Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1881-05-04
COLLAR.AND.ELBOW.

COLLARsAND.LLBO
Before Father Ryan came quietly
into our rough mining town we had
never observed any suspicious religl-
Gus character mousing around for a
gospel ranch. In fact, none Of US
ever had thought to ask if any man in
camp had any religion Of any kind :;
but when Father Ryan came there he
seemed to know all about it, He
called the people of his faith together,
or visited them one at time, and
among the first things we knew he
began with his own hands, assisted by
Others, to grade level spot on one
of the roclI-faced hills surrounding
the town.
When we stepped on our way to
and from work, and asked, "What'r
goin' to put up?" the father, embrac-
ing his shovel-hande long enough to
seem to be about to spit on his gloved
hands, stood mp and replied:
"a small edifce to the worship of
Col"
"Ol church. ell T.
"Well, begging your pardon, hardly
church hut bit OF a chapel, jnst."
"What kindp
"Caholic." And the father went
on Shoveing the loose earth and small
rocks over the side OF the grade, as if
he had no greater concern in the
matter than the employment Of his
time until SHUTDOWN By-and-hy the
chapel began to assume the form of a
structure, which, like each Of the vari-
ous hosting works, looked down from
its stony eminpnre upon the town OF
cabins clustered in the hollow of the
hill>.
When the house was rooted in and
externally completed the irreverent
wits of the camp dubbed it "Purga-
tory h'istin works"
This new title coming to the ears OF
Father Ryan, he smiled meekly and
said:
"Shure, it's not bad name at all
and, glory be to God, I've great hope:
III be the means of hosting many {
poor soul into eternal glory J"
1t was no easy matter to collect tb,
money to pay for a religious building
10 our camp, because we bad all beer
so long away from what are Gale,
religious influences, and free from th,
so-called restraints of divine grace
that we thought such notions super
Auous. We had seen our fellow
scken and die, or die without bein.
sick; we had cared for, nursed o.
buried them without the "benefit o
the clergy" Full many harsh re
fusal and profane snub fell to the 10
of Father Ryan, as be went from
mine to mine on pay-days in his effor
to gather into the treasury of th'
Lord small part of the. hard earnings
much of which was otherwise destined
to cross the green cloth of the gam
ing table, or disappear through the
till of the bar-room counter.
The payday on the mines in out
camp we're from the 1st to the 4th o
each month; but in the year wher
Father Ryan was building his chapel
two Of the largest works announced
that their mines would pay of on the
day before Christmas, and shut dowr
for repairs during the holidays.
Now, about half way between these
shutdown mines and the town, there
was O little swsle in the hillside at ri
abrupt elbow in the road. In tbi
little swale, and on level with tn,
road-bed, 40 enterprising spirit grad
ed into the bill, forming a smooth
level place. On the front half of thi
level, and occupying abont half thu
space, the man of enterprise erecte'
what the poets called n hostelry, tina
is TO say, place Of refreshment-
mostly alcoholic and nicotian-for tb,
accommodation Of the constant goer