The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-07-06
Author

Valencia prays at the shrine in her
home country. Savoy. In the course
Of the book Father Bonn has writ
ten with humor and with tender
ness and in this chapter the beauty
Of his prose Is strikingly apparent.
And here you find him presenting
Mother Valencia for the first time
as lonely and sad figure; you feel
poignant sorrow for and with her
in her loneliness and under pres
sure Of her inf1rmities; poignant
sorrow that you do not feel so
keenly when in later years she
finds out and is told that she is
losing her eyesight; her failing
eyesight she takes lightly and has
a sharp quip for the doctor who
tries to soften the news; but here
at her shrine there Is something
to remember in Father Bonn's
delicate and tender telling of a very
personal incident which, as the au-
thor tells you, Is between her and
God. Never again, not even when
she became eighty and eighty-one
and eighty-two does the author
make you aware that she had at
tanned twilight years or was feeble.
With the closing Of the episode,
"At the Shrine Of Our Lady," she
returned to America with an al
most miraculous return Of health,
once more the efficient head, ad-
nnonishing and advising, and, to
be sure, building.
Familiar Names
The many characters that are
introduced add to the story Of
Mother Valencia and the growing
hospital. The five who came down
from the retreat house in New Hart
ford to start the ball a-rolling are
the hardy pioneers Of any such
endeavor; the ranks were not
broken for many year. There is
PIC KUP GAL 2
no person in the story whether
real or fictional that does not form
an important part of the story.
The reader will find mention Of
many familiar names; the good
Bishop Tierney, who was there for
the start and who found himself
as did the two succeeding bishops
that it was best to follow the line
of least resistance when the SUI
perintendent got a notion to build,
among them. Father Bonn refers
to that dry and hard to under
stand (by the sisters humor of
Bishop Tierney, which he calls
"the solitary, subjective humor of a
very lonely man." Following him
came Bishops Milan and McAu-
life to be influenced that one
should keep building and building.
Also the author presents our Faith
er Murray, at the beginning the
chancellor. but later to become a
bishop and an archbishop; Moth
err Valencia persuaded him also to
come around TO her way of think
ing In her building plans.
Sister Teresa
Then there Is Sister Teresa. the
valiant little one. who started in
a small way with nine dollars ana
forty cents and eventually notated
q half million In her financial
statements. Sister Teresa came
down from Lee, Mass. not unwil-
iingly but not too happily, and
Father Bonn tells OF the financial
summing up at the close OF the
second year thusly: THE receipts
for the first year were ee,2SeOi,
and the expenses 46.3bDOj, which
was marvellous. Mother Valencia
said. particularly the one cent.
Then there were Nancy Ryan also
from Lee. Monica Murphy who Up.
flied the TebeIlions spirit: Mary
Delaney. Sister Elizabeth: the
Great Surgeon who was q compo.
ate Of several efeat surgeons that
might have existed In any big hos
plial: the 40 small Francis" that
endeafed himself 10 all IN o.
EfnneIs and who gaa 40 loved bV