’ B R — S SE H S I S I N A R Y L I R A Y . T. jo P M S O 5

C AR D I N A L L AV I G ERI E

P I TE F A F I A R MA O R C .

A D APTED FROM THE FREN C H.

RE EB A N E M l . G ,

P L ’ ST. A THE A L U S C A D R ,

I B P TT PA . S URG ,

’ T. O EPH EM I N R Y H L D MI I ON S J S S S A F OR T E CO OR E S S S , C OPY R I G HTE D 1 8 8 , 9 ,

’ T. OS EPH S SOC I ETY F OR COL OR E D M S S S S J I I ON .

“ I HE SUN B OOK A N D J OB PR I N TI N G OFFI C I , B A L TO MD . C O N TE N T S .

PA G E .

r f Hi e C a e r . o a r e s a e r e s o e e h pt I Bi th Ch l L vig i , C ll g Lif a n d cc e s a s ca o ca o n . t E l i i l V ti ,

a r h n r f . ce II . L vig e i e at t e S emi a y o St Sulpi — At t h e S c h o o l o f C arm e s P ri e st a n d ro e sso r P f ,

a e r a e r e o c o r o f e e rs an d III . F th L vig i D t L tt ro e sso r Of e ra re at t h e S o r o nn e P f Lit tu b ,

a r f c fo r IV . F a th e r L vige ri e Di e cto r o t h e So i e ty t h e ro mo t o n o f d c a o n i n t h e as P i E u ti E t ,

a e r a r i n h a — d o r o f V . F th L vig e i e t e E st Au it t h e o a R t ,

c r e d o f VI . F a th e r L a vige ri e i s C o ns e a t Bi sh p o a n c — Hi s r e o o r n i n o rra n e N y B i f S j u L i ,

V I I . a e r e i s ad e rc s o o f e rs L vig i M A hbi h p Algi ,

o f V III . A rchbi sho p L a vige ri e a n d t h e famin e 1 8 6 7 ,

I X Th W a —Th . e hit e F th e rs o f Algi e rs e W hite — — Si st e rs Th e V ati can C o un cil Th e W a r — Th e re n c e e s F h D puti ,

X Th r n n . e s x o r e rs n s o e S a e Fi t E pl , Livi g t , t l y , — a n d P a ul D e B razz a Th e Ev a n ge li z ati on o f r c a i n t h e n e e e n e n r Af i Ni t th C tu y , s X I Th e o rk i . W o f A rchbi sh o p L a vige ri e n Equ a t o ri al r c a an d at ak e a n a n k a Af i L T g yi ,

X I I Th u a . e W o rk Of C a rdi na l L avige ri e i n Eq t o r a r c a— ak e a n a i l Af i L Ny z ,

X . rc s o a e r e i n n s III A hbi h p L vig i Tu i ,

X I r a V . A chbi sh o p L vige ri e C re ate d C a rdin al Hi s W e a — Hi s n -co o n a o c lth A ti l i l P li y ,

- X V . a rd n a a e r e an d A n S a e r C i l L vig i ti l v y , — X V I . Th e sco a e e A n s o r ca o as Epi p l J ubil Hi t i l T t ,

X P n V . e Sk e c o f a rd n a a e r e II A t h C i l L vig i ,

X Th n — V III . e E d o f a G re at C a re e r Fun e ra l o f a rd n a a e r e C i l L vig i ,

THE LI FE

L A V I E E C A R D I N A L G R I ,

E A A THE PRIMA T OF FRIC .

CHAPTER I .

A BIRTH OF CHARLES L VIGERIE , HIS COLLEGE LIFE

AND ECCLESIASTICAL VOCATION . Fifty years ago the history of the African Continent might be expressed in a few words : A brief outline o f Egypt from the pages o f the Bible ; the Cape o f Good

1 6 by Hope , which was discovered in 49 Bartholomew 1 Dias , and doubled in 49 7 by Vasco de Gama ; and th e

' traces o f A frican civilization as found in the history of the

E int ri ancient Roman mpire . But now Africa is a more

cate study , and classed as it is with modern discoveries , it has attracted the attention o f the nineteenth century and T imbuctoo , Sakhala , Khartum , Zanzibar and the other centres o f African civilization have become sources o f

, E wealth to uropean governments . Curious and intrepid

v travelers have penetrated the wild s of Africa , and ha e opened the country t o commerce ; whilst zealous and God - fearing missioners have labored for the conversion o f ' 2 7 716 L e o a rdinal a vz ’ r e if f C L ge z .

the idolatrous Mussulmans , and have brought to light the horrors o f that traffic of Negro slav ery wh ich stains with

o f human blood the land equatorial Africa . Amongst the courageous men who have devoted their

t o o f time , talents , energy and life the alleviation oppressed L and unfortunate Africa was Cardinal avigerie , the Primate o f r o f C Africa and A chbishop arthage and Algiers . Charles

‘ M L B a o nne F rance artial Allemand avigerie was born at y , ,

’

1 1 8 2 . October 3 , 5 H is mother s family came from the

L o n S ower Provinces hence , the maternal ide he was

o f associated with the country such apostles as St . Ignatius and St . Francis Xavier ; and although in character , sym

h e pathy and sentiment he was French , yet felt the influence of that maternal blood which characterized his actions even when he became Cardinal .

o f f He was the eldest our children , and he received the

o f first principles religion from his father , who carefully

o f guarded over the spiritual welfare his little flock . H e had the happiness of re ce i vmg his first holy Communion

Fra nc h ist e u from Father g y , afterwards the Vicar General to

L i Bishop acro x of Bayonne , and the example and direction o f this pious and enlightened priest gave a recruit to the

h is h is army o f Christ . Charles revealed to parents desire o f becoming a priest , but they strongly opposed him , for ,

o f as he was the eldest the family , his father desired him Th . e to embrace an honorable , but a worldly , career

i fo r thought of holy orders was repuls ve , it meant a more complete separation from family ties than the career Of the

magistrate or the lawyer . Such is the heart of parents ; they place the first obsta

cle in the path of their children , although they rej oice at His olle c L i e a nd Ecclesia stical Voca l ion C g f . 3

t h e final decision of a vocation . When a terrestrial union is sought , the most prudent parents willingly risk their

’ o w n and their children s welfare in the hope o f a human h appiness ; but when God makes the demand they pause t heir long experience is not sufficient to decide a matter

Th e o f s o grave importance . delay with Charles lasted a a year and a half, during which time he was severely tried , b ut h is his firmness surmounted every obstacle . At last f ather presented him to the Bishop , whose kindness made a deep impression o n him who o ne day would be a prince “ o f the Church I have always before me , he writes , “ the spacious room of the Bishop , the yellow velvet fur n it ure , the chair in which he was seated , and the purple c assock which he wore . My heart beat very quickly , but h e soon placed me at my ease . Yet that heart which was s o terrified in the presence o f the Bishop was a valiant h eart , and it contained the most necessary sacerdotal vir t - ues humility , detachment , and freedom from human a mbition . Th e Bishop perceived the latent virt ues Of the young

a man , and his Sp nish imagination yielded perhaps to a

‘ “ t ransient enthusiasm o r to an ambitious dream . He d ’ I L “ rew me towards him , says avigerie , and he caressed “ h is V : SO me with enerable hands , and he said to me you h ! “ ave , my child , a vocation to the priesthood Yes , ” “ o u Bishop , I replied . And why do y wish to be a priest ! he asked . In order that I may have a country parish , I answered . My father was astonished , for he did not know that I had such rural tastes , but the Bishop , “ s th e o f milingly , said to me You will go to Seminary L ” arre so rre . , and then you will be whatever God wishes 7 713 L e o a rdina l L a vi erie 4 if f C g .

What a profound word— you wil l be whatever God wishes !

He had clearly seen my destiny . I went to the Seminary o f L arre so rre , but afterwards whither does my path lead ! Amid the agitations and the fatigues o f my life my coun try parish has remained the dream of my youth and some f times the regret O my mature age . God has led me L whither He willed , as Bishop acroix had predicted , and

- so to day I am writing , not from a country parish , but f ” from the ruins o Carthage . Thirty -six years after th is conversation between the L Bishop and the youth , Bishop acroix and Father Franch ist eg uy were o ne day walking o n the seashore

o ld near the mouth of the Adour river . An man with a

long white beard who appeared fatigued by labor , care

and the rigors of a burning climate , j oined them ; he was L . G o d Bishop avigerie , the little Charles of former days

had led him whither He wished , and He had wished him T Primate Of Africa and Archbishop of Algiers . here he

i was , aged before his t me , between the Bish op who had confirmed him and the priest from whom he had received

s ad his first Communion . He remarked with a touch of ness that he had a more aged appearance than had his ” L “ former masters Why , replied Bishop acroix , I am ” more than four score years , whilst you are not fifty . ” “ T is L v L hat true , answered avigerie , but our ordship f must remember that the circumstances are dif erent . We

count by miles as well as by years , and when the miles

o u are multiplied they also affect our nature . So if y are

e t I thirty years older than I , y have thousands of miles to

my account , and that reestablishes the balance . And

’ these thousands of miles he began early to travel . His olle e L i e a nd Ecclesiaslica l ca tion C g f Va . 5

’ L arr eso rre . He went from to St Nicholas seminary ,

o f in Paris , where he spent the most gloomy period his

f L a rr . o rres o e life From the smiling landscape , with its

z limpid Nide , its maj estic hills , and its extended hori on , t f o the black and gloomy seminary o St . Nicholas was t o o sudden a transition . His first months in Paris were truly a prison life ; he longed for air and space , and he gave himself more to ennui than to study . Yet the

c o m an students Of St . Nicholas were amiable and j ovial p

D u anlo u ions , and the superior , Father p p, that dis t ing uish e d master who aft ee ards filled with such glory and honor the See Of Orleans , was kind and considerate . Th e little Basque was s ad and morose ; he longed for home and his native land , and buried in this gloom he promised to become a mediocre student . Father Dupan loup perceived the gifts o f this child of nature ; an energetic and an enthusiastic soul suddenly cast down by its exile from the paternal roof and the absence o f the

’ s un h is noonday , and he soon found a road to pupil s heart . He led the young man safely through this ener vat in f g sentiment which paralyzes all ef orts , and the pupil

o f was worthy the master . He learned the lesson ; and

f o f a ter the death the illustrious Bishop , he writes thus to “ L : da rk ness I Father agrange Amid the , saw another s un gradually arise ' which warmed my soul and awakened it from its deathly torpor . It was he who in the ardor of his spirits and in the warmth of that heart which was

a open to every noble sentiment , tr nsported masters and pupils t o the most lofty summits o f the human and the

His h is h is divine . manner , his walk , expression , lively — faith all combined to produce on us a blending Of a dmir 6 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a v erie f f C ig .

T h n . o w o o t ation , fear and respect those knew him , he might appear egotistic ; but to us he was the most f h o . v e humble men If he wished to ha e all , it was that

t o C might give all jesus hrist , according to the divine ‘ . : o u a re plan of St Paul All things are for you , and y

’ f r o Christ .

L v e Under such skilful direction , Charles a igerie becam a brilliant student , for his quick intelligence and his love t for study soon placed him at the head of his class , whils

o f Th e e his piety excited the admiration everyone . littl

fo r boy Of fourteen who had longed a country parish ,

o f sprang into manhood , and preserved intact that grace the sacerdotal vocation which he had confided to Bishop L ’ acroix . From St . Nicholas seminary he went to Issey ,

o ne where he spent year in the study of philosophy , and

1 8 th e in 4 3 , in the nineteenth year of his age , he entered seminary of St . Sulpice .

CHAPTER I I .

— A T' LAVIGERIE AT THE SEMINARY OF ST . SULPICE — THE SCHOOL OF CARMES PRIEST AND PROFESSOR .

h o f t o T e . masters St Sulpice , accustomed as they were

o f read the character their students , soon discovered the qualiti e s and the defects of young L avigerie . At nine

no t teen , he had one perfection , but he had a character , and it was no t difficult to foresee what hopes might be

o n . placed that exceptional nature He was , perhaps , a

—c o nfident s little stubborn and self , but he had the defect

f o f . o his qualities , and his qualities were a superior order A i l/ze Semina r o t ul ic S S e. y f . p 7

He had a correct j udgment , a subtle and penetrating intel lect , a lofty ideal which he would attain at any cost , a quickness o f rejoinder which with o ne word refuted the

o f arguments his adversary , a tendency to sarcasm , which

o f a did not spare the feelings comrade , and which led him t o o often to sacrifice the perfection o f fraternal charity for a witty saying ; such were the qualities and the defects which at that period were most noticeable . W’ ithal , he was full of ardor , piety , love for study and confidence in God , which did not , however , exclude a cer m tain amount of faith in hu an means . He believed in the direct intervention o f Providence in the affairs of this world , but he also recognized the part which man must

w as - play . He clear sighted and j ust , he had settled prin c i les p , a talent for organization , and a direct manner which

f o f overawed his audience , and sometimes had the ef ect offending the sensitive natures or o f discouraging the timid . He knew not the hesitations and doubts which encumber mediocre intellects with the details and triviali

o f . ties a subj ect In a word , he had a superior mind , but he was not easily understood ; he won esteem , respect and admiration to a certain extent , for he had that force of character wh ich warned men not to contend against his indisputable superiority .

c At St . Sulpice as at St . Ni holas , the commencement

. A ffre f a n appeared gloomy , but Mgr . soon af orded outlet for that secret struggle of an ardent soul amid the calm

A ffr . e and monotonous year at the Seminary . Mgr was impressed with the progress and discoveries of modern

o f la c m i n science , and h e saw the necessity p g the hands o f the clergy those weapons with which they might c oun 8 l e L i e o a rdinal a v e f f C L ig rie . t e ract th e false views of the enemies Of the Church and of her eternal truths . He founded at Carmes , Paris , a superior normal school for the aspirants to the priesthood ,

o f and placed it under the direction Father Cruice , after f L o . wards Bishop Marseilles avigerie quitted St . Sul pice and repaired to Carmes to prepare for his degrees .

i 1 8 i He bur ed himself in h is books , and in 47 he rece ved L f the icentiate o Arts . As much to his honor and energy as to his Obedience and intelligence , he who longed for active missionary life , silenced his desires and devoted himself to persevering study . He delved into the rich stores of Greek and L atin ; he published a course o f n Greek exercise , Greek versions , a Greek and Fre ch dic

i n r t o a . y , and an abridged history of the Church This literary discipline and victory over self softened

a o f the h rsh angles his character , and contributed not a little to that elegant facility o f style which characterized T a . his di oces n decrees , private letters and writings his example is a powerful argument against the enemies of L atin and Greek ; and it serves t o demonstrate that these literary studies which are considered useless in this age of bankers , merchants , engineers and chemists , tend also to form men o f action . When we are in touch with the

e are lofty spirits whose languag and thoughts classic , the

is v is j udgment formed , the ideas are ele ated , the intellect

refined , and that extended view , far from retarding the progress o f th e natural or the economic sciences , teaches how to place principle abo ve comfort and material pros it e r . p y Science becomes more amiable , enticing and

Th e o f f accessible . culture the beautiful has an a finity

o f with the culture the good , for beautiful thoughts and A t th e Seminar o t ul ice S . S y f p . 9 beautiful language are no t unfrequently the prelude of good acts . After L avigerie had received his degrees he returned to

. h is Th . e St Sulpice , where he completed course two y ears which he spent in this house ever remained a hal h i lowed remembrance in s heart . Years afterward an Old m an , wearing a long white beard , the cross of a bishop on

’ h is breast , a cardinal s hat in his hand , entered the room o f o f a seminarian St . Sulpice . It was Cardinal L av ig e rie . He humbly begged permission to s ay a prayer in that room , which he himself had formerly occupied , and t h e venerable Cardinal knelt at the foot o f the bed and remained buried in recollection and prayer . He then led t h e seminarian to the window and told him that from that w indow he had witnessed the terrible days o f the rev o lu T tion of 1 8 48 . his anecdote evinces his sentiments for

S that sacred spot , which had heltered his youth . L i i . 2 av ger e received Holy Orders at St Sulpice July ,

1 8 w as n 49 , but he obliged to procure a dispensation o a A ffr ccount of his age . Bishop e was not present to m i pose his hands upon the young priest , for he had fallen under the barricades of the revolution whilst in the act of

o f a h is imploring the grace he ven for people . Bishop

Sibo ur gave to the Church this noble recruit , who would s o s o actively and generously serve her . One day he

o f stood in that same sanctuary , a prince the Church , and thanked God for the graces which he had received at his

“ ! o . rdination I was then young , he said ; and now I am an ‘Old man ! My youth ! How everything in this church recalls it to me ! I s e e before me again the students o f my dear seminary where I spent s o many 1 0 l e L i e o a rdinal L a v eri e f f C ig .

s happy days . I ee the altar at which I recei ved Holy

o f Orders , the stones upon which I lay prostrate in proof my renunciation of this world . And yet with these sweet

Th e remembrances are linked many painful thoughts .

Archbishop of Paris , from whom I received subdeacon

o f ship , was killed in the barricades ; the Archbishop

Paris , who raised me to the priesthood , was assassinated

o f I in the sanctuary , and the Archbishop Paris , whom replaced in my first episcopal see , was shot as a hostage great G o d from what cat ast ro ph ie s have we not escaped

o u v And y , my dear children , weigh well what zeal , igilance and piety are necessary to render y o u worthy of your high vocation . C L Father ruice , who highly esteemed avigerie , peti t io ne d the Archbishop to appoint him professor o f L atin literature in the college o f Carmes and whilst the young priest brilliantly conducted his classes , he continued his

Th o f studies in preparation for his doctorate . e defence his thesis at the Sorbonne was a real triumph ; it treated L t o f He e si us is . g pp , who , after St uke , the most ancien

Th e - ecclesiastical historian . French thesis bore the “ modest title o f An Essay o n the Christian Schools o f E Th i dessa . e examiners were unanimous in the r

L o f decision , and Victor eclerc , the dean the faculty ,

Th e o f crowned the young laureate . school Carmes

S i had progressed rapidly in c ence and literature , but the

s finances were o limited , that the Archbishop could not conveniently support th e professors ; so Father L avigerie

o f accepted , besides his professorship , the post chaplain to

t o t wo communities of nuns . He seemed multiply the hours as he s o did during his entire life . D octor o L ett ers a nd Pro essor o L itera ture 1' f f f . I

TE CHAP R III .

A FATHER LAVIGERIE , DOCTOR OF LETTERS ND PRO F R THE ESSO OF LITERATURE AT SORBONNE .

’ 1 6 o f L KV s In 7 4 , towards the end ouis reign , a church f was begun on the site Of the Old Abbey o St . Genevieve Of and dedicated to that saint , who is the patroness Paris ; but the French Revolution prevented the completion of

Th e the work at that time . Constituent Assembly took f ’ possession o St . Genevieve s and consecrated it to th e

f Th e f o n ! memory o its patriots . ef ect was felt the archi

f Th e O . tecture the edifice original plan formed a cross , but the desecrators erected a dome in the centre and a

columned portico in front , the pediment of which contained an immense bass - relief representing great men crowned by

Th e their country . spectator could not know whether the

edifice were a temple or a museum , a theatre or a church ,

insci t io n and the p over the entrance , By a grateful coun

” ’ Th e try to her great men , did not remove the doubt . pagan name of panthe on was substituted for the Holy

r s Shepherdess , and pious chants , hymns and ce emonie were prostituted to the coffins of military men , artists and

Th e a o f c writers . crypt cont ined the tombs the ar hitect

f a c o f Souf lot , Rosseau , Volt ire , and many other Fren hmen renown . Nothing disturbed the silence and sorrow of the

1 8 0 tomb until the revolution of July , 3 , when the church was restored to Catholic worship under the name of St .

Genevieve . 1 2 Th e L e o a rdinal L a v erie if f C ig .

Th e Archbishop wh o had long desired to fit e c c les i a st ics o f in an especial manner to preach the Word God , s o that they might be abreast with the needs and diffi

c ult ies o f f O . modern times , devoted the revenues St

’ Genevieve s church to the support o f those wh o would u Th ndertake this arduous mission . e applicants were obliged to pass a rigid examination before a board o f

Th e examiners who regulated their admission and rank . Of L f o . success avigerie attracted the attention M Maret ,

o f the dean the Sorbonne , who desired an assistant pro

fesso r o f t ecclesiastical history . He wrote o the Arch bishop and to the Minister o f Public Education the “ following letter : Father L avigerie is o ne o f the best

o f o n students Carmes . His sch olarly essay the school o f Edessa manifests a rare union o f qualities which — betokens a good historian aptitude and keenness o f

appreciation , wise criticism , concise and agreeable style . e w With car and study , he ill become an excellent pro f fesso r o . church history Moreover , he has fixed prin ” T c iples in theology and philosophy . his letter had the

f L v t desired ef ect , and Father a igerie was appoin ed to the

chair of ecclesiastical history at the Sorbonne .

Th e o f Sorbonne , wh ich is the seat of the University

1 2 0 o f Paris , was founded in 5 by Robert Sorbonne , the f L chaplain o St . ouis ; and it was intended especially for

s . tudents of theology In the seventeenth century , the L architect , Jacques emercier , enlarged the school and the

no w v church , but what is called under the collecti e name

o f th e c reat io n the university , was , of Napoleon I , wh o

a grouped the faculties of arch eology , history , moral and

political sciences , and geography under the management

1 l e L e o Ca rdinal L a v erie 4 if f ig .

befo re the definition o f that dogma which the Jansenists c T alled a no velty . here was open warfare against the

Th e bserv r audacious professor . O e established a crusade

o f against the course lectures , and loudly abused him , but h o st iiit T this y only added to his popularity . h e Jansen

ist ic paper supplicated the Archbishop to dismiss him . “ “ , ro fess oro f If said they , he were only a p the University , w e would not find fault with the enunciation of his belief ;

but he is a priest , and he receives his mission to teach

o f from the Archbishop Paris , and his mission allows him T to teach only Catholic truth . herefore we are obliged to denounce his heretical and rationalistic teachings to the

wh o o f Archbishop of Paris , is the custodian the truth in

h is o w n a nd diocese , who cannot authorize such pernicious L doctrines . Father av igerie h as replaced the old dogmas C of the hurch by several new ones , and amongst others ,

’ ’ o f Th e the Infallibility the Pope . Archbishop s reply was prompt and expressive Father L avigerie has been

appointed professor for this year , and he has already f selected his course o lectures .

o f L By a series circumstances , which Father avigerie

had neither courted nor desired , his active and practical

spirit was absorbed by speculative truths . God in His al l

v o f wise designs had led , him through the arious grades t h e ministry to mature by the weight o f experience that j udgment which would exert such an influence in the

foundation of educational establishments . He began his work amongst the young as president o f the Oz a na m Con

- o f L ference , known to day as the Catholic Circle uxem

“

burg Street . Amongst those ardent and ambitious spirits he experienced some emotions o f that missionary z eal D irector o t/ze Societ or Promotion o Educa tion 1 f y f f . 5

which burned in his h eart from his infancy . In h is chair a t the Sorbonne he reached the mind and the intelligence o f in his audience ; . the Catholic Circle he dealt with their souls .

Pe rre ne a s Father y , who succeeded him professor of h istory , once remarked that a man was not elevated to the priesthood simply to deliver a course of lectures o r to

l a nd a write a beautiful artic e now then for the m gazines . Th e future Archbishop o f Algiers proposed the same ques t ion to himsel f. He thirsted for active life and for noble

h is t h e works , and soul was stifled in confinement of the university ; but this was only his hour o f trial and prepa r G o d was r ation , and p ovidentially preparing a work which w ould hurry him for the remainder o f his life into the heat f o the battle .

CHAPTER IV . F ATHER LAVIGERIE DIRECTOR OF THE SOCIETY FOR

THE PROMOTION OF EDUCATION IN THE EAST .

1 8 0 o f X In 3 , during the reign Charles . , the Dey of A lgiers insulted France in the person of her consul , and a French squadron was sent to Algiers . War was d eclared , and after a vigorous struggle the French gained

o f o f partial possession the country , but the victory

C . harles X remained for fifteen years a disputed question . A deep instinctive hatred arose between the Mussulmans

a T . h e and the Christi ns Arabs yielded to force , but they

no r were neither conquered convinced , and the chiefs and t h e nomadic tribes endeavored at every opportunity to s Off hake their hated yoke . 1 6 Tne L e o Cardina l L av er e if f ig i . Amongst the most obstinate and persistent against

E - e l- Christian civilization was the mir Abd Kader . Thi s

o ut man stands as a grand and noble character . At the w age of t enty , he wielded so much power and influence

that the Dey of Algiers , j ealous of his ascendancy over Th his compatriots , endeavored to destroy him . e over throw o f the government o f the Dey increased the popu

larit o f E a y the mir , and m de him a formidable ene my of

the French . He persistently besieged the strong cities , and France was forced to render an account to this adversary whose alliance was most necessary t o her f . o success He ruled over the province Mascara , but this semblance o f royalty did not satisfy h is ambitions and

aspirations , for he desired the complete and absolute inde n f pe nde ce o his country. He struggled twelve years t o 1 8 realize this dream of his life , but he was forced in 47 to surrender to General L am o ric ier with the promise of d complete liberty . France feare to keep her word , and

- c l- b Abd Kader , crushed y th e law of might , was led a f T l o . captive to the cast e Amboise , in France his want

o f s o n faith deeply wounded the savage of the desert , yet the mild treatment of his custodians made on him a last

ing impression . His upright and generous nature learned

to love France . Napoleon III . , guided by a rare inspira Of tion , opened the gates his prison and restored his T liberty . his confidence was not misplaced ; for he

remained until death a faithful ally to France , and in his retirement at Damascus he soon found occasion to mani

fest by his actions and sympathy that sincere friendship . E French influence in the ast goes back to the Crusades , but when Abd - c l- Kader retired to Damascus this infl u D irector o t/ze Societ or Promotion o Educa tion I f y f f . 7

w as a s a ence waning ; for there , in Afric , the servants of Christ and the followers Of Mahomet were in constant

Th e a warfare . Mussulm n abhorred the name of Christ

h is ian ; only argument of proselytism was the sword , and he in c essantly harrassed the French Christian settle

a c ments . Notwithst nding these perils , devout and oura g e o us souls did not hesita te to risk their lives in the cause

o f . religion Syria was flooded each year by missioners , Of religious , and Sisters Charity , and the civilization Of

a a the people w s begun in the Christi n schools . A society w as formed whose Obj ect was the extension of the politi cal and the rel igious influence of France in the East by

f Th e a means o education . committee ssembled at Paris

1 8 6 in the beginning of 5 , at the residence of Baron f O . Cauchy , a member of the Academy Sciences Although it was an assembly Of illustrious names such as Montal embe rt Oz ana m , De Broglie and , men who were ever in readiness when their religion or their country appealed to their devotion , yet little progress was made , for money w as required without which the work could not be con

inu d . t e . M Vallon , the secretary to the association , made his report after a year of struggle and failure ; he had

c was suffi collected only three thousand dollars , whi h not cient to meet the demands .

Gaz arin Prince , a converted Russian , who had become a Jesuit with the hope of bringing back to the true fold E his brethren of the astern church , felt intense grief at m n h this failure . An eloquent and influential a w o would thoroughly organize the work and gain the i nterest of

n . L the people was ecessary Father avigerie , the doctor o f the Sorbonne was the man . Full of this idea , Father 1 8 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a vi erie f f C g .

G az a rin acquainted the confessor o f L avigerie with this

L i i h im self ' re la proposition . Father av ger e tes this evo lu “ ” tion from his life as a professor . My confessor , he “ R av i na n says , was the saintly and renowned Father g , whose memory I hold in the most tender reverence . I was h is drawn to him by his virtue , lofty character and by the remembrance of a common country , for he was t from Bayonne , where I spent my childhood days , almos l T o d . under the shadow of the cathedral h is great man , x who was an e perienced master in the conduct Of souls , never directly condemned my life o f study and o f teach ing , but he would casually remark that he saw another

G az a rin life for me . One day he told me that Father had explained to him the difficulty which the society had T encountered . hey had resolved to entrust the manage ment of affairs to a reliable ecclesiastic . And then he ‘ T o f said to me with a smile , hese men the institute

v o u ha e naturally turned to y , and they have requested

’ u I was u me to inform y o Of their decision . neither s r ‘ ’ prised nor disturbed at such an avowal . If you think , ‘ ’ d ’ ‘ I re lie d a . p , that such is God s will , I am prep re It

’ ’ is God s will , he answered ; and with these words the ” f a af air w s concluded . “ And whither have they led me fo r thirty years ! To

France , Asia , Rome and Africa , and now this long voyage draws to a happy close , and brings me safely into port

Gaz arin again . On the next day , Father conducted me to my small apartment o n the second floor o f a house on

S Regard street , where the Office of the society has ince been established . He led me as a conqueror might lead

h is . captive , but I was a willing captive On the way I D irector o th e Societ or Promotion o Educa tion 1 f y f f . 9

r o f a eceived the congratulation Admiral M thieu , who shortly afterwards entrusted t o me the registers and the T s . cant fund , which was easily managed his was at the

1 6 G az a rin c lose o f the year 8 5 . Father remarked as he ‘ : departed from the office You see the water , my dear

’

F . ather , now you must swim

“ Th e first requirement in replenishing an empty treasury i s th e to become a beggar , and unanimous verdict is that the life o f the beggar is not a sinecure . Begging was the l o f L a s o f ife work Father avigerie , for bishop and prince the Church his hand was outstretched to the world . We m a y add that , although French generosity is inexhaustible , e specially when a great man intercedes for a worthy under

o f L taking , the impressions Father avigerie as a mendicant friar were not always pleasant . He preserved the remem branc es o f his adventures , and often in his conversation he f o . would recur to this period his life One day , whilst presenting to the priests o f his diocese the missionary “ : bishop of Picando , he remarked , with emotion Ask the L blessing of Bishop ivinhac for you and for me . Remem ber the trials which he has undergone fo r Jesus Christ and

h e t chains of martyrdom which have bound his hands .

And then a smile banished the tears of pity , and he added “ With these hands what rich bequests might not I Obtain fo r my mission ! Yet he needed not the hands o f his

h ow o wn neighbor , for he knew to extend his with an indefatigable perseverance for the promotion of the schools f E o the ast . Th e diocese of Paris was under the care of the saintl y

o f Tibo ur Cardinal Marlot , the successor Mgr . , who had fallen under the dagger of an assassin in the Church o f 2 0 T/ze L i e o a rdina l L avi er e f f C g i .

L St . Stephen of the Mount . avigerie obtained the bless

c o n ing of the Ar hbishop and started his j ourney . He preached first in Paris , then in the neighboring cities

Versailles , Chartres , Caen , Orleans , Angers and Nantes .

After a brief vacation he went to the south of France . T his j ourney was not all pleasure , for after the sermon he made his quest ; then he formed a committee , appointed Th a director and organized a local centre . e hearty encouragement o f the bishops and his o w n fiery eloquence bore abundant fruit . Yet , amid the roses , he Often found “ thorns which deeply wounded h is zeal . I have some ” “ in flatt e r times , he said , been refused terms which were

ing neither to my reason nor to my person . S ome people

o f E knew not the schools of the ast , nor of the Sorbonne , f L o . nor Father avigerie If I insisted , they informed me that I was a swindler who had appeared recently in the

neighboring cities under a religious garb , and that th e f ” police were in search o me . At other times the authorities were influenced by per

Th e sonal motives in placing obstacles in his path . bishop

o f a certain city was erecting a cathedral . When he h eard that Father L a vigerie proposed to preach in his diocese he

was fearful , and not without cause , that the resources which he much needed would be appropriated to the cause of E religion in the ast . He departed from the city , but only after he had amply instructed h is Vicar - General to dis

courage the mendicant friar . — Th e Vicar - General played his part well h e was both

’ L a vi e rie s politic and polite . He heartily approved of g “ : mission , but he added I see that you do not clearly

S grasp the ituation . Our people take no interest in foreign

2 2 T/i e L e o ardinal L a vi erie if f C g .

“ “ ru t ed s ee - p his guide ; I , said he , that the Vicar Gen eral calumniates the bishop and yourselves , but I do not

h i o u a believe m, for I know how eager y have alw ys been T . T to do good his reply silenced his opponent . h e pastor of o ne of the churches invited him to deliver a

- lecture , and this time the Vicar General was thoroughly ” “ aroused . No , he said , the bishop does not allow it . Father L avigerie gently remarked that the bishop did no t

’ ” o f even know the pastor s invitation . No matter , “ - h angrily replied the Vicar General , if he did know e

v L would not gi e his permission . Father avigeri e d heartily enj oyed this incident , and ever afterwards he tol it with much zest . “ e At another time , he writes , I received a more sever

Th o f repulse . e pastor a cathedral closed the door in my face . But I had the opportunity of gaining a singular

o n revenge , for some years afterwards , the death of the

t h e v aca nt bish op , I was Offered see . I smiled when I thought o f the sorry figure of the young priest wh o would be obliged to admit with all due solemnity the man d whom he had so rudely rej ected . But I was appointe

o f o f over the Diocese Nancy , and I lost the opportunity ‘ recalling to h is mind that the King of France does no t f ’ re venge the insults of the D uke o Orleans .

CHAPTER V .

FATHER L A VIGERIE IN THE EAST—AUDITOR

OF THE ROTA .

T o f 1 8 o ld o f th e owards the close 5 9 , the hatred Mahometan D ruis e s towards the Christ i an Maronite s A uditor o tne R ota f . 2 3 broke o ut anew ; and some fanatics recruited hordes Of

r - brigands anxious for any crime o V iolence . Abd e l

o f Kader , although a Mahometan and an inhabitant

no t Damascus , was taken into their counsel , nor could he understand the motive of the leaders . Suddenly , through

fo r out all Syria the signal massacre was given . In the towns and villages , but especially in the districts in which the French were unable to protect the population against

nfla . Co ra this frenzy , frightful crimes were committed g

w as tion , pillage , assassination , every means employed for o the extermination of the po r Christians . Th e Mahometan government silently acquiesced in this violence ; and the Sultan was almost powerless , placed as he was between his fanatic c o - religionists and the fear of Fran c e which exercised the right o f protection o ver the f E Christians o gypt . Five thousand towns and villages

a were r zed to the ground , sixty thousand Christians assassinated , and sixty thousand starved wretches were left to wander aimlessly amid the smoking ruins . Such was the sad spectacle which in three months Syria pre

E Th e sented to urope . newspapers and the dispatches of the consuls had imparted the sad news to the civilized world , but their descriptions were only general and miti gated S ketches of scenes which would strike terror into

Th e D ruis es r fi n the most valiant heart . manifested a e e

o f fo r ment of cruelty in excess the most bloody wars , Th Syria was not a field o f battle but of carnage . e ’ Christians fled to the mountains only to be tortured by the horro rs of famine .

Th e Mussulmans massacred husbands and wives , mothers with children in their arms , the aged and the 2 T/i e L i e o a rdina l a r 4 f f C L vige ie.

S ick ; none escaped that excess of barbarity , the very recital of which makes one shudder . Close by the palace o f

— - Dier c l Kamar stands a wall in wh ich there is an opening f T about the height o a man . hey confined their victims in this enclosure , and obliged them to pass their arms through the opening ; then they amused t hemselves by giving a reward to the soldier who would most adroitly cut off the T wrists . hese atrocities lasted three months , hence we may

o f imagine the despair and exasperation the poor Maronites .

Th e u sa d vult res , which fed on the remains , were unable completely to devour the traces of the victims . Sometimes despair drove the poor Christians to seek

s a w o n revenge . One day a Christian woman th e streets

’ o f - e l- d Dier Kamar the wife of her husband s mur erer .

sh e S Infuriated with anger , seized a sword , and igning

S sh e herself with the ign of the Cross , rushed upon the

s h e woman , and before the authorities could interfere ,

ff o f with o ne blow cut o her head . At the first news the

insurrection , France dispatched troops to Syria under the

’ u u command of General Beaufort d Ha tpo l. When the

Sultan learned of their arrival , he sought out some guilty D ruise s and punished them ; thus he hoped to appease

the indignation of the French , and prevent them from

penetrating into the interi or o f the country . He did not wish them to scrutinize too closely the extent and the

’ d Ha ut o ul enormity o f the disasters . But General p con

no t f cluded that the repression had been ef ectual , and h e

d . advance to the interior Yet , if this small army held

some brigands in subj ection , it could never repair the evil , C alleviate the miseries , nor console the poor hristians who

had outlived such a disaster . THE FROM SOUTHERN SOUDAN .

A uditor o t/i e R ota f . 2 5

w as L a This role reserved for Father vigerie . He a ppealed to the French c lergy ; again he stretched forth “ T f h is . o hand for aid housands Christians , he said , “ pitilessly massacred by the fanatic hordes , women out

raged , priests and religious tortured and abandoned with

o ut burial ; everywhere pillage , incendiary and violence ;

a a Th s uch is the s d news each d y from Syria . e fugitive

m a a Maronites , driven from their ho es , h ve for the p st two m onths lived in the mountains , tortured by the pangs of h u nger and the fear of the sword which a barbarian chief h as S worn he will not return to the sc a bbard until he has

a m a n a S beheaded the l st who m kes the ign of the Cross . Many women a nd children have sought refuge from dis

o r h onor death in the homes of our sisters and priests . These poor c reatures appeal to France ; to her the groans

f a o ur a o the m rtyrs and the confessors of f ith arise . But how sh a ll we repair the evils ! Th e Society for the Pro

E E it s motion of ducation in the ast raises voice , persuaded that the Catholics of Fra nce have not forgotten the a ncient

s o t c a ties which bind them to the Maronite nation , j us ly lled ‘ ’ c c a the France of the East . In all onfidence I ll on you ” o f I beg the aid your zeal for this work of charity and faith .

T a his eloquent appe l was heard throughout France , and gifts and alms flooded the sm a ll ap a rtment on Regard

Th e is street . heart of the French ever open to charity ; a lmost a million doll a rs in money a nd supplies were

a donated . Such a remembr nce of kindness will keep the

a c most pessimistic from despairing of a n tion whi h , not

a nd withstanding its peculiarities revolts , belongs to Him who suffers not the gl a ss of water given in His name to

go unrewarded . 2 6 T/ze L e o a rdinal L av erie if f C ig .

L o f Father avigerie undertook the distribution the alms . He little cared for the displeasure of his pupils at the

t t o Universi y , for he preferred make history rather than

e to recount it . Aft r a hurried preparation he s et out for

E f h is the ast , and what he there beheld confirmed orever L missionary vocation . Bishop acroix was a true prophet , C Off for God had conducted the little harles afar , much

x farth er than he himself had anticipated . For s i month s he wandered amid the ruins caused by the fierce Muss ul

t o mans , and everywhere he gave alms and consolation

o n the poor Maronites , who lavished praises and blessings T France and the French people . his dangerous j ourney he accomplished with his faithful dragoman , Michael

s Rose . H e visited successively the Christian village

h ad v llla es which been spared , and the g which had been

Th e abandoned to pillage . Maronite Bish ops , the United

a Greeks , the Armenians and Syrians regarded him as ! h i messenger sent by God . With his natural tact and s

o f knowledge of the needs the situation , he established

a n in the East lasting institutions . He found at Beirut orphanage for four hundred Maronite girls , and a similar

a r t h e establishment for boys t Zahleh . H e dist ibuted

French money equally throughout Syria , saddened only by the thought that the poor Syrians , who were equally destitute , could lay no claim to these alms .

o f - e l- He resolved to visit the survivors Deir Kadar , that he might revive their courage and fill them with the hope of better days by offering up the sacrifice of t h e

Th e Mass in their ruined church . French consul

c o m assisted officially at the sacrifice , and the military mander placed a guard at the disposal Of Father

2 8 T/ze L i e o a rdinal L a vi erie f f C g .

’ Th e knowledge of Father L av ig erie s good deeds had

h im . t o h is o n h is preceded native land , and return the Minister o f Religion supplicated the Emperor to confer L T on him the Cross of the egion of H onor . h e Oriental bishops sent to Pope Pius IX a testimonial o f their esteem and admiration for him who had s o generously aided f Th them in their hour o distress . e attention o f the Pope was thus drawn to the young professor of the Sor

’ T - d A uve r ne . o f bonne Bishop our g , the Auditor the Rota f - o f rom France , had been appointed Coadj utor Bishop

L w as Bourges , and Father avigerie named for this important position , which had been recently established E by the mperor , Napoleon III . He entered into his new 6 0 E 1 8 . functions in October , very Monday and Friday the t ribunal o f the Rota assembled at the Vatican to investigate all the spiritual affairs o f the Catholic world

o f be nefi c e s questions immunities , marriages , rites , and

o f . the canonization saints Yet this honorable post , by no means a sinecure , did not satisfy the activity of the new

o n prelate . He accepted the position only condition that he should retain the dictatorship of the Eastern schools and be permitted to establish in Rome a council similar to f h o . t e council Paris He then departed for Italy , leaving

Pe rr v a s his successor the worthy and talented Father ey e .

CHAPTER VI . FATHER LAVIGERIE I S CONSE CRATED BISHOP OF — NAN CY HI S BRIEF SOJ OURN I N LORRAINE .

h e T Auditor of th e Rota seldom remains long in Rome , for this position is usually the stepping - stone to the Epis Consecra ted B is/t op of N a ncy 2 9

a c . c o p y In the opinion of the French government , the activity and the energy of Father L avigerie adapted him

a 1 8 6 for diocesan work . So , on M rch 5 , 3 , he was

h is appointed over the diocese of Nancy , and consecration L 2 th a t . w as fixed for the 5 , the national church of St ouis

of the French . Pius IX , who highly esteemed him , would have presided h ad he not been prevented by a severe

c . atta k of illness He delegated Cardinal Villecourt , wh o

Ma rrin ll was assisted by Bishops Hohenlohe and e i . Th e conse c ra ting prelate and the newly - consecrated

a T prel a te presented the most perfect contr st . hey were both French , both destined to wear the purple , both

warmly attached to the Holy See , yet they possessed dif

fe re nt gifts and merits which were universally recognized . Apart from the feelings of piety a nd fa ith with which L Bishop avigerie regarded the solemnities of the Church , and the more intimate and personal feast - days of his

sacerdotal career , he delighted in pomp and display . He

’ T - d A uber ne invited to his consecration the Prince of our g , the attaché s of the French Embassy and of the Tribunal

f o f o the Rota . He was pleased to be the hero a reli

io us g and a French celebration , and he desired to give to the ceremony that eclat with which a ll h is life he s ur rounded himself whenever he had an opportunity o f dis

playing a patriotic or a religious sentiment . Of f Cardinal Villecourt was a dif erent disposition , for

he was rather a religious than a prince of the Church . L As Bishop avigerie appeared great , and desired to per form great actions for the glory of God and for the honor

o f s o the Church , the Cardinal desired to conceal himself

through a sentiment of humility and voluntary abasement, Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v erie 3 0 f f C ig .

a nd w as in perfect imitation of his Master , who born in a

o n c T stable , and who died a ross . hese contrasts in the Shepherds of God ’ s flock illustrate the extent of that r eligion which draws from various characters and disposi

Th - t ions varied and real good . e old styled coach of Car

h is h is dinal Villecourt , stained throne and threadbare f urniture might excite a smile , but His Holiness com n m a de d the respect of all . It is said that when Pius IX informed him o f his eleva

t o s o i n to the Cardinalate , he was disturbed that for eight

! days he could neither eat nor sleep . He could not make

! o fli c iall known his grief, for the Pope had not y elevated

”

him ; but his servant observed his chagrin , and he loudly “ c o n : is s a d ommented it Monseigneur , and he does ”

n o t . wish to tell me the cause What do you wish , my “ ! unex poor John said the Cardinal , something most d ” “ pe ct e and extraordinary has happened to me . D o ” “ n ot t be dis urbed , added John , even if you go to the ” Th e nd o f . e o the world , I will follow you p or Bishop h i c ould no longer keep his secret from s devoted servant . “ ” “ w e ll o u Ah , , he said , I may tell y my sorrow ; I am a

Cardinal John knew not whether to laugh or to cry ,

! but when he saw new servants in the palace , and he , him

- self, the maj or domo Of a great house , he took more

o f agreeably than his master to the idea a Cardinal , and he rebuked his master for his vexation at s o high a p osition .

L To Bishop avigerie was full of life and activity . rule

a diocese , in which faith and piety were in demand , was

s aw “ o f not displeasing to him . He a vast field labor ,

a nd no sooner was he consecrated , than he courageously B t o N a c 1 Consecra ted is/ op f n y . 3

s et about his work . His first pastoral letter , written

c h is fo r o f from Rome , indi ates desire of toiling the love “

. God , and of arising above miserable party quarrels I ”

should bring , and I do bring into your midst , he said , “ — one standard the standard o f Jesus Christ and His

Of sh all Church . With the help God I ever be a stranger t o dissentions or personal interest . Placed outside and — above the world , I wish only one thing the salvation of

a ll your souls , for I love you , no matter from what clime y o u may come . With that accurate foresight and penetration which e nabled him to perceive dangers in advance , he began by a n administrative act which to - day clearly proves his

- sa f clear headedness . He w the importance o Christian

Th e o f a schools . young are the future country , and is n o t that future in the hands of their instructors ! Th e diocese of Nancy which was eminently Catholic , counted a considerable number of religious at the head of the s chools and educational establishments ; but privileges h ad been a c corded them against which the public spirit T secretly protested . hey were admitted as teachers without having passed an examination of competency .

For the maj ority this confidence was j ustifiable , but it g ave rise to criticism and malevolent insinuations against t h e Of Th e lack education in some of the teachers .

o f Bishop of Nancy , forestalling the Minister Public

I c o n nstruction , issued an ordinance which was severely d e m ne d a ll by the teaching communities of the diocese . He required all the novices to pass an examination before an episcopal board , composed of the best instructed e cclesiastics . After a successful examination they 2 T/ze L i e o Ca rdina l L av erie 3 f f ig . h obtained a diploma , wit out which they could not teach W the lowest grades of a school . ere this measure uni versal the ostracism which to - day brands our Christian schools might be averted . In the first moments o f n asto ishment the religious raised many obj ections , but

a s they were true to their duty of obedience , and the h Bishop had anticipated , the trial turned to t eir honor .

Some of h is confreres thought he had made a h umilat

th e T ing concession to the spirit of age . hey complained f to the Nuncio at Paris , who officially in ormed him that

w as the Pope dissatisfied with his action , and had ordered him immediately to withdraw his ordinance . He did not

h is hesitate in submission to the H oly See , but he felt

w a s that he in the right , and he desired to j ustify himself.

! He s et out for Rome without acquainting anyone of his j ourney , and skillfully avoiding the tardiness and delay s

c His s of etiquette , he requested an audien e with Holines ff on an a air of importance . Pius IX , who dearly loved the former Auditor of the Rota , gave him a private

h is audience . but not without much astonishment at precipitate j ourney . He immediately asked the object “ of his request . Most Holy Father , it is the command ” “ t which you sent me to withdraw my ordinance . Wha ” “ m ordinance , asked the Pope , I have com anded you to withdraw an ordinance ! Bishop L aviger i e then f explained the af air , and he was informed that the

Nuncio had acted on his own responsibility . He requested an examination of the ordinance by the Con

at io n f Th e an g re g o Bishops and Regulars . result was

o f absolute approbation the measure , with the express desire that it be introduced into the other dioceses . With rc ois/i o o A l iers A /z p f g . 3 3

wh o this approbation , the Bishop hastened to the Nuncio , L h is . reiterated orders In reply , Bishop avigerie drew

o f from his pocket the decision Rome , and quitted the palace before that official representative had recovered

from his surprise .

CHAPTER VII .

I P F LAVIGERIE S MADE ARCHBISHO O ALGIERS . One year after the elevation Of Bishop L avigerie to

Mac Mah o n the See of Nancy , Marshal was appointed

' - f E Governor General o Algeria . Marie dme Patrick

Ma c Mah o n o f Maurice was born at th e chateau Sully ,

1 1 8 0 8 . near Autun , June 3 th , He was descended from an Irish family which took refuge in France after the

ll i fa of the Stuarts . He entered the m litary school of St .

1 8 2 Cyr in 5 , and began active service in the expedition

- i . 1 8 8 into Alger a He was made Brigadier General in 4 ,

and assumed command of a division in the Crimean war . 1 8 In 5 7 , he fought in Algeria against the Kabyles , and was appointed Commander - in- Chief o f the land and sea

forces in Africa . He was recalled for the Compaign

against Austria , and on account of his victory at Magenta ,

he received from Napoleon ' o n the field of battle the dignity of Marshal o f France and the t it le Duke o f

Magenta . He was fitted by h is knowledge Of Africa for the post o f Governor - General of Algeria which had been

lately subdued by France . Unfortunately a man may be a hero o n the field of

battle and yet be only a mediocre administrator . In this Th e L e o ardinal L a vi er e 3 4 if f C g i . respect Mac Mah o n often surprised those who rej oiced at T his promotion . hey thought that a man who was a n good Christia , a worthy citizen , and an upright and

a dmini intrepid soldier , should also possess exceptional st rative Th e qualifications . Governor of Algeria is

o f n almost the sovereign the cou try , for his distance from the mother country enables h im to regulate affairs beyond appeal . But he has the responsibilities as well as

o f the privileges royalty , and since the conquest , the

o f kingdom Africa was not a pacific royalty . From the

o f - el- s o time Abd Kader , insurrections were numerous that a military government was imposed on the Arabs . But a moral and a religious influence was als o necessary to transform these M ussulman into loyal subj ects o f

France . Tw o Cath olic Archbishops had presided over the Se c of

Th e D u e ch h Algiers . first , Archbishop p , w ose courage n diffi and devotions were untiri g , was overwhelmed with

lt i h i 1 8 8 cu es . s On arrival in the colony in 3 , he had three priests and no permanent institutions ; but o ne year

- fi ve afterwards he counted twenty priests , eight churches ,

o ne C seven chapel , seminary , eight atholic schools , two orphanages and o ne hospital . His zeal burdened him

o f h is with debts , and consequently , in the eyes enemies , he had compromised the episcopal dignity . After an

o f administration ten years , he qu itted Algeria ; but not before he had reaped a harv est su fficiently abundant to merit the pardon o f posterity for his supposed sin o f

v T . extra agance . hanks to the generosity of Napoleon III , the first Archbishop died neither insolvent nor a prisoner fo r his debts .

6 Th e L e o drdina l L avi r 3 if f C ge ie. h v f v a e declined your Of er , for I ha e entered the episcopacy

v o f v r Y u f through a moti e de otedness and sac ifice . o Of er

o ne v v me a hard and laborious mission , that in ol es exile

all is Y u and abandonment Of that dear to me . o think that I am best adapted for the position . A Catholic

o ne Bishop can make only reply ; I accept the sacrifice ,

E devot io n I and if the mperor appeal to my , shall not E hesitate , cost what it may . I freely authorize your xcel ” I e nc y to make known my reply to his Maj esty . Bishop L avigerie became the third Archbishop of the

See o f o f s s Algiers , which boasts such illustriou name

C Ful e nt ius as yprian , Augustine and g ; and as they in

innum e ra former times , so he now must contend against

Th e f A l iers ble Obstacles . Archdiocese o g contained eighty three parishes four hundred regular and secular priests — L T four religious communities the azarists , the rappists ,

six s the Jesuits , and the Christian Brothers ; communitie

f — f ~ t h o O St . e women the Sisters Vincent de Paul , of

o f C G Sacred Heart , the hristian Doctrine , of the ood

T o f o f Shepherds , Of the rinity Valence , and the Bon Secour o f Troyes ; and o ne large and o ne preparatory Th seminary . ese zealous congregations labored amongst the Christians o f the parishes and amongst the eight thousand who were scattered here and there in the French T Of o colony . hey lived in the midst Mussulmans , wh m the mother country carefully guarded from any attempt of T proselytism . his has been the great mistake of the

Mac Mah o n French government in Africa , and Marshal ,

a e although an exempl ry Christian , shared in these fals

Th e views . politicians proposed to convert Africa into a

ro d o f French province by governing with a iron , yet rc sh o o l er A h bi p f A g i s . 3 7 u nder a specious pretext o f respect for the liberty of the

f . Arabs , they decried any ef ort to introduce Christianity

M l MacMah o n no t h e Doubtless , arsha did think that would have to deal with s o stubborn an adversary when

L fo r he selected Bishop avigerie the See Of Algiers , but

o f this choice , which was the beginning a prolonged strug

o f gle , was a manifest indication Of the designs Providence o ver the African colony . With an evangelical liberty

a nd which was , at the same time , firm respectful , Arch bishop L avi ger i e fulfilled his duty and maintained his T rights against every opponent . hus he evinced his patri o t ism , for patriotism was the dominant virtue of this man , who was endowed with a political genius which o ur age has often misconstrued . It was patriotism and zeal for the s alvation o f souls which determined him to exchange his

fl o ne ourishing diocese for a n impoverished , a determina t ion which astonished the entire French Hierarchy . We live in an age in which the supernatural and the patriotic

o f virtues merit little consideration . Hence a maj ority the bishops could not conceal their surprise at the conduct o f L Archbishop avigerie , and some even felt obliged to inter c ede with his friends to prevent his departure . But his action seemed to him only a better means o f serving the s o f acred cause the Church and Of France . He did not think with Marshal Ma c Mah o n that an Arabian and Mussulman kingdom could subsist under a w T . sa o French and Catholic yoke He beyond this . him t h e n o f o f fi al conquest Africa , which Algiers was the key , f c onsisted in complete assimulation . Instead o maintain ing the false principle that a Mussulman is incapable o f

a o f ccepting the truths Christianity , it was necessary to 8 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v eri 3 f f C ig e.

T f attempt his con version . his di ficult task did not dete r Tw — the Archbishop . o things seemed necessary work s

o f charity for all , and French schools for the children . H e did no t look forward to a complete realization of thi s

t o nc r plan during his life , but he wished give to it his e o u a e m ent g and his labor . Certainly , a tranquil and an hon h t ored life in France was more agreeable , but he soug

no r neither tranquility honor . He was young , strong and

o f energetic , and he feared not the hardships Algerian — life . Only o ne man gav e him any encouragement Bishop

o f Maret , the former dean the Sorbonne . Go , he said t o him , God has chosen you . I know the French hier

o u k archy , and I know that y alone can attempt this wor h ” . Of t h e wit some chance of success , and Pius IX was n same opinio . 2 1 8 6 L v d On March 7 , 7 , Bishop a igerie was consecrate

o f o n 2 2 d d Archbishop Algiers , and December he embarke

f r o f Th e from Marseilles o his new field labor . vessel on

o ne o f th e which he took passage , although the smallest of

v e line , carried o er seven hundred passengers and a larg

Th e cargo Of merchandise . Archbishop was accompanied T by a number of ecclesiastics , the superior of the rappists , several religious of the Sacred Heart and o f other com m ni i Th e f u t es . captain had hardly steered across the Gu l o f L was yons when a heavy storm arose , and the vessel t tossed from wave to wa ve . In vain the sailors labored o

sea l t h e bring her to shore ; the high broke the ti ler , waters reached the hold and extinguished the fires of t h e

Th e engines . Archbishop could only exhort the terrified passengers to resignation a nd sorrow for their sins . He gave them a general absolution and requested them t o r l r A ch bish op of A g ie s . 3 9

“ make a v o w t o Our L ady o f Africa for their safety .

He then descended to the cabin , where he met the superior “ ” “ f T . a o the rappists Ah , dear F ther Abbot , he said , we

’ have j ust made a v o w to Our L ady o f Africa . All here will see that the Blessed Virgin will deliver us from this ” “ ” o u ! peril ; and y , what are you doing here I also ,

T “ o ur replied the rappist , am recommending myself to ‘ ’ L o f good Mother . I am telling Our ady Africa , in all simplicity , that this disaster is not to her credit , for every o ne knows that you and the priests and the religious are

o ne invoking her aid . Now , if she allows us to perish , no

’ Th e will ever place confidence in her new shrine . pre

at late smiled this filial familiarity , but he himself had made a v o w from the depth of his heart to the good Vir

B elz unce o f gin for these poor mariners . As Bishop Marseilles had chosen “ Our L ady of Trust as the Pro “ ” t e ct ress o f so L o f seafaring people , Our ady Africa had become o n the other side o f the Mediterranean a place

Of pilgrimage and of prayer for the poor sailors .

aft e r a Six days this storm , the ship and her c rgo entered the harbor of Algiers . And now as the visitor on a Sunday afternoon wanders into the basilica which over

a V i looks the Arabian city , strange sight meets his ew . Under the portico is a cenotaph erected by the Archbishop o f o n fo llo w m i i To Algiers , which is the g , nscr ption

o se a the memory of th se who have perished in the , and ” who have been engulfed by the waves . A priest , vested in a black cope and accompanied by four choir boys , goes t o o f the brow the hill against which the waves lash . As ’ ” o n L All Souls day , he intones the ibera me , Domine .

Th e O choir boys hold a pall ver th e abyss of waters , and 0 Th e L i e o Ca rdinal L a v erie 4 f f ig .

E and incense and holy water are cast to the ast , the West and the North in benediction o f those who repose in this T immense tomb . his is the vo w o f Archbishop L avigerie and of the passengers who were safely guided into port

f o f by the af ectionate hand Mary .

CHAPTER VII I .

A N D TH F 1 86 ARCHBISHOP LAVIGERIE E FAMINE O 7 .

Tw o scourges treacherously lie in wait fo r the African

Tw o people , the drought and the locust . years Of a

drought and an invasion o f . the locusts reduced this un f Th fortunate country t o all the horrors o famine . e poor

t o and th fi e lds starved death , and the streets e were filled with corpses , whi ch spread everywhere a deadly contagion o f Th e typhus fever . famished survivors wandered through

“ the villages devouring the most disgusting Obj ects , and f Th consuming even the corrupt bodies o animals . e efforts Of the Archbishop and h is clergy were powerless to

t h e ' dist res s o f t o f relieve the unfor unate , whom nearly five

Th e hundred thousand died . government did not make known the scourge for fear o f deterring new emigrants T u from locating in Algeria . his silence was inh man and

culpable .

L v Archbishop a igerie , ignoring the political discretion

o f o f the Arabian Bureau and the Administration , raised

h is voice in s upplicat io n t o the charity o f Europe . He

h o w fo r no t . knew to petition , this was his first attempt He sent six priests throughout the whole world— to E — urope , the United States , Canada wherever he could W I A BO L OF R CE .

2 Th e L e o a rdina l L a v er e 4 if f C ig i .

h a and twenty others applied for admission . Childhood s

h as the power of exciting pity , but unfortunate ch ildhood

o n Th e a particular claim our compassion and love . Arch

h is bishop placed trust in Providence , and interceded eve rywhere for his orphans whom he could no t t urn into : the street . D uring the famine he received almost t w o thousand

o f children , many whom had been so sadly neglected , that notwithstanding the care Of the nurses five hund red died . After the famine some were restored to thei r parents , whilst others were adopted by the Archbishop

C t ax and atholic charity , and a permanent and regular Th d was levied for their maintenance . e boys were place at Maison Carree under the direction of the Brothers , and

Th e d th e girls at Kouba under the Sisters . alms receive from all parts o f the world were set aside for the erection

n f e of Arabia orphanages . But the means o subsistenc could be obtained only by labor and the cultivation o f th e

no t soil , which has only a lucrative but also a refinin g

Th e o f effect . friends the Archbishop argued that the natural tendency Of the Arabs to the nomadic life wou ld

h e create difficulties and insurmountable obstacles , but was a man of action , and preferred to demonstrate by experience rather than by arguments the merits of h is

Th e system . uncultivated lands were cleared and trans

co rnfi e lds v . formed into vineyards , and egetable gardens Th e children roamed through the fields , and none ever attempted t o escape from the hospitable home which

a nd sheltered them . Some returned to their tribes , others remained o f their free will to accustom themselves

o f to domestic life and labor . In time the young men a 1 Th e F mine of 8 67 . 43 h the orphanage intermarried wit the girls at the Sisters , and thus was laid t h e foundation o f Christian villages o n

Th e the site of the ancient Roman colonies . Archbishop , f in his fatherly af ection , distributed to each family a small house , a garden and some uncultivated land .

w as Such the happy lot of the orphans , and such the I f origin o f the villages of St . Cyprian and St . Monica . a stranger were to inquire from an Arab the name of this village with its beautiful white houses and its cultivated

‘ o f ve et ables e gardens g and flow rs , he would be told that ‘ ’ this was the village o f the Christian priest s sons ; and f the Archbishop was indeed the father o the colony . So absolute was the confidence of his children in him that they received willingly from his hand their life compau “ ” “ a t o ions . Father , said young man to him , I wish “ ” W e ll marry . , my child , replied the Archbishop , “ ” “ ! o u whom do you wish to marry Oh , whomever y ” ” h e c t . th e wish , said young man But , my hild , added

—h e t o Archbishop , you should know was not allowed “ ” conclude the sentence . You know very well , obj ected “ the young mam , how to manage all that ; I will be satis fi e d if you select the best g irl for me It is not ne c es sary to add that the Archbishop never a bused this con

fi de nc e which was reposed in him , nor restrained by undue means the religious sentiments of the Arabian T . f orphans hey were , however , instructed in the truths o

c Christianity , but no hild was forced to accept the truth . Baptism w as administered to children who were in danger o f death , and this has ever been the custom of mi ssioners T in infidel countries . his syste m of education and o f C hristian assimulation bore , in time , abundant fruit . Th e L e o a rdinal L a v r 4 4 if f C ige ie.

Th e natural disposition o f the Arabian ch ildren for a v doration , prayer , and for whate er pertains to exterior C worship disposed them towards hristian civilization . Archbishop L avigerie h as often recounted the consola f h ” O is . tions apostolate One day , he said , an orphan

- Th e about twelve years Of age was sick at Ben Aknoun .

Sisters placed him in the sick room , and when I called at

the orphanage I stopped at his bed . He placed his hand “ o n h is : breast and said to me I am all black inside . “ “ do ! Why , what you mean , my child , I asked My ” “ heart is black , he answered , for I am not a child of

G o d , and I want you to give me that water which makes ” h e th e o f t soul white before God and opens gates heaven .

o f When he had been baptized , he asked for the Bread ” h i L s . ife , and I readily consented to pious request At t h e sight o f the Sacred Host that ghastly face lit up with

t h e light of faith and love , a light which seemed to trans

f Hé h is orm his very features . stretched little emaciated

‘ hands towards the Sacred Host , and when he had

r eceived his first Holy Communion , he remained as in an

e w a s cstacy his figure truly transformed , and he became

- “ an apostle on his death bed . I am going to heaven to ” e t o s e Jesus , he said me , and shortly afterwards he

e xpired . T v m o d his success amongst the Arabs did not , howe er ,

if o f fo r y the views the government , which labored rather

Mahometan propagandism than fo r Christian proselytism .

In consideration for the delicate consciences of the Arabs , the Administration ordered the Sisters t o remove the

o f Crucifix from the rooms the hospitals , a command which

Th e v t hey refused to Obey . French go ernment sup ported a mi o 1 Th e F ne f 8 67 . 4 5 in Algeria many Mahometan schools and three Mah o me

o f tan seminaries , which , according to an Official report

1 8 6 4 , numbered three thousand nine hundred students , who were taught reading , writing , arithmetic , and the

T - v Coran . his self styled tolerance con erted the hatred of the Arabians into scorn and contempt , for they enj oyed the ridiculous conduct o f a Catholic nation wh ich annually transported to Mecca hundreds o f pilgrims who returned from the holy city with an intense hatred for France and f fo r the name o Christian . Sincere Mussulmans despised these strangers who with their wavering convictions would

D esve ux enter the mosque , as did General , and there

t o render public praise to Islam , and exhort the believers thank Providence for the innumerable benefits which

France had showered on them . Marshal Ma c Mah o n had given Archbishop L avigerie a

a f o f glimpse of the Obst cles and di ficulties Algeria , but he h ad not foreseen that from the Archbishop wou ld come

Th e the signal for warfare . success of th e Arabian orphan Of ages had overthrown the argument the government, for the natives were susceptible to religion and to civilization .

Th e army was powerful , but the Catholic clergy with only

o f Th a h the force persuasion wielded more power . e ut o ri

e ties began openly to Oppose the Archbishop , who , th y

o f said , took advantage of the miserable condition the Arabs by forcing them to accept either Baptism o r death T by starvation . his conduct was more culpable than the dastardly act of the highwayman who forces the traveler t o Th e yield up his purse . orphans who we re imprisoned by the Brothers and the Sisters would always keep ali ve Of that distrust the vanquished towards their conquerors . , 6 Th e L e o a rdinal L av rie 4 if f C ige .

S uch absurd and calumnious reports reached the Governor

“ o f General , who was imbued with the prej udices the A d

ministration . He ordered the Archbishop to close the o t o . rphanages , and to return the children their tribes

no t A father does , however , willingly allow his children

t o ff Th e be carried O . reply of the Archbishop to Marshal

Mac Mah o n was reproduced in the j ournals Of the day . It is said that I wish to force these poor Arabian children to sacrifice their religion for the mouthful o f bread which

h as Catholic charity given them . No , Marshal this

conduct would be unworthy of a bishop . I have never

o f influenced the belief the children whom I have relieved , nor have I baptized them except when they were in danger

o f no t death , and even then without their consent if they f had attained the use o reason . I shall always give them

o f my paternal support , although they may decide in favor M m ah o m et an . the religion I shall teach them , for I can n teach only what I myself k ow , I shall teach them that it is better to provide by industry against the frowns o f fortune than to drift slo wly towards death while invoking destiny ; that it is better to rear a family than to live in t h e perpetual and shameful debauchery Of divorce and polygamy ; that it is better to love one another without ‘ d istinction o f race or creed than to kill th e dog s of ” h ristia ns v C , that France and her so ereigns are greater T b efore God and man than the Turks and the Sultan . his

wh o h is what I teach them , and dares find fault with t is m ethod ! You know that I live in the most profound

o ff retirement and solitude , cut from the world , and e ngaged only with my episcopal duties . If, then , the f p eople o Algeria are drawn more closely towards me , it Fa min o 1 8 Th e e f 67 . 47 i s because they consider my ideas and principles their only h arbor of safety from the tempests which surround them . “ But I delay over details , whilst your letter has a l is o f . h igher import . It the consequence a fa se system Th e Administration wishes to surround the natives o f

A lgeria with barriers which , however , cannot impede the T o peration o f the Church . his false system goes back

Th e even to the conquest . first Archbishop of Algiers w a s abandoned by the Government and obliged to flee this land which he had watered with h is tears and his b t o— lood , and had not the Prince , who day is the sovereign o f France , generously aided him , he would have died in close confinement . Yes , it is well known that this noble a a o f postle , who l id the foundation of many proj ects relig

i . ous hospitality , was persecuted by his rapacious creditors

i c h s . And suc essor , Archbishop Pavy , was not less unhappy

H e was allowed no intercourse with the Arabians , and the v enerable superior o f his seminary was threatened with imprisonment and the galleys fo r having rescued two ” s mall Arabian children from the gutters o f Algiers . “ And whilst the liberties o f my venerable predecessors u were th s curtailed , the government was erecting at much

o f cost useless mosques , and by its protection native schools w as inciting religious fanaticism . What seems incredible ,

o f it authorized in the name France , the study of the

Coran , even amongst people who had never heard of it . Shall I multiply proofs ! Notwithstanding the permission

was was which kindly given to me , I not allowed to estab l o w n ish at my expense , a house at Kabyle where the Sisters might distribute medicine and a lms to the poor people . When the famine spread its ravages over Algeria , 8 Th e L e o a rdina l L av r 4 if f C ige ie.

I wished to assert my rights by throwing open my doors

v . s o s to the nati e orphans I did , and immediately word

o f m alarm rang through y ears , words which threatened f T the future o my orphanages . hese words came tru e

- when at the installation Of the Brothers at Ben Aknoun , y o u publicly said that after the harvest yo u would send

t o back the orphans their respective tribes , and close the f o . doors the orphanages You imply , Marshal , that we

v who ha e collected these forsaken fatherless children , and who hav e placed them under the care o f o ur religiou s

s h a ll s Brothers and Sisters , be obliged after some month

s et e to them at liberty , without protection , without d fense ,

a prey to the brutal passions of their co religionists . Never ! I would rather a thousand times their death !

! . You think this step necessary If you dare this deed , I ll u sh a brand y o before the world . I would willingly

t o return these children their parents and guardians , but

r th eir parents and guardians are dead , and I am thei T father and their protector . hey belong to me , for I

have preserved in them that life which animates them .

Force alone can snatch them from their asylum , and if force be used I S hall raise the indignation o f all who have f f ” in their hearts o ne spark o humanity o r o Christianity .

“ v e Tw o accusations are brought against me . I ha raised too high the gloomy veil which concealed from th e f f o o . eyes France the evils Algeria If this be a crime ,

-n t f o f then I stand guilty . I could o relieve the suf erings

s o many victims without an appeal to Christian charity . I am accused o f exercising and o f claiming a pri v ilege — which comes to me from t h e Church and from truth a

privilege conceded by civil law , and which henceforth will

Th e L i e o a rdi a l L a erie 5 0 f f C n vig . present failure ! A lgeria does not rest upon the solid C ” foundation of hristian civilization . Th e Archbishop was not satisfied with th is indignant

o - protest to the Govern r General . He hastened to plead before Napoleon II I a cause which was so V it a l to the ” f Th e o . v interests France Algerian go ernment , he “ said , endeavors to conceal and to misrepresent the mis T eries of the Arabians . hese miseries and the incredible indifference Of the Arabs towards the government have forced upon all enlightened inhabitants Of the colonies the conviction that the only means of safety lies in a rapid and a complete assimulation Of the Arabians with the f C . o r hristians Sire , the time has arrived the development o f that moral and religious training . Allow us then to

ur exert at least the influence of o charity and zeal . T E his appeal touched the mperor , who felt that although h the Archbis op was rather positive in his opinions , he was

advo an exemplary bishop , a true patriot , and a zealous cate o f the truth . He resolved to compromise matters by offering him a prominent diocese in France as a reco m pense for his noble exertions in Algeria ; but he knew not h is L v man , for Archbishop avigerie was ne er attracted by “ ” “ o f . the glitter personal ambition Sire , he replied , I am thankful for your kind proposal ; but were I to accept ,

’ it would be to my own and t o the Church s dishonor .

His firmness and his disinterestedness were victorious , for the Emperor gav e him full permis io n to continue h is work

Ma c Mah n o f love amongst the orphans . Marshal q was replaced by Admiral De Gueydon , who embraced the v Of L v iews Archbishop a igerie , and ably seconded him in his apostolate amongst the Arabians . F a t rs o l r Th e Wh ite h e f A g ie s . 5 1

CHAPTER IX . THE W HITE FATHERS OF ALGIERS—THE W HITE SIS — — TERS THE VATICAN COUNCIL THE W A R

THE FRENCH DEPUTIES .

By a royal grant absolute freedom w as given to the h a Arc bishop in the m nagement of his works , and he now entered into a proj ect for the present and the future pro

i Th e t e ct o n of his orphans . foreign congregations which were engaged in his diocese could assure him only tempo

no rary assistance , whilst the colonial clergy had made

ad vance in their relations with the Arabians . He resolved

to organize a distinct congregation , whose mission would Th be the evangelization o f the natives . e saintly Father

o f L Gerard , the congregation of the azarists , and supe

o f o f f rior the seminary Kouba , was instrumental in ef ect

see ing this obj ect , and he lived to the complete assimila

Th e o f tion of the natives and the clergy . charity his holy

P ul a . a w s founder , St Vincent de , revived in him , and he labored to infuse into h is students a zeal and love for

souls . One day in the year 1 8 6 8 he presented to the A “ ” “ rchbishop three youths . Your Grace , he said , here are three youths who wish to devote themselves to the

’ African Apostolate W i th God s grace this will be the ” f Th o f beginning o the work . e many occupations the Archbishop prevented him from undertaking their forma tion in the religious life , but Divine Providence came to his aid . T e L i e o a rdina l L av er 5 2 h f f C ig ie.

Tw . o . . French priests , R P Vincent and M Gillet , the f o . Director the Seminary of Nantes , applied for adoption Th e Archbishop saw the necessity of placing th e students in an apartment distinct from the large seminary , and a religious and a secular priest had come to his assistance . A religious o f the Company o f Jesus undertook the dirc e

f v T f o f tion o the no itiate . h e question o location and money was o f no consequence . A house was procured o n El- B iarr the heights Of , as the permanent abode of the

s o five members , but the community increased rapidly that the Archbishop was forced to seek a more commo i E f d o us . . o building St ugene , the former residence the r b French Consul , had been transfo med y Archbishop

Pavy into a preparatory seminary , or rather into a mixed school in which youths not destined for the e cle siast ical

als Th e o f state were o educated . large buildings the f seminary at Kouba sheltered also the students o St . E ugene , and this latter establishment became an apostolic school in which were installed the students for the African missions .

By an ingenious stroke of policy , the Archbishop decided that the missioners to the Arabians should wear the same costume as their future neophytes ; and natu rally they were designated by their white habit as the

Th e White Fathers . novitiate was soon filled by F numerous recruits from rance , Belgium and Holland , who had hastened to this field of labor in the hope o f finding amongst the fanatical Mussulmans and the poor

r Th e negro slaves an outlet fo their zeal . Archbishop resol ved to transfer the novitiate of the White Fathers

- Of to the Maison Carree , wh ere a large tract land had e Wh ite Fa th ers o A l ier Th f g s . 5 3

1 8 been cleared and cultivated by the orphans . In 7 3 , Of the Provincial Council Algiers , by a special decree ,

v o f which recei ed the approbation the Holy See , publicly encouraged and sanctioned the new congregation . Six

o f years after the institution the congregation , the founder convoked a general chapter for the election Of the first

Th e superior . White Fathers wished to confer this honor

aw n . s o the Archbishop , but he absolutely declined He

o f o f the inconveniences such a mode government , for a member of the secular clergy could not usefully

f D u e rr o . govern a congregation religious Father g y , a nephew o f the heroic pastor of the Madeline who was assassinated during the Commune , was chosen superior , a position which he repeatedly held , until his humble supplications and his bodily infi rmit ie s induced the

t e f r Th e Fathers o look lsewhere o a superior . White Fathers are at present exempt from the j urisdiction of the ordinary , and are subj ect to the Apostolic Delegate for

o f the mission the Sahara and the Soudan . Christian charity had invented no means of reaching the Arabian women , for Arabian etiquette forbade men to enter the harem . A congregation of religious women devoted t o works o f charity amongst these poor female slaves was the next thought of the Archbishop , and the f di ficulty of such an undertaking only stimulated his zeal . He placed the postulants for this work under the direction f o f . o the Sisters of St Charles , and the Sisters the As

a sumption , who had recently emigr ted from France .

t e n th e After a religious training of years , novices were formed into an independent congregation ; and the White Sisters completed and perfected the labors of the White Th e L e o a rdinal L a v erie 54 if f C ig . T . T Fathers heir duties were clearly defined . hey would instruct the infidel women in the first principles Of the C hristian religion , open boarding schools for the natives

fo r C and the hristian children , conduct the hospitals and the orphanages and labor for th e education and the pro

t e ct io n o f the poor Arabians . We may easily imagine the feelings which this evangel

ical charity excited in the h earts of the Arabian people .

E is t o In the ast, woman despised ; she is condemned the most arduous labor ; she becomes the slave and servant Of

o f man , a beast burden , a creature Of an inferior class who

has no claim to his esteem nor his kindness , much less to .

h i f Th w o n s af ection . e exertions o f the h umble religious

v o f the admiration and the lo e these unfortunate women , wh o considered them supernatural beings sent from Th heav en . e Archbishop frequently repeated the remark o f an Old Mussulman to o ne o f the Sisters o f Charity : “ o u Sister , he said , when y and the other religious de ” no w ! scended from heaven , were you clothed as you are Th e poor Arabians considered nothing impossible t o these noble women wh o had abandoned everything for Go d and

f Sis the service o the unfortunate . One day three White

ters went to a village in which there wa s much sickness . Th e inhabitants were urgent in their demands , but the cries and t h e importunities o f one woman attracted the ” “ ! sh e . C Sisters ome with me , come with me suppli “ ” “ cat e d . I will go , replied the Sister , wh en I attend to ” N O these sick come immediately , cried the moth er , ” “ ” “ is ! yo u must cure my son . What wrong with him asked the Sister . He is dead , sobbed the mother .

v Poor pagan woman . She thought that e en death should Th White Fa th ers o A l i rs e f g e . 5 5

recoil before the skill and the devotion o f the Catholic

religious .

s ne w Of In the mid t of these labors , the voice the Pope resounded over the world calling the Bishops to the Vatican L Council . Archbishop avigerie set out for Rome , but a sad e scene there await d him , for his friend , Archbishop

o f L e ano Sarbo nne Maret , p , the former Dean of the ,

' t f opposed the Papal Infallibili y , and the two suf ragans ,

o f L a s Bishop Callop , Oran , and Bishop Casas , of Con st ant ine o f , pronounced against the seasonableness the

h e ld definition ; but he himself aloof from every faction . It pained him t o hold convictions contrary to the opinion

h is c and the sentiments of former lean , but friendship could Th not warp his j udgment nor his convictions . e Cardinal

o f o ne S ecretary State , to whom Pius IX day remarked , “ ” h o w ! And the Archbishop of Algiers , does he act L n a . could happily reply , ike angel , Most Holy Father Th e Pope had not an opportunity of congratulating him on his attitude , for two days after the dogmatic definition , a new sensation fe ll like a thunder clap o n the civilized

a world ; two great powers , Prussi and France , had rushed T to arms , and war was declared . his event dispersed the h Council , for all the bis ops hastened back to their dioceses . Th e announcement o f the disaster of his country found a sad echo in the heart of the Archbishop , but he did not I i succumb to fruitless amentation . With his pract cal turn Of mind and his knowledge of the needs o f the situation f he desired to remedy the terrible evils o war . He endeavored t o retrieve the miseries of his poor c o m

o f L patriots , the inhabitants Alsace and orraine , those children of his first apostolate , many of whom he had 6 Th e L e o a rdinal L a v erie 5 if f C ig .

ff held in his arms . He o ered them the hospitality o f that

s o Algerian soil , which he dearly cherished , and whose ll w e . resources he knew He appealed to them , he urged

v them , he detailed with a paternal solicitude the ad antages o f emigration from the devastations which the annexation 1 8 0 of 7 had caused . He lauded the charms of the country , Of and the salubrious climate , which surpassed even that

Alsace . He begged the poor farmers to water with the w “ sweat of their bro the fertile fields of African France . “ “ He entered into details . Come , he said to them , the State will sell to you at a moderate price thousands of

o f o f acres land , the payment which will not be required

c v until you are in comfortable cir umstances . I , who ha e been your bishop , tell you this , and it would be a crime to deceive you . I do not know one laborious and sober

fo r family , these requisites are absolutely necessary , which ,

! would not shortly be well repaid . He then reassured “ C them of the religious advantages of Algeria . ome , the Sisters who instruct the children , and care for the poor

L . and the sick , are almost all from orraine and Alsace There are about five hundred Sisters of Christian Doctrine

Yo u will v from Nancy and Provence . ha e these friends

o u . o u to bid y welcome to Algeria Come , and y will learn

lo ve o n to , as they do , this land which God has showered h ” is gifts . During the entire war he donated to the Republic part o f his salary for the purchase of arms , and he said to his “ d iocesans You will pardon your bishop , if he now

o f curtails the exterior marks his dignity , and if he th us ” gives you the example in this s a d trial Of his country . He offered the bells Of his cathedral and Of the other

h e h it e a th ers o l ers T W F f A g i . 5 7

c hurches for the construction Of cannons for France ;

and in the many insurrections which arose in Algiers , he

e ncouraged the clergy to manifest openly their patriotism .

i o f He , himself, ass sted at the solemn obsequies the parish

priest of Palestra , who had been killed whilst defending h is pa rish o ners and he showed special marks of attention t o Father Gillard , who had been wounded by the bursting

o n Of a shell at Sedan . He went to meet him his return ,

and forthwith appointed him Vicar General o f the diocese . Th e devil cons tantly finds men prepared to work out h is designs by opposing th e advance o f Christianity ; and the Administration was the ready instrument in the

f Th e co - f hands of the author o evil . operation o Admiral De Gueydon gave a respite from th e persecution of the

o f . Arabian Bureau , but this respite was short duration

Th e Admiral was replaced by General Chanzy , a brave a nd o f loyal soldier , who from the first was the obj ect

Th e is calumny . acknowledgment shameful , but conceal m ent would be cowardice ; it was France that conspired

it s o w n against interests in Algeria , and religious hatred

s . hortly raised its hideous head Since the conquest , l religious ceremonies had been performed public y , and the procession o f the Blessed Sacrament on the Feast o f

a Corpus Christi was attended with extr ordinary solemnity .

Th e nd c civil a the military authorities assisted . Benedi tion

w as a nd given at the public departments , even those

governors who , as Marshal Randon , belonged to the

a w as reformed religion , were present with their st ff ; it

'

a noble manifestation Of the national worship Of F ra nc e . 1 8 2 In 7 , an edict emanating from the municipal council

o f a Algiers suppressed the processions , ag inst which 8 Th e L e o ardinal L a vi er e 5 if f C g i .

tyrannical measure the Archbishop vigorously protested .

arish o ne rs He summoned all the pastors with their p ,

schools and societies , to take part in a public procession “ L ” Th around the Church of Our ady of Africa . e land which bordered on this pious sanctuary was the property

o ne of the church , and hence no could prevent a cere mony which was interdicted on the streets o f the m et ro po T lis . his energetic resistance enraged the Sectarians and t forced hem to a new resource . Although the Catholic works o f Africa were under the

o f o f e management the Archbishop Algiers , the advanc o f religion was greatly facilitated by a governmental sub sidy o f twenty thousand dollars which was appropriated

T no t annually for Algeria . his money , which contributed a little towards that love and esteem of the Arabians for

the name of France , was utilized for the orphans , the f o . seminaries , and the various works charity A j ournalist

o f a by the name Warnier , who had t first admired the

and Archbishop encouraged his undertakings , blinded by

his political success , abj ured the past , and made an open

t o attack against the actions o f the Prelate . According the habitual tactics o f those who dare not state facts no r

w h o a n cite witnesses may belie their words , Warnier no unce d to France that Archbishop D upe ch had in c o nfi dence condemned the conduct o f the Archbishop Of

v c Algiers . Moreo er , the Arabian Bureau had a cused him o f exerting that influence which he had gained over t h e

Arabians , not for the profit of France , but for his own

o f profit . Soon he would be the great elector Algeria ,

with the sum o f twenty thousand dollars at his disposal , to T utilize to the detriment o f the public good . his subsidy Th e Wh ite Fa th ers o A l iers . f g , 5 9 T should , by all means , be withheld . hus the plot was laid . Th e surprise and indignation of the Archbishop at t h e

Th e language of the writer found vent in a reply . attack had been public , the reply should be public . He dis patched to all the deputies a letter in which he alluded t o the approval lately given to his works by this j ournalist , “ and he concluded with these words : When renegade s

t o attack our work , it is well inform Catholic France that the future of Algeria belongs neither to the Arabians nor ” T to the Mussulmans . hat year the credit was continued ,

was but the bitter hatred not disarmed , and the following Th year the g overnment withheld the subsidy . e grants which had been made to the clergy and to the seminaries

I n o f were discussed open council , and to the scandal all

m en true Christian and patriotic , they also were reduced

s um to a nominal . f n Universal suf rage is a beautiful thing , but that moder liberty which is so rooted in our customs and manners often gives rise to adverse criticism . Th e Chamber o f

Deputies during one year encroaches upon every religious ,

n T s u political , scientific and admi istrative question . his p poses in each member certain qualities which belong

t o fo r re re equally the elector , it is he who selects the p f se nt at iv e . of the maj ority In a word , universal suf rage implies universal knowledge and savors much Of optimism . T Catholic electors should act conscientiously . hey should be guided by an inflexible attachment to principle , and not s by personal sympathy , in their selection of deputie who perhaps are honest in public life , but who have neither the education nor the capability of deciding affairs 6 0 Th e L i e o ardinal L av erie f f C ig . o f T grave importance . hese deputies too Often cast their v v otes without considering the gra ity of their act , or the

. 1 8 6 disastrous consequences In 7 , the French Chamber

o f f Deputies , without mature reflection , suppressed fi ty thousand dollars o f the two hundred thousand which had

fo r f been appropriated the advance o religion in Algeria . Th e general council o f Algiers readily imitated the exam

ple of the French Deputies , and they suppressed the Th grants which had been accorded to religious works . e

Mus French Catholics advocated this measure , whilst the

s ulmans , followers of Mahomet , through their admiration

L v v fo r co n for Archbishop a igerie , unanimously oted the

inu n f T no t t e ce o th e appropriation . his withdrawal did

o f dampen the ardor the Archbishop , for he resolved to

no t evangelize only Algeria , but the entire African Conti nent

CHAPTER X .

X S S A THE FIRST E PLORERS , LIVING TONE , TANLEY ND P A UL DE BRAZZA - THE EVANGELIZATION OF AFRICA IN THE NINETEENTH

CENTURY .

In a cotton factory at Blantyre , Scotland , at the begin

o f ning this century , was a young boy who read with

avidity whatever books his poor earnings could su pply .

H e spent his evenings in deep study and composition , and finally he passed from the cotton factory to the medical T college o f Glasgow . his prodigious student , who by his natural energy and perseverance became a learned

L o f . man , was David ivingstone , the great explorer Africa Th F rst Ex e i plorers . 6 1

He was not a Catholic , but his tender and compassionate heart w as fired with the a rdent and the generous zeal of a

Catholic missioner . His researches in the field of history aroused his interest in the poor Africans who were plunged into the depths of paganism and barbarity , and he resolved to W i n them t o civilization and to the truths of the Gospel .

1 8 0 L In 4 , the ondon Missionary Society furnished him

o f with the necessary means , and after a voyage three T months he landed at Cape own . He took up his resi dence four hundred miles inland amongst the B a kw a in

Se ch ele tribe , wh ose king , , embraced Christianity , with E . o all his tribe nc uraged by this success , he started with

1 8 Kalah a ra his wife and children , in 49 , for the desert , but

o f de ce the African fevers , the absence water , and the p L tive mirage of ake Ngama , forced him to return and

8 1 B a kwa ins . 1 seek some months rest with the In 5 , he

f Ma l l ebit uane o k o o o s . S departed for the country the ,

o f the king the country , j oyfully welcomed the Christian m religion , and in his last oments he was consoled by the

o f L pious exhortations ivingstone , who taught him the

o f value the soul , and the happiness of the life beyond the T . h e grave explorer , however , expressed a melancholy regret th at he could not give to the chief the solace o f the “ . s o Catholic religion I never before felt grieved , he

o f writes in his j ournal , by the loss a black man , and it was impossible not to follow him in thought into the world of which he had j ust heard before he was called

o f th ose wh o away , and to realize somewhat of the feeling ” ra or th e dea d p y f .

1 8 2 h e In 5 , , undertook his third voyage , which estab

lish ed his reputation throughout the civilized world . After 6 2 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v eri e f f C ig . a difficult j ourney towards the north through a gigantic

ne w and unknown forest , he arrived by this route in the c Mak o lo lo s s ountry Of the , who willingly econded him in h is expedition , and furnished him with an escort as far as L T Saint Paul de oanda . his trying voyage completely ” exhausted h is strength . Never shall I forget , he writes , “ the luxurious pleasure which I enj oyed on feeling E myself again in a good nglish couch , after having slept ” n o the ground for s ix months . He accomplished a great work by this expedition , for he established the possibility o f intercourse b etween the nations of the East and the i f E m nterior o Africa . He departed for ngland in the co “ o f e kw h h i Mak o l l S e e s o o . pany , faithful guide What ” is o f a strange country this , said the guide at the sight “ t h e ! ocean , all water , water everywhere But this sight o f an immense expanse o f water confused the mind o f f the poor African , and in a fit of frenzy he cast himsel o verboard .

1 8 L e In 59 , ivingstone b gan his exploration of the m ouths and the tributaries o f the great cataracts o f the

Z v V o f fo r ambesi ri er , with a iew utilizing them the spread o f commerce and o f religion . It was in the neighbor h ood o f L ake Nyassa that he first witnessed the horrors o f the Negro slave trade , in which many Portuguese

t o L 1 8 6 t . raders were engaged On his return ondon in 4,

’ o ne o f the ! ueen s counsellors asked him what re co m T pense he wished for his valuable service . his generous a nd disinterested hero replied : Fo r myself I wish noth

o u ing , but y will reward me beyond measure if you check t hat disgraceful traffic by which the Portuguese carry the

lave r N egroes o f Africa into s v .

6 Th e L i e o Ca rdina l L a vi e 4 f f g rie.

tambo , where he calmly and peacefully expired . His

v a heart was buried in the illage , and his body w s embalmed and carried to Zanzibar , then across the ocean t o the f shores of his native land , and amid tokens o mourning and admiration such as England accords only to her

greatest sons , it was interred in Westminster Abbey . Th e impartial historian entwines with the names o f

L o f z ivingstone and Stanley , the name Paul de Braz a

Savo r nan f g , to whom France owes an immense debt o

. 1 8 2 gratitude He was born in Rome , in 5 , and received h is education in Paris . After having passed a brilliant

examination in which he displayed superior intelligence ,

g reat energy and an ardent imagination , he was admitted into the French navy . He served in Africa on the Gaboon station , and under the command of Admiral de ! uillio , he

’ m n f ade a voyage o the western part o Africa . He had often heard the French merchants complain o f that ex ces sive competition which each day depreciated the commer c ial o f market , and he resolved to penetrate the interior

h e Africa , that might discover a new channel for the 1 8 8 increase of French industry . In 7 , he became an

Venus ensign on board the vessel , which coasted along the Gaboon region . He obtained the permission of his

la nd superior to with some sailors , and after a short march

o f C v to the north the ongo river , he arri ed in the kingdom

Th was so o f v . e a powerful sa age tribe king , Makoko ,

’ influenced by the force Of B raz z a s persuasion that he made a

1 8 8 0 solemn treaty , October 3 , , in which he placed his states

o f was under the protection France , and a railway which constructed between Brazzaville and the coast . opened f immense territories for the commercial interests o France . Th e F irst Ex lorers p . 6 5

These details on the first explorers of Africa are no t a digression , for they enable us to appreciate the eminently Of religious and patriotic work of the Archbish op Algiers . He had long foreseen that Europe would advance slowly and surely to the subj ugation of these rich and extensive countries , and that heresy would strive for the conversion o f the natives . During his entire life his one ambition was the propagation Of the true faith and the patriotic

’ Th e development Of his country s interests . religious Of L civilization the devout and zealous protestant , iving stone , had not gained a secure foothold in Africa , but noble Catholic missioners had implanted the Cross o f f Christ at dif erent points of the African coast, and many f o f them had suf ered death for their faith . Th e frivolous and egotistic world which believes neithe r in sacrifice nor in self- oblation should know the names o f some of those obscure heroes who so generously gave

Of 1 8 6 their lives for the spread the Gospel . Before 4 , Christianity in Africa was limited in the e a st to the Vicariate o f Egypt and the Prefecture of Abyssinia ; in the west , to the two Guineas ; and in the interior , to the

o f Mountains the Moon , a Christian station at Cape Horn and Madagascar , to which island St . Vincent de Paul , at

L Th e the request of ouis the XIV , had sent missioners . Roman provinces o f Egypt and Abyssinia had been evan

eliz e d c . g in the fourth entury by St Frumentius , and the church which was founded by him preserved for five cen

a t urie s the sacred deposit of f ith . Amid the devastations which swept like a destructive tempest over Alexandria , that church stood as a monument to the young Abyssinian prince who had supplicated the King Of Portugal fo r a Th e L i e o a rdinal L a vi erie 6 6 f f C g .

C . v colony of atholic missioners Howe er , the fickle char acter of the Abyssinians and the fanaticism o f heretical monks prevented the lasting establishment o f Catholicity

Th e in that country . Jesuits and the Franciscans were in turn protected o r persecuted in proportion as a wise king

sa o n o r a tyrant t the throne .

’ d A baddie 1 8 A learned Frenchman , Antonin , who in 4 3 had made an expedition through Abyssinia , wrote to his “ C i friend , Charles de Montalembert , that the hrist an tra dit io ns wh ich were there preserved rendered the task o f

’ Th e the missioner relatively easy . natives were so v desirous for priests that they seized a French tra eler , who T they thought belonged to the ministry . heir reason is f f “ T an evidence o ignorance and o good faith . his “ is is stranger , said they , not a woman , hence he holy he knows how to read , hence he is a priest ; he is white , hence he is a bishop , and he will consecrate the priests

L A vanch ens that we desire . Father eon des , who was

' A b ss rma I n 1 8 1 S sent to y 5 , ays that he met many native Mussulmans who Observed as a sacred inheritance from

o f E their fathers the feasts aster , Pentecost , the Ascension and the Assumption ; but these remnants o f Christianity

Th e were mingled with many pagan practices . importance o f the Abyssinian mission does not consist in the number o f it s neophytes , but in the necessity of controlling for f Catholicity a means o communication with Central Africa .

Th e Mussulmans , who carefully guard the coast of Africa , have informed the inhabitants of the interior that the religion of Mahomet is the true and the only religion , and they know that Catholicism has serious motives in holding this key to the unexplored regions . T e F irst x lorers h E p . 67

Th e first missioners of Madagascar were sent at the

s o f L n uggestion ouis XIV , who co templated the subj uga

a Th e t ion of th t island . inhabitants welcomed the truths

o f o f s o Christianity , and soon the labors the mission were arduous and the neophytes s o numerous that these apostles f were obliged to beg the assistance o additional missioners . Tod ay this flourishing mission is under the Spiritual d irection of the Jesuit Fathers . Th e idea of evangelizing Central Africa originated with R ll a o . Polish Jesuit , Father Maximillian y Whilst in Syria he had formed the acquaintance of a merchant who h ad o f c traveled in the region the Soudan , and he con luded that a c ountry which could be penetrated for the interests o f gain or of commerce , was open also to the saving truths 8 6 o f . 1 the Catholic Church In 4 , whilst Rector of the

a Prop ganda , he obtained from Gregory XVI a brief c reating him Vicar Apostolic over the new mission of

1 8 8 C entral Africa . In 4 he departed for Khartum with fo ur Italian missioners , but he died shortly afterwards ,

h is K no ble ch e r o f leaving charge to Mgr . , the diocese of h Th L a ba c . e y new Vicar Apostolic interested Francis II ,

! E A the mperor of ustria , in the undertaking , and owing to t h e reinforcement of some Italian Jesuits and pe c uniary a w as t o ssistance from Germany , he enabled penetrate the n c ountry . But the poor missio ers succumbed to the rigors o f 1 8 1 the climate , and in 7 the stations of Khartum ,

K o ndo rak a u - o f , Sa te Crux and Sculla had cost the lives

f r Co mb ni . o o ty priests One of the survivors , Daniel ,

o f bravely pursued his labors , with the aid of the religious

L e llis the Order of Saint Camillus de , who penetrated the

a Of . . northern p rt Central Africa Mgr Barrou , the Vicar 6 8 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a v erie f f C ig .

r Apostolic of the two Guineas , obtained from the fou nde o f the Holy Ghost Order seven priests and three brothers , who sailed from France in 1 8 4 3 ; but with the exception» o f B e ssie ux Father and a brother , they were all overcome Tw B i ux . o e ss e was by fever and died years later , Father

o f Gallio o lis K o bet h is appointed Bishop p , with Bishop as

coadj utor . From this period the Holy Ghost Fathers

e evangelized the coast of Guinea , but were unabl to pene

th e trate the interior , which was carefully guarded by

- Mahometan slave dealers .

In opposition to every h uman and divine law , many half- breeds were engaged in the repulsive traffic o f Negr o

s slavery , and they opposed whatever might destroy thi E lucrative commerce , especially an invasion ofthe uropeans .

1 8 1 Co mbo ni In 7 , Father sent the following information to the Central Council for the Propagation o f t h e F aith

’ E t o o o o r o In gypt , every family that is not p owns a Negr

o r . v a Negress Many families have two sla es , and the

‘ h i a lth E o f th e rich in proportion to t e r w e . uropeans are

opinion that Negro slavery is a crime of th e past , but I l f can affirm that this ignoble traffic exists in a l Egypt . O

s late years the public markets are closed , but the Negroe are driven like a herd of animals into the smaller locali

ties . I myself have been asked to buy Negro slaves , and I can point out the city o f Bulhar in which every fifteen

T s days Negroes are publicly sold . hese unhappy creature n are brought from the centre of Africa , where the inhuma

cupidity o f the cruel speculator has led him to penetrate . Children are stolen from the fields and from the banks o f

the rivers , and are separated forever from their homes . After the perils o f a long voyage through the treach erou s Th e F irs t Ex lor r p e s . 69

d K o rask o esert of , they are thrown into a large vessel laden ’ T with gum and elephants tusks . here they are crowded ,

w n Of s ex a ithout disti ction , without reg rd for disease , w ith a nourishment more to the taste of animals than to T human beings . hey are secretly landed at Bulhar , where

a they are surrounded by purchasers , who c refully examine

t . heir qualities If they are strong and healthy , they are ” - sold for a hundred to a hundred and twenty fi ve dollars .

o f It remained for a great Frenchman , the Primate A frica and Archbishop of Algiers , to raise the cry Of a larm and to denounce to the civilized world this curse o f

o f A frica . Hitherto the attempts to penetrate the interior — A frica had only been private each nation o r each learned

. 1 8 6 society had followed its own views But , in 7 , in con s equence Of the publication of the travels o f L ivingstone

and Stanley , the king of Belgium matured the idea Of an i nternational association for the purpose of opening to

f Th e c ivilization th e undiscovered parts o Africa . Con

g ress of Brussels made a great display , and this crusade

a gainst barbarity attracted many an ambitious youth . They proposed to establish at the most important points o f the country centres of exploration and o f scientific

research , and the Belgium explorers wished to erect a line b L T o f communication between Zanzi ar and ake anganyika . T his idea was great and noble , but whilst the traveler , the

s cholar , and the merchant would profit by the route to

E uit rial f o o . q Africa , the interests religion were ignored

o f Although the members the international association ,

w h o were for the most part Protestant , did not directly

o f th e oppose the spread Gospel , they announced in their program that their efforts would tend principally to the

f c a o . dvancement science , commer e and industry 0 Th e L e o a rdinal L a v erie 7 if f C ig .

T 1 8 o f his was the aspect which , in 7 7 , the question Equit o rial Africa assumed before th e Christian world and h . t e before the H oly See Cardinal Franchi , the Prefect of

Propaganda , called the attention of the Holy Father to the

u f Th e A res lt of the conference o Brussels . interior of frica

as s o had been pictured a vast desert , sterile that habita tion was impossible , but the reports of the courageous dis coverers and of the missioners had dispelled these fals e

T —a historical and geographical ideas . hat desert land s extensive in territory as Europe - was inhabited by a hun

- dred million Negroes ; those sterile deserts and barren. hills were fertile and producti v e lands and studded with beautiful lakes ; those inaccessible and lofty mountain s

Th e were covered with perpetual snows . Protestant soci et ies o f L o f th e ondon and New York , electrified by

u o f L v acco nts i ingstone and Stanley , were planning con

v Co n quests in this extensi e and wealthy country , and the ference Of Brussels had added a new aspect to the crusade . Should the Holy See remain inacti ve and allow the guar dians o f error to ex cel the apostles Of truth and of ci vili z a tion ! Yet this vast and perilous mission presented a

f Th e o f ~ practical di ficulty . religious societies that aposto

o f fo r late were in need missioners , the treacherous climate

v n o f and fe ers , and the burni g heat Abyssinia and Daho

v r a . mey had e ery yea destroyed large number Where ,

e for then , wer the laborers and the necessary resources

v n l z a i n f v ! the e a g i i t o o those ast regions Fortunately , a remedy was at hand .

1 8 6 L v t o t wo In 7 , Archbishop a igerie brought Rome

o f o f . White Fathers Algiers , the first fruits his foundation Th e thought of the evangelization o f Africa from t h e

2 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a v er 7 f f C ig ie. stations in the districts in which the A frican International

Th e Society was located . prelates unanimously gave their approval to this step , and the Pope Officially entrusted the T task to the White Fathers . hey responded with e nt h u i m s as . All religious societies have their epochs o f heroism ; and this was the hour for the White Fathers . They dispatched two members to Rome to express their

t o gratitude , and place at the disposal of the Holy See

fe v their wills , their suf rings , and even their li es for the

it r a l Th e salvation of Equ o i Africa . bearers of such

1 8 8 G o d beautiful sentiments arrived in Rome in 7 , but

had called the great and holy Pontiff to H imself. His

L e o successor , XI I I , obtained from the Propaganda the

necessary expenses for the return of the missioners , and he assigned to the White Fathers four centres in which the conference o f Brussels had proposed to e st abllsh

: L L T o f stations ake Nyanza , ake anganyika , the capital

’ Yanva s o f Muata kingdom , and the northern extremity

Th e the Congo river . Pontiff grasped the idea of Arch L bishop avigerie , and in order to forestall the advance of

t e mis heresy , he ordered the immediate departure of h

s io ne rs for the field o f action .

CHAPTER XI .

THE W ORK OF ARCHBISHOP LAVIGERIE I N E! UATORIAL K AFRICA A N D A T LA K E TANGANYI A .

“ Th e Society of the White Fathers o f Our L ady o f

Africa had been strengthened by the baptism of blood . Algerian missioners had been located at stations bordering a - a Equa torial Af ric L a h e Ta ng a ny ib . 7 3

o n a G e rriv ille L a h o nat the S hara , at Biskra , , g and

Pa ulmier Me no ret B o uch and Metlili , and Fathers , and had ventured into the Sahara with the expectation Of

reaching the Soudan from the south , but they were

o f a massacred by a band fan tical Mussulmans . Fathers

Po u la rd Tim Richards , Morat and p , unable to reach

buct o o by this perilous route , attempted to pass through

T o f ripoli , but they were attacked at Rhat and fell victims

their zeal .

Th e Archbishop mourned the loss of his first sons , but his practical mind profited by this s ad occurrence to im press o u his missioners the necessity o f moderating their “ ” n e . zeal with Christia prud nce My dear Sons , he said “ t o them , let the exercise of your zeal be seasoned by

the virtues of prudence , patience and charity . Prudence ,

f r f o u o if you desire to hasten af airs , y will Often endanger

f I yourselves without ef ecting any good . One mprudent act may reta rd for a long time the conversion Of many Of people . Never lose sight your sacred character nor

the spirit of your order which has a special end in view ,

it s the absence of which would destroy utility . You

must gain the attention of the natives by your language , Of dress , mode eating ; in a word , by your conformity to f their customs . Other congregations may adopt dif erent

o u f methods , but y must aithfully cultivate the portion ” o u which the Father of the family has entrusted to y . He introduced into the constitution o f t h e society pre c rse I nstructions whi c h gave strength to his general “ ” remarks Never , he stated , under any circumstances ,

sh all Th e less than three priests be on a mission . most advantag eous and urgent offers shall not make an e x cep Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v erie 74 f f C ig .

f h tion to this rule , which is essential to the existence o t e T society . his measure provided for the spiritual and

o f no for the temporal welfare the congregation , so that member would be alone in a pagan country during life no r f at the hour o death . Th e Archbishop was prepared t o make any sacrifice o f money , for unless he wished to expose a missioner to cer x tain death , he must equip him with an e tensive outfit .

Th e E v uropean tra eler , who can quickly pass by railway

o ne o f e from end the country to the other , cannot realiz of E Th the hardship a j ourney into quatorial Africa . e best roads are only winding paths through thick under u growth , freq ented more by wild beasts than by man , and where two men cannot walk abreast . Then the

is no t v o u v baggage less complicated . Ha e y e er reflected o n the inconveniences o f travel in a country which h as no currency ! Th e traveler must carry the indispensable

o f o r r o articles life , more cumbe s me articles with which

Ho w o f in to procure them . easily the price sustenance Europe may be placed in a small pocketbook ! Only the missioner lost in the immense African forests can appre ciate and mournfully meditate on the advantages o f cur re nc T o f o f y . here is everywhere a system buying and s a elling , but to buy with money is necessity to which

i and v is . s e ery one resigned In Africa there no money , its — substitute is most cumbersome cloth , glassware , brass

v ; ware , kni es , axes , mirrors ; all these are less easily car

no t f t ried than a few bank notes . And it is without ef or that each man carries on h is back at least seventy pound s o f o f wares , and instead a satchel and an umbrella , large

o f . packs tents , hammocks and cooking utensils And a o a l ica —L a h e Ta n a n iba Equ t ri Af r g y . 7 5

what security has he in his j ourney ! Africa is overrun

, with hyenas , serpents , jackals , lions and other wild beasts w ithout mentioning the cannibals who , as in Dahomey ,

believe that they appease the gods by human sacrifices . This is neither exaggeration no r pessimism ; the letters of

every missioner are a proof o f its realty . Of An instance is found in a letter Father Baur , the

- Vica Prefect Apostolic Of Zanzibar , who traveled in the ” Th e o f E interior . white skins the uropeans , he writes , “ o f W a do e s attracted the attention the , who had never

o r seen a f eign caravan , and their reflections were not H “ ” t o r L o ne o f reassuring the poo travelers ook , said “ them , smacking his lips , I think that fellow would be

” ’

. not good to eat I would like him , replied another , he must be an Arabian ; but that large o ne who looks f ” like a giraf e , he ought to be excellent . M . Durand wrote in his j ournal the following conversation between himself and o ne o f the neophytes who one day appeared “ Y . o u sad much dej ected seem , my friend , said the ” ” Yes sad good priest , tell me what is wrong . , I am , “ sad v replied th e savage , I am very , for I did not ha e a ”

. o u ! good breakfast What did y eat asked the priest , “ ” s in a soothing tone . Nothing , Father , he an wered , ” O t wo o f o v o n ! nly ears a man , and how c uld I li e that And it was to people o f this class that Pope L e o XIII L and Archbishop avigerie had sent the White Fathers . 2 th 1 8 8 On the 5 Of March , 7 , five Fathers departed for

L T fo r L T ake anganyika and five ake Nyanza . hey w ere

t h e received at Zanzibar by Holy Ghost Fathers , and

f r T Th e there they prepared their caravan o abora . kind

o f Ho re r u ness Father , the s perior of the order , deeply ' 6 Th e L i e o a r ina l a 7 f f C d L vigerie .

L t o touched Father ivinhac , who wrote thus Archbishop “ L avigerie Father Ho re r received us as a father receives h i s . c o n children He is truly an apostolic man , and his T freres are all good and kind . hey requested us to par ” Of take their hospitality during our visit . Father Pascal , the superior o f the mission o f Tanganyika contracted a fever and died before he reached the end of his perilous j ourney . H e spoke o f his illness with the j oyfulness of “ a saint . I have been visited by our dear sister, the ” v “ fe er , he writes from Kondora , everybody has patiently f to bear his trials and suf erings . But what a great con f solation to suf er for the Good Master , and for those whom

! w as he has redeemed by His precious blood He ,

i av indeed , r pe for he en . His companions arrived at Tanganyika after a j ourney o f ten months , and the other missioners reached Nyanza , o ne - year , ten months and twenty nine days after their

Th e o f departure from Algiers . sting a poisonous fly

T fat al t o aminals called the setse , was their , especially to T the oxen , mules and horses . his was not , however , the E only embarrassment of the expedition . very distant

f E uito rial mission has its di ficulties , but the missions of q

Africa have special difficulties . When the missioners Th arrived at their destination , their trials began . ey wrote to Archbishop L avigerie that they had encountered f — Of our principal obstacles the climate , the lack resources , religious indifference and slavery— but with courage and confidence in God they hoped to surmount all these . h T e territory along the coast is low and marshy , and the humidity and heat of the tropics give rise to a miasma E Ex which produces fevers Often fatal to the uropeans . a r al rica— L a h e Ta n a n ih a Equ to i Af g y . 7 7

iv c e s s e fatigue from forced marches under a burning sun , a chilliness and heavy mists during the night soon pro

Th e duce a slight indisposition , and finally death . Blacks are , however , acclimated to this poisonous atmosphere .

o f On the high lands and lofty plateaus , as on the banks

i Th e T n s . the a ganyika , the climate salubrious fertile l s oil produces without much cu tivation wheat , beans , potatoes and manioc , which last forms the principal nour

h me nt o f Th e is the natives , oil of the banana and the palm tree constitute the principal sources o f wealth t o the country . “ Th e second difficulty is the lack o f resources . In ” L av inh a c less than three years , writes Father , we have expended one hundred and fifty thousand dollars , and yet ” i T we have only arrived at the stat ons . his expenditure is not , however , enormous , when we consider that the Evangelical Society of L ondon sends out each year to

Protestant missions one million dollars .

Th e f Negroes manifest an indif erence towards religion , yet the assertions that certain tribes h a ve no kind of

a nd worship no idea of a supreme being , are false .

L t o , , Father ivinhac who had been sent _ Nyanza wrote to Archbishop L avigerie that he found in Africa the most gross idolatry , but no atheism .

th e L T At Uj ij i , principal city of ake anganyika , the

o f great evil Africa , the Negro slave trade , is practiced in all its repulsiveness , and is the most stubborn Obstacle to Th . e Christian civilization Arabian traders , who are aided by some Negro associates , have made this village the depot o f D e niau their odious commerce . P . d depicts in striking

c colors the abomination of this traffi in human beings . 8 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a vi erie 7 f f C g .

“ Th e o f peaceful villages the Negroes , he writes , are s uddenly surrounded during the night by these fierce a t dventurers , and , al hough the Negroes are supplied with

th e arms , they are overpowered by men who are armed to t f eeth . All who seek shelter in the darkness o the night a re captured and started o n a lo ng j ourney through

T o f unknown countries . hen begin a series unutterable

miseries . Men , women and children are forced to walk , a nd n the stro g men are bound by the hands and the feet , T so that they cannot escape . hey walk all day , and when . a t evening they halt for a short repose , they receive a very

Th o f frugal meal . e fatigues and privations the first days Old weaken a large number , especially the women and m n ' e . t o t erro ris e In order this unhappy human brood , th e conductors strike the exhausted Negroes a severe blow n h o the neck with a wooden club . Wit a cry of pain they

o . fall to the ground , and die amid agonizing convulsi ns Th e fear o f a similar treatment gives strength to the most E feeble , who immediately fall into line . very time that a

slave stops this frightful spectacle is repeated . “ When the first days of such a life have exercis ed their d h e eleterious influence , a sight not less horrible awaits t Th v ictims . e dealers in human flesh have learned by e xperience what the Negroes can endure , and they know

at a glance those who will shortly succumb to fatigue . In order to economize their meagre nourishment they kill

Th e them with the blow o f a club . corpses are suspended

n o f o the branches the neighboring trees , under which the

unfortunate Blacks are obliged to eat and to sleep . And what a sleep Among the young Negroes whom we res c ued from this living hell and restored to liberty were

8 0 Th e L e o a rdina l L a vi erie if f C g . o r less consideration , have attempted to demonstrate that

fo r the Negro , with his brute instincts and vices is created

S T f . o lavery , and never can appreciate liberty his point view would j ustify a discussion on slavery , but when it is

o f question of the capture and the sale the Negroes , every

s political , economical and philosophical argument recede before the leading question of humanity . If the Black is not adapted for liberty as it exists amongst civilized

nations , he has an absolute right to protection . It is the

o f Of right the feeble against the strong , the ignorant

o f o f against the learned , the poor against the rich , the n unfortunate against the favored . He wh o would o t

o f L praise the lofty designs Archbishop avigerie , and in

h as some way become associated with that great work ,

neither a humane no r a Christian heart .

Some pious laymen , formerly Papal zouaves , j oined the expedition o f the missioners in order to guard the Negro

T - f carriers . hese men represent the armed force o the

little band , a role which the priests of Jesus Christ could

no t well perform . Six armed auxiliaries accompanied the two caravans o f apostles sent out in 1 8 79 to re - enforce

the White Fathers , who had departed the previous year . With an inspiration which recalls the crusades and the

o f o f glorious era the military orders , the ceremony “ departure took place in the basilica o f Our L ady o f ” Th e Africa . Archbishop blessed this army , and each volunteer , as an equipped knight , made his solemn pro

o f testation at the foot the altar , in these words

’ “ fo r I am resolved , with God s grace , to devote myself

ne E o year to the mission of quatorial Africa , and I promise o n my faith as a Christian to observe d uring that time all - a N a z a 8 1 Equatoria l Africa L h e y n .

the regulations of the auxiliaries o f the mission . I promise t o obey in everything the superiors of the mission to which

I shall be attached , and the chief who shall be selected f f . o by the advice o the missioners In evidence which , placing my person under the protection o f Our L ady o f ” o w n Africa , I sign with my hand this agreement , one copy of which I shall place at the feet of the miraculous

o f statute , and the other in the hands the superior of the ” African mission . ! Signed !

L 2 0 1 8 . Given at Our ady of Africa , June , 79

CHAPTER XII .

THE W ORK OF CARDINAL LAVIGERIE I N E! UATORIAL R — K Z AF ICA LA E NYAN A .

Whilst the White Fat hers at Tanganyika were estab

lish in o f g their abode to the north Uj ij i , in the province of L Urundi , Father ivinhac and his companions had settled

L Ta o f a . at ake Nyanza , in the kingdom Ugand At ng

an ika y , the numerous small states which are more or less

o ne frequently at war with another , form a kind of con e t fed ra ion like the Swiss Republic , whilst at Nyanza the

a various small kingdoms are tributaries to M tesa , a pow e rful black prince who is sovereign o f the kingdom O T Uganda . his kingdom l s somewhat simil a r to the Ger

E in a a c t man mpire , which the confederate states c nnot

E a without the formal assent of the mperor Willi m . Th e missioners knew that their first step was to win the

o f a good will Mates , who was loath to recognize them . 8 2 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a v erie f f C ig .

Th S . e An incident , however , hortly won his friendship Fren c h missioners had been forestalled by a Protestant

o f c preacher , named Mackay , who , fearful the influen e of the Catholic missioners , and actuated by a spirit of rivalry

unbecoming a Christian , had prej udiced the king against L . w as them Fortunately , Father ivinhac endowed with a

c natural tact , and with that virtue of pruden e , of which L Archbishop avigerie had so highly spoken , he remem bered that in a mission o f North America the chief of a recently converted tribe had been won by the allurement

of a red French dress , trimmed with gold lace . He knew the weakness of the savages for bright articles and brilliant

colors , and consequently , before quitting France , he had T gone to the market of the emple , where the dealers Of “ o d e T l cloth s are located . hanks to our successive

v L re olutions , he writes pleasantly to Archbishop avi “ Of gerie , I found comparatively new dresses senators and

ministers . I made a selection for king Matesa and his

T oe w as h is court . his man uvre very successful , and in generosity he permitted us t o preach the Gospel to his

us subj ects , and presented to th irty head of cattle , and a

o f . few acres land covered with banana trees Moreover , he furnished the material and workmen for th e construe ” Th e tion o f a house for o ur accommodation . reader

no t must not think that this people , who had a knowledge f o at least the first principles of architecture , could not

fo r no t erect a house , the Negro huts are very com — — plicated some posts , reeds , herbs and straw such are

the materials fo r a building in Equatorial Africa . It is no t astonishing to read th e following words o f that L courageous superior , Father ivinhac , to the Archbishop ua toria l A r ca — L a h e N a nz a Eq f i y . 8 3 o f Algiers Tell those who manifest a desire fo r this

n o f missio , that they must acquire a great spirit faith

l G o d which will ead them to see in everything , and a true love for the cross which will teach them to embrace priva tions and trials , for the tribulations of Kabyl and th e other missions convey no idea o f the hardships o f the

' o f E He missioners quatorial Africa . remarked to the “ Director of the noviti a te o f Maison - Carree : What good we could accomplish if we had amongst us a St . Francis Xavier ! Fill your young men with the spirit and the zeal E o f us . that saint , and send them to ndeavor , by all means , to form good superiors who shall possess three — leading qualities great sanctity , great meekness and great U T firmness . his humble missioner was himself endowed

fo r with these qualities , and he required them the trials which shortly would fall upon his mission . In order to facilitate the management of the missions o f T L Nyanza and anganyika , Archbishop avigerie founded at Zanzibar a religious house which would be th e centre for communications between the novitiate at Maison

E Th e Carree and the stations of quatorial Africa . increase o f Christians and neophytes necessitated the establishment

L t o of additional stations , and Father ivinhac repaired

Algiers to lay this question before his superior . Hence

ro vicariat e s forth , two vicariates apostolic and the p of Unyamwe z i and the Upper C ongo claimed the attention o f L the White Fathers . Father ivinhac was consecrated bishop of Nyanza , with the authority upon his return to the Negro country of consecrating Mgr . Charbonnier vicar - apostolic o f Tanganyika ; but this consecration was retarded by the sad events which transpired in Uganda . 8 Th e L i e o a rdinal L av erie 4 f f C ig .

D uring the absence o f Father L ivinhac the mission of

R uba a t L u d l g had been entrusted o Father o r e . Matesa

v so n was fav o ra had died , and Ma anga , his and heir , first ble to the missioners . He had been instructed in the

C o f atholic religion , and the lords the kingdom strongly C suspected that he was a hristian , but this suspicion was

groundless . His partiality towards the Mussulman slave traders gav e rise t o an era o f persecution against the

E 1 8 8 L o urde l a c m . c o uropeans In September , 5 , Father

anie d o n p the king a j ourney through the kingdom , and upon their return the king was informed of the arrival o f a German caravan which proposed to take possession o f

a Bagamoyo and Usagara . His vexation w s augmented by

the information that Bishop Hannington , of the Anglican

v Missions , would shortly arri e at Uganda , by way Of Mas

saya , and that the Anglican Missioners would meet him

upon the eastern coast . Th e thought o f being thus encircled by Europeans gave

t o . rise much anxiety Besides , there was an ancient pre diction that by way Of Massaya the enemy would enter the Th o f . e s kingdom Uganda poor king , depre sed by this “ t o L o urde l : sombre presentment , said Father I am the

o f last king Uganda , and after my death the whites will

live I . seize my country , but whilst I shall oppose them ”

o f . With my death , terminates the line Negro kings

This gloomy prediction w as fatal to the Christians . He sent o ne o f h is o w n representatives with imperative orders

to conduct the Anglican t o the frontiers of the kingdom .

was h is Some days later he informed that , notwithstanding

command , the whites had penetrated Uganda , and in his

Th e E anger he ordered their death . nglish Protestants E ua torial A rica — L a h e N a nz a 8 q f y . 5

o f vainly attempted to obtain the revocation the command , and in their despair they supplicated Father L o urde l to

Th e f interc ede for them . prayers o the good priest forced from the king a promise to recall his threat , but whether

L o urde l he wished to deceive Father , or whether the sentence had already been executed , Hannington and his escort of forty men were massacred .

Not content with his first victory , the king and his prime minister wished to drive from the country Mackay

L ur l and two other Anglicans . Father o de was secretly informed of this move , and he immediately acquainted the three Protestants , who desirous of saving their lives , gave a magnificent present to the king , and told him that they f h i o s . knew criminal design Surprised at this avowal , he demanded the name Of the informer , but Mackay was

Th e no w silent . king forbade the natives to visit the

f L ur l houses o the wh ites . Father o de inquired whether this proscription applied to the Catholic missioners , and he

o n was told that , the contrary , they might continue the instru ction o f their neophytes . Such w as the state of a ffa irs when the king w as suddenly attacked by an infla m L . o urde l mation of the eyes Father applied a lotion , and in a few days the inflammation disappeared . He ordered l the royal patient to take an opium pil before retiring .

During the night he was attacked by a violent nausea ,

h is w a s f o f which , counsellors insisted , the ef ect the opium

t O ' im riso n pill , and they advised him p the priest . In vain did o ne of the counsellors maintain that he himself had f taken three opium pills without any evil ef ect . Father L o urdel with difficulty prevailed upon the king to accept

a ni a prepar tion of tric acid to counteract the nausea , for Th e L i e o a rdinal L a vi erie 8 6 f f C g .

“ the spectators incessantly repeated : Th e king is a fool to receive a remedy from the hands of a white man . He

o ne has ordered the death of the whites , and this will seek ” revenge by poisoning him . In a few days , however , the

king was perfectly restored , and his prej udice vanished .

Joseph Makasa , a faithful Christian and a warm friend “ o f s s a : the mi sioners , ventured to y to him Why have you begun to kill the whites ! Y o ur father never killed ” T them . his bold rebuke was his death sentence ; for he

w as condemned to be burned at the. stake . Immediately

L o urdel all the young catechu mens hastened to Father . “ “ Th e o u king intends to drive y away , they said , baptize

fo r . us , we will soon be put to death How could he refuse this touching request of future martyrs ! During these days o f anguish he baptized a hundred and thirty

o f four persons , many whom were afterwards massacred . T hey were seized and tied to bundles of reeds , which were

ignited , and thus they expired amid excruciating torments .

L avinh ac Meanwhile , Bishop returned , and he was filled with admiration at the heroic courage Of the new “ . R uba a Christians During the month which I spent at g ,

he writes , not a night passed that I did not receive several

Christians . I gave confirmation to seventeen . Sometimes ,

overcome by sleep , I attempted to take leave of my pious

: us visitors ; but they would reply Stay with , for to - morrow we shall receive from the king our death

sentence , and we shall see you no more on this earth . How could I resist that appeal ! We prolonged the con

versation on the vanity of worldly pleasures , and the j oys Of heaven which o ne blow o f the exe c utioner would

u Th e merit for s . future martyrs waited until morning to

Th e L i e o a rdina l L a v er e 8 8 f f C ig i .

o f sacrificed a large number his faithful friends . His — heart responds to two vibrations , avarice and fear . He

w h is o w suspects everyone , hites , Arabs , and even n

Th e subj ects . Protestants are anxious to leave , and two

- fo r of them depart to morrow . As me , Mavanga has declared that he will never allow me to g o ; perhaps h e will hold me as a hostage in case of an attack from the

o f whites . We are , however , in the hands God . Pray

o ur for us . If we must follow neophytes to heaven , so

o ur much the better . We continue holy ministry amongst

o the Christians who come t us at night . D uring the first

- year I baptised two hundred and sixty four persons . Our

orphans are studying the truths of reli g ion , and are much ” u attached to s .

o When the victims had reached a hundred , many f

whose names the superior did . not even know , Father

L o urdel t o resolved visit the fierce persecutor , but he was

given an audience only with the prime minister . He had the s a d privilege of w it ne ssmg the capture and the impris

nm nt o f T o e of a large number young Christians . heir

farewell was heroic and touching , for they had the gift of

o f Th e n v i courage and faith . ki g se erely repr manded

o n o f them account their belief, and he exclaimed in a “ l oud and angry voice , All those who pray , stand on this .

side and at a given signal , the executioners seized these -A t generous confessors and led them to their death . this touching spectacle Father L o urde l felt his very strength le a ve him ; he was not permitted to speak o ne word of

encouragement to his dear neophytes .

Bishop L ivinhac arrived some days after this massacre .

t h e He feared to reproach king for his crimes , lest he be A A CROSSING THE S HAR .

T e o a a l a er e 9 0 h L ife f C rdin L vig i .

Four months afterwards the Christians found my asylum , and after a struggle Of five months we have triumphed over the Arabs . I supplicate you to send priests to preach the religion of Jesus Christ in the whole kingdom o f

a P h as Uganda . I underst nd that your Father , the ope , sent you t o treat with the powers of Europe for the exter

o f mination the slave trade in the countries of Africa . I will aid them to overthrow this commerce in human flesh

t h e a A sk in all countries which border on Nyanz . God

liVe to give me the grace to a good life , and I beg him to

o u u bless y , and assist you in all the works you ndertake Hi for s glory .

Your child ,

AV AN GA o f a . M , King Ug nda 8 v 1 8 8 . No ember 4 ,

Wou ld that this were the termination of t h e history of

is Uganda , for it painful for a Christian writer to add that the ruin of this fruitful mission w a s not the work of Mus L s ulmans ! c . Bishop ivinhac , who had onsecrated Mgr

T w as Charbonnier , Bishop of anganyika , forced to return

t o o f Algiers , where he was appointed Superior General

h is the White Fathers . When successor , Bishop Hirt , a

native of Alsace , arrived in Uganda , he found the country

c s ix peaceful and prosperous , religion respe ted , stations

under the care of fourteen priests and three brothers , five

a nd a n a thousand neophytes equal number of Christi ns ,

a c thirty chapels erected in the pe eful Ch ristian centres ,

w as and the disasters of the persecution repaired . Such t h e state of Nyanza after some years of labor by the

White Fathers . ca — ah e N a nz a 1 Equa torial Af ri L y . 9

Th e blood o f the martyrs had produced a fruitful

a harvest ; but Protestant h tred , upheld by the agents of

E E - a the nglish ast Africa Company , destroyed this be utiful

c T is pi ture . his company composed of merchants , but it

is exclusively Protestant , and under the control of the

L ondon Bible Society . During the disturbances which succeeded the revolution of Uganda and the dethronement

o f a c Mav nga , the Protestants had formed a distin t organi z at io n Of , and the very existence this party gave birth to t a Catholic party . After the re urn of the king . there were two camps which divided the burdens and the dis t rict s ; and although the Protestant party w as inferior in E w as . a number , it protected by the nglish fort Fe r

c and policy , rather than onviction , actuated Mananga in

extending his protection to the Catholics , for to them he

h i w as owed s restoration . He present every Sunday with

his court at the instructions , and although this conduct

a a ex sperated the Protestants , it g ve him prestige in the

Th e eyes of the Catholics . culprits who were brought x before him were e amined with impartiality , but when the ’ c o nde m nat io n fe ll upon a Protestant , he invariably appealed

E w as to the nglish fort , and sustained in the face of all

j ustice . One day a Catholi c in l awful defense killed a Protesta nt

c a chief who had atta ked him with a band of ggressors .

L u a rd E Captain g , of the nglish fort , wished to examine the

a rlic d a proceedings , and whilst he p with Mavanga p

a re nt l a c c E p y to obt in j usti e , he se retly distributed nglish firearms in the de a d of th e night to a h undred Protestant Th . e 1 8 2 blacks following day , January 4 , 9 , some shots

to which the Catholics replied , were the signal for a 2 Th e L i e o Ca rdinal L a vi erie 9 f f g .

frightful struggle . On the square in which stands the capitol a fierce combat was waged , and although there

w t wo t h e was no proportion bet een the parties , poor Catholics had to contend not only against the protestants o f E the country , but also against the nglish arms . Mavanga accompanied by two thousand Christians sought

o n L refuge on an islet ake Nyanza . What became of the missioners during this time ! T hey were at the mercy of the hostile army which , furious

o f at the flight the king , bombarded and set fire to all the T ' buildings . w o children risked their lives in carrying a L last appeal of Bishop Hirt to Captain ug ard. He hastened to the scene , and with a strong force rescued the missioners from the flames , but he conducted them to the fort amid the insults and j eers o f the Protestants who re

Tw o mained masters of the field . days later they quitted the fort and j oined Mavanga wh o had sought shelter at a Buddu with the Catholics . But fifty bo ts loaded with

- sharp shooters hurried towards the island , and the royal residence was riddled with bullets , and four thousand Th Christians were killed . e king and Bishop Hirt e s caped whilst the Catholics contended step by step fo r the isle , until they were final ly vanquished , seized , and con

E L u a rd ducted to the nglish fort . Captain g informed Mavanga at Buddu that he had g iven the throne of B Uganda to Maboga , the king of the aganda Mussulmans , Th o n account o f his partiality towards the Protestants . e priests were taken prisoners by Captain Williams and “ confined in the fort o f Kampala . What ignominy to “ G uille rmain s e e France , writes Father , to her priests E and her children prisoners in an nglish fort , despised and

Th e L i e o a rdinal L a vi rie 94 f f C ge .

share , and conceded a small portion to the Mussulmans

t h e and to Catholics . All the Catholic chiefs were placed

o ne o f systematically on side , and the religion Islam became Th under this regime the state religion . e authority of “ Mavanga was nominal , for the principle that the king reigns , but does not govern , was applied in all its force by E the nglish Company in Uganda .

Th e king , yet a Catechumen , ascended the throne , but he

o f wielded the sceptre at the cost his faith . He persecuted

o f 1 8 2 his family on account their religion , and April 3 , 9 ,

’ he signed a treaty with Captains L ug ard and Williams in which he consented to banish the Catholic Blacks to

Buddu , with the command that they should not propagate their religion without th e a uth oriz a tion of th e h ea d of th e Eng lish Compa ny and if they behaved well the head of the company reserved to himself the power o f m o difying th e T conditions which had been imposed upon them . his clause 15 I n opposition to the international conventions Of E Berlin and Brussels , but the nglish wished to impress Europe with the idea that the Catholics had been the

o n aggressors , whilst , the contrary , they had been the vic tims of a vile plot . D uring this frightful period the German station o f

Nyanza was favorable to the Catholics . From the thousand women and children who had been exposed ” during the horrible revolution , writes Bishop Hirt to

L “ h a s avigerie , the head Of the German station at Ukala

h as . rescued a hundred , whom he returned to us Bishop Hirt returned to R ubag a with the resolution of reconstru ct ing the ruined missions ; but what a spectacle fo r the heart o f a Frenchman and a missioner t o witness ! Fifty r ca— a h e N a n a Equatorial Af i L y z . 9 5

a o r thous nd neophytes , plundered , exiled , massacred ; thousands of women and children condemned to sl a very ;

o f En a nd thirty chapels in ashes . Such was the work g

fa nat a c is m E o f E lish and of the nglish Company ast Africa ,

a the conquerors of Ugand .

c a a a a nd Bishop Hirt alled on M v ng , although the poor

f w as king had not O ficially espoused Protestantism , he , n Of En lish evertheless , a very submissive servant the g of Th Fort Kampala . e gra c e of baptism had preserved the

no twit h females of the place , for they were firm Catholics , standing the endeavors o f the Protestant ministers to effect

a their apostacy . Rather than abandon their f ith they t informed the king that they would escape o Buddu .

1 8 2 o f In November , 9 , Captain Macdonald , a delegate

a o f the ! ueen , was sent to investigate the c use the Catholic lf w as . V o persecution at Uganda . He accompanied by M ,

info r a German traveler , from wh om he Obtained accurate

a c c s aw m tion of the re ent occurren es . He at Buddu the results of the persecution and of the hatred of his co - relig — ionists the most abj ect poverty , misery and despair ; for

c the poor Bla ks had lost their homes , their wives and their

children , and thickly congregated in the marshy places , they became an easy prey to fever and the other maladies

c s o whi h are prevalent in that country . Bish op Hirt

1 8 wrote , in 9 3 , that of the one hundred thousand neo

h t e s - p y who were at Buddu the previous year , one half had

A S perished . the result of the investigation of the dele g at io n the C a tholics of Uganda were given two new prov

inc e s f T and the island o Sesse . his was a tardy and

a incomplete reparation . May the d y come when entire

j ustice will be given . 6 Th e L e o Cardinal L a v erie 9 if f ig .

Th e mission o f Tanganyika had not to contend with

E s and th e nglish prote tants , but with serpents wild beasts , Th enemies more easily avoided . e arri val o f Bishop Charbonnier amongst the poor Negroes was an important Th event . e orphanage of Kibanga had more than o ne

o f h undred restless Negro boys , gathered from all parts

ma the country , and we y well imagine the welcome Of C T Bishop harbonnier amongst this curious class . here

v T were many ad entures at anganyika , but what were they in comparison to the persecutions o f Nyanza !

wh o Father Guilleme , accompanied the bishop to Kibanga , “ remarked I n a letter to the Superior at Algiers Of all

o f o f the enemies the plains Kibanga , the most formidable

L - are the tigers . ately they have destroyed twenty eight

o f o ur goats , and although for three nights we have placed

a goat as a decoy , we have not captured the enemy .

C h is Bishop harbonnier died at Karema , shortly after

n f A 1 8 8 8 B rido ux o o . arrival , the sixteenth pril , Bishop ,

h is his successor , had j ust terminated pastoral visit when

o f he , too , succumbed to fever and died at the age thirty L eight . He had visited the village of Saint ouis Of

Me rumbi h e , founded by Captain Joubert , and gives

evidence o f the great faith and piety which he witnessed . ” “ “ T o f his village , he says , is constructed partly wood

Th e c o n and partly o f brick . noble Captain directs the

st ruct io ns s , governs thi little world , attends to the sick , presides at the morning and the evening prayers and at T L catechism . his village is several miles from ake T anganyika , and the bishop promised to send , as soon as

o f possible , missioners who would take charge the spiritual

f L av i e re o f af airs . Archbish op g had the pleasure having

8 Th e L i e o ardina l L a vi eri e 9 f f C g .

Since the Congress of Brussels , and the crusade of the E u ropean governments against slavery , the wolf seemed con v erted into a lamb ; but he was simply restrained by fear . It is with slaves as with other prohibited merchan

Ti u- Tib dise , recourse is had to smuggling . pp personally renounced the slave trade , but he had under his command

— R o maliz a Arabs and half breeds wh o pursued the traffic . failed to dispose of the slav es whom he had captured in his ff last invasion , and he o ered some hundred children to

B rido ux f Th e Bishop for a nominal sum o money . good — bishop eagerl y accepted the proposition his last act of ch arit v towards this unfortunate people , for he died shortly afterwards . Th e premature ruin of the missions was doubly deplora ble , for , owing to the revolutions and the invasions of the

- M ussulman slave traders , there was no possible route to

Equatorial Africa . After the destruction of the Christian

o f L v ‘ kingdom Uganda , Archbishop a igerie sent Father

D eg ue rry to attempt a new entran ce by Zambesi . His f w ef orts ere successful , and a new station was established w L ith the permission of the king of Portugal at ake Nyassa , E and by this route the caravans afterwards proceeded . min Pasha h as testified to the devotion and th e labor of th e

zealous missioners . H e wrote from Victoria Nyanza , in 1 8 9 1 D uring my soj ourn I frequently visited the Cath

olic missioners from Algiers . I was on terms of intimacy

a . with them , and I was shown the most attentive hospit lity There is a singular contrast between the Protestant and

Th e th e Catholic missioners . Catholics labor seriously

a nd w to make the Negroes intelligent useful , hilst the

Protestants sing hymns and feed them to satiety . If we A rch bish o L a v erie in Tunis p ig . 99

wish the best results , we should by all means procure the

o f labors the Catholic missioners , and supply them with n the means of elevating the Negro . Certai ly , this testi

is mony beyond dispute , and with these encouraging words we shall close our remarks on these distant missions . It is time to return t o the Algerian colony and follow the many patriotic and Christian undertakings o f Archbishop

L avigerie .

CHAPTER XIII .

’

ARCHBISHOP LAVIGERIE IN TUNIS .

We last saw Archbishop L avigerie chagrined at t h e d o f h is at t o f eath first missioners , and the hostili y the French deputies in withholding the state appropriations fo r religious works , but neither sadness nor hostility could T d h is . ampen zeal hese mental and physical fatigues , however , had impaired his health , which was never robust , fo r he had inherited rheumatic affections which had pre

ff Th e maturely carried O his family . strain of incessant in labors forced him to apply for a coadj utor , and his creasing debility led him to seek a few weeks o f rest in

Europe .

Th e a time seemed propitious for this tempor ry absence , for he had succeeded in regulating the affairs o f the

o f o f church Constantine , which under the administration

L a Bishop s Casas had become financially embarassed .

Th e o f Bishop Constantine , more zealous than prudent , ha d e ncum erected many religious buildings , and had bered the dio cese with the enormous debt o f tw o hundred 1 00 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v erie f f C ig .

-five and twenty thousand dollars , but through the kind ness o f Admiral de Gueydon and o f the government this

was l o f debt iquidated , and the responsibility the diocese

o f was entrusted to the Vicar General Viviers , Mgr .

was Roberts , who consecrated by his coadj utor in the Th e . Cathedral Of Algiers . Archbishop entrusted to Mgr

So ubiranne S o f , the Bishop of ebaste and late director the

Of E i Schools the ast , the adm nistration of the diocese during his absence ; but his health declined so rapidly that ' he feared he might not materialize a proj ect which he had long co ntemplated . He felt that now he might renounce h is dignities and the honors o f the episcopacy for the life of the simple “ missioner o f the order of the White Fathers My dear ” o f 1 8 2 children , he wrote to his sons in the beginning 7 , my conscience will no t allo w me t o send you alone into the pe rilOus arena . Amongst your number are many whom I have sent afar into the battle - fi e ld to seek the m crown o f artyrdom . I cannot choose their successors unless I myself give them the example in generosity . You have left all in response t o my appeal ; I have sacri T fi ce d s ee . nothing , for I still retain my episcopal his thought to rtures me . He is not a general who leads not

no r o f his army , he a shepherd who flees at the approach

v e the wolf. I ha e besieg d heaven with my prayers , and

’ my declining health seems to me an indication o f God s , ‘ o f v will . With the permission the So ereign Pontiff I shall exchange my archiepiscopal see for your habit and

o ne . rule , that I may become with you in life and in death Fortunately the Pope would no t listen to this untimely

t o o appeal , for he knew well that the duty of a general ,

1 0 2 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v er f f C ig ie.

Th e Felicitas , Monica and Augustine . barbarian and Arabian invasions under the Calif Omar in 64 3 erected

o f the Mussulman kingdom on the ruins Christianity , for

although Africa had her saints , the corruption and heresy o f many Christians had drawn down this terrible chastise

ment . Soon the only faithful in Tunis were th e victims

o f i C T p racy , snatched by the orsairs , urks and apostates

o f from the shores Sicily , Corsica , Sardinia , Italy , Provence

and T Spain . hus , St . Vincent de Paul , a martyr to his l t o heroic charity , was oaded with chains and condemned

o f B e lick the galleys y .

v Depri ed Of all religious consolation , these Christian

o f victims erected altars in the obscure corners the galleys ,

o f and there the sons St . Vincent de Paul and of St . Francis strove amid the most extreme pe ril to exercis e

i i i T o f the r m n stry . his continued until the conquest

i 1 Th o f Algiers n 8 3 0 . e presence the French troop s intimidated the Arabs and enabled the Italian Capuchins

i T ni 1 8 2 to establ sh several parishes in u s . In 4 , the

o f Superior , Mgr . Suter , was appointed Vicar General the

a e province . When this pious prelate had attained the g

f - o eighty four , he supplicated Pope Pius IX to allow him to retire from active life , but his prayer was not heard .

w t o An unforseen expedition , ho ever , gave a new turn T the V icariate apostolic o f unis . French and Italian

t h e influence had been for some time antagonistic , and

- - Me tas h a . Bey , p Ben Ismael , had been circumvented by M

R ust a n Mac c io o . o , the Italian c nsul , who had insulted M ,

Th e o f K o urmirs the French minister . depredations the gave R o ust an an opportunity o f interposing with an

v h is at ~ armed force , and the Bey , percei ing mistake a vi r un s 1 0 A rch bish op L ge ie in T i . 3

having espoused the cause of the Italian , was forced to submit to the protectorate of France .

o f Mgr . Suter had proposed to the Holy See the names th ree Italian subj ects from whom to select his successor ,

but the French government demanded a French bishop . There was only one man who could amalgamate the heter — — o g e neo us elements o f Tunis Archbishop L avigerie and 2 8 1 8 8 1 by a decree of June , , he was appointed apostolic

T s w administrator of unis , with the reque t that he besto an

Th e annuity o n the aged Italian bishop . French govern

s no w ment , which had refu ed to extend a credit to Algiers , Of resolved , even against the desire the deputies , to sustain

c T the Ar hbishop . hey authorized a lottery , which realized

two hundred and fifty thousand dollars , but the Archbishop had expended eight hundred and seventy - five thousand — dollars h e had thrown himself energeti c ally into the

— c work schools , hospitals , chur hes , religious establish

ments and asylums were immediately erected . M . Maceio ,

the Italian agent , paid a tribute to his activity and zeal “ “ be o Ah , Archbishop , said one day , what g od you are accomplishing in Tunis ! But how that good reflects n o us .

o f In fact , the very presence the Archbishop was more

f Th e o f ef ective than an army . village Sfax had resisted h the Frenc expedition , and after a severe bombardment it was captured , and the inhabitants condemned to pay a

large indemnity . Archbishop L avigerie came as a m es

senger of peace , bearing in his hand the Olive branch . “ He was welcomed by the people as a prince , writes L “ Mgr . esur ; a regiment of soldiers formed his body guard , the cannon fired a mili salute , the citizens 1 0 Th e L e o a rdina l L a vi r e 4 if f C ge i .

f appeared in holiday attire in expectation o a great event . He gav e two thousand five hundred dollars to the church ;

v which had been se erely damaged by the bombardment ,

t o and he distributed abundant alms Christians , Jews , and

Mussulmans alike . Public rumor soon made known this ” kindne ss and , the inhabitants were profuse in their thanks . “ When he departed from the church he was overwhelmed

o n with demonstrations of gratitude , and his arrival at the

Presbet r y he was met by Mussulmans , who desired an T interview . hey pictured to him their deplorable condi

o n tion , for the following day they would have to pay the indemnity o f the war u nless the great priest o f the Chris f . o tians aided them In consideration the great audience ,

o nt ifi cal the Archbishop , attired in his p robes , repaired to the ch urch accompanied by the terrified Mussulmans . He ascended the steps o f the altar and stood before them in all the grandeur o f his dignity . He impressed upon them the malice Of their offence in despising the authority o f their sovereign ; Sfax had previousl y manifested a sedi

i tious spirit , and their present conduct had aggravated the r

o ne o f crime . As a Catholic Bishop , his mission was

o f . m e rc mercy , but the manifestation y implied the deep

o f w repentance the inhabitants , otherwise it ould be a ” o u ! weakness and not a virtue . Do y repent he asked . “ “ e v Yes they repli d . we ha e done wrong ; the Bey is k ” o ur . master , France is strong and we are wea But , h e o ld - - added , your chief, Ali Ben , Khalifa , says that you “ have promised him to rev o lt in the Springtime . It is “ v e false , they indignantly replied we ha e b en his vic “ ” tims ; we do not wish to revolt . Well , then , said the “ ’i ‘ m e fh at o u Bishop , swear to y will never rebel against

a a 0 A rch bish op L vigerie t Tunis . 5

no r your lawful sovereign , the Bey , against France , his ” “ ” ally and protector . We swear , as God sees us , they

cried . On this condition only will I exert my influence , “ ” o u ! T concluded the Bishop . What do y wish hey

f t o desired su ficient time in which fulfill their obligation , ’ T for they could not then procure the money . heir houses

t o and lands would have be mortgaged , and this could not ” c be a complished immediately . Th e Archbishop reassured them o f the consideration o f

o f t h e the Bey and representative of France , but he insisted o n their fidelity in cancelling as soon as possible

Th e this sacred debt . government kindly granted his T t . request , and the indemni y was faithfully paid hat even ing the village was magnificently illuminated in honor of

the distinguished visitor , and amid the general rejoicing

the Jews and Mussulmans were most conspicuous . On the following day the enthusiasm was so intense that the inhabitants detached the horses from the Archbishop ’ s carriage and carried it through the streets amid the ” o f cheers and blessings the spectators .

w as Although he influential in a political point of view , he saw clearly that the interests of religion would not

. T progress In unis , more than elsewhere , many remnants t of Christiani y exist . Polygamy is found only amongst

T Th e the wealthy , who are of urkish origin . natives are not nomadic ; they dwell in stone houses and cultivate

the soil , and are less fanatic than other Mussulmans ; but although some tribes have as a traditional remembrance

o f the sign the Cross tattooed on their hands , face and

arms , the present generation is so filled with the pre

o f j udices and superstition the Coran , that the organiza 1 06 Th e L e o Ca rdina l L a vi erie if f g .

tion of missions such as exist in other infidel countries , Th would be fruitless . e only el ements Of zeal in the esti mation of the Archbishop were the education of the

a nd young charity and good example to all . Instruction

and works of charity constitute the mission of priests and .

d o ne religious , but goo example is the vocation of every ,

t h e s and that living sermon would , in cour e of time , dissi

o f pate all the false religious sentiments the sons o f Islam . Th e Mussulmans interpret th e zeal and the devotion of “ o wn Yo u th e Catholic priests after their fashion . “ s a priests , they y , are enlightened by God ; you con r sider you selves Christians , and in the depth of you r

i e f . . o heart you are , but you will be true believers , , sons ” T Mahomet , when you die . here is a strange tradition

L i regarding St . ou s , Of France , who died in Carthage .

Th e Mussulmans ardently admired his many virtues , and they claim that at the hour of his death Mahomet appeared

h is s o ul to him , and carried to heaven , and some even place him in the catalogue o f the i r saints . Th e Archbishop in his ardor and zeal for the spread o f religion pursued the plan which he had adopted in Algiers , o f T He populating unis with French Catholics . felt that this country offered advantages superior even to those o f

1 8 : “ f Algeria . He wrote in 8 5 I wish to af ord to the Old families of France an opportunity for labor and useful

, fo r investment , and by this means make some return the many kindnesses which they have showered upon me .

T o u . hat I ask no sacrifices , y may j udge for yourselves T When th e French occupied unis , the best land sold for ten to fifteen dollars an acre . In less than three years the v de fi nit ive va lue alue has rapidly increased , and a has not

1 0 8 Th e L e o ardinal L av erie if f C ig .

Mac Mah o n sat cap , but Marshal in the presidential chair o f - o f i France , and the former governor general Alger a had

not forgotten his encounter with the Archbishop . Not withstanding his indisputable military abilities and his

v pri ate virtues , he was obstinate in his antipathies . Grandeur o f soul Often presents a counterpart of petty

o ld weaknesses ; and the soldier , inflated with his past v h f ictories , had not forgiven the defeat w ich he had suf ered f L v 1 8 8 2 rom a igerie and the Arabian orphanages . But , in ,

' and M no t this obstacle no longer existed , . Grevy was a f personal enemy o the Archbishop . There was universal jo y in th e colony when th i s great honor was conferred upon their Archbishop . He had , with a truly patriotic sentiment , reconstructed the chapel u L pon the spot where King ouis IX had died , and there

’ w c ch ini res nt e d it as Count Ce p e to him the cardinal s cap . Th e ceremony was the occasion o f a manifestation Of love and esteem towards the new cardinal , but in his humble piety he felt obliged to abase himself in proportion as his

Th e w orldly glory increased . Maltese detached his horses f rom the carriage , and much to his discomfort and chagrin , carried him in triumph through the streets . When he “ : arrived at the church , he cried out I am only a man , ” and it is no t becoming to render me such honors . His “ reply t o Count Cecchini was grave and serious It is as dean o f the French bishops that I have been recommended

f Th e o f to the Sovereign Pontif . many years my episcopal ministry and the fatigues o f the African climate will soon

o f convert the purple into a shroud . In the presence such l a spectac e , what other sentiment can fill my soul than my ! o wn weakness and misery Of myself, I am nothing , but a i r rea ted a rdina l 1 0 A rch bish op L v ge ie C C . 9 the Church which sends me gives me the assurance o f

’ Th e o f t o God s support . designs Providence seem indi

cate that Carthage , subj ugated by the pagan Romans and ” barbarians , shall be restored to life by Christian Rome . This utterance betrayed the secret desire o f the Car

f o f o r Sec . dinal the restoration the of St Cyprian , which

fo r t o had been dead a thousand years . He referred th is “ in h is letter o f gratitude t o Pope L e o XIII When I shall have endowed th e Vicariate o f Tunis with e very requisite in institutions , missions and resources , the happiest day o f my life will be that on which I shall

o u cast myself at the feet of your Holiness , and beg y to h f t e o . restore See St Cyprian , and revive the great church ” o f was Carthage . Four years later this pious desire

fo r 2 1 8 8 6 L e o re - accomplished , on January 5 , , XIII estab lish e d this famous See , and a superb cathedral sprang up

was under the magic touch of the Cardinal . It a mixture

o f Th e Moorish , Byzantine , Gothic and Roman styles . white basilica , surmounted with a dome , the lofty spires

o f T and the great golden cross overlooked the city unis , the entire gulf, the mountains of Ariana , Cape Bon and

the distant ruins of Utica .

o f On the day the consecration , the decorated arches ,

tw o o f supported by hundred colonnades Carrara marble ,

Th e was presented a most pleasing spectacle . Cardinal second to none in the arrangement fo r a religious feast ;

not a detail escaped him . He ordered and arranged T everything . welve bishops were present in their epis

t Th e copal robes and added splendor o the occasion .

o f first Archbishop new Carthage , in all the pomp which f the Church permits to her pontif s , appeared in the very 1 1 0 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a vi erie f f C g .

spot where the last bishop of ancient Carthage had been

insulted , beaten with clubs and cast into prison . He

s o f h is pared no pains in the entertainment guests . He had Often been falsely accused Of a weakness for pomp

and ceremony . Personally , he was opposed to luxury

S i life in and expense ; he lived a mple , unostentatious , ,

close imitation of the White Fathers . But he had lofty

o f o r ideas of the manner conducting a feast , a reception

a ceremony . Nothing was too good for God , for the

fo r o f re re maj esty of his worship , and the dignity a p

s ent at ive o f o f T the Church and France . hen he was

o f T lavish and regardless expenditure . hose who admired

saw o f him and the extent his works , were profuse in

their generosity . But his new dignity , far from impeding

h is o f flights zeal , confirmed his vocation as a mendicant

st im u friar , and the obstacles which retarded others only

lated his ardor .

o f 8 86 v o f At the beginning 1 , a se ere attack a chronic

he f malady brought him to t verge o the grave . He had received the last Sacrame nts and had entrusted the

o f h is administration of the diocese Algiers to coadj utor ,

D e urr P . g y , when contrary to all expectation he suddenly

v recovered . He was con alescing , and obliged to take the

utmost precaution and repose , when the deputies , again

o f forgetful h is services , suppressed the credit intended for T w Algeria . his was the blow of the lash hich brought

h is him to feet . He imm ediately dispatched a letter to “ E ” Paris to the director o f the Schools Of the ast . “ Tell your associates that I shall s et sail for France . I am coming to extend my hand for the love o f God and

Of France . My health is feeble and my strength nigh

1 1 2 Th e L e o a rdina l L av eri if f C ig e.

“ t o f : D o hired carriage , the proprietor said the O ficer

o u s e e ! L e y wish to the richest man in Algeria ook , ther h is “ e . ffi Th e goes What his name asked th e O cer . ” “ o f ! Archbishop Algiers . Indeed And is he so very ! ” “ ” “ rich continued Felix . Yes , said the merchant , he cannot count his wealth . He owns all the land on either

o f the t o ve s side railway from Algiers Oran , and all the ” “ ” f sels in the harbor . Why , replied the O ficer , wonder “ at fully amused this remark , I thought these vessels

- . es belonged to a well known company Oh , y , added “ m do the erchant , they in name , but the Archbishop

do really owns them . What does he with the money ! “ Th asked Felix . Why , he enriches his family . is was

so f too much for the officer , he made no ef ort to remove f the false impression . A gentleman who had de ended the

’ Cardinal s reputation against a similar charge recei ved a

Th e letter of thanks through a local paper . Cardinal enumerated his various possessions , and terminated thus “ w Such are my millions , hich in fact are neither millions

h is is o n nor mine . A financier who cannot balance books ” the verge of ruin . I am that financier . He could only say that the immense amounts which passed through his

h is o n hands were not w . In order to assure the continu ance o f h is works he gave to the Society o f the White

Fathers all the property which he had acquired , but they

no t were enriched by this donation , which was encumbered

with numerous mortgages . Th e Cardinal was in h is sixty - fift h year when th e action o f the French chamber obliged him to begin again a s ub

E is o f scription tour throughout urope . France a country d contrasts . Side by si e with a maj ority of the electors av erie rea ted ardinal 1 1 A rch bish op L ig C C . 3 wh o represent the nation at the Bourbon Palace and who

th e t o j oyfully suppressed donation the national clergy , were a generous and enthusiastic multitude who w illingly opened their purse strings to the v enerable Cardinal . At f h Rennes , a ter a short address in the cat edral , he received

h six h three t ousand undred dollars , and at Paris , Bayonne ,

t h e was and in entire south , he welcomed with an enthusiasm which compensated him for the inj ustice o f the French authorities .

v t i In the meantime the French go ernmen , mpressed by

o f the general movement , established a credit twenty thou

v f T sand dollars in fa or o the Algerian clergy . his paltry reparation o f - a suppression o f o ne hundred and fifteen thousand dollars gi ven annually t o the three dioceses o f

C was Algiers , onstantine and Oran , debated before the

a chamber o f Deputies and w s twice defeated . Ashamed o f an action which rendered France odious and ridiculous

o f C in the eyes the natives and the colonists , the ardinal ,

o f o f in the name the bishops Algeria , boldly refused th is pittance , which would only call down on the French

n SO w as clergy humiliating discussio s . the appropriation withheld , and the Cardinal supplicated alms rather than accept the Offer of a sovereign Of Europe who proposed to support the seminaries which supplied apostles for Equa t o rial o n o f Africa , the condition that the flag his nation be

v Th e C o f is raised o er these institutions . ross Christ the only standard Of the Apostles , replied the Cardinal , yet I thank yo u for your g enerous proposal but t o a French ”

C . man , next to the ross comes the standard of France We can easily understand the motive which prompted this f Th Of er . e missioners had opened th rough Uganda a road 1 1 Th e L e o a rdinal L a v erie 4 if f C ig .

v a to commerce and to ci ilization . King Mates had

‘ wished to place ' his kingdom under the protection Of

' fi Of France , and had the Of cers the government seconded

’ m - the views of the great Frenchman , France ight to day rule over an empire in Africa equal to the English posses

’ r t - sions . But the Deputies by thei an i religious policy had developed to their detriment an anti - French and anti ~ colonial policy .

X CH APTER v .

- CARDINAL LAVIGERIE AND ANTI SLAVERY .

2 t h 1 8 8 8 C L e On the 4 of May , , ardinal avigeri arrived

t o in Rome with Algerian pilgrims , whom he presented ‘ L e o wh o the Holy Father , X III , was then preoccupied

f Th o f with the question o slavery . e accounts the explorers and the letters of missioners were filled with the details Of the inhuman treatment inflicted upon the unfortunate d f Negroes . H e had j ust a dressed a letter to the bishops o Brazil in which he insisted o n the united efforts o f the

le r s Brazilian clergy for the extermination of that social p p y . r Stanley , who may be suspected of neither tende n ess “ o ne nor compassion towards the Neg roes , says that hundred Negroes are destroyed in order ‘to procure two

! Th e slaves traders b urn the huts , kill the first inhabitants whom they meet , and surround the others , from whom

Th e disa they select only the most profitable . villages p ” pear as if they had only existed in the imagination . Father Guilleme writes the following letter to the Car “ — dinal I saw a drove o f slaves in Uj ij i long files o f

aro und t h e ir men , women and children ; some with ropes

1 1 6 Th e L i e o ardina l L a vi erie f f C g .

whom the White Fathers had snatched from slavery . L eo XI II again expressed h is compassion fo r these poor — slaves a compassion which sh ould find an echo in the

f v as h i heart o e ery Christian . H e w loud in s praise o f th e v wh o v t o de oted missioners endea ored repair the evil , and w : t o o u Car he terminated ith these words But y , h f t e o . dinal , we are indebted for success this work We

o u e o u know what y hav done , and we are confident y will no t cease until yo u ha ve brought this great undertaking ” t o a happy ending .

’ Th f v e Pope s wish was o r Cardinal L a igerie a command .

h is w as Old and and feeble though he was , energy capable

f v o o ercoming any obstacle . He must undertake a new

v E co m crusade ; he must tra el through urope , organize mitt ees co O e rat io n v , collect alms , Obtain the p Of the go ern

o f m ments , and place at the head this per anent international congress a man capable o f concentrating the authority and

B run f . c t o . o mode action A young prelate , Mgr , the

h is Procurator Of the African Missions , had attracted

as h is . attention , and he enlisted him coadj utor Filled

o f o f set with hope , and convinced the j ustice his cause , he

v o ut with his purse and staff. Paris was the first to recei e

His o f the revelation o f the courageous Cardinal . account ‘ the horrors o f the S lave t rafli c touched every heart and

opened every purse . His passionate eloquence was mag

netic . At every meeting he organized the best and

- w e althiest men o f Paris into anti slavery societies . A

council of personages high in standing , under the presi

e o f den y Jules Simon , was invested with the duty Of defending the cause o f abolition amongst the political and

national assemblies , the learned bodies and the newspapers . r a - la r 1 1 Cardinal L avige ie nd A nti S ve y . 7

L was v From Paris he went t o ondon . He recei ed by

C L v ardinal Manning and ord Gran ille with courtesy , but E with , perhaps , that instinctive mistrust which ngland

h is e ntertains towards French colonial questions . But

f His first discourse aroused the sympathy o all . glowing tribute to the memory o f L ivingstone immediately enlisted

f h i - v the attention o s Protestant hearers . An anti sla ery s t ocie y was organized , and some days later the president ,

Sir Sidney Buxton , Obtained from the government permis sion to induce the king o f Belgium t o take the initiati v e

’ Th e for a congress at Brussels . Cardinal s arrival in Brussels assumed the importance o f a political and relig

v fo r t o ious e ent , the king was the first propose the

extinction of slavery by force o f arms . After the first lec

fi ve a ture thousand dollars were don ted , and five hundred young men placed themselves at his disposal fo r the

defence Of the Blacks o f the Upper Congo .

Th e Po r Cardinal wished to visit Germany , Spain and tugal , but his declining health rendered this j ourney

impossible . He , however , appealed to these countries ,

and and societies were rapidly organized , in Spain the ! ueen Regent w as pleased to become the protectress o f

f r . w as o the work But the prospect in Italy not bright , , as he was suspected o f having infl uenced Tunis in accept

o f was ing the protectorate France , his presence neither

E h s agreeable nor desirable . ven the clergy manifested o t ilit i y , and the Italian Capuch ns whom he had driven from T h i . s unis shared in the national antipathy However , prestige as Archbishop Of Algiers won for him a respectful

and even a generous welcome . In Milan , he recalled the

. t o u memory of St Augustine , who belonged Italy thro gh I 1 8 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v er e f f C ig i .

‘ Th his intimate relations with the h oly Bishop Ambrose . e Th enthusiasm of the Neapolitans was intense . e Arch

o o f bish p Naples had received a magnificent pectoral cross , valued at two thousand dollars , a testimonial from the city

' fo r h is exertions during the cholera epidemic . In h is

generosity he gave this cross , studded with precious gems ,

t o o I O» to the Cardinal , who , however , had much delicacy accept a sacrifice which might wou nd the feelings o f thos e generous Catholic hearts . This constant labor told o n th e constitution o f the Car

i i n e xh a us dinal , and he arrived in Alg ers a state of such tion that he was compelled by his phys i c i ans to pass t h e f h i o . s winter at Biskra , on the borders the desert In E T uropean tour he had not visited Switzerland . hi s country seemed a suitable place for the international con

1 8 8 n gress ; so , in August , 9 , he summo ed all the commit

L Th e th tees to meet at uzern . city was j ubilant over e prospect o f such illustrious and benevolent guests ; and fo r

two weeks before the opening o f the congress every room . Th in the hotels was engaged . e Cardinal arrived some days i n advance to seek a much - ne e ded rest o n the shore s

f Th e O the lake . condition of his health became so seri o us that at the last moment h e was obliged to postpon e

o f fi ckle ne ss a nd the congress . Many openly accused him

w h o caprice , but those knew the deliberation with which

saw f he always acted , a more pro ound motive in his con

w s infl u a . duct . It patriotism He was informed that the e nt ial members of the French anti - slavery committee could not respond to the summons , for they were in the heat of

l n l m o f an e e ct io a ca paign . He feared that in the absence a maj ority favorable to France , the international assembly

1 2 0 i o a r l av er e Th e L fe f C dina L ig i .

One more organization was needed t o complete the Th f un . e o v o l work Brothers the Sahara , those generous

wh o o f L teers , in imitation ieutenant Joubert , would teach the Negroes the system o f self-defence against the attacks o f Th e C their assassins . ardinal established for this pur pose a novitiate at Biskra , where the armed Brothers might learn the language o f the tribes o n the outposts o f ‘ v a icul Dah omey . They recei ed a special training in g r

v o f ture , medicine , the fertilization and de elopment the

o f oases the desert . Su ch w as the establishment and the progress o f the

o f crusade which he had preached , whom Jules Simon writes in a Protestant j ournal : Cardinal L avigerie ! A man o f this generation whose name will be ensc ribed in ” n f indelible characters o the pages o history . And we may repeat with him that this great man drew the inspira

o f h is no t i o f tion grandeur , from the max ms this world , but from the lofty principles o f the Gospel . He constantly respected and gav e expression to the noble emblem wh ich w as ensc ribe d upon his arms , an emblem which may be

o ne . expressed in word , charitas , charity

CHAPTER XVI . — THE EPISCOPAL J UBILEE A N HISTORICAL TOAST .

o f h 2 2 1 8 8 8 C On the morning Marc , , the athedral of Algiers appeared resplendent with decorations ; every e wher were garlands and festoons , gold and purple tapes Th try . e walls were concealed under heavy foliage and ' ‘ A N A I I V E PR I EST.

1 2 2 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a vi erie f f C g .

r o f priests and the eligious Northern Africa . Afte r the ceremony numerous other gifts were presented ,

a amongst which were a massive gold chalice , nother pec

t h e toral cross , a mitre , ornaments and sacred vases for

o f Th e poor churches his diocese . Cardinal was moved t o tears at this spontaneous manifestation of the love and

h o f s attac ment his faithful subj ects , and this weaknes touched the spectators more than could the most el o quen t address . After the first moment o f emotion he expressed his sincere thanks , and then taking his ring from his finger ,

f t is : t h e he Of ered it o h coadj utor , saying You have , in Of name my faithful clergy , presented me with a new ring . I wish you to possess after my death the ring which I wea r

- o u . o n t o day . Allow me to present it to y I ask only e will w ill favor ; when my hand be cold in death , and yours t be raised in benediction over my children , remember tha beyond the grave I , too , will love them and will bless When the Cardi nal entered the cathedral a choi r of two hundred voices intoned the “ Ecce sacerdos mag ” - o f t nus , and all were spell bound under the charm tha

o f s o grave and religious music Haydn , which expressed beautifully the sentimen ts of every heart . Th e Cardinal had intended t o pass the day in silenc e

n o f and recollectio , but he acceded to the request the Sis f f ters o f Charity to speak in favor o the poor o Algiers . On his way to the con vent he desired t o visit the shrine o f ” “ L f t o s e e Our ady o Africa . What was his astonishment grouped around this h oly sanctuary the Christian Arabian families o f the two villages o f Saint Cyprian and Saint

Th e Monica , which he himself had founded . Arabs pre d sented to him his grandchildren , as they calle them ; and al u 1 2 Th e Fpiscop 7 bilee. 3

th e dignified , serious and ceremonious Cardinal had the

weakness o f a grandfather towards these Arabian children .

Th e h e contrast was the more striking , because generally assumed in the presence of his visitors and guests a majestic air which sometimes disconcerted even his own

Fo r household . although he might manifest a lively and r j ovial manne towards them , yet by a word or a look he

could teach them their position . It was not a rare thin g to s ee his vicar - general and h is canons preserve a respe c t n ful and prudent silence in his presence . , But the childre

He and the unfortunate were certain of a warm welcome . had founded at Attafs an orphanage for deserted Arabian

children , and he frequently visited this institution . Some times the children would climb upon h is knees and run

o f - their hands through his pockets in search sweet meats . “ “ I I am filled with j oy , he exclaimed one day , when think of the goodness of God , who , in his boundless charity , ‘ has preserved these innocent creatures and. showered upo n ” - them the graces Of Christianity . After receiving the congratulations of the young Arab s E at the shrine , he conducted his guests to Saint ugene ,

A v r . e ardi where a splendid repast had been prepared Mgr . , who occupied the place o f honor as the representative o f

Of L e o the Holy See , presented the congratulations XIII

to the venerable Cardinal . A magnificent illumination

terminated this beautiful day , in which he had reached

h uma n lo r the zenith of g y . As Jules Simon had well “ fo r said , He was a man whom the age had the highest

Th e honor and respect . Pope esteemed him as a brother ; the crow ned heads as an equal ; the Catholic world as an ” a h i mi s postle ; s e ne e as a lofty patri ot . 1 2 Th e L e o ar inal av 4 if f C d L igerie.

Th e Pope w as t o ent rust t o him a work which wo uld c n h is s v o f a o firm patrioti m , e en at the risk s crificing the n f . 1 8 0 oble A rican undertaking In October , 9 , he went to

R o f t - v L ome in the interests an i sla ery . He found eo X I II a g itated and preoccupied o v er the tendency Of the Old f Th o C . e World , and especially hristian France modest o utlines o f this simple biography cannot embrace the h o f v r istory the successive re olutions which , du ing the

v a v Ev present century , ha e spre d o er France . eryone is acquainted with the party strifes which were the outcome o f the hatreds and sympathies a rising from dynastic

a — o o f h as qu rrels sentiments often w rthy respect , inasmuc they represent the chi valrous and leg endary fideli ty o f the

o f old re ime G o d t h e Frenchman the g to and king , but

r o f p ej udicial to the welfare a country , when , through d o f t etestation the republic , they wi hdraw honest and

f Th e intelligent men from public af airs . republican g o v e rnme nt h as is it s much that blamable , and movements s ince 1 8 8 1 explain sufficiently the passionate attacks and

a fo r t o profound antip thies against it ; many men , lacking n no r t o either intelligence attachment country , the word

is and fi nan republic synonymous with irreligion , inj ustice c ial disorder ; and the actions o f the go vernment have

“ f Th e t o o often v erified this figure o speech . fault lies w ith associating the abtio ns o f the republican g o vernment

T o f with the republic itself. hus the ground contention

f f r o r h as . o o been shifted Instead struggling a principle , f r o f o r o the protection a religious a national interest , the a tt ack h as been directed against a personality o r a form o f

T is g overnment . his policy the material and moral ruin o f a country ; and France h as been the victim o f s uch a pol icy fo r almo st a hundred years .

1 2 6 Th e L e o Ca rdinal L a vi erie if f g . t h e C u u Or o wn . hurch , even if we be buried nder ruins He had heard the desire of the Pope and the approval Of the Superior o f the African Missions ; there remained only t h e opportunity of public ly manifesting to France t h e m o f L e o ind X I II .

v 1 2 th 1 8 0 On the following month , No ember , 9 , he i nvited t o a banquet at the Archiepisc opal residence o f

E o f Me dit e r Saint u gene , the staff the squadron of the

ranean - A l uine r , the vice admirals Duperre and q , the rear

’ a O N e il - dmirals and Auger Dufresne , and forty Officers , f f besides many Officials o the government . At the end o

s a nd ro fo und the repast , he aro e amid a respectful , p s ilence and proposed the following toast

— o ur Gentlemen Allow me , before departure , to drink

o f s o to the health the French navy , nobly represented

r here tod ay . Oh navy recalls many glorious and endear

!

i ng remembrances o f Algiers . From the first day the n m avy aided in the conquest , and the name of the e inent man wh o commands the squadron of the Mediterranean f brings back as a distant echo the first song o victory . I

a m t o happy , Admiral , pay my respects to those who

o f represent in Algiers the authority France , to the heads

o f o ur o ur o ur valiant army , administration and magis

tracy . What touches me most tenderly is that you have

a ll assembled at the invitation of an aged Archbish op ,

t o who , in order promote the interests of France , has

made Africa his native country . May that same union w hich binds us together soon reign in the hearts o f the

o f sons o f our mother country . In the presence the bloody

f o ur past and the threatening uture , union is supreme

is o f need . Union , permit me to say , the first desire the a il e 1 2 Th e Episcop l f7ub e . 7

pastors Of the Church in every grade of the hierarchy . That Church asks us t o renounce neither the remembrance o f the glorious past nor the sentiments Of fidelity and gratitude which are honorable in all men . But when the

- will o f t h e people is clearly de fi ne d when the form o f government has nothing c ontradictory to the principles which can christianize and civilize nations , then absolute a dherence to this form of government is necessary to pre Th serve it from the threatening abyss . e moment is come to terminate these dissensions , and to sacrifice whatever T conscience and honor will permit . hat is what I uphold , and what I w ish the clergy in F ra nce ' in every rank t o uphold ; and in this desire I am confident of the appro v al f o every authorized voice . Without this resignation and patriotic acceptance , order and peace are overthrown , T social and religious destruction are imminent . hose who wish to accomplish their work o f folly give to our enemies

o f o ur o r o f t h e a spectacle ambitions our hatreds , and fill heart o f France with that discouragement which is the

f c a a t r Th precu rsor o final t s o ph ies . e French navy and

s et T n army have the example . hey have mai tained their

a ancient tr ditions , wh ilst they remained true to their national standard under whatever form Of government it T was furled . his is one o f the causes Of the respect and honor which the French navy wi ns wherever it unfolds its

as o f flag a symbol pride to the name of France . Allow

s a a Cardinal missioner to y with all gratitude and thanks ,

that it has nobly protected the Christian missions . Gen ” t le m e n , I drink to the French navy . Adm iral Duperre then responded ! I thank your

E o f mi nence in the name the French navy , to which you 1 2 8 Th e L e o ardinal L a v erie if f C ig .

t have paid such glowing tributes . I drink o the Apostl e o f t o o f Africa and the clergy Algeria . Some hours

e v E later the r porters telegraphed the news o er urope , and o n t h e the following day public papers were in an uproar .

’ Th e C z T ardinal s expectations were fully reali ed . h e

wh o o f C o f Radicals , were enemies the hurch and her m C C v inisters , termed him ambitious ; the atholic onser a t ives as T branded him a deserter . hose who qualified him as not f r ambitious , could clearly indicate his motives ; o

was xt at that moment , through his personal worth , he , ne C to the Pope , the most influential prelate Of hristendom ,

was and , consequently , the accusation groundless . Although the Catholic Conservati v e j ournals were respectful toward s his personality , they attacked with energy his declaration .

fo r But impartial history will make due allowance them , fo r they were ignorant o f the part which the Holy Father played in this extraordinary step , and , notwithstanding the — “ significant remark o f the Cardinal I am confident of th e — approval o f ev ery authorized voice they did no t kn o w with absolute certainty th at he had been only the mouth L piece o f e o XII I .

Th e o f x maj ority the j ournalists , whose e asperation

v o f m d rew from them excessi e terms exaggeration , ade no

it s distinction between the republic itself and misdeeds . ” “ Yes o ne h as , said j ournal , the trial been made ; but great God ! what a trial Th e Christian religion ban ished

o f from all the primary schools , the public manifestation of C worship interdicted in the large cities , the Sisters harity

v o f e dri en from the hospitals Paris , the clergy d barred

o f from the bureaus charity , Catholics practically excluded

v n from all civil , j udicial and administrati e functio s , social

1 0 Th e L i e o Ca rdinal L a v erie 3 f f ig .

CHAPTER XVII .

A P N S K OF A A R E ETCH C RDIN L LAVIGE IE .

Before we recount the last days o f the great Frenchman we may pause a moment in the contemplation o f that noble character whom the Holy See s o j ustly appreciated and

n so f whom Fra ce dif erently understood . In the opinion o f his adversaries and o f his admirers Cardinal L avigerie

o ne possessed superior faculties . No was better fitted than

he to guide and direct mankind . He was endowed with

o f the genius a commander , and with all the exceptional qualities and resources which made him an incomparable

leader . He seemed to grasp at a glance all the details o f

o f an undertaking , the best method realizing it , and the

T r result . his foresight neve failed him in his various

enterprises , and often proved both a help and an obstacle . We have seen that even as a seminarian and a young

no t priest he was understood , and during his long career his opponents Often collided with the angles o f his inco m

an parable superiority . In inferior position he would have

o ne found material for discussion , but in the first rank no

presumed t o control or oppose his actions . His appearance w as rather that of a general than o f a

bishop . His orders were absolute . He admitted neither

no r discussion , observation the slightest delay in the exe

cut io n Of his commands . He alone knew the motives

h i s s ubo rninat es t o which actuated him , and had only obey h i s orders . His manifold occupations explain sufficiently A Pen Sh etch o a rdina l L a vi erie 1 1 f C g . 3

no r his conduct . He had neither the time the taste for the

o f indulgence parliamentary rules , and he would no more allow his vicars - general or his missioners to question h is o rders than a commander would permit a simple soldier to advance the least theory in opposition to his commands . Obedience seemed to him the only virtue which could pre s erve discipline and bring to a happy termination the works which he had undertaken . Even the excess o f his qualities raised him above the ordinary . In any position he would have evinced a lofty character and a powerful personality . Providence had selected him as the light of the French hierarchy , but his talents , character , energy and genius as a ruler and an organizer , would have made him a great man in any other

R t ch in . o s o s e t career As a soldier , he would have with p fire to Moscow to save his country the humiliation o f a foreign occupation ; as a diplomat , he would have with

T o f alleyrand at the congress Vienna , preserved to France amid the ruin Of war and revolution , the prestige of a powerful nation ; in a word , he would have shone as a

o f leader , and we may say without fear contradiction , he would have been a perfect president o f that ideal republic which two years before his death he had publicly espoused .

In the presence of such rare and commanding qualities , we can easily understand that sweetness , forbearance and condescension were not his dominant virtues . Were he o f a hesitating and vacillating disposition he never would have accomplished such stupendous undertakings ; and if sometimes his admirers were stung by a too harsh man

o f . ner , they could never doubt the goodness his heart We

’ s peak of the Cardinal s admirers , but not of his friends . 1 2 Th e L i e o a rdina l L avi er 3 f f C g ie.

Th e is reason plain . Friendship implies confidence , simi larit y of tastes and views ; in a word , sympathy and an f L o . C equality subj ects ardinal avigerie had no equal .

He acted as a superior towards inferiors , as a father

so n towards a , and in Algiers , as a sovereign towards h is

. no t with st and subj ects And in this exceptional position , ing the goodness of his heart , he elicited admiration and

v esteem , rather than lo e and intimate friendship . He

h o w knew to be simple , kind and amiable , but on the

He least occasion he quickly assumed his superiority . was generous to excess ; of that race of noble minds who

a c c o m a prefer to give than to receive . Old age and its p

infi rmit ies nying , touched a sympathetic chord in his heart , and filled him with a longing for companionship . And what nature has not this weakness for sympathy ! Even o ur L ord i n the garden Of Gethsemane sought the

o f support and the companionship H is three apostles , and

o f f i n the bitterness His heart at their indif erence , He “ C o u ! remarked , ould y not watch with Me one hour Although to his last h our the Cardinal was engaged in

v works which absorbed his time , his heart was e er open to

Th e the poor , the children and the unfortu nate Arabs .

v orphans re ered him , and they have treasured many happy f f T traits o his kind and af ectionate nature . In unis he was

B ea uro n esteemed even as a legendary hero . Father nar

rates that in the establishment o f the White Fathers at St . L ouis o f Carthage are seen three pictures Of the Cardinal f L o . in the company St ouis . One represents him in the act o f blessing the saint before h is departure for the cru

sade ; the other as sending him to battle , and the third in the act of administering the L ast Sacraments t o the dying

1 Th e L e o ardinal L a v er 34 if f C ig ie.

the eyes of his audience . Deeply touched at this m anifes

t at io n s , he turned towards the altar and aid to the vicar

: o u o ut general Now y may come ; for if you do not , I shall be forced to laugh at you and he continued his

discourse amid the most respectful silence and attention . This simple anecdote i llustrates the care with which he

accomplish e d his undertakings .

In the course Of his career , which was too brilliant not t o w as arouse j ealousy and criticism , he sometimes

accused Of ambition ; and truly he was ambitious . He had a noble and generous ambition o f utilizing every

e saw possible means for the good o f all . H only the end towards which he directed his energy , and this end never n was his o w personality .

He was not a writer in the strict sense of the term . He

h is wrote clearly and energetically ; for his writings , as speech , were precise , pointed , never commonplace nor

w e ll studied . H e spoke , because his thoughts were forcible ; and when he touched upon his favo rite work , his ardent convictions burst forth with animation and

T w as o f brilliancy . here a lack empty phrases and high

i sounding words , for he sought to instruct and conv nce , L rather than to please . He spoke the atin language with

o f - astonishing fluency . At the age sixty seven , he dictated , without notes , the convocation of the Council Of Carthage and the decrees for the consideration of the

o f o f Fathers . His application the texts Scripture was a spiritual commentary in itself. His thorough knowledge o f the religious history of ancient Africa was manifested T upon many occasions . his happy union of talents and literary qualities inspired his admirers with the hope o f o a rdinal L a vi erie 1 A Pen Sh etch f C g . 3 5

securi ng him a membership in the French Academy ; and

1 8 8 in 4 , the secretary , with whom he had previously

h is corresponded , invited him to present name to the

Th e Institute . Cardinal replied that he could not solicit the votes o f the members according to the established e rules . His excuse is so lofty and delicat ly expressed that we give it in full

To th e Secretary of th e French A ca demy :

“ m In consequence of y recent illness , I have been unable t o reply to your kind communication except by d Of telegram . I wish to ay to supply for the laconic style

t o my answer , and to express my gratitude the members o f your Academy who have taken the initiative in my

candidacy . I desire to explain my reserve , which may

perhaps be a surprise to you . “ I know that the candidates are obliged to personally

o f Tw o solicit the votes the Academy . reasons deter me

Th e o f o f from this step . first is the absence any titles n disti ction which might j ustify my application . I have

only my good will , and when it is question of science and

re c o mmen Of positive results , good will is not a sufficient

Th e dation . second is of a more delicate nature . I am

only a missioner , and my other titles are insignificant .

Hence , if as a missioner , I gave up all , I cannot now f solicit the distinction which you of er me . I have sent a legion of missioners to break down the bulwarks of idol

atry and superstition . In the strife eleven have lost thei r

lives and others succumb to fatigue and disease . What would they say if, whilst they seek only the crown of w martyrdom , I were to ear the laurels of the Institute ! 1 6 Th e L e o a rdina l L a vi erie 3 if f C g .

Th e W e re I very expression Of this thought deters me .

to yield to this seductive temptation , I would be covered

no t f with shame . It is compatible with the life o a mis

s io ner s o i , I beg to rema n with my barbarians . Although

I cannot petition this honor , I and my noble missioners will always labor with yo u for the diffusion o f knowledge

o ur and science , and in the service of country .

Someone asked him o ne day if he were willing to become “ : a member of the French Academy . He replied Yes , if I do not have to make personal application but he im “ mediately added , I would like to know who my prede

cessor was . I might succeed the comic writer wh o has j ust died ; and what could I say in his praise ! I wish n — L o e . only seat that of M de esseps , for he separates the ” continents , whilst I try to u nite them .

CHAPTER XVII I . THE END OF A GREAT CAREER—FUNERAL OF

CARDINAL LAV I GERIE .

1 8 1 1 8 2 L D uring the years 9 and 9 , Cardinal avigerie

f s o f l suf ered inten ely , but the intervals re ief he devoted

assiduously to his numerous works . He read his many

h is letters every morning , and as right hand was partially “ paralyzed , he dictated his replies to his secretaries . With

o f the care so many undertakings upon his hands , says “ Father Kline , he was the most laborious and generally

v Th e - the least en ied man on the continent . vicar general ,

i n wh om he placed the most confidence , was literally

v o erwhelmed with labor , and his only repose and vacation

1 8 Th e L e o a rdinal L a v erie 3 if f C ig .

t o E h brought him the Holy ucharist . After his t a nk sg iv

o n T 2 th ing hursday , November 4 , two brothers clothed

him , but his paralysis had so increased that they were

obliged to place him upon his couch . He could scarcely

speak , although he retained perfect consciousness . A

calm sleep succeeded the first violent attack , and his attendants had every hope that his strong constitution

’ n would triumph . But on Friday morning about o e o clock be manifested marked symptoms o f congestion of t h e E brain . He received xtreme Unction with sentiments o f

profound piety . After the reception Of the Sacrament o f

S the dying , he slept a hort while , but his sleep was followed

by a lethargy which lasted all day . At half after ten in the m orning the v enerable invalid slowly and calmly h entered into is agony . Towards midnight Bishop D use rre began the prayers

o f for the dying , after which he arose , and taking the hand the Cardinal , he said in a voice trembling with emotion

a s o My friends , kiss for the l st time this hand which has often called down the blessing of heaven on you and h e bowed down and he respectfully kissed that right hand already cold in death . All the attendants approached in

e turn , and performed this last duty of filial piety . Som E L moments later his minence , the great Cardinal avigerie ,

h is t o rendered his sublime soul to Creator , and hastened receive the recompense for the many labors which he had

u o f th e ndertaken for the glory of God , for the honor

o f o f Church , and for the salvation the poor unbelievers

T v C th e Africa . hus passed away the enerable ardinal in

L o f S - peace of the ord , at the age ixty seven years and ” - twenty seven days . a a t a r r 1 Th e End of Gre C ee . 3 9

Th e news Of his death cast a gloom over the Catholi c E Of t world . very party knelt before the coffin the grea

Th e a n h is . Frenchman . j ourn ls were u animous in praise T hey all admired his broad intelligence , and bowed down

e before his lofty patriotism . But the highest praise cam

o f from the lips the Sovereign Pontiff, who , through the L Prefect of the Propaganda , the eminent Cardinal edo

h o ski To u rnie r - c w . , sent a letter to Mgr , the vicar general

o f s Algiers , in which he spoke in the most flattering term

’ o f L o f the energetic laborer the ord s vineyard . He termi nat ed with this expressive remark His heroic labors and cruel trials have broken h is physical forces and ruined h is

health . He fell on the battlefield , a valiant champion in

o f Th e o f the struggle truth against error . missioners

a Of Algiers have lost in him a devoted f ther , the priests

Algiers and Carthage an experienced pastor , and the entire

t h e African church a valiant primate . For me , owing to f great af ection which bound me to the deceased , I share the deep sorrow in which the Sacred Congregation is

o f c - buried at the loss a faithful o laborer . Amid my bitte r grief at the death of so eminent a person , I earnestly beg

us God to assist us with His holy grace , and to teach to walk in the footsteps Of the late Archbishop o f ” Algiers . A solemn service for the repose of the deceased in t h e

L ! . o f church of St ouis the French , in which he had been

a e th e consecrated bishop , g ve evid nce of the esteem of f church and o France . Similar services were held in many

o f th e dioceses , particularly in Bayonne , the birthplace illustrious Cardinal ; at Paris , where he had been elevated to the priesthood and whose pulpits he had s o often elec 1 0 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a v erie 4 f f C ig . t rifi e d L h by his brilliant eloquence at yons , w ose abundant

s o h i charity had generously responded to s appeals . “ L f In erecting the magnificent basilica Of St . ouis o ” C C fo r arthage , the great ardinal had prepared a place h is remains under the main altar . On the evening o f the consecration o f the church he went with the semina rians and the scholastics to this hallowed spot , which he t T himself o . “desired bless his ceremony called forth a train o f thoughts which h e expressed to his select audience “ ” t o o u I would hesitate sadden y by this ceremony , he “ no t said , did I see in it an occasion for serious consider f ation . God has given me the grace o keeping every day

o f before my eyes the thought death , and my declining health has made this thought familiar to me . And as the m years increase and the supreme oment approaches , that thought dominates o v er all others . I have always found i n it two great advantages which the Holy Ghost Himself

h h o w T . teaches us . e first is to learn from death to live

’ n Th e Remember thy last end a d thou shalt ne ver sin . other is to labor whilst we have the opportunity . I must work the works o f H im that sent Me whilst it is day ; the

’ T is night cometh when no man can work . hus it that I come to this tomb tod ay that I may here learn how to f employ the remainder o my days in useful labor . I will T no t fo r v . come some day , a moment , but fore er hen will

v I need your prayers , for I will ha e to render an account

- v o f my administration to my Supreme Judge . I ha e wished my grave t o be in your midst that yo u might remember your father and implore the mercy of God fo r T him . his I humbly ask in return for my paternal love ,

: o n for my fatigues and my labors Have mercy me , at

1 2 Th e L i e o a rdina l L a vi er e 4 f f C g i .

E E ’ F C . o r Kyrie leison , hriste leison the illustrious

a nd i the gnoble alike , for the rich and for the poor , for all who have crossed the channel o f death and stand

- o f is before the j udgment seat God , that prayer opportune .

Th e prayers Of the faithful ascend to the Master , who scrutinizes the innermost movements o f the conscience ; t hey supplicate Him t o be merciful to the soul which stands

before His tribunal . “ i f D ur ng th e holy O fice , the guard was drawn up along

the principal streets , from the residence of the Archbishop f t Othe magnificent quay o the Republic . Delegations o f

c hildren , headed by their pastors , lead the procession . T hen came in turn the White Fathers , in their picturesqu e

c o f ostume , the clergy and bishops , the Admiral the

s o f T quadron oulon , the generals of divisions , with th ei r f staf s , four Arabian chiefs arrayed in their white cloaks , s the hearse , drawn by eight horse caparisoned in black ,

D use rre Mgr . and his attendants , the Governor of

o f f f Algeria , the consuls the dif erent nations , the o ficials o f v the ci il and the j udicial courts , the professors and d o f eans the colleges , and even rabbis and Mahometan

priests . “ This imposing procession moved slowly and sadly to

h o r o f t e music of the military band , the solemn chant the

’ Miserere , sung at intervals by the clergy . An immense

o f throng people crowded the streets , th e balconies Of the t houses and the quay . I am unable o describe the appear a nce and the recollection o f this cosmopolitan public . I have never seen anything s o edifying . Not a loud word broke the silence Of the sorrowing spectators ; and when

v e the hearse appeared , every head was unco ered and bow d e End o a rea t a reer 1 Th f G C . 4 3

in respect to their former friend and father . And that immense a udience was composed o f representatives from E every country of urope , not to mention the many Arabian tribes who came to manifest their respect for their savior .

- fi ve a o f a L a During twenty ye rs , the name C rdinal vigerie had been heard s o Often in Algeria that it seemed e nc ir E cled with a kind of legendary admiration . veryone

w fo r kne his passionate love for France and Africa , and his noble exertions for the advance o f civilization and o f religion . Many who were present might find it impossible

o f to state the number his undertakings , but they knew that certain honors were due t o him wh o had s o increased the honor of their country . “At the quay the cortege was given to the admiralty to

’ Co smao convey to the cruiser , which had been sent the day before from Toulon to bear the remains from Tunis to

Carthage . When the coffin was lowered from the hearse

o f and placed on board a launch , the Governor Algeria

o f advanced to the midst the bishops and assistants , and ‘ : in a voice sincerely agitated by his feelings , he said I

- cannot part from this man whom France to day honors ,

o f Th e h is without a word adieu . Cardinal has wished h i body to be borne to Carthage , but he has left s heart here . Here it was he began and continued the great work

o f . o ne o f his life When no thought Africa , he wished to gain it for France and for civilization . He was a noble E Frenchman and a brave uropean , the precursor of those hardy voyagers , mariners and soldiers who have realized

o f the glory of conquerors the New World . He struggled

G o d during his entire life , and only knows the sorrow and f . o r the bitterness which were his lot He was born action , 1 Th e L i e o a rdinal L a vi erie 44 f f C g .

no t o n o n and his life rested his origin , but his destiny . He was kind and tender to those whom he loved— pas sio nat e in his affections ; and he possessed the power Of

o w n infusing into all the magnetic force of his ardor .

was His memory will ever remain sacred to France , for he o ne of her most noble “ Th e remains were then carried to the c ruis é r by a f e launch which the marine service had kindly placed at th . i ! f ’ e disposal o the Cardinal s friends . Other boats follow d with the bishops , clergy , military and civil authorities . When the signal was given the flotilla a dvanced toward s

’ ma Th e A dmir the Co s o . thunder of th e cannon of the Th al ty and o f the cruiser resounded over the waters . e

o f Of flags the fort were unfurled , and hundreds boats ,

. o f ladened with saddened citizens , followed in the wake

Th e t h e the launch . remains were slowly raised into cruiser , and the bishops and the attendants ascended . “ Th e Bishop Of Constantine advanced to the side and n ‘E chanted the last absolutio ternal rest give unto him ,

’ O L ord ; and let perpetual light shine upon him . What a beautiful prayer , on the calm bosom of the waters , in sight Of that city and o f those mountains which the great

Cardinal had loved , and where he had labored for the f f glory OGod and the advancement o religion . “ E 0 L ! E ternal rest give unt him , ord ternal repose

a to that indefatigable p tle , to that noble laborer , to that intrepid soldier ! His earthly remains entered the h o spit

S T able helter of unis and Carthage , but his pure soul enters the blessed abode of heaven forever . Under the shadow of the Cross and the French stand a ard , the body of the great Fren chm n arrived at Carthage ,