ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSION WORK.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 303, 19 December 1912, Page 8

ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSION WORK.

• — WORLD- WIUE TOTJIt OF A SUPERIOR GJ_NXl—__, 400-MI—E JOURNEY IN A PONY CART. Among the arrivals by the mail steamer Makura was the Very Rev. F. Henry, Superior-General of St. Joseph's Foreign Missionary Society, which has its headquarters in London. The remarkable growth of the Society, whi<_ . carries on its work in all parts of the globe, was explained by Father Henry to a "Star" reporter who waited on him to-day. The Society, said Father Henry, was founded by the renowned Father Vaughan in 15156, when he was quite a young priest. Father Vaughan remained Superior-General until the time of his death, in 1903. At that period the Society had 150 priests scattered about in various parts of the world engaged in mission work, and the baptisms were between 5,000 and 6,000 yearly. Last year 200 priests were working in the different missions, the baptisms numbered 16,600, the communions 600,000, and there were over 400,000 confessions. Two years ago Father He_xy paid a visit of inspection to some of the mission stations in little-known parte of the world He visited the Phillipines, wheire the Society has about 30 missionarire promulgating the G-ospel undeagresat d_Bc_ties. The work k chiefly confined to Mindinao, no stations having yet been esstablished among the Ingoro— and the Negrotias, the wild tribes o! the North. Father Vaughan also paid a visit t-o Borneo, where he spent three months among the wild natives of that island. Later the reverend Father went on to Madras, and spent considerable time in India. While there, he inspected the Society's mission stations. This inspection necessitated a large amount of arduous tr-yelling, one journey of 400 miles being made in a pony cart, and taking 10 days to a«arnp]___ While in the Dondmon, Father He—'y will v_it the Maori nrisskms, where the Soc—ty's priests art labouring and after proceeding to Australia, will'go on to Africa to -rant the Ugandan stations. several miles m the interior.