The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1874-09-13
The soldiery of the Gross.
tErom the Baltimore Mirror,


~ tErom the Baltimore Mirrorl
A German Journal has recently given in
round numbers the statistics of the monks
and nuns scattered in the Catholic converts
over the globe. To some of our pious sec
taries they will be astounding. They will
cry aloud with wall like the widows of
Ashur, how many idle mouths devour the
produce of the hard working children of
toll. Monks and nuns are all lazy" all
unproductive " in their eyes. The asser-
ton formed one of Victor Emmanuel's
reasons for despoling the converts of Italy
but the other day, and the Protestant
zealots of Europe shouted out, ''serve them
right" when. they were turned out on the
streets of Rome and Palermo and Milan,
without bread or a roof to shelter them.
Now' here areathe figures in q rough
refer: There are $4,000 religious in all,
of which 40, 900 are monks and 100, 900 are
nuns. The monastics are divided into
$4,000 Franciscians, $4,000 Christian
Brothers, 5000 Jesuits, 5000 are monks
devoted to the care of the sick, 5000 are
Benedictines, Domiuicans number 1000;
there are 4, 700 Cistercians aud Trapp,s.s,
2, 900 Lazarists. 1900 of the order OF st.
Antony, L 800 Redemptorists, ! 600 Thea
tines, Hermits 900. To these figures it is
necessary to add some thousands Of Marists,
Oratorians, Suipiciaus, and Others not here
enumerated.
The one hundred and ninety Thousand
nuns are divided into 162, 600 in Europe, of
which 1000 are in France alone. Indeed,
that estimate is below the reality. Little
Belgium boasts of 10000 more. Italy
has 10000, half of them wanderers now,
without spot wherein to lay their heads.
Germany counts 5000 as her number of
nuns, Spain 1000, England, tour readers
will recollect that this is from German
source where they count Engiand and Ire
land as onel, 1000. Now, the truth is that
England has not five hundred born English
nuns, or nuns of purely English descent.
Switzerland numbers $40, Poland 1000.
Hungary 1900, America 90 900, Asia 1000,
Africa / 900, Australia 1000. This is the
total in round numbers.
Now, of this great army of sanctity, this
splendid array of holy women, % 900 are
Fran iscians, 10000 are sisters of the
schools, 10000 are Sisters of the Sacred
many more are Sisters of Tire Virgin, 900
are Sisters de Notre Dame, 1000 are Ursu-
lines, 5000 are Sisters of the Holy Cross,
5000 are Sisters of st. Charles Borromeo,
1000 are Dominicans, 5000 are CarmeIites,
1900 are Augustinians, $500 Sisters de la
Sagesss, 1000 are Cistercians, and DC 900
others such as are Beguines, Poor Servants
of Christ, Sisters of the Holy Ghost, Sisters
of the Good Shepherd, Sisters of Mercy,
Sisters of Nazareth, and 80 on to the end of
the reckoning.
1t is q very common thing amongst the
foes of our faith to tell US that these are
" drones" useless mouths feeding on the
industry of society" British Ministers of
State made use of such an argument to
justify the invasion of the Pope's terrific
ries. " The crowd of monastics injured
the progress of the people, Continental
infidels repeated the cry. Over the world
the sectary and scorner raise it with equal
fervor. Of course, they forget or ignore
the works that are done by the religious in
the Catholic Church. They forget the hos
pitfalls they tend, the schools where they
teach, the poor whom they support by their
charity, charities of their own giving, or of
their begging from others. They assail
them still, and will assail them always as
"lazy monks" "idle runs," and they say
that these $40, 600 useless mouths prey upon
the community. An eloquent priest Of the
Society of Jesus, in France, lately answered
that. " Yes" he said, ''these useless
mouths open every instant to pray, or to
preach, tn teach, to console the poor, the
sick, and the un;urtnnate, to bless the sin
ner Tho repents, and to open Heaven TO the
dying These are 3!0,0 moutlIs which
Hever open to return to the world the i'm
pietes and the columns of scandals with
which tbs pages of the press are SO richly
furnished. These are 10000 mouths
which open, not in the saloon, in the
tavern, nor at the corner of the street.
What useless mouths for the newspaper or
the Police Gazette 2" There is u good deal
worth memory in this lesson. and in this
contemplation of the ranks of the Soldiery
of the Cross.
rTxTr, Nx-xx- nts Ave