The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1918-04-20
Continued from page IL
Heroines of the Civil War
On the Worlds BattIefieIds.

On the Worlds BattIefieIds.
Hundreds of Sisters took promi-
nent part in the service, many of
them belonging to the Orders whose
victories for charity constitute q
bright page in the history of numer-
Gus battlefelds of the Old World.
Civil War in America, England was
involved in a gigantic struggle with
Russia. Throughout that ter
rible struggle which ended after the
! fall Of Sebastopol, at the invitation
of Her Majestys Government, Sisters
of Mercy went through the awful
hardships of caring for the sick and
wounded in military camp and hos
pital. Sisters of Charity also labored
in that theater of action. Among the
| first to volunteer in the service were
several nuns from Bermondsey, where
stood the first Mercy Convent estab-
| lished in acknowledgements of
beautiful historic traditions and relig-
ious associations, once charming and
| healthy suburb of London.
1T was similar devotednass to
| duty that led the various sisterhoods
to answer the official call and go
forth, accompanied by military officers
and physicians, to labor in numerous
camps and hospitals during the late
| Civil War. And needless to say, they
| orb int no 81 Nd
discipline which had long been promi-
nent features of their daily training
and experience. Hence the unique
| character of the services they rem
dered during the entire period of the
war. .
And so, because the services rem
dered by these various sisterhoods
stand forth in bold relief, evincing a
heroism unsurpassed in the infinite
detail of that war, it is altogether fit
| ting that a memorial be erected in
their honor, now that the period of
well-nigh three score years has
passed and their memory been almost
! forgotten. Now is the time to bring
| back their memory to the people.
! Now, while the resources of America
are again being organized for war;
now, while the wealth of the Nation
is being generously offered to provide
for the comforts of American troops
who Will soon face the angry vicissi-
tudes of European battlefields; now,
while the boys are rallying again to
fight the battle of democracy under
the old flag and are marching forth to
| offer full measure of devotion to
their country's cause, it becomes the
American Congress to stop a minute
and pay this tribute of recognition and
respect to the dark-robed ministering
angels who exchanged the salutary
atmosphere Of the peaceful convent for
the noXious vapors of the fever
stricken camp, and faced the perils of
the battlefield to comfort and relieve
the sick and dying soldiers on both
sides of the line in the Civil War
Never Shirked Their Duty.
Monuments to the memory of de-
parted heroes are the immortal lega-
cies bequeathed to future generations;
they are the silent footprints of his
tory upon the pages of time. Like the
songs of country, they are part
of the life of the people. The nuns of
the battlefields are the immortal
heroines of the Civil War in America,
and the passage of this resolution will
be wholesome and lasting expression
OF a peoples gratitude, belated though
it is, for their deeds of self-sacrifice
and devotion.
The records of the war do not
register single instance of failure or
| Sinking on the part of the sister
hoods, and it must have been an edi-
flying sight indeed to see. these pious
and unassuming women, whose souls
were enriched with the jewels Of
heavenly sanctity, as they went from
battlefield to hospital to apply their
| tranquil ministrations. No page in all
our history can present any nobler
deeds of courage and devotion. Easily
and without emotion they turned from
0ShOOl anu doy YUM u take up Tie War
duties, and, no matter how appalling
were the sights that came before them,
they labored with unity and harmony
under the most trying and difficult cir
cumstances. ss
Too long have we delayed in pay
ing an official tribute of praise and
gratitude to the various sisterhoods
whose heroic self-sacrifiees and be-:
nevolent ministrations rescued thou
sands of soldiers from the grasp of
wasting disease, and whose constant
piety and devotion moved many a
conyalescing patient as we'll as an.
expiring patriot whom the curtain of
death was surrounding to utter a.
humble prayer.
"All that Congress is asked to do
is to pass this resolution which au-
thorizes the erection of memorial.