COMMONWEALTH NOTES

New Zealand Tablet, 22 August 1918, Page 31

COMMONWEALTH NOTES

' ' a- • : NEW SOUTH WALES. His Excellency the Apostolic Delegate returned from his Queensland tour, accompanied by the Right Rev. Mgr. Ormond, on July 23. Mi*. J. Lane Mullins, of Sydney, has succeeded the late Mr. L. F. Heydon as President of the Superior Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society for Australasia. Mr. Mullins, who is a Sydney solicitor, was born in 1857, and was educated at St. John’s College, Sydney University. He helped in the formation of the N.S.W. Irish Rifle Corps, of which he is a retired captain, and has been prominent in Catholic affairs, having been hon. sec. to St. Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, since 1899. He was made a Privy Chamberlain to Pius X. in 1903. His wife is a sister of Sir Thomas Hughes, the first Lord Mayor of Sydney. \ VICTORIA. We have often remarked that some of our wealthy Catholics may have faith and hope but have very little charity when they make their wills (states the Si/dlicy Freeman's Journal). Occasionally a Catholic institution receives a godsend in the shape of a bequest, but as a general rule the Catholic of means who has given away very little in his lifetime gives away considerably less when facing eternity. It is quite proper, of course, that parents should provide for their children, and that relatives should not be forgotten ; but when Providence has blessed a family with abundant treasure the Church and charities should not be forgotten when the last testament is- being made. We remember a wealthy squatter dying some years ago. His estate was valued at something like a quarter of a million. He was a Catholic, and brought up a Catholic family ; yet not one copper was left to a Church work of any kind. As in life, so in death, he could spare little of his substance for objects favored by the Almighty. It is because so few rich Catholics think of the Church on their death-bed that we give prominence to the will of the late Patrick Brennan, of Yarram (Victoria). In addition to £2OOO already given towards Newman College at Melbourne University, testator directs that beyond the sum of £20,000 now collected for that foundation, £IOOO shall be paid out of his estate for every further £IO,OOO collected up to £50,000 total. Deceased left £4049 realty and personalty amounting to £262,356. To the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne he devises £20,000 for the erection of a stone chapel in connection with the Newman College. He leaves £IOOO to the Catholic convent at Sale, £SOO to the Sale Catholic Church, £IOOO to the Yarram Catholic Church, £SOO to the Catholic convent at Leongatha, an amount sufficient to pay off the debt on the Woodside Catholic Church, £250 each to the hospitals at Sale and Yarram ; £SOO each to Mary Davis, widow, of Symthesdal© Road, Sebastapol, Agnes Davis, of Bright, and Ellen Cotter, of Errol Street, Ballarat; £IOOO a year to his widow, £52 a year to a sister-in-law, and £26 a year to a nephew. The income of £SOOO is to be paid to Mount St. Evin’s Hospital, Fitzroy (a branch of St. Vincent’s, for paying patients), and the. residue of the estate is to be divided between such hospitals and other charitable institutions as his trustees shall determine. Speaking at Clifton Hill recently, Archbishop Mannix referred to recent criticism of expenditure on Catholic buildings. He said that certain people would no doubt say that the Clifton Hill parishioners were even worse than those of other parishes in diverting their energies and their money into church and school extension work. They overlooked the important fact that the money had found its way into the homes of artisans and others, whose families otherwise would have suffered much during these hard times. How much help would these families have received from

those who talked so loudly and criticised so severely ? Catholics were r contributing the money largely in support of, their fellow-Catholics and their fellow-citizens who were not Catholics. If the Catholic Church had cried a halt a great many homes> would r be-very cheerless, and. a great many mouths would go unfilled. Catholics were doing their duty in ; other directions, too. (Applause.) Next year the Christian Brothers will celebrate the golden jubilee of. - their work in Australasia. Early in 1869 three Brothers opened their first school in Melbourne. Now there are 36 communities spread throughout the various States' ' and New Zealand. These conduct some 50 schools, in which' roughly 15,000 children, from all classes of the community, receive a sound religious and secular education. Three large orphanages are included in their work, as well as schools and colleges imparting the higher education. In order that the young members of the Order might receive a thorough training in the teaching profession and thus be able to fit themselves for their most important duties, it was necessary for the Brothers to have an up-to-date training college. A property was purchased at Strathfield, near Sydney, on which a debt of .£15,000 remains. The Brothers now propose with the approval of the archbishops and bishops of the Commonwealth, to hold, in connection with the jubilee celebrations, a bazaar and art union, the proceeds-*of which will be devoted to the reduction of the debt. * QUEENSLAND. Twenty years ago the present Christian Brothers’ College was opened in Toowoomba, and although for a very long time its accommodation was able to cater for a fair number of pupils, of late years the increase of new scholars has been such that the Brothers were at their wits’ end to try and cops with the demand. Bight Rev. Mgr. Eouhy, assisted by many of his parishioners, interested themselves in the matter, and some time ago it was announced that arrangements had been completed for the erection of a new school at a cost of something like £IO,OOO. . It is worthy of note that the school was opened with 150 pupils, whereas to-day in the four Catholic schools in Toowoomba the number is 1150. The laying of- the foundation stone of the new school took place on Sunday, July 21, by his Excellency the Apostolic Delegate, in the presence of several thousands of people-including a fair proportion from Warwick, Dalby, Crow’s Nest, and the surrounding districts. The occasion was a red letter day in the history of Catholicity in Toowoomba. The erection of the school will supply a long-felt want, and no one will be better pleased when it is finished than Rev. Brother Jordan (Principal) and those on the teaching staff. It was announced at the conclusion of the collection that the splendid sum of £ISOO cash had been received. His Excellency the Most Rev.' Mgr. Cattaueo concluded his visit to Queensland by laying the foundation stone of the Christian Brothers’ School at Toowoomba on Sunday, July 21. The new school is to coat £IO,OOO. At the close of an editorial article relating to the tour of the Apostolic Dele-, gate in Queensland, then lately completed,' the Catholic Advocate said: “Apart altogether from the religious side of the Apostolic Delegate’s visit, he must have • been deeply impressed with the honor done him and the courtesies extended to him by the State Governor, the members of the Ministry, the railway and civic authorities, and many private individuals not of his own faith. The Queensland and Longreach Clubs conferred on him honorary membership during his stay. Indeed, nothing was left undone in any respect to make the Apostolic Delegate’s sojourn in Queensland the pleasant and profitable time it proved to be, and we are glad that immediately on his return to Sydney his Excellency voiced his appreciation of the magnificent hospitality extended to* him in Queensland.