The Catholic World.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8, 22 February 1900, Page 24

The Catholic World.

ENQL AND— Death of a Victoria Cross Hero— it may not be generally known (pays the Cat hoi w Times) that the late ColourSergeant Booth, V.C., of Brierly Hill, was a Catholic. The deceased won the Victoria Cross for conspicuous bravery in the Zulu campaign, 1878-9, and it is now decided to place a memorial stone over his grave. FRANCE.— About to Settle in London.— The Sisters of the Good Shepherd, of Nancy, have sold their property in that city, and are, a French paper says, about to settle in London. A Sequel of the Dreyfus Case —a pleasing Bequel to the Dreyfus case is the promotion of Commandant Breon and Commandant Ducros to the officership of the Legion of Honour. The first voted in favour of the ex-captain's innocence at the Rennes courtmartial, and the second gave evidence which refuted the depositions of certain officers. Both officers were distinguished pupils of the Jesuits. ROME.^The Pope's Jubilee Festival.— it is said that 280 bishops -will take part, with 35 cardinals, at the opening ceremony at the Pope's Jubilee Festival this year. SCOTLAND— The Growth of the Church-— The Rev. Father Etherington, S.J., delivertd a series of sermons recently in St. Joseph's Church, Glasgow, on the growth of the Catholic Church during the present century, and gave some interesting particulars regarding its progress in Scotland. He said : — ' At the dawn of this oentuxy it was estimated that in Scotland (not including the

Highlands) there were but a few thousand Catholics, mainly of the poorer classes, administered to by forty pastorsat the outside. In the first thirty years of the century eighteen new churches were built ; during the next twenty the number was doubled, and now, at the close of the century, 4.>0 pastor* ministered to over 400,000 Catholics, whilst, churches, convents, and schools had multiplied in the same proportion. Alluding to Glasgow in particular, the rev. gentleman pointed out that fifty years ago there were seven churches in the city, with 20 priests administering to 70,000 Catholics. To-day-there were HO churches in the city, with over 100 priests to do the work amongst a Catholic population of 200,000. This progress was nowhere visible in any other religious body. There was no doubt that the coming century would see a greater growth than the one which preceded it, :md that the example set by Catholics in years gone by who had toiled in poverty and patience for the faith would be handed down as a legacy to Catholic generations following. THE PHILIPPINES -Catholic Soldiers and Chaplains-—^ is claimed that there are now fully 20,000 Catholic soldiers in che Philippines. They have, however, only two chaplains. UNITED STATES- — A Priest Preaches against Strikes- — A crusade was started in all the Catholio churches in Shamokin, in the Harrisburg diocese, on December 8, against a threatened strike of miners. More than 2000 United Mine Workers attended the churches. The principal address was delivered by Vicar-General Joseph Koch, of the Harrieburg Diocese, and pastor of St. Edward's Church. He said : 'In the 34 years I have been among you I have had considerable experience in strikes, and you know that in every one the working man has been the loser and the community the Bufferer. My advice to you to day is, don't be led into a sympathy strike. This advice comes from a friend, for I have always been willing to stand by you and work for your interests so long as they have been for peace and for right and just purposes. I speak to you to-day for your own good, and appeal to you to keep out of a strike. If a strike is ordered refused to obey, and if necessary you had better leave the order that would bring this ruin on your head. The only way to adjust a grievance is by arbitration and going about it in a cool, deliberate, and just manner. I am and always have been a friend of the working men so long as they fight for just principles and peace, and if in the future you have grievances and desire my services to help adjust them, come to me and, as always, you will find me ready to work and intercede for best interests.' The priest's address caused a big sensation with the men and public, ar»d it was thought would avert the strike. Cardinal Gibbons at the White House.— A whole crowd of Episcopalian Bishops (says an American exchange) reoently called on President McKinley, and the visit merited no other newspaper notice than a mere mention of the fact. Cardinal Gibbons recently called to see the President, and the papers gave the fact several columns of notice and comment Archbishop Chapelle and Father McKinnon paid their respects to the Chief Executive, and there are those ready to believe that the result of their brief stay iD the White House was union of Church and State in the Philippines. A Church for Croation Catholics.— Croations in Chicago are pushing forward a movement to build a Catholio Church. Support has been promised by people of the nationality throughout Illinois and in several parts of the United States. With this aid the 20,000 supporters of the plan in Chicago hope soon to collect sufficient money to erect a fine building. There are more than 2J0,000 Croations in the country. The only two Croation churches in the United States are in Pennsylvania, where the immigrants first formed settlements. Bequests to Catholic Charities.— By the will of the late Vice-President Hobart, probated, bequests of £1000 each are made to five charitable institutions, two of which, St. Joseph's Hospital and St. Joseph's Girls' Orphan Asylum, Paterson, are Catholic. The Propagation of Total Abstinence-— A Catholic total abstinence lecture bureau has been established in the diocese of St. Paul, Minnesota, with the blessing and encouragement of Archbishop Ireland. Six priests have undertaken to give their services as temperance lecturers in response to an invitation from any pastor, to help in establishing total abstinence societies in parishes where they do not yet exist and to do all that is possible to infuse new vigour into old societies. Not Favoured by the Bigots —Mr. David B. Henderson, of lowa, has been elected Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Prior to the election every member of the House received circulars protesting against the election of Mr. Henderson on the ground that he got money voted for what the writers considered sectarian purposes. The real reason was that he had by his broadmindednesa and liberality incurred the enmity of the A.P.A. Society. During the closing hours of last session lie delivered a powerful speech in denunciation of the action of the district of Columbia Committee in cutting off Catholic charitable institutions in the district from Government aid whilst others received it. In the course of his speech on that occasion he said -. I feel deeply on this question. It is well known lam no Catholic. Perhaps lam in big luck if I can bo regarded as a thoroughbred Protestant. I do not wear any religious shackles. The religion of God is unfettered. I realise the claims of humanity, wherever I find it, in health or in suffering. But I can remember the time in 1861, when, in the Good Samaritan Hospital of St. Louis, these ' Little Sisters,' with their white bonnets and their pure, innocent zaom, received into that institution my comrades who had measlea and smallpox and nursed them as only wives and sisters nurse. And from that hour in 1861 I swore that I would defend them in their works of mercy. And I have done bo on the floor of this bouse,

with the A.P.A. organised in my city. And Ido it to-night, defying those who would throttle an orphan child and bow the supple hinges of the knee to worse than ' sectarianism ' — to a more bitter tyranny than ' sectarianism.' No cross or crescent is more dangerous to this republic than these men who meet in secret and try to intimidate Congress from the discharge of a sacred duty to the fatherless and motherless. I have discussed this question before. I feel all that a man can feel in my earnestness about this matter. I feel the impulses of a man who should do his duty even if a Damascus blade in the hand of some secret organisation is held over him. OenerOUS Bequests- — Mr. Patrick Callaghan, formerly a New York lawyer, whobe death occurred ia Puughkccpoic, left a will in which he bequeathed the greater part of his estate, valued at £200,u00, to the following institutions . Society for lUe Protection of Destitute Catholic Children, Convent at Morrisania, Foundling Asylum of the Sisters of Charity of New York city, Home of the Good Shepherd, New York city, and St. Mary's Church, Poughkeepsie. The will does not state how much each institution is to have, but after dividing about £25,000 among relatives the remainder is left to the institutions named, presumably to be equally divided among them. GENERAL. Nuns who Served in the Crimea— Preaching recently in connection with the Diamond Jubilee celebration of the Sisters of Mercy, Bermondsey, England, Canon Murnane stated that four of the Sisters served during the Crimean War, when, with Miss Florence Nightingale, they undertook the work of nursing the wounded soldiers. Their heroic conduct has been brought before the notice of the Queen, and the three who still survived had received communications of a most cordial character from her Majesty. The Propagation Of the Faith- — The Association for the Faith is supporting in foreign countries over 5,000 priests and 10,000 Sisters. The Catholic Church in America has received from it £1,120,000 for establishing churches and spreading the faith.