The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1872-01-21
NUMBER 81.


i The estsrs h he Tar Wsse. th2s =
Far away 70 the North west. n th,
region Of almost everlastips sfyoet and y
eternal ice, in an inlospttAbls iSnd drained
6y the Mackenzie river. which pursuee n
greary confas TO the rctsc Ooeea--enidsi
shese iwestea OF SNOW, almost enliuaay cat o.
world, which can be reached onlv sSter =
long and painful voyage BY land and water,
OF more than four tboussnd mileS. fhere Il Is
% found, a. where u there noe. & Cefholic
Mission TO tho wretched a6orfgines
wrescnsa, Indeed e We bpt oonsidsr their
Cd, Il We remember that sthsy' srs sivine
eoass. for whom, aud for Whoas salvador.
Our Biessed Lord wan made man. and 6fox
IN bitter agony on the cross bus who,
n0vSseheless, have never boon taught to
pronounce the sweet names Of yss1s and
Mary and who have never heard tie glad
tidings OF how . Saviour had bought tksn
wiEh His most preciQus blood 80 a3is,,sss
bae even upon these ontoaatsy al the
extremity Of the earth, grsaa light has
dawned, and to them chs Gospst hSs been
carried W the missionaries of the Cnsholic
Church; by her priests, and BY the tender
virgins, the chaste sponses al ths Lord.
whom abe has reared. What land. what
regten 10 there that is met fall OF her fahorr.
and bears not the Iuarks Of her sacred nres.
enee 1t is In behalf Of . branch 81 this
J081Et &0sOBDr0t10R
Y SIS great and good work, AAstwe to-day
address these few words 70 our readers.
When Mgr. Faraud was appointed by the
Holy See to take charge, a. Vicar Apos-
tolic, OF the Mackenzie River district, he
accepted with alacrity the burden laid
desire that he might be assisted In his Ia
bors by some Sisters Of Charity, whose care
it would be to tend the sick, to instruct the
young, and to provide for tho orphans
among the savage tribes to whom he was
sent as bearer Of the blessed Gospel. Mgr.
de Montreal. having been applied TO in
these circumstances, addressed himself to
the Sisters Of the Grey Nunnery, who
promptly responded to the appeal, and o
sufficient number Immediately v0luntee
for the service. 1t the present moment
there are some ffty Of our brave Sisters
In these distant missions; about
thirty in what 10 called the Red River dis
trict and the remainder in the Apostolic
vlcariat ruled by Bishops Grandin and
Faraud.
With many labors, and with many pri-
vations, the Sisters have carried on their
established on the Mackenzie River an
Orphan Asylum. In this there are about
twenty sig orphans, and it issuperintended
by the Sister missionaries Of that district,
i've In number comprising four Canadian
and one Irish Sister; who also visits the
ute medicines to and tend the sick, and
gather together the young children in
schools. What hardships these heroic
women have to undergo In that i1hospit-
able country, our readers can hardly real
ize; what they have to sufHer from the ex-
tremity of cold, what from hunger, and
want often of things which We consider the
first necessaries of life. Bread, or any sub
stitute for bread, is unknown to them.
Dried fish, generally. sinking for want of
salt to cure it with, varied occasionally
With smoke dried flesh Of deer lie their only
diet; and of this the quantity 10 often very
limited. Four fish O day for the men, and
two for the women, is tho customary allow
anee among the Indians; and eveR this
scauty fare is not always forthcoming. So
straitened, in short, for food, has the mis-
sion become of late, that Mgr. Faraud has
found himself, some time ago, under the
painful necessity Of ordering that no moro
children he admitted within the orphan
asylum and of recommending the Sisters,
IL possible, to discharge some OF those al
ready on their hands. The mission was
literally menaced with starvation.
To this the Sisters at once, and unani-
mohsly replied, that they wound not part
with one Of their orphans; that they would
share with these the daily couple Of dried
fsh which the customs of the tribe allotted
to tbem-aDd thus they passed last winter,
10 great suffering of course, but still sus-
tanned and encouraged by the presence Of
their Lord. 1t may be easily imagined
that, under these circumstances, 1t is but
little that they can do for the Indians, who,
able existence in their filthy butts, and arc
devoured by vermin.-MontreaI True Wit
ness.