The Irish standard., 1906-02-24

~ fruit, vegetables, eggs for his own
suse or that of the mission, he must
buy them from the natives. There
fore, 1. 1t is false that the natives
on these rural farms are retained in
strict custody by the Fathers. None
OF the Fathers reside at these rural
chapels, and as NJ. Waulthier very
Justly remarks. they exercise over the
natives a purely moral influence. ..
It Is false that the natives on these
farms possess practically nothing and
that the stock and farm produce are
sdestined to he given to the mission
They possess, after the manner of the
natives, viz, in common. Nothing is
sent to the Central Mission without
being we'll paid for in money or equiv
alents. The Fathers have no proprie-
torial rights over the land of the rural
chapels, The land continues to be-
long to the village. and all emolu-
ments accruing from the labor of the
natives remain the property of the
colony. 5. 1t is false to affirm that
the natives living in these rural farms
rarely obtain permission to marry
The Fathers have no means of prevent
ing them, even If they wished to; but
in reality they desire to see the natives
marry us soon as possible. for they
know well how difficult the celebate
state is for them, and it is clearly in
the hest interest of the mission to
augment as much as possible the num-
her of Catholic families living in the
country. AS regards the permission to
return &c. their native villages, there
can be no question either OF giving or
of refusing this permission, since they
are all actually living in their own
village, and almost all are natives Of
the place." 1t is really difficult to
understand how responsible Commits
sioners. charged with a mission of such
Importance, could have drawn up a
report" which would be simply ANUS
ing on account of its childish mistakes
were it not 70: the disastrous conse-
Quences it may have for the mission
aries laboring in the evangelization of
that country.
Since the appearance of the mission
aries vigorous protest, the government
of the Congo Free State has judged it
wise to make an amende honorable in
Mgr. Van Ronsele, Superior of the
Congo missions: MY Lord,-We. the
Government Of the Congo Free State,
have much pleasure in acknowledging
tle spirit of generous devotion, zeal
and disinterestedness which animates
to an equal degree, and without dis
tinction, the religious of all the religi-
GUS orders laboring in the Congo. We
cannot adequately express our high es-
TEEN for the valuable cooperation of
the Catholic missionaries in the civil
cation OF the natives. We consider
their cooperation as essential to the
material and moral regeneration Of the
natives. We present to the mission
aries the expression of our profound
gratitude. We desire to honor the
memory Of those who have sacrificed
their lives for this cause, and at the
same time to encourage their success
ors and to assure them of our help.
In acting thus we express not alone
our own sentiments, but also the SEN
timents of those who know what noble
and interchangeable efforts were neces-
sary to produce such remarkable re-
suits, despite the immense difficulties
encountered. We beg your Lordship
to assure the different Communities
working In the Congo Chen follows
long enumeration OF all the congre-
cations of priests and nuns) that the
government takes Il most lively inter-
est In the progress of their several
missions. and attaches great import
ance to their development We also
beg to state that. in accordance with
the request made by the superiors of
the missions at the audience given
them ty his Majesty the King at Brus-
sells Oil the 5th of November, we have
received instructions to examine with
the greatest goodwill the different
recommendations which the missions
may desire to present in the interest
of their work OF evangelization."
OVER THE NORTHWEST