The Irish standard., 1900-01-27
PLATFORM CONTROVERSY in TEXAS
FIR. Brannan Routed an Insulting
Methodist Minister.
CIRCULATING THE CATHOLIC BIBLE
A Dying Young Man in Virginia
Embraces the Faith.

Persons OF all creeds and of no creed
have become interested in the progress
OF the missions to non-C Catholics now
being conducted in various dioceses by
gifted, Jealous priests who have been
chosen for this work by reason of their
special fitness and who are laboring un-
der the auspices OF regularly incor-
porated society, the Catholic Mission.
ary Union, organized for the purpose
OF providing for their financial sup
port This society has an official Or
gan, the. Missionary" edited by the
Paulist Fathers The current issue OF
this journal says:
We are now practically giving
away $1,000 a year. In this matter we
are the alnoners OF that host of gener-
GUS souls who, like us, love the Church.
and are ready to make sacrifices in Or
der to advance her kingdom in the
hearts of men. The more we labor in
this field the more we are impressed
with the absolute need there is for some
such organization as ours We have
but entered the gate of the vast field
that opens before us. Fifty thousand
dollars could as readily be spent as
$1,000, and every dollar would be prof
table in souls that it would bring to the
light, and win to Christ. While we
are growing year by year, and with
Gods grace propose to keep on grow
ing, still our impatient spirit often
chafes under the limitations that are set
for lis. Many and earnest are the calls
that come to lis for help, but against
them all we must close Our ears be-
cause we are unable to respond to these
appeals. AS our resources grow, as our
work becomes better known, as Our
friends become more and more gener-
Gus, we shall only then be able to an
swer all the calls that come to us for
help"
Rev. P. F. Brannan, whose "ield" is
the great state of Texas, and perhaps
even little on the outside, has repu-
tatlon as conversationalist second to
that of no other priest or layman in the
country. Many spicy stories are told
OF his wit and rcsourcefulness. The
following incident culled from the re-
port of his "fall campaign" is to the
point:
My first mission was at Del Rio, a
town OF some three thousand inhabi-
tants on the Rio Grande river, which
divides Texas from Mexico. 1 had the
commodious courthouse at this place,
and the papers stated that we had the
largest audiences that had ever before
assembled in it. The most interesting
incident of my fall missions occurred
at this place. had just finished my
lecture, of about one and three-fourths
hours, on the Real Presence when
gentleman approached me on the ros-
trum as l was gathering up my books
preparatory to leaving the courthouse.
He extended his hand and said he was
the Methodist preacher at that place. |
told him where I was staying and in
vlted him over to see me. He said: Il
would like to have an opportunity OF
answering your lecture OF tonight,
with your permission 1 told him he
should have the desired opportunity at
any time that suited his pleasure. 1
asked him how much time he wished
and he said he only wanted twenty
minutes. 1t was an appalling thought
to be standing in the presence of
phenomenal genius who required only
twenty minutes to dcmolish doctrine
which had been taught for nearly
twenty centuries, and, OF course, to in
cidcntally annilniatc little man like
me.
However, I mustered up sufficient
courage to say that he might have the
twenty minutes and as much more time
as he wanted. The following night was
the time selected by him, after l was
through with the lecture for that even
ing. The large courthouse was liter
ally packed with people, Protestants
predominating, three to one. He
talked incoherently for about forty
minutes He was somewhat insulting,
and subdued murmurs could be heard
among the Catholics. He then stated
that any one who accepted the doctrine
in the sense in which it was believed by
Catholics was fit only for lunatic asy-
lum. This thrust did not evoke any
AZ 1eaet "a external circumstances