The Northwestern standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1885-1886, 1886-03-27
INTOLERANCE IN TORONTO.
Investigations Respecting tho Central PRS
On in That City and the Faots
g Developed.
THE COMMISSIONERS REPORT.
Catholics Not Allowed TO Attend Rs-
igious Services on Sum
day.

4 Catholics Not Allowed TO Attend lie
1 ligious Services on Sum
Il day.
i tits rot many years since, on Cor
4 pus Christie Sunday the ceremony 0
carrying the Host around ST. Michae ell
4. Cathedral, Toronto, was interrupted b,
1 the hooting and bowling, OF an excited
4 fanatieaI and hostile mob Of Professionals
Recently, Investigations respecting th.
i Central Prison are developing facts tina
4 do not tend to bolster up in any greaI
measure, the blatant boastings Of The
Protestants, That under their regiments
religious freedom is invariably guaran.
iced We republish the following ex
! tracts, which come from the trenehani
pen of Patrick Boyle, Esq, the editor Of
the Irish Canadian, (Toronto.)
| But when the Catholic Chaplain.
| Father Jeffcott GALL honor to him for the
noble fight he made for his prison
fock) writes the following letter, and
| the Commissioners find in effect that ii
is not courteous enough to be addressed
by Priest to choleric, self-opinion-
ated Warden that it is too peremptory
in its tone-we then say again the Com
nissioners have neutralized the useful
ness of their report.
| Any charge OF religious diserlmina-
| ton, SO to cnlI it, is serious one, and
deserves to be carefully examined. be-
cause no. official in q prison should be
tolerated for one day, unless he acts
as fairly towards those who differ from
him in religious belief as he does to
those of his own communion. The re-
Igious freedom that the people of this
country enjoy in such an eminent de-
gree, is what each citizen should respect
in others Just as highly as he prizes it
for himself. None the less should this
be SO than whan that citizen happens to
be III authority in an institution wherein
are congregated all classes of the COM
munity.
The Commissioners are glad to be
able to report that the Warden OF the
Central Prison cannot be held liable
under this charge, but, at the same time,
they would be better pleased il they
were not called upon to refer to certain
occurrences in the prison, out of which
probably arose some OF the i1nputa-
tions which were made against him. In
matters of tins kind, where the public
are peculiarly sensitive, it is much to
be desired that no one denomination can
have any excuse for the superstition That
they are not fairly treated.
The difficulty between Father Jefcott
and the Warden arose out of the present
rules. Tt is reasonable that an attend
ing clergyman should enquire for all
the members of his flock, but 1t is to
be regretted that the Chaplain had any
occasion to write so peremptory
note to the Warden az the one we
find in the evidence:
DEAR SIR VIII you please allow the
Catholic prisoners to Mass on Sunday.
I respectfully demand their presence
whether under extra punishment or nc t.
Yours etc.
ID. JEFFoorT, Chaplain.
If the Chaplain had gone to the War
den and enquired why some Of his
congregation we're absent, it is likely
that no one ever would have heard OF
this rather trifing affair. The Warden,
naturally perhaps from his position,
disregarded the letter, and in subse-
quent interview both gentlemen got
very hot, and probably lost their tenn
pers. Father Jeffcott asked for the
rules, which the Warden refused to
give him, and these being the two rules
already referred to. and these doubtless
hlOWu ~ euC AJlalJA1Auy ~ Ac AAhNAy 1Ax1t
this is Whist Father Jeffcott means in his
evidence by saying that he thought he
had the best OF the situation. The
Warden should have told him that the
rules in question, did not, by custom,
apply to prisoners in punishment, not
to say, as he did, that sit was contrary
to the rules for prisoners undergoing
punishment to be permitted to attend
services in chapel.
While the Commissioners have no
sympathy with The way in which this
Interview was conducted, it was GER
tainly due to the Chaplain that the War
den should explain to him now it came
about that the rules we're not kept, and
it WIS equally due to the Warden that q
requeesaof this kind be more as q re
quest than demand
One Of the two-the Priest or The
WARREN was wrong. The Priest ire
spectfnIly demanded'' the prasence of
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