ARCHDIOCESE OF WELLINGTON.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVII, Issue 30, 27 July 1899, Page 4

ARCHDIOCESE OF WELLINGTON.

(From our own correspondent.) July 22. The Hibernian Society has donated half of the profits of the sports held on St. Patrick's Day, v, litt'e over £11), to St. Mary's Cathedral Fund. Socials are to be held shortly at the Victoria Hall. Newtown, the proceeds of which are to pay for the additions to the convent school in that district. A new church is shortly to be erected at Shannon, in the Otaki mission. The timber is upon the ground, and building operations will soon b•> in full progress. A concert in aid of the building fund was held at Otaki on last Friday evening, the 21st instant. Eirly in June the Very Rev. Dr. Watters arrived in Dandalk, where he is spending a short time with his aged mother. On the Feast of Corpus Christi he was the celebrant at the Solemn High Mass, in St. Mary's College Church. It is worthy of note that the sub-deacon was the Rev. J. Taylor, an ex-student of St. Patrick's College, now engaged on the professorial staff at St. Mary's. Of the sermon preached m the evening the D mid alk Chronicle says : — ' The theme was naturally the Blessed Sacrament, and its treatment was of that deep scholarly and withal devotional nature which we so seldom find united, and by which Dr. W r atters has made so high a name amongst the most distinguished preachers of the Southern Cross.' At St. Mary's Convent Schoolroom on Wednesday evening the second chamber concert was given in aid of the poor under the care of the Sifters of Compassion. The schoolroom was most tastefully decorated. The audience, thoughismall, owing to the inclement weather, was most enthusiastic, encoring almost every item. His Grace Archbishop Redwood, who is spending a few weeks in Wellington, the Rev. Fathers Holley and Servajean, and Mr. Allen, M.H.R., were among those present. The following were the items given : — Duet, ' Norwegian dances,' Misses Evatt and McDonald ; chorus. ' morning,' duet, ' Friendship,' Misses Connell and Flynn ; song, • Life's lullaby,' Miss Flannagan ; solo, («) ' Morningr,' (b) • Anitra's dance.' Mi«s J. Ford; song, ' Tell me my heart,' Miss Connell : chorus, ' Ring on sweet angelus,' solo, ' Papillon au printemps,' Miss Evatt : dint. • When the wind blows in from the sea,' Misses Connell and White; song. "'lhe promise of life,' Miss E. Maginnity ; solo, ' Allegro c vivace,' Miss Falconer ; song, 'A bird sang in a hawthorn tree,' Miss Lon^ ; chorus, ' Lullaby.' The halt-yearly meeting of St. Patrick's branch, No. 95, H.A.C.B. Society, was held at St. Patrick's Hall on Wednesday last, the principal business being the election of oilicers for the ensuing term, and consideration of the balance sheit. The latter, while showing nearly £210 sick benefits dispensed among members, was of a satisfactory nature, the total funds showing a steady increase. The election of oilicers resulted as follows: — President, Bro. John Stratford (re-elected) ; vice-president. Bro. John McCarthy ; treasurer, Bro. W. T. Grant (re-elected) ; secretary, Bro. W. J. White (re-elected) ; warden, Bro. James Stratford; guardian, Bro. Cha«. Foley ; sick visitors, Bros. Jno. McCarthy and Thomas Burke ; auditors, I'ros P». Doherty and Chas. Foley. More interest ought to be taken in the Society by our young Catholic people than there is, as it i-s the only Catholic benefit Society in the Colony. The total membership for the Colony represents only a very small portion of the Catholic population. For various reasons this fact is to be deplored. Th«- good that could be done by large bodies joiningforces for ther mutual, temporal, and spiritual benefit cannot be denied, and though the same inducement, from a monetary point of view, is offered in the H.A.C.B. Society as in other societies, we find large numbers of our people joining those wherein no religious observance is ncci i-sary. The Rev. L. O. bervajean lectured to a lurge audience at St. Patrick's Hall, on Tuesday last, on the Dreyfus case. Mr. J. Hayes was in the chair (says the Pout). Many people, the lecturer said, were und<-r the impression that Dreyfus had been condemned solely because he was Jew, but this was entirely false. Religion had nothing to do with th<* ca^e. The Catholic Church never persecuted the Jews, but constantly took them under her protection. If there is now such a bitter feeling agai-ist the Jews in France, they may blame themselves for tlu-> ; they are reaping what they have been sowing, lie went at some length into the record of the connection of Jews wilh Fn n'jn history, since their naturalisation in 1789. With regurd to the 'Affaire Dreyfus,' the lecturer explained how the suspicion fell upon Dreyfus, and how he was finally condemned, An error msiy have been made, but the officers who pas-sed the sentence certainly acted m good taith. If one has proved U> be a forger, like Co). Henry, it was i.o reason why the whole of the French Army should be cried down, besides, the cablegrams are far from being reliable ; they ;ire very otten entirely wrong, instances of this being 1 given In conclusion, the lecturer hoped that the real culprit would be found, if it could be proved that Dreyfus himself was not the

traitor. Mr. Gilfedder, M.TI.R., moved a vote of thanks to the rev. lecturer, and it was seconded by the Vcn. Archdeacon Devoy, and carried unanimously.

The annual general meeting of the St. Joseph's Choir was held at the presbytery, Boulcott street, ou Wednesday evening, July 12. The officers for the ensuing year are the following : — President, Rev Father O'Shea ; conductor, Mr. H. M'Cardell (re-elecLed) ; librarian, Mr. G. dirling-Butcher ; secretary and treasurer, Mr. Dix ; organist, Mr. M. J. Ennis ; committee, Miss s Rigg and dallugher, and Mrs. Turner. It wiL be readily admitted that one of the most essential things to ensure success in a choir is regular attendance, and this has been observed very thoroughly by the majority of the members, the total number on the roll now being 32, and the average attendance on Sundays and on practice nights numbered 24 throughout the year. During the year sacred concerts were given in aid of the organ fund, viz., on October 23, 180 S. March 12, 1800, and July 0, ISOO, all of which were very successful, both from a musical and financial point of view. Two new Misse- 1 were put in rehearsal — Haydn's No. 1 in B flat, and Mozart's Twelfth— and were produced respectively at Christmas and East rj r with marked success. The si lections for the concerts were from works of well known composers, such as Handel. £ Haydn, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Rossini. Spohr, Gounod, Zingarelli, and others, the aim of the committee being to keep to as high a standard as possible. The capabilities ot the choir were tested during the meeting of the Hrst Catholic Provincial Synod, which took place in January, arid the conductor was complimented by the Right Rev. Dr. Lenihan, Bishop ot Auckland, on the excellence of the music. The choir also had an honour paid them by the Very Rev. Father Lane, by whom they were invited to assist at the opening of the new church at Petone. From the balance cheet it appears that the finances of the choir are in a very satisfactory condition. The Veil. Archdeacon Devoy and Rev. Father O'Shea have donated the sums of two guineas and one guinea respectively to the choir fund.