The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1883-08-11
Communicated.
sc Charity."


g In what condition 90 we find the parish of
Ascension? or rather, under what reign do
llve?"
After an absence of ten long years from the
town of Donaldsonville, returned, and taking
up one of its journals, the above met my gaze.
| read on; my herat became fired with indig-
nation. [ rose to my feet, / turned to my
rounding friends and asked the question,
where am [? Are we returning to barbarism,
or have l. by one of those strange freaks of
imaginative minds, fallen into a train Of
thought and misapprehension which causes n
mirage of horrible images to be reflected on the
mind which will not, for the moment, be ex-
PEELED?
A smile which only the sad, patient face of
wronged woman can wear was my answer.
1T is no halucination, my dear madam. 1t
is the TRUTH
1t is thus the parish of Ascension, the town
Of Observation-Disclosures the hot-bed of chiv-
alry-alows tho anointed of God to be treated.
laid down the paper and unused sadly, oh!
SO sadly. It saemed-God forgive the express
sion-that felt something of the sorrow our
divine Master must have experienced i'll the
Garden OF Olives.
Oh. Louisiana, my beautiful. my beloved.
! when you arrayed yourself in armor to defend
your civil rights, the banner under which you
tonight was dedicated before tbs altar of your
God. The eyes of the world were upon you,
| cheering you on to deeds of valor. Think you
there was naught in the blessing that rested on
its folds? Think you it was not the holy spell
surrounding you that enabled you, after fight
ing bravtly for what you thought to be the
right, to bow in submission to the fiat of the
Almighty, when The bloody struggle was over?
Are all patriots deud? viii tho strong
but trembling cry" of woman be left UNDECIDED,
or must she unsex herself and raise the banner
Of justice and right you have ruthlessly
| tramplcd in the dust; mount the breach You
have caused by your sacrilege and proclaim to
the world shat the boosted cElivalry of tho
South is no more? No moro! sad requiem OF
departed glory. and oh, sorrow! it is your
| work! With your own hands you have rent the
garment OF your innocence. Go, hide your
selves in the lnnernOst recesses of your lonely
swamps, cast ashes on your heads and crawl
with its Shiny monsters. | bescech You, for the
honor Of Louisiana, show not your nakaSness
to the gaping world. Assume virtue. if you
have it not" You make liberal contributions
to the names of defunct Governors and mar
tyred Presidents, have you nothing left for an
insultcd God?
Surprising, even, that tho priest whom your
wives and little ones revere was all that you
;accnSc him Of allow that their reverence for
him is mistake, at least it is mistake the
right side They surely do not err as much sou
did in accusing, Garfield before he mounted the
preSIGnnt!Hi All tpltinI
when he became the victim of fanaticism. Fair
| play is a jewel. Can't you allow the priests
some little mistakes? They'll do you no HARM
When they pick up tho stray victims of inmor-
ality on the streets of your large cities, when
they wipe away the tear OF the widow and the
orphan and smooth the path to the grave for
heavens sake, let them alone.
You are afraid of the supremacy of the Pope
Surely, it is as harmless belief as the suprcln-
acy OF a civil power. Look at the history of
your presidential campaigns, As long as the
candidate wrongly namod--is an aspIrant
for oiticc he IS peltod with scurlious abuse on
both sides till he IS very para Of filth and
abominotion When-ohI miracle of E,lith, far
surprising that Of the supremacy OF the Pope,
yea, even the belief of the Real Presenca-wltEl
reverence be it named-the moment he touches
the presidential chair, his filthy robes fall from
HIM and he shines out, if not "an angel OF
light, 1T least pretty good fellow. and by all
means, the right man in the right place"
This seems straylny from the subject. Let it go
for what it is worth. 1t is intended to point to
the sad fact desecration and calumny'' are
allowed to rest on the Holy of Holes y to the
bitter end, but are lifted like Il gossamar veil
from off the God of the politician.
The jews having 9 Abraham to their father"
have expressed g noble sympathy III this mat
ter and yet a Christian may be living not a
hundred miles off and know but little Of it
through our public journals,
| mused again: Ten long years ago / left this
town united Ill pablo demonstration of relig-
lous feeling around its time honored church and
beloved pastor, each race in beautiful order
displaying burners of devotion, while the Hon.
J. 4. Cheevers embodied their sentiments in 1.
glowing address. | come to-day to find that
reverend APOSTLE Of Christ exlic from his
parish, his flock crying for the mlnistratinns he
alone can supply. go on the public thor
oughfares, what do | see! A church closed.
twenty-five exquisite marbles of rare workman
ship, lying the wayside, covered with the
dust OF the street. The spirit OF Improvement
and the march Of progress unclaimed, the cause
Of truth fettercd; and this IN Il State that has
produced an Audubon, a Gayarrd, Souia.
VISITOR