The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1869-02-27
A NEW ENGLAND CATHOLIC PRIEST.
BY JAMES PARTON.

| witnessed a Catholic service, a
summer or two since, in the very heart
of New England, which was chapter
of Charles O'Malley come to life,-a bit
of old Ireland transferred bodily to the
New World. Toward nine o'clock on
Sunday morning, the hour appointed for
the semi-monthly mass, the people gath
cred about the gate under the trees,
while the ruddy and robust priest stood
at the church door, accosting those who
entered with loud heartiness that
made every word he uttered audi
bic to the people standing without and
to the people kneeling within. He was
a .jovial and sympathetic soul who
could (and DID, laugh with the merry
and grieve with the sad; but it was
evident that laughter came far more
natural to him than crying. When he
had concluded, at 9.l5, boisterous and
most jovial conversation with Mrs.
O'Flynn at the door, every word of
which was heard by every member of
the waiting congregation, he entered
the church, and proceeded to the altar,
before which he knelt, holding his straw
hat in his hand. His prayer ended, he
went into a small curtained alcove at
the side, where his priestly robes were
hanging. Without taking the trouble
to let the curtains fall, he took off his
coat, in view of the whole assembly,
and put on part of his ecclesiastical
garments, unassisted by his only acolyte,
"a little boy in the usual costume, who
stood by. He then went again to the
altar, and arranged the various objects
for the coming ceremoni n after which
he stepped aside and completed the
robing.-not even going into the alcove,
but standing outside, and reaching in
for the different articles. He might
have spared the congregation the pain
of seeing his struggles to tic his strings
behind him; but no he chose to per-
form the whole without help and with
out disguise. When all was ready, he
said the mass with perfect propriety,
and with unusual manifestations of
feeling. But the sermon, if sermon it
could be called, was absolutely comic,
and much of it was intended to be So
There had been fair recently for the
re-decoration of the altar; and in the
first part of his discourse the gratifed
pastor read list of the contributors,
with comments, in something like the
style following:
Mrs McDowd, $3.50; and very
well done too, considering they had
nothing but cake upon their table,-no,
not so much as an apple. John Hag-
gerty, $40; and indade he's only a
boy, a mere ad,-and q good boy he
IS. Mrs. O'Sullivan, S37.9S; yes, and
$27.42 before All but that was doing
vel, that was wonderful, considering
what she had to contend with. Mrs.
O'Donahue, $3.50; and every cent Of it
got by selling ten-cent picture. Very
we'll done of you, Mrs. O'Donahue -
Peter O'Brien, $1,000; good FOR you,
Peter, and | thank you in my own name
and in the name of the cong regation.-
Total, s4s9.57. Nearly five
hundred dollars! It's really astonish-
ing! and how much of it, my children "
(this he said with wink and grin
that excited general laughter,) and
how much do YOU think yeur priest will
kape for himself? Not much, I'm
thinking No indeed. Why should |
kape it, What do l want with it?
have enough to eat, drink, and wear
and what more does a priest want? l
have no ambition for monev,-not |
and YOU know it we'll You know that
the whole of this money will be spent
upon the altar of God and we shall
spend it with the greatest economy
Not Brussels carpet, of course. That
would cost four or five dollars yard
Good ingram will do well enough for
us at present, and last long enough too;
for can't it be turned You know it
can. Twenty years from now, when
we are all dead and gone, they'll be
turning and turning and turning it, and
holding it up to the light, and saying,
Il wonder who laid down this ould
carpet p In all my life, never saw
such an altar as this in church of this
size" turning to the altar, and survey
ing it with an indcscribably funny at
temptto look contemptuous),- NAME,
so VERY name! l tell you, if l had
been here when this altar was made,
I'd have wheeled the man out of church
pretty quick (These last words were
accompanied with the appropriate ges-
ture, expressive of taking the deln-
quent carpenter by the back of the
neck, and propelling him thereby down
the aisle) but what shall l say of
those who have given nothing to this
fair? All! l tell you, when the decora-
tons are all done, and you come here
to mass on Sunday mornings, and see