The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1898-03-25
AN ORDER OF NEGRO NUNS,
Tho Only One In the United States I
Gated Mt Now Arlaans

Tho Only One In the United States To-
Gated Mt Now Orleans.
In the old French quarter of New Or
leans With its narrow streets, lattiCed
windows and jealousy guarded courts,
where the tig and orange tree grow, is a
square of rather miscellaneous architec-
ture. Its central building, TIT Orleans
has stately entrance, with great pillars
and old-fashioned, Ornately-carved doors.
1t was once the old Creole Opera house
and ballroom of the early days. Now it
is the home of the colored nuns.
The powdered and ringleted damsels
with hoop-distended skirts who stepped
daintily across that threshold, to scenes of
to dark-robed figures whose white ruff
fled caps only bring into stronger relief
the bronze and ebony of their skins The
very names of the streets here are rich in
history and romance. There are Or
leans and Bourbon. Chatres and-him of
the iron hand and gentle heart-Tonty.
Shades of the past are jostling one anoth-
err, though in gentle, shadelike way, at
every street corner, and at nothing do
they seem to be more astonished than
at the sight of the colored nuns
Yet the order is not such a very modern
one after all, for it was founded in New
orleans over half century ago. Its
members are now well-known figures on
the streets of the Crescent city. The
special object. of it's institution was the
euucatlOn ana moral training of young
coiored girls and the care of orphans and
aged intirm people of the race. 1t has
had the cordial support of such eminent
ehurchmcn as Archbishops Blame. Odin,
Perche, Leroy and Janssens. who sue
cesslvely filled the archiepiscopal see of
New Orleans. 1t is also novitiate
W here YNl,NO onlprn1 or 60
the work of the order with the view of
extending that work to every parish in
Louisiana, and, If possible, into every
Southern state.
One of the mos; interesting parts of the
convent is the orphan asylum, where chill
dren ranging in age. from the wee tots
just beginning to walk to girls of II and
ters in charge of the babies was an ex-
slave. She is a real ''mammy'' still.
But. reverend mother, you seem to
have some white children here" said the
Northern visitor, commenting Oh the fair
white skin of some of the children.
oh, no. said the nun, smiling bit
Wistfully, ut the Ignorance. of her visitor;
veins. Maybe they are only quadroons.
octoroons; some of them. indeed, have
only ene-tenth colored blood, but that one
tenth black counts more than the nine
tenths white, and makes them belong
forever to the colored people,
One is reminded Of some of Cables
stories; the pdthos and tragedy thereof.
In the orphan asylum 135 children are
sheltered who would otherwise be thrown
upon the state. These, as we'll as the
sixty poor old colered men and women,
and many of the children in the school,
are dependent upon the sisters for their
daily bread: Formerly the sisters OBJ
tanned fair revenue by going through
the streets of New Orleans from door to
door, and into business houses and rail
road Offices, soliciting aims for their
charges. SO quietly did they labor that
few outside the city were even aware of
the existence of the order, the only col
ored sisterhood in the United States. But
the yellow fever which broke out in the
South in August caused that section to be
hemmed in by quarantine. and the wheels
of commerce were stopped. As pathetic
letter just received from one of the sisters
says: 'Our friends have always been
among the poor laboring classes, who
seem to feel most for us, and since this
class has suffered particularly through
lack of employment for three months,
and their distress at present is almost as
great as OURS, we cannot in conscience ap-
ply to them for aid. Even if we did, it
would not be Forthcoming, as they have
not the means"