THE LATE BISHOP GRIMES

New Zealand Tablet, 1 April 1915, Page 23

THE LATE BISHOP GRIMES

THE FUNERAL AND OBSEQUIES IMPRESSIVE CEREMONIES. (From our Christchurch correspondent.) The Very Rev. Chancellor Price, who accompanied the late Bishop Grimes to Sydney, returned to Christchurch on Wednesday morning, bringing with him the mortal remains of the late prelate. Father Price was with Bishop Grimes to the last, and in view of his close association with the deceased prelate, felt acutely the painful experiences he went through. To a representative of the Press Father Price spared a few minutes to talk of the last hours of Bishop Grimes. His Lordship stood the passage from New Zealand to Sydney very well, and on arrival at the Lewisham Hospital was examined by a prominent surgeon. Dr. Stewart Mackay, and by a leading physician, Dr. Veitch. They found that he was suffering from a dilated stomach and mitral regurgitation of the heart. They were hopeful of being able to restore him to health, though they were of opinion that, owing to the heart affection, his Lordship would never bo able to undertake any strenuous work, as the least excitement might result in a sudden collapse. With care, they thought he might live many years. On the Friday night before his death, the Bishop had an attack of appendicitis, but the physician thought it might pass away in about twenty-four hours. Instead of doing so it became more acute, and on Saturday at midday it was decided that an operation was absolutely necessary. The same evening, Dr. Stewart Mackay operated, and he stood the operation splendidly, leaving the operating table feeling well. When the effect of the anaesthetic wore off his Lordship said that he felt much more comfortable. Up to 4 p.m. on Sunday he was getting on as well as the doctors and nurses could expect, but then a slight attack of pneumonia supervened and gave his Lordship no chance, and he gradually sank and expired about one o’clock on Monday morning. Bishop Grimes avrs conscious up to two or three hours before his death. When Father Price conveyed to his Lordship the intimation that there was no hope, Bishop Grimes gave his blessing to his people and asked for their prayers. He spoke of the twenty-seven years he had labored amongst the people of Christchurch, and expressed a wish that his remains should rest in the Cathedral. A Requiem service was held at St. Patrick’s Church, Sydney, at which his Grace Archbishop Kelly, the Apostolic Delegate (his Grace Archbishop Cerretti), and about sixty priests were present. The following day the body was removed on board the Manuka, which, after a somewhat rough passage, arrived at Wellington on Tuesday just in time to connect with the ferry steamer. At Wellington the remains of the late Bishop were transferred from the inter-colonial steamer Manuka to the ferry steamer Maori, reaching Lyttelton on last Wednesday morning. Meanwhile from an early hour preparations for the reception of the remains were in progress at the Christchurch railway station, the sad occasion being forcibly borne in upon the people, who had happy and vivid recollections of many joyous receptions on the same scene of their much-beloved prelate during the pastmore than a quarter of a

century—when returning to his devoted flock in the prime of life, and in’good health and spirits'. The realisation of the contrast was more than' many of - the older people could bear. The gloomy weather conditions prevailing, too, appeared to harmonise with the mournful character of the mission in which so many hundreds were then engaged. The station was barred to all, except the travelling public and those intimately connected with the arrangements in hand. , LARGE ASSEMBLAGE OF MOURNERS. The widespread and very real love and veneration in which the late Bishop was held by his flock, and the great respect felt towards him by the public of Christchurch generally, were very eloquently testified to by the large gathering that so patiently waited the arrival of- the mortal remains of the Bishop, and by the respectful grief manifested on all sides. Moorhouse avenue, from the station entrance westward almost to Colombo street, was filled with people, and subsequently the sidewalks along the route of the procession were lined with crowds. Shortly after seven o’clock the mourners began to arrive at the station, amongst the first large bodies being the children from Mount Magdala and the Children of Mary, the lastmentioned being distinguished by their blue cloaks and white veils. It was known early that the ferry steamer had arrived a little late, and that, consequently, there would be some delay. In the meantime the different parts of the procession were assembled along the southern footpath of Moorhouse avenue, stretching from the entrance from the avenue to the arrival platform on the south side of the station, to the entrance to the station. The children from Nazareth House, the school children from the two convents, the boys from the Marist Brothers’ School and from St. Bede’s College, the Marist Brothers’ School Cadets (looking soldierly in their green uniforms), and the members of the H.A.C.B. Society, as they arrived took up their appointed stations. The clergy, both local and visiting, were present in large numbers, and with the other mourners took up their posts. By half-past eight the formation of the procession, as far as it was possible, had been accomplished. Order of the Procession. A quarter of an hour later the hearse conveying the body of Bishop Grimes emerged into the avenue from the southern side of the station, and the procession finally formed. The order of the procession and those comprising it were:—The cross-bearers altar boys; the clergy; Nazareth House children (in charge of the Sisters of Nazareth) ; Mount Magdala children (in charge of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd) ; St. Bede’s College students boarders and school children of Our Lady of the Missions Sacred Heart College and Convent Schools; School children of St. Mary’s Convent and representatives from Houses on the West Coast; Marist Brothers’ schoolboys; schoolboys from St. Mary’s; visiting clergy; the hearse ; guard of Hibernians ; motor car (Sir George Clifford, Mr. IT. H. Loughnan, and Mr. J. A. Cassidy); carriages (visiting clergy) the Bishop’s car (with curtains drawn) ; Marist Brothers' School Cadets (under Lieut. Roche) ; members of the H.A.C.B. ' Society ; the general public. The procession presented a very picturesque appearance. At the head the cross-bearer, holding aloft the cross, was accompanied by altar boys bearing lighted candles. The banners borne by the two branches of the Children of Mary —the Sacred Heart Convent and St. Mary’s —lent color to the array, as did also the Hibernians with their sashes of green. A medieval note was added by the ceremonial torch lanterns borne by the guard of Hibernians with the hearse. Some idea of the total length of the procession can be gained from the fact that it took ten minutes to pass one point. The Hibernians were led by Bro. J. Griffen (president) and Bro. M. Grimes (secretary of St. Patrick’s branch), and there were representatives present from the Barfield, Ashburton, Kaiapoi, Leeston, and Timaru branches.

Lieutenant Roche, who was in charge of the Marist Brothers’ School Cadets, also represented the Defence Department. , * _ . Mr. J. R Hayward represented the Dominion Council of the Catholic Federation, Wellington, and Mr. W. Hayward, jun., represented the Diocesan Council of the Catholic Federation. ' Amongst those present were Mr. T. H. Davey and Mr J. C. Adams, chairman of the Board of Governors of Canterbury College. The great bell of the Cathedral was in the meantime tolled, and at about ten minutes to nine the procession started, and at ten minutes past nine the casket was conveyed from the hearse into* the Cathedral, the front of which was draped in black. Very Rev. Dean Hills, received the body, which was conveyed to a position in front of the altar. The interior of the Cathedral was draped in black and purple, the altar and pulpit being draped in black. Over the high altar were the words ‘ lieguiescat in race ’ in large silver lettering on black. Dean Hills said the ‘ Miserere 5 the clergy responding. This was followed by the recitation of the Holy Rosary. At the conclusion of the service of mourning the lid of the casket was removed : this permitted the remains to be viewed through a glass front. About 600 persons had viewed the remains by ten clock and throughout the day members of the Catholic Church and others continued to file through the Cathedral to pay their last respects to the mortal remains of a Bishop who, during his episcopacy, had set a notable example not only to his own flock, but to the whole community, by his holy life, his simple kindliness, and devotion to duty. The Lying-in-State, During the lying-in-state, probably thousands filed reverently passed the coffin, the procession beiim continuous. The coffin was flanked by six lighted tall candles on each side, sufficient space being left for the free passage of the people. All through Wednesday night relays of men of the congregation kept watch, The members of the hierarchy and clergy, who already arrived from other parts of the Dominion, were his Grace Archbishop O’Shea, his Lordship Bishop Yerdon, his Lordship Bishop Cleary, Right Rev M«r Mackay, Right Rev. Mgr. Brodie, Yen. Archdeacon Devoy, Very Rev. Chancellor Holbrook, Very Rev. Deans Smyth, S.M. (Provincial), Regnault S M Holley S.M., Binsfield, S.M., Carew, S.M., McKenna, V .G. (Masterton), Tubman, Very Rev. Fathers Coffey Adm. (Dunedin), O’Connell, S.M. (Wellington) Rev’ Fathers Dignan, S.M., Barra, S.M.,' McDonnell, S.M.’ and a number of the diocesan clergy from Westland and Canterbury. PONTIFICAL REQUIEM MASS. Long before the appointed hour for the Pontifical Requiem Mass and solemn obsequies, people were flocking to the Cathedral, and by ten o’clock the whole of the ground floor space was thronged, hundreds being content to stand. Soon the overflow was accommodated in the choir gallery, until it was closely packed. Then the lengthy side gallery showed line after line of later arrivals, and finally one after the other of the galleries in the great dome were occupied. Never in the brief history of the Cathedral has it contained such a vast concourse, and probably never before in the Dominion has such a sight been seen. As the procession of hierarchy and clergy entered the Cathedral and filed up the nave, the strains of Beethoven’s ‘ Funeral March’, were heard, and was followed by Chopin’s Marche Funebre,’ played by the Cathedral organist (Mr W Handel Thor ley). The Pontifical Requiem Mass, which commenced at 10 o’clock, was celebrated by the Right Rev. Dr Cleary Bishop of Auckland. _ The Very Rev. Dean Hills’ S.M., was assistant priest, the Very Rev. Dean Tubman, S.M. (Timaru), deacon, Very Rev. Dean Hyland (Rangiora) subdeacon, Very Rev. Chancellor Price, Adm., master of ceremonies, and Rev. Dr. Kennedy assistant master of ceremonies. His Grace Archbishop O’Shea, S.M., occupied the vacant episcopal throne, and was attended by the Yen. Archdeacon Devoy, S.M.’

and , Ve r y Rev. Dean McKenna (Masterton). Th© Right Rev. Dr. Verdon, Bishop of Dunedin, Right Rev. Mgr. Mackay, V.G., Right Rev. Mgr. Brodie, V.G. an Very Rev. Mgr. O’Leary occupied "seats of honor m the, sanctuary. The whole of the Christchurch diocesan clergy were present in the sanctuary, whilst others from the archdiocese of Wellington and dioceses oi Auckland and Dunedin were—Very Rev. Deans Smyth S.M. (Provincial), Regnault, S.M., Holley, S.M. Binsfield, S.M., Carew, S.M., and Burke (Invercargill), Very Rev. Chancellor Holbrook (Auckland) representing the N.Z. District of the H.A.C.B. Society Very Rev. Fathers O’Donnell (Gore), Coffey, Adm (Dunedin), O’Connell, S.M. (Wellington), Rev. Fathers Del any (South Dunedin), McDonnell, S.M., (Hastings) ignan (Napier), and Barra, S.M. (Wellington). Seats had been reserved for representatives of various public bodies, and as was to be expected in the case of a Bishop whose sympathies were so wide and whose interest in the welfare of his own city was so keen as those of the late Dr. Grimes, these reserved seats were well filled. Among those present in the congregation were: Representing his Excellency th© Governor; Colonel Chaffey, accompanied by Captain Matthews. Representing the Christchurch City Council: the Mayor (Mr. H. Holland), Crs. 11. B. Sorensen, A. Williams, I. Burgoyne, Hiram Hunter, Geo. Scott, J. McCullough, and W. H. Cooper; Messrs. H. R. Smith (town deik), and A. Dudley Dobson (city surveyor). Representing Canterbury District Law Society: Mr. F. AY. Johnston and Mr. J. A. Cassidy. Representing North Canterbury Hospital and Charitable Aid Board: Mr. F. Horrell. Representing the Board of Governors of the McLean Institute: Messrs. H. W. Bishop, SM George Harper, and W. F. Hilson (secretary). ’Representing the Board of Governors of Canterbury College ; Messrs. J. C. Adams (chairman), C. H. Opie, Geo & T. Weston, S. Hurst Seager, G. IT. Mason (registrar). Representing the Professorial Board; Professor Wall, Dr. Chilton. Representing Dominion Council of the Catholic Federation: Mr. J. R. Hayward. Representing Diocesan Council of the Catholic Federation: Mr. W . Hayward, jun. I he H.A.C.B. Society was represented by Bro. J. Griffon (president) and Bro. M. Glimes (secretary) of St. Patrick’s local branch, together with a large number of members. The Rev. H. b. Leach (Anglican), and Revs. W. Sinclair and H. H. Bell house (representing the Methodist Conference) were also present. Among the prominent laity in attendance were Sir J G. Ward, K.C.M.G., Bart., and Lady Ward, Sir G. Clifford, Bart., Mr. M. Kennedy, K.S G ’ Superintendent Dwyer, Mr. H. H. Loughnan. There were also present—Mr. G. Witty, M.P., Mr. G. H. Gilby (representing Dr. Thacker, M.P., absent from the city), Mr. J. A. Scott, M.A., editor of the N.Z. Tablet, Dr. Crooke, Mr. AY. IT. Murray, Mr. H. J. Marriner, and Mr. T. Smale. Occupying reserved places were the Sisters of Notre Dame des Missions, Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of the Good Shepherd, Sisters of Nazareth, and the Nursing Sisters of the Little Company of Mary, also the Marist Brothers, and children of the several institutions. Led by the Rev. Father Ainsworth, S.M., and Very Rev. Father O’Connell, S.M., the ‘Dies Irae’ and solemn ordinary of the Mass of Requiem were sung by the choir of clergy, and at the Offertory the Cathedral organist played Handel’s ‘ I know that my Redeemer liveth.’ THE PANEGYRIC. . The panegyric was preached by the Most Rev. Dr. O’Shea, S.M., Coadjutor Archbishop of AVellington, who, in addressing the enormous congregation, said My Lords, Right Rev. Monsignori, Very Rev. and Rev. Fathers, and beloved brethren,Might I, first of all, return the thanks of the Archbishops and Bishops, and the clergy and laity, not only of this diocese, but of the whole Dominion, for the kind sympathy that we have received from the whole of the citizens. We are especially grateful to his Excellency the Governor, to the Prime Minister, and the Mayor of this city, and other public and representative men for -the kind mess-

ages which they • have sent to the Bishops and the ecclesiastical authorities in {this diocese. This has touched us very deeply, and it is most consoling, and will serve to draw tighter the bonds of affection that should exist, especially in' these perilous times, between the people of all classes and creeds in this Dominion. His Grace based his discourse on the following text:—‘And I heard a voice from heaven saying to me: Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. From henceforth now, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors for their works follow them (Apoc. XIV. 13). Proceeding, his Grace said; A great calamity has overtaken this diocese of Christchurch, and a great sorrow in consequence fills all parts. Your beloved Bishop, who for nearly eight and twenty years ruled so successfully and so well over this portion of the Lord’s vineyard, is no more. After a long, strenuous, and active life that passed the allotted span, he has laid down the burden, and the whole diocese is in mourning. It is hard to realise that the stout heart has ceased to beat, and that an active brain is now stilled in death. But the sad fact is before us, and we are assembled here in this beautiful Cathedral, which the departed prelate raised with such loving care, to pay our last tribute to all that is mortal of the first Bishop of Christchurch. To me personally the task of addressing you on this occasion is the more difficult, because I was bound to your Bishop by the closest of ties. It was at his hands that I received the great dignity of the priesthood, and this fact naturally drew me towards him, made me look up to him with feelings of filial affection. Early Days of the Departed Prelate. Bear with me then, my brethren, while I discharge the sad duty of recalling to mind, before we consign his body to the tomb, the chief incidents of his lifethe work that he accomplished, the virtues that he gave example of. The Right Rev. John Joseph Grimes was born in the year 1842 at Bromley, Kent. He was a bright, intelligent lad who, from an early age showed that he possessed exceptional talents. He studied in various colleges of the Marist Fathers in Ireland and France, and, as he showed signs of a decided vocation to the religious and priestly life, he as received into the Society of Mary in the year 1867, and was ordained priest in 1869. For a time he taught in the colleges of his Order in Ireland and England, and after a while he was sent to the United States, here he was attached to the staff of Jefferson College, New Orleans, eventually becoming head of that institution. While in New Orleans the yellow fever broke out. As many of the diocesan clergy were down with it, Dr. Grimes and the college priests offered their services to assist in ministering to the sick,

and he too caught the - fever. Happily he recovered, but no doubt the A attack weakened his by . no means robust constitution. He was sent back to England in 1880, and appointed Superior of St. Mary’s College, Paignton, in the South of England. He held this position until the year 1887. It was in that year that the Holy See decided to separate Christchurch from Wellington, and Dr. Grimes was selected by the Holy Father to be the first Bishop of the new'diocese. Bishop of Christchurch. So he was consecrated by the late Cardinal Vaughan in St. Anne’s Church, London, in the middle of the year 1887, and he arrived in Christchurch at the beginning of the following year, just twenty-seven years ago. The Colony, as it was in those days, was not as advanced as it is at present. Things were more or less in a state of formation, and there was a lot of building up to be dome. A new diocese always presents difficulties to its first ruler that would not confront a bishop who takes up the reins in a diocese that has already been well established and ruled over by able predecessors. The new diocese has to be organised. Things have to be gradually brought into shape and into line with the requirements of ecclesiastical law. All this involves on the part of the Bishop an immense amount of energy, skill, tact, and perseverance. The work of visitation alone in those days was a heavy one. The means of communication, especially in Westland, thirty years ago were not as up-to-date as they are at present. But visitation is one of the chief duties of a bishop, and it is always more necessary in case of the organising of a new diocese. We know how conscientiously Dr. Grimes carried out that part of his office down to the very last. He went into every district—becoming acquainted with his people, giving Confirmation, preaching, exhorting, and in a word setting all things in order like the first bishops of whom we read in the New Testament. The strain of the first three years was so great that he very nearly broke down in health and had to go to Europe for a prolonged holiday. Even there he did not altogether rest, but did something towards raising the nucleus of a fund for the erection of a Cathedral worthy of this city. When he returned restored in health, he set to work vigorously to further this last-mentioned project. At the same time he did not neglect attending to the other wants of the diocese, especially the educational and charitable institutions, which made very great progress soon after his advent to Christchurch. But the work of raising the large sum of money for the new Cathedral was indeed a formidable one, especially in view of the many other requirements of the diocese. However, he was not dismayed at the greatness of the undertaking. He threw himself heart and soul into the work, for he

knew that if the large sum of money required were to be obtained it must come through him and in answer to his direct and personal appeal. So he set to work to visit every part under his jurisdiction, even to have, if possible, a personal interview with every Catholic in the diocese and beg for the Cathedral. He wrote innumerable letters. The work of collecting money is, as everyone knows, a distasteful one. It brings plenty of mortifications and rebuffs, and God alone knows how many humiliations the late Bishop had to go through. But he had the courage of his cause, and he was determined that the erection of a Cathedral should be a public profession of faith on the part of his people. There are some people who would like to identify religion - exclusively with the corporal works of mercy, and who think that money spent upon a magnificent Cathedral is a waste and would be far better spent upon ‘ charitable or educational institutions. With these up to a certain point the Bishop agreed, but there he parted company. By all means raise money for these other institutions, but do not neglect the House of God. The service of man is most necessary, but it must not be looked upon as an all-sufficient substitute for the service of God. His Cathedral was to be a centre of the public worship of God, and to his mind could in no way interfere with the progress of other necessary institutions of education and charity. As events have proved, it has not done so in the Christchurch diocese. Nowhere have you finer parochial churches, convent schools, and charitable institutions. A Wonderful Achievement.The work of collecting for the Cathedral occupied most of the middle period of his Lordship’s episcopate, and he had the happiness of completing the beautiful building in which we are assembled, and seeing it solemnly opened for public worship just ten years ago. He was surrounded on that memorable occasion by distinguished prelates from Australia and New Zealand, and he received many well-deserved congratulations from all quarters, and the then Governor and Prime Minister of the Dominion were present in person at the opening. It is true a large debt still remained on the building, but the Bishop, with his usual energy and success, almost entirely wiped it out before his death, and now a* sum of less : than 000 remains to be paid. From whatever way you look at it this was a wonderful achievement. For one Bishop to begin and complete such a magnificent Cathedral during his lifetime was indeed a great thing, but he had done more, he had during his episcopate practically raised all the money required for the building. No wonder, then, that this Cathedral will always be looked upon as the best monument to the first Bishop of this See. Other Works. I shall not detain you, but will merely enumerate the various other works that he was instrumental in establishing in the diocese during his episcopate of a little over a quarter of a century. Several new religious Orders were introduced; the number of priests and churches were greatly increased. Many of the older churches have been replaced by beautiful and substantial modern buildings. The Marist Brothers were introduced under his rule. A new college for boys (conducted by the Marist Fathers) as opened. ihe splendid Magdalene Asylum was greatly extended, and an orphanage built in connection with it, as well as a very fine chapel. _ The educational establishments of the Sisters of the Mission, Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of the Sacred Heart, and of St. Joseph were multiplied and improved. Then we had the establishment of the Sisters of Nazareth, which is doing such good work for the old people and for the orphans in Sydenham. Last, but not least, we have the Nursing Sisters of the Little Company of Mary, who began last year at the small hospital at Lewisham, for whom the late Bishop performed his last public function, and who nursed and cared for him so tenderly and devotedly during the last weeks of his life. To-day, my dear brethren, he leaves the diocese, that he saw grow from infancy, one of the best organised and equipped in Australasia.

, Now, my brethren, the "Bishop, who under - God accomplished all this, must have been no ordinary man. I know that in all his undertakings he had the loyal cooperation of his priests and people, without which very little can be accomplished by 7 any Bishop. But, as in an army, more depends upon the qualities and ability ' of the general than upon anything else, so it is in the great army of God, in which the bishops of His Church are the generals. And Dr. Grimes was no ordinary man. He was endowed with gifts of heart and head above his fellows. He had a charming manner and personality that made him friends everywhere, not only amongst his own people, but amongst people of all classes and creeds. He was a very able administrator. He was very thorough in all that he undertook, and, as he was a man of tireless energy, there was little that escaped his attention. He was a man of wide sympathies. He took an active, practical interest in everything that concerned the welfare of this young country, that he loved so well. He was especially proud of his own city of Christchurch, and was never tired of showing his visitors around it, and pointing out to them its many features of interest and beauty. Nothing that concerned his people’s welfare was too trivial or beneath his attention. He was always thinking of them and working for them. Busy as he was and occupied with a multiplicity of duties, he always found time to devote to the duties of hospitality, and indeed he was an ideal host, as many visitors to this fair city can testify. The Secret of His Success. Now, what was it that rendered the late Bishop’s career so remarkable and so successful ? It was nothing else than‘his zeal for God’s glory. Herein we have the reason why he worked so hard for the salvation of souls, and why he labored so strenuously to build this grand Cathedral, and to raise up all those institutions of education and charity for the benefit of his fellowcreatures. All these things contributed to God’s glory. He saw in his fellow-men the image of the Creator, and in laboring for them he labored for God. No merely humanitarian motive can make men persistently work' for their fellows. No, it must be supernatural. Poor human nature is so weak, it is often so repulsive and so ungrateful if left to itself that only there are higher motives, many a good man would soon be discouraged and give up working for his fellow-men. It was these higher motives that prompted Bishop Grimes in all that he did. Like the Apostles, he wished to make himself all to all, that he might gain all for Christ. It was his delight to have all the ceremonies of Holy Church carried out with as much splendor and magnificence as possible, not because he loved show, but because he rightly believed that nothing can be too grand in the public worship of the Creator. He was a man of prayer and union with God, and therein he found strength and consolation in all his difficulties. For, great and exalted as is the position of a bishop in the Church, great, also, are his responsibilities. He has so much to answer for, such difficult paths to tread, and often alone. Bishop Grimes cherished a tender devotion to our Blessed Lady. Ecce Mater tua, the words contained in the motto on his coat of arms, meant a reality for him, and in the constant devotion to Mary the Mother of the priest, he was a true son of the Order to which he belonged. It has pleased God to call him out of this world at the moment when our Empire is passing through what is perhaps the great crisis in its history, when we need our best and strongest men. The loss of such a prelate in these circumstances is therefore the more • deplorable. But welcome be the holy will of God. He has left a rich heritage behind him— heritage of example that should inspire us all to work more strenuously for God and country and our fellow Our Consolation. Though our hearts are sad to-day, we are not as people who have no hope. For it is our consolation as Christians to be able to look forward with confidence to that glorious immortality of which the Apostle

speaks Behold, I tell you a mystery, we shall all indeed rise again for this corruptable must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. Then shall come to pass the saying that is written: death is swallowed up in victory; O grave, where is thy victory; O death, where is thy 'sting?' This is the hope and firm expectation that consoles us to-day, that softens the heavy blow that has .fallen on this diocese. We shall rise again, and it is in our power, by cooperating with God’s grace, to make our resurrection a glorious and a happy one, so that we may be reunited, never again to part from those whom we have known and loved upon earth. We are not, then, as those who have no hope, for in God’s own time this happy reunion will come about. I need hardly remind you that there is one great duty which you must not neglect. It is the duty of praying for his soul. Great, no doubt, were the graces that your late Bishop received from God; but great, also, were his responsibilities, and he may still stand in need of your help and assistance, of the help and assistance that you can afford him by your Masses and your prayers. I know and feel sure that you, with your strong Catholic belief in the efficacy of prayer for the dead, will, for the love you bear him, pour forth your prayers and supplications before the throne of God for the soul of your departed Pontiff, that the time of his purgatory may be shortened, and that he may soon be admitted to the joys of the Beatific Vision. And, though we say farewell to-day to ail that is mortal of the first Bishop of Christchurch, we know that Ids memory will remain in benediction in the Church of this young land, in the Church which he has adorned by his virtues and helped so much by his labors. For, whether we look at him as a studious youth in the busy metropolis of the world, as a bright student at college, as a young priest working amongst the ravages of the fever in Louisiana, or as a holy and energetic Bishop devoted to his work, we always recognise his singleness of aim and purpose, and the supernatural nature of the motives that actuated him at every period of his life. And while we. consign his body to the tomb, where it will fittingly rest beneath the dome of his own dear Cathedral, there to await the hour of a glorious resurrection, may his dear soul be soon received into the ■ kingdom of the Blessed, there to reign with Christ for all eternity. Amen. THE ABSOLUTION. Although the whole ceremonial was impressive and mournful in the extreme, the final portions were, as may be easily imagined, the most touching. Descending in processional order from the sanctuary, the Archbishops and Bishops and other ecclesiastical dignitaries approached the casket containing the venerated remains, and upon which were placed the crozier and mitre of the departed Bishop. Taking their respective positions, the pontificating prelate, his Lordship Bishop Cleary at the foot of the coffin, his Grace the Archbishop and Very Rev. Dean Smyth, S.M., his Lordship Bishop Verdon and Right Rev. Mgr. Mackay on either side, each in turn gave the absolution, the Archbishop first, Bishop Verdon next, then Monsignor Mackay, Dean Smyth, and finally Bishop Cleary. Eight members of the Hibernian Society then reverently raised the coffin, and conveyed it to the Chapel of the Holy Souls. A # dirge was sung, the last sacred rites were celebrated, and then the remains were silently lowered into the space prepared under the floor of the chapel, and deposited with the final ‘ lieqviescat in pace .’ As a recessional, Handel’s ‘ Dead March ’ from ‘ Saul ’ was played, and thus concluded the most notable and impressive ceremony of its kind that has ever taken place in this city. It was sad and soul-stirring in its intensity, and the Recollections of it will never be effaced from the minds of the present generation. — R.I.P. MORE TRIBUTES FROM PUBLIC BODIES. At the meeting of the Hospital Board last week the chairman, Mr. F. Horrell, referred to the loss sustained to the Catholic community by the death of Bishop

Grimes. He had been an honorable gentleman and had taken a very active interest in philanthropic work in the district. The Catholics still stood in the forefront of other denominations in regard to buildings for learning and for the relief of distress. He felt that the death of Bishop Grimes would be a loss to the whole community. He moved— ‘That the board convey to the Catholic community its deepest sympathy at the loss sustained by the death of his Lordship Bishop Grimes, a loss which also affected the whole community, inasmuch as he had always given the greatest assistance in any movement calculated .to promote the welfare of the people.’ Mrs. Wilson, in seconding the motion, said that she had been associated with Bishop Grimes on other boards and had always found him a courteous gentleman, and desirous of doing all he could to help the distressed. His death was a direct loss to the whole community. The motion was carried, the members standing. - A resolution of sympathy with the Catholic community in the death of Bishop Grimes was passed by the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association at its annual meeting last week. At a meeting of the general committee of the Poor of Great Britain, Ireland, and Belgium relief fund, reference was made by Major Oakes to the fact that the late Bishop Grimes was a member of the committee, and had taken great interest in its work. He moved that the committee should record its regret at the death of Bishop Grimes. The motion was agreed to, all present standing.