Evening star., 1925-02-13

collecting agencies who pocket most
of what they set, turning over to the
pastor who has been persuaded to use
them, mere moiety of what is ac-
tually received. Mail and telephone
are used all day long, and more than
once the lay schemer at the other
end Of the wire give the name of some
priest in order to give added strength
to his appeal.
only recently laymen went about
the city selling crucifiXes for three
dollars each. They stated they were
giving part of the price in charity to
a home on Hanover street. The cruel
fix was not worth so cents. The
Catholic Church in this Archdiocese
has nothing whatever to do with the
home on Hanover street or on Gar
rson boulevard. 1t has nothing to
do in any canonical way with the So
called Salesian Sisters. The whole
scheme was fraudulent and the perpe-
traitors should be in the penitenttary.
There is another classical case.
The people of the archdiocese are re-
ceiving through the mails punch
card and several pages Of literature
In the name of Father Paschasius and
the Carmelite Fathers of Washing
ton. When the card is completely
punched the returns, s12.1o, are sent
to the Carmelite Fathers and the
young lady who peddles the caro- re-
ceives five premiums OF her own
choosing for herself and her friends
who in the punching process get the
lucky numbers. The money Is sup
posed to go to the payment of debt
on the Carmelite property in Wash
ington, to the erection of national
shrine in honor of the Little Flower
and for the benefit OF the Trappist
work in Zululand. South Africa.
Fathers Innocent Dupes.
Now let us be frank about this
scheme. The Carmelite Fathers have
been made the innocent dupes of
commercial concern manufacturing
odds and ends in the way of pre-
miums. The five premiums received
by the young lady. ranging from
10-cent shaving brush to 15-cent
pearl necklace, are not worth 50.
The supplying concern Is simply
profiteering. The whole scheme is
combination of graft, gambling and
deception. 1t should be condemned
publicly by our priests everywhere
and lay people should throw the card
and literature into the waste paper bas-
ket, or, better still, the fire.
THE CarmeIite Fathers came from
Spain to Washington to establish
house Of studies for their young men at
the Catholic University. They are not
building, nor are they going to build any
national shrine in honor Of the Little
Flower. There is only one national shrine
in course Of erection in Washington. 1t
is the Shrine of the Immaculate Concep-
tion. now growing into magnificent pro-
portions at the Catholic University. This
Is the only national shrine your arch
bishop knows anything of, and he takes
this occasion to urge the priests and
people Of the archdiocese to visit it and
show generosity toward it. / have no
objection to people giving help to the
Carmelite Fathers, but that help should
not take the form of making young
women and children pay s2.42 for a
10-cent shaving brush or 12-cent
manicure set.
There are dozen other schemes just
as dishonest and discreditable as the one
outlined above. II our people wish to be
fooled, 1 can't prevent it. But ! am
warning them publicly.
What I have said above must not
be taken as in any way rejecting on
the work and methods of our arch
diocesan charitable organizations
bureau, it's allied organizations. our
parish activities, our mendicant re-
ligious such as the Little Sisters of
the Poor and others. The work of
these persons and agencies is known
to our people. The Bureau Of Catholic
Charities and our own Baltimore
Catholic Review need no introduction
to the public and no formal permis-
sion to carry on their work. They
deserve the support of all Catholics
of the archdiocese. To them might
well be given the money going to
semi-fraudulent schemes now being
foisted on our people by men clever
enough to deceive and make tools OF
some few of our unsuspecting clergy"