The Irish standard., 1908-04-11
ITS DAYS NUMBERED
The Clemenceau-Briand Minis
try Tottering.
Scarcity Of Priests Subject Of
Great Anxiety.

and ministry has been baneful to the
French Catholics, writes the Paris
correspondent of the Irish Catho-
lic," of Dublin. There can be no
doubt of that. But now it's days seem
numbered; even Catholics are not
sure they would have anything to
gain by upsetting it. The campaign
against the cabinet is led by the per-
fidious statesman named Combes,
who, in applying the associations
law. dispersed the authorized educa-
tional religious congregations, though
NJ. Waldeck- Rousseau, the author Of
that measure. protested against it's ex-
tension to them. If the French parlia-
ment had really fallen so low that the
stricted to NJ. Clenlenceau or NJ.
Colnbes, there would be valid reasons
for desiring the maintenance in power
of the former. They have both the
same political program, in which the
persecution of the Catholic Church
stands first. They are both pledged
to the creation of the income tax and
Of the workmen's pension fund and
also. with a view to providing more
posts for their political partisans to
the purchase of the Western Railway
by the state. But if NJ. Clemenceau is
placed in g. minority and constrained
to resign, and NJ. Combes is called
upon by the president of the re-
public to take the reins Of govern"
ment into his hands, he will be obliged
to accept the compromising support of
NJ. Jaures the chief OF the French In
ternationalists.
In serving M. Combes. M. Jaures
would serve his own ambition, which
is the triumph of Internationalisn
army and navy. 1t is threfore to be
hoped that in the case of NJ. Glenn
enceau being driven from office, M.
Fallieres will have the moral cour-
age to refuse to entrust M. Combes
with the formation of ministry, into
which he would certainly introduce
men of the same group as his former
colleagues, NJ. Pelletan and General
Andre respectively ministers of the
marine and OF war in his previous cab
met The creation of second Combes
ministry would not only mean the re-
vival of religious persecution, but
would constitute u veritable national
danger.
Tho increasing scarcity of priests in
France has become the subject Of
grave anxiety. During the last seven
or more years, IL great number Of
French Bishops have deporcd the
ever decreasing number of sacerdo-
tai vocations. A glance at the list Of
the dioceses of which the Bishops de-
clare they have not a sufficient num-
Der Of priests, or who fear they will
soon need more priests than they
will be able to get shows that at
least two thirds of the country is
suffering from the evil. Quite recent
ly the Bishop of Versailles published
Il pamphlet entitled Scarcity of
Priests" Examining the situation
that authority affirms the French
Church has not sufficient priests to-
day, and expresses the fear that to-
morrow the scarcity will be aug
mented. Another Bishop has just, by
the intermediary of his "Semaine Re-
ligieuse," demanded Of his seminar
les. priests and faithful to pray to
obtain a greater number Of sacerdo-
tai vocations. He suggests a formu-
la. to which he attaches indulgences
bearing the expressive title, "Ad
Postulandos Clericos.' Other Bish-
ops have preferred to apply to their
clergy. In one of the circulars ad-
dressed to them Bishop says: "It
is cry Of desolation and alarm
which I raise. Our seminaries are
being deserted"
After the Bishops. the persons most
able to judge the situation are un-
doubtedly the superiors Of the SEM
inaries. The Alliance des Maisons
d Education Chretienne, comprising
the greater number of the Petits
Seminaries and ecclesiastical colleges
of Franco, discussed the recruitment
of the clergy at it's congress held in
1906. The information furnished by
the chief OF the educational establish
ment of secondary education was SO
alarming that the president of the AL
lance. Canon Lahargou, summarized
it in a pamphlet. entitled La Crise des
Petits Seminaries." In 1906 the AL
lance des Grande Semnaries, founded
that year. fastened to inscribe the
question on the program OF it's first
congress in the following terms:
Charming decrease in tho nu,nho,. ~