The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1917-07-14
FAITH OF FRENCH SOLDIERS

Our cures return to his once flourish
ing parish brought him face to face
with scenes Of destruction that sur
passed all he had imagined. He first
stopped at hamlet called Hautebraye
that belongs to his parish. Out OF for
ty houses only two were left standing.
The inhabitants had been removed, by
the Germans, but an old couple. named
Menard, succeeded, by hiding in Gel
lar, IN remaining among the RUNS OF
their old home. There was no church
at Hautebraye before the war. Since
the advance of the French, two ora
tories have been arranged, where SOL
dier-priests and military chaplains eel
citrate mass. There are graves every
where, in the gardens and in the
fields, as well as in the cemeteries.
Closer to Antreches, Calvary has es-
capped destruction.
The big Christ with His outstretch-
ed arms, and statue of Mary Mag
dalen, are left standing among DESC
late surroundings. The village of An
treches is filled with barbed wire rail
ings. There are cables everywhere,
with inscriptions in German such as
'Lebensgefahr," peril of DEATH Ger
tain quarries, still unexplored, were
called by the enemy, "The Devils
Hole" hence the severity of the mil
itary authorities now in possession,
with regard to visitors, who, lncon-
sciously, may walk into trap. With
much difficulty, the cure made his way
to the place" where his church once
stood; a magnificent church, he pa
thetically tells us, regarded as an his
torical monument of Importance and
value. He found himself in presence
of heap of stones; the stone spire
and the columns lay on the ground in
| a shapeless mass Nothing was left
standing but few bits of wall. The
poor priest owns that he sat down in
the garden of his shattered presbytery
and wept. The sight of the birds fly
ing in and out among the broken
stones and preparing to build their
nests among the ruins brought hope
full thoughts. Some day. he writes,
life will return to Antreches; homes
will be rebuilt and, may be, God will
be served here more faithfully than
before the upheaval.' There is some
thing very beautiful in this clinging
to hope in face of ruin and desolation
unspeakable.
Nuns at Rheims.
At Rheims, some nuns are allowed
to remain, those who by caring for
the sick and wounded render valuable
| service to the inhabitants whom cir
cumstances detain in the stricken city.
Among these religious are some Sis
tiers of the Assumption, the nursing
Sisters of the Poor, who, under the
shells, go to and fro between the
cellar of their shattered house and
other cellars where their poor clients
are suffering from sickness and from
fear. They keep up bright spirit,
but neglect no reasonable precau-
tions; thus they use masks against
the shells which when they explode
! fill the atmosphere with poisonous
vapors.> The cheerful heroism of
these little Sisters is wonderful. The
other day, at the request Of the May
or, who feared that provisions might
run short, the Cardinal Archbishop or
dered the three, Communities of wom-
en-, who remain at Rheims, to send
away half their members, as it was
urgent to diminish the number OF
mouths to feed. They obeyed. In
each religious house half the Commu
nifty remained to carry on the work
among the poor, the others were sent
| to Paris. These last were, according
to their own report, infinitely the
! most to be pitied. The Sisters select
ed to remain at their post considered
themselves privileged and rejoiced al
their appointed lot.