The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1886-09-03
IN A CLOISTER.
How Noyices Live and Row They Spend
Their Time.


tiop, some distance from New York
to spend a few days in the novitiatC
as his guest. The invitation was &C
cepted with pleasure, mingled with 8
slight misgiving at the thought Of the
uninteresting solitude of the place
was going to. The misgiving was
speedily allayed on arriving at my
destination, and the new sphere Of
life in which / found myself proved
interesting beyond measure. | met a
hospitable welcome, was politely es,
corted to one OF the guest chambers and
requested to make myself as com,
Portable as possible. The apartment
to which / had been allotted was
marked by the simplicity which char
acterizes the establishment. No car
pet covered the bare, Immediately
clean floor, and the walls were inno-
cent of paper. The furniture consist
ed of q stove, q desk, three chairs,
one of them q rocker, a bed and q
wardrobe. Over the head OF the bed
beamed the mild countenanCe of the
virgin; an agonized Christ faced it on
an opposite wall, and above the writ
ing desk, looking forth from a cheap
frame, was the wrinkled face Of st.
jeremiah. In his aged hands he
clasped a skull-pleasant food for
meditation. Hardly had | disposed
of my goods and chattels, when q
light knock called me to the door. |
opened it to admit q welcome friend
a young man who had once been O
prime social favorite, the life Of recep-
tions and germans, and who had
n day disappeared from his usual
haunts to startie his circle later with
the surprising intelligence that he had
decided to forsake the world and be-
come a Jesuit. The pleasure OF the
meeting was mutual, and grew even
greater when | discovered that my
former chum had been appointed
chaperon to me during my visit. He
wore the regulation dress of the Jesuits,
q flowing black robe, belted at the
waist, from the girdle of which hung q
rosary OF large brown beads. ] say
the robe was black, but / must qualify
that remark by the statement that it
had been black originally. Lopgusage
had transformed it into q decidedly
faded and shabbygarment. My friend
evidently noticed my scrutiny Of his
attire, for he remarked, laughingly:
"We do not get new garments every
day. received this n a year ago,
and | hardly think it had come fresh
from the maker even then. One thing
certain is that i never felt happier
than the day | donned it and during
the entire time | have worn it."
''Tell me-" / said, "how did you
happen to come here?"
He laughed again the laugh of an
amused boy, and he replied. "It was
very simple. Ihad been leading a use
less sort Of life, doing as | pleased
and gong pretty much where my fancy
led me. Naturally my mother began
to worry, but she did not talk relig-
ion. One day / received aletter from
a schoolfellow who had become anov-
ice here. 1t was full of good advice,
and contained, beside, an invitation
to visit him. smiled at the advice,
but accepted the invitation, as the
latter might possibly be productive of
novelty. 1t was in reality an indirect
call from heaven. / came to be anus
ed, but remained to think seriously
of the new and strange life which I
saw unfolded before me. The more /
saw Of it, the more / inclined toward
it. Finally / concluded to make a
three days retreat, to isolate myself
completely from all distracting infu-
ences, and TO mediate attentively on
the future welfare Of NIX soul. The
result cs my retreat was a determine
ton to become q Jesuit. / wanted to
enter the novitiate at once, and spoke
to one of the superiors OF the order.
His advice discouraged me for the mo-
ment. He said: DO not decide has
tily. Return to the world for six
months, revive your classical studies
during that period, and then we will
talk the matter over again. You will
be surprised when I tell you that it
seemed 20 me as ii the six months
would never end When they had
passed, my decision was irmer than
ever, and here / am
"How do you employ your timer
In q variety of ways. There is al
ways plenty to do, ~particuly as all the
work pertaining to thehouse is looked
after by the noyices and lay brothers.
We employ no female servants ofany
description, nor do any Of the insti-
tut}ons belonging to the order. Our
work is varied constantly. One week
/ may be sent to the kitchen to assist
the cook, the week following / NAV be
appointed porter at the door, and
then ] may be transferred to the max
ing of beds in the dormitory, or to
help in the garden. You see, q body
has to make himself useful, and in do
ing SO he gets some effective lessons in
humility"
lis there much study"
mot among the o Weusually
commit a certainnumbero OF lines daily
in order to keep the memory in good
conditions The real study comes
alter the two years of novitiate. To