Perth Amboy evening news., 1918-09-25
ARGHBlSHOP
ST. PAUL DIES
Archbishop John Ireland, Noted
Fighting Priest, Passed Away
After Long Illness

u long Illness OF nearL disease anu
stomach trouble. He was eighty years
old.
John Ireland, Archbishop OF st.
Paul, held such a keen and active in
terest in general affairs in the United
Stntes during the past half century,
that he was noted as a publicist, as
well as for his religious zeal. He
was n of the most distinguished
Of h Roman Catholic churchmen of
America. There were few fields of
intellectual, political or spiritual en-
deavor In which he failed to take a
positive stand. making himself at
times the center Of a controversy.
q Born in 1888 in ireland. a carpen-
ter's son he was carried with hts par
ents IN the tide of Irish immigration
to America while he was a child. AL
tar service at Burlington, VT, n n
Jolting trip west on a prairie schoon-
er were among his boyhood memories.
bringing him finally to st. Paul.
blankets stalked the streets of that
frontier town. One evening. the mis-
sionary Cretfn. first Bishop of st.
Paul, while watching from his win
dow some boys of his parish at play,
called to John Ireland and Thomas
O'Gorman-who later became bishop
of Sioux Fa1is-to come into the
church. He asked them IL they
wished to become priests. Both he
and his playmate agreed that priest
hood was their ambition. Bishop Gre
tin sent them. in charge of a guard
ian. to France. where they were edu-
Gated by the Marist Fathers. When
he heard of the outbreak of the Civil
War in America, the student turned
~homeward, fired with as much patri-
otism as religion.
a. " ca n.
he eagerly accepted an appointment
rs chaplain IN the Fifth Regiment of
the Minnesota Volunteers.
He was ardent for the Unfonist
cause and shared every hardship OF
the soldiers life in their terrible win
ter raids. At Iuka he gave yoeman's
help by rushing ammunition TO the
front when It was sorely needed. He
vas stricken with fever after less
than a years service n returned to
a st. Paul passionate.
He soon attracted national atten-
ton through his work for temperance.
The story is told of how on one jan
uary night IN 1859, three drunkards
staggered into his doorway and hand
ed him a rumpled sheet. which read:
For Gods sake organize a Tenn
perance Society" The paper was
signed by seven men, including q sa-
Ioon-keeper. Those wers the days
when st. Paul was filed with border
turbulence and the riot of drink. The
next Sunday Father Ireland began his
campaign by organizing a Temper-
ance Society of eighty members. He
made hut-to-hut visits to st. Paul's
shanty-town. throwing whisky bot
ties OF of the squaiid doorways. The
work he thus began he extended
throughout the Northwest and trav-
eled the whole country preaching
temperance. He even carried the
battle back to ireland and Great Brf-
tain. His energy was SO abundant
his zeal for work such that the
term "consecrated blizzard" as APP
piled to him by n of his admirers
was accepted by many as a peculiarly
happy expression.
He at one time conceived the idea
of consolidating the Catholic paro-
chial schools and the public schools.
The plan was tried at Fairabauit and
Saltwater. Mimi, but friction which
the archbishop could not relieve
arose the scheme was dropped.
He was founder OF the Hill seminary
on the Minnesota side OF the Missis-
sippi river. To this he gave hts
highiy-prized private library. one of
the most comprehensive in the North
west. One of his early works was the
founding of a colony of 9ee Catholic
farmers in wesfern Minnesota in 1875.
He became Bishop In 1875 ana
Archbishop in 1886. He received
support from many OF his admirers
for appointment as the fourth Ameri-
can Cardinal Celebrating his golden
Jubilee the priests Of his diocese pre-
scented him with a purse of 100000.
As a speaker Archbishop ireland
was direct and magnetic. with a sense
of humor. One of the phrases which
has often been quoted as character
fstic of his particular endeavor in life
Is this
The watchwords OF the age are
reason, education, liberty. the ameh-
grafton of the masses"
Archbishop Ireland's strong Amer1-
eanism. first put TO the test when the
civil war began, was manifested
afresh when the United States entered
the world conflict. No soon had
congress formally declared war On
Germany than the archbishop called
upon people OF his faith TO remember
that they were Americans above al
other ties and declared II their duty
TO help In every way. Later when
occasion demanded. he advocated
purchases of Liberty bonds and IN
tributions 20 the Red Cross and to
various relief funds
IN LniS G0uEoC nE loAAQW1u LNAA1A1A~
emily a part he took IN a famous SON
.troversy which antedated his "Far4-
bauit plan" 1t resulted from a ped-
ton made TO Rome to create I'm the
United States German parishes VITA
parochial schools with orders that ths
German language be taught in these
Institutions. Its sponsors sought 10
conceal the purpose of the plan by
proposing also that n be followed by
other nationalifies. but the arch
bishop saw the fAiiacy Of IA idea
ana FASTENED to Rome. where he sue
eessfuliy comhatted II.
The mass Of our Catholics are
Americana he argued. They resent
any attempt 10 make them Irishmea
OF German or any other kind Of for
eigner. The bishops Of America are
fully able 10 ard of any foreign IN
vasion IN the church and to maintain
IL on thoroughly American lines
Later. OF the same proposal. he said:
Our country is not a Poland to be
~partitioned at the good pleasure Of
foreigners. We have. under Peters
successor. our autonomy and for the
OF the American church and the
American republic. We viii retain Ru-
tonomy."
As a monument 20 Archbishop Ire !
land stands the beautiful cathedral az
St Paul on the brew OF ST. Anthony
nm. N over1ooks the valley OF the
MisSfSSfunl ana thu fhriv4,~ L.