Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-05-27

Father now archbishop Neale received for
it the sanction of Pope Plus VII. The poverty
and hardShips of the little band, which in
n few years had increased to thirteen mem
bers, Were Cheerfully borne. Their food
and clothing were of the coarsest kind.
Such comforts as they had We're given to
the pupils, who came each year in greater
numbers Their poverty, however was so
great that, after having received a picture
of st. Jane de Chantal, the sisters could
afford to make but one habit, fashioned
after that worn by the order in Europe.
cup of rye coffee without milk or sugar
and small piece CT corn bread formed the
daily fare for breakfast and supper and
TO these was added a bit of salt fish or
meat at dinner. Nevertheless in 1870, the
corner stone of the chapel was laid. and in
the following year it was dedicated. The
marble altar and bell came from over the
sea. The altar was the gift of Charles Y
OF France. and the bell was sent by an
other friend. In the vault beneath Arch
bishop Neale was buried at his own re-
quest, and here also rest the remains of
the foundress, Sister Teresa, and several
OF her earlier companions, among others
Miss fturbide, who became a nun.
Help Comes Unexpectedly.
Still struggling along under most adverse
conditions, the nuns were in 1924 so en-
harassed financially that they had about
agreed to sell their property and disperse
Aid came al most opportune moment
AA'NthS4s anu Win OliIeI unexpected nelD
the sisters took new courage. a number of
pupils were received whose expenses were
PAID several years in advance. An era of
prosperity began to dawn and the trials
and hardShips attending the foundation
were practically over.
In ISIS President John Quincy Adams con-
ferred the prizes upon the pupils and adj
dressed the graduating class at the closing
exercises There were then about 100 pu-
pills, among them, as the President writes
IN his memoirs, three daughters of the
sometime emperor of Mexico Yturbide. The
eldest received the first crown, and in ad-
justing it 10 her head the sentiment of van
.ty OF human greatness impressed itself
deeply on my mind
There are now about seventy nuns in the
convent nearly all engaged in teaching
lhey are strictly clustered, and from the
day they enter the convent they never
again pass over its threshold unless for
transfer from one house to another There
are nuns in Georgetown who have not seen
the street for nearly fifty years. The tram
guilty of their lives tends to longevity
Their first superior Sister Teresa lived
eighty years; Sister Mary ApoIlina Diggs
VINO dlcd ten years ago. had reached the
age OF ninety. She entered Mt sixteen and
was in many respects one of the most noted
members of the community. Wihelmina
daughter of Commodore Jones known in
religion as Sister Stanislaus. lived fifty
four years in the convent. Virginia Scott
daughter of General Winfield Scott and
Miss Graham. daughter of General Gra-
n.
| When the war broke out the convent prop
erty would have been taken possession Of
| by the government, was Georgetown COL
| leGe. lad not General Scott asked Secre-
tary Starton to spare. if possible the spot
made sacred to him the last resting place
of his child. All the nuns who have died
II these hundred years. together with sew
eral OF the spiritual directors. are buried in
the largr vault below the chapel or in The
cemetery in the monastery grounds
World of Its Own.
Behind the high walls and suffered win
dowS which mark the outside of the big
convent building there is a little world of
| its own. where the daily routine goes on as
sere1ely as If no other beings in the world
existed The exterior alone is forbiddfng
and gloomy; the interior suggests naught
hu- happiness and peace. The walls of the
properly inclOse thftty-fve acres of wood
land and gardens. The site of the original
convent is within this area but the build
ings were pulled down several years ago
The main part of the present structure
was built in 1886. and the portion north of
The chapel in 1878. II is in this modern