The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1898-03-29
FRANCISCAN MONASTERY.
The Work on the Foundations Il
Progressing.

Progressing.
The laying of the cornerstone of the
Franciscan monastery, which is to be
erected near the Catholic University, will
mark another step forward in the prog
| ress of that great educational institution.
While the cornerstone will not be laid I'M
til about May /. the work on the founda-
ton is progressing and the institution
may now be said to be fairly under way.
There are now installed at the university
three religious orders. each conducting a
school. The addition of the Franciscans
VIII make four, the others being the
Paulists. the Marists and the Order of
the Holy Cross. Nor will the clustering
of religious orders around the university
stop here. 1t has but fairly commenced.
Negotiations have been pending for a
| long time with the Dominicans and the
Pass!onists, who are DESTROYS of opening a
house of studies at the university. The
movement is calculated to spread to all
the orders of any Importance in the
United States and will undoubtedly do
so in the course of time. Naturally there
is something back of this movement to
gather about the Catholic University the
houses of the various orders.
1t is one of the most important objects
which came prominently before the
minds of the founders of the university
and is being carried forward by the pres
ent rector, Mgr. Conaty Washington has
been recognized as the ideal educational
city of America. AS the capital of a great
nation there is an atmosphere about it
found nowhere else 1t is the home Of sci
entists, literary men, artists, philanthrO-
pists, the wealthy and the cultured. Its
great libraries and museums. it's public
buildings and other objects of speCiaI in
terest TO an American scholar can no.
where be duplicated. Essentially n res
idential city it's broad. shady streets and
well-paved avenues, the absence of manu-
featuring interests. it's mild climate and
its location make ii the most desirable
city I'm the country for the location Of
great universities.
These facts Were put forward promi-
nently when the Third Plenary Council
of Baltimore was considering the advis-
ability of locating the university in some
other city. either Chicago or New York.
Nor has it been overlooked by other re-
ligious denominations DESTROYS Of found
ing central universities. The Methodists
have already erected the Hall of History
Of the American University. which will
soon be followed by other buildings and
the Baptists have at hand the Columbian
University with hundreds Of students
and completely equipped schools Of
science, law and medicine. In the course
Of time. when some Rockefeller gives
Columbian q million or two 1t will take
rank with the great universities of the
country. Meanwhile II is steadily grow
ing. High up on the banks Of the POto-
mac beyond Georgetown stands the i'm
posing quadrangle Of the old George
town University. Founded over 100 years
ago. il has steadily grown until it has
alumni I'm all parts of the country and
counts its friends by the thousand. II
is conducted by the Jesuits but has no
connection with the Catholic University
II Is not strange. therefore that the re-
liFious orders of the Catholic church
should seek 10 found here their houses OF
studies. These houses are affiliated with
the university and the students have all
the privileges Of those attending the uni
versity while they live with and receive
additional instruction from their superiors
in their order. II takes large sums OF
money 10 equip any university with libra
ries and other apparatus; 70 pay the sal
aries Of competent instructors and other
expenses Nor has each order enough
competent men TO equip university So
by the method Of affiliated schools they
have all the advantages of a great uni
versity of their own with scarcely a per-
Centage of expense.
interviewer with the original plan Of
the Catholic University was the thought
Of Americansm. The Catholic church
in this country is intensely American.
and intensely patriotic. This may be
due. to a large extent, to the fact that
its backbone is composed of the Irish
who, if cast away like Crusoe. would
have Indignantly resented the efforts OF
would-be reSCuers. and sworn that the
island was the finest land the sun shone
on. The Irishman scarcely touches the
American in heart as well as in name.
While the university belongs TO the Cath
Ole Church of America, ii was founded
principally through the efforts of the
Irish-American Catholics, and it has
been their money that has maintained 1t.
The founders calculated ahead for many
years. They patterned after the great
universities of Europe. The church
builds slowly but she builds exceedingly
we'll and what she once has she holds.
1t took hundreds OF years to mature the
universities Of the old world; what if it
took a century for those of the new
world? The prelates knew that in the
course of time the university would at
tract TO itself wealth, learning prestige
and power.
The highest in the land, conducted by
the church. il would naturally draw the
more brilliant young men of the church
TO its schools; priests who would go
throughout the country to missions and
who would become identified with the in
teTests and welfare of their alma mater
a prime thought, therefore, was TO send
these missionaries throughout the land
imbued with the spirit of AmericaniSm.
while the university is thoroughly
Catholic" said Archbishop Keane. lit is
also thoroughly American" Combined
with this idea of gradually acquiring con-
troll of the church in this country through
the education Of the young priests was
that of centering at the capital the relg-
iOus orders of the church. Not merely
that they should have here their houses
of studies. but that the superiors of the
orders should take up their residences
here and direct the operations of the or
III 49,.