The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1874-06-16
THE AMERICAN NUNS WORK.
A Survey of Our Catholic Educa-
tional system.
Tho Converts and their Founders-The Car
melI,es, the Sisters Of Charity, the
sisters Of Mercy, and other
Religious Orders.
From the Catholic World for jane, 1874.

only sixty-six conventual schools or educa-
tional establishments conducted by nuns or
Sisters in the United States. Now there
are under the charge of those religious
communities of women of the Roman Gath
ole Church in this country about four
hundred academies and two hundred and
forty select schools, or an average Of about
four to each diocese. These are all either
pay schools, attended by pupils who board
either in the institution or with their rela.
tives. But the poor schools taught by
these religious women, including the par
ish, free, orphan and industrial schools, are
reckoned by thousands and the pupils at
tending them by myriads,
In the diocese of New York there are
foTty-six Of these female schools, with over
twenty thousand children, whose tuition is
gratuitous, besides some three thousand
inmates Of orphan asylums and other char
table institutions for juveniles. In the
Philadelphia diocese there are thirty five
Sisters free schools, with an attendance of
nearly ten thousand pupils, in addition to
the orphans. In Cincinnati, where the
school system has been brought to a state
of great efficiency, the proportion of the at
tendants to the Catholic population is much
greater. We have no means of ascertain.
ing the total number of pupils in the entire
country; but If we take the three dioceses
above mentioned as a criterion, it will be
found that ia the United States there are
nearly three hundred thousand girls daily
receiving at the hands of the Sisters of va
riOus congregations a free, thorough and
practical Catholic education. The expense
alone OF this great work of charity, if not
performed without compensation, would
be, judging from the cost of the public
schools of New York, at least
EIGHT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ANNUALLY.
If we add to the number of girls in the
free schools the fifty or sixty thousand pu-
pills in the Gao academies and select schools
we shall find that about $4,000 female
children are, in this day of grace 1874, I'M
der the care of the religious or nuns of the
Catholic Church. But besides this the in
situations OF these pious women afford rest
and shelter Tor all classes of untOrtunates
In the sixty-two diOceses and vicariates in
TO which the United States is divided, there
are nearly 300 founding, orphan, deaf
blind, and insane aSylumS, rctOrmatoriCs
protectOries industrial Institutions homes
for the aged. houses Of the Sisters of the
Poor, as well as intirmaries and hospitals
the former numbering over 200, and the
latter about 90, or collectively, an average
OF five charitable institutions for each
ecclesiastical division.
The distribution of these asylums and
hospitals is another interesting feature in
their capacity for general usefulness. In
dlOceses having an estimated Catholic pop
ulatlon OF oyer 100000, they may be thus
classified: In Buffalo there is one to ev-
cry 5000 Catholics in Cleveland. St. Louis
and Louisville, one to $4,000; in San Fran.
cisco one to 1900 in Albany, one to lS,.
600 in Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, New York.
Brooklyn and Philadelphia, one to %. 600
Newark, Alton and St Paul, one to q, 900
Boston, one TO 30, 900; Milwaukee, one to
10000; Chicago, one to $4,000; Galveston
and Providence, one to 10000; Hartford,
one to $4,000; and in Springfield, one to
every 100000. Of the less populous do
ceses, Oregon has ] Burlington, Colum-
bus,2; Covington, 3 Erie, Fort WAYNE
B. Grass Valley, 3 Mobile 3; Monterey
and Los AngelOs,j Nashville,2 Natchez.
,; Natchitoches, 8; Nesqually, A.; Port.
land, . Richmond, 3 {; Rochester, s San
Ia Fe, . Savannah 5; Vincennes, 4
Wheeling, 2 Wilmington, |; Kansas, >
Nebraska, Charleston, >. Green Bay.
Harrisburg, Lacrosse Little Rock, Or
densburg Arizona. Colorado, Idaho. and
North Carolina, all small dioceses. or
sparsely settled have none.
THEIR BENEFICIARIEs.
1t Is impossible to give anything like an
approximate report Of the vast number Of
persons OF all ages and sexes who find re.
het, advice and protection in these asylums
and hospitals; for we are not aware that
there Is IN existence any general or full re-
turn from one-half Of the charitable insti.
tutlons scattered so broadcast over the
country. We can, therefore, only ATTEMPT
to form an estimate of the whole by taking
the statistics nearest US. For example, in
this diocese there are 572 girls and very
young boys IN the female protectory, ,297.
IN seven orphan asylums SAG penitents in
the House Of the Good Shepherd; while in
one OF the tour city hospitals, St. Vincent $.
$50 patients were received during last wear
In Brooklyn there are ,O4l orphans, Dos
penltents, APO patients IN two hospitals, in
addition to nearly 5000 externs who re-
celyed medical and surgical attendance.
ana 229 old men and women under the
charge OF the Little Sisters of the Poor.
The care OF these charitable institutions
Is not confined to any particular communi
ty, but, according to locality or peculiar
circumstances, falls to the lot of different
congregations. Thus of the asylums. )
per cent, are under the charge of the Sis
tiers OF Notre Dame; IA per cent. under
the Sisters of Mercy; "a per cent. under
the Sisters OF Charity; 81 per cent. under
the Sisters of the Good Shepherd per
cent under the Little Sisters of the Poor .
"a per cent. each under the Sisters Of
Providence, Holy Cross, Sacred Heart, St.
teresa, and st. Dominic; 30 per cent. un-
der the Sisters OF ST. Francis 10 per cent
under the Sisters Of st. Joseph: u per
cent. under the Sisters OF the Holy Name.
81. Benedict, and the School Sisters OF
Notre Dame, beside few others belonging
70 different communities. CT hospitals
the Sisters of Mercy have Is per cent.
the Sisters OF Charity, 81 Providence, 9
holy Gross, / st. Francis, I, Little Sis
ters OF the Poor, 2; st. Dominic, 5 (; St
Joseph, ii Sour Hopitalieres, 2; Naza
rein, .; and OF all others, 20 per cent.
THE NUNS WHO TEACH.
vi the teaching orders and communities
IN the United States who devote them
selves solely to the higher branches of ed
ucation and, when possible, to the pratu
itous instruction of poor children, there
are the ladies' of the Sacred Heart, the
Ersulines, the Visitation; the immaculate
Conception, Presentation aud the Sister,
OF the Precious Blood, Loretto, st. Glare
Our Lady of Angels, st. Aun, st. Mary
Sacred Heart Of Mary, Poor Handmade
ci Jesus Christ, Humility of Mary, St
Agnes, lncarnate Word, Holy Child. anC
daughters OF the Cross. The Carmelites
servlte Nuns, and Sisters of St. Anthem,
are cOntemplatiye communities tho,,oL :.