The Portland daily press., 1890-06-27
AN INTERESTING EVENT.
Raising the Flag over the Kavanagn
School.
Eloquent Addresses by Bishop HeaIy
and Others.

Yesterday afternoon the flag presented by
the Montgomery Guards was raised over the
Kavanagh schoolhouse The heavy shower
interfered somewhat. but the occasion was
an imposing one. The Montgomery Guards
and Sheridan Cadets, headed by Chanoler's
Band, marched to the school. presenting
fine martial appearance. In the school
grounds were two platforms, one Of which
was occupied by the Kayanagh school chill
dren, each carrying flag, presented by Mr.,
James Cunninshaun, and the other by Bishop
Healy, Mayor Melcher, Vicar General MUIR
ply, Father Linehan, Gen. j. j. Lyncn, ex-
Alderman Short-of the Montgomery Light
Guard Veteran Association of Boston-and
others.
The military formed in two lines in 'front.'
and Captain Hartnett, with the flag in hand,
advanced and presented it to the Bishop in a
brief but pointed speech. Bishop Healy
received 1t, blessed 1t and replied as follows
BISHOP HEALY's ADDRESS.
Fellow citizens. 1.-THE volunteer soldiers of
our city, known as the Montgomery Guards,
and of whom not only the city but the State
OF Maine IS proud. have long desired to pre-
sent flag to the Kavanagh school Our de-
lay in accepting it, like that OF the city Of
Portland, arose not from lack of love to the
flag, but simply from the low considerations
of possible damage to the roof and the ex-
pense Of future flags to replace this. But
we have risen, citizen soldiers, to the desired
level; we accept the flag, your generous gift.
and we thank you and your young compan-
ions, our boys Of the Sheridan Guards, for
your presence and your sympathy on this
day. shall enter into no defence; l shall
make no apology for our parish school. As
all know, 1t saves thousands of dollars every
year to this city, although supported entirely
by the congregation of the cathedral The
outside appearance and the inside accommo-
dations are worthy OF our beautiful city by
the sea. We are not ashamed Of 1t. As for
Its scheme OF education, let me say that we
have, as examiners and supervisors, those
competent teachers, the Christian Brothers,
whose pupils in this present year In New
York and in Manchester, N. H.. 0utrank, In
success Of examination the pupils Of the
public schools In competition for West Point
and Annapolis Our constant effort is to
make our scheme Of education a successful
reality.
TO give practical, sufficient, and above
all. a Christian education, is the whole aim
Of this and similar schools. Pursuing this
one way and object. fulfilling every duty and
obligations as good citizens, believing that
without religious teaching lnfdelity and
atheism are every day becoming more prev
dlcuL III OuI DtllcNluR budb WubT6 LOtIt
Is no fixed belief in God there will be no
fixed basis Of conscience, Of duty, nor even
OF loyalty, we think we are doing the State
and community noble service by making
good Christians of our children.
| stay my remarks Of defence and turn to
this flag, this day presented. According to
ancient religious custom, we have blessed 1t
so that religion may consecrate IL as al en-
blem and reminder Of loyalty due to its es-
tablished government and authority. And
yuhap I of he lkxy 0f Noth Il
am conscious that shall be considered as
utterinE almost ehaNeDso TO discussion.
| For OF late there has been disseminated, by
| spoken and printed words, imputatiOns,
doubts and accusations upon our loyalty.
Not from soldiers did these utterances come.
twenty-five years are not long enough to
blot out the memories Of the camp and bat
tlefield, when Protestants and Catholics
lived together. fought together and died TO-
gether that our country might remain one
and undivided. Doubts of our loyalty as
Catholicsl hardly dare speak in its de-
fence In this presence. What Is loyalty?
Loyalty Is compound of love and reverence
from which comes obedience. and what class
of citizens are more devoted in love to the
whole undivided country?
"And who doubts our loyalty In presence
Of the representatives of the Ninth Massa-
chusetts, of which l saw and knew the out
going and of which the whole state well
coined the glorious record and return? Shall
name the gallant Sixteenth and Twenty
eight OF Massachusetts or the Irish Brigade?
or shall run over the names which rise to
every memory and dwell on every lip, as
cending from the ranks to the officers
and eliminating in the so lamented Sheri-
dan whose name our boys are proud to bear?
The task would be useless the list too long
Doubt of loyaltyl When / am looking
into the faces Of some men whose loyalty to
authority overbore their attachment to poll
tical party and saved this state from
threatened bloodshef and civil war? We
wi oil hall faf oh
cussed. and II our opponents will only take
what we do believe and profess, instead of
putting up scarecr0w of their own contriv
ance, we shall welcome any examination,
any unrolling Of the pages of history. But
when our loyalty is attacked, we are justly
indignant 1t is against the plain and un-
deniable facts.
We can show that in the War of the Rev
olution, OF the priests then in our country,
| (not more than twenty In number) and OF
any ationaIity-American Irish, German,
French and even English--all cast their lot
with the struggling colonies. In all the ut
terances exciting to the late war, where do
you lind Catholic priests or bishop, sounding
the dead tocsin Of diScord and carnage?
| And in the midst Of the horrors of war,
in the field strewn with dead and dy-
ing, or In the improvised hospitals, tell us,
soldiers OF that day, whether bishop, priest,
| sisters OF charity or Of mercy. whether from
| the North or South, made any distinction in
their ministrations? Whether the blue or
| the gray, they were suffering fellow men
they were more, they we're fellow country
men and loving charity cared for all. l
| appeal to the common sense and the memo
| ry Of all Who then lived; appeal to the rec
objection OF these nobest OF citizens, the citi-
| zen soldiers, OF the men who seized their
arms. not for pay (Heaven forbid). but for
the Union for our country; and when the
danger was passed returned rejoicing to lay
| aside with the sword and the musket every
| trace OF bitterness and revenge.
| Loyalty, as loving obedience-why our re-
| iigion makes 1t sacred duty. 1t teaches 1t
| obedience to legitimate authority is preached
by Leo KILL and re-echoed by every priest
| In the wide world. We say without hesita-
tioD, that whether native or naturalzed citi
zens: our country never will have and never
can have, more loyal citizens than the true
| Catholics. When we look aloft we shall see
there the cross of Christ, our Lord, symbol
| OF our faith, and of its teachings, and close
| by 1t the blessed flag Of our country. When
In the darkest days of our late war in 1868,
wandered with friend on one Sunday
| morning along the wharves Of a foreign port,
and saw The many flags of many nations on
their different vessels, and when at
last last we discovered one flag that bore
the stars and stripes, we shook
hands with joyful tears, repeating the words
of the great orator statesman, the expounder
OF the constitution, we said on that dark day
with Daniel Webster, what we ask you to
say ou bulS DIlgnL uay as Jne nag aScenuS,
what we say and make our children say
Thank God, thank God, too am an Ameri-
| camp
As these dear children, and those who sue
| coed them, look upwards, we can promise
that they will love all the stars without ex-
| ception and while the star of Maine will be
| to them brighter and dearer, no other will be
| excluded from their love. A flag is an en-
| blem. 1t has no speech of its own Like
| the phonograph it gives back the words it
| has received 1t is like the instruments of the
| band that play whatever tune Is breathed
into them. But our flag will be to us all a
/ gratefully treasured souvenir of our noble
citizen soldiers the Montgomery Guards and
of their older and younge. companions in
arms. IL will recall to these children the
atfectionate reverence for the authority that
| rules, aud their hearts and their voices will
/ know but one chorus
"oul country, one and undivided, unto the
end of time"
At the close Of the address, Captain Hart.
nett took the flag aud bent 1t on the halliards
and 1t was raised, the band playing the Star
Spangled Banner, and the children singing
that national air. Then Gen. Lynch made a
patriotic address, and the children sang
America" Then ex-Alderman Short OF
Boston, In behalf of the Montgomery Light