THE LATE MGR. KNEIPP.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXV, Issue 17, 27 August 1897, Page 4

THE LATE MGR. KNEIPP.

A REMARKABLE CAREER. Pfaruer Kneipp, of Worishofen, has at last passed away, after a prolonged illness. Latterly it was thought that he would rally but all too soon this hope was disappointed, for forthwith came the sad news of the pastor's death. Father Sebastian Kneipp was a man of exceptionally strong character, and his career is worthy of more than the customary notice given to the life of a good and energetic village priest. From youth onwards there was about him an air of rugged self-dependence. The son of a weaver— a fact in which hs took a manly pride— he was eager at an early age to study for the Church. His lather, who was probably looking forward to receiving help from him when he should become an efficient operative, did not favour his inclination for the priesthood, and there is a story that when the lad was fourteen he stole out in the night to consult a neighbouring priest as to how his most earnest wish could be realised. The father followed, and on learning the object of the boy's journey, remarked : " Yes ; go and tell the priest, too, how well you have kept the Fourth Commandment " Sebastian was informed that two thousand florins would be required for his education. Immediately he began to save, and in three years he had put by seventy-five nor ns, or a little over £6. He kept the money hidden under a loose beam in a garret, and when he was seventeen the house took fire and was burnt to the ground. His silver coins, wore converted into a little mass of silver, which he found lying amon»st the ashes. Hut he went on saving with as fixed a determination as ever. Then Father Mathias Merkle "-aye him private instruction. Subsequently— in i $',()— he entered a seminary ut Diliingen, where, owing to his prematurely a»-ed appearance, he was called " Vater Kneipp," and in due course'he was raided to the juie-i.ho'xl. It was as the apostle o f coM \\al>r that the Pfarrcr obtained worll-wirfe fame. From the first there were many— especially amongst the meaibe-s ot the medical la.ulty— who denied that his system conferred any benefits, but there wen; aKo large numbers who attributed to it cures and improvement in health. A few years ago the writer of the pie-ent notice, whilst visiting Cologne fouudth.it a priest with whom h<< m.vle acquaintance, and who' was then strong and w^oron-,, was following the Kneipp treatment and he questioned him a* to its elricaey. " lief ore I commenced it "' said the rev. gentleman, '• my chest 'was bad, and the doctors had given me up. I was too weak to walk across the street. From the moment since I tried it I have been gradually getting Wi-11." Testimony such as this dissipates a gnat many doubts and misgivings-, and as there was much evidence of the knid in Germany, it i 0i 0 not surmising that Kneipp institutions were established in that countiy and in various parts of the world. The water-cure idea entered Kneipp s mind in his early student days, as we learn from an interesting article which appeared in The Month of January, lb'.»2. He had woiked too hard at his studies, and was on the verge oi the grave. Chance threw into his way a small book dating from Iho last century, the author bein" Johann Sigmund H.thn. Kneipp believed that he owed his life to observing its directions. At, the s-minary he began to experiment on his fellow-students. One was believed to be dying, but every night he and Kneipp climbed through the window to the pump in the yard, where abundant douches were administered. The nocturnal expeditions were discovered, but the manifest improvement in the student's health saved Kneipp from anything more severe than a slight reprimand. The water cure not only male Won^hofen famous, but trebled its population. '■ The moment when 1 first saw him in full activity " >~ayrf the writer in j'h, -VW/>, •• r, one that will always live as a picture in my me.r.cry. I had been told that S a.m. was the hour at whkh consultation* beg-m and accordingly soon after ei«-ht I prebonte 1 my-elf at the door ot the Piarrhot. Having opened it' I s'ood still in di.~in,iy. The whole ot the lobby was crammed with cxi eotant patient.-. IVasuiN m various quaint costumes, elbowed lad.es in fashionable bonnets, and monks, in hairy habits stood alongside of dandified youths. Fioin time to time tbe door which led into the i'tarrer's sitting-room opened, and each time this was the s gnal for a sort of free fight, which ended by a group of the inside p iLieuts forcing their way out, and a group of the foremost and most energetic of tbe outside patients— m.-n and women indiscriminate ly— forcing their way in. When 1 had fully grasped the sitta-

tion, my first impulse was to turn and fly ; but to move backwards had by this time become as impossible as to move forwards, and besides my curiosity was beginning to ba mightily aroused. It was nearly ten o'clock before, half-suffocated by the close atmosphere, I succeeded in shoving myself through the doorway. Having recovered my breath, and put my hat straight, I proceeded to take stock of my surroundings. The r 10m was comparatively empty — that is to say, there were not much more than twenty people in it. On a seat against the wall, with a loig deal table before him, and a white Pomeranian dog nestling at his side, the Pfarrer was seated. In the lobby there had been a constant buzz of voices, but here all was silent, except for the quavering tones of some patient whose turn had come to approach the tribunal, or for the slow and measured words of the Pfarrer. At each end of the table a doctor sat making notes ; several other individuals, whom I afterwards discovered to be likewise doctors, were lounging in the window embrasures. 13 ut I looked at nothing but the Pfarrer. His photograph had prep uvd me for something striking in the way ot human countenance, and I cannot say that I was disappointed. The contract between the snow-white hair, and the dark, bushy eyebrows (I believe they are the bushiest eyebrows I ever saw) would make him remarkable anywhere. The features are indeed heavy — even coarse — but the penetrating glance of the black eyes and the expression of intense yet calm energy which is stamped on the face quite redeem* Knoipp's countenance from any approach to the commonplace. This combination of calmness and energy always btruuk me as being his peculiar characteristic. Never before have I seen such concentrated energy so utterly free from any taint of restlessness, nor buch perfect calm so innocent of any suspicion of apathy. In this combination I believe lies the secret of his power." The good Pfarrer needed all the calm he could command, for he was hunted everywhere by patients, many devices being used to secure private interviews, amongst them that of bribing with sweetmeats his little niece Mariedl.who was so dear to him. Despite a rough exterior, he was kind to all, especially to the poor. If the sufferer was well-to-do a moderate fee was fixed, but if ne^dy no charge whatever was made. This is a specimen of how the Pfarrer dealt with the question of fees : " How many cows have you got ?" " Pour." " How many children?" '"Five." "Go along. I won't take anything from you." Again : " How much, Pfarrer /" " Well, as your daughter has so many flowers in her hat, you can give me a mark."

The good sayings of the pastor were numerous. During the first interview which Baron Nathaniel Rothschild had with him he bsgan by giving- a minute description of his manner of living, particularly of his diet. Kneipp listened patiently to the account of what the Baron took for breakfast, of what his "dejeuner a la fourchette" consisted, of what his luncheon and of what his dinner. "And now what is the matter with me?' inquired the patient. The phrase for this, '• Was fehlt mir ?" means literally in German " What is wanting to me ?" and Kneipp, waggishly catching up this meaning', replied : '■ Oh, it's a second stomach you want." Amongst the Pfarrer's patients were eminent Churchmen such as Cardinal Gibbons, who derived considerable benefit from his treatment. The Holy Father also tried the waten-oure for a while, and made its author a Domestic Prelate with the title of Monsi^nor, an honour which gave widespread satisfaction to the multitudes of the pastor's friends and admirers. M^r. Kneipp wrote " Meine Wasserkur " and other works advocating hio system of treatment in his own peculiar btyle. — Catholic 'J uni.i.