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IVIaps. plates, charts, etc.. may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The <<>.D., 1 1 1 1 1 1 r '* 'Jll 7 ■>■,■ PBO ^Vl^^nil JUCv^V5.r4 HISTORY OF THE DEVOTION TO TUE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY IN NOllTII AMERICA. BY THE REV. XAVIER DONALD MACLEOD, PBOFESSOIt OF RHETOHIO / N'J BULI.Ka LETTltEa IN ST. MAKy's OOLLBOB. OINCINMATI. WITH A BIEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR, BY THE MOST REV. JOHN B. PURCELL, D. D., AKoriiieuop OF Cincinnati. /HOI^O HY SUBSC'RIPTIOIV ONLY IJCSTON : MURPHY & SIcCARTIIY, 32 BllOMFIELD STUEKT. Puovidenxe: 2G9 Westminstek Stkeet. 1879. 'J JbiUnd looording to Act of Onncn'OH iii tiie year imu, Bt virtue Si YOKSTON, la th« Clerk's Office of tbe Uigtrlct Court of the ITnitGd States fur tbu Southcro of Now Vork. INBCRrBEl) BY THE PUBLISHERS TO Qn)e iUemort} OF THE AUTllOIi. and he ir Xavi(j ten all of thi thy wh plo ich asi^ a Win] Tiic MaiM appeUl PUBLISHERS' NOTICE. Catrouc LiTKUATiiRE ill tilis country is not yet rich in works of a historical character ; and though wot a fd by .'road, on •I "It is Bad event tc visit „Hnd fric |he attei •the street «ippi, an ftopped time, l:o ^ft -1 .shaj'j #ie sigua vinoinna tilled '!!' !l'' !!li Memoir. itca pecu- n to one cs. Tlioy ineinorial, ud of Mr. tlie prool's ;inunt, the oul. jious opiu- ycars, dc- bouks and St. Louis, th tlic cdi- he became o.st society; 10 marriage iiich neither broken oil'. )ricBt of St. . )roceedings, could have i and a man for Mr, Uac rdibisliop of ■roconcilably ben sucli an ni protection ind the sem- is borne, bi cbing, study- mer, in refer- after mature minor orders ;b of the fol- lowing' year he was ordained snb-deacon ; in October, and priest. From the seminary bo continued for deacon sonic time to visit Sedamsville and North Hend, collecting- together the scattered Catholics, catechizing the children, and visiting the sick, until, the little church of St. Vincent of Faul being built, he took up his modest lodgings in the basement, where he continued, with(jut a murmur, to bear privations such as fall to the lot of but few priests, until his lamented death. Of the acceptableness of his ministrations at Sedamsville, and the manner of his death, we here insert the account givfMi In his obituary written by IT. C. Lord, Esq., Superintendent of the Lidianapolis and Cincinnati llaihoad, taken from the " Cincinnati Com'nercial," of Mon- day, 3d .Tuly, — his death having occurred on Friday, 30th June, 1865 : " The Rev. Donald MacLeod. " Ens. Com. — A short paragraph in the morning papers, of |Saturday, announced that the llev. Donald MacLeod, pastor 3f the Catholic Church in Sedamsville, had been accidentally dlled by a train on the Lidianapolis and Cincinnati Rail- road, on Friday evening. " It is proper for m(; to explain the circumstances of this gad event. Father MacLeod was, at the time, on his way |c visit a poor woman, who was thought by her husband knd friends to be dangerously ill, and who had requested pe attendance of her faithful pastor. As he turned into le street which crossed the roads of the Ohio and Missis- pppi, and Indianapolis and Cincinnati companies, he wag topped by a passing train on the former road. At the ^'^me, he was standing on the track of the latter road, and ftt a sharp curve. The noise of the passing train drowned i1|ie signals of the approaching train on the Indianapolis and ipincinnaii track. He was struck by the latter and instantly killed. He died while on his errand of duty and mercy. xu Memoir. "This event has cast a gloom over our littlo community, and I ciinnot liclp rcforn'iiT^ to some of tlio poonliar traits of cliaractor and disposition wliidi had endeared Father MacLeod to myself and so many of his personal friends and admirers, and to so many of the poor and laboring people among whom he mingled, and by whom he was so mncJi beloved. " My acquaintance with Father MacLeod commenced but a few months ago, yet at the time ,/f his death I knew him well. I had learned to appreciate his excellent qualities of heart, and to honor his restless and vigorous intellect, his independent judgment, his fine scholarship, and his great learning. He was a man of remarkable energy. In look- ing after the necessities of his little church, in hunting tip the needy and destitute, in ministering to tlnnr wants, in consoling the sick, in cheering on the well, working as will- ingly by night as by day, in the rain and under the glare of the sun, he never seemed fatigued or tired of his mission. •Whatever he had to do he did cheerfully and with all his might. Hundreds of section-men and laborers on the two roads between Cincinmiti and Lawronceburg will bear testi- mony to their knowledge of him, and to his knowledg(^ of them ; to their love and respect for the positive, yet good- natured priest, to his unfailing kindness to them and to their households, and to his '-flucnce and control over them, which nev<'r lost its hold. " Father MacLeod was a man of rare independence of judgment. He never adopted the opinions of others, but held them subject to a severe analj'sis, and only accepted them when they accorded with his own well-defined convictions. Whatever position he took, whether in the Church or ag a citizen, he took conscientiously and with determination, and upon his own judgment, and he would recoguixe no hui/u'ii authority as above his own conscience or the conclusions of his own intellect. speak that d( sacred •ancient itnd the varied ; same he author Scots' d heautifu tliunked t^ated the liistory. "Buti [father M |of strong put his in, -control hii word andl hhn alwaj serve andl engine thi ftnd vigorJ great and) ^«iii't, andl The wril that the cj deceased « bytho^ JjUman auli •Ribjocts oj Ohurch auf Memoir. xiu nullity, r traits Father uds aiul jo nnic-li i\cc(l but , new him luVitioa of iUcct, his his gi'fiiit In look- unting up wants, in ng as will- • the glare | is mission. vith all his on the two bear testi- lowledgo of P, yet gooJ- loni aiul to over th(Mii, jicndence of era, but held cepted them convictions, lurch or as a liinalion, ai'd /,o no l;VvPU'ii i>uclaeiou3 of " Father MacLeod was a man of rare learning. I do not Hpeak of him as a theologian, nor of his acquirements in that department of knowledge, but as a master of history, sacred and profane, of political economy, of many languages, ancient and modern, of natural philoisophy, geology, botany, and their kindred sciences. Uis acquirements were equally varied and substantial ; and I have often heard him, in the same hour, instruct a wise man and delight a child. As an author he was well known, and his life of 'Mary Queen of Scots' drew from Washington Irving a most touching and beautiful letter of commendation, in which that gifted man thanked our friend for liaving so ably and generously vindi- cated the character of a sulferiug woman and the truth of history. " But it is to the genial traits and generous friendship of [Father MacLeod that I love most to refer. lie was a man [of strong impulses, quick, and sometimes violent temper ; [but his impulses were generous, and he ever struggled to Icontrol his temper, and was always ready to recall an unkind Iword and to correct a false impression. A kind word to lim always brought a kind word from him, and he loved to serve and defend his friends. It was a cruel and merciless Engine that, with its terrible blow, shattered that manly jmd vigorous frame, and in an instant of time stunned the freat and restless brain, stilled the loving and generous heart, and released the spirit of Donald MacLeod. " H. C. Lord." The writer of this notice is not a Catholic. But it shows that the character, the acquirements, and the talents of the deceased were appreciated and admired by others as well [|t by those of his own Church. The independence of all hliman authority so justly claimed for him, was confined to wabjccts of a merely human or secular description. Tc Ohurch authority, in which he recognized the authority of |m' XIV Memoir. God, ho waw at ull tiiiKis ainiMiiiblo. To hor docisions ho suliiiiittcd, — if with a roasoiuug- and a roasonabk' convictiui; of his clear and vin^orons intcHoct, yet with tho childliki; fiirnplicity which tan-iht him that, when (Jod Rpcaks thronpjh an infallible tribunal, it is the enlij^htcned Christian's duty to listen and to obey. Devotion to the lilessed Virgin, and zeal for her honor, was a ruling passion of the soul of Rev. Mr. MacLeod, lie was her client, hir son, her knig-ht, her priest. The "Le- gends of IToly Mary" and " Our Tiady of Litanies" preceded the beautiful " History ot the Devotion to Mary in North America," which we now present to our readers. But an- other proof of his veneration for the Innnaculato may aptly llnd its place here. The first sermon he preached after his ordination was on the purity of the Virgin Mary. The choice of this subject was probably suggested by tho piibli cation of a tractate calhid "James, the Lord's brother," by (me Chauncey Fitch, an Epis(!opalian minister of Piqua, Miami County, Ohio. The object of this tractate was to show that Mary had other sons besides the Lord. It was highly recommended by the Episcopal bishop, Mcllvaine, of Ohio, The bishop thus speaks of it in a letter to Rev. Dr. Anthon, editor of the " New York Protestant Churchman :" " Rev. and Deak Sir — I believe you know soraetliing of a trac- tate which the Rev. Mr. Fitch of Ohio has written on ' James, the Lord's brother.' He has recently completed a full carrying out of the argument, and made, I think, a very conclusive proof that James was the son of Joseph and Mary, and really, literally, the Lord's brother. It upsets the whole Mariolatry, and all her claims to supremacy through Peter. . . I believe it would be as good an article in tlie Romish controversy as we could publish. " Yours, aflFectionately, C. P. McIlvaine. " Cincinnati, Jan. 19, 1857." :iiih Commenting on this letter of the bishop, Father MacLeod .ill: Memoir. XV Diivictior. chiMlikn i llirouffli All's duty lei- honor, jood. lit! The " L, ate was to rd. It was cUvaine, oi" to Hov. Dr. [irchinan :" ling of a trac- 0, ' James, the ing oat of tho hat James was ,ord'B brother. to supremacy article in the McItVAINE. ;her MacLeod remarks, in a printed refutation of Fitch's theory, as follows : "MARY EVER VIRGIN."' That Catholics maj ^eo and know how unfailhful and utterly false to the principles of tlicir own creed are lead- ing E|)iscopuIians, we reprint in this form a letter from an Episcopalian to tho "Catholic Telcgra[)li," January 22, 1859, \vliich sets forth the real teachinj^s of the Episcopal body on the subject of the p'-rpotual Virg'inity of tho Mother of I our Lord. The letter being a contribution, we shall not change it, but print it as it came to us. Now this same Bishop of Ohio (!) disbelieves, if he had I any religious belief or disbelief at all, the wIujIc contents of Fitch's emanation. That same Bishop of Ohio, in connnon iwith all other bishops of tho Protestant Episcopal Church, assigned Dr. Gilbert Pearson's Exposition of tho Creed as the only standard dogmatic work in his communion, as tlie one dogmatic guide of his theological students, and as t!i(; (ej:t- book of the General Theological Seminary in New York. If he do not believe with Pearson, he is false to his trust and position in giving such a work to his students ; if he do, he, by his approval of Fitch for the sake of a dirty insult ^to Roman Catholics, has carried dishonoriible T)asrness to an "(pxtent of which his is the only example. Furthermore, by ao doing, he not only denies the common faith of all Chris- tians and tho applicability of tho passages from the proph- ets universally applied to our Lord, but also shows an Ignorance of the mere letter of Scripture, which may be <|^rdonable in an Episcopalian Bishop, but which should be • reasonable caus(> of degradation to the assistant sexton in iftHard Shell Baptist Conventicle. >M|The book from which I quote is "An Exposition of the :^eed, by John Pearson, Bishop of Chester (in the 16th cen- liiry). NewYork : Appleton&Co. 1857." It is as follows : 'M m XVI MKMoin. " Tliii'dly, We Ix-lii'vo tlic iiiotlicr of our Lord to ham been, not onhj hrj'oi'c and oftcr Iiik riafiuifi/, but also fort'i'rr, lit)'. most, imniacnlnh: and hlcxxcd Viff/in. For iiltlioiiyli it may bo thoii^'lit Hiiniciciit hh to tlio mystery oF tlio iiic'iriiation, tliiit wlif'd oiir Siivioiir was (Muiccivcd and born, his niotlicr was a viij^iii ; thoiitfli wiiatsoovcr Hlioiild liav(! lollovvod al'ttT, coidd have! no rcllt'ctivo operation upon tho lirst-iVuit of hor womb ; though there be no further inenlion in the CuKici), than that lie was born of I hi; Virgin Jifari/ : yet the pe- cubar eniineney and unparabeled privih'ijfe of that motlier, thr; B[)ecial honor and reverencu; d\w unto that Son, and ever paid by ii(;r, tiie regani of that Holy (ihost wiio came u[)on her, and the power of the Highest who overshadowed lier, the singuhir goinbiess and piety of Joseph, to whom she was espoused, have persuaded the Church of God in all ages to believe that she slill conlinued in the same virginity, and tberefor(> is to be acknowledged the Evi^r-Virf/in, H/avj/. As if th(! gate of the sanctuary in tluf prophet I<]/.ekiel were to be understood of lu r : ' This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no nan shall enter in by it ; because the Lord, tho God of Isiael, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut.' (E/.'k. xliv. 2.) "Many, indeed, have tak(!n tho boldness to deny this truth because not recorded in the sacred writ; and not only so, but to assert the contrary as delivered in the Scriptures ; but with no success. For though, as thoy object, St. Mat thew testifietli that Joseph ' knew not Mary, until she had brought forth her first-born son' (Matt. i. 25), from wheiico they infer, that afterwards he knew her ; yet the manner ut the Scripture language produceth no such inference. Wiicii God said to Jacob, ' I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of (Gen. xxiii. 15), it fol- lowcth uot that when that was done, tho God of Jacob left him. When liio conclusion of Deuteronomy was written, it was said of Moses, ' No man knoweth of his sepulchre unto j«>i Memoir. XTii /mvi' hcvn, i,ri'i't'i\ Ihc rli it limy icurniitioii, liirt inotlii.T « lulloweil L! lirst-lVnit lioii in tii(! yot the pi!- inotlicr, tlu! Ti, and cvfi- civnio iijtnii (lowed licr, whom hIic I ill all uj,'Ort i-H-inity, and to d(Miy this and not only Scriptnrcs ; j(>ct, St. Mat lutil she hail Von» whence le manner ui cnce. When 1 I have done ii. 15), it fol- f)t' Jacob left as written, it ipulchre uutu this day' (Dent, xxxiv. r») ; hnt it were a weak arfrnrnent to infer from tlience, ihid Ihe sepnh'lire of MoHeH hath been known ever Hiiiee. ^VIlen Samnel had delivered a Hevero preclietion nnto Siinl, he 'ciime no more to Hce liim tintil llin day of liis death' (1 Sam. .w. '{f)) ; Iml it were a Htran^'o colleelion to infer, liiat hi; therefore paid liin) a visit after he was'dead. ' Miehid, tii<' dini;^ht(n' of Sanl, had no child until the diiy of her death' (2 Sam. vi. 23) ; and yet it were a ridienlons Htiipidity to drenm of any nddwifery in th(! f:;ra70. ChriKf f)romiwed his preseiiee to tlie apostles 'unto the end f>f the worhi' (Matt, xxviii. 20) ; wiio ever made so happy a constrimtion as to iid'er from thence, that forever after ho wo(dd bo absent from them ? "i\f?ain, it is true that Chrid is termed \\\v.fird-horn mn of Mar]i, from whence they infer she mnst needs liave a second ; but they mijrlit as well conelnde, that wheresoever tlier(> is one, then; mnst he two. For in tliis particular tho Scripture notion of priority exeltidetii an antecedent, but inferreth not a consequent ; it supjxjseth none to have p;'(me before, but concluded not any to follow after. ' Sanctify unto ni(! [saith God] all the first-born ;' which was a firm and iixed law, immeiliately obli;;'infi^ upon the birth ; whereas if the first-born had included a relation to a se( ond, tJK-re could have b(!en no present certainly, btit a 8Usp(>nsion of obedience ; nor had tho first-born been sanc- tifif^l of itself, but the second birth had sanctified tho first. And well miylit any sacrilegious Jew have kept back the I price of redemption du(! unto tho priest, nor could it have i been required of him, till a second offsprinj^ had appeared ; I and so no re;lemption at all had been required for an only son. Whereas all such pr(>tcnccs wore unheard of in tho Law, because the original Hebrew word is not capable of any such construction ; and in the Law itself it carrieth with it a clear interpretation, ' Sanctify unto me all the firHt-born ; whatsoever openeth the womb among the chil- xviH IMemotr. ihvu of Tsiacl, hotli of man and beast, it is mini (K\.m1. xiii. 2.) The apcrtion of tli(! womb (Ictcrmincil tlic (lisl- born ; iiiid the biw of nMlcmntion cxcbiilitli all Hnrli Ici- j^iv«;rHiifion : ' TIiomo tliat an; n;(l(!('m('(l, from a nionlli old tlioii wlialt ic'dcom' (?Viiml». xviii. 1(5) ; li<» slayin;;- to mako U|) the relation, no ex|»e(;tin;;" another biiUi to peil'ect tin; reibimption. I'lein;^- then 'they broii;^'lit our Sar.iuiir to Jerusalem to present him to th(3 liord, us it is written in Luw of the fiord' (f.nke, ii. 22, 2:5), it is evident that la- was called the firrtt-born of Mary aeoorditi'^ to tin' notion of tho Fiaw of Nfoses, and conscMjiiently that tithi inf(,'rr<.'tli no Hiiccessioii, nor provotli tho mother to liavo any other uflsprin;^-. " Indeed, as they thirdly object, it cannot bi- deni was reputed ami called our Saviour's latlair, so might they well be accounted and called his brethren, as the ancient fathers, especially of the Greek Church, have tauglit. Nor need wo thus asscM't that Joseph had any oilsiniiig, because the language firrtt- icli l<'l'- nth old III miik(3 lee I till! ;/(»«/• to •iUcii ill tli;it lie lotinll of rrotli iii> .,, it'll l>n< t-cthi'cn I't' , iiml liis Whilr Iw IH'II stoixl ■tC).) H"*' , l();j,-cthrr, ; ulld tlio tin '11, Ixit Mrcii. It Min-ywiis and ciill'''^ )Uiitt'(l iiiid ally of the luiH UHSOrt iiiguag'C of t oidy tlio of cotisun- on for tluit .d unto tlie ii. 8), BiiiLl ijn of Tcrah, V Lot nf TTiiniii, urid cniiMcrinciifly mil IiIh bnifluT, but his tic|)ii('\v, anil, as clsciwlwrc iiropi'rly styli'd, ' the Hon of hirt lii'dlliiT.' (Hi'M. xii. T).) ' iNfoHi'H calli'd AfiHiiacI and Kl/a- |ihan, till- HiinH of U///i(,'l tlio iincli' of Aaron, and Haid unto tlii'in, Ci.Mii! nour, carry your itrcfhrcn frntn li*'fiiro liio Haiu;- tiiary' (lii.'V. x. 4) ; whcrcuH thoso Im'tiircn were Niidiib and Aliiliii, tin; Bona not of Uzzifl but of Aaron. 'Jacob tnld liaclii'l that ho was hi'r fath(M''H brother, iind that ho was ili'bckairs Hon' (fJon. xxix. l2) ; wlicrcaH, Itebckah was till' sister of Uachel's fathe.-. It is sunieient, ther(!- fiire, that the evang'elists, aei'ordin-ni» zz Memoir. of Chrif^t, wlio was the motliei" of James and Joses, the brethr(>n of Chrid. " And now tlie nrij^ing of this arg-umeiit will produce a greater clearness in the solution of the questioii. For if it appear that Mary the mother of Jam(!S and Joses was dilfcir- ent and distinj;"iiished from Mary the Virgin, then will it also be ajiparent that the brethren of our Lord were the sons of another mother, for James and Joses were so calK'd. But we read in St. John, that 'there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Mag-dalene.' (John, xix. 25.) In the rest of the evanj^elists we fhid at the same place, ' Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joses' (Matt. xxviii. 56 ; Mark, xv. 40); and again at the sepulchre, ' Maiy Magdalene and the other Mary' (Matt, xxviii. 1) ; where- fore that other 3fari/, by the conjunction of these testimcmies, appeareth to ' '■ JFanj, the wife of Gteophof^, and the mother of James and Jo.^es; and consequently James and Joses, the brethren of our Lord, were ?)ot the sons of Mary his mother, but of the other Mary, and therefore called his brethren ac- cording to the language of the Jews, because that the other Mary was the sister of his mother. " Notwithstanding, therefore, all these pretensions, there can be nothing found to raise the least suspicion of any interruption of the ever Blessed Mary's perpetual virginity. For as she was a virgin when she conceived, and aft(.T she brought forth our Saviour ; so did she continue in tlic same state and condition, and was commended by oiu' Saviour to his beloved disciple, as a mother only now of an adopted son. "The consideration of all which will at last ii^ad us to a clear explication of this latter branch of the Article, ivhere- by every Christian may inform himself that he is hound to profess, and being informed, fully express what is the ob- ject of his faith in this particular, when he saith, I believe i ill Jei hereb; this iu ccrtaii Joseph was a in the .* noly C Son of . brough most 2)1 the woi the leas deliver , was of t ■^ his thro profess i We h }^ man," oi discredit impudeul text-bo(J ipublishol ^ anybodyj ' begins "Mary," J "The C(J the preci "Motlieil Imiiacul^ ^ From /urther i • "The Memoir. XXI M\nco a ^)r if it 18 dilTi!!-- i will it voro ilio io calU'tl. CVf)SS of le wifo of I In the ;e, ' Muiy us' (Matt. re, ' Miuy ) ; wlievc- stimoTiios, ; mother of Joses, the lis inotlicr, rolluon ac- the other ions, thove ion of any II virginity. and afl'.'V tinuc in llw led l)y 0"!' ,r now of an load us to a •tide, ^chcre- is hound to t is llic ob- itli, I bolicve in Jesus Christ who was horn of the Virgin .Vary. For hoi-eby ho is concc'wcA to intend thus much: I asaont unto this as a most cortain and infallible trnth, tliat thorn was a certain woman, known by tiie name of J/a?-//, (!spon.scd unto Josq^h of Nazareth, which before and after her e.s[)oii.sals was a pure and unspotted vir<,^in, and Ixuikj and coidlnuuui in the mnw vinjinity, did, by the immediate operation of the Iloly Ghost, conceive within her woud) tlu; only-begotten Son of God, and, after the natural time of other women, brought him forth as her llrst-born son, conlimring .^tilt a most x>ure and immaeulate virgin ; wlKsreby the Saviour of the world was born of a woman under tlie Law, without the least pretence of any original corruption, that he nn'ght deliver us from the guilt of sin ; born of that Virgin which was of the house and lineage of David, that he miglit sit upon his throne, and ride for evermore. And in this latitude I ^ profess to believe in Jesus Christ, noR.v of the Viugi.v AIauy." We have a word to add to this. " The Western Cluirch- iinan," organ of the Episcopalians here, endeavored to cast discredit upon the above quotations. Now this was sheer impudenoo. The book is not (mly an Episcoi)al dogmatic text-book, but it is their only one. The title and the ' publisher's name are given above, and may be verified by anybody who chooses to take the trouble. Tiie (juotation begins upon page 263, Article III., "Born of the Virgin Mary," and is unbroken to the last paragraph, begimiing, "The consideration of all which," etc. Between that and the preceding matter, intervenes the proof of the title " Mother of God," and of the absolute necessity of Mary's Immaculacy to the Incarnation. From this intervening and very brief portion we add one further quotation to those given above : :|| " The necessity of believing our Saviour thus to be born zxu Memoir. of the Virgin Mary, will iipp(;ar bolli in vospcct of lior wlio was the ^Fotlior, and of llim who was tho Son. Tn respect of her it was ncjcessary, that wi: might PKuriiTriAM-Y ruKSKKvio AX KSTHKM OK II KK I'KltSON I'UOrOUTIONABI.E TO SO IIKMI A DIONITY. It was her own prediction, ' Fkom nKNCKFoinii am. (!i;nkra- TioNS smai,l call mk liLKssKD,' (Lukc, i. IS); bnt tills obligation is onrs, to cam, heu, to estkkm hk.u so. If Elizabc^th cried out with so loud a voice, ' JJi.esskd art thou amonc womex/ when Christ was but newly conceived in her womb ; what kx- PRESSIOXS 01-' HOXOU AXD OV ADMIRATION CAN WE THIXK SUFEI- ciENT now that Christ is in Heaven and that mother with Him ! Far be It from any Christian to derogate from that special privileg'e gran.cd unto her, whicli is incomnninica- ble to any other. We caxxot ijear too reverext a ue(;ari) unto the Mother of our Lord, so lonc, as we give h(>r not THAT worship which is duo unto the Lord Himself." —P. 272. God grant that these words of old Bishop Pearson may influen(;(! the hearts of his pretended co-religionists here, if not to less hatred of the Cirarcli, at least to respect and sense of propriety and decency towards her whom their Prayer-book calls the " Blessed Virgin Mary." We cainiot resist the desire of embodying in this notice of the eloquent defender of !N[ary's prerogative, the beauti- ful tribute to the efi'ect of mediaival devotion to the Blessed Virgin, for Avhich wc are indebted to a very com- pulsory wituiiss indeed, " Lccky's Kationalism in Europe,'' vol. ii., pp. 224, 225. The reader will perceive that only an eromy and a bigot would use the words "benighted and monkish" in such connection. charact(j the Iov(J glories vigils ill ii her belli rous res] «■ tastes dl ;|: in inanj'i H'-best in 1 intiijy ofl pp. 225, f " The worl I is governed by its ideals, and seUh^m or never has there been one which has exercised a more pro- found and, ou the whole, a more salutary influence than the Memoir. xxiu icr who rospoct ■UKSKIIVI? DIGNITY. (iKNKUA- ^riod ovit :n/ when WHAT KX- S'lC SUFKI- tliur with tVoin that nununicii- ' A KK(iAUI) fvive her lliinsolf." ivson may its hi'vc, if spoct and liniu theiv this notice th(! boanti- on to tlic very com- 11 Europo," ;it only an iy-htcd anil niodiocval conception of the Virgin. For tlio first titno woman was clcvat(!d to her riglitfnl position, and the sanctity of weakness was recognized as well as the sanctity of sorrow. No lonji^er the slave or toy of man, no longer associated only witli ideas of degradation and sensnalily, woman rose, in the person of the Virgin Mother, into a new sphere, and became tJie object of a reverential homage of which anti- (piity had had no conception. Love was idealized. Tiie moral charm and beauty of female excellence was, for the first time, felt. A new type of character was called into being, a new kind of admiration was fostered. Into a hai'sh and ignorant and beniglited age this ideal typo infused a con- cei)ti()n of g(;ntl(;n(;ss and of piu'ity unknown to tiie proudest civilization of the past. In the pages of living tenderness, wliich many a monkish writer has left in honor of his c(!les- tial patron ; in the niillicms who in many lands and in many ages have sougiit with no barren desire to mould their cimracters into Iier image ; in those lioly maidens who, for the love of Mauv, have se|)arat('d themselves from all the glories and pleasures of the world, to seek in fastings and vigils and hinnble charity to render themselves worthy of her benediction ; in the hqv sense of honor, in the chival- rous nispj'ct, in the softness of manners, in the relinement of tastes displayed in all the walks of society ; in those and in many otlior ways, we detect its inllueniu'. Ail tliat was best in Eui'ope clustered around it, and it is tlie origin of nr.iny of the purest elements of our civilii:ation." — Vol. i., pp. 225, 22G. seldom or a more pro- ICC than the -C- V f Til General Catho COVKJd VOTION The baskiiif ^^ewarthj the havl Jihe burj M T]ie as tlieyj Their tf Baaiiuerl for no If any ■Iras hoc jb ship HISTORY OF THE DEVOTION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY IN NORTH AMERICA. CHAPTER I. General View— Cohjmbus— Natural Growth of this Devotion— First Catholics— TUK Southeun Statks and Canat)a — Ouu Laiu-'s Dis- covEHr OF America — Churches of h: Namk — Ministers of thk De- votion-— European and Amkkican Devotion — Honor due to Mary — EmoRANTS— I'atroness of the United States. The little seaport town of Palos, in Andalusia, lay tbasking in the sun, and its harbor was crowded with HFfiwarthy sight-seers and vocal with wondering tongues. The cool mountain waters of the Tinto brawled past the haven, and flowed into the broad Atlantic. Out on the burnished sea three caravels lay at anchor. The crowd had assembled to see a set of madmen, as they called them, depart upon a hopeless voyage. Their tongues were busy in discussing the probable manner in which evil fate would fall on the expedition, for no one dreamed of a happy issue for the adventure. If any dared to suggest such a probability, he, too, was hooted at as insane, and ironically recommended ship for the voyage. 1 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Ami, MS thoy (lisputccl and siuHU'ed, over and anon a strain of the jMass-nnisic would swell ont from the church, where Faith was kncelin*^ to ask protection ; where Conlideiuic was drawin_i^ new strenj^th from de- votion to Cod and Mary. For the adventurers, thciii- commander at tlieir head, were preparin<^, by confes- sion and llolv Comnumion, to enter like Christian men upon tlieir pcirilons undertaking.' Then the Mass was over, and out from the clmrcli, grave, resolute, and calm, Ava]k(Hl the admiral at tho head of his crew ; and the ci'owd, husluid into silence, opened a way for tho procession to the jetty. A few moments were allowed for farewells. Then the brief orders Avere given, and tho sailors entering the boats, rowed oitt to their respective vessels. Then the n^port of the culverin sounded from the bows, and the standard of Castile swung out to tho April breeze from the peak of tho Santa Maklv ; and the crew checn'ed, and the crowd on shore responded, as the admiral stopped on board. A few moments more and tho anchors were weighed, the yards Avore trinmied, the sails filled, and the flotilla of Colundnis stood out to sea. And Avitli it, as it crossed those pathless Avaters, the love and protection of our dear Lady and Mother floated over the Atlantic to the shores of America." * Present t : F»;rdinand and Isaliella, ii. ]!]0. ' The liiinil)lL' and rcvLMViit s])irit in which Catliolics undertook tlioir great hibors is wondered ut, and sometimes even sneered at, by modern liistoriaiis. These do not understand the consecration of all The called Santa Motho] It i.s noA'or ]j h(>r ser fait/ifnl hrv po^^ 11 OM', flT Terra d Motlier For d. Sarily gr oui- love iable, be lis it Aval aoAv gloil things to I leadiing sJ "UominJ terrnm et Uudotur tnl • 'sts uiu] in her sacred warfare without parallel in the victories of the sword. The Aveapons of her hosts are gentle- ness, and mercy, and weariless aftection ; self-sacrifice and refusal of reward on earth ; and, better still, when- ever a soldier falls, fighting bravely in the front rnnli for her honor, his death only strengthens her armies and helps to insure the success of her cause. From the soil which was enriched by the blood of the mar- tyrs, spring the Howers that deck her altars in the month of Maj'. With the successors of Columbus came the cannon IN North Ajiertca. i.nmaiuty ; of God ; ocVs love, •0, in His :>vnioro on I'ivpturons jluuip;e for {vp it is, to iiecessu- ,rtion witli or tlirout^li ]\ tlio same m-ows ever, bey 01) d tlio ions in tliis nquer it all, kingdom ^' miuests Mul the victories ire gentlc- sclf-sacrifice V still, wliou- e front rank s licr armies ause. Fi'ora of the mav- altars in tlie the cannon and tlio sword : hnt there cumo also tlio Cross and the Eosarj. There came Inst of dominion, of lands, of gold ; crnelty, bloodshed, and tlio vices of civilization. Bnt among them, and nnharmed by their contact, were self-sacrifico, devotion, 55eal for sonls, love of God and of man only for God's sake. They that took the sword perished by the sword, and won only blood-stained names as their re- ward. Bnt the warriors of Zion and of Carinel won sonls back to Heaven ; and if thc^y died in the conflict, their blood spake londor than their voices had done. Ponce de Leon, Vasqnez de Ayllon, Narvaez, de Soto, Alvarado, Coroniulo, with all the power of their arms, Avitli all the Spanish and Indian gore they shed, only gained the abhorrence and hatred of the natives. Bnt Father Mark, the Franciscan, armed only with the crncilix, penetrated New Mexico, in 1539, and gamed the Indians' love. Five other Franciscans took the same path in 15-10 ; and two of them, Fatlier John de Padilla and Brother John of the Cross, remained in )ihe conntry, and tanght the doctrine of Christ, until they were slain in an hn-oad of stranger savages. vKodriguez, Lopez, Santa Maria followed in 1580, and confirmed the faith in New Mexico, from which it has ,_liever since departed. I But earlier than this, in 1514, Andrew de Olmos had 'Bought out the fierce Texan tribes, and had converted vfaany ; and in IGOl, the Carmehte Father, Andrew of jllhe Assumption of the Virgin, with his companions. 6 Devotion to the B. V. M.viiy had eiit(>rssel, idone, and knelt down upon the shore, lie was slain by a blow from a war-club, and his reek- ing scalp was sliuken in derision b(>f()rs," was ohtamed, t, Trancis- rivah-y to ut tlio new (Ving the Festi- a to tlio liar\)or jj;(ivi'nior wt'ut 10 of liisking. .! loundufion of hiin forty years .,. yi't standing re Virginia was G'.). country. Tlioy pierced the thick forests, tlioy crossed tlie mountuin ranges, they swam tho broad rivers of tlie South. They toiled with tho Natchez, tho Creek, and the Cherokee ; they established missions in Caro- lina and Virginia, and they coasted tho whole Atlantic border as far north as tho Chesapeake, Avhich iJmj called St. Mary's Bay. They were martyred, it is true, by tho Indians ; they died in the wild iorest of starvation or fatigue ; but that did not deter others from following in their steps ; ftnd tho first Europeans who dwelt peaceably in these lands were the missionary fathers, who claimed them, Hot for any earthly power, but for God and St. Mary the Virgin. , It is true that they were soon driven from Virginia (ind tho Carolinas. Shortly after the discovery of Amer- ica, folloAved the discovery of that system of rebellion |K)pularly known as the Reformation. The only distinc- %ye mark of this was, and is, hatred to tho Church, and llhenever its adherents had the poAver, it was signal- lied by the destruction of religious establishments. "Ifhile the most splendid monuments of religion and fUpt were falling beneath its axes in Europe, its ropro- Sfintatives in the New "World, in Carolina and Virginia, bttndcd with and led on the savages to tho sack of the humble missions, and the slaughter of the devoted priests who served them.' • The Cliristinn Indians driven out with tho missionnrips took the name of Scminolos, or Wimderers. Deprived of their instructors, tliey III 8 Devotion to ti'E B. V. Mary No 8o-callo(l Protestant powers have over mado their way to any new or pagan country — India, Chiua, Japan, or Aincric^a — without finding Catholic mission- arieH in posHeH.sion before them; quia Domini cut terra, " the earth is the Lord's." And wherever they havo been strong enough, they have invariably overthrown those missions and rci-established paganism. Nay, iu some places they have endowed it ; and to-day the dis- torted, idols for India are manufactureel by the ton in the cities of Christian England. So the missions on St. Mary's Bay and in the Caro- linas were destroyed by the combined zeal of the Re- former and the Yemassee ; but under the Catholic fla<,' of Spain, they flourished and took root in Alabuniii and Florida ; and the summer sun of 1G93 shone upo!' a statue of tlio Mother of God, under whose patronage and protection they were founding, and successfully, Pensacola.' And while those transactions were occurring in tlio south and southwest, the French missionaries were conquering the tribes of the north. From Acadia niul the St. Lawrence the servants of Mary spread the news of salvation. The forests of Canada rang with the Salve Ih'fjina ; from the birch canoes that cut the azuiu waters of the great lakes swelled up the Ave 31- ■SOS, the names d uo report at all It is her Maternity to Him that explains — that only can explain — the CathoHc devotion to her. It is be- cause she has Him for her child that she has us for her roverers. She has a right to our veneration, because she bare Him who has a right to our adoration. It is a common sentiment of our nature to honor every good mother for the sake of her son ; it is a sin, then, against our regenerate nature to refuse honor to that best Mother of the best Son. And so it comes that His ministers are her ministers ; that fidelity to the gospel of Christ is fidelity to devotion for Mary. . And for this fidelity must her minister be endowed with the gifts which insure it, and which are rendered necessary by the circumstances of their lives, as well as for the success of their mission. They must be prudent as serpents, for a thousand BBares are daily laid for their destruction. Estoic ergo pruchntes td serpenfes^ — yet prudent without selfishness ear trick ; " be ye simple as doves" — simplices sicut co- himhce. They must be brave in their innocence, for **I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves," ^tto vos sicut agnos inter Ivpof. / humble, for the poor il^ spirit have the blessing — heati pauperes spiritu;" yei ii^ all their personal humility they must preserve the ll^hest dignity and sacred character of their office, BUace, " as My Father hath sent Me, even so send I yoiV -^cut misit me Pater et ego mitto i)os.* Eenunciation the world, and separation from its ties and it, are :^ " St. Matthew's Gospel, x. 10. ■} • S*.. Luke, X. 3. ' St. Matthew, v. 3. * St. John's Gospel, xx. 21. 12 Devotion to the B. V. Mary necessary, for the "cares of tliis world choke the word," and the married man careth for the things of the world, how he may please his wife, cerumnce saxidi suffocant verbum,^ and qui cum uxori est solicitus est mundi quomodo placeat nxori.^ The ministers of God and Mary must find no obsta- cle in disease, privation, or poverty, no teiror in death; for tlie *' sufferings of the present life are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed"— non sunt condignce passiones hiijus temporis ad futuram gloriam qticc revelabitur in nobis.' He must be persever- ing, for only " to him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of Life which is in the Paradise of my God" — Vincenti dabo edere de ligno vitce quod est in Fa- radiso Dei mei;* and he must be ever vigilant, since only that servant is blessed whom his Lord, when He Cometh, shall find watching — Beati servi illi, quos, cum venerit Dominus invenerit vigilantes.^ And it is precisely men of such qualifications whom it has pleased God to send out for the evangelization of America. Had they been endowed with less than all this, the English conquest of North America would ^ .ve swept the devotion to Mary from the land. "Were tiiey not so endowed to-day, devotion to Mary woulil perish before the godlessness, the indifference of tlie world around us. But they are the same in the nine- teenth century as in the sixteenth ; they may differ ^^f externa tention, commis) their lal Mons( * St. Mark, xiv. 19. ' 1 Corinthians, vii. 33. • St. Paul to the Romans, viii. 18 * Apocalypse, ii. 7. • St. Luke, xii. 37. S spot wh ''f three hu the ^Span in 1560 ^^ told his I ■k banks of the same ■ .fluence hi iof Mexici "^northern ] a bishop ] Eiver, an( Palm Sur petual m gC'lden la are pushii faithful s( ing the . feverence While ^an, and 'The SpaJ " ilorida, or t\ ■ ' The Reel Claiiaiia. \A *fc<. IN North America. 13 Dke the lings of ce sa;cuU st mundi obsta- n death; t worthy ealed"— futuram persever- 1 give to se of my est in Pa- ,ant, since when He qiios, cum ons whom igelization L less than rica wouU md. "Weve lary woulii nee of tk n the nine- may diffei 3, ii. 7. ax. 37. :;<» externally in some matters, but the interior— the in- tention, the puiTDOse— is the same, as is the divine commission and ordination which gives authority to their labors. Monseigneur Verot builds a church to-day on the spot where Luis Cancel de Barbastro was martyred three hundred years ago. Bishop Lamy renews among the Spaniards and Indians in 1862 tht fervor awakened in 1560 f • ^- Our Lady of Guadalupe. Where Jogues told his beads as a preventive for martyrdom, on the banks of the Mohawk, a hundred voices are repeating the same prayers ; and Avhiie the circle of Mary's in- fluence has been Avidened, tiU its bounds are the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and its (northern limits are the extreme Arctic regions — while a bishop has his seat at the mouth of the Columbia sEiver, and another in far Florida, the land named for v'Palm Sunday,* and a third rules in the almost per- i^etual winter of Hudson's Bay, and a fourth in. the l^olden land of California — the intrepid missionaries iiifcre pushing the frontiers still further northward ; and |fe,ithful servants of Mary have filled, and are still fill- ing the whole interior of the countr;; with love and feverence for her name. '% While the old missionary orders, Jesuit, and Sulpi- tian, and Franciscan,' are still energetically pursuing ^ The Spaniards lending on Palm Sunday, which they call Pascua ' IjPIorida, or the Flower Easter, gave this name to the now land. i' * The RecollectB, an order of reformed Franciscans, are busied iu Ciauaau. u Devotion to the B. V. Maby I their sacred conquests in Oregon, among tlie Esqui- maux and the tribes of British America, now orders have arisen especially devoted and dedicated to the Blessed Vii'gin, as the Marists' and the Oblates of Mary Immaculate." These are the outj)osts and advanced guards of God's army in North America ; while, in the interior, the secular and regular clergy, bishop and priest, are in the heat of the fight. These have, perhaps, even harder work than the missionary to the pagan. I do not say this in a spirit of comparison, but only in ex- pression of a feeling Avhicli I ])ossess, in common with others, and which is this : That he who is roaming through the grand native forests, breasting the torrent in a birch canoe, setting a stout heart against the in- clemencies of a wild nature, has the poetry and ro- mance, the adventure and ever- varying iucidun^^^ to mspirit and excite him. So Bancroft, after a tribute to the zeal of the mis- sionary, says : " And yet the simplicity and the free- dom of life in the wilderness had its charms. Tlio heart of the missionary would swell with delight, as, under a serene sk}--, and with a mild temperature, and breathing a pure air, he moved over waters as trans- parent as tl '* most limpid fountain. Every encamp- ment offered his attendants the pleasures of the chase. ' An edunatioual order founded at Bordeaux. France, in 1818. * A missionary order whose superior-general is Mgr. tlie Bishop of Marseilles, and vvlio are laboring chiefly in British America and in the bouthv ustoru United States. ; Like i lund I the 1( ■I'i its pr t ship, where ;! the af I like tl I bread I site f( il moniei ' floor ( : cluster [ Dot im: Hel Ptrium}) 'Mvne G jUhe pri fEation of civil :-the lov flislion( fluence . lable i .l^ess ; cioctrin ittdivic ftnd po e Esqui- w orders d to the blates of ;iiards of ) interior, )riest, are laps, even ;an. I do »uly in ex- luion with s roaming lie torrent nst the in- ry and ro- iieidciit to 3f the mis- 1 the free- irnis. The delight, as, raturo, anil •s as trans- L-y encamp- ; the chase. in 1818. •. the Bishop of srica and in tlie IN North Ajierica. 16 Like a patriarch, he dwelt beneath a tent ; and of tho land throngh Avhich he walked ho w^as its master, in the length of it and in the breadth of it, profiting by its productions without tho embarrassment of owner- ship. How often was the pillow of stones like that where Jacob felt tho presence of God ! How often did the aged oak, whereof the centuries were untold, seem like the tree of Mamre, beneath which Abraham broke bread with angels ! Each day gave the pilgrim a new site for his dwelling, which tho industry of a few moments could erect, and for which nature supplied a floor of green, inlaid with flowers. On every side clustered beauties which art had not spoiled and could not imitate." ' He hiis the rough, hearty life of a soldier, and the triumi)li of the discoverer ; and he has to teach the true God to those who have worshipped demons. But the priests in tho midst of a more or less perfect civili- zation have not this. Their fight is against the vices of civilization, very unpoetic, very unromantic ; against the love of money, the cheatery of trade, the permitted dishonor and dishonesty of the world ; against the in- fluence of the drinking-shop and the low gambling- table; against the serpent of liberalism and godless- ftess ; against the temptations of impurity and false doctrine ; against the ever-changing phases of sin in individuals; against dangers which confer no glory, ftnd poverty which is not picturesque. They are in the * Bancroft: History of the United States, iii. 153. 16 Devotion to the B. V. Mary heart of the army, in the midst of the ranks ; they are the unnoticed fighters, who fall, and are succeeded by others who fall in turn ; who combat all their lives to gain one foot of ground, or, perhaps, only not to lone one foot ; and whose record is only on the page of the book of the Gveat King on high. For them the steaming walls of the hospital replace the dark green arching aisles of the stately immemorial wood. For them the rush and roar of the hot and nar- row street must be a substitute for the fresh, free leap of the wild and beautiful river. The skulking convict and the drunkard, the brazen harlot and the apostate Catholic, must be their dark-skinned warrior tribe. The idols they must shatter are the human passions ; the temples they must renovate are human hearts. It is in this view that I have ventured to call their work harder ; not in itself, but in its circumstances : not because more actual labor is required from one than another ; but because of the lack of much which can stimulate and distract. And this brings me to a point which must be care- fully noticed by the reader. I mean the difference be- tween the rise of devotion to the Blessed Mother of God in this country and in the old Catholic lands, and the consequent difference between the respective ex- ternal manifestations of it. When the Gospel of the Son of Mary issued from Palestine and spread over Europe, it was for the dethronement of false deities among comparatively simple men; for civilization then was exclusivelj Eo T IN North America. 17 ; they are ceedecl by 3ir lives to lot to lofse age of the tal replace inmemoi'ial ot and nar- h, free leap ing convict he apostate rrior tribe. ,n passions ; hearts, ko call their Bumstances ; )d from one much which aust be care- lifference be- ;d Mother of ic lands, and espective ex- f issued from was for tlie jomparatively 3 exclusively Roman, save here and there a little colony. Men re- ceived the faith, sooner or later, in simjile, earnest hearts. Faith retained for many, many centuries a straightforwardness and unnhesitating openness which V, has begtin to decay only within the last three hundred ? years. For the general diffusion of a too thi\ and iu- .1 nutritive knowledge has unquestionably injured the ;V' simplicity of faith, by increasing, not our wisdom, but our conceit that we are wise. Men have been taught by this to replace Faith with J those niggardliest of qualities, suspicion and doubt. •\! State any manifestation of God's love to man, any in- ff^ dividual and distinct mark of His favor or providence, and for one that will say Blessed be Plis Name for that; a hundred will doubt it, will furnish a score of w mean reasons against its probability, will suspect a I score of honorable men of collusion, invention, and I'm deceit. * Pantheism — if I may use that word for want of a better to express the generalization and depersonaliza- jtion of God — was not universally spread as it is now. Mi it existed, it was in some head which "too much •'learning had made mad" — some mind gone astray Ithrough over-esteem of its own reasoning faculties; jland was generally confined to a university chamber. Then men believed in a personal God, to whom they were personally accountable ; they loved to receive His gifts and benefits as personal ones ; they knew nothing of these fine, new, universal humanities and confeder- acies of God ; but He was nnj Father and imj God as 18 Di;yo'I'I(»n to the 15. V. IMary well as our Fiillu'r and our God. Tlioy f^ot closer to Him bv tills iiulividualiziii}^', wliicli was yot in no sonso exclusive. A man received a benelit, not as a }^(>neral, universal j^'il'l — of the gratitude for wliicli his own shani Avus so small that (Jod Avould not miss it if it were never paid — but as a benefit done to Iiiiit, for which all his gratitude was too little. And so th(>v liad jiersonal dealings with Ood; and •W'lien ho said to tlu^ belovcnl disci[)le — speaking from the cloud of agony Avhi(^h overhung the Cross — "Son, behold thy mothi>r!" they saw in that divinest boon a mother for all and each of them ; a moth(>r ecpially loving and tender to each of her children ; procuring benetits for eatili from h(>r Divine Son, and, therefore, naturally carrying back to Him the thanki^. of each for such ben(>f\ts. AVell, tluMi, in a little time, human thanks to God ran gencridly through IMary's heart and lips as their channel, the channel naturally the most agrec^able to Him ; and so licu' name got to be cud)roid(n'ed on the bright mantle of the European Avorld as its chiefest decoration. They went to fight, and b(>ggod her pro- tection; they came back successful, and they built Notre Dame des llcfoircs. They were perishing by an epidemic, and made {. novena to her, and she heard tluMu, and their Cathedral is dedicated to Our Lady of Help in need, Notre Dame de hon secours. Travellers lighted on land after storms, like the grand, heroic Columbus, and because in their trouble they had begged help from the gentle Mother, and tlio ]ali< JXJO ono Mar ary was In i of J), ll inevi I those . t to so ■^ same y Lady >late^ ;: tain fi iHhoug leach v$ He ''-%, ' Ev( '^ers wll i|brior tj ■. .;^e arte ;.ilid m] J|now IBbgas, ;i> blund ;^(1 mol mce. IN NoiiTir AMKura.. 19 'loHcr to ao sonso rf(MiOVal, • WW sliiiro ' it -Nvoro wliii'li all ^o(\•, and dn<,' from IS—" Son, !st boon a ived by Mary's intiU'cession, and, by inevitable naturalness, they bear her name ; ,ind, in those days, remembering some kiiubuiss don(! by luu' to some particular town, and standing in need of the same kindness for himself, a man would pray to our Lady of Ilehbourg, St. Mary of Challons, the Inunacu- late Virgin of Liege. From which circumstance cer- tain flatulent writers have deduced that those Cathohcs hought there Avero many Blessed Virgins, and that acli lived in her own special village.' Hence, the Histov " the Devotion to the Blessed ', ' Even sucli as Walter Scott and Washington Irving commit blun- ders which are incomprehensible to nu!n whose ediicarion is far in- ferior to that of those masters. Catholics going to Mass at all hours of the afternoon and eve aing, confessing to a^tl receiving absolution from laymen, and men, w( men, and children in general using breviaries and missals. A well-educated author, a Protestant, is required to know the meaning of the Ramadan, the Mishna, the Norwegian Sagas, Joe Smith the Mormon, the Yezidees, the Fetish, but is allowed to blunder like an idiot about Mass, Vespers, and Rosary, the highest and moyt frequent acts of worship of two hundred millions of Chri» tian men, half of whom are of the leading races of civilization in Trance, Spain, North America, Germany, Italy, and Great Britain 1 ■5t(^ 20 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Virfifin in Europe is simply a rainblo throuj^li tlio lioantiful. Thcro is no hiunlet, no bnrj^h, nor city without its consecration, partial or entire, to the dear Mother of God, and for His sake ours. Euroi)o is flooded with fact, and legend, and circumstance ; ami ho who writes of the devoticm there finds dilUcultv, not in diseoverinj.^ material, but in deciding amid tlio masses tliat lie before him what he will accept ami what refuse. But with us, the national antiquities, so to speak, of the Catholic Faith must be looked for only on our borders. The poetry of evangelization meets only tlio Indian missionary, the tradition of the Spaniard in the South, of the Frenchman in the North. I mean, of course, the imblished poetry ; for the hidden, intrinsic beauties of our faith and our devotion arc imperisliablo and invariable. We live, comparatively few in number, in a land which, if not Protestant, is, at least, anti- Catholic. No sacred processions, with vested clerics at their head, sweep through our streets ; no train of pilgrims wmds along the river-bank, or through the greenwood, to a favored Lady Chapel ; no sweet face of dear Mary Mother smiles at us as we pass from wayside shrine ; there is no halt of business,' and gen- ' These statemonta aro to be taken generally, and particularly' only of the United States. French Canada, of course, retains, with tlie ancient faith, many of its external practices. The colonies of C'ntluilic Hii^hlanders in the extreme north can do as th(\v please. Ijouif^iana, New Mexico, and part of California, are still Catholic ; but >7hero our great {wpulations and our largest wealth and influence are, these , words are true. '.-i'--i IN North America. 81 )U}^ll tlio nor city the clear ixirope is Luco ; and dilViciilty, amid tlio ccopt and ) speak, of ily on our in only tlio liurcT in the I moan, oli 311, intrinsic iperishablo hi number, least, anti- isteil clerics no train of through the sweet face e pass from ss,' ami gen- larticulaTly only etains, witli the .nit'S of Catliolic use. Ijouisiana, but Nvliero our uonce are, 1.1 ;he»e cral baring of the head for a moment's communion witli God, whvAi the Angelas rings out from the steeple. A few traditional obscr^-vances may linger in porti(m8 of the United States where the Spanish or French in- fluence has remained unaltered; but the length and breadth of the land is bitterly hostile to any out- ward manifestation of ovv love for Mary, because bit- ' terly hostile to that love itself. Pulpit and lecture-room, rostrum, public meeting, and corner-stone layings, the press and the bar-room, re-echo with charges of idolatry, of taking from God the honor which is His duo only, and giving it to a .creature ; and even the gentlest will shake their heads and bewail with grave charity the unfortunate propen- vgity of the Papist to give too mucli honor to Mary. Vji And yet what is our feeble love and honor compared ; ;to that which she obtains from God ? As our love for our fellows is but a shadow of His love for man, so our especial love for Mary is but a shadow — a faint, attenuated shadow — of His love for her. The Eternal Father hath chosen her to be the Mother of !.i .s only Son ; the H(jly Spirit elected her His spouse. The Son who givetli right-hand thrones to the apostles who preached His word, is bound in justice to do more for the Mother who bore Him For His sake, if you would please Him, reverence her ; if you believe in honoring your own mother, believe that He believes in honoring His. It is impossible for the Christian adorer of the Incarnate God to give His blessed Motlier more honor, interior or exterior, than is her 22 Dkvotion To'TirE B. V. I\r.\iiY duo. Smic/d cf hiniKii'iihiItt J'nyinlhis-, (ini/iiin lelnutJihits vffc I'll III i.'csfi'i) ; I] II ill qiiv.iii ru'li capt'i'c mm jw/t'ro)ntatioii, and wih'ul falsehood ; liow niui'li (>asior it is to deny having' a del- icate and l>elov(>d sentiment tho rather than to expose it to ili(i risk of a sneer; how swift tlii^ })aeo of tlio money-hunter is hero; how little th(! 1t(>autil'ul in life and creed is cultivated, and how devoted are nun to whiit they nre ph>ased to call tho practical, au'l which means simply nujro careful diligence for the hod}' than for the soul, for time than for eternity ; — wIkm we con- sider all these, the Avonder is, not that there is so nmcli or so little devotion to Our Lady, but that there is aiiv at all. Yet in despite of all this, wo aro prepared to believe that there is no old Catholic country in Europe ; tlifit there never has been a country in which reverent love and earnest heartfelt devotion tor the Blessed Motlur of God was more deeply rooted, more ardentl}' cher- ished, or more fervently and fi-uitfully practised tliiiii this same North America. It is unobtrusive, but it is ' Response in office of B. V. M. Holy and immarulato Virgini'yl with wliat pniisca to greet tboc I Itnow not; for Uini whom the heavens cannot contain, thou hast borne in thy bosom. ■ real it is Heen Been; It ^^hero glow? \ho B iernit form t «ler th Kotre Oliildre 6ducat] his sen ftfduou Afisumi tiheir c| •elf-deii ti^rougll Bfelp, a| SUmmitl ,,|Wee| ndans owasedl MJld effei And iilbesj ^ own! IN NOIITH AmEIUGA. 23 fi Inudlhm Icrant, tuo lis fc(>1ing the iull\i- it iimjovity land ; liow licvo; Ivow ami Avill'ul iviiig a tM- 1 to ('xposo laco oi tlie itit'vil in life are incn to 1, an''^ wliifli ^o l)t)i1y tluiu lic.i wo con- o is so mucli , tlu>r(i is any -d to ]ielieve <:urorn ; that reverent love "sseil Motlit'V dently clicr- vactised tliaii Lsive, but it is r llhu whom tk jin. ,V real. It guides and influences the hearts of mon, and it is found, pure and glowijig, in tlu* souls o( some who Bccni to he the most thoughtless in society, of sonu) who Seem to he the driest and most engrossed hy alVuira. It hi^gins in eailiest childhood, when the scapular ,and the medal are ])laced rcnuid the neck, to h(> kept vltbere ever afterwards, oven in the grave. As the (diild v 'Ifi'ows, he is won into mend)ershii) of some Sodality of \ho Blessed Virgin, some llosary So(dety, sojiu) Confra- ternity of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The elders form their benevolent associations, and place them un- lier the patronage of the Queen of Angels. Nuns of yotre Dame and of the Visitation train tlio feinalt! ^ildrcn. Brothers of Mary are consoorated to the Education of boys. The Bishop labors patiently till ipls seminary of St. Mary is completed ; the priest toils jWduously until his parish of the Annunciation or the Assumption is established; and all join their prayers, iiheir counsel, their money, their manual labor, their Wjlf-denial and renunciation, until the Cross peeps iil^'ough the gi-eenwood from the convent of Mary's Help, and the Church of the Immaculata crowns the summit of the hill. We close this chapter, then, with a short view of the means whereby this devotion has entered and in- creased in this country, before examining its progress and effects more particularly. And first, the Spaniard brought it in his heart as his best treasure for a new life, his best memento of his own old fervent land. He planted it in the ever- 24 Devotion to the B. V. IiIary liii glades of Florida, on the coasts of Alabama ; or bore it with patient perseverance into Mexico, California, T3xas, and even Oregon. In the various changes which this country has undergone of political rule and advancing civilization, the Iberian was driven from the East, and made powerless in the West, and his faitli grew lazy, and in some pbces almost disappeared. But religious freedom fought its way here into general acceptation, and now the love of Mary is reappearing, fresh and beautiful, as the resurrection of the flowers when the winter has passed away. Then the Frenphman, above all, the loyal and pious Breton, settled Acadia." " When, in the tranquil evenings of summer, wlien brightly the sui. get liiglited the village street, and gilded the vanes on the chimneys. Matrons and maidens sat in snow-white caps and in kirtles. ********** Solemnly down the street came the parish priest, and the children Paused in tlieir play to kiss the hand he extended to bless them. Reverend walked he among them, and up rose matrons and maiden? Hailing his slow approach with words of affectionate welcome. Then camo the laborers homo from the field, and serenely the sun , sank H Down to his rest, and twillglit prevailed. Anon from the belfry Slowly the Angelits sounded, and over the roofs of the village Columns of pale-blue smoke, likt; clouds of inccmsc ascending, :-;| iiose from a hundred hearths, the homes of peace and contentment Thus dwelt together in love these simple Acadian farmers — Dwelt in the love of God and man." ' And thence they were driven by the English, iindei > The Acadia of the French settlers embraced Maine, New Brur.r wick, and Nova Scotia. » Longfellow's " Evangeline." ucirci ;^1pe ''ftn-itl liomi ■Buti brave lUkTary ihe sj »lreac yet ui] Marqi Same i Tlie the Sp Mexico altliouf term in,' sferoyecl for thai make tj Mary tJ With) C^tholil the Blel missioij ' Bancil C^OBS to t| and look sipf thf tribe i IN NoPTH America. 25 la ; or bore California, as changes 3al rule and en from tlie id bis faith lisappcaretl into general reappearing, £ tbe flowers al and pious jriglitly the sin. le chimneys, kirtles. ■» * ♦ d the children V)less them, ons and inaiden> 5 welcome. serenely the sue m the belfry lie village ascending, nd contentinimt. arniers — Englisb, imde! Maine, New Bntt^ icircumstances of barbaric cruelty which wning from ■the very heart of a Protestant the finest poem yet ■written in America, and one of the finest poems of •home and domestic affection extant in any langxiage. But the good seed had been blown abroad by those brave northern winds, and the love and the name of Mary had been carried, through the wild red tribes, to ^e shc'ies of Lake Superior, and missionaries were iJready sighing for permission to bear it to the far and ♦et unknown Mississippi.' And when, in 1673, Father Marquette discovered and explored that river, the name that he gave it was " Immaculate Conception." ^ The Frenchman, descending the Mississippi, met file Spaniards coming up from Mexico, through New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, and Arkansas. And yet, l^though it Avas the forces of Great Britain which ex- ijBrminated the missions of Carolina, and half de- fliroycd those of Acadia and Canada, it was reserved fttr that empire to send forth a colony which should Iftake the central line Catholic, and give the name of Jlary to the State they founded. With these three points starts the History of the Catholic Church, and, consequently, of the devotion to the Blessed Mother of God in North America. What missioniziug was done went cither westward from > Bancroft, ii. Tims did the religious zeal of the Frencli bear the Cross to the banks of the St. Mary and the confines of Lake Supeiior, and look wistfully towards the homo of the Sioux, in the vnlley of the Mioifisippi, five years before the New England Elliot had addressed th^tribe of Indians that dwelt within six miles of Boston harbor. I!"ii!i^t'' 26 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Maryland or soiatliward from Canada, the Jesuits aud Becollccts reaching the Hudson and Mohawk rivers and the State of Ilhuois. But little, however, was accomplished until after the Revolution, in the interior of the States east of the Mississippi. . West of that gi'eat river, the whites were few or none. But the emigration began. More French came into the central States on the Atlantic, and their i-eligiou was respected for the sake of their services to the conntr}-, if for nothing else. The Irishman came, hear- ing from the shores of his seagirt isle the faith wliidi had withstood centuries of persecution, and sucli a persecution as is a phenomenon in history, havin<,' n.. parallel in tlio annals of man's injustice to man. Yaii- quishcd, enslaved, starved, tempted, they clung to Goj aud St. Mary the Virgin only more closely for all at- tejnpts to sever them. Crushed down by that preposterous incubus c;\K the National Church, they remained and still roiiiai: devotedly faithful to the ancient creed. I do not s])e;!: of the priest-hunting and sanguinary portions ol' t!: persecutions, for that violence rather fans the fliiniii loyalty ; but of that dead, stupid, crushing load, wliiii pressing as it did on their very lives and souls, uoedi a miracle of grace to enable them to resist it as tlk have done. And when, commending themselves to that ilft Mother in heaven, who had been their support ai consolation, they bade adieu to their home, tli brought to the land of their adoption the sameii: jlhaken j|Be-swa ide pa ich \ •art; t. way ^ lipb ; an l^ggart ( litd tlie i liiiavens h Vklien fr "long str: Wdnt to ca sfiiines of| road are namu is tJij a huudredl sohools of I ternal face leataied to 1 empty his These ca i*idttstries American ;j tenor; to hill-side. Mary, unofl pafient, an(| The|ie pari! .:,>,iS»*' IN North America. 27 Bsnits aud ,wk rivers rover, was lie intoviot 3st of that 1 came into eir religion ices to tilt came, bear- [aitli \vliicli and sucli ii y, having m' man. ^'an- . :;lung to God • ly for all at iciibus callc'. still remaii do not spoal )rtions of t!: s tlio ilauit" Pro- I vinciarum ; * * * Emi. ac Revmi. Patres in congregatio.ie general! Ide propaganda Fido censuerunt supplicandura Ssmo. Dno nostro ut Ipiontissimis Concilii votis annuere dignentur. Hanc vero S. Cong, sentcntiam in audientia die 7 Fobruarii 1847 Ihabita Ssmus Dns noster Pius divina providentia PP. IX. benigno Iprobavit in omnibus. 80 Devotion to the B. V. Mary CHAPTEK II. The Zhai- ok tiik I'ionkkks -Ciiaiii'i.ain and thk Rkoollkcth — Mothkh Maiiv of tiik Incaiinatidn and Tiiii UitsuLiNiiS— Makquk'itk and tiik ImMAUULATII (.'oNClil'TION, The scen>t of tlic dtwotion to Mnry is a lusart-folt zoal foi" tlio glcny of God. It Avas a hi^luu" motive than any worldly one that bronglit Columbus to San Salvador and Conc(>p(uon, or Champlain to tlio snows and forests of the North. "The salvation of a single soul," says this pious gentleman, " is Avorth more than the conquest of an empire, and kings should seek to extend their domin- ions in countries A\'hero idolatry reigns, only to cause their submission to Jesus Christ." ' He undertook his toils and labors Avith patience, in order " to ])lant in this country the standard of the Cross, and to teach the kuoAvledge of God and the glory of His Hely Name, desiring to increase charity for His unfortunate creatures."'' Thinknig that he would " commit a great fault if lie emploj'ed no meaiis of bringing the savages to tlie ' Tlie first words of tlie Sieur do Chumplain's voyages. ' Phintor en co pays I't'stendart do la Croix et leur enseifrrier la cognoissanco do Dieu et gloire de Son Sainct Nom, estant nostre di'sir d'augnienter la cliarite envers sea miserables creatures. — Voyages (I dccoiivertures depuis 1G15. IN North Ameiitoa. 81 ,— MOTIIKU I'K AND TUK K^iirt-felt r motivG H to San be snows his pious est of an ir (loniin- r to cause iM-took bis ) pl.mt in I to teach His Holy nt'oituuatc fault if lie gcs to the enseigiicr la lit nostre dt'sir kiiowIo(l^'(> of God," ho eiiviiostly "sou^'ht out some f^ood Ri^li^nous who would have zoul and nil'vriUm for God's glory." Such as these are always dlscoverablo by those who are really in want of them, and Cham- plain soon found them— men "who wore borne away by holy alleetion, who burjied to make this voyage, if so, by God's grace, they might gain some fruit, and might plant in these lands the standard of Jesus Christ, with fixed resolution to Hve, and, if need were, to die, for His sacred Name !" ' So, when the ship is ready, we naturally expect the next record, that "each of us exanuned himself and purged himself of his sins by penitence and confession, so best to say adieu to France and to place himself in a state of grace, that each might be conscientiously free to give himself up into the keeping of God and to the billows of a vast and perilous sea." " When the voyage is thus undertaken, what wonder ihat we find, along the first discovered coasts, St. ary's Bay, Gt. Mary's Isle, St. Mary's River ; that [Montreal is first called Ville Marie ; that the first grant of land from the Due de Ventadour to the Jesuits is the lordship or seigneurie of Our Lady of ngels, and that then., by Mary's lake and missiors of ssumption and Annunciation, we sweep away west- ard to the mysterious river of the Conception ? And so the portal of the Occident being thrown 5l>pen, and the highways baptized by the name of * Voyages depuis 1C15, p. 3. » Ibid., p. 8. 32 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Mary, licr seivrints cjiter iu. How they labored, a sketch of one or two of them will suffice to show. MoTHEit Mary of the Incarnation. In tliG convent gromids of the Ursnlines, at Quebec, stood li'telv an old ash-trce. More than two hundred years ; '>(), under its shadowy foliage, one might have seen a croAvd of swarth} Indian girls, i^lgonquins, Iro- quois, Abnalcis, but most of all, Hurons. Their voices sounded with natural sweetness in prayer, as their dusky fingers told their beads, or mingled in the Sake Hegina or Ave 3Iaris StcUa, and their eyes were closed in meditation or lifted up with love upon the figure of the crucified Eedeemer or the image of Our Lady, or fixed reverently and attentively upon the calm, affec- tionate face of their instructress. And she, with tlio holy wisdom and patient sweetness which are the gifts of saints, taught tljem the love of God, winning them one by one, and through them their families, h-om their pagan superstitions and their wretched life, to the love and service of that dear Lord and His Mother, to whom '^he had totally 'i;iven up her body and h jr soul. Far away in central France she had left a gay ami comfortabl'^ world, the society of the noble, the ease of wealth, for the white bandeau raid dark veil and huliit of the Ursuliiie ; laid, in the year of onr redemptiou 1639, she completed her renunciation of all things bv forsaking her sunny ns tive land forever for the ice- ,- bound shores, the pri'sations, the perpetual toils of ^| the Hi walls witli It^cted, a von slioiiJd ancianl \\-iiito ■^■deliciitl :x v. IN North America. 88 Cannda. Her verj namo was left behind her in the world she had forsaken ; the lady of the French salons bad been called Madame Sophie Gaynet ; the Ursuliue beneath the ash-tree in Quebec was Mother Mary of the Incarnation. And this is, in brief, her story. One holy Christmas-tide, in i\er homo at Tours, when her heart and soul had been particularly given up to union with God, by meditation on the mystery of His Incarnation, she fell asleep and dreamed. She thought that she, with one companion, hand in hand, were toiling along a broken and dilHcult road ; more difficult than ordinary, because they did not see, but only felt the obstacles. But they had plenty of cour- age, and went on until they reached a place known as the Tannery, beyond which lay their home. Here they were met by a venerable old man, in whose pure, sacred lineaments beamed kindness and I protection. It was he avIio had watched and guided St. Mary and her Child from the roofs of Bethlehem to the i^alm-shades of Egypt. And St. Josc])h, she thought, conducted them into a vast inclosure, whereof the sky was the only roof. The pavement and the walls were of white, spotless alabaster, and arabesqued |with gold. Here all was silence, deep, religious, recol- llected. And, without disturbing tlio holy stillness by vord, their guide pointed out to them the way they should go. And they saw a little hospice of quaint, mcient architecture, but very beautiful, and of snow- irhite marble ; and in an embrasure of this, upon a delicately-sculptured seat, sat Our Blessed Lady, St. c. 3* 34 Dkvotion to the B. v. Mahy Mary, with the infunt Josus in her arms; but th(dr bat'lvH wi'vo towanls tho travclk'VH. Mury of tlio Iiuuirnation sprang forward and oni- brac'od the tliionu of her Quocsn, whilo licr conipanioii kiiolt at a litllo distancfi, wlioro sho could easily S('o the Virgin and her Chihh The liospiee faced thd Orient. It was built upon an eminence, and at tho foot of this was a vast space, murky with clouds; and through the tliick, chill mists there rose into pure air tho ftpire and gables of a church, but the budy of it was iiidden by the lusavy fog. A rugged, perilous road led down the rocks i.ito tliis space, winding along fear- fid prcicipices and througli cavernous rents in the mountain. Our Lady's gaze was fixed upon this gloomy space, and th(; heart of the nun kneeling be- hind her buiiii'd with desire to see the face of tlie ]\I()ther of puit! delights. And then the Virgin turned and welcomed the sup- pliant with a smile of inefFabhj swecdness, and, bend- ing down, she gently kissed her foreliead. Then slic seemed to whisper something about the Ursulinc to the divi)ie child in her arms. And when she had dene this three times the vision faded, and in a tremor of delight the nun aw(die. A year aft(>r, vhih; absorbed in mental prayer, tlie Ursuline became impressed with the idea that tlic cold, cloudy space was Canada, then called New France. She felt the most powerful attraction to- wards those unhappy regions, and seemed to hear a command to go there, and to found a house for Jesus ^'iiannel IN NouTii America. 86 tlioii d cm- ily see i-cl the at the Is; ami )nro air ly of it )ns roiul nf^ fear- ; in the pon thib pliug 1)0- 3 of the the snp- nl, beiul- Llii-u slu' •sulhio to had thvne tremor of »rayor, the that tk 11, hI :Nc\v lu-tion to- to hoar a e for Jesus and for ?,rfiry ; so, then niul there, who promised, if such >v(>re the Avill of Ood, to obey the inspinition if He would sui)])ly the meniiH. She wtis ri};ht in her foiiclusions; this was her voeation ; the shores «)f Iho 1)1 (»ad St. Lawrence were to form the seene of lier liil)()rsfor move than thirty years ; and then, blessing and blessed, she was to dc^purt thence for lier (iternal liomo in heaven. In October, lO.IG, comes a hotter from the Jesuit Fatliers, inviting her most urgently to join them. It is dated from the mission of the Immaculate Concep- tion ; it contains an anecdote of how the Fathers had made a vow to give the names of Mary and Jos(>ph to the first persons baptized by them ; how they had ac- cniiiplished that vow ; how Joseph died a holy Chris- tian death soon after, but Mary was living, and was I the first Indian who had brought her children for baptism and edncuition to the missionaries. Their converts nundiered several hundreds, and the Fathers often heard resounding from the leafy aisles c'f the forest the sweet names of Jesus and of Mary. The saints have a straightforward simplicity ' . '^"ilr lives which prevents our ever being surpri. ,. it their actions. After her vision, her waking convictions as to its significance, and the letters from Canada, we are l( !idy to see her seated in the cabin of the St. Joseph, and writing placidly to her superior : " There are signs of a storm, the captain says ; we are at war with Spain ^iid England also, and may meet their cruisers in the Channel ; but those are not reasons for being troubled 3G Devotion to tiik B. V. Mauy now. Ill fact, ono ImH no trouble now; tlio (HfTu'ultj is to oxpliiiii or uiulcrstaiul tliiit infiiiitcl}" swoct i'cpoHo wliicli I'ollowH one's coniplcto a1)iin(l()ninont to God; lorsf/ii'oii, s'csf, (lt»nic ime bovne/ois a Dicn." ' Tliovo wcro no crowtlH of iifti'ctioniito friends ; no W(!ll-liiicd crtrriu^(> ; no wuvni and brilliant drawinji;- rooin ready for luir in Canada : lier weleonio was to hear the 8avafi;es eliant lijnnis in their own lan{jjua;^'(>H; to apo five hundred Huron names upon a year's bap- tismal register ; to receive her yoimg future pupils ns they came forward, and to mark their names, Mary Negabmah, and Mary Amiskwam, and Mary Abateno, and Mary Gamitien ;" and then to go to such house as she had, and, with her sisterhood, commence at once her thirty years' occupation. It is not much of a house, that convent and semi- nary of the Ursulines ; between the cracks of the planks yon can see the bright winter stars ; and it is almost impossible to keep a candle burning in the rooms. It is no easy matter to accommodate all tluar pupils, and the sisterhood in the bargain. The beds, for instance, made of pine-plank, have to be arranged in tierb, after the manner of berths in a canal-boat. They are obliged to cut iip their own bedclothes to make gar- ments for the poor little Indian girls as they come in, and their chief articles of diet, indeed their only ones for a while, are salt fish and lard. ' Choix dcs Lettros Ilietoriqucs do la Vo .oriiblf M'to Marie de I'ln- carnntion, promirTe supcrieure des Ursuliaes de Quebec, p. 20. ' Ibid., pp. 25, 27. rating '4' Q'laud . ^fil'Iiu; dil ®«g'' et d'hu ^ lettres, p\ IN Noirni America. 87 Uculty , God; ulrt ; 1U1 waH to ir'B l)ivv- : ^ni\)UH as lis, Miiry A\)atein>, .cli lioxiso incncc lit and scmi- is almost rooms. It . mpils, and )!• ins-'tance, ticvfc, attci They ave make gar- eY coino iu, tr only o'ies And tluMi tlio children. They aro not nil in<(> IMavy Oaiiiiticn, who ncods no Himv to daybreak devotion; who in uj) with the sun, reeitiiif,' her rosary, and who Rings beautiful liymns to the .IJK^ssed Virgin ?n tho Huron tongue. Th(>y aro not lilio her wluui they come out of tho woods. But tluiy aro brought to tlu) good sisters with no nioro cL)thiug than u solid coat of groaso, well rubbed in by their panuits.' And to got that, and worse, off of thosts httle bodies, tahi^s a pro- found and patient scrubbing, and a fre(]U(Uit changing lof garments for months. Nice work for tlioso delicate il'i'ench ladies; but thoy dispute for tho office in their [hunible, gentle way. Magdalen do Chauvigny, Dame ido la Peltrie, gets it tho first year ; Mother IMary of ISt. Josei)h monopolizes it tho next. And while the ■V.I'' ilBcrubbiiij^' goes on, and iiidcoil ulwaj's, there are men iSand women Avaiting in the parlor to bo fed through the grating by others of tho nuns. Tlw snuill-pox entered their semmary and turned it into a hospital. Tho sisters all resigned themselves •io catch it, and, if it were God's will, to die of it ; for they were in attendance day and night upon their patients, and lived all together in small and crowded ftpartmonts; but, through the care of Mother Mary, %)t one sister was attacked. Add to this the porj)et- t^\ wars with the treacherous Iroquois ; the struggles ic, p. 20. de Vln- • Qmmtl on los nous donne dies sont nuos comme un vcr. * * * ^eliiut: dillgonci) quu Ton fasso, quoiciu'on Ich chimii^o souvent de Ullgi' ot d'habits, on no peu de long tenipa upiiiaur la verniine. — Choix dM lettres, p. 31 38 Devotion to the B. V. Mary of tlie mcclicine-mcn to retain their sviperstitious emi- uonee among the savages, — that sraall-pox, for in- stance, and all these new diseases come, they say, from the magio of the wliites ; the seeming impossi- bility of teaching the chler ones to bridle their in- famoiis passions ; the desolation of the long winters ; the forests echoing with savage howls; the repeat' d shocks of earthquake ; the dreary wastes of snow which spread around ; the news, now and then, of ta missionary's martyrdom ; surely these must break down our courage. Not a bit of it. " Wo are perfectly well ; wo siug oftener and better than we did in France. The air is excellent — a little cool, perhaps, but excellent ; so, you see, it is a Paradise on earth, Avhere the croH:scs and tliorns spring up so lovingly, that if one is pierced by them it is only to let new floods of love in upon the heart. Pray God to give me the grace to love Him alwavs." ' But Mother Mary's troubles and trials caanot be given here ; a mere list of them would take up too much room. Only one or two of them can be meu- tioned, Avhich offer themselves apropos of our subject It is the night of December thirtieth, " in the Octave of our Lord's Nativity." Sister Martha has a lm;:e ' baking on hand for to-morrow, and forgets the fire in the bakery, which is exactly under our seminary. Tlie night prayers are over, and all go to bed, to sleep a; ' Clioix des lettres, p. 48 *^<'raj)j i('(^, so ]J ?aHer cjj ^ give Jiol *^eir rooil roof fulls i| ^AJl in al ^i gocsf be (ll ivis emi- for in- ley say, impossi- tlicir in- ■svintors ; rcpeat''(l o£ snow tlien, of a cist break 1 ; we SlBg Tlie air is nt ; so, you croKSOS ai"^ pier 3rcecl by in upon tlie ;o love Hiw IN North America. 39 IS caBnot be take lip too lean be men- our subject, m tlie Octave lias a W lots the five in minary. 'I^'* a, to sleep »* well as the cold will let tlicm. A few lioiirs afterward we find tliat some of tliem — poor souls ! — have gone to bed Avith their shoes on, so terrible is the chill Ca- nadian air. And, at midnight, Mother Mary of the j Serapliim, who has the care of the children, and sleeps [at the door of the seminar}', rushes into our dormitory ftith the cry, " Wake, sisters, wake ! The house is on ire ! Up, and let us save the children !" As they spring up, the flames, red and Avild, leap brackling through the pine-floor of the ; i {)artment. The [other Assistant and Sister St. Lawrence break down 16 convent grating, which is fortunately of wood, and let out a portion of the scholarf-' that way. Our [other Mary, trying to save some of the chapel fuvni- ire, gets caught betAveen tAvo fires, hesitates as to [hethcr she should throAV the largo criuritix, luu* OAvn, it of the AvindoAv ; thinks that that AA'ould be irrever- ice, so kisses it Avith IoavIj' love and faith, and leaA'cs ito the flames. Then she escapes into the bell-toAvcr, [just missed by the falling bell, and gets out, bare- 3ted, into the December snow. 8ister Ignatia has a theological difiiculty. The trailer children are still up stairs : is it permitted her iigive her life for theirs? Meantime, she goes up to ttteir room, and lets them doAvn, all safe, from the wdow, one by one. Then, Avith a fiery crash, the iwf falls in, and Sister Ignatia's difficultv is solved. 11 in authority appear to have presence of mind, ph goes first to her proper post, to see if any thing be done there. Mother Superior, Avho has the Il!iilili"i! 40 Devotion to the B. V. Maet keys, goes to set tlie doors wide open, and stands there calling to the sisters by name. But no one comes forth — no one replies ; then she throws herself at the feet of the Blessed Virgin, and makes a vow- its terms we do not know — for the preservation of her sisters ; and, after a short agony of doubt, she finds them all safe, their poor Httle Indian girls with them. Safe thev are, but nine-tenths of them barefooted, with a single garment to cover them, standing in tlie December snow. But Mother Mary could see, by the tranquillity and submission of their faces, that God was in their hearts. "We were stripped," she says, "as bare as Job, but then we had better friends." In fact, the people had gathered by this time roiiml them; the Jesuits from their house, the French and^ Indians from the neighborhood. One man, after star- ""I ing in amazement at the perfect calm and resignatioE of the nuns, was heard to say, " Either these womeu are mad, or they have an exceeding love for God." Then all are hurried off, some to the neighbors houses, some to the large parlor of the Jesuits ; tl: nuns to the hospital, where the sisters clothe tlu:: with their own gray habits, and make, for the tiiii: being, scRur griscs of them. On the way thitlior tli ' are met by some good people with welconi'^ slior and one of the first pair is given to Mother Snixni.' in right of her age and position. Mother Mary of tl Incarnation does not say that she got a pair, wliicli: very good evidence that she did not ; in which c;i> this deHcately nurtured woman must have wallr rar agaii Ipieces oui "1*8 accusJ Wiher misi ibong till .^ escape) *#OM'U off <^em, all ^tJier Bij ^Ifrfl caref ^ge veinJ [ stands no one s herseli ', a vow- on of liM she finds til them, larefootecl in"" in tlio see, by tlie at God was 3 says, "as time ronwl Freucli ami' a, after star- ^ resignation I ^liese womenj )!• God." e ncigldiofij Jesuits ; tlw! clotlio theffll for t\ie timi y tliitiicr m slcome slices) tlier Snpci'i": r Mary o^ >^; pair, AvliicV' in wliicii c;v have v^flll^' IN NOETH AmEEICA. 41 some quarter of a mile, barefooted, through the snow, to the Hospital of the Gray Sisters. And now all their earthly pos' 3Ssions were gone — house, furniture and raiment. Nothing remained to I them but a black, ugly mass of ashes and ruin, whence sa column of gloomy smoke rose, sluggishly curling up |througli the gray frosty dawn. Not a whit downcast is Mother Mary. "Divine Providence," she says, will help us to pay our debts and to build again. Chat has placed us in our present sad condition. That nil set us up again, through the most holy Virgin, qf vhose succor u'c arc so assured, that we live in peace that direction. What she does not of herself, le will excite friends to do for us ; and so in time she rUldoaU.'" Those miserable Iroquois were the greatest difficulty all. They would wage war, make peace, and wage far again. They scalped, burned, and he^v^cd in leces our good Hurons and Algonquins. Their proph- \b accused our missionaries of bringing disease and ler misfortunes upon them. Father Jogues goes off long them to have his fingers cut off, joint by joint ; escape, but only to go back again and win the )wn of martyrdom. Father Daniel is burned by 5m, all clad in his vestments, at the foot of his altar. ^ther Breboeuf has the flesh torn from his body — carefully in thin strips, so as not to break the je veins ; has boiling water poured upon his head * Choix des lettres, 2ia 42 DkVOTION to 'J'llK I). V. ]\rAllY '1 1 in mookrrv of biiptisni; luw liis n.iils lortj onl, by piiuuM's ; luul passes t'nmi lli.at toilurd into Uio (itormil glory. All those M(>r(^ fi-i(Muls o'" -^iiry of \\n' liiciinmtioii. " Ah," slio si}i;lis, " if we cduIiI only {^'cUioIil (»f s()tii(> Tr()(|uois i;irls to cihicalo uiiil send hiwk ;is niission- iiries to (litMr lieiulisli elnnsnuMi ! ]>iit. some! of Uie Froiu'li are as hud as IIh* Trcxpiois. Souk^ lia\e eonie hitluu' «)iilv to trtule, williout nwc for souls; and the easiest trade is nia le by means t)f brandy, liic^-watiM-. Our best eonviM'ts, some of tliem, a,re lured aslriiy; «nir ViM'V sehool-<;irls get to love (In* hellish beverage, whieh they i;et wIkmi they >^i> to see their parents. The traders are exeomniuniitatcd, but they laugh ni that. All our elVorls will fail, unless it pl(>aso (Jod to interlere in our India 11'." Odd ilocs iutiM'I'ei't", he shaki^s that ""ar noi'.'hin'ii land uiili an e;irlli([uake. It was in ](!(II] thai this oreui'red, Houst's rocked U> and fr.\ eraeked, and fell to ruiii; the atnio-splure was ilust ; stei^ples swung like tre(\s 111 a storm ; ihe nii ••ht\ H. ] jawreuee ran dl (MlOW sulphur ; the laui}) of the JJk^ssed Sacrament f(dl ihi'eo times in the chureli of ]jea7i[U'o. A. mouidain near Tadounsac sank wholly into the vawni ng car til. aiu the valleys rose into phdiis. " The Avails of our con- vent split ; we were nearly ehokt^d Avitli dust, asphyxi- ated vitli bituminous and sulphurous exhalations. Half of the ni>ighbi>ring forest Avas destroyed ; soiiio lives were lost ; but God was with us !" The brandy-traders, at least, wore well frightened ; and ft pio an end U) from llieso of iiKiasuri used by tl tlie shocks Mliii(! o(,Ii((f All (l.,.so iifirv :dl, b delic.'de w( more devoni to need rej) wrote! a eatei Hiie traiisl;it( pil<"d a dieti slu) sny.s, " acconiit I itn Wliat tluM U'ore im2)oss; Thoy \\'ci\) al| courage, eonf ing, sim])]o no longer y( heathen relal wife prayed, liclp mo. Cul and shall belif when my wifJ Indian, "I g( canoe to fi.sh IN NOUTH AmKUTCA. 48 and a ])i()iiH f^'ovonior, coniirig ovor from Franco, put an ond to ihrm for ilid i)r(ss('nt. And wo learn, too, from tluiso rceords, a urw and very a(lvisal)l() nniiliod of nicaHuriii}^' timo—a nioiliod n»nt'.li and Hnecossfnlly uscul by tlioHnee, iind love. There was the touch- ing, simple faith of tho Indians. One poor couple, no longer j'oung, were d(!sertod with scorn by their heathen relatives, and tho olil man was ill. So his wife prayed, " O Thou Vvho hast made all. Thou canst help me. Cure my husband ; for we believe in Thee, and shall believe in Thee, even though he die." " And when my wife had made that prayer," said the poor Indian, "I got well. But," he continued, "I had no canoe to fish from, and know not how to make one. 44 Devotion to the B. V. Mary But I }irayc(l with all my heart, ' O Creator of all, help mo, I beseech Thee ; for Thou knowest I hare never made a canoe.' \n{l then I set to woi k at it. Coni(3, look at it ; it is periect !" Then, again, the Indians got into a habit, when setthig out on their hunting expeditions, of leaving' their little daughters in the hands of the Ursulin(!s, and by this means good seed was sown in those litllo lie.'ufcs and matured there, and one day boro a hun- dred-fold. The baptisms increased yearly. Mow la- borers for the rip(!ning harvest camo from Franco; the converted Indian himself became a messenger of good tidings to his brethren, sufl'ering, many a tiiiio, torture and death with the fervor and constancy of a martyr. Above all, the venerable Mary of the Incaj-- uation saw that sweetest fruit of truth, that most civil- izing and gentle making of influences, devotion to Mary Mother of God, spreading deeply and broailly throughout the Huron and Algonquin tribes, and sink- ing more profoundly into the souls of her own soiiio- times too light countrymen. There was the Abenaki tradition of a virgin's son, who had repaired the world after the great deluge, ami who was to come to earth again. In the Huron naiiio of this Being, which is Messou, the good Ursuliiics loved, probably correctly, to find Messiah. Then, be- sides the names of places which marked the land to her devotion, the Feast of the Virgin's Immaculate Conception was the patronal feast of all those coun- tries. All the people, haUtans and Christian Indians, \m IN NoilTlI AMiaiinA. 45 were wout to recur to the Holy Family in all tlwur dis- tressoH, and not in vain. Mary of tlist tribes the ghid news of a Bedeemer ; to people heaven with their ransomed souls ; to teach those pathless l)rairics and unhewn woods to ro-echo the sweet names of Jksus and of Maiiy ! This, Father James Marcpiette felt, was to bo, for the future, his ambition. So at once he began oflbriug up per])etual devotions to the Immaculate ]\[other for the accomplishment of his yearning. Indeed, things seemed to work that way. He was sent south and westward to Mackinac, soiitli and westward to Green Bay — southward, at last, to the Illinois. Evtirywhere he heard more and [)lai/i -r tidings of the great riv('r, and ho redoubled his devotions. Then Mary heard and granted his prayers. Joliet arrived, sent by the Count de Frontenac, then governor of Canada, and bringing with him, from Marquette's suixn-iors, the long wished-for permission. And note the day of Jo- liet's arrival : it is the 8th of December, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary ! The heart of the missionary bxirncd within him, for it took months to prepare the expedition ; biit at last it was ready, at the mission of St. Ignatius, the cross of which, on the Isle of Mackinac, was seen over the wide straits and from the two inland seas of Huron and of Michigan ; and in the middle of May, the month D 3 50 Di'.vo'rioN Tf) 'vuv, H. V. Maiiy of IMnry, IIm'V piiHlicd out tlicir l>aik (•.•iiiocH upon tlio (1(>(>|) ))|ii<> liikc. 'rii*',v took nil |i()Hsil)l(« prccuulioMH, iiiii([(> nil ni'iidciil |ii-('it;iriilii)nM piV|. Ixit lihovit III Huys l^l!iiiiucll(\ " 1 pliu'cil our V(>_yii;;c iiiitlci' Hit' pioh'clidU ol' tlu* I'Icsscd Vii'f^iii liiiniiicuhic, iiml )»rniMisr(| Iicr tliut if she o'lfiiiiictl IIS (he ^imcc ol" (liscovciiii;^ llu! great riser, I would ;.;iv(' it (he iiaiiic of ('oiiciiplion, hh I would do to lli(( lirst iiiissiou I sliouUl ustaWlisli nmon^' lliosc new nalioiis."' Tlie slorv of this discovery cannot l>c repeated Iiere; it in the coinmoii properly of liisloi'ian and [j;eo^raplier. AVe have only to kIiow (Iu^ voya;^«! of devotion to the ]Mother of (iod, and what advances lli;i( made into the wild interior of North America. The missionary, starl- ing inward from tlu' slmres of (ireen Jiay, had peiie- trateil west and south, tlu'ou,i;h many adveiitureH, leav- ing hert' and there some hint of the (Jospel, which he hoped one day to preach to all tliese nalions, and reaching at length a stream, wide, and swift, and (h'ep, which they told him would l)(>ar him to the gnnit river. Bci'oro end)arking on its bosom, they began a ni>w de- votion to the Ijlessed Virgin Inunaculate, which they practis(Hl every day, and " by esi)eciul pra^'crs wo phiced," ho says, " under hv.v protootiou tho siiccess of Thou, for a hundred and our V oyi a ijjfo ami oiirselvos 1\ ' ^ourtout jc mis nostro voyngo Houbs la protection do la Sto. Viergo Iiuniacuirc, luy promrttaiit, (|U(i n\ olic; nouH f'uisoit la gract; (U) dt'cou- vrir la ^luiult' riviiTo jc luy (loiiuorols \v noin do laConcoptioii. — l{cdt des Voyajj;i's it dis Dcscmivortos do P. Jacques Marquotto, cap. ii. * Recit dos N'oyaycs, cap iii. IN NoilTII A.MrjtFCA. 51 twoiity milcH, Micy flout down llio Wisconsin, iliron«,'li tlii< SlMt(^ of tiiiit ti.'uiir, it) its nioiitli and Hk^ oitjcci of (licir wislics. Tlicn out upon tlio lifoiid Itrciist oi llio l'';itlMr of Wiitcrs, and down its slrciini piisi lowii, Ml souri, Illinois, noting every olijeel, llie nidmo of llie li'ees, tlie viiryin,!^ widlli of wuier, llie jininnds, «!S- |(('('i,'illy llie "wild (!iil,tle," and ilie paiil liers whitili came in si^iit.' The Illinois se(!nj io liave been a niild, s, a ])a)'t to as(;('nd, otli(!is to de- scend the river, so as to surnmnd tlii'ir pr(!y. The (iurrent drew the canoe to the sliore, and tin; young men sprang in to seize it ; but not getting near enough for til , they returned to the shore, and seizing their bows ujid arrows, preparcul to pierce the servant of God. Dt atli seemed inevitable. " But," says the ' Miirquotte gives the name of pisikiou to the American bison 52 Dl'A'OTION TO TfIR 13. V. IMaUY fiiidiful IMnnincHo, " \v<> li.'ul rccd'irsc to our pMironcyH i».n«l ;^iiitlt\ ilio llolv Vir};in Imm!M'ulii.l(>. mihI wo IiikI {'vcni ii(M>(l ol' hoy MssisiMiic<\ for lli«^ H;tvjif;(>M wnc iir^- iiii:; r.'U'li ()llu>r io (lie sl;ni,i;lil('r by lici-cc iiiid conliiuiMl crios."' I*mI(1o(I siKltlt'iilv loiiclwtl llit^ IicmiIs of lli(\ (»1(1 iiuMi, llu> yoiilli wvvo '.•lu'ckfd, Mini for Unit iimo (.he inissioiiMvv wiis s|)Mr«'(l. 'J'lu'V li.'ul now r<>;ichi'(I m liind \vlirr(> lli«> inliMhiituils lU^Vt'V S('(> snow, MIK I I. now (I \o winuM" only ly by 11 \{i i-Min which f.ills oI'Iimum' Ihiin in sniunicr;" tiiiii is, iUoy woro in Arlv.ins.is. And now I ho prolth'ni of lh(^ j_;n':it v'wcv W'.vA solvi>d ; Mild lh(\y knew liow IhMl, coiiiin}^' from Iho cohl ImUos of llio nor! It, it wMlorcd so vmsI: Mn oxIiMii of ooiinlrv, to oniply mI hist, in lh(> (^nlf of jNloxico. I'or they hMil hcMid MlroMdy, by ihi) N«^w York niissioiiMrios, how bMiids of .vMiuhM'injj; Inxjiioi.s luul WMiTod agMinst iho ()nton^M.iinhn, avIio HvcmI on tho banks of a. beautiful riv»>r (Ohio) whicii loads io llio ^roat lako, as tlu\y callod tlio S(>ji, wht>ro ihoj tradi'd witli Muropoaiis " wlio pray to (Jod as wo do, ami have msarios. and bolls, to call nuMi to praycn-s."'' Of thoso and othov sncli acoounis, IManjuotto ^ain(>(l full oonflnnatiou from iho Arkansas tribos ; and so, lia\'ing navigatod its wat(>rs for a distanoo of oiglit do- groos, and })ublishod the Gospel as woll as ho ci>ul(F to the nations ho had mot, and h>arning that all tho tribos below were in perpetual -war and furnished ^vitll firo- ' KiH'it, cnp. viii. ' Slu>iis Dis..'overy nud Exploration of the Missiswippi, prof., p. xxiii, ' Recit, cap. ix. ftrniH, h UKcorid lOnloi Knskasl was oori tlioni. ' caliins, I of two II on foot < CJrooii 15; It was iiiission-u ni>enl.tlio chi'onic; (1 l>roiiL;lit 11 sought or iiionlh () "pon tin liuid, hi,- laiKio. do? Eul and foiuK there lie feast, of not o/I'or that dj'iii ex2)os(>d liis food I pan ions. TJio Ill« ^.'laiiiMiiiWffl^'" IN NoiiTii Amkiihja. 68 anns, Im iurncd lll(^ prow of IiIh , of llic- I'coriiis, and \vas ('oiii|)(ill('(| io |)r()iiiiH(i hotli l-o irliiiii and instinct tluMii. 'I'lii'cd days ho. prdaclicd tlm faitli in nil tiic^ir cabins, liiiptizcul a dyin;^' child, nnd so, nl'lcr a vo_yii|i;() of two thonsand seven linndrcd juid sixl-y seven uiilcH, on foot or in bireli canoes, lie reacdied llie mission of (Jreeu Uiiy. It was lierc, under tli<^ roof dedicated to Ids 1)elov(^d mission-model, St. I'^rancis Xa.viow(lor iiml for goods. " I liavo como," ho answers, " to inslruct you, to spoak to yon of prayiM-, to stoj) your wars with tho IMiainis, aiid to spread peace througliont iho laud. Powder liavo I none.'" How nuu'h does ho uinnuur? "The 15U'ss(>d Iniuiacndato Virgin" — llu^se nvo his words in Jiis hist journal — "luis taken such euro of us in our wanihM'ing, that we liave never wanted food ; \\c Ywo (pu'te com fori ably." '^ This is the " llislorv t)f tho Devotion to the BIosscmI Vir'iin Mar}' in North Ain(uiea," this spirit in Iter s(>rvants. AVhat worldly nu)tive-power is going to r(\sist or over- come this? See ihat lone, fei^blo missionary, that child of an an'iciue race of sunny Frances, in the poor bark hut of the savage, in the dead of the northern winter, lying prostrate there, yet ])erf(U-ming the spiritual erercises of St. Ignatius, contessing and com- numicating his two comradc^s twice a week, fasting on Fridays and Saturdays, and saying, and bcliciuiHj, in his deep, saintly humility, that he " lives quite com- fortably !"' That, we say, is the History of the Doato- ti(m to Saint Mary ; stop tJuit, if you can, by a sneer, a tn^atise, or a mob ! Meantime, the flesh of humanity has its laws, and under these the missionary is doomed to death. Far ' >rarqnotte'8 unfiuishod journal-U'ttcr to Fatbor Dablon, suycvior of thi! missions, Dooembor 20. '' J(Muiiul, l)('Ci.'inbei' .'lO. ' 'J'hi- laft words in Ids journal aro a gcntlo jost at the fatiguca of the French tnulors — ho forgets his own : " Si k's Friim.ois out doj robboM do ce pays icy, ils no les desrobbent paa, tani li's I'aiigues sont grands pour Ics i;u tircr." April (j. gnniuig sliall S(!( yvt. L( player, I of his f;i she do K( hito i\rot His comj Hie pr.'iye from tjio , On the chd'um o( f(rl,l,>, to down (Ik; IN North Amkhtca. 65 south li(^s tho (losinHl miKHion ; liovo, wl m-o lio is lyiii};, stretch tho (h'soliito siunvs and howls tho wild Ixjic.'il •Nviiuh I[(> sinks (hiily, hourly ; liis comrjKhis aro Ik*- giiuiing to ('onsi(hM- whoro, boiKsath tho iVosis, ilioy filiidl Hcoop out his Hohtary {jjravo. ]>ut lie says, "Not yot. Lot nui SCO my mission first, and then dio. To prayor, friiinds!" Nred. On tho 29th of March, in tho Octave of tho Annun- ciation of tlio JM(>ss('d Virgin, ho is ahU^, still xovy feeble, to start. Tho ice is broken up and is fh)ating down tho river. On the 8th of April lio roaches the long-desired village of tho Xaskaskias. ][oro ho assembled for s(!V(vral (hays tho anci(aits of the tribe, then visit(!d the st'iiarate wigwams, -a hich were crowded to hear him. Oji Thursday, in Holy Week, he spake to all in ])ublic. It Avas a hirge town, five hundred fires burned there daily, aral his audi(!nce was vast. His church was a prairii^ knoll. On four sides of him were planted his banners, largo pictures of the Blessed Virgin, attached to strips of India tafTety. Five hun- dred chiefs and anci(.>nts formed the first circi(% nearest to the Father ; fifteen liundred yoiing warriors gathered behind them ; the women and the cLiidreu formed the outer ring. M l>KV(vn()N TO rtiK n. V. IMaiiy TlniM 111' |>i(';u'Iit'(l (o llii>m llii' (loclriiii' of (Mni;il. i'ni.'illiMl , llio ( i.)'.|n'l dl' (iixI'm Sou nimli" Mmiv'm ^i■>n lor lluMH. Il«' oIIckmI lip II ll< !l\\ I'm! .'Il'l lll<'l< o I' II lo Miis.s I'oi- (lu'ir (Mir.iMshMJ. On Mii.Mlt>r Siiii(l!i> li(> rein- 1>i-;Hi'il lln< sMino (Irciiij ni\s|('fi('M !i!^;nii, .'iiul cl.'iiincil thill l.lUil ,'IS !1 I' .i'.Mi r<>r lli<> AI"sl I li;'li ( !«t(l. Mini !;;i\o 111 il luission llii> njiiiK- o r I lie I iuin.'it'iil.il(> ( 'i)!i '|r SI. IM.'irv Til .1 I Hill, ins iiM'civcil III': ni( I li lt"<< WlHl ,I"V Lis niissu'ii \\.is S('('iir»M\ Ton 11 llllil Ins work WIIM nt\ ll(- coiiM iiol l;ii>(>r llnMi>, ImiI iiinsi ;•,(> iind (M'I, othiM- l'";illuMs l(< i.'|>l;ii'(> lull!. !''i>r lliirlv iiiilcM on liiii \\;iv tlu' nrw I'oiivtM'ls mHimkI liiiii, foiilt>:'.l in;', who .shnll I'.in V soincthinr, hrlon;',!!!;: lo liiin, 'riicn ho rcnchcM l,.'ik(^ Mi(hi.",;in, |ioor ,l;u't|n('M niul rr;iiu;ois dcsp.'iin .•ilinosl of ;;('t|in:;' him t'lnihor; lor ht> lie,' h('l|t!t 'Sh! Ill their :iriiu> iNnv. or \\h(>ri>\<'r llh'\ l;i_v him down !^ MS ;i littlo <'hild. \\c siiiilcs; .Miid S|H\ll\S SWiH I. c'llm mii'oiir:i''(Mn(Mil lo (Itcso Iwo, or lies qiii(>t. nuninnring I'vom tiiin^ lo linm I 1 viiow ina Ih !nv Kod «\Mnor livi^ll I. * •v "^larv, iiiolhrr of !;r!ic(> and ^lothi-r i'>'( (mhI. V(MiitMnl)(M- nu" I" Ilo liirccls rvmy Ihini;- to bo propavod for his death, hh'ssiiif; holy walor for liis ngonv and burial, insiriictin;;- his v'onip.'Uiions, iv;uliug his bv(>viavv uulil ilu^ (ilni of ajiproiu'hin^ dis- itl 1011 dav of Iho olliot^ of i\w J' iniiionlato Conoo}itioii. WoU, Salurdny liiul ooiiio, Olid ho bado tliom pa Idlo io tho slioro to a knoll, at IN ■Nnirrif Amkiiioa. 57 (lie f'liol. of wllicli II. lilll" liver I'lili into IJir hike' 'I'IkW liiid liiiii, liko SI. l''iiiii('iM Xiivicr, ii|miii l,lin nliorn, luui hI'I'i (S'lVn llnlii IIk^ hisl, (liirclifMiH, iJiniiKcd ilicm .1 II )!• IlK'ir l(»V(\ Im'<';;';( in;; a, niiHHJonury ol" .J sliowii iiillicr t'lillv till' H|)irii, of llioso wluHii (uhI, in His nici'cy lo Aincric.'i, li;is ciiMif^cd Milli llu' ilill'usioM of (Icvolioii lo IMary. Nor did wo t'lu>osi> iluMti fioin nnv s|)cci;d prt'liTi'iico I'oi' llicm rnlhcr llwni for oIIums; for tlu> Mospiltd Sisl(Ms of Our liiulv \\«>ri> in (^niiula. before ilu^ UrsuliiicM iirrivcd, and (luMH^ \v<'r»> urnv-licMded niissionarit^s anion^ tlio Indians lu'forc" .laincs l\lar(jiiolt(> had l(>ft his owu sunny l"'raiu'(\ 'I'hi' spirit A\hic]\, in (h«' liisi chaplrr, we st>t forih as necessary, is eoiivenimtly excMiiplilied in ^[ary of ih(> Incarnation and th(> holy discovi>rer t>f tht< TMississij^pi ; but it is th*> sanu^ in all the servants. I^r<;t>d by thc^ love of souls, tiu^ children of St. I''rnncis, known as Kecollecis, as vi\v]y as the year lOJd, follow the i:ood (']iann>lain. Of these three ])riests, two throw 111 Muselves at once into the dilVicult stru<:;gle, against sin and death, among the nomadic Algoncpiins of the Saguenaj, the Ottawa, and the St. Lawrence, while the other pushes forward to the shores of Lake Huron, among the uun-o s»^ttled Wvtindots or Hurons. Three others are found about the same time in Maine ; but the new, young orders of Jesuits and bulpiciaus, IN Null Til Ami;iii(!a. 61 full of fn'uli iinlor iiiul (Midi'fjfy, rnu\ is Uic (nsf, of'lli(( cHfiiMiHliirK'nl, of ilio .1(, suits, iiitliouf^d' i''<'.y Ji'i'l laboird in Nova Scol,ia and M.'iiiic IVoiu KIOH |o lli<> ('oii(|U('Ht. of Acadia. 'I'luiri Mm Put' dr VcnliMlour ;,M;iiilcd l.licni ImikIk ar<»und (^u(il>r(% uiidvr i\\v iiil(> of 111'' Sci^'iicurio of our liudy of Ari(,'(dH. Tlicif liisi lioiiS(i vv.'is l)uill, M,i Si. (Muuli H. TImmi for llic MisHion of S(. .losc^ph, near (^u<(l»('(!, Urulart do Sil- Icrv fui'iiisluxs foniid;ilioii. Ho dcHii'CH to CHiabliHli a s])ot \vli('r<> lilt" w^s'MdKTinj^ Havii;^'(^H may I).') al,tra(!t(ul and aHScmliUHl, as ihti kui'i'mI, notlts of ilioir ct nviirHion. lit' hopes, M» the di'cd of foundation, tjiat all Iiis f)lanH "will liap|)ily sutM'ccd by tlio iiicritH and povvctrfid ln^lp of tlu^ imxst, holy Vir^^in, Motlicr of (Jod ; and vvislioH, bv the deed, also to testify tlit^ {^'ratiiudc! vvhicdi ho f«;(!lH foi' tho wondrouH favors rcccivcMl frojri that MotluT of Mercy." So lui dc^tVuMtcH the* foundation "to tho honor and {^lory of tho Most Holy Ti'inity, — of tho Father, Avho ^s /- 4^ ^ i <5?^.% ^^ '«i % 1.0 I.I ■ 50 ^^ 2.5 1.8 1.25 1.4 1.6 ■« 6" ► V] <^ /a 7 ^ .>* ^^ Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 '% ■^5*=r=s» 64 Devotion to the B. V. Mary well (1G4G). Charles Garnier, pierced by three Iro- quois nnislvet-biills, prepared to die, when he saw a Christian Indian expiring. The siglit awakened all the priest within him ; he staggered to his feet only to fall again, lint though he could not rise, he could and did drag liiniself along the blood-stained grounii, and, as he gave the last absolution, a tomahawk clove his skull, and h(^ died on the eve of the Immaculate Con- ception, which gracicms mystery he had early bound himself by a vow to defend, even unto death (1G19). Anthony Daniel fell at the Iroquois sacking of St. Joseph's, in KVIS. The braves were all absent at the chase. There were none at home but the old priest, the women, and the children, when the savages burst through the palisades. Swift ho rushes to the wig- wams to baptize the sick ; a crowd of others demand that Sacv. uu'ut ; he has no time for even shortest cere- monies ; he dips his handkercliief in water, and bap- tizes thcju by aspersion. Then he gave general abso- lution to all who sought it, and, entering the chapel, he vested and stood prepared to meet his death. " The Avigwams are set on fire ; the Mohawks approach the chapel, and the consecrated envoy serenely advances to meet them. Arjtonishment seized the barbarians. At length, drawing near, they discharged at him a flight of arrows. All gashed and rent by wounds, he still continueel to speak to them with surprising energy — new inspiring fear of the Divine anger, and again, in gentle tones, breathing the aflfectionate messages of mercy and grace. Such were his actions until he re- IN North America. 65 coivcJ a (lofttli-blow from a halbevt. Tho victim of the heroism of clinrity cliotl, the namo of Josus on his lips. The Avilderness gave him a grave ; the Huron nation were his mourners." * It was in tlie Octavo of the Visi- tation of Mary Mother of God. Noel Chabanel receives his death-blow upon the banks of a stream near St. Mary's, from the axe of an apostate Huron, on the 8th of December, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception." Rene Goupil, so livid and mashed with club bruises that his features were undistinguishable, liad his thumbs cut off while repeat- ing " Jesus, Mary, Joseph." Tied to the ground upon his back, at night the savage boys poured coals upon his breast until the flesh was charred. Six days tormented thus, he and his companion. Father Jogues, too weak to escape, wei'e left at liberty. But one day, ^vhcn they had retired {)])art to pray, two young men followed and ordered them back. " Dear brother," said the Father, " let us recommend ourselves to our Lord and to our good Mother the Blessed Virgin, for these men have some evil design." They walked back, telling the beads of their rosary. They had said four decades, when a tomahawk crashed into the brain of Rene, and he died, uttering the name of Jesus. " Bressani (1G44), captured by the Iroquois, marched chained in their procession, whei'eof the banner was the head of a Huron Catliolic, whose heart he saw torn ' Bancroft's History of tho United States, vol. iii. 139. * Mario do I'lncarnation, p. 148. ' Shea's Narrativo of tho Captivity of J(jgue8. G6 Devotion to the B. V. Mary from tlio l)0(ly to bo oatcni in bravado — marehctl fear- lessly ill that (Iroail procession, for " I was lillod," hu says, " Avitli eoufidonco in tlio intercession of the Holy Vir<»in." Six; days th<^y advanced through tlio forest, lie beiii;^' ooinpelled to act as tluur slave, fetching tlio wood and water for the night (;ncanipnu ;its, cooking for his savage captors, and repaid by blows. He slept, tied to a tree, uncovered, in the night air of the early northern A[)ril. Arrived at the village, tlu^y prepared him for running the gauntlet, by splitting his hand up between the ring and little lingers, and then beat him as h(> moved between their barbarous lines. They ft)reed him then to danco and sing for hours ; they ran splinters into his ilesh, and burned him with brands ; tlu^y covered sharp points with hot ashes, and com- pelled him to walk thereon; they tore out all tlio nails of Ids lingers with pincers or with savage teeth. One night tlu>y would tear out a nail, the next cut otF or burn oil' a joint; and all this, and more than this, lasted for a month. His wounds swarmed with worms; ho " said unto rottenness. Thou art my father ; inito worms, Yc are my mother and my sisters." ' Finally the sentence was passed, that what life lin- gered in him it should be burned out at the stake ; ai!'l then he. says : " I 2>repared my soul and comnumdecl myself unto tht Mother of Mercy, who is in truth tho Molher most amiable, most admirable, most powerful, most cleiiunit, and tho consoler of tho afflicted. She, ' Putii'diiii d'w'i : PiitiT inous as; muter mea ct Boror mea vermi- buB. — Job xvii. 14. IN NonTii America. 67 after God, w.as the only refugo of mo, a poor sinner, jibiuulouod by all creaturos iu a strange land." ' Then they reverH(Ml the death sentence. "For such," he says again, " was the Avill of Ood and of tlu! Virgin Mother. To her 1 owe not my life; only, ,l)ut the strength to su])port my pain." It was the Hollaiuhirs of New York who saved him at length, purchasing him from the barl)arians for some forty dollars, and he says: "1 tiaiv^f my coininff out (>/' Djy pi.'' on the IDth of August in the Octave of the Assumption of the Yirgin. whom I consider the bestower of my freedom." AVell, this at least was enough for one man ; he surely l(^ft his mission. On the contraiy, tho same year saw him on his way to the Hurons. Four times he made that voyage, and thrice he fell into tho same bloody hands, and was covered anew with wounds, yet God and Our Ijady delivered him out of all. AVhat wonder that thos(^ mutilat(Hl hands can record among the rever(}rs of Blesscul ]\[ar3', as the fruits of thii'tcen years, lia^'-c thousand Indians! There was ycit another of theses Jesuits, the last wo shall Cii(! here, Avho came in ir)25, and Avon the crimson crowu of martyrdom in 1033. When he came to the Hurons, he f(mnd not a single Christian ; Avhen he left them for the (jterual glory, they nund)ered eight thou- sand. It Avas the nobh; Jean do Br(d)feuf — the heroic, impassioiK^d servant of Mary. It Avas he Avho " once BiTSRiini, Relation, pp. 116-1^9. " In exitu Ismol de .^Egypto, domus Jacob de populo barbaro Ps. 113. [ 1 68 Devotion to the B. V. Marv > imparadisoil in a trance, beliokl the Mother of Him whose cross he bore, surrounded by a crowd of virgins, in the beatitudes of heaven." * This was his vow : " What shall I render to Thee, my Lord Jesus, for all that I have received from Thee? I will accept Thy chalice ; I will call upon Thy name. And now I vow, in presence of Thine Eternal Father, and of the Holy Ghost, in presence of Thy most holy Mother ; before tlie angels, the apostles, and the mar- tyvH, my sainted fathers, Ignatius and Francis Xavier, that if, in Thy mercy. Thou shalt ever offer unto me, Thy unworthy servant, the grace of martyrdom, I will not refuse it. So that if any occasion to die for Thee occur, I promise not to shun it (unless Thy greater glory so demand), and even to receive the mortal blow with joy. Now, from this hour, I offer unto Thee, with all my Avill, O Thou my Jesus, my body, my blood, my soul, so that, by Thy permission, I may die for Thee who hast deigned to die for me. So let me live that I may merit such a death ! So, Lord, will I accept Thy chalice and invoke Thy name, O Jesus, Jesus, Jesus !"^ St. Louis, St. Mary's, and Conception were attacked by a thousand Iroquois in the winter of 1649. Among the i^risoners taken was John de Breboeuf, who, when he saw the stake destined for his torture, kissed it with respect. So earnestly he exhorted his compan- ions to be firm, that the brutal savages cut off his lips ' Biincroft's IIi8l/)ry of the United States, iii. 124, * Relation de Bressani, p. 200. IN North America. 69 and toiij^ue. Continuing still his exhortation by signs, tliey gave hini the first prolbrenco in the torture. " Tliou wert wont," they said to him, " to tell others that the more they suflfered here, the greatei would be their recompense in the new lifo. Now thank us, for we only brighten thy crown." Then, having made a iiocklaco of red-hot hatchet-heads, tliey hung it about his ueyk. In mockery of baptism, they poured boiling water upon his head. They pierced his hands and breast with red-hot irons ; they tore his tlesh away in strips ; they cut his scalp into the semblance of a crown, then tore it from his head. He was a strong man, using to say of himself, " I am only an ox (fia'ii/'J, fit for labor;" yet he died in three hours — while his comrade, Gabriel Lallemant, young, delicate, and frail, lived seventeen. Yet his first torture was, to be stripped, enveloped from head to foot in bark, sat\i- rated with rosin, and set on fire.' But we must tarn elsewhere and look for other "Marians," as the pagan savages called them, saying only with the historian of the missions :'^ " Fain would we pause to follow each in his labors, liis trials, and his toils ; recount their dangers from the lieathen Huron, the skulking Iroquois, the frozen river, hunger, cold, and accident; to show Garnier wrestling with the floating ice, through which he sunk, on an errand of mercy ; Chabanel struggling on for years in a mis- ' ' Bancroft : History of tho United States, iii. 140. ' Shea: History of Catholic Missions, p. 183. 70 Devotion to the B. V. Mary 11 m sion from which every fibre of his frame shrank witli loathing ; Chiuinionot compihng his Indian grammar on th(i frozen earth ; or the lioroic Brebo'uf, paralyzed by a fall, with his collar-bone broken, creeping on his hands and feet along the frozen road, and sleei)ing, unsheltered, on the snow, when the very trees wero splitting with cold." Bnt we must turn to other devout children, wliosc filial love has taught this country aflection and devo- tion to the Mother of Divine Grace. In the great world of Paris, the Blessed Virgin Mary had few clients more sincerely devoted to her than the secre- tary of the king, Henry the Fourth — Jacques Olier do Verneuil, the trusted minister of his sovereign, the frientl of Saint Francis of Sales. His wife, Mary Dobe, Lady of Ivoi, was worthy of the respect which this holy bishop bore her, of her husband, and of her son. To them, among other children, God gave a boy who, from his earlier years, belonged to Mary — Jean Olier de Verneuil, founder of Montreal. Even in child- hood, whatever recalled the holy Virgin, or had any reference to her, caused joy or gratitude in him. He was glad to have been born of a mother named Mary, in a street called Our Lady of Silver.' In liis studies, he counted more upon the assistance of the Throne of "Wisdom (Scda Sapientia'J than on his own abilities, though these were naturally very > N'otrc-dnme-d' Argent — a name given to the street called Eoi de Sidle, because of a silver statue jjlaced at its corner by Francis I., in expiation of some sacrilege committed there. IN NoiiTn America. 7i great. Ho says himself tliat he could learn nothing without " Hail, IMary !" and others have recordcul that the devotion with which he used to repeat this an,^elio prayer moved them to tears. Ho undertook nothing, indeed, without fii'st j^oing to that dear Lady and ask- ing her to command him to do it, as a mother her son. "When clad ancAV, when the new hat or coat Avas given jiim, he never felt at ease until ho had gone to dedi- cate them, and himself in them, to the Blessed Virgin, and to implore her for the grace, never, so long as ho should Avear them, to oirend her Son. " I have thought," ho said, in later life, " sometimes, that this practice might he a feoLleness or a folly. But, Avhen I omitted it, my clothes Avero sure to come to speedy ruin the first day or the next. So I took these acci- dents as a visible punishment, sent to correct my fault, or to Avarn me not to fall into it again."' GroAvn up, he entered the gay Avorld at Paris, as his birth and rank seemed for the time to require of him ; and CA'cn there his patroness preserved him from its evil. Ho conceived an ambition to be profoundly learned, and set out to Rome to gratify it. But an affection of the eyes threatened him Avith total loss of sight ; so, instead of staying at Borne to study, ho Avont to Loretto to i^ray ; and there Saint Mary healed liim, and showed him also that he Avas to be her faith- ful and devoted servant. In 1033, accordingly, he re- ceived tlio holy order of the priesthood, and, aftei ' Vie do M. Olior. Paris, 184 1, p 5. 72 Devo'iion to Till': 13. V. Mary throo mouths' H})irituiil retreat, snid his firHt Muhh in tlio clnueh of our Ludy of Mouut Carnu!!. To luu- liis devotiou iucroiiHiHl daily. Couviuecd that to hor, after God, hv owed all t\n) ^rat't^s ho had rceeivod, ho choso hor for his nuj.!;ust Lady and Quoou; ho h(>ld all liis possessi(Uis as a ^rnni innn hor ; usod tlu^m ouly hi her namo ; uuulo a vow of porpotual sorvitudo to licr; aud, with tho authjuo synd)olism of his day, wore rouud his nook a silver chain to show that ho was boiuliuau to tho Quoou of Hoavon. Froui tluit day ho never refuscnl, when in his power, to give wliatever was demanded hi tho namo of Mary. Ho made uo journey without first going to tho church of Notre Dame to ask his IJlessod Mother's benediction. When struck with apoplexy, his rea.^on shaken, his sight and hearing gone, only two sounds seemed to reach his sense — the names of Jesus and of Mary. At the first, a bright smile gave intelligence to his half-dead face ; at tho second, his paralyzed lips murmured "Mother." When the idea of the grand Seminary of St. Sulpico was in his mind, he wont as usual to Notre Dame, and there our Lady showed him visibly the plan for the proposed edifice. Then he commenced that sacred work, and the corner-stone was laid in the Octavo of the Virgin's nativity. Tho works went on until the winter interrupted them. They ceased on the Immaculate Conception ; they were recommenced in the Octave of the Purification. He sang the Mass de Jkata, \\'ith tho keys in his bosom, offering them to Our Lady as the owner of the IN NOUTTI AmEUIOA. 78 ,.4 lionso. "For horoin," ho says, "I trust tlint tho lioly niiirio of Miuy will \w })1('HH(u1 forovor. All my doslro is to itnprint it dooply on tlio hearts of our brethren ; foi' Mary is our (lounsejlor and pr(>si(lont, our tvoitsurer, our i)rincoss, our queen, and our all." In tho court, faeinfj; tho portal, ho placed a grand statue of tho Virgin, seated, and holding tho infant Jesus in her arms. He refused to bo called tho founih'r of tho house. " Finuhivif cam ytlflsshniis," ho said; "it ia Jesus in Mary who is our founder ;" and ho caused tho monofi;ram of Mary to bo engraved on tho silver, wrought in tho iron-work, marked upon the linen, for the house was hers. Olier furnishes tho idea, and Lo Brun paints the coiling. It is tho coronaticm of Mary Queen of Heaven by tho hands of tho Father Eternal ; while below, the Church militant, repr(>sented bj' tho Council of Ephe- sus, hail her with cries of exultation, and proclaim her title, (le JUIc, of Mother of God.' Two other pictures from the same hand adorned the chapel — Mary, the channel of God's grace, and tho Visitation. In that house tho first devotion was to the interior life of Jesus ; the second was to Mary. And all this love and devotion to the (Jueen of Saints was, by Father Oiler's moans, sent to consecrate the swift waters and im- memorial forest-lands of North America. Before treat- ing this point, Ave cannot leave the holy founder of St. Sulpico without mentioning his death. His last years • Vie do M. OUer, p. 281. 4 I 74 pKvorioN 'I'o TiiK r.. V. IMaiiv 1"^ X. WVVv linllt'd t(> (lie l^l^'.sill|| of liis In lovid Loi'il by a <'()lll|iIif;itioli of (lisiHilrrs, i'S|>(i'i;i|l y llu- ji;,',(iiii/iti;; i>l\(< t)|' };i'.'i\r|. ill ils iii'iili'sl iill.'icLs, win ii ||h> hoiiI Wits iiliiKisI (liisi'ii (Mil of liiiii liy |)livsii';il ;iii;.';iiisli, hit llllt'i't'd no coiiiiilMiiils, ImiI. \'.iy Nlill, ;',<'iillv siiijlin;', )I1 ollcnii;^ his |i:iiii lo ,\ ( ,siiH criicilu'd, uiKl iiiiii iiiiinii'r. () Lo\.'! () Lo\.!" Ill' icihli red ii|i jiis soul iiilo ijir IiiukIm of Cjiiisl, Mill Ills tjcar IMollicr on llolj Saliii'tlaj', iMiiii'li liO, J(m7. It \v;is ill l(ill('» ili.'il (lie ('oiiipiiiiv of IMoiilrciil u.is fnilliilfd "for llii" I'onvt'ii.ioii of llic s;iV!i!;rs uiiij (Im iiiaiiilciiMiicc of Ili(> Ciitlioiii' rcli;^i(»ii in C'liiiiih." I'^ivc luicsls, it c'liiliiia! ( lliflu'licil), ii iliirlii'ss, Iwo .lill^(-s, turl\i' ollirr nolilrs, iiliil a, silii|»l(' Sisirr of Ciiaritv, foinu'il the association; niiil, for four jcais, tlu'V lalioiiil faillifiillv ti» In iiij;; llirir scIiciik^ iiiio siu-- i't\ssful oiK'iatioii. Tlicir |)Iaii was lliis : To IniiM, upon (III' I.-K' of Moiilii al, a town wliii-li slioiild Iti; at oiu'o u liouu' for Ilic Ulis^uons, a dtdViifc a;';aiiist llio savii}j;('s, a ct'iilrc of coiinnrrcc for tju* iiri;^Iil)oriii'j; ])(M)j)li', wliicli should lit' consccralcd lo Ihr most holy Virgin, and be called Villc-Marit'. So, ulu'ii all was ready, on I he morrow of tlio FeiiHt of Our Lady's rurii'u'alion, ihe associates assembled in the cathedral church of Motic Dame. M. Olier ollenul up the ])erfect Sacrilico at the Virj^in's altar, whereat all the laics ooiiumuied, while those of the Company Avlio were i)ru' ^sls said Mass at other altars with the pri Bumo iutoutioii, '* fervently imploring tho (Juocii of ■UWI IN Noirrii AMi:iiif!A. 75 Ah;.^<>Im Io lilf'HH llicir «'nl<'r|)iiMr, ntid (o l;il(c I7II1 of IM.iry's own inoidh of IMiij, firrive id Motdreiil. Tliey liiiild u chiipel of Icirh, erect iin iiiljir, ;ind ofTer forlhiMlrst lime Ihe, SMcrilico of Iho INTass. Oti that (I;iy lin'y reserved Ihe Hlessed SaerMineni, find /Vom llmt (1(11/ it has idways Iteen reserved in ViMe-I\rariHl.s TNIrsHrs. «l«^ (^)ii;ivliis, »I(< (^)illiiit>|., Diillfl, and liounri, to \u'<^]\\ Avilli. ill l()(i.'{, (li(> {\)inj»!iiiy, wlioHO only (thjcci, was \\w I'onvtM'sion <»f llio sav!i>;t's, resigns, inio llio Ininds of 'ln> Snlpiriiins, nil sci^ncnrijil ri^Iils ov(>r tlio island, {i|](>s conlirnit'd, a i-tMiinrv lalcr, by {\\o I'liliHli ffovnni- miMil. MfliM- llit> contiucsl of Canada.. And Mmim it is that iUo p.K'ssi'il ViiY;in Alary is ,>ldl llio sovorci^n lady of lMonir*>al. Tluvso Snlpicians also liavo Hhmv crinison r(MM)rds tlu^ir d»\dinj;s with tin* Wcn-o and wily Inxiuois. Two only, for tlu> pn^sonl, will w<> ni»>nlion. Whi>u !M. Olicr first jM'opost'd this mission to Ids (^cclcsiaslics, jdl oai^iMly olVtM'tHl tluMns(>lv(>s : nonc^ wcro moro ;',t>alons than Falhcr liO INI ail iv. " S.muI nit>," ho said ; " I will pronustM\'UMu>sl lalxn- ; T willj^'o to Iho Indians, oven in thoir tnvn ronnhy." " Vou uill not havo tlid trouMi\"' answonnl tho s»n\aid. of (u)d ; "Ihcy will conio to look for yon, an»l will so snrronnd you that you shall not osoapo from tluMr hands." Two y(>ars nftor tho doath of I\I. Olior, Father Lo INFaitro, tlu>n in Canada, was surrounded and Indieadod by tho Iro- quois, on tho Foast of tho Docollalion of Saint John tho Baptist. Father yip;nal followed him to lioavcn by the same painful path. On tho scant records that we have boon ablo to procure, we read tho nanu^s of twonty-livo stuninary priests in less than forty years — Salajj;nac do Fouelou, on the north Ontario shores ; among tlio Irocpiois, de Belmont in the Indian school of the Mountain; IN Ndirrii AwKiticA. 77 J^iiHsoii do Hi. (loiiu'', ^<>'\u^ fur Hoiiili lo \]w NiiU^lmz. 'Plic cliiltln'ii of Ij-jriiiMiis immI Xiivicr wi^in lli, (IdiMi no tcnoiK ; Mwir linm of l.'il)ot' iind il.H lit'M weld wliilc* and \vli('rnt lO look for hospit;ili*'r(>s. Ho found eager candidates for the mission lunong the Bisters of St. Joseph, in la Fleche, from whom threo "I :!i 80 Devotion to the B. V. Maky were scilcctod and sent to found their order' in Amer- ica. And now, what more have we to say of this lady ? Her arm, broken by a fall, and badly treated, becime hopelessly paralyzed. She was patient, biit she was a burden to others ; so she resolved to seek relief from God through her holy and gentle Mother Mary. Every one in Montreal had, of course, great veneration for M. Olier ; so, full of devotion and simple faith, she made a journey to France, and, at his tomb, she p)'ayed for such a restoration only as might enable her to aid herself, that she might be no longer a bur- den to others ; and her arm was made whole." She returned to her labors, and died in 1G73. There is r o more to tell. Hospital sisters have no stories. Their whole lives are beautiful praises to the gracious God, and are written only in His Book of Life on high. ' Tlioy wore still seculars. Pojie Alexander the Seventh erected them into a religious order in IGOO. » Vie de M. Oiler, p. 394. IN North America. 81 CHAPTER rV. Mabouebite Bourqeoys and the Conoueoation ok Oun Ladt. The hospital sister practices the virtues of Mary, and dies adventuroless. But Mary's servants are of all kinds. There are adventures in the hfo of Mar guerito Bourgeoys — more than she sought, faithful, loving soul, as slie was, but not more than God saw v/ere necessary for her perfection. She did not look for roses, nor did she find them ; but her life is itself a rose, offered and accepted on Our Lady's altar. If the old style of writing in conceits were in vogue, her life is one that could almost be composed so that every third word should be " Mary." That word waa in her mouth and in her heart, fi*om the time her lips first could frame it, until they laid her head, whitened by ninety winters, beneath the snows of Canada. She was born in 1*)20, this Margarita, this pearl of the Queen of Virgins. She was called, in religion, Mar- guerite of the Holy Sacrament. She was the founder of that society known as Daughters of the Congrega- tion of Our Ladv.' It was in the city of Troyes, in Champagne, that Marguerite was born. Her parents, not notable for rank or wealth, were distinguished for something » Vie de M. Olier, p. 394. 4* 82 Devotion to the B. V. Mary 'M 11 bettor — earnestness in the practice of religion. This was the best heritage th(^y beciueathocl. their dangliter ; it was the only portion of th'ur beqn(!sts that she re- tained. Her childhood was di^;tinguiKhed, quite early, by a certain grave piety, which was always character- istic of her ill after-life, and l)y zeal in the confraterni- ties and rosary societies to which sho belonged. It was at a feast of our Blessed Lad}' that she first canght a glimpse of her vocjiiion. It was the festival of the Iiosary, and Marguerite had gone to join in the procession, which it is the custom of the Dominicans to make on tliis day. On this occasion, Anno IGIO, so great was the throng of people, that the pomp was forced from its usual neighborhood into tlie larger streets, and passed before the grand catliedral church of Notre Dame. A statue of the Holv Mother of God adorned the grand portal, and Marguerite saw it, as she thought, at least, environed with lustre ; while the eyes, full of kindly intelligence, appeared to look wist- fully at her. luiiigination or reality. Marguerite re- ceived it as an invitation to consecrate herself to God, under the auspices of St. Mary. And, from that mo- ment, all the innocent little fineries of dress, in which, like otht^r girls, she had Intherto indulged, were laid aside, and she thought only, lusnceforward, of how sho might acomplish her self-dedication. At first she tried to gain admission into the convent of our Lady of Mount Carmel; but God had other work for her, and sho was l)a(Hed in this attempt, although she persisted for years — although it became the ^^'( brothc IN NouTH America. 83 tlie strongest desire of her heart. There wfis another order of nuns wlioni she frv^quentcd in Trojcs, tlioso of Notre Dame, devoted to i istruetion, and tliey had under lluir supervision a mm.ber of young persons, united by an agreement, witliout vo'.v, living each in lier own family, and visiting and instructing those who could not attend the classes of the niins. These were called the " outside Congregation of our Lady," and into it the nuaidxur received our I\[argue.rite with gratitude. This was her novitiate. Here she prac- tised all those virtues of holy poverty and self-sacri- li(!e, charity and devotion, with whiidi, afterwards, she made America illustrious. So, in the course of time, her saintly, mortified life Avon great grace for her. Her heart was always filled with fervor Avium she ap- proached the Holy Communion ; nay, sueh was her devotion, that our Lord vouchsafed to shoAv himself to her in the Blessed Sacraiuc^nt as a little child incomparabl}' beautiful. It Avas the Feast of Our Lady's Assumption, the chief festival of her congre- gation. Am(mg the nuns of Notre Dame Avas a sister of that pious noble, the commandant of Ville-Marie. Another sister, equally devoted, Madame de Cuilly, remained in the Avorld. Of course, botli Avere interested in their brother's fiir-aAvay colony in America ; they had pledged themselves to use every effort to procure for liiin some religious, for the instruction of the young people, and, for a long time, many of the nuns of Notre Dame hoped to be sent. They had given to , 1 » I! i H Devotion to the B. V. Mary M. de Mfiisonneuvo a picture of the Blessed Virgin, whereon tlicy had written, in testimony of their prom- ise and desire, these lines : "O Holy Mother of our Ood, Virgin of loyal lioart, Keup for us, of thy royal mount [Montreal], a consecrated part." Naturally, then, the good sisters talked much about Canada, and Marguerite Bourgooj-s listened. For, by this time, she had won the respect and love of the whole community, and had been offered admission to the Order; biit it Avas not her vocation — that, as far as she knew it yet, was to be a Carmelite. But de Maison- neiive, aviving in France to look for hospital sisters for Mademoiselle Manse, and soldiers for the defence of his co!.,>nists, went, as he ever did, to visit his sifters at Troycs. It was in the parlor of the convent at Notre Dame that Marguerite met him, and heard him talk of Ville-Marie. Then she knew at last where her vocation was. If she needed confirmation, she had seen the commandant in a dream some weeks before his arrival, and recognized him as soon as she saw him ; and when, in the absence of the bishop, she went to take counsel of the vicar-general, he told her, in so many words, that God required her in Canada. To know her vocation was to follow it. She was guardian of a younger brother and sister, and she arranged at once for their education. She had some property — she made it over to them and to the poor, and stood free in the world. She said, " I am ready ;" and then came the difficulties and temptations. The IN North AjriiiucA. 85 t IS le le Ibe roligioiis, rcfuscJ for tlio present by cle Maiaonneuve, dissuiiiloJ licr from going until they coukl go too. She desired to liavo with her a member of that " outside congregation," of whi(,'h she had for some time been prefect, a young girl, whose honor she had saved ; bn ' circumstances were inexorable : only one could be taken ; there was employment only for one. Mar- guerite must stay or go alone — alone, of her sex, in a ship filled with newly-recruited soldiers, and their commander, whom she had reen but once. Not an easy obstacle this to surmount. She has recourse to her confessor. " Go freely," he says ; " M. de Maisonneuvo will be your guardian ; he is one of the noblest knights in the court of the Queen of Angels."' Still, nature and modest education are powerful : Marguerite yet hesitates ; then the Blessed Virgin herself decides. One morning, while meditating ia her own chamber, a lady, beautiful, white-robed, surrounded with a halo of flashing yet tender light, appears before her, and says gently : " Go, Marguerite, to Canada ; I will not abandon thee." This settles the matter. Come now what may, she will be at Nantes for the embarkation by the Feast of the Visitation of St. Mary. Many a thing will come — temj^tations, re- monstrances, imputations which are the hardest for women to endure, but all useless. She quits Troyes, in the Octave of the Purification, for Paris. At Paris ' " C'est un dc8 premiers chevaliers de la chambre de la Reine des Anges." — Vie dc Sojur Marguerite, p. 51. 86 Devotion to the B. V. Mxtiy hIic is f^oiiovally liuiglicd at ; licr undo tli(>ro, not sliar- iii}^ in tlu! liiliirity, storni^j, iir^ucs, rc'l)iik(>s, forbids, brinpf.s to;\vs ubundantlj nnd Inuuhlo protestations of nfVection, but no cbango of puvposc. Tlio provincial of tlio Carmelites b(>^';.s lior to renounce tin's crazy ad- venture — oH'tM's to procuro her reception in any Car- molito convent she prefers. Here, then, is the dearest wish of hci- heart j-ealixed at last, and it stagj.i;(!rs her ft little. She pays a visit to tlu! nearest church, and comes b) ;'lc fixed. It is not to Our Lady of Mount Carmel chat she belongs, but to Our L\dy of Yille- Mario. Then sho makes up her comforts for the voyage. These consist of a crucifix, a rosary, a book of devo- tions, and a chancro of linen. She tak(\s this lui:'t:!;a"o in her hand, and she starts for the port of Nantes. Travellinu; alone, she is frequently i]isalt( d ; at Saunmr and at Orleans she is contemptuously refused entrance at the hotels. One ni^^lit she passes in a stable, the other in a clmrch. She has a letter for a merchant at Nantes, v.hom, on her arrival, she meets in the street. He gives her the address of his house, and promises to follow thither shortly. A young man, going out with M. de ^^raisonneuve, insists upon carrying her little bundle, and they present themselves at the house of Monsieur lo Coq. IMadanic, in person, 'opens the door ; madarae appears to have been one of the " unco good." tjhe looks at the poor young woman and the youth beside her, and shuts the door in their faces. Marguerite crosses over to the church of the Jacobii.rf. IN North AMEnioA. 87 m time for tlio commcncoinont of the Rosary proces- sion, joins iu tlio ceroniony, iintl tluni with renewed i'onrii{,'o 111 tempts the nicrehnnt's house n;^ain. TJiis time slie is soundly ruted for her impudence, and dismissed with Ignominy. But, as she turns away patiently, M. lo Coq liimself comes home, and the weary servant of Mary finds a shelter at last. She reposes for a day or two. By the Octave of the B. Y. M. of Mount Carnu)l, she is out at sea — not iu a modern packet-ship, or luxurious, swift-puffin{» steamer, but in the lund)ering little transport of two hundred years ago. In this vessel, sl(!eping uj)on n pile of cordag(% the nurse of the sick, the consoler of the distressed, making the night and morning prayer, the attendant upon a hundred soldiers and the crew, the heroic woman traversed the Atlantic. "When she steadily refused to cat at his table, M. de Maisonneuvo sent her food, fdtered water and wine, which she re- ceived gratefully, and distributed among her patients. She ate the coarse fare of the ship ; she drank, from a little leathern cup, the ropy, unsavory Avater of the common cask, and drank but onc(> a day — a habit she preserved through all her after-life, from devotion to om- dear Lord's bitter thirst upon the cross. In the practice of these virtues, after a jo\irney of between three and four mouths, sister Marguerite arrived at Montreal about the Feast of Our Lady's Presentation, 1G53, and then and there began the labors which knew no rest for nearly half a century. The town of Villo-Marie had few mognificenccs in 88 Devotion to the B. V. Maiiy '« I':n' tliiit day. Witliiu llio stockade, Home fifty honaes; outsido tlio walls, twenty or tliirly fariiiH, and a half hundii'd of Indian wij^waniH — that was the city of Montreal. But, small thonV( whom sli coiuljiitri iiig up a tlio .sj)irii iu'aits of these !;ib( no I)iM'l(lin the coiniiK and did <^-i alwiivH, of scliool, bnl hor eiiergi and so, on( money; a hcinis, au ai'oso, just of Good E\ Bvt the arrived, j\ guovite feltl hiixo lielj). to look for ' r^a Vie (1 Paint Sdornnil ^'lles Seculail 1818 IN Nonrn AMFRirA. 89 branclirs iiocossiiiry for tlioni, rH])('('iMlly in tlin \n\n- cij)li'S iind pnicticd of rclii^'ion. "Slu^ iiiHpircd tlicni," BJivH ono of her l)io{j;rMpli('rs, " witli HciitinicntH of love niul devotion towiii'ds tlio iiuj^'iiHt INFotlHT of God, to wlioin slio WHS hcrsjdf particularly dcvotiul. A -worthy coadjutrix of ]M. do INTaisoiuu'Uvo, whilo ho was build- ing; u}) a material rity for IMary, sh(> was establishing the spiritual empire! of tliat IMessed Mother in the hearts of tho faithful."' For four years oocupiod in those labors, she ran from house to house, for as yet no building could hv spanul her for a school. But if the commandant could give her no buildhig, he coidd anil did give her land ; and on this, thinlstal)lisli si {!oiijj;roj2;!itioii oJ' Our Lady in Villo-]\rai'io. They liad a sato and pleasant passag(!; thoy visitcMl toj^clluM' M. Olior's toiul), and, tog(>tlier, nnidered tlianks to (u)il for the niercy extendcHl to Madonioisollo IMaiiso. Alone, as slio canio, so slio goes back to ]u>r native country, a simple, woman, without raidc, wealth, or iulluen('(>, to ask parents for their daughters, to go to an isle in a seavc(> explored river, threc^ thousand miles away, surrounded by cruel and hostiki savages, to instruct the children of poor colonists and Indians in the knowledge^ of the Gos])el oi God. Truly it I'l^tpured smno coiilideuco to u> dco the ro(|U(^st, and more to hope for a favorable re- sponse. Put Marguerite knew to wlvnu she looked, whom she loved in Invr heart, Avlio-.n she trusteed in, ■whom she had chosen.' "I will come back in a year, and successful," she said, as she Icit Montreal, on the Octave of the Virgin's Nativit}', 1058. No sooner had slio arrived in Troves, than three of her old companions }>resented themselves to her for the missioij. ; but the f;ither of one of thoni, a notary, wanted a little information on the subject. " How did they live, for instance, in that wild country ?" " Thoy had a stable," said Marguerite, " which M. do Maisou- ' Reguum mundi ct omncni oriiiitura wrruli contompsi propter amorem Domini inci Josu Cliristi, quem vidi, queiii omavi, in quern cred'di, qucm dllcxi. — Com. uuu Virg. IN North America. 91 nenve had given thorn, and whidi only wanted some repairs to make a residence of it." The notary wished to know what inducements were ofl'ered to those who Bhould inhabit this fine lodging? " Trouhles, hnmili- ations, and hibors," answered Margmnite. " Was it pro|K)sed to support hl'e exchisively upon these?" askcnl the notary. "Oh, no; she Avoukl insure them bread and soup, and, with the blessing of God, that was enough." The tears arose in the old man's eyes. " You shall have my daugliter," he said, " provided you accept a dowry with her." Marguerite thanked him, in Our Lady's name, for the former, but refused niouiiy ui)on any conditions. At length, with five re- cruits, she returns to America and her stable in Islo Mont-Eoyal. "It was a stone building, this stable," she tells us, "about twenty-live feet square, and had long been a retreat for aninuds of every sort. But I had a chimney built, and got it cleaned ; so that we could lodge there the children Avhom the Indians gave us, as well as hold our schools. As for us, there was a sort of dove-cot, or garret, above, where, until now, pigeons lird been bred, and of this I made our dormitory and corn- munit3'-room, although it was rather inconvenient of approach, the only access being by a ladder outside."^ Yet, in this establishment they lived, taught their schools, guarded young emigrant girls who came from France — once as many as eighteen — and trained their ' Vie de Marguerite Bourgcoys, p. 81. 92 Devotion to the B. V. Mart postulants anil Indian converts. Next, tliey spared two sisters for the famous Mountain Mission of tlie Iroquois. It was tlie mountain wLicli Jacques Cartier had surnamed the Royal, and Avhich gave its name, corrupted, to the island. When first, in 1G19, M. do Maisonneuve beheld the stately heij^ht, that " knight of the Queen of Angels" vowed to erect a cross, the standard of his Lord, upon its summit, and to place beside it the lesser banner of his sovereign Lady. So he caused a tall, massive cross to be made ; and he himself bore it painfully to the top of the mountain, planting it firmly there, and inserting carefull}-, in a niche at its foot, the iniiige given him by his sisters at Troyes. This took place the same year and season — perhaps the same day and hour — in which Marguerite, looking ixp from the Kosary procession upon the groat statue of Our Lady, beheld it rob(;d Avith uuAvonted splendors. So now she sent two sisters to toil among tlie In- dians ; for M. de Belmont, serving there as priest, had opened schools for the savages, which were well at- tended. And there the sisters dwelt in birch-bark wigwams, and labored for the spiritual weal of tlio native American. "When advancing civilization drovo the Indians thence to the Saut au Ilecollet, and thenco to the Lake of Two Mountains, the sisters followed them, and are still found there in 18G2, faithful to their inherited duties, as were the first two sent by Sister Marguerite. But labors and troubles accumulated— diificulties about the congregation — hard u ork in get- ting th to unit( see witl to Fran tion frc to tlie ] these ni the niou is oblige guerite wliom to the charl One tr pany of ] votion t Pretre, I relics in i little Stat to work ViUe-Mar for it, aiu where, j>s consecrat portion o camp, an was hoale then he headed t his own image at IN North Ameeica. 93 ting the nile. The saintly bishop hesitates, -svcmld like to unite the orders of Quebec aud Ville-Marie, does not see with Sister Marguerite's eyes. She must needs go to rniuce again, and get a charter for her congrega- tion from Louis le Grand ; -which charter, according to the propriety of dates -which seems to accompany these matters, is issued and signed by King Louis in the mouth of May. Mgr. de Montmorenci falls ill, and is obliged to resign his see ; so that, when Sister Mar- guerite returns to Canada, she finds no bishop to whom to submit herself and the rule, as the term of the charter required. One treasure she acquires in France. All the Com- pany of Montreal, we know, were distinguished for de- votion to the holy Virgin Mary. Amonj^' them, le Pretre, lord of Fleury, had a collection of ancient relics in the chapel of his castle. One of these was a httle statue of Our Lad}', by which it had pleased God to work miracles. This ho determined to send to Ville-Marie, where, he hoped, a chapel would be built for it, and where it would be more honored than else- where, PS that toAvn and colony were more particularly consecrated to the pure Mother of God than any other portion of the world. Being brought to M. do Fan- camp, another member of the Company in Paris, ho was healed instantaneously of a dangerous illness, and then he vowed to labor stiuulfastly for the chapel, headed the subscription list with a lieav}'' sum from his own purse, and placed that sum aud the sacred image at once in the hands of Sister Marguerite. It 94 Devotion to the B. V. Mary was the consolation of tlie sisters on tlieir voj'age, and the object of their unremitting zeal on their arrival, which ha})}Hnied on tlie eve of the Assumption. So well they labored, that, on that daj' two years, they saw the chapel finished — the first stone church erected in Montreal — walked in the long procession, and heard the first Mass within its walls. The house of the Con- gi'egation rose l^eside it, and the sisters dwelt tad toiled there under the eye of their tender Mother. Many a storm passes by her and over her during all these years. Chapel and house consumed to ashes; the first English war and the captui*e of the city ; the burden of the Superiority — for the order numbers forty persons now, and she desires to lay down the authority, to place it in younger hands ; nay, she walks to Quebec, on foot, through the midwinter snow, at the ag(! of sfrcn/y-f/ircc, to beg remissi(ni fi'om the oflice, but the bishop (Lacroix) will not listen to her. " Go back, IMarguerite, to your austerities, your labors, to this position of honor, harder for your humility to bear than either : 'qx! pcrscrorairrit vsque h Ji)ie)ii hie. salvuh cn'f — whoso persevereth unto the end, ho shall be saved."" So Marguerite persevered, lived to see her mission-schools spread over the land ; to hear her communitv blessed bv everv mouth ; to build a new oliurcli, in 1(195, and to see there founded tlie i)erpet- « ual adoration of the most holy Sacrament. Her prayer on this occasion to the Prisoner of Love is jireserved, ' St. Matthew, x. 23, IN NOKTII AmERKJA. 95 wherein she Loseechcs His especial hcncclietion upon, and his guardianship for, her sisterliood. " Most Holy Virgin," thus, after long supplication to Jesus in the Sacrament, it ends, "remember that thou art our Mother. Be, too, our advocate, and supply what our devotion to thy Son is lacking in. Make us see the power of thy intercession with Him, bearing thyself our poor and feirblo prayers to Him, and presenting them thyself l^efore the throne of His glory." And, now, the day was well-nigh over — tlie hour was approaciliing for repose, for reward. Sixty years of austerities and toils had done their work upon the weary frame — forty-seven of those years in the wilds of Canada. Consult her life for the extraordinary spirit of mortification which always luh^d her, or judge what treatment she reserved for herself when she pre- scribed this course for her community : " To live in perfect renunciation of self and all tilings earthly ; to seek only the glory of God ; to be devoted to the in- stniction of young girls, and the practice of all good works, without murmuring at the pain, troiible, humili- ations, and suffering which are mscparablo from those ; to imitate the sim})le and modest life of Mary in all • things ; on their missions to imitate the Apostles ; to travel always, when possible, on foot ; to win their broad by the labor of their hands ; to be chargeable to no one. In their missions and commuuirv to have only the simplest, poorest, most indispensable furni- ture ; to Avear the commonest clothing, and eat the coarsest food ; to havo no better be(l than straw ; to 96 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i. live in all things as tlie poorest people, only in scrupu- lous neatness. Such was her rule for others ; it was luxurious when compared with the rule for herself." ' Thus, when the Master came, He found His servant \ I watching, and the end was on this wise. Sister Cath- erine, the mistress of tlie novices, lay dying in the in- firuiar}', still young, but early called. The last sacra- ments had been administered ; the agony came on. The sisters Avatching her ran to the various rooms to summon all to the prayers for the dying. When they came to sister Marguerite, she groaned in spirit, and said : " O Father ! why not take me, the old and use- less, and spare that poor sister who can yet serve Thee long ?" xVnd Mary bore the aspiration of self- sacrifice to the feet of God, and God heard it, and granted it. Sister Catherine rose up cured. Sister Marguerite lay down upon a couch of cruel anguish for ten days, borne with thanksgiving and hynnis of praise, and then, on the Feast of the Epiphany, she fell into a SAveet and gentle agony,"" and, Avith her hands crossed meekly on her bosom, Avent to " find the young Child and His Mother" in the courts of heaven, January 12, a. d. 1700. HoAV simply she told her Mother Avhat she desired for her congregation ! " Oh, my good Mothei-, I ask for our coiumunity no goods, no honors, no pleasures of this life. Obtain for me only that God may be faithfully served, and that Ave may never receiA'e ' Vie de Soeur Marguerite, p. 139. = Ibid., p. 1G8. she g laud coun estab whej'e livery chose! Fo] for the one vc IN North America. 97 ^jity or presumptuous persons in our mitlst ; nor 36 whose hearts are in the world ; nor who aro .ijiclercrs or mockers ; nor any save such us will study to practise those maxims which our Lord, thy divine Son, has taught us, has sealed with His bhjod, and Avhich thou, oh, most Holy Virgin, hast observed with, such exiictitude.'" How dearly she loved the very name of Mary, giving it in baptism to the poor little Indian babes, abandoned or easily given up by their parents! The first, baptized on the feast of Our Lady of Snows, and all the others, wore named Mary. One, an Illinois girl, lived to be eighteen, and died a holy death in their house. Other two, Iroquois, Mary Barbe, and an Algonquin of the same name, became sisters of the community. But Marguerite's whole life was devotion to the Blessed Virgin ; every thought was affected by her, every act was done as if by her direction. To IMary she gave herself in Franco ; for her slie left her native laud forever, to dwell in a wild and just discovered country, in a town bearing the name of Mary, to establish a congregation under the name of Mary,, where the books, and houses, and persons wore the livery of Mary, and where Mary herself was solemnly chosen first and perpetual superior. For, at the first formal assembly of the congregation fnr the election of a superior, the sisters liad (niod with one voice, that " they would have the Blessed Virgin Vie do Soeur Marguerite, p. 114. 9S Devotion to the B. V. Matiy I for tluMV saporior, tlioir origin, founder, i')rotoctres8, and good mother for time and for eternity.'" And then jMiirgnerite and the rest of them prostrated thora- solves before the image of our dear Lady, and made this prayer, reiiienihere I and preserved by tlie sister- hood : "Look, lioly A^irgin, on this little band of thy servants, avIio liave eonseerated themselves to God's se:-viee niuh-r i!iy direction, and Avho desire to follow thee as good children follow their mother and mistress, and who consider thee as their superior, hoping that God Avill give t(^ theo the rule over a community which is thine own creation. "We have nothing worthy to present to God ; but we hope, by thine intercession, to obtain the graces necessary for our salvation and for the perfection of our state. Thou knowest better than we what we need, and what we should ask for. Kefuse us not tliine aid. Help us, by thy praj'ors, to receive liglit and grace from the Holy Spirit, so that we may labor faithfully in the instruction of tlie young girls whom it is our especial diarge to teach. xVnd, above all, oh, our dear Lady and Mother, procure that we, the teachers, and all the children to us committed, and all who shall contribute to their spiritual advance- ment, may be of the number of the elect ; so that, in thy society, wo may praise our good God in the joy which endureth forever."" And so it ]ia})pens tliat, in the Congregation of Our Lady, there are no earilily superiors, but only sub-supcn'iors. "Th ■ Vic tie Soeur Marguerite, p. 148. I'uid. tiuue til sire in girls. pronn's(| limbo. ■1 IN North Abieiuca. 99 We would lilco to show, by its manifolil varicKl oxam- plos, tlio z(>al of ]\[aijj;uoritG for Cod's scrvie(3 in otlior cliainicls of d(>v()tioii, but it (^annot lia,vo place in this book, wliicli is dcMlieatcd to ono topic only. Dut, she ustnl to toll her sisterhood, and her entire life exhibited li'T own conviction of its truth, that their zeal, to bo ])orteet, nnist be formed upon the model of the Blessed Virgin's, of her whom it pleased the Eternal Father to malvc a coadjutri v '\n a manner) of her divine Son's work of redfnnption. From this, that dependence on, and imitation of, Mary, which she so much insisted on in the f. V. MaRY priiy cniitinudlly for tlio souls in purgatory, and for the convorsion of sinners on cartli. "At tiu! aA tlie sis< to Jabo "Jhii IN NoilTII ABrERTCA. 101 took to linrsclf no titllo of tlio honors wliioli tlioy paid Him : nov slmll tlio sistora distinguish between thuir BchftlMrs, rich and poor, nor nttributc to tlicniselves any of the su(!eess which Ood may ^runt to their labors. It is l)ehev
    ivo su('l\ in r(!tre;it, and to labor for their reformation, Avhere that is needed. " But the life of the Lk'ssed Virgin Ijoing all perfec- tion, and ineluding all the virtues of tlie religious state, points her out in all tilings as espeeiolly to bo chosen as our model, our mother, and our directress. As, tlien, she has deigned to admit us into the ranlcs of her humble servants, has chosen us to imitate her life, and is our founder and superior, let us, in conforniity with all the graces given us, as far as the frailty and corruption of (uir nature Avill allow us, imitate her virtues. Our good God has always, in the history of the Church, given to the founders of religious orders the special graces demanded by the spirit of their in- stitutions ; be sure, then, that he Avill accord to Mary, our dieboeuf organized the mission in 1634, and the Fathers never left until the Hurons were no more a people, 1650. They taught them in the day of peace ; ■ Bancroft's Ilirftory of the United States, vol. iii. I'Zu. suffer( hope 1 tion. up in securii to tlie implac appeal] ceived Hero tl or inst hymns had acq became many fl ytenetn couver tism, ruf joy. Tl enemy the Sioi thence t to Poini where a Tlie blotted TJie first Tlicy set changed thoir cal IN North America, 105 suffered with them in their misfortunes, and gave them hope beyond the grave for their restraint and consola- tion. The trinmph of the Iroquois broke the nation up into five bands. The first sought immediate security with the Ffench. The second fled northward to the ManitouHn Ishmds, and, driven thence by their implacable foeraen, took refuge in Quebec. The third, appealing to the generosity of the Mohawks, were re- ceived by them as brethren and adopted into the tribe. Here they preserved the faith, although Avithout priest or instruction. They met in common to chant the hymns they had learned, and to tell the beads they had acquired before the days of their captivity. They became missionaries among their captors, and allured many from paganism. Tvnen the Fathers at length penetrated into the Iroquois cantons, some of these couverts, grown old in the long-deferred hope of bap- tism, rushed forward to meet them, and wept aloud for joy. The fourth troop went to Mackinac, where the enemy followed ; thence far beyond Lake Superior to the Sioux, who treated them as ill as the Iroquois; thence to the Ottawas, in North Michigan ; and then to Point St. Ignace, upon the Straits of Mackinac, where a small remnant of them dwells to-day. The fifth joined the Eries, and, with them, were blotted from existence by their relentless enemies. The first alone reaped benefit from the national ruin. They settled in Isle Orleans, in the St. Lawrence, and changed its name to St. Mary's Isle, and here, amid their cabins, rose the house of prayer, and the fixed, 5* 108 .Devotion to the B. V. Mary ,:t thougli humble, residence of the missionaiy. The Iro- quois drove them even from thti,t, it is true ; but, wLon the Avar was over, they settled again about four miles off, and gave to their new home the name of Mission of Oui' Lady of Foie. Hither the Belgian Jesuits brought a statue of the Holy Virgin, sculptured from the oak of that forest near Dinan, in which was found the miraculous image Avhich bears the title of Notro Dame do Foie in Europe. But their need of the chase drew them nearer to the woods, and a league further brought them to a place wherein they hoped at length to rest. The cabins Avere arranged in the form of a square, and in the midst of them the church v/as placed supereminent, dominating all the village witli its cross as in perj^etual benediction. To this tlio missionary, Chaumonot, added a chapel of the Blessed Virgin, in size and form, material and furniture, a copy of the Holy House of Loretto, wherein our Lord was born. This became the holy place of the Indians. The Iroquoiy convert found a home here, side by side with his ancient Huron victim. The ' Hurons them- selves grew in lioliness and all primitive virtues ; and their brethren in far exile were wont to j lake pilgrim- ages hithe.'ward, bringing ofie rings of furs and balm, from the distant west, to the feet of the Virgin Im- maculate. Another and final removal to a very short distance took place long after. They called the settle- ment the New Loretto,' and there, to-day, are gathered ' Notes to BroBsaiii's llelatiou, 309-318. ^1 the fast- nation. the Hare Our Lad_; Tlie Cr the Ciiip] was cnUeci cat]ic(h'al the leaping sJiorc of t] the beauti Holy GJio; taught a CJ Ave Maria, aud Ottawa the recesscf gcnth IlJin years, Alhm regions froi fyiug tJie si or tlirough no broad b] the unwhol cessautlj' ; ment, to slJ and alwaysl ^I'lnd, or ral told it up IN North America. 107 the fast-fading remnants of the once grand Huron nation. What was once the site of the Old Loretto of the Hurons is now the parish of the Annunciation of Our Lady. The Cross went northward, and was phanted among the Chippewas of Lake Superior, The mission-house was called by the name of Mttvy, a)id stood where the cathedral of the Immaculate Conception now shadows the loai)ing waters of the Saut. Then along the south shore of the same great water, Father Allouez carried the beautiful devotion, founded the mission of the Holy Ghost at the very extremity of the lake, and taught a Chippewa choir to chant the Pater and the Ave Maria.' And here he met the scattei'ed Hurons and Ottawas, the sun-worshipping Pottowattomie from the recesses of Lake Michigan, the Sac and Fox, the gentle Illinois, and the proud warrior Dacota. For years, Allouez, Dablon, Marquette evangelized the vast regions from Green Bay to the head of Superior, " de- fying the severity of climates, wading through water or through snows, without the comfort of fire, having no bread but pounded maize, and often no food but the unwholesome moss from the rocks ; laboring in- cessantly ; exposed to live, as it Avere, without nourish- ment, to sleej) without a resting-place, to travel far, and always incurring perils ; to carry his life in his hand, or ratlior daily, and oftener than every day, to hold it up as a target, expecting captivity, death from ' Bancroft's History of the United States, iii, 150. 108 Devotion to the B. V. Mary the tomahawk, tortures, fire." ' So to the Fox River, to Iowa and Wisconsin, to the tribes of the Kickapoo, the Mascoutin, and the Miami, the devoted servant of Mary i^rochiimed her beautiful name. The Mission of the Immaculate Conception among the Illinois was the most prosperous, although not without its checks. In a foray of the Kickapoos the Recollect Rigourde was slain, and his colleague, Membre, put to flight. Allouez, the " Apostle of the West," labored long, and then retired to Isle St. Joseph to die. But, as in later times, with other races, some of the red men were willing to adopt Christianity only on condition that it should not inter- fere with their passions. The chief of the Kaskaskias called himself a Christian, and professed great re- spect for the missionary, but he lost it in this way. The light of his lodge was his daughter Mary, brought up from childhood in the faith, whijli had found congenial soil in her innocent heart. Mary had heard of the virgin spouses of Christ, and longed always to be such as they were. Besides, she desired to belong altogether to that dear, spotless Mother of Purity, whose name she had leceived in baptism. But a Frenchman, named Ako, rich for the place and time, but dissolute and reckless, demanded her hand, and her father determined to give it him. Mary prayed earnestly to be left as she was ; she told her father that she had given her heart to God, « Bancroit's Hibtory of the United States, iii. 153. and ( forced Fathe; and w; necess, left th( turned the oth hibited comma] but Akc missed totterinj remaine enough The cr( closed, herself her fathi her hanJ claimed I model saerisiuj village fluencec assembll them U Refuge Froml drew hel IN North America. 109 and could not religiously marry ; but the old chief forced her to the chapel. At the very altar she told Father Gravier of her earnest dislike to the marriage, aud was instructed by him that her free consent was necessary. This she refused to give, and the party left the chapel. But her dusky sire stripped her and turned her from his lodge. More than this, he won the other chiefs to his side, and the " Prayer" was pro- hibited in the village. Gravier appealed to the French commandant, one of the adventurer La Salle's posting, hut Ako had been there before him, and he was dis- missed with blame and reproach. The mission was tottering to its fall. Fifty Peorias and Kaskaskias remained faithful, but their opposition was only strong enough to irritate, not to resist, the party of the chief. The cross would soon be broken down, the chapel closed, the pastor driven away. Then Mary offered herself in sacrifice for the good of her tribe, and, on her father's promise to restore the mission, she gave her hand to Ako. Her virtues and her gentleness re- claimed the dissolute Frenchman, aud he became a model of penitence. The old chief made himself a sacrisLu.., and morn and evening he went through the village calling his people to prayer. His wife in- fluenced the women, as he did the warriors ; aud Mary assembled the children daily in her house, and taught them to invoke, by prayer and hymn, the benign Refuge of Sinners. From this source was it that the good Indian woman drew her consolation and strength. " I call her only 110 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Mother," she was wont to say of the Blessed Mother of her Lord. " I beg her, with all the terms of eudear- ment that I know, to accept me as her child. If she accept me not as daughter, if she will not be my mother, what can I do ? I am but a cluld, and know not how to pray. I beg her to teach me how to pray, how to defend myself against the evil one, who attacks me ceaselessl}-, and will effect my fall unless I have recourse to licr, imless she shelter me in her arms, as a gentle motlier does a frightened child." ' This was an Illiijois Christian woman two hundred years ago. I know of no country in which the influence and in- terference — so to speak of the Blessed Mother of God — is so evident as in this country. Here, now, in Illi- nois, as the first Jesuits disappear, the Priests of the Foreign Mission take their place, and the Priests of the Foreign Mission were originated in a sodality of the Bl(>ssed Vu'gin in Paris. These carried the be- loved name to the banks of the Ohio and the St. Josejjh's. The number of converts among the Illinois grew rapidly, and embraced the noblest and best of the tribe. So changed was an Indian village now, that the French settlers preferred to choose their wives from its maidens. At home, the tribe was punctual at the chapel ; when they went to their hunting-grounds, they would meet every night and chant — for that was their way — in alternate choirs, the Bosary of Oui Lady. ' Sliea's Indian Missions, 417. IN North America. Ill iH, There was no priest at Peoria since the death of Father Gravier, slain there by the hiHuenco of tlie me(li(!ino-men or prophets. But the grand chief woro a crucifix upon his breast, which he revered with sin- cere piety, and a medal of the Blessed Virgin. He had found this somoAvhere, and had carried it to better instructed Christians to learn Avhat it was. They told liirn that it represented the Virgin Mother of God ; that the little Infant, whom he saw in her arms, was the Bedeenier of the Avorld, and that her especial title was Mary the H«'lp of Christians. He received this lesson into a faithful heart, and he wore his medal with confidence in her whose image was embossed upon its siirface. One day, walking with his gun un- loaded, he espied a Fox Indian lurking in a thicket, and saw that the musket of the savage was levelled at his heart. Then he cried to Mary Help of Christians, and she heard him. Five times in succession the gun of the Fox missed fire. Before he could aim a sixth time, the piece of the Peoria chief was charged and levelled in its turn. The Fox surrendered, threw down his gun, and the votary of Mary led him triumphantly to his lodge. It was to Father de Charlevoix that he told the story, when he brouglit his little daughter for baptism to that clergyman.' What most charmed the later missionaries, when they came among these In- dians for the first time, was their peculiar, grave, alter- nate chant for tlie Rosary. > Shea's Missions, p. 428. 112 Devotion to the B. V. Mary These Illinois chanters of the Ave Maria had been even to tin mouth of the Mississippi, to the new French settlements, chaiilct in haml, and the by no means too pions Europeans there looked admiringly, and, peihaps, self-reproachfully, at these swarthy war- riors, who had not left their religion behind them in the far-oil' lodges of their tribe. Indeed, a praj^er to Mary Immaculate was not new there, for de Soto's exj^edition in 1539 had been accompanied by twenty- two ecclesiastics. The Salue lieglna had floated over the waters of the mighty father of streams, from the mouth of the Red River to the ocean, and the infidel Mobihan, in the wilds of Alabama, had listened with wonder to the chant of the Litany of Loretto, Membre told the pure Name to the swarthy Arkansas ; Mon- tigny to the Ta?nsas on Eed liiver; St. Come laid down his life to honor it, amid the tosvns of the fire- worshipping Natchez ; Foucault, du Poisson, and Louel shed their blood while proclaiming it among the Choc- taws and the fierce Yazoos. "When Iberville came from France, to meet the Acadian and the Frenchman descending from i-he Canadas, he called the islands at the mouth of the Mississippi, Chaddeleur,^ in honor of our Blessed Lady's Purification ; and soon we find within the stockade of New Orleans the hospital sister (1705), the monks of the Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmcl (1722), and those devoted jnoneers of educa- > The French Festival de la Chandeleur answers to our old English (Jandlemass, or Feast of the Purification. IN North America. 113 tion, the daughtera of St. Ursula. Tliiia, then, from its head-waters to the ocean, had the devotion to Mary followed the tides of the Mississippi ; and on both sides of the stream it had been planted, and its roots had taken iirm hold, and had spread widely. We shall soon see their bloom. But we must now return, where indeed we find the throbbing heart of this devotion, to the city of Mary on the St. Lawrence, to Ville-Marie. There, while all others were contributing to the honor of their sacred patroness, their safety was watched over by the guard of de Maisonneuve ; for this gentleman had enrolled fi'om among the soldiers sixty-three volunteers, all specially vowed to defend the town of Our Lady, out of peculiar devotion to her. The number was sug- gested by the years of her blessed life on earth ; and these veterans of old France formed thus, in the forests of America, a sort of military confraternity. Tht^y met daily for the recital of the Rosary ; they wore the medal of their order as a military decoration ; the approached the holy sacraments on all the feasts of the Virgin ; and be sure that for all this they were the first to confront the cannon of the English, or to an- swer, with their battle-cry of Ace Purisniiiia, the ^^ir- whoop of the sanguinary L'oquois. So, too, when their chief enrolls the inhabitants into a militia, it is " attendu que cette isle appartient a la Sainte Vkrge — because this island belongs to the Blessed Virgin." And those who are forward in the service are to have their names publicly recorded " as a mark H m Dr.voTioN TO THK H. Y. TNIauy of honor, IIS linvinf; ('X|>os(>(l Uioir livoH for tlio intoroHta of Oiir Lmlv Miitl (lie pulilic wcmI.'" Ami (lie iiiiit;ilioii itf I\l;uv in Iht Yisiljifioii to Siiiiit Eli/;il>t'(li s|irc,t(l fast mikI w'uU\ l\w (lislinclivc iiistitu- iiidi (if Norlhciii |''iTii('li Aiiiciicji. II was lliis fcslival iliat iMarj^iicrilt' IJoiir^t'oys had clioscn foe (lie |tatroiijil holi.l: IV of lici- iiislitiitioii. 'rii(« A'isil of Our J.adv sill' used l'> sa\ to her sistcis, " was tlii' occasion of tlus greatest of iiiiraclt>s, tlic \ )urilicutioii of Saint Joliii tlio ]>a|)tist from (n'i<4'inal y'\u ; his sanctilication ami that of his faniilv. '["aiic that thoiij^dit with yon, sistci-s, in all y(»nr missions. Imitate Alary in the sanctilication of children." Swift and steadfast the j^ood woik ect'l»>siaslics wioti* to their friends in Fi'ance ; spreat *I>r colonial ollicers i'(>ported to the homi> {^'overnnient ; tho soldiiM' dctaileil to his ancient comi'ade 11 le niarv( Is of Mirgiu'rite's institnlion. 'J'heir missions nndliplied from Isle Orleans to (^hu'liec. Ni)t only did they fol- low their vocation in their schools, but in what was called the ()ut<>i' (\)nty, religion, and modest}' sin'cccd to l(>vity iuid iiidovotioii ; mid not only wiu-o nil ini[ii()V(!d, lull []\v licuris of nijiny, IoijcIuhI l)y i\u' lessons iind exiunple of tlieir Huinily instriu^tors, ^rew dis^'usted willi the world, und they (ionscuM'Jited tliemselves to (Jod ill the Con^re^iition of Our Lady.'" IMur^ucrito Hved to see no hiSS than (^i;j;ht of tlu^se missions scieiirely founded and pros[)erons in well-doiii-^ ; a few years after, they had increased to tliirty-tlire**, and now they form an ospe(!ial {^dory of (!ana(h'i, and are to he found in ono dioeeso at least of th(! United Stat(!S. Anywhere in th(!ir mission you may s(!e them patiently, swe(!lly, perseveringly busicnl in tlwir Iteaiilifiil calliiif^, tlie " sanetilieation of chihh'en," leading the younj^ heart, through INIary's maternal tenderness, to C»od, her Eternal Son. But most edifying nuist that sight have b(Hm when they met in their n(!W and present home in Ville-Mari(% on the Oetavo of our l>l(!ssed Lady's Nativity, a. d. 1845, their number lacking but one of tho himdred. And still more touching is that anniversary of tluiirs, Avhen they assemble on the day that Marguerite Boui'gcoys died — not to lament her as one lost, but to celebrate with joy her birth into ' From tilt! liir<^o and very beautiful lif'o, in two voUnnoH, puMisliwi for " the Sisters of tlie ('oiigri'gation of Notre Dume." Villc-Mario, 1853. By Rev. M. Fuillon, fcJt. SuLpico. • \i lie DllVOnoN TO TIIK IV V. l^r.vuY that lunv atul bctliT l.iiul wlirn! Iicr houI in r(Mi|>irip; tlio ivnviirds of h(>r Hcir-HiUfriCuui, her liiliors, juul Imr Hunclity. l'\ti- iiiMiiv inoiillis Ix'foni ilu^ day comes round, tlio yonti;j; };iils ol" lli(> wcaKIiici' cImssch coiiscuTate ilicir worlxiii^'-liouis to tin* iiiMkiii}^' of a coiiiplt'lc out (it each for one of (lie |)oor cliildifii of the outtir seliools. And on that (l;iy all asscinhU', rich and [)ooi', in tlu^ ]tr('H- tMK'e of the };dod sisters and a coni'ourso of friends, in the ^rand liail, ^vllen^ all the gifts are hiid at the foot of an iniMi^e of IMessed IMary. There stands, too, a bust of Mar}j;ne)'ite, at the feet of her Avhoni she 1ov

    , lu'esents for Mary'w sako tho roll of comfort- able clothing, and adds something whertiwith to nniko a little feast at home m honor of Marguerite and Haint Mary. And this is the annual celebratiou of tho Daughters of Our Lady at Ville-Mario. One mark of the devotion to tho Mother of CJod, which still exists iu all its pristine fervor in Mcmtroal, I insert here, as belonging to the Congregation by sentiment, althongh to our own time by date. It is an extract or two from the pious dedication to tho life of Marguerite Bourgeoys, to which I am indebted for so many beautiful facts.' Tho dedication is — • Let 1110 tlmnk, Iutc, for tho loan of this book, as woll as for the Lift) of JladcmoisoUo Lobor, tlio kiud courtesy of tho lion. Thoinaa P'Arcy McUee, M. P. P. for Montreal. IN Noiirn A^rERioA- 117 "To TirR MoHT TIoriY ViitoiN— Q^ken of AroHTr.Ks," and it bcf^'iiiH— " IMcsHcd ViiK'". I "^"» inoHt liiiitpy to rcoount lioro tlio toiu'liiii}^ <>lV(^(!l,s of your lovo for tlm Sistur Uour- gdoys, Avlio o\V(!(l to you, iiftcu' (lod, uU tluit rgation, wliieh she had largely aided from her abundant means. Here, in a little cell behind tlie altar, dwelt this de- voted recluse, the cell modelled upon the Sanfr Com inn or sacred cliambcr of the Hoh' House of Loretto ; so that in this she might he perpetually, as it were, under one roof with the Mother of the Incarnate Word. Here, with her rosary, her little office of the Blessed Virgin, and h.er utensils for embroidering— for she proposed no idleness — she was at length inclosed, after vespers on the Feast of Our Lady o^ the Snows, August 5 1G95, to go no more out forevcn . Here she dwelt for .\ineteen years in prayer, in moaual labor for the altar, in meditation, and in adoration of the thrice holv Sacrament. To aid her in obtaining the inner union whicli she sought with the perfect dispositions imprinted by the Holy S}iirit on the heart of the Blessed Virgin, she ke])t continually before her eyes, upon the Avails d the " in- tcrio amor upon hovei wnigs ' Moriiitur nniiria moa niortc jiistovum et fiuul novb^sima men boruui aimilia. — Numbers, xsJii. 10. m iiliiav' ''**"■ IN North America. 121 tcrior life of Mary." There you saw the Blossccl among womoii enthroned on clouds, the hands crossed upon her immaculate bosom, Avhilo the sacred Dove, hovering over her, seemed to pour from his spotless wings His sevenfold grace. The eyes of Our Lady, raised to heaven, Avere fixed upon the sacred niono- gi'am, T. H. S. — Jesxs homimnn Sah'afcr. This showed that if the Holy Spirit were the source of Mary's actions, Jesus and the salvation of souls was their end and aim. Below the print, you read : " With i\f(iry. liij Jfary. In Man/." This was Sister le Ber's — for such was her title henceforward — this was her object now ; sought steadily in prayer, at holy Mass, in her comumnions and other pious exercises, in labor, in her poor repasts, to unite herself by faith and love to the interior dispositions of Mary ; and earnestly she be- sought that sacred ind tender Mother to be with her spirit, her heart, and all her faculties ; to be the model of her actions and the soul of her soul ; to penetrate and fill her mind, to possess it altogether, until she should become a simple instrument Avherewith the Mother might deign to glorify her Divine Sou." The other print represented the same good Mother receiving into her arms and lovingly supporting a Christian soul, which, languishing in this condition of exile, seemed to find all its joy and repose in Mary. The Sulpicians celebrated the feast of this interior life of the Blessed Virgin on the nineteenth of October, Life of Mademoiselle le Ber, p. 211. 6 !! 122 'Devotion to the B. Y. Mary and for tlio pious rccluso it was a day of particiilar devotion. And, still more to honor it, ?von by tlio works of licr Lands, die niado> a superb vestuiout for tlie feasts of i'oo Inimaeulate Queen, and in the centre of the '^voss sle embroidered most eunniu^ly the pic- ture first uescribed. How all this love was answered and increased, we shall see in the notes of the eliapels and churches connected with the Congregation. She never wearied in her benefits to this " family of Mary," as she called it. Her means liad greatly aided the building of their church ; slie furnished the; richest vases and ornaments U>r the alt.-ir; slu; founded there the Perpetual Adoration of the ]Most Holy Sacrament, Mild endowed a daily Mass; and more, to maintain, out of filial love and tender devoiion to S.-unt Marv, au iiislitute so distinctly her own, she gave them ten tliou- sand livres ' for the good friendship that slie bejirs to the Sisters of tlio Congr<\gation of Our Lady," ' tlio o)dy •condition lining that ilio. revenue shall be applied to their uses in Yille-Marie alone. Glad enough, we may be sure, was the heart of Sister Marguerite to have such a guest within tlio walls of her house. At thc^ time of her coming there were other guests there also. The Hospital Sistei-s had been burned out, and had found affectionate wel- come from the humble Daughters of Our Lady. "We have now," says Marguerite Bourgeoys, " in our house » " Pour la bonne amiti i' qu'ellc porte anx Soeurs de la Congregation de Notre Dame." Words of the deed of donation. IN North America. 123 the tlirco estates of women whom orr dear Lord left on eartli, after His resurrection, to serve Him and His Church : like Magdalen, by solitary life ; like Martha, by active life in the cloister ; like the most hoi}' Virgin, by an uncloistered life of zeal"* There lived, then, the recluse, so busied with her needle, that she fur- nished all the parishes of Montreal with chasubles, altar fronts, and other ornaments. They still preserve in the parish church of the city a cope, chasuble, and dalmatics, richly embroidered on cloth of silver by her nimble fingers. Towards herself she showed an ex- treme parsimony, making her poor woollen robe and coarse shoes last for years by mending them repeatedly herself; f(n' of all her large revenues, what was left from her gifts to the altar, she scrupiilously gave to the poor. She knew the Psalms and the New Testa- ment almost entirely by lieart. They Avere her books of predilection. But, besides reading tln^se, she re- cited daily the Litanies of the Saints, the OlFice of the Cross, the Rosary, and the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin. Add to these her ordinary prayers, mental and vocal, her adoration of the Sacrament, the ofiice for the dead three times a week, her embroidery, and her care for the poor, and judge whether she had not caught some of the tireless spirit of zeal of her sacred model and Mother. The faithful of that day and place believed that the angels used to help her. That she did receive many an(? * Vie de Mademoiselle le Bcr, p. 229 iil D,VOTIOK TO THE B. V. M«t m ^^* "'" " , ■ 1, it is imi-ossilAo to toibt. visiUe graces ftom on lug . ^ ^.^^.^.^ ,^^,„ ,e- ToueKca by Vr «;:f °;,^„tion to Mavy in tho Holy „ou..o«l the «ovW ^]"^''-, Charon do la Barro, ramily. Joining «th 1?.'"^^ ,.^ ;„ tonor of St. L instituted t"°/°;^"t ;1™ ^ »'-l-^ "' ''• Joseph, and ^^ J^o Blessed Virgin, on the 0^0- Anne, the mother of the 1. ^^^^^^ ,^;^ ^^,to,, rite side of the town from ^^^ ^^^^ ^^.„.„ „£ ^t. eharel of Bon Secoms 11 ^,,j. Dying Annes, so fau.ous "Y?"fo h r heloved commnnity ten Wore his sister, ^'>^^^Znm^on that there should thousand hvres, on the so ^^^^, ^,^^ „„,„„ abvays be one of the sr^ -U^o ^ .^^ ^^^^^ ^ „£ Saint Mary. anclanoto«>^_^^^^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^ ^ody was buried ml Congregation „ot be divided even in «'« S'^;^' ^^ j^^, ^sterhood to Marguerite, dying, ha ^ o ^^^^^^^^^ ^^ ^„„„ increase the -^°»'"°'Y'™;,,iae the means. But a,DivineProvidenee should in ; ^^_^,,^. „. thirteen yei.rs passed on, j^ ^^ ^,^,,.,,. 3. , creasing, but the good s.»tei^ „ ^^^ _^^^^^.^,^^,,^ years, however, "- r7^^^:l\,,at she felt noaven heart of Jeanne le ^-^f'^^l to e.ecnto it. T-t, drawing nearer, she d^te™.'";;\*° ^^^ Bi„,,„d Virgin IN North America. 125 off the pious recluse as well as they could. But they wore used to listen to her advice, and when she said that she knew it was the will of God, and that the angels would help vheni, they went to work and gave the first orders, alth jugh they had n(ntlier materials uor money. The foundation was dug, the corner-stone was blessed and laid by M. do Belmont, and the new house was dedicated to their heavenly superior, under the title of Our Lady of Angels. This was the inscrip- tion on the i)late in the corner-stone : "Most Holy Virgin, Queen of Angels, refuge and safety of men, receive the prayers Avhieh we, in full confidence, olTer, to obtain your blessed protection for the commencement, the advance, and the com})letion of this building which your servant and our good mother. Marguerite Boiirgeoys, has charged us to con- struct. AVitli all our hearts we desire tliat it may serve to augment your honor and the glory of your Divine Son. Do not, oh, Immaculate Virgin, over permit mortal sin to enter in this house. Bid the holy angels watch so well over the conduct of all who n of TiiK TfoLY Famu.y— Oi 11 Laijv of VicTonv — Ouu Latiy o» Good IIki.I' --Oi-k Ladv of tiik Visitaticn — LoixiK of tmk liiMACu- LAiK < (IMKITI'N -Oil! I-Al'V ill' S.NOWS -C'ATMKDKAL "F Till-: IjUilAOO- LATii Co.Nci.rrioN, A^D Chukciii.s of Oub Lauv ix t^i kiieo. The i'u'st throe titlos -urittcn al)ovo arc the titles of three most cuiinent devotions in Cfinjithi. Dutiiig back 'o the vcrv boifIiinin<:rs of the cohrnv, thev, rv at least two of theiii, have grown steadily in the altec- tions of the Canadian Catholic down to this day. A favorit(> thonie of M. Oliov's devout meditation was the Holy Family, Jesus, IMary, and Joseph, in the stable, hi the humble hou.sc at Nazareth, or the llight from the murderous wrath of Herod during the long hidden life of our Lord. As by this sacred household it had pleased tin; Eternal Father to convey salv;i,tion unto man, so did M. Olier desire to secure its protection for the new France which was growing. up in the snowy piue-woods of the scarcely trodden AVest. It was in Februiiry, then, that this holy priest, assend)ling the Society of jM'ontreal in the church of Oar Lady of Palis, a7id having offered the eternal Sacrilice at the altar of the blessed Virgin, consecrated Monh'eal and its Vtliole territoiy to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, under the particular protection of Mavy, tc whom the com- pany resigned forever the sovereignty and dominion of their lands. 128 Devotion to the B. 'V. ^lAnv As lie usimI to go l)cforo, on their journcjH in tho land of falcstino ; as he marched before on the Aveary way to Ej^ypt ; so now Hi. Jt)S{'j>h was tho fu-st to come amid th(3 lee-fulds and by tho rnshin;^' rivers of Canada. Ho (.aino in and with tho liospital sisters of Madonioisollo IManso, endowed by M. do hi h)auver- sioro expressly to honor tlie jairo foster-father of Christ. Tlien canio tho seminary priests of St. Sulpice, whoso aim was, as is tliat of tlio sacred priesthood in- deed, to represent our Lord himself, and t(j diiriisii His spirit. And, thirdly, eainn tho institute of Marguerite Bourgeoys, to make the name and thought of Mary t'evercid and loved. To none of these three had M. Oiler reviaded this cherishi'd idea; yet, Avitlujut their own design, they perfectly accomplished it. By and by, the time ciimo ; the Jesuit Father, Chaumonot, pro- posed and took tho managenieufc of the scheme ; tho three comniuniti(^s accorded heartily, and the Confra- ternity of the Holy Family was established in Canad.i. The object was to reach the three estates of maidiood, womanhood, and childhood ; to induce every resident of the laud to do something towards an imitation of those gr(uit exemplars of human virtue — the men to find theii model in Bt. Joseph, tho women in Our Lady, tiu) children in the gentle innocence of the In- fant Jesus. Sister Marguevito v^cords her signing of the act of foundation, together Avitli Mademoiselle Manse, and Mother Mace, superior of the Hospitalieres ; " for," says the Sister Mozier, historian of the Hotel Dieu IN NoiiTii America. 129 first Ruporiors woro closely bound in lioly frionJ- ) with IMar^MK^'ito ]5ourf,'coya and h(;r sistt'is ; tlioy jre dauglitors of tho most lioly Vir^'in, wlioni thoy liad choson for niotlKU' and jn'otoftross ; and wo daii^qli- tcrs of St. JoH('i)]i, wliicli makoH us, too, ado[)tcd chil- dren of tho same Holy Family,'" Tho Ih.st use to which MarfTuorito applied tho new scheme wuh in tho establishment of a house for poor grown-up f^irls, wherein they might be taught some honest calling, while their souls were kc^pt puro from the tciujitutions to which they were exposed. And this was called tho House of rrovidenco of the Holy Family. Soon it was used for s J )iritual retreats; then for the preparaticm of children for their first co;amuniou ; and so incalculablo were the moral benefits produced, that royal procu- rours grew eloquent abi:ut i'. in their letters to tlie king, travellers consecrated pa^ s of their journals to its praises, and the Parisian Father Souart used to call Sister Marguerite hi intUe Salute Geiwvivvi: (In ('niiathi. Mgr. do St. Vallier desired such a blessing for his episcopal city of Quel tec, and sister Marie Larijier was sent to found it. From tho very commencenjent, zeal and fi^rvor for a better and holier life spread through- out the city ; every day gave birth to some new i)rac- tice in honor of the Infant Saviour, the Virgin, or St. Joseph ; the yet olT Cham- hly, and do what ho could to Icoop them from tlio town. He couhl got hut a nun'o handful of men, and liis hopi s wcro entirely in the help of (heir Blessed Patronc^ss. So a banner was prepared, on the centre whereof they wrought a picture of tho Yii:;iii Mother, and Jeanne lo B(>r's cunninu; needle worked round tho image this l(>gend : " Our enemies put all their trust in anus, but we confide in the Queen of Angels, whom we invoke. 8h<^ is t'U'rible as an army in battle array, and under her j^rotection wo hope to vaiupiish our foos." M. de Belmont blessed the standard before all tho populace in tho parish cjinrch of Our liady. 'i'licn, bearing it in his own hands, Longueil set forth at the head of his little trot)p. Their trust was not in vain. Heaven fought visibly for tho ricrvants of Mary. As tho Hoot camo up the 132 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i St. Lawi-enco, abreast of Egg Islancl, on tho night of the second of Soptonihcr, a fierce northward-careering gale smote them suddenly. Seven of the largest shins were instantly wrecked, another was strnclc witli light- ning, and the sliattered remnants of its hr.lk Ihmg sheer up npon the yellow sands. The sliores Avere covered witli corpses — neai'ly three thoiisand, say tho French— about a thousand, says the accurate Bancroft. The rest were driven from the river, ami fled back to Boston, where their arrival was followed by a conila- gratiou that destroyed eighty houses. When solemn thanksgiving had been rendered to the Most High for this signal deliverance, the rxferna of th(^ Congregation commenced their collection. Tlio sisters gave a piece of ground within their own inclo- suro, and the chapel of Our Lady of Victory raised its roof above the dwellings of Montreal. Po]ie Bene- dict XIII. enriched it with privileges and indulgences ; its patronal feast was the Nativity of Mary ; and, for many a year, no day ever saw it unvisited by faithful worslii]ipers who came to give thanks for their preser- vation. Burned with the other buildings, it Avas recon- structed in 1/G9, and became thenceforward the par- ticular chapel of the exferncs of Notre Dame. But the gi-eatest, as it was the first, treasure of the good sisters was, and is, their church, Our Lady of Good Help, JS/'ofre Dame de Bon Scconr.9. If you should make a pilgrimage to this famed Ameri(!an shrine — and a more c difying devotion you will not find on tliis coji- tinent — you will see its quaint structure on the hill- IN North A]u:erica. 133 Bido, fronting Notre Dame Street, and overlooking the broad, sail-covered St. Lawrence. Its not ungraceful, ratli'jr Oriental-looking steeple, -vAitli its tAvo open lan- terns, one above tlie other ; its steep, snow-shedding roof, and old-fatihioned ornamentation of the doorway, will at once carry you back to the date of the Jesuit mart^'r and the Indian niisrsious. Of course, tin's, or something like it, had found a place in M. Olier's saintly reveries. " Oftini," he says, " it comes into my heart that God will, of His grace, send mo to Montreal, in Canada, where the first chapel built to Him shall be under the title of the Holy Virgin, and I shall bo the chaplain of that Blessed Lady." ' But he was not to see Canada ; the work was for Margumite Bourgeoys, and we have seen her struggles to build crowned Avith ultimate success in 1675. The wish of M. Olier was fulfilled in the pei'son of his spiritual children, the Sul- piciaiis, for they became the chaplains of Our Lady in Yille-Marie. Father Souart headed a procession of all the people upon the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, and solenndy blessed and laid the corner-stone — " D. 0. M. Bcafce Mavm Virrjini et sub tUnlo Assump- Uoim. To God, most Good, most Might}-, and to Blessed Mary the Virgin, imder the title of the As- sumption." The walls rose SAviftly ; a bell was cast from a bronze cannon wliich had been burst in the Iroqiiois war ; the iuiiaculou-3 statue of Our Lady was placed in a shrijie, ' Vio de Marguerite Bourgeoys, i. 238. it 134 Devotion to the B. V. Maey I! ':t gilt and ciiricliod witli jewels, and Bon Secoiirs stood open to the faithful, the first stone chnrch on the island. Thou the sisters made over all their claim to the parish church of tlio city, retaining this privilege alone, the perpetual right to keep it in repair, and to adorn it, "wldcli we offer to do," they say, " to I'ender to the Blessed Virgin, our Mother, all the honor and service tliat we can." This was accepted by the Sul- picians, as hn-dr; of Yille-Marie, and the de(>d was scaled with their famous seal for Montvcid, wliich shows on its intaglio the Queen of Saints laieehng to receive the Most Holy Eucharist fnnn the hands of the beloved Disciple, ■s\ ith this brief, eloquent legend : " Virgo Virgincni vin/i:)! commnnicaf. A virgin to a virgin gives a Yirgin in communion." And there, henceforth, were daily Masses said; and ther(>, in all distresses and calamitic^s, were public })rocessions made ; a daily pilgrimage sprang iip for the citizens, and from the remotest parts of settled Canada camo others, for alread}' Our Lady of Bon Sccours had be- come the refuge of New France, and to her protection was attributed the success of the infant colony. This was the beacon of the boatmen on the stormy river, and the remembrance of the trapper in the far-off forests. For the Sisters of the Hospital, cxprdled by the fire of 1734, it became a refuge, a hospital, and a grave ; for, almost coeval with the fire, an ejiidemic of most virulent kind ])roke forth ; they had no place but the chapel wherehi to lay their sick ; and it was within its venerated walls that they performed their offices of soil] -wc reo])Ie, back in people J'econstri 'IS waste ^oi that ' Manup] IN NoETH America. loo mercy; and that eleven nf ih^. «ed thoro, and .0 Zm^ ■'"""'" '^ ""^ P'»e"«. ae Virgin of Good Help" ""' ""'^^'^ «'« »^«« of In 175J a great part of the tn-™ "...i this time, to the horror of the "T ''"™' "=""'"' their beloved and venerated u '"' "'"^ '"=''»M Not..ing.a..aved.pie:::i ™:-;-^^ appeared under the smol-;. f'>™iturc-a]l dis- Beneath the ashes thevfonrd t \-^^ "S"' '"" ''°<'- discolored by the (i!!, " "'° ^""'^ *'■""<'. ''ot even I-.gine with what jo' « "l '" ^"*"' P--rvation. <" the Congregatioi.^ i:" '::°7f -^^^ «« S-ters to their own ohureh. and Z 2v ! ""' *™"™ •o tansfer thither the n, Iv iM f ^'^ '''°"^«'' the «ne of Bon Seeolr , T '"'''"' ^""' ^''""J' uu otcoms had been enriehn,! Many an evil followed this F„ """'• English eonqnest, with its t 1 ^ ""' ""' ''™' »■"' «- -hes grew blaelc witl ^T!;''™."-' -^ venerated shrine, and the rahr, b 7 "''■' °* "'« singled then, with the soi v ,"'"" "'^'" ^^ people, "All, if we onK. 1 , ° °'"* °' " eonqnered t-Icin her 'own L^ rl^T,^""^' °' ^-'' «'* "™l>'o were disheart! ;; ,1 t,«" :?"'" «"'«- '■econsfrncfion. At last t """""=' *""■•"■''» a - ««te land, and this r!,???'""' "'""'"'' "'^ P'-e 13G Pevotion to the B. V. Mary people liG might liavo ; but Our Lady's littlo plat of gi'ouiul ! no, that, at least, uo governor shoukl get, by any fault of theh's. So, toAvartls the end of June, in 1771, the ground was cleared anew ; aud, on the anniversary of the first pro- cession, a second, manifold as great, chanting litanies and hymns, passed to the spot to lay anew the ancient corner-stoiio. The new inscription tells the history of the shrine : " D. 0. M. ct Beaiw Mariw Auxiliatrici suh tilnlo Assnm2>t'>on'is, Tc)vj>h(m hoc, 2""^'"^^*'w angnstiori forma mllJicatiDii, anno 1G75, |)o.v/ra Jlammis adustnm anno 1754, ampliora forma rcsfauravci'tivt Gives Mari- anopoVitanl, cnUui Bmkv Maruv. Virginis adJidissiwi anno 1771, die Jnnii 30" cadeni qua jirimus lajtis vetcris ecdesia', fuerat imponitioi. To God, the All Good, tlio Almight^-. and to Blessed Mary of Good Help under the tiHc of the Assumption, the citizens of Vill(^-Marie, most devoted to the veneration of the Blessed Yirgiii Mary, Lave restored this Temple, built at first in 1G75 of narrower dimensions, consumed by the flames in 1754, in pnipln- form, this 30th day of June, 1771, the same day that the first stone of the ancient shrine was laid." ' It was finished in 1774, and so stands to-day. It is not large, the nave being seventy feet by forty-six; the choir, thirty-two by thirty ; but it holds the relig- ious heart of Canada. Over the portal stands Oiu- !# % i'1^ ' Vie do Marguerite Bourgeoys, ii. 427-30; Pclerin de Notre Dame, 23-24. IN NoFTH America. 13^ Lady's image, with tlio logond : " Maria AnxlUnm Chrislianonnn — Maiy Help of (christians." It looks over the SAvift-rusliiiig river, and tlie flash of its metal- lic roof makes it a beacon to the boatman and the sailor, "beckoning him," says Father Martin, 'as it were, to the shore of the heavenly country, the port of safety and repose." The fanions imago was of dark- browu Avood, exquisitely seulptared, and, after being the object of afFeetionate veneration for three cen- turies, was stolen by some infamous wretch in 1831, and has never been recovered. How it iias; been re- placed by a modern substitute, we shall see hereafter Another an<;ient American shrine of the Blessed Mother, near, or rather at present in, Montreal, miist have brief notice. It is that of the first chapel at La Prairie, Iho Indian mi:ssion so often refer ed to in tliciepagc, . The date is 1G75, September 22. Very liumble, indeed, in man's eyes, is the gift we chronicle, but precious as St. Peter's or Cologne in the sight of God and to the heart of Mary. It was only " a lodge of stakes or upright logs, straw-tln-tched ; but, for thirty years, it sheltered the celebration of the Divine Mysteries, and echoed to the responses of the Eosary." Nay, within its little inclosure of tv»enty by twenty-five feet, Mgr. de St. Vallior once held a confirmation in 1692. And this is the deed of gift : " Pierre Pora, and Deniso Lemaistre, his wife, both dwelling at the Prairie of the Magdalen, with mutual accord and consent, moved thereto by an impulse of piety, have given, and by these presents give, to the 1! L 138 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Holy Virgin 3Iary Our 3f(>lJicr, purely, simply, and ir- rcvocalJy, a stake 1 Igo, tliatcliod with straAv, situated on their propert}^ at the Goto St. Landjert, with the site of the said lodge, as well as with a perch of land a.^ round, and a right of Avay to bo adjudgcnl and marked out ; the said lodge, site, environ, and way, to be per- petually used for the service w — There you muj 'leai' wi , ii '• ,»■ a it *d. And Buek, iu witucsa of tavi dcxxl. Our Ludy of the rfnc ' In the old times, when Frunce held sway From the Balize to II ml son's Bay, O'er nil the forest free, A noble Breton cavalier Had made hie home for many a year Beside the Rivers Three. To tempest and to trouble proof, Rose iu the wild his glittering roof, To every traveller dear ; The Breion song, the Breton dance, The very atraosphero of France, Difl'used a generous cheer. Strange sight, that on those fields of snow The genial vine of Gaul should gr^ v, Despite the frigid sky ! Strange power of man's all-conquering will. That here the hearty Frank can still A Frenchman live and die ! The Seigneur's hair was ashen gray. But his good heart held holiday. Ah when in youthful j)ride He bared his shining blade before De Tracey's regiment, on the shore Which France has glorified. • From " Canadian Ballads," by lion. T. D. McGee, M. P. P., Montreal. IN ■' "oRTH America. 141 Oay in t^e ile '1, glail in tho Imll, Tlie first at ugcr's frontier call, Tho i\>' 'iblest (i .votce Of God nnd if St. Cathorino dear tVas iho btout Tin-ton -lavalici Beside tlic Rivers Tliree. P.P., Wlicn bleak Deconiber'a chilly blast Fettortd the flowinu: waters fast, And swt^pt tho frozc^n plain — When, with a fn/vh toned cry, half heard Far southward fled the arctic bird, Proclaini'-ig winter's reign— His custom was, como foul, come fair. For Christmas dirties to repair llni ) the Ville-Marie, The City i , tho Mount, ».liich north Of the great river looketh forth Across its sylvan sea. Fact fell tho snow, and soft as sleep, The hillocks looked like frozen sheep, Like giants gray tho hills — The sailing pino seemed canvas spread, With its white burden overhead, And marble hard the rills. A thick, dull light, where ray was none Of moon, or star, or ciieerful sun, Obscurely showed the way — While merrily upon the blast The jingling horse-bells, pattering fast, Timed the glad roundelay . Swift eve came on, and faster fell The winnowed storm on ridgo and deU, EfiTacing shape and sign — Until the scene grew blank at last, ^8 when some seaman from tho masl Looks o'er the shoreless brine. ]v 142 Devotion to the B. V. Maby r S % Nor mnrvcl nught to find, ero long, In Huch a sctJiiu tlui death of song Upon tlio bravcHt lips — Tho empty only could bo loud When naturt) IVonta us in her shroud, 13enouth tho sky's eclipse. Nor marvel more to find tho steed. Though fumed lor travel or for speed, Drag on a i.ainful pace — With drooping crest, and faltering foot. And puhil'ul wliine, the weary bruto Seemed conscious of disgrace. Until he paused in mortal fear. Then plaiutiv(i sank upon tho mere, Stitt" as a steed of stone. In vain the master winds his horn- None, save the howling wolves forlorn. Attend the dying roan, Sad was the heart and sore the plight Of tlie benumbed, bewildered knight. Now scrambling through the storm. At every step he sank apace, The death-dew freezing on his face — In vain each loud alarm. Down on his knees hinist'lf he cast. Deeming that hour to be his last, Yet mindful of his faith — He prayed St. Catherine and St. John, And our dear Lady calleil upon For grac(; of happy death. When, lo 1 a light beneath the trees. Which clank their brilliants in the breeze, And lo ! a jdiantom fair ! As God is in heaven ! by that blest light Our Lady's self rose to his sight. In robes that sijirits wear I IN North Ameiiica. 143 Oh I lovelier, lovelier far than pon, Or tongue, or art, or funcy'ri ken Can pictun , vvuh her tiiciy— Gone was tlie Horrow of the Hword, Ami the last passion of our Lord Had left no living trace. As when the moon across the moor Pointd the lost peasant to his door, And glistens on his jjaiie — >r when alon^i: her trail of light Belated boatmen steer at night, A harbor to reguin — So the warm radiance from her hands Unbinds for him dtsath's icy bandti, And nerves his sinking heart — Her presence makes a jierffct path; Ah I ho who siicli a helper hath. May anywliere depart. All trembling, as she onward smili^d. Followed tiiat knight our Mother liuld, Vowing a gratefid vow ; Until, far down the mountain gorge. She led him to an anti(iuo forge, Where her own shrine stands now. If, pilgrim, chance thy steps should lead "Where, emblem of our holy creed, Canadian crosses glow — There you may hear wliat hero you read, And seek, in witness of the deed. Our Lady of tho Snow. At Quebec, tlio Recollect Fathers liad raised a handsome clmrch, as early as 1G93, "to tho per- petual glory of God and the honor of the Virgin Mother of God, r^stead of the ancient convent of :*i 111 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Our liiuly of Augols," couvertod into an asylum for the poor.' But aid, ovon an tlio orij^'iiml convent — older than our little straw-thatched lodge at La Praiiio — is tho cathedral of tho lunnaculate Conception, built by the noble and saintly Bishop jMoutmorenci de Laval, in IGGO. So that they built cathedrals in America two hundred years ago, in honor of that dogma which tho learned reformed divines declaro a novelty in 18G0. The cathedral is very lofty, with massive arches of stone dividing the nave from tho aisles ; its dimensions are two hundred and sixteen feet by one hundred and eight, and it can contain four thousand worshippers. The tall tower and spire stand detached from the body of the building. Its interior was destroyed by shells during the bombardment of 1751), and the i^icturos and decorations now there are modern. Next comes the hospital, with its chapel, dedicated, in 1G72, " to the Blood of Christ poured forth for us, and to the Blessed Mother of Mercy — clfaso Chridi Sanguini et Mmricordm Jlatri;" and thither one goes to look at Coypel's famous picture of the " Virgin and Child." At the repulse of the British arms in 1G90, the Feast of Our Lady of Victory was established in the church of that title ; and, twenty-one years later, on the wreck of the Boston fleet, tho title was changed ' For these notices of churches in Quebec, see " Hawkins* Picture of Quebec." IBU. IN North America. 115 to Our Lady of Vii^torioa. Tho church was ch^stroyud by tho bombarchiicut which injured tho cuthodral. Of okl pictures of our Blos.sod Mother, which wo boar of in Quebec, tho Ursuliiu's po.ssesa an original Vandyke, a Jlfuter Dolorosa. Tho Seminary of tho Holy Family has a Flujht into I^yypt, by Vauloo ; an Adoration of the Witie Men; and a Viryin ministered unto hjj Amjds. E » UG Devotion to the B. V. Mary CHAPTEE VII. Devotion in Tkxas, Oalifohnia, Nkw Mkxicio — Oun Lady of Goa'ja- LiTK — TiiK Xi:\v Mount Cai!mki, — The Atlantio Spanish Misbiost- AKiKS— Maisyland. In the North —as we hiive seen — the devotion was planted and grcAv ; grew steadily, in spite of checks und obstacles. Throngliout the present British pos- sessions it maintained itself healthfully, Avitli the single exception of unfortunate Acadia. But its story in the South is twofold. Brought by the earl}- Spaniards, ever devoted to the Holy Mother of God, her name was proclaimed upon the coasts of Florida and Alabama ; was carried thence through the forests as far north as the Bay of St. Mary (the Chesapeake) ; as far west as the yellow Mississipj)i. But new dominions drove it hence, only to be renewed with additional fervor in our own day. This was the approach from the Atlantic and from tlie Gulf of Mexico. But the conquests of Our Lady of Victories were more progressive and steadfast on the Pacific side — the side of the Ocean of Peace. Here, securely sheltered by the golden flag of Spain, the missionary pushed his way through the Mexican territories, new and old — Texas and Cali- fornia. From that day the love of Mary has conse- crated those regions ; and still are the rivers, the mountain /:aks, the valleys, and the upland slopes, IN North America. 147 blosijed by licr bcuitiful iifinio. A daily nc-\v.sp,i])er will show this, Avliereiii tlio letters from tli(!se coriiitries are full of Santa Maria, Asuncion, Vir^cni, Concei)oion, Loreto, El llosario, Carmolo, and la Purissima ; tlio last new dioeeso ostablislied tliero is Marysville, and the capital of Now Mexico is still called Santa Fe. It is not to be supposed that the blood of so many holy missionaries had been slied in vain in the South- ern Atlantic and Gulf States, or that the English arms effectually destroj-ed idl reverence for the sacred name of Mary. Something survived, if only the solitary " one cluster of grapes, or as the shaldng of the olive- tree, two or throe berries on the outermost l)ougli, or four or five on the top of the tree." ' Enough was loft tj give courage by tradition, enough to su])])ort hope when it pleased the Son of Mary to " send new laborers into His harvest." Although the first explorers w^ho landed on the Southern coast were accompanied by ecclesiastics, yet there remains no record of any fruits gathered by them for God. But, as early as 152G, Mexico, thoroughly Christianized, began to pour her heroic missionaries upon the Northern shores of the New World Mediter- lauean. Franciscan, Dominican, and Jesuit struggled side by side. These first missions were about St. Augustine, the town founded on the Feast of Our Lady's Nativity, with solemn celebration of that rising ' Sicut raccmus nt siciit excussio diets duarum vel trium olivarum in suinmitiite mini, sive quatuor aut quinque in cacumiiiibus ejus fructus ejus. — Isuiaj, xvU. 6. 148 Devotion to the B. V. Maey of the Morning Star. By 1597, three chapels, dedi- cated to Our Lady, stood upon the soil of Florida ; a mission upon St. Mary's Bay invited the Algonquins of Virginia ; anoiaier wooed the Uchees and Catawbas amid the pine-covered Carolinian mountains. The Cherokee, the Natchez, the Mobilian tribes, were visited. The Indian and the Sj^aniard knelt side by side at the foot of the stately statue of Our Lady, which threw its stately shadow over the harbor of Pensacola. But they were nearly all washed away in blood. The tomahawk and arrows of the savages slew Over thirty Jesuits, Dominicans, and Franciscans. The English conquest did the rest. The Catholic Indians who throng around the Spanish St. Augustine grew few and feeble in the destructive and licentious pres- ence of the Saxon successors of the Spaniard. They wandered back to hide themselves in their tliick, green everglades, and were called Scminoles — the Wanderers. By 17S3 they were all gone from the neighboriiood of the citj \\'here they had been peacefullj' colonized and instructed in the faith of Christ and the virtues of civil- ization, near the shrine of St. Mary the Virgin. The same power desolated the missions of Alabama, until, in 1722, none remained of the converts save four chiefs — Oziuntolo, the Creek ; Adrian and John Mark, the Appalachicolas ; and Tixjana, or Baltasar, chief of the Talapoosas. These, gathering a hundred Chris- tians of their trib'^s, estal)lished the Mission of Our Lady of the Solitude. Tlien came the cession to the English, and the red-sldnned devotee of Mary disap- mmmimi^^''*-''^"' I!"|IP< IN North America. 149 peared. Their piiesis were banislied ; the religion of the foolish Establishment was proclaimed ; and if any- still lingered Avho loved the beautiful Name, it was in the fastnesses of the forest yet jiathless for the invader, NevcrthelesG, before we cross the Mississippi, let us note the double consecration of its waters to the Im- maculate Conception. Almost from its source to the Arkansas had Marquette made its shores hear the praise of that adorable mystery of God's love to man ; and, ere his followers sank the body of Fernando de Soto in its turbulent floods where they near the sea, his fingers had traced in his last will and testament these directions : "I order" — he saj^s, after the usual Christian pref- ace and commendation of his soul to the Most Holv Trinity — " I order that, wherever I may die, my body shall be carried to Xores — to the church of San INIiguel, and laid in the sepulchre where lies my mofher." •- * * "And in that church, I order that of my goods a site and place be bought, where shall be built a chapel, which shall have for its invocation Our Lady of the Conception. In which edifice and work I desire that there be expended two thousand ducats — fifteen hun- dred for the structure and inclosure, and five hundred for an altar-piece representing the said Invocation of Om- Lady of the Conception." He then directs fiilly the furnishing of silk vestments ; the chaplain's salary ; the fund for the perpetual guardianship and repair of the chapel, and for the Masses to he said therein — to wit : five of the Passion of our Lord ; five of His sacred 150 Devotion to the B. V. Mary wounds ; sixty for tlio souls in Purgatory ; ten of All S lints; ten of the Holy Ghost; and twenty of " Our Lady of the Conception." And then he adds : " In tjie event that my body cannot be taken for sepulture to S])ain, I order that ihat bo no impediment or hindrance to the founding of said chapel." Ah, Christian Cabal- lero ! not beside thy mother ; not in the chapel of the Conception ; but in the swift, turbid river of the Con- ception were thy bones laid to moulder until the trump of God shall bid them rise. licquicscant in iMxce!^ Meanwhile, in Mexico, the r.evotion to the Blessed Virgin was spreading rapidly and surely. The Sjian- iard had been nurtured in it afar off beside the Anda- lusian streams, or on the hills of Castile. And the Indians — they were a gentle race, except in the cele- bration of thoir pagan rites — the Indians gladly learned the beautiful mystery of the Saviour's Incarnation, and gave up their whole hearts to His inHuonce, embracing with simple but most earnest faith the privilege of sharing in Mary's maternal love. In a little while they returned that love with faithful childlike affection, and so won great s})iritual reward from her gracious in- tercession. Throughout Texas, xirizona, New Mexico, and parts of California, you find churches by the score dedicated to the Mother of God. Some of these were built but yesterday; some, echoing now on festal days to the ' D»» Soto's w." jif.ybe t" und in the " American Ilisforiciil Maga- zine," vol, V ; p. lOl. SBjaact**--"- IN North AsrERiOA. 151 chant of Our Lady's Litanies, or the choral sweetness of the Ave licjjina, heard the same sounds swelling from Lidian voices two hundred and forty years ago. On every mountain-side, on forest edge, on village- watering stream, iipon the frontier of the far-stretching prairie deserts, beside the cailon's brink, they stand, perpetual prayers in stone, invoking the intercession of the matchless Virgin with her eternal Son : Our Lady of the Eosary, Our Lady of Angels, Our Lady of Light, Our Lady of Carmcl, Our Lady of Sorrows, Our Lady's Annunciation, Nativity, Immaculate Con- ception, Assumption ; Our Lady of Belon, of Santa Cruz, of the Canon de Jemes ; but, above all, Our Lady of GuADALurE ! No less than five of those famed shrines are fdled with praise, even in this age, in the diocese of Santa Fe alone. That diocese is well named, for the holy faith, bCAvn tlievo in blood throe hundred years ago, has never faded from the people's hearts. IJut why so many shrines of GiiadaJiipe ? Ask tlio lady in the drawing-room, or the shepherd-boy on the hill-side ; inquire of the soldier in the barrack, the cattle-driver oil the pampa, the Indian girl Avitli the basket of fruit upon her dark-tressed head, and they will all tell you the same otor}' of Nuesfra Scnoru Je G uadaliipe.^ Our Lady of Guadalupe was soon the patroness of all New Spain ; Texas, and California, and New Mex- ' The Icgeud of Our Lady of Guadalupe is given in Orsini's Life (Virtue's cditiou), p. 37-1. 152 Devotion to the B. V. Mary ico, were rivf.ls in showing her honor. Rivers and towns were called after lior u.'ime, and little hanilots on the edge of the forests still bear the name of Guada- lupita, or Little Gnadalupe. At least a score of clmrclies, dedicated to Our Lady of Guadaliii)e, have in those States resisted the clianges of empire ; the many revolutions ; tlie influx Ox 'Icoii- tious infidels from the Eastern States ; the crncl, caus(doss, wicked dfsstruction jf the harmless CathoUc Lidians bj the people of the United States.' A chap- ter was formed for the first church, and Pope Benedict Xiy. accoided a Mass and office, with a privileged octavo. The copy of the miraciikjus portrait given him, he gave to the religious of the Yisitatit)n of tlie Blessed Virgin in the Eterii;d City. To Spain he gave +he right of celebrating the festival in Europe, and the great Pius VI. extended the privilege to Italy. Judge then, with such a patroness for New Spain, how fast tlie devotion spread ! By 1581 the fearless missionaries had carried it seven hundred miles from the ca2:)ital, into what is now the State of New Mexico. 'J'lie land was of course inigated here, as elsev»'liere, with blood; and the first to fall for St. Mary was the Fransciscan Father, Juan de Santa Maria. Sixteen years later, eight more of the same oi'der had pene- trated to the northern Bio Grande. By 1G08 eight thousand souls had been baptized into the faith oi' Christ ; and when less than a score of years more had Vide note at end of chapter. IN North AjfEmcA. 153 rollod over, Futlior Benavidos had established the twcnty-sovonth mission in Now Mexico. Three Avell- built churches of Our Lady of Guadahipo, and others, under vnrious dedications, sheltered crowds who adored the All Holy and told the beads of the Ilosary of the Virgin. Of these poor Indians, in spite of their many suftcaings from the {governments which have plundered and oppressed them, eight thousand still exist as a proof of the graces won from God by la Purissima Virgen. As early as the year IfiSG there was a G'iculalwpe river iu Texas, and eight Franciscan missions flourished on its borders. Nay, some of them were pushed for- ward among the Osages and Missouris, AvhOe others, going towards the Pacific shore, hfid marched to the spiritual conquest of California. These pioneers of Cli'ist, Avho were Inmting souls, more precious far than gold, were i:^ a special way St. Mary's own sworn ser- vants ; they were the Monks of Our Lady of Mount Carrael. These Avere the founders, two centuries and a half ago (1601), of Santa Barbara, San Francisco, and Monterey ; and, at the latter place, an altar was erected beneath a shadowy oak, and Father Andrew of the Assumption of the Virgm said then and there the first Mass, and laid claim to California in the name of the King of kings.' South of that rose -he new Mount Carmel, and the mission of that title stood at its feet, looking out upon the broad, still, transparent ' Sliea's Indian Missions, p. 88. 7* 154 Devotion to the B. V. Mary sen ; and the dusky rucljlos gatlievcd tlioro to loaru the histoi-y of the Iiiciivnutioii ; to bi; glad iit tlie ncnvs of a IlodeeiiKn'; to ht'fc their untutored liearts in rev- erent love to His Mother, Avhose protection tht-y soon learm.'d to trust. And the good Fathers won tliem from their savage sh^th, and idleness, and want, having heard in their souls a voice lilio that which sounded to the prophet of old : " Feed this people Avith tliy crook, this Hock of thy heritage, which dwell solitary in the wood in the midst -f Carmel."' There the l)ea(ls of Mary's Rosary Avere t;iuglit, and the hynnis of her feasts were sung in the Indian language; and ;is in Asia the Mediterranean bathed tlie feet of the ancii'ut hill, svj hore the blue, clear Pacilic sought the shori!, and broke at the base of the uew-found vineyard of God.= Wondrous, indeed, were some of our dear Mother's manifestations of pt \. er and protection. In the Oct:ivo of her glorious Assumption into Heaven, year 1770, the priests Somera and Cambon started oil' for the in- terior, where pagan tribes, hitherto unvisited, were dying in ignorance of the Father of all. \Yeary days and nights ther travelled witli their little escort of ten soldiers, till they reached the base of the vast Sierra. The sun was going down over tlie Western Ocean ; the siiOWT peaks of the mountains were turning roso-hued in the ^tthig day, Avhen they saw hundreds of Inchans, Kil^- the TJi her Li Nuest ciou, those the Ai pi-aj-er,' that, luight 1 Pascc populum tuinn iu virga tua, gregcm liereditatis tuis, habi- tanres solos in saltii, iu inodio Carindi. — Micali, vii. 14. ' The Hebrew word Cunuel siguifius Gods vineyard. IN North America. 155 fully armed, and slioiiting their war-cry, rushing upon tliem. A moment's commendation of their soula to God, and tlien the missionaries unfurhul their battle- flag — the liag of tho Llcsscd Virgin. Fold after fold, the azure stan(hird, studded with golden stars, streamed out in the light of the sunset, and fro)u its field the radiant beauty of Our Lady's eyes beamed on tho startled Indians. Their hearts were touched ; thoy throw away their arms ; and catching their trinkets, or whatever else they had of valui; with them, they came forward humbly to offer them to her as a propitiatv^^' uift. Thev were soon won to know her and lovx; her hctter ; the Mission of SiUi G abriel, of him who brought to her tho message of tho Inearnatioiik, ro.se among the mountains; the Cross Avas secuivty planted, and tho first Mass was ottered on the Fetvs-t (^" her Nativity, in the chapel Avhich her new childl'en had builded. Thus the whole ffolden land was won to Marv and her Livine, Eternal Child. Missions of Santa Maria, Nuestra Senova do la Soledad, la Puri.v.sima Concep- ciou, were crowded with the Christianized natives. All these establishments had tho same rule. At daybrnak the Augelus summoned idl to (ihiireh for morning prayers and Mass before their fast was broken. After that, each went where the duties and labors of the day might summon him. Again the xVngelus recalled them at eleven, Avhen they dined, rested until two, and re- turned to work, until the third Angelus sounded as the sun Avent down, and they gathered for the Rosary and then for their last meal. The evenings were spent ii) 15G Devotion to the B. V. Mary ■:ii|' innocent rccrf^ations. Their wcaltli was in common, auJ was laid ont by their spiritual Fathers for thtsir best welfare ; happy, innocent, and pious, thus they lived, until the " lust of gai?i in the spirit of Cain" scut the eastiU'u money- worshipper among them to blight, dcniorali;^e, and destroy. In 18I>7, thirty-one thonsaiid lingered still in phuii- tude and peace ; but the nexf year Father Saria died 01 starvation and poverty — died clad in his sacerdot'd vestments, as he strove to begin the Mass whore for thirty years ho had offered it, at the altar of Our Lady of the Solitude. In 1810 there remained of these poor children of God only about four thousand in all the missions of California. Would you know the rest of their history, read the note which follows this chapter. ^Vhile these first conversions were going on in tlio more Southern and Southwestern States, an English n(jbleman, a friend of his Icing, yet powerless to prac- tise his religion even under that protection, resolv('d to seek for freedom of faith in America. A grant of lands was obtained ; the expedition organized ; the spiritual charge of it given to some Jesuit Fathers, and thus the first step was taken towards the estal>lishment of that church which, two centuries later, slioidd declare Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception patroness of all the land. It was then, in the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and thirtj^-thrce, on the twent3''-second day of November, the first day in the Octave of Our Lady's IN North A>reRiC.». 167 Prt'sont.'itioii in tlio Tciiiplo, tliat tlio Catliolle ciiii- gi'ants, uiuler Lord Bultiuioro, onihiirki'tl on Ixiurtl the "Ark" and tho "Dove." "Tli(\y placod tlicir sliips," says tlicir chaplain, Father White, " under the protec- tion of God, of tho Bh^ssed \'irp;in ^NFother, of St. If^na- tins, and of the Guardiiin Angfls of Maryland," and ao set forth to S(;ek religions freedom in tho f(n"os[s of America. Their voyage was long, as nsual in those days, and a furious storiu threatened to send them to the bottom. Tho two vessels were driven apart, and in the one which bore the Jesuit they expected and prepared for death. Strengthened by the Sacrament of Penance, t^^ey had i-esigned hope, almost, when the priest, kneeling on tho drenched deck, called to witness " the Lord Jesus and His Holy jNFother, that the pur- pose of the voyage was to pa}"" honor to the Blood of the Bedeemer by the conversion of the bai'barians." The tempest soon hilled, and, at the close of February, they gave thanks to the Blessed Yirgin as they landed in Virginia. Then sailing up the Chesapeake, first called, by Christian men, St. Mary's Bay, they entered the Potomac, and reached the territory of ]\[aryland. Their first solemn thanksgiving for safe arrival was made on the Feast of Our Lady's Annunciation (March 25). They offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and then planting a huge cross, hewn from a tree, they knelt at its foot to recite; tho Litanies. No other colo- nists of the United States, known to its, dealt so fairly with the red-men. No rnm, no worthless triidvcts, no destructive weapons were used in trade ; but the Indian tu '^^>, o , t* *•- ^5^ Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716)872-4503 v # \ \ 6^ 1^ '9) 4^ 'l 158 Devotion to the B. V. Mary J- '-''rf' ■ f sot lus own A'filno (Jii the hind, purted from it willingly, and received in exclnmge seeds, cloths, and instru- ments of linsl)a'.Klry. No native blood stains the soil j.iiirchased ior St. Mar}' the Yirgin ; no Indian warfiivo is in the records of its history ; but on St. Mary's River they pitcluid their tents, and, in friendship -svitli the red-man, laid tlie foundation of their town. They called it after the beloved Mother of their Lord, to •\vhoso prf)tecti<3n they avowed their safety from the perils of the sea ; and fen- years the little town of St. Mary's was the centre of their colony. Ono of their earliest converts was tlie chief Tayac, jiTul with him were baptized his wife and daughter, b('>tli (jf whom received the sacred name of Mary. And fi^iCni tlie fervent heart of the Jesuit Father White was gl/idcL'ned by hundreds of neophytes, for the aborigines ro<5oived v.ith joy the doctriae of Christ. The cere- mony of Llie baptism of the chief's family had been coiiducli-Hl with what pomp their rude circumstances permitted. A cross was ])orne la procession, the gov- ernor of tho eolonv and his officers walking beside the dusky American king, and all chanting the beautiful words of tlie Litany of the Blessed Virgin. Soon came the crowning boast of this colony, the passage of the religi(Mis toleration act, in KiiO ; for these children of bt. Mary had not been, like the Puritans of New Eng- land, soured by persecution into relentless and absurd intolerance. Clmrches soon arose to bless the land, sometimes the woik of government, sometimes of in- dividuals, as when William Bretton gave, for a church, IN North America. 159 a grant of land "in lionor of Almiglity God and the Ever Inimaculate Virgin Mary." ' Tliis colony, it is true, was soon to sec itself dis- francliised, robbed of its religious froedoni, and its Catliolie people stripped of their privileges for wor- shipping God in the way of their fathers. But Leforo this, Father White had displayed the spirit of his holy Company, in the evangelization of the sa\ages. Sail- ing up the rivers in an open boat, with a box of pres- ents, a chest containing the sacred vestments and altar-stone, and a basket of provisions, with a mat iov shelter from the sun and rain, lie went forth in pursuit of souls. Towards nightfall the boat wj.s made fast to the shore ; the two attendants v/cnt into the wood to look for game ; and the priest gathered sticks to make a lire, or, if it rained, stret.;i.od the mat upon boughs of trees. " Thanks be to God," he says, " we enjoy oiir scanty fare and hard b^ds as much as if we were accommodated with the luxuries of Europe." On one of these occasions ho was called to a Chris- tian Indian, an Anacostan, who had fallen into an am- bush of Susquehar.nns and been rim through with a lauce. Father White found him chanting his doath- soug, and the Christian red-men beside him praying fervontl}'. Then the good priest heard his confession and prepared him for death. But, ere leaving him, he read a gospel and the Litany of Lovetto over him ; he urged him to commend his soul to Jesus and to Mary. ' Day-Star of Amoricun Fronjom. by O. L. L. Davis, p 228 IGO Devotion to the B. V. Mary IV' Tlion, toucliing liis woiiiids Avitli a relic of the true cross, lio l)fide the attendants bring the body to the chapel for interment, and launched his canoe to go visit a dying catcchunien. lleturning the next day, he be- held Avith amazement the same Indian vigorously pro- pelling a canoe to meet him. When they met, the Anacostan steriped into the priest's canoe, and, drop- ping his bhmket, showed him a faint red line, Avhicli was all the trace remaining of the deadly wound. Rec- ommending him to make his whole life an act of grati- tude to Jesus and Mary, the father went on his way, giving thanks to God.* But here the further records of devotion to our Heavenly Queen, if any such exist, from this time to the Pievolution of 1770, have, owing to the distracted condition of these States, and other causes, become quite inaccessible to the present writer. The present significance of the settlement of Maryland is this, that the devotion to Our Blessed Lady, expressed in the English language, here enters the now territory of the United States. The Span'ards planted it, to be well- uigh extinguished, along the Mexican Gulf ; and, more permanently, in Texas, California, New Mexico, as early as 1540. The French so cherished it from its first coming, in 1G15, that it gTew with luxuriant beauty, grows daily now, and loromises, by God's blessing, to shelter, with its pleasant shade, the wdiole North, from the Arctic circle to the great lakes. The English, as ' Shea's Mibsions, 492, 493. mmmmmmm IN North America. IGl WG see, attempt the centre in 1G34. We shall return to them at the period of the American Piovolution. Now wo are to look at the other early Missions in the United States. Note to Page 153. An imexpocted confirmation of this sort of fact is found in Harper's Moiithl}/ Mafjazine, ISOl, p, 307, et scq. Wlicn I v-iiw in tin; Aiiindes de la P ropar/dtion de la Foi, the statement in a missiionary's letter, that tlie whites were wont to " try their new visluh" \x\)oxv the unfor- tunate Indians, I was unwilling to believe. Rend, now, tlii; testimony to that and to the Catholic Missions from the most prejudiced and anti-Catholic work in this country: "As California became more settled, it was considered profitable, owing to the high rate of compensation for white labor, to cncourago the Christian Indian tribes to adopt habits of industry, and they w(>re employed very generally throughout the State. In the vine-growing districts they were usually paid in native brandy every Saturday night, put in jail next morning for getting drunk, and bailed out on Monday to work out the fine imj)osed upon them by the local authori- ties. This 0^(3toitn still pre\ iiils in Loa Angeles, where I have often seen a dozon of these miserable wretches carried to jiiil roaring drunk of a Sunday morning. The inhabitants of Los Angeles an; a moral and intelligiMit people, and many of them disapprove; of the custom on princifile, and hope it will be abolished as soon as the Indians are all killed off. Practically it is not a bad waj of bettt-ring their condition ; for sonui of them die every week from the effects of debaucliery, or kill one another in the nocturnal brawls which prevail in the outskirts of the Piu'blo. " The settlers in the northern portions of the State had a still more effectual method of encouraging the Indians to adopt habits of civilizar tion. In general they engaged them at a fixed rate of wages to culti- vate the ground, and, during the season of labor, fed them on beans and gave them a blanket or a shirt each ; after which, wlien the har- vest was secured, the account was considered squared, and the Indians were driven oflf to forage in the woods for themselves and families during the winter. Starvation usually wound up a considerable number of the old and decrepit ones every season ; and of those that 162 Devoiion to the B. V. Mary fiiilcd to jiivKli from liuiif^^iT or cxiKisiirc, Honic wcro kill''cl on iho f(f'nt;rii1 iwinripli' lliat tlii'v must liavf? suliHistcd hy stealing rattlo, for it wtiH wi'll kiiuwn that <-iittIo i'iiii;j;('(l in tho vicinity; wliilt; others W(.'re nut iinlVi(iiiciit]y «liuiii,-iitere(l hy the.ir enij)h)ye;s for licliiing thcniHclvi.s to tli(^ refuHc i)ortioiis of the crop which hiul bei ii left in tho ^ri'ouiid. It Miiiy be naid that thftse wwro c'xcc|)tion8 to the general rule; but it ever an Indian was fully and lioneslly paid for his labor by a white t^etilti', it was not my luck to hear of it. Certainly, it could not have been of ('re(inent occurrence. "The wild Indians inhabitin," th(^ Coast Knngn, tho vnllevs of the Sacramento and San Joaiiuin, and the western slo})0 of the Sierra r^'evada, became truubleswme at u very early period alter the discovery of tlu^ gold mines. It was found convenient to take possession of their country witliont recompense, rob them of their wives and children, kill them in every cowardly and barbarous nninn(;r that could be du- vised, and when that was impracticable, drive them as far as ix)ssibl(3 out of tho way. Hucli treatment was not consi.stont with their rude ideas of justice. At best they were an ignorant race of Diggers, wholly unai'(]iiaiiiti;d with our enlightened institutions. They could not understand why tliey should bo munlered, robbed, and hunted down in this way, without any otlu'r pretiMice of provocation than tho color of llieir skin and tho habits of lifo to which they had always boon accustomed. " Voluuiinc'us rejiorts were made to Congress, showing that a gen- eral reseiva^Dn system, on the jilan so successfully pursued by the Sl)anish missionaries, would best ncconiplish tho object. It was known that tho iMissi(jns of California had been built chiefly by Indiuu labor; \\Mi dnriinj their existence the prufttH had fully demonstrated the cajir.city of this race for tho acciuisition of civilized habits; that extensive vineyaiils and largo tracts of lands had been cultivated solely by Indian labor, under their instruction ; and that by this humane system of teaching, many hostile tribes had l)een sub(luitli( r from Hclual or indiroc* connection with tho reservation. It \^■!^s nllesred tuut tJiey had driven oft" und eaten private cattle. I jion an invi stiga- tion of this charge, nrndo hy tho ollicery of tho army, it was found to bo (>ntirely destitute of truth ; a few Ciittle had heen lost, oi- probably killed by white men, and this was tlio whole basis of 1 be massacre. Aniied parties W(!ut into tho rancherias in open day, when no evil was ajiprehended, and shot the Indians down — weak, harmless, and dofenceless as th(!y were — without distinction of age or s.'x : sliot (town womi-n with sucking babes at their breasts; killed (»■ cripf)led the naked children that were running about; and, after they had ui^Iiieved this brave exploit, apjx'aled to the State; (iovrrnm''nt for aid! Oh, sliame, shame! where is thy blush, that white men hhonld do this with impunity in a civilized country, under the very eyes of an enlightened government! They did it, and they did more! For (lays, weeks, and months they rang(> uot eiuMuies, he; liurried in pursuit iind res- cued the ca[)tiv(>s, but not until they had been most savaiiclv Irealed. ]hit lu! brou'dit them d()\v?i to Sil- lery, or St. Jose])h's, and thcn'o tho Hospital Nuns, fi'om the Queb(>e foundiition, dress(>d their Avouiids, iind attended them Vtith their usual j^t^ntlo charity until they were (piit(j ri'covered. When th(>y went home, well armed and clothed, Meitiskwat accompanied them, visited their towns on the Kennebec, and preached Christ and His blessed faith to them. Ono sagjimo, or chief, retuined with him to Quebec, was instructed and baptized. His exjunple was followed. In a little while, no Alxmaki, or, jis New Yorkers called them, Owenagunga, village was without two or three Chris- tians. Finally, on tho feast of tho Mother of God's Assumption into lioaven, year 1010, they formally asked for blaclc-robes. And then two »Tesuit.s went forth from their ci^ntral liouso in Quebec— Tsaiic Jogues to the Now York Iroqiiois, Gabriel Druillettes to tliG tribes of Maine. Father Gabriel was received by a docile and gentle, although lu^roically brave people. In three niontlis Le could catechize and preach in their own tongue ; and v.. IN NouTii Amehioa. 107 ho l!il)ort!(l, on and off', ivs tlio nn(!ossiti(5S of otlior uiiH- sion Htiili(»ns nMiuirod, until 1057 ; by which tinio the ffnn\ H(!{hI wuh sown iind hud Hpriiii;^ up, novov to 1)6 onidiciitiul. Allh()n;,'h thoy wuro often witlioiit ii niis- Kioujiry for h)n,^ yoai'H at a time, yet they remained stoiulfiist in the faith. Jjefore the atta(!k on Fort Pen- (|iiid, in KiH!), avo ihid all the braves fortifying' them- solvcs by the Holy Sai'ranient ; and diiviiiji,' all that oxpeilition they said the Ilosaiy of Our Jihtsstul Lady pcriH'tually, without inttirniission even at meal-time,' Jiul;j;e, tlu.'n, if they had not Received into fervent souls devotion to the Queen of Angels. And bo not sur- })ns(>d at their fidelity throuj,di the long residence of Father llnslcs and Father Vincent Bigot anicmg them ; nor yet that tlu^y remain to-day pure and f(>rvent Cutliolics amid the temptation, vices, and irreligiou ot oilcte Puritanism. From about 1080 to 1700 the niia- sionnrics, unable to live amongst these tribes, sought to draw them nearer to Quebec, whence spiritual and physical help could be more easily procured. In a little while the men of the Kennebec outiuini- bcrod the vanishing Algonquins in Sillery, and for years the Mission was calhul the Abenaki. Then Father Jiinios Pigot, of the Society of Jesus, founded the Mission of St. Franyois de Sales, on the beautiful Falls of the Chaudiere, not far from the spot where your modern maps show ymi three townships of St. Mary side by side. In 1G85, the new reduction absorbed Shca'a Indian Missions, p. 143. 1G8 Drvotion to Tin: 13. V. Mauy ^"^ ^ tluit of Sillciy. Two IrttcrH' of Ffillicr Bi^'ot, now l)o- for(> UH, iiro lillcil \villi cdlfyinp,' dctiiils of tlu'so most forvt'iit Ani(!i'irnii (jiUioHch — tlioHo fiiitliful Aiiicriffin tlovot(!(!K of tli(! Blessed l\rotlu'r of God. Tlicj \V(>ro poor to extremity, their vi]I(i<,'e Hceined u fiivorIt(( aLode for epide'inics, yet men, women, mid cliildreii of per- fect purity in honor of His Immaculato I\[other. T in their sickness, and fondly summon her to the couch of death with prayers. To her they sent their choicest waniinim necklaces, the wojk of a whole lon^f winter's leisure. Uo you smilo at the poor oft'ering of Indian beads? send yoiu' own necklaces and hracehits of gold and ruby, in the spirit of the simple Abenaki, and then you maj^ smile with more satisfaction to yourselves and edification to your neigh])or. Among the treasures of the famous cathedral of Onr Lady of Chartres," France, you may still see, pres(n'V( d ' TliG lettors, printed from tho orik('ii of tlirir siinpln lovo, in \(V.)-). Tlio ground is vioU't, and in wliito hfttcrH you way read thin inscription : " MATIir VriUIINI AllNAQUKKT, I). D." "To tlu) Virgin l\rofli('r, her most dcvotc'd Alx-nalvis." The cliapltr of llm ^'rcat (jatlicdral rccciviid tlio olVcr- ing as it would Inivo rcci'ivod tlio jowollcd ^'ift of a liiii^f, !ind wrote alTi'ctionately to tlio poor Indians a thousand loa'^Mics away. Whatever tasto and power of di'licate labor tli(( Owena;^'un^'a could bestow, W(!ro liivislicd on this belt. The best workers of the villa^o were eniplo\'ed, the choicest and most perfect beads carefully sekK'ted. And this they entreat the clerj^'y of the cathedral "to ofTer as their little present to tho most r>less(Ml Virgin." "Though it Ix; only Indian work," they say, "our sacred Mother will see by it our hearts, and all the sentiments of love and tendern(>ss with which we oHer it. We have already oflered it here, placing it at tho foot of her imago during two whohi novi^nas, praying for you; and at the end of each day's Mass chanting tho IitLUohifa hciilyiid Iirat tender- ness, to an heroic desire for suffering, and all the marks of predestination Avhicli accompanj^ their holy deatli, you "would be greatly touched.'" The chapter of Chartres having made some presents to the little church of Chaudiere, the hearts of tlie forest children ove-'tlow with gratitude. " "Wo always loved the blessed Virgin Mother," they write,'^ " wo always lionored her sincerely; but now it seems that your kind gifts have redoubled oiu' affection and reverence for our good Lady. Some years ago avo consecrated to her our vil- lage, our persons, all that we have, and all that we are. Each year, on the day when she was assumed, body and soul, into heaven, we renew that consecration. Present our poor little gift to Mary, and, wliat wo especially desire, cause that this very paper toiicli her shrine. Maybe, from that, fresh ardor will be con- veyed to us here, to augment our love for our sacrinl Princess.. We have said. Let this bell of wampuia confirm our words." The present sent from Chartres was, as we find by a letter from Eev. Pure Aubery, written sixty years later, a very beautiful statiie of the Blessed Virgin in silver, a copj^ of that known as Notre Diano sous tenr, or under-ground, so called from the subterranean ' LesVa'ux des Iluroiis et des Abnaqiiis a Notre Dame de Chartres par M. Doublet de Boistliibault. Chartres, 1857, p. 33. ' Ibid., pp. 34-38. mmmmmm IN North America. 171 c-d mysteries, aud for His ftreat tender- all tlio marks ir lioly death, o chapter of to the little [orest children •od the blessed s lunioivd her kind gifts ha\e for om- good to her our vil- fiU that wo are. assimied, body t conseeration. and, wliat we lapcr toiich her jr will be cou- for our sacred leli of wumpuia as we find by :teu sixty years Ih'ssed Virgiu in Dame fious ten-c, 10 subterranean chapel, which will be described in a note. This letter is signed by the missionary and six Abenaki chiefs. Tlie letters of their missionaries are full of simple little traits of devotion to St. Mary the Virgin. Some- times they would want the Indian names, family names of the women, to distinguish in their registers one from another, and they would find the greatest difficulty in getting them. " My name is Mary," they would say. " But I want your Indian name — j-our Abenaki name." And the answer would be, " I have no other name ; Abenaki name no good ; nijj name is Mary !" Almost every woman was a Mary ; if they did not get that name in baptism, they took it in confirmation, or they would go and ask permission of their pastor to be called henceforward hj the beloved name. Or, after Mass, they would linger in the church, even in the depth of winter, to recommend their resolutions and their good thoughts especially to her. And, after all, what elstj ccndtl they do, since they were consecrated to her individually and as a peoide ? It was on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception that this solemn dedication, or duiiutlon as they called it, took place. They adorned, as well as they could, the chapel of Our Lady in the church at Sillery, ex- posing to veneration their Ijcautiful silver statue ; and, for many days after, they practised particular devo- tions in honor of their elected Queen.' Then, every re Dame do Chartros p. 33. ' Relation de ce qui s'ost passi' do jilus rcmarqimblc dans la Mission Abniiqiiaiso de Pallid J()8('i)h do Sillery et do Siiinct Fram.'ois do Sales I'annte 1GC5 : par lo Pere Jacques Bigot de la Compaynie de Jesus 172 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i "'.'. ^M' year, on the Feast of tlio Assumption, tliey bore tlio image in procession to bless tlie village at CliauJicre, and solemnly renewed tlieir gift. This was their act of donation : " Great Marj^ may the heavens ond earth bear wit- ness to our sincerity. May all thy friends gathered noAV in heaven hear us, and be glad that Ave thus imi- tate them. Let them testify that our hearts and our words accord. May Jesus, our Lord and our God, acknoAvledge our sincerity, who hath willed His in- fancy to be governed by thee, who so miraculously gave him birth ; who hath made the universe confess thee JLady of all, almost as though He had placed His sovereign dominion in thy hands. May He, Avhom we hail as Lord, behold our hearts, see that we have but one thought, that thou shalt be forever our Lady ami our Queen. And thou, O Mary, hear us from heaven, where thou art throned in incomparable splendor; hear us, and accept what avc oifer. " O Mary, Virgin Mother of God, wo have long waited for this day to choose thee for our Queen, for hitherto Ave have been but obscurely thine. Take, then, possession of us and ours. We nuike thee mi;;- tress of our A'illage, and therefore have Ave borne thine image hither. If in any of our lodges thou shouldst see Avhat can displease thee, hasten to remove it. May all anger, and disujiion, and eA'il speaking, all im})urity, drunkenness, and every other sin, take flight before the approach of thy sinless steps. May the demon not dare to injure a land Avhich belongs to thee. Do not mmm IN North America. 173 disdain to dwell with us, since, Laving thee, we shall have the virtues that go with thee, and that remain where thou art, gentleness, unitcdness, charity, docility. Do not refuse to dwell with us, great and glorious Lady. Though among us, vile and contemptible as wo are, thy grandeur will not be obscured, but our lowli- ness and our wretchedness will givs it new splendor by the contrast. " This, our blessed Princess, is what we have to say. Would to God that our words were engraven upon the rock, never to bo efl'aced. But they Avill not vanish, for they are written on our hearts. They are im- printed on the tender hearts even of our little children. They will hand them down, and our remote descend- ants shall know how we loved thee and recognized thee as our Queen. So shall our example teach them to love and serve thee. AVoe to him who would destroy' oiu' affection, or change the sentiments we have for tliee ! Eathor may the brooks cease to flow, and the smi to shine, yea, all things to exist, than that one of our descendants should prove disloyal to thee. Love us, then, Mary, our great Queen ; procure for us the favor of thy Son ; and may we one day behold Anth joy His unutterable glory and thine. We have spoken." ' This was the school in which the true Americans of Maine learned the faith which they practise still on the banks of the Penobscot and Kennebec. ' Vceux des Ilurons, pp. 39-41. 174 Devotion to the B. V. Mary TNIicn, lifter a time, the IMissions W(;re re-established in their own country, by the sivhuon-filled strcauis of Maine, we liiul no diminution in tlie fervor of these red-skinned children of Saint Mary. Father Tl'Ury, at Panawaniske, on the Penobscot ; the llecollect Father Simon, at Medohtek, on the St. John's ; and Father Vincent Jjigot and Father Tuile, or Easle, on the Ken- nebec, were steadfast laboi'crs hy 1G88. iJi^ot' has two especial themes of praise in his peo})le, their fervor for tlie Most Adorable Eucharist, and their love for Mary. The lirst thin<^ in the morning, the hist thing at niglit, Avas a visit to our Lord, if only for a few mom(;nts : going to or returning from work, the}- made it a law to go salute, at least, the Most Holy. So fre- quent were these visits of ^he children, Avomen, and men, that Father Bigot declares it was like a continual little procession to and from the cha[)el. So constant a habit Inid some of tliem formed of spiritual union with our Lord and liis l)lt.'ssed Mother, that none of their occupations could distract them from it. An old chief blesses God for his blitulness, since nothing now cau attract his sight from the wounds of the Crucified and the beautiful face of Mary. Maidens die in their bloom, blessing her for taldng them uid'ettered by mar- riage and its distracting cares. A young man, whose right arm was drop})ing to pieces from necrosis of the bone, would ask her pardon for the irrepressible groans ' Kelation do ce qui s'est i)asse dans la Mission des Abnaquis a I'Acadie Tannce 1701. mmmim IN North America. 175 urung from liim by liis bitter pain. To tlic priest ask- iiig a younj^ girl dying, if tlioy could d(j nothing to assuage lier suilerings, slio answered, "No, i'utlier, I can Avisli for nothing more. Tluj Mother of Jesus, my good mother, knows that I htive no more fervent and continual desire than to see her face." ' An Indian who desires to reach a point has a way of going straiglit at it. Not remarkable for syllogistic abilities, he has a shorter nu-thod of reaclung correct conclusions. The Mohawk, when the Al])any Dutch- man sneered at her for honoring Mary, asked to whom ho prayed. He said, to Christ his God. But she shaking her head gravely, said, "Guess not pray mucli ; no Inive honor for Mother, no have nuich for Son." One of tlic Kennebec chiefs, of Bigot's time, was taunted with th(i errors of his creed, in his visits to the English settlements, and urged by the people to adopt theirs. "Which of them?" asked the red-man, "for no two of you have the same." Of course they must deny the power of the Blessed Virgin ; for tlusy could se(! the scapular on his swarthy chest, or the heads and medal twisted into his head-dress ; Init he fought the usual battle with tluun, and gave himself as an examph) to prove his docti'ines. " You have known me long enough," ho said. " Y(m know that I was as hig a druidvard as ever lived. Well, God has liad pity on me ; and I can dc^fy any one to reproach me with having tasted wine or brandy for many years. To > ! ■) Rolation, p. 30. 170 Devotion to the B. V. Mary whom am I ol)ligecl for tliis but to our lioly Lad}', to the MotliiT of Jesus. Foi- to her I had recourse in mj- extreme fcebhiiiess, for grace to conquer my inveterate habit of drunkenness; and hj lier help I conquered it. After that, Avill yon tell me that the saints do not hear us; that it is useless to address ourselves to the Mother of God? T believe none of your words ; you are deceivers. My own experiei. oe convinces me ; and know 3'ou this," and tlie brave, a reno^mod one, drew himself u}), and his dark Indian eye kindled, " know this, that I will love and bless the holy Virgin to tlie last breath of my life. For I am sure that she is glad now, and that she will recompense me for defending her cause against you." ' Father Vincent Big(3t is succeeded by Sebastian Easle, juKjther of that grand " Company of Jesus." On his thirty years' mission we shall touch liut lightly. In 1705, one Hilton, at the head of a party of New Eng- landers, burnt the church and vilhige of Norridgewock, profaned the sanctuary, and withdrew. In 1713, after the peace of Utrecht, some of the chiefs went to Ijostou to hire Avorkmcn to rebuild their churcli. " I will re- build it for you," said the governor, " if y(ju will dismiss your missionarj^ and receive one whom I will send you.' " Listen," said the warrior in answer. " You saw and knew me long befi a'e the French, but neither your predecessors nor your ministers over spoke t(3 me of prayer or of the Great Spirit. They saw my furs, my ' Rola+ion, pp. 9, 10. IN North America. 177 beaver, and my moose-skins ; tlicso tlic} son;^lit alono, auJ HO eagerly tliat I have never been ablo to bring them enough. Whon I had plenty, they were my friends, and only then. One day my canoe missed tho route, and I "wandered a long time, having lost my way. At last I landed near Quebec, in a great village of Al- gouquius, where tho bhu'k-robes were teaching. As soon as I had arrived, one of them came to me. I Avas loaded with furs, but tho black-robe of France dis- dained to look at them. lie spoke to mo of the Gretit Spirit, of heaven, of hell, of tho prayer wliich is tho only way to reach heaven. I heard his words with pleasure, and remained in tho village near him. At last, the prayer pleased mo and I asked for instruction. Then I asked for baptism, and received it. ■'■ "^' * Now I hold to the prayer of the French ; I agree to it ; I shall be faithful to it, until even the earth is burnt and destroyed. Keo]) your men, your gold, and }our minister. I will go to my French father." ' For thirty years now, has Father Sebastinii llaslo dwelt in the forest, teaching to its wild, red chiltlron the love of God and Mtiry. He is burned by sun and taiUKid by wind until ho is almost as red as his parish- ioners. The languages of the Abenaki and Huron, tlie Algompiin and Illinois, are more familiar to him than the tongue in which his mother taught him tho Ave Maria. The huts of Norridgewock contain his people ; the river Kennebec ilows swiftly past iiis dwell- ' Shea's Missions. 8* 178 Devotion to tije B. V. Maiiy ^^: in^, to tli(' scii. Tlicic) lie hus huilt a cliuvcili — Ijiuid- HOiiK^, lie lliiiiks uiul Hiiys; jxii'luips it would not inudi oxi;it(! our nioi'.: luxurious iiuii;^dnutioii. At luiy vniw, tlui :ilt;ir is luuulsouir ; aud lit; lias j^utlKTcd ;i slor(! (*f c()|K's iiiid clia.^uMcs, ull)S and ciubi'ttiiicicd stolt^s, I'or tlio dij^iiil V ol' lli(^ lioly service. He has trained, also, us nianv as I'oiiv Indian 1><>}S in tlu> (H'i('nH)nies, und, in tluur eiinisoii cassoeks and white surplices, they aitl tlio sacred poiMp. Jlesidis tlu! chui"(;h, there ai'i! two chapels, one on tlu; road which h^iids lo (he forest, wluue the Inaves are wont to make a short retreat before they slarL to tra[) and liunt; the other on the path lo the cnltivateil lands, wlu'i'e prayers hvc otlertul when they n() to pkiid, or {gather Iji the harvest. 'J'iio one is dedicated to the Cluardiaii Au;j;el of the tribe; the other to our most holy Mother, jNLary .Ininnuailate. To adtnji (his latl(a' is the especial eniulalioii of the women. W'liatever they have of jciwels, of silk stull' from the settlinients, or dedicate broidery of poi'cupiiio quill, or lichly tinti'd moose-liair, is found hen;; and from amidst their o!lerii:_i^s, rises, white and fair, the statue of the Yiii;in ; and her sw(H;t face looks down boniynantl} upmi her swarthy children, kneeling before Lor to rcicito tludr rosaries. One beautiful inaninuito ministrant to God's worship they have in abundance — light from wax candles. Tho wax is not precisely aji/'s ajjiimi, but it is a nearer ap- proach to it than ^ou lind in richer and less excusable places. It is wax from the berry of tho laurels which cover tho bills of Maine. IN NOUTII AMKU[f!A. 17'J And to tlic <'li!ij)('l (!V(.'ry iii}^'lit niid inoi'iiiii.'L; coiiic, ull tlm liidiiiii (!litist!UiiM. At iiioniin,^- limy m.ik*; their ))r;iy<'i' i" coimnoii; iuid iissist at Mass, ciinuliiii.j, in llicir own dialrci, liyiiiiis wi'ittcii for llial |mii|m»sc l»y tli(Mr )i;isloi'. 'IMicii llii'V' '^o to tin ir ('m|i|(i\ iiKMit Tor tlm day : 1h> to Ids (ton mioiis, onlci'ly, and ('casclrss l;il)()r. TIk' iiiofidii^' is j^iv(!ii up to visitois, who cnmo to thi'ii' j^ood iatJu^r witli ihv'n sori'ows oi' (h^i(iii('tud('s; to ask his I'cHcl:' a.^aiiist soiii(5 little, injustice of th(^ir fellows; Ids advi('(! on their iiiarria,L,'e, or other j)roje(;ts. Il(! (ujiisohiS tins Olio, instriKtt.s liiat ; i'e-esi;d)lishes pcaco in disuidtcid fandlies; calms troultleil consciences ; iuliiiinisl((rs e(;iitlo i'(n)nk(\ or eives eiicour;i;..:ei;i(!nt to tlie iiiidd. 'riio al'ternoon l)elon,^'s to the sick, who ai'O visited in their own cahins. Jl' tlui'e l»e a council, the hhu;k-rob(i nuist conic to invoke the llolv S[»irit on its dclilxu'ations ; it' a I'eust, ho must Ix; j)res iit to hless the viands and to check all approaches to disorder. And always in tho aftornooii, old and youn:,' wairior and gray-hairod H(iuaw, Christian and ciiiechumen, as- semble I'or tho catcHihism. When tho sun (h^-lines west- ward, and tho shadows cre(!p ovor the vill,i;i;e, they sock tho chapid for the public prayer, and to sing a byinn to St. ]Mary. Tluai each to his home ; but bol'ovo hcdtinu! neighbors gather ag.ain, iu tho house of one of thoui, and, in aiitiphonal choirs, they siiiij their beads, and with another hymu thoy separate for sloop.' ' Lettro (lu R. P^jro Sobastian Raslo, 1722, tin'e ila la Clioix dea Lettres cdinantea ccritus dea Miasiona etrungurca. Paris, 1809, vol. vii., p. yi}5-413, lao Devotion to tiih H. V. Mauy Win II tlicy ^o to tlio H(!!iHi(lo for their fisliliif;, Iho.y bofir with tliciii, ms wiiiitlcriii}^ Tsnu^l lioiw! Ihc talicr- niiclc, !i cliMi'cl foniicd of biirlv, tliut they may liavc^ tlio consolations (»!' rrlioion, wliilo exposed to (laii;^tr and tomptation. And intw eoiiipai'o this picturis of the prof^a'c'ss of (h'voiiou to Our Lady, with a!iy nmrch of IVotestanlisiu aniou;^ the Indians. Head the rreneh Catholic's nussioii to the Alj^onijuin, Al)eiiaki, llui-on, and Iro([Uois; or, in our own day, to the Kuw, the Osage, and the Fiathcs-id ; and the work of Protestant England or the United States among the SeniiiKjlciS, the Pottowattoniies, or the Pueblos. One carries tho beads, paritj', and eivili/aiion; tho other a whiskey bottle, deiilement, and death. Quo, thing, in a n-li- gious way, tho descendant of the Puritan is pretty apt to do — namely, to attempt the destruction of his neigh- bor's religion. Boston contributes a minister to cilect, if possible, this end, e\on ii tho wilds of Maine a hundred years ago. lie reai'hes tho mouth of tho Kennebec, and building a scluol-house th(>re, docs hi^; best to entice the childrtm to it by presents and caresses. This failing, ho attempts their parents, and smiflles out to them nasal denunciations of tho Sacra- ments, purgatory, invocation of Saints, tho beads, tho cross, tho altar lights, and images. Then Father Kasle, from his lodge, leagues away in the forest, writes him a Latin letter, sixty-two pages of it, full of instruction on these topics, and of charitable recom- mendation to let tho Lidians alone. And the divine replies, swiftly, that the arguments arc chikli.sh; and so IN NoilTII A.MKUICA. 181 wonds l);u'1c to r)Osl()ii to inform tlio rinpjnst conumiiiity tluiVl! of how lu) ll.'ul IxM'll [)(!rH('l!Ut(!(l 1)J tlio Jt'Huits. So, in 17'22, Xorriil;^'(nvoc!k wuh fittjiclutl by u force of two lmii(lr(!(l and fifty N(!W EiigliimlrrH, for after tlio wurbrokoont the. AlKuiMki jullicrcd to tlio rnincli Ciitli- olic, rather than to tin; Kn<^'lisU rnrit.-ni. A few old men, wonuMi, and cliildrrn only w«'ro iji tlu^ villntfo ; but tlic PiU'ilMns Wi'vo. ixUov llic pri( st. Tic h.ul time to eonsiuiie the sacred hosts in tlio talxmaclc. and to cscjipe on his snow-slioes. Jlut they i)il!a^('d iho clnirch and his lodj^'e, and eavriid ofl' every thin'', eve; o> n to hi-^ inkstand. They still show with pride, in TTar- VMvd (V>ll(\'A'e, his mannscript Abenaki dictionary, ni,"do wi h such lon^' toil and patience*, ans of Avarfare chanced to lead them. Tho New Englanders never relaxed their elforts to catch Father Sebastian, for in him they saw the sonl of the Indiana. Accnstoined themselves to dcsify their own popnlar leaders, till they tired of thoni, they fancied that the stre'j^th of the; riul-man lay not in the Catholic I'aith, but in the talents of the priest. Him, at all hazards, tiu>y mnst have ; and triumphant success erowni'd their eil'orts in 1721. It was on t.he feast of St. Baithoiomew the Apostle. Au;, ust the twenty-fourth, that a band of Mohawkb and New Eut^- 182 DrVOTION TO THE U. V. INrAiiY ■# lisli Imist upon ilic town of llio ()\V('n!i;j;nii;,'(i. Tim women i'IhI cliildrcn lied ; u I'rw }oun^ briivcH m'Iio W(n'(! in llii vill;i^'(! cun^^lit np lluir iirniH to wiflistand tlui cnciiiv. J'lit I'cfon' tlicy conlil !)(« nlain, llic priest, n'nicnilu'i'in;^ tliosci words ol' our di'iir Lord, " Hdiuim pris/or iiin'iiiiiiit siidiii iliil pro nrlhi's .sii!s,^ tiic ;^'ood hIm'])- Iwril <^i\t'tli liis life t'oi- Ids slicop," .'iiid knowinj^ lunisclf to 1)0 tlir I'cid oltjt'ct of t\u' (itt.ick, adviUUM'd to meet Ins foes. Tlit'V s;nv luni just jis Ik! rcaclicd Hk; villa^'o cross. A yell of savui^o exultation, n volley of bullets, and tlin missionary lay di^ad at the foot of Iho synd)ol of salvation. Half a century later, tho desec^ndanls of tliese men wore asking tlio fii(Midsliip of the Oweiiagunga against th(! arms of CJreat I'litaln. The Kennobocs, Passaina- quoddit'S, and Penohscots nn;t tho Council of Massa- chus(^tts, and expressed their determination to esjjouse the cause of tho colonies, l)ut added : "AVe must have a French hhuik-roho ; wo will have no ' Praytir' that comes from you." Orono, tho Penobscot chief, bore a commission in the armv of the Revolution, and his clansnK'U I'ou^^ht beside him. "If one of our 'pricsls would be agreeable to you, wo will endeavor to get you one, and tak(! caro ho bo a good man. Such was the offer of the Council ; but the answer of tho Abenaki was still, " We know our religion, and love it ; we know nothing of 3'ou or yours." Thus faithful to tho teach- ings which they had received in 1G50, these truo ' St. John's Gospol, x. 14. V, IN NoiiTir Amruica. 183 Aniorican CntliolicH coiitimiod to (ilicn'Hli it, hy rosnry, and (inuiifix, and oiiriuist prayor, until tlic^y carritMl tlio crosH wlii(tli Futlior Kaslo had worn, to IJishop Carroll (it Daltiinoro, and hy it, d(!inand«!d a pastor of tho truo fiiitli. Wo Hlifdl 800 thoao faitliful rod-raon, briefly, again. 184 Devotion to the B. V. Mary CHArTEll IX. The I">evotion in tiik Statk of Ni:\v Youk — Tiik Saint op tiik Mo- iiAwivS — Saint Maijy amonu tiik htoijuoia. BiiAVF.ST, li.'iup;hliost, li.'uulsomost, most advontnrons of all Norlli Anu'vic.'Ui aboriss terror to tlie rising colonies of Quebec and Montreal. They were Irocpiois arrows Mhicli (piivored throup;li tlio palisades of tho fort ; an Iroquois torch bnmght tlu> new niission-houso to ashes ; an Iroquois tomahawk sent tlio first jiriests to heaven. Their nsimo is tho one terrible word in all the early writings, in tho letters of Mary of tho Incarnati(m, of Marguerite of Our Lady, of tho Jesuit relations, of the Virgin s knight, ^Maisonneuvo. Priest and laborcn', nun and warrior, wound up tlie tale of their hardship with horror for tho Iroquois. Yet into tho inner tent of that fierce people a ray from tlio loving lioart of Mary shouo at last ; thoy learned to bush tlio war- whoop and 18G Devotion to the B. V. Mary to slio.itli tlie scalping-knifo in honor of lior name ; and in a Moluiwk village wlncli reeked ^vith Christian gore, grew as sweet and gentle a flower oi' holiness as ever hloonied. Always at vindictive war with the Canadian Indians, the}' turned their ire upon the French when those niado friends with the Algoncpiin and the Wendat. Tliev at- tacked the very forts of the settlors; they waylaid their voyagers. Beaten oftt.Mi, punished as well as tlie sjnall force of the Europeans would allow, they returned witli redoubled fury. Champlain and others chased thciii into their own country, iired their villages, and I'cduccMi them for a time. They would make peace with tlio white man and bury the hatchet ; but, dug up again lio- fore the blood had well dried upon the blade, it flamoil, hungry for murder, in the clutch of the treacherons savaijfe. A favorite method of flace he was returning to Saint Mary's, the canoes hugging the IN North America. 187 shore to avoid the strong current of the stream, when Huddenly the warwhoop of the fatal Iro({uois rang through tlie air and a hail of inuskot-balls rattled about them. The pagan Indians leaped at once from the cHiioe ; but the Jesuit, with the three Frenelimen and the few ChristiaTi savages Avith him, "offered up a pra}'er to Christ and faced the enenij'." ' But already, tit the first whistlhig of the balls, a catechumen had thrown himself upon his knees in the canoe, and the fearless pritsst had ba[)tized him. They fought, some cloz(>n of them, but the Iroquois were seventy in nnrabcr. The missionary did not oven try to escape. Eeue Goupil, whom we have mentioned, was taken, f5"-li[ing like a lion. TJie next brought in was a famous Christian chief, Ahasistari, who cried, " Did I not swear, my father, to live or die witli thee !" Finally, a young Frenchman, AYilliam Couture, who had escaped, came back and gave h.'mself up, saying, " J cannot abandon my dear father." This heroism won him the honor of instant torture ; they stripped him at once ; thev tore his nails awav, crushed his lingei's with their teeth, and ran a sword througli his right hand. The same treatment was then given to Father Jognes and Goupil. But we will recite no more of these brutal tortures here. As they treated Breboeuf, so they treated these, not once, but twenty times, stop- phig shoi't only of death for the present. Whenever they rested, on their long journey of thirteen days, ' Luttredu Pere Isaac Joi^'ucs uu P. Provincial de la Province do France; apad Kclatiou abrcgco de P. Brcssaui, pp. 18y-2'10. 188 Devotion to the 13. V. Mary torture w.as tlie amnscmcut of tlioir captors ; whenever tliey met anotlier roving band of savages, and tlio forests were full of tliem, the torture of their vi -titns was the fejist to which they Avelconied tlunn. Tv.intj- two in number, they filed off from the battlo-groviiid, and tramped sadly through the Avoods on their way to the towns of the Mohawk. Through the avoous to tlui beautiful lakes Champlain and Horicon, and then-o, past Saratoga, across the country to the Mohawl-. The last ionv miles they marched on foot, cai'rying all the baggage of their masters, covered Avith putrei'yiii;^' woimds, unfed save by the berries Avhich, Avith mati- lated hands, they caught from the bushes on the road- side. But, " at last," says the servant of Mary, " on the eve of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, Ave ;u- rlA'ed at the first village of the Iroquois. And I thank our Lord Jesus Christ that He thus deigned to "rant us a sliarc in His sorroAvs and His cross, on the day whereon tl.ie Christian universe celebrates th(; triumpli of His sacred Mother taken up into heaven." ThcA^ entered the toAvn of the barbarians V)y numiiig the irauntlet, — Jogues comforted as he Avent "hv :i vision of the glory of the Queen of Heavo7i," ' Tlu>u on to another villag(% and so to a third, ti'acdcieg tlio Avhole land Avith their blood ; the «Tesuit ollering up his agonies to God, instructing his Huron neophytes whoii- CA'er ho could get beside them, as Avatchful and as ready for his duties as a priest, as if Avithin the Avails of a ' Bancroft's History Unitud Status, vol. iii., p. VM. IN NoiiTii America. 189 parish clmrch in Franco. Ho li(>ars Gonpil's confession as tlioy drug tlioir woaiy limbs tlirongh tli(> forest ; lie baptizes two pleading neopln'tes as they wado tlirough a woodland stream ; lie wrings the rain-drops from a stalk of corn and confers upon two ctliers tlie sacra- meut of regeneration. Thus, in constant torture and prayer, ho lingered until the Feast of the Xativity of the Elossed Virgin brought him hope. Two Hollanders from Albany arrived to treat for his deliverance, which was etreeted, however, only in the summer of tho next year. Cut before that, he had seen his friends fall, one by one ; the Huron chief praying at tho stake for liis enemies; Goupil tomahawked at tho thirty-ninth "Hail Mary" of tho Iiosary ; blood, death, horror, demon-worship around him. His Breviary had long since been taken from him, but he had found, from time to time, fragments of his Bible, the Imitation of Christ, and the Little OlHee of the Blessed Virgin. How often did ho sit thus "by tho waters of Babylon, and weep as ho renunubcrod Zion !" ^ " How often," he exclaims, " did I carve Thy Name, Jesus! upon tho tall trees of the forest! How often, stri})ping o(V the bark, have I trailed there the most holy cross of my God !" See him kneeling there, half clad with skins, and meditating on the life of his Piodeemer ; or watch his lips as they move in the recitation of tho only ollice left him ; Iioav his voice lowered at tho last Tu anion Domine, miserere nobis, ' Psalm, cxxxvi. 1. 190 Devotion to the B. V. Mary 'I gathers shengtli again, and breaks forth in the anti- phon, " FcUx uainqHc cs, tidvrn Vinjo Murid, cl onim Inndc digitiy.srma : s a peas- ant's hous(_\ and they rise to receive the forlorn sailor kindly; tlieii he lifts up his pocn* nnililat(>d hands and blesses them in the nann; of the Eternal. What slinll he do with, these hands'? A priest with but one thumb and ionv or live lingers left him! C(mrage, Confessor of God ; the Holy Father, Turban VIIL, will settle that. " Indujninri" he exclaims, " i)/di(jiu(iii esse ('Inisti iiKivhj- ri'iii, Cliristi 7U»i Inbi'ir, sdiupiincut ! It Avere unjust that the martyr of Clirist sliould not drink the blood of Christ !" So the dispensation is gi-anted. All throng to do him honor ; great nobles vie in offering him their services ; prelates throw open their palaces ; the lips of tlie stately Anne of Austria, the Queen of fair France, are reverently pressed to those deformed and mangled hands. But his place is not hero. AAvay, mmmtitt IN North Amkrica im m tlioiisaTids of inilos, it lies, Avlioro tlio Hudson and tlie Mobawk iniiijj,io their clear waters beneath the shadow of tlio iiumemorial woods. ' In tlio month eonseernted to his beloved heavenly Queoii, he left his eountrj- f(n- the 1 time, and arrived just soon enough to see a peace concluded Avitli the Iroquois. They asked for "black-robes," and liis su- periors oilered Father .Toques the mission, "lies," he said, " I shall go, and I shall not return ; Iho d nan rcdiho; hilt I Avill 1)0 happy if our Lord Avill compl(3to the sacri- fice where he has begun it, and make the little blood I have shed in that land the earnest of Avhat I would give fi'oui every vein of my body and my heart." ' The siicriiico was accepted. He and Father Jean do La- lande departed with the treacherous Irocpaois. The V(>rv dav of tlu'ir arrival the savages began to threaten them. The next dav thev tomahawked them at the door of a lodge ; their heads were stuck upon the pali- sades of the town ; their bodies were thrown into the MohaAvk. But he had not died in vain. Two churches of St. Mary" stand upon the shores of that beautiful river ; the Arch Confraternity of her ImmacuLito Heart is estabhshed in the principal town bathed by its Avaters.^ For the beautiful tloAver of devotion to Mary had been ' Letter to a Mend, in Slica'^t Narriitivo of Civptivity. ' At Anistonlaiu aiid Little Falls. Tlie place itsoll' is now Tribes Hill, just opposite to the contiuenco of Schoharie Creek with the Mohawk. = Utica. 102 Devotion to the B. V. Mary •;■;■«.., snvcly plautcMl by Fiitlicr Jc)gu(^s, mul nui'turcd witl. his tt'iirs iind Mood in tlic wootlliuids of New Yorli, wlu!ii lie kiuH'](^l to say jier ollico iit tlio foot of tlio cross tiiiced by his fiuslicd Jiiij^'crs on t-lu' tiunk of tlic miiple. "Jlcd/d Del G'licli'ix Maria," lie had said again and again in his agony, " Mkjh pcjidnii, fcin- 'pluin Jhnjiiin, .^acrarhnn SpiriliiiS iSa/tvli, tio'a ,sinc e,v- e)iiiiJ, hast Leon found pleasing to our Lord Jesus Christ ; pray for the peo- ple ; intervene for the clergy ; intercede for Holy ■women." ' And Mary heard hiui. Altliongli the tribes upon whose heads his blood had fallen Were fiercer and haughtier than ever, yet the day was to come Avhen the hnees of the Iroijuois should bend in prayer to a saint of their own race and nation. At present, supplied by the Dutch and English with arms, they spread the fames of war ovi!r the land. They destroyed, as we have seen, the Hurons. They drove tla^ northern Algoncpiins from tins shores of the lakes, and slmv the French and their allii's uiuh'r the very walls of Quebec. Then, weary of the wai'-path, they themselves asked for peace. And the heralds of this peace were those whose " footsteps are beautiful upon tho mountains ; who publish glad tidings of ' Anliphon iu Little Office of 13. V. M. IN Noivrn Ameuica. 193 good."' Fiitlior Cliaumonot asseniLlcil tliu Onoiulu- gas in tlio chief town of their ])e()ph', on the Oswego ; received from tlio nation a site for a mission-house, and connneneed hin labors by tho baptism of a poor captive woman of tho Eries, and an explanation of tho loading doctrines of the Gospel. The red-men received his message with s(jngs of joy, and the council gave permission to preach Christianity in all their villages. Soon after, one thousand Onondaga braves weie to meet four thousand Eries in fight; and they vowed, lilce Clovis, the Frank, of old, that if tlie (lod of tliu Christians would give thern tho victory, they would thenceforth serve him alone. Tliey drove the Erierf lilce deer from before them; and though many were false to their vow, yet a goodly number sought in- struction, and became the first-fruits of the warrior Iroquois. In November, luol], tho back walls of St. Mary's church arose, and the dread sacrilice of the Mass consecrated the land to its Maker. By the Oc- tave of the Virgin's Nativity, 1G5G, the back ^\ alls were exchanged for stone, and daily devotions to ?ilary Im- maculate were paid in that first church of Ncav York, Our Lady's of Ganentaa. Tho same year saw Father Ilcue Menard standing at the altar of a little chapel among the Cayugas, between pictures of our Lord and His Blessed Mother, and ex- plaining their signilicanco by the legend of man's re- ' Quani pulclivi suiht niontcs pedes nnniiiitiaiitis et pntdicautia pacem uiimintiiiutia bouuiii, I'.i'tcdicuutis salutuiu. — Ibiiias, lii. 7. >f 9 194 Devotion to the B. V. "Mauy (lcin])ti()n. 'rii(> f^rciit allios of tlio nii.s,sionavi(>a woro tho caplivc Huron avohumi, iiiaiiy iiiiiiri(!il now to Iro- quois warriors. Tiicy hronjijit their l)al»rs for bap- tism; tluv iiislnu'tcd tlicir paf^^•lll nt'i;j,iil)ors, whom the}' ('(litlt il l»y their Airtiies; "and in ahuost every oabiii eoiild be found an Indian moth.ev teaeldn;^' lier wayward child to hsp a prayer to Jesus and Mary." ' But (he (h'Uiou Ljrew ?;trong again. TIk^ war Avas re- newed ; llie missionaries were driven away or tied; and, by the entl of 1(I">8, not a j)riest was left in tho Iro(piois territoiT. lUit the* converted Indians, nota- bly tlie grand statesman and noble warrior (laracontie, had bei'U at work ; and thi' missionaries were ini[)lored to return to Onondiiga. So, with nnieh hd)or and in- terruption, the holy toil W(>nt forward until, in KSl'.S, tlicy had once more renewed their foothold throughout the eant.»ns; and, in 1(170, the first day of the Octave of tlu! Aiuiuiicialion of Our Lady, the worship of the demon Areskoui and other pagan superstitions -were renounced and solemnly condemned. But the English were by this time in New York, ■with the energetic Dongan as tlieir governor, and the missionaries to tho Iroquois were Frenchmen. Intrigues were commenc(!d Vvfitli the Indians ; the servants of Mary were driven from the country ; and, by l(i87, not one remained. Then the Catholics of the Five Nations went over and joined the French ; and though the missions were ' Shea's Missions, p. 233. IN NoiiTii Ameiiica. 105 ro-estiiblislunl l'onrl(H'ii yeurs iiftonvards, it \v;is only to lin<^(!r out 11 ])aiiil'iil cxistciu'i* ; iiiul rutlicr !\r!ir(uii], tlu) last Jesuit ill Xou York, left tlio desolated liarvoHt- lield ol' tlio Ir(.)quois just sixty-aoveu years after Joguoa had llist emielied it with his tears and Mood. Lut altiiou^^h tho il(>ld was laid waste, the IViiit had been ^athercHl. In thirty-fivo years from tlie cipturo of Father Jo^'ues, two thousand two hundred and twenty-live Iroquois were ha^jtized nniny cldldren, but man}' noble women and tho choic(^ of tlie s.-ieheiiis and orators. Garacoiitle, " th(! advaneinix Sun," tin; gi- andest statesman of tho Five Xaticms, th(> bidwarh of Christianity for a (juiirter of a eentury ; lie who cried out, before he diiMl, as he eovei'ed with hisses a ]»i('ture of our Lord, "Jesus borji of a Yir;j;in, tliou art ])eerless m beauty; grant that wi- may sit near thee in lieave Kryn, the high ehiei of th(> ^lohawks, wlio, when his tribe would not listen to his ph^adings, raisinl his wild war-cry for the last thno in tlie streets of his village; gathered forty devoted followers, and, hneeling down amid the graves of their fathers, poured forth a prayer for his nation; then rose, and, with streaming (>yes, led Lis braves away forever from tho fires of their peoph^ to the Christian settlement at La Prairie. Catherine Gannealctena, the Erie by birth, the Oneida by adop- tion, tlie foundress of La Prairie on the banks of tlio St. Lawrence. Mary Tsawente, " the Precious," the saint of the Onondagas. Stephen te Gannonakoa, who sulfored purely for tlu* faith, and was cut to pie(!es almost with knives before they threw him into the fire. 19fl Di;voTioN TO TFir, ]3. V. ^Fary OunOKHilmiv, tlio wnr-cliicf of the Cjiyiifi-f^H, wlio, wlion listening,' on liis dcnth-lxMl tf) (ho story of tlio Passion, cricil out, liko (Movis, "()!i, liml I liccii tluMO, tlicy 1(1 so lidvc trciitcd ijiyGoiI!" FraiieoH (Juii- 110V(U' \VOlll noiili.'ifcii.'i, \vli(», when u biU-barouH kiiisniaii tovo the cvuciHx fi'om licr neck, as slio stood lioniid totlin stako, d ^'aslicil a t'l'oss upon licr bared l)os(jm Avitli his an 8t'a]niii;(-l, my hrotlu'r ; tlioii liast j^ivcn im(> a ci-oss whicli iionc^ can tako awaj*." u'sc, am Tl the Ii 1 nianv another Hko them, form tho crown of h ro([ui)is missionary in lieaven. But, hvit;'htest and swoeti-st th)wer in the Tiid i;ni coronal of ^lary, was "Saint of tlio Iroquois." Catl icrino To-'ahkouita, t! ho Her fntliev a ^fohawk chief, her mother an Ah •on- qnin cMpiive, tliis holy ^"irl was hoi'ii in '\^\')i^, in the town Avh(>nco Kone Gonpil and .Faili(M' Isaac Jo^ui^s had ascendo(l, hy mart^'rdoni, to their rest. Tlie siii;dl- pox, which made 1 ler !r> orT)nan .h at tl i(> niro o f f. 0\U' years, had also injui'od her sii^ht ; a;id. shnnninp; tho lipjfht of tlie sun, she passed licr infa'icy and girlhood with an nncl(>, in a cahin, at tlio dooi' of which tho tomahawked priest had fallen. The child had not re- ceived tho graco of Holy Baptism, and had only what Christianity she could remember from her mother's instructions, with, ])erhaps, occasional teaching from some ]ioor Huron captive. Tims, her aflliction of t];o ( yes was, in Ood's will, a means and excaiso f >.■ tliat retirement which wordd otherwise not hav; been allowed. Thus she grew np, free from the vaniti'-^ and Li \ IN Xoniii Amkhica. 107 vioos nlmoKl iiu*vit/iblu to an Intlian girl in thoHu Mo- Imwk villiigos. Tlio tcniixjiaiy jx^ni'o ulrcuuly spoluMi of liiul l)Ocn iiiialn \vitU tl)(i French. Tlui inisKioimrlcs, whom tho siivii;;*. s hiul dc uiaiidcil, arrived fi'oia (^lulicc, hut found chief and peo].h' eiigii;^'cd in a drunhen (h;l)auch to ecde- hi'iile the ]icace. .ll''hold " how all lliiu^s work lo;,'etlier or '•'ooi 1 to them that h)Ve (iod. Tlic (h'uiikcnneas i'( d' the trihe was tin- oii))orlniiitv of Tej^'ahkonita. Tho tirin'' uirh uniit foi- tlie nvel, was onhred to enter- tain the I'lissionarii s, and won their In-arts hy hor llciiess. Ihil her tindditv kept Jicr ^ih'nt l)i'foro icn lici: !in U)i)es, Wie low the other women to lahor in i\\(' i-orn-harvest. The ' m. Paul to the lioumus, viii, 28. 198 Devotion to the B. V. Mary missionary cliose tlio opiiortnnity, offered l)j tlio ab- sence of tlio majority, to visit tlioso wlio reniiiinetl in the village ; and to him the girl opened li(;r heart, and set forth uith tonehing simplicity her love for the "Prayer," and her long and ardent yearning hn* bap- tism. Tliis sacrament, however, he dared not lightly confer. Ho gave the Avholc Avinter to her iustrnction and to close incpiiry about her character. She came forth from the tihd -white and pure as the blossom of tlie thorn. Of all that knew her, no one conld say aught but in her praise. Even when they blamed her for what they considered defects, the Chiistian priest knew these to be virtues. So at length, upon the Feast of Easter, 1G76, she received the seal of regen- eration and the name of Catherine. Ah ! then how her saintly soul unfolded, petal after petal, virtue after virtue, till slie stood before the dear hcavcnl}' Mother Mary, whom she tenderl}' loved, a white rose of purity and all goodness. But her trials came with her graces. The time sho took for her beads, Avhich she said twice a day, for her attendance at the chai^el, for her various devotions, was made a reason of blame and rebuke. The girls of her OAvn age, angered hj self-reproach, mocked and insulted her ; the children were taught to pelt her with earth and stones, and to shout " Christian !" derisively as they passed. One day a fierce young warrior dashed into the cabin and swung his axe above her bead; but, without looking up, sho crossed her hands upon her breast and awaited the blow. The Inave was aljasbud, IN North Ajiepjca. 190 and retired. Tliou licr relatives returned to their at- tempts at her niarrinjie, and omitted no effort to shake her resohition, l)ut in vain. Even tlie cahimny which is hardest for a woman to hear, faihid to (h'stroy the sweet jiatienee with whieli slie bore their perseeuticms. But she had heard of La Prairie. Yearly a few con- verted Irocpiois Avould bid adieu to the gi-aves of their fiitliers and <^'o thither for peace in religion. And as the love of Christ grew daily greater in her heart, she siglied for the free exercise of her worship, the enjoy- ment of ho^' faith. At last a half-sister of hers, a Christian, at La Prah'ie, opened communication with her and urged her flight. Father de Lamberville approved of it, and at lengtli it was concerted. The husband of her sister and a Christian Indian from Loretto, in the absence of her uncle, managed the escape ; but the old chief heard it, and, charging his gun with three balls, he pm'sued them. They hid her in a thicket, and sat down by the road-side as weary men taking repose. When he saw tluMU alone, he was ashamed of having suspected them, and, without telling his uneasiness, went back to his town. Then the flight Avas renewed, and Catherine, with her friends, arrived in safety at La Prairie. There, then, she s:nv with rapture a settle- ment entirely Christian ; and what Clvlstians! They were like those of the first ccnitury, living in the fervor of fresh faith in the pr(>senec of ever-impending death. For the leaves of each forest they entered were likely to conceal the Avar -paint of the Mohawk ; from behind 200 Devotion to the B. Y. Mah\ •:»■ each rock on tlic road-sitlo might twang tlio Cayuga bow-string. Tlio yonng girl voa\ 'xl herself entirely m\\n God, ajul from that moment seemed to have no tic on eartli ex- cept th.'it of lal>or for others. At the fom- o'clock ^Mass she entered the chapel, nor left it again till after the community Mass, two hours and a half later. OfUni in the day she intcn-ruptt'd her work to visit tlu^ ^Most Holy Sacramcmt; and in the sacred sh;i.loAv of the innio-e of Our Ladv, she passed whole hours aLsorlK^d in prayi'r. Every week she summed up her daily sell- (>xaniinatioiis, and apiu'oached the trilmnal of ]>ei]anc<'. The h'ast dtfect in her conduct caused her iloods of t(>ars. ''Oh, how can I ho wicked,"' she wimld say, "and otViiid my God who has so loved me!" Si) s»nvnelv heauiil'iil, so recollected aisd devoni' was sli,; at each cMiiiiimuioii, that the ollu-rs used io s;iv tliiy CMuld make tlicir preparatiim better if tli(\vhnclt win iv thev could see Catherine. Her spirit of nKnlificatiou was hitcnse ; she used scourges and iron chains, and mingled ashes with ln'r sim])h> and scanty food; she woidd remain osi hov kn(>es, in midwinter, in chapel, initil dir(>ct' 1 to retire by the pitying pri(>st ; she slept upon a hnoi bed str(MV(>d with thorns, until her morti- fications, becoming known to her director, wt^re mod- erated by liis command. She visited the Ursidines at IMontreal, and falling in love with their consecrated life, asked aiid obtaininl permission from her confessor to I'cnder her ever- cherished purpose of living a virgin for Christ's sake IN North America. 201 iiTCvocaLle hj a vow. This was done on the Feast of tlie Annniiciatlon of Our Blessed Motlier. " A mo- ment after Our Lord liad been ^^iven licr in the holy conimuiiion, she pronounced, Avith wondrous fcrA^or, the \ow of perpetual virginity. Then she besought tho holy Virgin, to wlioni she always had the tenderest devotion, to present to her divine Son tho self-oblation ^vliii'li slie made ; and then passed sevcriJ hours ut the foot of tlie aUar in perfect union with God." ' From this timt; she belonged to earth no more; but longed perpetually for tho presence of her Eternal Spouse in heaven, and to bo Avith her Mother, ^dary, Queen of Angels. " She never spoke of Our Lady ])ut witli transpcn-t," saj's her biographer. " She had learned the Litan}' of the Blessed Virgin ly lieavt, and said it every ui gilt alone, after the eoninion jirityer of tlie family was ended. She was never Avitliout her rosary, which slie said nianv times a dav. On Satur- days, and other peritnls eonseerattnl to th(! Vivgi]i, bhe redoubled her austerities, and passed the d;iy in tho practice of some one virtiie of Our Lady, augmenting lior fervor on ;dl St. oMary's feasts."'" But the slight frame was wearing fast away ; the eager soul must soon l)e unchained, and, like the dove of the royal |)oet, "lly away and be at rest."' As the sjning drcnv on, she prepared to pass away when the glory of the forest foliage and flowers was ' Father Cbolonec'B Letter. — Ghoix dcs Lettrea Udijiantcs, torn. vii. 447. ■' Ibid, p. 452. • Psalm, liv, 7. ft* 202 Devotion to the B. V. Mary just diuvniiig on tlio I.ukI. The men wore all away at the chase ; tlio ATonion absent the entire Jay, planting the golden corn ; and Catherine lay tliere, in the deso- late cabin, alone, with a plate of crushed maize and a cuji of water by her pillow, from morn till the stars had risen. Pain, of the acutest and most ceas(-less nature, raclced her worn, delicate frame ; but it never forced a nnn-mnr from hen* — never drove the sweet, tranquil smile from her lips and large, dark Indian ej'es. Tlie week of the Lord's drear Passion had come; she was to keep Palm Sunday and Hoh- ^loii- day on earth, but her glad, eternal Easter wi'h Si. 3.1ary in heaven. The holy Yiatieum was udniinistiMvd on Tuesdav. Father Choleiiec would have anointed her then, but she told liim slie was not yc^t dying; ami she passed that night in fervent communion with our Lord and his dear Mother. "But on AYednesda^/' says the good father, "she received the last unction with her usual piety ; and at three o'cdock in the day, havinfi; uttered the holv names of Jesus and of Marv, she passed into her agony." In half an hour, wiih.nit struggle or consciousness, she was asleep in Jesus. They did not j^ray for her when slie had gone, l)Ut toiler; and mauv a cure and ni.un a ora'"' wove oli- tained by her intercession. Tlu; holy bishop, Mont- morency de Laval, as he knelt by her gi'ave, called her the Genevieve of New France ; they plantcxl a tall cross above her ashes, where it still stands, and there did American Catholics, natives by a hundred descents, kneel and pray to a native American saint, nearly two \ L! \ IN North Ameiuca. 203 Imnilred years before Satan invented Native American politics, for tlie persecution of those avIio say tlie prayers and worship the God of Catherine Tegah- koxiita. Thus did the devotion to Marj- take root in North America ; filling Iniman hearts with sanctity, repeo- pliug heaven, and making new intercessors for a sinful world. The State of New York had been taken pos- session of in the iiames of Jesus and Mary ; its lands had been consecrated to the Immaculate Conception ; its children taught t(^ say the Ave Jfaria or chant the licgina CwJi. In thirty-seven years the fierce Indians of the Five Nations had learned to come in crowds to the New Loretto, and praj' at the feet of Our Lady of Foie. St. Mary's Church was built in Onondaga. Another still, St. Mary's of the Mohawks, soon occu- pii^d the very spot where Fathcu' Jogues was slain. The picture of her pure, swei>t face adorned the chapel altar at Cayuga ; the Mission House of the Immacu- late Conception stood in the midst of the Senecas ; a statue of the Yirgin Mother was erected in Oneida, and the Sodality of the Holy Family won scores of that people to its banner. The nobh; Mohawk wcmu^n wore their beads with firm devotion, though the l)urghcrs of xVlbany threatened them for displaying their "popish trumper}-" in the streets. One, stung past all patience by the taunts of the boors, went into their temple and said her rosary aloud.' The brave ' Shea's Indian ISrissions, p. 208. 204 Devotion to the B. V. Mauy and wise Gav.acontie was drivon from that temple for kneelinj^- iipdii its floor to recite his chaplot. " "What!" he said, " are yon Christians, a\nl will not lot men pray?" It was the aged ]Moha\vk, Assendase, whosn beads were torn from his nock, while the rais(Hl toma- liaAvk threatened his head, white Avith eighty yeais. " Strike !" said the old chieftain, " for this eanse I shall he glad to die." One woman drove her husband from tlie loilge because he had destroyed her cliMplct; but, learning that she had done wrong, recaUed him, and so Avon him by her gentleness that he ftmsook his paganism. And another, mocked by the Dutch fur her bea was no wheaten bread, no wine, nor any of the luxuries that sweeten European life, but there was abundance of suffering. And second, that to instruct and convert the barbaroui-. tribes of America, tlun-e wjuh more need of humilit}', and patience, and charity, and zeal for souls, than of great wit or very great learning. Then it struck the young man that such a home and such a life were precisely what was best for him ; for ho had a very decided calling to the life of a missionary. His name was Joseph Mary Chaumonot. For the sinless Mother and pure foster-father of the Eodcenier he had always had a vivid devotion, even in the early part of ins life, which had furnished him with abundant material for penance. So he turned to them ' " La Vie dii U. P, Pierre .Toscjili Slavic Chnumnnot, de la Com- pnnjnio de Jesus, t'crite par luimriuc par ordre do son Superieur I'au l(!li8." Another of Shea's unuppro'.'iated gilts to American Catholic history. 20G Devotion to the B. V. Mauy to get liim all the perniissions that wore ncodod to (juit his studios, to bo ordainod, to loavo Roino in tiiuo for the noxt missionary ship, and abovo all, lo niaki;, on foot and begging his broad, a pilgriniago to tlio holy shrine of Lorotto, there to olt'er himself to her who in that house had given birth to God the Son. For ho had made a vow to seek in all things the greater gloiy of God, umlor the espoeial protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary. So, iu October, he starti'd upcni his pilgrimage. The very lirst day something like the white swelling appeared in his knee ; but in spite of t!io extreme pain, growing daily worse by exorcise, ho for right days marched on with heroic fortitude; then ly the intercession of a holy person at St. Severino, daring the Mass of his companion, Father Poucet, ho w.is healed. They arrived in Loretto, and the \o\v v,;is solemnly pronounced before the shrine, with this iid- ditiouid one : that, if it wore possible, ho would some day build in Canaihi a house upon the model of tlie sacred one wherein ho was then praying. We know that he fultillod the second i)art of his vow at the Mission of the Indians of Loretto. During four- teen years ho was chaplain there ; during forty-nine 3'ears he was Huron missionary. And in the duLitss of tliis post he sought to accomplish the lirst obligation. He and the Ursulines and the .T^ospital Sisters reached Quebec together in 1039. Two days after his arrival ho set out in a canoo for Lake Huron. His early instruc- tors wore Lallemont, Daniel, and Breb(euf, the latter of ■whom had first made known to him his vocation, and IN North Ameiuca. 207 whoso Tndiiin name, Hoclion, ho inlioritcd \v]i(>n Bro- \uvni wt'iit to lu'iivon by the bitter puth of Ifot|uois tortiive. From that inonioiit ho was a Huiou. Ho iiovur loft thoin, except for a journey to ^Montreal or (Jutihec on their business, oxeept onee to aid tlie Ouon- da;^ji mission, until his superiors ealled him away in his last illness. Ho remain(>d with them throughout their desperate and fatal struggle with tlm Fivt' Nations, and did not forsake them in their ruin, but led the cliief renniant of the tribe lirst to the Isle of OrLans, under the protection of (Quebec, and, afterwards, to the now Loretto. It Avas ]w, wo know, who expressed the unuttered wish of Olii'r's heart, and with Marguerite lj(Jurgeoys, Judith do Bressolo; Superior of the hospital, tlie Sulpi- cian Father Souart, and Madame Barbe de 13oulogno d'Aillebcmt, founded the D(!Votion of the Holy Family. Wliilo his Hurons were still in the city, lit> was ap- pointed chaplain of Do Tracey's newly arrived troops. Ho and his new charge feH, some mutual dislru't at tu'st, but when the soldi* saw that he A\i:s never idle-, that he was in almost constant prayer, that he spoke with them only of what concerned their souls, that he waited on their sick saved them bv his intercession from ill-treatment, and thought nothing of himself, they groAV to love him. Soon he had them all at a slan't night prayer, then saying a ch.iplet eveiy night in honor of Jesus, Mary, and Josejdi, and by ami by enrolled among the devotees of tlio Holy Family. Nay, one of them, a captain, became a priest 208 Dkyotton to tuv. r>. V. Mary ])fiHt()r of Port Hoy.'il, in Acudiii ; unothcr bucanio a lay brollicr ill tlu! Coiiijimiy of Jesus. Tilt' licxt of liis woilvH wiiH tlio foundiiif^ of Onr Liuly of Foil', ii siiiino imnu'tliiitoly souj^lit by tlio iltivotion ]i( t only of tlic i\il -mill of tilt' ])iirisli, but of tlir Fmicji fi"o:ii till' iit'ij^libiu'inij; city, Tho wi'itrrs of the day record scm r.d luiniflt's of lui'vcv wioii^dit tln'ou<^li tho iutoi'ccssioii of St. jMuiy, .'lud tlu; littlo c'li;ii)i'l was vn- ricdiod AvilU ,^ifts from Cuuiidii, and oven from Europe. Tho ludiiius, ill gratitude for the statuo bestowrd, luul sent to Our Lady of Dinan a \vam[)um bolt, tho lirst Avhich I'l'ai'hod Europe in this way. This ono boro, in black letters on a ■white Hold, tho lo}j,'end, Jlcd/d (jmr craUious Chuii- iuo;iot, " and I doubt not that tJio Blessed Virgin gavo :'■, a still kinder reception, since, a few years ago, she ■^n'ocurod luo both the opportunity and tho means of biiildijig a now Loretto in tho forests of Now Fraiu'c' Ah! Mother of Grace," ho continues, "why can I iiot daily rondi'r thee a million acts of thanksgiving V ahovo all, when I have tho happiness to celebrate the lioly Mass. Wta'o it permitted uie here to sot forth all tha ' St. Luke, i, 45. * Vie du Prro Clmimionot, p. 01. IN NoilTII AMKIlirA. 200 wicIcImmIim'hs, ovoii s])irihinl, from wliicli ihy ]iityluiH rcsciicil nil', otlu'i's would 1)1! I'xcitcil to lliniik tluMi for iii(\ and to liav(! recourse- to tlioe with coiilhlt ncc." ^\h I icn Ills |mr))oso wiis Known, ilio means soon tli fol- lowed — land and labor, Illon('^' from Canada, and silver laiups nn( 1 rieli veslinents from Fi'aiK It was eoni- nu need inJannai'v, in74, and linislied and Messcul tho same .)■ iTOWdS () ear in NoV(>nd)i'r. Tin^ ceremony drew vast ImciicIi and Indians tojj-etlier. The Hurons an d the Christian Iro(]nois, of whom, by this time, tJiere were many in tlie Kednction, Lore the ima;^'e of Our Lady, a i'o])y of that in tlie Italiuu Loretto, in soltMun procession ; the Superior of th(! Jesnits chanted tl ic soleaiii liiijh Mass and pr en ched ; and all hearts ahited \\itli I'l'ivent devotion St. jiarv of th«^ Hurons. some nioiievji ac ddi- Tlie shrine may still Ix; seen, with tions, hut sulistantially the same. It stands upon an elevated point between two ;;'or<;es. On(> of these is thickly covei'cd with V(\L,'etation ; but down tlu^ other, over rock and gnarled roots, rushes the fo-mung river. On all tlm heights, and on tlu; sith's of the first deep glen, stand tho houses of the huliihtns ; beyond th(!so rises the remnant of tho aboriginal I'ori-sts, and tho blue, wavy (mtlino of tho distant mountains forms the background of tlio pictun It is now called tho ".iiiflciiiic Loi'clle ; Church of the Annunciation of Our Lady.- Many a favor, obtained by Mary's intorcossion, 'S«o engraving iu Orsiui's Lil'e I}. V. Al. 210 Dkvotion 'io Tin; IJ. V. ^Iaky II" :)'■ iuuilo <^rn\rU\\ licarts in tliis licductioii ; Tiiniiy ii mir- Mclc Jiiilrd till' ct'lflii'itv ol" the slililir, uliii'h Wiis liuw lilt' (tlllv slliltrr (if il once lloui'isliili;^ llilx'. Tift lis uivo one stoiv lici'c of Miirv's i»itv. on the aullioiih' of T'a.'licr Cliauiiioiinl. He huvh it would rctiuirc a laim) voliin.t' (i» rrcord llicni all; of lliis one lie was an cyc- ^vitll('ss ; liis ii'j^riid runs llius : ^Fary Ouciidracii uas u Huron woman a;;;! a fervent ("liristian. TFei- linsliand, Itaenliolii, and (wo of lier cldldreii — one live and one I'lfteeii years old- Iiad died in the liosoin of the Church, and sh'jit in the grave- yard of Our Tjadv of Foie. Sonio voarH after the re- moval to TjoreKo, this ^rood Mary was smitten l»v one of tlu^ ten il)le lyplioid fevers wliich us(;d to desohite the Indian villa_t;es in those days; something unalo- f^ous to the eamp-fi'vo's which wo hear of now. So conii)le(( ly reduc'i'd was she tliat hcv wholo Ixidy wa jiowerh'ss, as if paraly/ed ; the hist sacraments had l»eeu ;_,iveii lier, and her decease was momently ex- pected. Sliould she die, sh(! must h'avo heliind lier luu' rGmainiii lU'osc aiK 1 1 inrrit'( 1 to caliiii, ii'Ciilliiin; jis lie went tin' pi'avi rs fm' m .'1(>- tiii"' soul. As III' entered tlie l(ii1..c, iN mistress rose 11)1(1 received liilii witll [trot'oillid reVd'eliet", t) li h riiiifiisc \w. i ells n H. He tliouu'lit lliis ellort llie last tlidt iialiire would make — th(^ tlielverin;^; ni tlie li-^dit l>efoi'(' it should expire forever. Tfe iii',.';ed lier to lie down at once upon the [loor mat which served Inr fer a lied; but she said she would be as well seated. Ho n,^aiu urged her, but slie answered ;.,'ra\(ly, slio was [irrl'ectly well. ^- ill the good Fatlier I'aneled this a di'eam of mei-e delirium, whieli, when slie had ob- served, she sent her children from tlie lodge and toM tlie piii'st as follows: That, soon nfti'r he had gouo out, two persons entered tlu^ lod;.;(> and took their places bj her mat, one at the side, the oilier, a little d hey, at the foot. Tho oiK^ at th(^ side seemed a yoiin;^ >v')nian or full-grown girl, and said, " ^Ty mother, if you will toucli tho edge of my I'obo, you will 1k> healed." r>ut IMarv Oueudraea could not bolievt^ that any one from lieaveu Avould condescend to visit one so lowly ns lid not have appeared liko lersc If: d L'talfl uid as mortalfl "woui those, sh(^ fancied tlicm demons come to trouble her last 1 lour, an I si le pray e( Itol )e rescuiM 1 fi om lliem lint tlu! vouii'T u'ii'l, wltli !i sweet, lieavenlv smile. 'o » biuslied llie edge of lier robo across tho sick woman's face, and said, " Tliero, mothov, you are cured." And tlicu they disappoiired. Then IShwy tried to move, aiul confidence bej-au to steal into luu' heart as s'i»3 212 Devotion 'J'O the B. V. Mai:y ■;«•?; fouiul liorsolf niistross of lior strenj;tli. H\\o. roso and walked to the door, tried all her limbs, and scut her troml)liiig d;iu,^litor for Chauinonot; for the; hny had tied from Ikm- as fi'om a s])('ctre. Th(!]i tlu; jjood priest undorstood tliat llio j^racious Queen of Jleavcii had licard ihi-iv ]n'a_vevs, and had sent to lier lowly Huron nainesake her own ehildron, witli tlie boon of liealth. There wer(> no degnn^s i)i the reeoveiy, ?.r.iiw Ouen- draca walked at onee to the chnreh, tiu're to oH\'r her thauks'-dving, perfectly restored. So many and so luarked indeed wer(^ t1;e favors ob- tained tliroi;,L;]i the intercession of the Motlier cf Clod, that the poor Indians were; always re_Li,Teltin_u; their Icvvliness and poverty, because they had ijo mi^ms of lionoring her .ib tJiey desired. Nevertheless, (liey de- tiM'inined t:) do what tliey could. They had si'iit a wanipum-belt to Foie and to Lorctto ; they nnist send another, (nl Vlniuiciu purlturdiit, to Our Lady of Char- tres ; for the Mission of Loretto, as well as lliat of the Ab::akis, had been united, by a "union of intivntion in prayer," to ihe i^rand cathedral in rrance. So tluy made as fine a, belt as tliej' could of black and white wanipiim, and tliey wrought the edges in tlu> Ihiest (piill-work, of the richest dyes, and the legend was, •■' Yiiic.ixr rAKiruii.E Votum Huhonum," and they sent it with this hdter :' " It fills our hearts with joy, O Holy Virgin, that ' Those wlio iir(! curious in these miittprs m:iy rci' lie original Euron h'ttcr'f in Jolin IJilmary Shea's exquisite ediiiim of Fiitlier Caaumonot's Aulobiogruphy. IN NoiiTii America. 213 even Ix^foro jour birtli, the city of CLartros built to your honor a shrino with this dcdicivtion, ' To the Virgin avIio shall hoAiv a child.' Happy arc thoy who have won the glory of being your earli(>st soi'vants. Alas! incomparable Mother of God, it is quite other- wise with us poor llurons ; we have the sorrow to liavc been the last to know you and to honor you. But wo would do what li(^s in our power to make up iov all past n(>glect of your service by fcu'vent devolion .low. Tliis wo. desire to do, joining ourselves to your chil- ilrrai at Chartres, so that we may have but one mind, one mouth, one heart Avitli them, to rendcM- you jiraise and service and love. "We beseech them to ((llVi' for us, and in our name, all the honors which they liavt; ever l)aid to you. It shall Ije they, for avi; hojx; they will not refuse us, who shall win your bounty for us; their fervor compensating for our sluggi^!in(>ss, their know- lodge for our ignorance, their riches for our penury. "And, Holy Virgin, although your holy child has l)oen born into the W(n'ld, we will still honor you under tiiat tith; of J'liyo Fdrlli'ra, so that you may deign to ai'c(!pt us also as your children. As we honor y(m lun'o in a house modelled upon that wlun'ein you gave a hunuui life to God, we hope that 30U will oljtaiu a spiritual life for us ; so shall you be, O ev(U' Virgin, our njgcneratrix until J(!sus be born anew in (uir hearts. This is what we ask of you, sending this wampum in testimony that we are bound to ycnir service." ' ' Vocux (les llurons et dcs Abnaquls, p. 1. 214 Devotion to the B. V. Maiiy T.'io cliaptor of Cluirtvos plnecd tlio Huron XkM air ■•(» tlio treasures of their glorious catliedral, and ■were very kind to their poor Indian brethren on tlus banks of tlie St. Lawrence. Thev sent them, ain()ii<' otlier thiui;s, a very liandsonie, well-liUed rehcjUMrv. It was of massive silv(>r, richly chased ; upon one side bearing in high relit>f the kneeling figure of Our Blessed Lady, and of the Angid wlio brings the An- nunciation, who with one hand extends the lily of purity, and with tlio other points to the et<'rnal Dove, hovering, white-winged, in the upper glory. On the other side you see the hollow oak wherein, on a low altar, sits the Virgin wilh the Holy Child in her arms. On tho base of the altar is a legend, rinjtiii. Puritiini:^ This Avas received wiiii great gratitude, and on the feast of All Saints, KiSO, it was exhibited for the V(>ii- ejation of the faithful. Sm'nions were prc^aclied in Freu'di and Huron ; tin; reli(puuy was incensed and placed wiilun th(^ niche prepared for it; and Our Lady was thanked for this, as for other favors, by the mingled voi( es of French and Indians chantuig tho Air Mari.s SivUa. The daily life at Lorctto was more like that of a re- ligious conununity than of a village oi pour Indians who depended upon the chase for their sup[)ort. Morning prayer, Mass, and general examination in ' Notice pur un T?cli([uairo donnc' en Kif^O aux IfiiroiiH dc Luri'tto en lii N(iuvi'''(' I'laii''" par Ic CliMpitn' df I'lVdi*''' dc ('li:irfn's, p.ir M. Doublet lie iJoistliilittiilt. Extrait de la Kevuo Aiclieologiciuo, XV'. anuee. Puiis, A. Leleux, iyo8. IN jSTonTII AjfERICA. 215 tlic cli.apol occnpicHl the l(>isuro of tlic forenoon ; cato- chism and Instruction of those who conhl attend, with visit to the Blessed Sacrament, sanctified the after- noon ; and when tlie sun was setting, the sound of the bell called the canoe to the shore, and hade the loiter- ing" hunter hasten from the forest to end the dny with prayer. Tlien, when all were gathercnl, tlu>y sang vespers on feast-days, and other prayers on feriro. They sang in alternate choirs, in Indian and in Latin, their evening devoiions. Tluu'e was a short examina- tion of c'onsei(MU'e, the beads of the Blessed Virgin or of the Holy Family, the Pitivy, Air, Cmlo, Coiijitvor, the Coraraandnients, and other prayers for the living and the dead, an anthem to the most pure INIother, and the A)i(i('lii>^. Thus closed the d;iy, and then the stars reigned in heaven ; or, if the clouds made the mid- night more profound, the Indian children of ]\[ary slept in scM'ure humility beneath the shadow of her .sln'in(> in the Lort^tto of the forest. Missionary to the Hurons for more than fifty years, ihc hour for Father Chaumonot's rest must bo at liand. There are successors, ca[)able nn^n, for the mission. Piirt of his daily duty Avas to teach the Huron lan- guage for at least half an hour,' but at length the superior thougiit him too nnich worn for furtluir labor, aiul HM-alled him to the tranquillity of the collegf , in 1GD2. AVhat else wo know of him is not from hii^ ' His Huron prammnr was tlio biisis of all other Northern IndiuB graraniiirs, iiud tho text-book of the missionary. 21G Devotion to the B. Y. M.vky autobiogrjipliy, written in obedionco .'ind for liiKuility, but is from tho work of a eontonijxirary Fatlior wlio know liiin and watcluMl ])is declining years, as he passed from lioly life to holier, in the college of Our Lady of Angels. IIo liiid piissed the liniil; usually allotted to man, tho throoscoro years aiid ten. In 1()89, on the Feast of St. Joachim, tho second d;ty of tho Octavo of Our Lady's Assumpticm (Aug. l.")i, ho chantcMl, in the cithedral of Queliec, his ".?\[ass of iifty 3'ears.'" Half a centur}' had he heen ])riest_, find had broken the Bread of Lif(^ to "tiu^soul-; that luni- gercd in the wilderness." Falling sii-k at last, the old man was sunnnomnl from his mission, hut as f;oo]; ns ho had soTuewhat recovered, he cravcnl peiMiiission to return. They put him ofl" until the Fetist of tlio Immaculate (Conception, and from that until l\!pi]ih;uiv, and tlun thev n(>eded no more excuses. His rnpidlv hn^akiiig system told him that Loretto and he wwa parted forever. 80 he i)re[>ari'd himsvlf hy ceaseless prayer and meditation, and oll'ering up of his suH'cr- ings, from acute gravel, to his cruciticul Lo)'d ; and on tho morning of the nineteenth of Januiiry, he took leave of tho woi'ld without a moan, entering the new life witli the words, " Jr.srs, I\Iary, Joseph !" on his lips. We conclude this elia]:)tcr with the ju'omised Note, on the especial patroness of our early Indian missions, Our Ladv of Chartrcs. Note. — " li'nnciennott-, la devotion ot la servico do rrgliso catlu'.- dralc do Nobtre Duim; de Cliartrca I'ont rcudue Bainto et vcni'rublc. i IN North Ajiertoa 217 tons les Clirosticns . . . Cost co qui a mou la pi('t(' dos rnys noa pivdroopscurs, la dotter de pliisicurs i'oiuls vt domainos, fiivcurs et ])riv('li'i;es, et par lour cliaritrs. libi'ralitrs, magniflceiico royalle, la rcstiiblir et la ivodifior dos le toiiii« du S. Fulbcrt qui ou estoit cveeque en I'l'istat (pri'llf so void ft pri'scnt." So sjioaks tlio Most Clivistiiin King Jjouia tlie Tlurtconth wlien foiiniling in tliis liinious cathcdnil, in KioS, a perpetual reqniian Mass for tlic soul ol' liis I'allicr Henri Quatre. "Tiie anti(iuity, (levotum, nnd service* of the catlieilral ehtnrli of Our Lady of ('Imrtrc^s liavo rendered it lioly and vcneralde to nil Ciiristians. Tliis it is wliieli liaa moved ilie kings our predreissor.s to endow it with many foundations, d'lniaini'S, favors, Jind privileges, and by tlieir <'liuri;;es, li!;crulitieB, nnd roy:^l magiiincenee to re-establish and re-edify it from the days of St. Full)ert, wlio vas 5t3 bislioj), in tlio condition that we s(>,o it in today."' For Cliaiuos yirlds to no quarter of the earth in devotion to the Moth' r of (iod. in tlu' diuees" whereof tliis vt-ueriiblc slirine is cathedral, nino stately abl)eye and forty-five parish ehureli^s iiv» deciicated by name to the Blessed Virgin, and her veneration traces back, liy reverent tradition, Ixyond the dato of Christianity itsilf. There is nothing n^quiiinga very unusual streleh of Inilh or eredulily in the tradition. Th(* argument is brielly tliis : Tliat ali jH'oiiles'- liad a tradition of a virgin wlio sliould bear a eliild, the ^^aviour of the world; tliat the !>ru:ds in (iaul were thi; learned of tho day, the liolders of all religious traditij-n af; well as its ministers, and that Cliartres was the headquarters of liriiidisni.' Such is the argument for its proliaiiility, and the legend is as follows : 'I'he catliedial of Our i.ady of Chartres stands upon a hill onco covered witli the saer^'d oal; -grove wherein tlie Diiiids worshipped tlieir god 'i'eutates.'' In the centre of the wood was a cav(;rn or vast grotto, where the sunlight scarcely ])(^netrate; to the T>. Y. Matsy '■fi lopreml, one Imndrcd yciirs lii'foro tlio Saviour's liirtli, dkl Prisous, kini?: (if Ciiiirtri n. patlior liis wiivir)rs, ban.ls, orators, ami ])rii'Sts, to seo erected, l)y coiuiiiaiul ot' the In'iii'iie collei^'e, an altar, Ivarin^- tlu; Ima^e oi" a Woman with a Cliild in her arms, aini thi- inscrijition, "To THE VnuuN who shall r.iUNfi foiith a ('ini.n." Vii!f;r\i PAUiTViiJ';. 'I'he altar was set up, and Prisons tlie k'uyj; soli'ninly Cfjnsec.ruled himself, his land, and liis i)e()i)le forevi;r to lier wiio should Iwar the "Desire of all Nations.'" \\'l;en, then, the first Innilds ef the truth, SS. Po'i-ntianiis, Altinns. and Sabinianus arrived j-i this country and announecd that She, so honored there, had come, and hud born " JCmannel, liod with us," the hearts of the Canuites, long iirc- pared, received the message gladly. A rude church was built within the grotto, the very image sculptured by pagan fingers wa< blcssc;l and the land becanie Mary's, to tlie greater glory of her et"rnal Son. When Coiislantini; gave peace to the Cliiirch, and tlu; (•mpiit; of the (';esar8 became Christendom, the grove was cut down, a:iii n church, st'.ll modest and poor, was erected upon the Rtunmit of the hill. Iliilier the early (iallic Christians florked, and Inmi Our Bhsscd ]jady was pleased to manifest her nuitcrtiul love Jor tlie unfirtuuaU' liuman bri'lhreti of her Son. The crowds of worsliijipiM's gra luiilly ang!tiiMitcil, and various structnves succeeded to the primiiive br.iM ings as the necessity of the times recpiircd. At length, in 10:20, the Bishop, Fuibi'rt, aided by the devout largesse of Robert of Fiance, Knut the (ireat, of D.-nniarh and I'^O'vland. l?ichard of Xi rinaii'Iy, William of Aquitnine, I'Tudi's of ChaTtrrs, ami other so^•l'r(■ign princes. laid the magnificent foundations of the actual cathedral, and lini.-^hcd vaultiug the grotto wliicli thus bccann.' the ciypt of the chmcli. In tl;e cryiit-chur<'li, whi(,'h is known as Oar Lady's Tuder Oroiiml, is ]ireaerved t!ie ant:<]ue statii<\ in a, niche f)ver tln^ altar. The iniassed Virgin is crowned. And there rested the fitatuo where llie hands of the Druids had placed it, tiiilil ihe jnogro- sive ri'imMicanism of 17!^' 1 ovrthrv'w the shrine, tore thi' imaire from its niche, hea])e antique inutge. so consistently destroyed by our modern political and HMte iiiiilMr II- - — IN KoiiTH America. 219 social reformors. Besides this, however, tlio church was enriched with other treasures, which happily escaped tlio nigo of the Hovohi- tion. There was a statue called Our Ludy of the Pillifr ; long a vehicle of Clary's graces to her cliildrea. The atone ])e(lestal on wliich it stiiiuls lias heon Avorn hollow by tlu; kisnos of the devout, and the legend on the haso is, Tota pulrlira cs amira men ct macvla non est iit te — "Thou art all fair, my beloved, there is no sixrt L. thee." There is also, since the year 870, nn Oriental veil, sucli as is still worn in tlie Kast, and which is said to have heen Our I.tidy's. It Avas given to f lie church by Charles the Bald ; it h:is received ihe venera- tion of all centuries since llip(>n- cl(>nee : tlie first clerpry under the jniisdiction of C roll are thos'^ Avhom fetterless tiger passions drive 1V( old Catholic F'-iriice, Dubois, Fliiget, ])avid, r)ad Du^-'ourp', Mar(M'h;d Chev(n'T;s, Pdchard, Salmon, and tlieir companions, lay th*^ foundations of this country's true indebtedness to the land of St. Louis. Of these, Stephen ]5adin' is to be the first priest ordained in Aiueriea; six others are to be bishops, one afterwards a cardinal;" Abbe Salmon is to die of cold and wounds, in the snow ; Garnier shall see his phdsni(t ]i"i;s (t<\ ar- )ni m. Fraw '" a gam, and end his l;i'>ors as superioi'-ir rcnev'i lof St. Sul;)i ce Cheverus, a Prince of the Church, and Du- bourg die nunnbers ef tho restored hierarchy in their native Innd; and the others arc to find the place of * Stephen Badin, ordiiincd at Balt'more, 17!).). * Join; Lofevrn Chovcrus, Bishop of IkKsion, 1810; of ■Moutaubar, 1818 ; Arc!ills1io|) of lordcr.ux, lb~'G ; Ca- Jinal, 18oG. IN North AArEincA. 221 F IT — A Mis- tlieir rest iu tlio land which their toils have couse- crivtod. So that France, the pioneer of Christianity, heir of t!ie Spiuiianl in Loiiisiuna, and sacred conqneror of Canada, sends the iirst company of soldiers of Mary to rcMluce to the suhmissiou of God the centre of this vast iiovtheni continent. ]S\'veith(-less, it is in England t.'iat this act of the sacred drama opens. In the centre of a Avell-watered valley, running downward through Dorsetshire to the Channel, stands the anlitpie castle of Lulworth, a gothic pile of f( ur round towers united hy massive battlemented curtains. This was the home, first of the Normal! de Lolleworths ; in King John's da}'s, of the princely Newburghs ; then of the Ijindou Howards; lastly of the Welds, sprung from Edric the "Wild. For these a home, for othei's a temporary refuge. For here the austere monks of Our Lady of L i Trappe found a shelter when driven from their mountain for- ests by the merciless mus cnlili'es; and later, by another effort after universal eipiality, the old Avails became the abode of the royal house of France, bc^t'oro they moved to that castle of sadder and darke- history, the Scottish Holyrood.' It was the scene of many a harel fight in olden days, as when de Clare stormed it for the Empress Matilda ; but none cl' its memor"(>s can interest ns so much as thai of the midstimme, •■'orning which gave their first )f ^loutauban, i > Sir Bernard Burkc'l" Liindea Gentry," Article, Weld. 022 Devotion to the B. V. JNIauy ■%'- l)isliop to tlu) Uiiitrd States. Tlio day wan not nn- liapi)ily clioscii. For tli(^ discovory aiul consocration of tlui land i'l'oin INIaiiK! to Florida, from the Cliosa- poakci to California, by tlio servants of Mary, and tlio solciiiii dedication of it to hvv name, may \)v likened to her Nativity. The growth of the French and Span- ish churches is lu>r beautiful youth. 'Ulum come the dark 'imes of I'uritanic con([uest, the destruction of the Catholic missions, and the disappearance of tho Catholic Indians, as tho dark time of her sorrows fnjin tho Flight into Egypt until the Crucifixion. xVnd now the new rising of the Church is visil)le meetly on tho Foast of her Assumption, when she went up into tho presence of the King her Son, and "tho King rose up to do her reverence, and tiny set a throne for the King's Mother, ami she sate at his right hand." ' So that from that Feast of Our T>lessed Lady's x\s- sumption in tho castle cliiipel of old Lulworth, unto that \\iiich has been celebrated this year Ihrougliout the length and breadth of North America, the devotion to Mary has grown steadily; and now tln're is scarcely a county without a church to her niuue; scarcely a s(iuare mile from the Gulf to tho Arctic Ocean wlnu'ein that nauK! has not at least been ]>roclaimed. In that short space of a single human life, seventy-two years, ' Lib, iii.. Ucgmn : V(;nit t^o Bethsaljco ml IJe;,'oin Saloiiioncm ; et surrexit rex in ofcursiim ejus; nduravitque caiu, et scdit sujjor thronuni Hiuiin; potsitustiuo ubt tlirouus matri regis (juic scdit ad dux- teram regis. IN Nonrir AMEurcA. 223 "tlio lonst Ims booomo a lliouHaiul, aiul tlio little one a most stroiif^ luitioii.'" The lioly do Moiitfort,' if wo ituumhIxm" ii,L;litly, ap- plies to Our Lady thoso words of tlic Soii'^ of Soiij^s : "As t]i(5 applo-troos unioiif^ tlio tvoi>s of tlu? wood, so is my l)olovi>(l among the t*liildr(>n of iiicii ;" ' jind says tlifit slio bhall coiuo to luiiti^ in herself ulniosf nil Iho vcnoration paid by man to saints; oi- at Kast sliall bo aolaiowledij;ed as supertMuir.ently worthy of it in every part of Christendom. And wo seem to see the fiilfil- mout of this declaration in North America. In ]'jnro])(% every town and vil]ag(! has its own ])!itr(in, who ab- sorbs most of the devotion of the people; but in this comitry, jjlaced under her especial protection by Span- iard and Frenchman, by emigrant En,i;lishman, and American in the fresh Hush of ncnv inde[»en;ienco, nearly the whole devotion of the people conccnitrates in \ivr; or turns, for her sak(>, to Saint Annc^ among the Canadians,* or to Saint Joseph among tin; faithful ill the United States. What antique Catholic land, ev(^n Spain or Ireland, can show what this country shows, even by the ex- ' Isaiiis, Ix. 22. ' Si'i; Dr. Ncligiin's " S^aintl y riiiiractcrs." — Kiikcr: New York. ' Sic'iil iimlijs inter ligiia silvarum, sic diluctuj rums iiircr iili(js.— Cant, ii, ',]. * 'iho voyagcT gives as reverential reason for liis jrroat rlevntion to St, Aiiiic, tliat Our Lady is too lol'ty and great for hi.> unwortliiness to uddicss dirrcily ; and so as otlier ("atliolics pli'ail iliniugli tlie ma- lernity of Mary to the Heart of .lesus, the Canadian iniijlures tlxe ma^ teruity of iSl. Aiaiu to intercede witli the Heart of Mary. 224 Dkvotion to tiik B. v. Mxuy tioiuol}' i;iii)(!rrcH't roiionl of tlu! ulin:iuao, one cJnirch in cvcri/ /ire 1»( .iriii^' the bouutiful and cikIuvIii^ iianio of tho Mother of Our Tionl iiiul of us? AVliut tcivritory, of oiU!-t(Mil]i llio vastiiess, lias t-Vi'V Itccn placed ]>y four iiidi'peiident und unintorcoiuinunicatiii^' powers under lier peculiar patroiia;^'e and protection ? Tlnii, with this for the divinely oi'dered starting-point, let us look to sei! \\lielher tho other means, lius zeal of the ministry, has been connnensiu'ate, in its decree of course, \\l[\\ the clear grace bestowed by our (ileiiiul Father. "We atlo[)ted as principles,' at tho outset of this -woilc, that a devotion advanc(>s in prop/ortiou to its own merits and to tho ardor of t!ie ministry who propagate it. Tlio whole of this gri'at book, Orsini's noblo "LitV'," and our own hund)l(! continuation, is mi exhibition of tho merits of Mary, and we Inive simmi tlio latest iliu^trittu.s historian of An^orica, puritan tiiou^h he bo, sn])|)()i'ting us in our claims for the early [)i()ne('r servants of Mary in tho land. Lot us begin l)y statiiijj; what thev lia\" done in a single! evident way for this beautiful de\otion — as Kouelni Digby would say, llio way of churi'lu>s. There are nninv churches of Our Blessed Lailv un- known to tliis writer. Of acvcii dioceses in the Jhitis]« Possessions ho has no account; bi;t with ail thi.-., and with the gre:!.t imperfection of such rec(ji'ds as h(' has, he still c:ui give the following list of Mary's siuines iu North America. V ■ ' See pages 9, 10. IN Noiirii Amkiiica. 225 Tli('i'<' •ii'ti (18(52) iiiiu^ (Icdic'utioiH lo "Mary TT»'1[) of ChvistiiiiiM, iiiiu! to ^lai'y Star of tlu> Sea, two to j\Livy H(^fuj;o (»t' Siiiiici's, si'Vfu to tlio Htu'rctl Heart of Marv. Tlirn^ ,i)'i! soiiu'iiiiu's only one, somctiiin'S as many an four, loOiir r^ady of llio Port, (»f I lie I^l(•, of tlio Cata- ract, of [he (lulf, of tli(! liivor, of tlio llocks, roLnnl.d In foriniiliilliiis /I'fnc,' Our I^ady of the Porta^'o, of tlio Snow; )f the "Wooiis, of tln! Jjakc, of tins Desert. There is Our I^aily of La Salitte, of ]5eUMi, of Lovis, iind nine of (luadalupe, A^^aln, avo iiave Our l^ady of Li^dit, of (lrae(^, of Good Hilp, of Piefnge, of (Jood Hope, of Pronijtt fSiU'cor. Tliero are four to Our liady of Vielories, tliroo to Our Lady of (V)nsolation, livo to Our liudy of Lorotto, soven to Our Ijad^' of An^^tds, nine of the liosary, seven of the Oood Shepherd, six- teen of Our I^ady of Mercy, twenty-one of Sorrows, twenly-two of Carniel, thh'ty-onu to "Our Lady," SlUllilV There are tlireo ehurehes of the ^[oiher of Clod, five of (lie Pui iliealion, eleven of tho Xa.tivit}' fourteen of tilt) Aniiuneiation, sixteen of the A'isitation, I'lfty of tho Ai5Sunii)lion, one hundrt'il and forty-live of tho Ini- macuhito Conception, and thri'o hundred and sixty- st'von uhich are simply ealled Saint Mary's. In all, there stand in North America, in honor of its Patroness, more than eight hundred chuiches. How this swift growth has come about in so short u time wo arc about to look at more in th>taik AVc are " Jly dove in the clefts of tho rock." — Sony of SoIodkui, ii. 14. P 10* 226 Devotion to the 13. V. Mart to soo tlio pri(^st and tlio religioiis, tlio enorp;y of man niid tlio ivitiont labor of Avoiuan, under new dillicultios and trials peculiar to tlioir position, (^xt(Midin<^ to tlio people Avlio surround llieni tlielr own eariu>st devotion to God and Mavv. Coeval with tin; cousccialion of Bishop Carroll, the Daughters of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel were in ]\rarylaud suirering from poverty al- most extreme, fastiii^tj; eight months in the year, sleep- ing on straw, ohtaining a modification of their clois- tered austerity to enal)le them to become teachers,' and oflering perpetual prayer for the country wheiein they came to dwell. The Poor Clares followed, but did not continue long; when tiiey declintnl, the Visitation of Our Lady took their jilaco. Long, long ago among the mountains of Chamblais, there stood an ancient shrhie of tlu^ Blessed Virgin, resorted to by pious pilgrims. Hero, gradually, certain hermits gathered, as in Switzerland they clus- tered about the famous Abbey of Einsiedeln, and the saintly Bishop of Geneva had given them for title. Hermits of the Visitation. Afterwards, when Saint Jane Frances de Chantal formed her congregation ov(Mty iil- •eav, sleep- Lliciv clois- ; teaclici'S,' try Avlieiuin itiime long; • Liuly took lountivins of nu'BlosstMl :>, p;viuTually, (1 tlioy clus- -lii, aiul the iin for title, Avluni Stiiut .■rogation at .ihI them tlio ;t was their (lirocticm of Irican sister- ,o\\ between , United States, three anJ four hundred of these daughters of Mary toacli reverence to her uanie iu these States. Already the Sisters of Charily were at EniniittshTtrg with their venerable foundress, Mother Seton, 1809. To-d;iy where are they not? Their orphan-asylums and scliools, their hospitals, their baiiaclv iie;ir the battle-lield mark their presence. And there are no longer in this whole vast country, we be-lieve, ludess perha})s in New England, niany wlio do not know and reverence the dark-robed i'oun us it moves on its er- rand of mercy throiigh the streets. Add to all those, the fervent priests, so few at first in number ; tlie early bisho[)s, penniless, sometimes barely clotlied, and often Avuhout light or fire m winter; traversing distances en horseback that we grundjle at passing over in the mil way-train now; enduring all this cheerfully and lu;i.'oically as we shall soon see. Sum up all th(!se and ■\vo begin already to observe that Devotion t(j Mary in Central North America is to rival the Devotion of the Canadas. Lishop Carroll found himself spiritual governor of all the terrilory then owned by the United States, and liis missionaries started from Baltimore for the West us one would strike out to sea alone in a bark canoe. For the uncut forest surged around them with its vast gi'cen w;.v(\s of verdure; the Indian, rarely i'riendlj', lurked in its dim recesses ; the road was oftenest no clearer than a hunter's trail or a forsaken deer-path. liny themselves were scholarly men, nurtured in i^uropean habits, necessities, ideas of distance. But 228 Devotion to thk B. V. Mary in tlio precise spirit of Miirqnotte, Jogiies, Brebooiif, tiicy put tlioir trust in God unci Avcnt "wlievesocvcr He directed. Borne by tlicni, the Devotion to Our Lady followed tlio course of the grout ntiturid l)ound;irics of this nii<;'1itv land. Flowint^f westward from the Lav whicli- the Ih/st missionaries culled St. Mury's ; from the town which its first settlers culled St. ?Iury's; tliis river of devotion, checlced, us might be supposed, by the cli.iin of mountains, ])y Alleghany, and C'uinber- land, and Blue Bi<,lg(}, divided into three streams. One of these streams run nortlnvurd, us if to seek the old wells of devotion among the red-incn und the French ; and this soon carried on its bosom a saintly Cheverus to hear through tlie gloom of tlie wood the song Uaiiriijival and the Salm lUy'ina from tlu^ lips of our old friends the over-fuithful Abenuki. A second run southwurd, to visit ugain, after an intervul of two centuries, the spots "wluu'O the blood of Jesuit and Carmelite, of Augustiniau and Franciscan, hud niiu- gled to baptize the Carolinas. And the third followed the course of Ja hiic. lilcltrv, and flowed with its yel- low Avaters through the fertile heart of the lan("., to the river wherein De Soto had been buried, and to whidi Marquette hud given its name of Immaculate Concep- tion. In eighteen years, sixty-eight priests and eighty churches formed too heavy a burden for tlie venerable Bishop of Bultimoro, and the sees of New Yoih, Bos- ton, Bliiladelphia, and Bardstown in lO^ducky, were established. Let us look at a typo or two of the meii :,^ IN North America. 220 wlio led those missions. As early as 1705 tlicre was one Fiithor Smith who was missionary for an onormons district in Western Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsyl- vaiiia. There, for forty-one years, ho toiled hi hum- bli' faithfulness ; from thence hi^, soul ascended to the judgment which his life had merited. It will not he Tiiiiiit(>vesting to consider some points in the life of this m>rv;iiit of Mary, this glorious, although unrenowned pidiu er of lu'r lioiior in this country. This Father Smith, missionary of Ilagerstown and Cnml.)erland in ^Maryland, of Martinsburg and AVin- chestcr in Yirginia, of Chamberslmrg and the Alle- gliaiiy iuountain sweep in Peimsylvania, and tlieuce southward; of far more, in a Avord, tliiiu \Juit now constitutes the entire diocese of Pittsburg ; this rival of rioniez in tin south, and of Father Chaumonot in the north : this founder of Our Lady of Lon^tto in the (■('111 re of the continent, was not always known a .; Father Smith. In his own country, the vast Muscovite cm- pho, IJK^n ruh'd by the Czar Alexander 1., he was known :i,s i]\o Prince Augustine do Gallit:;^in. His father, Prince Demetrius Gallitzin, was ambassador of Catherine the Cireat to Holland, at the time of the missionary's birth. His mother, the Princess Amelia, was daughter of that famous Field-marshal Count von Hchmettau Vv-ho illustrates the military annals of Fred- erick Ihe Great. The young Gallitziu was decorated in his very cratllo with military tithes, which destined him from his birth to the highest posts in the Ilussian army. 230 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Iligli in tbo favor of the Empress Catlierine, his fatlior, a lianghty and ambitious nobleman, (IrfMiniui:; only of tlie advancement of his son in the road of pveferniont and worldly honor, was resoivutl to give liim an educa- tion Avorthy of his exalted birth and brilliant prospei'ts. Religion formed no part of the i)lan of the father, who was a prolicient in the school of Gallic intidelity, and the friend of Diderot. It Avas carefully excluded. Special care Avas taken not to suHer any minister of religion to a2)[)roacii the study-room of the young prince. He Avas surrounded b}' infidel teachers. His motlu.'r, a Catholic by Ijirth and early education, Avas seduced into seeming Voltairianism by the court fash- ion of her native country, and her marriage Avith Prince Demetrius confirmed her habits of apparent infidelity ; we say apparent, for she retained, even in the Sidons of Paris and in the society cl Madame du uhatclct, a ferA'ent dcA'otion to Saint Augustine, that grand doctor of the Church Avho lii> I been a great Avorhlling and heretic. After the marriage of the elder Gallitzin Avitli the Princess Amelia, ho brought her to Paris and in troduced her to his literary infidel friends, especially to Diderot, in Avhoso company he delighted. This philosopher endeavored to win the princess over to his atheistical system ; but though she Avas more than iu- diff'ercuit on the subject of religion, her naturally strong mind discovered the holloAvness of his reasoning. It was remarked that she Avould fi-equently puzzle the philoso[)her by the little interrogatiA'e — Avhy ? And as he could not satisfy her objections, she Avas determiucd ■ -fTTS'-" IN North America. 231 to examine thoroughly the grounds of revelation. Though having no religion herself, she was determined to instruct her children in one. She opened the Bible merely for the purpose of teaching her children the historical part of it. The beauty of revealed truth, notwithstanding the impediment of indifTercnco and unbelief, would sometimes strike her — her mind being of that mould which, according m Tertullian, is natu- rally Christian. A terrible illness called her mind back to God ; she saw the truth and beauty of tlie CathoUc faith, and she returned to the protection of Mary on the Feast of St. Augustine, in the woek following the Octave of Our Lady's Assumption. It is to the happy influence and bright example of his mother, t^^ whom, under God, we must mainly as- scribe the conversion of the young Demetrius. As the illustrious Bishop of Milan, St. Ambrose, consoled the mother of Augustine, when he used to say " that it luas impossillefor a son to he lost for icliom so many tears ivere shed;''' so we may believe that the pious Furstcnberg, her son's tutor, cheered, In a similar manner, this good liuly, in her intense solicitude for a son Avhom she so tenderly loved. At the age of seventeen the young prince was re- ceived into the Church. He was, in the year 1702, ap- pointed aid-de-camp to the Austrian General Von Lil- ian, who commanded an army in Brabant at the open- ing of the first campaign against Iho French Jacobins. The sudden death of the Emperor Leopold, and tho 232 Devotion to the B. V. Mary <^ inimlor of tlio king of Swcdcu by Ankorstrom, both suspccUicl to bo tlio work of tlio Frciicli Jacobins wlio had iloc'larc'd war u/ainst all kings and all rc^ligions, caiisod the govoiiimonts of Anstria and Prussia to issuo a very strict order disqualifying all foreigneivs from military ollicca. In consequonco of this order the yoiuig Prince do Gallitziu was excluded, llussia not taking any part in tlie war against Franco, there Avas no occasion oliered to him for pursuing the professiou of arms for which ho had boon destined by his military education. It was therefore determined by his parcuitis that ho should travel abroad and make the grand tour. Ho was allowed two years to travel ; and lest, in tlio mean timc^, his acquirements, tlio fruits of a very Hu- ishod education, might suiler, ho was placed mider tlio guidance of the Bev. Mr. Brosius, a young missionary then about to embark for America, with whom his studies were to bo still continued. In the conq)any of this excellent clergyman ho reached the United States in 1702. The next we need see of him is as a seminarian with the Sulpicians in Baltimore, November 5, 1792. Iii this moment of his irrevocable sacrifice of himself to God, the feelings of his inmost soiil may bo gathered from a letter which he wrote at the time to a clergy- man of Muuster, in Germany. In it he begs him to prepare his mother for the stop ho had finally taken, and informs him that he had sacrificed himself, with all that lu. possessed, to the service of God and the salvation of his neighbor in America, where the hur- IN NoiiTii Ameuica. 233 vest was so groat and tlio laLovcrs so few, and whore tho niissioiiary liiid to rido friiquontly forty aihl lifty miles a diiy, nndor;j;()ln}^' dillicultios and d.iiit^'ors of every d(;sori|)tion. H(! adds, tluit ho doubtod not hiy call, as ho was willing to subjoct himsolf to suc;h ardu- ous labor. Fiithor Etionno Badin was tho first priost ordained iu tho United St:it(>s ; Prineo Oallit/in Avas tho sooond, and ho, as early as 17'.)'J, was settled for life in tho then bleak and savage region of tho Alleghanios. From his post to Lake Erie, froni tho Susqui^hanna to tliu Potonnic, tliorc was no priest n) ehurch, no re- ligious station of any kincL Tliinx, tlion, of tho in- evitable labors and privaticnis of this missionary ; and again understand how tho devotion to Mary has spread over North America. During long missionary excursions, frequently his bed was tho l)aro lloor, his pillow the saddle, and tho coarsest and most forbidding faro constituted his re- past. Add to this, that ho was always in feeble health, always infirm and delicjftcs in tho extreme, and it was ever a nuitter of wonder to others how tho little he ato could support nature and hold together so fragile a frame as his. A veritable imitator of Paul, " ho was iu labor and painfuluess, in watching often, in hunger and thirst, in fasting often, in cold and nakedness." ' ^Vlien he first began to reside permanently on tliis mountain, iu 1779, ho found not more than a doacii » 2 Cor., xi. 234 Devotion to the B. Y. Mai.y Catliolics, scnttorcd here ami there through a tracklosa forest He first settleil on a form generously' left by ':hf "i; fTU've family for the maintouanco ol a priest. A f'13.1''' log-chureh, of some tw(!uty-five or thii'ty feet, v.v; Mii icient for a ecmsiderahle time for the first little flocic thai .. oi'shii)pecl according to the faith of thtir fathers on the Alleghany. He commenced his colony Avith twelve heads of families; lu; left behind him when he died six thousand devotees of Marv. But the })()pulation grew rapidly, allured by the saintly reputaticm of Father Smith. It was he m-^"^ purchased enormous tracts of land, who built the grist and saw mill, he wluj found himself oppressed by d(])t in his old age. Of coiirse he expected his father's in- heritance, and when that prince died in I8O0, he was pressed to quit his beloved Loretto and go to cl;iii'> his rii^hts in Ttussia. His mother and friends urged him to come ; h.is prelate was on the point of com- manding hiin ; Ijut when he met Bishop Carroll, ho gave reasons for remaining among his flock Avhich that prelate could not in the end refute. He stated that he had caused a great number of Catholic families to settle in a Avild and uncultivated region, where they formed a parish of a considerate size ; that the Legis- lature had ])ropos(3d to establish there a county-seat ; and that numbers still continued to flock thither. The bishop nt length fully acquiesced in his remaining, as he could not send another in his place. The apostolic missionary then w^rote to his mother, that whatever ho might gain by the vryage, in a temiwral point of view, J IN North America. 235 could not, in liia cstiiaation, be coinparccl with the loss of a miijle so il that might bo occasioned by his Had ho gone, it would ha^'o boon in vain, for the Emperor and Senate of St. Petersburg settled the question by disinheriting hini for "having embraced tlio Catholic faith and clerical profession." Nevei'^he- loss, he hoped to share with his sister, who ha iL horited all. And she did supply him, until the uul ' German Prince de Solm, whom she had marri' n^ de away witli her fortune as he had done with his .wv. Then came his days of debt, dreariest of n.' dcWs to men. Put he lived so that none should si.ii'er but himself. He neither ato nor drank nor Avas clothed at the expense or loss of any creditor or others. His fare was often but some black bread and a few vege- tables ; cofTeo and tea were unknown luxuries in those times. His clothing was home-made and of the most homely description ; his mansion was a miserable log- hut, not denied even to the poorest of the poor. With the prodigal son of the Gosjxd, but in a most meritori- ous and heroic sense, he could say : " How many hired servants in my father's house havo plenty of bread, and I here perish with hung, j !" ' " Being now," he says, " in my sixty -seventh year, burdened, moreover, with the remnant of my debts, reduced from $18,000 to about §2,500, I had better spend my few remain iug yeai'S, if any, in trying to ' St. liUke's Gospel, xv. 23G Devotion to the 13. V. Mary pjiy oil' that buliinec, ami in prt'[)aiiiig for a loii{,'or journey." On that Lorolto of liis lovo he (^xpondcd, from tlio wroi^k of his fortuno, $15l),()00. So is it uitli the, svv- vitors of Mary. Threo eonturios aj^o, th(>y }^avo their boilies to bo burned, their hcMids to thi> sealpinj^'-litiit'e, their lin«:;er-joint8 to tho teeth of the Jrocjuois; later, they gave their hves ami foi tunes, countin|^' them as nothing if so they might win souls to Christ.' Let his friend and bioti"a])her tell tho secret of all this, and thus show ■svhat a Muscovito priuco can have in common with this book : "As ho had taken for his models tho Lives of llio Saints, tho Francis of Sales, the Charles Bovroiueos, tho Viuconts of Paul, so like thom ho was distingnislied for Lis tender and lively devotion to tho lUessed Virgin ; and ho lost no opportunity of extolling tho virtues of Mary. Ho endeavored to bo an imitator of her ((.s she tvas of Christ, Ho recited //(/■ ro.sdri/ varij d'eiiiiuj ainomj liis /loiiscliohl, and inculcated constantly on his people this admirable devotion, antl all the other pious exercises in honor of Mary. The church in which he said daily Mass, he had dedicatetl under the invoca- tion of tliis ever-glorious Yiigin, whom all nations "were to call blessed. It Avau in h'ono)' of Mary, and to place his people under her peculiar patronage, that ho gave the nanjo of Loretto to the town ho founded here, ' Omnia detrimentum feci ut aibitror ut btercora ut Christum lucri- laciam. — Piiil. iii. 8. IN NOUTII AMKltlCA. 237 flftor Iho fai-fiUiKul ]i«)r(lt(>, wliicli, towcnii;^ iiliovu llio l>lii(! \viiv(! of tlio Adriatic, on \\\v. Italian coast, (>x- liihils to llui (Christian [)il^riiii Uu; hallowed iiiid !iia;^- uiliceiit tciiipli! which contains the Hainttul sluino of Muvy'y huiiihlc /lonsc ill irhicli ,v//c iit Xirjinl/i liciinl aii- noumvd the tiii/sfcri/ of the IiiriLfiinlloii, and ^vhicll tlio inarinci.-i, ns Ihoy pass to tnicountcr the jx"! ils of tho doc]>, or return in safety from them, salute, chanting t!io joyous hymn, Ave 3[ayis SteUn ! l'\jr, like* St. John, ho reco^Miized in her a mother reconnnended to him hy the words of tlu! dying Jesus : " ilu saitli tt) tho disciph', Jlehold thy mother !" And so, when the I'ranio was worn out in her service and Ler Idoii's, lio went up to sec lier i'aco on high.' Proceeding in the order proposed to ourselves, we give tli»i lirst place to Lliut which bears the name of Our Lady. ' Piscoureo on tlio Lifo and Virtues of IJov. Donictiius Augustine (lallit/in, by tho Very Kfv. 'nioinns llcydcn. Printed for tho Monu- mi'utal (to Princo Gnllitzin) t'oniniiltci! of l.oroito, Piiin. .'•'nnn thia eloquent discoiiryo lu-arly the whole of thu ubovo uccouut is tukou. 238 DEVonoA J.0 B. V. Maiiy CHAriER XII. Our Lai)v ok tub Lake. hi XoT knig ago, iu ISiU, in tbo old town of JNliins, lu CuUiolie I'riiiK'o, a holy uuJ duvotcd priest, Movoau, was profi'ssor of dogma iu tlio beummiy and canon of tlitj catlu'drul in the town. Ho was oloiinent, zi-alous, and one t)f the grandest preachers iu I'rauce. Ho gave up much of his tijuo to i)reaching retreats ; that is, to the leading of his tiock away from the world, to the "quiet pastures and still waters," wliero is tlio presence of the Good Shepherd, wJiose crook and staff rule, guide, guard, lead; who " restoreth th<^ souls" of the erring, the weary, and the so-called lost, and gi.etli them to eat and to drudi of His own table, whereat is " fulness for evermore." ' After many years thus passed, his bishop authorized him to form an .auxiliary society of priests to aid him in this ])astoral labor. He accordingly associated with himself four pious and devoted clergymen, with whom he lived a regular community life in the seminary for over a year. About this time, or a few years previously, a com- munity of a dillerent kind had becm founded in the same diocese, by the Very Eev. Mr. Dujarier, one of ' Psalm, xxii. ^ maiii I'u^ ■ ■ .-'< ,r ^»,v . ,^-^ IN North A>friiicA. 2nf) tho vcuoraMo HurvivorH of tlio Tl(n'olution. It ronsistcil of 11 liaiul of (li'votfd iiK'ii, mostly yoniij:?, wlio, witlioiit aspiiiii^' to tlio tH't'loHiiisticdl stiito, yc^t, iininmlcd l)y ;i tnu /('ill to liil)or for CJod's ^'lory ami tlu> s.-ilvation of souls, li.ul formod tlu'iusclvcs into a vcli^ioiiM com- uumity mulor tlio titlo of tlm ]}i'otli(n-s of St. Joscpli, consccvutiii;^ tlioiuHiilvoH to tlio Clivistiiin cHliication of yoiitli, ami liaviiiL? no hii^hcr aim than to imitate the liuuiMc and liiddon life of their holy patron. Then, luo viars later, nun'(>d by the scilf-sacrifico r f those {.,'ood nun, some picm.s and devoted women of tho li\niil4('r elass of society olFiU'ed themselves, from a motivi) of holy eharity and zral, to oonduet tht> woi-l< of ilio cstidilisium^nt, and to .s(U've those good Priests and Ih'othcrs as the holy women of the Gospel did oiir Haviwui and his disciph'S. God wilh^d it (hat this event should insjiirc* our worthy founder with the idea of establishing, as a third branch of tho association, a sisterhood to eo-operatti Avith the two former branches in all their pious labors, and to labor themselves in a particular manner IVu" tho benefit of the youth of their own sex ; the whole association thus forming a united and most efiieient body, able to act in concert ii[)on all classes of society. Under the training of the saintly Superiu. ss. Mother Mary of St. Dorithei, Juet, they made a fervent and regular novitiate, and were, one year afterw.'vds, admitted to the religious profe?sion urdur the mime of "Sisters of the Holy Crjss,' and patronage of Oar Lady of the Seven Soi'r()ii>\ They were, said their founder, to seek Ixod in all 210 Devotion to tuk B. V. Mary tliiu{^rt, to !ilm only at licaveu, to aspire to tlui liiip])!- xios« ol' i)()sse,sKiiig Jesus, of beloui^ing only to Hini uiid to Ills lilcKscd Mother, making iiso of all intcirc^sts, rights, or i;ot)Js for the- solo honor of their ])iviu(>. Master iiiid the salvation of sonls. They were to lead a life of aInie_!j,ation in all employments ajjd exercises, nevir aelip.j^; save by the 'will of a Superior; a life regular ami exact, by constant and universal lidelity to the rules aiid constitutions of tlio Society, observing them in the spirit of love and not of fear, by the light of faitli and not through hunnui motives; a life social by humilit}', in meeldj' bearing or charitably support- ing otluu's, accomplishing to the letter tlu; iiiMxiiu of tlio pifais author of the Imitation, of mutually sui)port- ing, ct)nsoliug, aiding, instructing, and admouishiiig one aiiother ; a life edifying by modest}', tlu>. forgett'ul- ueHS of st'lf, ]'eligi(ms gravity, avoiding in conversatiou all critii'isms, raillery, and above all, hnity ; a life of labor— a litV; Ulterior and, elevated to God by tlie habit- ual practice of tjie acts of Faith, Hope, and Charity, by the iwample of Jesus Christ, whom we are partic- ularly bound to imitate in our conduot, for A\e nuist above all lead a life hidden in our Lord, if we would not ruin the work of the Holy Cross. " Here," he says, " are throe orders subordinsitc oiio to the otlii'r, an imitation of the Holv Familv, where Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, although of conditions so dilierent, are made one by the union of thoughts ami the uuifjrni'ty of conduct. " lu ordci to cement this union, and this imitatiou IN Noivrn Ameuica. 2^1 of Bio IIol}' Fiiiuily, I havo consocrutcid, and coiisc- crate again as nntcli as in mo, tlio Priosts, to tlio Sacrod Heart of Josns, Pastor of souls — tho I'rotlicrs, to the Heart of St. Josopli, tlioir patron; and tlio Sisters, to tlio Heart of Mary, piorcod Avith tlio sword of j^riof. "]]eliold, my dour oliildron in Jesus Christ, tlio plan of govonunont which it is tho Avill of God should bo followed ill tho administration of Our Lady of Holy Cross." The Hishop of Vinccniics, Monaoignour do St. Pa- lais, desires to have those children of St. ]\[ary to help Liiu in extending her renown tiirougli tlu>. west of Northern America. So Father Sorin, still Superior, comes Avitli six brothers. They "bless God and his Holy Mother" for their safe arrival, and they claim jiossession of the soil " in the name of tho Cross, of the Blessed Virgin, and of St. Joseph." ' Monseigncur sends his now colony, Dhilrin ciilfores Dei, to the nortliern part of Indiana, about thirty miles south of Lake Michigan. This section had been sceured, years b(>fore, by tho proto-priest of the Uiiit(>d States, He v. Father Bad in ; his efforts, how- ever, had only been crowned by the erection of a little leg-church, and a poorer log-house. But the situation is Olio of extreme hciauty — not grandeur ; for northern huliaiia can claim nothing of the sublime or grand in lier scenery. Yet tlio nonotony of her low land and ' Vide Life of Hi-v. V. Cointct, Prii'st, .and Missionary of the Con- gregation of the Holy Cross. Cincinnati, 18o5. R 11 242 1>KV()IU)N TO THK 15. Y. ]\[aUY praiiii's is ficciucntly (livt'isillrd, uiul llio clianuitiT of tlic lu'Miiliriil i;iv(M» ii bv cIcmi', placid, lilllc lalics, sui- I'OllIll l.'.l I >\ ;('iitl\- iiiu liilaii )l:iiiis. Til (MU'sUon t'diilaiiH't 1 1 wo o r 11 i('S(> picasa ni anil 111 aucs. Iiii'ii liidiau tradition had attai'lu'd many a talc vf ciu'liantiiicn 1) cdicatiii;.;- t!iis spot to Not re I); niic ( lu I jac Father Sw novitiates oih; he hoped lo train I'or his new mission, llesis for tlu> 1' and the otiier for tiie i'rothcrs. A heantirnl situati( as also chosen on the lianks ol" th(> lake I'or the t'litii! )ii M )11 college d(MlCt\ ; then, with linn conlideiice in Divine Provi- he spent tlu> \viiit(>r in collecting the scattci'cd Catholics of tlu> neighhorhood into a rt>gnlar congrega- tion, in t'oriiiing his Xovitiateof the I'rothcrs, ;!iid at- teiiiling to the temporal Avants of his little I'olony. At this jHM'ioil. the aid so long and eariu^stly desirivl l>v this din()i(>d missionary was fnvnish(>d in the per- son of his former hclovcd friend, the yonng Ahhi'' Cointet, he who in youth had made this r(*sohilioii - "To give np sonu> time every day to reading liolv books." TluMi, in his journal, after that, he adds : "For th(> sanu^ intention, I shall say tlu> l\osary. Since an (Mrlv a^e I have boon consecrated to tlio r.i esse( lY u'Liin, aui 1 to hi er earo have I con tided my clias- titv. I will study attentividy tlit^ virtues of this Holy iMotlun-, to whom I am stiictly bound to liave many ds wl n.m\ traits of r(^semblanci% and tow an desire to fci'l all the iendenu>ss of a true child. art lenth IN Noirrii Amkuioa. 2i:j So, tli(>n, Ihoro aro two ])rli!. The l)oo^s lie iulroitly in;niiij';ed nol io we.'ir riiilil tliev li;id pMssed iliron.i^li tlie sl;!;j,('S of ij'Oil niid I, ])id t.lie ]\;\{, could liol. l)e so eiisiiv lii;ui:ii(lin''lv, if l'\-i,lhei' Coiiilei, w;is recognized ridin'' 01 walKi 111'' oil' willi a. lial. on ]iis head, il \va' mown to Oil' inendxM's of llie ]illl(! coininunily tltat tlie Sii[)erior \v;is at lioiue A 11.1 now, u liai <~ls(^ is Io 1)0 said of tlu sc (levo tod so'.iN shall no! ])o in llie words of hitii whose name is 'i;i the ti'.le-oa'i""' < )f lliis liook, l)iit in those of a, sister (if th(> order, of a. servant of AFary at tlu^ foot of the C^ross. As " Xi'tro Dame dn Lac" n' v stands, it liolds, various establislnneiils circling; the ])leasant waters m .ftllelaI^ e, a colleu"( 11( a, manna Idal )or scliooi a con vent ill its pojiidar sense, tlie initiatory schools of the l)rotliers, and the siMninary — all and each of those soltMiiiily (h'dicatiMl in 1.S15 to deyotiou to, and placed iuiil(n" the special protection of, the ])](>ssed Mother of (iod. St. iNFary's Lake is thus (>nch'eled, and over all, line liundred and ten feet from tlu^ ground, stands the st;itno of "])l(*ssed amon upon the apprentices of the manual-labor school 244 Dfa'oticn to the B. Y. jMahy in their (Hffcvriit wovksliops niid fields ; ilio rjvollicrs ill tluMT (iui(>t noviliate; tlie seiiiiniiriir's- in llieir lioly solitutlf. And (»n" a mile to tlie Avest, lier eve I'csts dis- tiiK'lly 111)011 the iiislitutions of the Sisters of i\\o saiiio ordfM', dwclliii:,' under the titk> of I'U. IMiirv's of tlio Imiiiaenlaf(> Conc-eiitioii. T1i(> C'atliolie ]mpils of liotli plaees ;ire (MiroUiul in the sodalities of the Children of j\[arv and the Livincr Rosarv. Every Saturday (^veiling tlu^ Litany of Lorctto is solemnly eliantt>(l in the conventual churches. The ^Fonth of ^[ary is here mad(> a gloi'ious festival of thirty- one days. I'enediction of tlui ]^)h>ss(Ml Sacra- nv^nt is o-iven ev(M'y eveninp;, and n discourse pro- non!i('(>d In- one of the Rev. Fathers in honor of their TTeav(Mily Qu(^(>n. The Assnm]ition is annually cfdehratel by n solemn procession aftm- High IMass. On that day (>vei'v pic- turesque s]iot is adorned Avith some memento of the Queen of Heaven. Arches ornannMited with ]wv image point th(> route to iho pious pilgrims, and the murmur- ing AvatcM's of the lake, the songs of the birds, and all the ])leasant sounds of midsummer in the green woods, together with the iovous chime of twentv-oiio hells in the church-tower, unite to form a triumphal chorus to the happy voices of the children of Notre Damo as they intone the Litan}^ of Loretto, the 3far/nijicnl and the Sidrc Tici/hia. Devotion to the Blessed Virgin may truly ho said to I) the presiding spirit of the place. Private chapels IN Nnrrn A:\rEPjrA. 215 in ]\or lio7ior nvo in oxery honso. Tlio irrTonnds arr^ fulorncd willi stutm^s of tho Miulonna and ("liild itiul of ili(> Iimiificnlato Concoption. At Notr<^ l);nno a ]uxuvi;n)i nvbov, at least an cij^litli of a niih; in Iciii^tli, (Icdicatoil to Noire /hniic mix Jidisiiis, 1 tears ('()MS[)i(;u- ously on tivcry arcli the diUercnt titles of thci Litany of Loretto. In tlie conventnnl church is the altar of tlio 8cven Dolors, above which is a lino i^i-oii}) of statuary rejire- scutiiig the body of Our Dlessed Lord taken froin the Cross, and laid in the arms of his INlother. A niajj;nifi- cout stained window al)ovo the main altar r(>prosonts the Assumi)tion. Ill every direction the ."pirit of Mary seems to hreadu! and inihienoo. The full ecclesiastical year sl'.onld 1)(^ [)assod at Notre Damo, in order to inid(?T- st.iiid lio'.v every festival of the l^lessed Virj^in brings some Tiew or tou(diing evidence of the love which the Society of Holy C'l'oss bears to Notre Dame, and which it se(>ks to instil into the hearts of its pupils. On a beautiful little promontoiy opposite th< '1- Icge, the zeal of the Superior has caused to be ei ted a clia}H>l dedicated to Our Lady of the Angels. Here the Catholic pxipils spend one ni^ht of every m< U in adoratioii l^efcn-e the lUessed Sacrament, This apel is hnilt on the exact plan of the celebrated ( apel of "Our Lady of the Angels, or the Portiuncula," and has been eiu'iched by the Holy See with all the privileges of that world-renowned pilgrimage estaLlished by St.< Francis of Assisium. 216 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i ':?:' These privileges, wliicli have made " St. ]\rarj's of the Angels" one of the richest treasures in Itr.ly, con- sist of })h_^nary indulgences gained by all the faithful Avho, being heartily- sorry for their sins, go t-"* confes- sion, receive Communion, and visit the chapel beiweon the first and ^ -ond Yespers of the 22d of August — not one indulgence alone, but as many times during the day as the faithful enter the chapel with the proper dispositions will they gain a plenary indulgence. TheF(^ immense Hi)iritiial blessings were granted to the praA'er of St. Francis by the visible interci^ssion of Marv, and bv Jesus Christ himself. During six Imn- dred and t\v(Mi[y-five yeai's the devout among the peojile of Italy, and many pilgrims from foreign climes, have assoml)led at Assisium on this feast of grace and morcv. So numerous were these devotees, that it is related of St. E(^rnardine, when he preached at St, ]\rary's of the Angels, that two hundred thousand per- sons Avere assembled around the chapel. And to give the faithful of !North America an oppor- tunity of gaining the same treasures, and in the same manner, the Society of Holy Cross has transported, as it were, this chapel with all its spiritual wealth into our midst. At St. Mary's of the Immacidate Conception, the residence of the Sisters of the Holy Ci'oss, one mile west of Our Lady of the Lake, the duplicate of the Santa Casa, or Holy House of Loretto, has been erected as the special chapel of the childr(>n of Mary. This chapel has also been cnriclied by the Holy See IN North America. 247 with all the infliilgences belonging the famous pilgrim- age of Lorctto. These two chapels bring to our own land the two most famous shrines of Italy, and are most powerful means, in the hands of the religious, of promoting in tlic hearts of the youth intrusted to their care a deep and abiding love for the Blessed Mother ot God ; and may we not hope that at no distant day love for Our Blessed Lady will bring many a pilgrim to these two chapels, in crowds, if not as great, at least as fei'vent, as tlioso which visit the original chapels in Ital}^? The Society of Holy Cross has several houses of cfl":'itiou established in different parts '■■; ;^e United States and Canada; and, as at Notre xViaie and St. ?tlary's, so do they all aim at spreading the love and (lovdtion for their Holy Mother by every means which tlu'ir zeal and resources Avill present. The consecration of this order was made on the Fe.Mst of Our Lady of Snows, and in the snows of November they first took possession of the old log- clinrcli and tlie adjacent lands. This chuicli had been dedicated to the Blessed Virgin by the early French missionaries, de Seille and Petit, and here these holy men had taught the Indian to love and venerate their Heavenly Queen. When FatheT Sorin came and heard of the pioneer devotion of the American proto-priest, lie rejoiced at the thought of laboring in this domain, already consecrated to his Blessed Mother. Not as owners of the soil, l)iit as faithful and devoted servants of Mary did the first meml)ers of Holy Cross com- 248 Devotion to the B. V. Maby monco tlunr work. Every thing was to ho improved, every Uiiiig made userul or Ix'aulil'nh For Mary's sali(>, ihi'ir Quihmi, the \:\\io was callcMl St. Mary's Lal;<'. Plans for novitiate, ehnreh, mannal-hihor scliool, and c(rlleg(>, ywvo sketehed, and all eonse- crat(Hl to Xutro Danio, and all the land Avas Mary's liuul. Notwithstanding the rigors of an unusually sovore winter, zeal for the glory of tlu^ august Mother of God waruKHl the hearts of her ehildreu with its anient aiid ginuu'ous rays. Often during the tirst years tlu^y ui^-tually suffered for laek of food and rai- ment. Their favorite; devotion on such occasions was tix; thousand Hail Maries said in coninum~a devo- tion sliil customary among the members of the cod- gregation. Let us Icani, anionL!; the items of this wondrous Ncith .American D(>votion to Mary, how these sisters of hers ;ire consecrated to her Seven Sorrows. Let one of theni still speak, and tell how pleasing, how dear to the Queen of MartM's must be the devotion to her Sorrows ; how, moiv than all other devotions, it tends to supornaturalize the mind, since in it the most wondei'^ul divine operations mingle with the conmion woes and sorrows of a suffering world ; and it ex- presses that union of s<4f-abasement and self-obliviou in which all the greater graces of the spiritual life take root. Devotion to the Sorrows of Mary iinites us to an abiding sorrow for sin. It is all stained with tlio precious blood of our dear Lord, and thus it puts uh into the -^ery depths of His Sacred Heart. J IN NOUTH xVmERICA. 249 Tho loss(ins which Our Mother's Sorrows teach \is arc wanted at ahuost every turn in life ; they are im- parted with sue]! loving tmuhirness, with such pathetic simplicity, and in the luulst of such countless simili- tudes between our sinless Mother and our sinful selves, that no school can be found in which, so much heavenly wisdom is taught so winningly as in the Sor- rows <^f Mary. Befoi'c we quit this pleasant siibjcct, let us see that this land oi Marj vKvs not belong solely to the living, l)ut also to tho Kremory of tho dead. In tho parish graveyard ohapel stands tho statuary group of the Mother with her dead Sou. Over tho earth wherein the Sistoix are buried, smiles serenely " Our Lady of PefKv;" ^\here the priests and seminarians repose, is the statue of the Immacidate Conception. Every- where Madonna, sho is the Lady of Lake and Land. T\1ien recreation calls the children of the Sisters' school!-, together, among other pleasures they have the rcailing of their journal, the "Mystical Rose." It was ill this that a Sister, whose heart is full of music as of (It^votloti, sang ill sweet iliythni Iter prayer for Nort^i Anu'i'ica. Later, we will st o thai Litany chanted by the Ursuline nuns before Our Lady of Swift Help, Xo're Daine do Vro)ii}>t Scdn'rs, during the battle of New Orleans, in 1812 ; now let us read the hymn of a religious of Mai'} 's Sorrows, sung in this time jf great uutional pain and small individual charity : 11* 250 Devotion to tiik B. V. Mary STELLA MATUTINA. Star of Morninp I doiiHO tlw clouds Tlmt liover round oik nation's bark, And liowlinij winds Kliricl; tlirou,uh her shroud* As on sho pU)ugha tho billows dark. Oh, show thy li^Hit! thou urt our guido, Thy Virgin brains our patli nhall lend, As fearful o'er the stormy tide, Before the conquering blast wo speed. O Star of Morning ! pierce the gloom, And gild our path along the sea, Ere anarchy shall boal our doom, And chant the death-dirge of tho free. From St. Augustine, far away, To bold St. Lawrence' northern strand, From San Francisco to tho bay That waters honored Maryland, Deep lovo for thee with mystic power Hath uiiuglcd witli our nt^liou's life, And aided us, in danger's hour, 'Gainst wars and elemental strife. O Star of Morning ! 'twas thy ray That led the mariner of old Along the ocean's trackless way. Earth's western wonders to unfold. 'Twas love for thee that fired his breast, And made him count all p(;rils light. That opened to the cloud-girt West, Thy morning beams to heathen sight. Star of Daybreak ! when tho hand Of bold opjiresisiou crossed tlie wave, Thy shelter sweet in Maryland Made conscience there no more a slave. M Thy chosen child, Lord Baltimore, Struck off tho manacles that boimd, By tyrant power, the infant shore, And stamped her soil true freedom'? ground. •'Vfi-i' • -..■AVi-M IN NoHTii America. 251 'TwfiB tliore tliut Faltli— colostial bird— First fluiif? aliroud luu- enrol Imid ; And thou, fuir Stur, licr nmtiiiM biurd, Which, Houriug hcavouwuid, piurcod tho cloud. Sweet Orb of Dawn 1 It was thy ray That, croejunj^ through tluj western wilda, IviHHcd tho broad titreunis, and kindled day Along the woodland's dark defiles, And wok(! a song ol" jiraisc tliat wound Where mighty lakes maji;stic How ; Memuon's fumed lyre were har.sliest sound To anthem blest that hailed thy glow ; The touching strain so old — so now, The words we ne'er shall ceaso to frame, Those mystic syllaMos that drew A Ood from heaven at thy sweet name,— " Hail, full of grace ! the Lord, with thee, On earth is blessi'd evermore;" And (iiibrifl's salutation free, Eclioed in joy from pliore to shore ; And savage men submissive bowed, To own a Saviour crucified. While Fjrror, in her dusky shroud, Sought in her darkest haunts to liide. Tho waters of tlie sylvan lake, And wildwood stream were hallowed then. By sacred touch for Jesus' sake, And Mass was sung in glado and glen ; And crosses in the wilderness Sprang up to bless primeval shade. Where lilies wild, and water-cress. Alone before thanksgiving made. peerless Orb ! along thy wake, How clear thy constellated train Of virgin stars, fair saints that take Their rank along the ethereal main #0. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 1.1 |50 '""^ 1^ 1.8 1-25 1 1.4 1.6 ■• 6" ► Photographic Sdences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. MS80 (716) 872-4503 m ^9) \ ,y Pkyo'I'ion to the K v. Mauy A coiiHtant Imihiiifjcr flioii nrt Of Uim, tlio Sou of lA^rhr Divino, \Vlit> (Irimk Hwiii't wiiriulli from tliy piiro lu-ftrt, Wliowi- Wdiiilniiis gnifii lliroiigli tlii'(^ dolli uliiuul When oliiiiliiiif),' Htifl, tlio ((v<'n'm^ K'""^y> Thy rmliaiil. luiin doi!'. t:;i:u tlu) aky \Vc know i'Vi' loiifi; will coiiio tlio day, W'l' know the rising Sun is iiijli. Oil, yis. wlton o'er our sinful souls 'I'hy f^i-niiil rays lu'Migiuint fall, Our MIt'ssi'il Lord His lovo unfolds, And l\lt'rcy's day light spri-ails o'lT all. Yi's, thou wilt hriiig to us, sweet Star (\ nation of young restless life), Tlu! liglit of pi aee, and near and far ^^'ill cease the bitter sound of strife. h ^ Wo ask thy aid ; wo beg thy caro ; We know wo cannot plead in vain ; So, trustful, through the murky air We hail thee with thy heavenly train. O blissful Star! words cannot framo Tho gratitude wi^ owe; to thee, As ri'verent now we name thy Nanio, And meekly supiiliiint bow tho kuoo. Then show thy light — thou art onr guide ; Thy A'irgin beams our path shall load, As hopeful o'er tho stormy tido Before tho conquoring blast wo spood. They ediicato in tlio love of Marv five thousand five hundred children. IMiiry Angola is the Mother Pro- vincial, and Mary of the Ascension, Superior.' ' Letter of Very Rev. E Sorin, October, 1803. -'; r- IN North America. 253 CHAPTER XIII. OuB Lxny's SrsTKna— Lks S 111 !• "(li'MJ- IMiilhrr CnllHlMlllilir" ill (cniis \\liiili |iii>l»;il»lv cniiliiiii nil Ikt |M»,Msililn i-lo. <]iit>ii('(\ lull uliicli rnll iiiliiiilt'lj' hIioi'T nl' lli<> cNliniiMi- Ii'SH ic.ililv nl' Ill-Mill V wliicli lilt' iiiiiiii pre iciiIm. "AIi!" nIic s;i\m, "\\Ii;iI ;:;i':ii'i(»ilM vinii'lics «|ni'H tlin mdi. cx- liiliil ! Now il is fiilin mm |»t'iico, mow Iroiililnl; llicn HUrgili;; riirioiislv ; it is i^rct'ii, il. is lillic ol' lini viii, il ll.'islics willi |»lios|(|iort>sfriil };it«uniH. Tlic sun, wlicii H«>ltiii;4;, clollifs nil llio (|t't'|) in rniniml, ol" liviii;'; lif^'lil ; nnd llic liori.'.oii in clouds ol' rvcrv liiil, ;';ol(l nml piir- t|(> violrl, Miitl j-rccii, iiiiil ornii!!(' 'n icsc 11(1 most rnnlnslif ronns : volcnnors in (>ni|>lioii; Viisl r I'lio ; moitiit!iiiiM siio\v-cn|»|)('(l, mid I'l'iinsoM si'Ms o fon'sts, towns, nnd l);illl(>m(Mit»>d cnsllcM. Our iccii'ii- tioii is to look on this; n\u\ before f^'oiiif; to our rcsi, nfler Ihis s|ie(-t.U'l(>, we clinut tlit> LilMiiy td' llie iSIi'SHod Vir'rin :\\\A s,i\ lier Kosnrv to-rellier." T cniuioi \t)u, luv (lenr IM oilier, w lint: 1 iMpni- ness one l'<'els in sinj^iiij^ Mnry'.s prnis(>, our denr, {jjooil IMotlier's. in llie midst of ilio ocoan ; under u liciivcn s»>v.ii w ith stnis lu'W to us, to tlu^ soKmuii sound ol* sens W'hioh bri'nk upon tho frail sidos of our whip ; nnd llicn, full i>f ciMituliMU'o juul of tlior(m«j;lu>st trust, av(> sloop iu the hand of Clod, traiupiilly as in (mr ]''iiropoan convont." Still at soa, tlu>y keep tlio Foast of Iho Amiunciatiou on board tho ]\[ovninj; Star, with liigh INfass, vespers, and a sermon. ■ It is vor}'- consoling to us," says Sister Keuilda, " to soo Mary so loved and honored by IN NuiiTM Amkiiica. 201 lM'i\iily, iiii'l ■tliuiliiif" ill M(s;iilil«" •''•' [\u\ i'nIiiuisI- onl.lr.i; llx'K of li.';iv.'ii,il h,' sun, wluMi f livini'. li!',l>»; .roM Mini \>iir- 1h"S.< I:i1^" *'"' >c»n»li*'i> ■' ^''^'^'' Our rtHMTii- ,.f |(. our rost, of llu- 1-1*'^*^^"'^ ■v, Nvluii l»!>pri- ouv a.-i>v, i;o(h1 u sduimI of >^^"'>« ship ; nw^ *^'''"' trust, ^vo siocv onv J'iiu-Dpean 10 Annunoiivtiou ]N[iiss, vc^spers, 1^ to ^^^'" ^''^y^ Tud Ixouorodby till w IIH'i III) huiioiiihI iih ; iiIiiiohI. all l,li<« Hiiiloci \\< m |Ih> liil ul' llio ||iiiiiM.cul;il.n nl Mru ; ;ili(l (lio iilliir on tlri'lv in fovri't'il wilJi llm tiiiMMioriury liniiiHi' of Oct'Mhii'ii, wlinn Mm OMjiIcm of M.-iry iwr iii work ii wliil*! l)Miiiit>i' lii'iu'iii^{ )i criiiiMoii itohm ; iiihI IIhii, ii|)oii II l>iick;^'rniiiiy tlm lf(.ly I'lithrr." Aim! HO afliii' inaiiy <'X|Miri(iiiy rt'iu'li tlio nionlli of llm ( 'oluniltia. 'rinn tlir. hi- (liiniH conin oH' in tlicir ciuiofH, iiiitl Kcriiiultin iihoiirfl, ('liinookH, 11,11(1 Orcf^'oiiH, luid Wall.iw.ill.is, willi ii li.'Ui^lily |)iiy- a^ni, howisvcr, and with all tlioHo Kdiitiiiicnts and al)H(>- liilt! stonily rcaliticH, with all those; [)ray(;r.s, and hyiniiH, and intoned litanies, do not let it he siipj)OHod tliat tli(i gentle Sisters {^iHiW puritanic, or Iheir faees lonj^ and sour. No, no; if anyhody may wear a gay fiicc, it is a cliild of IVFary, devoting all to her and her KtcriiMl Son, " We luiver passcKl our reuroations more ' liifUiv (in S(T!ur IKnildc, p. 17. 262 Devotion to the I). V. Maiiy m gayly," Sistc^r IlisniUla Htiyn. "Even tliu bud wt'iitlior holpH to iniiko UH fun. \V(! cull ono ond of our jmr- ticiilur ciihin Wiilliiniotto, such being tho niitno ol our miHsion not yt^t roacluul, luul tho other ond wo nuino Tho Falls." Tho latter jdaco Ixiing probably on tho Icc-side, with a very decidtul slope. " All of us," hiijh tlio Sister, " visit Tho Falls scsveral times a day. Sister Francisca goes ofteuor than any of the rest of us. And only tho other day Sister Mary Al[)liou- BUH, alter ra})idly sliding thither, her soup-i)latu in lior hand, was turned about by tho roll of the vcjhsoI, and sliding back as rapidly, emptied the contents of that aoup-plato ou tho head of Sister Mary Bernard.' And this is tho additional information proiiiisod by tho present writer some page or so above. TliLs is what ho knows about tho other two sisters ; that Mary Ali)honsus, compelled thereto by an aillmmt wave, emptied hor soup upon tho person of Mary Bernard. Among tho Indians who come or are brought on board is a young female barbarian, une pclite muvu- gesso, a candidate for baptism. And tho Sisters, before they quit the ship, assist at that sacrament. The cap- tain is godfather, and endows his j'dlcule with half tlio trinkets and gay old clothing in tho ship ; and, of course, the little red-girl is called Mary. Then tlieio is a venerable Chinook who sings for them in his own tongue, " in a voice by no means disagreeable," tlio hymn just given above ; and pointing with simple IN North Ameuica. 203 cxiiltiitioji to tlif> iikmIuI of llm Tiiiin!i»'ul!il(i Coiiccplion wliicli Imii^'H Jipon liin Hwnrtl.y clicst. Tlicii, wlim tlits Moniiii}^ Shu* is 1o(1^,'(m1 by Iicr pilot ii|)(jii ii .siuid-biir, at tlu! nioutli of tlio Wulliiim't.t(>, "SJHtcr riciiildii iiiitl li(T conip.'Uiions" ({uit hnr dock for ctiiiocs, und pro- ceeding in tliom to thoir luif^Hion-liouso, arc lost to ni}:;l!t of ours. It is proper to say lioro, iliiit oIIku' oi'dcis tliiui that of Sister Iiciiilda call tliciiisclvcs of Notre Damo. Homo, ill North Aiii(;ri(!a traco tluur orij^jin to Lorraine, so fur hack as ITyOf), IJlessed Paul Fonnier hcin;^' ih(ar foniider, and are to ho miit with at IMilwaukfe.' Then Miirf^'uei'it(^ Bourg(!oys and h(!r sist(;rs ar(! a kind of colony from these;. This is tho extent of our informa- tion rei^arding the Sonirs do Notre Dame ; and it is |)ossil)lo that Komo of our statistics may not lie ahvays iittrihnted to the proper socicity of thes(! three. Shonld any one discover tliis, we can only declare that sncdi (MTor is not wilful. They are all, at least, Sisters of Onr Lady, all children of one Mother, and we do not intend, hy this present writing, to assign them any iiuni('diat(; credit at alk We wish to follow their ex- iunplo, and to assign all credit, all the honor, all the glory, to Jesus, their eternal Spouse, who loved them, and who bought them Avith His blood — to Him, and His Inmiaculate sweet Mother. What wo do know is ' " Les SiTvantos do Dicu on Canada, 1 853. Essai sur I'histoiro des commuiiiuitt's religiouses do fommes de la Proviuco:" par C. do Laroclio-llcron. im 2C4 Devotion to the B. V. Mary this, tli.it cortahi devout women, known as Sisters of Notre Dame, are daily teaching more than thirty tlmv- sand American children devotion to the Blessed Saint Mary the Virgin. if LI wwTiimniriULUa IN North America. 265 CHAPTER XIV. Oi!R Lady of 'NrERCT and of Citauity — Oun Lapy's Loviua Friknds at (the Cjioss — Ouu Lady of Chiust's pukcious Blood. The History of Derotiou to Blessed Mary in the Old World, and even of that in elder Canada, seems rather an exhibition of effects, the sources of which are easily enough divined ; but, in our careless, anti- aiitiquarian, and recordless state, Ave must be con- tented with getting at such causes as are visible to us, and from those deduce the inevitable effects. If cer- tain religious have thirty thousand pupils, and are guided in their lives and their instruction by certain visible principles, it will require no wizard to guess at the result of the education which they give. Kenelm Digby writes a book called " Compitum, the Meeting of the Ways," to show that all roads duly fol- lowed '.ead to the Church. It is true ; and so is tho reverse true. All ways lead out of the Church again over tiio suffering world. When the convent doors open in the morning, i'. is that one Sister may go to the school-room, another to the hospital-ward, another tbrougli the streets to the houses of the charitable, another to the garrets and dismal cellars, to the shrines of utterest poverty, to inodorous alleys, where 12 266 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i r f . "I ■•<%i M M povorty and filth and sin have supremacy. Here, a bhiek-robe ; there, a broAvn one, Avith a crimson cross nj)()n the bosom, tlireads the city paths. On one Hquare yon liear young voices carolUng hymns to Mary from the windows of an academy ; on the next, you see the Avliite, broad-leafed, quaint bonnet of the daughter of St. Vincent de Paul. And all those are travelling in a circle ; tliey come from the hearts of Jesus and of Mary ; they are to go back thither when their eartlily Avork is done. One family of these precious souls is known by tlio name of Sisters of Mercy. Do you remember Long- fellow's Evangeline in the yellow-fever hospital for the poor in Philadelphia ? Let us repeat it : Only, alas I the poor who had noithcr friends nor atti^ndants, Crt'pt away to die in tlio almsliousL', liomo of tiio honioless. Then in the suburbs it stood, in the midst of meadows and wood- lands. Now the city surrounds it, but still with its j^ntpway and wicket. Meek, in the midst of splendor, its humble walla seem to echo Softly tlie words of Our Lord, " The poor ye have always with you." Thither by night and by day came the Sister of Mercy. The dying Looked up into her face and thought, indeed, to behold there Gleams of celestial light encircle her forehead with splendor. Such as the artist paints o'er the brows of saints and apostles, Or such as hangs by night o'er a city seen from a distance. Unto t/ieir eyes it s(>emod the lamps of the City ('elestial, Into whoso sinning gates, ero long, their spirits should enter. And with light in her looks she entered the chamber of sickness Noiselessly moving among the assiduous faithful attendants, Moistening the feverish lip and thc^ aching brow; and in silence Closing the sightless eyes of the dead and concealing their faces. Where on their pallets they lay, like drifts of snow by the waysido. Many a, languid head upraised as the Sister entered, V:- tms-im!^ IN North America. 2r.7 Turned on its pillow of pain to gaze whilo sho ])nssod ; for her presence Fell on their hearts like a ray of the sun on the walls of a prison, And uH she looked around, she saw how Death tlio Cons(der. Luyiu^f his hand upon many a heart, had heah;d it forever.' Earlier than the year 1830, we find Sisters of Mercy in Chiirieston South Carolina, helpers to Bishop Eng- l.aiid in his apostolic work clown there, and now they are elsewhere ; in Cincinnati, among places known to UR. These are of the good gifts bestowed by Ire- land on America, and are, so to speak. Children of the Order of the Presentation of the Ever Virgin Mary, in tliat ancient and Catholic island. Lot ns jiidge of what tlu^y are likely to do in advancing the devotion, by what we can know of their daily lives and ride. Given fidtters to ho obliged to sny tl:'it the OfFico is not the Mass — to repeat again that the Mass is what Protestants would call the Service of the Holy Communion, and the Ojjke is the Breviary — to wit, the Psalms of David, with Scripturj lessons and commentaries ; short biographies or notices of tlu- saint, liliii 2G8 Devotion to the B. V. Mary m Then another rule binds the good sisters " to inspirit, as much as in them lies, the chihlreu whom they edu- cate with a sincere devotion to the passion of Jesus Christ ; to His real presence in the Holy Eucharist; to the Immaculate Mother of God, and to their Guardian Angels." They must say daily in their schools five decades of our Lady's Rosary or her Litany of Loretto. Their days of recreation are all Mary's days — the long vacation from her Feast of Mount Carmel, June 10, to Mouda}' after her Assumption, August 15 : the other days are Saturday's, consecrated by ^he Church to her, and the Feast of her Presentation. Then their rule bids them "bear perpetually in mind that their Con- gregation is under her especial protection, and that she is, under God, its chief Patroness and Protectress." Therefore the Sisters " must have the warmest devo- tion and affection to her, and must regard her in an or other siiciod subject of tlio clay ; collects or short ])niy(>rs, from which those of the Anglican and American Episcopal churches are translated, and a few hymns and ])ious verses, '.isually from Holy Writ. But when such a man as Thomas Carlyle, the pre-eminent "sham" hater, who writes, in correction of all other historians, his history of Frederick the Great, and half of whoso midtitudinous notes are devoted to abuse of other men's ignonuuc ; when ho gives us Mass in tlie afternoon, and, for a whole page, jumbles uj) this ISook of Psalms with the Communion Ollice, what can an ex-man-of-letters do but notice it? Vide History of Frederick II, called Frederick tlip Great. By Thomas Carlyle; vol. iii., p. 200. New York: Harper & Brothers. Munmieiy as much as you please ; nonsense and idolatry as much as you please; but a writer, a public teacher of men, is bound in simpli' honor to iuiow something about the daily mummery even of two hundred millions of civilized men. ^ IN North America. 269 especial manner as their Mother, and the great model which they are to imitate." They are to have, " indi- vidually, unlimited confidence in her ; to have recourse to her in all their difficulties and spiritual necessities, and by the imitation of her virtues are to study to please her and to merit her maternal protection." They shall, moreover, " solemnize her festivals with all spiritual joy and devotion, and shall i)t8lil in the minds of the children, and of all such as tlicy can injlacncc, the greatest respect, veneration, and love for her." Tliey shall " say the beads every day in her honor ;" and " on the Feast of her Presentation, in every year, the whole communit}', with lighted wax lights in their hands, shall, on their knees, before the altar of the Blessed Virgin, make the following act of oblation and of consecration to the Blessed Mother of God :" ' " The Act of Renewed Consecration. " Most holy and glorious Virgin, Mother of God, we Sisters of the Congi'egation of Charitable Instruction, convinced how much we stand in need of the grace of God to fulfil the arduous duties and obligations of our pious institute, and of the greatness of thy power with Jesus Christ thy beloved Son, and of thy good- ness towards poor Christians, most humbly address ourselves to thee this day, as the Mother of Mercy, ' Sketch of the Life of Mias Nagle. Rule of the Sisters of our Lady of Mercy, of the Presentation, Dublin. 270 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i and in the fullest confidence of obtaining, through thy holy intercession, the Divine assistance. "We, there; fore, most clement Virgin, prostrate be- fore thee with all humility, earnestly beseech thee to be most graciously pleased to accept of the oblation we all irrevocably make on this holy day of ourselves to thy love and service, proposing with the Divine as- sistance to bear always towards thee the most cordial respect and veneration, and to engage, as far as in our power, all others to love, honor, and respect tlioe. Deign, O most pure and immaculate Virgin, Mother of God, to receive us all, and every one of us i. partic- ular, under thy holy protection. We look up to thco as our Mother, our Lady, and oiir Mistress, as our Pa- troness and Protectress, Advocate and Directress, humbly entreating thee to obtain the pardon of all our sins and transgressions against the Divine Majesty, and of all our negligences in thy holy service. " We beseech thee to obtain from the infinite good- ness of thy beloved Son, that this little Congregation of Charitable Instruction may ab^ays be favored with thy singular assistance, especially in the arduous func- tions of the institute and in the practice of every reli- gious virtue. In fine, we most earnestly request thou Avilt be graciously pleased to obtain that perfect union of hearts and minds may always reign amongst us; that we may ever be faithful to the observance of our rule, and persevere to the end of our lives in the spirit and grace of our vocation, that having with fidelity served thy beloved Son, by imitating thy virtues on LI IN North Aaierica. 271 earth, we may, with theo and all the elect, praise and glorify Vim in heaven for all eternity. Amen." ' Anu then those Sisters of Our Lady of Charity — all one with some external diiference, some with schools, some without ; some with quaint, picturesque Avliito butterfly-winged bonnets and antique-looped gowns ; some all in black and some in brown, but all alike ; Mere Juchereau in 1G30, Mother Seton two cen- turies later ; Gray Sisters (Sanirs Griscfi) or Hospita- liorcs, or Sisters of St. Joseph, or of the Hotel Dicu, or sacred inn, whereof our Lord is the host, and where the penniless are guests and " have wine and milk without money and without price ;" " or Sisters of Ciiarity in New York, in Boston, in New Orleans, iu Cincinnati, in Minnesota, in Montreal, they are all one —all are children of Saint Vincent de Paul ; all rejoice to be known by that proud title which he bestowed upon them, " Daughters of Charity and Servants of the Poor." What need have we to speak of them? Let the school, the hospital, the prison, the filthy lodging- house, the orphan asj'lum, the blood-stained camp talk about them. Why, the Protestant ajid the Pagan ; the roughest among men, the " lost, lost, lost" among women, know the Sister of Charity, and find some- where amid the ruins of their souls an untainted bless- ing for her as she passes. ' Rules and Constitutions, etc, Dublin, 1809. ' " Qui non habetis argentum, properate : venite, emite absque argeuto ut absque ulla commutatioue, viuum et lac." — Isaias, lv.^1. 272 Devotion to the B. V. Maiiy i In Quebec, iu 1G37, more than two hixiidred yofvvs ago, they wtintod a school aud a hospital, and tlio Sisters of Charity furnished both. Montreal, Mary's city, felt the need, and we have seen how Mademui- selle Manse provided. In the States, Mother Soton founds her adaptation of the great order, and now the Sister of Charity is everywhere. Here, there is the Sister of Providence; there, the "little Sister of the Poor ;" everywhere the faithful child and humble im- itator of Holy Mary. Mother Seton's first convent is a tenement of four rooms ; one floor and one garret must lodge sixteen persons. But she has the " cliapol of the Blessed Virgin" ' wherein to receive the Bread of Life ; it is Saint Mary's Mountain which is their hoped-for laboring-place, that Saint Mary's town, now Baltimore ; and they can give their own fond phase of signification to Maryland. Here were Dubois, afterwards Bishop of New York, aud saintly Brute, their wise guides, the sccoiiJ, afterwards Bishop of Vuiceunes. He it was who lintl "no time at home to get his hair cut,"" and so catch- ing the barber one day in the woods, he sat down upon a stone and was newly tonsured there. It wus he, too, whom students of St. Mary's, known to the present writer, used to see laboring with his own hands to make more easy a steep up-mountain path 1 ' Life of Mra. E. Soton, Founder and First Superior of tho Dauglilcra of Charity iu the United States. By llov. Dr. White, p. *;35. » The same, p. 380. IN North America. 273 lulred yoavs tal, and the veal, Mary's )W Madeiuoi- lotlicr Setoii and now the there is tlie Sister of tlie d liumbk; im- rst convent is lid one gariot ,s tlie " chapel iive the Bread which is their ry's town, now fond phase of Ishop of Kew lcs, the sccoikI, It was who had " and so calch- l he sat down there. It was known to the with his own mountain patli lor of tlic Dauglil^'s lite, p. '^^5. which led to his grotto oratory and the statnto of the Mother of God. Ah ! the}' were very poor in money and influence in those early da^'s, but rich in gTac(\s, iu humility, in love of labor, and in sv. oet conti'nted- ness. Tliey have lives of roughness and great labor, but God gives them encouragement. Th(>y have sick- ness and pain like others, but Ho sends them pleasant tlioughts. They die, some years too early, we may fancy, but so " He givetli His beloved sleep." ' What sick Sister was it on whose heart while she slept, Mother Seton placed a rose just given her? We do not know. !i;liall never know her name ; nor is it in any point essential to us or her that we should. But as she wrote her simple thanks for it, we may look here at the form of words it took.'' The morning was beautiful, mild, and serene, All nature hiul wakod from repose ; Maternal affection came siltnitly in. And placed on my bosom a rose. Poor nature was weak, and had almost prevailed The long-wearied eyelids to close ; But tlie soul waked in triuTupli and joyously hailed The sweet Queen of Flowers, the Rose. Whitsuntide was the time, 'twas tlie season of love, And I tliought that the Ulcst Spirit chose To leave for a wlule the sweet form of the Dove, And come in the blush of the Hose. Come, Heavenly Spirit, descend on each brcafit. And there let thy blessings repose. * Psalm cxxvi. 3 : " Dederit dilectis suis somnum.' ' White's Life, p. 494. 12* 271 Dkvotion to tiif, B. V. Mauy Ah tlinii (mc(> didst on Afiiry, tlm trnipli! of roHt, Kor Mary'H imr MyHticiil IIosk. Oil miiy cvi'iy roHO tliiit Hprinp* forth t^vcrmoro. l']iikiiullo tli<> lu^iirtH of III! tlii>H(^ Who wciir it or ni'(< it, to IdcHs and luloro Tlio lltiiid lliiit created tlii! rono. Ijct UH ^ucHH how ]\[()tlior S(!tou would luovo youiifj; hoiirts to tlu> lovo of tho UIchhchI Jiiiioii^ avoiikmi, by wluit wo S(>o of hvv own child, \wv licbfccii. Just a ^'liinpHc into that woll-triod lil'o of hers ; a inonuMit's raisinj^' of tho cuirtain to exposo tho riiothor's pain, und ono fflanco into tho hoart of tho child. Tin* record of tho littio girl's lon vni('i'(il)lo Mo'.licr I\Tiir^,')ir(>k (Icorn;)., lil'lv-oiM' yotivH ii " Diui^'lilrr of Cliurily iiml HtU'vmit of tilt' poor." If you would Hcn lirf mimI nnk Iht pniyciM, you will Cmd licr in ilic niidsl (»f ||i(> orplnins, iii tli(> nsyluni in ('uniniinHvill)>, <'incirni)ili. Of oilier Sislcrs of Chnrily, imd of Hichc, a fuel, or (wo will iliiislratt^ our iiilcnipt ut u liisioi'y of dcvolioii. Oiw sini^Io eoniniuniiy, ili.'ii of Miiiniillshur^', Ims twenty-two jisyliiniH, foi- orplinns, for Hie inHaiic, I'nr in('iir!il)l«'S ; «>l<>V('n liospilalH, imd twenty -five hcIkioIs. Til Uie eily of New York alone, Sislers of v;iiiniis orders t«'aeli at least six thousand pupils. Tn Canada, ei'dil Innidicd reliL'ious wotnon, t ('II y<>ars ago, wer<> t(>aeliiiijLj eleven tliousanti cliildrcii, giiardiii}; a thousand or])hans, nursing flv(< thousiuid sick,' and teaehing, by ])reeept or (>\ani|ile, devolion tn tlui Blessed Virgin to ev])oitioii to each order in the TTnited States its due iiunihcr (if pu])ils : but, as yet, system is wanting. Just take your atlas for aAvliile, and see tli()S(^ Gray Sisters, the first vo over saw in North Amori'-a ;'' scf them to-day, more than two conturios latcir, toiliii;,' in the half-tro]ucaI heats of the South, or braving, for tlio love of God and IMary, the boreal wind car(Hn'ing over ' Servnntos de Dicu on Canada, ' Vide tins work, p. 40. -*ri_i*»fia>->''f*' IN Noifi'ir Amkiik'a. 1277 oil's ('oiniim- icr Miir^^MiTt il soo tlxiso Ovay th Amovi'-iv •; s(M' ^H livtov, toiliiii^ in ,v bvaviuo-, for tlio luT caivoviiit^ over ; tliiH work, p. '1' flic sctni-fi'o/cti IIiukIh of IIikIsoii'h I'mv, or llir nlino^if; |H'i|M'liiiil sriowH iliiit li)^ iiroiitid \'nr AlliiiltMSfii. liiihc, ill noi'lli l.'iiiliiiln (!()'. Look til \\\(' |)iiii;^IiI('I'm of Dm (IroHH, HMiliii<^' ill IH;")"* from Trc^^iilcir, in l''r;iiic(', lo AvoyrllcM, ill liOiiisiiiiDi, INlniy IFyfirinllic, Hii|M'rior of (lie I'lisl colony ; IMiiry A','!ifli;i, of llic second, in iMno. II is lliis Iiisi colony wliicli, wlicn tlicir Hliip tiikcH llnf fur out 111. sen, iiHHcnihli' in llicir ciiliin mid cIimiiI, IIki Stih'i- Ittyi'iKi-'*^ \\n'\\, (^iiccii ; Iniil, Moljicr of Mcr.-y, our life, our snvccIiichh, and our liopc" Tlicso mIvo rc- cilc cMcIi day llic Tiillle OIVkm! (»f llic I'IcshcmI Vir,%fiii. Tlicn, vIm'ii Kciiliicky wuh a wildcrncsH, nlniist, in 1812, luid lioly I'\-illi('r Ncrinckx l.'iltorcd uh niisxioniiry tlicic, lie culled inlo cxisfiMuu', to uid ilie (fiuiKo of Clod iiiid Our fjiidv, lli(( "Sislcu's of liorctto, oi- I'lifUids of i\l;ir}' fit Ilie foot of llie Cross ;" tlieir oliject, (Irsl, tlieir owii |)erfecli(Ui, and llieii tli(! (Mlucation of ^ii'ls, eHjX!- (•i;iily of tlu! very ])oor. YU\ calls llieir liouse on Ifur- (liii's Creek, Loriitto, tlu) liouso wluu'cof Otir T/vdv "wn.i tlie niistr(!ss on eurlli ; witliin wlios(! walls Our Lord l)('('!ini(^ iiicaniaie. St. Mary'n poverty was to lie tluar nio(^.cl of life. Tlieir liouses aro tlieniforo j)oor and badly furnished, their food is of tho plaincsst kind, and tlioir raiment of the coarscist. Hard labor in the fields and forests Avas to bo their earthly luxury, and their lives penitential — banjfooted most of tho year, for ono item.' "Poor to extremity, but ah," says saintly ' SkdtclicH of tlio Early Catliolio MisHions in Kentucky. By Rt Eev. M. J. Simkling, Bishop of Louisville ; pp. 200-213. 278 Devotion to the B. V. Mary Bishop Flagct, "such spotless clejiiiliuoss!'" Now, they have at least ten cstaLlishmeiits in Iventucky, Missouri, Arkansas, out among the Osage Indians. There are two hundred Sisters now, and every housu has schools. And then, these " Friends oi" Mary at the Cross" meet in their darkened chapel when three o'clock comes round each day, for a long meditation on, and commemoration of. Our Lord's drear Passion ; and •while the bell tolls mournfully^ ^iicj muriiuir at stated intervals, " O suffering Jesus ! O sorrowful Mary!'" Then, close by the side of these good religious, and educating more children to love and reverence 8t. Mary, are the Dominicans ; and St. Dominic, you know, is the Father of the Tlosary. Not of that nniu- ner of prayer, but only of that manner brought to per- fection of practice ; for the use of beads in prayer sweeps far back beyond the Incarnation of Our Divine Ivedeemer, and is common to all Oriental nationsi, Pagan, Hebrew, Mahomnicdan, and Christian. Now, the first two women of this order in the present States, so far as we can find out, were in Kentucky, and were both called Mary. They were here in 1807 or 1808, Then they were at St. Mary's, Somerset, Ohio, in 1819 ; and they have houses in Zanesville in that last-naiuwl I V.;: 1 Sketches of the Life, Times, and Character of Rt. Rev. Benfidict Joseph Flaget, first Bishop of Louisville. By Rt. Rev. M. J. Spal ding ; p. 290. ■' Letter of Rt. Rev. Dr. Spalding, Oct. 2. 18C1 lY iiess!'" Now, in Kentucky, >sa|j;o lutlians. d cverv houso Is of Miiiy at pel Avhcn tlivee ong luoJitatiou drear Tassioii ; ley uiurumv at il O sorrowful )d religious, ami \ reverence St. ,. Dominic, you ^ot of tliat niaii- • broiiglit to per- beads in prayer ,11 of Our Divine )ru'ntal nations, 'hristian. ^'o^Y, |c present States, ,itucky, and were lin 1807 or 1808. t,01iio,inl8rJ; tliat last-named of Kt. Rev. Bcncdicl lU. Rev. M. J. Spal m North America. 279 State, and in Bcnicia in California, in Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee, and in Brooklyn, Long Island. Their first convent was called St. Rose ; their second, St. Magdalene, now called St. Catherine's. I only know them to be in a most especial manner de- voted to the Blessed Virgin ; to be zealous in impart- ing that love to others. They educate a couple of hundred pupils at least each year; and in the same State of Kentucky the Sisters of Charity at Nazareth teach between four and five hundred. Our road for the rest of this chapter must bo a very- undetermined one. Perforce a vagabond, wo wander from mountain to prairie, from forest to sacred sea- side, picking up here a woodland flower, there a peb- ble ; sometimes getting a mere glance at some bright object, and utterly unable, for thicket, surf, or quick- sand, to come any nearer. What we shall get into our basket, however, be it agate or patch of moss, we lay on Our Lady's altar, persuaded of this at least, that she will have no contempt for it. The Sisters of Providence, in Oregon, in Canada, in Vermont, those who received at Grossp. He the thou- sand of ship-fever patients in 1818 ; these educate some hundred and fifty girls who pay, and some nine hundred who are too poor for that. The " Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary" all bear the name of Mary, and teach a thousand pupils. The Sisters of the Presentation at St. Hyacinth ; the Sisters of St. Joseph ; the Daughters of St. Anno ; how many do they teach to honor Mary ? God knows, and God 280 Devotion to the B. V. Mauy W- rewards. Everywhere, to him who has eyes and wlio looks out of them, there is observable some new par- terre from the Church's perpetual fertility.' On tlie day which sees these hues written, we read in tlie Freeman's Journal of New York these facts : How, in the year of grace 1814, a small community of nxuis en- tered the diocese of Cincinnati, having the title of " The Most Precious Blood," whose principal office consists in the nocturnal adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, together with other duties common to most convents, and som<'. peculiar to then- selves. The founder of the Arch-confraternity of Priests of the Most Precious Blood was the Canon Caspar di Bufalo, who was born at Home, A. d. 1780. Another true benefactor of America he, issuing like so mauy others from the red /(iihjc of that French Revolution. Chiefly through his exertions the Arch-confraternity of the Most Precious Blood was organized, in 1815, at Rome. So rapid was its progress, that fifteen years later, in 18o0, more than a hundred and fifty lesser confraternities were already affiliated Avith it, not rnly in Europe, but in Africa, India, and China. It was not until some years later that the first bod}^ of these holy missionaries directed their steps towards America, The Rev. M. Sales Brunner, with eight missionary priests and six novices, sailetl in 184:3 for New York, and upon the invitation of the Most Rev. ArcL- ■ See M. de Courcy's " Servantcs de Diuu," pamrn. '^ MIY IN North America. 281 i eyes and who souie new pjir- L'tility.' On tlio sve read in the 1 facts : How, iu nity of nuns en- iug the title of principal ofTico he Most Blessed ith other duties )eculiar to then- lity of Priests of lanon Gaspar di 1780. Another g like so many ich Revolution, ch-confraternity nized, in 1815, at at fifteen years and tifty lesser with it, not « nly una. It was uot )dy of these holy jwards America, [iight missionary 43 for New York, Lost llev. Arcb- Mu," passim. n hishop, established themselves in the diocese of Cin- cinnati. During a pious pilgrimage at Rome, in the year 183'2, Madame Anna Maria Brunner, mother of the reverend gentleman mentioned above, uniting herself with the greatest fervor in all the objects of the saintly Canon di Bufalo, became a member of his Arcli-con- fratcrnity, and on returning to her native land, re- solved to consecrate the remainder of her days to the adoration of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, in tho Holy Sacrament of the altar. Tho better to withdraw from distractions which might tend to interrupt her devotions, she retired to the solitary castle of LoAven- berg, in the Grisons (Switzerland), where, in the course of the following year, .-.he was joined by twelve devoiit young women from Alsace and Baden, who placed themselves under her direction, and for whom she prepared a rule, by which they led a regular religious life in the observance of nocturnal adoration. Tlie night was sul)divi(h!d, and each member passed two hours before the altar. Every day, at the close of the morning prayers and before the celebration of the Holy Mass, the sentences enjoined by Arch-confrater- nity were repeated by each member of the community, in an audible voice ; and during the celebration of tho Mass, they recited together tho litany of the Most Precious Blood. The day was employed in manual labor, always accompanied by prayers or meditation, in the house or garden, or in the fielels ; for they were poor, and could command no other means of subsist- 282 Devotion to the B. V. IMaky R*' ■% onco, eitliov for tluMiiHcilvtis or for tlui iiuli^'cMit f(Mii;iI(» orpli.-uiK whom llicy sustuliicd in llicir (ioiivciit Tlio blossiji{^ of God gavo iho, fruits ol' llicir toil ; iiiul trusl- iiig to (ho rt'sulis of tlicir pi'aycus juul iinliisliy, juid tho powerful iuton^essiou of tlio Hlcsstul iMolIu!!' of (lod, thvy, iil'lcr a WMc. liino, cliarj^cd tluMusclvcM with tho expt'uso of oducaliug for tlio holy ])ri(isthood scvdii young inissionarios, who woro afterwards attaclicd to tho Z(>alous band ^vh() (as wo have I'clatcMl) cnbiiod tho diot'oso of Cincinnati, A. i). LSI;). A yoar after tho arrival of tho missionary priests, tho ]\[ost l{ev. Archbishop of Cincinnati (^xtendiid an invitation also to Iho community at LowcmiIxmi; to establish tlunnselves in his diocese, whicdi wms jic- cepteil. The simple story of tlu> trav»ds hitherward, by land a7ul si'a, of tlu>se angcdic women, as given in letters to their friends, is most touching. Our limits contine us to a few bri(>f extracts from this intiu'cst- iug correspondence. After a tearful parting witli the beloved ones at Lowenberg, -whoso faces they should seo no nuiro on oarih, tln^y went first to prostrate themselves at tho feet of our I^ady of EinsicHlehi, to implore her blessing on their great undertaking, and to place it under her direction, lie freshed and full of consolation, they now diroct(Kl their steps towards the great AVi^stern ocean, ^vhich they nutst traverse in order to reach their goal in tho midst of the vast coii- tiuent beyond it, yet no fear or danger agitated tlioir strong and faithful hearts. " Truly," writes ouo of them, " this great jouruey IN Noivrri Ameiitca. 283 lu this iiiU'rcst- s great journey mij^lit woll liiivo frij^litoTiod iih, but wlKm wo roniorn- borcd that tlio Sou of Ood liad fnu'ly pounid out tlio last drop of his most jn-ocious l)h>od for us, we said Olio to another, 'If in Aineriea wo can pr(ivy 171)0 tlie nuns of Our Lady of Mount Car- lut'l, lu)Mi(> of tlio Scapular, wore laboring in Maryland. "Wlien } on <^oi to Cincinnati, in these days, and debark from tlie raiJAvay train, perhaps you may want to go to tlio catlicdral. Get, then, into one of those " street- cars," and ride up into the town. After a scpiare or two has b(.'(Mi passed, a woman gets in, probably ac- companied by a child. Young looking, but how young you cannot nearly guess : the infinito peace of God seom.-i to settle on such faces, so as to destroy the marks of Time's advance. Whether she be twenty or forty is not particularly evident. But you remark her. Tiiore is a look of singular sweetness and patience on the face, which gives refinement ; or it may be that that is there naturally — you don't know ; she may liavo been born a countess, for there are such among tliem. There is a bonnet, not very peculiar, but such as nobody in good society would like to wear, at least ; there is a black cloak — a very poor woman's cloak ; Vie do Marguerite Bourgooys, ii. 470. 288 Devotion to tilk B. V. IMary I*' tluTo is a ooiirso brown robo, ami on tlio bosom of that, Uio crost aiul anus of hcv nobilitj, is a (U'iiusoii cross. Tliat is a Franciscum Hospital Sister, out \n'<^- giiig from door to door, for food, clotlies, money, any thing that good p(H)2)lo choose to j^ive for the Kup- port of a hospital where any who are poor may outer, " without distinctiou of sex, age, country, or ro- ligion." There arc only two doubts to bo settled : da the ap- plicant in downright need? and, is there a bed empty? Those decided, they take the patient in, and set to work to support and nnrso him or her for the love of the dear God who div>d for ns all. That is the Avay these ucAV ciiisaders, these red-cross sisters, do at tho Hospital of Mary's Helv. They were added to our holy Archbishop's causes of gratitude to God, somo three or four rears ago, invisible for awhile — violets lu the winter ; by and by, when tho spring came, a conple of years later, blooming out modestly, two days after their arrival, begging from door to door in tho strange, uncultivated, but not unkindly town. Aud then, as reward for their energy, God sent them, in tlio lirst week, somo dozen of pauper patients, in a few weeks forty, and then they knew that His blessing was with them. Ssvift then as weeds, but pure and sacroil as tall llli(^s, sprang up their convent and their hos- pital of ":Mary's Help." In 18()0, two hundred and seventy patients had been nursed; the next year, /f? Junidrcd and cir/hfcen, and, among those, thirty, worn out with age, for life ; and all supported, and all ex- IN NOUTH AmEUICA. 289 ])OiiHss- (hI ]\[arv, vestals who ward oil' the* wralli of .Justice,' jmrc types of consocratc wonianhood, yc an; (sailed by many iiamos, yo livo by the pulse of one Heart. Other creeds have striven to imitate you, and have gotten exotic and bereaved plants, and these hav(} found no nourishment in those stranger lands, by stranj^er waters. But the Catholic sister is a strong and glori- ous tree, Avhose sap is the IJlood of the Lord, whoso roots are planted in the Paradise on high. IMiiidc how those sisters move about the noisome streets (jf pover- ty and dark infecticma lanes, quieiiy. as by stealth, shvll'(ss, and love for God and man, like the scent of the Alpine rhodo- dendron, csca])es the perception of man, and floats straightway upwards to the Throne. One day, too, shall they all be gathered there, and out from the lips of Him who died for us, of the King and Judge, these words shall flow : " My sisters, I was au hungered and yo gave Me meat, I Avas thirsty and ye gave Mc drink, I was naked and ye (Hotlied Mo, sick and ye ministered unto Me, in prison and ye visited Mo. ' In pagan Rome, the passing by of a Vestal Virgin conveyed par don to criminals doumed to deutli. V 18 290 Pr.voTioN TO THE B. V. IVFaiiy •l^- For iiiiiHiii\ich us yo did it unto tlic IciiHt of my jioor brctlircn, ye liavo tloiu! it unto M«^ AVlicii yo conHuhiU iho Horrowl'iil, yoiu* wohIh of ])ity Hiiuk into My woiui.lcd liciirt ; it was ISIy cur that listened when yo inHtiiuticd tlio ]iaup«'r ; whvu yc ivlievod tlio bcj^^ar, f/ii's ])l(irc('(l hand took llio alms; \\\\o\\ yo ffxvo drink totlm thirsty, yo lii'ttnl tho cup to tlu! lips of your llcidccnun' mid your God. And these shall j^'o into ev(>rlaslin^ lif(^" ' As you leave tho Colle{j;o of Our Lady of Anf^(>ls, to cross into Canada by tho Sus})ension Ihid^'o, you sec nl)ov(^ tho ralnbow-crowncid mist tho Convent of Our Lady of I'eace. It is a lumso of Loretlines, and, he- ing a place of ])ilgrimiige, will ho spoken of lu'reaftiU'. L(it us como to Our Lady of Saint Ursula and Suiut Angola. There is an order of holy -women "wonderfully raised up," says tho Collect, " in His Church by God, muler the protection of tho glorious T"" 'in Mary, Mother of His only-begotton Son."' These enter tho Chapel, wherein they take their veil and vows, to tho music of this solemn march : OLORIOSA vmaiNUM.3 O Miiry, while thy Maker blest Is iimirlslicil at tliy virjj;ln brcawt, Such glory shines tliat stars, less hrii^ht, Uehold thy lace and hiao their liiflit. L\ > St. Matthew, xxv. 34 40. 3 Cijllect for Feast of St. Ursula. * I find this renderiiijj in Bishop Enyland's Works, iv. 203. ■ ] .nrrw'f^ IN Noiirii Ameuica. 291 Tilt' ]osH timt imtn in Kvi' ilr-iilorcn, Tliv fniitt'iil womb in ('hrint rcst'iics; And vimkt'H tlio wiiy to ln'iivi^n fn^o For ilicni tiiat umurii to lollow thoo. U\ ilirn ilut hi'Kvonly pitcw (lispliiy Ami hIiow till- lif;litM (tl'i'mlli'SM diiy. Nin/iif, riuiHoiMcil niition«! win^, and own Your rnnw)tn wus u Virgin'H Bon. May njTO to npn forovor ninff Tim Virgin's Hon and Anfjfid'a Klnjif, And praise, witli tlii^ crjcstiai iuiHt, Tho Fiitiicr, Hon, uud Holy (ihost. And tlioii ti:o edohrimt chants solemnly, for tho postulant, Oi'd pro w, kSuncfit I)i I, dcnUrl.i' ; and tlio choir of sisters rt'S})ond in harmony, (If (Htjnn. ri/icinlur protinssioiilhiis Cln'inti. "Pray for lior. Holy ]N[oth('r of God, that sho may bo made worthy of tho i)r()misos of Christ.'" Those aro tho Ursulin«>s, and to mo, at least whilo mnki'ifj; this book, thoy hovxw inseparable, some- how, from the Sisters of Charity and Mercy. lu;n-cm- ber tho beginning; of our story, and seo how they stood side by side amid tho Canadian snows. When they were burnt out in tho sharp winter of IHDS 0," it was tho sistcu's who received thorn into such shelter as they had, and clothed them for tho time in their own gray habits. At New Orleans, they liad, at one time, to perform tho duties of Hospital Sisters, for they were tho only religious there in 1728,^ and for many years ' Works of Rt. Rev. Dr. England, iv. 193. * Vide tlda work, pp. 40, 41. ' Auuales de I'Ordru do Sainte Ursule, Clermont-Ferrand, ii. GOl. 292 Devotion to the B. V. Mary -::4 W tiftor. It wjis iu tlioir schools tliat tlio first Indian girls w(U'o tiinglit ; it may bo there that tlii^ last shall loavii tholr Ave Maria, Lcforo thoy perish xiiulor tlio ruthless feet of the white m'an. AVheii we last saw the (laughters of Saint Augclix Merici, they w(>re iu Montreal and Quebec. A century later wo lind them amid the miasma of Louisiana. Mother Mary Traneh(>pain, surnamed of Saint Augus- tine, and ten devoted companions, form the first baud who go to the city of N(nv Orleans — city of so mauy and varied destinies. Wo have her own earnest and pious account of the voyage;' of their danger aud wreck, and their vow to Saint Mary the Virgin ; of lier perf'^et confidence in that good Mother, and conse- quent calm fearlessness." Afterwards she describes the arrival and rudo settlement of their community, and then, also, she has to tell of the holy death of three of them, as each in her turn succumbed to tlio labors and the insalubrity of the climate. On the first year of their arrival they were welcomed by somewhat such terrors as greeted their sisters loug ago in the days of the Iroquois. The Natchez fell upon Fort Eosalie, and massacred ail but tlio children. Those, or thirty at least of them, were purchased back from the savages, and formed the first Orphan Asylum of the Ursulines. To this they soon added otlicr ' llelation du Voyage des prcmit^rcs Ursiilinos a la Nonvelle Orleans et de leur ('tablisseiuont en cctte ville. Par la R. More St. Augustin de Tranchcpain. * Relation du Voyage, etc,, pp. 15, 25, 26. ' ViWiiri^iT'-" IN North America. 293 gcliools, one for J'oung Froncli ladies, one for tlio slavo woinon, a day-school for tlio poorer wliito children, a hospital, and a Magdalen Asylum. So that not con- tent with being Ursulines, tlu!y innst needs, for awhile at least, make theinselves Daughters of Charity and Sisters of the Good Shepherd. And for all these toils, in 1730, seven nuns — it was all that was left of them — found courage and resignation in those inexhaustible wells, the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.' By and b}' there comes, in 1755, a new claim on the charity of these bravo women, a claim met heartil}'^ and with good-will. It came from the extreme North, there where Mary of the Incarnation Avorlv(jd and wrote long ago. In her neighborhood, but still further north and eastward, in the now British province of Nova Scotia, was the land once known as Acadia. There are many Protestant historians Avho sketch the sad history of the cruel ruin of these settlennmts, but there arc no Catholic authors obtainable by me. Most beautiful of all narratives is Longfellow's " Evange- line ;" but it tells the story only of two exiles, both of whom find their rest in another part of this vast semi-continent, and, cradled in Nova Scotia, make their graves in Pennsylvania. When Evangeline wandered to Louisiana, she found only Urhuline nuns, as there were no other religious in Now Or- leans at the time of the arrival of the Acadians. These holy women formed tho provisional army of " Life of Bishop Flnget, pp. 157, 158. 294 Devotion to the B. V. Mary ' m I '■i Charity and Mercy during the first struggles of those countries. They were Bretons originally, these Acndians, and from that land, and from illustrious La Veud^'e, avIioso warrioi's went to liattle with the sacred Heart of Mary, white eml)roidercd, upon their breasts, they Lrouglit their fidelity to the Queen of Angels, far over the troubled Atlantic, to tlie wild and ice-bound shores of Cape Breton. They made those deserts blossom ; the valleys of that boreal and breeze-swept land stood thict with golden corn ; sixty thousand head of horned cattle soon grazed iipon the pastures tilled l)y their careful and industrious hands. The flax which they cultivated, and the flocks which they reared, spun and woven by the nimble fingers of their pious Avonieu, clothed the Acadian farmers. Each family was well able to provide for its own wants, so that there were no poor, and little barter. The blessing of paper- money had not lighted iipon them, and they had little or no use for the slight stock of gold and silver which they possessed. They kept as clear of the court of justice as they did of the trader's exchange. The elders of the villag. settled all slight quarrels ; they carried the greater to the priest. He dre\v their pub- lic acts, recorded their Avills, kept them instructed in the law of God, consecrated their lives by Sacraments, kept vivid in their souls devotion to Mary Im- maculate. His salary was the tumty-s-jvenih. part of the harvest — always more than he needed, for there were no poor. "Misery was, wholly unknowD, IN North AimpicA. 295 4cs of tliose o cadians, and outV'e, whose eart of Mary, tlioy brought far over the und shores of blossom -, the pt hand stood head of horned tilled by their aax which they eared, spim and L- pious women, family was well llhat there were ising of r^^r^^"' they had little .nd silver which of the court of exchange. The quarrels ; they drew their pub- ■m instructed in bv Sacraments, to Mary Im- ■nlij-s:-ven1h part he needed, for dioUy unknown, and henovolence anticipated the demands of pov- erty. The Acadian married young, chose his own partner for life, and she brought him her portion iu flocks and herds. When the union had been determined on, the whole coi'iinunit}^ built the young couple a house, broke up the lands about it, supplied, them v.'ith life's necessaries for a twelvcxiiouth, and bade tliem God speed. The population numbered eighteen thousand scnils. And when their sun was at its serenest the storm came down. In 17C2 this charge Avas brought against them, " That the Council were fully convineed of their strict attachment to the French king, and their readiness at aU times to take part with and assist him."" This was the cloud, and l\om it the liglitning soon fell. In the Octave of Our Jjady's Seven Sorrows, September 17, they stood upon the shore surrounded with bayonets which wei'o to drive them, if resisting, into the vessels prepared for their deportation. Their houses, churches, barns, and mills had been given to the flames — two hundred and fifty-three of tlietie burn- ing at once in a smgie settlement, five hundred lying iu ashes in another. Some fled and perished in the woods, some made good their escape, most of them submitted to tlie force employed. Back from the cold beach about a mile stood the ' Haliburton, C. J., i. 173. ' Proceedings of liis Majesty's Council on the subject of the removal of tlio Acadians in 176'J, extracted from Council books. 296 Devotion to the B. Y. Mary Church of Our Lady of Acaclie. Thore thoy gathered for the hist time, while Father Heyual offered the Holy Mysteries for them. Theu they marched slowly out, weeping, telling their beads, chanting the Litanies of the Blessed Virgin, singing hymns to her eternal Son and her. All the way from that chapel to the shore the mournful procession passed through the kneeling ranks of their wild weeping mothers and wives, of their sisters and little children ; and when the men had passed, these rose and followed to the shij^s. And so, driven aboard, they passed away over the strange seas, in that Octave of Our Lady of Sorrows. The sun went down. Such of the poor women as were left found shelter where they could for them- selves and their children, and the pros^incial soldiery stood in their ranks upon tlv^ sands, alone in a once beautiful and fertile country, " without a foe to sub- due, or a population to protect. But the volumes of smoke," sdja the Protestant historian, "which tlio half-expiring embers emitted, while they marked tlie site of the peasant's cottage, bore testimony to the ex- tent of the work of destruction. For several succes- sive evenings the cattle gathered roiind the smol'':",g ruins, as if in expectation of the return of their masters, and all night long the faithfui watch-dogs howled over the scene of desolation, and mourned alike the band that had fed and the house that had sheltered them." ' ■ Hieto.ical and Statistical Account of Nova Scotia, 07 Hon. Chief- Justice Halibui-ton. Halifax, 1829, i. 180, 181. IN Nohth America. 297 All these sad victims were sown liLe wild-flower seeds, by chance, as it were, all along the North Amer- ican coast from Main to Louisiana. No regard was paid to family ties : daughters were separated from their mothers, wives from husbands, and little children from tlunr families. Such of the latter, a large num- her, as reached New Orleans, formed the second in- heritance of orphans which fell to the Ursulines of the South. There, at least, these little ones found a home. Many a trial to their faith, hope, and patience, had the community of New Orleans to sustain. First, want, and labor, and poverty, — biit these were natural to the missionary nun ; then the loss of eighteen of their mirabor at once, who retired to Havana on the pur- chase of Louisiana by the United States Government ;' then by the decay of religious spirit among the people, only revived by the coming of Bishop Dubourg. They knew where to have recourse in their sorrows. The good bishop having obtained for them the permission of the Holy Father to that effect, they placed them- selves under the especial protection of Saint Mary, and called themselves thenceforward Ursulines of the Presentation of Our Lad v." And then, at the close of 1814, having finished their chapel, they erected the statue of our Lady of Swift Help, Notre Dame de Prompt Scco7irs, and thither go the Ursulines for com- fort now. In that same year of 1815, an army threat- Scotia, by Hon. Cliief- ■ Servantcs de Dieu : La Roche Heron, p. 28. ' This was effected on January 10, 1813 18* 298 Devotion to B. V. Mary W ened the town of Now Orleans, and General Andrev Jackson commanded its defences. And while Old Hickory swore and fonght hard, the daughters of Saint Angela knelt before the statiie of Notre Diime, and behind them knelt the women of the city, lady and negress side by side, all, with earnest sui)plication, pouring forth the Litany of " Our Lady of Pronipt Succor." And the cannon that thundered without, and the rattle of musketry, and the shouts of tlio fighters went tlicW way also. Perhaps, since then, with the same or greater agony of supplication, they may have prayed this Litany ; perhaps they are pray- ing it now, October, 1802. AVe will condense it for economy of space. After tlie usual Kyrie eleison and invocation of the Most Holy Trinity, of " Holy Mary," and of " Mother of the In- fant Jesus," it is in substance as follows : Our Ladj' of Prompt Help, Pray for vs. Our Lady, Prompt Help of those who invoke tliee with confidence ; of those devout to the Lifant Jesns ; of those yearning for an earnest and enlightened faitli ; of penitents ; of afflicted families ; of the }K)or and in- firm ; of travellers; of mariners; of the shipwrecked; of those in the last agony ; of the souls in purgatory, Pray for vs. Our Lady, Prompt Help to obtain and preserve charity ; to observe the law of God ; to obtain con- trition and perseverance in the practice of good works. Pray for us. Our Lady, Prompt Help in the conversion of sin- m North America. 299 ain and preserve conversion ners ; in tho wants of the soul ; in occasions of sin ; in temptation ; in necessities of the body ; in the acci- dents of life ; in conflagration ; in inundation ; in en- lightening unbelievers; in the conversion of heretics, Pray for ns. Our Lady, Prompt Help against impurity ; against the revolt of the will from God's will ; against lightning aud tempests ; against contagious diseases ; against the Evil One, Pray for us. Oar Lady, Prompt Help of the people of New Orleans; of those who fight in defence of their country ; against our enemies, Pray for us. God, who beholdest us encompassed on all sides by dangers and miseries ; grant us in Thy goodness that the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God Thy only Son, may defend us from tho malignant enemy, and protect us against all adversity; that she may ever, by prompt help, deliver us from the necessities of body and soul, and with her powerful hand lead us in saft*"y to the kingdom of heaven ; through, etc' In 1823 these noble Ursulines of New Orleans were strengthened by a colony of six from Old Quebec again ; and in 1861 by others from the convent of St. Martin, in Ohio. Let us move that way. Up from the French capital, following Marquette's River of the Immaculate Conception to the Ohio, first known to those Jesuit servants of Mary who died beneath the ' Find this Litany printed in St. John's Manual. Dunigan & Bro., New York, 1857, p. 1130, 300 Devotion to the B. V. Mary IS' Ii'oquois tomahawk auJ scalping-kuifo, to tho cathedral towu of Ciucinuati; and theuce back into tho new country, whore, siuco July 21, iu the Octavo of Oui- Lady of Mount Carmel, 1845, thoy have boon training souls in the love of God and Mary. As you approach it, you are struck with the features of American natura,! beauty which surround it : wo once heard an eloquent guest compare it to the Happy Valley of Rasselas, a valley in, but not of the world. We would rather liken it to the mountain-top, as being more isolated, and higher up, nearer to God than val- leys are or may bo. Mountain-top or valley, however, this place is like a result of the traditional recollectiou of Eden. The broad plains covered with corn, vine- yards, and orchards, or lying in wide sheets of dark green meadow, daisy-spotted and arabesqucd bj brooks ; the stately, calm nobleness of ancient forests, linden and oak and maple and locust ; then over and through all this, the humming of bees and golden beetles in the noon, and the flashing of phosplioric fire-flies, diamond-like luminous in the dusk ; and the constant, varied song of uuhunted birds, from the pure, sweet whistle of the golden yellow-bird, through robin and red-bird, quail-pipe, screech of blue-jay, low coo of purple-throated dove, to the ' aried utterance of the reddish mocking-bird, and the sweet, rollicking song of the bobolink, rocking on a mullen top. First you see the little church, usually with half a dozen birds upon its cross, making you think of that Ecce tnim passer invenit domum, etc. Behold the spar- r-'i'-viviiriu-, lit ■ IN North America. 801 roio hath found her a house, and the tntiJe-dove a 7ie,st where she may lay her young, even Thine altars, Lord of Hosts, my King and my God.^ Then yon see the presbytery where two holy priests, Fathers Gucon and Cheymol have, like their Master, been '* doinff good" for twenty years; and then yoii see, amid the trees, tlio noble Convent of the devoted daughters of St. Ursula. Another colony comes to Cleveland. Their bishop, Mgr. Eappe, receives them in their chapel with Bene- diction of the Blessed Sacrament, the first time there, on the feast of the Virgin's Assumption. In tho Oc- tave of the Immaciilate Conception, their chapel re- ceived by its consecration that beautiful title as its own. On the festival of the Annunciation, tho first Communion of the pupils took place. Go further north and you find them still ; at three Ilivers, at tho Saut Sainto Marie, children these, too, of the antique pio- neers of Quebec. And these of the North now count over seventeen thousand pujuls, ucted in more than the ordinary branches, some ii: tho highest of women's studying ; best of all, instructed in the lore of love of God, and devotion to the Model of Christian women, tho stainless and gentle Mary." But we must retrace our way, back down the Father of Waters, to what, so short a time ago, was wilder- ness ; to far-off Texas, to Galveston and San Antonio. ' Pealra Isxxiii. 3. ' Annales de i'Ordre de Sainte Ursule, ii. 550, 556. 802 Devohon to Tim B. V. Mary ■■^ Bister Siiint Ambrose will bo our fjjuidc' From Sontli- eni France, she — from Auch, in diocpso of Tonlonsc. "Goo(T-bv, fair France!" she writes from Havre ; "faro- well, my good Mother Superior, and all my sisters. "We confessed, Ik :ird Mass, and received the Holy Communion this morning at Notre I^anie. Earnestly we called upon IMary, and besought her to ofTr'r us to her Divine Son : then, at her feet, wo bade adiiui to all whom we love. Good-by, till heaven." It was on tlio eve of the Annunciation of Our Lady that they sailed. On the Feast of her Visitation they were at their homo in Galveston. It was on an island, she tells us, flat, without a single spring ; they drank unfiltered rain- water tlu.re, as in Africa and elsewhere. Thev are do- voured by mos(iuitos ; overrun -with sharp-l)iting ants. The convent is of wood. "Not nmeh of a palace," says Sister Saint Ambrose, " but finer than our Lord's at Bethh.'hem." For her own presidential room, she has a plank hut, a shanty in the garden ; with a rough wooden cross made by herself, and below it, pasted on the wall, iiiw 'jx'lilc hnmje de Mark', — a little picture of Mary. " Send lis some help, good mother," she writes to France ; " young sisters, in good health. Make them study English thoroughly, without going before the mirror to practise the th. Preach to them well. Promise them, that if they come here, they shall have affliction, privation, liumiliation, suffermg, and temp- Annales, ii. 571, 608. IN North America. ?,0'.i tiition of .'ill sorts and 'without eiul,'" Tlic rrotcstaiit ininiHtcvs [)roiieli a crusailo aiJtainst tliom : it scuds all tiio curious to look at and listen to tlicni. Ministers mock at the poverty of their convent ; it sets people thinking, and converts como in by the dozen. A hur- ricane sweeps away Iho r()f)f ; the rain-storm that fol- lows drenches the house. " Never mind," says Sister Saint Andu'oso, "wo sail in the good ship, 'The Divine Will,' peac^efuUy and joyously, and are confident that Mary will bring us safe to port." After a little, in the summer Oi 1853, the acIIow fever and the cholera together furnish them with new ex- poricmceH. In New Orleans two thousand persons perish in a single week : the dead-cart rundJes per- petually over the pavement. In Galveston these plagues decimate the population. " Lut all our con- fidence is in Mary, who we know will hel[) us to keep ready for our appearance before our Lord." Prayers are ordered, of course, by Monseigneur Odin. To these the UrsulJnes add a particular devotion to Mary. In the Octave of Our Lady's Nativity in Sep- tember, almost in the tropics, a severe frost sets in and the terrible scourges are checked. " No doubt," says the pious sister, "we owe this favor to Blessed Mary ; therefore we intend to make a devotion in her honor immediately, at once to recognize her kindness in banishing the plagues, and to beg her continuous pro- tection for our community." There were, before the sickness, seven priests and a deacon in the then new settlement ; after it, there re- 304 Devotion to tiik B. V. Maiiy iimincd hn^ ])vioHts. This wiih Ootobor, 185!}, nnd Sister Siiint Aiiil)r()so says, "Wo liopo that iMary will ))it'H(!rvo these two. In our Iiouho wo liave not had a .siii<^l() case, ncitlK!!' anion^ the rcligiouK nor tlid Hclioliir.s, The true, the only roason for this in the 'dovotion' of which I have spokou, offurcd by the couuuunity uuto Mary." :^V FM*v TUE VOW OF THE GALVESTON UUSULINES TO THE IM- MACULATE HEAUT OF MAUY, CONHKaiATINO TIIKMSKKVKB TO IT IN OUATITDDK FOll TIIKIU I'llIiS. EIIVATION FlIOM TIIK HCOtlUOK OK 1853, AND TO AHHIIIK TIIKM- fiKLVKS A CONTINUATION OV UEU I.OVK. OcTODKIl I), IH*);). "O Mary, Mother of God and our Motlun-, dci^'n to look upon this community of the dan^htcu's of Saint Anj^ola, who, prostrate before thee, render thoo their honiafTo and inqilore thy protection. " llemembcr, O Mary, that the Most High has niatlo thee the dispenser of His bounty ; and that Ho has only made thee so powerful, so rich, and so good, that thou mayst give us succor in our wretchedness. Thou seest the calamities which afflict this land ; perhaps our want of ardor iu thy service lias been tlio only cause of them. Help us now worthily to re))air ')ur forgetfulness and our ingratitude. Revenge thyself, we pray thee ; but revenge thyself, O tender Mother, by piercing our hearts with a sword of love for thy dear Son and thee. Henceforth we wish to be thy most devoted servants. We choose thee for our Queen, our Mother, our Advocate, and our Patroness. IN NouTii Amkuica. 305 To tlioo wo (l(!(licuto uiul consoenito onisclvuH, ami our couvciit, and tlio lioaita of all who dwell or .slmll dw»ll theroiu forever. (Jueeu of Vir^'ins, dcinn to u('('('i)t tlio i'Tovocablo gift of ourHelv(!H, which, in the; sight of heaven and earth, wo niako to th(!0 this day. And that wo may obtain thy Htrong protection for this eou- vcnt, which is now thino own, wo solenuily engage — " 1. To dedicate our new convent and its churcli to God, under tho title of tho Ininiaculato Conception. "2. To make a nine days' devotion before each of our feasts. "3. To make a procession in tliy honor on tho feasts of thy Immaculate Conception, thy Nativity, thy Au- uunciation, and Assumption. " 4. On each of these days to causo tho Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to bo olVerod for these intentions. " 0, our dear Mother, crown all tho kindness thou hast shown us by tho grace of a holy and hiii)py death, that so, one day, wo may all ascend to hjvo thee, and to bless thee forever in heaven. Amen." ' The Mother Superior, Sister Saint Jane do Chantal, read this vow aloud in tho presence of tho Most Blessed Sacrament exposed. A young girl, whito- robed, held a wax-light near hor. " We sang tho hymn anJ chorus of Our Lady of Victories, Sulre Diuuc des Vidoit'cs ; then tho Superior, in the name and by the consent of all tho sisterhood, pronounced tho vow of consecration. Then, afterwards, wo sang tho hymn, ' Annales do I'Ordre do Saint Ursulc, ii. 505. 306 Devotion to the B. V. Mary I am llio cliild of swcot Mary, And tliat Mi)t'u!r beloved doth bless mo eacli day ; I am tlie cliild of sweet Alary, "lis the cry of my heart, 'tis my chorus alway. now bl(.'si; is he, teiulir Mother, Who in thv ranks hath chosen his part ! There is on earth no bliss more i)erfect, Than his who aiveB to thee his heart.' ■t '• " Then came the l\ivfvm Ergo, and, after the bene- diction, the Te Deum. Our statue of the Virgin we Lad decorated witli our best taste and power, and she seemed to us more gracious than ordinary." Fire next ; but Mary shows her tenderness in that ; and thougli tlio buildings be of pine, and the cohnun of flame is visible from ufor, but little damage is done. The Convent of the Immaculate Conception grows rapidl}' the while. Next year comes the fever. " The houses around us are all draped in monrning : our con- vent alone escapes without a single case." Xi the cathe- dral, a priest, the Abbe Motz, falls victim. " Thanks to onr Mother Mary, so good, so tender ! May the people here learn her gentleness and love her." There are more hurricanes. Once, the gulf and the bay threaten ' Je suis Tenfant do Marie, Et ma mere clierie me benit chaquc jour; Je suis I'enfjint de Marie, C'est le cri de mon easur, c'est raon refrain d'amour. Qu'il est heureux, tendre mere, Celui qui t'a donne son coeurl Est-il un etat sur la terre Qui puisse egal sr son bonheur? — Gaiitiquc a Mam ImmacuUe. i imwim a^a aaatA- ..TiS'^-' IN North AAfERicA. 307 \n (I'amour. to imito tlioir Avatcrs and submerge tlio islfuul. Tho limo takes fire aud burns away — four liundred dollars' worth. A hurricane unroofs the town. 3[(ii-s, 31; ept the capacities and phj'sical strength of each, lor consolation and support the}' too have their little chapel of the Im- maculate Conception, the inner joy of conformity to God's will, the assurance of Mary's love and pro- tection. Let that noble type of the missionarj^ bishop, Mgr. Odin, tell a story of the Convent of San Antonio. "A young girl, sixteen years of age, belonging to a Protestant family, after having spent three years in the Convent of San Antonio, and often expressed the desire of receiving baptism and becoming a CathoHc, concluded that if she returned to her parents she would never have the happiness of embracing our holy ' Annales, ii. G07. t.\ IN North America. 809 religion. She consequently asked her fatlior to poi*- mit lier to remain some time longer at scliool. Three days after n^ceiviug the permission to remain she fell ilL From the first she declared that she should never got hetter, and again requested to be baptized. The Superior recommended her to wait some time longer, hoping that she would bo better ; but a few days hav- ing elapsed, she said to the Mother Superior, ' I have only a few mimites to live ; for God's sake let me be baptized.' The priest was sent for, the young person received the sacrament of regeneration, and died a few hours afterwards in the most sublime sentiments of piety. " She had scarcely been buried a fortnight, ere the Protestant newspapers published anonymous letters, in which this young person's death was questioned. Tliis report gained credence in the public mind ; it was intimated that the religious had shut her up in a dungeon, in order to force her ultimately to join their community. Between three and four months after the interment, the father of the young person, accom- pcanied by several Protectants, presented himself at the convent to verify the fact, and was conducted to the tomb whieh contained the mortal remains. The gi'ave was opened, then the coffin : the deceased was found in a perfect state of preservation, and even more beautiful than on the day of her death ; her white robe had not received a single stain. The father recogniz- ing her, cried out, * O my daughter !' Then he wept bitterly, and uttered no word of complaint against the 310 Devotion to the B. V. Mary religious, for lie was convinced that those good sisters had done all in their power to preserve the life of his child. •' Some time after this event, the sister sacristan, v/hile cleaning the chapel, found, under the foot of the statue of the Blessed Virgin, a charming letter, wliioli the pious girl had addressed to the Queen of ^Xjigels, asking of her, in terms of admirable simplicity, to ob- tain, from her Divine Son, for the writer, the grace of not dying without baptism.' " t John Mary, " Bitihop of Galveston." And now, with a fact or two about the connection of the Ursuhnes with the Devotion to the Mother of God in North America, we will say good-by to those noblo and exemplary ladies. And first : their distinct mis- sion of education is to the girls and young women of the wealthier classes. They always have schools for poor children attached. The North American Ursu- lines, or rather the Ursulines in North America, for, with a few English exceptions, they are chiefly Frcncli, have taught love, confidence, and hope in Christ, through His beloved Mother, to more than thirty tliou- sand of the wealthier persons of this country. Ah, what may that not efi'ect ; thirty thousand seeds som'D, of respect for marriage, of maternal duty, of honor to authority, of reverence to Blessed Mary, of love of Annals of tlio Propagation of tho Faitli, November. 1859. m North America 311 o-ootT sisters lio lifo of liis fovcmbor. 1859. God, of fear of sin, of love of virtue, of habitual sclf- (jovernment, raeanirg thereby, domination of one's own individual passions. Ten TJrsulines, or ten of their pupils who observe and keep what the TJrsulines teach them, would have saved Sodom and Gomorrah. Here there are eleven houses of the Order. To conclude this chapter let us borrow an article or two from the Constitutions. Article I. Devotion to the Blessed Mother of God being earnestly recommended to all religious com- munities, inasmuch as she is their Lady and Mother, as well as the sole perfect model of the life which they should lead, the religious of this Order of Saint Ursula are more particularly bounden to this duty, so that by her intercession and especial protection they may labor more fruitfully to form Jesus Christ in the hearts of young girls, and to instil into those hearts the virtues of Mary, according to the spirit of their institute. Article II. Therefore, in every convent, the Blessed Vhgin Mary shall be especially chosen for first and chief Superior, which election shall be thus made : Article III. On the day appointed by proper au- thority, all the religious of a community being as- sembled in chapel, wherein shall be placed a statue of the Blessed Virgin, holding in her sacred arms the Infant Jesus, they shall invoke the Holy Ghost, by saying or singing the hymn Veni Creator Sjnritus. Then shall follow some prayers to the Mother of God, and after that the Mother Superior shall place the keys of the convent at the foot of the statue, and, all 312 Devotion to the B. V. Mary kneeling, she shall offer her charge and the convent to Our Lady by some devout prayer. Th^.n the Mother Superior shall render homage to the Blessed Virgin by kissing the feet of her image, and all the sisters shall do so in turn, passing processionally, and singing the Te Dcum laudamus. And this, with what is already recorded,' is a faint sketch of what the Ursulines have to do with Devotion to Mary in North America. ' See tliifl work, pp. 33-47. m North Amemoa. 313 CHAPTER XVI. Various Orders of Our Lady — Piloriuaoes to Ocb Lady of Peace, 01 Mercy, of Ghack, and back to Ocb La^t of Good Help in montbexl. It is to be understood that every religious order is devoted in some way to the Blessed Yirgin. But in our extreme dearth of material we can only signalize a few besides those already given. The Ladies of the Sacred Heart are too well known to need any descrip- tion. They are in Oregon and New Orleans, in New York and Missouri. They had, in 1853, twelve estab- hshments for education : they numbered two hundred religious in the United States.' The 'Princess Gallitzin, cousin of the heroic prince-priest already sketched,* was one of the earliest and most energetic developers of this Order in North America. She died of yellow fever in Louisiana in the year 1843. In Canada they have forty-three religious. We can allude to only one of the good works of this devout order of women, of which the influence on Devotion to Our Lady in North America is most evident, and by which their zeal for that devotion may be partially estimated. It is what ' Servantes de Dieu, etc., pp. 92, 93, « See tliis work, p. 339. 14 314 Devotion to THii B. V. Mary f :-l^lh the French call an exfernal association/ composed of young ladies who in secular society retain their desire to advance, even there, the cause of religion. It is called " Association of the Children of Mary iu the "^.Vorld," and is composed, in the first instance, of tlioso who have been educated in the schools of the Sacred Heart, under l^e superintendence of a religious of which order every society is placed. Any other per- son, however, desirin^ij to share lu the privileges may be admitted, after the prescribed tests of fitness have been made. The prin<*-ipal object of the members is to cherish " tender love for the D'vine Heart of Josuii, modelling their love upon that Avliich Mary bore her adorable Son. They meet on the first Saturday of ewery month at the Convent of the Sacred Hcjirt, whore they listen to an instruction, after having as- sisted at Mass and received the Sacraments of Pou- ance and the Most Holy Eucharist. Then the various labors and undertakings of the several members are discussed. " Our Society," one writes to me from a metropohs, " is large and flourishing. Many are at- tracted to it by t]:3 simjile swc^otness of the l. Some honor cs- pocially Our Lady of tlio Pn^sonlafion, and tluiso all take, in religion, the namo of Mary. Ono Society is called " Sisturn of tlio Holy Names of Jkkus and Mary ;" another is the " Community of Onr Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd" — of Him Avho said, ** As a shepherd seeketh out his flock, so will I seek out my sheep and will deliver them out of all places wherein they were scatteied in the dark and cloudy day. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was drivcMi away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land ; and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness ; tlioy shall sleep even in the woods. For yo, My flock, the flock of My pasture, aro men, and I am your God, saith the liord God." ' This is the community, the first idea whereof sprang from a brave woman of the working classes, iNfadelaine I'Amy ; but the first who put on the habit and pro- nounced the vows, was a child of ono of the haugh- tiest and most ancient houses of Normandy, Madcmoi- ' Sicut vlsitat pastor grogcm punm, sic visitabo ovcs moas, et lihe- rabo eas de omtiihus locis in quibtis dippersre fiierunt in dio nubis et caliginis. Quod periorot rf'nuiriuii, ci, quod iilijoctuni erat redticain, et quod confriictura fuorat iilligiibo ct ()und inliniiiini fiiorat consoli- dabo. Et fiiriiiiu cum cis ])ai'tuin pni'is, rt cpssiiri- faciain liewtins pes- Blnias de terra et qui Iml^itant in dcserto, swini dormicut in siiltibus. Vos autem groges mei, grngcs pascna^ racrB liomincs entity, et ego Doiiii- nuB Deus vester dicit Dominus Dcus. — Ezecliiel, xxxiv. 11, 13, IG, 25, 31. IN North America. 317 sello de Taillcfov. Now nearly ('i(ihf Inmdird of thoao ilevoted women are laboring to reolahu their ruined sisters. " We are touched," it has been said by a certain writer, " wo are touched by the dcrotion of those chaste spouses of Christ, who have conseeratod themselves to education ; of those who deny them- selves the supreme joy of motherhood, to become mothers and servants of the orphan poor. Wo ven- erate those who have made themselves, for God's sake, tiie iusejiarablo companions of contagion and infec- tion ; breathing, as it were by predilection, tlie putrid miasms of the hospital ; cleansing the loathsome ulcer, bi .ding up the bleeding wound, sustaining feebleness, waiohing over idiocy or madness. "But wliat shall wo think of those religious who choc for their daily companions the most degraded of their sex, so as to win those poor lost sheep back to the flock and fold of God ? Wliat shall we say of Vir- tue going to look for Vice, of Modesty searching oiit Ribaldry, overcoming tho mere instincts of respecta- bility to save one brand from the burning, one immor- tal soul from hell, for the love of that eternal King who died for us all ? All ! in the insufferable wickp ' mockery of that noblest of E ,Hs^i words, 'loyalty,' in the midst of those tloods of trash which men dare to ciill, now-a-days, by that pure and Christian and beautiful name, liow encouraging to him who has eyes and who looks out of them, to see one set of holy women, if that were all, loyal in its only sense, loyal to their King !" 318 Devotion to tite B. V. IVlAnY I do not know wliotlicr it bo a rulo of tln'R Ordor or not, but T obHtn-vo, in loolo or four iustitutiona, tiuit nil of the religious are named Mary. Tliey have been in tlio United States, so fur as I can discover, since 1812. The Ladies of Loretto arc also all called Mary ; juid I beg my readers particularly to note these littlo points. It in the fifraiv which shows how the wind blows; in breeze, or gale, or tornado the clay-bmik stand;^ stupidly steadfast. So many of these Domini- cans, Lorettines, Good Shepherds, Trapi)ists, Carmel- ites, are all called Mary, and only intell(>etual obesity can be dull to the influence of a name. The Lorettines spoken of above come from Dalk(y' Abbey in Treliuid, but the institute originated in Bavaria among the loyal British exiles who had taken refuge there in the last struggle of the Stuart. In North America, sinc(! 181;', they are discoverable; by mo only in Toronto and at Niagara Falls. At the former place their convent is Icnown as Our Lady of Loretto, at the Falls it is Our Lady of Peace. The grand cataract itself has been consecrated by his lordship Doctor Lynch to tlu; Blessed Virgin of Peace,' and the Holy Fatluu' lias been pleased to grant the privileges of pilgrimage to this convent. He gi-ants a plenary indulgence to those wdio, after the usual preparation, shall receive the IMost Holy Vr,; L\ ' Kind and courteous letter from V. B, Mr. Nortligravr t, Octolxr, 1861. IN NOIITH AmKIUCA. 319 rottitnuTii'on and prny in tlio churcli for " tlio oononrd of Christ iiin j)rinoos, tho poacoful trintiipli of Onv Holy Motlu^r tlio Clmrdi, i]u) extirpation of licrcH}-, and tlio convorsion of siniu'rH." "Pius, PP. IX., for ovor- Instiuf^ memory of tlio fact : — It has boon sliown Uh by our vonorablo brother John Lynch, now Bishop of Toronto, that ho intends to cHtablish a pil,t.',rinia^(' to tho Church of tho Blessed Vir^^in, called Our Fjady of Poaco, situated within his diocesi^ at tin; Falls of Ni!ijj;ai'a. Wo havo granted, therefore, to the pilgrims milking this pilgrimage the indulgtmces attached to tlio proscril)(>d and annexcnl prayers." ' It Avas on tho Sunday within tho Octavo of Our Lady's Ascension that tho church was dedicated. Hundreds of })ilgrims, after hearing Mass in tho city of Toronto, proceeded by steamer and railway to tho shrine. And when they Cftino back, at least upon tho steamer, they chanted, with tho sublime, perp(!tual voice of tho cataract for basso, tho Vespers of the Blessed Virgin. After which all knelt, A/ith their faces towards Toronto, in adoi-a- tion of the Blessed Sacrament, thanking the Piedeemcr, tlicro present, for their preservation from all casualties Northgravt s October, ' Pius P. P. IX. ad porpotuain roi niomoriam. Exiwniudiuu nobis nupercnravit Vcncrabilis Frator Joannos Lynch hodierims Episcc^piis Toruntiniw sibi in r.-.titno csso Instituere pacrnm porcijrinntionini ad I'CcleKiam Beata' Maiia? Virginia, cui ncinicn a Pace, sitani ad pvieci- Tiitca lapsus aquaiuni loci " Niagara" ipii noniinatur, dii^tai dia'Ci'sis. Enixns ideo preccs Nobis ndmovit ut pro fiddibuH pnrfatani sacram pcrcjrrinationi ni, poraji:entibus ca'lcstea indulf,rrntianini tlu'sauros de bciiignitato Ncwtra rescrare dignaronms."— die 1 -Martii, M1JCCC!LXI Pontificatus nostri anno decinio luiuto. 320 Devotion to the B. V. Mary during that, the first pilgrimage to Our Lady of Peace. And now from Our Lady of Peace, riding down the sliore and past tlio toAver where swing the intor- wreathed crosses of Saint Andrew and Saint George, wo may cross the bridge and stand, in view of tlie star- spangled banner, near Our Lady of the Cataract and the Seminary of Our Latly of Angels. Nf.>t to delay, but to hurry eastward, by a little south, through the land of the old L'oquois Missions, of Jogues and Goii- pil's martyrdom, of Tegahlcouita's and Garacontie's birth ; past Saint Mary's church at Medina, the Na- tivity of the Blessed Virgin at Brockport, the Immacu- late Conception at Rochester, the Assumption at Syra- cuse, the Visitation at Saratoga, to the handsome Gothic heights of the Cathedral of the Lnmaculate Conception in Albany, once the metropolis of antique Dutchmen. Then down the grand Hudson, through the flat lauds which won the Batavian heart so many years ago, through the majestic Highlands, over the sparkling river, We toiich our hats as we pass Saint Mary's of Hudson, Saugertias, Poughkeepsie, and New Ham- burg ; Our Lady of Loretto at Cold Spring ; Lnmacu- late Conception at Port Jervis ; Our Lady of Mercy at Portchester ; Immaculate Conception at Melrose ; the Church of the Madonna at Fort Lee ; and then, laud- ing at Hoboken, within sight of the tall commandiug pile of the Immaculate Conception in Jersey City, across Harsimus Bay, we linger in Hoboken to say a Tpnr— TirnifHmrgfflTKTs ■ ■ - IN NoHTn AsnjRiCA. 32] prayer or twain at the slirinos of Our Lady of Mercy and Our Lady of Grace in Hobokon. "WHaile the cisergetic and devoted Father Cauvin was l)uiMiiig the churcli of Our Lady of Mcrcj', a pioiis layman was providing an altar-piece in Piome. It was an accident, a chance, a providence, which you will. Br^ the facts are these. When Father Cauvin wrote to his friend and protector, Cardinal Brignole, for an I'jtar-picco, he received an immediate reply. Some Haio I'cfore, the Signer Paci-Ippoliti had caused a ca]\y of the Madonna dclla Miserirordia of Rimini to be made, and had begged the cardinal to present it to some American mission. Mr. Caiiviu's letter followed eloHoly on this, and AVcst Iloboken received the pic- ture. It gave to the church its title, as you may see, if yon like, above the gKsat door, where the inscription rrtads thus : MATER MISERICORDI^. Mother of Grace, Mary, hoar I Mother of Mercy, lend thine car I From raging foes our souls defon , And take us when our life shall end. The dedication of the churcli was a solemn one : the preacher was His Grace the Archbishop of New York, and a large attendance of clergy and devout laity thronged the aisles. The pj.inting, covered with a curtain, was above the altar, and when it was with- drawn, and thr. Ave 3Iaria rang forth from the choir, all foil upon ^iieir knees and joined in that beautiful w 322 Detotion to itte D. v. Mary m ■■*: prayer to Our Lady of Mercy.' But the greatest honor paid to her was that which came across the sea from Italy — the fervently faithful devoti'«u of the truly Italian Catholic heart of Signor Ippoliti, Eix-ju the moment he was told that his picture had fouiKl its mission-homo, he wrote to Father Cauvin that lie be- gan to place unlimited confidence in Our LaJy of Mercy, through the prayers of the devout pt'ojJo of the parish. And then he tells how, on the thiiiierJiof January, 1853, he was engaged in certain expori;f>t ut.s with gunpowder. He thought, Jinpj'x'ned to thijik, he says, of the church in Hobokcn, and recomincrdo.i himself particularly to the care of Our Lady as vener- ated there, just as he entered the r.irrr.n- ;->r.d cLivo room which was the scene of his pxpe;'.i:ie};':s. He had a very largo .i[r.inli1y of po-vd<:v th-^ro, \difii he went in, " giving himself up to Mary with the auw- filial confidence as a child's, when it throws itself into its mother's arms."* In a few moments the whole in- flammable mass had exploded about his head and face, The windows and doors of the room were shattered tu pieces, the whole house was shaken, but, as ho sa}.;, " by the mercy of God .n.nd his blessed Mother," the servant of Mary was uninjured. The same year, ui gi'atitude for his preservation, ho leaves a foundation in perpcfnum to the church of Our Lady of Mercy, "When tlio Passionist Fathers were sent there by the ' Courrier des Etats-Unis, November 27, 1853 ; Freeman's Journal, same date. » Letter from Signor Ippoliti, Augutit, 1853 (^-6ai!BflSB?^\?rwr^%F.T-^^Sia"_':at".^^^ - IN North America. 323 1853 ; Freeman's Journal, Ordinary, Father Cauvin resigned Lis pastorate to them, and moving eastward into the midst of the town, founded there the church of Our Lady of Grace. There the pilgrim, for these are all pilgriiL .ges, will find an exquisitely fine copy of that Madonna of Rafael's which is known as del Foligno; that oue where you seo Our Lady, with her divine eternal Son in her arris, surround^id by cherubic heads of extreme finish and beauty. Below stand or kneel Saint John the Baptist, Saint Aagustine, Saint Benedict, and Saint Francis of Assisium. In the centre a cherub holds an uniuscribed tabltt. This is the grand picture, the altar-piece as we may say, of the Cliurch of Our Lady of Grace ; and outside, over the great door, is set a tablet bearing this inscription : GRATIARUM VIRGINI. And here the pilgrims are frequent and numerous. Some thirty ex votos, in gratitude for graces, cures, or conversions obtained by her intercession, already hang at the altar of the Sacred Patroness. What is said to be a relic of her veil is piously preserved in the church, and the Papal benediction is by especial permission imparted each year on the feast of the Bosary. His lordship the Bishop of New Jersey testified his veneration for the shrine by solemnly croAvuing the picture ; hoping, by that act of honor and veneration to our blessed Lady, to increase the devotion of the faithful to the Mother of Grace, and to consecrate a shrine full of invitation to the needy and the sorrowful. 324 Devotion to the B. V. Mart There is a large number of pictures of unusual merit in the church, notably, those of Our Lady of Grace (del Fulignoj, Our Lady of Sorrow.., -nd Our Ladv of the Rosary. An immense assemblage attended to do honor to the sacred Lady of the day, and one among them, Madame Pychowski, sang this hymn in honor of the festival : i m Mother dearest, mother fairest, Virgin brightest, purest, rarest, Lady inilil and Bweet ; Hear the grateful songa we sing thee, Hear the hymns we humbly bring thee, Bending at thy feet ! Gate of Heaven, Star of Morning ! Lo, the votive gifts adorning This, thy favored shrine 1 All the wondrous story telling. Of thy mercy with us dwelling, M jther of Grace divine I In our need upon thee calling, Thou hast saved from death appalling. Heard thy children's prayer ; Heard our cry amid the dashing Of life's waves, our frail barks lashing, Granting us thy care I Mother-arm, thy Son infolding, Mother-heart, witiiin thine holding All who turn to thee ; — Still thy kind protection lending. Let thy love on us descending. Our sweet comfort be 1 While our souls to thee uy)lift)ng, W'e seek peace unild the drifting, Darkening storms of earth. m North America. 325 f unusual merit Lady of Grace ad Our Lady of 3 attended to do , and one aniouf^ lymn in lienor of Humblost Virgin I Queen of Heaven ! Unto thee bo honor given, Honor due thy worth I Joyfully this gi*'t wo proflfcr. Humbly this fair crown wo offer, Deign on us to smile I Mother of Grace, with heart's o'erflowing, Tims our grateful love we're showing — Bending low the wliilo I Ages past have known thy glory, Mighty kings and prophets hoary Sung thy starry crcwn I Blessings, honors, clear foretelling, Lauding thee as all excelling, Shadowing forth thy throne I Israel in thee r(!Joic(>s, Salem lifts her myriad voices, Quivering with t'ly love 1 Queen of Angels ! Bride of Heaven I Mediatrix to us given ! Undefilcd dove I East and Wjet unite to praise thee, North and South their hymns still raise thee. Blessed in every land I Hosts angelic join with mortals, Far within the stairy portals, Where the seraphs stand 1 — TYhere amid the wide creation, Holding foremost rank and station, Christ's dear Mother's seen. List the glorious strains ascending. Heaven and Earth, their voices blending, Hail tliee. Crowned Queen I Sweep northward again, to our venerable early tneixd, Our Lady of Good Help. This ends the pil- 32G Devotion to the B. Y. Mary grimagcs known to us on this continent, as it bcfj an tlicm It is with a document of remarliable clovotiou to Mary that we close this chapter. It is the pastoral of Monseigneur Bourget, bishop of Montreal. PASTORAL Op MoNSKTGNKtm the Bisiior of Montreal, to encouraoe the PILOKIMAOE OK NoTUE DaME PE BoN SKCOURS, AND TO ESTAIiUSH IN THAT ClIAPEL THE CoNKRATEliNlTY OF OUll LADY OF GoOD Help fou tue whole Diocese, % ■^i >B Ignaco Bourget, by the mercy of God and the favor of the Holy Apostolic See, Bishop of Montreal, etc., etc., etc. To the Clergy, secular and regular, to the Beligious Communities, and to all the Faithful of our Diocese, Health and Benediction in our Lord Jesus Christ. You have not forgotten, dearest brethren, that on the thirteenth of last August we publicly bound our- selves by vow to do our utmost to re-establish the pious Pilgrimage of Our Lady of Good He p, wliicli, by our indiffereiice and tiie evil of the times, had ceased to be frequented as it once was. In making this vow we sought to erect a barrier against the terrible epidemic which was making fright- ful ravages at the gates of our city, and which every day overleaped the limits within which men strove to keep it, to smite its victims in the very heart of the town. In this we only imitated the good example of our fathers, for whom this holy chapel was, from im- mt, fts it began rliiiblo devotiou t is tlie pastoral (utrcal. IN North America. 327 , TO EKCOURAOE THE [IS, ANU TO ESTABLTSn Oou Lady of Good r, to the Eeligious rtl of oxir Diocese, Jesiis Clirist. brctlircn, that on ublicly bouud our- to re-esta'olisli tlie Good Ho p, wliicli, of tlie times, liad van. to erect a barrier was maldng friglit- ty, and wbicli every liicb men strove to ,0 very beart of tk le good example oi .apel was, from im- memorial time, a certain refuge in great calamity. Pa Ires nMii narravcrvnt nohis.^ Wc had long groanixl in secret to see tl)e vonorablo Chapel of Good Help almost deserted. AA^'e could al- most apply to it the words wherewith Jeremiah ex- pressed the just grief wliieh ovorwliolmed him when he saw the holy temple abandoned and the august solom- nitics neglected : " The ways of Zion do mourn, be- cause there are none who come to her solemn festi- vals.'" In fact, wo no longer saw, as in our fathers' days, crowtls of pious pilgrims, moving in the evening w^en the toils of the day were done, towards the clu risluMl sanctuary to thank our august Lady of Good PEolp for the graces obtained by her mighty int(U'cession, and to ask for new ones. Except during low Mass, non(> W(H'o seen there at praj'cr dui'ing the day ; so tliat it be- came necessary to kei^ii the doors closed, so as to pre- vent the sacrilegious thefts committed ther(>. But this state of abandonment had something in it sinister to ou' eyes. Without wishing to examine too closely the secret judgments of God, it seemed to us tliat sucli an indifference must, sooner or later, draw misfortune upon us. History and our own recollections inspired us witli just fear. You yourselves know the groat calamities wnich desolated this city and country after ' Our fathers have told ua. -Psalm xliii. 1. ' Vifo Zi(in liigont co quod noii siu* qui veniant ad soleuiuitutem.— Umentations, i. 4. ' 328 Devotion to the B. V. Mary 1 1*- . the fire of 1754, wliicli reduced to ashes the second chiipf ■ of Bo)' Sec- iirs. You have not forgotten thiit, in 18C1., u |tr«)iuij ) mud c.iiried ofi the statue so vene- rate'' b^ '.>i'r : hers, and which had escaped the dev- astating ,i.i,mes. Ml, since that day, how many ills have come upon us ! The terrible pohtieal agitations which shed the blood of citizens in the streets of the city on the 21st of May, 1832 ; the dreadful cholera which appeared on the 8tli of June of the same year and decimated our pojinla- tion ; the same epidemic which returned in 1^'M, spreading everywhere dosohition and death ; tlic troubles of 1837 and '38, which caused so many tears to flow, and covered the land with sorrow and ruin; the millions of insects which for so many years have desolated our country', and ruined the commerce of tlio city with the liopes of llio husbandman ; all these arc too near you, have left too profound traces to be for- gotten yet. Finally, last year, we were exposed to a new plague, which threatened at every moment to in- vade both country and town.' Those whom duty car- ried to the field of that aflliction, to relieve that wretchedness, were nearly all attacked by the discasi, and many fell. But we desire not to reopen your wounds, still bleeding, by recalling your sufferings aiul your misfortimes. Occupied solely with the means (if p,ppeasing Heaven, and of preserving you from the ills which have fallen upon j'our clergy and the religious • The ship-fever of 1847. riT J^oRTH America. 329 les the second c '. nuniii'js, we were struck with +he thought that Our l.iuly of Good Help so compassionate towards our fatlicrs in all tJieir misfortunes, would have pity ujion us, and obtain fo^; us grace and mercy. Tben we made a vow, at first in our own secret heart ; then in the presence of this diocese we formed the solemn engage- ment to do what in our power lay to restore to the pilgrimage of Bon Seconrs all its solemnity. We need not tell you here that Mary heard the vow and granted our prayer. How ccnild she do otherwise when she beheld herself surrounded, as aforetime, by a multitude of devout jv rvants ; when she heard her sanctuary re- eclioing with plaint and moan ; when, throughout the whole Octave of her glorious Assumption, the throngs of sad pilgrims crowded the venerable shrine ? By hearing our prayer thus in her Chapel of Good Help, Mary has caused us to know that to-day, as long ago, she wishes to bo especially honored in this tem- ple; that this sanctuary must be for us, as for our fathers, an asylum in great calamities ; that this chapel was indeed the throne from which she bestowed her pity in those terrible days when the hand of rigorous justice lay heavy upon us poor children ' ' Adam. It is then at the close of such favors, at the end of the mouth all consecrated to her honor, that we undertake to perform a duty so agreeable to our heart, and dic- tated, moreover, by a vivid gratitude. We would be the most ungrateful of men, indeed, and our tongue should cleave to the roof of our mouth, if we were to forget that we owe to your fervent prayers in the 330 DEVonoN TO THE B. V. Mauy ■-,f cliapol of Bon SecouvH tlio health wo enjoy to-ilay. May wo coiiHccrato it wholly to the glory of IMary ami tlio HaiK'tilleation of your souls ! Wo exhort you then, brethren, to make oficn aiiil with devotion the pious pilgrimage of Our Ladj of Good Help. It is for the greater honor of IMaiy, the greater good of your souls, and the acquittal of our conscience that we invito you to lift up your ojes towards that place from whenco we may exj)ect sinli powerful aid. For wo are convinced that this chapel is one of those privileged spots whej'c God is ploasiil to show His great mercy through tlie intercession of iMary. . . . This pilgrimage commeaced willi tlid settlement of the country. Three churches have ri.sin from the corner-stone laid in 1G57, despite the many misfortunes of our country'; proof that our fathers felt keenly the need of such a sanctuary. On its front is carved the august name of Mary, and the heart's gratitude rather than the workman's chisel has en- graved her sacred monogram. It is there to say to the ages to come that Montreal in its greatest calami- ties must never lack confidence in that powerful name. Maria, noincn siih quo iiint'ud (hspcrarnhim est (St, Augustine). You read over the doorway the simple and noble inscription, Maria, auxHium Chridianonm, Mary, help of Christians. That was our fathers' crv of confidence in all the trials wherewith it pleased Divine Providence to visit them ; such was their sole resource when total ruin threatened them. Eeud it, Montreal, with joy and happiness; for thy destinies IN NOTlTn AMEniCA. 331 fvro gro.tt, if thy confiJrnco in Mary corrospoiul to tho (xpoctiition of thorn tlitit fouiiclecl theo. Make thyself worthy to tako a<:;ain, and to wear forcvor, tho gh)riovi8 uiimc of ■Vilij:-Mauie. That nothing may bo wanting to tho holy chapel of Good Help, that may win yoxir confidonco, wo propose to estahlLsh the pious confraternity of Our Lady of Good Help in that venerable parish, and ho])e that all tho parishes of this diocese will unite with it. By sncli an institution wo shall erect a durable monument to the piety of our fjithers, for when they formed tho gcuerous resolution of coming to the New "World, and there to found in honor of tlie Blessed Mary the city wherein we dwell, they formed an association which they called " Society of Our liady of Montreal for the conversion of the Indians." Now, in place of a hand- ful of associates enrolled to pray for the conversion and civilization of the red-man, we trust that thousands will gather beneath the glorious standard of Our Lady of Good Help, to implore her mighty intercession for the destruction of error and vice, more particularly of diuukenuess and im})urity, which ruin body and soul, and render their victims wretched both in time and in eternity. Ouco tho pious region of Chartres' saw one hundred and nine churches or chapels dedicated to Mary, and all springing from the famous church of Notre Dame do Chartres. So many monuments proved that the ' See for Cliartres and its connection with our Missions, pp. 332 Detotion to the B. v. Mary I'' .J voneviiMo town waH inilecd, iiB in name, tlio city ut ;iio BltiHHocl Virgin. Its logcud is Qmu est Caniuhnnium tuh'la ? Ilkiria, dialer Gvntitv, 3f(if(;>' 31m,rtvot'diu'} Long ago a writer said that " all Clmrtros roHoundtKl with tho name of Mary ;" ' and we, bound to tliat antique shrine by ancient association oi jiraycrs, uill follow its example and participate in its privilog(;s by moans of our new confraternity. For each parocliial society will be a living church issuing from the motbei- church of Good Help. All, brethren, believe me, tlioio can never bo too many sanctuaries for prayer aud expiation, nor too many shelters for virtue aud poui- tence. Then let us strive to preserve fresh on our city and diocese tho stamp of religion imprinted by two hundred years of faith and piety. And now to preserve the precious souvenirs which should attach you to Our Lady of Good Help. Wo purpose, on the twenty-first of this month (May), to erect a statue which shall replace that which a sacri- legious hand stole from the shrine in 1831. May it, like the ancient one,' be the instrument of Mavy's mercy. It has been solemnly blessed at Noti'c Dame des Vidoircs in Paris, that sanctuary whence flow so many graces to water all the lands. Let us trust then that it is filled with heavenly benediction, given it at the altar of the Holy Immaculate Heart of Mary, ' Who is the guardian of ChartrcB? Mary, Mother of Qraco Mother of Mercy. * Carnutum ubi omnia Marlam sonant. ' For description, see this work, p. 217. M^ IN NoiiTii America. 3:J3 IH SOUVGllllSl l^owofful to aid poor HiniuaM luid lift tliciii from ihoir wiotc'liocliu'Hs. To I'ciidcr ii still dunrcr to your hcurts nnil Worthier of your conlidi'iuu), wo sliull crown it with all that soleniu j)onip of eorcinony ol)H(!rvcd iu Homo, whuro aro pointed out to tho csptu-ial devotion of tho puoplo such sacred iniag(!S of the Ijlesstid Vir- gin as God has pleased to nudvo the instrument of Hin gracious favor. Our gratitude forl)ids us to forgot how, last year, tho supplications otl'ered in tho clu^iol of Our Lady of Good Help delivered both town and country from tho terrible i)estilenco. In the same view wo shall place in the chapel a painting rc^presenting tho glorious Virgin Mary arresting tho typhus at tho gates of this her city. people of Montreal, who possess in your midst so veuerablo a sanctuary, visit it assiduously ; go hoar a Mass there on your way to your daily occupations ; stop there and give thanks for a moment when the labors of tho day shall bo ended ; never pass it without saluting Mary. Road the now inscription above tho doorway and obey it. Motlior of Grace and " Si I'amour de Marie En ton ca>ur est f^rave, En passant, no t'oublio De lui dire un Ave." i'ause, if tho love of Mary Be graven on thy heart, And breathe one fervent A'je Ere thou depart. Go thither, ye dwellers in tlio peaceful country, 334 Devotion to the B. V. Maky Hfe "4 ■ 1 wlioii duty calls yoii into town. Rliow your noods with filial contiilciufo to Our Jijuly of (lood lldj). Rooonniu'ud your occiipiition.s to Uvv vij^ilanro. JU'g of hor tho grace of going iionu^ witli an iiiisullicd iniio- conco. Your niarla^t is undi'r tlui vy^'H, as it were, of Mary, Ilclp of (■lirislians. Kcu^i) strictly, then, tlio laws of soLricty, justice, and piety. Then hack 111 oil peace to your ])leasant lioines,^ — anil may noiu; ( f y be met drunk njx)!! the road. Thitlu>r, ye piims mariners and boatmen who risk your lives on that vast strivim which rolls majestically at (he foot of Our Lady of (lood Ibdj), as if to invito you to seek her shrine before you quit tlm harhor, after you cuter it in safety. Look lovingly on Iho sacred chapel each time you pass it. Tn danger rc- g:ird that Star of tlu^ Si-a, and call on IkJary "/Axy iliV. Shlh (1)11 rocit M (inidii. 'oi' ^()u IS 1 t tl lal wt( placi) upon the riv(M"-front of the shrine a .statue. Inscrihed ov(>r the head you .shall read: '■' MafUniopolis 'I'lilcld, Protectress of Villc-Marie;" and at the ieo.t/\I*iisn('rii)il me cnstodcDi, they have made mo their gnardian." S(> shall we show to the future that ^bii'v is the Palioiuss and ]\b>ther of "Montreal, city and dioc<>se. These dcnli- shall till us with conlidi'iice in her hel[). These sli,,!'. make us lov(^ Ikm' shrine, and f>'t>(jnont it with <;rc;i( dovot ion. ' (Jidnil (lilfcht tiihrfiKici/lit litii; shtnlc X I '/•//// 1 pviJiS iKistri 111 (ifri'i's h/is. How lovely is th_\ dwelling'- plaoo ; our feet shall tread iu the coiirts of tliiuo abode." Therefore, with the consentient advice of our vouor- IN NOUTJI AMKUlf'A. 33r) )W your iitHids )f Oooel Help. n<^il!iiH'o. JU'p; iinsiiHictl iiiiio- H, iis il were, of iftly, ilitui, iho Tlu'ii l)ark in lay iioiu! ( f }(>ii iitnu'U Nvlio risk oils iii;iji'stii':illy p, as il' it) invito piit, till! liarbor, loviii|^ly on tlio III »laii;j;('i' ro- il Mary "//r,sy//Vi! it Uiai \v»! placo :iiuc. TnscriluHl tihh canons, anj;y to establish such olll(u>, and (!Xorciso/i ScroHTfi in tho first shrine; of this town which ^n Our youth heard Our supjilications, and that thou Jk^T^ 336 Devotion to the B. V. Mary hast clioseu Us to govern, imcler tliy protection and guidance, this diocese. The work done here is thine not Ours. And as we see the risk of losing our- selves and the dear flock to Us intrusted, Ave cry to thee and say, "Vitani prccsfa piiram: iter para Intum, Give us purity and innocence of life : sliow us tlio road of perfection." Let not so m-ri-ny souls, to Us intrusted, perish by neglect or inoxporieuce of Ours. But obtain that we may all find Ourselves to- gether in that Eternal Temple, there forever to cou- template Jesus, thy divine Son, and to rejoice with thee evermore. "Mgnatius, Bishop of Montreah I tA-'f Guess, then, pious reader, how the hearts of our dear old friends, Marguerite Bourgeoys, and her Congre- gation of Notre Dame, must have rejoiced at the read- ing of this pastoral. On that same twenty-fourth of May, the whole Community of Sisters, novices, and pupils, made a pilgrimage to the ancient shrine, and there solemnly renewed their consecration to Mary of Good Help. As a symbol of their devotion, they offered to her a heart wrought in silver. It was borue, upon a cushion of blue silk, by the president of tlie Children of Mary, and four little girls held ribbons, as you see the banner-cords held in the procession. The five were the representatives of the Children, while the Mother kjuperior, her assistant, and the misiress of the novices, renewed their self-offering in the name of all the religious. The heart was placed in the bishop's) Iahy J protection and ne liere is thine, of losing our- iistecl, we cry to Uci' para intum. e : sliow \is tlio mii,uy souls, to inexperience of inel Ourselves to- 6 forever to cou- d to rejoice with IN North America. 337 hands, and he, after celebrating High Mass and mak- ing them a paternal address, presented their humble offering to that good and gentle Mother, to whom nothing is small if only offered in love. X 15 op of Montreal. hearts of our dear and her Cougre- joiced at the rcad- twenty-foiirth of ;ers, novices, and ,ncieut shvino, uud ;ration to Mary of ir devotion, they lev. It was borue, president of tlie Is held ribbons, as procession. The Ihildreu, while the the mistress of tlio in the name of all ed in the bishop's 338 Devotion to the B. V. Mary CHAPTER XVII. (,«' Gille-Maiki nan (Uel. — Malik Teba Wanbanakki A^namuae, Before returning to tlio United States, by way of tracing the course of our devotion by missionary men, le^j us pass ^'oni Montreal out to Aricliat and Antij.;o- nisli, where the wild Hebrideau dwells by his native sea. The sea, at least, his ; free as himself ; his own sea ; because it is God's, because BcanvaicJife Main is its Star ; and because he is God's and Mary's, rrniii the land to which lona belongs ; where the so-callud Protestants still bless themselves with the simi of tlie Cross, and take off their bonnets and say a jn-uyer in the ancient churchyard of Saint Columba and Saint Aidan, on All Souls' Day. NoAV, in the diocese of Aricliat alone, which forms the eastern portion of the Province of Nova Scotia, about tlurtv-tive thousand Hi'ddand Catholics have found a new st'a-kissed, sea-nurtured home. On those, some Indian Missions, containing fifteen hundred sav- ages, so called, depend. They can abide togecher, for with both, silence amid torture is a native quality, he it good or bad. They have no poets Avho sing perpet- ually of their wrongs ; no political orators to " hawk their sores through the world." They suffer and re- memb r. Tlie sword of their indomitable spirit never left their hand till 1745, wlien both blade and clutched IN North AjfEmcA. 339 AKKI Ax.NAl£UAK. hand were cntalicd by the united power of Snxon and Sontlicru Colt. From the misty isles, and from the straths, glens, and mountains of Inveruosshire, Eoss, and Argylesliiro, come nearly all of this silent High- land folk. From Lochaber, synonjmn for an exile's Mail ; from Glengarry and Arisaig, from Knoydart, and Morar, and Stradthglas ; from the wave-beaten isl(!S of Eigg and Kanua and Uist. When tlie unfor- tunate apostas}^ of many of the chiefs was knoAvn, it became the choice of tlicse clansmen to renounce alle- giance either to Him who had given them those chiefs, or to them who were His repres(>ntatives. They hesitated long, and they suirer(>d bitterly, but tliey chose the God of their chiefs' fathers, and of tlieir own ; " they preferred," says a venerable bisho]"), one of themselves, " the}- preferred expatriation, exile, and perpetual banishment from their hills and glens. lou- der the protection of Heaven, and with filial invocntion of the sacred name of Mary, they connnitt*. d ihem- selves to the wild ocean.' Led by God's hand, they reached Prince Edward's Island and Upper Canada, and now tlie Scottish Highland Catholic population of the North American provinces surpasses one hundrt thousand." xV single diocese, Arichat, nund)ers twe ity priests of the CJanne nan Gael. Inwards of the brine- nursed strand of that sea, their count will lie some thirty or forty more. The counties of Glengarry and ' Letter from bia lordfihip, Rt. llov. Colin Francis Muckinnon, bishop of Aricbat. . :^V<>.^ULi«M«blkMM*HMiWMiM«MilM 840 Devotion to B. V. Mary Stormont on the Saint Lawrence, are all Catholic Gaol, and from some one of these came the crook used in ono of his latest ministrations hy the venerable A. M. i. do. Charbonnel, nmqnhile Bishop of Toronto. When King 1\. ort the Bruce, indomitable after thirteen defeats, met his crisis and his crown on Ban- nockburn, this cro(jk first threw its silver light outsitlo of the Abbey of Aberdeen. It was of chased silver, and incl()S(>d the bono of the right arm of St. Aidaii, monk of lona and abbot of Lindisfarne. It was on tlio feast of Saint John the Baptist, 1313, " Avhen Kiug Robert drew his army nyi about a moat and ordered that all should confess their sins and receive the Blessed Sacrament. And then Mauritius, abbot of Aberdeen, said Mass for the king and his chief nobles ; and bishoi^s and priests celebrated throughout the army. Tlien, after the king's exhortation, as the En- glish army came near, " the whole Scots army fell down upon their knees to recommcuid themselves io God, and the holy abbot adv. .need with the cross erected like a banner" and blessed tlu m as they knelt. And after that they fought ; and, at the concnision of the battle, King Robert '' divided the great s})oil and ransom-money among his army, except the cloths of gold and silver which were in Kin^.; Edward's and the English noblemen's tents, which the king caused to be given to the churches for altar cloths and other necessary ornaments." ' ' Davivi Scot's History of Scotland. Westminster, folio, 1728, pp. 187, 188. IN North America. 341 clotlis and otlior ninster, folio, 1728, pp. This cross or crook, of solid silver elaborately carved, having on one side a pi'ecioiis stono and on the other an Qff\gy of tho Redeemer, was in the he- reditary custody of the Maenabs, by them intrusted to the Maclndoirs, tlieir standard-bearers, and by the last of these was brought to Canada, where, with the letters and charters of James the Second (of Scotland), it is now preserved in the tOAvnshii) of Macnab on the Ottawa. The first, five Inindrod in number, came with their good priest Angus INtacdonald, in 178G. Later, the heroic Hon. and Rt. Ilev. Bisliop Macdonnell, • lio Lad raised for the crown a regiment of his Catholic clans- men and others, and had served them as chaplain, led them, when their wars wore over, to tho shores of the broad Saint Lawrence and dwelt among them, and now rests from his labors in the shadow of the Kings- ton cathedral. Ten years later, tho Hebrid(\ans set sail from Kanna, and Muiek, and Ronin, and the shelter of towering Scaur-Eigg : from tho shadow of sacred lona^ from Mull and wild Tireo ; from Uist and Skyc, of gray mists, From Ulva dark and TolonsnT And all i]w. fjjroiip of islands frav That guard famed Statfa round.' Hither they came, these servants of God and children of Mary, with their utter impossibility of enduxing a ' The Lord of the Isles. 342 Devotion to the B. V. Mahy sp}' ; Mi'th tlu'ir niarrow-Lrcd loathing of inforniovs ; witli ihv'w tlionsiuicl-your-old incapacity for servility : liitlu'i to 1)0 free to ailoro the Sacred Trinity, and to worship tcnd(M'ly tho Mother of Einniannel, after tlio rij^es of their fathers. Macleod and his "yellow stick'" disregarded ; their beloved mcmntain land, witli its passionate seas, resigned ; for God's sake, they crossed the am'wj mhor, the " great ferry," the Atlantic, nnd songht new homes for themselves. Always, however, without asking sympathy, without com})laint, still reso- lute, unsung, iinnuntioued in speeclies, their d(M'p woes known to tlKur God and to them ; known and reineni- hcred by both. " Wlieii my forefathers," says tho grandson of one of theso men, " loft Eigg, in company with iinniy fi'ionds, they took lands in a part of the province of Nova Scotia (the name of it was akin to what was closest to their hearts), calhnl Capo d'Or,* ou the buy of Fundv. Here thcv labored hard for eleven veiiis, until, like i]\v, Acadians, by industry and perse- voranc(\ tlu^y had ccmverted tho primeval forest of that wihi country into nourishing fields and vcrduiit lawns. " They were beginning to bo very happy, in ;i tem- poral point of view : but they had neithtn- prii'st nor church to console them in the land of their pilgrimage, ' This chief, after forsaking the ancient religion, ('onvertwl some of his ancient clansmen by the argument of his cane. Hel)ii(ii'an Pro- testants have been ever since, and are now called " Protectants of the YeUow Stick." TN No./rn America. 343 i^;ioil,cnnV(Ttr(lsoraenf lis can.v llc.l.n.lrunPrn. ailed •' Prutcf5tuuts of the and all the siirroumliii^ country wus gottinj^ rnpidly occupied l)y Protcstiints. Tlio oini^vaiitH saw the iminimiit danj^or to \vhich tluiir chiKlicii Avould bo ox- posed of losiiia, our deur INIother, wo. will seek utlier lauds, where we hopo that, in time, Provid(Ui(M) will enable us to iwir our children in the faith of their fathers ; in t)to pr.icticos and teachings of the Catholic Clmroli. "C^^iie aged matron, Mary Machtod her name, a mether in that Celtic Israel, was especially impatient. She constantly repeated to lier sons and daughters that there were lauds to the eastward. ' Tluu'o,' she said, 'w(! niiiy hud ii hiijipy hon?e. There wo shall be- ijdiue a numerous piogeny. Ther? we shall raise the Civis nil Criofid/i, tho Cross of (!hrist ; and un^ler the pah'onage of tho Mother of God, in years to come, there shall rise from our descendants, those who sh.all be the spiritual rulei's and guides of our people.' Tho venerable woman spake sooth. Of her descendants, five are priests, and one, the child of her daughter Una, is the bishop, the spiritual ruler of tlio Gael in Aiicliat, Antigonish, and Cape Br(^ton." All the Catholics of the old colony left it and settled 34-1 Devotion to THii B. V. Mary in tljo county of Sydney, Nova Scotia, and the son-boat island of Capo Breton. And the old niotlu^r lived there to a good old ago, and saw her childnni's cliil- drcn to t])c fourth generation. Now, in her gnindson's dioccs(>, tliero staiid twelve churcheH, including tlio cathedral, under the invocation of the ImniacnLite Motlier of God. "Wo have thousandH," says tlio bishop, "members of the Confraternity of Our Lady's Bosary : of the Confraternity of the Sca^mlar and of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary."' There tlion, in brief, imperfect sketch, Ave intimate the existence the mountain Gaelic child of Mary on this continent, Doubtless a mine, with rich veins of gold therein, cmild the taste and the opportunity for its working be luiited in the same individual. Under the spiritual jurisdiction of Arichat arc tlio tribes of Indian Catholics of that region. The Mic- macs, we believe, are tlie larg(\st. Converts tlicv ef the old Acadian missionaries, in the davs of tlie niui- tyr Jesuitc, of the Ursuline Mary of the Incarnalidii: and of Margaret Bourgooys, the Sister of Our Ladv. They are allied with the Mareschite, the Penobscot, the Passamaquoddy, and the remains of th(> C;inadiaii Abenaki ; all appertaining to the once wide-.s})r(.;!d and powerfid race of the Algonquin. "A good peop!>' chcse Micmacs of Capo Breton," says the Protcstaiil Judge Ilaliburton, "possessed of an inexhaustible stock of spirits and good-humor. Roman Catliolic ' Letter of Rt. Rev. Dr. Mackinnon. XKi IN North Amehica. 45 ami the soa-boat la niotlier livc.l r cliililvou a diil- 111 lici" j^ri\n(lsou's >s, iiichulinu; ilio tlio luiuviculiito ^aiicls," says tlie ity of Our Lady's ( Scapular' and of ,,."> TIk'Vo then, ,to tbo cxiHtx-'nce on tliis c'ontiiioiit. yokl thovfin, could , working be ui\itra of Arichat arc tlio rcnon. Tlic 'Slk- Converts tlu^y nl Lo davs of tlio luar- of tlio Incaniatuni; ■lister of Our LuAy. lito, the ronobscot, lus of tbo Caniidi:u. onco Avidosprc!;.! n. "A good l>'H)pl' sjiys tlic Protestanl )f " an inexliaustible r. Eomaii Catliolie ivckinnon. priests aro still tlioir religious instructors, and, con- sid( ling tho small advantages of tlioso poor peoplo, tlieir character is not bad. Dishonesty is seldora heard of among them." ' So says tho Protestant historian of Nova Scotia, but ^he Catholic Pastor says, •' All our Indians are Catho- lics, — honest, humble, good people. Their churches lU'o generally under tho invocation of Saint Anno, tho Mother of tho Blessed Virgin Mary. Saint Anne was given tho aborigines of this country as patroness bv tho first missionaries. Oiu' poor Indians aro very devout people : they are remarkable for their fidelity to the faith, Not- w'ithstantling the many temptations to which they are exposed, and the manner in which their religious be- lief is tampered Avith, no inducement can bring them to abandon their faith. Tho Indian, male or female, invariably has either a medal of tho Blessed Virgin, or a small crucifix hanging from the neck. With tho blessed beads in his hand, lie defies all opposition ; and no human argument, no amount of bribery can make him violate his allegiance to God. He says to all, that Jesus Christ is his father, that Mary is his mother, and within that impregnable stronghold cf faith, the gates of hell cannot prevail against him."' If your canoe be of birch-bark and your sail of good ' Hon. C. J. Haliburton's Nova Scotia, ii. 250. ' Rt. Rev. Bishop of Aricliat. 15* IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // ^ J^^4^. /^^VV 1.0 I.I 1.25 ;r:i^ llllli^ •^ i^ 1112.2 u 2.0 1.8 U 11.6 Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. MS80 (716) S72-4S03 4:. 4ip IL 4 \ ZiQ Devotion to the B. V. Mary canvas ; if tlio sea bo smooth and tlie wind, right abaft, you may sweep over the bhie brine Hke a swallow through tlie air, and in a few hours laud, from Capo Breton, in Maine of the Catholic Abenakis. The lust we saw of them, if we remember rightly, iiury vvero standing horror-struck around the hacked and man- gled body of Father Ilasles at Norridgewock. Now wo are to see them again, following the stops of saintly Cardinal de Cheverus, somewhere, I guess, in tlio absence of dates, about 1810. He has given himself the preliminary trouble to learn what he can of the language of these Indians. He thinks it, as do otlior scholars in it, allied, by structure at least, to Hebrew. Be that as it may, philology is not at present his oc- cupation. He gets together M'liat vestments, books, and other things in small compass, are absolutely necessary for a priest. He hires a guide, buys a stuil", and sets off, on foot, from Boston, " luib of the Uui- verse." He strikes into the trackless forest ; breaks his way through brush and thicket ; lives upon bread which he has taken with him ; sleeps upon the spruce-boughs which the guide hews down. Day after day thoy break their road through the obstructed forest, or walk cheerily where they have found a glade. The lay of the Lord, dies Dominica, comes, crimson at dawn, to light the green umbrage of the redulout pines ; " on dewy branch, birds, here and there, witii short, deep warble, salute the coming day. Stars fade out, and galaxies. The Universe opens its portals for am IN North America. 347 Mary e winil riglit abaft, ne lilce a swallow rs laiia, fr<:>m Capo .\)euaki8. Tho last rightly, tiu-y wove ) hacked and maii- idgewock. Now wo tho stops of saintly e, I guess, iu tho e has given hinisi'U" what he can of tlio hinks it, as do other at least, to Hebrew, ot at present his on- it vestments, books, jass, are absolutely a guide, buys a stull", ,n, "hub of thcUni- rest ; breaks his way upon bread which lie u the spruce-boughs Day after day tUoy obstructed forest, or found a glade. The , comes, crimson at .'age of the redolent here and there, with ingday. Stars fade opens its portals for the levee of the gi'eat High King.'" And above the woodland notes, or the sough of the wind in the pines, rises a chorus of human voices, indistinct, distant, soft, ringing through the verdurous alleys of the scented wood ; and the French missionary recognizes the notes of Dupont's Royal Mass ; that which still echoes be- times among the stately arches of Notre Dame, or the paganish square-flatness of the Madelaine. It is the Sinuliiy morning devotion of the poor, priestlcss, but imprognably loyal Abnaki, Savages, they call them, to distinguish them from the French democrats of 179J5, and from others. They call tliemsjlves Wanba- iiakki, Children of the Northern Light. So, while God was listening to such of the prayers of the AJamcdrmok, or Mass Devotion, as the poor " savages" were entitled to utter. His minister and rep- resentative walked into the midst of them. Then were prayers and all else put aside, as their swift observa- tive eyes saw the cassock. " It is the black-robe," they cried, " it is the chief of prayer." He was the first they had seen for fifty years. Yet never, during all that time, had these " savages" omitted to celebrate the Sundays and the grand festivals, as they could, without one empowered to offer the supreme act of adoration, a pure sacrifice. Not an answer of their catechism had they forgotten : the children had learned (|uestion and response correctly from the memory of their barbarian sires and dams. Their instruction, in ' CarWle'e French Revolution. w 348 Devotion to the B. V. Mary i its limit, was so perfect, and their morals, on examina- tion, were so spotless, tliat the holy de Clieverus wept for joy. " See how good God is to you," he said to tlicm. " He has not forgotten you ; He has only tried your faith and perseverance. Now you ha^ o your rowtud. He has sent me here to you to dispense His word, His graces, and his sacraments." And they were glad, those poor savages, that the bread of life was to be broken to them again : and, progressionist as we are, we fear that they were content with what de Chcvorus could give them, heedless alike of the invi'iug s})leii- dors of the Great Father at Washington, of the Bos- tonian intelligence, or of the philanthropy of Doctor Beecher and Madame Baphael. The coarse fancy hunger to be the greatest of evils ; ah, if they could feel the horror of hcing ohllgcd to caf, by courtesy ! Mgr. de Cheverus sat upon his b'iar- skin, and compelled himself to swallow, from his birdi- bark disli, the filth which the pious Indians can swal- low with impunity ; aged fish boiled without salt, for two months ; swine's fic-sh greenly antique ; by and by, towards the third month of his mission, getting covered by those " friends of man," which, having eight legs, are nameless. "Lc seul casuel" he said, "qiiil rclirdt de son mhiistere. The only chance (fee) which he got in his ministry there." At last he had to confine liim- self exclusively to bread ; unable as he was to see, with his good Indians and some others who arc not Indians, the connection between piety and nastiuess. lil< MfeT*SS|M^3!S«ri»«™-'- . Mary morals, on exainina- ly de Clievcrus wept i," lie said to them, lias only tried your u lia'O your reward, tponse His word, His nd they were glad, lad of hfe was to be Tcssionist as we are, ith what de Cheverus of the invi' iug spleii- .shington, of the Bos- lilanthrojiy of Doctor the greatest of evils ; of hciwj ohl'Kjcd to eai, IS sat upon his h'^ar- allow, from his hircli- lous Indians can swal- niled without h;ilt, for |y antique ; by and by, [ission, getting covered ill, having eight legs, |he said, "quilrctimt tee (fee) which he got [lo had to confine liirn- |le as he was to see, te others who are not piety and nastiuess. IN North America. 349 The master of a French vessel recognized him once, from his deck, buffeted by the rough waves of the ocean, in a bark canoe : and begged permission to carry him to his destination. The future cardinal de- clared himself at home with his Indians, and refused to change conveyances. Our Indians were dirty ; but though that caused him much suffering, it was not that which lie saw most clearly. But this' — sentiments so noble and so com- monly prevalent, that the civilized world might well blush at the comparison : such simplicity of gratitude for small kindness ; such tenderness of mothers ; such heroism of filial piety. They could not believe that the French had murdered their king (Louis XYI). "It was a lie," they said of their neighbors, " invented to make them hate the French." In vam did Monsei- gneur de Clieverus declare to them that the nation dis- avowed the crime, that a haudfiU of miscreants in power had committed it ; the distinction was too fine for the Wanbanakld. It was an old wliito-headed Indian who questioned the missionary', and who, com- prehending the atrocity, was incapable; ^f comprehend- ing the excuse. " I love the French uo longer," said the ignorant savage. " But," urg-^xl tin piiest, " the people, as a nation, disavow the crime." " Disavow it, do they," cried the unlette^'ed barbarian, " they should have stood between their king and his assassins. &a(x ' Vie de Jean Lou's Anno Madelalue Lefebvro de Cheverus, Archo- veque de Bcid^'..M.x. I'Lr's, Jac(iuc;B Lecoffre, 1850, pp. 61-74. £££: 850 Devotion to the B. V. Mary (1 .•.'•v. ,■ died in his defence." ' Later, when, as archbishop and cardinal, he spoke of his barbarous red children, it was with tears in his eyes, and with these words often re- repeated, "Cea dmes si grands, si nobles, those grand and noble souls." And the next holy man we see among them is Bishop Fenwick. Bishop of Boston he, and by no means un- mindful of his red-men. He goes to Norridgewock, like a true Celt, to take vengeance ; hke an apostle, to take the vengeance of a Christian. " Sije ne me tvompe. je vous ai fait 'part de Vinterdiuii ou f etuis de venger la memoire du pere Basics.^ If I be not deceived, I have told you of my purpose to avenge the memory of Father Busies." He cites from a New England author- ity of that day, the following argument used to convert the savages. " Father Basics is accused of employing all the artifices used in his order (Jesuits) to seduce the Indians. That he taught them the doctrine of salvation through Jesus Christ, but at the same time nrade them believe that Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, was a Frenchwoman ; that our Blessed Lord himself had been put to death by the English ; and that it Avas meritorious, just, and good for all Christians to kill Englishmen." ' A doctiine not so unbelieved as you might fancy, only not a French doctrine. Now the mode of the good bishop's vengeance was on this wise. First he piu'chased an acre of land, in- • Vie du Cardinal de Cheverus, p. 74. • Annales de la Propagation de la Foi p. LyoP; viJ. 177. • See detailed account in Dr. Fenwick'e letter. — Ibid., vii. 178 tma?^^smsi&.-. IN NonTE America. 351 closing tlio site of the ancient Indian Churcli, of the cabin of Father Rasles, and of part of the once happy village of Narrantsowack. A pile of stones still marked the position of the altar, and beneath them mouldered the relics of the martyred missionary. Bishop Fenwick then ordered a granite obelisk and pedestal of twenty' feet in height, surmounted by a flo- riated cross in iron. Then, after careful publication of his intentions, he went to the spot, to celebrate a re- quiem Mass for the Indians, some sixty or seventy in numbei", who had fallen in the massacre : to pronounce ^^.o eulogy of the missionary, and to inaugurate his monument. The inhabitants poured out of the towns and villages to see the novel ceremony. Five thou- sand, the bishop thought. And there the monument was erected on that anniversary of the martyrdom, August 29th, 1833. Two years afterwards it was thrown down ; restored again ; and again, in 1851, overthrown. Among the audience was a grandson of one of the murderers ; a Protestant and a man of great resi:)ect- ability. More than once, during the ccremoines, he wept bitterly, and it was in a voice broken by heavy sobs, that he thanked the prelate for the " pious and solemn act of reparation made to the memory of as honest a man as ever lived upon the face of the earth." ' If we give his story in his own words here, it is to show what the love and habitual imitation oi ' Ann. de la Prop., vii. 183, et seq. 352 Devotion to the B. V. Maiiy iiipiii Maiy can effect in tlio hearts of savages. " Your work here," lie saiil to the bishop, ** is a truly pious one. I do not belong to your religion, but I esteem this act of yours. I am no stranger to the events of that deplor- able day on which Father Rasles lost his life. My owu grandfather was one of that unhappy, cruel, and un- just expedition ; and on the day of his death, he cried like a child on remembering the massacre. One cir- cumstance, unknown to Catholics, unrecorded by non- Catholics, I will, with your permission, tell you. " Tho New Englanders had with them a large num- ber of pagan savages. The young braves of Owena- {mnga were away hunting or fishing. The first fire of the assassins killed the few old men and boys who at- tempted to resist, killed them, or wounded and dis- persed them. One woman, with her baby in her arms, crossed the river, and hid herself in a cavern in the forest there. On the next day, when, after burning the church and village, the Yankees had retired, carrying with them what was valuable among the missionary's personal effects, the poor woman recrossed the stream to search for her husband among the corpses of the slain. She found him, and having scooped out his grave in the sands of the river shore, she laid him therein, and turned away from the spot to recross the river. But deep moans of pain from a thicket arrested her attention : she searched the spot and found, not one of her people, but one of their Avhito murderers, severely wounded by a ball from some Abnaki musket. IN North America. 353 " Tliere lie lay, completely at the mercy of this sav- age who had just inearthed her husband, — killed, per- haps, by this same pale face. But she sul)dued every thought of vengeance, she recalled only ideas of reli- gion : she pardoned, and, having succeeded in getting the man to her canoe, paddled him over the river and concealed him, from any chance return of the Indians, in her own cave of refuge. Here she nursed and nour- ished him with the tender care of a mother, and bade God bless him when returning strength permitted him to depart for his home. * He wept,' says his descend- ant, ' at the recollection of this good Samaritan woman ;' which was a great consolation, for he was a civilized Puritan, she merely a Papist and a savage." All the long period from Father llaslcs' death to the advent of Bishop Fenwick, our poor red friends were exposed to perpetual annoyance from the " mission- aries" of Boston : nay, even Indians are employed ; and their ancient foe, the Iroquois, furnished some apostates from the faith, who undertook the perversion of the Alnambay of Maine. They succeeded as those edifying laborers usually do — that is, they have not yet made one single convert. Now, fortunately, they have a devoted patriarch, or as they, who have no "II" in tlieii' language, call him, Pallias, Rev. Eugene Vetromile. This priest has secured them from much danger by providing them with books in their own tongue, a book of catechetical instruction and a prayer-book.' Ho ' Alnambay uli Awikldgan, Indian Good Book, made by Eugene y 1 H 354 Devotion to tiik 13. V. Maky WUH liiml rn()un rlat. .\ii(1ii, Siin^'aiiuiwi Miilio laiHHiiiH(jii(!, niidii. M<;li clitc.iiiiwul- ilaimi, cli k'Hiiiif'mim moiiii 'Avvmh. Niiilctch." ' •oud motto of tlio > Indian (Jood Hook, p. 168. 35G Devotion to Tiiii 13. V. Mauy CIIArTlvll XVIII. flu''.' li Oni.ATI MAHI.B IMMAOUI.AT-IS. OKKKIIKI) KOll MAUV IMMAOtU-ATR. SditELY no oiui of llio (lovont roadcrs of ili(>Ho sli(>telu'H liiiH for^.'tl',!)! tlio niiiiui of Olicr; how wo Riiw liiiii ^v•o^kill;^ for ilio (Jiiy of IMury on tlio S.iiiit Luwroncc, founding tli(^ Kocidty, Hondiiig out tlio iiiiiiis- tvvH, who, mupiii^ for tlio Hiunu Muster, whtiro tlio Ji'SiiilH had sown, garnered gloriouH harvests hi Nortli- orn Ainei'iea. Let ns hopo, too, Uiat Father (!limi- nuniot, that stuch'nt in tlie Colle{»o of Jesus in Homo, who gave its Ih'st Loretto to this contiuent, is not ah'eady hidden by tlie nuwiso hurry of our life hero. If yea, hit us recall them both by another student, oiio nearer to us in time. Another llower ri[)enc!(l by that detestable mnek-heap, the I'Voneh Ilevolution. A b!il)y exile: a schoolboy in the collepjo of tiobUiS ai; Tuiin; after that, tempted by wcaltli, by his family, by ahuu- dant opi)ortunity of and intluonco for distijictiou to remain in tho world; and refusing all. Urged by an aged nnclo with this final argnniont, " Ton are tho last of your name ;" lio makes answer, " And what nion; honorable for any family than to end in tho person of a priest ?" ' ' Oraiaon fun^bre do Moiisoi{i;noiir (l(i Mazonod, par Monscigneur Jeancard, ivcijue de Ceramo. MarsuilJes : li'Cl. ^ilClii 'i'i''''iyii '■ , Maivv III. U MAUV 1MMA(M:I.ATK. t rfudi'VS of tllCHO of Olicr; ln>w wo Mary on tlio Saiii^, luVni}^' out llio minis- Miisti'.r, wlu^vci llio iH harvests in Noiili- , Uiat FalUia- C\m\\- fe of Jt'HUs ill lloiuo, liis contiiuMit, is not iny of onv lifo here, uuolhdv stmloiit, ono wcr x\[\v.nv.d by lliiit III,. volution. Abiiby of !iobU;safc Turin; his family, by abuu- :o iov distinction to |g all. Vi-i;M\ by an lit, " Tou are tho last Ir, "And Avliat wore lend in tho person of In7.ono<\, par Blonscigneur IN NoiiTii AMKHiriA. 867 Fimilly, ^nnvn u]) ; not wilful, but ablo by oduratiori and coil 'cliou to convinco his cldcrH, Ik! f)V('rcoTrn>« tlicir o])|>osition, and <'nl(>r« as student in llio Soini- iiary of Saint Suli>ic(^ His name is (!|iail('S .ToH(!|)h Euf^cno do IMazcuod. It is not ours b» follow liini in liis career as seiiiinariaji and priest. T'jiiou of "MMrseillcs li<^ stiinds, Avlien we first require to look at liiiii. A soldier of God and iSfary, Avitli the new id'-as, bep^otteii of tho li(>volution, to combat; with the looseness of niMiiiM'r ;u!d iiiiHM' moi'iils, and the deeiiy of res])eelidtility iiiseparablci from tlu^ success of liberty, I'ldsely so called, to correct, as ^race mit^dit b(^ j^'iveii him. Tfis courap;(i was lii;^li, his will Ih'ii), his fl;iL,' lh<^ true ono, his r«'lianco tho Stronj^' One, but he could not hopo to hiiltle triumphantly alone. H(MVorked long and haid to gather and foiiu a body of devoted priests. Caught by his spirit, many gavo themselves up to him for these new missions in tho laud of tho •' Eldest S(m of tho Church." Their zeal was rewarded with a golden harvest of souls; thoir success Avon recruits to their banner ; thoy Avere evan- gelizing seven dioceses alrc^ady,' ■when, cntroatiHl by tho bishops, ho d(;torniined to form thorn into an Order, if permitt(Hl. So ho sought tho permission at tho tomb of Peter. Tho then successor of tlio Prince of tho Apostles, Leo the Twelfth, i-eceived both tho bishop ' Oraison funebre, p. 17. 358 Devotion to the B. V. Mary .;^i?^'' V'-i and his project witli favor. The Cardinals charged with such affairs received their orders, and the new association took its phico among the canonically con- stituted families of God's Church. The}' were called *• Ohhfi Jfarifc — Men offered, soul and body, unto God Supreme in honor of Immaculate ]\Iary." He had already been offerxl the Cardinal's hat by the same Pontiff, buL had refused it. Let him stay with his Oblatcs of Mary : that was his place : that his work. " God willed," says his eloquent eulogist, " to bestow ujion him, not the purple of terrestrial dignity, but the robo of eternal glory. "Was it not a foretaste of that, when he lived to see his spiritual childven evangelizing the v/orld, from the islands and peninsulas of Japan to the snow-clad wastes beyond the vast North American lakes ! To see five of them conse- crated bishops by his own hands at the head of as many missions ! We may say of him as of the Ajjos- tles, 'His voice has gone forth over all the earth.' What man, of our day, has done more for the Church ? To find his fellows wo must remount to tho holy found- ers of orders. Plis order, only of yesterday as it is, counts a legion of evangelical laborers at home as abroad, from the tropics to the poles. He it was who cared for them all; he who directed their zeal and fortified their courage. He animated them with his fervent spirit ; communicated to them his own lively faith ; inspii-cd them with that heroic confidence which defies obstacles. No seas have been found so vast or stormy, no forest so profound, no race so barbarous IN North America. 359 and rebel to tlio truth as to stop tliem in their inarch of self-devotion, in their progress of spiritual con- quest." They are Oblates of Mary. Let his last "svill and testament show the spirit of his life. "I implore," he says therein, "the mercy of God, through the merits of our divine Saviour, Jesus Christ, in whom I place all my confidence, so to obtain the pardon of my sins and the grace of reception in liis holy Paradise. Therefore, I invoke the interces- siou of the holy and Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God ; daring to remind her, in this my extreme hour, iu all humility, but with consoling confidence, of my hfe-loug filial devotion to her, and my perpetual desire and endeavor to make her known and loved whereso- ever my influence could extend." " Never," we are told, "did he neglect his meditation or his Ptosaiy ; utvcr did he remit the austerities of his laborious and peuiiont lif(i, nor the fervor of his devotion to the Blessed Virgin." " Stay with us, my Father," said some one to him as he lay dying. "We have such need of you, God will not refuse to leave you wit \ us, if you ask Iliui." "No," he answered, " I cannot . * for that. I have but one desire : that His blessed will bo done. Eeiid then the prayers for the dying ! But give me first my mis- sionary cross and beads ; those are my arms !" He took the crucifix in one hand and his chaplot in the other, and never loosened his hold on them again, al- though his agony lasted tldrUj hoara. They repeated the complines over and over again for him. At the i p. 3G0 Devotion to thk B. V. Mary vorsos, " In ITim -svill I sloop and talco my rest" — " In Thoe, Lord, have I trustod ; I sliall never be con- fonnd(Hl" — " Into Thy hands, O Lord, I coniniond my spirit ;" and at the " 'Now, liord, lot Thy servant de- part in peace,"' he tostifuid his approbation of tlio sen- timent l)y a motion of his hands. Th(>n, Avhen they recited the iS((Jw J?r(ju}a, for it was Tuesday in tlm Whitsnn Octave, ho followed the beautiful prayer. At the sentence, "After this exil(^ show to us thy Son," he opcniod his eyes. ATlien tlioy said, " O cl(>ment, O f^entle," he nmrmured the words, and then, a\ ith a suprcnne eflbrt, he added aloud with the others, " sweet Virgin Mary!"" and broatlied forth his holy soul into her maternal arms. Such was the father : let us look for a little at the life of liis sons ill North America. In 1827 the work A\as begun in Franco, or ratlicr tlie idea of the holy ])r(date was accomplislnMl liy tliat date. By IS-^tu ninotoon 01)late priests W(>r(^ at woik in Canada.' At Montreal, at Quebec, at Kingston, with the vast dependencies of those dioceses. By 1815 they had secured to themselves the Indian Apostolatc, and that of the lumberers or woodmen, thous;uuls of whom live, more uncultured than the savage, in the ' In iclipsum dormiam ot rfquicsciim. — Pa. iv. In Tc Domino spcravi, nmi coufiindar in a'ternum. In mantis Tuas Domino cum- mendo R|iirituni uu'inii. — 1'!=, xxx. Nunc dimittis sorvuiu Tiiimi Doniinc. — St. Lidvc's (Jospi'l, ii, - " Filiuin, pi)st line cxilium ostonde. O clmnens, ])ia, dulcis Virgo Maria." — Pontccoyt C'oniplino Antiplion. ^ Annalc's de la Propagation du la Foi. Lyons, xvii. 311, ct soq. ii Mary IN North AirERicA. 3G1 talxG my roRt"— "In shall never bo con- Dvd, I commend my lot Thy servant dc- )robation of the scii- h'c nr(jhin, for it was o, he follow(Ml tlin 20, " After this exile is eyes. AA' hen they nurmured the words, ho added aloud with nry!'" and hreatliod •nal arms. Such was at the hfe of his sons in FrariCC, or ratlicr iccomplislK'd hy tliat priests W(H-o at work uebec, at Kingston, Ise diooeses. I\vl81.') 10 Indian Apostolato, )()dmen, thousands of in the savage, in tlie -Ps. iv. In Tc Dominp Imanus Tuas Doiniiu' omi- lie aUnittiH sorvum Tiiuni cl.Mnens, O pia, dulcis lion. Lvona, xvii. 211,et8eq. vast northern forests where their scene of labor lies. Tlicy had already visited all the tribes about the mouth of the Saint Lawrence, and wtire looking with- eagor eyes towards the ice-bound coasts of Labrador and the snow-huts of the Escjuiniaux. Each year some one or more of tlnnn miist make a visitation of every post. In 1840 they are calhnl to Hudson's Bay. A mission nearly as large iu territ{n'y as the whole of Europe. Ten degrees of latitude in width (48^ to 58° N.), it sweeps across the longitude from 70° to 142°, seventy-two degre(>s, from the slajres of the Nortliern Atlantic to beyond the Rocky Mountains, froni Lake Superior and the nortlunn limit of the States to the poi'i)t!tual icel)ergs of the Arctic Ocean. Since tluit time tliey have increased immensely in mnnlxir, and iu fervor, were that possible. They are extending their limits into the Vnited States. New York has at least one colony : New Mexico, if we mis- take not, another : California and Oregon rejoice in the presence of the 01)lates of Immacidate Mary : and eleven years ago (1S.")2) a party of twenty-two of them left France for the Missions of Texas. It will not be miint(>i'esting to Avatch the growth of their devotion. The first wild missions are from Three liivers, up the Saint Maurice, in a canoe, except when the frequent portages required walking. Salt pork formed their dinner and dessert ; two blankets apiece their bed ; the diyest bit of soil they could find their solid bedstead ; tlie th'-forest fohage or the boreal sky their canopy. But their welcome by the Algonquin repaid them for all. 16 362 Devotion to the B. V. Mauy Such eagerness in tlio poor red-skin to show his love and gratitude ; such avidity for the truth; such hum- ble reUanco on God, such chihUike love for ^lary. In that first mission,' fifty Indians made tluur first vxnn- munion, and tw(uity were l)a})tized, nearly all adults. Another part}-' stretches oft' one hundrcHl miles (east- ward of Quebec to Tadoussac. Old Catholics these, unedifying a year or two ago, but now, 181-1, ])ious unci ■nourishing, " fire-water" having been permanently re- nounced. "Look, fathei-," sa^'S one of tlu'ni, "wIumi we drank, we forgot thy lessons : v\e ceasinl to drink, and now every word stag's lu>rc," and he laid his luuid upon his heart. One hundred communions, tliirty-six ba[)tisms here. Still another Oblate, Father Lavn- lochcre, mounts the Ottawa, from Montreal to tin' tribes of Abbitibbe, neariiig the lower shores of Ibul- son's Bay. He is met by the grand chief, clad all in scarl»»t, with a collar of ])earls round his neelc, jiiid lianging over his breast Our Lady's Bosary and ;i medal of the Imuiacidate ^Mother. All fervent Catho- lics here, having, for Indians, fair wealth of furs aud game, and no whiskey. Next year we make a stride from Montreal of ticciihj- Jive humlrtd iiiiJc'S northwestward. No railways or steamers here; 3'ea, 1815 though it bo. Our boat is of birch l)ark, rather thicker than this paper which you are holding, twice as thick may be, not more; hut ' Annales do la Prop., xvii., 2 13. Father Bourassa, 1844. ' Father Fisutte, Aunales, xvii., 247. II IN North America. 363 ei- shoves of Hml- ui cliiof, cliul i\ll ill mid lii:^ nec'lv, uml y's Eosavy iuul :i All fervent Catho- wealtU of fuvs luul ler Bourassa, 1844. tougli and strengthened with ashen ribs and vertebrae : requiring to be Aany light, so that two persons may shoulder it and carry it round falls and rapids : a boat of perfect buoyancj', holding a dozen persons with a teut or wigwam, if need be, and some provisions and simple culinary apparatus. So through the grand forests, along the fair waters, chanting such hymns of the Blessed Virgin as ring in the catlnidrals and parish chiu'chcs of old Catholic France. The squirrel chat- ters at them as they pass ; the cardinal grosbeak utters his wild, loud whistle ; the indigo bunting flashes his sapphire plumage through the clear air ; or if it happen to be snow season, and the voices and wings of these be still, at least you can see the white rabbit spring up and scurry away over the spotless waste, and, borne to the ear, over miles of snow plain, sounds the long, weird howl of the hungry wolf. Away up the Ottawa or the Mattawan, past Sanlt Saint Marie, along the north shore of Superior, up the Tamiuistiquia to the extreme limits of Canada, and then, on foot, across the broad plateau till the sparkle of the lied lliver waters becomes visible, and, launch- ing on that stream, they follow its course, to the palace on its banks, of Monseigneur Provencher, bishop of Juliopolis and vicar apostolic of Hudson's Bay. A Canadian he, by birth, early called, early sent to this wild mission of Saint Boniface, on the Red lliver, near Lake Winipeg. Fanc}' his life : " the intensity of cold, the pangs of hunger, the extreme want to which he was exposed, sometimes without clothes enough to ' i;. -I i^Tv 3C4 Dicvo'j'ioN TO Tui) IJ, V. Mauy covor liiiu.' Fali<,Mi>) aiul privutioii in tw(uy slia|n) wdio hiH, also utmost luM'oic, apostolu! znal." From liSlS to l.SniJ, //i!rh/-/i'iu: i/cars, was Ms [nnlm] of labor in tlu^ borciil wilds. A bisliop, yot \n) .swini" a (left axi' in tlu^ woodland ; a bisliop, but if joii visiUd liini in tlio season, you would iind him following Iho I)louj;li. Ho had his work to do ovoj- souls also to transform tribes of furious wolves into a lloek of liimhs, ao that the (.}ood She])lu!rd might Iind them niiuly when ]Ie called and led tlunu "to the green pasluivs, by the still wa((>rs," where, in "His pn^scMioe is fulness of joy forevernu)r(\"''' ]>y and by lu^ gets assislaiicu. The Oblates of Immaeulate Miivy " come over to lulp liim."' lie sees the sacred fruits of his labor (!.\lcii(liii}; for ci(//il('('ii. /iniiilird )iiil(s, from tho door of his callu- dral ; " di'iiiiiiuiirrxiit upcviosu dcscrli. JJcsauty s[)riiii;- oth up in (iu^ desert."* Then ho knows that his work is done. Ho sends for Mr. Tache, a missionary, ono thousand niili'S away, to help him, .15ut b(!l'or(! tliu Oblato of IMary can reach him, lie sleeps sweetly in Jesus. '' Ikdif. Doiniiiii.s dilcclo Sao .sdihiuuh. lie hath given His beloved shH^p.'"" And uow Monseigiiour Tache is tho liishop of Saint Boniface.' To go back a little. AVheu Father LaverlocLere ' For a eketcli of Mgr. Provcuclior, seo Annala of the Propagation of the Fuith, xxvi. 17-51. ■■' In loco piiscuu' nic cdllncavit ; super nqnnm rofcotionis rduciivii me. — Psalm xxii. Adiinplcbis me la'titia cum vultu Tuo. — PHiihnxv * Acta of the Aixjstlos, xvi. * Psalm cxxvl. * Prophecy of Joel, ii. * Consecrated, Nov. 38, 1857. IN NOUTII AlMKUrCA. 366 , Annals of the Propngatioo nqnani rofoctionis oiliiciwii cum vultu Tuo.— Pwibu xv fsalm cxxvi. lonsccrated, Nov. 38, 1857. starts for lii.s hocoikI iniHsioii in 1813, li(i lM!j;;inH it, lis lu> ti^lls lis, "by ollri'iiij^' tlio August SiicrirKM!, luid by pliu'iii;^' liiinsolf under the. i)i()l(^<',|,i(>ii of liiiiiuu'iilulo Miiry." Tliis piotiuitioii is iiiir has once broken his })l()d{^(3. llvvv., anionj^ the Abbitibbi, in a family of distin- guished liuutiii'S and braves, only the old motluir had remained resolutely pagan. This time she asked for baptism. All the long interval since the last visit, she u.id " dreamed," as the ludiaiis ciill it, and had made up her mind to follow her children. "Ah, Father," she said," "1 was very wretched until the CJr(!dt Spirit took j)ity upou me. Since the Jlhtck-rohc. warned me of the danger of remaining as I was, I havt) had no rest. Often, while ashiep, I seemed to Ije faUiiig into the gulf. Then when I awaked, I promis(;d the Great Spirit to obey the counsels of the Black-robe ; but as ' Aunales, xviii. 454. « Ibii. 36G Devotion to the B. V. Mary M IMl'l I i; mmw oftou tlio Mt(i'/ii-)nanifou (tlio evil spirit) conquered me. Whenever I looked at the holy (jtudns of pniyer (tlio Rosary, or at the blessed face of Mar}' on the medal round my children's necks, I was troul)led. l>ut, all the last year I have lived with my eldest son, and every day ivc counted the hohj grains (f pntijer together, and it did good to my heart, and I yearned for bap- tism. Ah, how long the year seemed ! ' Will the Black rolje never come ?' I said. * He might have pitj on me,' This was all I thought of through the sad winter. And when my son set out for Killii Kami (Hudson's Bay), I prayed him to write you. Here is his letter. Now you, my Father, are following hiiu. You will see him at Abbitibbi, and will tell him that his ^xiother is a Christian." Some U.'mporal comfort the missionary finds in those desolate regions. Sir George Simpson builds him a church. About tlio same time, another Oblate of Mary Im- maculate, in Northern Oregon, is in the snow-camp of the Yakama. There pains and miseries, physical ami mental, cold and starvation, and sorrow over hard hearts, fall on hun, ho thinks, " liko hail on a springing plant." So he calls his mission " Holy Cross ;" and bears his lesser crosses more cheerfully, in remem- brance of tliat. The petty chieftain Ydhno Snake is his grand enemy. Whenever he calls the better s(n't to the prayer. Yellow Snake gathers his pagans in a neighboring wigwam, and there holds infernal revel- ries. Yellow Snake's devil is nearly as clever at inveu- . Mary IN North America. 307 lii'it) conquered mo. 'idns of priiycr (the Mary on the iiietlal trovibletl. But, uU [uy chlcst son, aiul ,' of prayer togotlusr, I yearned for bap- ^cemed! 'Will the Ho might have pity of througli the sad out for KUhi Kami write you. Hero is , are following him. id will tell him that iouary finds in those lupson builds him a Oblate of Mary Im- ,n the snow-eamp of liscries, physical and sorrow over hard hail on a springing "Holy Cross;" and ecrfully, in remeui- 1 Ydhio Snake is his s the better sort to •s his pagans in a olds infernal rcvel- [y as clever at inven- tion as the devil of Doctor Brownleo, or of the leas iutolligcnt American antipapists. " The ]>l.ick-robe," quoth Yellow Snalve, " catches rattlesnakes, and, by hir encliantmi^nts, makes them vomit a black poison upon our tobacco. He will soon kill us all."' To this is iiddcd accusation of producing all the sick- ness, fever, gastritis, a case or so of small-pox. The cold is so intense that wild animals are scarcely to bo found. Snmetinnis the ponio.v are frozen to death when out hunting ; but, upon the whole, ll/ Anuales, xxiii. 79. :js.—-" M.UIY titiitiou anil suft'or- t) Cuyo\isi;s, uikI i\n) Drbsliiii^f uuiU'f tlu) Uucss ; that then; is of tho Imuuuailato jt bn.'ak down tho isvcut ricnch f^ayoty [las ho not a pautvy )«' anil two det'uuct lio cliinato is rather •obo ; and that wlicu to pieces at hist, the iitndes, bit him moro iVoni a (hio W^A of tho coin-bloom. 3ly violet, I fancied Lino I Avas caught in and my cassock was mpo I, for I lost my [er in all my Qniriual a big pin and nuulo Ih I have mcndt;d the my noodlo; she is lo bends oftencr thiiu breaks." ' Irue, but not more so Iry, Father Faraml, IN North Amektca. 3G9 whoso boat is about Lake Athabascia, and tlumco nortli- ward. Ho has mado himself a litth» box which hohls broad and wino, a vestment, altar liiuni, tho chalieo and tlio stono, overy tiling, indeed, needed for tho adorable sacrilico, and, when tho. box is opened, and its double cover arranged, it forms, ho thinks, a very decent littlo altar. Another box contaiihs a neat tout of seven feet by fivo in base, which covers his altar ; tho body of his church is tho forest, the praiii(>, tho river-bank. Ho must know, if possible, the Mou- tagnais, a dialect of Algonquin. Ho studies it through the medium of tho Cree, and this hv- iiccpiires from an old blind Indian Avho knows no Frent-h. Tho process is not detailed, but tho result is that ho can catechizo, at least, in four or five months. It was this samo Oblate, Father Fiirand, who built tho church at Athabasca. Tho Scots commandant, a Protestant, of tho post, gave tho place and all the material but the wood. The priest cut that down in the forests with his own hands. Then tlie commandant had it brought to the place and sawed. So the frame- work soon arose, and tho reverend Oblate's own fingers made the absolutely necessary furniture, the tables and benches, as well as the doors twid window frames. Two years alone at this place ; never seeing a coreligionist except his poor Indians, ho never lost courage, nor regretted his self-sacrifice for Mary.' As with the priests, so with the bishop. We saw the ' Annales, xxiv. 223-237. Z 16* 370 Pkvotton to the B. v. ^Fary i\- (Icpnvturc of M()iiM(i;,Mioui' rrovciiclior for tlio Bet- ter Lund ; let \\h look ai ]\\h HUcccHsor, ISronsci^iuMir Alcxiiiulcr Tiu'lii''. Ifc! iH \vTitiii;j; to tlid V(Mi('r)il)lo Bisliop of iMiirscillcH, Superior Clciuinil of llu! OMatos of iNriiry. Tie liiis viHitrd Hie stulioiis of Suiiit Anijo and Our TjkIv of Victorioa, iind is scltin^ forfli from Saint nonit'.icf to (Vohr Island, north latitiidi* 51°. Tlio date is Pchiimry iV/tli. L(!t us Kee liow this bisliop luiukes }iis visitntionH.' "Our small otruvtui waH ct)nii)rised uh follows : two I\Iontaj;iiais Indians, Avitji fiiins on their shoidders ami hatehets in tliiii- hands, caeh drawing a snudl sledf^'o, upon Avliicli was their store of provisions, and "weariii}:; hiY'^o siiow-shoi'S, oj)oned tho wa}', and, in ease of need, nunoved anv insni'niountable ohstruetion; behind them plodded your hund)le scu'vant, provided with suow'-sliot\s somewhat snniUer, on ueeount of the; weiik- uess of his legs; next camo four of the liin'sr dogs of tho country, drawiu'' a sled'''e four ftuit six inehcs brmid by six feet and a lialf in length, iipon which were attached my culinary apparatus, my b( d, ward- robe, chapel, provisions, as well as the ('H'ects of a yoniig iialf-breed, who cIoschI tho procession, and who hail charge of the dog-.^ and the sledg(!. This arrangeniont was a little disturbed the very first day, since the kiiul- hearted M. Di^schambault, a nuunber of the Honorable Hudson's Bay Company, would have nn; placed under tlio guidance of one of their servants. The latter was ' Annales, xvi. 113, et seq. Bultimoro; Amoricau edition. Taut lior for tho Bct- isor, MoMHci'jimMir to tlio V(Mi('n\l)l(» mil of tlid OMiitcs )iiH of Saint Anno scltin^ forth fi<»iii „ith l:iti(u(l(< 51°. lis Ki'u how this i«(l tiH follows : two lu'ir shoulders and ini^' !i small sUnl^'o, isions, and wcariii;^ y, and, in case of )l)stiii('iion; boliind Lilt, ])rovidi'd with •count of tln^ ^voak- tho foH'st do^H of ir f(<; inclicH ^Ih, upon which us, niv 1>< d, wava- clVoctsof a young (.11, and who had This arrani^cinunt ;iy, siM('(! the land- V of tho llonorahlo luo placed under ts. Tlu! latter was IN NoilTII AMKHiriA. 871 rn l( American edition. provided with excellent do^s, 80 that T felt lisposed to avail myself of tho oH'er, and hushand my strenj,dh. This la/y project was, however, speedily ahnndoned. Ill tlie afternoon, the do;;H, not nnuth accnst^tnied to fjdi;,'ne, found that the honoralilo load which th(>y wore draf^f^in;^ alon^jf was too Insavy for them ; T was couko- nuently oltli<^'(l to dismiMint, put on my snow shoes, and tread iIo'aii the snow heforo Jiiy enl"( cltlid steedy, a necessary hilmr for the I'oHowin;^ . iif ihuj-. "To ])itch our rude camp ere th<' nij^diti'all, tlm firKt thiitf^ of coursf^ necc^ssary, is to move away the loose Bnow. For this, tho snow-shoes servo the jiurpose of shovels, and tho ice-bound surface beneath is then cov(!red with fir })ran(rhos. At tho sann^ time, the M'f^orous axe is actively oii^'a<.^ed in decinifitin;,^ the forest trees. Their pj^antic trunks ar(! severed in jU'ofusifni, tho stool (units tho lon^if-desired sparh, tie tino carpet of over^ecius, whicli has n^jdaca'd the rn(nv, iuvitcs the travellers to take possession of their new abode; each ono placets himself by the fire to satisfy tho most imperative want — that of narming his limbs, hon'.nnbed with cold; some time is silent in rubbing tho chiu, the ehecdcs, and tho nose, to restore tho cir- culation of the blood ; and when tho lips have ])een restored to their natural suppleness, the impressions received and the adventures of tho day are dis- cussed." And so on, day after day, over tho cold wastes plods tho holy Oblate of Mary : now and then stopphig at a post of the Hoii. Company to confirm, baptize, or cele- ■ '.■?>.■'»■ 372 Devotion to the B. V. Mary brate tlio divine myHteries. One post tlie good bishop is sorry to place under the care of the nearest priest, because lie has no assistant ; the resiclenee of +hat nearest priest being one hundred and fifty miles from this station. Then the poor savages are nearly all pagans still, Th(\y have theft, murder, drunkenness, the lowest (h'[ith of moral degradation, for their in- veterate habits. Crecs make war upon Sauteux, As- siniboins, Ne/-Perccs, IJlack-Feet, Blood-Eaters. Here and there only a (!^liristian family could be found ; suf- fering, but always faithful. " Help ! help !" cries the devoted prelate to his friends in France. "What a vast field is here ! What an abundant harvest ! It is true that it ap])<\ars far from being ripe ; but the dew of celestial gra( is so fructifnng and powerful, the rays of the sun of justice so vivifying, that they may ripen it before the period assigned by human calculation. The gi'eat desidera- tum is more priests. Young Oblates, my brothers and fiiends, cast, I entreat you, your regards in this direc- tion. In consecrating yourselves to God, in renoun- cing all worldly enjoyments, you took for your device these expressive words : ' Evamjclizare pmiperihns mtsit me Deufi : God hath sent me to evangelize the poor." May your zeal be exercised here, and may you be one day enabled to exclaim, M'ith exultation, ' Faiiprrci' cva7}ra- tes, my brothers and regards in this direc- to God, in renouii- took for your device nrc paitpcrihns vusd ivangehze the poor." and may you be one iXultatioTi, 'Faupmit the Gospel preached ,r your generosity, I IN North America. 373 « Ibid., vii. 23 cannot promise you either wealth, pleoaurcs, or honors ; I know that jowv generous hearts despise them. I cannot even assure you that you will always experi- ence those sensible joys that sometimes accompany the exercise of tho sacred ministry : the Avork which is here confided to us is ojio of devotedness and self- abnegation. Jesus alone will be your recompense, as He aluno is the end of your labors. It is always a sufficient happiness to find only God, when H(^ is the only object of our desires." Some consolations, nevertheless, there are. At Fort Augustus seventeen were confirmed ; in another place twenly-two adults i.aptized; and at Our Lady of Vic- tories, a moisting Avith the yoimg Oblate, Eatluu' Romas. Ho had been hero iowr months onh', sneering much. At his first coming, says the bishop, "lie had no liouse, and the season Avas too far adA'anced to think of building one ; a man of the country gladly offered liini his. This habitaticm is about thirteen feet square, and six and a half high. It Avas in this den that your poor child first made, liimsclf acquainted with our mode of life ; this was also tho episcopal palace that lie had to offer me, and which I willingly accepted. The onlv seat it contained, the decaved trunk of "' tree, served as my tlirou(>, and I found it perfectly ada[)ted to my condition as a missicniary 1 i^llop, Here, as els(>where, I had no Avovldly enjoyments, which I do not desire; but I found the inexhaustible treasure of tho consolations Avhich Divine goodness is pleased to bestow with a boimtiful hand upon thos« 374 Devotion to tite B. V. Mary :■■'% who labor for Ilis glla.co selected ff)r the mis mou. One of onr pretty Indian canticles, in honor of our good Mother, was iho prelude to our labors, whieli I commenced myself, by felHiig the first tree. I then (mgaged work- men to constiTiot, as soon as possible, a hous(> ; audi trust that tho Father has already been (>nab](,>d to es- tablish in it his penates. On the 8tli of May, in the morning, I took leave of him. You can scarcely im- agine what were my feelings when giving him iny blessing and end)racing him. Alas ! poor missionary, alone, in tin; depths of the forest, upon the banks of the cold lake, among a people of whose language he knows but a few words ; far, very far, from tlu! beauti- ful France^, from his beloved family, without l)eing ny- sociated even with one of tho numerous br(>thren whom lie has adopted in his religious profession! "What noble devotedness ! what admirable generosity ! holy religion ! what power hast tluni over the human heart, since thou art enabled to break asunder at the Mary IN North America. 375 oi Our Lady of in tlioso rof^ions. o patronaf^o it is i-iHliiiig mission!" in tliis wrvld, tlio Oblat'' of the ung [y''j own p(^cniliar np to obtain tlio in favor of oin- en- ) of men of good- 8sion. Ono of our our good Mother, inch I connnoncod hen engaged work- )\c, a hous(>, ; and I )een enalded to os- 8tli of May, in tlie lU can scarcely iin- n giving him my ! poor nussionnry, iipon the hanks of Ivhose hvngnago he ir, from the bc^iuti- withont l)eing as- tons l)rethren whom profession ! AVhat (le generosity! )U ov(n' the human ■oak asunder at the aamo time tho ties of nature and those fornKul by hahit! At thy call he forgc^ts every thing, mindful only of his divine Model, who, in order to savo ua, withdrew, so to speak, from the bliss of Paradise, and wrested himself from the ineffable embraces of his ce- lestial Father." Sometimes, however, as indeed is always tho rule iii this world, tho darkest hour is the hour before tho - dawn ; and pleasure comes from tliat which threatened pain. Our Oblates are chictly Frenchmen ; and many a thing in th(i Western wilds appears s.-i-vagci and per- ilous to those who issue from tho old civilizations, which is a matter of indifference to the trained Ameri- can. Besides, if they only imagine danger, t^ie pain of that is quite as great to them as any sense of I't^idjty. Only very stupid people laugh at imagined griefs ; not that tho grief is less, but that the mocker lacks in him- self the quality that caused it. When Fatlu'r d'JTer- bomez, an Oblate of IMary, in Oregon, hjst his way somewhere between that territory and Northern Cali- fornia, his position was not a comic one. " It was a case," he says, "for trying tho divining rod. I said a 'Hail Mary,' and threw th(> reins iipon the neck of my mule. At one time, I began to fear the Blessed Virgin had not heard my prayer. I had already been going at a sla])ping pace for some time, and yet saw nothing of our friends ; when, suddenly, I came upon a sort of village, consisting of some twenty huts, out of which streamed men, Avonien, and children, carrying in their bands some sort of insti-uments, I knew not what, and ■J 37G Devotion to the B. V. Mahy coming towjirdn mo. Tlu\y wore bliuik ; MfUilau' tlian any oonl ; Iho wliito of tlicir vyo.n and of tlicir tvotli soomod ;dl tho more sinking, and gavo tluMii, in Initli, a sinisti'i* asjxu^t. T was soon sniTonndcul \)y them. Now, yvvi soo, I was not yd nsed to this sort of tiling; tho ulca (hat thcso folks might turn out to ho antlno- pojdiagi mad(! mo I'ool what I would ratluu- not ox- pross. 'J'o Ix) oaton before I had ovon roachod iiij post, ap^vijirod to mo somowhat promaturc;, to say the l(!ast of it; so I assumed as bold a tone as I could, ami asked my way. Tho only n>ply I got was simply n horso-laugh. I was on tho point of repealing my question, when those on my right hand uttered a shout of joy, repeating in their language a savage word whieh I did not undeistand. Tho}'^ liad evidently made a discove'y of sonu^thing that pleased them, for they claj)ped their hands with great glee, " The ehief now approaehed mo. IIo was distin- guished from the rest l)y tho superior manner in whicli he was tattooed on the I'aoe and over the rest of Lis bod}'. Strings of beads, formed of human te(>tli, were suspended from his ears and neck. He made signs for mo to dismount, and I felt by no moans at ease ; resistance, however, was out of the qu(!stion ; so, with- out more ado, I commended myself to God and to our tender Motlujr." After all, they wore onl}'' glad to see him, these wild men. They made him smoke the calumet, and he found, on trial, that some of them spoke a little Euj,^- lish. It was tho sight of the missionary cross uuder ^ •fmmaem^'- IN NouTn America. 377 to seo him, tlicso wild the calumet, ami lie Ln s])oko a little Eug- InissioTiary cross iiuder his cloak that made tliom glad, tlioy Raid. Tlioii ho fiiiw a (!oum1o of cliildicn witli our dctar Lady's Scapu- liir and medal round t1»(!ir neckH ; and finally, ho dis- covered that tvvo-thinls of theia wore Christians.' Fatlier Ih'unet also, at La Cross(5, IFiidson's Bay, in 1857, has hi.s consolations. Lot him tell ns a story or so of Mary's rcMl children at Ilo La Crosse, Hudson's 15ay. One year, ^vhiKi giving his mission, lie was shuck hy the perfect, biiauliful serenity of one faco. It was the face of a girl of seventecsn, and vvhe ho would find in the huLi- tations of the poorest at least a table, prepared l)y some frieudl}- neighbor ; but ho would have to enter the Indian cabin by crawling on his hands and foot, to take gi'cat precautions against burning his clotlus oi soiUng them. But, under such circumistunces, where is the priest to deposit the Holy Sacrament while hearmg the confession of the sick person ? Thoro is not a single piece of furniture in the hovel, not even a log of wood. For my part, knowing bcd'orehand what I have to expect, I carry with me a small caskiit, not so large as a quarto volume, which I wrap in a piece of clean luien, and, on arriving at the abode of the savage, I place it on the ground, in the least dirty place. This is the throne upon which the King of kings is pleased to descend, while I prepare Him an other in the heart of the sick person by receiving his confession." IN North America. 381 Then, again, is not this a fit scone for tlio Mission of Our Lady of Sorrows ? "A poor old Indian arrived, followed by Lis wife and children, and laden Avith a heavy burden. They struggled through the deep snow, painfully, to the door of the Mission House, and, with bitter te£irs, told their errand. The burden which the old man carried was the dead body of one of his boys, and his request was for Christian burial ; for his faith was, at least, as givat as his paternal love. AYhen the coffin and grave had been arranged, I prepared to per- form the burial service. The cemetery is at a consid- erable distance ; there is along the road a quantity of wood, which obstructs it, and there was no one to carry the corpse. Two boys, one of whom was the brother of the deceased, tried to carry it ; but they had not sufficient sti'engtli, so that the poor father was obliged to resume his burden, now considerably in- creased in weight. My clerk was a little Indian, five years old ; although he had only the cross to carry, he fell several times, tripped up by the snow and the branches ; I was obliged to raise him, myself encum- bered with my book and the holy water. I had also to act as guide to the old man, that I might not have to lift him up also. On arriving at the gi-avo, I was about to let down the coq)se myself, when the poor father told me to wait for his wife, avIio had not been able to arrive in time. When she came up, the old savage knelt down devotedly, kissed the coffin, in which act ho was imitated by his wife and children. Ketum- ing all together to the church, in tears, I recited with 382 Devotion to the B. V. Maey .■/I m 1^1 ■•■ll'"- tlicm tlio RoHary, and sang a hymn, to wliicli tlioy re- sponded, as Avcll as to tlio Rosary." ' Father Paul Dnrieu" had spent fivo years in tho Rocky Monutaius, waudoving about from solitude to solitude, from forest to forest, constantly exposed to perish in torrents, to fall by the awful grip of tlic grizzly bear, scarcely knowing where to get food from day to day, or shelter and rest at night. Stiff with colil, rain, and suoav, wet to the bones for days together; after his long, long isolati(m, getting, as best he might, to tho next mission, one hundred and fifty miles away; staggering the last few miles of tho distance, and falHug at last upon the threshold, so apparently (\ving, thiit they get him to bed and administer the Extreme Unction. Plenty of sunerings were his ! The usual unscrupu- lous wickedness of dc.'aliug with the Indians in tlie States, was one source of his troubJes. Cheated first in the form of obtaining their lands ; second, in tho measurf>'^v.jrt; Ihird, in payment, and generally in every other point of the bargain ; the poor American was driven to desperation, rose, two or three thousand strong, without discipline, amnumition, or jirovisior, against tho millions of Celtico-Saxon civilization in 1858. Paul Durieu had a mission of four hundrcnl Christians ; who, obedient to the missionary, refused resolutely to jom the exasperated tribes. Of course, they were reckoned as enemies ; they were obliged to fly from their mission ; to leave their village, with its ' AnnalcB, xix. 343. « Ibid., xxxu. 212. ;Aa.-cj»«.«-;a23C IN North Amfhtca. 383 , to whicli tlioy ro- \\i<];wani ohnrcli, to the flames, and to take refugo in tlio mountains. Tlnvo mi,tj;lii}' hills thny crossed to reach their jilaco of rofu.t^e ; a ranf];(! (A mountains two hundred and fifty miloH in length, rising in enormous peaks covered with eternal snow. From the top of the last height which ilivided tlu^m fi'om their new home, they ](K)k(Ml down over the j^lain where the wild massacre was going on, and shuddered at the thought of how its thousand sparkling streams were tinged with hlood. At first the limiting was not bad; the bear and roebuck wore abundant ; and, when the hunters, with their Oblate Father among them, succeeded in finding a good herd, tlioy would remember who sent it, and, kneeling upon the snoAV, they "would sing the jivn ^fftris S/cJIn, to tliank God, through the medium of the Blessed Virgin I\[ary, for giving them food in the wilderness." Twice had the savage pagan warriors been cmshed by the civilized cannon ; and now furious, not tamed, by their deficits, they were searching all the wilderness for re-enforcements ; and one night a fierce troop en- tered the Christirai encampnumt. The}- knew that the Oblate of Immaculate Mary had prevented his people from joining the fii'rcc foraj'S of the heathen. He heard tliem coming and yelling oiit his title. He foil upon his knees, made a solemn act of contrition and recom- mendation of his soul to God, and then awaited them, b a few moments they poured into his lodge.' Ibid., xxxii. 212. ' Annales, xxi. 221. 884 Dkvotion to the B. V. Mauy i, l',i ■^ " IToro \h tlio priest," ho Raid. " What do yon want of liimV" Th(* cliicf sliowcd tlio (^ords tliat vore to biiul him. 'V]h) wnrriorH bnindishcd tlu^ ^iuih and tlio kuivt'H that wcro iiit(Mi(h'd, at huist, to iiititiiidatd him. but ho said, " Do you know in whose- h)d^' niinistor of JeHUH Christ; to tho mcssen^'cu' sent \)y Hod aiiioii" you; to him who is sjuirifitdnjj; liimsclf for yonr sulvu- tion. And your minds arc so perverse, yonr lieartsNo unj^ratefnl, that 3'(m wonhl do him harm. Are you not afraid tliat tho Master of Ileavcui will (h^slroy you on the spot? If you are thirsting' for my blood, T am in your hands: piereo tlui heart tlnit has always lovctl you; her(> it is," and ho barcul his breast, adiliiig; *' Strike if you daro, and all will bo consummated,— your orimo and my sacrilieo." Tho heathens Avero sullen and silent, and Mary's Oblato continued: "You want ])owder and hills; I liavo none. Ihit, if I liad them, I would not ^msc tliom to you, nor would I bocomo associated with your mas- sacres, by furnishing you with tho means of c(jiuiiiit- ting them. Tho Black-robo is tho man of [>eace ami charity. Hi. is ready to give up his life to save yours: he detests those wlio would disseminate death. Go from mv lodge. Tho Master of Life will dad with you some day. Ho will take vengeanco for -what you are doing now. But I entreat Him to hav(! pity on you, and to change your hearts, for I cannot help loving you still." Then tho chief said, " Ho has said it. It is true. The Black-robo was and is our best friend. Mary IN North Amf.rica. 385 What <1() you want corils that voro to :hI tlic (j;ut\H and tlin ;, to iiitimiilatt' liim. HO 1()(1^(> you staad, It is to tin' iniiiistci' sent l)y (lod among iisoH f(U' your Halvii- ^'('rH(>, your licarls ho I harni. Arc you not 1 will (loHtvoy you on )!■ my 1>1»)()(1, I am in lilt liaH always loved his bivast, ail(liii<,': bo coiisuumiatuil,— 1 Hilcnt, anil "Mary's )()\V(l('r and halls; I would not }:;iv*' tlicni iiilcd with y.'iir ums- K! means of i-omiiiit- ic niiui of pcai'o and lis life to save yours: scminate death. Go ifo will deal with you u'(^ for what yim uro to havi! pity on you, I cannot help loving 'He has said it. It d is our best fiicud. Pardon us, Blaf^k-roho, wo woro ordered hy our chief to conm. "Wo ^o away now, without doin;^ liai-m. Tlio I'lack-robo Hhall always b») our friend." 'riien they hIiooU hands with him, and diifdcd, in their silent way, down tho mountain. Well for Ihcm, most probably, for tho t'liristian Indians soon returned from tho chaso ; and liad they seen tlieir priest threat(Mied, bloodshed would havo (tevtainly c^nsuod. "But," as thoy aro so foiul of ropeatiji^ in their l('tt(>rs, " Our Mother ImnuuHdato watches over her Oblat(>s." Tho poor Indians, preposterously simydo in tlui eyes of tho schoolmen, aro so blessedly childlike in tho ey(!S of our Clod. Ono poo?* old INFonta^nais at the ^fission of Our T^ady of Sorrows, was found to pass his Fiidays altorliiin wlicditT I (lid rij^lil, l'\illi('r, l>ui T Hiiid Wm Bl(>ssi'(l ^'il•,l;il^s KosMi'v (lircd iiiiics.'" And \V(> iiiiisf, rcniciidx"!', in (|U(Mi( I Mils. 'I'lu'y un^ iunoiij^ Uio HiiVM|;t^ |);i|;:uis of (licir r.'K't' ; akin l>y blood, soparnlo l>y rclii^doii ; mid, faillifid in sucli (•iicniMHtanccs, run lie doul»l. (Jial. ;is with Abraliain of old," "it will !>(> nM-lvoncd to tiiciii for f:;r(>altM' iij;li(t>ousm'ss V" l"'aJli('r l'\araiid, of Mary's 01)lait's, sliows us in a. slu'fcli liow wild cirtuiii- staiiccs of association necessarily ai'c." Ilo sajs: "On mv return, 1 fonnd an ass(Mnl)la,u;o of lift v In- dians, leapini;, shoutin;.^, Iiriui; ^Mins, and inea|)alil('of restraining!; tiie e\|n'(> .sion of their eidluisiasni and joy. Anionj;- llieni \ver(> two old men. still inlidcls, Imt par- tially aciniainted with tht> sacr(>d truth, '(iood and merciful (uxl,' (>\cIaini(Ml one of tlioni, ' I thaid; Thco for liavini;- ptMinittt'd me to live to se(^ 'J'hy |tricst, tlirouj^li whom 1 am to tain salvation.' The Indian coronioni(>s havint;- Ixumi duly perfoiined, 'Fathei-,' said thoy, 'do you consider our liair sulliciently f^ra} ? Aro wo snlVieiently rip(> for hoavon? Wo aro not attaclird to the ]>rest>nt life, but wo liavo nskod of (iod to ^i.int us tlu> fav(U' of livinjf to sc>o aj^aiu your face, and re. ceivinij; baiitism.' On lu^aring my alHrniative reply, tlicy dried their tears, and I proootuled to the fort. ' Aniinlcs, XX. lot. American oil'ilion. " St. I'luil lo tlu! Ilobri'ws. ' Auuiiios, XX. 22;J. Aiuoricau odition. i-r, l>ut T Hiiid U>o " I osiiinnUdn of (licso 'inntaiioiis iiiul foli- um S!iv;i|;t^ p.'i.j^'iMis of V. l>y i-clij^ion ; iuid, n lie (lodM tliiii !is (M'UolH'd ll> tltt'lM for I'^nrnntl, <>f IMiiry's ,• wild tlu's«> cinuiii- iro." ll*>s:i_ys: ;»«inl)l;i;-;«> <>f <'l"*y Tu- ns, Mild in(':iit;ilili' of (Mitlnisiitsm :nid joy. ;till iiitidcls, lull par- irutli. ' (lood Mini uMii, ' I. thiiiik Tlico to SCO Tliy priost, jitioii.' 'l'li(> liuliau rnuMl. 'iNitlior; siiia Vu-'uMitly ^niyV Aiv, Wo iiro not altiu-litHl kod of (Un\ to ij;r!Uit I your fai'c, niul re- iiy atlinnativc nply, ii'oedcd to tlio fort. IN NOKTII AmKIIIOA, 387 III odition. lu odition. F>iit T wiiH Hooii ohlij^tid to loavo cvciry tliiii;^'; imiii(;r- OIIS J^IIII-.mIioIs llild jllHt \)VVU llaiity ; they liad conie, liowever, (o jiear the words of salvation. As tlieir lan}^'iia|^(^ is sninetliin;^- like, that of tin! i\loiita;4nais, I was aJihi to iiisliii<-t them ; tho iliUlciilly was io liea.r, for they spolu; all at once, HctrcaiuiiiL? uiid howliiij^ in the most deafeiiii);^^ manner. J could |)er('(!ive, ]iow<'A'(M', tliat they were s|i(!a,kin;^ of 5ii(! with admiration. Some of them, whom I had seen four years l>efor(>, want' I to im|)ose silence niton tlio ()lli(!rs, tliiit they nii^^ht speak to nu; alone ; but, it was (juite iiiii)ossil»le, for any siii;^h! voice to Ix; dis- tiiif!;iiished a,mid the tumult. 'I'll is sceiu! continucid until half-past (iloven at ni^dit, wluiu I dismissed tliem. If tho Yellovv Knivc!S should one day lieconu! Chris- tiiuis, I feel cotivinced that tluiy will |)ractis(! virtiu! to horoisin, 'I'hcy liavo lon^ Ixuui tlio tturor of llu; other 8ava,j,'OS, and they arc still tho most violent; l)nt aro not the nu)st violent dispositions tho nujst susceptiblo of {^iviii}^ tho hri^htost examples of virtue? "I uunouncod tho opening of tho INIission for the followiiif^ day, which was Sunday, on tin; morning of which day, the sun a])])oarcd to rise more bright aud radiant tlnui usual. Having concluded uiy meditation, I rang tho hoW, and tho Indians, at tho first signal, tillod tlio room tliut acrvod us aa a cliurcL. After Mass i!M;i I >f"'U' 388 Devotion to the B. V. Mary ■% ■■z^^, and instructions, the chief of the Yellow Knives, a man of good sense and regular conduct, remained with me, together Avith the second of the old men, who, also, had asked to receive baptism. ' God,' said the latter to me, with an earnest look, ' the God, whom you preach, must be good beyond expression, since you are so good.' Then, addressing himself to the chief of the Yellow Knives, 'What country has given him birth? who has inspired him with the thought of coming here to instruct us, poor, miserable creatures, who were so deserted ?' The reason appeared evident to the other old man, who replied : ' Father, I now see you for the first time, although I have long had the desire of meeting you. But I am happy in having thought of one thing that you have preached to us. You spoke to us of the omnipresence of God ; some of my tribe considered this very extraordinary: well, I then explained to them how this could be possible. If the sun, which is so small, lights all our forests and lakes at the same time, is it astonishing that He wlio has made the sun should bo able to penetrate and search even the bottom of our hearts?' " But I was not to overlook the principal aim of my voyage. The mountains of snow had already disap- peared imder the sun's rays, and my workmen hud already prepared for me all the building-wood. I took two men with me ; we got upon a raft, upon which we drifted towards Elk Island. To relate all the dangera we incurred that day would be impossible. Some- times in the water up to the waist, wo resolutely p-'"- IN North America. 389 sistecT in clearing the ice wliicli would not give way ; sometimes we were carried away by the current, and we were in danger of disappearing beneath these float- ing mountains. At one time, while seated astride of a flake of ice, I was thrown into the water, and should have been drowned had I not been an expert swimmer. I got out upon another piece of ice, and was caught by my men ; but I was obliged to desct d in the raft, and return with them to the fort without having suc- ceeded in my attempt. Tlie following day the wind changed, and drifted away the ice. We hastcmed to set out ; the building-wood was put on board, and at four o'clock in the afternoon we landcnl on the deserted island. Our savages followed us, and we now went to work. For eight days I superintended the Avorkr.:en, hatchet in hand. When the house and chnpel l,egau to require less of my direction, I left my workmen to continue their labors, and resumed my missionary occupations. " Then a new clan of heathens came in upon us sud- denly, with salvos of musketry and rather discordant yells. Of these, only one had been baptized, but he was an apostle ; he had instructed liis brethren, and they might liave been taken for old Christians. Moreover, the numerous tribes that inhabit the banks of the great Mackenzie Hivcr are so desirous of instruction, tliat it is sufficient to initiate one alone to give to all the rest the essential notions of Christianitv ; so that all these Sfiva^^es, even those who are not baptized, look upon tlioraselves as Christians. I devoted the whole of i m 390 Devotion to the B. V. Mary tlie niglit to tlio cxaniiiuition of the ncw-comcrs, aiid tlio next d'.yj I was ciuiLlod to fix the time for tlio gi'and biiptisiuiil festival. Providence addcnl to llio solemnity of tlio event in perniitting ns to perform the ceremony in our modest chapel, which, altlioiigli unfinislu>d, avus available for the exigencies of tho occasion. "In the morning I ascended a small hill that over- looks the house and chajiel, that I might nun-e freely devote m^'self to praj-er. Beneath me lay two hun- dred and sixty Indian huts, and I heard a few voices muttering prayers. Ou tho previous evening I Imd exhorted tlnnn all to praj-er, and they spent tlie niglit in singing hymns and reciting the Rosary. At break of day, some of them, overcome by fatigue, had gone to sleep ; others were still engaged in prayur. On tho signal being given, they all assembled. After IMass, I cidled over the names, and thirty-six adults, ad- mirably disposed, received tho sacrament of regen- eration. A few days after, eighty otluu* adults wore sufficiently well prepared, and enjoyed the same happi- ness." And tlien how gratifying it is, to sec these groat heroes, these warriors of God, unmentioned in news- papers, unquarrelled for by parties, unawa: ,; of tlieir own grandeur, remembering so tenderly the fatlier, mother, little sister, whom they left at home in kindly France. Livhig in the wilds as God made them, unen- tbralled by the extreme elegance and didicacy of Nortli American civilization those me^. amid their wander- the ncw-comcrs, aiul fix tlio tiino for tlio 'id(Uico {1(1(1(h1 to tho uittiiig US to i)oiform lapol, wliicli, iiltliongh lio exigeucics of tlio ly NoiiTii Amekioa. ?J91 inga, and perils, and nohh HvU-sacri^u-o 1 S02 DEVo'noN TO TEE B, Y, Mary CHAPTER XIX. Maut'b Oblates on tmk Atlantic and in the Land of the Dacotaii. There arc other missions, too, loss near the North- ern Pole, but no loss fruitful in suffering. To nie tlioro is something inexpressihly touching in the aihlrcss of Father Bernard's letter from the Gulf of St. Law- rence. f "My Good and Dkaukst Mother:' " I remember that when I was still vor}' youiiijj, 1 onco read to you a letter from a missionary, in ^vhi(■ll he spoke of tlie labors of his ai)ostleship. He repre- sented himself as catechizing liis people late at night, seated upon a beam of liis half-or(H;t(Hl cliapel. This scene was lighted by a splendid moonlight ; and tlio secret desire of imitating the good priest was enldndh'd in my heart. It has pleased God to aid, by His grace, the sentiments with Avhich He then inspired me. It is now eleven years since I left France to proceed to Canada, Avliero I liave already built two churches, both dedicated to the Apostle St. Peter, my glorious patron, For the means to construct these two churches, I had ' Annales, xx. 2:28. American edition. IN North America. 393 THE Land of the Dacotah. the Gulf of St. Law- Brican edition. to turn beggar, aud I liavo now sufficient to complete them. " For four years, I exercised the ministry among the French Canadians, and it was not unt'l last spring that I saw an Indian tribe, in their normal state, in the midst of the woods. The dream of my early years is now realized, and it is to you, my good Mother, that I address the first narrative of my Avanderings. I left Montreal on the 13th of last May, and Quebec on the 20th, accompanied by Fathers Bubel, appointed to the cliiof direction of the Mission ; Arnaud, missionary to the Nascapis ; and Crepman, sent to Labrador. On our way to the Mission, in the bark canoes, we recited the Rosary and prayed together. We mingled our voices in singing the ]\fa(jn!/icaf ; to the eye of faith, it wiis a splendid sight to witness these thirty-four travellers praying daily in common. And at the Mis- sion we find all the Indian Christians. On our arrival tlio women run and pick up dry wood. They light a fire and boil the pot. The children gambol, and run in quest of wild fruit, while the men watch, gun on arm, upon some crag. You may, if you like, apply hero tho proverb, * that you should not sell the bear's skin be- fore having killed it.' Despite all the proverbs in tho world, the pot boils ; it must have victims — it will have them! Have patience! Do you see that iKcpculush (httle boy), nine years old, with smiling lips and a quick step? With as little concern as possible, he says to you, as he passes: 'Nofa shiship ; Father, some game!' Good, good! by the aid of the murderous 17* 394: Devotion to B. V. Maui loatl wo will have soiuo tjodes, sonic inoiuac, for (liniiei', and tlicro will bo somo loft for this ovoiiin^. Tliu juoal over, tho voyage is resumed until nightfall, whou anchor is cast, and all again laud. A largo fiic is lighted ; tho game will soon be cooked ; some coarso black tea will serve as a beverage. After supper, all, at a given signal, assemble around tho large fire, and recite, on their knees, the Rosary, This is followed by night prayers, after which an Indian, with a clear voice, intones, in his own language, three times, tho Farix Dominc, and three times, also, that invocation to the Blessed Vii^'u, — ' Sancla Maria, nftujiiua }xccatanun, ora nro nohisJ Then is added that touching iuvocn- tion from the office of the Church : ' Into Thy haiuls, O Lord ! I commend my spirit. Thou hast rodeoniod us, O Lord God of truth ! Glory bo to tho Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost ! Keep us, O Lord, as tho apple of thine eye. rrotect us under tho shadow of thy wings!" Sublime accents, how tlioy move the soul of tho Christian praying in solitmle be- neath a star-covered sky !" At 'iiugan, they find ninety Christian Indian fami- lies assembled, and " Mingan possesses a delightful little chapel, surmou'ited by a belfry terminated by a, small arrow, and ornamented with a cross. A bell is used to call to Mass the nomadic people encam])ed iu the neighborhood. There is a Mass at five o'clock, ' Holy Mary, Rofiigo of Sinners ; pray for us. * Conclusion of the Compline Office, llomun Breviary. IN North AMERirA. no," iBfc iHonidc, for dinner, Ohristiau Indian faini- posscsses a doli^'htful belfry terminated by a 'ith a cross. A bell is ic people encamped iu Mass at five o'clock, procod(Ml by prayer, and acpoTnpnni(>d by tbo sinpnq of liymns. Tliis is followcMl by instruction ; .nnd, at fioven o'clock, by tlio last Mass. An Indian woninn, wliom I asked if slio were not fatigued Avitli remaining so long at cliapcl, and always in a squatting posture, replied : ' I wish the Fathers would rcm.'iin with us always. Can we nialco too much of them during the days of the "Mission ? Ah ! if you knew how long the months appear when we are without priests !' ' And what,' said I, 'do you do on a Sunday when we are not Lore? Do the men hunt?' 'NoA'cr, Father, unless tliey have hvon unsuccessful the night, or night but one, before. The Great Spirit does not wish his chil- dren to die of hunger. About the time when we know diat the High INFtiss is IxMng offered up in the parish rliurchc^s of Canada, we read prayers and r(>cite the Pvosary, and so also at the time for Vespers. This is all our consolation while awaiting the return of the Mission.' "These words, I am Vtound to say, wct-o fully jusu- fied in their condiict. You Avould be delighted to see tlicm go aliout their avocations, the Avomen inside the cabins, the men outside ; some fishing, some hunting, and others building bark canoes. You wou'd bo equally surprised to see them leave off work to go to confession. You would not, perhaps, find one who ■would content himself with going only once. At night- fall they assembled at the chapel to sing hymns, which arc followed by the recitation of the Eosary, prayer, and benediction, and expositicn of the Blessed Sacrament. 39G Dkvotion to tiih B. v. M\\\y "Tho (lovotions aro tonniimtcMl l>y tlui sin<:;i)i«^ of u lijmii to Mtuv, of Avliich tlio following- in a tiiinslution of tlio livst mid niniplo stroplio : "'How I lovo to lt)ok upon tlio QiUHni of Heaven's Hacred image ! My lieavt and my voice have alwuys uiidevstood her language. She say.s to me, with a .smih^ — Come, my child.' "I must also sixuilc to you of the procession in honor of the Blessed Virgin, ■which generally clos(>s the Mis- sion. At that to Avliich I allude, a statue of our good Motlu-r, brought from Franco, was borne \)\ Imw young ^lontagnais girls, while four others held tli > ends of the ribbons. All of them might have saiil, with the Yirgiii of Solomon, ' Nifjra sum, sed JhritiDsn :' we ai'e black, but this by no means i)revents us fidiii being pleasing to the Qu(H'n of Heaven.' During the proce)ssion, a company of hunters from time to tiinc discharged their guns. Each report was instantly an- swered by the cannon fired on board the Canadiemic, moored in front of the chapel; and her numerous crew, at least the major part of it, had come, by our invitation, t( hn-m an escort to the imiige of the Pro- tectress of France and Canada. You will be as- tonished at the grandeur of this ceremou}', if you re- flect that it took place at a distance of four hundred miles from Quebec, upon an uncultivated coast, and in a wood, in which, in spite of the gnats and musquitos, I had opened a road, eighteen feet wide and five Imii- ' Sojig of Song3. l)V tlu>. sin-^in;^ of ,. ft/ \'uvr is ii tiiiiisluUon Qu(;cu of Ifi'avi-n's y voice hiivc ivlwayH savs to iiH>, witli a ) procession in lioimr n-ally closes the ^Mis- a statue of our good was borne by f L's from time to tiiu." piu't Avas instantly aii- )()ara the Canadiouin', and her numerous f it, had come, by our ,(', image of the Tio- You will be as- ceremony, if you re- ance of four hundrod ultivated coast, and in gnats and niusquitoN loot wide and five liuii- IN North America. 397 (Infd yards long. "We inaugurated it on the i)rovi()Us rvoning by planting a largo cross, to which disconso- late! souls may come hereafter for strcaigth and con- solation. Wo have seen, this year, 1803, that struggle of the Sioux for the possessitm of Minnesota, whieh will probably be their last. AYe havt; read of their out- rages, and of the lumging of some seventy of them. Let us see how a civilized woman j)roposes to arguo the matter with them. It will give us an idc^i of the f(>rocity and savage hate for all whites which exist, as hfe-elements, in the boscnns of the untamable Daco- tali. " IMinnesota," says Mi's. Jane G. Swisshclm, " will never make peace with the Sioux Indians. Whenever they get out from under Uncle Sanniol's wing, we will hunt them, .shoot them, set tra])s for them, put out poisi))i((J hull for them, kill them by every moans we would use to exterminate panthers. We can- not breathe the same air with these demon violators of women, crucifiers of infants. Everv jMinnesota man ?'7/o has a soul, and can get a rifle, will go to shooting Iiulians, and he who hesitates will be blaekballed by every Minnesota woman, and posted as a coward in every Minnesota house." ' Now, if this be a just way of dealing, even retribii- tively just, with the Daeotah, we can gain an insight iuto the perils of the Oblate Father Mestre on his journey through the country of these indomitablo ' Lecture delivered by tlie above-named lady, iu Washington, ou Saturday, Feb. 21 or 88, 18(5:}. 13. :;i).s pFA'OTroN ro I'lIK ]). V. M.MIY If m "i I Hava}j;<'H 1((sh tliivn tlinio yv.arH n<^o.' " I would not writt! yow {\\rm\ lion-ors," lie huvh Io IMnii.sci^^'iiciir dc Mii/i'iiotl, " wciii il' lint to iillnr!! yoii joy iuid iiis|iiit> you willi ;^iiititud(', liy |H()viii.n' to you oiiccs niorr llmt, ill tlic midst of deserts llin most frimditful mid ronnidii- blo, till! Oltliitiis of Miiiy Imimiculiito are visihly |»n)- tocted l>y her wliom you teiieli tluiiii daily to invoke as thoir ProtiHitresH and Molliei'. " Nature lieisell' ^dves uk Mie (irst idea of wliat our j()uru(!y is to l)i>, I'or, ahoiit iiiiu^ o'clock at ni;^lit, just an we liiid all taken to our Idiiukets, and \ver«' (liiiikiiiL( of takiiiif a little re|ios(! on the hard ^n'ouiid that was to 1)0 our travelliiijj; couch, a most violent storm hroke out. The wind, blowing with fury, continually iit'tid u|) our tent and thn^atened to overturn it, whih' tln^ clouds poured down upon us a torrent of lain. Torn good hour we liad tlu! ^r(!atest didiculty in preserving our slii^ht place of slielt(M', and in |)rotiM!tin;^' our pid- visions aj^ainst tlu> water, which broke in ui)on us at. all sides, When tlu» stoiin had coas(!d, and the sky became a^ain sei-eiie, a leuijxst of another uaturi! was suddenly lu^ard in the lent uext to ours, and one, too, Avliicli gavi! us much more alarm than the one against which wc had been so vigorinisly strugi^lin^'. Tlio three half-broods, who had shown us the gn^atest civility, having l)oeu visited in the evening by soine comrades, invited tliiuu to drink, and drank with them to excess ; then followed shouts and songs, which were Annivh'8, xxii, 229. BuUiinore editiou. I. M.MIY ,ti\ ' " 1 \v(mlil nut lo Moiiscij^iii'iir tic vo\i if another natnn^ was Kt to ours, :ind ow, alarm than the one Ivij^onmsly strugi^'lin^?- ihown us the ^n-eatest |the evening hy «'>"'^' and drank with them Imd songs, which were IN NoUTir AMI'.ltlCA. 800 fliose of Inie Trocpiois : hut llies(! were Sf)on Hnf'f'e»^(hMl hy ipiarrels, iu\(\, as a liiilsh lo llie feast, liy Hangnlnary hiillles, for one of tjic coiiilialants rec-eiveil l\v(» knif<(- ciils in the orhil of the rjj'M eye. Tliis scene lasted Miilil three o'clock in the moi'ning." Tlien they striki; oil' into those honndless plains wlieic Jlie eye seldom H(!es any trace, of hnninii Wto, hctween itself and the far hon'/on. Ihd in a, feu dnyn a straggling Indian or Ira ler woidd meet tiiein, njid ass them rai)idi\- with llie news that tlie Sioii were "I IIP and soon," smvs I''ather ^festre we aw, iri [luore edition. the difection of tint northwest, jin ininieii'^e lire, uikI our people recognized in this ;i, piact ie(' of Ihe Hiotix, wl'o must liav( discovered ms during the daylinie, and wlio, hy this mis'ins, were, giving to their hrethi'eii, dis- jicrsed on iiie [U'airic^, tlu^ signal for a rendexNoiis, that tliey niiglit he ahh; to attack ns wi!h gr(;aler advan- tag((. This sn[)])()sition was hut too trn(\ "It so hap[ien(Ml tlnit, niuh'r these fearlul circnm- stiUK!(!s, -we had with us only four young half-hrecHls, not inoro than (lightecn years old, and a man of ahout fort} hut who app(;ared least courageous of all. It was in vain that we sought to rou.s(! him from the ]>r(!Occu- pntions that jjveyed upon us, as well as him; in vain ilid we exhort him to i)ut his whole triist in (lod and the g;H)d ^Nlary. Alas! it woidd seem he anticipated the horrible scene in Avhii^li, (devon days later, hv. was to fall a victim to the porfidy of the Sioux. Ahout six o'clock in the evening, just as we wi-re retiring within our camps, perceiving him still in the same clejected ^00 Devotion to the B. V. Mauy ..m mood, ' Como,' sai'T I to liini, ' I will stcind sentinel, and SCO that our horses do not go astray, and give the aljwm at tlio first sign of danger.' And, aeeordiiigly, with my gun on my loft arm, and in}' Ivosary in my right hand, I set to walking abont, in all directions, around our carts, stojjping at every step to listen." So they go on, over those seas of land, till, on the twentieth day of their jonrncy, they "suddenly lioavd the almost sijnultancous report of S(>V(U';d guns. 'It is all over with us,' said the men one to another ; ' the enemy is behind the hill; we are lost!' 'Lost,' ex- claimed Father INEoulin and I, as if instinctively re})eating the word; 'no, no, it is not possililc! the All-Powerful hand that has protjcted us thus far, will not aliraulon us. AYo are here two missionaries, two cliildren of Mary Immaculate : our glorious Mother i? wttli us. The shots came from a band of Dacotahs who liad fired at three straggling half-breeds. Tlie latter now came in and swelled the drunken, mixed-blood escort of the unfortunate Missionaries. These fellows tolil the Oblate Fathers that there were oidy twenty-fivi' miles left of their journey towards tlu? INIission of Saint Joseph ; and that there was no further daiii^ci from th(! Sioux. The truth was, that they had still one hundred miles to traverse, and that througli the very central caniping ground of thos(> vedoul)tahle lieathens. But "God and IMary" was the"r watoli- word; and earnest, practical Jxlnf in that wliich they professed, was their strength. But the luggage of V. Maiiy IN NouTH America. 401 [ will stand sentinel, ) nstray, and ^dve the L-.' And, ac'C()vdin-j;ly, [id my Hosni'j in luy out, in all directions, try step to listi-n." is of land, till, on tlie licy " sudd(!nly lieavd of several <:;nns. 'It 1 one to another ; ' the .ro lost !' ' I.ost,' ex- I, as if instinclivdv t is not possible ! tlic tjctcd lis thns far, will two missionaries, two Dur glorious Motlicr i? if Dacotalis wlio lisid 'eds. The hitter now m, mixcd-lilood escort These fellows toW were only twenty-fivi' ards tlio INIission of •as no further .laii^'or IS, that they had still and that thr(ni.'^li the of thos(! redouhtiihle ry" was the'r watcli- ,",/ in that which they Bu't ilie luggage of tlieir escort consisted cliiefly in whiskey : tlio unbred hrr.tos Avero always drunk and quarrelling ; and tlie two priests, " otFercMl to God for INIary," determined to "o in advanco of the caravan : hoping and believing to find that she, Avho is the " Star of the Sea," Avould pr()V(! for them also the " Star of the Prairies." They believed that they had twei^ity-five mih\s to go, and th;'y started: Father Mcmlin, with his breviary uiitlor one arm, and their stock of provisions swung on an umbi-ella over the shoulder of the other ; while Father Mestre bore a travelling-bag, weighing thirty pounds, attached to the muzzle of his rifle. So they go on, from daybreak until three o'clock, the tw(;nty- fivo miles of suj)position gradually lengthenii;j.'; out into the huiulred miles of reality. So the night fell at last, and there was nothing left but to lie down beneath the tufted willows which fringed the watereoui'se that guided tluin, with trust in God and His Tnnnaeulate' Mother, for their sole protection from the night-dew, the prowling AV(df, the grizzly bear, and the grizzlier Dacotah. "It is needh^ss," says Mary's Oblatt% "to describe the horrors of that long night. Half re( lined upon the ihinip ground, we covdd not sleep for a moment, for, at every movement of the leaves, we imagined our- selves assailed by enemies of all sorts ; and as I placed iiiuoh reliance on my gun, I never, for iin instant, parted with it. Ah, with what jtjy we witnessed the break of day about four o'clock next nu)rning ! After liaving ofl'ered up an act of thanksgiving to God, and BB 402 Devotion to the B. V. Mary implored the intercession of the Blessed Virgin for our protection, Ave sought the best means of crossing tlio river; but what was our surprise, on reaching tlio opposite bank, to discover an immense plain Ijctwicii us and the long-desired mountain !" — the moiTntuin at the foot of Avhich they fancied St. Joseph's missio)i lay. Therefore, they march on bravely, and find, at seven o'clock, that no Mission is there. Courage ! it is at the other side of the mountain ! So they set a stout heart to a steep brae, and climb the hill. And on tlio top they find the beginning of a new and apparently limithiss plain, stretching ofi' far to the base of anotlu r and a taller peak. Then Father Moulin is struck with an attack of ague, from which he had been for some time suffering, and falling down, declares his inability to go any fur- ther. What is to be done ; The escort cannot over take them in less tlian two days : they have had no foo; for twenty-four hor.rs ; on this elevated plateau there not one drop of water to quench their parcliing thiiw Then says Mestre : " ' What shall I do, my brotlie Shall I lie down beside you that we may die togetli or shall I leave you, and strive to reach the Mission And Father Moulin answered : ' Go forward, fricntl you have still any strength remaining. It may be tl St. Joseph's is at no great distance. Ah ! if you cou but reach it Avithout accident, you would probably llu there some charitable souls who would fiy to my assis' ance, and then — ' ' Leave that to me,' said I, Avil my heart swollen Avith grief. ' Ever since Ave were le IT 3. V. Mary 3 Blessed Virgin for our t means of crossing the L'prise, on reac-liing tlie immense plain Vjctwccu t-a^jn !" — the mountain at St. Joseph's mission lay. wely, and find, at seven here. Courage ! it is at tin ! So tlicy set a stout inb the hill. And on the of a new and apparently far to the ba^o of another struck with an attack o? n for some time sulleriiig, is inahiUty to go any fm- Tho escort cannot over- ly s : they have had no hv\ is elevated plateau there is iR-h their parching thirst, at shall I do, my brother? that we may die together, iveto reach the Mission r xl : ' Go forward, friend, i( omainhig. It may be tluU istance. Ah ! if you couW it, you would probably iiu'l I ^v'ho would lly to my assist- 1 that to me,' said I, ^vitl; ' Ever since we were lc!t | IN North America. 403 to ourselves in this frightful solitude, God has delivered us from so many dangers, that He Avill still be my pro- tector and guide, and will likewise watch over you.' With these words, I placed my gun and bag at the feet of my dear brother, and now, that I had tli vested myself of this heavy burden, I felt capable of walking several miles before nightfall. " I must admit, that when I saw my beloved brother, hitherto so courageous, lying helpless on the ground, I could not help feeling discouraged. For a moment I thought it was all over with us; but Providence, who had reserved for us this severe trial, came to my aid ; and no longer thinking of the pains in my legs, or the numerous blisters that had almost rendered me in- capable of putting my feet to the ground, I set out with almost as much energy as at the moment of departure. " I had scarcely proceeded three miles, when I sud- denly perceived, a few yarus before me, what appeared to be a man's head in the grass. * Hold !' said I to myself, ' there is a Sioux lying in wait for me.' I re- solved, however, to advance , trembling with fear, and recommending myself to God with all the fervor that an almost certain and inaneiliate death was calculateel to inspire. On approaching the so-much-elreaded ob- ject, I elistinguished a black cap fixed on the euel of a stick set up in the very path along which I was walk- ing. On approaching this trophy, I saw also two arrows on each side of the road, and beneath the cap, a large knife, very recently steeped in blood. This 404 Devotion to the B. V. Mary PI 1 was quite sufficient to con\'ince me that the Sioux must have cominittccl there a double murder within a fow days. Looking around me, I perceived on the grass, which appeared much trampk-d, some traces of hhny], f.nd shreds of ch)tlies ; thirty or forty j'ards behind tlio spot, a knot of dwarf willows, the branches of wliitli were for tlie most part twisted or broken, bore (>vi- dence that the eiiemy had made this their and)ush." The next encounter was with a Avolf — no dog-liko coyote of tlie milder prairies, but a gaunt, ta\vny-gi;iv wolf of the noi'lh. Poor Fatlni' Mcstre had notliii)" to do for it but trust in God, and to keep his und)re]l;i pointed at tin; brute. By and by it slunk away, aiul the Oblate felt bettor, until at sunset, Avlieii, liaving finished his Oiiiice, he heard the growl of nu)re tlaui one grizzly bear. No hujih'r's joy was his at the souml ; for the unaided und)rella is not reliable in tlio case of the bear. "Besides," he says, " I couhl scairtly bear up against the pain that was caused \)\ the cdu- traction of the sinews; I was also parclied witli thirst, which tended to increase the state of weakn^ ss to which I was reduced. I tried, however, U) drag iiiysilf along for sonu' time, firmly resolved to keep the prom- ise I had made to Father IMoulin, to walk day and night. 1 J Iso ex|)ected to meet with some Like or stream at which I should be alile to (piorich my tliitst. Biit at nine o'clock, finding myself deceived in uiy ex- pectations, and my stnwigth com])letely (>xhanstetl, I was forced to make a halt. I took shelter for the niglit luider some bushes densely covered Avith folia.ge, ami, IN North America. 405 before going to sleep, recommended nij-self \vitli all my heart to 'God, and to her wlio is justly designated the CiWiforlei' of the aj/lldcd. Apprehensive tluit I might only awake iu the presence of the great Jndge, I thrice repeated my act of contrition, then painfully stretching myself upon the already damp grass, Avith my cross in one hand and my llosary in the other, I laid my head on my breviary, and crossed my arms on my breast. In this posture, I waited patiently until sleep came to close my eyelids. But the SAveat in Avhich my Avhole body Avas sulTused, the dew Avhicli had already Avet my clothes, distressed me A'ery much ; and it Avas not till after having lain long and painfully awake, that a deep sleep enabiuel me to forget for a time the fatigue and sufloriiig that I had endured during the Avhole day. At ton o'clock I Avas suddenly roused by the hoAvling of the wolves." So u]) he must rise and stagger on again : but he blessed God for that, for eleven o'clocdv l)rought him to a river, shadowed by dwarf red-oak and maple. Here he quencluid his thirst, and, after one or two failures, succeeded in clindnng up into a triple tree-fork. Hero he felt disposed to mock at the howling of the noAv nuiuerous Avolves, for he kncAv that the brute could not cHnib, but a dee))er groAvl in the distance moderated his triumph, and bade him remember that the tallest trees are accessible to the bear. But he got some little rest, though broken, in his forest arm-chair, and at davbreak he felt better able to continue his route. And so still fasting ; chcAving the blossoms of certain 40G Dfa'otion to tiik B. V. Mary :^ otlorifevons pliinU for huiigivr, and lickiiij^ [lio dow from tlu! larjfo oak leaves to queneli liis thirst, lie i'oiiud hits way at li'ii^th to his Itrotluu- Ohlates of Muvy Im- maeulatci, at their iiiomitain Mission of Saint Joscpji. Ho hud been separated from Father IMoulin Jortn- Itro /loiirs, duiin<^' all which time that priest lay, jmjs- trate witli fever, on the o})eu prairie. I'nit ten stout men hurried off at onee for him, and it phrased ow Lord to save him for future usefulness on earth. But Father Goill'on, of Saint Bonifaite, caught iii a storm of rain, hail, and snow, saw his horse perish in a marsh, in December, 18(i0. His elTorts to save tlio poor brute exhausted his own rtuuaininy strtaigih, iuid he fell beside! the creature that had carried him. Five ihitjii and ii'iijldH he lay there in the Icnee-deej), half- frozen slush, j)illowed on and nourished by the dwul horse oidy. On the sixth day, his wild shouts of delirium at- tracted attention, and they found him lyinj' cramped there, and, with crazy hospitality, inviting all to sluiro liis delicious bancpiet of horse-llesh. Saved, he, but at the ex2)enso of one leg, and the foot of the other. A day or two after tluise were am})utated, tlu; mission house took fire, and when they cjit)v> to move him, ho said, " Leave me to die : go save those who are useful: as for ni(% I am no longer good for any thing." And they had scarcely carritid him out when the lire seized upon and consumed the room wherein he had lain.' ' Aiinales, xxii. 244. Baltimore. 3. V. MAiiY IN North Ameiuca. 407 Such in our iiiongro sluitc;!! of tlio 01)liit(;s of Thiudic- uliito Mary. Aro not tluiso tho k!<4;itiiuiit(! sucincssors of ihoHO f^riv^.d men, wlio strode in con(|ii(!st over this Vi)Ht land tliro'; centuries a<^'o ? Do not the s[)ii'its of Marciuette, and Jogues, of Lallemant, lircssiini, Danii;], Breheuf, h)ok down from heaven in benedictl(;u on these conipk;ters of tlieir work? Wliat, to th»^se he- rocs, are the toils they undergo, the ills tlujy sui'fur, the death that they confr(;nt ! All have for th(nr hattlo- call and rallying cry, these words of one of tluiir num- ber, now laboring in Texas : ' " IJlessed forever bo the sacred names of Jksus and of Mary, to whom we ap- pertain for time and for titornity ! too happy we in having given up our lives for them." ' Fatlior Mary Sivy, Obliito of Mary Immuculato. So« Annuloa, xxii. 251. Baltimuru cditiou. 408 Devotion to the B. V. Mauy CHAPTER XX. Thk Compant or .Iksdh aoain — The Immaculate Conokption in tiik Ro Ki' v L LATiruDKS — Uj;votion in Minnesota — Ouu Lady of thk Uoukv MOb'NlAl.NS. We arc not to s\ipposo, lioM'o\tr, ibrt nono otlicis are ofiored for Mary but tlioso wlio arc so by title as well as practice. In those same cold regions, side by side with this fresh young Knighthood of the Immac- ulate Mother, labor some secular missionaries : a few sons of Saint Benedict, and, of course, the in<>vitablo Jesuit. Pioneer warrior of God to-day as he Avas three hundred years ago, the soldier of the Company of Jesus preserves the spiric, features, and disci})line of those who evangelized the Abnaki and Algonquin of old, who paid for the souls of the Iroquois with their blood, as their Master had bouglit their souls with His most precious Blood. Year after year, new tribes, from among the thousands who still wander betv.'een Hudson's Bay and the Pacific, coaie in search nf the Black-robe, or are s ought out by him. The Dacot ili even respects him, and if he have harmed any it was by mistake, and all other tribes exhibit ^ o-day the wel- come of Hiawatha, as in the days Avhen Daniel and Mar- quette first visited the cool, siiores of GUche Guihme.^ ' The Eig-Sea Water : Lake Superior. The address of Hiawathf in the poem, is a translation merelv from Shea's " Mississippi." TN NoiiTH America. 409 U.ATE CoNOErXION IN TIIK Ho A — OUK LaUY Ok' THE lidCKY \er, thrt noiio others 'lio are so by title as cold regions, side by itliood of the Iininac- r missionaries : a few course, the in<>vitablo •d to-day as ho was Idier of the Company itures, and discii)liiio uiki and Algonquin of Iroquois Avith their ; their souls with His or year, new tribes, still wander between o.iio in search of the y him. The Dacot ili ve harmed any it was xhibit ^ 0-day the wel- when Daniel and Mar- s of Gltche GmitVie.^ The addniss of Hiawatbi blica's " MJssissipDi." From tlio distant land of Wahun, From tho furthost ronlins of morninpr, Ciimo th(! Bliick-robo chiof, tlio Pi'ophet, He tho Priest of Pniyi^r, tho pale-face, Witli his guid(!3 and his companions. And tho nol)le Hiawatha, Witli Ills hands aloft extended, Held aloft, in sij^n of wclcioiue, Wruted, full of exultation, Till tho birch cnnoe with paddles ' Grated on the shining pebbles, Strandeno need de- spair beneath the shadow of her name, how can we im- uyiiie that she Avill permit this nascent Mission to perish, since its future destiny is placed under the glorious title of the ImniaciiJate Concvpllon ? Is not this that tower of David, from which a thousand shields are suspended for the defence of those whom it is to proteet? Moreover, was there ever an ago in which this prerogative pr(!seiited an aspect so promis- ing for the future? Where could wo find, at the present day, a more secure pledge of protection, hope, and life? "The experience of the past already seems to an- 412 Devotion to the B. V. Maiiy r\i- swor for tlui futiiro. Tlio fiiif^cr of Clod has Htuini)i!il our woi'k, wliioh is His own, with a hiHtiii;^' imi)ri!HH of the Cross; hut from tho mjitorual hi'iirt of ^r.-ir}-, :i iVw drops of coiiHohii}^ lialiii liavo ahvady fancii upon us." Tho Ciovcriiincnt of tho Uiiit(>d States, in puisuaucii of its iinineinorial custom of extruding the Indians from its territories, forced hirgo hands of tho unforliiuuto rod-num, who still hngorod oast of tho ^Mississippi, into tho nortliern lands beyond tlio great hdces; aiid those immigrations aro hailed by tho missionary uh now grain to bo cultured and reaped for tho harvest of God. "I have already," says tho pious Father, "bapti/cd the rirst-l'niits of these future neophytes: of those \vho, with God's permission, aro to be tho objects of our affection here, our consolation on earth, and our crowu of glory in heaven." When this Lidian woman is questioncnl by Father Fremiot, as to tho motive wliinh induced her to embrace tho Prayer, ?\ie tells him this story. " One day, I W(!nt with my three children to an island in Lake Nipigon, about ten miles from the laiul. While eating some myrtle-berries and other wild fruits, a violent wind rose upon tho lake, and the waves, gradually rising, at length carried off my canoe, whifli I had loft close to tho bank. There I was, alone and helpless, upon a desert isle, with my children ; I thought wo sliould all bo lost. I did not, however, give way to despau-, out resolved to find out some means of saving my life and that of my children. I . Y. Mahy r of Ooil Ima fitampiul 1 a liistiii;^' iinpriiHs of il lu'iirt of ^liiry, ii iVw IrtMuly fallen n\nn\ us." StiitcH, ill i)iiisu:uic(> of ulin^ tlio Imliiius from Ills of the nnforlmmto Lst of tho ^lisslsHippi, I tlio groat lakes ; and by tho mlssioiiiiry us reaped for the harvest nous Father, " bapti/cil eopliytes : of those who, bo the objects of our )ii oartli, aiul our crown this IniliiUi woman is as to tho motive wliicli fayer, ;-;ho tells him this y three chiltlren to iiu ten miles from tho lainl. ics anil other wild fruitfi, le liilce, auil the waves, licil otr my canoe, which There I was, alone and with my chiklrcu ; I it. I did not, however, lolved to find out somo that of my children. I IN NoilTlI AMKniOA. 413 niado n sort of raft with two pieces of wood tied to- gcllier with flexible roots, and oronidiin^ upon it as if in a canoe, I seized an oar and pushed oil'. The storm had fortunately been Hucceedinl by a c()iii])l(!to calm, uiiiler favor of which, I reached the land without acci- ilent. But I luid no sooner landed, than tho wavos hogan to rise anew, so that had I been still in tho mid- dle of tho lake, I must have perished. I hastened in qu(>st of n canoe, that I might return to fetch my dear children, whoso cries of distress I could still hiiar in tho distance. At length I discovered tho object of my search, and immediately end)arked to I'etnrn. The water had again becimio calm, and I reached n)y chil- div.n, just before sunset, and fovuid tlunn all alive. Then it was that I recollected hearing our (dd men speak of the Great Si)irit, wlum I was still a idiild. 'He is above,' they used to say; 'lie it is who mado the earth and all things ; lie is the ^Master of Tdfe.' I had never thought of this for a long period ; l)ut I now felt that it was He who had sent this extraordinary calm ; that it was to Him my cliildren and I wore in- debted for Ovir lives. And hence, when 1 heard tho prayer of the Great Spirit mentioned, I felt an i^arnest desire to learn and embrace it.' " And indiHul, this poor woman surprised every one by the promptitude with which she learnt the Christian truths, although she only heard them publicly anmmnccd from time to time in the church. I gave this good ueophyto tho name of Mary Anne." As for his Catholics, it is nearly all consolation. iU Devotion to the B. V. Mauy They are so imcivilizeil and barbarous as to practise what they profess. One of these savages, closely ox- ammetl a year after his baptism by Father de Smot, said, with some siirjn'ise in his tone : " No, Father, I have done none of these things. Did I not pwmm the Master of Life and you to abstain from them?" Here, about the Mission of the Immaculate Concep- tion, they are like nearly all the other Cntholic Indians — thoy have " become like little children." Except tlie Kyvle cleiHon, which they sing, Father Fremiot says, iu Lafin,^ they sing, congregationally, the Mass and A'^os- pers, in their own dialect, to the notes of the Roman chant ; and, at sundown, on the day of the Lord, thoy gather, for tlie fourth time that ilmj, to recite in common the Rosary of Our Lady Mary the Immaculate. It is cold there in the winter. "A yoiing man, who was travelling in the woods, arrived hero with his cheeks and chin frozen black and blue ; and I myself, on going to the fort by a road through the forests, took ofF my gloves for about two minutes to wi[)e my spectacles, covered with a double coat of ice, caused by the respiration, for I had a shawl over my face ; but I found it v.tterly impracticable. My l)reath, in- stead of melting the ice, only served to thicken it. I could not have thought that this operation would havo frozen mj fingers ; but I became painfully aware of it a quarter of an hour afterwards, on entering a liouso and experiencing a sudden transition from cold to heiit. ' Annales, xv. 185. IN North AjrERicA. 415 I went out immediately to rub tliem in snow ; but it Wcas already a little too late, and tliis painful sensation continued for two or three days. On this occasion, also, wo were obliged to thaw the chali(;e three times during one Mass, although there was b}' the side of the priest a cliafingdish, and two stoves in the chapel. But what will appear to you still more incredible is. that the wine actually froze in the cruet, placed only half a foot above the stove! A journey during this season is not exactly like a pleasure excursion. Ima- gine that on some occasions, as was the case last spring, we have to walk on the melting ice, softened to the depth of half a foot, or make our way, with a watchful oxe, across the clefts which present tlunn- solves on all sides. Sometimes, also, as it happened this winter-, we have to cross the woods, Avithout anv road to guide us, wandering from the early morning till nine or ten at night. Once, for example, in cross- ing a lake at night by the light of birch-bark torches, ^\o tread ujion t!io newly-skimmed surface of a wide crevice, and are Avell drenched for our carelessness ; but the December Avind soon freezes our garments, and we do not feel the wet. Only sometimes, on these occasions, we recall our recreation Avalks over the hills of sunny southern France, where, somcwliat nearer to the skyey regions, Ave raised our voices to her Avho is their Qu(.'(vn, in the strains of the Salve licgina. "This, hoAvcA'or, is not the south of France. There is our trip to Prince's Bay — latitude 'lir"" 50'; air very pure there in the month of January ; bracing, indeed, 416 Devotion to tiie B. V. Mary as wcll-\\Tappecl-up old gentlemen call it wlicn they see a youngster sliiver. We started for the bay at two in the morning, intending to walk across the ice and to sleep on the other side. There had been a recent thaw, but we had forgotten all about that, and noAV it recurred to our remembrance. " There was, indeed, still some ice ; but it was so thin that it would have been folly to venture upon it. We were consequently obliged to make up our minds to encamp even at this unseasonable hour. The snow was falling in large flakes, and we could scarcely see two steps before us. We bogan by setting fire to a birch-tree. Tlie bark immediatel}' ignited to the very top ; and, by the light of tliis burning column, one shook the snow from the trees under which wo were to camp ; another, using his snow-shoe as a substitute for a shovel, cleared the place of encampment ; and a third went in quest of dried wood to feed the ^rc during tlio night. After having taken a frugal meal, eacli one lay down to rest upon a few fir-branches, near the extem- poraneous hearth. " I wrapped myself up as well as I coidd in my blanket and butTalo skin ; but although the snow had been shaken from the tree under which I was lying, there was still some left, which, being melted by tlie smoke, fell in large drops upon my face. Of this circumstance I became painfully aware, when I was wakened out of my first sleep by the cold, f(n' the sky had becon,<) clear, and a cold, frosty wind blew across the desert. I awolfo my men, who went to cut some x«4 ; V. Mary IN North America. 417 len call it wlieii tliey •ted for the bay at two Ic across the ice and to o had been a recent about that, and now it me ice ; but it was so dly to venture upon it. to make up our minds nable hour. The snow we coidd scarcely see ;an by setting fire to a itely ignited to the very s burning colunm, one under wliich wo were to -shoe as a sul)stitute for icampment ; and a third feed the "ire during the ugal meal, each one lay auchcs, near the extcm- well as I coidd in my although the snow had iider which I was lying, ■h, being melted by the pon my face. Of this illy aware, when I was by the cold, for the sky frosty whid blcAV across who went to cut some wood by moonlight. For my part, I turned my face down upon the bed, leaving the drops of water to con- geal quietly over my head. In the morning, the ice of the bay was broken into thousands of pieces. Hoav- ever, after a long winding, we arrived at length at the house whei'o wc were so anxious to arrive the night before. There we spent the remainder of tlie day ; and ahhough the boards were our only bed, we slept there much better than beneath the dropping of the forest trees. "But what are all these advent'.ires, fatigues, and even dangers ! If at this price, the priest should only suc- ceed iu adding one neophyte to this mysterious num- ber of the elect, he would have no reason to regret the sacrifice he has made. He would recall to mind the sentence of Saint Francis Xavier ; ' To go to the Morld's end to save a soul and then die, is an enviable fate.' " It has happened to this missicnary to be caught in a stu^'ra, towards nightfuU, on that grand inland sea, and .n order to save the canoe and its contents, to land upon an island rock, as the only visible sliclter and place of safety. On the top of the rock, some eigh- teen feet high, they found a few dead fir-trees, which gave them fire at least. Around them lay many well- bleached bones of the wild Huron and Iro(piois of old. There they slept, and when morning dawned, they added to their usual prayers those two grand hymns to sweet Mary Mother, the Salve JRcgina and the Inviolata There they pass, fasting, the whole day : very appro- cc 418 Devotion to the B. V. Mart \}-y \y ,;l priate that fasting, thinks the Jesuit, " for it is Friday in Ember week," and with the coming down of tlio shadows, came also a furious and nigh+-l-ng rain- storm, " with peals of thunder and terrible flashes of lightning." Father Frc'miot thus continues his narrative : " At length, on Saturday-, the Avind veering to the northeast, rolls the waves, gradually increasiiig in size, against the rock to which our canoe is fastened, and makes ns apprehensive that, if we defer any longer, we shall not be able to launch her again. But whither sliall we go? The stoiUi prevents us from returning to the Immacu- late Conception. Let us cross the lake. " We say the Litany of the Blessed Virgin, and pre- pare for the worst. The wind is on our side, and wo set up our blanket for a sail. Jjj this means \\\i ad- vance a little ; but the north wind gradually i" creases the force of its blast ; (>normous waves, .vliite -wUli foam, rise before us in rapid succession ; we cut tlioni in the middle, however, tolerably well ; but when wo arrived in the open water, about half-way across, tlio billows become irregular and the danger serious. Our only rower begins to lose courage. ' I said how it woiild be,' he muttered ; ' the wind is too sti'ong ; let us return.' The other was of a different opinion. ' Let us return,' I said myself, * if there is less danger than in advancing.' ' The danger is equal,' lie repli( d. ' Courage, then, my boys : mind how you meet the waves, and place confidence in Him for whose glory we are laboring. Wo have not undertalcen this voyage IN North America. 419 ;. V. Mart psuit, " for it is Friday coming down of tlio and nigl'^--l-^ng ruiii- and terrible fliisli(,'s of cs his narrative : "At ?ering to the northeast, L^ashig in size, against fastened, and malc(!S ns iBy longer, we shall not ;iit whither shall we go? hirning to the Inimacu- the lahe. 31essea Virgin, and prc- l is on our side, and we By this means wo ad- ind gradually i- creases ons waves, .vhite willi .ucccssion ; we cut them .l)ly well ; but when wc )ut half-way across, tlie lie danger serious. Our ura^'e. ' T said how it wind is too strong ; let dilTerent opinion. ' Let ;liero is less danger than is equal,' he replied |ind how you meet the Him for whose glory wo imdertaken this voyage from motives of pleasure or interest, but solely for the service of the Great Spirit ; He will watch over us. I will pray while you work.' ' Yes, Father, iutercedo earnestly with the Great Spirit,' said the oarsman, a heathen. 'Without doubt, my son ; do you also pray to Him in your heart, and ply your oar vigorously.' And, while I was repeating my llosary very devoutly, I saw the young man moving his lips as if reciting a prayer." Next day the pangs of hunger are rather sharp, but one effect of this is salutary. " When we rjpeat the ' Our Father,' we have unusual earnestness in the peti- tion ' Give us to-day our daily bread.' And wc did indeed recite it with feivor, accompanied with a prayer to the Blessed ^ irgin for calm on iho following day. IL: jmra tntiim/' and so at length on Siinday "we reach Rock Harbor in time to recite with tlie Indians the Rosary and the Litany of the Blessed Virgin." And then Father Fremiot signs himself, " Yours faith- fully, in the Sacred Hearts of desus and of Mar}'." While these, then, keep the ilelds which the prowess of their predecessors won for our Blessed M(jther east of the Fathei of Waters, others start westward from that stream, and conquering the wild tribes of the hison-trodden prairies, pass the savage gorges and tall peaks of the Rocky Mountaiiis, and plant the everlast- ing Cross upon the strand of the Northern Pacific. Tlieir limits are, hitherward, the Mississippi States ; beyond, the long shore-line of the great ocean as it runs northerly from California, past Oregon, and tlieu 420 Devotion to the B. V. MAiii trends:, westward and northward to 55° north hititude, near the regions of perpetual sno' 'S. On our way thither, if wo go by the north, let us hear from Futlicr Eayolle, Apostt^lic Missionary in Minnesota, his means of confidence when, in 185G, he enters the territory of the terril)le Sioux. He tells us that " having set out from Saint Paul's on the 6th of August, I reached, ou the 8tli, the caravan of Pembina, at the point where it crosses tlie Mississippi. This was my Ilubicou. I p'lssed it in a light canoe ; I then went on my knees to offer my life to God, to implore Ins protection, and to recommend myself to Mary." Then when he comes into the very presence of the peril, it is tlius that lio takes courage and imparts it. "Although but a small number, the half-breeds were confident of their ability to defeat three hundred Sioux. The former are brave, and well skilled in warfare; they load and fire, on horseback, with extraordinurv rapidity, and in this consists their great superiority over the savages. Besides this, wo placed our hopes in God ; we reflected that Mary was with us. My companions observed : ' There are many persons at Pembina who are praying for us, and who are j)erforiii- ing ex'^rcises of devotion for our intention.' We said prayers in common every evening, and when, in conclusion, I recommended our vo3\'ige to the good Mother, they responded with especial devotion. On Sunday, we had Mass in the morning, and the Ptosary in the evening- On the Feast of the Assumption, the altar was erected on the banks of a beautiful lake, and 5ns eSS!'"!' IN North America. 421 lighted up by the rays of the rising sun. This was probably' the first time that Jesus Christ h.ad been offered up in these solitudes ; the first time that the triumph of the Queen of Angels had been mentioned, or the happiness of loving her. Hope in Mary is honey of the desert, the refuge of the traveller, an im- pregnable rampart against every enemy. AYlienever you go to Notre Dame, beg of the Blessed Virgin, that my love for her may increase, that I may labor for her honor until the end of my life, and that at my last hour I may obtain her powerful intercession." ' In far Kansas, Oregon, and those Eoclcy Mountain lands, however, as all scholars know and speak of, as the Government of the United States is aware of, to its benc^fit, what dominion based on love there is among the wild men, is given to the Blaek-robe by these grateful Americans. Start from the central point, St. Louis, and push your way anywhither towards the Eocky Mountains, and you Avill bo sure, by and by, to see a picture like this. evening, and Avhen, iu )ur voyage to the good especial devotion. On norning, and the llosary of the Assumption, the of a beautiful lake, and " ' On the western slope of these mountains, Dwells in his little village the lihick-robe chief of the Mission. Much he teaches the people, and tells them of Mary ami Jesus ; Loud lam;h tliuir hearts with joy, and weep with pain, as they hear him.' Thither they turned their steeds ; and behind a spur of the meun- tains, Just as the sun went down, they lieard a raunnur of voices, And in a meadow green and broad, by the banks of a river, Saw tlie tenia of the Christians, the tents of the Jesuit Mission. ' Annalcs, xxx. 88. Baltimore edition. 422 Devotion to the B. V. Mary U:!.li>f a towci'inn: oak, that stood in tlio mUlat of the villn^jo, Knolt tho Hlack-robo cliiof with Viis children. A crucifix fastened Higii on tlif trunk of tho troo, anu nvoivshudowod hy grape vhitiH, Looked with its ug -■id f;., -ix tl i multitude kneeling- l)eueiith it. TV, 'a was ('ir rur.,* 'iiip«"i. Aio •'., lirouirh tlio intrh'ate archi's Of its aerial roof, n'-oti f,he chant of their vespers, Mingling iis notes .vitj' ■.fti ■taf'rrus and bigiis of tho hranches. Silent, with heads uncoverei, tlit 'Hers, nearer apj)reacliing, Knolt on the swarded floor, and joined ui the evening di'vutions. But wh 'n tlie service was done, and the benidiction had i'liUen Forth Ironi tho hands of the priest, like seed from tho hands of tlie sower, Slowly thc! reverend man advanced to the strangers, and hade them Welcome." ' Ex v)io (hfico omnes. Wo shall only ft^llow one of these servants and cliildiHui of Mary, and hint so slightly that this shall not merit to be called even a sketch, for, in all that vast territory, I know not whotlier there be any thing, gi'eat or small, that he has not seen ; out of which he has not drawn profit for Innnaii souls, instruction for human minds Tho auth(n'i(ics of Washington thank him for the topograpliy of tliose lands of tlieirs ; the army asks his attendance, with till respect for their valor, as a safeguard. No savage so wild, as will not, at least, listen to him. As he threads the immemorial forests he classifies the trees ; as ho moves over the prairies he notes and catalogues tho wild-flower and the esc\ilcnt or medicinal weed. The haunts and habits of the grizzl}'^ bear tiud wolf; the marks and seasons of the rock antelope, and tall, peak-loving Avdd sheep ; the dam of the beaver ; tlie ' Longfellow's " Evangeline," iv. fi ;. V. Mary IN NonTIT AlvTERICA. 423 midst of the villnjr<^. Ircn. A crucifix I'listont^d iiudowed by graix' vin.w. iltitudo knei'lini'- lifiu'ntli It. iUirli till? intricate! lu-clu's r vi'spors, IS and biglia of tho bnmclius. llcrs, nearer a\>i)niaclung, ,u the .-vening dcv(.tioiis. o bentdiction bad iiiUi'u ,0 seed from the bauds of tlie ;be strangers, and bade lliem Aiall only follow one of of Mary, and liim so icrit to bo called even a itovy, I know not wlietlior small, tliat lie 1ms nut t drawn profit for liuimin minds The authorities the topography of those Is his attendance, with all .afognard. No savage so ,11 to him. As he threads flassifies the trees; as lie totes and catalogues llio (1- medicinal weed, be grizzly bear and wolf; rock antelope, and tall, dam of the beaver ; tlie Ung'^li'^'^'" IV. lurking-place m the mink; the spot where the otter ot'f M >st plunges in the pool tli ■ lino whom the rabbit bt^gins to grow white, a7id tliat from which the wiry pniiinc leaps almost invisible over suoavs no more spot- less, save the black tail tip, than himself : all these, and the ^-eins of the minerals, arc most sih utl}' taken note of by this apostle. Read one letter, and you would say tliis m^^n has done little but hunt ; from a second, you w^uld fancy him a naturalist ; from a third, a mere painter or poet revelling in the grandeur mid beauty oi tlie nature he surveys — were it not tliat in all you see the presence of God ; the ceaseless zeal for His greater glory ; the devotion, as a mental char- acter, to the Heart of Jesus; the child's loving reliance on the gentle heart of Immaculate Mother Mary. He is a man past sixty, twenty-three ycMvrs (^f them on these Indian Missions ; robust, tall, straight as a pine, silver haired now as the poplar of the country. Ho is grave, quiet, simjile, dignifiiHl. Bronzed, silent and (piick, obsfu'vant-ev'ed as he is, he might be a Delaware or Omaha chief. Very earnest and straight- forward, but of feminine gentleness and modesty : full, also, of merriment of the silent kind ; laughing more with the eyes than with the lips. A foe to no man liv- ing ; a friend whom all joxiv prosperity can attach no more close 1}% whom all your adversity could not sepa- rate from your side. An Indian Missionary, this man ; a Black-robe, servant of God, a child of Mercy, a sol- dier of the Company of Jesus. It was in the year 1840 that Father de Smet started ir T iw ff' i!!l «il 424 Devotion to the B. V. Mary on Ins first expndition for tlio iTiflians wiih ^N'liom ]iU name was to be so tondorly and iiidissnlul)lv niiitofl. The first force of sava{];os whom lie moots aro tlio Slie- ycnnos, who welcome him wariiilv, tlioir groat cliirf ordering throe of his fattest (Jofis to be served up as a banquet for the Blacl<-robo whom he d(>]ightod to honor.' By July, ho encounters the Flathead dopntn- tion who have come to moot him, and in the Octave of Our Lady's Visitation they roach the groat cmiip. Ah, how they welcome him! with what ear.iost joy! with what simplicity of devotion ! " Kdi'lriJiyir.nsfcn, the Groat Spirit," so speaks the high chief, " has a"- complished our wishes and our hearts swell Avitli joy." That night two thousand red-slcins assomblod bo- fore the Blaclv-robe's lodge for night prayers. By t1:e next year, the Mission of Saint Mary's was comph^tdy established, and the Flathoads and other tribes fonucil a Christian people. In all his wanderings at this time, he was treated kindly as soon as known. Even tlio tierce Blackfoet Sioux reooivcd him with reverence nw listened to his instructions. He visited thirtv-six dil- ferent tribes, numbering at least forty thousand sonls. Wandering among them he found a countryman, Jo!;; Baptist de Velder, from Ghent, an ex-grcnadior of Napoleon, who had exchanged grenade and axe for rifle and fur-trap, and had dwelt thirty years now in Xy!: 1 Letters and Sketches, witli a narrative of a year's residence ainoiii,' the Indian tribes of the Rocky Mountains, By P. J. de Smut, of tlio Society of Jesus. Pliiladelphia, 1843. V. Matiy [tiflians witli whom Iih id inclissolubly miito icnt, an ex-grenadier d red grenade and axe for ,lwelt thirty years now in IN Nonxn America. 425 ■ative of ;i year's rcsid.'ncoam.m^' utains. By P. J. n,i,dit (if TortuUiaii, that the soul of man is naturally Christian." Ho i.s a^aiu met by the Flatheads tho next year, 1811, near Saint jMary'H llivei', on tlu; Feast of Our Blessed Lady's glorious Assumption. Ho had to listou to a hundrcHl stories, and to learn with joy that " tin') had prayed daily to obtain for mo a happy journey lunl a speedy return. Their brethren continued in llu! same good disposition ; almost all, oven ehildren iiiul old men, knew by heart tho prayers which I had tau^lil thi!m the i.recediiig year. Twice (»n (;vc;ry week-ilay, and three times on each Sunday, the assembled trilio recited prayers in common. AVhenevor tlioy niovotl their camp, they carried with them, as an ark ol safety, tho box of church vestments left in their custody. Five or six children, whom I had bapti/ed, had gone to heaven during my absence : thxt y<''ii', oil tlu^ Ft'siHt oi: Our ion. Ho luul to listen ,1 Nvitli joy iliitt " tlu-y a liiippy .i«>"'nry iiml fen eontiiuu'tl iu llio all, even diildivn luul (U-swhirli Il>iiiltan-^lil CO on ovoiy wook-iliiy, V, tlio assonil)lo(l tvilto A'licni'ver tlioy niovod ■in, as all avk of safvty, loft in their custody. Kul bai.ti/(ia, liinl gouo tl„. vovy clivy after my oni I luul baptized tlio KH! of ;v wcmnel received |o luontlis before. Aiul lue as far as the forts a catecliunien, diod ci ribo, but in sncli happy L perfectly consoled for his soul N\ as in heaven, igo, seeing horself ou tlio baptism with such eui- IN NOUTH AMF.IlTrA. 427 TU'sfuoHS that hIio was biipti/eil by Peter, the Troipiois, iiTid received the iianu' of Mary. After liaviiij^' suii;^ a liynm in a sli'oni^er voico than usual, sho died, saying, ' Oil, liow bi'autiful ! I see I^Tary, my mother.' " From that tinu', the jMis.sioii of Saint jNFary's ad- vances steadfastly in saiudity. In October, tiio good blacdv-robo thus expresses his joy over tho souls of his red children.' "Next to tho Author of all good Ihings, wo returned tlianks to hor whom the Church ri'V(>res as the ^[othor of her Divine Spouse, since it has pleased the Divino goodness to send us the greatest cons met tho vanguard of our dear neophytes. On tho Sunday ■within tho Octave, wo, for the first tinio since my retui'u, c(d(d)rated the Holy Mysteries among them. On the lollowing Sunday our good Indians jdaced themstdves and their children un- der tho protect ivotnl servant of Mary, because the presence of God is even- where, and " iu that presence only is tin; fulness of consolation." " I cannot pass over in silence the pleasant meetinp; I had in the depth of the forest. I discovercul a little hut of rushes, situated on the banks of the river. Pvals- ing my voice to its highest pitch, I tried to make its inhal)itants hear me, but received no answer. I felt an irresistible desire to vh it it, and accordingly made my interpreter accompany me. AYe found it oecupiotl by a poor old woman, who was blind and very ill. I V. Mahy ed from my compan- l1 at once came to a bed in a point aLovit lerpendicular descent a rock as stvaiglit as a precipice of about ive that my situatiou iie slightest false step ind his rider into tlio i impossible, as on t)ne :, and suspended over My mule had stopped >scent, and not haviii.u; d myself to God, and, p deeply into tlie sidts bold leap, and safely nuch larger than that •Avherc by the devotid jsence of God is eveiy- ouly is the fulness ot :e the pleasant unH'tii!-- I discov(>red a little iks of the river. Pvais- teh, I tried to rnuhe its ,ed no answer. I iV'lt and accordhigly niadi We found it occupied , blind and very ill. I IN North America. 1.11 spoke to her of the Great Spirit, of the most esscutial dogmas of onr faith, and of baptism. Tlie example of the Apostle St. Philip teaches us that there are cases where all the requisite disjiositions may entirely consist in an act of faith, and in the sincere desire to enter heaven by the right path. All the answers of the poor old woman were respectful, and breathing the love of God. ' Yes,' she woidd say, ' I love the Great Spirit with my whole heart ; all my life He has bc(}n very kind to nK\ Yes, I wish to bo His child, I want to bo PTis forever.' And immediately she fell on her knees, and begged me to give her baptism. I luimed her ;Mary, and placed annmd her nc^ck the miraculous medal of tlie Blessi'd Virgin. After leaving her, I overheard her thanking God for this fortunate adventure." Listen now to the legend of little Paul.* "On Cln'istmas eve, 1811, a 1\'W hours before the midnight Mass, the village of St. INFary was deemed worthy of a sp(>cial mark of Heaven's favor. The Filessed Virgin appeared to a littler orphan boy named Paul, in the hut of an aged and truly pious woman. The youth, pioty, and sincerity of this ohild, joined to the nature of tlu; fact which he related, forbade us to doubt the truth of his statement. The hdlowing is what he recounted to me with his own innocent lips : 'Upon entering John's Init, whither I had gone to It^arn my prayers, wdiieli I did not know, I saw some oue who was very beautiful. Her fei t did not touch ' Skctclu'8, ftc, }). 192, et seq. 432 Devotion to the B. V. MxUiy the earth, her garments were as white as snow ; slio had a star over her head, a ser^K'nt under her feet, and near the serpent was a fruit Avhieh I did not reel)glli^e. I could see her heart, from which rays of hght burst forth and shone upon me. When I first beheld all this I wab Tiightened, but afterwards my fear loft me, my heart was warmed, my mind clear ; and I do not know how it happened, but all at once I knew my praj'ers.' (To be brief, I omit several circumstances.) He ended his account by saying that several times the same person had appeared to him while he was sleeping, and that once she had told him she was pleased that the first village of the Flatheads should be called Saint Marv. The child had never seen or heard before any thing of the kind ; he did not even know if the person was a man or a Avoman, because the ap])eara]ice of the dress which she wore was entirely unknown to him. Several persons having interrogated the child on this subject, have foimd him mivarying in his !insA\ers. He continues by his conduct to be the angel of his tribe. " Next year, 1842, we performed the devotion of tlio month of Mary, and I can flatter myself that the ex- ercises were attended witli as much piety und edliica- tion as in the most devout parishes of Euro})e. At Die end of the month a statue was borne in triumph to th" ■■,. ry place where our Blessed Mother designed to h nor us with the aforementioned apparition. Since t^ul dji\ r. sort of r dgrimage has been established ther ,-, iiiA: r the m; um of ' Our Lady of Prayer.' Isouo V. MxUiY m North America. 433 \ wLite as snow ; slioi tit under liev feet, aud .1 I did not recognize. li rays of light hurst len I first beheld all ards my fear left me, clear ; and I do not L at once I knew my 3veral circumstances.) itpmr: 434 Devotion to the B. V. Mary 11 '5^ bers of tlio colony, emulating each other in their zoal to pay their tribute of thanksgiving and praise to their Blessed Mother. "When they reached the spot, one of our Fathers, in a short exhortation, in -wliich he id- niinded them of the signal pr(vligy and assistance of the Queen of Heaven, encourage . our dear neophytes to sentiments of confidence in the protection of Mary. After this add^-ess, and the singing of the Litany of tho Blessed Virgin, the procession returned in the same order to the churcli. Oh ! how ardi'utly we desired all the friends of our holy religion could have witnessed thv devotion and recollection of these new children of Mary !" See, then how this Blessed Name is known, even as the "holy and terrible Name'" of God is known, "from the rising of the sun unto the going down of tho same;"" liow it is siuig beneath the magnolias of Floridian wood .. and praised where the ice-bound sea lies silent round the coasts of Labrador; how the tall arches of eastern cathedrals re-echo its melody, and the soiind of its SAveetness floats oil' from the i)i'ak> of the hills of Oregon far over the Avide blue Pacilio. lu this journe}- of short two years. Father do Smet, with his colleagues, Fathers Mengarini and rt)int, havr es- tablished a chnreli in tlu^ wilderness. They have de- stroyed lying, thieving, and the use of t)ie scalpiiig- knife in several tribes. Tlu^y have restored marriage to its siniplicity and indestructibility ; they have ' Sanctum et terribile Nonicn ejus. — Psalm ex. ' Maluclii, iii. V. Mary IN North America. 435 acli other in tlioir zoal ,'ing and praise to their Bached the spot, one of tation, in which ho ro- (M.linry and assistauct) of ;c . our dear neophytes the protection of Mary. ;ing of the Litany of tlio returned in the sumo ' ardcMitly we desired all in couhl have witnessed )f these new children of Kainc is known, even as of God is known, "from ;he going down of tlio leath the niagnohas of vhere the ice-bound sea Labradtn-; how 11 le tall re-echo its melody, and :s off from the peak^ of 10 wide blue racilie. lu s, Father do Smet, with rini anil Point, liave es- derness. Tliey have de- he use of the scalping- have restorcul marriage itructibility ; they have -Psalm ex. ' Maluclii, ui. <;auglit the wild hunter to love agriculture, and, in some degree, the mechanic arts; they have elevated tlie woiiicn from mere drudges to Christian comjmn- jons; ; they have baptized one thousand six hundred and f(n"ty soids. Soldier and trapper, American fur-trader and British governor, no less than the poor Indian, bless tlie name and work of the Jesuit missionary. Governments seek his aid ; commanders of armies thank God for liis presence ; but Parker disapproves ; Parker is atliietcd; Parker will be an obstacle in those matters. " Who is Parker ?" you ask. I do not know. Father (le Smet knows or knew. It would seem that he had written a book ; tliat Parker had written it, since lie ])oasts that, in 1830, on his way homeward from these wilds, he, Parker, *' liroke down a cross jdauted by some Catholic Irociuois over a child's grave, not wish- ing to leave in that country an emldem of idolatry!"' " Poor man !" savs the Black-robe Chief of Prayer "Were he to return to tliese mountaius, he w'ould heai the praises of the holy Name of Jesus resounding among them. He would hear Catholics ia. Ho would behold the Cross planted from shore to shore for tk.e space of a thousand miles ; on tlie lofti- est height of the Pointed-Heart territory ; on the tow- ering peaks which separate the waters of the Missouri ' Skotclies of de Smet, p. 213. 436 Detotion to tite B. v. Mat^y from those of the Cohimbia ; on the pLains of Wiilla- mette, Cowhtz, find Saint Mary's. Tlie words of Him who said that this holy sign should * draAV all men to Him,' begin to be verified with regard to the poor strayed sheep of this vast continent. "Were he who destroyed that humble, solitary cross now to i-eturn, he would find the image; of Jesus Christ crucified, worn on the breasts of moi-e tlian four .'.lonmml Indians, and their smallest child woulil sav to him : ' Mr. Parker, wo do not adore the Cross ; but do not break it, because it reminds us of Kim who died thereon to save us. As for us, we adore God alone.' " And so Father de Smet leaves Par- ker, and the above is his only appearance in this history. Wo do, indeiul, d(!sire never to see him anj' 1 ' ^re. Nor .sZ/r///' we, probably, for the missionary has started back for Saint Louis. He reached that town in safety, and by the last Snmlay in October, 1842, as he tells us, " he was kneehng at the foot of Saint IMary's altar, offering up thanksgiving to God for the signal protection He liad extended to His poor un- worthy servant." 5. V. Mauy IN North America. 437 CHAPTER XXT. The Bi,\CK-ni>nK in Okk(io\— Ilnw tiik Black-koiik T*ii:s — IJocky M^-.-n- TAINS AilAIN Till': M.\U(;il t)V TBK Ul.A(^KKF.ET TO'ftl.MtDi Till-. S;,ii?sEOF OUK LaOV — A.'iKNAKI AM) Fl.A'lHKAl) TULCIl HANDS. It is by a long route tliat Father t}o Sji-aet revisits liis Indiana in 18H. Since we saw liini last, lie ba:4 luvn to Europe for re-onforcomeiYls, und returns in tlio Jloniing Star, escorting n">und Cape Horn, nnd up the Pacilic coast, to the WnlilMnK^Hc Mission on the Colum- l)i;i, "Sister Renilda aiinl hor companions," whose ac- quaintance we have ahliread^" made.' Before tnldng linal leave oi those good; Sisters of Our Ladv, lot us give tlieir academy the benefit of an advertisement ; and, for the convenieiK*e of any of our rcad(>rs wlio may de- sire to send thc^ir daugliters to Wallamette, for educa- tion, let us copy the luicii di>iiiiintliHl for ti ipiurter'3 tuition, as set forth in the Prospectus of the Sisters : "Tuition and boai*d per quarter, 100 lbs. Jlour, 25 lbs. pork or 30 of beef, 1 sack of potatoes, 4 lbs. hog's lard, 3 gallons peas, 3 dozen eggs, 4 lbs. candles, 1 lb. tea, and 4 lbs. of rici\"' Fv(nu which it may ho seen that the Sisters cannot often expect their claims to be re- mitted bv mail. ' Vide this work, p. 2.'5G * Missious do I'Ongon : par lo P6re de Snict, p. 53. All 438 Dhvotion to tue li. V. INFauy "It wiiH on tlio Feust of tlio AHsuiiiptioa of oiir glorious L;uly that wo left our lioals for (lie slioii!," Hiijs Fiitli(>r (!ii Snu't. That is, on tli(! ir>tli of August, IS 15. Jlo finds that sinco tin* Mission of U|»[i(r Ort'gou was foi ndcd, in 18o'.), thrco Ihousaiul imUans liavo boi'ii bapt /''d, and tluit three, thousand nu)ro arc to hi) ad(K'd to theso 1V(UU otlior Oregon tribes sinco 1811. Tlie track of tho BLvuk-robo winds through ten d(>grees of hititud(! and sixteen of huigitude ; going up to Athabascra, (ht; ]ni(Ullo one of tluit ania/ing chain of inhind seas wliieh unite thc! waters of Lakt^ Su[)erior with those of tho Arctic Ocean and Jlehring's Strait. A your after liis hmding, wi; find the weariless num at tho station of St. Mary's Assumption, tlio Mission of tho Flatbows, Arcs-a-jilal,'^. " Sinco uiy arrival anuuig tlio Indians," he writes from hero, " tho feast of tho glorious Assumption of tho Blessed Virgin Mary has over been to ni(! a day of groat consolati(m. I had time to prepare for tlu; cele- bration of this solemn festival. Thanks to tho instruc- tions and coi;nsols of a bravo Canadian, Mr. Borland, who for a long time has resided among them in tlio quality of trader, I found tho little tribe of Ai'vu-d-plala dooilo, and in the best disposition to ombraeo the faith. They had already boon instructed in the prin- cipal mysteries of religion. They sang hymns in the lu'onch and Indian tongues. They number about ninety families. I celebrated the iirst Mass over offered in tlioir land ; after which ten adults, already advanced in age, and ninety children received baptism. . V. Mahy IN NOIITII AmI'IIICA. 439 o AHSumiitioii of our boats for ll>«' ^lioic," on tilt! inth of Aui^iist, ^^ Mission of Upl'cr irco tlionsaml Jmliiins reo tUovisaml more uro cr Oivgoii tribcH siiu^o •oIh) Nviiuls llirou.^li ten of lougitmU-S goiu<^ up f that iiiiia/iny; cliain of ater.s of J^ak(> Suix-rior :i atiil Uehriiig's Strait. id tilt' wearilt'ss man at .mptiou, tlio Mission of tlio Indians;' lio \viitt'« glorious Assumption of cv l)i;on to mo a day of to propavc for ilio cclo- Thanks to tlio instnic- Cauadian, Mr. Borland, rd among thorn in tlio tic tribe of Jrcs-d-jMs ,sition to embrace tlio instructed in the priu- iiey saug hymns in the They number about the lirst Mass ever ich ten adults, already lildren received baptism. The former w(!re very attcniive to all my instructions. In the afternoon, lli ■ planting of the Cross vvus as solemn us cireumsianties would permit. There was ii grand salulfs of ninety guns, luid ai ilie foot of tho lowly standard of tlu; (iod-Saviour, IIm; ciitiii) tribe made a tender of their lieurts to II im, with tlu; promise of inviolable attachment to all the dutiiis (d' true chil- dren of th(! Prayiu'; availing themselves of this o(!ca- sion to renounce the rtunains of their ancient juggling and sup(U\stitist, and honor perpetual to Mary, the Mother Virgin Immacu- late. " So faithfully have my dear Indians prayed for me," he says in the same letter, " that, whether by sea or land, I have not suffered one moment's illness ; nor had to dc^plore a single grievous accident. Glory to God for so special a protection : and gratitude to tho good Indians who ceased not night or day to invoko the assistance of Heaven through the intercession of the Holy Virgin for her poor unwortliy servant." IIo dearly loves his poor Indians. What pastor of av- savage men will say this ? " When the priest gives the white robe at ba})tism to these people, and says iu the words of the Roman ritual,' ' Take this white robo and wear it spotless before tlie judgment-seat of Our Lord Jesus Christ, that thou nuiyest inherit eternal life,' he may enjoy the moral certitude that the greater part of these catechiimens will preserve their iniiocenco until death."' ' RitiiaU I{ot)in>i(im. Baptivn. Accipo vestcm candidiuii quara immaculatam pcrferas ante trn)unal Domini nostri Jt'su Ciiristi, et habeas vitani ajteruam. * Tlie testimony to the iirimitive piety and simplicity of religions practice among tlie Flutheads, F/ar-rings, and Awl-hearts, is not that of an entlmwiastic and imaginative young Missionary. Father de Smet is himself a very grave and quiet man : and he says nothing in this way of praise which is not equalled, if not surpassed, by the Pro B. V. Mary IN North America. 443 fitisli Nortlnvest possos- liing tlie G()sp(;l of tho QS, baptizing thonsaiuls lod in tlio higlu^st, and Mother Virgin Inunacu- Indians prayed for me," that, Avhether by sea or 10 moment's illness ; nor vous accident. Cdory to n : and gratitude to tho , night or day to invoke 'ouiih the intercession of iinw(n'thy servant." He IS. What pastor of v.n- ' When the priest gives these people, and says iu d,' ' Take this wbito rol)0 10 judgment-seat of Our mayest hdierit eternal certitude that the greater preserve their innocence \ ccipo vostcm cimdidiiiii quam Domini nostri Jesu Christi, et ii'ty and simplicity of n-ligious ings, luul Awl-hearts, is not that young Missionary. Father de t man : and he saya nothing in ud, if not surpassed, by the Pro Let Father Point of tho same Mission explain his ideas of the source of this so great goodness. He says : " It is to the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary that the pastors of souls owe their consolation ; at least, it is thence, beyond a doubt, that we derive ours. Every day our Indians invoke these treasuries of goodness, which alone explains the wonders which we relate.'" Yesterday they — the Cceurs d'Alenes — worshipped the beasts of the forest, the i^rinciple of evil, a colored rag, tlie hoof of a mountain antelope. To-day, all who are old enough have made their first Communion ; they are guiding cattle and sheep and swine ; they are cul- tivating the fields ; their squaws have become Chris- tian women ; their faith and their practice would shame us in our educated self-conceit, were our sense of shame nearly so delicate as theirs. " If ye have faith even as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this sycamore-tree : Be thou removed hence and planted in the middle of the sea, and it shall he do7ie." ' Most men profess to believe in Him who spoke these words, and explain these and all his other Avords to mean nothing at all. This, I am told, is the exercise of reason. It is lacking to tcstant governors, Indian agents, army offlc(!ra, and traders of this country. — Vide Exploring Expedition from the Mississiupi River to tho Pacific Ocean — Lieut. Mullan, U. S. A., j). oOS ; Govi-rnor Stevens' Report to the President, 1854 ; President's Message to Congress, 1854 -5 ; Washington Irvlng's Bonneville, pp. 3'J0-91 ; Putnam, vol. 10, &c. ' Do Smet's Oregon, p. 183. " Saint Luke's Gospel, xvii. 6. 44i Devotion to the B. V. Mauy the barbarians who inhabit tho Oregon village wliich is called " Heart of Jcshus." " Father, my little giiTs (lying; all your nieclichies have done her no good; she refuses the broast ; she is dying." Such is one Indian father's report to the Black-robe. " Has the child a medal of the Immaculate Conception ?" " No, Father." " Take this one then, hang it round liw neck, and do thou and thy wife pray the prayer tlu'r(!- on written : ' Holy Mary, conceived without sin, jjiiiy for us who implore thine aid.' " The Indian took tho medal and departed, and when the ]ilack-rol)e mt^t liiin next day, ho asked: "How is your little cliild?" " Oh," said the savage simply, " she is well !" AVliat wonder that every year tho tribe renews its act of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of that dear Mother ! But prayer in our days, however fervent and con- stant, will not win the white man's veneration. L( t us see if tho Black-robe bo good for aught (^Iso. It was a dangerous time going down the upper IMissouii; bloodshed daily : bitter wrongs were to be washed red, by savage men whose sense of justice was very uncivil- ized and primitive. As for us Black-robes, on tho 20th of October, 1847, we had gone ashore for the niglit— " oui" fire was seen by a band of Arikaras, armed to the teeth. They crept in close to us in the gloom, without om- having perceived any trace of them. Their chief recognized me (de Smot) in the fitful blaze of the fire, by the Cross which hung upon my broast, and by my cassock. He flung down his mace, which ; B. V. Mauy IN NouTii Amehica. 445 was quivering in his gn[»(; uh lio iiiaJc, lofuly Un- a spring, and bounding towards tlio fuo, cauglit lao in bis arnir., saying, ' All, Imt thou wort near (hjparting for the land of Spirits. We thought tluie fur fiom horo : we took tlu-'e for a f(je.' " Of all the tribes in this part of the desert, the whites have most temu' of the bloody Arikaras. From this chief and from uU his men lihick-robe de Snuit received a solemn [)romise, that they would never again approach a party of white men exc(ipt with the; pi})e of peace in tluiir hands. Now all who know Indians, know, that, whether for good or evil, t/ir// keep Ihcir proiniHcs. Look now at this st(jry of the l>hick-rf)bes, de Smet and lloiiken, if you fancy that their physical and spiritual way li(!S altogether through flowers. Father Hoekeii, rtunend)er, is returning from a visit to Saint Louis after fifteen years' Indian Mission. They arc on board a steamer struggling up the Mississippi to Fort Union, two thousand miles north of Saint Louis. The summer had been rainy beyond example, the Father of Waters was in flood, covering so much land beyond his banks as to be sometimes Jiftecn miles wide. There were over a hundred passengers on board, eighty em- ployees, for instance, of the American Fur Company. The force of the furious current rendered their prog- ress almost impossible. The ^aius were ccmtinual. The change from violent heat to piercing chill damp occurred more than once every day. A dozen different diseases broke out : strong Father de Smet succumbed at last to a low bilious typoid fever; and finally, Asiati" U6 Pkvotion to ti[k B. v. INFauy ,m cli(»l»ini (li'clui't'il '\{» tciribhi jji-cscmic** hiii(Hi l)(»it liiul bccoiiu^ a lloiilin^' hospiliil. On ilui loth of Jiiiio a chirk ol' tlui Ooiiipjuiy was H(M/,<'(1 with tlio (^loh^ra ; in a, I'nw houis lu; was dead. Otlicrs lollowcul liiiii in swit'L suciicission. J)n Snuit hiy i)()wcih'ss in his cahin. But ni^ht and day, inch-fatij^'aljlc, luM'oic, l^'atlicr Hotikcn atten(h tl tliu sick, and said tlio last prajc^rs over the (h'acL I'ricst, doctor, and nurse, at oiu'c^, ho aided and waitiul ou llie ill in tlieir sulleiint^s, [ucparetl their i'(Mne(li(>s, I'ubhed IIkmu with cainplioi'atiMl spirits, heard their confessions ere the}' died, went «)n sliore to bless the tual jouriu-ys had brokcMi a once iron constitution. This tei-rible hospital duty was di'stined to give the last blow, ]>y and by it aj)- p(>ared that iho ilhu^ss of de Snu't »vas chani^in;^ into the chohira ; so he besouj^ht his conn"ad(! to hear his confession and to administer the last niuttion. But Hoeken, who had that day assisted tin-ee dyiu}^ ])er- sons, assured Fathtu" de Smet that he was not to bo tho fourth. Their cabins, or state-rooms, adjoined each other. Some hours afttu' this interview, between one and two at night, when all was silent but tho sighs ami groans of tho sick and djing, the prostrate do Smet lioard Father Hoekeu's voice, the voice as of one iu his aj^ouy, calling to him for help. Ho rolled from his IN Noinir Ammkica. 117 juljoiucHl each otlun-. L(itweon ono iuul two t tlio sighs and gvotins )sti'ato do Sniot hoard )iuo as of OHO iu his Ho rollod from his lu^rtli MS licst lio inigld., dragged liimscif along lliif floor into tlio ('a])iti of his IVimd, and I'onnd liini in liis oxtrdiuity. 'I'jioro, dying liiniscH", us lie Itdicvcd, lut luiard ilio Missionary's l.'ist conlcssion, adiiiinisltircil tilt! niK'lion, and then hri^athed liis own siirii't iido tlio diilleil <'ar of one, already ahnost in tli(! piesence. of his (lod. " \'es, there," he says, " I made my coid'essioii, crou(!lied, \V(!eping, hy the pillow of niy hrotlier in J(>stis ('lirist, of my fa 'difnl friend, of my only (roin- ])aiiion in the wild(!rn(!ss. T, ill and almost d} iiig, con- fessed to liim in his last agony."' There, Ik- found striingth to )'(!(!it(^ tin; praj'ois for the agoni/ing ; lo pronounce tlie {'inal a])sohdion, and then, hysician told him that he could not survive the morrow, replied gently : " No, Doctor, you are wrong, I shall not die to-morrow, I shall die on Saturday. Satiirday is my day." He had always ex- pressed a desire to die on some day consecrated to tlie Blessed Virgin, and he was confident that his desire would be fulfilled. And so, Saturday morning found him still alive, and nuirmuring at intervals, " Jesus, ' Cinquanto Nouvelles Lettres du R. P. De Smet. PariB et Tournai, 1858, 1'. 2-1.1 B. V. Mary IN North America. 449 K'gged to holil the Cross ir, uiul iiaplovc'd tlmt the I might bo hehl hffoie of their good Mother, poll her gentle face ami 1 they expired." This n, Ciitec'hist, and priest, h in all weathers, visitod the children, converted hour : breathed the foul lis tainted garments, and ies. The Indians called heart," and it was witli for them upon his lips 1 the hands of Him who Company of Jesus : the veil. Three days before another of these graiid in told him that he could L'd gently : " No, Doctor, to-morrow, I shall die on ly." He had always ex- 10 day consecrat(Hl to tlie onfident that his desire Saturday morning found ug at intervals, " Jesus, . P. De Srnet. Parifl et Tournai, have mere}' on mo! Mary, pray for me! 'and with these words on his lips, he died on that day of the week which is given to the special honor of Saint Mtiry. One of his last acts on his Mission was to es- tablish tliG Arch-confraternity of the Immaculate Heart of Mary ; au'l he it was, who, when consulted by a venerable archbishop, in troubled times, as to what course were best to pursue for relief, he it was who made answer : " Have eariu'st recourse to the Supreme Pontiff, and obtain his permission to insert in the proper place in Mass and Oilice the word ' Iin- macidati',' before the word ' Conception.' " ' What wonder then that, with such men in pursuit of their souls, we find even the fierce Blackfeet Sioux be- ginning in 1855 to yield. That year Father Point could register six hundred and sixty-seven baptisms, and the wild blood-drinkers began to look with wondering ad- miration at their brave old enemies, the Flalheads. " For there," sa3'S Father Adrian Hoeken, brother of him just commemorated, " they all admire the dcei) and tender devotion of the Indians for Mary ; a certain sign that the roots of faith have struck deep into their hearts. Every morning and evening the families meet in their wigwams to recite the rosary in common : every day they implore the Blessed Virgin to offer their thanks to the Great Spirit, that He hath drawn them out from the old night of their paganism." Finally from his last journey, in 1859, made as chap- ' Cinquante NouvoUes Lettrcs, p. 4)26 BE 450 Drvotton to B. V. Mary l.iin to tlio Uiiitt'il StiitcH army, FutlM'r do Sinot brings buck from rather Point tliin story of a JJlackfci't bui.l(,'.' " Wlicii Father Point was amon^ tlui lilackfcot, Im pri'scntcd i-rosseH to stjvoral chiefs as distinctivo marks ; bo exiihiineil to them their signification, exliortin^' them, especially when in (hmgor, to invoke the Son of God, whose image tliey bore, and to plao(! in Him their entire conli(U'nce. Tiio chief wlio related these details, was one of a band of thirty Indians who had gonc! to war against the tribe of the Cvows. The latter having tracked their enemies, assend>led in haste and in great nuinbijrs to light and exterminate them. Tliey soon discovered tlitun barricaded in the forest and pi-otijctcd by a collection of trees and branches, and snrronnded them, raising at the same time the war-ciy. Tiie Black- feet, on perceiving the superior nunduM's of their op- ponents, who wi'ro about to p(-unce upon them sud- denly, were under the persuasion that they wen^ all about to perish at tlmir hands. One among them bore upon his breast tlie sign of salvation, the cross. Ho theu recollected th(! advice of Father Point, which ho communicated to his eomjjanions, and they all re- peated: 7'A/-s is our oiiJij cliance of .sdfvhj ! Thej- then invoked the Son of God, and left the barricade;. The bearer of the cross was at their head ; he puslKul for- ward, and tlu'y all followed him. The Crows met theiii with a volley of balls and arrows : not one of them was seriously wounded, and tlicy all escaped. In re- ' Anuals of tlio Pii>ijayation of the Faith. Baltimoro, 18(50, p. 232 IN NoiiTii Amkiuoa. 451 lilting tlio ('ircninst!inc(\ thocliii^f added in im ('ii('Vd to begin a new joiu*- ncy into the Aineiican wilderness, his twen!y-seeo)id year of these wild Missions. We gave him then at parting the Scripture History in tins Ahnalci language, and the curious Church Calendars prepared for those Indians bv their Patriarch, Ilev. Eugiine Yitroniile. And so by this little book tlui Owenegunga, the ancient servants of 3[ary, stretch out their hands fioni ^Nlaine and from Newfoundland to their brethren at St. Clary's of till! Flatheads ; or at the village of Imnniculate Con- f option in the gorges of the Itochy Mountains. May wo again have the j^leasure of seeing his ven- erable face in this life, strong as when he bade adi"U to Bishop do Ivam in Belgium,' and r(>ady to end the narrative of his new adventure as ho does that of 1800, in these words : " My greatest source of consolation is that of liaving been, in tho Imnds of ProviiU'nce, the instrumei.L of eternal salvation to nearly nhie himdred li. Baltimore, 1800, p. 233 ' At tlifir It'uve-tiikingMonsiugniiur implored the Black-robe to give him some little tokcsn of remcmlirunco. But the Missionary had nothing. So taking a copper soita from his pocket, ho bent it double with his teeth, and gave that to the bishop, who preserves it relig iousiv. 452 Devotion to the B. V. Mart poor dying children whom I baptized. Several of them seemed only to be waiting for this happiness to fly to their God and praise Him forevermore. " To God alone be all the glory ; and to the Blessed Virgin Mary, humble and profound gratitude for the protection and the favors received during this my last and long voyage.'" ' Annals of the Propngntion of tlie Faith. Baltimore, xxi. 234. , . „ '.4' •>■ 1. IN North America. 453 CHAPTER XXII. Bkoken Threads— Conclusion. Faith. Baltimore, xxi. 234. At length we have readied tlie last chapter of our appointed task, and have only to pick np the broken threads of our subject, and then to bid farewell to our readers. A history of the devotion to Blessed Mary is, after all, but a chapter of Church History. Where tlie Church goes, there goes the devotion ; thoy grow together, they stand or fall together. There is no pos- sible separation of Marj' and tlie Church. The Mother of the Bridegroom is the Mother of tlie Mystical Bride. But still every century can furnish new illustrations ; every generation of men will find novel expressions of the perpetual idea, and the accumulation of such illus- trations and expressions will constitute each age's His- tory of the Devotion. For instance, the Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God is an old and endless truth ; but its dogmatic definition by the glorious Pontiff who now wears the signet of the Fisherni'in, is a part of the his- tory of this century. Note now the example of this fact, in our little book here. On pages 1 37 and 144 you have descriptions of two clmrches of the Immacu- late Conception in North America, as early as 16G6 454 Devotion to the B. V. Mary and 1675 ; on page 47 yon have the life of the heroic discoverer of the Northern Mississippi, a ht'e ^vholly given up to the worship of this snhhnie mystery from early childhood, in 1654. And in the sketch of the 01)latos of Mary luiniacnlate, of the Marists, and other new orders, 3'ou have to-d.'iy's manner of ex- pressing the old idea. The historic truth stanils im- mutable, and even the utterance of it by the varying generations is less remarkable for variety' than for re- ligious fervor and consistenc3\ So, then, the collation of such facts as church dedi- cations, founding of orders, savings of men, acts of men and women, directly referring themselves to ^"^firy, make up, with the known devotion of all Catholics, what we have to oPlcv as oxir best attempt at a History of the Devotion in North America. But there is some- thing else to be added. Not merely what is peculiar to North America makes it historv, but that also which it has in common with the rest of the Catholic world. The extreme proportion of churches which seek the benediction of Mary's name, is more remarkable hj its publicity, but not by its popularity, than the Sodali- ries, Confraternities, medal-wearing, saying of Eosa- ries, and other devout forms of showing love for the Mother of God. We have already alluded to the, so far as we know, iniivcrmUfi/ among all classes of Catho- lics, of carrying, and wo presume naturally of Nin/hig, the beads. Furthermore, not to jndge, but sini})ly to offer an individual observation, it is the Amrrican aud not the old Catholic emigrant who is most prone to IN NoBTH America. nn this devotion. Catholics oi the oldest European fideli- ties will say to you, when you speak of the beads : "Oh, I can read." Americans of two ccutiiries of American-born, educated ancestors — of names world- revered in science and art — show what Protestants would call a superstition about saying tlieir chaplet. Generals and admirals, shipping merchants of New York, prominent lawyers, favorite and most successful physicians, are known to this writer as fervently par- ticular about that simplest, most childlike, and sweet- est of devotions to our gentle lady-Mother. Of course, in these remarks we do not speak of converts to the faith, for the zeal of a convert is generally excessive. Another point is the observable piety during the month of May, the month of Mary. There is scarcely a missionary parish so small as not to celebrate it. Every cathedral, college, chapel, parish, church, and convent chapel has an altar especially decorated for those thirty-one days. The month is opened and closed by especial solemnities. A preacher is audible at least once a week ; the sunset devotions are nearly invariable through oiit the land, and the large number of worshippers is surprising. The immense majority of Catholics wear the scapular ; you will with difficulty tind here and there one without the medal of the Im- maculate Conception. Then, again, many thousands belong to an associa- tion, established in 1858, lately approved by tlie sov- ereign pontiff, and recommended by several prelates, which has for its object the conversion of souls — an .1 'm 456 Devohon to the B. V. Mary object so lioly, that the Eternal Son of God became man, and remained on earth thirty -three years, to sock the strayed sheep and redeem them with His precious blood. How consoling for iis to be able, by means of jirayer and other good works, to co-operate with God in the salvation of souls, the most divine, as St. Denis calls it, of all employments. St. Chrysostom assin-es us, that there is nothing more pleasing to God tlian the salvation of souls. " Though your riches should be ever so great," says he, "yet, by converting one soul, you would do far more than by giving all you have to the poor." Now, to co-operate in this glorious work, prayer is one of the most efficacious means. " Pray for one an- other that you may be saved ; for the continual prayer of a just man availeth much." ' " There is nothing more powerful than a man wlp prays, because such a one is made partaker of the power of God." ' The members are most earnestly recommended to offer up frequently their good works for the end of the Association ; and also for the conversion of some of their friends, chiefly for those already favorably dis- posed. It is much to be desired that the menibtiis prepare themselves for the reception of the sacraments on all those festivals on which a plenary indulgence is granted. When any member dies, he shall be reconi- mended to the prayers of the Association in the place where he resided ; and every member there residing St. James, v. ^ St. Chrysostom. 3. V. Mary IN North Ajierica. lcnary indulgence is dies, he shall be reconi- Association in the place member there residing ' St. Chrysostom. shall say three times the " Our Father" and the " Hail Mary," for the repose of the deceased. All priests, members of the Association, are requested to say two Masses a year, one for the deceased members, and the other for the conversion of America. Prayers for the conversion of America. — First prayer, with indulgence : " Almighty and eternal God, who wisheth to save all, and wilt have none to pevish, have regard to those souls who are led astray by the deceits of the devil, that the hearts of those who err, rejecting all errors, may be converted, and return to the Unity of Thy Truth, through Christ, our Lord. Amen." Second jirayer. — Memorare (300 days' indulgence every time, if said with contrite heart) : "llemember, Mary, tenderest-hearted Virgin, how from of old the ear hath never heard that he who ran to thee for refuge, implored thy help, and sought thy prayers, was forsaken of God. Yirgin of virgins, Mother, emboldened by this coniidenco, I fly to thee ; to thee I come, and in thy presence, I, a weeping sin- ner stand. Mother of the Word Incarnate, oh, cast not away my prayer ; but, in thy pity, hear and an- swer. Amen." " O Mary, Mother of Mercy, Help of Christians, Refuge of Sinners, lest I perish, take upon thyself tho care of my salvation, and the salvation of all those in whose behalf I implore thy powerful mediation, in or- der that all may be brought to the One True Fold, in which Jesus Christ, thy Son, wishes us all to live and die. Amen." 80 458 Devotion to titf, E. V. Mary " O l\rai'y, concoivod Avitliout sin, pray for the con- vorsim of tliis country. " Qiicon of Ajjostlos, confioivad witliout .sin, pray tlic Lord of tlio liarvt'.st tlnit IIo send lid)orerH into Ills Harvest." " Our Father," " Hail Mary," " ( Jlory he io tlie Father," etc. To boconio a mend)cr of the Association, nolhiii'f more is required than to have tlie name re^nstcn'ed in a book by a priiist of tlio diocese in wliich it is estab- lished, and to say daily, in honor of tho Iinniaeulat(! Conception of tho Blessed Viri^in for tho conversiou of America, one " Hail INIary," with this ejaculation : ** O IMary, conceiv(Kl without sin, pray for the convci-- sion of this countiy." No special meetijig is requisito ; but it will be sufficient, wluirever tho Association is established, that the ]n'a_yers api)ointed by t)io arch- bishop, or bishop of the diocese, bo said by the pjistor, either immediately before or after High Mass, vespers, or any public service on Sundays. It is most ardinitly desired that once every month, every mtnnber go to conf(!Ssion and communion for the conversion of Amer- ica. Should, however, any member receive tho Holy Sacraments monthly, in compliance Avith the regula- tions of any other Society or Confraternity, he may by such reception comply with this rule, by adding tlio intention of the Association to the intention or inten- tions ho may have already formed. A plenary indulgence has been granted, l.sY. On tho day of admission. 2(1. On tho 10th of May, the day on which the Association was established, iid. Ouco IN North Ameiiica. 459 a month, to tliosi; who confc.'SH and receive Holy Com- munion. Aili. On the Nativity of our Lojd, the Teust of St. Joseph (IDtli of Miircli), (jn the Feasts of tho l*uri(ieation, Annunciation, Assuniption, Nativity, and iuiniacuhite Coneei)tion of tho lilessed Virgin. (Jno lunidred days' indulgtaico to ineniLers who assist at tlie weekly meetings, providcnl they say the prayers appointed by the arelihisliop, or hishop of tlie dioeese. The })rayers of the dioeese of Cineinnati are tiireu " Hail Marys." One hundred days' indulgciiiee, iii tho archdiocese of Cincinnati only, are granted to those who bring a member into tho Association ; and a hun- dred days to those who say tho ejaeulatory prayer : " O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for the conver- sion of this country." The pro^jagation of this good work is most earnestly r(!Commentled to the zeal of every one, and especially to those charged with tho care of souls. Wo do not know positivcjly but that the discourage- ment of writers Avho might furnish American books of dovotion, may be from the zeal for her honor in tho hearts of older and better informed Catholics. It may bo from a si)irit of nationality ; it maybe from the wis- dom attaintnl by authority ; it niay be from charity, lost tho humility of tii(5 Christian should be injured by some notice of tlie writer ; but the consistent discijur- agoment, although g(nierally negative, is a fact. But for all that, the land is Mary's. AVhy shall I not ad- vance thus modestly her claim to it, when nations have battled and are battling for it ? 4G0 Devotion to the B. V. Mauy "Who then has tho trun cliiim to tlio ownorship of North Anioricji? Tho rcil Iiuliiiii stojjs iioisclijsslv for- ward and says, *' It is I ! For aj^'os iiiunoiiiorial iny fathers iish(.>d thoso watiU'S, or struck down tlio (I tliuHO Soutlicvn Ulf illltl the l!l[f()()ll tlio " It is luiiio," says tlio 5 of Canada Avcro criiu- , --.vaa a Fronc-li sword >ia, and tribes of every nin, from the miglity al:cs. ' e Enj^llsh Puritan from En^lisli Cavalitir from land. The 11 i^l dander, Nvhieli lie turiuHl awuy odon, demands at least s and G corona, the eold ; of tlie shores oi Saint Mexican Gulf ; honor to the chivaliic Frar.k Avho swung the lilies out to tho icy air of Canada : honor to the broa(l-ehestni|Mlii IikIiiiiis. I^(, 1H(t. 196. Allcilll'A .Il.sillt fllllliT, 8, lOT. Alviiniilii. f). Aiiu'i'lii. till' Iri'lliin L'irl, .178. AiiuvlM, Oiir I..H'l.v (if. 01. Aiii.'1'lii', Till', I"'."). Arinr, St,4o; clinpt'l of, 124; devotion to, ■MX AiipJirUlori of Our I.Bdy, 'i'il. Ari'^kimi, Woisliiji of, reiioiiiicoil, 194. Arii'liui ilioi i"*i'. !{;is. Arkiinsiis, Miiri]iicll(' nt, 9. tii A-c'ii(lii»(''. Mnliiiwk chief, 2U4. Aiwliilbolii Indiii'is HT'.', AsMH'iiiiioh of CiijMr.'n nf Mary In tlie World, :tU; cf I'niy.r, 4.50. A-isiimption MIm* iiii, 4'1s Atlmbiisift I.iikf Mis«i(iii, !!fi9. Auciislliic. Sr , Klorlilii, foiiiidLMl, 0. Awl-lieart Iiidiiin^ 413. nndin, Ufv. Ptcphon, 220, 288. liiiUliiiiiri', Lnri. 1,")7. r.iiiicrofr, 'I'rIlMilo from, 14, 25, 104. liiiiuiak Indiiiiis. I"9. IJsiimr of Our I.ady. Ml. I.'*, 2CI. jiaiiMooklinrn. Hittle of. 3 Id. Hhpii.siii of Indiiiii.s, 1,')2, 15S, 1S7, 195, etc. Ii^I■au';^ Ulsliop, 48. Biirilstott II {liocp.se, 22S. HiTro, de la. 124. HiivU'V, r.i.ihop, 323. HcJkIs", Til.'. 4(1. {>B, (W. 20,3, oto. Hi'liiioiit. Siilpii'lHti, 70. 92, 131. H.-in'dlL't XI II. Pope, i:<2. ncneillct XIV.. Pope, l.')2. liJL'ot. Kiillier .Iiiiiif.-*. 107 I!ii.'oi. KnthiT Vincent, 107, 169, 174. ItilUart. Jiillc. 2.'')i. ISii'oii. Mnrle, 139. lilftckfeet, 429. KluckfeelSiiMix, 424. HlHiictiet, Archldsliop. 2."i6. BlIn-IiuurUuD, Ylcuuiiobae, 258. HonllXce, 8t, rtln.:B»e. 303. Itiiii Seniiir-. Notre iJaiiio Je, 1.12. lloHton iliiie>'Si\ 22S. Iloiiix'oovs. MarirniTltP, 77, 81, 114, 129. Itoiiru'et,' lli^liop, ;)20. liraiidv traders, 42. lirelieuf, .IcMilt, l''alli,'r. ninrfyr, 07, OS, liK Hri-'sanl, .lesiilt Katlier, ^, 0,">. llrutlii'is of St. Joseph, 210; of the lloR- pital. 124. liriiee, Klim P.ohen. 340. r.nilart d.- Slllerv. 10.'). Unmet, Ohiste I'Nilhcr, 877. llriiniier, Katlier. •.'S(t, l!niiu>er. .Mailame, 231. linile. l!i^ho|>, 272. ISufalo, Canon ' lii'll iii^ l'2!l, 4-tO. «;i>liitft. Kiitlior, Jl'J. (liiliiiiiMa Ulvcr Mi^'ilxn, 1\, (>ti<. Coliiiiibus, Cliii9iii|iliui', i, 2; IiIh micci'it- enrh, f>. CiiiH'i I'liciii iMiiiiai'iiluti, D, 4U, t>'6, [»i, UlH, Wi. m. :iii7, liii. <'i.iiriiii('riiiiu'.i. ijr, '.'--ii, !iit. l.'oiiui'i'|.'iil|iiii III Our Lilly, Tit, bl, lit, U'^T. V |iir,-.l> III' Mary '.".J. Ciiiiii'i riiiiiiii lu ilimsuil Virgin Mury, 172, •JT:.. liiil. :i;tr, Ciinvi'ilN, Kurly liidiuii, 07. ('iirniiailii, It, l.'iill' M. l,;illllliTt (!liM|irl ul Ml'.iy lit, M", Ciiiiiii'il III' lliiliiiiiiiic, '.'!!. Crifk liKJiuii .Mi.—iuii, 7. I IS CrosK, 'I'lic, ilnllnliliiKt 111, ',^77 ; riniii llnli- iiiirkliiirn, :!l(l; I). SiiutV lil'r mimiI liy, III; tlir Kiuiiilnril ul Uki lHucklvil, UUi ; |iliiiiliiiK lit', 'I'I7. (.Ir.iH liiiliiiiiH, -ll'.'. I'rdwiiiiijf ul' iiiciuri'H, yaj. CiiiiiiiiiiivlIU', 270. Diililon, JeMilt Kathor, 8. 107. l>U((ilali liiillitliH (rii/r .Mciiix). Daiilrl, Kallicr, .luMill .Muilyr, OJ. |)avi(l, l>i»liii|i, .'Jil. Uoviiiliin to lJli'Ssi.(l Vli(,'lii, DIlTiTcnco bi'tuci'ii lMirii|ii'Hii mill .Xnii'iuiin, 17; Miiiidi'i's iiliiiiu It, I'll; iiliKlai'li.t l; 1)1 i'i'>, 7'.; ; iit tiiu .\bi'ii- aki-. lt;s; lit' till' I'rMiiini's, ;iiM; at mir Laily III' tile I.iki', 2.iV; in Oii|{iiii, 24, caiihu iif rujiid 8|ireiid xtt, 4-1^ Oieliiiiiary. Iiiilnili, i-i. J)iiiiiiiil>'aiiH, 2i'i. Drinlli'iti". .IrMilt KnlhiT, 100. l)uliiij>, lii>liii|i, 22ii, 272 Diiliiiiir::, lti>hii|i, 2'2i), 2117. DiirliMi. OMali' I'alhi r, iisZ. Dweiigur, Kov. J., 2sJ. Kiir-riii»; Indians, 441), 442. Iuirllii|iiiiki' in Canada, 12. Kinniuilein Hiu' Lady iil', 2a2. Kllldt, K.'V. Mr., ■^;>. Kiiiiitruliiin, i'l'L-nuli, 26; QiTiiian, 27; ]ri»li, 20. Knuli.-li, tlii'ir unkiiidnoBB, 20; tiivubiun ul' Caiiaila, l;lii. Krif Indians, 10ft, 105. Kiirraiid, Oldatc Father, 308. Kay. .lie, Katlnr, 420. IVni'liin, Kiitnor, 70, J'eiiwii k. Ilisliii|i, .S!)l), Kever, Yi-iluw, Mi. Flic ill cunvi'iils Mi), l-'liiL'i'l, l'.i>liiiii, 22n, 273. Flatbow Iiidiaii.s. 4';S. Flalliiimi Indian^, 42^1, 4211. Flurida tjaplizud in lil.xid, C; origin of uaiiie, lii; Mi.isiuiis in, 146. Kiircl^rn Ml.'<«luns, rrli>iiU of, HO. Kiiiiiaiilt, iiiMil vr, 1 12. FiiiirniT, llli »-'ii| I'vliT, 20!). Fiiinri-ian Si-tiTu, 2i'H I'laiici^ilc Hali'H, Si, .Mlnniiin, 107. Kri'iiiliil, .liMiil Faili'i-, 4lu. Fffiicli lidiui- liir .\Iiiiy, '.'."i; Krfiirh ziiil, 20; Ki't'Mcli t'liiluruliuii to Anirrnii, 'Jil. Oiiooii, FiitlnT, Hill). Oalli/.lii, rriiiiT. '.".>!); I'rliici'xi*, iiWI. Oalinii'lii', Mal'i|iii.< ilc, i ,'l. (iann.'akii'iia, ( iiilii'rini', l',>,'i. (ianiiiiiiiikiiii, .'Mt'iilii'ii li', ( lilc't, IU,'j I, lud. Ill liridrati oinlL'rant", •Vi',l, llirliuiiKV., d', Olilatt' l•l.^llu|l, 37&. IlliUValll I'.'i Wilriilni', |MS. lli^dilaiidiT.s ill .\nii'iiua, t!d«. Ilii.krii, .li'Miit Fallirr, death, 4-lfli lluly Kainlly, 127; d. vulioli to, 2u7, llu'<|iilal liriillii'i>, 121. Ilu>|iit il ul' .Miiry'.s llcl|.. 2'», llu.s|,il,il ,SjM.r.H, CO, 7&, 7U, 128, 288. Iliili'l Dun, I2>. Iluu,^t' lit rriivldi'iici', 12tl, lli'il. lIiiiLton's lliiy .\li-.Muii.s (rii/r Oldalc), l,'i, lliirun liiiluiiiH, luij; cuiivi'i.ilun, iu;i; tiivir L'jri'ttu, luO. Illiiiuiii Indlan-4, ti\. liiiiiiiiinilaii.1 I'uiiccptlon. !•, 41», ,'i.'). ,')S, liN, 2ti;), 217, :iu;, 41(1, 4'):i, i:!!), .Ifi;!; llrst olilirrli of, 141; scniiid cliurcll ul', l,M». Iiii;annuiun. Muilicr .Mary ul'tlu', o'2, ;i3, liidnin C'alliulieH duslruoid, 8, I'^S, 1&2, 102. Indian convcrt.i, .M, «7, 194, 2n.'). Indian Marii.'s, 171; inis.-lunarlcs, 47, etc.; iSisiiTs, 1)7. to IJli'C.ied Virgin, .',-)r>; Indian hymn pray.r. ■;;.l. Iiiiliaii iMix^iun.s iiimins: Ahi'iuikis. 10fi-lS:i; Alu'uiuiiiins, Iti.'i ; As~iiiiliuiii>, :ii2; Awl- IwiiTlK, 42'J, 410; llannaks. 4211; Hiiick- fi'it, 42!»: (.'aliiuridaii-. 1 ,'•:), 1 ,'i I ; Cliir- okrcs, 7; Uninouk>, 2ti:i ; (;iii|i|iiwiw, 107; Crows,4l2; Darulahn (r*'/cSiuii.\); Kar-riiii;-!. I4u, 4i-.i; F urhiiiiiis, li, 1:1, 148; Flalljuw.s, 4:)S ; Fiailn-iids (vi'l« IK' Snit't and ulnuti'); lliirun.s, 01. 07, ill.'!; liilniils, .M; Iroiiuujs, Isl-'JOl; Kallspfis, 4'.'!»; Khiishs. 42."); Kitskatkiiis, li'^; Kucli'iiays. 4211. l;!lt; LuuUiaim, ll',i; Mlamis, .')4; .Mis.soniis, I,''):!; Micinacs. 01, l.'il ; .Muliawks, li54, ilc. ; Muni:i(;niii», 111,'), ;!7o, :W2; Natidioz, 7, 112; Niw Mo.Mcaus, b, etc; New Vork, 1S4-21I4; Index. 405 gn Ml^^liiiifi, PrlpiiU nf, ItO. mil, iiiiii'i \ r, I I'J. nir. IIU»-'.cl I'll.T, 'JUil. ■l-l'llll SI -ll'lK, 'i>S ■\^lW tiilli'H, Sl, MInhioll, 107. lilt, .li'Miil l''ail|.'l', llM. -Ii l.iliiir liir Miiiy, 'J."i ; Knncli /.i nl, KniK li criiluritliiiii tn Aiinruii, '.'ll, II, KiilliiT, !l(in. clii. I'lliii... •.'■.';!; PrlPK'i'Xs, ;llil. u'lit', Miir(|iil'< cl(<, I !l, 'llkll'llll, ( IlllllTilll'. I'.in. nliiikiMI, M)'|illi'li tc, ( lllt'f, I'Jo iiiiiic. (iiiri; 111.'), '.'.ll, ii'i', .li'Miii I'.itliir, lii» (Iciiili, 01, (iV, :c. Mdlhir \Iiir^' ird. 'JiO. M'llt'l inllt ii'irl^ '.V'\^, nil, OliliiU' Kiillicr, Iim;. iiii;ili'liii, I''miii('i'% IIMi. III, Ui'iii'. tut.iirr mill ileutli, *;5, lb7. •. Our I.Mily m|; :I'.'1. iliM, t)l)>itli' Kiiiliir, 'ii'l*. Ur. .li'Miit KmIIiui'. laliorii, IH'J, 111. uliilii', Our I.itily of, U'll, li>li. Iilciin ciiilu'riiiit^, M.'l',i. (illu/., (I', OlilllU' lilnlliip, 3T0, •ulll i'> Wrlcdllli', [lis. Iiinilfr.i III AiMi'ilcii, ;U«. I'll, .li'Miit Kiillii'i', ilialli, 4-1(1 I'liiiilly, rJ7; ill voiluii tu, 'i^u7, llitl liriillii'i>, I'.'l. It'll 1(1' MiiiV'' lli'll', ii''\ Ital .SjMi r.-; till, 7i), 7l», I'JS, '^SS. Dim, !■-'>. u 1)1 rriiviili'iii:i', l-.'O, ;',ril. Dii'd liny .Mi.vMoii.i (liile Olilalo), If). II liiiliaiiM, llKi; cuUVfraiuti, luU; tlieir fill), lUtJ. lit Iiiiliuiii, M. iinilaii.. l'i)iii'i'[illon, !», IH. ,'>:!. .'iS, in* •217, :iiii, 11(1, 4:i.i, i:!!*, -Ifi:); llrst I'll of, I4t; stt'i'Diiil oliiirch nl', l.'iD, iiitlDii. MiiiliiT .Mary dI' tin', .IJ, liii. II CutliDlle.t dcBli'i),! '1(1, 8, I'S, IS'J, 11 f(iiiv4Tt.>t, M, 1)7, 11>4, 'Jii.V .Miirii'S, 171; iiila>li)iinrli'8, 47, etc.; rs, 1)7. II liviim to IJlfCat'il Virgin, 205; r. :'i,M. 1 Mi-;«li)iia ii!iiun2 AbeiiaklH, lli0-is;i; iiHiiiiix, lii.')', As-liiil)iijn>, :!7-; .\«l- rl.", A-l'i, 4111; llaiiiiaks. I'J'.l ; Itmck- ,, 4'J'.): l'ali^Drlllall^. I.''!!, l.'it; Clur- !.s, 7; diiiioi)k>, •IM; VW\\<\H\\iis, ; (Jri)\v.'<, 41'.' ; Dawilalix ((•!'/»' f*i"ii.\); -riiiUM. 44ii, 4l'i; K iiri'liaiis, li, i:i, ; Kliilliiiw.t, 4!(S ; Klailiiiul.s (('i''« Siiii't mill iiliiuti'); lliii'iiiis. lit. li', : lliliiiiis, ,'il; lioiiiriiis, l&4-'.'iH; is|n'l>, 4:'.»; KiiiiMi.'*. Vl'i; Kiiskaskliis, Kiii'triiays. 4'J!i. l^i'.i; Liiiiisiaiia.il-; mis, .')4; .MissDinis, l.'i:!; Mieinuos. lil, ; .Miiiiawks, ls4, I'li'.. ; ^llllllll).'lllll.^ i7o, :);t^; Nati'lu'Z. 7, \ll\ Ni'W .icuii.'*, 0, etc.; New York, Ici4-'i!ii4; New r»l(«(1nnl«n«, 2.1!) : Nox-pcrci''*, 420 ; ! OrrUiiii^ 'i'<'>, 4J), I'Uv; i>,-iai.''H. 417; l>i>iiri>iN, III; Hl'llllnllll'^ ll'^; Hill|>u|i^ 4'.'ll; ljii>ii\. r.'ii: .Siiiki's. I'.",l ; 'IVmui-, ,'., i 1,'i:i: WviiiiilolH, til); VHkaiiiit% iiilO; | Yi'lliiwkiiiv. s, .■;'<7. lri>li I'liiiKraiils, '.'I). IriM|iioiii liiillttii.4, 1st, ct". ; iliuir Afliwiiin, 11*4. iIiickKoii, fli'iirnii Aiuirow, '.'!K, Ji-iiitM, till' I'litlii'iJs l», I't, 47-OU, 01-72, lli:i-lll. 111.'), I'l". Jii){in'H. .Ifsiiil Katluir, iimrtyr, lil, 4^, 180, *S\, «t(!. J..li.'t, .•'li'iir. 40. Jiiii'lih. rtuliit, Vixloii of, !i'); Ml.i.>0. Kiiiisa- IiiillaiiH, I'J.'i; >fi'nli)iin, 42(V Kii»ka-klii I'lilians aii'l Mission, Mi, Ki'iiliii'ky MI-~iiiMs, 'JT7. Kiii'iiiiay IimIIims, I'.",i, |;10. Kryii, iMnliiiwk clin'l, \\)'i. \m Dull' 'rsliTi'. Mr. ilr, 70, 128. I.iikc, Our l.a'ly iilllii'. '.'.'17 l.all.'iiniil, KaliiiT, imiityr, 60. Lali.r, .MKs .\ll,'i., .".'li. I,iiiiilii'rvill.', I'ailiir. 107, \m I'rairli- Mis,i,iM, I;i7, lit, 109. I.uiiiy, l!isliii|>. |:l. Liival, Miiiitniiirt'iii'y ilo, lii.sliop, 89, 03, 141. '.'11.'. LKvcrloi lii'ri>, OMati' rallnr, :((!■.>. Ll' Hit, Mail.'iiiols, H- .Iiaiinr, 121. 13L Ll' Maltri'. 1'' illii r, iiis ilialli, 70. Lh I'rclri". .'*i'li.'iii'iir ili', OM. LItiiny 111 Itli's-i'il VIp.'ii, 1.')7, 2S0. Lnnu'i'iiil. llariMi ilr, I'JI. Liiiiirli'lliiw iin.iti'.l. 21, 2110, 41)9, 421. Lnri'ltliii'S, ■J'.iil, :(l,'i, :;i\ Lorctto 111 .Noiiti Aiiiirii'S. 11)0, 220, We. Loriill.) SisiiT' 111. •111. Louisiana .Misslmis anil Indlanii, 112. Luhvorlh Casili', •.<:2\. LyiiL'li, llisiioi). His. Macp, Ki'ViTrml MhIIiit, 1M .Miiriliinalil, Iti'V. .Ai'ni.s, ^'-il, Mai'iliinni'll. i;i>iiii|i. ',;;. Mai'klnai'. .Maii)'ii'tti' ai, 49. Ma''kiniii)ii. IIisliii|), 330. Mai'l I. 342. Miii'li'oil. Marv. 313 MhImi', MissiuMs In. 3t0. Maisoniii'in I', l.iinl of. 7.">. 's7-S9. Matisi', Maili iiioisilli'. (jncs lo Montreal, 78, Mari'i'lial. UMmii, '220. Miiri'iiil, FalliiT. III.'). Miiria Hilt; .Maria Sti'in, 2^. Maria. S iiila, sliij) of Colninbua, 2. Marians, Oil. Mark. Kranoispan Katlicr, S. Miiriiiii'tii', .(I'Miit Katlu'r, 8; sketch of his laliors, 47, li)7; lU'iiili. M. Murtlu, St, Convent, 21i2. 20* Miiry Ako. M9. Mary, liMllaii uinion no oiill.'il, 171, .Mary, .Miiilirr of Oi.il, |i,.r KriaiiiP"", 4; iiir iiiiili'riiily, I'.'; ("laT I uf iiruyur Hiiil ur.iii', Is; |,aiii.iii'>., In Aiiiirna. 30; laily «ini'ri'ii'ii nf .Muiilri' il, 70; t ili's of ill Anirrna, il,°); Iiiiliun lU'Volion 10, 1 1"', 172, I'll' ; (ililairs Ml, ;;,•,!»: l„.r hl»> lory till) liisi..rv of tlit- Cliiirrii, 4.'>i); iiiKiilli of. 13:': l.ii'ly of Nnrlli AiiuTltii, 4.V.I ; I'.iiiijiM'si, In .\iiiii ii'ii, 'J3. .Mary at tliu lool of ll'.j Cio-n, .Sisters of, 277. Mary of tlio hoarnBilon, 32; Lor vision, 33; li.r.li'aili, 47. Mary, rrli;.' mis s.i iih-noil, U18. Miiri liiiiil, .Mis. lull" In. l.'iO. MiUi'iioil, Itisliiiii .ll'. :i,'iT. .M.'.lal, It^.'s-iil \hyin Mary, 23, 111. 175, 201, lil, 41.'). Mi'laskwat, Ali.Mii(|Mln chief, 106. ,Mi'iiiliri', Failnr, 1 12. MriiKinirf, 'I'lii', ill Iiiillan, 3.15. .Mi'ii«ariiii. I'',, liiT, 134. Mi'llaril. {''iilli T, 103. .Merry, Msli'is nf, '.'OO. Mi'ssiiili, Alii'iiaki liailltliin of, 44. Mnslri'. (Ill ale Fiillier, 307. ,Me\li'ii Misslniis. 'Jl. Miami Mission. .'i|. Mli'iirie liiil ans, ill, l.'il, Mliil-lers Divliii'. ihi'ir elmrai'terl-tic.', 10, M s-lniiarle.s. Lic'lis'i [li'i,' .Maiylaml), l.'iO; Kreiii'li, lOri, |.|e (rul.- (iliialo, .Ii'siilt, ell'.); S|iaiilsli, 16, .'jj, 14!); iirun- eiseaii. 1.3: III eilii'.s, IS, M„ssoiiri .Mi.^luiis, l.v;. Moliauk Inilliiiis, 17,\ .Moiitli III .Mary, 1:12. Mnniiiiiiy, .Mr,, 1 1'2. MdiiI ri'iiey, Hislinp Laval ile. <=9, lit, Monireal, Its IniiinliT, To: eoiisi'rraluil to Mary, 127 ('•/(/.• Vill,'-Mr.rl.'). Mnriiiii;: Mar, V.'va'.-i' of ilie, ibS, iMi'iiliii, Oiilaie Ki'illiif. 4011. Mountain, Mission of the, 02, 139. Nagte, Miss. 200. Narvaez, f) Natelii'/ Imliann. Mlsi^tons to, 7. Nellie, llislli>|i, '.''Ji;, Neniirkx. I'"iitlii'r, 277. New ('a eiloiiia .Ml— Ions 2.'i0. New .Mi'xii'o. Mi— iiiis ill. 're, 110. )f,<2. New York, lirsi .\ll-iiiii.«. i-,| ; \Uh[ elmrph In, 103; 111 si siiiiil, lllil; ili'votloii to Mary two ceiitiuies ago in, 2Uo; diocese of, 227. Nez-|ierei'S Iiiillaiis, 429. Niai.'ar.'i Fa I-, .ilS Norriiltrewnek Imrneil, 170. yi'itre I>iiini' ihx yifliiirex {ridfi Our La'ly mill Slsur^). !••; lA' Imu Seeonin, IS, 32(); <1'' /■'(.('/', mo. 2IN: del} beiges, 1311; lie I'liniif)! Sicmtrn, M'.l', Notre Dame, Si-trrs of. 1 14, '203, 268, Nova bcotlu Mibisions, CL Oblates of Mary, 859. 4f56 Index. 0(!ln, Archlpisliiip, OOS. Ollico oCtlu' IJIcs-ed Virgin Mary, 20S. Ollico, T)i villi'. ■J(W. 01l«r, .IdIhi ill) Vi'iiipiill, 70; his di'votio:. to ilie BIcsmhI Virgin Mnry, 70, 7;i; foiinila Si, Siil|iici', 7-'; ilcaili, 7-t; Uovo- tiiin to Holy Kniiiily, li7. Olinos, FatliiT Amlii-w ili, fi. Oregon, '24. '.Tm. et<. ; Oliiatcs there, 305; Jesuits tiuTc. L'.'i."i; Si-trr,-, 25S. Orono, renoliscot cliirt', l,v2. Our Laily of Aiis.'i'ls, (il ; hoti S/'coiim. SO, VVi, l;!(i, MJii; rmiirri'^'alion ol", 7.'), h\, 837; oCFoie, KM), '.'o.j; olOiiailiilui.e, 18, 151; of Silver, 7ii; of Siiow.^ l.ill; of Victory, lis. l:jO, U4, :it:i; of viuious titles. 22."), i-14 ; of llio r.al?e, '.'4:1; of the Solliuile, 14s; of O.iiienum, I!):!; of La Tiappe, '.^7: of I'eare, 'JilO, :!!!>, ■i-M. Oueniliaea. .Mary, •JIO. Ouriliiiuaii', (.!.iyiiga cliief 1U6, Owenai;iin{,'ii, li?2. Padilla, Kftllier Jolin , 302, PilirriiMaiiPs, Anicri'-in, 320, 323, 351. Planting i.ftlie <' .i>s, 447. Poems to the '.Jlobeil Virgin Mary, 140, 324. Point, .Tesuit Father, 434, 449. PoissDii, Martyr, 112. Ponce de 1,1'iiii, 5. Poor Cl.ires. 22li. Precious Uliioil. Conaresalion of, 2S0. Priess nf ill- Foreign Mi->ioii, 1|(». Prompt Siiecor, Our l.ady of, '2U7. Protestant li'SiiMiony. 1 t, 2."). Proveiieli, r. lii-lmp, 3(13. Pureed, AiehbL-hop, 25S, 2s0, 2S7. Quaylus, 70. Quebec, 02, 145. Ram, Bisliop de, 451. Kappe, l.isliop. 300. Ha-ies, Jesuit I ailier. niartyrod, 176, 346. Pattlesnakes in a cuiiveiil. 3()S. P.eeolleet I'riars, (in. i(l>, 139, 144. Iteiiins, Olilale I'alln-r, 373. Kcnililu, S:sler. 2."is. devolution. Fipiu'h. .3(0, 3,')C. Iti-ymil, Fallier, 200. Kiljonr.le. Deaili of F-.thcr, 108. Kiehard. Father, 221. Uosarv, 'I'lie, 45, 1,>1, 1S9, 208, 278, 2S0, a44, 3.^v4. Sacred Heart, Laters, 41. 270; llii>- pilal Sisters. 7il, 12\ |:ll; of llnly Cn.-N, 240; of the Visilatinn. 2-.'0; of'Mercy, 2(.0, 207; of l'i,>videii.'e. 279; of tlie Poor, 272; of the (mmmI Sheplierd, ;ilii; Itoiiiiiiic, 27!?; 170, of Lorolto, 277 : of ,st various orders, 2.s7. 310. Smet, Fallier d.', 257). 4'23, 434, 437. Smith. I'atij.r vl'rinee Oalilziii), 2'29. Snake Itidiaii.s. 429 S11..W.S, Dur Ladv of ide, l.",9. S.MladLie.s. lilessed Virgin Mary, 23. S.niieia. Father, I5t. Soriii, Father, '241, Soto, Fernando dl, 5; his will, 149. Souart, l''allier, 76, 77, 1.33. Soiiel. Maityr, 1 1'2. Spanish labor for .M.ary. '23. Statues (,f .Maiy. s, ;i:j, ii:i, ino, 1:!:3, 2o:i, 21111, 210, 29\ 3KI, 32s, 396, 4:j3, St, //(I MulKtiiKi, 249. St. V.allier, l!i>li(ip, 129. Stilpiee, St., founded, 72. Sulpician Fallier.s, 7,°), 76. 'lai'lie. (Il)lale IJisliop, 364, 370. 'reirahkoiiit.i, Cailieriiie, the Saint of the Molitiwks, liiO, iO.s, Te.Miii .\li~-iiiii-, 146. 'I'liehaisof Oiiid, 'I'll,', 2S7, Theu.\, De, Jesuit Father, 44S. Tsawelilo, Mary, I'.l.i. Ursnline», flieir first Houses here, .32. 219: at New Orleaii.s, 2112; in (;iiu;iniiati, 800; in (iaive.sloii, 302; iu (ileveiaiiil, 801. Va-qnez dp Avllon, .5. Velder. Fatller.de. 424. Veiitadoiir, Diike o(, 01. Vutrouiue, Fatlicr Kugene, 853, Index. 467 iitriislinfi, Florida, founded, d iiirlus, til. ■>nic, Mr (Ic, 77; martyr, 112, riiiicis, Mis-iim, 1(!7. iiry's, ()!!, (Miir\ luml), 1S7, (OnondiiL-a) , (Fl(itli.'iiil), l:)-.'. ilais, liisliop dc, '240. illicr, IJi.sliop, 1'.'!). ir, I'liilii'i', (i. imc (In I'V'iK'lon, "(i. >n, Km her, deiilh, 2'>0. Maria. I''allu'r Joliti do, inurtyr, l.'.'i KuiluT. (Iiaiii, \ijli. HU). MKfii', 4,'5. lar of tiie lliessed Virgin Mary, '2:i if Villp-Miirio, 134. K)!vs, Muaniiig of, US. Ills of llie Iniinaiiilate Heart of ■V, 81.'). ,"U.d.ccca. '274. , llo.y. Motlicr, •2'27, '271, 273. I', I'.nilari dc, (il, \ljb. 11 Indians, 4'2!t, , iiias.Micres, 3'J7 ; Mlsaions aii\i)]i^', s, of Noin- Danic, 114, •2.'A iiC:!; ,jf ■rity, -271 ; (irav Sifters, 41. '2711; ilos- I 5>isl,T.s. 711, [■1\ l:U; of llcdy (■r(.(^^, ; of Uw Visilal.iuii, 'i'Jli; of Mercy, 'Mil; of ri,,vidi'ii.-i-. U'Tll; of the ir, ■27'2; of tlu: (iuoil SliopluTd, :;i(l; LiirelU), '277: of St. liojidnie, '27f; oiis ordoi's, '2S7, ■>lii. iMilliiT (!>■, 'A-j,'). 42:'., 4IU, 4:37, . I'atii.r ^I'rim'u Cialilzinj, '229. IndlaJis, 4'J',t S Our Lady of id,", 1.1^ IK'S, lili'ssrd Virgin Mary, '23. a, Failior, 1,tJ. Kalher, '241. Fernando di, ,"i ; ids will, 149. t, l'"allior, 70, 77, Vio. Maityr, 112, -Il labor f{jr .M:iry, '2:!, ■s of .Mary, s, ;i:i, H;.!, lOn, l:i:3, 170, 2ii:i, 2111. •2',ls, :flO, :j2s, 390, 4;:>:J. Mdliitiiiii, •249. llifr, l!isli(.|i, 129. V, St., founded, 7'2, Ian l''atber», 75, 70, , Oldatu iJisliop, 304, 37», kouU.a, CallierinL-, tliu Saint of tbe lavvks, liiO, li».\ .Missions, 146, is ofOido. 'i'lie, '2^7. ;. I)c, Jesuit Fallier, 44S. nlu, Mary, 11»;). nv^, tlieir first Houses liero, S'i. 2lfl: New Orleans, -2112; in (jiricinnati, ; in Galve.slon, 302; in (ileveianil, Vestitipnts, Harp, 123. ViTot, Bishop, 13. Victory, Our l.aily of, 119, 1.30, 144, 373. Viu'iial, dcatli of, 70. Vllk'-Marie, 31, 74. 113,130. Vlririnia, I'''irst Missions of. 7. Visiiatin:i ,if Mary, '220; (Jhnrcli of, 13S; Siste-s of, 220. • WalUrnette Mission. 20.3. Wan'piini for Our Lady, 109, 203. Wnnbanaki Indians, ,