The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1907-02-02
INCIDENT OF FIRST REVOLUTION
How Grandfather of Two Cleveland
Priests Saved Hunted Priest in
Former REIGN of Terror in France.

Events in France today are constant
~ bringing up memories Of the awful
DAYS of the French revolution, but
! perhaps none of the actions Of the gov
eminent offers a more striking parallel
to the efforts Of the Jacobin party to
depose Christianity than the recent or
Ger of the minister of finance 70 take
from the coin the inscription God Pro-
b, tect France" and to substitute Lib
erty, Equality and Fraternity" the
shibbOleth of the maddcned Jacobins.
| at whose command rivers, of blood
! were shed between 1889 ana 1874
An incident that occurred during
| those bloody days. when the test Of
/ loyalty to the church was life and
death, cannot fan to be of interest to
readers of the Universe because of its
relation to certain we'll known persons
in the Cleveland diocese. Men were
lot wanting in those days who stood
undaunted. their clear vision I'M
dlmmed by the shadow of the guillo-
tine, realizing tlist 10 lose life is but
to find it
One of these was the mayor Of Ger
tam little town ten miles from Metz
the capital of Alsace. at that time a
French province. To this sturdv old
man there came one day a priest. hunt
ed by the deputies of the .Jacobin
parties, whose agents were located in
every department of the country Fear.
less of consequences. the MAYOR took
the fugitive in and for two years the
priest. i'm the guise of a workinglnan
was safe from the rage of the perse-
cutors. The day of reckoning for
Robespierre had not yet come and the
reign of terror seemed to increase in
horror, reaching out farther and farth-
en- A traitor in the town gave infor-
nation about the priest sheltered by
the mayor, and one afternoon. without
warning. two geudaTmeS were seen ap-
preaching the house There was not
moment TO lose. The priest was sit
ting by the able in the living room.
and before he could turn in his seat
the door was flung oDen ana the gen
oarmes entered, demanding to know if
the mayor was hiding a priest The
old mayor kept his presence of mind.
telling them to search the house. With
the greatest calmness he spoke to the
priest, addressing him as a man SER
want. reminding him that it was time
to look after the cattle. His GOODNESS
diverted the gendarmes. who had no
suspicion of the man in the rough gar
ments. and before their search was
over the priest was out Of reach. The
faith and loyalty of the OLD mayor did
not die with him. but was bequeathed
as a goodly heritage to his descend
ants. Nor did Ii go unrewarded of
God
One of the sons of the mayor fought
under Napoleon until the disastrous
overthrow of the emperor at Waterloo.
Later he came to America. locating
with his family near Cleveland. The
sturdy faith of this son. and he was
signally blessed in giving two sons to
the church. who labored for years in
the missionary field One is the Rev.
Peter Becker. pastor of Holy Trinity
church. Cleveland. and the other the
Rev. Michael Becker.
Jacob Becker of AVIAN and Andrew
Becker of MaUmee are the other two
sons living. Henry Becker, who died
in Cleveland several years ago, was
another.
Told in the twilight of a winter aft
ernoon by a grandson Of the old mayor. |
who had heard it often from the lips
of his father the story thrilled one
y it'll its nearness 20 those awful days
when France was mad with the .ust |
for blood. The home of this grand |
SON, on the picturesque banks Of the !!
Maumee, is far removed from that little |
town in old Alsace. and more than a |
hundred years nave interviewed since |
those dark days, but the story bridged |
the chasm of time and space and took |
the listeners back to the scene SO Wv |
idly that it viii long be rendered
Catholic Universe.