Morning journal and courier., 1885-11-09
CORNER sroNELAIp.

CORNER STONE LAID. over One Thousand People Witness
 the Laying of the Corner Stone of
 the St. Lawrence CR. C.) Church,
 West Haven, Yesterday Afternoon.
 Nearly one thousand people stood with their hats off in the falling rain yesterday afternoon and watched the ceremony of lay ing the corner stone of the new St. Lawrence Roman Catholic church which IS being built on the corner of Union and Main streets, West Haven. The crowd consisted of men, women and children, some of whom had been waiting for the exercises to begin for nearly two hours. The small boys climbed up into the trees on the lot adjoining the, church and tried to see how much noise they could make while the ceremony was being gone through with. Nearly five hundred of those present went from this city by special cars on the West Haven road, while as many others walked, as did about two hundred members of the St. Aloysius society headed
 by the Wheeler & Wilson band of
 Bridgeport The first floor of the church was laid Saturday and
 several chairs set on it for the priests, and the people quickly crowded on to
  CT Larkin, the pastor of the West Haven church. The St. Aloysius society were then given the privilege of occupying the floor
 with the priests and the band. Shortly after
 o'clock Rev. Father Larkin, followed by
 three altar boys, Bishop McMahon of Hart
 ford, Rev. Fathers Mulcahy and Gibbons of
 Sacred Heart, Rev. Father Cooney, Murray
 and Maloney of St. Johns, Rev. Father Law
 Ter of St. Marys, Rev. Fathers Mulholland
 and Lynch of St. Francis, Rev. Fathers
 Kelly of Bridgeport and Rogers of Stamford, marched upon the platform and after bless ing the cross proceeded to the southwest cor
 ner of the building where the regular Catho-
 lie ceremony of laying the corner stone was
 performed by the Bishop, assisted
 by Rev. Fathers Russell and Kelly.
 Under the stone was placed document on
 which was inscribed the date of the laying of the stone, and the names of Pope Leo
 XIII, the Governor of the State and Rev.
 Father Larkin's name A few coins were also placed under the stone. After the stone had
 been laid the procession, consisting of the Bishop, priests and altar boys, marched around the church singing. The priests then again mounted the platform and col lection was taken up.
 An address was delivered by Rev. Father W. A. Harty of Waterbury, who said: wish to announce to all the people present that while am making few remarks the clergy present will pass around the baskets and I LruSG you VIII all respond lR a IDefal man ner. To-day we have gathered here to par ticipate in the solemn exercises of laying a corner stone of another of our beloved churches. It is eminently proper that there should be no differences between the church that is built in the humble village and the one that is erected in our large cities. Each one is entitled to our respect and to our ad- miration each one should have our best wishes or watchful care and our liberal sup port. Tradition has it that when it was or dained that man should be saved by a blessed Trinity there no distinction of persons or places that should receive the benefits of that saving power. Our Saviour was not born in city, but in lonely man ger in @ humble village. It is eminently proper then, repeat, that we should gather here to-day, even though the elements are against us, to join in these solemn services and bid God speed to the people who are so nobly doing the work of spreading our glo rious religion. This is none other than the foundation of the house of God. The con- dition of universal salvation will be inn proved by the work that will be carried for ward in this church. and your children will be lead to become Gods true children by the influences that will surround them in this church. In this church the poor will be just as welcome as the rich, and the low will occupy positions as lofty as the high. The blessed gospel will be preached alike to old and young-to the rich and to the poor Here in this church, the corner stone of which has been laid to day, that awful sacri- fee that was made in Calvary will be ex- plained and it's truths and lessons expound- ed Here will be renewed the old, old story and from here the bread of eternal life will be disseminated, and sinners will be told again and again of him who said, Behold am with you always; even unto the end of the earth" Again say this is Gods house, and no gale of bigoted opposition can destroy | Thora iS ,0A s,, 4ho CRoRo of Connecticut that has twenty Catholics in it that has not a Catholic church. In 1886 | there will have been sixty new Catholic l churches built in this State in six years and five months. January, 1886, it will be just | six years and five months since Bishop Me | Mahon began his duties as bishop of this | diocese During that tirae has been @ single disturbance of any account in any | of our churches and not single Catholic l church in the whole State that can be found l to-day that has not been either built new or l entirely altered and improved, and it matters | not what our enemies may say against us | we shall go on improving and increasing | our churches and bringing our people to God | and to understand that our religion is the | only true and the only right one. God Almighty never intended | that his people should struggle to | comprehend and reconcile half dozen differ | ent kinds of creeds and religious beliefs. | Here in this church you can hear the true re- l ligion expounded and it's truths will be so | carefully explained that no one can fail to l understand it. My hearers, let me urge you | to do all you can to assist this little church | to increase it's usefulness and in other ways prove that you have the welfare of the Cath | ollie church at heart. I had hoped to speak | to you of many other things, but I will not | detain you in the rain. In closing I can | only urge you to keep on in the good work of | giving and doing all you can to build up our | beloved church and increase its influence.
 After the address, the ceremony being | over, there was grand rush for the horse | cars, and many were obliged to wait in the | rain for the cars to make another trip before | they could get to this city, on account of the | large number wanting to ride. The church, which is being built by MT. Andrew O. | Smith, is to be 4Ox7O feet, of wood. The steeple will be 130 feet high. It will cost about $12,00O. The silver trowel will be given to the person giving the largest contri-