Year: 1879




lChicago Times


One OF the most needed improvements of
the day is one which has just been inaugu-
rated in Chicago under the name of the
Irish Colonization society. Its purpose is to
move rishmen upon farms. A rough sum-
mary of the purpose of the association may
be found in the plan proposed by Bish-
op Ireland, which is that ssthe main object
which this convention should have in view
being to assist worthy people of limited
means to secure homes upon the land, the
convention deems it matter of paramount
importance that an organization for the pur>
pose should be formed. The convention
recommends, therefore, an organization to
be called the Irish Catholic Association of
America. An executive board consisting of
fourteen members-seven bishops and seven
laymen-is hereby appointed, with full pow-
ers to act in the name and with the author
ity of this convention, to adopt such meas
ures and perfect such plans as may seem to
the members of the board most wise and
practicable


There are some people who may be found
who will object to this mixing up of farming
and religion, agriculture and Catholicism.
This, however, is nobody's business outside
those who are engaged in the enterprise. 1t
is the right of any man, or association of
men, to get up a colonization scheme in
which nobody shall be admitted who has not
wooden leg, or red hair, or who has pro-
nounced squint. In the same way 1t is the
right of body, operating under similar cir
cumstances, to decide that no man shall be
assisted to farm who does not accept i'm
mersion, or the thirty-nine articles, or tran
substantiation, or the belief that the world
is supported on the back of turtle. All
these are, or should be, minor considerations
to the general public. The utility of coloni-
zation in the country cannot be successfully
denied. The main thing is the colonization, 1,
and not the religious faith of the colonist.
Moreover, the objection to the flavor of
Catholicism in this movement will come from
those who have the least right to impose any
| difficulties. The objection will be wholly
entertained by class of sectarians
whose bette noir is Roman Cathol-
| icism, and who are incessant in their asser-
tions that the larger portion of the crime,
pauperism and mismanagement of our large
cities comes from the Irish element of the
Romish church. Believing this, or affecting
to believe it, they cannot, with consistency
object to an effort calculated to unload the
American cities of this class, and thereby, as
| they would claim, purifying the moral and
political atmosphere by the removal of per-
nicious influences. Again, from the stand
point of class infected with no religious
| fanaticism, but who are disposed to deprecate
anything like sectarianism in the conduct of
business affairs, the movement in proposing
to confne itself to single religious denomi-
nation, must present itself as commendable
| for at least one very substantial reason. The
bane of new communities, as we'll as some
| not so entirely new, is churches-not religion
but the edifices. Whenever a score or half a
hundred families get together under the Or
dinary circumstances of emigration or immi-
grafton, the first thing to be done
is to build from three to six
churches, each, of which, with heavy
mortgage, is solemnly dedicated to the
Lord. The effect is twofold; it keeps peo-
pie from the churches who would remain
were it not for their incumbrances, and it
burdens those who do remain with debt
which heavily handicaps them in their bust
ness progress. It would be an enormous
gain, both in money and churchmembership.
we've all colonization plans to be projected
and carried out SO that each colony would,
in the main, represent only ono religious
denomination. The saving in the cost of
t'sacred" edifces, contributions, subscrip-
tions, interest on mortgages, and the like,
would be beyond computation. One good
church, in the case of such unity, would take
the place of half dozen bad ones, and
would be one which would not constantly
Hout lO per cent. mortgage in the face OF
heaven. In Chicago the dead weight OF
church mortgages and the support of un-
necessary churches upon business is an evil
OF the most serious magnitude. We're just
One-half the churches in this citV Obliterated