The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-12-29

pointed him archbishop of Westmin.
ster to succeed Cardinal Wiseman In
the great vatican council of 1870 no
made profound impression on his fell
low bishops. and on the pope, who five
years later named him n cardinal. Such,
III brief, is the story of his life.
But to see the great cardinal at his
best one had to visit him at his work.
shop, as he is inclined to call it, ut
Westminster. 1t is in great square
building ut the corner of Carlisle place
and Victoria station, and was formerly
used as n sort of barracks for the non
commissioned officers and men of some
regiments of the guards. Just near it
is a splendid site of some four acres
where great Roman Catholic cathedral
is to be erected.
The cardinal did not encourage curl
GUS visitors, yet he has been by no
means inaccessible. He likes Ameri-
cans, and when it has been ut all prac-
ticable, has not been averse to granting
them an interview. One is struck by
the intense simplicity of the old man
when you first SEQ him in his library.
One ut once thinks on seeing the gaunt
form and striking features of the
cardinal of two pen pictures of the
man drawn by such an artist as John
Morley, who said of the appearance of
his face:
ut was as if wrinkled parchment
was stretched across q fleshless skull.
out of which, however, kindly blue
eyer CLEANED brightly, while pleasant
smilo gave life and human humor to
the features of the ascetic"
And that is good description of the
cardinal as he greeted me in his study.
If the day is warm, you will find him at
work in his plain black-cassocls edged
with red that marks his rank and
skull cap drawn over his head. If cold,
he will have on n coat drawn over all.
Around his neck is the gold chain and
cross of the holy see. The great
sapphire ring on his finger was given
him by Plus TX.
suggested that the cardinal was still
doing good deal of work despite his
advanced age.
YES" he replied, II have been used
to work, hard work, all my life. love
work. 1t is u part of my life. Besides
there is so much to be done that do
not feel that can be idle have a
long day. Beginning ut o'clock in the
morning am frequently still at work
at IL at night. | dine early mt 1880, and
have tea at T:3O In addition to nv
other work read the principal news
papers. paying particular attention to
foreign news
Going on the cardinal said that since
1865 he had been Il total abstainer from
the use of liquor and that of late years
he has been almost vegetarian as well.
1t was when the cardinals attention
was drawn to statements that Christian
ity was not holding it's own against inf
dels, ngnostics and the like, that he
spoke most vigorously.
VI have been in the thick of religious
life for moro than GO years." said he,
with flash of his stccl. blue eyes, land
l believe from my experience that faith
and religion have enormously grown in
England since the time of John Yves
ley. From the time of Elizabeth to,
say $780, religion had steadily declined.
Since the time of Wesley, both in and
out of the Established church, it has
just as steadily advanced. There is
still n good deal of reason run to seed
in England, good deal of free thought
and much spiritual ignorance among the
overworked masses. But we are max
ing steady Roadway against that. If
You could go among London working
men as do you would see this. There
arc more than 500, 600 Catholics in Eng
land now, and they are increasing in
number What is more, they really
practice their religion"
''And the other churches?"
"Ah, my son." said the cardinal, smil-
ingly, II am too old to throw stones. 1t
&c Of l,,fx, 90
who are without our lines"
Then the question of temperance
came up.
England sober" said the aged church.
man, lis England happy and contcntcd.
If we could make the English workman
n toual abstaincr, we could settle the
most serious of the social problems that
confront us now. have worked to-
ward this end for many years, and with
some success"
The cardinal takes very hopeful
view of the labor outlook, and he is pc
culiarly competent to speak on the mat
ter. In his opinion workingmen and
their employers are coming closer to-
gethcr all the time.
On the Irish question. as on others,
Cardinal Manning's opinions are clear
cut: lie did not discuss persons but
spoke generally.
81 am an Englishman,y you know, to tho
core and | am not separatist," he
said, but know and love the Irish
people. Since the time of Henry VIII.
they have been governed by force. In
justice naturally provoltes evil passions.
Kind and equal laws would long ago
have settled the Irish question. and it