ f >-■ :^ • .: ': • . -■'- . ;•■.- •.,•. Ht *." -■■ 1*- -. ■ "' p' I ._■* ,*' "', ,. . ..-i ■ ' . ' ti^-^ ;^ '■,': ;' '-t: '.*■.- : '.. > ■ "^ ■ ". X"^-' .V-''/ .. , s 38 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. BE MAZENOB, AND CHAPTEK YI. ■■•■ s i % In the lives of holy personages, we may remark how strikingly God watches over their journeying forwards on the path of their special call. How, at critical and decisive moments. He comes marvellously to their help. How He sends to the individual soul, at the very moment she needs it, her guide, her pro- phet, her apostle. Thus saints become the precur- sors of saints. Such was Elias to Eliseus ; such was Paul to Timothy; such was Ignatius to Xavier. We have seen, already, how a holy priest rose up upon the path of young De Mazenod, when in exile at Venice, sent on his way by God, to plant the first seeds of the priestly calling in his soul, and to fos- ter their growth by the light and warmth of his teach- ing and example. Eugene was then a mere youth. Years had to elapse before it was permitted to him to approach the threshold of the sanctuary. He has now arrived at man's estate; a great future is before him. If we lift the curtain of that future, we shall behold, appearing on the scene, the zealous mission- ary — the holy Founder, in the Church, of a new i^ W^n OF THE LABOURS OF TEE 0BLATE8 OF MART, 89 society of apostolic men — the great Bishop of the old- est Christian city in France. All these he will one day become. In his soul, in his mind and heart, there were aptitudes for every single phase and de- velopment of his triple calling. But the skilful hand was needed to mould them on the perfect priestly type, and to fit them for the great works wJtiich he was called to accomplish. At that time there was in France a man providentially raised up by the hand of God, as another Noah, whose ark, during the revolutionary tempest, was to ride upon the waters of the deluge, laden with the germs of the priestly life, for the bringing forth of new generations of learned and holy priests in his country, after the floods had subsided. The vene- rable Abb^ Emery, the worthy successor of M. Olier, and the faithful disciple of his virtues, was then Superior of St. Sulpice. He was an intrepid con- fessor of the faith; he suffered imprisonment, and was condemned to be guillotined, but escaped death by a sort of miracle. But he was to exhibit no less courage and firmness in opposing the daring en- croachments of Napoleon upon the liberties of the Church, One day, during his contest with the saintly Pius YII., the Emperor sent for M. Emery, and asked, in a tone of furious anger, " What is the Pope ? " " Sire," he replied, " I can hold no other opinion on that point than that which is contained <'.tl !!!CS! !!: ' .J 40 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. DE MAZENOD, AND in the catechism, taught by your Majesty's orders in all the churches of France : * The Pope is the Head of the Church, the Vicar of Jesus Christ, to whom all christians owe obedience.' Can a body exist without its head, without Him to whom, by ^ Divine right, it owes obedience ? " " "Well," re- joined the Emperor, " I grant the spiritual power; but the temporal power was given to the Pope by Charlemagne, and I, as Charlemagne's successor, feel bound to take it back from him, because he does not know how to use it, and it hinders him in the discharge of his spiritual functions." Emery was prepared for this attack. " Your Majesty," he said, " knows the great Bossuet, and Bossuet, Sire, speaks thus : ' "We are all aware that the Eoman Pontiffs and the priestly order have received, by the grant of kings, and do lawfully hold, property, rights, and principalities, as other men do, on very good titles. We know that these possessions, inasmuch as they are dedicated to God, should be sacred, and that no one can, without sacrilege, invade or seize them, or give them away to seculars. To the Apostolic See has been given the Sovereignty of the City of Eome, and of other possessions, that the Holy See * may, more freely and securely, exercise its power through- out the whole world. On this we sincerely con- gratulate, not only the Apostolic See, but also the Universal Church ; and wo pray, with all the fer- 01 THE LABOUBS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MAST. 41 vour of our heart, that this sacred principle may remain safe and untouched.' " Napoleon then broke off the conference. The Emperor afterwards said : "The Abbd Emery spoke as a man who is thoroughly master of his subject. I like to be talked to in that way." — (Darras' History of the Church.) United to this firmness, which was immoved un- der the frown of princes and under the shadow of the scaffold, in M. Emery we find a deep and ten- der piety, a most ardent love of Jesus Christ, especially in the mystery of the Holy Eucharist, a child-like devotion to the Blessed Virgin, a zeal for religious discipline and exactitude, and also for the sanctification of souls, but especially for the sancti- fication of the clergy. Such was the spiritual master and guide which a special and loving Providence ordained for Eugene de Mazenod, as he approached the holy mountain of God, in following His call to the priestly state. The virtues and the spirit of the saintly Emery seemed to run, like liquid gold, into the mind and heart and bearing of young De Maze- nod, in whose life they will often appear again in bright traits of priestly, and religious, and episco- pal perfection. During the years which he spent in the seminary of St. Sulpice, he was privileged by being admitted, from the beginning, to the intimate friendship and confidence of the venerable M. Emery, who was theii r 42 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND approaching his eightieth year. He was daily invi- ted to M. Emery's room, and he frequently enjoyed the advantage of his intimate conversation. Con- sidering the burning questions that were then agi- tating Europe, and France especially, of the right solution of many of which M. Emery held the key, such conversations must have been most profitable in fonning the ecclesiastical mind of De Mazenod. He had been but a short time promoted to deacons' orders, when he was to be deprived of his spiritual father and friend. The good fight had been fought, and the faith had been kept, even in prison and un- der chains, and God was about to call His faithful servant to Himself, to give him the crown of glory he so well merited. M. Emery may be said to have died in the arms of the Abbd de Mazenod, who was his constant attendant during his last illness. After his death, the Abbd de Mazenod wrote in the fol- lowing terms, to his mother, of the last illness and death of his spiritual father and friend: — ; ^ " If you read the public journals, you will not be surprised at my prolonged silence. We have lost our venerable Supe- rior. During his last illness, all my time /as employed in waitmg upon him ; and, after his death, which we all feel most deeply, the carrying out of the funeral arrangements devolved chiefly on me. To give you a true idea of the virtue of M. Emery, I should have to borrow the tongues of all men of merit to whom he was known. His death is one of the greatest calamities which could befall the Church in France, in the present critical times. He was the only bond 01 THE LAB0UE8 OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. 48 of union capable of holding together the divided spirits of these sad times. All parties respected him, and acknow- ledged the sway of his undisputed merits. The Emperor himself was silent in his presence. He was one of those noble spirits — alas ! so rare in our days — who could not be- tray a duty, nor forsake a right principle. At the same time he possessed, in a supreme degree, the gift of concilia- ting all parties. He was, in a word, such a man as the Church most needed among her defenders in the present crisis. But God, who would have us feel that it is on Him- self alone we should place our confidence, has taken from us one who seemed to be our last resource. May His holy will be in all things accomplished ! I shall never forget the ex- ample of priestly vigour and energy which he gave us up to the last. He jdelded only when the approach of death laid him prostrate. It was impossible to prevent him from saying the Divine Office on his sick bed. As his end approached, he insisted on saying the Holy Mass once more before he died. It was a touching sight to behold that venerable priest, who was close upon his eightieth year, supported by two assist- ants, slowly advancing to the altar, thereon to offer the saciifice of his life to the Lamb that he, with trembling hands, was about to immolate. It was my happiness to serve that last Mass. Deeply was I moved in witnessing this holy priest, who was almost in the agony of death, celebrating the sacred mysteries. The impressions then produced wiU remain ever indelible in my breast." . ..■ Aff -^if.h'.^^\-\"fr. , 44 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQE. LE MAZENOD, AND CHAPTER VII. After his ordination as priest, his distinguished merits opened to him the path of eariy preferment, but it was not for the sake of the honours of the sanctuary that he quitted those of the world. During the years of his seminary life, he had constantly be- fore his mind the motive which had induced him to abandon the world, and to embrace the ecclesiastical state — that of spending himself in labours for the souls of the poor and the spiritually destitute. The prisoners of Aix, his native town, where, as a lay- man, he had exercised already a true apostleship of zeal, came first before his mind. After his or- dination, he felt a burning desire to labour among those poor prisoners. His ecclesiastical superiors willingly seconded his zealous wishes. Though not officially named Chaplain of the prison, he per- formed all the duties attached to that office. He felt moved by an interior impulse to seek occasions of accompanying criminals to the scaffold, and mar- vellous were the fruits of his courageous and pious 3eal in this doleful ministry. Hardened hearts were '*ii- ■ i OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BIATE8 OF MAST. 45 softened by his words to repentance, and many died craving for mercy, who, had it not been for his charitable endeavours in their behalf, would have died in their despair. At that time a large number of Austrian prisoners of war arrived at Aix. Shortly after their arrival, a fearful plague broke out in their midst; their chaplain, their physician, and the military officer in charge of them, were carried off amongst the first victims of this dreadful malady. The Abb^ de Mazenod hastened to offer his services to those poor, plague-stricken prisoners. The civil authorities were slow to accept this generous offer, being unwilling to expose a life so precious as his to so grave a danger; for in the eyes of the public it was looked upon as certain death for any one to enter into the plague-stricken circle where those poor prisoners lay. But he was not to be deterred by such fears ; looking on it as a privilege to be coveted, were God so to will it, to die on such a battle-field of priestly devotedness. He was not long permitted to discharge his ministry of zeal amongst the victims of the plague, when the dread malady '■ d upon himself. Finding himself attacked, as he thought mortally, before taking to his bed, he went for the last time, as it seemed to him, to cele- brate the holy sacrifice of the Mass, and to offer himself as a victim to God, in union with the Divine Victim of the altar. When it was known that the 46 SKBTCEBS OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND II ' Abbd de Mazenod was lying amongst the victims of the plague, a deep and universal sorrow spread amongst the inhabitants of Aix. The churches were filled with devout crowds, imploring of God the favour of his recovery. The last sacraments had been administered to him, and he sank into uncon- sciousness, and it seemed that his death could not be long delayed. But God was moved by the earnest prayers offered for his recovery, and a favourable crisis put an end to the anxious fears felt for his life. On his recovery ho felt, in his gratitude to God, still more than ever called to devote himself to the work of promoting the divine glory, and of labour- ing for the salvation of souls. At Aix he found himself surroiinded by young men of the upper classes. The example of his sacrifices, the fervour of his exhortations, and the sway of his personal in- fluence, drew them around him, and attached them to him in filial reverence and submission. Availing himself of the favourable dispositions on their part, he formed them into a society entitled, " La Congre- gation de la Jeunesse Chr^tienne." This society became thoroughly imbued with the spirit of its holy founder ; consisting, as it did, of young men belonging to the first families of Aix, the edification given by those who composed it was the more im- pressive. Many came forth from it to shed the OF TEE LABOUES OF TBS OBZATSS OF MABY. 47 lustre of high christian virtue on their various paths of life. This association presented many vocations to the priesthood, and some of the first missionary companions of Father de Mazenod were drawn from its ranks. But the evangelizing of the rich was not the mis- sion that he was to choose as the work of his pre- dilection ; his heart was set upon labouring among the poor. Those splendid gifts of mind and utter- ance and of personal prestige which he possessed, were not to be employed in drawing around him fashionable crowds in favoured localities, but they were to be lavished amidst the poor in the villages of Provence, or amongst the working classes in the slums of great cities. " He has sent me to preach the gospel to the poor," was his chosen motto. But he aimed at doing a greater good than could be accomplished by his individual efforts. Association with kindred spirits became a necessity, in his mind, for the evangelizing of the masses of the poor, on the scale which his ardent zeal suggested to him. He looked around him for those who would be fit and willing to join in his undertaking ; he prayed much for light and assistance from God in this most important matter — the selection of the first com- panions of his labours. He felt that the missionaries should be not only men of action, but men of prayer; in order to walk worthily in the footsteps of the I nan 48 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DS M/IZEXOD, AND 1*1 Apostles, and gain souls to Jesus Christ. He felt tliat if the missionaries were to sanctify themselves whilst working for others, that the exhaustive la- bours of the missionary life should be preceded and followed by fitting intervals of community life, with its circle of religious exercises, its practice of obe- dience and humility, and its opportunities for sacred studies and quiet reflection. His first aim was to bring around him men gifted with a spirit of interior piety — lovers of solitude and retirement, but ready, for the good of souls, to go forth at the call of obe- dience into the midst of the crowd, yea, to the ends of the earth, if the saving of souls demanded it. He found little difficulty in bringing to his side helpers in his missionary works, but he had not yet found that man of God who would be his second self in the foundation of the work to which the Divine spirit was leading him. God is not slow in seconding the designs of those who labour with a pure intention for His glory. At that time, the recollection of a young priest, the Abb^ Tempier, with whom Father de Mazenod had formed an acquaintance when both were pursuing their studies at St. Sulpice, and whom he esteemed very much for his great piety, rare prudence, learning, modesty, and spirit of regularity, came vividly before his mind. An in- terior voice seemed to say to his soul : " This is he after whom you have beeji seeking as the associate or THE LABOURS OF THE OBZATES OF MART, 49 of your undertaking." Presently, after an invoca- tion of the Holy Spirit, he sat down and wrote to the Abb(5 Tempier, who was then at Aries, the fol- lowing impressive and beautiful letter : — '' kiJi, October %th, 1%11S. *'My Dear Friend, " Read this letter at the foot of your Crucifix, with the intention of listening to the voice of God alone, and of considering only what the interests of His glory, and the salvation of souls, demand of you. Impose silence in your soul on all cravings of the natural man for the goods of this life; renounce all seeking for your own ease and conve- nience ; reflect seriously on the spiritual destitution of our poor, especially in rural districts ; consider how great the number of those is, who have already fallen away from the faith, and what multitudes are now exposed to a like dan- ger. Irreligion and apostacy are making a frightful havoc of souls in our midst, and little is being done to impede the progress of such evils. Question your own heart, and ask yourself what sacrifice are you prepared to make, in order to take your part in the remedjdng of these disasters, and then answer my letter without delay. "In truth, my dear friend, and I will speak to you I plainly, you are necessary for the work which I feel the Lord has inspired me to undertake. The Head of the Church is firmly of the opinion, that in the present deplor- able state of France, missions alone can bring the people back to the faith which they have actually abandoned. And the views of the Supreme Pastor are fully borne out by all that we know of the spiritual desolation of different [dioceses. I am profoundly convinced, that in missions lies Ithe remedy for this deplorable state of things. Full of this jconviction, and placing entire reHance on God, I have under- ken to found in this diocese a house of missionaries, who, 50 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. LE MAZENOL, AND giving the example of a truly sacerdotal spirit, will endeavour unceasingly to destroy the empire of Satan, and draw souls to God, by their labours amongst the poor, especially in rural districts. We shall live together in a house which I have purchased, according to a rule which we shall unan- imously adopt. We shall be happy in this holy society, which will have but one heart and one soul. One part of the year will be employed in the conversion of souls, and the other in retreat, study, and our own sanctification. I shall say no more to you about it just now. This is enough to give you n foretaste of the spiritual pleasures we shall enjoy together. If, as I hope, you will become one of us, you will not find yourself in an unknown land. You will have four companions. As yet we are not more numerous, for we wish to choose men who have the will and the courage to tread in the footsteps of the Apostles. We must begin by laying solid foundations. We must introduce and establish the greatest regularity in the house, as soon as we enter it ourselves. And this is the precise reason why you are so necessary for me, for I know you have the courage to embrace, and the steadfastness to follow out, a life of strict religious observance. When I receive your reply, I will give you all the details you may wish for. But in the mean- time, my dear friend, I would entreat you not to demur I taking part in this good work, which is one of the greatest j we could undertake for the interests of God's Holy Church. It will be easy to find somebody to take your place in the j post you now occupy. But it is not easy for me to find men who wish to devote and consecrate themselves to the glory of God, and the salvation of souls, without any reward upon earth ; but with the certain prospect before them of muoli fatigue, and of many of those trials and contradictions whicb j our Lord predicted would be the lot of His true disciples. Your refusal would be exceedingly detrimental to our risingj work. I speak with sincerity and reflection. Your modestyj will suffer, but no matter. I will oven add, that, if I thoughtl OT THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 51 it necessary to go to Aries, in order to determine you, I would do so at once. Everything depends upon our begin- ning well ; on our being of one mind, atid united in devoted- ness. With you at my side, this will be possible. Lose no time, then, in sending me an affirmative answer, and I shall be satisfied. " Adieu, my beloved Brother." To the foregoing letter the following reply was forwarded by the Abb^ Tempier : — "Sir, and very dear Brother, " May God be blessed for having inspired you with the design of establishing a house of missionaries, to preach the gospel to the poor, especially to those poor people who, living in remote country districts, are most destitute of spiritual aids. I assure you, my very dear brother, that I completely share your views. Far from needing your press- ing entreaties to join in a work so much in harmony with my own wishes, had I been acquainted with your pians, I would have been the first to beg admission into your society. Accept my humble thanks for judging me worthy to be your fellow-labourer in the work of promoting the glory of God, and the salvation of souls. It is true I do not possess the gift of eloquence necessary for a missionary ; but alius sic — alius autem sic. What I may not be able to effect by eloquent sermons, I will try to make up for by catechetical instructions and familiar discourses, by my labours in tlj.e tribunal of penance, and by such humble works of zeal for establishing the reign of Jesus Christ in souls, as may come within my reach. I shall find nothing low or painful in any humble or laborious function of the missionary life. In the meantime, practice will make me more familiar with the duties of the holy ministry than I am at present. More- over, I clearly see what you wish to find in those you choose as your fellow-labourers. You want priests who, as our 52 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND Father Director in the Seminary used to say, * Do not follow the ordinary humdrum of routine ' — priests who are willing to walk in the footsteps of the Apostles, and to labour for the salvation of souls, without expecting any return on this earth, but much toil and hardship. By God's grace, I feel in myself this desire ; or if I feel it not, I eagerly wish to do so. I am sure, with your help, everything will become easy to me ; so you may fully reckon upon my good will and co- operation. " Good-bye, very dear Brother. , ^ ' t "Tempier." Father de Mazenod wrote again in these terms : — " May God be blessed, my very dear Brother, for the holy dispositions which He has awakened in your heart. You cannot believe what joy I felt on reading your letter. I opened it with some anxiety, but was soon consoled. I assure you, that I consider it most important for the work of God, that you be one of us. I depend more on you than on myself, for the fervour and regularity of a community which, in my ideas and hopes, will imitate the perfection of the first disciples of the Apostles. I rest my hopes more firmly upon that than upon grand sermons. Have grand sermons ever converted anybody? Oh, how well, with God's blessing, you will perform your part in this important affair ! Why are you not near me, in order that I might press you to my heart ? IIow sweet are the bonds of per- fect charity ! Humble yourself as much as you like, but nevertheless know that you are necessary for the work of the missions. I speak to you before God and with sincerity. If we only wanted to go and preach the word of God in an off- hand way, to go through the country with the view, if you like, of gaining souls to God, but without taking much trouble to become ourselves interior men — truly apostolic men, I think it would not be hard to find some one instead of you. But can you believe that I want people of that OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 53 stamp ? We must simply be saints ourselves. This word comprises everytliing. The second reason why I look upon your resolution of joining us as a gift from heaven, is the need we have of a priest who thinks, as you do, regarding the interior of our community. I am so sure we shall always understand one another, that I am not afraid to make a promise of never thinking differently from you on any- thing relating to the interior life, and to the obligations of the priestly calling, which are more comprehensive than they are generally supposed to be. "We wi^! draw up to- gether, when we meet, our regulations, and take mutual counsel with one another regarding all that God may inspire us to do, for our own sanctification, and the good of our neighbour. " Good-bye, my very dear and good Brother. I embrace you from my heart, and long for the happy moment of our meeting. "Eugene de Mazenod." To this letter the Abb4 Tempier wrote the fol- lowing reply : — " Arles, December 20M, 1816. "Holy Friend and true Brother, " I cannot tell you how much you have done for my salvation. You are truly the dearest friend of my heart. I loved you before, and had a special esteem for you ; but since you have fixed your eyes upon me with the intention of associating me with yourself, in your apostolic labours, and of making me a sharer in the fruits of holiness, which we shall find in our dear congregation, I have no words to express my sentiments in your regard. May God be praised for all that he has inspired you to do for me. I would beg of you, however, to moderate the too good opinion you have formed of me, and not to think me so necessary for the work you have undertaken, as you are pleased to say I am. You 64 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MO JR. DE MAZENOD, JND may find yourself disappointed, when you are in a position to form a true judgment of me. You will soon see that if I have a certain amount of good will, I have little else beside. I am determined to leave for Aix on the day after Christ- mas, with the firm resolution of not returning to Aries. " Good-bye, my very dear and good Brother, let us pray earnestly to the Lord that He may bless our undertaking, if it be conformable to His will. " Tempier." ■SI:'* On the feast of St. John the Evangelist, 1815, Father Tempier arrived in Aix, and became the himible and loving disciple of Father de Mazenod. This spiritual relationship continued unbroken, un- chilled, and unclouded, for a period extending over forty-five years. A few weeks elapsed after the meeting of the two holy friends, before their plans were ripe for execution. They saw one another every day, and, we might add, all day long. They mutually encouraged and comforted each other, and prepared themselves for that great act which, accord- ing to God's intention, was to give birth to a new religious family in His Church. Father de Mazenod hhd already purchased a residence for his future immunity. It was an old Carmelite Convent, from which the daughters of St. Teresa ^had been driven forth in the time of the revolution, and which had since then been in secular hands. He felt happy in being the instrument, in God's hands, of re-awaken- ing within those holy cloisters the chant of the OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MAET. 55 divine praises, after so many years of sorrowful silence. On the 25th of January, 1816, Father de Maze- nod, Father Tempier, Father Mye, and two others, assembled together for the first time in community, the requisite diocesan sanction being obtained. The new Congregation was then founded. A Superior had to be chosen. His companions at once named Father de Mazenod to that office. In his humility, he refused its title and functions. He suggested that they should spend some days in fasting and praying, and then proceed to the regular nomination of a Superior. This being done, the choice again falling upon him, he at last consented to accept the office of Superior, but with the ex- press condition that he himself might be allowed to practice obedience under the direction of Father Tempier. 56 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. DE MAZENOD, AND CHAPTER yill. Every christian virtue flourished in the new com- munity, the members of which rivalled one another in the ardent love of God, and in heroic charity for their neighbour. They were all of one mind and one heart. The fragrance of their virtues went abroad, and other disciples came to range themselves under the guidance of Father de Mazenod. He possessed an extraordinary power of moulding souls upon his own type. There was a holy fascination in his manner which few could resist. He had the facility of setting hearts on fire with the purest flames of holy love, simply by his ordinary conver- sation. This came from his vivid faith. It was his habit to speak of the mysteries of faith, as if they were not mysteries, but things that he saw and touched and handled. The brightness of his faith was ever acting on the tenderness of his heart; hence the copiousness of his weeping at the foot of the altar, which frequently overtook him whilst cele- brating the Holy Sacrifice of Christ's Body and Plood, or whilst officiating at Exposition or Pro- OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 57 cession of the Blessed Sacrament. The writer of these lines once saw him, when Bishop of Marseilles, in presence of the Blessed Sacrament, kneeling be- fore the high altar of the cathedral of that city ; his face was flushed with emotion, and the great tears chased one another down his venerable cheeks. The occasion was the opening of a novena of prayer for the conversion of England. After the ceremony we ventured to ask the holy prelate the cause of his emotion. " My child," the good bishop replied, " I could not help weeping when I thought of England, once so Catholic, once the island of saints, but now overrun with all manner of heresies." These mani- festations of vivid faith, and of a piety tender and vehement at the same time, were frequent occur- rences in his priestly and episcopal life. Cardinal Giraud, Archbishop of Cambrai, who was a cleric in minor orders at Amiens, when Father de Mazenod was ordained priest in the cathedral of that city, and who, the next morning, served his first Mass, thus describes in a conversation he held with Monsigneur Jeancard, shortly after Monsigneur de Mazenod' s death, the impression produced on him by what he witnessed on that occasion : " Father de Mazenod, turning to those who were then present to ask their prayers before beginning his first Mass, was carried away by an outburst of faith and fer- vour, to utter words that astonished all present, and 58 8KBTCSE8 OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND brought tears to every eye. I never heard such a discourse; I never witnessed anything like the effect produced by it. The emotion was general, and I was overcome like the others. We were all in tears. His words seemed to raise us out of our- selves, and above things of earth, and to transport us to some region all on fire with the love of God. The furnace of his own loving heart seemed to com- municate its flames to our breasts. What lofty ideas of the priesthood, of the sacrifice of the altar, and of the mission upon which he was entering, did he not then impart to us : what eloquence vibrated in his im- passioned words ! No, it was not eloquence simply ; it was an outpouring of the Holy Spirit that came rushing on as an impetuous torrent, flooding our souls with the love of God. Forty years have since passed away, and the remembrance of that fervid discourse is still fresh within my breast. I shall never forget it." As a priest, Father de Mazenod never administered Baptism without shedding tears, when the moment for conferring that sacrament arrived. Afterwards, as a bishop, in administering the Sacrament of Holy Orders, when the moment oame for conferring the priestly character on those who were to be ordained, he fo^ind it often impos- sible to control his sighs and tears, so affected was he by a lively sense of the sublime function he was performing. OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 59 There was a startling energy in his utterances when denouncing vice, even in ordinary conversa- tion. Impressed, as he habitually was, with a sense of the infinite perfections of God, he felt in the keenep* way any failing in reverence in holy places; and still more, any grievous violation of God's law that came under his notice. In his ser- mons there was an absence of empty enthusiasm and effervescence, but there was an earnestness of con- viction in every word he said, which kindled, as he went along, into a soii: of prophet-like power of speech, which in turn smote with fear, awakened tenderest hope, and excited to a heroic love of God. He seemed ever to live for those around him, and not for himself merely. The young novice, ap- proaching him for the first time, was often amazed to find how quickly he was understood and sympa- thized with, and how he had found a father's kindly care, and a mother's tender fondness, in his new Superior. This came from a special gift, which the venerable founder of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate had received from God, to fit him for that patriar- chal office which he was to exercise in holy Church, as the founder of a new family of missionaries, who were to go forth to the ends of the earth, bearing the tidings of salvation to many sitting in darkness, and in the shadow of death. One day the holy founder expressed himself to the writer thus : " God % t ! I 60 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. BE MAZENOD, AND n .i.^ - has conferred on the founders of religious orders special gifts to fit them for their special works. St. Ignatius, St. Philip Neri, the blessed Liguori, had each his own peculiar and appropriate gift. The gift, my son, which God I feel has conferred upon me, unworthy though I am to bo named with those great servants of His, is that of the love of a mother for her children." But there was no weakness in the tenderness of his love for his spiritual sons. His aim was to make them truly apostolic men, and missionaries of the poor. This end he sought to accomplish first by his own example. In him they saw one who had trampled the world under foot, at a moment when some of its highest dignities and emoluments, and of its most captivating plea- sures were within his reach, to give himself to an austere and humble mode of life, and to the work of a laborious and obscure ministry. His fasts were frequent; several times in the week he used the discipline ; his brief sleep was taken upon a hard bed; his meals were of the simplest and most frugal kind. Looking on himself as the servant of the poor, he would imitate the poor, as far as priestly propriety would allow, in the manner of his attire. His cassock was often threadbare, and sometimes patched with his own hands, but always perfectly clean and without a speck. The length and fervour of his prayers, and his profound and loving rever- OF THE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MART. CI ence when in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, afforded a grand lesson of practical piety to all who had the privilege of dwelling with him under the same roof. The first, himself, at every spiritual exercise, he stimulated all round him to regularity and fervour in keeping the appointed hours of com- munity worship. His zeal was unbounded for the sanctification of his first companions. Several times every week he addressed spiritual conferences to the members of his new community. He would speak to them so strikingly, as often to move them to tears, of the necessity of imitating Jesus Christ in his life of obedience and humility, silence and prayer, in the obscurity of Nazareth, in order afterwards to go forth as his disciples, to save souls with Him. The holy Founder spared not the reprimand or reproach when he deemed such to be needed. A simple irre- verence in the divine worship, some want of punc- tuality in the performance of religious exercises, or some negligence in keeping the rules of the com- munity, would draw from his lips expressions of reproof so severe and stem, that one would be dis- posed to tax them with exaggeration, who took not into account the burning zeal of Father de Mazenod for the perfection of those whom God had intrusted to his care. He possessed a marvellous tact in dis- covering the secret virtues and the hidden weak- nesses of his subjects. The latter, with resolute yet 62 SKETCEEI} OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND m gentle hand, he would seek to weed out, in order to give full play to the growth of the former.. No amount of good dispositions, or brilliancy of talents, would cause him to shut his eyes to a real defect in a member of his community, no matter what it would cost his own feelings, or what pain it would cause to somebody very dear to him ; he would not rest until the evil was amputated, and the defect torn up by the root. Two short months of holy community-life had barely elapsed when Fathers de Mazenod and Tem- pier felt mutually drawn, by the Spirit of God, to perform an act which would bind them still more to the divine service, and place them in a state of holy dependence upon one another. On the night of Holy Thursday, 1816, which these two devoted priests spent together in adoration before the Altar of Eepose, after hours passed in prayer, each knelt before the other, and pronounced the vow of- obedi- ence one to the other. They united this act of self- immolation with the mystery of Calvary, which they were then commemorating. This was an act of private devotion on the part of Fathers de Mazenod and Tempier, of which the other members of the community at Aix were not cognizant. The first mission given by the newly-formed com- munity of Aix, opened at Grans on February 11th, and closed on March 17th. It produced an abun- OF THB LABOURS OF THE 0BZATS8 OF MAST. C8 dant harvest of souls. Two years well nigh elapsed, during which Father do Mazenod, and his little body of missionai'ies, laboured with extraordinary fruits of benediction in different towns and ham lots of Provence. Their numbers had already considerably increased. A second house had been founded, Notre Dame de Laus, in the diocese of Gap. Father de Mazenod felt that the time had come to give a more definite form to his work, and to prepare a code of constitutions and rules for the new society. Hitherto he had confined himself to the establishing of general regulations, whilst waiting for the ac- quiring of further experience, and additional light from God, to complete his work. "Now he feels the time has come to put his undertaking into definite shape, and to draw up the final rules for the go- vernment and mode of life of the members of his society. One of the family estates of Father de Mazenod was situated at St. Laurent de Yerdon, a hamlet in the department of the Lower Alps. On it stood an ancient Chdteau, the favorito resort of the De Maz- enods in former times, when they sought repose fi'om official labours in the silent woods in which it was embedded, and amidst the noble mountain scenery by which it was surrounded. It was to this spot, so favorable to quiet contemplation and retire- ment, that Father de Mazenod came to draw up the \ i m ii y] ; 1: 64 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND constitutions and rules of his new institute. He sought for a spot where he could reflect and pray- much, without being distracted by missionary works or the concourse of visitors, whilst occupied with the important task he had laid before himself His companions were Father Moureau and Father Susanne. His venerable mother, Madame de Maz- enod, knowing for what object her holy son was going t^ St. Ijaurent de Verdon, begged that she also might be allowed to accompany him. This truly christian mother deserves a special notice in this biographical sketch. The great virtues of Eugene de Mazenod, which ripened with his years into heroic deeds, were in a large measure, under God, the result of her training and of her example. Instead of throwing obstacles in the way of her son's vocation, as too many weak-minded and selfish mothers in similar cases would have done, she, on the contrary, did everything she could to aid and en- courage her son in accomplishing the sacrifice which God demanded of him. He reven^d her, not merely as his mother, but as a great servant of God, and sought her counsel and her prayers somewhat as we may believe St. Augustine did those of St. Monica. Madame de Mazenod. took with her, as a companion on that occasion, to St. Laurent de Verdon, an aged lady friend — the Marquise de Eequsse. The CMteau of St, Laurei?!; 'xoame for the time OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBZATES OF MART. 65 a holy solitudeo Its inmates held no communication with the external world : no visits were made or received. A rule of life drawn up by Father de Mazenod was strictly followed by all. At an early hour, all rose and engaged in mental prayer. A great part of the day was given to silence and pri- vate devotion. Everybody seemed anxious to draw down, by fervent and prolonged prayers, the bless- ings of the Holy Spirit on the work of Father de Mazenod. The venerable founder himself redoubled his prayers and austerities for the same object. Two months were thus spent at St. Laurent de Yerdon. It was during that time that Father de Mazenod drew up the code of rules and constitutions of his new congregation. Page after page of this holy volume was written by him on his knees, with his missionary cross placed before him, to serve, no doubt, as his source of inspiration, and to suggest to him the framing of such laws for the spiritual government of the members of his society, as would hring their lives most into conformity with the image of Christ Jesus crucified, and would help them to imitate this divine model in labouring for tlie salvai-jn of souls. In the opening pages of the first chapter he treats of the ends of the society, which he declares to be the evangelizing of the poor ; the direction of semi- naries for the training of young ecclesiastics, and in f G6 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. BE MAZENOD, AND general the guidance of the young in the ways of piety ; and the giving of retreats to the clergy and laity, in the houses of the society, or elsewhere. In the second chapter he lays down regulations for the giving of missions, which he declares to be the chief means by which the society is to accomplish its end of evangelizing the poor. In the third chapter he enters minutely into the mode of government and order of discipline, of the theological seminaries un- der the care of the Fathers of the society. In the fourth chapter he treats of preaching and of the administering of the sacraments ; the direction of youths ; the visiting of prisons ; the assisting of the dying ; the performing of the canonical hours ; and the public spiritual exercises to be held during the year in ihe churches of the society. In the second section, chapter the first, he treats of the vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and perseverance. In the second chapter of the same section, he lays down rules for the observance of silence, and of interior recollection, for the proper distribution of the devo- tional exercises of the community, and also for the practice of mortification, and for the community meetings and conferences. In the third chapter of this section, he speaks of the virtues which the members of the society should chiefly practise, such as charity, humility, and renouncement of the world. He speaks also, in this chapter, of the reception of OF THE LABOUBS OF TEE OBLATES OF MAST. 07 the sacraments and spiritual direction, of the food and raiment of the members of the society, of inter- course with the neighbour, and of journeys. In the fourth chapter, second section, he lays down rules for the care of the sick members of the society, for the assistance of the dying, and for suffrages for the dead. In the third section he treats of the government of the society. There are special para- graphs in this section on the General Chapter, the Superior-General, the Assistants, Provincials, Local Superiors, and also on the noviciate ; on the quali- ties candidates should have, to be admitted to the novice-ship, and on the reception of lay-brothers. This rapid analysis of the rules of the society of the Oblates of Mary, will serve at least to make manifest the character of the work undertaken by its holy founder, during his seclusion in the Chateau of St. Laurent de Verdon. His first aim, in the drawing up of the rules of the new society, was to provide for the sanctification of its members ; that they, being made holy themselves, might the more efficaciously labour for the sanctification of many. No very great austerity is imposed by the letter of those rules ; at the same time, their spirit, if thoroughly imbibed, will lead to the crucifixion of the carnal man, and to a close imitation of the penitential life of the servants of God in all ages. Prayer, study, labour^ the love of Jesus Christj and :|P* 1-11 68 SKETCHES OF TITE LIFE OF MGR. BE MAZEXOD, AND tender devotion to His Blessed Mother, are the norma of the life of the true Oblate of Mary Immaculate. Such was the ideal which rose, in the vision of his prayer, to the mind of this new law- maker, whom the Spirit of God led up as if to the summit of another Sinai, there to reveal to him the precepts of holiness, which he was to deliver to the little band of chosen souls who had followed him from Egypt into the desert. »:,>■. '*.:■■■ ■^-' ;■' ■ tl OF TEE LABOUHS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 69 CHAPTER IX. ■^^''mm^^\ Father de Mazenod having completed the work which he undertook in seeking the solitude of St. Laurent de Verdon, returned to his community at Aix, bearing with him the precious fruits of his re- flection and prayer, in the code of rules which he hud completed. It was during the annual retreat, which was to close on the Feast of All Saints, that he communicated the knowledge of those rules to his community. Every day during the retreat he read a portion of the rules, and delivered, in bm'n- ing words, a viva voce commentary on the portions read, which wonderfully moved the hearts of his devout hearers to receive them and observe them. Self-immolation was the theme of those glowing im- provisations. He showed them how the faithful observance of the rules of life he proposed to them, led to a mystical death to self and the world. He urged them to become voluntary victims, and to make of themselves holocausts on the altar of God's holy will. A common u^^sire sprang up within their hearts in listening to the words of their still youth- 70 SKETCHES OF TUE LIFE OF MGR. DE MAZENOD, AND ful though, by virtue, most venerable Superior. It Avas that of dying with him to the world, by the perpetual consecration of themselves to God. " Eamus et nos ut moriamur cum eo." " Let us also go that we may die with him," was the sentiment of their loving devotedness at the close of the retreat. . On the morning of the Feast of All Saints, the 1st of November, 1818, the whole community assisted at the Mass of the Superior-General. Before the communion, he addressed to the community a fervent exhortation. He then made known that he had the sanction of the Yicars-Capitular of the diocese of Aix, to receive their vows. Prostrating himself before the Blessed Sacrament, he pronounced aloud the formula of his own vows. Father Tempier then pronounced his vows, as also did Fathers Mye, Courtes, and others. Another important layer is now solidly placed on the foundations of the new society, and we shall see it rise, tier upon tier, until the summit of the edifice will be crowned by the hand of Peter with its finishing stone. A few days after the solemn ceremony of public pronouncing of vows by the community, the work of the missions was recommenced with new ardour. The missionaries of Provence, as they were then called, headed by their devoted Superior, Father d(j Mazen-od, went from town to town, and from OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY, 71 village to village, through many dioceses in the South of France, sowing the seed of the divine word, and always seeking, by preference, those places where the poor most abounded, and where souls were in the greatest spiritual destitution. In the year 1820 a great mission was opened at Marseilles. This mission was conducted by two bodies of mis- sionaries. The missionaries of France, of whom M. Forbin Janson, afterwards Bishop of Nancy, was Superior ; and the missionaries of Provence, under Father de Mazenod. The evangelizing of the most crowded and the poorest parishes of Marseilles fell, to his great gratification, to the share of Father de Mazenod and his missionaries. As the Proven9al was the popular language of the poorer localities of Marseilles, Father de Mazenod delivered all his dis- courses in that language, of which he was perfect master. He gained complete sway over those fiery and turbulent masses whom he had undertaken to evangelize. They became quiet and tractable as children under his guidance ; ancient feuds were forgotten; multitudes of men, who had spent the greater part of their lives in the camp or on the battle field, and who had never once for years thought of God, were awakened up from their tor- por by the inspired preaching of Father de Mazenod and his companions. During the mission, the news arrived in Marseilles of the assassination of the Due 72 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGS. DE MAZENOL, ANL de Berry. The inhabitants of the parishes evan- gelized by Father de Mazenod were intensely royalist, and a popular outbreak was dreaded ou their part ; but his influence was successful in calm- ing them down. Several of the leading spirits among them afterwards confessed, that it was the influence alone of Father de Mazenod which checked theii' projects of vengeance against that party at Marseilles, whom they looked upon as being friendly to the enemies of the unfortunate Due de Berry. The labours of the missionaries of France were also very successful. The mission closed with the plant- ing of the mission cross: forty thousand persons walked in procession at the ceremony, and Father de Mazenod preached in Provencal at its close, from a platform erected on the spot where the cross was to be planted. This was the centre of the district which he and his brethren had been evangelizing. The pious enthusiasm of this vast multitude could not be restrained, even by the solemnity of the occa- sion, from manifesting itself by loud demonstrations, so moved were all hearts by the kindling and holy eloquence of the preacher. The cross, which was then planted, stands erect to this day, and it has be- come a place of holy pilgrimage. Shortly after the mission, the first house of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate was opened at Marseilles, and the site selected for this new establishment was very appro- OF TEE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MAJiY. 73 priate, for the mission cross stands in the front of their house and church on the Place du Calvaire. Father Forbin Janson and Father de Mazenod com- menced a mutual friendship on the occasion of their mission at Marseilles, which death only terminated. The mission of Marseilles was followed at a short interval by another great mission by Father de Maz- euod, in the cathedral of Aix, with similar success. His labours dui'ing the mission seemed superhuman, but the ardour of his zeal for souls sweetened every fatigue and privation that he had to endure in their behalf. Ten years of active missionary life had now elapsed. During this period new recruits offered their services to Father de Mazenod, to be incorpo- rated in his devoted little army oi missionaries. During a mission given by him and Father Susanne, of holy memory, at Nice, a learned Professor of the Diocesan Seminary of that city, Don Carlo Albini, offered himself as a postulant to Father de Mazenod. Father Albini bore already a reputation of extra- ordinary sanctity. He had been for a long time secretly sighing for an opportunity of embracing community life in some society, dedicated to the conversion of sinners and the service of the poor. Having an opportunity of studying closely Father de Mazenod and his companions, whilst helping them in hearing confessions during the mission, it seemed to him that he had found all that he had I^^H^ 74 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND been wishing for so long. He was profoundly edified both with the holy bearing and the apostolic zeal exhibited by these servants of God, and he re- solved to seek admission into their ranks. At first, his bishop was greatly opposed to his designs, but aftei*wards he consented to the sacrifice, hoping to have, one day, a foundation of the missionaries of Father de Mazcnod in his diocese. Without suifer- ing any delay to intervene, Father Albini prepared to follow the divine call ; so dead was he to the world, that he came away without visiting his native home, which was within a few miles of Nice, and during the twenty years that he lived as an Oblate of Mary Immaculate, he never sought the consola- tion of a visit to his early friends. He always en- deavoured to conceal his great sanctity under the veil of profound humility ; but, with all his efforts, he could not hide it. At missions and elsewhere, when people did not know his name, and wished to speak of him, they designated him by the title of "the saint." He died in the odour of sanctity, and miracles are reported to have been worked at his grave. Shortly after Father Albini joined the new society of missionaries of Provence, a young ecclesiastical student offered himself as a postulant to Father de Mazenod. His name was Guibert. The experienced eye of the holy Superior quickly discovered in his or THE LABOUIta OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. 76 new postulant, signs of a marked vocation, and he admitted him to the noviciate without hesitation. Brother Guibert was destined to become one of the lights of the new congregation of missionaries. After his ordination to the priesthood, he was en- gaged for awhile in giving missions. Afterwards, his rare prudence, great piety, and his disciplinary spirit, marked him out as one eminently fitted for the important office of master of novices. To this post he was called by Father de Mazenod. Later on he was appointed Superior of the Diocesan Eccle- siastical Seminary, founded in Ajaccio by the Oblates of Mary, for the education of the young clergy of Corsica, and which is still under their direction. He was afterwards named Bishop of Viviers, and then Archbishop of Tours, and he is at present Cardinal Archbishop of Paris. Amidst all these successive honoui's, this holy prelate still remains the humble religious, and glories in his title of " Oblate of Mary Immaculate." .. - ^ The ranks of the new society being considerably increased, and fortified by the accession of such subjects as Fathers Albini and Guibert, and many others of the same saintly type, an interior voice seemed to say to Father de Mazenod, that the time had come for launching out the little bark, of which he was the pilot, into deeper waters, and that he should seek a place for his new society among the *> IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 1.25 2.2 12.0 111= L4 III 1.6 Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 3 4580 (716) 873-4S03 €3 \ :\ V ^\' i\> "\ ^ rv^ *^i> <^ ■'"■■' P V'T--' L-?/ L<5> «x- 76 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. LE MAZENOB, AND recognized religious bodies in the cliiiroh, by ob- taining for its rules and constitutions the approba- tion of the Vicar of Jesus Christ. The humility of the holy priest shrank from the idea of putting him- self forward as the founder of a new religious con- gregation, and, for a time, he could not bring himself to entertain it. At last he yielded to the pressing solicitations of the members of his community, and especially to the counsel of Father Albini, whom he revered as one full of the Spirit of God, and re- solved to seek the formal approbation of the Holy See for the rules and constitutions of his society. In an affair of such importance, he felt the need of bringing into play all the agencies which holy pru- dence might suggest, and his spirit of lively faith disclose. He took counsel on the matter with several learned and holy men, but, above all, he consulted God in prayer. He had prayers said for the success of his undertaking, not only in the com- munities under his own jurisdiction, but in the religious houses in which he had influence, and these were many. The Capuchin Sisters at Mar seilles, and the Poor Clares of that city, communities in ^hich there were then many living saints, made frequent offerings of their prayers and acts of pen- ance, to obtain the divine blessing on Father do Mazenod's undertaking. Aided by such super- natural helps, and fuiiiished with lettei's of highest OF THE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF lifARY. 77 recommendation given by various bishops in whose dioceses he and his missionaries had laboured, he left Marseilles for Rome on the 1st November, 1825. We shall now proceed to give some extracts from the correspondence of Father de Mazenod, written from Rome to Father Tempier, and other Fathers in his society at Marseilles. "Rome, November 26ih, 1825. "My dear Friend, " I reached Rome to-day at too late ai: hour, un- happily, to say Mass, though I remained fasting until past two o'clock p.m. for that purpose On leaving Genoa, my companions were Father Pizzi, a Jesuit; a Trappist Father; four Carmelite Fathers, and a secular priest from Sardinia. You see that I was in very good com- pany. By common consent we organized, in starting, a community mothod of life for our journey. In the morning between three and four we made our meditation for one hour. After that we tried to sleep for awhile. When we had sufficient daylight to be able to read, we recited together the Rosary, and afterwards the little Lours of the divine office. When the diligence stopped at breakfast time, I hastened to the nearest church, and said Ifass, at which my companions assisted. During the day, at intervals, I read aloud passages from the Imitation of Christ. We said the Rosary together, and in the afternoon we recited vespers and complin. Our conversation was always on edifying subjects." " Rome, December 6th, 1S95. " My dear Father CotRXES, ** I write to you from the capital of the christian world. This beautiful city of Rome deserves well that title, SI ' I' ' \nm 78 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND for it is the See of the Vicar of Christ, and in some manner, a compendium of Christianity. Here alone, it seems to me, is understood what sort of dwelling man should prepare for his God upon the earth. No idea can be formed by one who has not been here, of the magnificence which reveals itself at every step, in the holy temples you meet as you go along. Sometimes you meet five or six churches clustered in the same vicinity, each rivalling the others in splendour, and surpassing them by some special beauty of its own. Here one can form an idea of how, when in heaven, we shall never tire of giving praise to God, or never lessen in love as we contemplate His infinite perfections, when we find that the sight of those beautiful productions of human skill — the works of the feeble hand? of men — excites an admiration that continues to grow as /♦ o gaze. And what a stimulant to piety is furnished to us by the sight of those many monu- ments that attest the victories won by those martyrs who drowned idolatry in their blood. Their bodies are here, and their memories are as fresh to-day, after the lapse of seven- teen or eighteen centuries, as if they had been lately in our midst. These centuries have swallowed up their persecutors, and destroyed their works, which they had flattered them- selves would be eternal. Here everything is holy for him who comes hither in the spirit of a true pilgrim. For my own part, 1 only see here the Apostles, and Martyrs, and Confessors of all ages. There is not a step in Rome where you do not find some monument of faith and piety." "Rome, December 9th, 1825. " I cannot accustom myself, my dear Father Tempier, to a separation from those I love ; 1 have no joy apart from them. Oh, how great shall our happiness in heaven be! There we shall abide in loving society with one another, and shall not be obliged to travel into distances away from our friends. And though we shall all there be completely ab- sorbed in God, nevertheless we shall be free to love one OF THE LABOUES OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 79 another with intense mutual lovo. The intuitive vision of God did not prevent Jesus Christ from loving men, and among men, some more than others. There are certain over-refined mystics who deny this, and who would force upon us another nature, inferior to that which God has given to us. In my own case, 1 cannot be fully happy whilst separated from the members of my community, whom I love so tenderly. . . 1 have not yet seen the Holy Father. Cardinal de Gregorio, to whom I have been warmly recommended from Turin, and who has received me with great kindness, gives it as his positive opinion that the Pope will not grant his solemn approbation to our Rules. The Holy Father may possibly, he thinks, give an indirect approbation to our work, by ex- pressing some words of praise in our behalf, and by granting us certain privileges and indulgences. I say Mass during this Octave of the Blessed Virgin, to obtain from God the favours we are seeking for. I do not neglect, at the same time, the human means which I think needful to employ. If in the end I do not succeed, I shall have nothing to re- proach myself with." The 20th of December, the Vigil of the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle, was the day appointed for his audience with the Holy Father. The morning of that day he visited the tomb of St. Peter in the crypt of the Vatican, and placed the manuscript of the rules and constitutions of his new institute on the altar over the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles. He wept copiously on that occasion, and prayed with great fervour, invoking the intercession of that blessed apostle, whom Jesus Christ had appointed to be head of His church. He then celebrated the holy Mass, being in tears all the time. At the ap- hit;?' t 80 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOE. DE M^iZENOL, AND \: 'it i; pointed hour he repaired to the palace of the Pope. The Holy Father wa3 prepossessed in his favour by the reports which had reached him of his virtues and labours. As he entered the audience chamber, his first appearance produced a most favourable im- pression on the mind and heart of the holy Pontiff. His noble bearing, blended with an expression of the most profound humility and loving reverence for the Vicar of Jesus Christ, was judged by the Holy Father to be a faithful i>^velation of his inner spirit. Kneeling beside the holy Pontiff, he exposed the object of his visit to Eome. For three quarters of an hour he had the privilege allowed to him of developing the nature of the work he had under- taken for the saving of perishing souls. The holy Pope was deeply moved as he heard of the good already accomplished by the members of this new Society of Missionaries, of whom Father de Mazenod was the founder. He seemed much impressed with the practical character of the project presented to him, and evidently looked on Father de Mazenod as one raised by God to do some/great work in his day, for the interests of the holy church. At the con- clusion of Father de Mazenod' s supplication, the Holy Father appeared to be much affected by what he had been listening to. Lifting his eyes to hea- ven, he clasped his hands together, and bent his head for some moments in earnest prayer. He then OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 81 entered into familiar conversation with Father de Mazenod about his project, and seemed to become at once its warm advocate. He instructed him in de- tail as to the steps he should take to obtain the approbation and confirmation of the rules and con- stitutions of his society. " In the first place," his Holiness said, "the secretary of the congregation will present a report to me on the subject. I will then appoint a Cardinal to examine it, who will pre- sent his report to the congregation. After that each Cardinal gives his vote. The number of ap- plications which come to us, especially from France, compels us to adopt a special mode of procedure which consists in giving praise and encouragement to the new Institutes, without however granting them a formal approbation." Father de Mazenod hesi- tated not to say to his Holiness that it was the formal approbation of the Holy See which he was then seeking to obtain for his new congregation. The condescension of the Sovereign Pontiff on this occasion was something remarkable. He seemed from that hour resolved that no time should bo lost in raising the new congregation of Faiher de ISIaae- nod to the rank of the canonically appointed religi- ous bodies of the Church of Christ. "Was he moved by some supernatural power to this condescending patronage of an infant work ? Leo XII. was a man of God^ who looked with an eye of more than 82 SKETCEBS OF TTIT. LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND human penetration into the future. Had his Holi- ness then some foresight or presentiment of the work which was to be done for God by this new congregation, once that the blessing of Peter, as a baptism of the Holy Spirit, had descended upon it, and that a new name had been gives to it at that baptism — ^that of the " Society of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate?"* Did he see, in mental glance, at that hour, the future sons of this new con- gregation .going forth to reap the ripened harvest of souls, not only under the sunny skies of France, but also in the lands of Saxon and of Celt; yea, traversing earth and ocean in search of other harvest- fields, in regions never trodden by civilized foot, amidst the glaciers of Arctic forests, or amidst the burning sands of African wilds ? Certain it is that it was no common cause that led the Yicar of Jesus Christ to depart from the ordinary reserve with which the Sovereign Pontiff deals with new projects, even when proposed by Saints, some of whom spent many years in obtaining, for orders founded by them, an approbation similar to that granted almost at the first audience by Leo XII. to Father de Ma- zenod. At the close of this memorable audience * When Leo XII. conceded fo the now congregation tho title of " The Society of the Oblates of Mary Immaculitte," his Holiness expressed to Father de Mazenod the great gi-atification he experienced in having such an opportunity afforded him, of manifesting his devotion to the Imnjaculato Conception of tho Blessed ITivgin. OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 88 the Holy Father, in his evident zeal to promote Father de Mazenod's undertaking, gave him precise instructions as to the first steps he should take to advance his work. " Go " he said, " to the Arch- priest, the secretary of the congregation, and tell him in my name to present his report to me on Fri- day next, the day of his audience." Fearing that Father de Mazenod might forget the name or ad- dress of the Arch-priest, his Holiness rose and took from his desk a sheet of paper and a pen, and placed them before Father de Mazenod that Lo might write them down under his dictation. The following day, Father do Mazenod presented himself to the Arch-priest, and informed him of his Holiness's wishes on the subject of the report he would have him prepare on the rules and constitu- tions of the society of the Oblates of Mary Im- maculate. The Arch-priest, who gave a most gracious reception to Father de Mazenod, bade him, however, not expect a formal approbation of his society, and said that the most he could loolc for- ward to, would be a declaration that the rules of his institute were worthy of praise, — landandce. * ' This manner of proceeding is," he said, "in accordance with the custom now established in dealing with new institutes, and it is the view which I will sup- port." These words of the secretary of the con- gregation were a blow to the hopes of Father do fi4 SKETC1TES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. DE MAZENOD, AKL m H '"*- ffT V ,mI,, f\ II , 'P 11 1 Mazenod, and threw his mind, for a moment, into a state of much perplexity. The thought presented itself forcibly to him of abandoning all further attempts to obtain the formal approbation of the Holy See for his society, and of returning to France. But, on reflection, he dismissed this thought, feeling that he was bound, through respect for the Holy Father, to pursue, to the end, the negotiations with the Arch-priest, which he had entered upon under the direction of his Holiness. In withdrawing from the Arch-priest, he said, ** I leave this affair in your hands, and I seek for nothing else but that God's design may be accomplished." It was arranged, on that occasion, that he was to return to the Arch- priest's on the following Saturday morning, to learn the result of the latter' s audience with the Holy Father, which was to take place on the Friday. We will give an extract from a letter written about this time, by the venerable Superior- General to Father Tempier, in which he touchingly narrates the circumstances of thit. eventful period in the history of his society. It will serve to give us an insight into that spirit of lively faith, and entire dependence upon God, which was habitual to him, especially when anything great or difficult had to be accomplished by him for the divine glory. " I continued to recommend the affair to God, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin, and of the Angels and OF TEE LABOURS OF THE 0SLATE8 OF MART. 85 Saiuts, and, in a spirit of entire abandonment of my project to His holy providence, I awaited the issue of the Arch- priest's audience with the Holy Father, whatever it might bo. At the hour when I supposed the audience was taking place, I addressed myself to God in prayer; not that I thought that my poor prayers could accomplish what I de- sired, but it seemed befitting that I should remain in our Lord's presence, notwithstanding my unworthiness, at a moment when divine grace was operating, and the holy spirit was guiding the Head of the Church in a matter which concerned the existence of our society, and the salvation of countless souls. This morning, according to appointment, I visited again the Arch-priest to ascertain the result of his audience with the Holy Father, which took place yes- terday. He first road to me the report which he had presented to his Holiness, which concluded, as he had said already it would do, with a recommendation to his Holiness that our society should be pronounced praise- worthy {laudanda), simply. But mark the goodness of God, and give thanks with me to Him, without ceasing. The Holy Father's views were other than those of the report presented to him. * No,' said the Sovereign Pontiff, * this society pleases me ; I know the good it is doing.' He then entered into a number of details concerning the society, which astonished very much the Arch-priest. * I wish,' his Holiness continued, * to favour it. Choose a Cardinal amongst the most kindly disposed in the sacred congrega- tion, to be the promoter of this cause. Go to him in my name ; tell him that it is my intention that these rules be not simply approved, but that they be formally confirmed ! * Leo XII. 1 you will always be regarded as the Bene- factor and the Father of our society. In leaving the house of the Arch-priest Andolfi, I said a Te Beum, and I entered a church, where reposes the body of St. Joseph Calasanctius, to give thanks to our Lord, and to beg of Him to complete the work which He had begun. Let all t,he brethren of our 80 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGJt. LE MAZENOJ), AND I*' il"4 community increase their fervour in the punctual observance of our rules. You must feel that to-day they become in- vested with a more solemn character. Let us accomplish all that the Head of the Church expects of us. 'ihis will be the means of drawing down new blessings from Heaven upon ourselves and our ministry. Let us especially increase in devotion to the Blessed Virgin, in order that we may be worthy to be named Oblates of Mary Immaculate. This name is a passport to Heaven. How is it we did not think of it before? How consoling and glorious for us to be dedicated to her, and to bear her name, * Oblates of Mary Immaculate ! ' How grateful is this name to the ear, and how soothing to the heart 1 Let us rejoice in it, and bear her name and her livery." The Holy Father had manifested his favourable disposition towards the new society, but the formal approbation of the rules had not yet been pronounced by him. Things might still take an unfavourable turn, and the expectations of the holy Founder might not be realized. In the lives of all who do great works for God, we find alternate hopes and fears. If coming suc- cess shines without a cloud to-day, to-morrow the sky may become overcast and menacing, and signs of success may disappear. God permits this for the greater merit of His servants, and to give them an opportunity of putting forth an increase of faith and love and confidence. He also thus provides an opportunity for Himself of making manifest His providential care and Fatherly love, by coming to OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY, 87 their aid in critical and decisive moments when all other helps fail. Great works, undertaken for God and for the good of souls, have a manner of their own of reaching the goal of success. They seem often to fail, when all the while they are in reality advancing. In the meantime, those who are en- p-aged in carrying them on come in for their meed of censure and dispraise, much to tn^ ' soul's profit. And, like the incoming tide, against which the wind bloweth, which presents on its surface coimt- less receding waves, whilst it is steadily and irre- sistibly advancing; so with the progress of many a work, undertaken for God's glory, in the de- velopmert of which superficial faihiros often cover the deej and irresistible under-current of super- natural success. Father de Mazenod's undertaking is not to form an exception to the ordinary rule concerning great works set on foot by God's servants for the promotion of the divine glory. It has to pass through the crucible of a great and unexpected op- position. Letter after letter came from certain influ- ential personages in France, addressed to the Holy See with the intention of defeating Father de Mazenod's designs of obtaining the confirmation and approbation of his Institute. Those whom he had been looking upon as the warm advocates of his undertaking suddenly, without any seeming reason, became its bitter opponents. In the midst 88 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. LS MAZENOD, AND ^^-::; llp' of this storm of opposition, his soul remained cahn and full of a child-like trust in God, His manner of acting on this critical occasion aifords matter of deep instruction for all who labour under great opposition in carrying on works undertaken for God's glory and the interests souls. He felt, at such a time, more than ever bound to avoid the least voluntary fault which might render him, in any manner, less worthy of the aid of that special Providence to which he had been looking to for success. He thus unbosoms himself in a letter, written at this period, to Father Tempier, his alter ego — his other self — to whom, as his spiritual guide, he was in the habit of opening the innermost recesses of his heart : — " Having in my hands an affair of such importance, the result of which may prove of the greatest corsequence to the interests of Holy Church, the glory of God, and the sancti- fication of souls, — an affair which is sure to stir up against it the malice of demons, and which cannot succeed except through the very special protecti(m of God, to whom it be- longs to touch the hearts and guide the wills of Lien, 1 must necessarily feel convinced that it is my duty to do all that depends on me to live in the most intimate possible union with God, and to form the resolution of avoiding every fault, however slight, which would grieve His Holy Spirit. In the present position of affairs, the least voluntary trans- gression would appear to me a crime, not only because of its displeasing God, which would be its chief evil, but also be- cause of the consequences which might follow in its train. Ever since 1 left France, and especially since I arrived in Rome, God has assisted me in all things, iu a manner so sensible OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MABY. 89 that it seems to me that I could not, if T tried, cease to expe- rience a loving gratitude which leads me to praise, to bless and to give thanks to God and our Lord Jesus Christ, and, in due proportion, to the Blessed Virgin, and to the Angels, and to the Saints, to whom I feel indebted for that protec- tion and consolation whicb I experience. AVith all that, I find matter for self-reproach, and for humbling myself before God in my confession, which I make twice a week." In a subsequent letter addressed to the same Father, Father de Mazenod thus writes : — " To-day I visited again the tomb of the Apostles, there to imbibe fresh spiritual strength, and to implore further help from Heaven. For the third time, I have said Mass at the Confession of St. Peter. I must acknowledge that God, in His great goodness, has, by the consolation of His grace, more than made up for all the troubiCS that the malice of Hell has excited against us. I have invoked Him with all the fervour of my heart, and He has shown Himself to be a true protector. I availed myself of that occasion to recommend you ail most earnestly to God. I asked for you an ample participation in the virtues and merits of that great apostle. One prays with confidence, I can assure you, when one finds oneself with Jesus and His Vicar, and the Apostles and Martyrs. In offering the Holy Mass on altars, under which repose bodies that once were animated with such great souls, and which in life had been in contact with our Blessed Saviour Himself, one's own soul readily catches the flames of that sacred fire of love which glowed within their breasts, as they confessed, by their sufferings and death, the name of their Master and ours. Let us continue to pray, my dear friend, and let us not cease to place all our confidence in God. To Him alone it helongs to rule and dispose all things according to His infi- nite wisdom and to the greater glory of His Holy name. 00 SKETCHES 01' THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AAD I must confess that never in my life did I understand and feel, as I now do, the value of an unreserved abandonment of one's self into God's hands. I rejoice now at not having omitted anything which might render this virtue familiar to me. The practice of this holy abandonment into God's hands does not, however, prevent me from asking earnestly certain special favours from Him ; on the contrary, when we abandon ourselves to God, we pray with greater confi- dence and with an almost perfect assurance of our prayer being heard. I have told you, already, that, since my arrival in Rome, I offer the Holy Mass every day for the success of our undertaking. I never kneel before the Lord, in the Blessed Sacrament, without placing my petitions at His feet. I never invoke a saint without asking him to be- come our intercessor in this matter. At the same time, I do not omit to employ such lawful and profitable means, as human prudence may suggest, to secure a favourable issue for our cause. I do not spare my feet in journeying hither and thither. I willingly sacrifice my repose of mind in furthering what I believe to be the designs of God's Holy Providence. Till now everything has succeeded beyond my expectations : God has, however, allowed certain drawbacks and disappointments to occur, thus leaving room for some anxieties ; but He has not permitted my confidence in Him to diminish. On the contrary, it is in times of greatest in- terior trial that my prayer assumes its most tender and confiding tone, and addresses itself to God in words fond and familiar as those of a child speaking to a father. As I pass in review, before my mind, the progress, from stage to stage, of this affair, I feel myself carried away by sentiments of admiration of God's goodness, whose loving hand is so visible in the whole matter." At length the great undertaking of Father do Mazenod reached the crowning point of success. The benediction, which was upon it from the onset, bore OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 91 it safely througli the host of difficulties which beset its progress. On the 16th of Febi-uary, 1 826, Father (le Mazenod communicated the following joyful news to Father Tempier : — " The Congregation of Cardi- nals, presided over by Cardinal Pacca, has unani- mously approved of our rules, and has petitioned the Holy Father to give his supreme sanction to them in due canonical form." Full of a sense of the immense debt of gratitude he owed to God, to whom alone he attributed the success of his undertaking, he thus writes to his friend :— " Take measures to obtain prayers of thanksgiving on the part of all those de\^out friends to whom, in your prudence, you have communicated the good news I have forwarded to you. We must acknowledge that the ways of Divine Pro- vidence, in this affair, have been wonderful. God has shewn Himself, in this matter, to be indeed the Euler of the hearts of men. It was He who inspired those with whom I came into contact, whilst carrying it on, with favourable disposi- tions in my regard. I felt all the while that He was lead- ing me by ,the hand, and that His light was guiding my steps. This gave me such an absolute and filial confidence, that I spoke to Our Lord, in prayer, as I believe I would have done if I had the happiness of conversing with Him when Ho was on earth." On the following day, the 17th of February, 1826, the Holy Father, Leo XII., confirmed the decision of the Congregation of Cardinals, and gave his solemn approbation to the Institute, to the Kules and 92 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOS. DE MAZENOD, AND l.l^ ' ' y i Constitutions of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. "Writing after this event to Father Tempier, the holy Founder having first expressed his thankful- ness to God, says : — " Henceforward it will be our duty to labour with a new ardour, and a more entire devoteduess, in increasing the Divine glory by gaining souls to God. From this hour we should observe our rules with more loving exactitude and reverence than before. They have now, after a most minute examination, received the solemn approbation of the Church. They are declared to be holy and eminently fitted to guide those who embrace them to the sublime end of Christian and religious perfection. They have now become the common property of God's Church. The Vicar of Christ stands guarantee for them. He whom God em ployed to prepare them from this day disappears. He was only the exterior instrument which the hand of God deigned to employ to make manifest the way of perfection to chosen souls, called by Him from the beginning to take part in this work of mercy, and to become incorporated in this new and humble society. Our members, as yet, are not many; but our society has already an existence as real as that of any of the most ancient and venerable Religious Institutes of the Church of God. Let us acknowledge, with gratitude, the dignity conferred upcin the society, our Mother, who has been raised to the rank of a Queen, and enthroned in the house of the Heavenly Bridegroom, to become ihe fruitful parent of a numerous offspring, in case we prove faithful to our calling, but otherwise to be smitten with barrenness. Let U8 therefore resolve upon becoming saints, in order to be worthy of such a Mother." The Holy Father had, during the stay of Father de Mazenod in Rome, already conferred many fa- 0¥ TBE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 93 vours upon him, but there is one which deserves exceptional mention : it is the notification he re- ceived of the intention of his Holiness to raise him to the dignity of Cardinal. This circumstance, so honorable to Father de Mazenod, was much spoken of at the time of its occuiTence, but aftei-wards was seldom alluded to. The recollection of it seemed to be forgotten. It was, however, revived twenty years later, in a conversation which took place in Eome, between Cardinal Orioli and Monsignor Jeancard, and which we give in the words of this latter Prelate who, at the time alluded to, was Sec- retary to Monseigneur de Mazenod : — " I was at Rome in the year 1846, and was engaged one day in conversation with his Eminence Cardinal Orioli, who said to me, 'You entertain a great veneration for Monseigneur de Mazenod, your Bishop, but are you aware that he, at one time, formally disobeyed the Pope ?' I manifested astonish- ment. His Eminence continued, 'Yes, he disobeyed the Pope, and it was Leo XII. himself, who informed me of it. His Holiness wished to make him Cardinal, but Mon- seigneur de Mazenod refused the dignity, for he preferred to employ his devotedness in France, rather than eonsecrnte it to the service of the Holy See in Rome.' * But Hi& Holiness,* I said, * must have admitted the force of his reasons for that refusal.' ' Yes,' replied the Cardinal, * and he admired his generosity.' Cardinal Orioli was a personal friend of Leo XIT., and one of the most distingu'shed members of the Sacred College." .:* 1|- .»,: 94 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAS^ENOD, AND 11 m CHAPTEE X. During his sojourn in Eome, Father do Mazenod was admitted to the intimate friendship of Cardinal Pacca. His Eminence had then completed his Memoirs of Pius YII., which he hesitated to pub- lish, in consequence of the freedom with which cer- tain high personages were spoken of in them. He felt also, that their publication might not be well received at Eome, owing to the greater publicity which would be thereby given to the act of weak- ness, into which the aged and infirm Pius VII. allowed himself to be surprised, under the menaces of Kapoleon, but which he afterwards gloriously and courageously retracted. The aged Pontiff had affixed his signature to the pretended Concordat of Fontainebleau, hoping thereby to stem the evils which threatened religion. He speedily repented of this act, for he found that, in consenting to it, he had infringed upon the liberty of the Church. Once that he had made this discovery, he hesitated not to acknowledge his mistake, and he boldly faced the fw^. OF TEE LABOURS OF THE OlilATES OF MART. 95 anger of the Emperor by withdrawing his consent from the document named. Cardinal Pacca, who deeply revered the saintly Pontiff, dreaded that the publication of tt Vlemoirs in question might cast some shade upon his glorious memory. It was on this point that he consulted Father de Mazenod, in whose enlightened judgment he placed great con- fidence. He asked him to read over attentively the manuscript of his Memoirs, in order to judge as to their fitness for publication. Father de Mazenod, after a careful perusal of the manuscript, handed it back to the Cardinal, with hcfcL words: — "I entreat your Eminence t '■:■ , lese memoirs. Far from lowering Pius VII., j v j xalt him in public veneration, by doing so. Notnin^ could be more honour- able for him than that full publicity should be given to facts which reveal the beautiful simplicity of his character, his humility, his sensitive delicacy of conscience, which forbade him to approach the altar, and which led him to acknow- ledge, in the presence of all the Cardinals assembled around him, the mistake into which he had been betrayed. Nothing could better show what a Roman Pontiff really is, than this courageous resolution to repair a fault regardless of all con- sequences. The Sacred College appears at the full height of its position, and the Iloman Church triumphs at a moment ■^^hcn the world was prepared to hear of its entire destruc- tion. Your Memoirs, my Lord Cardinal, form a magnifi- cent page in the history of the Church, and they should be preserved for the edification of posterity." Cardinal Pacca was pleased with this advice, and years afterwards he acknowledged to Monseigneur pTT m n i 96 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, ANI> dc Mazenod that it contributed very much to induce him to publish the Memoirs. Another circumstance arising from the esteem and friendship of Cardinal Pacca for Father de Mazenod, deserves here to be noted. His Eminence wished to introduce the French Seminary system into Italy. It was his de- sire that one seminary should be formed for the six suburban dioceses of Kome, over one of which he himself was bishop, and that this new seminary should be confided to the direction of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. The Convent of St. Alexis, a spacious building on Mount Palatine, was the place ho had in view for this seminary. Negotiations were set on foot, and carried on for some time, to accomplish the proposed project, but owing to un- expected difficulties presenting themselves, it had to be abandoned. During Father de Mazenod' s residence in Eome, he formed an intimate friendship with Father Man- tone, a Eedemptorist, who had the happiness of knowing personally St. Liguori. He frequently sought the society of this good Father to have an opportunity of conversing with him on the life and virtues of a saint, towards whom he entertained a most tender devotion. He had already erected in the Church of his community at Aix, the first altar raised in France in honour of the blessed Jiiguori, OF THE LABOZTRS OF THE OBLATES OF MAST 97 We find the following entry in Father de Maze- nod's journal of his first visit to Eome : — "I have to-day again visited the Liguonan Fathers. The Father Procurator-General presented me with a largo piece of the Blessed Liguori's cassock. He also allowed me to see the manuscript of his Moral Theology, written with his own hand. I kissed the precious miscellany with deep emotion and reverence. Father Man tone was received into his society hy St. Liguori himself. He told me there were then forty Redemptorists still living, who personally knew the beatified servant of God. This evening, Father Mantone made me a precious gift, which I value as a great treasure. It consists of a portion of one of the bones of the beatified, and of a letter written with his own hand. I can never tire contemplating these precious objects." The time of quitting Rome and returning to France had now arrived. Father de Mazenod pro- ceeded to the Vatican, to present himself in grateful homage, at the feet of Leo XII., before taking his departure from the Holy City. We will quote his own words to describe what occurred at his final audience with the Sovereign Pontiff. " I was received in the same chamber as on the occasion of my first audience with His Holiness. I began by giving expression to my gratitude for the favours which His Holi- ness had bestowed upon me in such abundance. The Holy Father made me at once feel at home in his presence, and entered into an interesting conversittiou with me. I availed myself of this excellent opportunity of presenting a petition for different favours, which I had marked down under sixteen heads. Ho granted me, in the most gracious manner, all that I had asked of him. He handed me a n -, J II ■fcj j 98 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DS MAZENOD, AND leHer he had prepared to send to my uncle. I caused him to smile when I told him that I had a certain scruple of conscience in not having previously discharged a duty, im- posed upon mo by the King of Sardinia. * I have been charged,' I said, * by his Majesty to express to your Holi- ness his regret at not being able to come to Eome for the Jubilee, notwithstanding his great desire to do so. I did not dare. Holy Father, to acquit myself of this commission when I first had the honour of being admitted to an audience, lest I might seem to take the airs of an Ambas- sador Extraordinary.' His Holiness smiled very graciously, and having pronounced an eulogium on that sovereign, ho charged me, if I saw His Majesty when passing through his States, to make known to him the sentiments with which he was animated in his regard. His Holiness then spoke to me of France. He understands her condition much better than those who would be her counsellors. I was surprised at his doing mo the honour of entering so unreservedly into particulars in my presence on such high and delicate ques- tions. On my part, I corresponded with this confidence by expressing freely what I thought of the actual state of things. I asked His Holiness to give his blessing to our society and to myself * Yes, from my heart, I bless you,' he replied, * de rore coeli,' in saying which he lifted his eyes to Heaven." Father de Mazenod having secured, through God's goodness, the great object which had taken him to Ex)me, and having obtained far greater favours than he had ventured to expect, became as earnest in his thanksgivings as he had been fervent in his petitions to Heaven, before the blessings he had been seeking for were granted him. His last days spent in Rome, pn this occasion, were employed in visiting different OF THE LABOVUS OF THE OBLATES OF MJJiY. 99 churches and sanctuaries of special devotion, every- where offering thanks to God for the favours that had been conferred upon him. He made the pil- grimage to Loreto on his way back to France, there to seek for further blessings on his new society. He returned, after an absence of several months, to the circle of his devoted and attached brethren. A General Chapter was assembled in the House of Calvary at Marseilles. All the members of the society renewed their vows in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament ; a joyful Te Deum concluded the ceremony. The solemn approbation given by the Church to a religious society is a something marvellously sac- ramental, which imparts to it new impulses and powers for the accomplishment of its special ends. The founders of societies thus approved of come in personally, we may feel sure, for a large share of the sacramental benedictions, which follow the solenm approbation of the Church given to their Institutes. The evangelizing of the poor and the reclaiming of abandoned sinners were always the chief ends proposed by Father de Mazenod to the zeal of his missionaries. Hitherto such works of zeal were matters of choice, now they were works of obligation. A Divine voice would seem to say to him and to his : " Go ye to the lost sheep of the House of Israel, and say to them, The kingdom of 100 SKETCHES OF TJIE LIFE OF MOR. DB MAZEXOD, AND Heaven is at hand.'' The apostle now appears in the holy Founder with authority, and benediction, and power. He has now a right to call disciples to himself ; to bless them and fit them for their work of saving souls, and send them forth, yea, to the very ends of the earth. Band after band of mis- sionaries of his society kneel beiore him, with staif in hand and breviary under the arm, to receive his blessing before they go forth to cultivate their ap- pointed portion of the vineyard. Over each suc- cessive gi'oup of missionaries he pronounced, accord- ing to the ritual of his society, the following words of blessing :— " Go ye forth, dearest brothers, to the perishing sheep of the House of Israel. Let the powers of darkness vanish at your approach. May the angel of the Lord accompany you on your way, and may you return to your brethren in peace, and joy, and holiness. To God abne, the Invisible and the Immortal, he honour and glory, for ever and ever. Amen. May the blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, descend upon you and remain with you for ever." The Missionaries having received the blessing of their Superior, go and prostrate themselves before our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, in adoration. They then rise and go forth. Father de Mazenod drew up the following regu- lations for his missionaries when on their journey to the place they are proceeding to evangelke : — " If the town or village where the Mission is to be given OF THE ZABOirSS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 101 is not fur distant, the Fathers are recommended to proceed thither on foot, in order to imitate more perfectly Jesus Christ and the Apostles, and to have a larger share in the merits of their journeys and labours. " On their journey they will frequently converse together on the virtues of the early missionaries, who had under their eyes the example of Jesus Christ as he went about doing good. By this means they will be encouraged to bear, with cheerfulness, the fatigues and labour they may have to encounter. " They will, as far as possible, perform their spiritual exercises in common. " They will endeavour, when travelling, to find an oppor- tunity every day of saying Holy Maes. If all cannot have this happiness, one, at least, should say Mass, at which the others should communicate. At the same time the Fathers should make all possible efforts to avoid being deprived, oven on one day, of the fruii.. of offering the Holy Sacrifice. " If they are travelling on foot through a town or village, they will go to the Church of the place to visit the Blessed Sacrament. Should the Church be closed, they will kneel at the gate for a short time in adoration. If they are tra- velling in a public vehicle, and cannot perform suoii vdsits, they will, in spirit, direct their thoughts to our Lord in the Holy Eucharist, and recite the Tantum ergo, to which they will add prayers to the Blessed Virgin, and the G<^uardian Angel, and Patron Saints of the place, and also prayers for the souls of those buried in the local cemetery. "Whenever the missionaries, in travelling, hear blas- phemies uttered against the Holy name of God, they will uncover their heads and make the sign of the cross, all together or each one by himself, according as it will be judged most expedient, to repair the insult offered to the Divine Majesty. They will recite the following or some similar prayer : * To God alone be honour and glory, for ever and ever. Amen.* If the blasphemy is spoken against I 1i 102 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. LE MAZENOD, AND I -J the Divine person of our Lord, they will say : ' Praised be Jesus Christ for ever,' or some prayer of the same kind." This extract will suffice to make manifest the burning zeal of Father de Mazenod for the Divine glory, and for the sanotification of the members of his society, especially in their missionary character. The intermingling of joys and sorrows following one another in appointed succession, appears in the lives of all the servants of God. Great was the joy of Father de Mazenod in seeing the society, as he says, in words already cited, crowned as a Queen and enthroned by its solemn approbation in the house of the Bridegroom. Great was his joy in witnessing how the number of his spiritual sons went on in reasing, and how God continued to bless their lal irs with marvellous results. But he had to endure keen sorrows, and his loving and sympathizing spirit was often wounded deeply and painfully. Thi^ happened especially whenever death, removed from his side any of his cherished sons and disciples. Ko mother could show more anguish of heart at the death-bed of an only child, than he on such occasions. As an episode in this biographical sketch, we will here introduce an ac- count of the last days on earth, and of the holy death, of one of his first disciples, and of the most beloved of his sons, Father Susanne. We trust our readers will not consider us as thereby straying 'W' )C OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 103 needlessly from our text. In introducing this notice of Father Susanne, our object is twofold. In the first place, in doing so, we shall find an oppor- tunity of disclosing certain beautiful traits in the character of Father de Mazenod which, in order to be appreciated, must be seen in living action. Secondly, we shall thus have occasion of putting before our readers several edifying facts, connected with the closing days of the life of a holy young Oblate Priest. Father Susanne was a young missionary accord- ing to the heart of Father de Mazenod. He be- came first acquainted with the Oblates of Mary at Foveau, in Provence, a great mining district, where Father de Mazenod was conducting a mission. He was then a Church student, and was spending his va- cation at Foveau. Struck by the miracles of grace he witnessed, edified by the lives of the mission- aries, but especially impressed by the virtues of Father de Mazenod, he felt strongly attracted to seek admission into the new society. He placed himself entirely, without reserve, under the guid- ance of Father de Mazenod. He became in a short time, a faithful copyist of a perfect model. Father de Mazenod' s vii'tues, as a Eeligious and mission- ary, began soon to come out distinctly, in bright reflection, in the life of Father Susanne. There existed between them, from their first acquaintance mi im 'JjflBT^aE ^11 '' 1 ^ ^ ^^H '^ 1?, '9 ^H "F' 3 H ll liff' •1 ■• : I ! 1 .' i ^^M 104 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. LE MAZENOD, AND until death separated them, the love of father for son, and the love of son for father. Parental love displays itself not simply in tenderness of affection, but chiefly in its aims at promoting the highest good of the object loved. If, in order to promote this end, it be necessary to give momentary pain, by administering admonition or correction, true paren- tal love shiinks not from doing so. Amidst the many virtues of his youthful disciple, Father de Mazenod detected certain marks of affectation in his epistolary style, which manifested a spirit not yet entirely free from vanity and egotism. Unable to suffer this in one so much loved, he wrote to him in the following severe terms : — " I have seen a letter, lately written by you to C . I was greatly pained to discover in it marks of a pretentious spirit in the studied search for fine words, and the ill-con- cealed affectation it displays. I could not help tracing all this to its latent source — hidden self-love." He continued, at much length, to write in similar severe and plain-spoken terms : — " Having written thus far, I have debated within myself whether I should send this letter to you or not, but I came to the conclusion of doing so, feeling sure that you had vir- tue enough to bear with my reproach ; and besides, I love you too much to shrink from administering to you a whole- some reprimand, through the dread of giving you pain. If I loved you less, I should tear this letter up and not send it to you. You know my heart, and you know how great is my repugnance to cause 'Bven the smallest pain to those I lovo." V,f?/ OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 105 This young Father flung himself with such de- votedness into the arena of missionary strife, that his prudent superior frequently found it necessary to moderate his zeal. "We find him writing to Father Susanne in these words : — " Why do you labour in a manner that must shorten your days ? Having worked as a galley slave at the mission of Tallard, and after having endured sufferings and fatigues at the mission of Lauzet, you preach twice a day, and, forgetting yourself, you hear confessions for thirty hours consecutively ! Can you imagine that such conduct on your part would not cause me grave apprehension for your sake ? You may say to me, you do not feel overworked ; that you eat and sleep well. All that does not set my mind at ease, for I feel sure you are shortening your existence by such excesses of zeal. When you arrive at Entrevaux, provide yourself at once with such warm clothing as you may require ; in a word, take all necessary pre'^autions to preserve yourself against the rigor- ous cold of these mountains, to the chills of which we are not accustomed. I regret very much that I am at a dis- tance from you, and that I cannot share in your heroic labours. Moderate your zeal, my dear Father, have more confidence in God's grace for the conversion of souls, than in any extra labour on your own part. Restrain your ardour in preaching, so that you may not come down habitually from the pulpit breathless and exhausted." Blessed excess of missionary zeal, which needed such a reprimand I No doubt. Father Susanne's humble spirit sought to obey the counsels of his- prudent and beloved Superior. But again and again, carried away by the vehemence of his desire to draw souls from sin to God, he would forget him- r 106 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND -I self, and risk his very life by almost superhuman efiPorts of zeal. After a mission of five weeks in the Cathedral of Aix, during which Father Susanne laboured day and night, with wonderful success, especially among the working men of that city, his health began visibly and rapidly to give away. When it became known that the life of this apostolic man was in danger, prayers were offered up, by crowds of fervent souls, for his recovery. "We should not pass over in silence an act of heroic generosity per- formed by three young scholastic Oblates to obtain from God the preservation of a life so precious to the congregation, and to the Church at large. Each offered his life to God, praying that he might be taken in the siead of Father Susanne, if such were the Divine will. But the hour was approaching for the faithful servant to receive his reward, and the prayers offered for his recovery were not to be granted. Father Susanne had not yet realized the grave nature of his malady, and entertained a full hope of his recovery. He had been for seventy days laid upon a bed of pain ; but still the prospect of returning to his cherished labour for souls had not abandoned him. It became necessary to break to him the intelligence that his life was despaired of. His afflicted Superior undertook this mournful work of charity. The news of his approaching death took OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 107 Father Susanne by surprise, but it did not sadden or terrify him. The moment he heard his life was di'awing to its close, a ray of joy beamed over his countenance, and a holy transformation seemed im- mediately to be accomplished in him. All pre-occu- pation about his recovery ceased, and his thoughts, from that moment, became fixed on Heaven. His bodily sufferings were very great. He was a mass of wounds from head to foot. "Violent internal spasms followed one another in quick succession. He breathed with the greatest difficulty, but no complaint fell from his lips, from which sighs of loving resignation were continually ascending to God. The Superior-General was at his side encou- raging him to patience by his presence and his tender words of consolation. Looking into the face of his spiritual Father, he exclaimed, ''I suffer much, but I accept all most willingly." Then fixing his eyes on the Crucifix, which Father de Mazenod pre- sented, he cried out, " Oh, how deep are the wounds of my Saviour, yet He was innocence itself." The hour came for administering to him a very bitter di'aught, for which he felt a great natural repug- nance, but this he quickly conquered m he remem- bered the bitter chalice of Our Lord's Passion. His charitable Superior was about to place some grains of sugar upon his lips, to remove the bitterness of the draught, but he declined this consolation with a 108 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. BE MAZENOL, AND !!i:..,t I smile, wishing to become more intimately united to the sufferings of our Lord, who, for his sake, had drunk vinegar and gall upon the Cross. It was during those hours of the last illness of his beloved son, which Father de Mazenod spent day after day at his bedside, that he received from his dying lips avowals of Ulial attachment, reverence, and love, which Father Susanne had never ventured to com- municate to him before. " My Father," would he say to his Superior, " such has been my attachment to the congregation of the Oblates that, even though I remained alone with you, I would never forsake it." Nothing gave the dying Father greater consolation than to hear of the successful labours of his brother missionaries. Knowing this. Father de Mazenod would inform him, from time to time, of the conversions worked by his confreres who were then giving missions. On such occasions, the sense of bodily pain would appear to be for the time suspended, as his apostolic spirit became absorbed in the joyful feelings awakened by such good news. From time to time he was heard repeating, with gi-eat earnestness, to himself: " My God and my all. Eternity, Eternity ! to love God for all eternity I " His soul was continually directing its aspirations to Our Lord in the Holy Eucharist. It was his habit frequently to place himself in spirit, in adora- OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. 109 tion before the Holy Tabernacle. He received the Viaticum several times during his last illness. On one of these occasions, he renewed his vows as Oblate of Mary Immaculate. Having done so, he poured out his soul in words of tender thanksgiving to God for having given him a vocation to the Society of the Oblates of Mary. He then was heard to say : " If I had not entered this society, where should I now be ? " Day after day went by of his paiaful malady. All that time his devoted Superior was seldom absent from his bed-side. He was there helping him to acquire further merits, and to become more and more holy as he approached his end. Father de Mazenod had a great power of inspiring souls with a love of Christ Jesus crucified. He brought this power fully to bear on the willing heart of Father Susanne. The latter would, imder this holy guidance, give utterance to prayers breath- iQg the fullest confidence in the mercy of Jesus Christ who died for him. At the same time he made many acts of contrition for his sins. The thought of his sins, nothwithstanding all he had done to efface them, would sometimes fill him with anxiety. At such moments he would appeal with fresh confidence to the Divine mercy, and, having done so, his habitual peace of soul would return to him. " Ah ! " would he say, " in what state must he be, at the moment of death, who has never done i i i 110 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. BE MAZENOD, AND ( \ J anything for his salvation ? " To a holy priest, who had come to visit him, and who was to have heen his associate in a work they were to do conjointly for God's glory, he said, with a smile : "I thought we were to be companions for a long time, but we shall be coinpanions for ever in Heaven. What are thirty or forty years of life compared to eternity ?" Then, after a moment's silence, he exclaimed : beautiful Heaven ! thou shalt be my abode for << » ever. On the morning of the 27th January, 1829, Father de Mazenod entered the room of the holy invalid at an early hour. The latter, who had suf- fered much during the previous night, exclaimed : " my Father, what a happiness it is to suffer for God ! I ask for no abatement of my sufferings." " My son," replied the former, ''it is thus the Christian and the faithful Priest of God accom- plishes his sacrifice on the Cross of Jesus Christ and in union with His sufferings." " Be it so for me," replied Father Susanne, " may my sacrifice be thus accomplished ! " These words of the dying son went to the hearl of his loving Father in God, who could no longer restrain his emotion, but was com- pelled to withdraw, to hide his tears. He felt that he also had a share in the sacrifice of that death- bed. Father Susanne, perceiving the ill-concealed grief of his beloved Superior, said to him, " My Of TEE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MART. 1 1 1 n Father, be consoled ; we shall meet again." The Superior, his heart still bleeding, recommended the society to the prayers of the dying servant of God. " My Father," replied the holy Oblate, " I will never forget our dear society. After the happiness of possessing God, my next thought will be to pray for my Brothers in Eeligion." Tears filled his eyes, and after a pause of a few moments he asked, " But is it not presumptuous on my part to make this pro- mise ? " " No," replied his spiritual Father, " God is faithful to His promises, His nercy encircles you, and you do not count on your own merits." " no," exclaimed the dying Oblate, " I have no merits." The Superior-Geneial suggested to him to prepare for absolution, and to make a general accusation of the sins of his life. It was not neces- sary to excite him to contrition, for he was heard praying aloud in these words : "0 my God ! how I wish to die of penitent grief ! How I wish that my heart would break with sorrow for having offended TKee, a God so good, who hast loaded me with so many favours ! " He pronounced these words in accents of the deepest compunction. His Superior was still speaking to him, when his eyes became fixed, as if upon some bright vision, and he exclaimed : " I see clearly, glorious Heaven ! " His further utterance then sank into a whisper. Kesuming his ordinary .tone, he exclaimed : "I HSPHiiflN m \ m 112 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. LE MAZENOD, AND owe this to the Blessed Virgin, my good Mother." These words were spoken in soliloquy. They would indioate that he was favoured at that moment with some bright comforting vision, which he attributed to the intervention of the Blessed Virgin. The Superior-General thought it well not to question him on the matter, or to endeavour to penetrate his holy secret. One of the Fathers of the community was at hi"i bed-side, and heard him speaking in low tones words which at first were not intelligible, but which, on drawing nearer to him, he could clearly distinguish. They were ejaculatory prayers which he was addressing to God. They were spoken with pauses between each short phrase, as if his soul was tasting in holy meditation the heavenly sweet- ness of the sentiments he was uttering. He was heard thus to pour forth his soul in God's presence : " My God, I love Thee with my whole heart, and above all things ; I would wish to love Thee as the Angels and Saints love Thee ; I would wish to love Thee as much as the Blessed Virgin loves Thee; yet she cannot love Thee as much as Thou de- servest to be loved. my God, how good and how lovely Thou art ! To possess God, to enjoy His presence, to see Him face to face, to be united to Him, to become one with Him ! Oh, how little do men understand this happiness ! It is true I suffer much ; but what is all that compared to what Thou OT THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 113 hast suffered for me, my God ! Increase my sufferings, Lord. Fool that I was ; I desired life ; now I long to die." The Father, who was listening to these pious ejaculations, here interrupted him, saying: "You die, then, willingly." The dying priest replied, '^ Is the moment of my death to ho long delayed? What are twenty or thirty years in comparison with eternity — always to he happy — ■ always to he with God. Do we reflect on this happiness ? Holy Virgin, my good Mother, I place my confidence in thee. Can any one he lost who places himself under thy powerful protection ? Ko, he has nothing to fear. my Mother ! Mater divince gratice^ Mater Misericordioe^ tu nos a^ hoste protege et hora mortis suscipe. Let us hasten to go to Heaven to see God, to possess Him, to be united to Him. Can we ever do too much for Thee, God ! My happiness is to suffer for Thee." The Superior-General, wishing that all the mem- bers of his community, and especially the junior members, should benefit by the edification of so holy a death, introduced them quietly, one by one, into the apartment of the dying servant of God. "When they were all assembled. addressing himself to Father Susanne, he asked him to speak to them some words of holy counsel. "I recommend to them" said the holy invalid, " ever to keep God in view in each circumstance of their lives ; never to fMtfi- ■■: vl » 114 SKE'fCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MQR. DE MAZENOD, AND act but for Him ; never to seek themselves in any thing they do. It is only by acting thus, that they will possess true happiness. Oh ! how great the blindness and folly of worldlings, who know not how to serve to God, and who spend the greater part of their lives without thinking that it is for nim alone they were created. Ah ! the thought of such indifference towards God is enough to make me die of grief. Let us, at least, who are dedicated to Ilim in the religious state, seek, by an increased fervour, to make amends to Him in some way for the coldheartedness of worldlings. What a happi- nesi3 that God should give us so many facilities for ser\ing and loving Him. This thought should trai] sport us with joy. It will console us greatly at the hour of death. Be happy in suffering for God. I should wish to live in order to suffer more, but God calls me to Himself. We part from one another only for a short time. We shall see one another soon again. A few years will pass by, then you, my brothers, will be with me in Heaven, there to be immersed for over in God. Oh, what a happiness ! Withdraw now, my sons. Take heed that you employ fruitfully every moment of the time that God has given you to spend in His service. I Avould have you understand how pleasant it is to die, when one has faithfully served so good a Master." or THE LABOURS OF THE OBTMTES OF MJRY. HB After the professed Religious withdrew, the no- vices were introduced to the bedside of Father Susanne. The Superior- General asked him to ad- dress to them also some words of edification. " I pray," said the holy priest, '' that they may ho possessed of a great love of the Society of the Ohlates and of its rules ; that they may practice great regularity and obedience, and especially great simplicity ; that they may manifest an open-hearted coufidence in their Master of novices, and, after their profession, in their Superior ; that their religious sub- mission be complete ; that simple obedience may rule their hearts. Happy days of the noviciate ! " Then, looking with an affectionate glance on two no- vices, whose period of noviceship was about to ex- pire, he said : " Oh, what a happiness is soon to bo yours, that of dedicating yourselves for ever to God ! Is it not a blessed privilege to be members of our, society? This privilege is now my consolation. Where should I now be, if I had not become a Ee- ligious in our society. I further pray that they may not be afraid to suffer for Jesus Christ. By suffering for Him, we become like Him. I pray that they may love God with a great love, and labour for his glory with indefatigable zeal ; never seeking themselves in any of their works, but al- ways having God in view, God alone, God alone, God before all things. Let them make no account 116 SKETCHES OF THE LTFE OF MOS. DE MAZENOD, AND -:\ r .1 '•■?;i;. of human praise, for if they do, they will have no other reward. Ah, what a miserable reward is human praise, even though it be sincere ! If you ar^ successful in your labours, some will be jealous of you, and others will speak to your advantage; but their praises will only be momentary." " You pray for many blessings then upon them ? " said the Superior-General. *' Yes," said Father Susanne, *'I am bound in gratitude to do so. They have done me many services during my long illness. The prayers of a dying Eeligious are ever heard ; and if from the height of Heaven, where I hope soon to be, I saw that any one of them was on the point of straying from the right path, I would pray for him that God's holy hand would hold him back from such danger." He lived on still for several days, edifying all who approached him, by the heroic virtues which he continued to practice on his bed of death. His loving Superior scarcely ever left his side all the time. He was there ready to render him every possible service in ministering tenderly, with his own hands, to the wants of the holy sufferer. But he was far more intent still in ministering consola- tion and help to the devout soul of his dying son. The voice of the departing servant of God now sank to a low whisper ; but, in the breathings of that whisper, one could distinguish those words : " Capio 01 THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 117 dissolvi et esse cum Christo,^^ — " I desire to be dis- solved and to be with Christ." At last, fixing his eyes on the face of his Superior, he said softly: " Oh, my father, is it not the end that has come ?" " Yes, my sou, I believe it approaches." Then let me go to God ! It is time." The prayers for the agonizing were then recited, and, at the words, " Go forth, christian soul I in the name of God the Father who created thee," he believed that his deliverance was already accomplished, and he said : " Is my soul already separated from my body ? " "Not yet, my son," his Superior answered him, " but it will soon go to take possession of that hea- ven which Jesus Chiist has purchased for it." He sank into silence for some moments before his death, a radiant smile passed over his countenance, and he gently breathed forth his spirit into the hands of Jesus Christ. 118 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOB. BE MAZENOB, AND CEAPTEK XI. l\ The new society of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate was ushered into existence at a time when France, and it may be said Europe, was but slowly recover- ing from the shock of the great Eevolution. The atmosphere was still laden with explosive elements, and new revolutions were brewing in the air. It was a time highly unfavourable for the growth and development of a new religious order. But God, who provides shelter for the young birds of the air amidst the storms of early spring-tide, was not to leave unsheltered a work which, from its earliest days, exhibited such signs of being born of Him. His loving providence was to raise up for its pro- tection a friend and a father in the person of a saintly prelate, the uncle of Father de Mazenod, — Mon- seigneur Fortunatus de Mazenod. The See of Marseilles was then vacant. This ancient city was the first in France, it is supposed, to receive the Christian faith. On the shores of Marseilles, according to a venerable and y/ell au- thenticated tradition, arrived Martha, Mary Mag- OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 119 dalen, and Lazarus, whom Our Lord had raised from the dead, having been borne thither, pro- videntially, in an open boat, in which they had been purposely sent out to sea to perish. Lazarus became the first Bishop of Marseilles. Many of his successors in that See were illustrious saints in God's church. Among them stand out prominently the names of Theodore and Serenus. The glories of this ancient See shone forth with new splendour from the middle to the close of the eighteenth century in the person of the illustrious Belsunce, and his successor, Monseigneur Belloy. According to the terms of the Concordat between Pius VIL and the first consul Napoleon, new limits were to be assigned to the dioceses of France, and several dioceses had to become altogether extinct. The diocese of Marseilles was included in this latter category. In 1823, Marseilles was restored to its former diocesan rank, and Monseigneur Fortunatus de INTazenod, uncle of Father do Mazenod, was named its first Bishop after the Eestoration. This holy prelate, who was already advanced in years before his nomination, had to wait for six years before ho could take possession of his diocese. At last, all obstacles being removed, he was enthroned Bishop of Marseilles. In accepting the heavy burden of his charge, he stipulated that his nephew should be named his Vicar-General. This latter ofiicc opened ■ *ff 120 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. DE MAZENOD, AND j;> a wide field for the large administrative qualities and boundless zeal of Father de Mazenod. Whilst occupied with the affairs of a great diocese, he forgot not that his chief responsibility lay in the government of his Society of Missionaries. His character of Missionary and Eeligious was never hidden behind any of those dignities of the sanctuary which were forced upon him, and which in obedience he accepted. Monseigneur Fortunatus de Mazenod, the Bishop of Marseilles, his venerable uncle, was, as might be expected, the warm friend and patron of the society founded by his holy nephew. He gladly availed himself of the services of the Oblate Fathers in the evangelizing of his diocese. The prisons of Marseilles were thrown open to their mis- sionary zeal. The training of the young clergy was also confided to them. For thirty-three years the Oblates of Mary Im- maculate were charged with the direction of the Theological Seminary of Marseilles. The crowds of holy and learned priests which came forth from that establishment during the period named, were wit- nesses to the learning, piety, and wisdom with which it was conducted. Father de Mazenod was Vicar-General to his uncle for nearly ten years. During that period the chief burden of the diocese devolved upon him, owing to the age and infirmities of his venerable OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 121 uncle. His prodigious energy and devotedness enabled hiia to preside over his community, and at the same time administer the affairs of an important diocese. It was a time when the walls of Jerusalem had to he rebuilt. The revolution had left behind it heaps of ruins. All religious institutions had been swept away, charitable asylums confiscated, hospitals closed, churches desecrated — some had been levelled to the ground, and others turned into warehouses or other secular purposes. Under the ad- ministration of Father de Mazenod, the desert began to rejoice and flourish, religious communities were re-established, churches were restored, new churches erected; schools, orphanages, and hospitals sprang up as if by some blessed enchantment. The ancient religious glories of Marseilles were called back into existence, in a great measure, by the vivifying action of Father de Mazenod's zeal. Gregory XVI. had ascended the chair of Peter. His attention was soon drawn to the important works in which Father de Mazenod was engaged at Marseilles as Yicar-General to his uncle, who was now evidently drawing nigh to his end. Gregory dreaded that, at the death of the aged Bishop of that See, the government of Louis Philippe would nomi- nate some unfit person in his stead. He also wished to secure for the important city and diocese of Mar- seilles a continuance of the wise and holy adminis- ^■p^ 122 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGE. BE MAZENOB, ANB tration of Father de Mazenocl. With this double object in view, proprio motu, he nominated him Bishop of Icasia, in paritbus, and coadjutor to his uncle. In obedience to the yoice of Gregory, Father de Mazenod had to consent to be raised to the episcopal dignity. He was consecrated in Eorae by Cardinal Odescalchi, on the 14th of October, 1832. Gregory's object was that he should succeed his uncle as Bishop of Marseilles. The French Government took umbrage at these proceed- ings. A storm of persecution was let loose upon the new Bishop. He was declared to have forfeited his rights as a citizen of France, and other trying and vexatious measures were adopted in his regard, but God bore him through the storm. His holy firm- ness, blended with the spirit of wise conciliation, conquered finally the opposition of the government. At the death of his uncle he became his successor in the ancient See of St. Lazarus, a.d. 1837. It is not our purpose to enter upon the history of his glorious episcopate as Bishop of Marseilles ; wc leave that to abler hands. We shall content our- selves with a brief summary of that remarkable period of his life. In becoming Bishop of Marseilles, he aimed at once at copying, in his life and in the administration of his diocese, the examples of his sainted predecessors in that important See. The third in episcopal descent from the great Bclsunce, ill ^T\ OF THE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MARY. 123 he would seem to have fully inherited the spirit of heroic charity and zeal of that illustrious Bishop. To the ancient Saints who had occupied the See of Marseilles, he bore a special devotion, and sought, with great zeal, to promote their public veneration in his diocese. One of the noblest churches in Mar- seilles was already dedicated to St. Theodore ; but the memory of St. Serenus had almost fallen into oblivion during the revolutionary period. That saint was Bishop of Marseilles about the end of the seventh century. One circumstance in the life of Serenus should make his memory especially dear to English Catholics ; it is the loving co-operation he lent to St. Augustine of Canterbury, in his first labours for the conversion of England to Christianity. St. Augustine and his companions, travelling from Eome to England, passed through Marseilles, and tarried for some days under the hospitable roof of Serenus. Proceeding on their journey, they reached Aix. Here the companions of Augustine lost the courage to advance further. At Aix they met mth men who spoke to them discouragiugly of their pro- ject, representing to them the English people as a race of monsters, whom it would be impossible to convert to Christianity. Discouraged by those re- ports, thoy refused to continue their journey to England. In vain did Augustine endeavour to re- animate their courage, and to induce them to accom- m i 1 1 1 t- ^^H ,z:=it- 124 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOM. DE MAZENOJ). plish the great mission assigned to them by v gory. Eeturning to Marseilles with his companions, Augus- tine placed them under the care of Serenus, and went back to Eome to take advice, in the emergency, from St. Gregory. In the meantime, the wise and holy counsel of Serenus, joinod to the inner workings of divine grace, succeeded in dispelling their prejudices and in re-awakening their first missionary courage and zeal. When Augustine returned from Rome to Marseilles with the renewed order of St. Gregory to proceed to England, he found them joyful and will- ing to accompany him. On his arrival there, owing to the miraculous success of his labours, it became soon necessary for Gregory to send him additional help, to enable him to reap the harvest of souls which had suddenly sprung up in ripeness and abundance. Paulinus, who became the first Arch- bishop of York; Millitus, who was afterwards the fii'st Bishop of London ; and Justus, who was to be the first Bishop of Rochester, were chosen as Augustine's fellow labourers. St. Gregory wrote, at the same time, to St. Serenus, a very beautiful letter, in which he speaks of the wonders of grace that were being wrought in England by the preaching of Augustine, and in which also he re- commended Paulinus, Millitus, and Justus to the hospitality of St. Serenus. We mention these circumstances, as we feel our readers will not be OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 125 loath to be reminded of the indirect, but loving and efficacious part which a Bishop of Marseilles, in the seventh century, took in the work of England's con- version to Christianity. St. Serenus, during a jour- ney in Italy, died at Blandaret, a town in the diocese of Yercelli, where his holy body now reposes, and where also he is honoured as the patron saint of the locality. Monseigneur de Belsunce had, in his time, procured a relic of the saint from his shrine at Blan- daret, which was deposited at Marseilles. During the revolution the relic disappeared, and devotion towards the saint had become almost extinct. Mon- seigneur deMazenod resolved to restore this devotion, and to obtain another relic of St. Serenus from Blan- daret. He published a pastoral on that occasion, in which he says : — ^' As David had promised not to give repose to his eyes until he had found a resting place for the ark, so did I resolve not to be at rest until the relics of my sainted predecessor had again found repose at Marseilles." Full of this spirit he undertook a holy journey to Blandaret, where he was to be met by the Archbishop of Ver- celli. The news of the amval of so illustrious a pilgrim, sped rapidly through the neighbouring country. Great crowds flocked to meet him. They rejoiced to see, at the shrine of their patron saint, his living successor in the See of Marseilles. They came in processional order to do him honour, filling 126 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOIi. BE MAZENOD, AND i i ■ 1 1 M5S, V, h&.k.i the air with the harmonies of sacred music, and singing canticles in honour of their Saint. As the Bishop of Marseilles prostrated himself, in the midst of a kneeling multitude, before the shrine of his predecessor, the scene was solemn and touching in the extreme. The holy prelate was favoured on that occasion by a gift of sensible grace which, while it illumined his mind with the light of a blessed vision, awakened the tenderest emotions of his soul, and brought floods of tears to his eyes. He lay prostrate before the shrine of the Saint for a con- siderable time, in a sort of rapture, sighing deeply and lovingly. The pious crowds were moved to tears themselves at such a sight, and all felt that a living Saint was there holding communion with a Saint departed. In a letter to his flock, published on his return to Marseilles, he gives us some in- sight as to what was passing in his mind on that memorable occasion : — " How can we describe to you, beloved brethren, the pro- found emotion wo experienced when, after a long journey, we found ourselves at last in the presence of the venerable body which, in life, had been quickened by the soul of Serenus. As our eyes reposed on that holy body, we could imagine that w^e already beheld it transformed, as it shall bo on the great day of the Lord — risen in the glory, and ^'cstcd in the brightness of the elect ; its brow encircled with the immortal diadem of the Pontiffs of the living God. * Be- hold,' we said to ourselves, ' the victory of faith. Behold the reward of those who have fought the good fight. He OF THE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MARY. 127 who won that victory was once the pastor of that flock of which we are now the shepherd. He has traced out for us the path hy which we should guide it to Heaven. He was its father, is now its protector. He will not refuse to help us, his successor, now that we are at his feet. He will bless the -flock which we have come, from so great a dis- tance, to recommend to his protection.' Such were the thoughts which filled our breast as we bent our head to the ground, moved by an irresistible impulse to recognize, by our profound homage, the incomprehensible glory conferred by God upon His Saints. From Serenus, our thoughts went back to Theodore, to Cannat, to Lazarus, the contemporary and friend of our Lord, whom He raised from the dead, and who was the founder of the See of Marseilles. We were then led to contemplate, in its full length, the long chain of Bishops who preceded us in that See — a chain extending, link by link, back to the days of Jesus Christ and His Apostles. The same apostolic traditions were transmitted by all, the same doctrine was taught by all, the same sacraments were administered by all, the. same authority was exercised by all. "We were filled with admiration, as we contemplated how, in the history of this one See of Marseilles, we beheld, revealed in bright outlines, the unity, the perpetuity, the divine origin and economy of the epi'=;copate of the Catholic Church at large. We marvelled, as we considered the per- fect unity of our episcopate with that of Serenus, notwith- standing the interval of twelve hundred years which has occurred between our days and his. We arc charged with the care of the flock, over which he ruled so wisely as the Good Shepherd, He is upon the altar, we kneel at his feet, our hearts, full of a sense of our own responsibility in being the successor of so great a Saint." Such were the inner thoughts of Monseigneur de Mazenod, as he knelt before the shrine of St. Sere- nus. Reverently and lovingly did the holy Bishop ii;i 128 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND of Marseilles convey to his diocese the precious relic of St. Serenus, given him by the Archbishop of Ver- celli. An octave of celebrations, on the occasion of the translation of the holy relic, was inaugurated at Marseilles, and the devotion to St. Serenus was solemnly restored in that city. Serenus, in heaven, could not remain a passive or an indiflferent witness of the signal honour which was being rendered to his memory by his saintly successor, to whom, we may believe, he, in return, communicated abundantly of his own gifts and merits. If ever living merit deserved to inherit the mantle of some heavenly patron, it was when De Mazenod knelt at the shrine of Serenus. Then, we may believe, that he was admitted to a share in the indirect, but efficacious, apostleship which that Saint, in his day, exercised with regard to England. Cer- tain it is that, scarcely had the last notes of the Te Deum, which was sung in honour of St. Serenus, on the occasion of the translation of his relic, died away under the roof of the Cathedral of Marseilles, when an event of a providential character occurred which was to open a path to an apostleship in England for the sons of the devout De Mazenod. He is soon to see gathering around him, young dis- ciples, whom the spirit of God is to conduct to him to be formed, under his tutelage, for missionary work in England. And on that spot on which knelt OF THE LAB0UB8 OF TEX 0BLATS8 OF MAMT. 129 Augustine and his companions when on their way to England, and on which also knelt Paulinus, Millitus and Justus, to receive the blessing of a Bishop of Marseilles, there he will also behold group after group of his own missionary sons, kneeling to re- ceive his blessing before setting forth for that same land, with intent of treading, albeit in the distance, in the footprints of England's Missionary Saints and Apostles. '^ 130 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOS. DB MAZENOD, AND % CHAPTER XII. "We now are about to part company, for a period, with the venerable Founder of the Oblates of Mary, whilst visiting, with our readers, field after field of the missionary labours of the sons of De Mazenod, to find them sowing the seed of the divine word, and labouring for the salvation of souls on the western shores of the great Atlantic, or amidst the snow-clad pine forests and dismal prairies of the Hudson Bay territory, or nigh the margin of the Polar Sea, or among the fastnesses of the Eocky Mountains, or over the surface of the vast region which stretches from the base of the Rocky Moun- tains to the Pacific Ocean, or on the plains of Texas, and by the coasts of the Gulf of Mexico, or amidst the burning sands of Southern Africa, or on one of the fairest Islands in the Indian Ocean — Ceylon. To all these points of Asia, Africa, and America did De Mazenod live to see the labours of the Fathers Oblates of Mary extended. But if we break off, for awhile, the recital of the personal history of Monseigneur de Mazenod, we OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 181 do so in order to follow the transit of his great mis- sionary spirit to those far regions of earth, where destitute souls are to be saved through the laboui'S %f^ of his devoted disciples. His spirit of prayer ever accompanied his missionaries, taking part in their combats and in their triumphs. His spirit of piety, fortitude, and knowledge which they had already im- bibed, was marvellously stirred up and kept alive within their breasts by his active and loving corres- pondence, which had a tone of inspiration about it, as if he had been largely aided by the Holy Spirit in its composition. No exile longed for father or mother's letter to cheer him in the land of the stranger more keenly than did the son of De Maze- nod sigh for the consolation of a letter from his father, to gladden him amidst the loneliness of the trackless forest, or of ocean- like prairie, to enlighten him in his doubts, to guide him in his undertakings, and to bless him in his labours. " Your letter," writes an Oblate missionary from a distant region in Africa to Monseigneur de Maze- nod, '' has afforded me joy and consolation beyond expression. It imparted lo me a new stimulus to labour for God and for souls, with re-kindled fervour, and with a courage equal to the emergencies of my difficult position in the midst of these poor heathens. Accept, my venerated and most beloved Father, the assurances of my deepest gratitude for this proof of 132 SKETCHES OF THE LITE OF MOB. LE MAZENOD, AXD considerate kindness wliich you have shown to the least worthy of your sons." In another letter addressed from a remote mission to Monseigneur de Mazenod acknowledging one received from his lordship, we find the following passage : — " The day on which I received your letter, my Lord and beloved Father, was a real festival day for me, I could not tire feasting my eyes upon its pages. One should have experienced my sense of isolation and loneliness in the midst of these desert regions, and amongst those poor wandering tribes to understand my feelings of relief and happiness in receiving such a letter. It seemed to me for the moment, venerated Father, as if I were transported again into your presence, and allowed to enjoy the great happiness of being nigh to you, and of sharing with those Fathers and Brothers who are privileged to dwell beside you, the holy charm of your society and conversation. You can understand, my Lord, how those of your sons who in these remote regions are fighting the good fight against such terrible odds, stand in need of being guided and inspirited in the hour of combat by the voice of their General. The soldier spirit within my breast as a missionary could not fail to be stirred into bold and courageous action, when the voice of my spiritual chieftain thus addresses me : ' Be a true Soldier of Christ, a good Oblate, and you will force your way through the ranks of your enemies. Victory will be the certain reward of your perseverance.' " From these extracts we may judge of the character of Monseigneur de Mazenod's coiTespondenco with his missionaries, and of the extent to which ho con- tributed, by his guiding and inspiriting counsels, to OF THE LABOUHS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 188 the wide-spread and enduring success of their labours. Canada was the first trans-ocean scene of mission- ary exploit opened to the zeal of the Oblates of Mary. At the invitation of the Bishop of Montreal, t:ie venerable Monseigneur Bourget addressed to the Founder and Superior General of the Oblates of Mary, a community of that Missionary Congrega- tion was established in 1841 in the diocese of Mon- treal. From Montreal the Society extended to Ottawa, which was then named Bytown. The geographical position of Ottawa evidently destined it to become a place of great importance. In 1854 it was raised to the rank of a city and became the capital of Canada. The first Mass said at Ottawa was celebrated in 1827 in the cabin of a poor Irish- man. In 1832 a wooden chapel was built there, which was still the only place of Catholic worship in Ottawa, on the arrival there of the Oblates of Mary in 1844. A certain progress towards the erection of a new church had, however, been already made, the foundations of which were laid and the walls raised a few feet above ground. Father Guiges, Superior of the Noviciate House of Notre Dame de 1' Osier, in the diocese of Grenoble, in France, was chosen as the Superior of the new community at Ottawa. The question of creating a new diocese, of which Ottawa was to be the centre, was promoted by - « lit. 184 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. JOE MAZElfOD, AND the Bishops of Canada, and accepted by the Holy See. The eyes of the Canadian prelates, and especially of Monseigneur Bourget, were fixed on the learned and holy Father Guiges, as the fittest choice which could be made to fill the new See. The acceptance by Father Guiges of the dignity of Bishop of Ottawa made no change in his ordinary mode of life as a humble Eeligious. He continued to live after his consecration with the Fathers of his Society until the end of his days, following all the community exercises with the same exactitude as he practised before his promotion to the episcopacy. At the same time he displayed a marvellous energy in the administration of his immense diocese, and in co- operating by his personal labours in the missionary works of the Oblate Fathers. The wooden chapel gave place to a noble church, which was brought to completion under the surveillance of Fathers Telmon and Dundurand, both of whom were gifted with a considerable amount of architectural skill and genius. The devoted missionary labours of those two last- named Fathers, in which Fathers Baudrand and Molloy generously co-operated, were eminently successful in forming and organising a large Catholic community at Ottawa. One of the special works of the Oblatos of Mary at Ottawa, was the founding there of a University College chartered by the State, wbich they still continue successftdly to direct. In 01 THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 185 the meantime, Father Honorat and his brother missionaries were engaged in planting the roots of the new society in the diocese of Quebec. The large and populous district of St. Saviour's, in that city, was assigned to their care. But the spirit which Father de Mazenod com- municated to his society impelled his Oblates to go forward in search of souls more in need of help than those that presented themselves in the ordinary fields of missionary zeal. In the vast Canadian forests bor- dering the St. Lawrence, the Ottawa, and other great rivers, tens of thousands of men were dispersed in groups, called Chan tiers ^ during the winter months of the year, their occupation being to fell great trees and to prepare them to be floated down the rivers when the ice broke up in spring. These poor men, who for several consecutive months were separated from all ordinaiy means of approaching the Sacraments, and of taking part in the public exercises of their religion, were certainly fit objects for extraordinary missionary effort, especially as they were exposed to the great temptations which are ever to be found in such promiscous gatherings as theirs. The missionary who approaches these poor sons of the wild woods must be prepared to endure privations as great and greater than theirs. He must be pre- pared to advance through a trackless wilderness — to be lost in labjrrinths of high brushwood, and of the /] 186 SKETCHSa OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND yiii intercepting branches of fallen trees, through which, with axe in hand, he will oftentimes have to cut his way. He will find himself at the approach of night still a wanderer, and compelled to seek shelter until day again breaks in the hollow of some aged tree. He will find his path crossed at times by the swollen torrent, through which he will have to wade at peril of life. Knee-deep in sludge will he have to travel through dense forests, which are gloomy and dismal at mid-day, even as though it were mid-night, by reason of the heavy curtains of thick snow that hang upon the bent branches of the giant trees, shutting out almost every ray of daylight. He arrives at last at the goal of his journey, hungry, cold, and wearied. A welcome may await him, or he may be received with frowns. Even though it be a welcome which greets him on his arrival, kind wishes may lighten, but they cannot remove the bulk of those privations — mental, physical, and moral — which he as a priest, as a man of education and fine feeling, will have to endure whilst passing thi-ough the rigours of five long winter months in the open forest, without other companions than those gangs of rough untutored men. But it must be acknowledged that there are attractions of a high order for men of zeal in such missionary exploits. Returning from the Chaniiers in the forest, each Oblate missionary counts by the thousand the number of poor woodmen he %m OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. 137 has been instrumental in admitting to the holy sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist. The evangelizing of the Indian tribes on the Canadian border, and of the inhabitants of the ice-bound coast of Labrador was undertaken by Oblate missionaries soon after their arrival in Canada. Among the devoted labourers in those difficult fields of mission- ary toil we find the names of Durocher, Pinet, Arnaud, Babel, Charpeney, and others. But still more distant fields of missionary labour await the cultivating zeal of the Oblate missionary. We find the labours of Fathers Arnaud and Babel spoken of in the following terms by a Protestant writer. Professor Hind, of the University College,* Toronto, in his work Explorations in Labrador^ published by Longman : — *' The description given by Pere Arnaud of his journey up the Manicouagan, and his residence with the Montagnais in the interior, is very interesting. I met Pere Arnaud at Seven Islands, and also one of the Indians who accompanied him on his peiilous journey. The Indian drew a map of the country, which 1 subsequently compared with one which I obtained from Pierre. The delineations of the windings of the river and the lakes and portages resembled one another so completely, that if I had not seen the Indian draw the map in my tent I should have thought that one had been copied from the other, on a different scale. Pere Arnaud started from the mouth of the Manicouagan on August 29th, ) 853, in company with a little flotilla, consisting of seventeen birch-bark canoes, eleven manned by Montagnais who were returning to their hunting-grounds, and six by Nasquapees ■^ J '^ I l. — 188 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. LE MAZENOD, AND who had come from the far interior to see the priest of whom they had heard so much from their Montagnais neigh- bours." • • ' • • • » " Pere Arnaud lost the whole of his baggage at the foot of a rapid they were endeavouring to ascend, and after a month's toil they reached the borders of Lake Mushualagan at the beginning of October. At this lake the Montagnais who accompanied him determined to winter, not only because it was good hunting-ground, but also on account of its being a great rendezvous in the spring for the heathen Indians of their tribe. Lake Mushualagan is about fifty miles long, and varies from three to nine miles in breadth ; it is surrounded by high mountains, is very deep, and contains pike, the kokomesh, a variety of salmon trout, the memehil, * a red kind of fish,' &c. Pere Arnaud was soon left by the Mon- tagnais and Nasquapee who journeyed with him to liake Mushualagan. The Indians found that they could not sup- port such a large party by fishing and hunting in one locality. The Montagnais departed to seek better hunting-grounds, the Nasquapees set out to rejoin those of their people who had their lodges on Lake Pletpi, three days' journey from Mushualagan, only one family of Montagnais remaining with the missionary. Three weeks were spent in endeavouring to lay up a store of food for the winter, when another party in eleven canoes came to the lake from the coast, but many of them were ill, and an unusually largo proportion were widows and young orphan children. The fish began to retire to deep water beyond the reach of nets, the hunt in the woods was unsuccessful, and a rigorous winter began to set in. The Indians who had left the missionary some weeks before began to return, having also been unsuccessful in their hunt ; so that the entire party were compelled to have recourse to their supply of winter provisions until the snow became deep and hard enough for snow-shoqs, and the caribou began to descend from the mountains to the valleys. As soon as the caribou OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 189 111 H.^ Ki season at the beginning of December arrived, the camp was raised, and the whole band proceeded to fresh hunting- grounds. They soon found tracks in the snow ; but, to their despair, they ascertained that wolves had been in pursuit. The hunters followed the tracks, and after three days retunied with the announcement that they had come upon the bones of a freshly-kiUed deer, and that wolves were numerous in the neighbourhood. * Wolves are around us ; they will block and disperse the caribou : we cannot escape death if this continues,* exclaims the distressed Indians. A party of hunters arrived from a different direction two days after- wards, and brought with them the flesh of six caribou and two porcupines ; but they confirmed the impression which began to prevail that the wolves had driven the caribou away, and it would be necessary to seek other and distant hunting-grounds. Their only hope was the tripe * de roche ' when the caribou failed, and they could not support strength for any length of time upon such meagre diet. At this pe- riod a runner came from the Nasquapees, who had left them at Lake Mushualagan, bringing the intelligence that this people were starving, and begging for some provisions. He was soon followed by a poor Indian with his family, who had become blind during the previous week. The Indian imputed his misfortune, unparalleled in the forests which cover the country like a sea, to having slept on the snow, with spruce branches for his pillow, without fire or any covering beyond the clothes he wore. He was overcome with fatigue, and far too weary to make a temporary lodge of spruce boughs, and perhaps, like all his race, too inditf- . ut to the consequences which might follow the terrible exposure to which he so thoughtlessly submitted himself. Fortunately for the missionary, the ptarmigan, or white partridge, oamo in large numbers to the borders of the lake where they were at this juncture, so that he was able to relieve the necessities of the Nasquapees and the blind Indian's family. They also caught some porcupine and a , 4 ' %\ ■'i "i 140 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND few rabbits, which enabled them to delay having recourse to the tripe * de roche.' It now became evident that the whole encampment must break up and separate into single families, scattering themselves over a wide extent of country, in order to find the means of subsistence. During three long months Pere Amaud remained in one encampment with a number of the Montagnais who still clung to him ; but no heathen Nasquapees came near their lodges, as he had been led to expect. Provisions now began to fail ; the ptarmigan, which had been the principal means of support, were about taking their flight to the north. They tried to fish, introducing nets below the ice, but without much success. Their misery increased day by day, until at length it became absolutely necessary to separate and hunt in a new tract of country. Pere Amaud returned with a young Canadian, who had accompanied him to Lake Mushualagan, still 279 to 300 miles from the sea. He descended in the spring to the mouth of the river, after having endured much privation and sufiering.** » * • • * " During the morning a number of squaws passed our tents with loads of wood on their back, and bundles of fresh sapin (spruce branches) ; they were making preparations for Sunday, collecting a little store of dry wood for cooking pur- poses, and the sapin for re-lining their lodges. Pfere Amaud is very particular in making them perform their necessary preparations on Saturday, in order to secure a due observ- ance of the Sunday. Towards evening a runner arrived from the Moisie with a message to Pere Amaud — a man supposed to be dying wished to see the priest. Without a moment's hesitation, although it was raining heavily at the time, P^re Amaud set out on foot to walk eighteen miles, to see the sick man and administer the last consolations of religion. He hoped to find the horse which had so astonished the Nasquapee two days before, but if he did not succeed, he would have to make the journey on foot and return to Seven OF THE LABOURS OF TEE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 141 Islands in time for morning service at eight. Fortunately the horse was seen about two miles from the lodge, near the beach in the direction of the Moisie. Pere Amaud caught liim, and availed himself of the animal's services, much to the astonishment of the Nasquapec, who ran to see the ex- traordinary spectacle of a man mounting a hose and gallop- ing away on his back. The poor Indian laughed, shouted, and danced with delight, expressing in a loud voice his admiration of both rider and steed. Pere Arnaud reached the Moisie settlements at 10 p.m. The night was dark and stormy, yet he crossed the broad Moisie Bay in a bark canoe, during a storm of wind and rain, administered the last sacraments to the dying man, re-crossed the bay, re- mounted his horse, and, following the shore of the gulf, reached Seven Islands at 2 a.m. Such actions win the esteem of the half-savage Montagnais and wholly savage Nasquapees with whom he comes in contact, and are a most effectual means of securing their lasting attachment. The influence which Pere Arnaud exercises over these Indians is extraordinary ; and it appears to be well earned by nu- merous acts of charity, deeds of daring, and much self- denial, as well as by an entire devotion to the object of his mission." .m " At half-past seven on Sunday morning the bell of the Mission chapel tolled for Mass. By twos and threes the Indians left their lodges and repaired to the sacred edifice. A little before eight I entered the chapel and found it already fuU ; the Indians, however, made room for me, and I took my place among them. The appearance of the con- gregation was very impressive ; on one side were kneeling about eighty squaws and young Indian girls, on the other side nearly the same number of men. The congregation consisted of Montagnais from the interior and from the coast, Nasquapees from Ashwanipi and Petichikapau, a lake be- yond Ashwanipi on the table-land, a few French Canadians 'K %i 142 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOM. DE MAZENOD, AND from Seven Islands and the Moisie, and a few Montagnaia half-breeds." • ••••• " When the Indians went one by one to the altar-railing to receive the Sacrament, the native habits of Otelno and Arkasko were well displayed. They were squatted on the floor near me in the background, but when their turn came they rose and wound their way through the other kneeling Indians with a silent and quick step, which reminded one irresistibly of their motions when stealing swiftly through a thick forest of young trees. They seemed scarcely to touch any of the worshippers kneeling close together, and when passing noiselessly through the crowd, they did not appear to cause the slightest inconvenience, or attract any perceptible atten- tion." "Another comparison forced itself upon my mind as I was surveying these Indians eating the * pain beni,' which was handed round in the form of a pyramid prettily decorated with ribbons, more in keeping with the solemn service in which they had just been engaged. I thought of the condition of their wild brethren wandering through the dreary forests or over the moss-covered rocks of the Labrador Peninsula, who had never heard of the name of Christ, who had no real knowledge of sin, none of redemption, and none of the life to come — who were steeped to the lips in superstition, holding imaginary communication with evil spirits, and endeavouring to appease their malice with miserable offerings of food, blood, and sometimes of human life. I thought, too, of the years of incessant labour and patient endurance which the missionary had undergone in order to bring these Indians together at stated periods and teach them morality, honesty, and truth, the responsibilities of the present and the hopes of a future world." "At six in the evening we assembled at the chapel to OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 143 take part in a procession which was to march to a largo cross 400 yards distant. After a short preliminary service, the priest, in his robes, walked out of the chapel, and was followed by the women, dressed as at morning service. Some Indian lads bearing a small platform, on which was placed a liiilf-veiled gilt imago of the Virgin and Child three feet high, next took up their position. The men brought up the rear. As soon as the whole body of Indians were assembled in the open air, two children carrying a red cross headed the procession ; the women followed two and two ; then came the lads with the image; then the priest with his two assistants clothed in surplices, and holding lighted candles ; and finally the men. As soon as the procession started the women began a chant, in which the men soon joined. The singing continued until the priest arrived at the cross, when he entered a little temporary chapel constructed of branches of trees, and chantod a short service, all the congregation kneeling on th(! wet grass. A hymn was then sung, and the procession returned to the chapel in the same order as before. The cross is about fifteen feet high, and bears the following inscription : — Jesus kiran Kaots nifikium. (Jesus who died on the cross.) And in smaller characters below — Kanaskamnest mak kakuskucrtak (Oblat-Marie Immaculce.) The cross was placed in a small enclosure, and the y ..i. to it was ornamented with spruce trees stuck in the ground and forming an avenue. The singing of the women sounded very well in the open air, and the responses of the men were much less harsh than in a small and crowded chapel. It was dusk before the procession had returned and re-entered the chapel ; a few candles were lit, a hymn sung, and the ceremony was closed, with the customary priestly blessing. The effect of this display upon the Indians was very marked, and no one m n li4 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND present who was familiar with Indian heathen customs, could fail to rejoice at the contrast it presented to a Medicine dance, or Scalp dance, or a Dog feast, which were once common in the same camping ground before the Roman Catholic missionaries succeeded in winning the Montagnais from their earlier customs and superstitions, and instilling into their minds the germs of a better hope." • » « » 4» • " On the 16th, Pere Arnaud, shortly before noon, set sail for Bersamits in an open boat, with a number of Montagnais. The whole Indian population of Seven Islands were about to disperse as soon as the priest had taken his departure, birch - bark lodges were taken down, canoes wore launched, and their little store of worldly goods were all embarked ready for a start the moment the Pere left the shore. A salute was fired by the Indians, which was repeated again and again. They watched the boat until it had reached half way across the bay, when, one by one, they walked slowly to their canoes. The Nasquapees were going to the Moisie — some of them to retrace their steps to Ashwanipi and Petichikapau." " The description of a station given by Pere Babel ex- prDsses the opinion which the Catholic missionaries have formed of the Montagnais. It diflfers in no respect from what we saw at Seven Islands, where Pere Arnaud ofiiciated. 'This last spring (1854) I started for these missions in a schooner bound for Labrador, and after fourteen days of monotonous navigation, I reached the port of Itamameou (east of Natashquan). "I was truly happy to find myself among my Indians again ; they are so good, so ingenuous, so submissive. The missionary is truly amidst them like a father amidst his chil- dren. These are the poor people who fear and detest sin. If you only knew how bitterly they deplore the errors of their pasi, life ; how their perseverance in well-doing, and 01 TEE ZABOUItS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART, 145 the hannony of their conduct, are capable of putting to the blush many Christians far more privileged than they by the abundance of the help which they receive ! * " It is well worthy of notice, that the mission chapels at Itamameou, Mingan, Seven Islands, Manicouagan, Islets de Jereraie, &c., &c., are chiefly maintained by the contri- butions of the Indians. Pere Babel concludes his letter by the following tribute to the liberality of the Montagnais towards their religious teachers : — ' The Reverend Father Durocher, having attended this year the missions of the Islets de Jercmie, could interest you greatly by the recital of his travels. The good father could speak to you of the extraordinary generosity of the Indians who frequent that post, some of tchom deprived thnmehcs of necessaries in order to provide for the expenses of their chapel.' " Far away within the north-western limits of America, lay regions vast almost as Europe, whieh extend from 49*^ latitude to the Frozen Ocean and Baffin's Bay, from the Hudson Bay to the Rocky- Mountains. Those desert regions were the domain of the red man, of the moose-deer and buffalo, of the wolf and the white bear. There grim winter held sway the greater part of the year, and fettered land and lake and river in its chains of black ice, and clad them in its mantle of thick snow. In the chief portion of those inhospitable climes, mother earth refuses bread to her children. There no com waves in autumn-tide upon her plains, nor does vegetable life supply aught to the wants or gratification of the human palate. Man might die of hunger L 14G SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZE.VOD, AND there, though he ■were lord of boundless territory, if buffalo or deer or fish from lake or wild bird from eyrie came not within his reach to supply him with food from its own substance. But sometimes these feeders of man hold aloof and mysteriously disappear and then the awful solitude of the wilderness becomes more awful still, in the absence of its habitual denizens. Then does the shadow of death fall heavily on the gaunt spare figures of the hunger- smitten tribe. "Woe then to the weakest, they often at such times become the food of the strongest. The strong fell the weak. The aged father and mother and the gentle child are struck down sometimes, and the men of the tribe devour the horrible repast. There are few attractions in these howling wilder- nesses to draw hither the footsteps of strangers from other lands. The skins and furs of their wild animals are the only objects which the miserable inhabitants of those places have to offer in exchange for the goods of the white man. Here, it is true, nature reveals herself in forms sublime and terrible in her forests, over her boundless prairies, up her mountaiQ ranges, out upon her lakes and rivers and seas, aloft in her skies, which are sunless for months in certain latitudes, and which flame oftentimes by night with fires that rival sunflashes by their brilliancy. Pilgrims of science, and men of travel and adventure occasionly come hither; but dame nature is ever OF TEE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MAST. 147 lals the cliurlish in the reception which she accords to them. Upon all new comers she imposes pains and penalties, hardships and privations, oftentimes of a most for- midahle kind. Many over-adventurous spirits have forfeited their lives in those frightful regions by being swept over foaming rapids, or by being crushed by icebergs, or by being frozen by night-frost, or by being devoured by red men, or by being hungered by food dearth. Thus perished upon those barren steppes, killed by hunger and frost, the noble Frank- lin and a hundred and more of his devoted followers. The inhabitants of these melancholy solitudes had need of the advent of other visitors besides those who came to trade with them, or to study their manners and customs, or to photograph their like- nesses, or to view the scenery of their lakes and prairies. They had need of those who would come to claim them as lost brothers, to acknowledge them as children of the same Father, to communicate to them the light of faith, to embrace them in the bonds of charity, and to teach them how to love God and how to love one another. To supply these most pressing spiritual wants of the wandering tribes of the lone north-west of America, was to become the very difficult, but the very meritorious mission of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. The immense portion of British America to which we have just been alluding, was formerly part of the it :i ' i V 148 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AXL ^ ii diocese of Quebec. More recently it became an in- dependent district, of which Monseigneur Provencher was appointed Bishop. Gradually the number of priests under the jurisdiction of this zealous prelate continued to diminish, and no new vocations pre- sented themselves to fill the vacancies thus created. Monseigneur Provencher was alarmed at the prospect of his new diocese becoming extinct for want of priests. He found himself at last left with only six priests, some of whom were old and infirm. In his perplexity he took counsel with the Bishops of Canada- The result of their deliberations was their agreeing to make a joint application to the Superior- General of the Oblates of Mary, in view of obtaining a body of his missionaries for the evan- gelizing of the tribes of the vast district in question. Many reasons at that time combined to deter Monseigneur de Mazenod from complying with this request. But there existed one superior motive for yielding consent to the proposal of Monseigneur Provencher, which prevailed in the mind of Kv.n- siegneur de Mazenod over all reasons to the contrary; it was that this proposal was made in behalf of the most destitute souls on the face of the earth. Who so shut out from the help and sympathy of their fellow men as those wild wandering tribes of the north- western deserts of America ? Nobody without risk and hardship can visit them in their lonely encamp- 01 THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 149 ments ; much less can anybody live in their midst and become all to all among them in order to gain them to God, without having to endure mental, physical, and moral tortures that demand in him who patiently bears such trials, the faith and the courage of a martyr. There are other heathen lands where nothing seems to be mid, or savage, or repulsive, but man himself — lands in which, if man repels, nature invites the approach and fosters the sojourn — lands of bright skies and balmy health-giving breezes, where to dwell seems to be a paradise on earth. The home of the red man of the wild north has no such attraction to offer to the stranger who approaches it. Everything, on the contrary, connected with that melancholy land is calculated to isolate its unhappy inhabitants from the rest of human kind, and to ex- clude them from the knowledge and sympathy of their fellow men. Cupidity will induce traders to visit their ice-locked frontiers. But loftier motives than those inspired by thirst of earthly gain are required to induce other visitors to penetrate to the heart of their lonely encampments in the far wilder- ness, there to become partakers of all their suffer- ings and hardships. Their state of utter isolation and spiritual destitution is to form for the sons of De Mazenod one of the chief motives of their being the more earnestly sought after. In undertaking for his society the evangelizing of in u ,,Vi» ' ,1 I 150 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOM. HE MAZENOH, AND the vast regions referred to, Monseigneur de Maze- nod counted upon God's sending many additional labourers into the vineyard, to enable him to carry on the great missionary work for which he had be- come responsible. His trust in God was not in vain. When the news spread abroad in France that the Society of the Oblates of Mary had undertaken missions for the conversion to Christianity of the Indian tribes inhabiting the nurth-western deserts of America, an extraordinary development of voca- tions to that society began to manifest itself. Applications for admission to its ranks came from divers points of France, from the shores of the Mediterranean, from the vineyards and olive groves on the banks of the Ehone, from the Alpine ter- races ov* -hanging the rapid Xsfere, from the green fields and orchards of Brittany and La Vendee, from the busy centres of Alsace, and the vine-clad plains of Lorraine. These applications came from church students, from young priests, from professors of seminaries, and in several cases from parish priests, who gave up good appointments to become Oblate Missionaries to the Indian tribes. The professions of law, medicine, and the army contributed also a share to the list of novice missionaries. To these generous hearts their own Belle France seemed to lose her power of attraction, and to give place to a rival land in their thoughts and affections. To their own "'i*»8J m OF TRE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 151 historic and beautiful France, the land of literature, of the arts, and the sciences, they are about to give preference, as a place of abode till death, to a land without a history, without a past, without beauty — lone, desolate, and distant. To that land the finger of the Divine Will points, and thither are they pre- pared, at all cost and sacrifice, to go. Thither are they prepared to go without hope or desire of coming back again, longing for nothing more than to be spent and to srciiu themselves in labours for the saving of the souls of those dusky children of the forest and the prairie. The greatest earthly recompense which these noble apostolic spirits aim at, is the privilege of dying on the battle- field of their labours, and of finding a grave some- where on the steppes of the Barren Grounds, or by the margin of the Great Slave Lake, or by the banks of the Mackenzie, or the Peel Eiver, or nigh to the shores of the Arctic Ocean. Other vocations are ripening beyond the Atlantic. Canada is to take a noble part in contributing her contingent to the little cohort of apostolic men who, with cross upon their breasts, are to invade the empire of the prince of darkness in the far north, and to establish on its ruins the triumphs of faith. One morning, early in the year 1845, a youth- ful novice knelt before the altar of the oratory, in the Noviciate House of the Oblates of Mary, at m ' '•k ■v*r 162 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQE. DE MAZENOD, AND '! ! 11 Longuiel, near Montreal. He was one who had before him, whilst still in the world, a future full of bright promise of preferment and success, being the nephew of the Prime Minister of Canada, and being on his own part possessed of great natui-al abilities, which were highly cultivated by a careful education. All these advantages and prospects he renounced in order to become a humble Keligious in the Society of the Oblates of Mary. On the morning to which we refer, he came to the foot of the altar to plead for the life of a beloved mother. He had then just received the news that nothing short of a miracle could save her life. With loving confidence he implores God in earnest prayer to work that mii'acle, and to grant to him his mother's life. He does not come empty handed to address this petition to God. He comes into the Divine presence with an offering : the offering is that of himself. He makes a promise in prayer to this effect, that should God restore his mother to health he would ask his Superiors to allow him to consecrate his whole life to the evangelizing of the Indian tribes in the far region of the Red River. Scarcely had this prayer been pronounced and this holy promise made, when his mother was suddenly restored to perfect health. In fulfilment of his promise, Alexander Tach^, for such was his name, having heard of his mother's restoration to health, presented himself to his Superiors to seek OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MASY. 153 their consent to his devoting himsolf to the work of evangelizing the Indian tribes of the Eed River regions. Such were the circumstances which led to the selection of Brother Tachd, while he was yet a nc 'ce, and before he was ordained a Priest, to bo the companion of the first Oblate Father who was scut as a Missionary to the Red River. On the feast of St. John the Baptist, 1845, Father Peter Aubert and Brother Tach^ knelt in the Chapel of the Noviciate House at Longuiel, to receive their obedi- ence for the Red River Missions from their Superior, the venerable Father Guiges, who afterwards was appointed first Bishop of Ottawa. The sentiments experienced by the youthful Missionary Brother Tache, as he quitted, as he then thought for ever, the precincts of a home he affectionately loved, are thus portrayed in a letter written by him at a later period : — " You will allow me to tell you what I felt as I receded from the sources of the St. Lawrence, on whose banks Providence had fixed my birth-place, and by whose waters I first conceived the thought of becoming a Missionary of the Red River. I drank of those waters for the last time, and mingled with them some parting tears, and confided to them some of the secret thoughts and affectionate sentiments of my inmost heart. I could imagine how some of the bright waves of this dear old river, rolling down from lake to lake, would at last strike on the beach nigh to which a beloved mother was praying for her son that he might become a perfect Oblate and a holy Missionary. I knew that being r- ,f;, ! <1'J \ 11! 154 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. LE MAZENOD, AND intensely pre-occupied with that son's happiness, she would listen to the faintest murmuring sound, to the very beatings of the waves coming from the north-west as if to discover in them the echoes of her son's voice asking a prayer or pro- mising a remembrance. I give expression to what I felt on that occasion, for the recollection now, after the l^pse of twenty years^ of the emotions I experienced in quitting home and friends, enables me more fully to appreciate the generous devotedness of those who give up all they hold most dear in human affection for the salvation of souls." An unbroken journey of sixty-two days conducted the two young Missionaries to St. Boniface, on the Bed Eiver. They met on their arrival with a fraternal and cordial welcome from Monseigneur Provencher, who seemed, however, to be somewhat taken aback by the youthful appearance of Brother Tac.*!^. "I have asked" he said, half playfully, " foi a Missionary, and they have sent me a mere boy." This '' mere boy " in five years, v/as to be- come his coadjutor Bishop, then his successor, and owing to his merits and the success of his labours, St. Boniface, the title of the new diocese of the Bed River districts, was to become an Archbishopric. We would here ask his Grace Monseigneur Tachi^, Archbishop of St. Boniface, to pardon us if he thinks we have intruded too far into the sanctuary of his private life. "We feel, however, we have no need of making an apology on this matter, for such a life as his belongs necessarily already ta the domain of OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 155 Catholic history. On the Ist of September, Brother Tach^, who had during his journey reached his twenty-second year, was ordained Deacon, and on the following 12th of October he was raised to the Priesthood. That same day his year's Noviciate terminated, and shortly before the ceremony of his ordination began, he had the happiness of pronoun- cing, in the presence of Father Aubert, his Ke- ligious Vows. These vows were the first ever pronounced in that land ; they were pronounced on the banks of the Eed Eiver by the great-gi*eat- nephew of Yarenue de la Veraudre, by whom that river and the surrounding country had been dis- covered. After his ordination as Priest, Father Tach(5 remained some months at St. Boniface, doing Missionary work, and occupied also in studying the languages of those tribes which he expected soon to be engaged in evangelizing. On the 8th of July, 1846, he received his obedience to proceed to L'lle a la Crosse, which was reached after a harassing journey that lasted for two months. On his arrival he heard of an Indian chief who lay dangerously ill at Lac Vert, a place ninety miles distant, who desired to be baptized. Thither the young Missionary hastened through dismal swamps and vast pine forests. On his return it was arranged that he was to proceed after four days rest to Lac Caribou, which si II. 'I t ii :i I t I it . Hi";' ' 1 J i l! '0 156 SKETCHES OF IHE LIFE OF MOS. DE MAZENOD, AND lay 350 miles to the north-east of the L'llo a la Crosse. On the feast of the Annunciation, 1847, he arrived at Lac Caribou, the first who ever reached that desolate spot, to announce there the gospel of peace. There he had the happiness of instructing and baptizing several poor Indians. His next mis- sionary expedition was to Athabaska : on hi^ way thither he was warned of the fierce and savage character of the Indian tribes who frequented that place ; but, nevertheless, he courageously pursued his weary journey of 400 miles to the end, travelling almost the whole way on foot. A great consolation and a great missionary triumph awaited him at Athabaska, which was to compensate him abundantly for the harassing fatigues of his journey. In the course of three weeks he baptized 194 Indians of the Crees and Montaignais tribes. The efforts of the Missionary, aided by Divine grace, wrought a com- plete transformation in these poor children of the wilderness, who in their exterior became gentle and tractable, and in heart devout and fervent Christians. The next year he visited them again. He found that in the meantime the seeds of faith and piety he had been instrumental in planting, had taken deep root in their souls, and that all his hopes in their regard were fully realised. The extreme enthusiasm mani- fested on the occasion of his first visit had, however. Vi^p OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MABY. 157 diminished. He did not look upon this as a circuni- stimce to bo rogrc^tted, for as he says himself in one of his letters : — ** Enthusiasm is not the ordinary channel through which cither the vocation to tlie Apostleship or the vocation to tlio true Faith acts. The mature calm of sober reflection sus- tained by the efficacy of Divine grace, is more to be depended upon and offers more reliable guarantee for perseverance than the excitement of an imagination that scarcely under- stands what it says or does, or of a heart that is too often forgetful of its own cov ardice and weakness." In 1848, the Indians of Athabaska showed them- selves less enthusiastic than they were the previous year; but, in reality, far more deeply Christian. In the meantime those divine truths so new to them, and which their minds so readily imbibed at first, were pondered over by them leisurely ; they examined and discussed them among themselves, and the pre- cise way in which they appreciated them was calculated to fill one with surprise. It is true as the young Missionary himself writes : — " Although the heart which so often rebels against right reason, not only in the ease of the untutored child of the forest, but also of him born and nurtured in the midst of civilization still offered its practical objections to the full Christianising of these Indians, nevertheless, the triumph of the Faith was secured at Athabaska. It it now one of the chief centres of Christianity in north-western America." These happy beginnings inspired Father Tach^'s 01. 'A! ■L 158 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOS. DE MAZENOB, AND zeal to pursue with continued ardour his apostolic career. The life of a Missionary in those distant regions is chequered by successes and disappoint- ments. The latter would seem often to come in undue proportion. Sometimes, after accomplishing in face of frightful difficulties a journey of hundreds of miles, on arriving at the place of expected rendez- vous, the Missionaiy Eather finds that, owing to delays which unavoidably occurred upon his way, he has arrived too late, and that the tribes in sea?;ch of whom he had set out, have already taken their departure. Meantime his little stock of provisions is becoming exhausted, and the few Indians who have been accompanying him abandon him alone in the wilderness. The dogs of his team are famishing. He divides with them the last remnants of food that remain. He starves himself to save the lives of these poor brutes. If they perish he will have to abandon all his possessions in the desert — sacred vestments, chalices, temporary altar, books, everything. Under such circumstances he begins his return journey. The post from which he started lies perhaps three or four hundred miles away. Ho may have to pass two or three days without food (one Oblate fathei. Father Lacomb, was on one occasion six days witiiout tasting food). He breaks the ice whith covers some lake over which he is travelling in search of fish, wL:ch he may or may OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 159 'T-W:*! not succeed in catching. He aims his rifle at the passing bird or beast. He may bo a good marksman or he may fail — failure means hunger perhaps for days to come. Sometimes bird, beast, and fish seem mysteriously to disappear from air, earth, and water, and npthing gives sign of life ; all around — every- thing seems dead or petrified in the black polar frost. Sometimes the missionary and his team lose them- selves, and keep straying for a whole day and night over the frozen surface of some ocean lake, a wilder- ness of ice spreads out from horizon to horizon. No land-mark is there to guide him out of the frozen labyrinth, no friendly voice to direct him. No shelter can be found tnere by night ; no fire can there be kindled ; cold, hunger, thirst, the darkness and the storm all assail liim at the one time, and hope there seems to be none, save in God. But in God the hope of His faithful servant in that supreme hour burns brightly. A feeling rises up within him that he is then more in the Divine presence than he ever was before. He knows that if he is in such straits it is bocause he has gone forth at God's bidding to do God's work and to save souls ; therefore does he count with _cdlest assurance upon God's help. He does not cornt thus in vain, as is abundantly proved by the providential succours that have come repeat- edly in marvellous ways to the rescue of Oblate missionaries at most critical moments. ! 160 SKETCEES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. LE MAZENOD, AND In July, 1848, Father Tachc^ was joined at L'lle a la Crosse by Father Faraud, who was afterwards to become a true apostle in the lone north of America. Lieutenant Hooper, E.N., who took a part in the Plover expedition in. search of Sir John Franklin, thus speaks of Father Faraud, whom he met on the shores of the Athabaska Lake, at Fort Chipewyan: — " We were politely received by Mr. Todd, and at supper were introduced to Pere Faraud, a French Missionary of the Roman Catholic Religion, with whom I enjoyed the privilege of much interesting conversation. Monsieur Faraud had apparently devoted considerable time to the study of the Indians in this locality." — Hooper's Tents of the Taski, page 403. For two years Father Tach^ had not met an Oblate father. His time was spent either with the Indians in the places of their encampments, or in journeying from point to point over the vast district confided to his personal charge. He had to endure often long periods of isolation and solitude. With unspeakable delight did he hail the advent of a brother missionary. For a while they enjoyed together the sweets of community life in the solitary prairie. Then each betook himself anew to his own special missionary occupations. In the commence- ment of January, 1849, they were both at Athabaska, where disquieting news reached them from St. Boniface. They were informed by their Superior, OT TEE LABOmtS OF THE 0BZATE8 OF MART. 161 ■^ Father Aubert, that owing to the decrease in the receipts of the ''"Work of Propagation of the Faith " in France, caused by the revolution of the preceding year, it was probable that their missions would have to be abandoned in consequence of there being no means of supporting them. The thought of having .0 forsake the work they had undertaken in behalf of the poor red men of the wilderness was insupport- able, especially at a time when the harvest fields of souls which they had been cultivating amidst so many personal sacrifices, now seemed to be ripening for the sickle. "With common accord they wrote a joint-letter to their Superior, couched in the fol- lowing noble and heroic words : — "The news which your letter brings us afflicts us pro- foundly, we cannot reconcile ourselves to the thought of abandoning our dear Neophytes and our numerous Catechu- mens. We will confine our demands upon your assistance to the narrowest limits. We hope that you will always be able to provide us at least with altar breads and wine for the Eoly Sacrifice. We ask only one further favour, which is that we be allowed to continue our present labours. The fishes of the lakes zvill supply us with the food we shall require, and the wild beasts of the forests will furnish us with clothing. Again we beg of you, Reverend Father, not to call us away from a work to which our hearts are so much attached," At that hour, in their distant homes, fond hearts would beat quickly with joy at the news of their return. Mothers with delighted welcome would hail the coming back of their sons from their distant 1 '11 a 162 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOE. BE MAZENOD, AND missions after an absence of years. All this the two young Oblate missionaries knew and felt. And were they to yield to their human feelings, they themselves would also rejoice at the prospect of being restored to civilized life, to the embraces of fond parents, and to the society of early friends. Eut they had made their sacrifice. They had at God's interior bidding given up father and mother, and houses and lands, and all things for the Gospel's sake. They are not now going to retract holy pro- mises made to God. J^ay, they renew their choice of the savage wilderness, with all its perils and privations as the place of their habitual abode ; and they declare their continued preference for the society of those poor wild children of nature, whom they arc seeking to reclaim from ignorance and vice, to all the endearments of home and to every prospect of earthly pleasure and emolument. Happily the dreaded evil was averted, and Fathers Tache and Faraud were allowed to continue their work of zeal in favour of the Indian tribes of the Bed River forests and prairies. Sir John Eichardson, when he was on his expe- dition in search of Sir John Franklin, met Father Tachd at L'lle \i la Crosse, and thus speaks of liim and his colleague : — ■ "They were both intelligent and tcII -informed men, and devoted to the +ask of instructing the Indians. They have -y ^■'-\] ^ m OF TEE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MAST. 1G3 already taught many of their pupils here to read and write." Elsewhere he says of the Oblate Missionaries whom he met : — " By sympathising with the people in all their distresses, taking a strong interest in everything that concerns them, acting as their physicians when sick, and advisers on all occasions, the Priests of the Mission have gained their entire confidence." — Arctic Searching Expedition. The position of Father Tachd is about to un- dergo an important change, his virtues and merits mark him out as the fitting coadjutor to Monseigneur Provencher, Yicar Apostolic of the North Western District. A letter of obedience from Monseigneur do Mazenod invites him to Marseilles. Thither he proceeds. His first meeting with the holy Founder was marked by signs of their mutual and deepest appreciation of one another. He beholds for the first time that father whom he had been loving and venerating in the far distance, with a filial devoted- noss not surpassed by that of any of his sons, who had been privileged to grow up like " olive branches around his table " in their na'ive France. And Monseigneur de Mazenod rejoiced in clasping for the first time to his breast the young apostle who had borne the standard of the cross into far regions whither it had not till then penetrated, and into the midst of peoples to whom he was the first to proclaim 1 164 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND the glad tidings of redemption. Their minds and their hearts had already been in close and loving intercourse, and the spirit of De Mazenod had found its way beyond the seas and reappeared in the life and deeds of Alexander Tache. When Monseigneur de Mazenod unfolded to Father Tach^ the intentions of the Holy See to create him coadjutor Bishop to Monseigneur Provencher, with right of succession, the humble missionary was startled at the proposal. He pleaded many reasons for not accepting the prof- fered dignity, and said moreover he wished to remain always an Oblate. " It is that precisely," said MonseigneTir de Mazenod, " I wish you to do." '' But is not," rejoined Father Tach^, " the episcopal dignity incompatible with the religious life?" '' What," replied Monseigneur de Mazenod, '' is it to be supposed that the plenitude of the priesthood ex- cludes the perfection to which the religious man is called?" Then assuming that lofty bearing and sacred dignity which distinguished him on fitting occasions, he said, " Nobody is more a Bishop than I am, yet, nobody is more an Oblate." He further intimated to him that his acceptance of the pro- posed dignity would help powerfully to consolidate and to develope the newly founded missions of the Bed Eiver ; in fact, that the very existence of those missions depended in a great measure upon such com- pliance on his part. Moved by these words of his f- \ OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART, 165 ■-a L.r;. v'''>' ;ting venerated Superior, Father Tach^ yielded his con- sent to what was proposed in his regard. He received the Episcopal Consecration at the hands of Mon- seigneur de Mazenod, who was assisted in that function by another Oblate Bishop, Monseigneur Guibert, who was then Bishop of Viviers. Mon- seigneur Tach(3 was named Superior of the mission of the Eed Eiver by the venerable Founder, who at the same time gave an obedience to several Fathers to prepare to take their departure for that distant region. Monseigneur Tach^ would willingly have prolonged his stay in Europe, had it not been for an engagement which he had entered into with some Indian tribes, to meet them at L'lle k la Crosse earJy in the following September. He shortened his visits to Eome and to Marseilles, and spent only a few days with his mother and family in Canada, in order not to fail in his appointment with his Indian neophytes. He travelled from Europe in company with Father GroUier, of whom we shall speak later on. In Canada he was joined by Father Lacomb, a young and learned priest, who was soon to become an Oblate of Mary Immaculate, and one of the chief mainstays of the North American mis- sions. Monseigneur Provencher's first intention on the arrival of his coadjutor, Monseigneur Tach^, Bishop of Arath, was to retain him at St. Boniface ; but he readily yielded to the strong reasons adduced € 16G SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGS. DE MJZENOB, AND by the young missionary bisliop for his fixing his residence at L'lle ii la Crosse. Monseigneur Tachu, on taking his departure for his distant home in the midst of the Indian tribes of L'lle a la Crosse, knelt to receive the blessing of Monseigneur Pro- vencher. The latter aged and saintly prelate gave expression on that occasion to the following pro- phetic words : — "It is not customary for a bisliop to ask for another bishop's blessing, but as I am soon to die, and as wc shall never again meet in this world, I will bless you once more on this earth, whilst awaiting the happiness of embracing you in heaven." Monseigneur Provencher breathed his last at St. Boniface, on the 7th of July, 1853, when he was succeeded by his coadjutor, Monseigneur Tachd. At the request of the latter when in Home, the Holy Father gave to the whole of the north-western diocese the title of St. Boniface. Monseigneur Tach^ continued to reside for some years after his consecration at L'lle a la Crosse. From this point he made frequent and distant missionary excursions to visit different tribes at certain places of rendez- vous. The privations which he habitually had to endure, not only when journeying through his vast diocese, but also when at home in his episcopal resi- dence at L'lle k la Crosse, are in some measure revealed to us in the following playful but truthful OF TUB LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 167 description of his dwelling place and of his method of travelling : — " My episcopal palace is thirty feet in length, twenty in width, and seven In height. It Is built of mud which, how- ever. Is not Impermeable, for the wind and the rain and other atmospheric annoyances find easy access through its walls. A few panes of glass and some pieces of parchment constitute its luminary system. In this palace, though at first glance everything looks mean and diminutive, a character of real grandeur, nevertheless, pervades the whole establishment. For instance, my secretary is no less a personage than a bishop — my valet is also a bishop — my cook himself is a bishop. These illustrious employeshave countless defects, but as they are all so much devoted to me personally, I quietly endure their shortcomings. When they grow tired of their domestic employments I give them some work to do out of doors, and I give orders for the whole establishment of Mon- seigneur to get ready for a journey of some months in the wilderness. The travelling party consists oi his lordship, two Indians, and a half-breed, who conducts a team of four dogs. The team is laden with cooking utensils, bedding, a wardrobe, a portable altar and its fittings, a food basket, and other odds and ends. Instead of ordinary episcopal sliocs, his lordship puts on a pair of rackets, or snow shoes, which are from throe to four feet In length ; laced in these his feet glide without sinking into the snow surfaces over which he advances at first very painfully, at the side of his baggage team. At the approach of evening the strength of the whole party, dogs, Indians, and bishop, being exhausted, they halt for the night. An hour's labour suifices to prepare a mansion wherein his lordship will repose till the next morning. The snow is carefully removed, branches of trees are spread over the cleared ground ; these form the ornamental flooring of the new palace, the sky is its lofty roof, the moon and stars are Its brilliant lamps, the dark pine forests or the boundless H^B - - jB 1 ^. I gtyrt ^!1 111 t 'I i! 168 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND horizon its sumptuous wainscoting. The four dogs of the team are its sentinels, the wolves and the owls preside over the musical orchestra, hunger and cold give zest to tho joy experienced at the sight of the preparations which are being made for the evening banquet and the night's repose. The chilled and stiffened limbs bless the merciful warmth of tho kindled pile to which the ' giants of the forest ' have supplied abundant fuel. Havmg taken possession of their mansion, the proprietors partake of a common repast ; the dogs are tho first served, then comes his lordship's turn, his table is his knees, the table service consists of a pocket knife, a bowl, a tin plate, and a five-pronged fork, which is an old family heirloom. The ^Benedicite omnia opera Domini Domino' is pronounced before the repast begins. Nature is too grand and beautiful in the midst even of all its trying rigours for us to forget its Author ; therefore, during those encampments our hearts become filled with thoughts that are solemn and touching and overpowering. We feel it then to be our duty to commimicate such thoughts to the companions of our journey, and to invite them to love Him by whom all those wonderful things we behold around us were made, and to give thanks to Him from whom all blessings flow. Having rendered our homage to God, Monseigneur's valet removes from his lordship's shoulders the capote which he had worn during the day, and extending it on the ground calls it a mattress; his mittens and his travelling bag pass in the darkness of the night for a pillov^; two woollen blankets undertake the task of protecting tht bishop from the cold of the night, and of producing the warmth necessary for his repose; lest they should fail in such ofiices. Providence comes to their aid, by sending a kindly little layer of snow, which spreads a protecting mantle without distinction over all alike. Beneath its white folds sleep tranquilly the prelate and his suite, repairing in their calm slumbers the fatigues of the previous day, and gathering strength for the journey of the morrow. What would be the surprise of some spoiled OF THE LABOURS OF TSE 0BLA1E8 OF MJJtY. 169 ii? child of civilization if lifting this snow mantle he found lying beneath it bishop, Indians, and the four dogs of the team ?" This is not the description of an occasional journey made by Monseigneur Tach^ in the wilderness ; but of journeys habitually performed by himself and his brother missionaries, according as the requirements of their ministry demanded. It is no uncommon thing for an Oblate missionary in the Artie regions to sleep every night successively for two or three months in the open air, lying upon a rug spread upon the frozen ground on a spot from which the snow has been just removed. On such occasions the whole party, priests, Indians, and even the poor dogs, will group together in one spot instinctively to maintain vital heat under the appalling cold of those worse than Siberian nights. Monseigneur Tach^ had not yet taken possession of his Cathedral ; he preferred to remain for some further period at L'lle ii la Crosse, from which place he could visit with greater facility the missionary posts in the north of his immense diocese. He thus describes his visit to Lac la Biche, where Fathers Tissot and Maisonneuve had pitched their tent : — . , ,:,/:, : :■, ^11 i'i ■■■'■' I "A canvas tent in the midst of snow, even though it be planted on British soil, does not present a proper idea of English comfort. On the day of the arrival of their bishop they took possession of their poor cabin, which cost them much trouble to erect. They did not possess even a single mm IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) V ^^. ^ A .// .. % '1? ■^ m te w. 4 .VI n i 170 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE M/IZEXOJ), AND chair ; a log of wood had to serve as an episcopal seat. He to whom it was presented would have accepted it with still greater pleasure, if he thought that by doing so ho could lessen the discomforts of those by whom it was offered to him. Hard work and anxieties were not the only trials of these two young fathers ; hunger also contributed its own share to their sufferings. I was profoundly afflicted in finding those beloved conjrkres pale emaciated and grief- stricken." The fisheries of Lac la Biche were a failure that year. A famine among the tribes on its borders was the consequence. The fathers had to suffer with the others. Monseigneur Tach^ continues : — "The visitors brought some provisions and other help. We then remembered the words of the Divine Master, * When two or three are gather^id together in my name, I am in the midst of them.* We were five, we should then be heard if we joined in prayer. A High Mass was sung, and a novena of prayer in honour of the fisherman Apostle, St. Peter, was inaugurated, to implore of God, through his intercession, a cessation of the fish famine. The prayers had scarcely been offered when an abundant take of fish, which appeared mi- raculous, followed. Since then the supply of fish has not failed. At their different missionary posts the Fathers have not only to catechise and administer sacraments, but they have also sometimes to perform the rudest manual works. They have to dig and plough, and sow potatoes and corn, where such luxuries can be niade to grow in that inhospitable olime. By example and persuasion they finally succeed, though not always, in inducing the Indians to undertake the tilUng of the earth and the raising of crops." The missionary has further to act as mason, and carpenter, and blacksmith, &c , according to ciroum- OF TRS LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MABY, 171 stances. From Lao la Biche Monseigneur Tach^ set out for the mission of Our Lady of Victories, at Atha- baska. He launclied his canoe on the waters of the giant river, the Athabaska, at a point which was considered unnavigable and full of dangers. It was important for the object proposed in the establish- ment of the mission of our Lady of Victories, namely, that it should serve as a central dep6t for the various other missions, to ascertain whether that river was navigable or not. To his great satisfaction he was able to assure himself, by personal experience, of its being navigable at those points where it was supposed to offer insuperable obstacles to progress on its waters. On the morning of the 2nd of July, at 2 a.m., after a journey of ten days, he arrived at our Lady of Victories. At the sound of their Bishop's voice asking for admission in the early morning, Fathers Grolier and Grandin and Brother Alexis rose without delay to receive him. Tears of joy at the ^appy meeting were abundantly shed on both sides. "When the news of the arrival of the '' great man of prayer " re? led the neighbouring tribes, they flocked in crowds to the mission to do honour to him who had been the first to preach to them, seven years pre- viously, the message of selv«tion. The arrival at the same time of Father Faraud, and the good news he brought of the success of his mission at the great Slave Lake, completed the joy of the missionaries of 172 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND %. .r Athabaska. They spent there one of those delicious weeks which one is rarely privileged to enjoy on earth. At last the morning of their separation came, and each had to return to his life of isolation in the vast solitude of the wilderness, where no other com- panions awaited him but the poor children of the forest and prairie. With heavy hearts they bade one another good-bye, feeling the keenness of the separation the more, because of the fulness of the joy they had experienced in one another's society, during the period of their temporary ' union. " you my brothers," exclaims Monseigneur Tach^ in referring to this incident, " who have the happiness of living always in comimunity, have pity upon those who cannot enjoy that consolation ; pray for your isolated brethren." During the year 1866, the Fathers at Lac la Biche succeeded in opening a way through the thick forest which separated their beautiful lake from the prairies that fringed the borders of the river Athabaska. This herculean labour was accomplished by months of incessant toil on their part. The opening of this roadwR}' through the forest facilitated very much the expedition which the missionary of Lac la Biche undertook, every year, to visit the Indians of Saskatchawan. Monseigneur Tach^ having visited several of the most distant parts of his diocese, at last directed his steps to St. Boniface. Here, through the zeal of his ma OF TEE ZAB0UB8 OF TEE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 178 predecessor, he found erected a cathedral, an epis- copal palace, which, though plain, was large and commodious, and a convent, which was tenanted by a community of Canadian Sisters of Charity. The cathedral was a fine church, and was the only build- ing which deserved to be called a church in that diocese. His palace, besides being an episcopal residence, became an asylum for blind and aged Indians, and an orphanage, into which were gathered many poor little waifs and strays of humanity, whom he picked up on his missionary circuits. There also he fed and lodged, from time to time, several Indian dueftains, whilst they were being trained in the practice and knowledge of the Christian religion, which it was intended they should afterwards be- come instrumental in propagating among their respectiYC tribes. From St. Boniface Monseigneur Tach^ continued to visit point after point of his vast diocese. In December, 1860, he undertook a jour- ney which was to last for six or seven weeks. It lay through one of the most desolate portions of his diocese, and he had to suffer more than ordinary discomforts, chiefly from the absence of fuel. The intense cold had destroyed all vegetation, and it was with difficulty that even the roots and stumps of trees could be found wherewith to kindle a fire at the close of the day's journey. On the morning of the 14th of December he writes : — " We left our enow bed at the early hour of one a.m. to . ifcf i ! y ■h 174 SrJSTCItES OF THB LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND confdnue our journey ; we travelled all night ; at ton a.m. we halted to rest and to partake of a little food. "We found it almost impossible to kindle a fire; at last we partially suoceeded. I sat beside the dying embers, cold and hungry and wearied ; a peculiar sadness oppressed me. I was then nine hundred miles distant from St. Boniface." This sadness of which the good bishop speaks would seem to be a presentiment of what was then occurring at St. Boniface, the news of which he would not learn till his return. Leaving the zealous pre- late to pursue his journey in the desert with a soli- tary guide, we ask our readers to accompany us back to St. Boniface. The hospitable shelter of the bishop's house had been extended, in his lordship's absence, to a great sufferer, a venerable missionary. Father Goiffon. This devoted priest, being on his way to the scene of his labours, listening only to the promptings of his zeal, left his companions behind and advanced alone on horseback, hoping thus to get quicker to his journey's end. On the 3rd of November he was overtaken by a furious tempest, alone, in the midat of a great praiiie, where he could find no shelter. A violent and intensely cold wind lifted the snow in thick clouds from the ground. Father Goiffon's clothes, which were still wet from the rain of the previous day, became one mass of ice. He still struggled forward till the close of the day. His general sufferings were so great that he did not per- ceive that both his feet had become frozen. His OF THB LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 175 horse could carry him no further, he had to alight. It was then he discovered that he could no longer use his feet. At the side of his poor horse he sank down in the snow. There he lay for five long nights and four days. His horse died of hunger and fatigue. To save his own life from death by starvation, he conti'ived to cut some morsels from the dead body of his horse. On the morning of the 8th of November he was discovered in this frightful situation. The Fathers of St. Boniface hearing of his condition, went immediately in search of him. They stayed with him for a fortnight, awaiting his being suffi- ciently recovered to bear the fatigue of his removal to St. Boniface. Medical aid, with some difficulty, was procured for the invalid. On examination it was found that amputation of both feet would be necessary, in order to save his life. This operation w ' performed. That night hoemoiThage set in. On the morning of the 14th of December his life was despaired of. At ten a.m. that day the attendants in the chamber of the holy sufferer were suddenly startled by the cry of " fire." Presently Fathers Simonet and Mestre rushed into his room and in- formed him that the house was on fire, and that they had come to rescue him. *' Go quickly. Fathers," ho said, " and save other lives more precious than mine. Leave me to perish in the flames, for my life is worthless. I am ready now to die, if it be God's ' i V: ! i. li 176 SKETOSES OP THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOB, AND will." Hurriedly seizing him, they bore him safely through the dense smoke and stifling heat. Perceiving that he was almost naked they endea- voured in vain to re-enter the burning house, to procure a covering of some sort to wrap him in. They were forced, by a sad necessity, to allow him to remain for a considerable time in the cold De- cember air, without covering of any sort to preserve the needed warmth. But the kind providence of God rendered this circumstance instrumental in saving his life. The intense cold stopped the hoemorrhage, and his life for that time wa« spared. The flames continued to spread. Yain were the eflforts of the Fathers and the crowd of affrighted Indians who flocked to their help, to stay the pro- gress of the fire. Alas ! one poor blind man, who was housed through charity in the bishop's palace, perished in the conflagration, all efforts to rescue him proving useless. Burning embers from the house on fire were carried by a high wind towards the cathedral. That noble building was soon wrapt in flames. In two hours nothing remained of the finest edifice in the Hudson Bay territ^y but a few fragments of calcined walls. After a short interval the fire resumed its destructive course. This time it was the convent of Sisters of Charity that took fire. Vain was the struggle to save it. It perished with its gi-anaries and stores of clothing and pro- 0¥ THE LABOURS OF IHE OBLATES OF MA&T. 177 visions, wliich the good Sisters had charitahly accu- mulated in view of providing food and raiment for orphans, and for the aged and imirm who depended on them for their support. What was the grief of the good bishop, Monseigneur Tach(5, when, on his return from his painful journey, he found his whole establishment, and the noble cathedral on which his predecessor had spent thirty-five years in founding and erecting, now reduced to ashes ! He thus vnites on the subject to the Bishop of Montreal : — " You may judge, my lord, of my emotion when, on the 23rd of February, after a journey of fifty-four days in the depth of winter, after sleeping forty -four nights in the open air, I arrived at St. Boniface, and knelt in the midst of the ruins caused by the disaster of the 14th of December, on that spot where lately stood a thriving religious establish- ment. But the destruction of the episcopal establishment was not the only trial which it pleased God that year to send us. A frightful innundation invaded our colony, and plunged its population in profound misery. What should the bishop of St. Boniface do in presence of these ruins, and under the weight of so heavy a load of affliction, but bow down his head in christian and loving submission to the Divine will, whilst blessing the hand that smote him, and adoring the merciful justice of God who chastised him.'* Whilst the flood was at its height, another event occurred which caused additional grief to the heart of the good bishop. The Superioress of the Sisters of Charity, Sister Valade, died. No doubt her death was hastened by the calamities which she witnessed ir Si: 178 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. HE MAZEKOD, A!TD around her, and in which she so largely shared her- self. There was a something peculiarly sad ahout her funeral procession. All who took part in it had to walk knee deep in water whilst conveying her holy remains for interment to the flooded ruins of the cathedral. Alas ! not a dry spot could be found for her grave. The missionary spirit of Monseigneur Tachci, though sorely tried and chastened by the succession of disasters we have spoken of, was not crushed or cast down thereby. He lost no time in setting to work for the rebuilding of what had been destroyed by fire and flood. An ample benediction was await- ing the heroic efforts of the devoted prelate to raise up again the ruined walls of Jerusalem. From the ashes of the former cathedral, phoenix -like, a church of nobler dimensions rose. Professor Hind, in his narrative of the Ked Eiver Exploring Expedition, published by Longman, thus describes the impres- sions produced upon him, though a Protestant, in visiting St. Boniface for the first time : — " From whatever direction Red River is approached, the journey has to be made through a wilderness in which no signs of civilization are to be seen for several hundred miles, much less a church in which divJie service is celebrated by attentive and intelligent worshippers. By far the most im- posing ecclesiastical building in the settlement is the Roman Catholic Cathedral. The spires, a hundred feet high, give an imposing aspect to the building. They can be seen from or THB LABOURS OF THB 0BLATB8 OF MABT. 179 a great distance, and are well-known land marks. The in- ternal decorations of St. Boniface, for so remote a region, are very striking, and must exercise a potent influence upon the large and singular congregation that worship every Sunday within its walls. Two or three very sweet-toned bells ring at Matins and Vespers, and to a stranger just arrived from a long journey through unpeopled wastes, no sight or sound in Red River creates such surprise and melancholy pleasure, as the sweet tones of the bells of St. Boniface breaking the stillness of the morning or evening air." The sontiments here expressed are similar in feel- ing to those we find in lines written by a celebrated American poet, after a visit to St. Boniface, and which we preface with the words of a writer in the " Chicago Advertiser : " — " Some twenty-five years since, John G. Whittier, the Quaker poet of Massachusetts, visited this mission, and its peaceful quiet surroundings seemed to have impressed him much as it did me, as over it the Angel of Rest of a better and truer life seems constantly to spread her pinions. After his return he wrote the following lines, in part suggested by the beautiful chime of bells which it still has : — ' Out in the river are winding The links of its long, red chain, Through belts of dusky pine-land And gusty leagues of plain. ' Only, at times, a smoke wreath With the drifting cloud-rack joins, — The smoke of the hunting lodges Of the wild Assinneboins ! » * Drearily blows the north wind From the land of ice and snow ; The eyes that look are weary. And heavy tho hands that row. 180 SKBTCHBS OF TEE UFS OF MOB. DF MAZBNOD, ANB f, i,. ' And with one foot on the water, And one upon the shore, The Angel of Shadow gives warning That day shall be no more. ' Is it the clang of wild geese, Is it the Indian's yell. That lends to the voice of the north wind The tones of a far-off bell P ' The voyageur smiles as he listens To the sound that growp apace. Well he knows the ringing Of the bells of St. Boniface. ' The bells of the Roman Mission, That call from their turrets twain, To the boatman on the river, To the hunter on the plain ! ' Even so in our mortal journey The bitter north winds blow. And thus upon life's Bed River Our hearts, as oarsmen, row. ' And when the Angel of Shadow Rests his feet on wave and shore. And our eyes grow dim with watching And our hearts grow faint at the oar, ' Happy is he who heareth The signal of his release. In the bells of the Holy City, The chimes of eternal peace ! ' " The writer in the " Chicago Advertiser " thus further continues : — " Of Bishop Tach^, the Archbishop of this great domain, who resides at this mission, much, very much might be said. His travels, labours and ministry have been extensive and acceptable, still a few words of the Psalmist will better ex- press him as he is, than any words of miae : — * The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord ; and he delighteth in his way. Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright; for the end of that man is peace,' And so it seems to b9 or TEE LAB0US8 OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 181 with him, in the peaceful air of this mission, which, with his kindly, genial way, seems to make the ahove quoted words particularly appropriate, and to cause one to sincerely wish that ' his days may he long in the land, which the Lord his God hath given him/ "The Red Ri- jr country. Province of Manitoba, was '''.%- covered by French Canadians. Sieur Varennes de la Ver- andyre, bom at Three Rivers, Lower Canada, organized an expedition at his own expense, in 1734, and travelled through the country from Lake Superior to Rainy Lake, thence to the Lake of the Wood and down Winnipeg River, to the lake of the same name ; up the river to the mouth of the Assinneboine, where he built Fort Rouge, on tJie point south of the river Assinneboine, almost opposite to the actual Fort Garry. Mens, de ia Verandyre, like all the dis- coverers of the time, had a missionary with him, and Rev. Father Messager was the iirst minister of the gospel known as having visited this parf, of our continent. Mens, de la Verandrye was accompanied by three of his sons. One of them was murdered with his party and their missionary, Rev. Father Amaud, by the Sioux, on Lake St. Croix, be- tween Rainy Lake and Lake Superior. Two other sons of the old gentleman discovered the Upper Missouri, from the Yellowstone. Accompanied by two servants they crossed the country, and were the first white men who saw and ascended the Rocky Mountains, north of the Missouri. The same gentlemen discovered the north branch of the Saskat- chewan in its frdl length. " The conquest of Canada by England put a stop, for a long period, to a regular French Canadian expedition in the wilderness of the northwest. The missionaries themselves had to abandon the country. The work of the Roman Catholic missionaries was re-assumed in 1818. Lord Ssl- kirk, anxious to secure for his colony of Assinneboine^ tli9 i tip \^ 5 182 SKETCEE8 OF THE LIFE OF MOH. BE MAZENOL, AND co-operation of the French Canadians disseminated in the country, requested of the Bishop of Quebec the services of two priests. The Rev. J. N. Provencher, and Severe Dumoulin, both French Canadian priests of the diocese of Quebec, were asked by their bishop for the important and difficult task. They willingly ace 'ed the proposal, started in birch canoes from Montreal, anu indcd at Point Douglas, now Winnipeg, on the 16th of July, 1818. They soon after crossed the river, and began the settlement of St. Boniface. Rev. Mr. Provencher remained in St. Boniface until his death, which occurred on the 7th of June, 1853. He was consecrated bishop in 1822, and consequently was thirty- three years Bishop of St. Boniface. After his death. Bishop Tach^, who had been his coadjutor, succeeded him in the See of St. Boniface. The diocese of 8t. Boniface, at first, comprehended an immense extent of territory; it is now divided, and was created an archdiocese in 1871. Bishop Tach^ was, at the same time, named Archbisiiop. The new ecclesiastical province of St. Boniface comprehends the arch- diocese of the same name, the diocese of St. Albert, on the Saskatchewan, presided over by Bishop Grandin ; the dis- tricts of Athabaska and McKenzie, under Bishops Fararid and Clut, and British Columbia under Bishops d'Herbomcz and Durieux.* "Archbishop Tach^ has been in the country for thirty- two years, partly among the Indians of the far north and partly at St. Boniface. Archbishop Tach^, who is by his mother a great grand-nephew of Mr. Varennes de la Verandyre, who discovered Re4: River, is also descended from Mr. Joliette, the celebrated discoverer of th« Mis- sissippi. St. Boniface is nicely situated on the east side of the Red River, opposite the Assinneboine and facing "Winnipeg, which affords from St. Boniface a pleasant view of the rivers and of the city. The religious edifices of * All of the Society of the ObUtes of Mary Immaculate. OF TRE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF ATAST. 188 the locality all in a row, parallel to the river, present a pleasing scene, complete and comfortable, whether viewed from a passing steamer, the opposite shore, or the immediate vicinity. These edifices are six in number; the first is the college of St. Boniface, surmounted with its nico cupola, and in which sixty boys receive a good education, not only in English and French, but even in classics. The second edifice is the Archbishop's residence ; a good dwelling-house built of stone, having in front walks planted with trees. Then comes the cathedral, built of beautiful stone and of fine design, far superior to any church north-west of St. Paul. The organ, which is really a very fine instrument, built in Montreal, was purchased by friends of Archbishop Tach6 in Lower Canada, and presented to him two years ago, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his election as bishop. The fourth edifice, to the south on the row, is St. Boniface's academy for young ladies. This establishment is conducted by the Sisters of Charity, in which there are over thirty boarders, and an aggregate number of eighty pupils. Next comes the Convent of St. Boniface, where the fc'isters sup- port kindly some orphans or poor girls, aged and infirm women, whence they visit the sick at home, and perform a considerable amount of other charitable and useful work. At a few hundred yards from their residence the Sisters have just purchased a nice house, where they will have their hospital, which is just now a small building adjacent to the convent. This new acquisition completes, for St. Boniface, a full set of educational and charitable institutions, all directed and mostly supported by the Archbishop, assisted by his clergy and the Sisters of Charity. It is evident that the Romaa Catholic church has done a great deal of work here, and that its staff has spared nothing in their power for the advancement and the comfort of those within their reach." ^® 1 184 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOB, ANB —^- ^ CHAPTER XIII. Missionary posts wpre now established two thou- sand miles distant from St. Boniface. The good bishop found it had become a matter of sheer im- possibility for him to visit, at necessary intervals, the missions of his diocese. He consequently ap- plied to the Holy See to have a coadjutor named to aid him in the discharge of his episcopal duties. Father Grandin was appointed to this office, with the consent of Monseigneur de Mazenod, under whose eye he had been trained to the duties of an Oblate Religious and Missionary, and who was con- sequently, well acquainted with his merits and fitness to become a missionary bishop and coadjutor to Monseigneur Tach^. Father Grandin received episcopal consecration at the hands of Monseigneur de Mazenod, in the Church of St. Martin, at Mar- seilles. His lordship hastened back from Europe after his consecration, to pursue the same laborious missionary career which he had been already fol- lowing for several years. Shortly after his return from Europe he under- OF THE ZAS0US8 OF THE OBLATES OF MAST. 186 took, at Monseigneur Tach^'s request, the visitation" of the northem regions of the vast diocese of St. Boniface. He left L'lle k la Crosse on the 4th of June, 1861, and arrived at Great Portage la Loche on the evening of the 10th. A large number of Indians were awaiting his arrival. He de-roted two days and nights to the work of instructing them, and of hearing their confessions. On the 20th of June he reached Athabaska, where he found Father Faraud, who had then been twelve years labouring at that post, and who had made himself perfect master of the Montaignais language. At the time of the arrival of Monseigneur Grandin, this good Father was suffering from great exhaustion, owing to his extraordinary labours and privations. He left Athabaska on the 1st of July, and embarked on the Slave Eiver. That river was very much swollen below the point of its junction with the Peace Eiver, which was greatly flooded by the thawing of the snow on the Eocky Mountains. Monseigneur Gran- din's frail canoe was exposed that day to the danger of being broken and sunk, by coming into collision with some of the huge uprooted trees that were being swept along by the violent current. On the 2nd of July he perceived a large encampment of Indians on the banks of the river. They had in- tended to meet him at Athabaska, but were delayed on their way by the floods of the river. They were * \ ViiPlf..fiiH4Ilfi_(». * h 186 BKETCSSS OF TEE LIFE OF MQR. DS MAZENOD, AND greatly rejoiced at meeting him, and they wished him to remain with them for some days. But he was unable to comply with their request, owing to the scarcity of provisions from which they were suffering at the time. They infonned him that the rapids which he was approaching t; ere never, to their knowledge, in so dangerous a condition. They expressed great fears for the safety of his little bark, which they said was too slightly built and too heavily laden to be fit to encounter the fury of the torrents through which he would have to pass. An hour's sail brought the bishop and his little p&rty of Indians to the proximity of the first great rapid. All had to disembark, and everybody (not excepting the bishop himself), had to charge his shoulders with a portion of the luggage. The little boat had to be lifted out of the water, and borne on the shoulders of the crew to the nearest navigable point of the river. These portages were of frequent oc- currence, and were sometimes accompanied with considerable difficulties. High hills, capped with thick pine forests, had sometimes to be traversed on such occasions. The bishop had to bear his full part of the fatigue of those difficult portages. . He was to be seen, not unfrequently either, heavily laden with some portion of the luggage, or advancing at the head of the party with axe in hand, cutting a pas- sage for himself and the others through the thickets OF TEE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 187 i of pine wood which crowned the heights they had to scale. On the evening of the 6th of July they entered the Salt Eiver. After a short sail they arrived opposite the hut of Beaulieu, an old chief- tain, whose name deserves special mention in these pages. This good old man and his family were true christians, and they had rendered, on different occasions, important services to the Oblate mis- sionaries. Sir John Eichardson refers thus to Beaulieu : — " We received some bags of salt from Beaulieu, who was guide and hunter to Sir John Franklin on his second overland journey, and who has built a house at the mouth of the Salt Eiver." In 1856 Beaulieu surrendered his house for several months to Fathers Grandin and Gascon, whilst they were engaged in evangelizing the tribes that fre- quented that locality. On the departure of these Fathers, Beaulieu and his family were unwilling to return to their house. They looked upon it as a sacred place, an altar having been erected, and the holy sacrifice of the Mass having been celebrated un- der its roof. They built another residence for them- selves, and set their former one apart as a ** House of Prayer." The good old Beaulieu did his best to beautify this desert Oratory. He placed all his re- ligious prints around the altar, which the Fathers, on their departure, left standing. At the foot of this altar the old chieftain, as a true patriarch, used 188 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGE. DE MAZENOD, AND to assemble, on Sundays and holidays, his children and grand-children, and such Indian families as happened at the time to be encamped in his neigh- bourhood, to recite the rosary> and sing devout hymns. He would on such occasions address some words of instruction to those assembled, and if he thought the circumstances of any particular case demanded public reproof, he did not shrink at such times from administering it. He recited family night prayers for the members of his own household every night. By such means he kept faith and piety alive in his family during the long intervals that necessarily elapsed between the visits of the missionary Fathers. As an instance of his zeal in co-operating with the Fathers in their labours for the sanctification of souls, we quote the following incident which Monseigneur Grandin relates : — " In 1856, when I visited Beaulieu for the first time, I met near his house a young man, whose wife had been car- ried away by a pagan Indian of another tribe. The forsaken husband fell into many irregularities of life after the depar- ture of his wife. Moved, however, by the grace of God, he yielded to my exhortations, and came to the resolution of changing his manner of life. Being anxious about his per- severance, when I was on the point of taking my departure to proceed elsewhere, I placed him under the care of the patriarch of the Salt River, Beaulieu. The latter under- stood the importance of the trust confided to his charge. He took this young man to live with him under his own roof, for the purpose of exercising a continual surveillance over or TEE ZAB0UB8 OF THE OBLATBS OF MABY. 189 his conduct. He felt, however, that in order to consolidate the young Indian's r^onversion, it would be necessary to effect, if possible, a reconciliation between him and his wife. "With this object in view, Beaulea' ^^ndertook a long and Painful journey in search of this yo man's wife. He was fortunate enough to discover her, and succeeded in inducing her to return to her husband. The young man, though willing to ]ive again with his wife, felt some scruples as to its being lawful for him to do so. He imagined that before living together again a new marriage was necessary, as they had been so long separated from one another. Beaulieu, to whom he appealed for advice, felt embarrassed for some mo- ments as to the counsel he should give. At last, aftr some reflection, he made the following reply : — * If I lose an object, I do not thereby lose my right to it ; consequen^^v if I find it again, I can lawfully take possession of it. I >f. i ^o me therefore that we can argue in the same manr^r wit ard to your taking back your wife. However, in -^ , to act imprudently, let us ask God to enlighten . let us L; jel down and recite the rosary together for that object.' Having prayed fervently to God for light, Beaulieu felt that he had given the right counsel to the young man. He then advised him anew to live with his wife, without seeking for any other marriage ceremony than that which had already taken place between them." This was the fii'st time Monseigneur Grandin visited Beaulieu and his family since he had been a bishop. Unfortunately they were then suffering great privations from want of food. With tears in his eyes, Beaulieu informed the bishop that they had nothing but a few carp to offer him to eat, as the floods in the river prevented them catching any other sort of fish \ besides^ his sons had failed in 190 SKSTOSKS OF TUB LIFB OF MOB. LB MAZBNOD, ANB h i their hunting expedition. "This being so," said his lordship, ** I will spend the night in hearing the confessions of all who are prepared to approach the sacraments, and to-morrow I shall be ready to take my departure." This resolution was necessary to be adopted, for if the bishop drew upon his own stock of provisions whilst stopping with Beaulieu, he would find himself unable to proceed further with his journey. Beaulieu was much grieved when he heard that Monseigneur Grandin would be com- pelled to go away so soon. The old chieftain earnestly begged the bishop to send a missionary to stay always with his tribe. "Formerly," he said, " whenever I asked you to send us a Father, you used to say to me that I should apply to the '■ great priest; ^ now that you have become a great priest yourself, it is to you I make application. The chief trader has informed me that a sum of thirty pounds is coming to me from the sale of my furs. This is all I possess in the world. I will put this sum aside for the support of the missionary Father. More- over, he can count on the aid of our willing arms to help him to live." The following day Monseigneur Grandin sang Mass in Beaulieu's "House of Prayer," and admiaistered Holy Communion to him, and all the adult members of his family. He further administered Confirmation to several Indians of neighbouring tribes. The bishop erected OF THB LABOURS OF THE OBLJTES OF MAJtT. 191 a large crosB on a prominent position, an d counselled Beaulieu to pray often at its foot for the Holy Father, Pius IX. '* I always pray for him," replied the old chieftain. He then recited aloud a prayer for the Pope and the Church, which he said Fathers Faraud and Eynard had taught him. " I alone," he said, " know that prayer, but I repeat it aloud that all the others niay be able to join with me in saying it.'' Having giving his blessing to Beaulieu and his family, and also to a large group of In- dians, and having shaken hands with everybody, the bishop embarked again on the Salt Eiver on his way further north, his companions being two In- dians and a little boy, a grandson of Beaulieu's, who was to become his sacristan. After two days' sailing and rowing, during which they encountered very severe weather, and frequently got thoroughly drenched, they arrived at the Great Slave Lake. St. Joseph's Mission, to which they were going, was situated on a little island in that lake. The bishop writes to Monseigneur de Mazenod : — "On approaching the shores of the island, we saw a crowd of Indians led by Fathers Eynard and Gascon and Brother Kearney, awaiting our arrival. This is the Mission which I expected would be confided to me at the time when God was about to load me with graver responsibilities. I was deeply moved when I reflected on the sufierings and privations which those Fathers who were sent here in my stead, have had since then to endure. Having warmly acknowledged r^ Iff!' 192 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, ANL the aflfectionate greetings by whicli I was received on my arrival, I was conducted by the Fathers to their little oratory, a room scarcely nine square feet in dimension, which was screened off from a public room in which the Indians as- sembled for Holy Mass, and evening devotions on Sundays and Holidays, and for instructions on week-days. This little oratory, poor and narrow as it was, nevertheless con- tained as really as did the womb of Mary, Him whom the Heavens and the earth cannot contain. Could you visit this humble sanctuary in the wilderness, I am sure you would pray here with as much fervour as if you were in one of your magnificent churches of Marseilles. I found the whole furniture of the house to consist of a few trunks which ser- ved as sitting benches, five roughly made chairs and three tables. I could not find in the whole establishment a sheet of letter paper wherewith to continue my correspondence with your lordship. The Fathers are driven to such shifts for want of writing paper, as to be obliged to register births and marriages as concisely as possible, in order to economise the few scraps still at their disposal." His lordship attributes this scarcity of paper, and of other essential requisites, to a disaster that oc- curred the previous year, when the greater portion of the supplies intended for those distant missions was swept away by the floods of a swollen river, which was being crossed at the time. This disaster happened under the eyes of Monseigneur Grandin, who nearly lost his own life in seeking to save sup- plies, so much needed by the hard working and isolated missionaries, for whom they were intended, and who would have to endure severe privations of many kinds, for a whole year, if deprive^ of them. f!f or TBM lABomta of tes obzatbs or mart. 198 The two Fathers who were then attached to St. Joseph's Mission were seldom to be found both in residence there at the same time ; one or the other was generally engaged in missionary work in behalf of some Indian tribe, sometimes at a distance of three or four hundred miles. Shortly before the bishop arrived at St. Joseph's, on the Great Slave Lake, Father Gascon came back from a prolonged visit to a tribe that was encamped far away in the interior of the desert. The place of their encamp- ment was so difficult of access, that he could not use a sledge for the conveyance of his luggage and pro- visions. He was forced to carry, on "hh own shoul- ders, for hundreds of miles, a great portion of his effects ; an Indian who accompanied him carried the remaining portion. On the 26th of July, the bishop left St. Joseph's Mission on the shores of the Great Slave Lake, for the Mission of the Sacred Heart of Mary on the Big Island. This mission had been established two years previously by Father Grollier. The Big Island lies at the head of the Mackenzie River, at the point where it issues from the Great Slave Lake. The bishop, accompanied by Brother Kearney, his little sacristan, and two Indians, reached that island on the 30th of July. In cross- ing the Great Slave Lake it was with difficulty they kept their canoe afloat, as the water was continually oozing in through its many leakages, placing their r •%• 194 8KSTCHB8 OF THB LIFB OF MOR. DE MAZBNOD, AND \b Uves in continual peril during the whole of their voyage. The bishop spent a week of apostleship in the midst of the Indians of the Big Island, at the close of which he embarked on the Mackenzie for Fort Simpson. At that time he was occupied with the project of establishing, somewhere on the banks of the Mackenzie, a mission, which would be suitable as a place of rendezvous for the Indians, and which would serve as a central dep6t for collecting supplies for the outlying missions of the Mackenzie regions. On the first evening of his sailing from the Big Island, he and his little party drew ashore and encamped on a spot which, on further examination the next morning, seemed to be well adapted as a position for his projected establishment. After praying to God for light and guidance, he came to the resolution of founding a mission there, and of dedicating it to Divine Providence. He planted a large cross on a site on which he hoped to see afterwards a new church erected. His hopes were fully realised. The Mission of Providence, on the banks of the Mackenzie, is now one of the most flourishing of the Oblate missions in those far regions. Proceeding with his voyage, he arrived at Fort Simpson on the 10th of August. Here an extraordinary gathering of divers nationalities occurred at the time of the bishop's visit. The death-stillness which habitually yei^s around those lonely posts of the Hudson Bajr OF THE LABOrmS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 195 Company, called '* Forts," was disturbed at Fort Simpson on that occasion by a jargon of voices and a babel-like confusion of tongues. The ten large barks that had conveyed the furs purchased from the Indians to the Great Portage la Loche, had then just returned to Fort Simpson laden with merchan- dise. Each bark was manned by a crew composed of different nationalities. The traders and their families, and a large number of the employes of the company, were also assembled there. The motley crowd was composed of English, Irish, Scotch, Cana- dians, Norwegians, Orcadians, Canadian half-breeds, and others. Among the Indians assembled there at that time wore the Santeux, the Maskegons, the Crees, the Esclaves, the Dog-Eibs, the Montagnais, the Conteaux-Jaunes, the Peaux de Lievi'e, the Letanais, the Secanais, and some Esquimaux. Fathers Seguin and Gascon accompanied the fleet of boats from Portage la Loche. With their assistance the bishop was able to begin a mission in regular form, in behalf both of the Indians and of the white men then assembled in such unusual crowds at Fort Simpson. His lordship preached four times daily during the mission, twice in Montaignais and twice in French. He and Fathers Seguin and Gascon were almost continually employed during the inter- vals between the sermons, in giving private instruc- tions to several Indians whom they were preparing t fli :^ ii >l .Hi i in -* i 196 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOLy ANL for the grace of Holy Baptism. Among those who presented themselves for Baptism was an old Indian woman, who belonged to an unknown tribe in Eussian America. She had met Father Grollier somewhere, when he was on one of his missionary expeditions. He instructed her very carefully in the principal points of Christian knowledge ; but owing to the violent opposition which was raised to her becoming a Christian, she was unable to present herself sooner for Baptism. This poor agf^d woman exhibited traits of heroism and constancy in em- bracing the Christian faith, worthy of the first con- fessors of Christianity. She was the first of her nation to embrace it. On the 20 th of Augur \ the bishop left Fort Simp- son for the Mission of St. "Raphael, at Fort de Liard. From the Mackenzie he entered the river de Liard. This ri■^■er rises in the Eocky Mountains, and flows with great rapidity. The bishop's canoe had to face the strong current, the progress was conse- quently very slow and difficult For four days they advanced between banks that rose precipitously from the water's edge to a height of four or five hundred feet. Their lives weie often exposed to grave peril during this journey, in consequence of the danger- ous state of the sides of the over-hanging precipices. They frequently had hair-breadth escapes from the danger of being crushed to death beneath great OT THE ZABOUSS OF TJ.f 0BLATE8 OF MAST. 197 masses of falling earth and loose rocks, that came rushing down upon them, without any previous warning, from the sides of the steep declivities. The bishop saved his life on one occasion by leaping fi'om one canoe to another, just in time to escape a huge loose boulder that fortunately he saw soon enough, to get out of its way, as it rolled down to the river. The bishop had scarcely escaped himself, when he perceived, to his horror, that Father Gascon and two little Indian boys who were ashore on the banks of the river gathering wild fruits, unconscious of danger, were standing under a great loose rock, which threatened every moment to fall on them and crush them. The bishop, and all on board, cried out aloud to them to warn them of their danger, but the noise of the rushing current prevented their cries being heard. At last Father Gascon perceived tho signs that were being made to him, happily in time to save himself and his little companions from the impending danger. On the evening of the 29th of August they reached Fort Liard. They found a great number of Indians assembled on their arrival, by whom they were very cordially welcomed, although many of them had never seen a priest be- fore. The following day the bishop, aided by Father Gascon, commenced the exercises of a mission. After three days, Father Gascon set out for Fort Scalket, to visit the Indians on the banks of the M $ 1 I 198 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQB. DE luJZENOD, ANL river Courant-Fort. These Indians had never been visited by a priest. They had expected a visit from Father Gascon the preceding autumn, but were dis- appointed. This year he was resolved to make amends for his forced absence from them the pre- vious year, but unhappily he was foiled on this occasion also in his charitable endeavour to reach them. The river of the Courant-Foi't, as its name indicates, is very dangerous. The stories told of the numbers who lost their lives amidst its rapids and eddies are very startling. Father Gascon, in order to escape the dangers of the river, exposed himself to other dangers scarcely less formidable. He undertook to scale a high mountain exceedingly difficult of ascent. For some days he pursued this attempt, endangering his life almost at every step. He often found himself at points from which it seemed equally hazardous either to advance or to retire. Far away beneath his feet, almost in a perpendicular line, ran madly on the treacherous waters of the dreaded river ; one false step would precipitate him from rock to rock into its foaming depths. Above his head rose straight walls of rock- work, on whose frowning sides he could scarcely find room for his feet to rest, in his endeavour to extricate himself. At last he had to acknowledge himself conquered by the difficultit s of his way, and had to renounce for that once, his cherished mis- OF THJS LABOUBS OF THF OSZATFS OF MARY. 199 sionary project. If ever God took intent for deed, as we know He does, He must have done so at that hour, when a devoted priest, going forth like the Good Shepherd into the wHdemess in search of the lost sheep, was forced, by flood and mountain bar- rier, to stop upon his way, and give up for a while the object of his search. We may feel sure, how- ever, that Father Gascon renewed again, and with success, his attempts to reach the tribe of the Mauvais Monde on the banks of the Courant-Fort. 200 SKSTOSBS OF TEB LIFB OF MQB. LB MAZSNOD^ ANL ah CHAPTEE XIV. t I After the departure of Father Gascon, the bishop, who now had only his little sacristan, Beaulieu's grandson, at his side, continued the labours of the mission by himself alone. His little sacristan ren- dered his lordship important services. At the approach of the hours for the exercises, he went into the woods and rang his bell to assemble the Indians. He served the bishop's Mass, and was useful in many other ways. On the 3rd of Sep- tember, it was evident that something unusual was happening among the Indians. Upon enquiry the bishop discovered that their chieftain, who had been absent till then, had that day arrived in the camp. From the ceremonious solemnity observed by the Indians on that occasion, the bishop expected to see a sort of royal personage make his appearance. Great was hie surprise when he saw issue forth a man, all in rags, more shabby and tattered in ap- pearance than anyone else in his tribe. The bishop discovered that he dressed in that ragged way pur- posely, as he looked upon it as being beneath the OF TEE LABOURS OF TEE OBLAIES OF MARY, 201 ^51 *l dignity of a chieftain to care about fine clothes, and said that it was only silly young men that thought of such foolish trifles. The bishop, who had heard that this chieftain was a polygamist and had three wives, was afraid of the evil effect his arrival would produce in the camp. Great, however, was his lordship's consolation when the chieftain came to him to inform him that, wishing to become a Chiis- tian, he had sent away two of his wives, for he knew bo could not be admitted to Baptism unless he did so. Many of the huntsmen who had accompanied him sought the bishop, to declare to him that they wished to follow the example of their chieftain, by renouncing polygamy and becoming Christians. On the 12th of September, the bishop left the mission of St. Raphael, at Fort Liard, in his birch- bark canoe : one of the two Indians who had been till then accompanying him, took ill, the other de- serted him. The bishop had to become oarsman himself for the rest of the voyage. His hardships during that voyage were very great ; having rowed all day, he had when night approached to take his part in preparing the encampment, and in cooking the slender nightly repast. He returned to Fort Simpson en route for the mission of our Lady of Good Hope, which was situated nigh to the Fort of the same name. Icebergs began to make their appearance on the waters of the Mackenzie* One moroing as the !a4i f 5' V un 202 SKETGUM OF THE LIFE OF MQR. DB MAZENOL, ANL bishop's little party were putting ashore for break- fast, their frail canoe was struck by an iceberg, and the water began to rush in, in great quantity. For- tunately they were sufficiently near the banks of the river to escape with a fright and a thorough drench- ing. Their position, after the wreck of their canoe, was very embarrassing. They had a long voyage northwards into the Artie circle before them ; their supply of food was very limited ; winter as it is only known in those dread climes was then setting fiercely in. They were alone on the desolate banks of the melancholy Mackenzie, in the midst of an uninhabited wilderness. Their little canoe lay a wreck at their feet. The time of suspense rolled heavily by, and nothing occurred to lessen the dreariness of their prospect. One day they were squatted around their lonely fire, and preparing in silence to partake of their mid-day meal ; the broad Mackenzie was full in view, when suddenly a cry was raised, " A sail in sight ! " Swiftly wind and current brought within hailing a large barque of the Hudson Bay Company, which was returning from the Great Bear Lake, laden with fish, on its way to Fort Good Hope. The bishop and his party were taken on board and treated with great kindness. On the evening of the 9th of October they were landed at their destination. His lordship was met by Fathers Grollier and Seguin, and the lay-brother OF THE LASOUSS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 203 Kearney, and conducted to their humble community residence. The bishop was much affected by the sight of the impoverished state in which the Fathers were then living. Their house consisted of one room twenty-two feet in length by eighteen in width; this room served as kitchen, refectory, re- ception-room, and dormitory. Their beds did not occupy much space ; they consisted of buffalo hides and rugs, which, during the day, were piled together in bundles, and at night were rolled out on the floor. They had no better sort of hospitality to offer the bishop than a share in their own privations, which he joyfully accepted. His lordship gives an inventory of their larder as he found it supplied on his arrival. The whole stock of provisions of the community, for the long winter which was about to set in, consisted of a moderate supply of dried meat and salt fish, twenty pounds of flour, the same quantity of pemmican, or dried buffalo flesh, a few pounds of tea and sugar for great festival days, and five or six pounds of rice. No bread or vegetables could be procured in those inhospitable regions. Flour and rice, and other articles of ordinary home consumption are, in these wild isolated regions, luxuries that can seldom be procured, owing to the enormous distances over which they have to be car- ried, and the imperfect mode of conveyance avail- able. In the far northern latitude of the Fort of iSif'i I? i 204 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DS MAZENOD, AND Good Hope, the sun sinks beneath the horizon early in December, and does not appear again till the be- ginning of February. Scarcity of candles was one of the privations which was pressing most severely on the little community at Good Hope at the time of the bishop's arrival. To save the few candles that still remained in their store, they pursued their studies and read the divine office by the light of their log fire. This want of means of lighting their poor hut was severely felt by them, at a time when sunlight was about to fail them for a period of more than two months. Thv^y were busily occupied on the bishop's arrival in putting their hut into repair, that it might stand better the storms of the winter which was at hand. The whole of the manual work had to be done by the Fathers themselves, aided by the good lay-brother Kearney. The bishop could not remain idle in sight of the fatiguing bodily labours of his self-denying priests. "Not being skilled," he writes, '' in the mechanical arts, and wishing to share, in some way, in the physical labours of the community, I undertook the task of providing fuel from the woods, and of keeping the fires kin- dled. Every day I put on a large deer-skin blouse, which took the place of my episcopal i ichette^ and instead of my orozier I carried an axe in hand, when going forth to make the day's provision of fuel." The bishop gives the following graphic description or THE LABOURS OF TEB OBLATES OF MART. 205 of the straits to which the community at Fort Good Hope were put, in their endeavour to raise a domes- tic oratory adjoining their miserable hut : — " Father Seguin having no boards or planks at his dis- posal, erected a number of poles and spars, which I covered with old fishing nets, over which I pasted folds of printed calico and some sacred pictures. Within this humble oratory,' the best that our poverty would allow us to erect, He who was bom in a stable condescends to abide and to become the partaker of our privations." The time for performing the annual retrc it pre- scribed by the rules of the Oblates of Mary, was at hand. The little community of Oblates at the northern extremity of the world was to rival in fidelity to this important point of their holy rule, their more favoured brethren dwelling in the well- appointed houses of their society in France. The object of a spiritual retreat is to increase faith, and love, and devotedness in souls. If anjrwhere the full play of those great virtues is in an especial man- ner needed, surely it must be there where great labours have to be accomplished, and great priva- tions have to be endured for God, and for one's neighbour, without any human recompense or con- solation or hope whatsoever. In holiest and most devoted souls there may be winter-tides — periods of mists and chills, and suspended growth, and inaction ^-wint6r-ti4es that will not cease bv themselves. ho i i.'i l,^_.^ 206 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOS. BE MAZENOD, AND and pass away without effort of ours, to give place to a coming spring of brightness and of life. Wise, then, is that foresight displayed by the founders of missionary societies, in supplying to their subjects who labour hard for the sanctification of others, such a powerful means of sanctifying themselves, as the appointed annual retreat presents. Monseigneur Grandin was happy to have the opportunity of join- ing his brother Oblates in their retreat, the exercises of which were directed by himself. When the members of that little community assembled in their poverty-stricken chapel in the lone wilderness, to invoke the Divine Spirit at the opening of their Eetreat, we may feel sure that He who promised to be there wherever two or three were gathered together in His name, was not absent from their midst. By their labours the frontiers of the faith had been pushed forward to advanced lines, border- ing on the north-western extremities of the earth. They now entered into retreat to prepare themselves for fresh combats and new triumphs. At the time of the bishop's first visit to the mis- sion of Good Hope, the tribes which frequented that post were as yet only partially brought under the influence of Christian ideas and dispositions. Their original lawlessness would sometimes unexpectedly re-appear in their conduct. During his stay in that place, the news of an atrocious crime^ committed by OF THE LABOUES OF THE 0J3LATES OF MAET. 207 some Indian families, reached him. They had aban- doned in the desert their aged and infirm relatives, leaving them to die of cold and hunger. Writing to Monseigneur de Mazenod of this occurrence. Dr. Grandin says : — "I have not met the guilty ones, but I have taken measures which, I trust, will prevent anything of the sort happening here again. I have threatened with the terrible judgments of God, all those who would abandon their aged parents. In our older missions we have not to deplore such crimes." The bishop made arrangements to leave Fort Good Hope on the 8th of January. The Fathers divided their little stock of flour with his lordship. Had the good bishop been able to foresee what was going to happen, a few weeks after his departure, at Fort Good Hope and in the surrounding neighbour- hood, he would not have consented, pressing though his own wants were, to accept the few pounds of flour, the half of the scanty supply of the commu- nity, given him by Father Grollier. Shortly after the bishop left, the horrors of famine broke out with great intensity in the regions of Fort Good Hope. Fishing and hunting failed, and all supplies ran short. The Indians in their fierce hunger devoui-ed everything that could possibly be converted into food, even their very shoes, and the furs and skins that they were prej^aring to dispose of to the factors, 208 8KSTCEE8 OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAEEKOD, ANL Horrible to relate, instances then occurred of fathers devouring their own children. Father Grollier makes mention in a letter to Dr. Grandin, which the latter received at Fort Norman, of a poor mother in whom the instincts of parental love were stronger than they were in her cruel and selfish husband. This poor woman's eldest boy was devoured by his inhuman father. She had to flee to a hiding place in the desert with the rest of her children, to save them from a similar fate. The bishop's highway in travelling from Fort Good Hope to Fort Norman, was to be the frozen bed of the Mackenzie. The frozen beds of rivers and lakes are almost the only roadways practicable in those regions for winter travelling. The actual distance that one has to traverse becomes enormously increased, by the fact of these frozen rivers having to be followed in all their windings. The freezing of the great rivers of the north is an operation of nature which presents many grand and surprising phenomena. A long and hard battle takes place between the mighty and voluminous current and the fierce polar frost, before the latter finally conquers. Innumerable icebergs invade the river, keeping their heads defiantly over the waters as they move on rapidly with its swift current. Gradually they become stationary, and present all manner of huge fantastic shapes on the ANB OF THE L ABO UBS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MA&Y, 209 iihers oilier hthe other onger band. )y his place save L Fort frozen rivers sticable actual ously Ihaving frozen surface of the river's bod. Again the waters of the river, having been held in check for a time by the obstructions which the frost created, accu- mulate in great force, and at last sweep away, with terrific crash, the ice-dams which had been impeding their course. A vent being made in the rent ice, the liberated waters rush forth with a roaring sound like thunder. The frozen surface of the river is then flooded to a height of several feet. This sur- face water is assailed in its turn by the frost, and the great river becomes finally completely frozen over. During the struggle between frost and current, the surface of the river takes the appearance, which it retains, of a hilly country. Great hummocks or hills of ice will sometimes be found extending from bank to bank, blocking up the way. Sometimes the hummocks present sloping, sometimes precipitous sides, and travellers have not unfrequently to cut through them with ice-axe, or creep over them on hauds and knees. The banks of the river, where least resistance is offered to the action of the frost, rise as walls of solid ice, sometimes to the height of fifteen feet. We mention these facts in order to give our readers an idea of the difficulties besetting the winter journeys of the missionary Fathers. We shall find the good Bishop Grandin encountering similar and still greater difficulties in the course of 210 SK£TCMI!i> OF TllE LIFE OF MGK. DJi MAZENOl), AND — '■■■ ■.. 1.1 »..l ■■ .1 ■! lOf^WirWtMM— > ■ ' ■ — ■' ■■.■■■I ■—■-.■- . — ■■■■■.■. ...... , ■■ _ that joiirnoy, which ho rosumos in the depth of an arctic winter. The bishop aud his little party set out from Fort Good Hope in the following order. An Indian ad- vanced at the head of the pai'ty, with axe in hand, prepared to hew down any projecting pieces of ice that obstructed their way. The edge of the Mac- kenzie, near one of its banks, was chosen as their roadway, as the unevenness was not so great netu* the bajiks as in the centre of tlie river, where greater resistance was offered by the current to the frost. The bishop at a certain distance followed on foot. His lordship's task was to trample the snow aud break such rough pieces of ice as lay on the track of the dogs that were drawing the sledge in his rear. The sledge contained the provisions for tlieir journey and the bishop's baggage. Having pursued their dreary monotonous way from early morning till night a-^proaohed, they halted to bivouac on the fro- zen bank. Whilst the Indians were collecting wood, his lordship was engaged in preparing tlie place of encampment, by removing the snow with his snow- shoos, which he used as a shovel. The oleai'od ground was then covered with brushwood, overwhioh some buffalo hides were spread. He undertook the task of cooking their supper on the first night of their journey, as he hoped to make their repast somewhat more dainty than usual, by aid of the flour iNJ) OF TUB LABOURS OF TUB OBIATXS OF MARY. 211 if an Fort n ad- liaiid, [)f ice Mae- tlieir it near vveater ) frost. m foot. ow and e track is rear, ournoy d Vlieir ng till lie fro- y wood, |)lace of snow- oleai'od r which ook the ight of repast Iho flour he had received from Father GroUier. The Indians wore contemplating with gusto the French culinary progress of the bishop, when the prospects of a good supper for the hmigry party were literally dashed to the ground for that night, by a mound of loose earth rolling upon them, burying fire and cauldron with its savoury contents, under a mass of debris. Supporless, or almost so, they had to lay their weary limbs upon their cold bed, with no shelter over their heads in the open aii', on a polar night in the be- ginning of January. Pemmican or dried fish is the staple food used on such journeys. Pemmican is dried buffalo flesh, propai'cd, not always by a very cleanly process, by the Indians. Its taste at first is very loathsome to Europeans, but hunger and habit give relish at last to this unsavoury f:>od. The missionaries, for long periods at a time, have fre- quently no other sort of food to live upon, and they consider themselves fortunate if, when upon thoir journeys, the supply of it does not run short. For ten weary days th-^ M: _ i;" kupt uis place, walking on the frozen Mackenzie at the head of his team of dogs. The hardships of this long march upon the ice was beginning to tell very severely upon the de- voted prelate, and his strength was gradually being exhausted. On the evening of the tenth day's marcli, the party were approaching a very rugged uud uneven portion of the frozen river. It was at j;r^;j^^f ^12 SKETCHES OE THE LIFE OF MGB. DE MAZENOD, AND that point where the Bear Eiver, coming down from the Great Bear Lake, joins the Mackenzie on its way northwards to the Arctic Ocean. At this point where the two great rivers meet, the struggle be- tween frost and flood was fiercest and most pro- tracted. Proofs of the severity of the contest lay scattered around in great abundance. The surface of the frozen river did not present there one smooth patch. It was broken up into all varieties of rug- ged shapes and forms. It was no longer possible for the poor dogs to draw their sledge ; bravely they struggled, but their attempts were in vain. They howled piteously as sharp splinters of rough ice pierced their feet, wounding them severely. The sledge and the snow-shoes of the travellers were broken. The baggage and provisions lay scattered amidst piles of ice, and could scarcely be discerned in the gloom of advancing night. They cannot be abandoned, as without them the whole party would surely perish of hunger and cold. The Indians load their shoulders with the baggage and provisions, which they have succeeded in collecting together from the ice cavities into which thev had fallen. In the meantime, the bishop has been wandering alone, in the darkness of the night, over the surface of the frozen river, which at that part was more than two miles in width, amidst huge hummocks, some of which he has to scale on hands and knees. He re- ND OF THE LABOURS OF IHE OBLATES OF MARY. 213 rom 1 its joint e be- pro- jtlay irface nooth ' rug- )ssible ytbey Tbey gh ice The s were attered jcemed mot be would ns load isions, getber len. In alone, kace of ire than I some of He re- mains stationary for a while through exhaustion, but finding a deadly chilliness seizing upon him, he is compelled to keep himself in motion, in order to save his life. He advances in the gloom of the dis- mal night, which has now fallen upon the dreary scene. The ice under his feet begins to tremble strangely — some couMilsion is taking place, a roar and a rush of waters are heard ! The ice has given way ! The mighty flood has broken through it ! To his horror he beholds a yawning gulf at his feet, out of which an angry torrent is madly rushing. The escaped waters quickly rise to a considerable height all around him on the frozen bed of the Mackenzie. He succeeds in gaining the summit of an iceberg. From iceberg to iceberg, with almost superhuman effort, he contrives to leap in his flight fi'om the advancing flood. At last he succeeds in reaching the river's bank at a point where it was fortunately accessible, and thus, through God's pro- tection, his life is saved. The ruins of Old Fort Norman stood nigh to the spot upon which the bishop and his party landed. This was fortunate, for they were spared much of the labour of preparing their encampment by being able to take refuge for the night within the roofless log- walls of the old Fort. Eemembering that it was the feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, the bishop, be- fore Ipng down to his needed rest, recited by the 214 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. I)S MAZENOD, AND light of the camp fire the office of that beautiful fes- tival. He had invoked that day the Sacred Name of Jesus in the hour of danger, and now he recites a devout Te Deum for the deliverance obtained bv him through the efficacy of that name. Two days' journey separated him from the mission of St. Teresa, Fort Norman. The last day of this journey was particularly trying. He started on his way in the middle of the night, in order to make sure of his arrival at his destination that same day. It was the coldest day he had yet experienced. He suffer- ed much from fluxion of the eyes. The outflow from his eyes became icicles upon his face, which caused him great torment. He arrived at Fort Norman on the 2 1st of January, and remained there till the 8th of the following March. During his stay at Fort Norman his time was occupied in giving instruction to the Indians of that locality, also in acting as school-master to their children, whom he taught to read and wi'ite. At Fort Nor- man he was joined by his little sacristan, Beaulieu's grandson, from whom he had been for some months separated. On the 8th of March he set out for Fort Simpson. He suffered very much during this jour- ney. His feet were covered with blisters, which were caused by the fine snow penetrating his shoes, and then thawing, to his great discomfort. He was also threatened with the snow blindness, which lie i, ! m OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATE.S OF MARY. 215 ran the danger of incnrring, owing to the intense reflection of the sun npon the snow-clad wihlerness he had to traverse. That winter he walked over twelve hundred miles. From Fort Simpson he paid a return visit to St. Joseph's, on the great Slave Lake, and was cordially received by Father Eynard. They were not permitted long to enjoy one another's society. A letter came from an encampment of Indians at the extremity of the lake, who were at- tacked with some fatal epidemic, which necessitated Father Eynard's departure without delay. The fol- lowing is a verbatim translation of the Indian's letter sent to Father Eynard. He had probably been taught by the Fathers to read and write : — " My Father, I wish to have a brave heart, but I find it very hard. My child is dead, my little boy whom you bap- tized. Everybody hero is sick. It is very sad. Oh, Father, write to me. If we can see the priest our grief will be less. I have been a long time sick, and I am like one who has lost his reason. Send me some medicine. My children, my wife, my father, everybody here are all poor pitiable creatures. Speak to God for my child who is dead. On this earth it is God alone, and his priest, that can make the heart strong. I think of this, and I am glad. Send me your words, my Father, for in this world it is through your help alone I can live happy. Is it not sad that everybody here should be sick ? I fear aU will end badly, and there are many who are not yet baptized, who are going to die. If the to us, priest, chieftain sends a sledge for you, will you not come my Father? Baptist, his word. This is for the >> •E"ci;ij-r..i::-gill i i; nil! 'II i li >'' 216 SKETCHES OF TBE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AM) Such an appeal could not be resisted. Father Eynard set out on a journey which was to last ten or twelve days, to visit the tribe in whose behulf Baptist had written to him. During his absence the bishop undertook his duties at St. Joseph's. On his return his face was much disfigured from frost bites. He suffered severely through the intense cold during his double journey, though the month of April was then drawing to its close. The follow- ing month of May was spent by the bishop at Fort Eae, where he had the happiness of baptizing 134 persons. A large number of others earnestly beg- ged to be baptized, but he deferred complying with their wishes until he had further opportunity of testing their dispositions, and of instructing them better. The Mission of Providence, which the bishop had inaugurated in the manner we haT 3 already de- scribed, began to bear very abundant and consoling fruits. In 1863 we find his lordship residing there, his companions being his little sacristan, and two Indian boys whom he had picked up during one of his journeys, and whom he was then seeking to civilize and educate. Servants he had none. No price he could pay would induce any ordinary ser- vant to follow him in his missionary journeys, and to partake of his privations. It would be idle to think of employing, as domestics, any of the Indians of the neighbouring tribes. They would be at home '. • !. IS OF THE LAB0UB8 OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 217 in an encampment, but in an ordinary residence they could render little service. Besides, their habits being so uncleanly, the bishop renounced all thought of engaging any of them for the domestic work of his little establishment at the mission of Providence. But this work had to be done — washing, mending, shoe repairing, tailoring, were necessities even of that humble menage^ and must be done by some- body. Who is to be that somebody ? If any of our readers would be tempted to think that Monseigneur Grandin was lowering the episcopal dignity by un- dertaking himself those menial occupations, let him reflect on the example of St. Paul, who worked with his own hands, when necessity compelled him to do so. Monseigneur Grandin hesitated not, UL\der ne- cessity, to perform the humblest household work, not only for himself, but also for the poor children of whom he had taken charge. The festival of Pentecost was approaching ; that time had been fixed upon for opening a mission to certain tribes of the Mackenzie districts, for whom a rendezvous had been fixed for that date at Provi- dence, on the banks of the Mackenzie. We will allow Monseigneur Grandin to give an account, in his OAvn words^ of the early trials and final success of the mission just spoken of : — " On the 23rd of May some families arrived. I opened a mission the following morning, the Feast of Pentecost. The " 1 ■ >.■ 218 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOL, AND feJ '^#i! 1 ! -I h good work, alas ! made at first but slow progress. The other Indians whom I expected had not arrived. It is true that, owing to the icebergs, the river was not navigable ; never- theless, it appeared to me that with a certain amount of good- will on their part, they could have managed to come. I waited till the end of May, and finding those whom I had been expecting were not coming, I resolved to go forth myself in search of the wandering sheep of my fold. I was grieved at being driven to this expedient, which after all might not succeed. After travelling several leagues I met a large body of Indians ; they were on their way to the mission. They informed me that a still more numerous body were encamped at a short distance, within the arms of a neighbouring bay. They excused themselves for their delay in arriving at the place of the mission at the time that had been agreed upon, on the grounds of their being afraid of not being able to catch fish enough for their support in the neighbourhood of the mission. They promised me to lose no time in hasten- ing forward to the place of appointed rendezvous. I then went forward to visit the more numerous gathering that wore encamped by the river. In going along I addressed earnest prayers to God, begging of Him, through the inter- cession of the Blessed Virgin, to place upon my lips the very words most calculated to awaken those poor savages from their apathy. When I arrived at their encampment they received me with great demonstrations of joy, and offered a variety of excuses for their delay in going to the mission. I assembled them together, and commenced to sing with them one of our snost stirring and devotional hjonns. I then de- livered a discourse to them, of which the following is a sum- mary : — ' You say that you love me, why then did you delay in coming to meet me. I also love you, and because of my love for you I have come hither to dwell in your country. Ten years since I left my aged father, whose hair was as white as snow. I left him, although my leaving him nearly broke his heart, and it was also a sore grief to myself, for I , AND ■ OF TEE LA nouns OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 219 felt deeply the pang of separation from him and from my sorrowing friends, whom I greatly loved. But they were all consoled and gladdened at the good news which afterwards I gave them, of my labours among the tribes of Athabaska and of He d, la Crosse, who, T told them, listened to my words, and were leading a life that would conduct them to Heaven. "Whilst with them I heard of your miserable con- dition, and I said I would leave them in order to come hither, to teach you how to save your souls and to go to Heaven. I came here also because you asked me yourselves to come ; I have passed through great straits and sufferings on your account, as my poor hands, that arc covered with chilblains and gashes caused by the terrible cold, will show you. The white men will soon come here to seek your furs ; I shall then have an opportunity of sending a letter to ray iiged father about you. But what consolation can I give him in speaking of your conduct ? You say you are igno- rant, but why do you not come to me for instruction, when I am hero only for the purpose of instructing you ? You say I can do but little for you, because I am unable to make you presents of tobacco. But of what use will your tobacco be to you if, after smoking it, you lose your souls and go down to burn with wicked spirits, because you did not learn to know and love God ? If you lose your souls, the blame will rest upon yourselves ; I have done my duty towards you.' An aged Indian then came forward as the spokesman of the tribe, to make reply to my address. * It is true, my Father,' he said, * we have spoken words which were not good. But what can you expect of us poor ignorant men ? We seldom see a priest, and we are badly instructed. But our hearts are not as bad as our words ; we are accustomed to get tobacco from white men whenever we meet them. We were vexed and disappointed, and spoke evil of you, because you gave us none. But we will accompany you now, and listen to your words, and be obedient to you.' They kept their promise. From that day the mission be- came a great success." 1 I •1 Fl i t 1 i i :i r : ■if; ■■;*•:■.- ..■ ': ,>^.i^ ^. ,,,,. CHAPTEK XVI. Henry Grollter, of whom mention has just heen made, was the first Oblate of Mary Immaculate to make the sacrifice of his life to God in the diocese of St. Boniface. From the earliest stages of his ecclesiastical life, he manifested an ardent thirst to gain souls to God. During his novitiate, which he made at Notre Dame de 1' Osier, in Dauphiny, he was often heard to exclaim : " Z?a mihi animas " — '' Give me souls." He entered the Society of the Oblates of Mary, with the hope of being one day chosen for their Indian missions in North America. He completed his theological studies in the Seminary of Marseilles, where for three years he had the hap- piness of being near to the holy Founder of the Oblates of Mary, and of imbibing his spirit. He was ordained priest by Monseigneur de Mazenod, who selected him to be the companion of Monseigneur Tache, on his' return to St. Boniface, after his con- secration. On Father GroUier's arrival at the Eed Eiver, he was appointed missionary in the distant region of Athabaska. Here his prodigious zeal soon hi OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 235 began to manifest itself. His holy ambition was to evangelize tribes, to whom the tidings of salvation liad not yet been communicated. He pushed his missionary expeditions far into the arctic circle. There he met tribes of Esquimaux and Blackfeet, and other tribes also, to whom he was the first to speak of God and of His Divine Son. He quickly mastered their languages, and brought hi« missionary influence to bear on their benighted souls. A bless- _ ing, like to that which fell on the preaching of the apostles on the day of Pentecost, seemed to accom- pany his labours. A few weeks spent by him in the midst of a pagan tribe, sufficed to prepare it for the blessing of Christianity. .^ , ,^ ;v, - s-. >, One of the most difficult passions to master in savage breasts, is the spirit of revenge. Terrible are the outbreaks of that passion, especially when hostile tribes encounter one another in the solitude of the desert. Woe then to the weaker side. That solitary missionary, with his uplifted cross, had the marvellous power of holding back, again and again, armed warriors rushing to their revenge, and of causing rival and hostile tribes to cast down their weapons of war, and to embrace one another as bro • thers. In a letter to a brother missionary, dated from the banks of the Mackenzie, he writes thus : — " Last autumn I met, for the first time, at the Peel'River, the tribes of the Loucheux and the Esquimaux. They had 286 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND already been at war with one another, and the thirst of ven- geance was still fierce in their breasts. On the morning of the 14th of September, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, I planted a cross in a prominent place, and in- vited the Indians of both camps to assemble around it. 1 then requested the chieftain of each tribe to come forward, and join their hands at the foot of the cross, in sign of their mutual reconciliation. My hands pressed theirs together upon the feet of the crucifix, and I made them promise to love one another for the future. Thus the cross became the bond of fraternal union between me, who was born on the shores of the Mediterranean, and these poor inhabitants of the desolate coasts of the Polar sea. I presented the chief- tain of the Esquimaux with an image of Our Lord on the Cross, with these words written at the foot of it : * All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.' And to the chieftain of the Loncheux I gave a picture of the Blessed Virgin, on which I wrote : * Behold, from hence- forth, all generations shall call me Blessed.' That day I had the happiness of baptizing my first neophyte from the great nation of the Esquimaux. " I returned to Fort Good Hope before the Mackenzie ?came frozen. My little canoe was constructed of whale skin. During this voyage I had an opportunity of expe- riencing with what loving care Divine Providence watches over the lives of missionaries. Three days before we arrived at the Fort, we consumed our last morsel of food. The two Indians who conducted the canoe informed me that we had nothing more to eat. It was the eve of the Feast of the Holy Angels. In reciting Vespers, these words of the divine office struck me forcibly : ' lie has given His Angels charge over thee.' I thought then within myself, that I was the servant of Him who once sufiered hunger in the desert, and that I also should be succoured by the Holy Angels. My hope was not disappointed. The next morning we per- qeived traces of blood on the banks of the river. * Behold ! ' OF THE LABOURS OF THE OHLATES OF MARY. 287 I exclaimed, * our breakfast.* It was so. Following those traces, we soon discovered two quarters of a rein-doer, which must have been killed on the previous day by some passing Indians, who, taking the portion they required, left the re- mainder to fall into our hands." i ' Father Grollier established a mission at the northern extremity of the lake Athabaska, which he dedicated to Our Lady of the Seven Dolours. He founded a Mission at Fort Eae, which he dedicated to St. Michael, and also a mission for the Esclaves of the Great Island, which he dedicated to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, and a mission at Fort Norman dedicated to St. Teresa. .-. He was the first who evangelized the tribe of the Peaux de Li^vre, a tribe which frequents Fort Good Hope. He dedicated that mission to Our Lady of Good Hope. Finally he advanced northwards as far as Peel's river, among the nations of the Loucheux and the Esquimaux ; he dedicated that residence to the Holy Name of Mary. Here his physical power of advancing farther failed him. Whilst engaged in those wonderful missionary labours, the success and extent of which recall the days of St. Francis Xavier, he was suffering from chronic asthma, which was to carry him to an early grave. Being a native of Montpellier, in the South of France, it was marvellous how he lived and worked as he did, amidst the terrible rigours of Lr ■ '111 Hi l! 238 SKETOHBS OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND twelve polar winters. When lie felt his death-ill- ness coming on, he was alone in the far northern wilderness, with his Indians whom he loved so dearly. Hundreds of miles separated him from his nearest brother-priest. On that occasion he thus wrote to Monseigneur Grandin : — " I feel that the hand of death is upon me ; I hope how- ever that I shall not die, without having an opportunity of making my confession ; but if I cannot go to confession, I have a peaceful trust in the goodness of God, that He will show me mercy. I am now a useless being. I can no longer be counted among the active workmen in God's vine- yard. Nevertheless, you must not be too anxious about me. I sufFor, it is true, from asthma ; but this malady, which is hereditary in my family, has not prevented many of my relatives living to a ripe old age. I think if I were at some post where I could get occasionally a little milk and a few potatoes, I should have a chance of recovering my health." In a subsequent letter he renounced the thought of seeking for a milder climate, or a place where he could procure that nourishment, and those remedies and helps, which his prostrate condition demanded. He again writes to Monseigneur Grandin : — " I will not quit my present position, unless you positively command me to do so, for I desire nothing more ardently than to die at my post. I can stiU render some little ser- vices here ; I know these poor savages, and they know me. It would grieve me very much to be obliged to forsake them." To the great consolation of the dying young mis- OF THB LABOUSS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY, 289 th-m- :them ^ed so )m his 3 thus )e how- mity of ission, I He will can no I's vine- [)Out me. vyhich is J of my at some id a few .ealth." sionary, his confr^re^ Father Seguin, arrived in time, to cheer and to help him to sanctify his last days on earth. It had been arranged before his last ill- ness commenced, that a large cross, forty feet in height, should be erected opposite the door of his hut. He wished the ceremony of blessing and erecting it to be performed by Father Seguin. He asked to be led to a window, from which he could witness the erection of the cross. When it was completed, he said to Father Seguin : " My Father, now I die contented. I have seen the stan- dard of my Saviour planted on the extremities of the earth. yes ! I am happy - so happy ! that I wept tears of joy during the whole ceremony." The news of the approaching end of their apostle and their father caused grief and consternation in the camp of the Indians. They assembled in great crowds around the spot where he lay dying. Though he wished to be left quiet, he could not refuse to allow group after group to approach his bed-side, and receive his blessing and his last words of advice. At last Father Seguin had to give strict orders that no more visitors wore to be admitted, to disturb liim. Father Seguin having intimated to him that he pur- posed to have him buried on the spot where the projected new church was to be erected. "No, no," he replied, "bury me with the Indians, between the last two who died, with my face turned towards ~:^^M i5 240 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOM. BE MAZEyOD, ANL the cross." During his agony, his eyes were often fixed on the image of St. Joseph dying in the arms of Jesus and Mary. The last time that Father Seguin approached his bed, Father GroUier said to him, with a smile : " Now I see heaven, where I shall have the happiness soon to ascend." These were amongst his last words. Thus died the first Oblate of Mary whose death took place in the far North "West of America. He died in the greatest poverty, without doctor, with- out remedy of any sort; the luxury of a cup of milk, or of a few potatoes, could not be procured for him, during his long illness, in that desolate region. We may feel sure a bright crown awaited him in heaven, whose life was spent in such heroic and successful efforts to instruct others unto justice. . , . ^ • . . ,-: Shortly after Father Grollier's death, it was decided to create a new diocese in the regions of the Mackenzie. This happy necessity was due principally to the number of new missions which he had founded in that locality, some of which lay at a distance of a journey of six months from St. Boniface. Father Faraud, whose missionary labours would require a volume to enumerate, was, as we have already stated, named bishop of the new diocese. Major Butler thus speaks in his work, The Great AND ! often 3 arms Father said to liere I These e deatli la. He r, with- cup of )rociired desolate awaited such unto m ers it was [gions of Ivas due trom OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MAAY, 241 Lone Land, of the Oblate Missionaries in Saskat- chewan: — ■ r " A few miles north-west of Edmonton, a settlement com- posed exclusively of French half-breeds, is situated on the shores of a rather extensive lake which bears the name of Grand Lac. This settlement is presided over by a mission of French Roman Catholic clergymen of the order of Ob- lates, headed by a bishop of the same order and nationahty. It is a curious contrast to find in this distant and strange land, men of culture and high mental excellence, devocing their lives to the task of civilizing the wild Indians of the forest and the prairie — going far in advance of the settler, whose advent they have but too much cause to dread. I care not what may be the form of belief which the on-looker may hold — whether it be in unison or in antagonism with that faith preached by these men ; but he is only a poor sem- blance of a man who can behold such a sight through the narrow glass of sectarian feeling, and see in it nothing but the self-interested labour of persons holding opinions foreign to his own. He who has travelled through the vast colonial empire of Britain — that empire which covers one-third of the entire habitable surface of the globe, and probably half of the lone lands of the world — must often have met with men dwelling in the midst of wild, savage peoples, whom they tended with a strange and mother-like devotion. If you asked who was this stranger who dwelt thus among wild men in these lone places, you were told he was the French missionary ; and if you sought hiir. in his lonely hut, you found ever the same surroundings, the same simple evidences of a faith which seemed more than human. I do not speak from hearsay or book-knowledge. I have myself witnessed the scenes I now try to recall. And it has ever been the same ; East and West, far in advance of trader or merchant, of sailor or soldier, has gone this dark-haired, fragile man, whose earliest memories are thick with sunny scenes by bank B 242 8KETGBE8 OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZSNOD, AND of Loire or vine-clad slope of Rhone or Garonne, and whose vision in this life, at least, is never destined to rest again upon these oft-remembered places To these French missionaries at Grand Lac I was the bearer of terrible tidings. I carried to them the story of Sedan, the over- whelming rush of armed Germany into the heart of France — the closing of the high-schooled hordes of Teuton savagery around Paris ; all that was hard home news to hear. Fate had leant heavily upon that little congregation ; out of 900 souls more than 300 had perished of small-pox up to the date of my arrival, and others were still sick in the huts along the lake. Well might the bishop and his priests bow their heads in the midst of such manifold tribulations of death and disaster." ,,,,... u ' During the days spent in the Mountain House, I en- joyed the society of the most enterprising and best informed missionary in the Indian countries — M. Lacombe. This gentleman, a native of Lower Canada, has devoted himself for more than twenty years to the Blackfeet and Crees of the far West, sharing their sufferings, their hunts, their summer journeys, and their winter camps — sharing even, unwillingly, their war forays and night assaults. The devo- tion which he has evinced towards these poor wild warriors has not been thrown away upon them, and Pere Lacombe is the only man who can pass and repass from Blackfoot camp to Cree camp with perfect impunity when theso long- lasting enemies are at war." •^ OF TEB LAJBOUBS OF TEE OBLATES OF MAHY. 248 '' ».' .'.,.'■•' ' "«■'■• CHAPTER XVII. To St. Albeet's one day came, to the surprise of the Fathers, a deputation from the war-like tribe of the Blackfeet, who up to that time had given but little hopes of their conversion to Christianity. The tribe had been smitten with the dread scourge of the Indian small-pox. The object of the deputation was to invite Father Lacombe, who, notwithstanding their being pagans, was well known to them, to ac- company them to their camp. He had just then re- . turned from a distant and very difficult mission among the Crees tribes. Although he was greatly fatigued, he set out at once on his visit to the plague-stricken tribe of the Blackfeet. Thus the foundation was laid of that marvellous influence he afterwards was to exercise over that warrior race. Before his return to St. Albert's, he had the hap- piness of baptizing four hundred persons of that tribe. The following letter, written by him to the Superior- General, after a visit to the Crees tribe, will show how well he knew how to combine th© 244 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND functions of the spiritual with those of the temporal hushandman, and how to intermingle the sowing of the seed of the bread that perisheth, with that of the Heavenly bread that springeth up to life ever- lasting. He writes : — " " At the end of May I went up the river Saskatchewan, until I reached the newly-founded mission of St. Paul. There, crowds of Indians were awaiting me. Their object was to make, under my direction, their first attempt in sow- ing barley and potatoes." The good Father had, with great difficulty, con- veyed to that spot, a plough and other farm imple- ments, together with a supply of different sorts of seeds. He continues : — " In two hours after my arrival my plough was yoked, and all was in readiness to begin operations. I was the only white man present. Two Indians led the oxen, I handled the plough. You could not hav3 helped smiling had you been there, in seeing at work the amateur ploughman, sur- rounded and followed by several hundred Indians, men, women and children, who stared with amazement as they beheld the ploughshare furrowing so easily and rapidly the surface of the ground. After a few days I succeeded in tilling a considerable surface. I then divided the tilled ground into little square patches, one of which I assigned to each family. I spent thus several weeks with my newly- trained agricultural labourers, many of whom were Chris- tians, and several others were under instruction. At Iftst we had to separate ; the time for buffalo hunting, which is their only means of supporting themselves, and escaping starvation, had co9imenced. I w&s griev^ to have to OF TEE LABOUnS OF JUS OBLATSS OF MARY. 245 leave them, as they seemed so well disposed and so fiill of kind feeling for me. I promised to visit them again in the course of the summer." con- Father Lacombe having spent some months at St. Albert's, set out again to visit the Crees tribe. Finding that they had not returned to St. Paul's Mission, he went to seek them in the buffalo hunt- ing grounds. They received him with great mani- festations of joy. He then commenced a mission amongst them, the exercises of which he thus de- scribes: — '^''\ ■- ''^'''■\'k:'^'- ->:'- " In the morning, after my private devotions, I assembled the women in the middle of the camp. I taught them their prayers and several hymns, I afterwards gave them an in- struction ; they then returned to their occupations, and I proceeded to visit the sick ; after which work of charity I visited those who were unwilling to come to the instructions, or in other words, who were unwilling to pray. I listened to the different objections they had to offer, and answered them. I afterwards had to act as Justice of the Peace, to arrange their differences and disputes with one another. About noon I rang my little bell to bring the children to- gether. Their eagerness to come to my instructions consoled me very much. In a few moments I was surrounded by crowds of little Indians, who loved me as their father, and who joined with me in singing hymns with all the vigour of their lungs. After this exercise I withdrew into a neigh- bouring wood to enjoy a little quiet, and to have an oppor- tunity of performing my private devotions. I then resumed my round of visits to those poor savages that I had failed to see in the morning. In the evening I brought the men together and preached to them j after which I entered iuto convers^- w ll . If. 246 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DS MAZBXOD, AND tion with them, and each one addressed whatever questions he pleased with reference to our holy religion, whilst leisurely smoking his * calumet,' or long Indian pipe. On Sundays all assisted together at the Holy Mass, the Rosary, and other exercises of piety. It was thus that day after day was spent during the six weeks I remained there. In the meantime the crops ripened at St. Paul's, and the Indians, on their return from their hunting fields, were delighted with the success of their first agricultural enterprise, and encouraged to renew the experiment." Father Lacombe, in obedience to the wishes of Monseigneur Tach^, renewed his visit to the tribe of the Blackfeet. On the occasion of that visit, the life of this apostolic priest was exposed to imminent danger, from which the hand of God alone rescued him. We will allow him to tell his own story : — " In the camp of the Blackfeet I was lodged in the tent of the great chieftain of the tribe. His name was Natous, which signifies the Sun. The tribe was divided into three camps. The camp in which I was located was composed of forty-five lodges, in a second camp there were fifty, and in a third there were sixty lodges. I give you these details in order that you may be the better able to picture to yourself the frightful scene which I am now about to describe. " On the day of my arrival, I earnestly urged the Black- feet to unite the three camps into one, as a precaution against an attack, that might be made upon them, by some hostile tribe. My advice, however, was not followed. Ou the evening of the 4th of December, having finished the re- ligious service for the men, night prayers having been said, and the usual hjrmns sung, each one withdrew to his own lodge for the night. I remained alone with the chieftain and his family in their lod^e. OW THB LAB0UB8 OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. 247 " I lay down on my humble couch to take the repose I needed. Alas ! I had no idea that at that hour a host of enemies were lying in ambuBh all around us, concealed in the wood, who were only waiting for our fires to be extin- guished to rush upon us in the darkness. They were about a thousand in aU, and were composed of the Assiniboines, of the Sauteaux, and of the Orees, who had come from the borders of the Beaver River. " We were all buried in profound sleep ; suddenly Natous sprang from his bed, and in a lugubrious tone cried out — * Assinan, Assinan — ^the Crees, the Crees.' He had scarcely uttered these words, when a sudden discharge of musketry took place, and showers of balls pierced our lodges from every side. The lodge in which I was, being the chieftain's, was more conspicuous and exposed to the fire, than any other ; but, I must say, that the attacking tribes were quite ignorant of the fact of my being in the camp of the Black- feet at the time, for our Indians (even though pagans) would never dare to attack a camp, if they knew a priest to be in it. " My beloved Father, I cannot tell you all I suffered that terrible night. I seized my cassock, and dressed quickly. I kissed my crucifix, and made an offering of my life to God. I then hung at my side the bag that contained the holy oils, in order to be prepared to give Extreme Unction to the dying. All the time, bullets were whizzing through the air. I advanced in front of the enemy's lines, hoping to be recognized ; but my efforts to attract their attention were fruitless. The din and confusion that prevailed, prevented them noticing me. It would be hard to describe the horrors of that scene. The night was pitch dark ; the lurid flashes of the musketry were the only lights visible. The war shouts of the contending tribes, and the rallying voices of their chieftains, mingled in frightful discord with the cries of despair of the wounded and the dying, with the wailing of women and the screams of terrified children, who knew I ':i vi m ii ill fe •'? Li t' 'It ' m 248 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF JitOR J>K MA/.ENOJ), AXD not wtiither to fly for safety. Added to these horrible noises were the loud neighing of the horses and the wild howlings of the dogs. To increase our misery, we had only a few men to defend us, as the greater number had gone to the hunting plains. " If God had not, in an especial manner, protected us, not one of us would have escaped with his life. When I found that it was impossible to make known -to the assailants the fact of my being present, and thereby stopping the ca nage, I urged the chieftains of the Blackfeet courageously to de- fend their people, even though it might cost them their lives. For my own part, I hastened to attend to the wounded and the dying. As I passed near these poor fallen and bleeding Indians, they grasped at my cassock, or seized my hand in theirs, unwilling to lose their hold of me, crying out at the same time, * Kimmo Kinnan, dgimo hekkat ! ' * Have pity upon us ! Pray for us ! ' " The first victim whom I met was a young woman ; she fell mortally wounded at my feet, at the moment she was leaving her lodge. I stooped down at once and asked her if she wished to die a Christian, to which she replied in the affirmative. B} the flashes of the musketry I was, fortu- nately, able to see near me a vessel full of water, a por- tion of which I poured upon her head and baptized her. In a few moments after the enemy rushed into her lodge and mercilessly scalped her as she lay dying. " Twenty-five lodges were in all destroyed. I lost every- thing with the exception of my breviary. In the meantime, the fighting men of the other camps of the Blackfeet hear- ing of the attack, came to our help. Thus reinforced, we repelled three attempts of the enemy to capture our camp. I awaited daybreak with impatience ; 1 felt that dreadful night to be painfully long. The next morning I vested ray- self in surplice and stole, and holding in one hand a crucifix, and in the other a flag of truce, I advanced between the combatants. The B^ckfeet ceased firing, but the Crees not OF TUB LABOTTJiS OF THE 0BLATB8 OF MARY, 249 'fPlI noises dings a few to Iho IS, not found its the I nage, to de- ir lives, ed and leeding land in ; at the ive pity seeing me, owing to a thick mist which hid me from them, continued still to discharge their weapons. Whilst I was vainly seeking to attract their notice, bullets were falling like hail around me. At last, a bullet, which most likely had rebounded from the ground, struck me, first on the shoulder and then on the forehead. 1 staggered under the shock, but did not fall. A cry was raised by the Blackfeet, * You have wounded the Priest,' which, when the Crees heard, they immediately answered, ' "We did not know the Priest was with you ; as he is with you we will cease fighting.' Nearly one hundred fell that night killed and wounded. " After the battle, the Blackfeet came in crowds to em- brace and to thank me. They said there must be something more tha,n human about me, as the bullets seemed to have no power of hurting me. Ah ! perhaps God wished to make manifest to those poor pagans. His power and His goodness towards those who put their trust in Him, and to show them the fulfilment of those words of the Psalmist, * His truth will compass thee with a shield. Thou shalt not be afraid of the terror of the night, or of the arrow that Jlieth in the day.' " In the pillage of the camp I lost all I possessed, clothes, blankets, my horses — everything. I had not wherewith to cover my head, or to protect myself from the intense cold of the season. " The day following the battle, notwithstanding our being fatigued and worn out by the suifcrings we had passed through, we were compelled to set out upon a journey of twenty miles to join another camp of the Blackfeet, with whom I remained for ten days. At the end of that time I prepared to return to the Fort of the Mountain. The task of reaching that point was not one of easy accomplishment. I was poorly clad, the cold was intense, and the snow was very deep. During the six days the journey lasted, I suf- fered in turn from hunger, cold, and fatigue. When I reached the Fort, Mr. Hardisty, the representative of th^ m m ti ^i'' m H- m 260 SKETCH JtS OF THE LIFE CP MOS. LE MAEENOD, AND Hudson Bay Company, and his family, came to meet me. This gentleman could not help shedding tears on mtnessing ray wretched and impoverished condition. He supplied mo with clothes, and provided me with the best and most nu- tritious food he could procure. He treated me as kindly as if I were his own father. Under the cheering influence of a hospitality so kind and generous, I soon forgot the severe mental and bodily sufferings through which I had lately passed." A few months later on we find Father Lacombe rendering to a forlorn band of Indians, whom he mot near the river Saskatchewan, services still more strik- ing than those we have just spoken of, as having been rendered to himself. They belonged to the nation of the Blackfeet. They were the remnant of a tribe that had been ovei'powered by the superior numbers of a hostile band. They had been robbed of every- thing, and when he met them they had been without food for three days, and were almost naked. Some had been severely wounded, and their wounds were still undressed. Father Lacombe's compassionate heart was deeply moved at sight of all this misery, and he could not refrain from tears. He gave them all his provisions — he washed and bound up their wounds — he clad those that were most naked in his own warm clothing, reducing himself to a condition almost as wretched as that in which he found them. Moreover he lent them his two horses, and continued his journey on foot to St. Albert's, or THB LABOURS OT THX OBLATBS OF MART. 251 After such deeds of self-sacrificing charity in their hehalf, we need not be surprised at the holy sway he exercised in their midst. On a subsequent occasion, as he was journeying alone in the wilderness, ho suddenly came upon a poor, aged, and dying Indian. He was a pagan. Father Lacombe's zeal, aided by Divine grace, suc- ceeded in rescuing from infidelity the soul of this dying man. He remained with him till he died. Shortly before his death, he asked him : "Do you love God?" The dying India,n, fetching a deep sigh, exclaimed : " Would that I had known Him sooner ! " What were those words but the echoes of those once spoken by St. Augustin : "0 Beauty, ever ancient and ever new, too late have I known Thee, too late have I loved Thee ! " This latter circumstance was related to the writer of these pages, by Father Lacombe himself, whose acquaintance he had the happiness of making on the occasion of that devoted missionary's visit to Europe, after his r ^idence of nearly a quarter of a century amidst the Eed Indians of North America. One of the chief difiiculties experienced by the Oblate Missionaries among the Red Indian tribes, was the complete want of books of any sort to help in learning their languages. Father Lacombe di- rected his great literary capabilities to the remedying of this want. He composed a great dictionary and "i;. 252 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND grammar of the Crees language, which is spoken by- several large tribes. For twenty years he laboured at these works, having no materials to draw from but the sounds of the words as he heard them spoken in the Crees tribes. . ^ Father Lacombe, during his loTsg missionary career amidst the tribes of British North America, had two leading objects ever before his mind ; first, their spiritual regeneration, and secondly, their introduc- tion into such habits of civilized life as they were capable of adopting. To each of these great objects he devoted himself with the zeal of an apostle. We have given some pages of his missionary life in the desert. These, we should say, were only fragments of a gref.t circle of labours and privations, embracing a period exceeding a quarter of a century. We are glad to have the following independent testimony at ]\aL^, in support of our statements, relative to Father Lacombe's intelligent and energetic efforts in sowing the seeds of civilization among the Indian tribes which he evangelized. Lord Milton and Dr. Cheadle, in their joint work North West Passaic by Land^ speak thus of Father Lacombe: cr,::' -;..;■,;:. v. ^ ,..-.r, .v,-- .■.-■■■. ..,,■•..-.,:..„.- •' We xbund a little colony of some twenty houses, built on the rising ground near a snii^U lake and river. A sub- stantial wooden bridge spanned the latter, the only structure OF THE LABOURS Oi THE OILATES OF MARY. 253 of the kind we had 'seen in the Hudson Bay territory. The priest's house was a pretty white building, with garden round it, and adjoining it the chapel, school, and nunnery. The worthy father, M. Lacombe, was standing in front of his dwelling as we came up, and we at once introduced our- selves. " P^re Lacombe was an exceedingly intelligent man, and we found his society very agreeable. Although a French Canadian, he spoke English very fluently, and his knowledge of the Cree language was acknowledged by the half-breeds to be superior to their own. Gladly accepting his invitation to stay and dine, we followed him into his house, which con- tained only a single room, with a sleeping loft above. The furniture consisted of a small table and a couple of rough chairs, and the walls were adorned with coloured prints, amongst which were a portrait of his Holiness the Pope, and another of the Bishop of Red River. After a capital dinner we strolled round the settlement m company with our host. He showed us several very respectable farms, with rich corn-fields, large banJs of horses, and herds of fat cattle. He had devoted himself to the work of improving the condition of his flock, had brought oxit, at great expense, ploughs and other farming implements for their use, and was at present completing a corn mill, to be worked by horse power. He had built a chapel, and established schools for the half-breed children. The substantial bridge we had crossed was the result of his exertions. Altogether this little settlement was the most flourishing community we had seen since leaving Red River. They have established stations at L'lle El la Crosse, St. Alban's, St. Ann't*, and other places, fur out in the wilds, undeterred by danger or hardship, and gathering hnlf-breeds and Indians around them, have taught with considerable success t'-^'? elements of civilization as well as of religion.^' ::_ The Earl of Southe&k, in his work, Saskatchewan 'fur 254 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MQR. BE MAZENOD, AND m and the Rocky Mountains^ published in Edinburgh in 1875, speaks in the following terms of his visit to Father Lacombe, at St. Ann's, Maniton Lake: — On our arrival at St. Ann's, we proceeded to the mission, where we met with a most cordial reception. We had the pleasure of dining with Peres Lacombe and La Fraine, at the Roman Catholic mission house ; agreeable men and per- fect gentlemen. What an advantage Rome has in this respect She sends polished, highly educated men to supply her missions. On the pressing invitation of my kind host, I remained for the night at the mission house. Everything wonderfully neat and flourishing ; the cows fat and fine — the horses the same — the dogs the same — the very cats the same. A well arranged and well kept garden gay with many flowers, some of the commonest flowers of the woods brought to perfection by care and labour. The house beautifully clean, the meals served up as in a gentleman's dining room. Everything made use of and turned to account." A few years previously that spot was a howling wilderness, the Red man's hunting ground. Now it is the site of a model farm and of a model habita- tion. We use here the word model in its fullest and most practical sense. Father Lacombe intended that his house and farm should serve as a means of attraction to civilized life, for the tribes that tra- versed the surrounding woods and prairies. He wished that they should also serve as a model, to be copied by those Indians and half-breeds who, re- W]fi^ OF THF LABOURS OF TEE OBLATHS OF MART. 255 nouncing the nomad life, would choose to become settlers and cultivators of the soil. Unlike the desolate regions of the Mackenzie, Saskatchewan presents, in some districts, vast plains of extra- ordinary fertility which, by cultivation, might be- come one of the granaries of the world. Father Lacombe's hand was the first that guided a plough- share through the plains of Saskatchewan. Through his exertions was the first bridge constructed, and the first mill erected, in that vast district. But commerce and civilization are indebted to him for a work of greater magnitude than any yet named. He was the first to demonstrate the practicability of a roadway across the great desert lying between Saskatchewan and Fort Garry. He undertook to explore that then unknown region. He started with an escort of three or four Indians, from St. Ann's, Maniton Lake, and pursued his way for twelve hun- dred miles across countless rivers, and through swamps and forests, and boundless prairies, until he reached Fort Garry. His object in undertaking this journey was to find out a direct way for the forwarding of supplies to the missions of the distant north. The caravans of the Hudson Bay Company now follow in that route ; but it should be remem- bered that it was the oart-wheels of the humble missionary that first left a track upon that great highway to the north. I 25G SKMTCUKS OF lUE LliJ£ OF MOM, DE MAZESOJ), AND CHAPTEK XVIII. The example of Father Lacombe was to be followed, in many notable items, by his brother Oblate, the learned and devoted Father Petitot. To the labours of this Father we owe most important addi- tions to the infant literature of British America, in the far north-west, as we shall see in its proper place. Early in April, 1864, we find Father Petitot at Fort Eae, engaged in the work of evangelizing the tribe of the Dog-ribbed Indians. The Indians of this tribe had all, without exception, been admitted to the grace of Holy Baptism by the Oblate mission- aries. Father Petitot derived great consolation from the faith and fervour exhibited by them during his stay among them. He hesitates not to compare their true Christian piety to that of the early Christians. He writes : — *' I was deeply moved at the compunction thoy manifested in f- . ousing themselves of very venial faults, and also by the simple, child-like fervour with which they addressed their prayers aloud to God. I never heard prayers more earnest AND OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 257 lowed, )blate, ro the t addi- rica, in proper or touching, uttered by anybody. I had the happiness of preparing a young Indian for death shortly after my arrivaL Before breathing his last, he made a sign to me with his hand to signify that God was calling him to heaven. In seeing this poor youth as he lay dying on the bare ground in a miserable tent, with the cold wind playing around him, I was filled with a sentiment of entire confidence in the Divine mercy in his regard. * No,' I said, * it is not possible that God will be a severe Judge for this poor savage. Those eyes that are now about to close, cannot open again without seeing heaven. He is now covered with rags, and plunged in deepest misery, but when from under the worn deer-skin rouf of his miserable tent, he lifts his eyes to heaven, and calls God by the name of Father, will He come to him as an angry Judge ? Will He treat him with that rigour that we civilized men deserve ? Oh no, to that poor savage He will be all mercy.' " ir " titot at ing tlie dians of dmitted Qflission- on from ing Hs ire their :istiaiis. lanifested ^so by the ssed their Ire earnest On the 6th of May, about the time when Father Potitot's mission to the Dog-ribbed Indians closed, he was visited at Fort Rae by a deputation from the tribe of the Trakwelotine, composed of the chief, Satle-Nakrasya, and eleven young Indians, none of whom, with the exception of the chief, were yet Christians. Their object was to induce Father Petitot to visit their tribe. Kakrasya addressed him in a long discourse, with the object of gaining his consent to the proposed visit to his tribe. Among other things, he said : " Our old people are dying without baptism. None of the women or children of our tribe have been, as yet, washed in the water of God. Nobody has been married before .. j church." s. 258 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOB. 1)E MAZEiroJ), AND Father Petitot did not require niiich further per- suasion to induce him to comply with the request of the good chief, !N'akrasya. It should he remarked, that some of the men of the Trakwelotine trihe had been instructed and baptized by missionaries, whom they met when selling their furs at certain posts of the company. It had come to Father Petitot's know- ledge that some medicine-men, or sorcerers, Imow- ing the desire of the Indians of that tribe to see a priest, pretended that they were priests, and drew many into their snares. Knowing this to be the case. Father Petitot felt that he ought not to lose any time in accepting the invitation which he had received. On the 9th of May he commenced his journey, in company with the twelve Indians who had come to seek for him. On the fourth day after their depar- ture provisions began to run short. That day Father Petitot received only a few ounces of diicd meat. The next day his only food was a small piece of a candle. They pitched their tents that evening. on the borders of the lake Kamitzse, which is situated about 64° north latitude. They lay supporless that night on the cold ground beside the frozen lake. The next morning they resumed their journey with- out breaking their fast. " Have patience," his guides said to him, " before mid-day we shall have plenty of the fiesh of the moose-deer to eat, for we iND OF TIIE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MART. 259 per- 3St of jkcd, e liad whom osts of Imow- Imow- see a d drew "be the b to lose . lie had imcy, m come to [ir depav- liat day of di-icd .all piece evening Is situated frless that ,zen lahe. fney with- ce," his jhall have it, for \vc shall meet before then with a large encampment of 'onr tribe,' at the foot of yonder mountain." At the hour they named they reached the mountain to which they had pointed, but its base was silent and solitary, and no sign of living man could be found there. They, however, discovered signs that bespoke the presence nigh to them of the remains of a de- parted Indian. On a gentle slope of the mountain's base, which ran out into the lake, they saw a cross encircled by a palisade, within which was the grave of an Indian Christian. The fragments of a camp that had been hastily raised lay scattered around the spot. The Indians have a horror of remaining encamped nigh to any place where one of their tribe has been buried. The presence of the little cemetery accounted for the departure from their encampment of the tribe which Father Petitot and his Indian companions had been expecting to meet at the foot of the mountain spoken of. , - - Hungry, foot-sore, and exhausted, they sat on the shores of the lake, looking with prolonged and searching glance into the little bays that expanded on every side, to discover, if possible, some traces of the missing tribe. But their search was in vain. Their dogs were dying of hunger. For several days the poor brutes had nothing to live on but some morsels of burnt parchment. After a rest of a couple of hours they resumed their journey, without ^ipw 260 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGE. BE MAZENOD, AND knowing what direction was best for them to take. They aiTived at a long portage, through a thick wood, at the end of which they came in view of another hike, named Turakaiie. It was the twell'th important lake which Father Petitot discovered since he left Fort Eae. But no sign or sound of human life had become as yet visible or audible. At last, as they were going to explore a distant bay in the last-named lake, the keen glance of the Indians discovered, in the snow, the footprints of u moose-deer. At a short distance in advance, human footprints also became visible. The Indians, at the same time, scented in the air the srnoke of a near encampment. Immediately they commenced shout- ing with joy and firing shots in the air. Presently they were answered by a discharge of guns in the distance, and in a short time they found themselves in the midst of a crowd of Indians. Father retitot was filled with liveliest sentiments of gratitude to God for this deliverance from the horrors of a death by hunger in the desert. He knelt and ofiered, on the spot, fervent prayers of thanksgiving, before entering into communication with the Indians whom he and his party had thus providentially met. The main body of the tribe were collected at a short dis- tance, on a small island in the lake. On Father Petitot reaching the island, he was quickly sur- rounded by a wondering crowd, scai'cely any of OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 261 whom had ever seen a white man till then. "We shall allow him to describe, in his own words, the scone that followed the events we have been relating, and also to give us the narrative of his labours on that occasion : — " The whole population was collected on a little islet in tlic lake. Long files of Indians came do^vn from the rocks. Little children were the first to gather around me. When I reached the little island I was literally besieged by the throng ; everybody tried to shake hands with me. 'Marciy Mfirci,' — welcome, welcome — rang from every lip. I was deeply touched at such a reception. These poor savages had never seen a priest or a white man before. They examined me from head to foot, wondered at my beard and spectacles, but were chiofly attracted by my cross. I made a sign that I wished to speak to them, and immediately a corpulent old man, with long white hair, the great chieftain of the tribe, whose name was Sanaindi, ordered everybody to sit :^own. A\'licn they were seated, I said to them, 'Knowing that my childi-en of the forest wished to see their Father, in order to receive from him the water of God, the blessed water of Baptism, and to become Christians, I hastened to come among them, not regarding the distance or the diiRculties of my journey. But that having come, I expected to find on their part docility to my words, the complete cessation of all practices of Likransc — sorcery — and fidelity to the com- mandments of God.' They answered by repeated cries of ' Tanan, Tanan* to express their satisfaction with all 1 had said. ■.,:..■ ■,. ...• ** Though many thought of gratifying their curiosity by scrutinizing my exterior person, nobody thought of satisfjdng the cravings of my hunger, which now had become insup- portable 1 was forced to speak of my extreme need of food to the old chieftain, lie took the matter very coolly, 262 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOH. DE MAZENOD, AND and informed mo that the whole tribe, even the children, were then two days without food themselves, but that they expected that the young men, who had gone to fish and hunt, would return the next day with plenty of provisions for everybody. This discouraging answer only whetted my appetite the more. I had tasted nothing since I had eaten a piece of candle two days previously. " Having spoken with me for about two hours, they be- thought themselves of the necessity of preparing their en- campment. I had met them on thoir march as they were coming to meet me. Presently they were all astir getting ready to go to the place of encampment. Each one went to his own sledge and yoked his dogs. The little children were placed in empty cauldrons or sacks, which were firmly tied to the sledges. The old men and women, and the children able to walk, as well as the able-bodied men, put on their great snow shoes, and the whole tribe set out in march- ing order. It was the first time I had witnessed a like spectacle, and it had a special charm for me. Far as the eye could reach along the frozen lake, stretched out a seem- ingly endless line of sledges and dogs. The women advan- ced, bearing heavy burdens on their shoulders, the men carried gaily their muskets and tambours, and at either side of this singular procession the children and the young men bounded along joyously, some guiding the sledges, others amusing themselves in using their bows and arrows, which they always carried with them. I had to dtj like the rest, and put on my snow shoes and yoke my sledge. Having reached the place of encampment, everybody set about raising his own hut. I sat wearied and forgotten in their midst. I was too much fatigued to construct my hut. At last a cliif^f- tain perceived my embarrassment, and gave orders to two young men to raise a hut for me, which was constructed of sufiicient size to servo also as a chapel. That same day I opened the exercises of the mission, and baptized two Indians who were on the point of death. That evening I broke my T^i ! f j.J OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MARY. 203 long fast by eating a morsel of a beaver's tail and a few shreds of dry fish. The next day wo had an abundance of food in the camp, owing to the passage of largo herds of door on their way to the sea shore. ** On the Feast of Pentecost I sang High Mass, which was preceded by a sermon in Montaignais. After the Mass I baptiiicd sixty children in thrco different batches. At the end of the ceremony I suffered from complete extinction of voice, being exhausted by the fasting, and by tlie several discourses I had to deliver. The following days I baptized uinety-soven children, in all 157. This important duty ac- complished, I gave myself up entirely to the instruction of adults. For this object I brought them together in groups of fifteen at a time, by ringing a little bell, and got them to repeat several times the answers of the little catechism, in their own language, together with the Lord's prayer and tho Hail Mary. Such was their desire to become instructed in the truths of our holy religion, that day and night I used to hear them repeat over to themselves tho instructions which I had given them. At tho end of fifteen days the greater number of these poor Indians were as well instnictcd in the chief truths of the Christian religion as many Christians living in older missions. I judged them to be sufficiently instructed to receive holy Baptism, which they earnestly asked for, and of which they showed themselves Avorthy by their good conduct. I had to hear tho confessions of this multitude, and to pass several days seated in my poor tent, into which the rain and snow entered, with my feet in wet mud and my limbs half frozen. But my sufferings seemed to cost mo nothing, I felt so happy in labouring for the good of these poor people." Father Petitot thought it prudent not to celebrate the holy sacrifice of the Mass in presence of the whole camp, but solely in presQaoo of those who IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 7 /. {/ p.< :a i/.x 1.0 I.I 1.25 vs. IM I4£ IM 2? 2.0 |||||m 1.4 III 1.6 Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 & h. ^ vV 264 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOB. J)E MA2EN0D, AND were already sufficiently instructed to be able to assist at it with proper reverence. This provoked the jealousy of those who were not permitted to be present at Mass. In the camp there were four sorcerers — medicine-men — who availed themselves of the irritation thus caused to raise a storm of op- position to Father Petitot amongst a certain portion of the tribe. They succeeded in assembling the majority of. the tribe on a hill overhanging their camp. There they erected a Chosineh^ or Sorcery Lodge, within which they were permitted to renew the practice of jugglery, which the tribes had pro- mised to renounce on the arrival of Father Petitot. He says : — " Being informed of these fav^ts by one of my neophytes, I hurried to the spot where the sorcerers had assembled the multitude. There I found all the infidel sorcerers squatted on their heels, swaying their bodies wildly to and fro like idiots. On seeing me they appeared to be disconcerted, and half- afraid to continue theii* proceedings. Nevertheless they did not give up their wild ridiculous chant, until, striking my hands together, I commanded silence, and or^ )red them to disperse immediately. All the Indians prepared to obey me, when suddenly the most fanatical of the sorcerers sprang for- ward, with a countenance purple with rage, and darting upon me glances flaming with anger, cried out, as one possessed with an evil spirit, * Who are you, to come here to trouble us? You do not see God, as you acknowledge yourself, but I speak to Him face \i face. You render no service to us, for you refuse to baptize us. Go your way and leave us.* J answered, * I take you at your word, I will go away to- OF TEE LABOUSS OF TEB OBLATES OF MABT. 265 morrow, but I will leave you in the hands of God, whom no one insults unpunished.* I then withdrew from the assem- bly. The crowd, terrified by these few words, quickly dis- persed, leaving the four sorcerers alone. I had not been long in my tent, when I was visited by great numbers, ~ho came to express their regret at what had happened. The three chieftains of the tribe came to me, one after another, to urge me not to leave them, and to assure me that every- body disavowed the words spoken to me by the chief sorcerer Ekwi-takfwe." Spring-time had now set in. The warm rays of the sun began sensibly to affect the solidity of the ice upon the lakes. Further delay in their position would be full of danger to all the tribe. The camp was quickly broken up, and everbody, includ- ing Father Petitot, tiet out upon the march over the still frozen lake. Though a safe footing was afforded to the travellers over the chief portion of the vast frozen surfaces they had to traverse, yet there was an unusual rising and sinking of the ice on which they trod, which was unpleasantly sugges- tive of imminent danger, and caused them to hasten their pace towards their journey's end. Sledges could not be used in consequence of the dangerous state o.f the ice. Father Petitot had to carry all his effects upon his shoulders, over dangerous lakes and across rugged mountains. At last they reached the lake, by whose shores the tribe had, the previous year, at the approach of winter, stowed away their 266 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. DE MAZENOD, AND canoes, which they now came in search of. It was there Father Petitot brought his mission to the tribe of the Trakwelotine to a close, by the erection of a large cross, twenty feet in height, which the Indians themselves had constructed. With di£Biculty the devoted missionary withdrew himself from the em- braces of these poor Indians, who wept loudly at his departure, and begged of him not to fail to return to them the following year. As Fatho. Petitot' s zeal oftentimes led him into the midst of tribes that were not only indifferent, but also hostile to Christianity, his life was fre- quently exposed to very grave dangers. On one occasion, when approaching a great rapid on the Mackenzie Eiver, the crew of his bark, who were twenty-one in number, and all pagans of the Peaux de Licvre tribe, formed a conspiracy to murder him. They resolved to throw him into the rapid. They were not aware that he understood their language, they consequently spoke freely to one another of their design. Their superstitious dispositions had been worked upon by certain sorcerers, who made them believe that all their maladies and other mis- fortunes arose from the presence of the priests. They resolved to kill, first Father Petitot, and after- wards Father Seguin and brother Kearney. Father Petitot writes : — *' I was acc^uaiuteclwith thoir plot, whon I saw thorn pe* OF TSE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY. 267 paring to lay hands upon me. Before thuy had time to do so, I openly declared to them that I was fully aware of what they were about, and that they might, if they thought fit, take my life, as under such circumstances I was not afraid to die, and that I would willingly offer up the sacrifice of myself in their behalf. * Act now,' I said, ' if you think proper, I will not defend myself.' This sudden display of energy on my part quite disconcerted them. They were profuse in their denials of any evil intentions, and in pro- testations of respect towards me. But they said to one another, * It is now more than ever necessary that he should die, for he knows our secret. To save our lives from the white men we must kill him.' It is needless to say I did not close my eyes that night. Our bark was left to follow the current, with one steersman to guide it. Four were told off to watch for an opportunity of killing me. All were not equally cruel ; some manifested pity for me, but they were too afraid of the others, to make much show of their good- will. One, however, had the courage to say, * Your project makes me sick, my head aches in thiuldng of it. I will have nothing to do with it.' ** I prayed during the whole night, and begged of God, through the intercession of our Blessed Lady, to prevent so groat a crime being accomplished. I counted my Rosary beads all the while. At the same time I prepared myself, as well as I could, for death, and felt joyful — oh yes, very joyful ut the prospect of dying a martyr's death. Alas ! I was not worthy of it. My would-be murderers put off the execution of their plan until they should find mo asleep. Their courage to strike me failed them, as they saw I was uwakc. A gentle word or a smile on my part sufficed again and again, during the niglit, to hold them back, when they were about to lift their hands against mo. " The day rose, and then they resolved to cast mo over- board into the next rapid. They had already arranged about tho divisiun of my clothes aud offeots. Their courog© 268 SKETCHES OF TEE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZEXOB, AND again failed them, and I arrived unharmed at the sanctuary of our Lady of Good Hope, my Protectress." Father Petitot was, in September, 1872, at Good Hope. At the request of Monseigneur Glut, ho translated the Gatechism and the Prayer Manual into the Peaux de Li^vre language. A young In- dian of that tribe, who was then a Gatechumen, named Gamillus, rendered him great assistance as a catechist. Other young Indians emulated the ex- ample of Gamillus, and eagerly sought to become well instructed themselves, in order to be able to instruct others. At the end of November, Father Petitot under- took a long journey to the north east of Fort Good Hope. His only companion was a little Indian boy named Tadigale, fourteen years of age. He walked 900 miles during that journey, iv his great snow shoes. He visited on his way several camps of the Peaux de Li^vre Indians. He traversed, whilst on that missonary expedition, 160 frozen lakes, and crossed over thirteen great rivers. He approached the barren grounds that border the Polar Sea, and arrived c}ose to the banks of the Anderson Eiver, which falls into the Bay of Liverpool. On the fifth day after his departure from Fort Good Hope, he and his little companion were crossing a large frozen lake, surrounded by im- mense barren steppes. As they passed under the OF TEE LABOUSS OF TEB OBLATES OF MART. 269 brow of a high promontory, they suddenly found themselves confronted by a pack of seven white wolves, of immense size. These monsters, who were raging with hunger, howled fiercely, and formed themselves into a semi-circle around the travellers, as if to cut off their chance of escape. They then made three boimds forward towards their intended victims. Father Pelitot and his companion had no weapon of defence ready at hand, everything was tightly packed up on the sledge. To undo the baggage and secure a pair of hatchets was Father Petitot's immediate object. He and his companion retained their self-possession, and kept theii* eyes steadily and boldly fixed upon the ravenous mon- sters, which still held back, but yet seemed ready to make the final spring upon their prey. Coolly and quickly Father Petitot undid his well-laced bag- gage, and secured the hatchets, and then put his sledge in order for a sudden advance. The dogs, which at first had taken the wolves for deer, were going to rush upon them, now discovering their mistake, sought to take flight, and had to be held firmly by the Indian boy, to be prevented from doing so. The sledge being in readiness. Father Petitot and his companion mounted it. Free reins were given to the dogs, and the frail equipage shot with the rapidity of an arrow straight through the group of wolves, who opened a passage for it, four standing 270 SKUTCEES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. J)E MAZENOD, AND on one side and three on the other. They received some sharp cuts of Father Petitot's whip as he passed unharmed in their midst. Their horrible howling, no doubt caused by regret at the escape of their in- tended prey, continued to be heard for a consider- able distance. A great portion of the vast regions traversed by Father Petitot, during that journey, had never been trodden by foot of a white man before. It was with ineffable feelings of devotion and thankfulness that he offered, for the first time, the Holy Sacrifice of Our Lord's Body and Blood, amidst those lonely steppes that touched the northern frontiers of the earth, and proclaimed the Name of Jesus to races that had never heard that august name pronounced till then. We are happy here to be able to state, on the authority of Father Petitot, that the four Indians who had been told off to murder him, had become penitent of their crime. For two years he kept them under probation, during which time he frequently instructed and exliorted them. They repeatedly expressed their regret and horror at the crime they had agreed to commit, and their determination for the future to lead a Christian life, and to give them- selves, vdthout reserve, to the service of God. At the close of their period of probation, Father Petitot admitted them to Holy Baptism. He states, that OF TEE LABOURS OF TEE OBLATES OF MART. 271 during the journey last named, he received hospi- tality for three days in the hut of one of these poor men. In 1874 Father Petitot arrived in France, the object of his retui'n to Europe being to make an'angements for the publishing of his great Dic- tionaries of the Deni and Esquimaux languages. His arrival in Paris was the occasion of a very laudatory article in the Journal Officiely from which we quote the following extracts : — " The northern regions of America, especially those dis- tricts that lie between Hudson Bay and the former posses- sions of Russia in America, were hitherto little known to geographical science. This deficiency has now been supplied by Father Petitot, a French Missionary of the Society of the Oblates of Mary, who has executed, witli his own hand, a map of the basin of the Mackenzie River, and of the Great Slave Lake, and the Great Bear Lake. This map, which is on a large scale, has been presented by its author to the Geographical Society of Paris, and is now one of the most precious treasures of the archives of that institution. " The Geographical Society cannot fail to encourage the zeal of those missionaries who turn to such profitable ac- count, for the interests of science, those moments of leisure left to them by the works of their apostleship. Through their means we obtain a knowledge of divers remote countries, which we could not acquire through any other channel." The Secretary of the Society Savante, Monsieur Blanchard, introduces thus the name of Father \: 272 SKETCHES OF THE LIES OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND Pctitot in the report which he read at the annual meeting of that Society in 1874 : — " Our committee is always ready to recognise the services rendered to science by the explorers of distant lands ; there- fore it docs not hesitate at once to acknowledge the deep interest it takes in the widely extended travels, learned re- searches and observations of a missionary of the Arctic regions of America. Father Petitot passed thirteen years among the Indians who live in the regions bordering the shores of the Arctic ocean. Ten times he has travelled through the long valley of the Mackenzie, from Fort Good Hope to the Great Slave Lake ; seven times he has visited the Great Bear Lake and the surrounding arid steppes. Ho traversed on foot the distance between the lower Mackenzie and Fort Simpson. Through the defiles of the Rocky Mountains he reached the north of Alaska. He journeyed through regions that have no name in geography to the lake of the Esquimaux, and thence to the Arctic ocean. During the time that he spent in the company of wild savage In- dians, he carried on to completion great literary undertakings. To him is our society indebted for his meteorological observa- tions, for his notes upon the manners and characters of the peoples he visited, and for an essay on the geological con- stitution of thee ountries extending from the 54th degree of latitude to the frozen ocean." Shortly after the arrival of Father Petitot in Paris, he received an invitation from a former college confrhre^ Father Boudre, the Superior of the Oblates at Nancy, to visit thai city. This circumstance, as we shall see, became the providential means of fur- nishing him with an opportunity of rendering an important public service to the cause of religion and OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 273 true science. At the time of his visit to Nancy, the beautiful capital of Lorraine was astir making pre- parations for a Congress of Savans that was then about to ashOLible in that city. The object of the Congi'ess was to discuss the history and ethnography of the indigenous races of America, of the period before the arrival in the new world of Christopher Columbus. The Congress was of an international character. It was held in the Salle des Cerf8 of the Ducal Palace, and was presided over by the Baron Guerrier Dumast. A great number of learned men from different countries were present. Father Petitot took his place modestly in the midst of the crowd that occupied the centre of the great hall, but on his presence becoming known to some leading members of the Congress, he was politely invited to occupy a place on the platform. Several speakers addressed the Congress, either to set forth their own theories, or to read papers entrusted to them by absent members. As the proceedings progressed, it became painfully evident to Father Petitot that the leading object of the greater number of those who had spoken, or who had sent in papers, was to throw discredit upon Eevelation and Bible History. This they sought to do by attempting to prove that the indigenous races of America were of American origin solely, and were not of Asiatic origin, and conse- quently were not descended from Adam, but were T 274 8KBTCSB8 OF THE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND autochthons of the American continent. At last a Monsieur Eosny, professor of the Japanese language, put himself forward as the champion of this infidel theory. He based his arguments on the authority of Voltaire. He attempted to show that the tribes of North America were a race apart, that h d no brotherhood of origin with any other portion of the human family, being autochthons of America. Ho continued at considerable length to advocate these false views. At the conclusion of his discourse, cries were raised by certain persons in the assembly, demanding that the Congress should decide the question at once, in a sense favourable to M. Eosny's views, and thus openly declare itself against the Christian doctrine of the unity of origin of the human race. The Catholics present, who formed the majority of the assembly, were indignant at finding themselves lured into a false position, under the name of science. It was evident to them that in the heart of the Congress, a conspiracy of free- thinkers and infidels were actively at work. Father Grouard, who had remained in the centre of the hall when Father Petitot took his place on the plat- form, thus describes his own impressions on the occasion : — " Assuredly, I said to myself, we are in the midst of a : gathering of freethinkers, who have come here with their : weapons of assault well prepared to give battle to Catholic , OF TEE LAB0UM8 OF TH£ OBLATES OF MART. 275 doctrine. They had the tracing of the programme, and the selecting of the ground of combat, and nobody has come hither prepared to engage in contest with them." When Father Grouard was turning over these discouraging thoughts in his mind, he forgot the presence of his colleague, Father Petitot. The latter, when he heard iuv. "indamental principles of Christianity openly assailed on that occasion, espe- cially as the assault was given on a ground with which he had reason to be familiar, felt it to be his duty openly to confute the aggressions made in his presence, upon religion and true science. Advanc- ing to the front of the platform, he asked to be allowed to speak. The favour being granted, he tnen said : "I beg of the assembly not to conclude rashly, and without any real proof, that the Ameri- can tribes were autochthons. I did not come here to-day prepared to enter upon this discussion ; but give me until to-morrow, and I will return, with your permission, armed with the proofs of those tniths which I am willing to defend." M. Eosny turned pale with excitement at meeting, unexpectedly, when he thought he had secured his victory, an adversaiy whom he instinctively felt he had too much reason to dread. "The Father," he exclaimed, " wishes for war, therefore let there be war. >) On Father Petitot presenting himself tie next 276 BKETCEES OF TEE LIFE OF MOB. DE AfAZENOD, AND day before the assembly, he was received with loud applause by the vast crowd that had collected within the great Ducal hall. Public sympathy had, in the meantime, been gained to him, when it became knt m that he had spent thirteen years amongst those tribes whose history and ethnography formed a main feature in the discussion which was being carried on, and that he possessed their languages so thoroughly, as to be able to compose Grammars and Dictionaries of them. During two days, for con- siderable periods at a time. Father Petitot held the assembly spell-bound by his simple, convincing, and learned oratory. He drew, from his vast experience and intimate knowledge of the tribes of North America, proofs which established to demonstration their Asiatic origin. He showed clearly how their language, their customs, their traditions, their re- ligious observances, their war instruments, proved their relationship to the nations of the East. A perfect ovation awaited Father Petitot's final discourse at the Congress. The President of the Assembly, who had been no party to the manoeuvres of the freethinkers, highly praised the science and talent that were united in the person of the humhle missionary. And some other leading members ofj the Congress, who seemed at first partlj inclined to! side with the freethinkers, came forward, when] Father Petitot ceased speaking, to disavow all sym- n OF THE LABOURS OF IHS OBLATES OF MART. 277 pathywith the unbelieving party in the assembly, and to make open declaration of their Christian faith and sentiments. The plans cleverly laid by the Voltarian party at the Congress, were thus completely disconcerted, and the cause of true faith and true science nobly vindicated. The attractions of his native country, the charms of home life in a land like Frajice, the private and public esteem, of which he received such marked proofs since his return to that country — all failed to wean Father Petitot's affections from the sphere of duties, which obedience and choice had assigned to him amongst the red men of the Polar regions. The object which brought him to Europe being accom- pKshed, he returned to his post. In his last communication, dated the 1st January, 1878, he gives an interesting account of his labours at Fort Macpherson, among the Esquimaux. " They follow my instructions," he says, "most attentively, and literally besiege me day and night. Their for- mer prejudices with regard to the priest have passed away, and now they manifest a confidence towards me which they would not have ventured formerly to do." He speaks in this communication of the frightful sufferings, from want of food, of the Indians of the Mackenzie and Great Bear Lake districts, during the winter of 1877. The deer, from some ^tsi im 278 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND cause, disappeared from the woods, and no trace of them could be discovered. Gluttons and wolves, black, white and grey, came forth in great numbers from the steppes and forests, and prowled about day and night, attacking, without any fear, men and dogs in their ravenous hunger. Leaving things in this sad condition at Good Hope, Father Petitot expected to find matters better at Fort Norman. After ten days' journeying on foot, he found that Fort forsaken by the company's agents. Thoy had all left at the beginning of win- ter, owing to the supply of food having run short there. They spent that season on the borders of the Great Bear Lake, living on what fish they could catch in the lake. " I was reduced to the state of a skeleton," writes Father Petitot, ''when I reached Fort Norman. I sufiered also from inflammation of my chest and throat, and a painful abscess on my lower lip." Great was his disappointment when he found the Fort abandoned. His stock of provisions was exhausted, and nothing was to be had at Fort Norman, where he expected to find an abundant supply for all his wants. Fortunately an agent of the company arrived at the Fort to spend a day on some temporary mission. He kindly gave Father Petitot a portion of his own rations, otherwise the latter might have perished of hunger on that trying occasion. or THE LABOXmS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 279 While Father Petitot was at Fort Norman, a band of Indians, very f jw of whom were Christians, came from the Eocky Mountains in search of new hunting fields, and to escape the famine which was threaten- ing theii' own districts. A young man of this tribe was accompanied by his two sisters and a little boy, his nephew. The oldest of these childi-en was under nine years of age. They were cruelly abandoned on the lonely steppes by their inhuman relatives, and their little bodies were found frozen shortly afterwards, with marks of intense suffering in their emaciated faces. This news afflicted the good Father very much, but he was consoled to leani that these children had been baptized. We bring Father Petitot's labours down to a recent date, to show that at this hour the hardships and sufferings of the Oblate Missionaries, in the bleak regions of the Mackenzie, demand still the exercise of heroic zeal and devotedness. Father Grouard, who had been Father Petitot's companion in coming to Europe, utilized the period of his stay in France, which, owing to an extinction of voi<^,e from which he was suffering, was prolonged for a year and six months, by applying himself to learn some mechanical arts which would be of use to him afterwards in his missions. He applied him- self especially to the learning of printing, of which art he became a perfect master. His knowledge of 9FT 280 8KETCEE8 OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, AND Hi 'A % I M IJI this important branch of the useful arts will serve him afterwards as a powerful means of promoting the civilization of the tribes that he -will have to evangelize. Shortly after Father Petitot took his departure, Father Grouard also left France for his distant missions by the banks of the Mackenzie. In seeking to promote the spread of civilization among the Indian tribes which they evangelize, the Oblate Missionaries are but acting in accordance with the letter and the spirit of the instructions given them by Monseigneur de Mazenod, and in- serted by him in thoir code of rules. From this code of printed instr ictions for Fathers employed in pagan countries, we extract the following pas- sages : — "It should not be considered as something foreign to the spirit of our ministry, to labour in forming the nomad tribes of the woods and prairies to habits of civilized life. On the contrary, the members of our society should look upon the civilization of those tribes as a powerful adjunct to their missionary work, and as a means of rendering their ministry more fruitful of soHd good. Therefore they will use all their influence to withdraw such tribes from their nomad life, and to induce them to choose some place of settlement, there to build fixed residences, and to become tillers of the soil, or to devote themselves to some other industry of civilized life. Superiors of our society should seek to develope in young subjects destined to be employed in our foreign missions, such, personal special aptitudes as each one may possess, which afterwards might be available in promoting some branch of civilization in those pagan OF THE LABOmtS OF TES OBLATES OF MAST. 281 lands, in which they would have to exercise their ministry. Superiors should select also lay-brothers who are skilled in the mechanical arts to become the auxiliaries of the Fathers in the work of instructing and civilizing the wandering tribes of those parts. A good school, in which solid religious instruction and secular education will be imparted, should be established in every mission. The missionaries should endeavour to promote not only the spiritual, but also the temporal well-being of the tribes. They should foster peace and charity between tribe and tribe, and between all mem- bers of the same tribe. They should endeavour to form them to habits of thrift and industry, and to a prudent lay- ing by of savings for future wants. They should never become themselves the chiefs of tribes. They will not in- terfere with the freedom of each tribe to choose its own chief, further than by encouraging and advising them to give their suffrages to a worthy candidate, who would be likely to govern according to the laws of religion and jus- tice, and to promote the temporal welfare of the tribe." This extract will suffice to make manifest the wonderful foresight and large-minded zeal of Mon- seigneur de Mazenod, by whose hand these regula- tions were drawn up. m ill I; I 282 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGR. DE MAZENOD, AND CHAPTER XVIII. The great question which all travellers to the wild North West of America have, before they start upon their difficult and perilous journey, carefully to consider, is that which concerns the food supply. Many precious lives have been forfeited, OAving to oversight upon this point. One of the chief sources of anxiety on the part of the Superiors of the Mis- sionaries of the Mackenzie districts, is the difficulty of keeping the Fathers and Brothers under their charge supplied with the common necessaries of existence. Many of the most needed requisites of life have to be conveyed over distances of two and sometimes three thousand miles, through dense forests and roadless prairies, or amidst the rapids and dangerous reefs of mighty rivers. Early in the summer of 1870, Monseigneur Glut, the coadjutor bishop of Monseigneur Faraud, under- took the charitable but trying task of conveying to the far north the annual supplies destined for th.Q different missionary posts of the Mackenzie districts. OF TEB LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MART. 283 and also for the commmiity of the Sisters of Charity and their orphans, at Providence. We insert the narrative of this charitable expe- dition aot because it contains anything very excep- tional *a the way of missionary hardship or adven- ture, but because it will furnish our readers with the means of forming a proper estimate of the diffi- culties under which the necessary food supplies are provided for the distant missions of which we are treating. On the 6th of M s t;-i, 288 SKBT0HE8 OF THB LIFE OF MOB. DB MAZBNOD, AND up the lesser rapids, and of lifting it over the shallows. The water was so low in certain places that the cargo had to be divided into four parts, and four separate journeys had to be made to the point where the river became navigable. On the 4th of Sep- tember one of the boatmen deserted. The rest wished to follow his example. They consented to remain only on condition that their demand for much higher pay was granted. Already their wages were exorbitantly high. Fearing to find himself and his party abandoned, and left to perish in the great wilderness, he had to agree to their terms. On the 7 th of September they arrived in sight of the great rapid. As it rose in view, the crew grew pale with terror ; real dangers stared them in the face. Though the current came dashing down the inclined ledges of the rapid, the water was so shal- low that the bed of the river could be seen bristling with rocks and huge sharp pointed stones. Here the cowardly crew carried out at last their threat, and forsook the bishop and his party. What a position for his lordship to find himself in. How is he and his companions to extricate themselves from the horrors of perishing in the wilderness ? What is to become of the precious freight of the disabled barque ? Are those supplies which he, with such difficulty had collected, and which in face of such 1 >D, ANL OF TEB LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MAET. 289 ver tne that tlio md four at whero of Sop- rho rest jented to for much ages were If and his the great • in sight of jrew grew )in in the down the IS so shal- i bristling es. Here eir threat, What a How is elves from 3? What le disabled with such of such great hardships ho has succeeded in " mveying thus far, to be abandoned? Is disappointment to be the lot of those hard-worked communities in the far north, who arc awaiting the arrival of these sup- plies ? To add to the bishop's embarrassment, the poor Sister of Charity fell seriously ill. Alas ! not- withstanding her heroic spirit, which bore her up amidst untold hardships, her delicate frame at last gave way under a succession of trials and fatigues, which were almost too much for the most robust of the travelling party. After much deliberation, and having taken the opinion of his travelling com- panions, the bishop came to the resolution of leaving Father Eomv and a lay brother in charge of the barque and its precious cargo, and of pushing for- ward himself, with the rest of his party, to the point of junction between the rivers La Biche and Atha- baska, where a small post of the Hudson Bay Com- pany had then been lately established, and where he hoped to be able to obtain help. A tent was erected on the bank for the invalid Sister and the little orphan girl. Monseigneur Clut and his companions took five days' provisions with them on their jour- ney, which was to be performed on foot, and which was likely to be accompanied by severe hardships. Painfully they advanced during their first day's march, sometimes over sharp cutting stones, some- times knee-deep in mud, now amidst dense bram- 290 SKETCHES or THE II FE OF MOR. DE ItfAZENOT), AiTD bles, and now on the brink of precipiccis, or on tho flanks of rocks and steep declivities. Towards sun- set all were exhausted with fatigue, and their feet were bruised and bleeding. They were thinking of preparing their encampmont for the night, sad with the thought of having another such day of toil and fatigue before them, for the journey of the morrow, when they perceived the smoke of some Indian camp on the opposite bank, curling in the air. Shots were quickly discharged, and answered by similar signals. Presently a canoe shot through the water, and some Montagnais Christians landed. When they dis- covered who the bishop was, they invited his lord- ship and his porty to their camp. The great "Chief of Prayer" was received, on his arrival, with extra- ordinary demonstrations of joy. Hearing of the traits to which his lordship and his party were re- duced, these excellent Christians placed, on the fol- lowing day, two canoes at their disposal. This timely aid was most providential, as Monseigneur Clut and his companions were so exhausted by the fatigues of the previous day, that they were in- capable of renewing their march, and probably would have broken down on their way, if the gene- rous succour named had not been afforded them by the good Montagnais. The post of the Hudson Bay Company, which they had been seeking to reach, was at last arrived . AVli OF THE LJBOTTRS OF THE OJtLATES OF MART. 291 on tlio is sim- jir feet king of ad willi toil and morrow, an camp Lots were r signals, and some Dhey dis- hia lord- ,at"Chiot' ith extra- ig of the were rc- m the fel- al. This )nscigneur ed by tlio were in- probably the geno- d them by at. The Bishop expected to meet there Mr. MacMurray, the chief-officer of the company in that district, who had already rendered many important services to the missionary Fathers, and who lie felt would not refuse to come to his aid in his then criti- cal position. But to his disappointment he found, on reaching the Fort, that Mr. MacMurray had not arrived there. nr<,ving waited for three days for that gentleman's arrival, he resolved to go forward to the Great Portage, with the prospect of meeting him there. ■ . v Accompanied by Brother Pourtier, and a half- breed named Bertand, ho set out for the Great Por- tage in a small canoe which he had equipped for the occasion. Five days' travelling brought him to the Great Portage, which was twelve miles long, and which he crossed on foot. In the absence of Mr. MacMurray, his representative (Mr. Mackensie) generously granted to Monseigneur Glut the assist- ance lie required. A boat, crew, and guide were placed at his disposal. The snoAV had already be- gun to fall. This sign of the approach of winter was a warning to him that he should lose no time in seeking to complete his journey. He had still to traverse the Great Slave Lake, and to enter the Mackenzie before the ice took hold of lake or river. If he should fail to do so, then all his labours up to now would count for nothing, and he would find 292 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOE. DE MAZENOD, AND himself unable to supply the missions of the north with the supplies intended for them. But this was not, at that time, the sole cause of his painful solicitude. He could not forget the little encampment of his fellow travellers, which he had left more than a fortnight previously on the solitary banks of the Athabaska. How had it fared with them since his departure? What was then the condition of the poor invalid Sister of Charity ? Must they not feel apprehensive and despondent at being left so long in their dreary solitude, without any news from him? Such were the questions which he then anxiously turned over in his mind. He resolved to shorten their period of suspense by returning to them by the readiest means of trans- port. Judging chat he would arrive more quickly in his canoe than he could do by waiting for Wiq luggage boat, he adopted the resolution of starting at once in the former, accompanied by Brother Pourtier. This resolution nearly cost him and Brother Poui-tier their lives. The canoe was ap- proaching a most dangerous rapid. Brother Pour- tier, who was rowing with the bishop, got bewildered and pulled some false strokes. The bishop saw the danger, and called aloud to his companion to row in an opposite direction. The latter either did not hear the warning given him, owing to the roaring and hissing of the waters^ or had become ooufased OF THE LABOURS OF THE 0BLATE8 OF MARY, 293 and lost his presence of mind. He continued still to row in the same fatal direction ; one false stroke more would have hurled the canoe and its occupants over the edge of the rapid, into the roaring abyss beneath. '* Eow as you see me row," cried out the bishop, with almost super-human effort. This time, fortunately, the warning was understood and acted upon, just soon enough to avoid a fatal issue. On the 1st of October, after an absence of nearly four weeks, the bishop returned to the ( mpment, where he found the companions of his travels des- pairing of ever seeing him any more. The joy he experienced in meeting them again was tempered by the sight of the sad condition to which the in- valid Sister was reduced. Her reason had given way temporarily under the accumulatior of her sufferings ; she was then in high delirium. Her little orphan attendant was in tears at her side. Father Koure had to watch her night and day for weeks, aided by the good lay -brother. The howling wilderness was all around them, and no other help was at hand. On the bishop's arrival, Father Eoure himself was lying prostrate, worn out and harassed by his fatigues and anxieties in keeping watch over the poor delirious Sister. The journey had to be resumed under these dispiriting circumstances. The poor invalid had to be borne on a litter over the long Portage, which 294 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. BE MAZENOD, AND they had to traverse to reach the place of embarka- tion. On Sunday, the 9th of October, they arrived at the Mission of the Nativity, which is situated on the shores of the Lake Athabaska. Monseigneur Glut had laboured in that mission for many years, and was greatly revered and loved by the Indian tribes that frequented that post. It being Sunday, a great crowd of Indians, seven hundred and more, were assembled for Mass. AVhen it was announced that Monseigneur Glut was -approaching, they went forward in a body, with great demonstrations of joy, to meet him. Fathers Eynard and Laity Avere in charge of that mission. The unexpected visit of a brother Oblate, in the revered person of his lord- ship, was a joyful surprise to them. Those meet- ings of dear friends in the wilderness have a charm about them, that those accustomed to home life can scarcely appreciate. When brother missionaries thus meet, they have much to say to one another— consolations to impart and to receive, counsels to ask and to communicate. Time speeds quickly on such occasions, and the day of separation seems to come too soon. But duty bids each one go his way to his own appointed work, and the voice of duty has to be obeyed, for it is the voice of God. Monseigneur Glut judged it would be imprudent to expose the invalid to the hardships of a longer OF THE LABOURS OF THE OBLATES OF MART. 295 journey. He came to the conclusion of leaving her and her orphan companion at the Mission of the Nativity, under the care of the Fathers of that mission. In the meantime she had quite recovered her reason, and understood how much she was in- debted to the devoted care of the good bishop and his companions. Her expressions of gratitude were very touching and sincere. On the 18th of October they entered the Great Slave Lake. They had not advanced far upon the waters of that inland sea, when the weather became very boisterous, and they were driven twice upon a sand bank. *Tt was only after supreme and repeated efforts that they were able to extricate themselves. After a considerable amount of tacking and rcwing, they succeeded in reaching Elk-deer Island, on which the thriving mission of St. Joseph is situated. There they met Father Gascon, with whom they stayed for two days. Father Eoure had rallied but very slightly from his recent severe illness, and the bishop did not consider him to be in a fit state to encounter the rigours of the remainder of the jour- ney. He consequently, to his great regret, felt himself compelled to leave the invalid Father at St. Joseph's. This was a wise resolution, for now the chief hardships of their difficult expedition were to commence. The first storm-notes of coming winter are ringing over the desolate shores of the Great 296 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MGB. DE MAZENOD, AND Slave Lake. The leaden skies are about to dis- charge a snow deluge over lake and land. The sharp air begins to bite keenly, as if a viper's tongue were in its every breath. The frost-king is soon to claim all nature as his domain, and to establish his rule everywhere. It is at such a season that Bishop Glut launches his frail boat anew on the waters of the Great Slave Lake. It may be asked, why chose he a barque so frail? The answer is brief and ready at hand — no other would answer to carry and to be carried. It is not only through waves on lake or river that the voyageur^s boat has to ad- vance, but also through woods and over hills on dry land. Unable to mount or descend the rapid, it has to be carried empty ov^er the Portage. Hence the need of light portable boats for such journeys as we have been describing. But such boats, it must be acknowledged, are ill-suited to weather the storm on lakes, some of which occupy a larger area than the Irish Sea. Monseigneur Glut and his party resumed their voyage on the 21st of October. A great fall of snow took place on that day, but the wind was favourable, and they were able to reach the embou- chure of the Ox Kiver before night set in. There they landed and encamped for the night. Early the next morning they set sail, but they had not gone far from the shore, when a furious gale suddenly OF THE LABOURS OF TEB 0BLATS8 OF MART. 297 n sprang up. Snow fell in thick abundance during the gale, darkening the air, and nearly blinding them. Huge waves went over the barque, which threatened every moment to go to the bottom. From head to foot all were drenched with half frozen water. It was evident to them that their boat could not hold out much longer against the fury of such a storm. If there was a harbour nigh into which they could run for shelter, then there might be some chance of escape for them ; on the contrary, they knew that their route was interspersed with many sunken rocks and hidden shoals, against some one of which their boat might, at any moment, run foul and sink. When all human hope of being able to save themselves seemed to be upon the point of vanish- ing, they suddenly sighted a little bay where the water was shallow, and where they would have a chance of saving their lives, even though their barque were to go to pieces. Into this bay Mon- seigneur Glut ordered the boat to be run. The crew, barque, and cargo were thus saved for that time. "When they had reached the shore, the guide and the crew presented themselves in a body to the bishop, to declare to him that their voyage for that year had come to an end. " We can advance no further," they exclaimed, " the lake is already fro- zen. We shall be caught in the ice if we venture IN t1:i 298 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. DE MAZENOD, ANL again to set sail." The bishop thought it useless then to reason further with them. That night sleep came slowly to his eyes as he lay upon the snow- clad shores of the Great Slave Lake. The dread of being frozen up for the winter in that desolate spot was upon him. The morning of the 22nd rose, and to his dismay he saw vast sheets of ice, spreading far and wide over the surface of the lake. The wind had fallen, but the cold was intense. He renewed his entreaties to the crew to proceed on their voyage ; one of them openly deserted him, the others were preparing to follow the deserter's example, but the bishop's in- fluence still held them back. The morning of the 23rd opened with still more dreary prospects. The storm had risen to almost its first violence, and the ice had become thicker on the lake. One day's more delay will render it im- possible, even for the most resolute and daring men, which the present crew were certainly not, to work a passage through these thickening fields of ice. At present it might be done, but not an hour should be lost. The 23rd was a Sunday. The bishop raised a temporary altar on the shore, and celebrated Mass. During the holy sacrifice, he prayed earnestly that God would bless him with a favourable issue to his journey. After the Mass the storm sensibly abated, ^.NOD, AND OF TEE LABOURS OF TUB OBLATES OF MARY. 299 it useless light sleep the snow- 10 dread of solate spot his dismay r and wide had fallen, s entreaties )ne of them rcparing to bishop's in- h still more a to almost D thicker on ender it im- daring men, not, to work s of ice. At hour should lop raised a orated Mass. amestly that 3 issue to his Lsibly abated, and the courage of the crew revived. The guido proposed to him to launch the boat anew, to which proposal the bishop gladly consented. The launch- ing of the boat, under the present circumstances, offered extraordinary difficulties. It had to be trailed for a considerable distance to the water's edge, over the surface of the ice, which was not yet sufficiently solid to bear the strain thus \yxi upon it. To encourage the crow who were losing heart, the bishop. Father Lecorre, and Brother Pourtier, took part in the launching of the bout, and Jiftorwards in conveying to ii the cargo, portion by portion. Several immersions took place by the breaking uf the ice, during this tedious operfjtion. The water being shallow, no danger was incurred, but every- body commenced the voyage in wet half-frozen clothes. A favourable breeze sprang up on their leaving the shore, which bore them in the direction of the m.outh of Hay River, which they reached that night. There they found a mission house and chapel which Father Gascon had erected the previous year. Father Gascon was then absent, but they were able to lodge in the house that night. The fol- lowing morning new difficulties awaited the good bishop. The crew, finding themselves in good quar- ters, were unwilling to quit them, and to expose themselves to the risks and hardships of a prolonged voyage. The bishop implored, exhorted, promised 800 8XETCHB8 OF TEE LIFE OF MOB. DE MAZENOD, AND them increase of pay, but all in vain. He declared that if any real danger presented itself, that he would at once order the boat back to shore. The next day a favourable wind broke up the newly- formed ice which had collected around the boat; this gave new courage to the crew, and they pushed off again upon the lake. They had a good run that morning, and about noon they reached a spot called Pointe de Eoches, where they drew ashore for din- ner. Suddenly, before they, embarked again, the wind changed, and began to blow strongly from an unfavourable quarter. They took to their oars, and got a short distance from the shore, when the vio- lence of the wind compelled them to return to Pointe de Eoches. On the evening of the 26th a calm en- sued, of which the bishop and his party took advan- tage. They had already made considerable way, when the guide suddenly cried out, with terrified looks, that the lake was completely frozen over, and that it would be impossible to advance any further. Moreover, he said, that if they stayed much longer out upon the lake, the sides of the boat would he stove in under the pressure of the ice. All de- manded to return to Pointe de Eoches. The bishop consented at once to this request of the crew, for now he perceived that they were threatened by a real and formidable danger. That night was spent by the devoted prelate in sad conjecture as to how mOD, AND OF TSS LABOURS OF THS OBLATES OF MARY. 301 his long and harassing journey was to terminate. Was he to become frost-bound on the lake ? Was ho to fail in the object of his charitable mission ? Was he to be deprived of the consolation of bearing food and raiment to his brethren, and to the sister- hood, and their orphans, in the mission of Provi- dence? In God was now his only trust. The prayer of that night was heard. A partial thaw took place during the night, which enabled the crew to float the boat the next morning. For the third time they quitted Pointe de Eoches. By hard pull- ing they reached the He des Marais, where the Great Slave Lake discharges its waters into the bed of the mighty Mackenzie. One hour later would have been too late to pass from the lake to the river, for a furious gale had sprung up in the meantime, which, if they had been overtaken by it whilst still on the lake, would have retarded them so much that the ice would have had time to encircle them, and thus to bar their further progress. On the evening of the 26th of October, they com- menced to descend the Mackenzie, in the midst of great floating icebergs. As night was falling fast, they wished to approach the land to bivouac till the following morning, being anxious to escape the horrors of a night spent on the river, in the midst of dangerous masses of floating ice, and enveloped in a darkness which was frightfully iutonsifled by clouds T'f ' r 302 SKKTCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOR. J>E MAZENOD, AND V, 1 12 ■ if ' I'M •tU I "'■ ' ill II of drifting snow. But they were prevented landing by the ice at the sides of the river. They were forced tlierofore to pass the night on tlie river, and the wind, whicii blew a hurricane, came from the north, and was right in their teeth. Thou<;h the current of tlic river which they were following was very strong and rapid, yet they wore making but little way, owing to the wind which was against them. Twice they succeeded in lashing the boat to a floating iceberg, in the hope that it would tow them along with it. A partial success followed each such attempt, but the iceberg, in each instance, broke away from them very soon. They had to ply their oars vigorously during that night, to keep the boat from running upon the sharp-edged masses of ice that jutted out from either bank. If they ran upon any of these, the boat would surely founder, and all would peiish. On the moniing of the 27th, at ten o'clock, a cry of joy burst from the lips of all — the mission of Providence was sighted. There it lay before them, the goal of their six months' journeying. Th^y had left Montreal in the first days of May, and they now arrive in the last days of October. The good bishop's labour of love is accomplished. He has succeeded, in face of countless difficulties, and at peril oftentimes of his life, in conveying supplies to the beleaguered Soldiers of the Cross, shut up within NOD, AND or TBM LABOURS OF THE OBLATBS OF MAMT. 803 tho ice fastnesses of the wild north. The news of his arrival creates at tho mission a joy, the more sensibly felt, because of its being so little expected. All liopes of seeing him there that year had faded away, and the expectation of the arrival of tho much needed supplies had also subsided. The following day his lordship celebrated a Pon- tifical nigh Mass of thanksgiving, at which the Missionaries, tho Sisters of Charity, and their or- phans, devoutly and gratefully assisted. I'-' m :;» SiS 3 t ' 304 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE OF MOB. JDE MAZENOD, AND CHAPTER XIX. We group together in this chapter certain isolated facts, which we have collected from the letters of the Oblate Missionaries, and to which we give the title of " Missionary Fragments." Louis Dazd is a name that will remain long em- balmed in the memory of the Oblate missionaries of Saskatchewan, and of the districts of the Mackenzie. He was not an Oblate of Mary, but he was their devoted servant, who sought no recompense for his services beyond his food and raiment. A Canadian by birth, and a carpenter by trade, for twenty long years he devoted himself to the voluntarily under- taken task of aiding, in every way within the sco;^)e of his capabilities, the great work of the OVlatenjis sions to the heathens of the wild north. His m.r