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New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVII, Issue 14, 6 April 1899, Page 28

the morals of our people through the dissemination amongst them of debasing and sedusive publications such as still continue to De sold in not a few places in this city and diocese. Those who are ensraeed in this infamous traffic should remember in time the warnin? words of our Lord, ' Woe to that man by whom scandal cometh, and again, ' What doth it profit a man to gain the whole world if he suffer the loss of his soul ?' All good Catholic, should do their part towards making: the trade in immoral publications an unprofitable one by transferring their custom from any bookshop or other place in which such publications are exposed to view, or are known to be on sale.

MEXICO -An Ancient Mission.-The distinction which has been claimed for Caparra, in Porto Rico, of being the oldest settlement on the American side of the Atlantic, is now given to Coyoacan, Merico, as far as the continent itself is concerned, lhis Mexican town is 377 years old, and a Catholic church was built there in 1530, or ninety years before the Mayflower reached Plymouth Harbour. At Coyoacan Father Olmedo, a Spanish triar, exercised his ministry as early as 1521.

ROME —Sacred Learning in the Eternal City -A very important feature of Pope Leo's pontificate (says the Rome correstiondent of the Sew York Freeman's Journal) has been the increased emphasis upon the fact of Rome's position as centre ot the Catholic universe. A few weeks ago I «poke in this correspondence about student life in the Eternal City. Let me supplement what I said there by adding among the nationalities which have colleges here for the training of secular priests, the Greeks, Germans (two), Austrians, Ruthenians, Scotch, Irish, English (two), United States, South America, Canada, Belgium, Poland Armenia, Bohemia, Spain, Maronites, together with international colleges like the Propaganda, which ha* students from all parts ot the globe. Among the Ordcrn that have house, of study in Rome for thwr scholastics are the Josuit-s Dominie n«, Benedictines. Carmehu^, Servites, Franciscans, etc.

The Vatican and Diplomacy .-An* her very int. resting; indication of the influence of the Catholic Church (\snks a correspondent of an exchange) in the»e closing year* ot the nineteenth ■ century is the extent ot its official n presentation with temporal irovernmi-nts. The United States and Kngland nru the only two nowersof any note which have tak. ti no sf ps to wui.re iomnl diplomatic relations *iih the Holy See. Turkey is still unrepresented but the Sultan is endeavouring to obtain the e^tabli-lunjnt of a legation to the Vatican and a nunciature at Constantinople. The powers that have at prcsant accredited ambassadors or onyoys to the Holy Father are Austria-Hungary, Havana, Belgium, bolivia, Braz : l Chili, Columbia, Copta Rica. Lquauor. France, Hayti, lionduras' Monaco, Nicaragua, Peru, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, San Domingo and Spain. A truly remarkable condition ot things when . it is remembered that at the death of Pius IX. the temporal power h-id been eight years destroyed and the right* of the Holy See to I diplomatic relations with governments wad almost universally j ignored. j UNITED STATES— Devotion to the Blessed Virgin-— In the course of an address, on New Year's. Day, to a Protestant Episcopal congregation, Rev. Dr. de Costa said :-The attack upon Mary is an attack upon the Bible and Christianity. They understand that a supernatural Child calls for a supernatural mother : their war is with the supernatural. They would free the world of the supernatural as from so much ' superstition.' To rid themselves of a supernatural Ohrist-child they repudiate the \ irgm. Yet Mary remains to-day, in the facelof false criticism/ with its allies, the infidel and scandalmonger. Mary forms the indestructible foundation of the Divine Incarnation ; and all Christians who have the honour of sacred truth at heart and venerate Holy Scripture should be made sensible of the fact that the object in seeking to debase Mary is to dethrone the Son of God.

MR. P. LUNDON, Phoenix Chambers, Wanganui, is still busy putting people on the soil. He has also hotels in town and country For Sale and To Lease Write to him.—/* The largest musical instrument on earth will be on exhibition at the Paris Exposition of li»0<). It is called an ' aurooleetropolyShone ' and its inventor and builder is an Italian, Antonio /ibordi, who cairns to have worked upon it for fifteen years rhe instrument executes every kind of concerted music, and contains no less than 8,000 different and independent instruments.