The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1921-07-16
THE CORDS OF ADAM.
CONTINUED from page 3.)

the fire to prevent pneumonia, "Fuji''
had crept into Genes arms, and pre-
ferred them to the company of the
others.
That afternoon of the First Com
munion Day, Gene required three calls,
each one more imperative than the 9TH
er, and finally maternal threat to
revoke the paternal gift, before Gene
came up for the thorough overhauling
necessary to fit him to appear at Our
Lady of Solace and under the Bishops
blow become Christian soldier.
Like a "fadeaway" in the movies,
this memory of "Fuji' and the Great
Day contracted to a disc and then en-
larged on another scene. Father Neacy
was seeing himself a slim, taller boy
in the blue Xavier uniform, sitting
with many other slim, blue uniformed
boys in the front seat of the school
auditorium.
Upon the stage was a bearded Bish-
op: small, sunburnt, and quick; a
touch of purple at his throat. His Eng
lish had an unnative twang to it. With
gestures, he was telling the Xavier
boys a true story of his mission field
Gene, sitting in the first row, never
forgot his words.
when my revered predecessors
landed at Nagasaki, boys, they did not
know if they would find any Chris
tians. 1t had been over two hundred
years since the last successors of Fran
els Xavier had met painful death, and
the pagans had boosted that they had
what you say?-stamped out religion
out of all Japan.
"Our Peres lived modestly at Naga-
saki. A small chapel had been opened,
and one day there came timidly into
our compound one little group. They
whispered together and they entered
the chapel. They looked around at the
statues of Our Lady and Our Lord;
the cross over the altar, and the light
burning before the tabernacle. Then
they consulted together, and one of the
old, wrinkled men came up to Pere
and questioned him: Are you bonze
of the One God? Did the Great Father
over the sea send you? Do you. take
wife? Do you honor the Mother of
God?' ..
''And when Pere had answered that
they we're priests of the One God, and
were here obedient to the Pope, that
priests do not marry, and all Catho-
lies honor Our Lady, the old mans
face frightened and he bowed and mo-
toned to the rest of his group, who
had been watching intently in the rear
of the chapel. When they had come,
they all bowed their triple bow, and
what do you think, boys-they were
descendants of those Japanese who had
received the faith from the hands OF
Father Francis. Through all the years
of persecution, when thousands had
suffered crucifxion, the sword, the pit,
the slow flames, and there were no
priests left in all Japan, they had held
fast to the tenets St. Francis Xavier
and his companions taught them. Fa-
theirs had baptised their children and
had handed down the formula of an
act of Contrition."
More, this old japanese missioner
told the school boys that afternoon,
but Gene, riding home to his seaside
home, carried close to his heart the
brave tale of these noble Christians or
Japan.
Now to Father Neacy came the mem
DRY of hot summer day, and gay
thousands crowding and laughing on
the walks that surrounded that amuse-
ment park lake. Boatload after boat
load came shrieking down 1.-THE
Chutes,' the passengers holding fast
to kin and property, and the Italian
boatman standing serenely erect In
the stern. By the Chute Lake Walk,
above stand, was stretched an oil
cloth sign, "a Japanese Ball Game"
and over the turkey red counter of this
stand Gene was leaning. He was a
taller figure now, dressed in white
blouse and blue overalls, and he was
watching his friend Tsutsihashi spiel
The stocky young Japanese, in cool
silk, was saying to a group of ladies,
who seemed to be dubious in their
minds, whether this was a form of
gambling:
mo, honorable ladies, this Japanese
ball game is, what you say, on the
table completely. You roll the ball
this way" he gave the little wooden
ball practice spin, land in whatever
pocket the little ball rolls himself into,
you receive handsome prize, direct
from nv home country.
See, please, the little ball rolls into
No. 10. See. ladies, No. 10 is beautiful,
very beautiful vases. Now you try
your hand, Miss Lady, and maybe you
win one of these hanging chimes or
these sets of china. They are all num-
bered, and so are the little holes the
little wooden ball rolls into. You can
not lose, for there is beautiful prize
for every number. You cannot lose.
Just try it once, Miss Lady, and try
your luck. You cannot lose"
And so on. Gene knew Tsutsihashi's
spiel by heart, and he would use it,
word for word, when he relieved the
Japanese at supper time
That hour of supper time, when the
big crowd in the park would dwindle
down, before the coming of the evening
crowd, Gene used to dream over that
far country that was pictured upon
the prizes: the snowy top of Full
yama, the Sacred Mountain; the tall
oblong of the sampans that sailed
stately around the vases; the gro
' A