The Irish standard., 1905-08-12

VI and its sufferings.
s'The retribution that trails in the
wake of money madness is the pow,
Il erty of riches. l can think of moth
/ ing more lonesome than man with
] an immense fortune.
"Good fortune cannot be enjoyed
without. companionship. Great wealth
is an idle thing if it debars the honest
grasp of the right hand of the fellow
being.
"There is no man so poor in human
companionship as he who is burdened
with riches He pays the penalty OF
I his success. He lives the life of abne-
cation.
with the increase Of rich mans
fortune comes the increase OF false
friendships and the leechlike attach
ment of sycophants and human blood
suckers. They are sure to gather in
the muddy pools made by financial
corruption, and then when the en-
plosion comes, when the searchlight is
turned on and the corruption shows
forth, these hangers on scuttle away
and leave the poor victim to his own
devices.
"While the spending of great for
tune may be great task it is the only
safety valve to happiness for the man
who is encmbered with wealth"
Cardinal Gibbons touched upon the
divorce question in the United States,
and said:
"The money craze and the corrup-
tion which it has developed in this
country is to me lesser evil than
the great increase in divorces. This
lax regard for the marriage tie is the
greatest menace to our country at this
time.
"It is a matter not so easily rem
edied as the other evils which exist or
threaten. 1t is essential. fundamental.
1t reaches into the heart uf our social
fabric, and unless there is some great
change within short time society
must suffer an irremediable injury.
divorce is wrong, radically wrong.
There can be no excuse for it. 1t is
not thing to be approached with
anything of sentimental consideration.
It must be dealt with seriously, harsh
ly, if need be.
at is impossible for me to contem-
plate with anything of complacency
the thought of the wrong inflicted
upon the children of divorced parents,
Marriage is not only a holy estate OF
itself, but the obligations it imposes
are not to be lightly assumed, nor
lightly cast Off When there are chill
dren the idea of divorce of the pa
rents becomes insupportable.
THE Catholic church permits sep
aration, a divorce from bed and board,
but the idea Of a remarriage is insep-
arabic from the idea OF legalized
wrong so great that there can be no
justification for it.
In this country there are many
children whose parents have been di
vorced and remarked There are mar
ried Divorces with two, sometimes
three former husbands living, with
whom they come frequently in con-
tact. In many cases sisters or brothers
and sisters are separated, two new
families frequently being formed.
"That such condition can be per-
mitted to exist bears more of menace
in my opinion than any other evil Of
the present day.
'The sanctity of the family cannot
be permitted to be destroyed. The
parents are the source of the family;
the family is the source Of society. II
the source be fouled society must ne
destroyed. No stream can rise higher
than it's source, and society can never
be better than the average of the pa
rents Of the families composing it.
" Auniform divorce law is all ex.
pedient at best, but useful one and
one to be greatly desired. The pres
ent tumble of laws is an evil in itself
and makes divorce easier than it
would otherwise be. The law, of
course, can never be Of great effect
without strong public sentiment be-
hind it, but the enactment of uni
form divorce law would Of itself be
an indication of the growth of a
healthy sentiment.
There is nothing more shameful
than the exhibition, now SO common,
Of colony of men and women clus-
tered in the towns of South Dakota
waiting to comply with the farcical
laws of that state, which make d.
vorce so easy.
IF single law could be framed,
covering the entire United States, the
number of divorces granted annually
would be materially reduced. This
would be desirable thing if the gen.
eral law were made drastic enough" !"
"The Catholic women of the city Of
New York have decided to attempt
the experiment of ostracism as ap-
piled to all divorced persons. Do you
regard this as effective or desirable?"
I asked.
"It is difficult matter to handle" "
replied the CARDINAL "but the idea is
an oyce11on+ ono if nroner1v modified