The Sisseton weekly standard. (Sisseton, Roberts County, S.D.) 1892-1929, 1907-06-07
CORNERSTONE OF
CATHEDRAL LAID
MOST ELABORATE RELIGIOUS
CEREMONY EVER SEEN IN
NORTHWEST.
ST. PAUL MECCA OF CATHOLICS
WHOLE NORTHWEST REPRE-
SCENTED IN GRAND PARADE
10000 PEOPLE IN LINE.

81. Paul. June 1.-The cornerstone
OF the new Catholic cathedral was laid
Yesterday afternoon. NO more I'M
pressive event has marked the history
of the Northwest, neither has any
event been fraught with greater Sig
nificance. both religious and civic, TOR
Yesterdays ceremonies have a distinct
i've importance which cannot be meas
ured in the doines of q day, nor in the
lifetime of the magnificent edihce
which is building on the brow of the
hin overlooking a wide and busy val
ley.
A Notable Gathering.
In the presence of thirty bishops,
fve of whom We're archbishops; IN the
presence Of priests from scores OF par
fishes scattered throughout the North
west: in the presence of ems OF thou
sands of spectators, both Catholic and
non-Catholic, the cornerstone was
laid With the most elaborate religious
ceremonies ever Witnessed in the
Northwest.
Tie cornerstone was laid by Bishop
LlAN'oiA I'M WI ~ NAiG C''
of the province. He was assisted in
the chants by 100 seminarians from
the seminary of ST. Paul. Archbishop
ireland delivered the sermon. and
never has that distinguished prelate
been more eloquent. Addresses were
also delivered by Senator Clapp, Gov.
johnson, Mayor Smith and Judge w.
L. Kelly.
The Grand Parade.
The great t,atule of the day was the
parade, probably the greatest OF it's
Kind ever witnessed in the Northwest.
Thirty thousand men marched under
the banners of the Catholic church and
An endless line of flags, banners and
faces fled past the reviewing stand.
Every town and city In h state was
represented. Old men, whose early
lives had been silent in the service Of
the church and state marched side by
side with boys in their teens. Busi-
ness men and sturdy farmers kept step
with each other: the wealthy and less
fortunate formed ranks together. All
lines and barriers were cast aside, and
like a vast army of invasion the laity
of the Catholic church of the North
west passed through the streets of ST.
Paul to do homage to their church.
Old Guard Is Present.
Fully an hour and a half was con-
sumed in passing the reviewing stand.
An impressive feature of the parade
was the appearance of the old guard,
men who arrived in ST. Paul when it
was a garden spot in the vast northern
wilderness. Prominent amcng them
we're A. l. L%arpenteur, who came to
the trading post which is now st. Paul
in 1SA7. and Isaac Bissonniere, who
built the framework of the log cabin,
which, as the Chapel of St. Paul, gave
the city its name.
10000 Visitors.
1t is estimated that the event
brought more than &C. 1000 people to the
city, including the visitors from Min
neapolis. More than 100, 900 persons
we're gathered about the site Of Che
new cathedral to witness the ceremo-
MES, and it would be impossible to es-
innate the number that witnessed the
parade.
Considering the sultry, humid condi-
ton of the weather, the thousands of
strangers in the city and the CORE
spending dangers of accident and sud
den illness, the entire program was
carried out with little or no unpleasant
interruption.
The New Cathedral.
The cathedral will be one of the
finest and most imposing buildings of
Us kind In the country. The site coull
not have been improved npon, and
when the s., 000,0 900 structure is com
pleted it will stand as a fitting monu-
ment to the work Of the Catholic
church III the uplifting of the North
west.