, 1883-02-10
A Bad Story.

pathos with which that towering church.
man, Wolsey, tells Of his fall. Purcell
had no temporal ambitious He mixed in
sfairs of state only As steringly patri-
o:ic citizen, but in the church he
"Onee .rod The ways Of glory.
AMI sounded all the depths and shoals Of
honor."
A pioneer OF Catholicism in the West,
the Zeal with which he worked for the
church was soon recognized by his ap-
puinrment TO the highest dignity under
the cardinalate an American churchman
can SECURE II is barely possible that had
he not held and expressed in council the
view that infalllhilty of the pope was not
an article of faith, the FIRST. and no doub.,
the only red hat that r me bestows upon
one If the faithful in tie American epis-
c pacy would have adorned the venera
bls head Of this pious, worthy, and most
unfortunate man. He fell through am
bitiun, not the ambition to rule a state,
bur that which would extend the spiritu-
al dom ain Of faith which commanded all
hi, zeal He was an admirable cure of
souls, slluring to heaven and leading the
gay, but he lacked the skill of the 6nsn-
Ger, and he leaned with simple trustful-
Ness upon the managing abilities of his
brother. like himself a priest, but really
possessing, as events dipclns-d. very little
more Of the talent of chancellor of the eK-
cheaurr thai himself. The st~ry Of his
utter and most disastrous insolvency is
well known. He, or his brother for him,
had become. little by little at hrst but
immoderately at last, a sort Of savings
bank. Implicit faith WAS placed in his
honesty, and so far As honesty consists in
the upright purptse II Was not misplaced.
n. doubt existed as to his sbilIty TO pay,
but he was doing business which is ,nvs-
rlably losing one. He attempted to pay
interest upon the sums deposited with
hin while investing them in the erection
aud maintenance of various churches and
elermosynary institutions, none OF which
PAID interest. The inevitable crash came.
In his old aye this venerable prelate
found himself debtor TO the extent of
from three To- four millions Of dollars,
aud obliged TO confront the misery and
despair Of poor creditors to whom he
ud not pay dollar. The only natural
pr p and stay left HIN, his brother, Faith
er Edward, died Rome appointed Gu
aijutor, and, no penny III his cassock, his
banevoIent heart bleeding with the know
leige that, with no purpose that was no;
lofty aud honorable, he had unwi..ing
spread rum, despair and misery as pro
found and far reaching as that caused by
snyftilure of frhecentury, the unhappy pre-
lare took his way to Convent beyond the
city which had long been the sea. OF his
palace
An old man, broken with the storms Of state,
! cpme 10 lsy his weary tones among ye
tive him little earth for charity
In the first knowledge Of the dismal
IA lure there was some Wild talk of rais-
IN the amount Of Bishop Purcell's indebt-
.dness by a popular subscription among
the Catholics of the United States. How
Y y,lunary WAS this scheme may be gath
,rrd from the reflection that City million
II prosperous people in the union were
considered generous when they raised
million and a half for the sufferers by tfe
yellow fever. AT q time when the calamity
va, widely known and touched all hearts.
Hux. then, were seven millions
Il Catholics, not .he most prosperous reii-
gous denomination, TO raise four millions
tor purpose which many Of them would
Mt understand and which, where under
s1ad stirred no deep and tender emo
tronsl Many of the creditors argned, and
Il.,lIy, that the, were entitled to pursue
their money 10 the very altar of the cath
elrsl, and seek it in the foundation
st,ne. OF the churches of a diocese that
had never wanted the lavish expenditures
Of their archbishop, their debtor. Their
eff n in this direction has not yet borne
fruit. No dividend has been paid the
creditors from any source. Some Of them
heart srre and weary, laid the matter at
the feet Of the successor Of ST. Peter, but
the seli-condsmned risoner in the gloomy
splendor # palace SO extensive thst
eleven bsttsllions OF infantry might be
qI,rtered under its roof and each soldier
De master If his ped Observation-Disclosures
- receive funds from the faithful-de.
cned 70 en'er upon the consideration OF
sma;ter which could not be mended save
bv generous donation from the pspal
eAcheQuer. II was, referred The bishop
cosdIutor Of Cincinnati with . eurtness
which did no, impress the petitioners ~ith
the graclou,ness of the holy father, and
compelled the ref-c.i"n that the holy
See, which prondly declines to receive the
large sum set spart by the Italian govern
men, Tor its support, is not too proud
TO accept Peters Pence drawn even
from the di"cese in far country, where
prelste, bearing the commission Of R"me,
makes the mos, startling default Of de-
cade fruitful IN falure..
Having made no substantial e6'rt At
dlschsrginV the debt. the ae'iveser isenpal
authority at Cincinnati hetrays that which
a.the distance appears to b. . strange, IN
pstionsble want IT sympathy not only
with the great body of sufferers, bnt also
si'h the eeeIesiastie, his elder, Who vas
the unuitring cause Of all the suffering
The following plalntivs nots from ths
archbishop is eloquent, If unsxpsssst.
dennnciaiion Of the injustice which lesvss
the fallen prelafe naked TO his enemies: