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THE LIFE AND TIMES 
OF JOHN CARROLL 



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UNPUBUSHED MAP OF TTIE CATHOLIC CHURCH 

IN THE UNrTEO STATE5 (IBIS) 

(bftltimora Cftthedral Archivas) 



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THE 

LIFE AND TIMES 

OF 

JOHN CARROLL 

Archbishop of Baltimore 
(1735-1815) 



PETER Q^UjILDAY 

Docttnf it teitncet moraiti et hittorvptet (Louvom) 

Proftttor of Churek History, The Catholic Unimrtity of America 



THE ENCYCLOPEDIA PRESS 

119 Eaat S7tli Sata 

New York 

1922 



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NiBit Omtat: AiTBUa J. Scaklam, D.D., Cttuar 
iHvtmjkTDi; Paiuci J. Hatu, D.D.. ArckbiAat of Iftm Ytrk 



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CONTENTS 



CHAPm FA<X 

XXIII. The First National Synod (November 7- 

". 1791) 419 

XXIV. The Founding of Geoxgetown College 

(1789-1791) 447 

XXV. The Couing op Saint Sulpice (1791) ■ ■ 463 
XXVI. Reugious Orders op Women in the United 

States 478 

XXVII. The Rise of the Reugious Orders for Men 

IN THE United States 504 

XXVIII. The Restoration of the Society of Jesus 

IN THE United States (1806-1815) . . 524 
XXIX. The Division of the Diocese of Baltimore 

(1808) 567 

XXX. The Suffragan Sees: I. Boston (1792-1815) 602 
XXXI. The Suffragan Sees: II. New York (1790- 

1815) 626 

XXXII. The Suffragan Sees: III. Philadelphia 

(1793-1815) 644 

XXXIII. TheSuffraganSbes:IV. Bardstown (1808- 

1815) 686 

XXXIV. Archbishop Cakboll's Extra-Diocesan Jur< 

isdiction 700 

XXXV. The Church in the Diocese of Baltimoke 718 
XXXVI. Thb American Secular Clergy .... 749 
XXXVII. Church Discipline and the Laity (1790- 

181S) 767 

XXXVIII. Educational and Charitable Institutions 

(1790-1815) 790 

XXXIX. The Last Years (1811-1815) .... 804 
XL. Critical Essay on the Sources .... 833 



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ILLUSTRATIONS 

Map of Catholic Church in United States (1815) FroHtispiect 

TACIVB 
PACl 

Rt. Reverend Leonard Neak, D.D 424 

Georgetowfi CoU^e — Original Building 44O 

St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, 1791 472 

Map of Diocese of Baltimore, 1808 576 

John Cardinal Cheverus 608 

Bishop Richard Luke Concanen 632 

Bishc^ Michael E^n 648 

Bishop Benedict Joseph Flaget 696 

Bishop Du Bourg 713 

Baltimore Cathedral S24 



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CHAPTER XXIII 

THE FIRST NATIONAL SYNOD 

(November 7-11, 1791) 

New Year's Day, 1791, found Bishop Carroll eager to ixffa 
Ae great tasks which were to be accomplished for Catholidsm 
in the United States. The first of these was to ensure the estab- 
lishment of discipline in the Church. Father Reuter had not yet 
aroused the spirit of schism in Baltimore, but in Philadelphia and 
in Boston the signs of discontent were plainly to be seen. Father 
John Heilbron's election to the pastorate of Holy Trinity Chord). 
Philadelphia, on March 22, 1789, by the trustees, "acting on 
their self-assumed right," precipitated a contest for spiritual 
mpremacy which tasted a decade, with various periods of 
armistice, one of which was in January, 1790, when Dr. Carroll 
administered the Sacrament of Confirmatioa in the Church and 
reconciled Father Hdlbron to ecclesiastical discipline.* That the 
bishop-elect foresaw the trouble which would ensue is evident 
from an account of the affair written to Antonelli on February 6, 
1790.* The schism he predicted came later, and will form the 
subject of a separate chapter. It was especially the situation 
in the Church of Boston that gave Dr. Carroll anxiety during 
his absence from the United States. When he returned from 
England, the winter was well advanced, and the condition of the 
roads hardly warranted his making a personal visitation of his 
diocese. Apart from the stir caused by Father John Thayer in 
Boston, there was no need of an immediate Visitation. 

The old division of the Church here into three Districts — 
Northern, Middle and Southern — was continued after his return. 
There is »o document in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives to 
tell us whether any change was made in the reorganization of the 

* IHnnuui], Kthretftet ef Htiy Trim^ ParUk {ijif-'f'tf, p. II- PU1>- 
MpUa, 1)14. 

■ P rtt aiania Arehitti, Scnttart en^tiuli, toL Sgj, not faUoal 



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420 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

diocese at this tune. At the head of each District was a vkar- 
general, and there was a vicar-general for the whole diocese. 
In the printed Staluta of the first National Synod, Father Frands 
Fleming, O. P., is named as Vicar-General for the Northern 
District, (Pennsylvania and Delaware, the Jerseys, New York 
and New England) and Father Molyneux for the Southern 
District. It would appear that Bishop Carroll, then in residence 
at Baltimore, which was in the Middle District, acted without 
such an official. Besides these, there was a vicar-general for 
the whole diocese — Father Pellentz.' This management fur- 
nished an easy and effective system of govenmient for the Qiurch 
in the original Thirteen States. For the territory beyond the 
Alleghanies, the first resident vicar-general appointed was Dom 
Didier. After his departure from Gallipolis, Bishop Carroll sent 
the Sulpician Father Levadoux to Kaskaskia (1792), as Superior 
of the Missions in the old Illinois Country and as vicar-generaL 
When the English evacuated their garrisons in Michigan (1796), 
Father Levadoux was directed by Bishop Carroll to take up bis 
residence in Detroit, and Father Rivet was appointed Vicar- 
General of the Illinois Country. After Father Levadoux was 
recalled to Baltimore (1801), Father Gabriel Richard was 
appointed vicar-general in his stead. 

In all this vast territory, the one congr^ation which caused 
concern to Carroll was that of Boston. The scandal created in 
the Church there by the erratic and dishonest La Poterie was 
augmented, as we have seen, by the unfortunate adventurer, 
Rousselet. In his letters from London to Antonelli, Bishop 
Carroll had expressed his hope that the appointment of Father 
John Thayer, a native of Boston, would bring peace to the dis- 
tracted Church in that city. 

John Thayer, the first convert from the American Protestant 
ministry to the Catholic faith, was born of Puritan parents at 
Boston in 1755. After graduating from Yale College, he be- 
came a Congregationalist minister, and as such served as chaplain 
to Governor Hancock of Massachusetts. During the War of 
the Revolution, he assisted the troops in and around Boston, and 

* Father Fruntacb I* >Uo tstken of M "Vicarint Cuwnli* pro tot> djoecd." bl 
tlie prjnled Slatmit, but lo the Adt o[ 1794 iPropaganda AreUvti, Alii, mac 1794, 
f. 441M), ba ii BoitlaDcd u pMlor emcritqi of Fradctidctowa. 



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Tht First National Synod 431 

vhen the war was over — he was then about twetiQr-Mven years 
of age — ^be went to Europe for the sake of study and {Measure, 
"to karn the laii£;uages which are the most in use, and to acquire 
a knowledge of the constitution of states, of the manners, cus- 
toms, laws and government of the principal nations, in order to 
acquire, by this political knowledge, a greater consequence in 
my own country, and thus become more useful to it." * He 
arrired in France towards the end of the year 1781, and remained 
there ten months studying the language and the system of govern- 
ment. He fell ill at this time and his first concern "was to forbid 
that any Catholic Priest should be suffered to come near me; 
such was my attachment to my own sect." • After visiting 
England, he went to Rome, by way of Paris and Marseilles. 
At Rome, he studied the principles of the Catholic rel^ton "for 
the same reason that I should have wished to know the Religion 
of Mahomet, had I been at Constantinople." ' A little book, 
entitled : Manifesto di un Cavaliero Ckristiano Convertito alia 
Religione Caltolica, came to his hands, and a prayer at the 
beginning of the work pleased him so much that he began sajring 
tt "When I received this book, I had a secret presentiment that 
it would give me the finishing stroke, and it was with extreme 
difficulty that I could prevail upon myself to peruse it." ' The 
remarkable happenings when Saint Benedict Joseph Labre died 
in Rome so impressed him that he decided to become a Catholic, 
and he was received into the Church on May 25, 1783. The 
account of his conversion, written the following year, was printed 
in 1787, and was soon translated into French, Spanish and Portu- 
guese.* "I desire nothing more," he wrote at the end of his 
account. "For this purpose I wish to return to my own coimtry, 
in hopes, notwithstanding my unworthiness, to be the instrument 
of tiie conversion of my countrymen." * Thayer was advised 



* Tkt C«Hwrj(n of John Tkaytr, p. 94. (Cop; luad ii id ■ little Tolnm* atltlBl 
CtthtUt Tneu, pobliAed by CBmniikcy, FUUddphU, io 1B37, in tb* Libnir d th( 
ABorieui Cilholie HliUrioI Sodctj, PhiladdpUa, 14.14-60.). 

* IbU., p. Si. 

■ It-ii.. p. »8. 

* IbU., p. 109. 

■ FivoTTi IBiU. Catk. Attm., pp. i4e'i47} bit lUUd TtaTo'i pBbllcMioiu. 
Abods the ■cqaintioiu to the Cannollj LibnuT, it ihe Cithidlc Unlmtitj «[ Anwrin, 
Wafhincton, D. C are tii little copici of thew tccounU irf liii eonvcrrioo, all am- 
Ic np or m ry, Id varknu Unymei. (Cf. CalhtUe Hiiiiiricti Rtvim, ml. 1, 'pp. 410-4}}.) 

* Ctmetriien, tie., p. iij. 



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412 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

to go to Paris to bc^ his itudies for the priettbood, and after 
four years at the Seminary of St. Sulpice, he was ordainod in 
1787. He is continually mentioned in the correspondence be- 
tween Carroll and Antonelli from 1784 to 1790. For two years 
after his ordination. Father Thaj'er laboured in the London mis- 
sion, and towards the end of 1789, he set out for Boston, where 
he arrived, via New York, early in January, 1790. Ten days 
later, he wrote to Bishop Carroll, the following letter, on the 
back of which Carroll wrote: "Sollicits the Superiorship of 
N. E. States" : 

Rn/d Sir: I troubled you with a letter from N. York, in which I 
gave you my idea of the chapel in the place. Things in this town arc 
perhaps worae. The Catholics are exceedingly few, not above fifty 
or sixty at most & those are very poor for the most part. I am positive 
that they must have ereat difBculty to maintain a single priett, much 
less can they maintain two of us. Besides this, La Poterie (who is 
actually here and in poverty) has run the church so deeply in debt that 
■I wilt be a long time before it will emerge fr<Hn its present situation. I, 
therefore, wish you to place Mr. Rousselet in another parish as soon as 
possible or he will be in some measure useless here on account of his 
language; seems to be his own desire, as he has expressed it to another 
person tho' not to me. I suppose he will soon write to you on this 
head. I pray you to do this speedily or his long ft Tedious disposition of 
the exercises at chapel mi^t be an obstruction to my zeal & to the good 
which I may produce in this place. The reception which I received from 
the Governor, from the ministers, from my family ft in fine from all 
classes of people is the most flattering & is an omen perhaps of good 
success; tho' I am prepared for you to expect opposition. I wish you. 
Sir, to be kind enough to send me an express permission to duplicate at 
discretion, likewise, a directory as you've altered it — English one 

I once more beg you not to put me in shackles by pennittmg any 
priest to officiate in the M. England Stales unless anthorixed by me. In 
this town especially one priest is sufficient at present. My reason lor 
mentioning this so often is the fear lest religion, which is at present at 
an ebb — shall suffer from some intruder. I should wish for an authentk 
paper in Latin from you constituting me superior of the mission in N. 
England under you, which I might be able to show to every arrivmg priest. 
I suppose. Sir, you believe my intentioa so pure as not to wish this 
from desire of domination or superiority. 

I've said. Sir, Mr. Rousselet is ItHig ft tedious in disposing bis chapel 
exercises; e. g., on a week day of obligation, when people can hardly 
find time for a low mass, hell say or ung two litanies, fottr prayers ft 
give benediction in the morning, ft in the afternoon hell have vespers, 
benediction, ft a apiritnal reading, tho' only four or five people can attend 



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The First National Synod 433 

A cannot nnderaiuid one word out of fonr which be uyt. Some bne 
toU him he keeps them too long in the cold, & he aniwen we mi^rt 
never think it too long to be in God'i House.'* 

Hancock, whom he had served as chaplain, was again Governor 
of the State ; and John Adams, who received Thayer at Auteoil 
in 1785, was President of the nation. The convert priest was 
at first kindly received by a!!. Catholics and non-Catholics, The 
dty numbered about eighteen thousand inhabitants and of these 
his little ilock was scarcely a hundred souls. Of his reception 
in his native city, we have his own description in a letter dated 
Boston, July 17, 1790: 

My Dear FritnA: I reached Boston on the 4th of January last, and 
have everywhere been received with the most flattering attention. My 
own relatives expresjed the greatest joy at my return, Tiie Governor 
of the state, whose chaplain I formerly was, hat promiied to do all in 
bis power to forward my views, and favor the work for which I have 
been sent to Boston. I have received nothing but kindness and attention 
from the ministers of the town. Uany of them have visited me and 
evmced a degree of cordiality which I bad little reason to expect. The 
officers of the custom house have also carried their politeness so far ss 
to unwillingly take anything for the many large boxes which I had 
procured from France and England, having looked upon their contents as 
things designed for sacred purposes. 

On the first Sunday after my arrival, I announced ti>e word of God 
and all flocked in crowds to hear me. A great deal of curiosity is mani- 
fested to become acquainted with onr belief, and this fair toleration 
allowed here has enabled me to enter into a full exposition of it. 

On every occasion the Protestants eviiKed the same eagerness to come 
and hear me but they content themselves with that. The indiiference and 
philosoidiy which prevail here as mucb as anywhere else, are an obstacle 
to the fruit of preaching which it is exceedingly difficult to remove — an 
obstacle, however, which does not in the least discourage me. I have 
bad the pleasure of receiving a few recantations, and my dear neophytes 
afford me great consolation by the sanctity of their life. About a dozen 
of them can attend Mass daily. I am engaged in instructing a few 
Protestants, whom I hope to restore to our Common Mother. I recom- 
mend our mission most earnestly to your prayers. We are m want of 
labourers for the cultivation of the immense field which has been so long 
abandoned in the United States." 



*• BclUmer* Cathtdral Ankivtt, Cue IB-Hii printed in tkt lUttfthtt. vol. 
nviii, n- t9-><M. 

> aitd in tbt VmiUi Sftu Catkotic Mme—it. voL viii, p. iiC C(. TW Firtt 
AmtHcmi Mtitiat to nan-Cttkelict. in tha Rtttanka, voL Kriii, |if. 4I-4). 



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424 ^A« ^if' <*'"' Times of John Carroll 

But this joy was short-lived. Father Rousaelet wu to Boston 
at the tttne, and Father Thxytt soon realized that the French 
priest's presence in Boston was detrimental to the good of reli- 
gion. In his letter on the sea, of July, 1790, Bishop Carroll 
r^etfully announced to Cardinal Antonelli the disturbed state 
of the Church in Boston. "When I left America," be writes, 
"thit^s in that mission were not very tranquil, because one pert 
of the congregation desired to retain Father Thayer, and another 
part, his predecessor, and it is impossible for the two of them 
to be maintained. Of the outcome of this controversy, I hope 
to be informed in Europe." In this letter, Carroll says that 
Roussetet was a man of excellent character and morals. He 
was unaware of the priest's unfortunate mode of conduct, until 
after his return to Baltimore. In November, 1790, Father 
Rousselet's followers, during Thayer's absence, called Dr. Parker, 
a Protestant minister, to read prayers over one of their number 
who had died, and on returning Rousselet said a Requiem Mass 
in Dr. Parker's church. 

Father Thorpe had warned Dr. Carroll, in his letter from 
Rome, of August 11, 1790, that Thayer would bear watching. 
"It will be necessary to have a priest of friendly tyt over Mr. 
John Thayer, of Boston ; his passion for more independence than 
any Apostle in God's Church ever had or desired, may involve 
himself and others in great ditHculties." '* The newspapers of 
the day published letters in which Thayer figured as "John 
Turncoat," and in the conflict which had arisen between the 
French and Irish factions, charges and countercharges were made 
by the two priests, Thayer and Rousselet On October 14, 1790, 
Thayer wrote to Leonard Neale, who was acting vicar-general 
in Dr. Carroll's absence, a strong reply to the accusations brought 
against him.'* 

After Dr. Carroll's return, the eccentric priest wrote describing 
the condition of affairs in Boston, and in January, 1791, Father 
Rousselet was suspended. From this time until the arrival of 
Father Matignon, August 20, 1793, Father Thayer was the taHy 
priest of the Diocese of Baltimore in New England. Early in 
1791, at Thayer's request, Bishop Carroll went to Boston, where 



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RT. REV. LEONARD NEALE. D.D. 



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The First National Synod 4»5 

he socceeded in making peace between the Prendi and Irish 
Catholics, when they accepted Father Thayer as that pastor.** 
Bishop Carroll was welcomed with profuse cordiality on this, 
his first visit to Boston. His personal character and his national 
prominence alike recommended him to the patriotic inhabitaids. 
Hancock attended Mass in the church, as a mark of respect, and 
the bishop was asked to pronounce the benediction at a banquet of 
the Ancient and Honourable Artillery.^* Boston was at that 
time, of all the cities in America, the most openly hostile to the 
Catholic Church, but Bishop Carroll's visit was the beginning 
of a better feeling. Had Father Thayer been more amiable and 
conciliatory, there is little doubt that his mission would have 
proved successful. In one of his letters, June ii, 1791, written 
before leaving Boston, Bishop Carroll says: "It is wonderful 
to tell what great civilities have been done to me in this town, 
where a few years ago, a 'popish' priest was thought to be the 
greatest monster in creation. Many here, even of their pritKipftl 
people, have acknowledged to me that they would have crossed 
to the opposite side of the street, rather than meet a Roman 
Catholic some time ago. ... I am very sorry not to have 
here a clergyman of amiable, conciliatory manners, as well as of 
real ability."** Father Thayer was gifted with genius of no 
mediocre quality, and was a scholar as well as a wit ; but, as one 
writer has expressed it, "not a little of the uncompromising Puri- 
tan spirit chmg to him to the end." 

How pleased Dr. Carroll was with the courtesy accorded to 
him in Boston, can be seen by the following letter to Governor 
Hancock: 

Ballintort, Aitf/. i8, 1791. 
Sir. 

I should have great cause to reproach myself, & would deserve the 
impuUtion not onl^ of ingratitude, but absolute insensibility, if I neglected 
to make my warmest acknowledgments to your Excellency for yonr inira- 
merable farours, & civilities, during my stay at Boiton. They were mcb 
M both astonished and confounded ax: and I should have (aid much 
sooner the tribute, which I owe your Excellency, if I could have com- 
manded the smallest leisure since my return to Baltimore. I knew that 



' Btitiman Catkriral ArCMim. Cue lo-Fi. 

' Hittory ef Um Calkalie Ckurek: Nra Enelatid Slttt, ml. i, p. a< 

■ Ct. Una** Stilt Clhalie Uttitu, ml. viil, p^ I4«-IS0. 



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426 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

jponr Excellency was cocipicuou* for civility & politenesi, u well u 
eciinent for patriotism and ynblic semcei ; and I had alwayt heard, that 
the town of Bosttm was distinguiihed for iti hospitality: Btit every 
thing wu far beyond my highest expectatiotu. When my frieada here 
uk me the particulara of my Ute journey, I feel myself incapable of 
conveying to them adequate ideas of the friendly, the cordial, the honour- 
^le treatment, which I received from the first magistrate of the Com- 
monwealth, & from its respectable citizens: and now that I would testify 
to your Excellency the grateful feelings of my heart, I experietice the 
same inability of expressing them, as stroi^ly as they are impressed 
on me. 

I must take the liberty of requesting your Excellency to auure Mrs. 
Hancock, that I retain for her the same sentiments: that her affability 
and condescension have made a lasting impression on me; and that I ahall 
be anxious for the moment, when I may again renew to both of yon every 
testimony of my respect and veneration.^' 

When Father Matignon reached Boston in 1792, Bishop Carroll 
recalled Thayer, and in 1796 granted him an exeiU from the 
diocese. From 1792 imtil 1803, Thayer wandered from one part 
of America and Oinada to the other, always in difficulties and 
yet serene in his brave but blundering endeavour to spread the 
truth. We hear of him in Limerick, Ireland, in 1805, trying to 
induce missioners to go out to the States at his expense; in \9a/7, 
he was at La Trai^, and was reported to have written to Rome, 
ui'ging new sees in the United States. He remained most of 
the time in Limerick, where he died in 1815. 

Some months before Carroll's arrival. Father Thayer, in an 
advertisement dated November 24, 1790, announced that he 
wotild preach on the week-day evenings in the neighboriI^[ towns 
and would answer any objections his auditors wished to make, 
either publicly or privately, as the objectors desired. The Rev. 
Mr. George Leslie, a Congregationatist minister of New Hamp- 
shire, r^arded this as a challenge, and a debate was arranged 
for January 26, 1791. Leslie grew tired of the controversy 
after the opening address; and after waiting a' year for him to 
answer. Father Thayer published his Controversy between the 
Rev. John Thayer, Catholic Missionary of Boston, and the Rev. 
George Leslie, Pastor of a Church in Washington, New Hamp- 
shire. 

In the early summer of 1791, it was reported to Dr. Carroll 

" Printed In the Rttardj, toL Kviil, p. gig. 



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Tkt First National Synod 447 

that Ttnyer had said he would refute to kave Boeton, if ordered 
to do to by Bishop Carroll, and with a promptness that waa 
dtaracteristic, Dr. Carroll wrote asking for a denial of the report 
On June 13, 1791, Thayer sent the following declaration of 

obedience to the bishop: 

The subacriber having been charged with lajmig that be would not 
obey the Bi*hop but place binuelf under the jurisdiction of the Pope 
ni cue he should be ordered by the Bishop to leave Boston, hereby 
declares that he does admowledge and will submit to the authority of 
the Bishop in case bis removal shotild be required by him and ihia shall 
be binding on him until a general r^ulation respecting the power of the 
Bishop in removing Qergymcn be settled by common consent of the 
American clergy. 

Jno. Thaw 

Botton, /mte 13, 779/.'* 

In passing throtigh New York and P>hiladelphia, Bishop Carroll 
had an opportunity of judging the state of the Church in these 
two centres. The appointment of Father William O'Brien, O. P., 
as pastor of St, Peter's Church in New York City, gave peace 
and organized Catholic life to that distressed congr^ation, while 
Father Nugent's forced retirement in 1790 removed any further 
cause for schism. For the next twenty years. Father O'Brien 
kept order and harmony in the Catholic body of the dty and 
State. In Philadelphia, the three churches — St Joseph's, St. 



■ Btltimert Ctthtdnt Archmt. CiM 11B-O7; printed in Ike lUmnktt, nL ix. 
p. 4>i ef. Patrick Cimpbelt to Cirroll, BoMon, Auttut ji, 1791, Oid., Cut i-Tt, 
Anmntlr Thtya rauiBcd in md aroimil BaitoD until 1794, whet Dr. Carroll aeat 
Un to Alaaodna, Va., when be aaid Maai in the bsoae of Cotoml nt^eratd, Wadf 
inston's aidoJa^anp dnrina tbe RerolBtiiifL TbajCT'i ofiinlinu on Haray wdrt too 
advanc to reader Um tctt papular, and he realind tbat Ua naafulaeat waa cone. la 
Jnir, 1794, be applied for an fnot, bnt Bi^op Carroll retnaed It, "while the diacoe 
ta in aiH^ prcaaing need of dcTYJinen.*' In 1796, he waa in New York, and a memorial 
(nm lai CatfaoUc laTnwn, ngneatlns that he he appointed aaalitant to Father CBrieM 
waa rcjcEled br Bialnp Carroll IBaMmeri Cailuinl Archivi, Caae ii-Li). A loof 
letter dated June Ji, 1796, on the negleclal condition of the Chnnh In the metnpcUa 
ama fnjwi kla pen to Dr. Camdl (Au«rrjk«, vol. axrlti, p. 14); it endi with ■ 
reamat for an txrai, which Carroll aaat to the erratic priaat on Jntj ), 1796, 
'SritUoc Ton more Mild ferttUK than I have heen able to proenre for ron." After 
lUa date •< And Un in Otufeec, %» wc lean frgn a Ictta acst by Biahop Hubert ta 
Dr. Carroll, nnds date of Norember >6, I79<: "I ba*e not sinn him any cnosnrac*- 
Hent to itmr witb ni" (Rttarii vol. zriii, p. 179). In 179S, Thayer waa ba^ is 
BoelOB, and the neat fonr r<nra be ipoit in tke nriiiirine of SeMw^. SlaTCrr aiaia 
wai bU ouIoIbs, and In 1801 be aet oM for Europe (SFaiaiaa, Skrickn, tie., 
pp. Bo-Bi). Cf. Leonard Brooke to Carroll, Eoflud, Jaatanr |i, 1(07 tBaMmtn 
CattedrsJ Artktvu, Caae a-Bi). 



idbvGoOgle 



426 Tht Lift and Timts of John Carroll 

Mary*!, Bud Holy Trini^ — ^were progressing in a way to give 
the Bishop encoun^ement 

During the rest of the year which followed his return from 
England, Bishop Carroll was busy preparing- for the first Na- 
tional Council of the Church in his vast diocese. He had an 
opportunity while in Philadelphia, New York and Boston, to 
decide upon the questions which should be brought before that 
assembly. A short time after his return from Boston, he issued 
to the priests (October 27, i^i) the official notice of the amuog 
Sjmod. Dr. Carroll wrote to his friend, Charles Plowden, at 
diistime; 

On the 7th of next month our clergy are to meet here in a diocesan 
synod. Then we ihall discuu the mode of preserving the succession to 
the episcopacy of the United States. Instead of a coadjutor, I am much 
inclined to solicit a division of tny diocese and the creation of another 
biihoprick. One only objection, of much weight, retards my determined 
resolution in favor of this scheme, and that is, that previous to such a 
step, a uniform discipline may be established in all parts of this great 
continent; and every measure so 6rmly concerted, that as little danger 
as possible may remain of a disunion with the Holy See. I am very 
fearful of this event taking place in succeeding time unless it be guarded 
against by every prudential precaution. Our distance, though not so 
great if geometrically measured, as South America, Goa and China, yet 
in a political light is much greater. South America, and the Portuguese 
possessions in Africa and Asia, have through thdr metropolitical countries, 
an intermediate connexion with Rome; and the taissionaries in Gima 
are almost all Europeans. But we have no Eiuopcan metropolis, and 
oar clergy soon will be neither Europeans nor have European connexions. 
There will be the danger of a propension to a schismatical separation 
from the centre of unity. But the Pounder of the Church sees all these 
things, and can provide the remedy. After doing what we can, we must 
commit the rest to His Providence.** 

On the day appointed for the opening session of this historic 
gathering, November y, there were present at Bishop Carroll's 
house in Baltimore, the following priests : *° 

Very Rev. James Pellentz, Victtr-General of tke Diocese. 

" Burt, ap. tit., pp. iJ3-ij4- 

■■ CamcQU PraviKcitUa Ba Uim arrtuU liMta •^ ••>■« 1I19 lUtM aJ tmmm il49. 
Second H&dan, Baltimore, iSji. Tke Ant 14 pp. ol tUt Tolrane ooMaia tke Jtatnta 
of 1701- A GODtanponrT eopr of the Sttiatt of ij^t will t* lotutd in tba Btlthman 
ClktinI jtreUvtt, Lrtttr-Batk, voL {. In the AUi of 17M (Pn>#a0n^ Arcliivtti 
tkm* Btmei are tt^euai with Ike locatioa of tlit pariahci to wUch the prieMt wen 



idbyGoogle 



The First National Synod 429 

Very Rev. Robert Molyneux, Viear-Gentral of the SomHuth 
Distriet. 

Very Rev. Frands Anthony Ffemiog, O. P. Vitar-General of 
the Northern District. 

Very Rev. Francis Nagot, President of St. Mary's Seminary, 

Very Rev. Louis de Lavau. 

Rev. James Frambach. 

Rev. John Ashton. 

Rev. Henry Pile. 

Rev. Robert Plunkett, President of Georgetown College. 

Rev. Stanislaus Cerfoumoat. 

Rev. Laurence GraessI, Promoter. 

Rev. Anthony Gamier. 

Rev. Leonard Neale. 

Rev. Charles Sewall. 

Rev. Sylvester Boarman. 

Rev. William Elling, Promoter. 

Rev. James Van Haflfel. 

Rev. Joseph Eden. 

Rev. John Tessier. 

Rev. Francis Beeston, Secretary. 

On November 10, Father John Bolton, Pastor of St. Joseph's 
Eastern Shore, and Father John Thayer of Boston came, the 
latter undoubtedly being the most observed man of the gnnqt. 

On the momit^ of the seventh, alt the dergy assembled at 
Bishop Carroll's residence. The bishop, in his pontifical vest- 
ments, with mitre and crozier, followed the procession of the 
priests, who were in cassock and surplice, from his house to the 
pro-Cathedral, where everything necessary for the Synod bad 
been arranged. Bishop Carroll then formally opened the Ses- 
sions with a discourse upon the meaning of the assem- 
bly. Fathers Leonard Neale and William Ellit^ were appointed 
Promoters of the Synod, and Father Francis Beeston was named 
Secretary. 

The Second Session, November 7, was spent deliberating upon 
the adoption of rules for the administration of Baptism and 
Confirmation. Many Catholics had been found who were not 
certain of having received these Sacraments, and others who had 
been baptized privately or t^ non-Catholic ministers, were anx- 



idbvGoOglc 



430 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

iou8 that their sinritual status be settled. Rules were made for 
conditional Baptism, wherever necessary, and the necessity of 
keeping baptismal registers was impressed upon the clergy, 

The Third Session, November 8, was devoted to the Sacra- 
ment of the Holy Eucharist. After describing the neatness and 
cleanliness desirable around the altar and in the churches, the 
faithful were admonished of their duty to support the priests 
in their efforts to make the House of God worthy of the Sacrifice 
which takes place therein. Accordingly it was decreed that in 
every parish two or three men of known virtue and of standing 
in the community be chosen to act with the pastors as trustees 
of the Church. These men were to be chosen by the pastor or 
by the coi^^ation. On Sundays and holy days of obligatbn 
the trustees were to have the duty of taking up the offertory 
collection. In parishes where no provision was made for the 
pastor's sustenance or for the poor, the offerings of the faithful 
were to be divided, according to an old custom in the Church, 
into three parts : one for the pastor's maintenance, another for 
the poor, and the third for the ufdieep of the church. If the 
pastor and the poor were otherwise provided for, then all offer- 
ings were to go toward the church itself; for vestments and 
for sacred vessels. A cassock should always be worn 
in vesting for Mass so far as this could be done without great 
inconvenience. The cassock and surplice were to be worn in 
all other priestly ceremonies. Pastors were admonished that 
before admission to First Holy Communion, children should be 
fully instructed in Christian doctrine, and they should be urged 
to make a general confession of their lives up to that time. 
The time of First Holy Communion was not to be delayed too 
long, but it was thought inadvisable for children who had not 
reached the use of reason, to be admitted as communicants. 

In the Fourth Session, November g, the administration of the 
other Sacraments was considered. In order that perfect order 
and authority in the administration of the Sacrament of Penance 
be established, it was decreed that any priest within the diocese, 
exercising faculties for confession without the express approba- 
tion of the bishop, should incur suspension and should fall under 
censure; any whose faculties had been revoked, administering the 
Sacrament of Penance, exc^t in grave cases of necessity, should 



idbvGoOgle 



The First National Synod 431 

likewise fall under this censure. The faithful were to be warned 
that confessions to unapproved priests were worthless. A prohi- 
bition under pain of suspension was decreed against any priest 
who should leave his congr^ation and take up his residence else- 
where, without episcopal sanction. Stringent laws regarding the 
Sacrament of Matrimony, were then passed. Freedom to marry 
had to be proven in every case, and no one could be married 
until after the triple publication of the banns. Mo one was to be 
admitted to the Sacrament of Marriage unless he or she could 
give evidence of a passable knowledge of Christian doctrine; 
and in this matter, the Synod adopted the rules laid down by 
the cotmdl of the Church of Lima, Peru, held in the time of 
St Turibius. The principal doctrines of religion which were to 
be known by the contracting parties, were: God the Creator 
and Redeemer of the world; eternal reward; the Trinity; the 
incarnation, death and resurrection of the Saviour ; sorrow for 
sin; acknowledgement of God's commandments and of the 
Church's precepts; and love of God and of one's neighbour. 
Pastors were urged to exert every holy influence possible to 
prevent mixed-marriages. The Synod recognized the unavoid- 
ability of mixed-marriages in the state of society then existent 
in America ; and the following rules were passed to regulate these 
unions: (l) Catholics should be gravely and seriously admon- 
isbed that great inconvenience frequently arises from sudi mar- 
riages, and they should be exhorted to show their Christian 
fortitude by restraining themselves from entering into such 
unions. (2) Where the pastor realized that his admonition was 
of DO avail, he should diligently set himself to lessen the danger 
of perversion. (3) The non-Catholic party to the marriage should 
be required to promise that no obstacle to the practice of the 
Faith or to the rearing of the children in the true religion would 
be placed after marriage. (4) Pastors should proceed cautiously, 
for the Catholic party might be induced to have the marriage 
performed before a non-Catholic minister. (5) Where such 
seemed to be the probable outcome, the pastor was allowed to 
perform the marriage ; but care had to be taken that no matri- 
monial impediment be overlooked, such as defect in baptism, 
consanguinity, etc. (6) These nuptials were, however, not to 
be blessed with the blessing prescribed in the Roman Ritual. 



idbvGoOgle 



43* The Life and Times of John CorroU 

The Fifth Session. November lo, at which Fathers Bolton 
and Thayer were also present, was given to the formuktioD of 
regulations regarding divine services and the observance of faoty 
days of obligation. Wherever possible, a Missa Cantata was to 
be sung on Sundays and holy days, and before Mass the Litany 
of the Blessed Virgin, to whom the diocese had been specially 
dedicated, was to be said. At the end of the Gospel of the Mass, 
the prayers prescribed for the rulers of the government and for 
the welfare of the republic were to be read ; ** the Gospel proper 
for the day was to be read in the vernacular; notification of 
marriage banns, of coming feast days, and of other matters of 
parish interest was to be given. A sernton was then to be 
preached, and it should be such as would encourage and exhort 
the faithful to lead perfect Christian lives. In the aftenuxm. 
Vespers should be sung, and the service should be dosed with 
Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament. This should be 
followed by catechetical instructions. Hymns in the vernacular 



■• It wu mt tbii time thM Biihop Cairnll wrote hu vdl-ki 
CMI AutkvrMtt at nr Country: 



Wa pnr Tb«, O almlgbtr and aternal Godi Who throiuk Jcnia OiriM but 
mals) Thj (lui? to all nattiHU, to praem tbc vnrks of Thj merer, that Thjt 
Qmich, beios ipread tkrcnwh tu wbole world, may eontiiiua with aneliaiicias 
faith io Iht eonf caaioo of Thr name. 

Wc piar Tbtt, Who abiM art cood and bolr, to endow with hcanolr kdowlcdte, 
ilnoere atu, and uoctilr of life, osr chief Nihop, N.N., the Ticar of Oar Lmil 

Sam ChriM, in the nvernnent of Hit Church; our own biibop, K.N. (or — <- 
dop)j tU otW Uibop*, prdatea, and paKora of the Chun^i 
thoaa who ars appcdiited to ozerciac amoiwat oi the {unctiooi of the 



We prajr Thee, OGod of migbt, wiidooi, and jnalleel tbronch Whan authority 
li ritmr atfaiBiatcred, Uw* are enaeted, and judgment decreed, aaiiai with Ttqr 
holr ^rit of ooonact and fortitude the Preddent of the United Statea, that Ua 
admJHMntioa our be conducted in riihteopancaa, and be eminently uicfal to Thj 



paoiile over wbom he praidcit Iv eoeoaragiDi due rcipcct for Tiituc and rdiaion; 
by a failhfnl execiMian ol the lavta in jneiicc and mercy; and by retirtiiUDi vice 
and imawraiicy. Let the li(ht af Thy divine wiadom direct the ddiberationi of 
Coocraaa, and ahine forth in all the proceeding and lawa framed for our rule end 
fuvevumsit, ao that they may tend to the preaenpation of peace, the promotion of 
natianal happineai, the increaia of induatry, aobriety, and useful loiowledfe; and 
m» patpSoate to na the hieasins of equal liberty. 

Wa piay for hii excellency, the Covemor of thii State, for the member* of 
da Aaaonbly, foe all jodiee. nagiitntei, and other alBcera who are appointed 
to (tard imr political wdfare, that they nuy be enabled, h^ Thy poweKuf protec- 
tioo, 10 diatbarfs the dotica of their re*pecti*e lUtioiu with honesty and ability. 

We recommend likewiac, to Thy unbounded mercy, all our bretbrvn mrtA fellow. 
dtueo* Ihrotwhoat the United Sutea, that they may be bleaaed in the Imnwledce 
■nd aanctified u the obaervance of Tby moat hoV law; that they may be preaernd 
Ia tmiui, and in that peace which the world can not liTc; and after enjoyinc lb* 
blaaainn of tbia life^ be admitted to Ihoae which are eternal. 

FilBlIr, w« pray to Thee, O Lord of mercy, to remember the •onli of Thy 
•emni* deputed who are |oac before ui with tbe aisn of faith, and repoie in 
the aleep of peace: tbe eouU of om' parent*, rdaliTci, and friend*; of ttaoae who, 
whan liflnt, »cra member* of thi* confiention, and particutarly of lucfa aa are 
latdy dwtued; of ell badacton who, by their doution* or leaadce to tbia 
cfaura, whneeacd their wal for the dc«3>cy of divine wonhip attd prored thdr 
daJB to ow (raleftd and charitable rencmbranee. To theu, O Lofd, and to 
■11 Uat n*t in Oviat, iiaat, we beaeec h Thee, a place of refieeluBeal, light, and 
«TcrlMtin( pace, tbioath Ae aenc Jcao* CbtlM, otu Lord and SavioBr. Aiata. 



DigitzfidbyGOOgIC 



The First National Synod 433 

were also prescribed for divine service. Where but one priest 
resided in the parish, he should carry out these regulations as 
far as possible. After Mass, the whole congregation should 
recite with devotion, in the vernacular, the Our Father, the Hail 
Mary, the Apostles' Creed, and the Acts of Faith, Hope and 
Charily. The children and others who needed the same, were 
to be kept after Mass for instruction in the catechism. 
The next canon is worthy of record: 

At the beginniiiK of our episcopate, we have been impelled by an 
ardent deure of natning the Blessed Virgin Mary the principal patroness 
of our diocese, in order that, by Her intercession, faith and love of God, 
and sanctity of life among the people committed to our care may flourish 
and increase more and more. We were consecrated first Bishop of Balti- 
more on the feast of the Assumption, and led therefore to honour Her 
as our Patroness, we exhort our venerable confreres to venerate Her 
with a great devotion and often and zealously to commend this devotion 
to their flocks, 90 that by Her powerful patronage, they may be preserved 
from all evil. 

The Sunday within the octave of the Assumption was made 
the principal feast of the diocese. In order to stimulate the 
devotion of the faithful, Bishop Carroll stated that he would 
ask of the Holy See abundant spiritual favours tor all those who 
should receive the Sacraments of Confession and Communion 
on that feast. 

The difficulty experienced fay Catholic merchants and labourers 
in attending Mass on holy days of obligation was dealt with, and 
each pastor was asked to tise his own judgment in arranging 
for Mass at a convenient time, if it was possible. Rules and 
regulations for clerical life were decided upon, and the clergy 
were ordered, accordii^ to the Tridentine canons, to wear clothes 
becoming their station. Black was the prescribed color. The 
ecclesiastical law regarding domestic life in the presbyteries was 
to be strictly enforced and the vicars-general were to see to it 
that this ruling be diligently observed. 

On account of the increasing number of Catholics and their 
scattered condition in the diocese, the priests were called upon 
to perform almost heroic labours in order to minister to their 
people; this required abundant support for the maintenance of 
priests and of churches. The faithful were admonished, there- 



id byGoOglc 



434 ^^' ^*U ''"^ Times of John Carroll 

fore, of their grave obligation in this re^wct This obligstioa 
Bishop Carroll intended to treat in a separate Instniction or 
Pastoral, to be issued at the close of the Synod. 

The Paschal precept was to be rigorously enforced, and all 
Catholics who failed to comply with the r^^ulation of approach- 
ing the Sacraments during that season were to be refused 
Christian burial. Judgment, however, in all such cases, lay with 
the bishop or vicars-general, who were to be consulted. Where 
this could not be done, the pastor was to follow his own judgment 
and exercise all prudence in making his decision. All such cases 
were to be treated with the utmost charity and according to the 
ctrcumstances peculiar to each case. The spirit of the Church 
was to encourage the living to follow the laws of God rather 
than to punish the dead. 

The closing sermon, delivered by Father John Ashton, has 
never been published, so far as could be ascertained, and it ts 
so truly a picture of the times, that it is given here, without 
change, from the manuscript copy in the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archives : 

But be thou vigibmt, Mour in all thingt; do Ihe work of on evatgelitt; 
fulfil the ministry, be sober.— U Tim., ch, IV, v. j. 

The injunction of St. Paul to hia diiciple Titnothf, which I have just 
now cited, did not originate front an appreheiuon, or suspicion of any 
want of seal, or deficiency of duty in tlie execution of the trust committed 
to him, but from a paternal solicitude on the side of ye apostle to have 
the great work of the ministry faithfully executed by all who were 
entrusted to that charge. He foresaw that "there would be a time, when 
mankind would not bear sound doctrine, but according to their own desires 
would heap to tliemselves teachers having itching ears; that they would 
turn away their hearing from the truth, but would be turned to fables." 
He well Icnew that the only preservative against such pestiferous doc* 
trine, was the salutary and sound food of evangelical truth to be admin- 
istered by his successors in due season. "Preach the word, be instant 
in season, out of season, reprove, intreat, rebuke with all patience and 
doctrine." 

It is in the Bame sense. Rev. Gentn. and Brethren, that I address myself 
to you on the present occasion. If there ever was a time for the Pastors 
of Christ's flock to use extraordinary vigilance and care, it must be when 
we see those very times come, which the Apostle speaks of ; when error 
has supplanted sound doctrine, when the fables of pretended philosophy 
have eclipsed evangelical wisdom, and mankind intoxicated with the enthu- 
siasm of liberty will not mbmit to the tweet yoke of XsL But as faitit 



idbvGoOglc 



The First National Synod 435 

wtthoot good woria dies within itself, and becomes unprofitable, <o will 
dx preadung of the word of life be of no account unless supported by a 
virtuons and exemplary conduct, corresponding with the doctrine that 
he ttndertakei to inculcate into others. A teacher of divine truths has a 
double task, to accomplish the end of his ministry; he must make the 
truth known, and he must walk in the way that he makes known. He 
is the light and also the gtiide; and as Xst said, that he was the Way, 
the Truth, and Life itself, so must the minister be the way, by his example, 
the truth by his doctrine, and life itself by the expectati<H) of the reward, 
which in Xst's name he promises to all them that follow his directions and 
admonitions. In two points of view therefore do I bdiold the whole 
duty of a minister of God's Church; he is to aim at his own sanctification, 
and he is to aim at the sanctification of his neighbour. These two duties 
are so correlative that the one gives assistance to the other; so that the 
means by which he advances in sanctity himself, help also to sanctify 
his neighbour; and by aiming at [he sanctification of his neighbour, he 
necessarily advances in sanctity himself. Behold the subject of my dis- 
course to you on this Solemn occasion. 

It is a truth, my Brethren, not to be called in question, that however 
lawful it may be on occasions, to expose our life to danger, there is no 
case in which it is ever permitted to hazard our salvation, "For what 
does it avail a man, says Xst, to gain the whole world if be comes to 
lose his own soul?" The eternal and unalterable law of Charity and 
wisdom therefore dictates to every man, whatever station of life he may 
occupy, to look first to his own safety before he provides for the safety 
of others. Though the Providence of God watches over them who are 
employed in bis service, yet his goodness provides not only the means 
necessary to obtain the end we labour for, but also the assistance we 
stand in need of in the exercise of our duly; now this assistance which 
God gives us, are the graces by which he means to sanctify us in our 
state of life, and to which we must be ready to correspond, in the order 
in which they are distributed to us. The Ap. St Paul, that gospel of 
election, chosen by God to carry his name before the nations and kings, 
was so sensible of this truth that he tells us with respect to himself, 
'Hhat he should become a reprobate himself" by neglecting to subdue his 
passions and improve the stock of virtue which he had acquired. It 
was neither his learning, nor his gift of tongues, nor his knowledge in 
Prophecies, nor his faith if it had been such as to move mountains, that 
he depended on ; for he was sensible that these were gifts for the benefit 
of others; but Charity he knew was a virtue that benefited himself; a 
virtue that included all other virtues, a virtue that has no bounds, a virtue 
tliat when dtdy cultivated produces fruits of justice, piety, sobriety, 
humility, mortification, patience, chastity, and obedience. These virtues, 
Rev. Brethren, are the ornaments of an Ecclesiastic, it is from such seeds 
ttiat good fruits may be expected; for whatever we sow, the same shall 
we reap; if we are deficient in virtue, we shall be disappointed in our 
atjKcUtiotu ; whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly, bnt he who sows 



idbvGoOgle 



43 6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

in benedictions will reap in benedictions. It is a matter of great afflictkn 
to our Holy Mother the Church, that the ministers whom she emplosrs, 
and who are daily occupied in the Divine Service, should be so little atten- 
live, to this ^eat point of sanctifying and perfecting themselves; I speak 
as I feel : and knowing my own deficiency in this point, I am willing to 
atone for my frailty by a public acknowledgment of my guilt. Pardon 
me, therefore, Rev. Gentlemen, for entering into a detail of certain 
points, to which for a few minutes I intend to draw your attention. In 
the first place therefore as St. Paul says to the Heb: "leaving the word 
of the beginning of Xst, let us go on to things more perfect." The chief 
duty and office of an Ecclesiastic ; is as the same Ap. says to offer daily 
gifts and sacrifices, first for his own sins, then for the peoples. The 
dignity to which we are raised by priesthood, makes us mediators between 
God and his people; the sacrifice intrusted to our hands is of such infinite 
value and effect, that we cannot approach to it without the most reverential 
awe, and worthy dispositions : we hold the place of angels, who offer up 
incense and the prayers of the Saints at the throne of God. and like 
them, this sacrifice should go through pure and luistained hands. But 
the misfortune is that habit makes familiarity and familiarity is often- 
times accompanied with disrespect. The world, even the profane world, 
is our censor in this point and nothing is more offensive, than to observe 
a want of due decorum, an indifference, a hurry resembling pain but above 
all a species of traffic and gain made of that which is the price of our 
redemption. I allow that a reasonable oblation may be received from the 
faithful for our intentions in this point; it would be to contradict the 
practice of the whole Church to deny it; for if we administer to them 
spiritual goods, as St. Paul says — it is but just that we should share of 
their carnal goods. But what I condemn is an over- solicitude for these 
carnal goods, which might sometimes make it appear that we set more 
value on them than the spiritual goods, that we administer in return. 
The same observation I make on the administration of the other Sacra- 
ments, and the exercise of our priestly functions. Let every species of 
avarice be banished; let nobody evacuate our glory in this point. Let our 
public discourses be tinctured as little as possible with what concerns our 
interest, lest it be observed that it is ata own selves that we preach but 
not Jesus Xst, and htm crucified : and lest the world that is so censorious, 
should have reason to ask, where is their God? 

The next duty of an Ecclesiastic is that of mental and vocal prayer. 
This, I conceive, to be the source of those spiritual treasures, from which 
he is to deal out so abundantly to others. For what means can there be 
of convincing others of the eternal truths of our religion, unless thcK 
same truths have made a strong impression on our own minds by frequent 
and serious reflexion? How can we enftame the hearts of others to 
virtue, if we are cold and indifferent to it ourselves? Sooner will a thorn 
bear grapes, or a thistle bear figs, than will the words of a preacher 
produce fruits of piety and justice in the hearts of his hearers, unlcM 
his own is first inflamed with it, irijm the fire of holy meditation. This 



idbvGoOgle 



The First National Synod 437 

made holy David say "that in the morning his meditation should kindle 
op like a fire." It was fri^n this source that he obtained those heavenly 
communications, those divine secrets, those sentiments of compunction, 
of hmnility and gratitude to God, of zeale for the Divine worship and 
the salvation of his neighbour. Besides meditation, the soul must be 
relieved and nourished with vocal prayer. The Church has fixed this 
duty on all Ecclesiastics, so that no day is exempt from its obligation. 
The divine oflke associates us to the choirs of angels, who incessantly 
sing the praises of God in heaven, while we mortal creatures are paying 
him the homage upon earth which will entitle us to join the celestial 
choirs. Let not use and the daily repetition, Revd Brethren, make this 
doty a mere task, but considerii^ it as a relief to mental prayer, as the 
balance at one end may sink. let the other always rise in due proportion. 
Another important point in the life of an Ecclesiastic, is a gravity and 
decency of outward comportment. The Ap. In his first Epistle to the 
Cor. says "when I was a child I spoke as a child, I understood as a child; 
1 thought as a child. But when I became a man, T put away the things 
of a child.'' The same roa; be said of the life of an Ecclesiastic; having 
consecrated himself to God, he is no longer to consider himself as a citt2en 
of the world; he is no longer to share in the diversions, employments or 
concerns of the world; but a gravity of comportment, must show itself 
in his speech, dress and air. In short he must put away the old man of 
the world and put on the new man, renewed according to Jesus Xst. He 
must not only crucify the flesh with Its vices and concupiscenses, but must 
renounce to the world with its vanities and follies. This is so conformable 
to the spirit of humility which Jesus Xst recommended so earnestly to 
his Apostles, to the sentiments of St. Paul, recommending sobriety and 
gravity to the ministers of Xst, that it may justly be called the distinctive 
mark of an Ecclesiastic. "In ail things (he tells Titus) show thyself 
an example of good works, in doctrine, in integrity, in gravity." From 
whence it follows that all affectation of worldly vanity in fashions of 
dress, elegance of furniture and equip^e. extravagance and sumptuous- 
ness of living, are wholly inconsistent with the character we bear; and 
that humility, frugality and moderation are virtues that add ornament to 
the character of a minister of God: whereas a levity of manners and 
spirit of dissipation, a fondness of diversions and dress, a love of com- 
pany and good cheer, alienate our minds from the true objects of our 
ministry and render us no more than sounding brass, or empty vessels in 
the minds of others. I shall conclude this first part of my discourse to 
you. Revd, Gentlemen, after saying a few words, on the daily employ- 
ment of our time. 

As idleness is the source of many evils in every state of life, much 
more is it so in an Ecclesiastical state ; for it is morally impossible for an 
Ecclesiastic living in the midst of the world without occupation to main- 
tain the purity of his profession. How then must such a one spend the 
hours of the day, who is neither addicted to prayer, nor to the study of 
the Divine Sciences? In frequent visits, useless conversation, parties of 



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438 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

pleasure, in a toft and easy life, and by that mtaat exposed to every 
temptation to which idleness infallibly leads him. If in a religious Mate, 
where time is so distributed between many ocmpationi and the eyes of 
Superiours are a check on the subjects, idleness be found to be the most 
dangerous rock to their vocation, how much more so, when a clergTmaa 
is left to himself, the master of himself and his actions, having nobody 
but God to direct him, who b soon forgotten, and having no coercive 
restraint but his duty which is easily thrown aside. An office hurried over 
slightly, becomes soon the burden of the day, and his life resembles more 
that of a professed worldling, than a follower and minister of Jesus Xst 
I have laid before you the means by which an Ecclesiastic is to aim at 
his own sancti location ; I have now to show you by what means he is to 
aim at the sanctification of his neighbour. 

The difference between a religious state and a pastoral state (which is 
the one I now speak of) is that the one professing the former is thereby 
bound to aim at perfection, but the latter is engaged in the actual state 
of perfection. The nearer we approach to the example which Xst has 
given us, the nearer are we united to Him in perfection. Thus when Xst 
said to his Apostles come and follow Me, he called them to the same kind 
of life which he exercised himself ; he not only invited them to imitate his 
poverty, his humility, his meekness and his sufferings, but he told them 
that he would make them fishers of men; that they should be associated 
to htm in the ministry of the work which his Father had given Him to 
do, and should in reward thereof, sit on seats, judging the twelve tribes 
of Israel. Behold, Revd. Gentlemen and Brethren, the excellency and 
dignity of your calling! This made a venerable Father and eminent 
Ecclesiastical writer not scruple to say: "That of ail Divine things, the 
most divine is, to cooperate with God for the salvation of souls." It is 
an employment which God has not even trusted to his Angels, but by 
honoring human nature with his Divine Person, He has also honoured 
it, with a participation of his divine commission. A minister of God 
therefore thus dignified, and exalted, takes upon himself three essential 
obligations respecting his flock. He is to feed them; he is to lead them 
by his example, and cure them by his labours. As to the first, it has always 
been considered an indispensible tie on pastors, to instruct their flocks, 
in the duties and obligations of their religion; to teach them the principal 
points of their faith, to admonish them of their faults, and to prescribe 
such remedies to them as may serve to correct them. "Preach the Word," 
says St. Paul to Tim.: "reprove, intreat, rebuke with all patience 
and doctrine." And truly, what other means did Jesus Xst institute 
for perpetuating his doctrine than that of preaching: Is it not from 
thence that we derive the traditions of the Apostles? does not faith 
as St Paul expressly tells us come from the hearing of the Word of 
Xst, and is not the Word of Xst made known to us by his ministers, 
whom he commands US to hear, saying, "he that hears you hears me?" 
Thus it was that the Apostles, in pursuance of Xst'a command taught 
all nations, and we who have the honour to be their siKccssors and depa- 



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The First National Synod 439 

ties, beinK intnuted with the lame deposit of faith are to transmit it pore 
attd tmcormpt to our hearers. But our ministry is not confined to the 
duty of preaching the articles of faith only; we are to inculcate a morality 
neither Pharisaically severe, nor Philosophically loose: a. morality taken 
from the sonrce of evangelical doctrine, supported, not by the pernasive 
words of human wisdom, but by the unerring spirit of God, and the 
practice of learned and virtuous men. Above all we must be disposed 
to satmiit our doctrine and opinions to the infallible judffe, which Xst 
afqmnted to lead us into all truth. But lAat will our preachinK avail, 
if not supported by example? "I have given yon an example (says Xst) 
that as I have done so yon may do alsa" It is not a duty in specnlatiMi, 
but it is a practical duty that we should preach; and to convince our 
hearers that it is practical, nothing will be so efficacious, as to see us 
practice it ourselves. Can Christian humility be taught by one, who is 
observed to seek praise and preferment? Can patience and forbearance 
be taught by one, v^o is observed not to bear the slightest reproach or 
contradiction?' Can mortilication be taught by one addicted to his ease 
and convenience? Can temperance be taught by one who is known to 
love company and good cheer? The same may be said of every moral 
virtue: But while we lay heavy burdens upon others, let it not be said 
that we have no inclination to stretch out a finger to support them our- 
selves. If virtuous example be so necessary to support the moral doctrine 
that we preach, how cautious must a preacner be, to avoid giving scandal 
or example to others. Uany things are allowable to worldly people, which 
are totally unbecoming and forbidden an Ecclesiastic, To say nothing 
of those conditions in life, that are instituted for the mere purpose of 
worldly gain and advantage, there are certain places even, where it is 
scandalous for Ecclesiastics to be seen; such as houses of public diver- 
sion and entertainment; places of concourse and public gaiety; resorts of 
idleness ; parties of pleasure and expensive entertaimnents. I say that 
the Clergy are not expected by the world to be seen at such places: 
Their minds are supposed to be taken up with other subjects; their time 
is judged to be too precious, to be so employed; their occupations are 
inconsistent with such worldly vanities. But if their presence alone in 
such places gives surprise, how cautious they must be, that neither tiieir 
words nor actions give scandal to their neighbour I "Wo to the world 
because of scandals" (says Xst), and double wo may I add to that Clergy- 
man, who when he should guard his flock against dangers and precipices, 
invites them by his example to a familiarity with them I "It were better 
for him (says our Lord) that a millstone were hanged about his neck, 
and that he were drowned in the depths of the sea." 

Having mentioned what a Clergyman is to avoid for the edification 
of his flock, I have now to say something on the labours he u to undergo 
to preserve them in the way of eternal salvation: and I will venture to 
say, that in as much as he is diligent or remiss in this point of duty, 
in the same degree will be tee his flock improve in virtue and piety. As 
the Sacraments are the great source* of Grace, insthuted by Xst, for ottr 



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440 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

lanctification, so it imut be through their means, that the faithful are to 
be conducted in the way to everlasting happiness. Nothing will con- 
tribute more to this, than for their pastors to inculcate strongly into 
them, from their early years, the advantase and necessity of receiving 
them often and with due preparation. It must be owned that the most 
painful and laborious part of a Pastor's life consists in his diligence and 
assiduity in this point; but at the same time, his pains are in no instance 
better rewarded. To draw sinners from the ways of perdition — to pre- 
serve the just from falling into those ways; can anything be more pleasing 
to God:* can anything be more meritorious? It is cooperating with God 
himself in the work of our redemption; it is peopling heaven with nuls 
that would otherwise be eternally lost; and it is adding an immense 
weight of glory to our own merits. But for this end much knowledge 
and prudence is retpiired on our part; we must know how to be infirm 
with the infirm; to rejoice with than that rejoice; to weep with them 
that weep; we must know how to compassionate them that are in affiic- 
tion; to bear patiently with some, to reprehend others in due season, to 
support their delays, to study their tempers, to watch the favourable 
moments; in short to endeavour whether by occasion, or any other means, 
to gain admittance into their hearts and to pour on them the sweet oint- 
ment of God's healing grace, entrusted to us. Thus the apostle tells ns, 
that he became all to all, to gain all to Xst. In thus treating with our 
neighbours, we have two extremes to avoid ; immoderate severity and 
too great laxity. Of the two evils I judge the former to be the most 
pernicious; because throughout the whole life of Xst, I do not find that 
he rejected one sinner making application to bim; but that he frequently 
condemned the austere morals of the Pharisees, while their hearts were 
embittered with malice and deceit. But while I condemn immoderate 
severity I am far from approving of pernicious laxity. If the blind 
lead the blind, the consequence is, that they both fall into a pit together. 
But I am happy to have to address myself to such as from serious appli- 
cation and long experience have no need of an instructor on this point, 
but who having generously engaged to labour in the Lord's vineyard, 
have nothing so much to heart as to gain souls to Xst, and having to 
encounter many crosses and tribulations, are thereby hastening their 
journey to heaven. 

Wherefore, Revd. Gentlemen and Brethren, give me leave to address 
yott on the words of St. Peter: "Brethren, labour the more that by good 
works you may make sure your vocation and election" and again "Feed 
the Bock of God which is among you, taking care thereof, not by con- 
straint, but willingly according to God: neither for the sake of filthy 
lucre but voluntarily." Behold from the Apostle the whole subjea of 
my discourse comprehended in a few words : to labour for our own 
sanctification and for the sanctiiication of our neighbour. The same 
Apostle, as an encouragement to us, immediately adds, that "When the 
prince of pastors shall appear, ye shall receive a never fading crown 
of glory." Behold the end of all onr taboars. This was the end that we 



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GEORGETOWN COLLEGE -ORIGINAL BUILDING 



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The First National Synod 441 

proposed when we first consecrated ourselves to God; this the object 
that we ever had in view, since we first engaged to labour in the Lord's 
vineyard; We have experienced the difficulties, we have encountered the 
dangers that have presented themselves to us in the course of oar labours. 
"In journeys often, in perils of rivers, in perils of robbers, in perils 
in the City, in perils in the wilderness, in perils from false brethren; 
in labour and painfulness, in watchings often, in hiuiger and thirst, 
in many fastings, in cold and nakedness." All these we have experi- 
enced and nuwy more, but which we make little account of provided 
we can gain sonli to Xst. But if there ever was occasion for extraordinary 
exertions to be made by the Pastors of Xst's flock, it must be at this 
present time, when "The harvest indeed is great, but the labourers are 
few," Let tis, therefore, Revd. Gentlemen and fellow labourers, exert 
our talents, and assiduity in the employment that God has assigned to 
ns. If he has multiplied our labour, he has also super-abundantly multi- 
plied his graces for cur assistance. If he has given us five talents 
instead of one, he expects that we shall improve them and gain five 
more ; and in reward for improving them, we may rely on hearing those 
comfortable words addressed to us, by Xst, our Lord and Uaster. "Well 
done thou good and faithful servant, because thou has been a faithful 
servant, because thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will set 
diee over many, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." 

We have now, Revd. Gentlemen and Brethren, with the blessing of 
God accomplished the business for which we were called to this Eccle- 
siastical Synod. Great thanks are due to our Most Revd. and Respectable 
Prelate, for the many useful regulations and points of discipline pro- 
posed for our consideration; but it is neither our concurrence nor 
acknowledgments that will be so grateful and acceptable to Him, as to 
see those same regulations carried into effect by the whole body of 
Clergy, committed to hts care. We are happy in having a Pastor, whose 
whole solicitude is to preserve the flock, which Xst has entrusted to him, 
and whose example will be a guide to each one of us. Let us there- 
fore benefit ourselves from so great a blessing, that by imitating his vir- 
tues and cooperating with his leale, we may save the souls of many re- 
deemed vnth the blood of Xst, and, in reward of our virtues and 
labours, shine like stars in heaven for perpetiul eternities.^' 

Before the close of the Synod, Bishop Carroll asked the 
priests present seriously to consider the advisability of petitioning 
the Holy See for a division of the diocese or for a coadjutor, 
"The question of the appointment of a Bishop as suffragan of 
Baltimore, or Coadjutor was discussed at this Synod," says Shea, 
"and all felt the necessity, so that in case of the death of Bishop 
Carroll there might be another Bishop to assume the charge of 

" B^Hmart Cattudrai ArcMvtt, SpecU C-8i. 



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443 The Life and Timet of John Carroll 

the diocese, without waiting for long months to send a ocMtunatton 
to Rome and obtain an appointment. The long voy^;e9 and 
slow conve3rance overland in those days, rendered conununicatton 
with Rome very tedious and uncertain, and in Canada the Bishop 
always had a coadjutor for this very reason." " A few days 
after the last session of the Synod Bishop Carroll issued a Cir- 
cular on Christian Marri^;e : 

When Christ honoured the institution of marriage by raisinE it to the 
dignity and sanctity of a sacrament, he intended to areale in all who 
were to enter into that state a great respect for it, and to lay on them 
an obligation of preparing themselves for it, by purifying their con- 
sciences and disposing them worthily to receive abundant c o mm un ka- 
tions of divine grace. He subjected therd>y to the authority and juris- 
diction of his Church the manner and rites of its celebra.tion, lest any 
should violate and profane so holy an institution by engaging in mar- 
riage without due consideration of its sanctity and obligations. It is 
judged necessary to say this, because lately some of the congregation 
have been so regardless of their duty in this respect, as to recur to the 
ministry of those whom the Catholic Church never honoured with the 
commission of administering marriage. The persons here spoken of, 
and others who have followed their example, hereby rendered themselves 
guilty of a sacrilegious profanation of a most holy institution at the 
very moment of their marriage. It must be left to themselves to contider, 
whether they can expect much happiness in a state into which they 
entered by committing an offence so grievous and dangerous to their 
faith. 

To prevent, as much as lies in our power, a renewal of such profana- 
tion and saciilege, you are desired, Rev. Sir, as well as our other Rev. 
brethren, to make known to all that whoever have lately, or hereafter 
shall be guilty of applying to be married by any other than the lawful 
pastors of our Church, cannot be admitted to reconciliation and the 
Sacraments, till they shall agree to make public ackiwwUdgmenI of thdr 
disobedience before the assembled congregation, and beg pardon for the 
scandal they have given.'* 

Early in the next year, 1793, Bishop Carroll issued a letter 
on Lenten R^ulations, and on May 28, 1792, he published a 
Pastoral on the Synod, making known to the Catholics of the 
United States the rules adopted by the Synod for the regulation 
of church affairs. A French %*ersion of this Pastoral is in the 
Catholic Archives of America, at the University of Notre Dame. 

■ Of. fit., vol. U, p. spr. 

■• BaUtmaTt Cotktirai ArcUtnt. Cm« «■£>. 



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The First National Synod 443 

Two important and far-reaching events in Americaa Calliolic 
life had occurred in 1791 ; the founding of Georgetown College 
and the coming of the Sulpicians. These projects kept Bishop 
Carrol] so busy both before and after the Synod, that it was 
not until April 23, 1792, that he had leisure to write a report 
on the Synod for Propaganda. The Acta were, however, sent 
to Rome shortly after the close of the Synod. Carroll's long 
letter is in reality a history of the Church here from 1785 down 
to 1792. We shall be obliged to refer to it constantly for 
guidance in judging the nature and the value of the various 
enterprises instituted by Bishop Carroll around this time. In 
the part dealing with the Synod of 1791, Bishop Carroll alludes 
to the holding of the Synod, autumno lapso, at which twenty-two 
priests were present. The fact that so many were gathered at 
his house for the meeting gave him the opportunity of speaking 
with them, especially with the older priests amongst them, of 
the prudence of asking a coadjutor for himself, or of su^^esting 
to the Holy See the wisdom of creating another diocese. "If 
anything should happen to me," he writes, "my successor could 
not be sent to Europe for consecration without great incon- 
venience and expense." After deliberating with the others, it 
was decided that he should ask the Holy See to create a new 
diocese, either in Philadelphia or New York, and the division 
of the two dioceses ought to be the Susquehanna River. Phila- 
delphia was the larger of the two cities, containing more Catholics 
and more churches, and was preferred over New York. The 
priest's house there was large enough for an episcopal residence. 
At the end of this letter he returned to the question of the 
appointment of a second bishop, and advised the Cardinal-Prefect 
that the priests, as well as himself, desired the privil^e of 
electing the occupant of the new see or, if Rome so desired, the 
coadjutor of Baltimore. The priests who attended the Synod 
had suggested that fifteen of their number be chosen as a nomi- 
nating committee for this purpose; ten of these should be those 
who were longest in the American mission, and the remainit^ 
five were to be selected by Carroll himself from the more prudent 
and worthy priests of the diocese. 

At a general congregation on American affairs, held at Propa- 
ganda, August 13, 1792, the Ada of the Synod and this L.etter- 



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444 J^A' -^'/^ ""^ Times of John Carroll 

Report on the state of the diocese were deliberated upon, and a 
Relatio on the same was prepared for Cardinal Antonelli, the 
Prefect. This Relatio is divided into two parts : the first part, 
subdivided into chapters, treats of all the points mentioned in 
Bishop Carroll's Letter-Report of April 23, 1792; the second 
contains a series of notes by the archivist of Pr<^ganda, which 
serve as a commentary on the chapters. Chapter seven is entitled 
Sinodo diocesano, and it gives a fairly accurate description of 
all that took place at the Synod. Chapter eight, on the poslulalo 
of Carroll's letter, treats first of all of the request for a coadjutor, 
lest in case of his death the Church in the United States be left 
without a chief shepherd. The response to this request was 
that it seemed preferable, in place of dividing the diocese and 
constitutii^ a new bishopric at Philadelphia or in New York, 
that the priests of the diocese choose a worthy candidate as 
coadjutor for Bishop CarrolL 

On September 29, 1792, Cardinal Antonelli wrote a long letter 
to Bishop Carroll, telling him that his letter of April 23 had 
been read before a general congregation of the Propaganda and 
that all were deeply impressed with the progress he had made 
in organizing the Church in the new Republic. The Holy See 
was willing to do whatever Carroll and his clergy desired in 
the way of lightening his own burdens, but the appointment of 
a coadjutor was preferable to Rome. The Holy See decided 
that it would be best to f^ve the administration of the Church 
in the United States dependent upon one authority. Moreover, 
Antonelli said, a uniform method of ecclesiastical discipline wotdd 
be more surely introduced into the United States under this 
central authority, and the clergy could be more easily ruled. 
Unity for the time being would be of much more value to the 
welfare of souls. Two bishops, each of equal dignity and juris- 
diction, would only open the door to dissensions and misunder- 
standings. Antonelli advised Bishop Carroll that a coadjutor 
might reside in any part of the diocese, and in this way the 
central authority of Baltimore would be preserved. 

Although it was rarely granted that the priests of a diocese 
elect their bishop, the HoIy^See was willing to allow the Amer- 
ican clergy that privilege, lest, as Carroll had pointed out in his 
letter, any objection should be made by the American Govem- 



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The First National Synod 44J 

ment or by those who were opposed to the Church. "This 
Sacred Congr^ation, therefore, with the express sanction of 
His Holiness, enjoins Your Lordship to consult with the older 
and more prudent priests of the diocese and to propose any priest 
in the American mission, whom you think fit and capable ; the 
Holy Father will then appoint htm coadjutor with all necessary 
and seasonable faculties." 

If it were only for having gained for the American clergy for 
a second time the permission to select one of their own number 
as bishop, the Synod of 1791 would have a prominent place in 
the history of church administration in the United States. It 
is not because such freedom of choice was unknown to eighteendi- 
century Catholicism that the letter of Antonelli deserves atten- 
tion ; but rather the fact that the Holy See and the broadminded 
Prefect of Propaganda were as anxious as Carroll and his clergy 
to allow no overt act to occur which might embarrass the Ameri- 
can clergy with the Government here. At the same time there 
was no cringing before the young and proud American Republic 
on the part of the world's oldest spiritual authority. 

One further incident can be connected with the Synod. Bishop 
Carroll signed his name as "John, Bishop of Baltimore," at the 
end of the Pastoral of May 28, 1792. This signature brought 
forth an attack by "Liberal," in one of the newspapers of the 
day, and Bishop Carroll immediately prepared a reply which 
was published on November 21, 1792, under the title An Answer 
to Strictures on an Extraordinary Signature, The letter is in- 
teresting in this sense that it shows us the fighting spirit of the 
man : "The subject of this contention," he writes in conclusion, 
"is so trifling in itself, and it affords so much room for ridicule, 
that if 'Liberal' take up his pen again, he must appear with 
something more material to eng:^ the further attention of John, 
Bishop of Baltimore," " 

A last reference to the Synod is found in AntonelU's letter 
to Bishop Carroll, dated August 10, 1794, in which he congratu- 
lates Carroll on the pastoral vigilance displayed by the Fathers 
of this first national Synod. Certain changes, however, were 
deemed necessary in the Staluta. In the statute on Baptism the 

* IbU., Cue IO-Y4 (printed capr)> 



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+46 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

distinction between Catholic aod con-Catholic midwives was to 
be omitted; infants in danger of death were to be confirmed; 
the stipendia for Masses were to be r^ulated according to the 
ctrciunstances in America; marriages of persons coming from 
other parts should be carefully regulated, and the testimony 
of two witnesses, or of one upon oath, r^arding the freedom 
of the parties should be exacted; in case these witnesses were 
unavailable, then the [arties themselves should be put upon 
their oath as to their freedom to marry. In regard to ecclesi- 
astical burial, the Roman Ritual was to be observed ; authority 
was granted to dispense with the English supplement of the 
Missal and Breviary; and — an important fact — to remove all 
objections that might be made, the formula of the oath to be 
taken by bishops in the United States was changed, so that "in 
future all pretexts for carping and misrepresenting may be re- 
moved." At the same time Bishop Carroll's faculties were 
entailed. 

The Synod of 1791 has always been the object of admiration 
to the Catholic hierarchy of America. Years afterward, Bishq> 
Bruti is reported by Shea to have written: "We must read 
over the Synod of 1791, for the form and its authority will be a 
good standard. In every line you see the Bishop. In all you see 
how extensively he had studied; and the spirit of faith, charity, 
and zeal in that first assembly, has served as a happy model for 
its successor."" No higher tribute to the worth of this earliest 
American Catholic conciliar assembly could have been given than 
that by the Fathers of the First Provincial Council of Baltimore 
in 1829: "When we look back upon the circumstances of the 
times and conditions which existed at the period that the Vener- 
able John Carroll, of happy memory, Bishop of Baltimore, held 
the Diocesan Synod of 1791, we greatly admire the zeal, prudence 
and learning, with which so many laws for the benefit of the 
Church were passed." The value of the decrees of 1791 were 
of such a high nature that the Fathers ordered the Statttta of 
1791 to be reprinted at the head of those passed by the Council 
of 1829. 

•* Of. tU., ToL u, p. ut. 



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CHAPTER XXIV 

THE FOUNDIKG OF GEORGETOWN COLLEGE 

C1789-1791) 

To those who see a link between Bohemia Manor Acadetn; 
and the venerable CoU^e and University of Georgetown, the 
half-century between the untimely end of the Academy and the 
founding of the collie (1789) can easily be translated into a 
loi^ series of plans and deliberations for the successful estab- 
lishment of a sdKwl for the higher education of Catholic young 
men. In fact, few topics, with the exception of the legal incor- 
poration of the clergy and the restoration of the Society, occupy 
a larger share in the documents from 1785 down to the year when 
Father Robert Molyneux, then the Superior of the restored So- 
dety of Jesus in the United States, became President of George- 
town College (1806). The three subjects (the College, Incor- 
poration, and the Restoration) are inseparable. 

It is with appropriate historic justice that the statue of John 
Carroll has been placed in front of the University of Georgetown ; 
for, in spite of every opposition, even that of Father Leonard 
Neale, who was to become Georgetown's fourth President (1799- 
1806) and Carroll's successor in the See of Baltimore, Bishop 
Carroll carried his design for the college forward to completion. 
The history of the (Allege, written by no less a master hand 
than that of John Gilmary Shea,* has its actt»l origin in Carroll's 
Plan of Organisation of 1782, the purpose of which was the 
creation of ways and means tending to insure a succession of 
labourers in the American vineyard.* Such succession depended 
upon a collie to train young men in the humanities, and upon 
a seminary to train those who should aspire to the priesthood. 

* WmwrW rf tin Ftrjt Cnt(iMr> of CttrgMatm Calltt*, D. C, Camftititig a 
HU»n of Gtortttma* UmviTtity 0»4 no Aceaupl vf tkt CnUmM CiMraHm. 
V/tAlngltm, ia«i. 

■ HneBa, vf. cV., DocnocBti, nl. I, put U, pp. (io^m- 



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448 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

"The object nearest my heart," he wrote Plowden, the following 
year, on September 23, 1783, "is to establish a college on this 
continent for the education of youth, which might at the same 
time be a seminary for future clergymen. But at present I see 
no prospect of success."* Father Thomas Talbot, the Pro- 
curator of the ex-Jesuits in England, wrote to Carroll on Sep- 
tember 21, 1784, evidently in answer to the latter's letter, and 
discussed provisions for a succession of workers. "I see only 
two ways possible," he says, "either by setting up schools and 
forming a seminary of ]rour own, or depending on foreign assist- 
ance." Evidently, Carroll had inquired about the English Acad- 
emy, founded at Li^ in 1774 by the English ex-Jesuits, which 
had been erected into a pontifica] seminary by Pius VI in 1778. 
"Liege," says Talbot, "will not be able to supply you with grown 
up and trained plants for the reason you allege : 'tis well if it 
can support long its own establishment" * 

The prospect of a successful beginnii^ at home was not encour- 
agit^. In his letter to Father Thorpe, February 17, 1785, 
Carroll's only hope of filling the depleted ranks of the clergy 
was to send Catholic boys to the non-Catholic colleges then being 
opened in several cities. He had every reason to hope, he said, 
"that amongst the youth trained in these different collies, there 
will be frequently some inclined to the Ecclesiastical State." 
Carroll's Relation to Antonelli of March i, 1785, refers to this 
plan: "There is a college in Philadelphia, and it is proposed 
to establish two in Maryland, in which Catholics can be admitted, 
as well as others, as presidents, professors and pupils. We hope 
that some educated there will embrace the ecclesiastical state." 
When the University of Peimsylvania was reorganized in 1779, 
Father Farmer became a trustee, under the regulation that the 
senior pastors of the six religious denominations in Philadelphia, 
should be members of the Board of Trustees. It was not long, 
however, before Carroll saw the inadvisability of sending Cath- 
olic boys to the non-Catholic colleges then being founded in the 



' SicitylaiTrl TtvutritU; prieted in Huaau, l.c., p. 6ij. 

* Hdobu, I.e., p. t>4. StHckttad wMc to CuroU en July ij, 17U, that It 
vcHild be Impouihle to crate free buna M littt for ADieric4D itudesu, and that 
nooe but EaalUb youthi were to be fnuted achoUnhipi. {.BalUmert Ctthtdni 



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Georgetown College 449 

United States. On March 28, 1786, Father Carroll was Chair- 
man of a meeting held at Grant's Tavern, Baltimore, for the 
purpose of founding a non-sectarian colle^ in that city. In 
order to provide better facilities for the education at home of 
the youth of the town in classics and mathematics, "a school for 
that purpose was established through the united efforts of Rev. 
Dr. Carroll, afterwards Roman Catholic Archbishop of Balti- 
more, Rev. Dr. William West, Rector of St. Paul's parish, and 
Rev. Dr. Patrick Allison, Pastor of the First I^sbyterian 
Qiurch. The venture did not prove successful, and before bng 
was discontinued." * 

The necessity of founding a Catholic college in the United 
States was generally reo^nized l^ the American clergy and laity. 
During the Revolutionary War, no students were sent to the 
Catholic colleges abroad, as formerly, and the English ex- Jesuits 
at Lt^ Academy took advantage of the peace which followed 
in 1783, to urge their former colleagues to send them students 
from America. Father Strickland wrote from Liege to this 
effect, and on September 13, 1786, Father Ashton, the American 
Procurator, replied: "I will give every encouragement in my 
power to well-disposed people to send their children to the Li^e 
Academy, on the terms you propose; but as we are about to 
institute a school in this State, for the education of youth and 
perpetuity of the body of the clergy here, it may suit parents 
better to have their children brought up nearer to them, tho' 
their education may vsA. at first be as perfect as what tb^ would 
get abroad." * But the cost of the voyage across the Atlantic 
and of the board and tuition at Liege was then too heavy for 
American Catholic parents. The usual aftermath of war-times, 
the scarcity of money and the high cost of living made it almost 
impossible even for families with sufHdent means to incur so 
great an expense for the education of their sons. Father Ashton 
asks: "Would you for i200 sterling, one half advanced in hand, 
the other half at the expiration of six years, undertake to carry 
a boy throi^h all his studies, and qualify him for the mission? 



: Iti HfMory awf m PnpU. p. ty. Hew York, j 

<ut, ChrowkUi 1/ BaUtmon, p. ■41. Billuwr^ 1I74. 
* Hdsku, Le., p. tit. 



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450 Tht Life and Times of John Carroll 

I mention this, because it may suit some peojJe while tb^ have 
the money by them; whereas, before the boy could get through 
his studies, by sook turn of fortune or change of mind, the end 
might be frustrated . , . . " There were some Americans 
at Uige when this was written (1786), and there was a question 
whether the American Church should not continue to profit by 
the endowment of pious l^ades and bequests which the Lij^ 
Academy possessed. The financial affairs of the English and 
American groups of the suppressed Society were in confusion 
at the time owing to the disturbances caused by the Revolution. 
After the War, few, if any, American young men went to Liige.* 
There was but one way to secure higher education for them and 
that was the foundation of an American collie. To men who 
had beloi^^ to an Order famous for several centuries for its 
successful coll^iate and Seminary training, it was natural that 
the thoi^hts of the American priests should turn towards the 
establishment of a house of higher studies. They were held 
bode, however, by the fact that there would scarcely be enough 
Catholic young men ready to enter college and also by the more 
important question whether it was l^al to use the revenues of 
the ex-Jesuit estates for this purpose. No mention of the pro- 
posed college seems to have been made officially at the First 
General Chapter of the Gergy (1783-84), but it was discussed 
informally, with the result that the priests present decided to 
postpone the establishment for a few years. Meanwhile they 
would depend upon the accession of priests from Europe to keep 
the congregations and missions supplied with pastors. The 
resolution was as follows : "That the best measures be taken to 
bring tn six proper clergymen as soon as possible, and the means 
furnished by the Chapter out of the general fund, except 
where otherwise provided for." ' Between this time and the 
Second General Chapter of the Clergy (Nov. 13-22, 1786), the 
plans for a college reached completion, and the Chapter offered 
a rather detailed scheme for its erection. The school was to be 
created "for the education of youth and the perpetuity of the 
body of the dei^ in this country." The jJan was as follows: 



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Georgetown College 451 - 

17S6, Novembtr 13-11. 
Proceedinss of the Ctuptcr, 13-22 Nov., 1786. 

(I) Resolves eoncernmg the ItuHlvlion of a School. 

i". That a school be erected for the education of youth and the per- 
petuity of a body of the clergy in this country. 

2*. That the following plan be adopted for the carrying the tame 
into execnttra. 

(II) Plan of the School. 

I*. In order to raise the money necessary for erecting the aforesaid 
ichool, a general n^>scription shall be opened inunediately. 

3*. Proper persons should be appointed in difierent parti of the cod- 
tinent. West India Islands and Europe, to solicit subscriptions and cdlect 

3*. Five Directors of the school and (of) the business relative 
thereto shall be appointed by the General Chapter. 

4*. The monies collected by subscription shall be lodged in the banda 
of the five aforesaid Directors. 

S*. Masters and tutors to be procured and paid by the Directors qoar- 
terly and subject to their directions. 

6*. The students are to be received by the managers on the following 
term*— 

(III) Terms of the School. 

t*. The students shall be boarded at the parents' expense. 

3'. The pension for tuition shall be iio currency per annum, and is 
to be paid quarterly and always in advance. 

3*. With this pension the students shall be provided with masters, 
books, paper, pens, ink and firewood in the school. 

4*. The Directors shall have power to make further regulations, aa 
circumstances may point out, necessary. 

(IV) Other retolvet concerning the School. 

I*. The General Chapter, in order to forward the above instittttioo, 
grants itoo sterling towards building the school, vriiich simi shall be 
raised out of the sale of [a] certain tract of land. 

3*. The residue of the monies arising out of the sale of the above 
said land shall be applied by the (jcneral Chapter to the same purposes, 
if required to compleat the intended plan. 

3*. That the Procurator General is authorised to raise the said sum 
and lay it out for the above purpose, as the Directors shall ordain. 

4*. The General Chapter orders the school to be erected in George- 
town in the State of Maryland. 

S*. A clergyman shall be appointed by the Directors to ttiperintatd 
the masters and tuition of the students, and shall be removable by tben. 

6*. The said clergyman shall be allowed a decent living. 

7*. The General Chapter has appointed the Rev. Uessra. John Carroll, 
James Pellentz, Rob. Molyneux. John Aditen, «nd htanaii Neate, Di- 
rectors of the school.* 



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45 a The Life and Times of John Carroll 

After the dose of the Chapter, this Cominittee of Five, who 
were the directors of the school, opened a subscription for the 
College. On January 12, 1787, Dr. Carroll informed AntondU 
Qiat the plan of the school which he and his fellow-priests had 
drawn up, could be put into execution, if they amid depend upon 
the charity of their own people and the liberality of Catholics 
in Europe.^" In a long confidential letter to Plowden begun at 
Rock Creek on January 22, and finished February 28, 1787, 
Carroll discussed the "two great undertakings we have now on 
hand, for the success of which we stand in need of every suiqxnt 
and best advice of the friends of Religion: we have resolved to 
establish an Academy for the education of youth and to solicit 
the ai^intment of a diocesan bishop." The important (actor 
in the college foundation was 

a fit Kentleman to open, u Superintendent, the new eitablishment, which 
we hope may be next antumn, or at the farthest, thia iprins twelve 
month. How often have I said to myself : What a bleuing to this coantry 
vrould my friend Plowden bel What reputation and solid advantage 
would accrue to the Academy from such a Director t and what a lasting 
blessiiv would be procured to America by forming the whole plan of 
ttudies and system of discipline for that institution, where the minds of 
Catholic youth are to be formed, and the (irtt foundation laid of raisinc 
a Catholic ministry equal to the exigencies of the country) Cotild the 
zeal of a Xavier wish a more promising field to exert his talents? 

Carroll realized that it would be impossible for Plowden to 
leave his friends in Ei^land, and he asks him to suggest some 
one capable of being the first director or president of the college 
— "I trust this important concern almost entirely to your man- 
agement" " It is evident from the letters which passed between 
Dr. Carrol! and his friend. Father William Ashton, then at Liige, 
that the Americans would have been very happy to have secured 
the learned Ei^Iish Jesuit. "I think Mr, Plowden," wrttei 
Ashton, "is a most respectable gentleman, a devout historian, a 
fine gentleman, a polite scholar, an accurate critic. I know no- 
body better calculated to be at the head of a college, particularly 
if he had a friend whom he respected as much as I know he 

** IV«f*pmdd ArcUvti, Sertlhiri otlgiMU, Vol. I76, no. i], f. in. 
*> RuoHii, 1. 1., pp. 6ja-tli. X^ PMt of the letter qootcd will ba tound la tk* 
Ktcartt, mL xix, pp. mS-^**. 



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Georgetovsn College 453 

does you, near him, to curb a lively imagination, and to raise 
his courage which is too easily dejected." ** 

Ground had been given, and some slight subscriptions had come 
in, early in 1787, as we learn from Father Carroll's letter (to 
Mr. James Barry) dated Geot^etown, January 25, 1787: "I 
have the pleasure to inform you that all your acquaintances are 
well and exceedingly glad to hear of your family being so. I 
sent to Mr. Frambach the proposals for our future academy b> 
be communicated to you. I have the pleasure to inform you 
that we have flattering prospects for its encouragement. Col. 
Dcalcins & Mr. Trelkeld have joined in granting a fine piece 
of ground for the purpose of building." ^* This piece of land, 
a gift from Colonel Deakins and Mr. Threlkeld, was, and still 
is, one of the most romantic spots along the Potomac. A few 
benefactors sent money donations from England, and several 
amounts were given by the leading Catholic gentlemen of the 
United States. It was not, however, until Dr. Carroll appealed 
in person after his consecration to some English Catholic noble- 
men that the real endowment of the college b^an, and it is 
worthy of notice that the list of benefactors included many of 
the former English Jesuits. Father Charles Plowden's name is 
in the list for a very substantial sum." 

Meanwhile, the opposition of some of the Southern District 
dei^ had assumed threatening proportions, and on February 7, 
1787, Carroll wrote to them from Baltimore : 

Revd. Deat Sir, 

The printed proposals accompanying this letter were to have been sent 
long ago; but Mr. Sewall [Secretary\ could not meet with an oppor- 
tunily. Be pleased to deliver one to each of our gentlemen and to those 
laymen who are appointed to solicit subscriptions; to whom may be added 
any others you judge proper. From the generous subscriptions already 
received, I had conceived the most flattering hopes ; and persuaded myself 
of the active co-operation of ail our Brethren in a measure, which has 
long been talked of amongst ourselves, and strongly recoomieDded fr<Hn 

■■ BalUmart Catkiirtl Artkivrt, CiM I-Bi>. Aihloo U Carroll, Liige, AnauM. 
<J, i7'71 priolcd In tlw Fteorii. vol. xix, pp. nj-nB. 

" Rttfrchtt, vol. X, p. 40 lGtBtgttvtf» Cetttft AreUvtii. 

" HvoBii, I.e., p- So), bMc II. Dominic Limch «■ Kuthorlicd to reetiTt (ub- 
•criptioM for Ibe College in the New York dietrid (cf. Stitarekti, vA. r, p. rj), 
■ad CeoTce Head* *nd lluunu FitiSinoiu, for tbt Fenairlnnin-jMMy dlMricl (tNrf., 
ToL tI, p. 144). 



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454 The Life end Times of John Carroll 

Europe. But Mr, Sewall received a letter a few days ago from the gen- 
tlemen of your District, reprobating the resolve of Chapter for a sdraol; 
and another yesterday from Mr. Diderick very injurious to the character 
of his Brethren in Chapter. The gentlemen thus censured will perhaps 
think proper to wipe off these aspersions. As soon as Mr. Sewall showed 
me your District circular letter, I wrote to Mr. Leonard Neale concerning 
the unexpected opposition to a school, and shall here transcribe those 
first effusions of my heart, which were drawn from me by the earnest 
desire of seeing a prosperous issue of an undertaking pregnant in my 
estimation, with the greatest blessings. Thus I write to Mr. Neale: 

"When amongst you, I conversed on the subject of a school with every 
one of you excepting perhaps Mr. Roets; and it appeared to be the geo- 
eral and unanimous opinion, that it was an advantageous and necessary 
measure. Indeed, your letter excepts only to the ejctensiveness of the 
plan. . . . What added to my surprise at your opposition was, that it 
should come from those wfio, in a manner so exemplary and with an 
affection so constant, have devoted themselves to the exercises of, and 
preserved such an attachment to the Institute of St, Ignatius. For, 
amongst all the means prescribed by him for the salvation of souls, 
every one wlio considers the past services of the Jesuits, or the present 
decay of religion in Europe, so generally complained of amongst young 
people; the great scarcity of pastors and Priests (as related to Qiapter 
by Mr. Pellenti)— whoever considers those things must acknowledge, dutt 
the Society rendered no service more extensively useful than that of the 
education of youth. . . ." 

So far to Ur. Neale. The great objection to the school is the appro- 
priation of property, which is considered as an alienation injurious to 
the Society and a violation of justice. But, in my humble opinion, what- 
ever other objections may be against the appropriation complained of, 
that of violating justice is not well founded. Do not divines teach unani- 
mously, that death extinguishes those rights in such a manner, that they 
do not revive, even if the former possessor should be brought to life? 
3ndly, However this may be, the property applied, either absolutely or 
conditionally, to the school never was the property of the Society; the 
events by which it lapsed to the present successor happening many years 
after the Society ceased to exist Here therefore was no breach of 
justice. 3rdly, Were the Society existing at this moment, and in pos- 
session of the property alluded to, and, if it had been granted to her 
without any particular destination from the benefactor, my opinion would 
be, that it could not be applied to a purpose more conducive to the end 
of the Society. I do not expect that these considerations will entirely 
remove the objections of our good gentlemen of your District; but I 
hope their private opinions will not binder them frooi exerting their 
endeavors for, and recommendations of the school; for surely the reso- 
lutions of Chapter are binding in matters of this nature. . . . But I 



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Georgetown College 4SS 

GUBot conclude this without obKrving that if Ur. Didcrick icnt any 
letter to St Uary'a [County] in the laasc style jwd with the stme impn- 
taticnu as in that to Mr. Sewall and Boarman, be has not only conceived 
onfotinded prejndiccs of, but has greatly misrepreiented the procecdingt 
in Chapter. He says the majority of Chapter had contrived the buiinesi 
beforehand, kept matters secret from the rest, and with ctmning and 
worldly policy carried their measures. You icnow how contrary to fact, 
these allegations are; that it was universally known that the considers- 
tion of a school, of incorporation, and, I believe, ecclesiastical govern- 
ment, was to come before the Board. I wish you would refer to Ur. 
Ashton's letter of convocation ; and I beg you to recollect that the subjects 
of deliberatioa were so much known, that Mr. Fellenti, not being able 
to attend personally, wrote his opinion on all these facts. I am satisfied 
(hat we all aim at tiie same good end.'* 

The objection to the school arose from the fact that it dashed 
with the hopes of some of the American clergy regarding the 
restoration of the Society of Jesus, and therefore with the com- 
plete restitution of all properties and moneys in their possessioa 
as ex-membcrs of the Society. The Southern District opposition 
to the collie and to the bishopric was based on the belief that 
both these projects involved alienation of the ex-Jesuit property. 
Carroll answered this objection in the letter referred to, but he 
saw no hope of removing the objections "of our good gentlemen 
of your District." The Chapter resolutions were binding upon 
the whole body of the clergy, and Carroll emphasizes the fact 
that no partial opposition would stop progress in the worthy 
project. On all other matters he was willii^ to suspend action, 
until "a genera] or nearly general harmony prevails amongst 
us," but the school project he was determined to carry to cotn- 
pletion. At the same time, Fathers rHgges, Ashton, SewaQ, 
Sylvester Boarman, and the pre feet -apostolic wrote a formal 
answer to their opponents (February, 1787) : without a restora- 
tion of the Society of Jesus, there could be no "re-acquiring of 
its former property here," while the application of some part of 
the ex-Jesuit estates for educational purposes is one of the noblest 
uses to which that property might be put. 

The re-establishment therefore of the Society in this country is a 
necessary preliminary for the re-acqniring of its foimer property here; 

" Ibid., pp. tji-tjs. 



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45^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

and if any tnore effectiu] tnuiu of corapuuiiK thftt re-«tt4bliibnicat 
can be devised than tlioie adopted by the Chapter, and which you do 
except against, we shall be very ready to join you in preferring them. 
A school will certainly be a nuriery from whence postnlantc can alone 
be expected; and an independent ecclesiastical Superior is priodpally, if 
not essentially, necessary to render the idiool competent to all the pur- 
poses of its establishment. The application of some part of oar estate 
which may be spared to this purpose, and the honour of God and food 
of souls being the end of this Society and hereby intended, we hope will 
give it that blessing from heaven, which we all most earnestly pray 
for. . . . Schools and seminaries have generally been encouraged and pro- 
tected by the Bishops, whether immediately under their own direction, or 
the direction of the Society, and, if she should be re-established b this 
country, In our life time, there is no doubt but, with the other property, 
the government of the school will likewise be surrendered into her 
hands.'" 

Father Carroll also foresaw what actually occurred in 1806, 
namely that in the event of the restoration of the Society, the coU 
lege would "be surrendered into her hands." He quite understood 
the reasons for the opposition, as can be seen from his letter 
to Plowden, February z8, 1787: "They act from this laudable 
motive, that both matters will occasion some alienation of prop- 
erty formerly possessed by the Society, which they wish to restore 
undiminished to her at her reJistablishment. . . . they posi- 
tively assert that any appropriation to the school (tho' made t^ 
the representative body of the Clergy, as has been the case) 
of estates now possessed by us is a violation of the rights of 
the Society; thus supposing that a right of property can exist 
in a non-existing body ; for certainly the Society has QO existence 
here." " 

The opposition yielded at once on receipt of Carroll's letter, 
and the sdiool project was assured of success, if sufficient funds 
could be obtained to make a foundation at Georgetown.^* The 
first assistance came from Cardinal Antonelli. On February 
18, 1788, Propaganda voted an annual subsidy of one hundred 
scudi for a period of three years, and on February 23, the 
Cardinal-Prefect announced this gift to Carroll.** SufRdent 

" Ibid., pp. 6;r-«7S- 

» tbid.. p. 67a. 

■■ Carroll to Plowdco, Uareh 19, 17S7, in Hdobh, L c, p. fiSo; 

" PrfttgnJt Archiprt, AM (ijBS) no. s— is rcplr M CamO'* letter of Jidy 

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Georgetown College 457 

ftuids having been gathered, the building of the college was 
decided upon for the summer of 1788. A bouse of 63 or 64 
by 50 feet was to be built as Carroll writes, "on one of the most 
lovely situations that imagination can frame. It will be three 
stories high, exclusive of the offices under the whole. Do not 
forget to give and procure assistance. On this Academy is built 
all my hope of permanency and success to our Holy Religion 
in the United States." How complete the plans were can be 
seen from Carroll's correspondence with Plowden : 

In the banning the Academy will not receive boarders, but they nrast 
provide lodgings in town; but a.\\ notortotu deviations from the niles of 
inora1jt7, out, as well as in, school, must be subjected to exemplarr correc- 
tion, every care and precaution that can be devised will be employed to 
preserve attention to the duties of religion and good manners, in which 
other American schools are most notoriously deficient. One of our own 
gentlemen, and the best qualified we can get, will live at the Academy 
to have the general direction of the studies and superintendence over 
icholars and masters. Four others of our gentlemen will be nominated to 
visit the Academy at stated times, and whenever they can make it con- 
venient, to see that the bminess is properly conducted. In the beginning 
we shall be obliged to employ seculsr masters, tinder the superintendent, 
of whkh many and tolerably good ones have already solicited appoint- 
ments. The great influx from Europe of men of all professions and 
talents has procured this opportunity of providing teachers. But thit it 
not intended to be a permanent system. We trust in God that many 
youths will be called to the service of the Church. After finishing tlK 
academical studies, these will be sent to a seminary which will be estab- 
lished in one of our bouses; and we have through God's mercy, a place 
and situation admirably calculated for the purpose of retirement, where 
these youths may be perfected in their first, and initiated into the hi^er 
studies, and at the same time formed to the virtues becoming their sta- 
tion. Before these young seminarists are admitted to orders, they will be 
tent to teach some years at the Academy, which will improve their 
knowledge and ripen their minds still more, before they irrevocably 
engage themselves to the Church.*" 

Printed proposals were issued about this time, and a Committee 
on subscriptions (or the purpose of collecting funds was em- 
ployed: 



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458 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

PropotaU 

for tttabluhiitg an Academy at Georgt Toum, Potowmack River, 
Maryland, 

The object of the proposed Institatioa is to mute the Ueans of oxB' 
mantcating Science with an efFcctoal Provision for gtiardtng and imiu-oving 
the Morals of Youth. With this View the Seminary will be superin- 
tended \yj those, who, having had experience in limilar Institutiont, know 
that an undivided Attention may be given to the Cultivation of Virtue 
and literary Improvement; and that a System of Discipline may be intro- 
duced and preserved, incompatible with Indolence and Inattention in the 
Professor, or with incorrigible Habits of Immorality in the Stodent. 

The Benefit of this Establishment should be as general as the Attain- 
ment of its Object is desirable. It will, therefore, receive Pupils as soon 
as they have learned the first Elements of Letters, and will conduct them 
through the several Branches of Classical Learning to that Stage of 
Education, from which they may proceed with Advantage to the Study 
of the higher Sciences in the University of this or those of the neighbor- 
ing States. Thus it will be calculated for every Gass of Citizens; at 
Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, the Branches of the Mathematics, and the 
Grammar of our native tongue will be attended to, no less than the 
learned languages. 

Agreeably to the liberal Principle of our Constitution, the Seminary 
will be open to Students of Every Religiout Projeision. They, who in 
this Respect differ from the Superintendents of the Academy, will be at 
Liber^ to frequent the Place of Worship and Instruction appi^nted by 
their Parents; but with Respect to their moral Conduct, all must be 
subject to general and uniform Discipline. 

In the choice of Situation, Salubrity of Air, convenience of Com- 
munication and Cheapness of Living, have been principally conmlted, 
and George-Town offers these united Advantages. 

The Price of Tuition will be moderate; in the Course of a few Yetrt 
il will be reduced still lower, if the System formed for this StaaoMFj, 
be effectually carried into exectttion. 

Such a Plan of Education solicits, and, it is not Presumption to add, 
deserves public Encouragement. 

The Pollowing Gentlemen, and others that may be appointed, hereafter, 
will receive Subscriptions and inform the Subscribers, to whom and in 
what Proportion, Payments are to be made: In Afary/oMd— The Hon. 
Charles Carroll of Carrollton, Henry Roier, Notley Voung, Robert Dar- 
nall, George Digges, Edmund Plowden, Esqrs., Mr. Joseph Millard, Capt 
John Lancaster, Mr. Baker Brooke, Chandler Brent, Esqr., Mr. Bernard 
O'Neill, and Mr. Marsham Waring, Merchants, Jdtai Danall and Igna- 
tius Wheeler, Esqrs., on the Western Shore; and on the Eattem, Rev. 
Joseph Mosley, John Blake, Francis Hall, Charles Blake, William Utt- 
thews, and John Tuitte, Esqrs. — In PrnfM^ftwHo— George Meade at>d 



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Georgetown College 459 

HMtnas FttiSimoni, Eiqri., Mr. Joseph Cauffman, Mr. Mark Willcox 
and Mr. Thomai Lilly.— In ViTginia—CiA. Fitzgerald, and George Brent, 
Esqrs.— and at Nevi York, Dominick Lynch, Esquire. 

Subscriptions will also be received, and every necessary Information 
given, by the following Gentlemen, Directors of the Undertaking: The 
Rev. Messrs. John Carroll, James Pellentz, Robert Molyneux, John Aih- 
ton, and Leonard Neate. 

To all liberally meliMtd to promote 
the Education of ¥otith. 

Be it known by these Presents that I, the undersigned, have appointed 

to receive any generous donation for the purpose set forth 

in a certain paper, entitled Proposals for establishing an Academy, at 

George-Town, Potowtnaclc Giver, Maryland ; for which will 

give receipts to the Benefactors, and remit the monies received by 

to me the aforesaid underwritten, one of the Directors of 

die Undertaking. Conscious also of the merited Confidence placed in the 

aforesaid I moreover authorize to Appoint any 

other person or persons to execute the same liberal Ofiice, as he is 
anthorized b; me to execute. 

this day of 17 

J, Cakboll.*' 

To one of his confidential advisers. Father Beeston, of Phila- 
delphia, Carroll wrote on March 22, 1788, saying that the re- 
sponses to his appeal were neither numerous nor generous, and 
that with all his detennination to make a success of the venture, 
he saw the possibility of a failure. In case Georgetown Collie 
should not become a reality, the alternative was to send AmericaQ 
boys to the IJ^ Academy, though "the expense of a U^ 
education at the advanced price of £40 per annum for young 
ecclesiastics renders it impracticable for many Americans to profit 
by that excellent Institution." ** There were four Americans 
at Li^ at the time preparing for the priesthood, and some of 
the clergy, particularly Ashton, the Procurator, preferred Lij:ge. 
It is not certain when actual building operations at Geoi^;etowD 
b^an, but it was probably in April, 1788, since we have Carroll's 
statement to Antonelli (April 19, 1788) — ^"the building of the 
school was bc^un a few days ago, but if it is to be brought to a 
b^>py conviction, our principal hope is in Divine Providence, 

' Shu, at. eU., nL U, pp. ia4S-ja«, from ft copr printed In the CwrpitouM 
Calltgt /eanul, voL vl, pp> 46-so. 
** BvamtM, I.C,, p. Ei4. 



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460 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

From this beginning I believe the conservation of religion in 
these lands depends, for without the school there will be no 
chance of establishing a seminary for the maintenance of the 
clerical body and the extension of our holy religion." " 

The plans for the college were approved in a general congre- 
gation of Propaganda, held on June 18, 1787, and the interett 
taken by Cardinal Antonelli in the sending of two boys to Home, 
kept the project constantly before the Sacred Congregation. 
Carroll told Antonelli on July 2, 1787, that he intended soliciting 
help in Europe for the college,'* On August 8, 1878, the 
Cardinal-Prefect discussed in his letter to Carroll the use of the 
Ratio Studiorunt in use in European colleges and seminaries, but 
he considered it wiser for Carroll to draw up a system of studies 
in keeping with the customs of America.** 

It was about this time that Father Robert Plunkett, a graduate 
of the English Collie at Douay, asked permission from bis 
ordinary, the Vicar-Apostolic of London, to go to America. He 
had been for some years chaplain to the English Benedictine nuns 
at Brussels. The permission of the Holy See was necessary, on 
account.of the Mission Oath taken before ordination. Antonelli 
mentioned Plunkett's wish to Carroll, March 13, 1789,** and there 
is extant a letter from Plunkett to the Holy Father, dated April 
20, 1789, request!!^ this permission : 

B*atittime Pattr, 

Robertus Plunket aac«rdos aluimiiu collesii Anglortun Dtuceni, in quo 
etnisit soiitutn juramentum missionis etc. cum debita licentia Vicarii Apoa- 
tolici Londinetuis tanquam Ordinarii lui per plures annos coDfesHriui 
monialium AnKlarum Bruxellis, modo cum consensu eiusdeiD Vicarii Apoi- 
Statibus Untitis. ubi 
un transf retare ; Md 
isdiclione Vicarii Apoi- 



lolici se offert missioni Americae Septcntrignali 

major «st penuria sacerdoium, paratus 

ciun ista missio hodie non sit, ut oljm fuit, sub juri 



supplicat ut Sanctitas Veitra benignc dignetur, 
juramenti possit laborare in vinea Dooiini. 

Father Carroll had decided upon Robert Plunkett as the first 
President of Georgetown Collie, and when its doors were 
opened to the first students in the late autumn of 1791, Father 

" Pr»Hat*d* Arckivtt, SeHttun riftrUt, Amtricm CntraU, vol ii. I. 361. 

•• Ibid., Tol. jtj. bsl 3. 

*■ nid., Littm, vol. J50, f. 444. 

*• IbU., LMtff, ToL JI3, (. t$. 



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Georgetown College 461 

Plunkett assumed charge oE the institution. On October is, 
1791, Carroll wrote to Plowden describing the inauguration of 
the oo^egc: "The [Georgetown] Academy will be opened in 
a few days ; but not so advantageously as I hoped. No president 
pro dignitate loci. I can hardly forgive my friends at Liege- 
Here was an opportunity for infinite services to the cause of 
God and His Church. Mr, Molyneux cannot be prevailed on; 
and indeed he has not the activity of body, nor the vwida w 
animi for such an employment. I have recurred to Mr. Plunkett, 
but cannot get his answer yet . . ■ ." " 

The Third General Chapter of the Clergy took up the college 
project, on May 15, 1789, and ordered that a special subscription 
be instituted throughout the United States to augment the general 
fund being gathered for the completion of the building. 

Praceedmgt of fkt Chapter, 1$ May, 1789. 
Uay 15th. Butinest of the Academy. 
Retched, 

i'. That a subscription be proposed to the general offices [officcn?] 
ind tnembers of clergy to relieve the public exigenciei, to which it ii 
likely the general fmid will not be adequate. 

3*. That the present members of Chapter do circulate and encourage 
the aforesaid subscription among their fellow clergymen in their respec- 
tive Districts, and the monies collected be paid into the hands of their 
(the?] Directors of the Academy. 

3*. That the sum arising therefrom be applied to the finishiiig die 
Academy at George Town, and that the Procurator-General be authorised 
to apply all savings out of the Office, which may be made to the next 
sitting of Chapter, to the same purpose. 

4*. That tbe Superior be requested by the senior ntember of Chapter 
to nominate a clergyman to superintend the Academy at George Town 
as soon as the schools shall be open for the education of youth, and that 
the said clergyman be presented to the Directors thereof and, if spi^oved 
by them, be constituted Principal. 

5*. That the income from a certain tract of land subject to the care 
of tbe Procurator- General be by him annually paid to the Principal for his 
support, as far as the amount of iioaoo current money, and tluS all 
deficiency to be made up to him oat of the general fund. 

6*. That the said Principal be ex officio one of the Directors of the 
Academy, and have a vole in at! matters belonging to the government 
thereof, except wlierein he is personally concerned. 



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462 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

7'. That the Principal ahall be ronovablf by « majority of votet of 
the other Directors.** 

Propj^nda's encouragement never flagged,** but the truth is 
that the generosity of the American Catholics was of such a 
kind that very little hope of sureess was present The gifts 
gathered by Bishop Carroll while in England in 1790 made the 
opening of the collie, a reality. In his letter on the sea, July, 
1790, Bishop-elect Carroll assured Antonelli that the completion 
of the school would be his first endeavour on his return, and on 
August 14, 1790, the Cardinal-Prefect wrote to Bishop CarroU 
that arrangements have been made with a merchant in L^hom 
to transmit the subsidy of one hundred scudi to Bahioiore. 
A complete history of Georgetown University would contain 
many other interestit^ references from the documents at oar 



The burden of maintainii^ the colI^;e fell upon the estates of 
the ex-Jesuits, and that support was given cheerfully during the 
r^rime of the first four Presidents — Pltmkett (1791-1793}. 
Molyneux (1793-1796), Du Bourg (1796-1799), Leonard NeiUe 
(1799-1806). When Father Robert Molyneux, S. J., the Su- 
perior of the partially restored Society became President in 1806, 
the college passed into the possession of the Jesuits, and thiis 
it began its loi^ career as the oldest and the greatest of all the 
Catholic educational institutions in the United States.*" 



" "De Khotec ioMttutiaDe qiun jamdin io aniBia concciituB lubca, nlUl Itctn 
potes tot too idD, pnotoDtiqiic viitute dignl. aiit picCmtii ct rcliflaDi prop na mUt 
HOMnmodatiiu"-— Antondli to Carraa, Jiil]r ii, 17S9, Prapagamdt ArcUoa, Lttttrt, 
ToL JSJ, f. U9- 

" The fiiM Modent to nutricnlatc at Geargt io wa Caliche wi« Witliun GMtoa 
(1778-1844). Alter Smihlnc bii itihlics at Gcortctown, GaMoa cnlcnd Prineetan. and 
thai totk up the pnetiEe of law. In iSij-tBts. be *ai United Stalea Senator from 
Hortk Canjiu, and in iSjj «a* appointed a Jndce on ttn Sopreaw Htaeb of Ihal 
SUte. (Cf. UttrotaUUm. voL ii (1856), p. S*%.) 



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CHAPTER XXV 

THE COUING OF SAINT SULPICE 

C179O 

For over two hundred years the aspirants to CaAoHc priest- 
hood in the British Isles were trained in the collies and semi- 
Dsries erected in the different coontries of Europe by English, 
Irish and Scottish Catholics after the fall of the Church in 1559. 
The process of preparing young men for the priesthood in these 
educational institutions was a loi^ one and a costly one. During 
a century and more, it was as hazardous to send Catholic boys 
to the Continent to be^n their studies as it was to bring them 
back grown men for their great and perilous work of keeping 
the Faith alive in hearts that had been broken on the wheel of 
penal brutalities. It took courage to be a Catholic priest in 
Great Britain and Ireland down even to the end of the first 
quarter of the last century. The freedom of the present day, 
especially in the United States, is apt to cause many to view in 
tolerant retrospect this anti-Catholic era of Ei^Iish history 
(1559-1829) and equally apt to lead some to forget that the 
whole of the colonial epoch in the thirteen English colonies 
was a period of ostracism, socially, and of imprisonment and 
death, legally, for all who were shepherds of Catholic flocks in 
the land. Too much credit, therefore, can never be given to that 
body of men, who, from the days of Father Andrew White, S.J., 
down to the end of the Revolutionary War, manned the Bark of 
Peter in this country. The Society of Jesus has many glorious 
pages in its record of four hundred years of intellectual and 
spiritnal activt^, but it has no page more vibrant with heroism 
than its century and a half of missionary success in English- 
q>eaking America (1634-1773). The Society was struck down 
at a time, when its power and influence were most needed in the 
dvilixed world; it was suppressed by the one power on earth 
4«3 



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464 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

it bad spared neither effort nor sacrifice to protect and support ; 
and when the Holy See yielded to the politicians of Europe and 
disbanded the Jesuits, it practically left its own defences un- 
guarded, its educational system in jeopardy, and its peace and 
prosperify at the mercy of every rising movement of lawlessness. 
The world and the Church paid the penalty for that act of 
1773, and nowhere else was the blow felt more acutely than in 
the new Republic, During the long q>och which followed Father 
White's first Mass at St, Mary's City, March 25, 1634, labourers 
for the American vineyard had been sent constantly from these 
Continental colleges and seminaries. With the Suppression and 
the Revolutionary War occurring almost simultaneously, the 
voyages of those who came with enthusiasm to work among tlK 
Catholics of the colonies ceased, and yout^ men could not be 
sent abroad to prepare for that same purpose. Father Hughes 
has given us a list of the Jesuits who laboured in the Anglo- 
American Mission; many of these were born in America, chiefly 
in Maryland, and were sent to St. Oner's College, to Watten, 
Ghent, or Liege, and then returned to labour in their own country, 
louring the period which followed the Suppression, this supply 
was cut off, and in Carroll's Report to Antonelli, the alarm- 
ing fact is given that there were only twenty-five priests in the 
United States. We have seen that of these, two had passed 
iheir seventieth year, and several others were dose to it. No 
fact weighed more heavily upon Carroll's heart than the lack 
of priests. He knew, as others knew, but he always had 
the courage to say it, that if the Church in the new Republic 
was to be left to the mercy of intruders, meddlers, and adven- 
turers, or to the danger arising from racial groups under 
the guidance of the priests who accompanied the immigrants, 
then its future as a national body was seriously in doubt The 
members of the suppressed Society can be readily excused during 
the eighteen years that separated the Suppression and Carroll's 
consecration for not taking more active steps to set up some sort 
of seminary training. There was always present in their hearts 
and in their prayers the possibility of a restoration of their So- 
ciety. Father Carroll saw affairs somewhat differently. He knew 
that no restoration was possible until Rome had expressed its 
consent to allow the same. Meanwhile, his little band of priests 



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The Sulpicians 465 

was bdng thinned t^ death, and intruders of an obnoxious kind- 
were forcing themselves into proimnaice in church life in 
America. The only way to gain control of a fast demoralizing 
situation was to establish a SeminaTy in the United States for 
the training of American priests. Assistance from the Old World 
was uncertain and dubious. The estaUishment of Georgdown 
Collc^, as has been mentioned already, was hut one part of the 
design he had in mind; the other was the establishment of a 
house of philosophy and theology for ecclesiastical students. 
What Carroll's plans for a Seminary were before his consecration 
would be difficult to say. The founding of the college over- 
shadowed everything educational at the time, and it was only 
when Georgetown became a certainty that he was able to con- 
sider the problem of clerical training. 

The Bull Ex hoc apostolicae of November 6, 1789, among other 
duties, imposed upon Bishop Carroll, emphasized the necessity 
of establishing "an episcopal seminary either in the same city 
[Baltimore], or elsewhere, as he shall judge most expedient." 
This injunction was in marked ^^eement with Carroll's views, as 
the historian of the Sulpicians in America tells us, and no doubt 
it inspired the prefect-apostolic with new energy to bring about 
the foundation of such an institution.* It has been stated that 
Dr. Carroll corresponded with various ecclesiastical authorities 
in Europe with a view to realizing the desires of the Holy 
Father and of the Coi^egation de Propaganda Fide. "Amoi^ 
the prelates whose aid he invoked," Herbcrmann writes, "was 
the Apostolic Nuncio at Paris, Monseigneur Dugnani." If this 
be correct, it is to be regretted that none of this correspondence 
has been found.' 

The coming of the Sulpicians can hardly be attributed to 
Carroll's direct apphcation to the superiors of the Society at 
Paris. Rather was the initiative due to the troubled conditions 
in France at that time. If it be remembered that Carroll's elec- 
tion to Baltimore occurred shortly after the fall of the Bastile 
(July 14, 1789), and that his consecration tocdc place at a time 
when it was evident that nothing could save France from the 

« UnUid Shut. New York, 1917. 



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466 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

terrible i^dieaval wbich dates from ^t outbreak, it will be 
easily understood why spiritual leaders such as Father Emery, 
the Superior-General of the Society of St. Sulpice, should seek 
a haven of refuge beyond the borders of France itself. Even 
the suggestion that a number of Sulpidans be sent out with the 
Gallipolis colony in 1790 met with a certain amount of approval. 
Fortunately, the Papal Nundo at Paris made the happier sugges- 
tion that there was more need of a Seminary in the newly-estab- 
lished Diocese of Baltimore, and that Bishop Carroll, who was 
then about to be consecrated in England, would welcome the 
assistance of a body of men devoted to the special work of train- 
ing youi^ men for the priesthood. 

The Society of St. Sulpice, founded by Father John James Olier 
at Paris in 1642, had opened the Seminary at Montreal in 1657. 
Its work was well known throughout Christendom, and its suc- 
cess in this important branch of ecclesiastical life so unprew- 
dented, that to Carroll and to all who knew how badly such an 
establishment was needed in the United States, the offer of the 
Sulpidans to come to America was providential. There are 
indeed few events in the history of the Church in this country 
which show more plainly the hand of God.* 

Father-General Emery communicated with Bishop Carroll and 
proposed that an American Seminary be begun at once. He 
offered Carroll the hospitality of the Seminary of St. Sulpice at 
Paris, in case he intended passing through that dty. Shea states 
that this letter was accompanied by a communication from Dug- 
nani to Carroll, dated Paris, August 24, 1790, urging Bishop 
Carroll to come to Paris for a conference with the Sulpidans. 
"It would appear," Shea says, "that this generous offer did not 
at first impress Dr. Carroll very favorably, as he wrote for 
further information." * There was undoubtedly some hesitation 
on Bishop Carroll's part, but it was wholly of a financial natiue. 
No doubt the disturbed ra>ndition of France, as well as his desire 
to return home for the reorganization of his diocese, prevented 



* Cf. ■ cDDtoBiBniT docnment in tba GtargHewm CaUtgi AnUutt, printed in flw 
Biuarclui, Tol. xiii, pp. 41-44 (FonnditiiHi tt the Sanlnarj of St. Snlpice, at BalU- 
mon). CI. GocuUR, fit dt M. Emtry. Piria, iUj; Ltt lUttiaiu StUHcitmut, in 
L'UnivrriiH CatMi^iu (FariiJ, toI. *i, p. S70 (Amnut 1$, igoj). 

* Ot. tU., TlL U, p. J73. 



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The Sulpicians 4^7 

Bishop Carroll from going to Paris, or to the scenes of his own 
kmg years as a student and teacher, St Omer, Brtiges and Li^ ; 
and in order to spare him tlie journey, Father Nagot, one of the 
Directors of the Paris Seminary, came to London to see the 
Bishop, Shea's "doubt or distrust" on the part of Carroll van- 
ished when he met Father Nagot He made it quite clear to the 
venerable Sulpician that it would be impossible for the new 
diocese to finance such an imdertaking. Father Nagot explained 
that "interest had been excited in France, and that means had 
been placed at the disposal of the Sulpicians to enable them to 
found a Seminary in America." Carroll announced Father 
Nagot's visit in the letter of September 27, 1790, to Antonelli : 
"These past few days, at the request of the illustrious Nuncio, 
there came from Paris, the learned and worthy priest. Father 
Nagot, the Superior of the Seminary of St. Sulpice ; with whom, 
after our conference, I decided to establish the episcopal Semi- 
nary of Baltimore. Certainly this is a wonderful mark of divine 
providence in our r^ard, that such excellent priests should be 
incited to confer upon us such valuaUe assistance. From this 
institution we are filled with hope not only for the increase of 
divine worship but also for supplying ministers of the sanc- 
tuary."* Some few days before his departure (October 4, 
1790), Bishop Carroll wrote to Lord Arundell from London: 

We arranged all preliminariea, and I expect at Baltimore early in the 
snniiiKr some of the gentlemen of that Institution to set hand to the work ; 
and I have reason to believe that they will find means to carry their 
plan into effect Thus we shall be provided with a house fit for the 
reception of and further improvement in the higher sciences of the young 
men whom God may call to an Ecclesiastical state, after their clatsioU 
education is finished in our Georgetown Academy. While I cannot but 
thank Divine Providence for opening upon us such a prospect, I feel 
great sorrow in the reflection that we owe such a benefit to the dis- 
tressed state of Religion in France.* 



* FrotMiatula ATcMvti, Scrillmrt oHginaU, i6L Bgi (not foliocd): "Hi*ec poctra- 
Bii didnii, PmHiiii idraiit, rcfatu En«nailit*inl Ntmdl, pncdartu opIiBmMVt Ptb*- 
tiTter Dominni Nagot, Superior pani, ui TOCBlur, Scmiiani Sti. Sulpidl, qnocnia, 
coUatii inTiccm coiuiliii, lUtntuin rM Seniinaniun EpiKopalc Billimori eoiwtltiieR. 

Tie propitiu in noi dlrinae vcdoaiatit Indidnm at, qood optiiiiM Saccnkita 
d tsntum nobit confcrradtm inbiidiuai, ex quo effnlcet pnecUim ipa non 
in infCDdi decoran divlni cultnt Md eliam lonitucndi nnctaiiii Hinictroi, qai 
u ocmI et (buodt inffidant, ct taigno cum f ructa Uliiu canm habeaoU" 

* Bttltim^t Cathtdrai ArcUtni, SpcdU C-St. 



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468 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

This group of pioneers from Catholic France wis destined to 
have a large share in the organization of Catholic America. 
Father Nagot was then fifty-seven years old, and had been one 
of the directors of the Seminary at Paris for some years. He 
was the logical choice for the rectorship of the new Seminary 
at Baltimore. He had taught philosophy and theology, and was 
almost as well-known in the ecclesiastical circles of France as 
the Superior-General, Father Emery. Father Garnier was a 
young man of twenty-nine at the time, and was an able scholar 
and a linguist of wide reputation. He had tai^ht theology at 
the Seminary in Lyons. Father Levadoux had directed the 
Seminary at Bourges, and Father Tessier, who was then about 
thirty-two years of age, had been professor at Viviers. 

U. Emery was certainly happy in the choice of the prieats whom be 
sent to America, but he did more for the new institution. As a sem- 
inary without Students would be a paradox, and as it was very doubtful 
that Georgetown, Bishop Carroll's new academy, would be able to fur- 
nish students of theology for some years to coine, he made vigorous 
efforts to secure inch students in the French Soninaries under Sulpidan 
guidance, and he was not unsuccessful. Five young Levitei, all of them 
speaking the English language, volunteered to become jHonecr students of 
the Baltimore Seminary. They were Messrs. Tulloh and Floyd, bodi 
natives of England; Perrinean, an English-speaking Canadian; Edward 
Caldwell, born at Etizabethtovm, New Jersey, a recent convert; and 
lastly Jean de Uontdisir, of the diocese of Chartrea.' 

One of Father Emery's friends had given him thirty thousand 
ItTves for the new foundation, and from a letter to Bishop Carroll, 
we learn that the Superior-General had decided to give one 
himdred thousand livres for the Seminary. The spirit of the 
enterprise is well displayed in the instructions given to Father 
Nagot, before starting out : 

The priests of St. Sutpice sent to found a seminary at Baltimore, will 
endeavour, above all things, to be inspired by the loftiest ideal of their 
vocation. They will bear in mind that their seminary is the first and 
wilt be for a long time the only institution of the kind in the United State* 
of America, that it is intended to educate in this seminary all the apostolic 
labourers who in the designs of Providence are destined to strengthen 

' HiusiHAHH, ef. eil., p. ig. Toltah rrtanied ta ZatUnd in int; both Flowdea 
and Strickland write alxnit Um ia 1791-1791. (BalUmert Ctihtdral AreUvn, Cut 

a-Bi, a-ci, 6-oe.) 



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The Sulpicians 469 

Catholics in tbeir faith, to bring back heretics to the bosom of the 
Church, to bear the light of the Gospel to the Redskins; in a word, to 
spread the kingdom of Christ and His Church m a countrr much 
larger than the whole of Europe. Therefore, thejr will do everything 
in their power to reach a high degree of sanctity, convinced that they 
will do more good by their holy lives than by their teachings and their 
exhortations. Let them often call to mind that they are destined to 
perpetuate the spirit of the name of their Society in the world; and let 
them always keep before their eyes the rules and practices of St. Sulpice, 
in order to be guided by them as far as passible. . . . Since it has pleased 
God to bless till now d>e work of the Society of St. Sulpice, experience 
coovioces us that its spirit is good; and since its proper and characterutic 
aim is to concern itself only with the education of the clergy, the directors 
of the Seminary at Baltimore will confine and consecrate themselves en- 
tirely to this work; and if at the beginning and under unusual circum- 
stances they find themselves compelled to take up duties foreign to this 
work, they must consider themselves to be under conditinis out of their 
element, and not to be satisfied until they can return to their special 
mode of life. . . . The peculiar spirit of the Society, moreover, is a 
spirit of unworldliness. They will, therefore, have as little intercourse 
as possible with the world; and all of their pious practices, those to 
which they will especially devote themselves are meditation and their an- 
nual retreat. In order to strengthen themselves in their k>ve of the inner 
spirit, they will adopt the festivals in honour of the inner life of Our 
Lord and the Blessed Virgin. . . . The Seminary at Baltimore will bear 
the name of St. Sulpice, will be under the special protection of the 
Blessed Virgin, and will also accept the other patrons of St, Sulpice. . . .* 

The first party of ten priests and seminarians embarked at 
St Mak) on April 8, 1791. Three months later, on July 10, 
they reached Baltimore. After securing a house on the present 
grounds of the Seminary, they began their work about July 23, 
1791, and on October 3, the Seminary was ready to receive 
students. When the spiritual retreat opened on December 10, 
1791, the little band of five aspirants had been reduced to three, 
for the names of Tulloh and Caldwell are not found on the list 
of priests ordained at St Mary's Seminary. Students came 
slowly to the institution — the first three beii^ two Frenchmen, 
Messrs. Barret and Badin, the latter being ordained in 1793 as 
the first-fruits of the Seminary, and the Russian Prince Done- 
trius Gallitzin, who was ordained in 1795. From 1795 to 1797, 



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470 r^' ^*fe <^f*^ Times of John Carroll 

the Seminary was without students. The first Americao-born 
student, William Matthews, entered in 1797, and was ordained 
in 1800. The year 1792 saw the advent of two other groups 
of Sulpicians, many of whom were to exert a lasting infiuence 
on church affairs in the United States — Fathers Chicoisneau, 
I^vid, and Flaget, who arrived on March 29, and Fathers 
Marshal, Richard, and Ciquard, who came on June 24. In 
December, 1794, Father Da Botu'g arrived and in 1795 was 
admitted to the Sulpicians. Without students to teach, all these 
priests could not be kept at St. Mary's ; and with the consent of 
Father Emery, Bishop Carroll sent them tt different parts of 
his diocese as missioners. Father Levadoux and Flaget were 
sent to the Illinois Country; Father Garnier established St. 
Patrick's parish, at Baltimore; Father David went to the lower 
Maryland missions; Father Du Bourg organized the first parish 
at Baltimore for the colored ; Father Ciquard was sent to minister 
to the Micmac Indians in Maine ; Father Marechal laboured on 
the Maryland missions tmtil 1802, when be became a professor 
aC Geoi^;etown College. A later arrival. Father Jean Dilhet, was 
sent to the West, as a companion to Father Levadoux, while 
Father Gabriel Richard eventually settled at Detroit (1798) and 
left behind him a lasting memorial in the educational history of 
Michigan. 

How highly Bishop Carroll appreciated the coming of these 
learned and devoted priests into his diocese is expressed in his 
letter of April 23, 1^2, to Antonelli: 

It is Already known to the Sacred CoogregAtion how singular a bless- 
ing has come to us from the disorders that threaten religion in France, 
unce on account of the same has arisen the opportunity ai sending thither 
some priests from the Seminary of St. Sulpice, at Paris. While I was 
in London, this matter was seriously considered as I have already made 
known to the Sacred Congresation ; after my return to my diocese, the 
plan was fully decided upon, and in July of last year four priests with 
five clerics, students of philosophy and theology, reached this port, led by 
the Venerable Nagot, formerly Superior of the Seminary of St. Sul- 
^ce. . . . The establishment of a seminary is certainly a new and extra- 
ordinary spectacle for the people of this country; the remarkable piety 
of these priests is admirable, and Aeir example is a stimulant and spur to 
all who feel themselves called to work in the vineyard of the Lord. Such 
are the great and remarkable eSects of God's bounty. But what is still 
more important ii that, owing to the establishment of this aeminary. 



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The Sulpkians 471 

the clergy trill be broUEht up io the purity of fsith and in hOlineu of 
cmdiict All our hopes are founded on the Seminary of Baltimore 
Since the arrival of the priests of St. Sulpice, the celebration of the 
offices of the Church and the dignity of divine worship have made a 
great impression, so that, though the church of Baltimore is hardly 
worthy of the name of cathedral, if we consider its style and its stie, 
it may be looked upon as an episcopal church in view of the number 
of its clergy,* 

It must be remembered, however, that like every religkms 
oommunity in the Church, the ideal of the Society of St. SuliMce 
was a well-defined one. The Society was founded for a single 
purpose — the training of yotmg ecclesiastics in the setninariea, 
in accordance with the decrees of the Council of Trent This 
work demanded men of ability and of piety. At no one period 
was the Society a large one. Its members were carefully chosen 
from among the numerous applicants who presented themselves. 
Its work is the hardest the ecclesiastical life knows. How well 
the ideals of the Sulpiciaos had succeeded is evident from tiie 
fact that in i^i, when the French Revolution crushed all Cath- 
olic effort in France, the sixteen leading seminaries of France 
were under the direction of the Society. Missionary work was 
not included in its designs; not indeed, that tbe priests of St 
Sulpice n^lected any labour of this kind which came to their 
notice, but organized missionary effort, such as that tmdertaken 
by the Sulpicians who came to the United States in 1791-1794, 
was decidedly foreign to the spirit of their Rule. It is in this 
light that we must regard the Brst ten years of Sulpidan history 
at Baltimore. Father Nagot, and still more, the Superior-Gen- 
eral, Father Emery, saw that thdr spiritual subjects in tbe 
United States might drift away from the Sulpidan standards, 
and, with the class-rooms of St. Mary's Seminary practically 
vacant durit^ that time, it is not surprising that the Baltimore 
fotmdation should be viewed as a failure. The situation seemed 
hopeless in America, and indeed, was hopeless. In France, with 
the election of Napoleon as First Consul (1799) the worst period 
of the Revolution was over, and the leaders of the country set 
about organizitig their distracted nation. Pius VI died in exile, 
at Valence, on August 22, 1799, and on March 14, 1800, Cardinal 

* Ct. HiuaiHA», ep. rit., p. 33. 



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472 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Chianmonti jvu elected, u Pius VII. In Novanber, 1800, the 

negotiationg began betweeo the repreKntatives of the Pi^Acy and 
of Napoleon, and the Concordat a£;reed upon in August, 1801, 
was solenuily proclaimed in Notre Dame Cathedral on Easter 
Sunday, April 18, 1802. One result of the understandit^ be- 
tween Church and State was the reopening of the seminaries 
in France. Father Emery was well-known to the First Consul, 
who held him in high respect, and on three occasions had offered 
him a bishopric, which the Superior-General declined each time, 
believing that his duty was to reoi^anize the scattered forces 
of the Stdpicians. It is easily understood, therefore, that the 
Superior-General should consider in all seriousness the situation 
of his priests then labouring in the American missions. 

Naturally, his eyes wandered across the great western main, where *o 
many of his brethren consecrated to clerical education were working 
hard, but working for ends which, however laudable, were foreign to 
the primary aims of the Society. All these considerations naturally 
tended to make him feel that he and his brethren were practically faith- 
less to the very porposes of the Society and that the American St. 
Stilpioe was betraybg the cause of ecclesiastical educatioa He ex- 
changed vie«-s with his dear old lientenant. Father Nagot, and that 
gentle soul, who up to the age of sixty had devoted his time and his 
entire self to the work of the Sulpician Seminary, could not conceal 
from himself that the American Snlpidans, \^ilst strennoas workers in 
the Vineyard of the Lord, were not faithful disciples of the Reverend 
M. Olier.'o 

Practically every message from the Sulpidans in America 
contained a picture of failure, and Father Emery at last decided 
to recall his brethren to the more important tasks at hand in 
France. Gosselin, in his Life of Father Emery, has given us a 
portion of the correspondence which passed between Bishop 
Carroll and Father Emery anent the recall of twelve Sulpicians 
then in the Diocese of Baltimore. On August 8, 1800, Father 
Emery wrote to Bishop Carroll about the latter's disapproval of 
the foundii^ of St. Mary's College in Baltimore, as a preparatory 
school to the Seminary." The letter is a frank statement to the 
effect that unless the bishop can see a way towards a closer 
cooperation with St. Sulpice, the whole project will be in jeop- 



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ST. MARY'S SEMINARY— BALTIMORE. 1791 



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The Sulpicians 473 

ardy. In January, 1801, we have CarroH'a answer, equally franic, 
but pleading with the superior-general to have patience — "I was 
frightened," he writes, "when I heard that for a short time you 
intended to recall them. I earnestly beg you to give up this 
tbot^ht and to feel that in the end they will fulfill the purpose 
of your Society and the views you had when you sent them here." 
Later in the year, when it was evident that Father Emery was 
determined to recall the American Sulpicians, Bishop Carroll 
wrote (September, 1801) : "... I conjure you by the 
bowels of Our Lord not to take all of them away from us, and 
if it is necessary for me to undergo the trial of losing the greater 
□umber, I beg of you to leave us at least a seed, which may yield 
fruit in the season decreed by the Lord. . . ." When Father 
Emery insisted upon the return of the American Sulpicians, 
Bishop Carroll complained sharply against the entire suppression 
of an institution, on the lasting character of which he had always 
counted, and declared that if the Sulpicians went back to Europe 
the only monument they will leave behind them would be a 
college. In his reply (February 2, 1802) Father Emery justified 
his action: 

... I come to the root of the matter ; surely in the entire course of 
the French Revolution nothing was done similar to what we did for you 
and your diocese. A small Society like ours, in fact, the smallest Society 
of all, offers to establish a. seminary in your diocese; it sends you quite 
a Urge number of members; it even sends you seminarians to enable yoti 
to start the seminary work at once ; the Society sends them at its own 
expense; it undertakes to support these members, and, in fact, has ever 
sitKe then supported them; it sacrifices to this institution the greater 
part of its savings and gives nearly 100,000 francs. What is the result 
of mil this? At the end of ten years things stand as they did on the 
first day. At present there is no question of giving up the Baltimore 
Seminary, because that seminary, in truth, has never existed; there is 
question only of giving up the project of the seminary. From time to 
time promises were made that students should be sent there; we were 
made to regard this as a grace and favour : but the students did not come, 
and difEcuItiea arose where we should have least expected them. You 
tell me, Uonseigneur, that the Society will leave behind it no monument 
except a college. I hope that you will bear in mind to some degree all 
the services which its members have rendered you during ten years. If 
there is question of complaining, it seems to me that I have a ri^t 
to complain, since at the end of a ten years' stay, and after many 
promises, we have done nothing and have been able to do nothing of 



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474 rft# Lift and Times of John CMiroU 

all that we mMnl to do when entering your dioccte. Howsw, I im 
very far from finding fault with yon; we know that you have not been 
able to do what you wished, and we are alwayi crateful to you for the 
Idndoess you have shown us." 

As a result of these orders received from Paris, Fathers Gar- 
nier, Mar^chal and Levadoux departed for France in 1803. 
Father Nagot remained on account of ill-health. The result was 
that the Seminary seemed doomed. If it was saved at the time, 
credit must be given to no less a personage than Pius VII, who 
was then in Paris. His Holiness had journeyed to the French 
capital, in November, 1804, for the coronation ceremony of the 
Emperor Napoleon (December 2, 1804). About this time Father 
Emery asked the advice of Pius VII on continuing the Seminary 
at Baltimore, and the answer which has come down to us, is: "My 
son, let it stand, let that Seminary stand. It will bear fruit in 
its own time." ■ Father Emery accepted the decision of the Pope, 
and allowed Father Nagot to continue as superior. In 1810, the 
venerable Sulpidan resigned his post, and-^was succeeded by 
Father John Tessier, who directed the Seminary from that date 
down to the time of Archbishop Whitfield (1829). Growth 
was slow at first, the ordinations numbering but two or three 
a year. During Bishop Carroll's episcopate, thir^ priests were 
orduned at St. Mary's. 

The chief cause for the failure of St Mary's Seminary during 
the first decade of its existence was the lade of students. With 
the opening of Georgetown College at the same time as the coming 
of the Sulpidans (1791), Bishop Carroll hoped to find a number 
of vocations to the priesthood grow out of the student body at 
the collie. In this, he was disappointed; and if Geoi^etown 
was unable to furnish students prepared for philosophy, the 
Seminary in Baltimore was a useless expense. A way lay open 
to them ; the creation of a petit simiruUre or preparatory coll^;e 
at Baltimore. To this Bishop Carroll was strongly oi^XMed, 
and no doubt, rightly so. Georgetown was in its infanqr, and 
to deprive it of students by creating what would be a rival 
institution was out of the question. But the conditton of the 
Seminary was too emphatic for delay, and Fathers Flaget and 

" BmnBUAUti, ff. eH., pp. $9-st. 



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The Sulpidans 475 

Richard gathered a few boys of the city around them in 1793 
for academic instruction. After a year, Bishop Carroll inter- 
posed and the work was abandoned. Father William Du Bout^, 
who had come to America in 1794, as a secular priest, 
became a Sulpician the following year, and in 1796, he was 
aj^inted President of Georgetown CoU^e by Bishop Carroll 
This position he resigned shortly afterwards, returning to the 
Seminary. It was evident that Georgetown had not reached 
that state of permanency which would insure a succession of 
ecdestastica] students. Another Sulpician, Father Babad, bad 
conceived the idea of a college in Havana, and he was joined 
there by Father Du Bourg. The prospects seemed bright enough, 
but, after a year's trial, the college in Havana was closed by 
order of the Spanish Government, and Father Du Bourg returned 
to Baltimore (August, 1799) with three Spanish boys. Here he 
opened a collie in 3 few rooms of the Seminary. Bishop 
Carroll was not in favour of the scheme, because of the danger 
the new foundation might prove to Georgetown. He agreed, 
however, to allow studies to be b^un, on condition that no Amer- 
ican students be accepted, while he limited the number of the 
foreign students. It was this opposition to St. Mary's College, 
which strengthened Father Emery's determination to recall the 
American Sulpicians altogether. "He seems," says Herbermann, 
"to have regarded the Bishop's opposition to a Sulpician academy 
as a bar to any plan of self-help on the part of his Society, and 
therefore as a kind of sentence of death to the seminary itself.'"* 
The bishop soon saw the necessity of permitting St. Mary's Col- 
lie to continue, and in 1803, its doors were opened to all Amer- 
ican students, day scholars and boarders, without distinction of 
creed. In 1806, the number of collegians was one hundred and 
six. There were only two other institutions of this kind in Mary- 
land at the time: Washington College, at Chestertown, on the 
eastern shore, founded by Rev. Dr. Smith, in 1782, and St. John's 
College at Annapolis, begun in 1789. The two institutions were 
combined as the University of Maryland by the Maryland Assem- 
bly, but they were not well patronized and the union was soon dis- 
solved by the state Legislature. The failure of these two colleges 

- Of. tU.. p. •«. 



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47^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

was emphasized by the success of St. Mary's College, which was 
raised by an act of the Legislature in 1803 to the rank of a 
university. Father Du Bourg remained President of St, Mary's 
University until 1812, when he became Administrator of the 
Diocese of Louisiana; three years later he became Bishop of 
New Orleans. Among the presidents of the college were Arch- 
bishop Eccleston and Bishops David, Brute and Chanche. For 
a half century, St. Mary's College held a high place in the edu- 
cational progress of Maryland ; but to the Sulpicians in France 
and to many of the American Sulpicians, it was looked upon 
as outside the scope of the Society's constitutions; and in 1852, 
the institution, then at the height of Its fame, was closed perma- 
nently, its place being taken by Loyola College. 

The Sulpician ideal was a purely clerical college, that is, one 
in which only those Catholic boys would be received who had 
aspirations for the priesthood. Not all, it is true, were expected 
to persevere up to ordination, but the rules of the Society were 
strict in this sense that the labours of the Sulpicians should be 
spent exclusively in the preparation of youi^ men for the min- 
istry. In 1792, when Father Emery sent the second party of 
Sulpicians to the United States, he impressed upon them the duty 
of foimding preparatory Seminaries in the New Republic. 
Shortly after the University charter had been granted to St. 
Mary's College, Father Nagot, the first Superior of St. Mary"* 
Seminary, gathered a group of boys around him at Pigeon Hill, 
Adams County, Pennsylvania. Father N^ot had spent one of 
bis vacations on a farm at Pigeon Hill, and when the owner 
returned to France in 1803, the farm and property were left 
in his care. The superior of the Seminary saw an oppor- 
tunity of establishing there a preparatory coU^, and one of 
the most remarkable of the Sulpicians who came from France, 
Father John Dubois, who was then pastor of Frederick, Mary- 
land, and who later became a Sulpician, suggested that 
the school at Pigeon Hill be transferred to Emmits- 
burg, where a number of Catholic fanners were living. 
Urged by Father Du Bourg, who realized as well as his fellow- 
Sulpidans, the anomaly of St. Mary's CoU^e as a preparatory 
Seminary, and by Father Nagot, who saw in the little nucleus 
he had gathered at Pigeon Hill the beginning of such a fouoda- 



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The Sulpicians 4TJ 

don, Father Dubois opened a school, under the title. Mount St. 
Mary's College, at Emmitsburg, in 1808-180Q. The Pigeon Hill 
scholars were transferred to the new college, and that establish- 
ment, modest as it was in the be^nnit^, then began its long 
career of usefulness to Church and State in this country. The 
Mountain, as it is affectionately called by its alumni, had sixty 
pupils in 1812. This same year Father Dubois was joined by 
an equally noted priest. Father Simon Brute. Mount St. Mary's 
Collie remained under Sulptdan direction during the rest of 
Carroll's lifetime, becoming a diocesan college in 1826. 

The early history of these three Catholic colleges — St. Mary's, 
at Baltimore, Pigeon Hill, in Pennsylvania, and Mount St. 
Mary's, at Emmitsburg — is not known with all the accuracy of 
description and of chronology which is desirable. They prepared 
the way in days when the sacrifices demanded of teacher and 
pupil are almost beyond belief, and their success, as the 3rear$ 
went on, only adds to our admiration for the bravery of these 
early scholars who came to the United States during the French 
Revolution with an ideal which they have never allowed to be 
tarnished. 



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CHAPTER XXVI 
RELIGIOUS ORDERS OF WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES 

It is a maxim in church tradition that no people can be said 
to enjoy completely the blessings of the Catholic Faith nnttl its 
sons and daughters seek a means of following the evangelical 
counsels in the life of perfection offered by the religious Orders 
that have existed in the Catholic Church almost from earliest 
times. As an integral part of Catholicism, the primary purpose 
of the religious Orders, Cot^egattons, and Institutes, is personal 
sanctification. But it is a fact admitted by all historians that 
the members of these religious communities have never been idle 
members of society. In the passage of time it has happened 
more than once that individuals and sometimes whole houses 
have proven recreant to their ideals; but the story of religious 
life is 50 thoroughly a part of the history of civilization that 
there are few scholars today who fail to recognize the value of 
these communities in the moral and intellectual advance of 
humanity. No one but a stranger to the religious life could 
make the mistake nowadays of accepting the position held by 
the reformers of the sixteenth century in regard to the utility 
of these Orders and Congregations. There is no aspect of 
human need, no work of charity, no phase of education, in which 
they have not taken a great share. Their care of the sick and 
the dyit^; their custodianship of the orphan and of the delin- 
quent; the consoling attention they pay to the aged and the 
infirm ; and especially their devotion to the cause of education — 
these alone give to the men and women who enter the religious 
life within the Church the surety of appreciation frcun all who 
rejoice in practical evidences of man's love for his fellow-men. 

When John Carroll became Bishop of Baltimore in 1790, no 
Catholic institution embracing any one of these ideals of Chris- 
tian charity existed within the borders of what was then the 
United States. There was no Catholic home for the aged, no 
478 



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Religious Orders: fFomen 479 

Catholic hospital, no Catholic orphanage. Catholic education, 
both primary, secondary, and ecclesiastical, had to be built up 
from the foundations. The want of these educational establish- . 
menta in colonial days had caused Catholic parents to submit 
their children to the risk of the long, arduous and perilous 
journey to the Continent of Europe for Catholic instruction. 
From Maine to the frontiers of Florida and from the Atlantic 
to the Mississippi, no convent- or monastery existed wherdn 
young men or young women, called to a life of perfection, might 
find refnge from the world. Only the broken remnants of that 
community which had founded the faith in the thirteen orig- 
inal States and had evangelized the Indians and the colon- 
ists for a hundred and forty years were to be seen. The 
great work of the Company of Jesus lay scattered by a blow 
from its commander-in-chief, a blow dealt in the dark and as 
fatal in its consequences as tfie disbandit^ of an army in the 
thick of the battle; and the Church in the new Republic was 
robbed of its strongest defence. During the three and thirty 
years of the Suppression in the United States (1773-1806), 
one by one, the old Fathers of the Society of Jesus were dropping 
off and were being laid alongside the Jesuits of the former days, 
who had spent their all in keeping the flame of the Faith bright 
and clear in the colonies. 

Outside the frontiers of the United States, only one community 
existed — the Ursuline nuns at New Orleans. Antedating the 
birth of John Carroll by seven years, the foundation of the first 
Ursuline Convent within the present territory of the United 
States (1727), was the outcome of Governor Bienville's plea to 
the Ursulines of Rouen to tmdertake the education of girls in 
the little settlement of New Orleans. On February 22, 1727, 
ten Ursuline nuns from various convents of the Order in France, 
set sail for New Orleans on the Gironde, accompanied by two 
members of the Society of Jesus.' The nuns were under the 
direction of Mother Marie Tranchepain, of the Rouen convent 



' rk« Vnmlimn iit LomWmw (i717'|Sm). Nnr Orlwu, i8B«i RiitHen 4<i 
Vvytv ^ pTtmiirn UrtaliMt i la ATnwil* OtUaiu t it Inr itaituxinHMl t» 
Itttt you, par b Rer. Utn St. AotvMia de Tnnckcpain, Ssp^iiear^ mne la Icttm 
dicBblrM da «iMl«Dca mm da ca Sotm, et dc U dita Hire. TnailaUd br Sau 
is th* UmiM StmU, CatMfe HtOvrlfl Uwwfaf, *<iL i, pp. i^i. Cf. Stttrdt. 
tbL niU, pp> M(-tJa 



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480 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

The account of the voyage, as contained in the pages of Sister 
Stanislaus Hachaid's diary 

reads in these days like a romance. . . . The ship encountered terrible 
tempests, and several times seemed on the point of going down. Once she 
struck upon a rock. Corsairs got on her track again and again, and on 
one of these occasions, when capture seemed to be inevitable, the Sisters 
were stowed away in the captain's cabin. To add to their sufferings, the 
captain treated them at times with brutal harshness. Five months were 
thus consumed, and everybody both at home and in the colony had given 
them up for lost. Finally, reaching the mouth of the Mississippi, the 
Gtromtt stuck fast in the mud, and the Sisters were forced to make their 
way up the river as best they could in small boats and dugouts, going 
ashore at night and sleeping in the forest.' 

Two wedcs after the wreck of the Gironde, they reached New 
Orleans (At^ust 7, 1727).* A hearty welcome was given to 
the Sisters, and within a short time, Aey hegaxi convent life. 
With the opening of their school — the first Sisters' school in 
the United States — an educational record was begun which today 
is one of the glories of the Church in America. Bums has given 
us a detailed description of the school life of the Ursulines during 
this first century of their Order here. The school day was a 
short one — only four hours. The vacation period lasted three 
weeks. Reading, writing and arithmetic, with Christian doctrine 
and manual training, made up the programme of the day. "Some 
features of the Ursuline system of teaching," he writes, "were 
surprisingly modern, and throw a new light upon the educational 
ideas and methods of the period." One of these interesting 
features was the employment of pupil-teachers, called in the 
Rules dieainiires, thus antedating by many years the Lancaster- 
Bell system. The monitors were selected from among the bright- 
est and best-behaved girls, and their duty was to assist the 
teachers in clasS'Wprk and in the maintenance of discipline. 

Each digainiire had her group of ten or so to look after. She ad- 
monished them of their faults, of which she was not, however, to inform 
the teacher, except it became necessary for their correction. , , . Another 
interesting feature of the Ursuline method of teaching was specializa- 

* Bmn, cf- <**'• P- »'■ CI- Dun, RiHaioui Ordtrt of Wamtn i» tkt UaiM 
SUI**, pp. SJ-3S. CUcacD, igij. 

> Cf. IUc<rri*, vdL i, pp. 114-141 (Voost, Tin Urntimt Nmu oi Amtrtca}. 



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Religious Orders: Women 481 

tion. ... A great deal of time was devoted to industrial work. Thia 
was a feature of the Ursuline ichool cverTwhere. The pnpiU began by 
learning to knit and to stitch, and were taught gradually how to mend 
and make their own garments, ai well as various articles of utility in the 
botuehold. . . . While the pupils were engaged in this work, the Sister 
in charge, or one of the pupils, often read some interesting and instructive 
sketch or story.* 

The Ursuline day-school and academy were supported by the 
French Governmetit, and when the Spanish Government assumed 
control of Louisiana in 1769, the same support was continued. 
The Ursulincs survived all the changes, political and ecclesi- 
astical, which followed one another so quickly in the province. 
After the cession of Louisiana to Spain, the ecclesiastical juris- 
diction of Quebec was transferred to Santiago de Cuba, and the 
C^uchin, Cyril de Barcelona, was made vicar-general of the 
province (1772). In 1781 he was consecrated Auxiliary-Bishop 
of Santiago, with residence in New Orleans. Six years later, 
when the Diocese of Santiago de Cuba was divided and Havana 
erected into a separate see, Louisiana was placed under the 
latter diocese. Bishop Joseph de Trespalacios became first 
Bishop of Havana, and Bishop Cyril of Barcelona continued as 
atixiliary to the new ordinary. The Holy See erected Louisiana 
and the Floridas into a separate diocese on April 25, 1793, and 
Bishop Louis PeSalver y Cardenas was appointed its chief shep- 
herd. The new bishop arrived in New Orleans on July 17, 
1795, remaining until 1801, when he was made Archbishop of 
Guatemala. From 1801 until October i, 1805, the Diocese of 
Lottisiana and the Floridas, with New Orleans as the chief 
ecclesiastical centre, was governed by vicars-general; on that 
day Bishop Carroll assumed jurisdiction as administrator. De 
Laussat, the Commissioner of the French Kepublic, had formally 
transferred Louisiana to the United States on December 20, 
1803, and Bishop Carroll was to all intents and purposes the 
sole head of the diocese, down to August 8, 1812, when he sent 
Father Du Bourg to New Orleans as administrator-apostolic. 
Du Bourg was consecrated Bishop of Louisiana, on September 
24, 1815, about three months before Archbishop Carroll's death. 



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482 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

During these many changes, the Ursulines contimted to pros- 
per, but there were constant rumors of confiscation by the 
French and the Spanish governments; and after the cessioa of 
Louisiana to the United States these rumors became more serious. 
"So little was the genius of the American government under- 
stood by her latest acquisition, that friends of the nuns, supposed 
to be well-informed, declared that the utmost concession they 
could expect was leave to remain in their monastery which, at 
the death of the last of them — they were forbidden to take novices 
— would be seized, with their lands in the city and suburbs, 
which were very considerable, by the American Government," ' 
The United States even after a quarter-century of constitutional 
life had not lived down, it would seem, the sad legacy for intoler- 
ance the English colonies had bequeathed to the new Republic. 
With the danger of confiscation in mind, the Reverend Mother 
Farjon wrote to Bishop Carroll informing him of the condition 
of affairs in New Orleans, on November l, l8o3.* Bishop 
Carroll replied on February 14, 1804, that he had sent her letter 
to James Madison, then Secretary of State. On April 23, 1804, 
the Ursulines wrote to President Thomas Jefferson describing 
their uncertain^ in a city where, as Father Bodkin told Dr. 
Carroll in a letter, dated New Orleans, January 3, 1804, "the 
Spanish, French and the American flags were flying" side-by- 
side.' On July 20, 1804, Madison replied to Carroll as follows: 

I have had the honour to lay before the President your letter of the 
14th of December, who views with pleasure the public benefit resnltinc 
iron) the benevolent endeavours of the respectable persons in whose behalf 
it is written. Be assured that no opportunitjr will be ncslectcd of mani- 
festing the real interest he takes in promoting the means of affording to 
the youth of this new portion of the American dominion, a pious and 
useful education, and of evincing the Krateful sentiments due to those 
of all religious persuasions who so laudably devote themselves in its 
diffusion. It was under the influence of such feelings that Governor 
Claiborne had already asswed the ladies of this monastery of the entire 
protection which will be afforded them, after the recent change of 
GovemmenL* 



■ Tht UrnOi^i i 

* BiUiiun Cmthntnl Archivu, Cue i 

* IbU., Cue I-I«. 

* Tkt Uttttiitf tm LmMkM, p. (a. 



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Religious Orders: Women 483 

In reply to Mother Farjon's letter, Jefferson wrote in hia 
admirably courteous way, on August 22, 1804: 

I have received, Holy Sisters, the letters yon have written to me, 
wherein you express anxiety for the property vested in your inititution 
by the former government of Louisiana. The principles of the Grartitu- 
tion and Govemmenl of the United States are a sure guaranty to you that 
it will be preserved to you sacred and inviolate, and that your institution 
will be permitted to govern itself according to Its own voluntary rules, 
without interference from the civil authority. Whatever diversity of 
shade may appear in the religious opinions of our fellow-citizens, the 
charitable objects of your institution cannot be indifferent to any, and 
its furtherance of wholesome purposes by training up its young mem- 
bers in tlie way they should go, cannot fail to insure it the patronage of 
the Govenunent it is under. Be assured it will meet with all the pro- 
tection my office can give it.* 

The authoress of The Ursvlines in Louisiana writes : 

Certainly Bishop Carroll himself could not write with more respect 
and appreciation of the Ursulines, and their high vocation as teachers of 
yotrth, than did the President of the United States. For years the nuns 
felt somewhat unsettled, as, indeed, did most of the inhabitants of 
Lotdsiana. Having changed masters three times in less than a month, 
many hoped, or, at least, expected, to be restored to their ancient rulers, 
and were indignant at being handed about from one Government to 
another, like so many head of cattle. Besides, owing to these frequent 
transfers of the Church of Louisiana, from Havana to New Orleans, 
to Havana, again to Quebec, and, finally, to Baltimore, religion was in 
a deplorable condition, and a large infusion of lawless and dangerous 
classes from all parts of the country did not lessen the existing evils. 
In 1812, Bishop Carrol] sent Rev. William Du Bourg to rectify abuses, but 
he encountered so many obstacles from those who should have aided 
him, that he was compelled to place New Orleans under an interdict 
For several years the cathedral was closed, and Mass was celebrated 
in the Ursuline chapel alone, by the only priest who had faculties, Abbj 
Olivier, who was over eighty years old."* 

During the battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815, the class- 
rooms of the Ursuline school were turned into a temporary 
hospital for the American soldiers, who were nursed by the 
Sisters. When the battle was raging between these untrained 
American troops and the English veterans, led by Pakenham, 



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484 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

one of Wellington's experienced generals, the ladies of New 
Orleans, gathered in the chapel of the Ursuline Nuns before the 
statue of Our Lady of Prompt Succour," and their pious hearts 
"ascribed to her intercession the exerdsc of the Power that 
turned the tide of battle from their firesides and homes."" 
Jackson's victory has always appealed to the people of New 
Orleans as something bordering on the supernatural. With 
6,000 yout^ recruits he faced the flower of the British army. 
From the windows of their convent, the Ursulines watched the 
progress of the battle, and everything seemed to point to the 
hopelessness of the American position. Pakenham's promise 
of "booty and beauty" to the English soldiers could have only 
one meaning to the mms, and it was that vile promise that sent 
them to their knees in prayer. Jackson had threatened to destroy 
the city which lay behind his trenches, in case of defeat, and the 
little Ursuline chapel was filled with the weeping wives, mothers, 
sisters and children of the town. On the morning of January 8, 
1815, Father Du Bourg, then the administrator of the Diocese of 
Louisiana, offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the success 
of the Americans, and the nuns made a vow to create a Thanks- 
giving Day in perpetuity, if the Americans won. The Mass was 
not yet finished when the good news came that Jackson was the 
rictor, and Father Du Bourg ended the services with a Te Deum. 
Jackson himself, tbot^h not overburdened with piety, acknowl- 
edged to Du Bourg on January 9 that he regarded the victory 
as a sign of God's action in his favour : "The signal interposi- 
tion of Heaven in giving success to our arms requires some 
external manifestation of the feelii^s of our most lively grati- 
tude. Permit me, therefore, to entreat that you will cause the 
service of public thanksgiving to be performed in the Cathedral, 
in token of the great assistance we have received from the Ruler 
of all events, and of our humble sense of it." " In compliance 
with this noble request. Father Du Bourg celebrated a solemn 



■> 1%I« roDk^Ua tMtu wu bronfU from Fnnec by debt Utmliati, ate antvid 
!■ PbiUddpU*, on June 8, tSto, bound far New Orliaiu, irbit^ dty thcr taxhti ga 
DKODber JO, tSto. (Cf. Rtuwrch4t, *al. zriU, p. ji.) The Umliu* of Nm 
0ri«u pnbliih a pcriodkil, Tkt Mtmnfr of Our Lmdy af Promt* Succtr (ifig — ), 
which contiiiu min; valiuble hiitnriol iketcbci of old Louuiuis. 

= Shea, of. at., nl. li, p. 6?a. 

■■ LiTOUi, Hiitorictl Uimeir of tkt War, p. 6S. I^UidcIphii, 1S1& 



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Religious Orders: fVomen 485 

Mass of Thanksgiving in the Cathedral, on January 23, iSij. 
and, in receiving General Jackson at the door of the Cathedral, 
he thanked him publicly for his recognition of the "Prime Mover 
of your, wonderful success." The same day, General Jackson 
with his staff visited the Ursulines to thank them for their 
prayers.** 

In a few short years the Ursuline Academy will celebrate the 
two hundredth anniversary of its foundation. The history of 
their heroic voyage across the Atlantic in 1727 in order to take 
up their labours in Louisiana will then be told in all its details. 
Under the flags of France, of Spain, and of the United States, 
this oldest institution for the education of girls in the United 
States has succeeded where many similar institutions, erected 
since that day, by Catholics and non-Catholics, have failed and 
perished. Through many serious vicissitudes they lived, carry- 
ing on admirably their work of educating the young girls of 
New Orleans and of Louisiana. The consecration of Bishop 
Du Bourg in 1815 gave them great hopes for the future. It 
would seem from a note in the Propaganda Archives that they 
had written to Rome urgii^ that Father Du Boui^ be encour- 
aged to remain in Louisiana. Propaganda replied in September, 
1815, that there was no danger of Du Bourg's returning to 
France, as they feared, for he had been consecrated bishop of 
the territory, and was about to return home. Bishop Du Bourg 
was then in Rome, trying to secure several additional Sisters 
for the work at New Orleans. On May 2, 181 5, the nuns wrote 
to Pope Pius VII asking for permission to return to France, 
His Holiness replied (October 16, 1815) : 

Uadamt, 

Your letter of May 2, reached us only towards the end of September. 
We are very sensible of your good wishes for our preservation and the 
success of our enterprises, always directed to the glory of God and 
tbe advantage of the Church. As to the inquietudes that agitate you 
regarding your spiritual direction, they cannot last, for M. Du Bourg 
ha* received from us Bulls, and has been consecrated at Rome, by our 
order, Bishop of the Diocese of New Orleans, to which he will soon 
return. You may, then, be tranquil as to your future, and give up the 
project of going to France; you can do much ntore for religion where 

* prlvJIcK* ot 



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486 The Life and Times of John CarroU 

you are. Therefore, we exhort yon to redouble your zeal for yoimg 
persons of your aex, and for the eternal salvation of yonr nei^bour. We 
have yDur community continually present to our mind, especially in our 
prayers to obtain for you all the gracea you need, and wc give you, 
with effusion of heart, our Apostolic Benediction." 

For some years after Bishop Du Bourg's return the situation 
of the school and academy was precarious, but little by little tiie 
Ursulines regained their old-time vigour and were soon on the 
road to the prosperity and success they have enjoyed ever since 
that troublous time. 

In the Baltimore Cathedral Archives there are many letters 
to Bishop Carroll from the superiors of convents in Europe 
askit^ for a welcome to the Diocese of Baltimore. As early 
as July 28, 1789, the Ursulines of Cork had gained such popu- 
larity with their parochial schools that some of their friends 
urged them to send a band of teachers to the United States,^* 
and the effort made by Father Thayer after his return to Ireland 
in 1803 to secure a group of ladies for his proposed UrsiUtne 
Convent in Boston deserves mention in this chapter. The young 
ladies in question came after Father Thayer's death (1815), and 
founded the convent at Charlestown, Mass., which was burned 
down by a mob in 1834; three of the nuns took refuge with 
their Ursuline Sisters in New Orleans. A group of Ursulines 
from Cork came to New York in 1813 at the invitation of Father 
Anthony Kohlmann, S. J., the Administrator of the Diocese of 
New York. On April 7, 1813, Kohlmann informed Dr. CarroU 
of their safe arrival "after the remarkably short passage of 
twenty-two days." '* They opened a free school and an academy 
a|id were incorporated by a special act of the New York Legis- 
lature in 1814. In leaving Cork, their superiors conditioned 
their stay in New York. Unless they should succeed in obtaining 
a sufRcient number of novices within three years, they were 
obliged to return to Ireland. Not meeting with success, they 
sailed for Ireland in the spring of 1815. 

During the eighteenth century the English Carmelite Convent 
at Hoogstraet, Be^tum, had attracted a number of Americait 

** Urnllmtt im Leat rian a, p. m. 

" BalUmtrt Ctlit4nl Artklvu, Cue frJiD. 

" IM., Cut 4-Lis. 



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RtUffious Orders: Woman 487 

girls, and, at the dose of the Revolutionary War, its superioress 
was an American lady, Mother Bemardine of St. Joseph, known 
in the world as Ann Matthews. Mother Bemardine was born 
in Charles County, Maryland, in 1732. At the age of twenty- 
three she received the veil at Hoogstraet on December 3, 1755. 
She was elected prioress of the Carmelite convent there on 
April 13, 1774. There were with her at Hoogstraet her nieces. 
Sister Mary Aloysia (Ann Theresa Matthews), and Sister Mary 
Eleanor (Susanna Matthews), both of whom accompanied her 
to Port Tobacco in 1790, Two other American ladies, Mother 
Ann of Our Blessed Lady (Ann Louisa Hill), Bishop Carroll's 
cousin, and Sister Mary Florentine (Ann Mills) remained at 
Hoc^straet The disturbed condition of religious life in Belgium 
(1781-1790) due to the Gallican reform movement instituted by 
Joseph IL the "Sacristan Emperor," and the general threat of 
the advancing forces of the French Revolutionists were felt by 
all religious houses in the Austrian dominions. It is not certain 
whether the decree of 1789 by which the Emperor suppressed 
all the Carmelite houses in the Low Countries included the 
English nuns of that Order. No doubt this general disorder, 
together with the fact of American Independence, induced 
Mother Bemardine to come to America in 1790. Father Igna- 
tius Matthews, her brother, had written to Mother Berdardine, 
urging her to come to the United States, and the confessor at 
Hot^sttaet, Father Charks Neale, offered the nuns a farm at 
Port Tobacco, Maryland, for the support of the proposed Amer- 
ican convent. The Lanherne (England) Carmelite archives 
contain several letters from Mother Bemardine describing the 
voyage across the Atlantic. While in London, Dr. Carroll had 
been informed by his cousin, Ann Louisa Hill (Mother Ann of 
Our Blessed Lady), in a letter dated Hoogstraet, August 8, 1790, 
that Father Neale, their confessor, had left for Maryland with 
three or four Carmelites to found a house in the new I^ocese 
of Baltimore. With the approbation of the Bishop of Antwerp, 
four nuns had already left (April 19, 1790). It was at this 
time that Mother Ann wrote the words which have already been 
dted: "I must acknowledge that it is a subject of joy to me 
to hear our Holy Faith and Religion flourishes so much in my 
native country, and that Rdigious are permitted to make estab- 



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488 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

lishments there, ant) live tip to the spirit of tbtii Holy Institutes. 
I am glad our Holy Order is the first."" 

Bishop-elect Carroll had no doubt been informed by Father 
Ignadus Matthews of the project, but there is no mention in 
Carroll's correspondence on the matter," One writer states 
that "his first act after his appointment was to invite the Carmel- 
ites to his vast diocese to pray for the American Missions." * 
The little band was composed of Father Charles Neale, Father 
Robert Phinkctt, the first President of Georgetown College, 
Mother Bemardine Matthews, prioress of the new community, 
Sister Clare Joseph Dickinson, an English nun from Antwerp, 
subprioress, and Sisters Mary Aloysia and Eleanor Matthews. 
They reached New York on July 2, 1790, some few days after 
Carroll's departure. The journey was a tryii^ one, from several 
causes, not the least of which was the captain, "a poor, little, 
mean-spirited, stingy Scotchman, who had provided very slender 
provisions or necessaries for passengers." Thqr left New York 
on July 4, reaching Norfolk on the ninth. The following day 
they arrived "at Mr, Bobby Brent's Landing, which is about a 
mile from my nephew Ignatius's House." '^ Difficulties arose 



* Ibid., Ctme 6-G41 printed In the Rtterit, *al. ix, fp. tn-isy rather ClarlM 
Male, S.J., wu ■ novice 4t Cheat In 1773. He wu lochlni the gnmnat eUu it 
tJtte in 1776. Fuher Ke*1e had been their Chaplain In Bdcinm, and he continoed 
to be their Spiritual Director, ontil hia death in 1813. (Ct. Rtcordt, toL idv, p. Mi-) 

" Ct. the introductor? oole to Ci«hian'a edition of the Aidrtii ef tht Rmimh 
CtMict of Amtrica to Gtorgt WaMmgtim (Londom. i7go). 

" Dibit, ef. eft., p. ji. There i* na record ol thia ia CarroH'a c orr ea pondenea. 
Sbi* Ut. eit., ml. li, p. jEj) italea that lelttn paaaed between Carroll and the Blahop 
d[ Antwerp. 

B GviLDAT, BpeUtk CmtMit Rrfugitt, *te.. pp. ]7>J74. <niai the Ardiina of 
the Carmdite Convent at Lanberne. Enclind: "The account of the joumer to the 
American Fanfidatloii, ijgo, iroa the Kevd. Mother ta the CaBfeaaor at Hooffatrsat: 
I heliere it will be afrecable to hear of oar aatc arrira] in Haiyland h the paiticolata 
of our joumer: After we left the Ttiti, which wii the GrH of May <I wrote from 
thence the dar we aalled k acnt the letter br the Pilot to Amilerdan to be pal in llw 
peat) we had a good njraie A not very long conaidering the coorae we paaaad: tiba 
Capuin deeelTed ua, aa/lns that he wai bound for New York A Phltadel^iia, but wa 
totmd afterwarda he did not Intend (oiB( to Philadelphia, but had taken in a pafod 
of loodi to deli*er at Tenerif one of the Canary lalanda belonginf to Spain, at a Town 
cnlled Sancta Cruce. which we knew not when we enfaged wllh him, he aaUed down 
the aonthem Latllndea, which made It very hM, ft waa aooo milea further than we 
ahould have gone had he Miled direct for Amoica. We pni to the coait of Normandr, 
croaaed the moDth of the Bay of Biaeay, had a abort cala on the eoaai of Spain, 
paaaed the Cape of St. VIncat, hy the Siralta of Cibtaltar, MW the Port of St Jallan, 
where the poor Jtanita atiflertd ao anch, paaaed by Honiceo Id Baihair, ofl the anal 
of Africa. On the actta of Kay we aaw the Canary latanda, oa the >jad aaw 
tha laland cd Tenerit, tba (jrd WUt-Sunday, antered the Pert of Sancta Crvee, 



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Religious Orders: fVomen 489 

over the location of the convent, and, in Bishop CarroU'e absence, 
they were advised to settle near Port Tobacco in a house on the 
Brooke estate. On October 15, 1790, St. Teresa's day, this first 
house for contemplative religious in the United States was dedt- 



whcre wc <ut UKbor k liT tbae till Thondir ercninc followkw. from tbcoci 
wo Milcd It* coont called the Tndti ft hid food iriada mnd wather, etit OM or 
two dlcbt Momu ft arriTCd at Neir-yOTk tbe and of Jd1t> t«a panai* ww **rr 
It of Ibc paiunctri. a tnao and hi« wife witb s Uttlc dUdno, 
in montins till nicht ft tha man and hia vita *anr 
t often wranilinc and qnarrdiDs, the Captain a poor 
1 ipiriled itinsT Scotdiman, who had pioridcd itrf ilendB- prorlaioiia 
•ailea tor paaMncen. Ua brmd from dw firtt waa mouldr ft not flt 
to «nt ft ao little of it, that he put hia men to allowanco a* aoon ■» wt had 
Ml Stncia Crnce. where he had an owwrt u nitr of lumiahlnf hia ihip vrlth trnh 
bread ft other prorialani if he would, but he wai ao Kinar. altboti^ hia crew had 
threatened to leare hina if he did not provide better, he oair took in one barrd of 
■our, ft a quarter or two oi poor Bed with a old iheep. Indeed if we had met with 
bad weather to have detained <u Ion(ei on the mrafe, wa ahoidd have been ia dancer 
of pcritbinc for want of prorliioni, the water waa ao bad that it waa not At to drink, 
w« were obliged to ittain It throufh a doth ft let it nand a dar to iweeten before «a 
CD<dd drink it. we were aU nrr acn-aiefc oceptinf Hr. Neal^ nine did not laat loot, 
bat tbo olberi were kdi ai oftoi a* the wtstber *u roofh all the paaaact^ ft Ur. 
Kcale had a bad fit of gout, that be could gel no rest hardly for 14 diT>= ^ wrcM 
to tba Ntma (nm New York, which w* left on the 4th of Jtd; Stuidir, ft arrived 
at Horfotk on Pridar moniins the gth where wa hired a voael, to pnritK our Jooracir, 
ft aaHod from thaice the same dar In the evaunc: ft 00 Sattuilar nenloc the totfc 
wc arrived mfe to Ur. Bobbr Brent'a landins, whidi ia dniit a mile from mj Nephaw 
tfnatioa*a Honae, it waa then too late to land our baggace, but wc met with a man 
who waa going out to fiah, ft we prevailed on bim to return to ahore with a letter to 
IIT' Broit ft Ignatiua. to inform them of our arrival, to desire than to come to oa 
earlr in the morning. Ignatiua came ofl immediately, ft came on board our v ea eal 
aboBt 10 o'clock on Satordar night, m^ Nephew returned on ibore that night ft esoM 
to na again on Sunday morning about 5 o'clock, when we landed with all oor Vff^ft 
ft went up to Hr. Brenl'a, where Ur. Neale nid Haaa about S o'clock, we dined there 
ft in the evening went over to Barry'i houae, intendinc to make that our habitatioB 
Un a more convenient place ooold be provided, wc remained there 8 daya; it waa 
Ihen judged more proper that we ahDuld come to ICr. Ncale'a houtc by Port Tobacco, 
which waa mudi Urf er ft not inhibiled, we pot on onr Habila tbe and day after oar 
arrival here ft keep our regolarity aa wdl aa wa can. a place waa agreed on for oar 
C^OBvoit, much to our aatiafaction in St. V^Tj't County, but aome di&enltiet aroaa 
abonl It ft Ifr. Carroll being in England about 3 wecka before Dor arrival, hii Vicar 
thoagbl proper we ibould cfauae another iilace, ft Ur. Baker Brooke hai made oi a 
prtaeot of hia own dwdling, with aevenl acrea of land round about it to make a 
CoaveM of. Ur. Plunket parted from na at New York ft (raveUed the rcat of Ua 
loarsay by land, be eame to aee tu aince our arrival ft ii now on the Uiarioa. Thara 
want to AoMTka The Rcvd. Uother ol Hoogatraet, Prioreu, Sifter Clare Joatvh, 
Didunaon of oar Comly, Sub-prioreaa. Sister Ibry Aloyaia ft Siater Elcanoia 
Uathawa, (a. Yoong Pnfcaaed of Hoogatiaet,) Niece* ol the Revd. Uotha ft onr 
Coafeaaor Ur. Charlea Neale, all nativea ol America, except oar Siater Clare." The 
fooTth menber of the tittle band of Carmelitea who aeitled at Port Tobaoco waa 
Sitter Uary Clare Joacph, who waa a Ulaa Oicldnaon, fron the Engliah Convnl at 
Antwerp. It ia tirt itated whether ahe wu Enfliih or American, but moat probably 
■ha waa En^iah, beeauae there it no mentioD of any American novice* In tin LanbcrB* 
Anaala. (laiikrrw ^wtaJr, ff. Si44.) 



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490 The Life and Times of John Carroll ■ 

cated. On his retura to Baltimore, Bishop Carroll loit no time 
in welcomii^ the little community to his diocese. 

In his letter to Antonelti, of April 23, 1792, be said: "The 
Carmelite nuns, who emigrated from Belgium nearly two years 
ago, have obtained a site in Maryland, on which a bouse and 
farm were given to them by the pious liberality of a Catholic 
gentleman. Four nuns came here, and others have since been 
admitted for probation. They are a salutary example to the 
people of the vicinity, and their sii^ular piety has moved even 
non-Catholics to admiration. Their convent would be a far 
greater benefit in the future if a school for the training of girls 
in piety and learning were b^^n by them." This suggestion was 
discussed in a general congregation at Propaganda, on Ai^ust 
13, 1792. It was acknowledged that the nuns would be of a 
greater advantage to the Diocese of Baltimore, if they were to 
establish a school for the training of young girls in religion and 
in the domestic arts. No decision was given, but on September 
29, 1792, Antonelli replied: "We have rejoiced exceedit^y 
that the Carmelite nuns, recently arrived in Maryland from 
Belgium, have been enabled through the generosity of pious 
friends to find a home for themselves. While they are not to 
be urged to undertake the care of young girls against their rule, 
they should be exhorted not to refuse this work, which will be 
so pleasing to God and which is badly needed on account of the 
great scarcity of workers and lack of educational facilities." 
Bishtq) Carroll made this known to Mother Bemardine on March 
I, 1^3, telling her permission to start a school had been granted : 

I bad letters lately from Rome; I had given in nuoe an accotmt of 
yonr lettletnent, and of the sweet odor of your good example, and had 
taken the liberty to add that, in order to render your luefulnesi still 
ETcater, I wished that it were consistent with your constitutioD to employ 
yoorselves in the education of young persons of your own sex. The 
Cardinal- Prefect of the PropaKanda, having laid my letter before his 
Holiness, informs me that it gave him incredible joy to find that yon 
were come hither to diffuse the knowledge and practice of religious 
perfection, and adds that : considering the great scarcity of labourers and 
the defects of education in these States, yon might sacrifice that part of 
your mititution to the prcmotion of a greater good: and I am directed 
to encourage you to undertake it ; and now, ia obedience to his direction 
I recommend to your Reverence and your holy Community, to take it 



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Religious Orders: Women 491 

bto your consideration. I axa exceedingly pleased at the increue of yoar 
moit religious family; every addition to it I locdc upon as a safeguard 
for the preservation of the diocese. Praying Altnighty God to grant His 
choicest blessings on yourself and your pioui community, I am, with 
fatherly affection and high esteem, honored Uadam, your most obed't 
•erv't in Christ** 

The Cannelites were trnwilling, however, to change their Rule 
in this respect, because the principal object of the community 
was contemplation and prayer. The bishop himself, trained to 
a rel^ous life and feeling as the great blow of his life the decree 
which exiled him from it, could not press these pious women to 
adopt a course repugnant to them, for he regarded the commu- 
nity as a saf^uard for the preservation of the diocese." The 
Carmelites had come to pray for the American Missions, for 
the clergy and for the Church in general. The life of a Carmel- 
ite mm is a distinctly contemplative one. Active work, such as 
nursing the sick or teaching children, is outside the scope of a 
cloistered community, where the day is spent in prayer and medi- 
tation and the ordinary work of the household. The Port To- 
bacco ccnnmunity preserved the strict observance of the cloister. 
In Marechal's day they numbered twenty-three nuns, and he 
reported to Propaganda that they were being well cared for by 
the Cathohcs of that vicinity. "They lead such holy lives," he 
writes, "these virgins of St. Theresa, that I can scarcely believe 
there exists in the whole Catholic world, a house of their Order 
where piety and monastic discipline are better observed." ** In 



* Cf. Otiiui Sttu CtkoUe Uftimt, toL vlli, p. Ji Vna tha BMmwrw 
Cathtinl AreUvtt, Cut S-Ji); ef. Cvuiu, Carmtt is Amtfiem. New Ynilt, i^i. 

" Ct. Shu, ef. eit., nl. ii, p. sS6. "Your Ancricmn Camdita an indeed to 
hlejiu lor xKflBctiiv tbe cducmtioD dt cfaildrcB of their owd kz and prohebl^ no other 
DmB fit tor that dntr will onlfnte to jaa. If thv ere fsided bj llr. C. Heels I en 
Dot enrpTiied that Ibcr are ioflcsble. I used to think that ffentleman the moat 
nnaeeonuBodatiof and uncomplrins man of Tlrttie that Z have erer fauwiL Tht 
qiirit nvT tKloof to ume desrec to the family and 1 appRhend that the iiiimiiiWi 
wUeh Toa ta c pr eee abont the coUese and Saninary majr oriilnata fmm the Broth m 
o( tbat DWDC." (Plowden to Curoll, Jannarr ifi. iSoi. BaMmort Cttktinl Ankhu, 
Cue C^J.) 

*• Ct. CetluKe Hitterieai RnUu, vol. i, p. 44a. In a letter to the wrllei, tb* 
FrioreM of the Canndita UonaRerr, of Baltimore^ explajna thia iltiiatioa ■■ foOowai 
"Ai for Tonr fitat and teoood qoeatian*. in a letta written br Blahop Canell ta 
MaUier Bcrnardini. dated March 1, \i9i, Hla LordaUp neidj' atilea that ■ jvaat 
•idled ReUfiona wiibtd to aMociit* henJI with the Cirewlitc*, and ktsp op hm 
wart of Machiiw. Tb* Biibop sddtd that while aeodiDS an tcccosl ol the FonDihtita 
W Robs, be took the Ubotr ti 



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49* TAif Life and Times of John Carroll 

1830, the nuns decided to seek a more convenient place for their 
house and they came to Baltimore, the following year. 

To share in the trials as well as in the triumphs of the Catholic 
Church has been the privilege and the fate of all religious Orders. 
Wars, and especially the so-called wars of religion, revolutions 
of various kinds, and the covetousness of governments have more 
than once in the Church's history wrought havoc in monastii: 
institutions. Few among the religious communities in modem 
times have suffered more than the Second Order of St Frands, 
or, as they are popularly known, the Poor Clares. The Order 
which b^;an with St. dare herself tn 1212, numbered in 1630 
about 925 monasteries of nuns, with 34,000 sisters under the 
direction of a minister-general. By some chroniclers the entire 
congr^ation at the time of the Thirty Years' War is given as 
70,000 sisters." With the gradual lessening of religious fervour 
in the sixteenth century, this wonderful growth began to show 
signs of decline, and when the French Revolution dispersed the 
religious Orders of Europe, many of the houses were disbanded 
and the nuns forced to return to secular life. America was a 
land of refuge for some of these persecuted women, and, in 1792, 
three heroic nuns. Mother Mary de la Marche, Abbess of St. 
Clare, Mother Celeste de la Rochefoucault, and Mother St. Luc, 
attended by a lay brother, came to Baltimore. They attempted 
first to start a house of their Order at Frederick, Md. In 1801, 
they bought property in Georgetown, where they opened an 
academy for girls, and here Miss Lalor and her two companions. 



to obtain RdigiMu intttucton for tha rocnc in thou Smj*. Bi adTJied tboa to fire 
^ nutter piayerfn] couIdcfrntEon, but Uure «u abiolu te lr no anthorization to do M. 

"Tlie Knna did not anil ihenudTC* at Out tinw of the diapcnaatiDn, benoM tk* 
Order belns iirictlr endoMd and ma\Aj detoted to contemplitiaD, it wii de^at 
wnat proper for the cradle of the Order In the United Suta to derdoii and fa«ei 
Ibt true tpirit, that it night be bequeathed untamiihed to future Benentiou. Then 
ma no real need, for necollatioiu were eren then atina on to introduce Active Ordora 
bno the United Statca, and the Caimditca had cone to piar tor the American If iailaia, 
for the deisT. and for the Chnrch in fCneral. 

"It wu not nntil the rear iSji that the Nona were forced by the direat porertr 
to take Bp tenchinc in order to earn thdr anbaleteneei being taHj jnMIfied Vt a cUtua 
of ear Hole which roninda na that 'neceaaity hnowa no lav,' Tber diKontinned 
tiachinc within a few ror*. and. I may add, ther had tern fadlitia for teadiinc 
•Tta when thejr were ohlifed to; far leoi were ther prepared tor the work when it 
waa auneeted to thcsi br Biihofi Carroll." 

" HKiMaucBaa, Dit Ordtn umd Kongrtaatimn itf Jbolkotuchrs Kkth*. vd. H, 
pp. 4^8.480. Fadetbom. ijof. 



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Religious Orders: fVomen 493 

who were later to found the first Visitation Convent in America, 
tai^^ht for some time. When Abbess de la Marche died in 1805, 
the other Poor Clares gave up the simple and returned to 
Europe. The school opened by the Poor Clares had the distinc- 
tion of being the first conducted by Sisters within the or^nal 
United States. 

The academy established by the Poor Clares at Georgetown 
was destined, however, to continue and, as the first Convent o( 
the Visitation Order in the United States, it became eventually 
one of the best>known of all the educational institutions founded 
in the United States for the training of youi^ girls. The actual 
founder of the Visitation Convent and Academy was Archbishop 
Leonard Neale." Leonard Neale was descended from an old 
and distinguished Maryland family, and was one of seven sons, 
six of whom either entered the Society of Jesus, or applied for 
admission after their studies at St. Omer's, Bn^es, or Liige. 
On the Suppression of the Society, Father Leonard Neale went 
to England where he was engaged in pastoral work for five years. 
He was then sent to Demarara in British Guiana. His health 
failing, he returned to his home in Maryland (1783), after 
twen^-five years' absence, and Bishop Carroll, then Prefect- 
Apostolic, appointed him pastor of St. Mary's Church, Phila- 
delphia. When Father Laurence Graessl, Coadjutor-BislMq>-e]ect 
of Bahimore, died in October, 1793, Bishop Carroll with the 
consent of his clergy chose Father Neale as his Coadjutor eum 
jure svccessionis. This choice proved acceptable to the Holy See 
and the necessary Bulls were issued on April 17, 1795. It was 
not until 1800 that these official documents reached Carroll, and 
the consecration of Leonard Neale as Bishop of Gortyna did not 
take place until December 7, 1800. It was during this period of 
waiting that Miss Alice Lalor came from Ireland to Philadelphia 
with her parents. She and her two companions had long desired 
to devote themselves to the religious life, and it was evident to 
Father Neale, to whom they came for direction, that they might be 
able to carry out a plan of long-standing in his mind, namely, to 
found a convent of the Visitandines in this country. The three 
ladies formed themselves into a community under his care. There 

■* LuiBot, A Story «t Court*. BoMoo, iSfj. 



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494 rft* Life and Times of John Carroll 

was indeed great need of devoted women in PhiUdelphta at the 
tune, for the yellow fever, which decimated the population of the 
city in 1793, had broken out again in 1797, and in the summer of 
1798 the plague carried off a fourth of the inhabitants of the 
aty. A third lady from Philadelphia joined the little band, but 
the community lost the other two companions of Miss Lalor 
by the plague, and the project of a permanent convent in Phila- 
delphia was abandoned. On March 30, 1799, Neale became the 
fourth President of Georgetown College, and he invited Miss 
Lalor and her companions to become teachers in the Poor Clares* 
Academy which Modier de la Marche had founded. This 
arrangement not proving satisfactory, Father Neale purchased 
a house near the College, and the "Pious Ladies," as they were 
known, opened a school for girls. A Rule similar to that of the 
Society of Jesus was adopted for the time. When the Poor 
Clares left Georgetown for France in 1805, Bishop Neale pur- 
chased their property. Among the books in their library, he 
found the Constitutions of the Order of the Visitation drawn uo 
by St Francis de Sales. An attempt was made to induce some 
members of the Order in France to come to America in order 
that Miss Lalor and her companions might be rightly prepared 
for their religious life, but this failed, and for a time it looked 
as if the little community might be forced to merge with the 
Carmelites at Port Tobacco. But Bishop Neale turned a deaf 
ear to these offers. Bishop Carroll wrote to Charles Plowden 
on February 12, 1803, asking him to urge two of the nuns under 
his care to come to Maryland for the purpose of oi^anizing the 
reli^ous life of the community; 

My Coadjutor, the Rt. Rev. Bishop Neale, has formed under the 
conduct of four or five very pious Ladiea, a female Academy at George- 
town, and has acquired for thetn a handtome property of lots and bouses. 
These ladies, Xtmg trained to at! the exercises of an interior religioiu 
life, are exceedingly anxious to bind themselves more closely to God by 
(altering into an ^iproved religious order, whose institute embraces the 
education of young persons of their own sex, poor and rich. Mr. Byrne 
and others hare given information here of your having under your care 
a house of religious women, whose useful and exemplary conduct has 
gained general esteem and couiidence. Now the prayer of Bishop Kcale 
and, I may add mine, too, is this: that you would choose and if possible, 
engage two of those Ladies, fully approved by you, to leave their country 



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Religious Orders: Women 495 

and liitcrt and friendi to eat^liih here a boote of thdr order. One of 
tbeni ou^t to be fit to become imnKdiately the superior and miitrets of 
Rovicei, and the other to preside in the female academj. The two principal 
ladies of this institution are natives of Ireland, and both women of exem- 
plary and even perfect lives. I know not whether one of them, «4iose 
name is Lalor, be not known to you. Bishop Neale hopes that Ur. 
Bymc will retom and take them under his care; and he will be ancwcr- 
able for all their expenses.*' 

Various other attempts were made to induM the Visitandines in 
England to send several of the nuns out to America with the 
object of beginning artght the religious life of the "Pious Ladies" 
of Georgetown,** Dr. Carroll wrote to Dublin and to Brussels 
but failed to secure volunteers for the work. On June II, 1808, 
Father Strickland informed Dr. Carroll that the Visitation nims 
of Acton were seriously considering the proposal, and Father 
Ptowden, who had written as early as July 30, 1792, on the 
problem, still hoped to induce the Visitandines, then at Hammer- 
smith (London), to go out to Georgetown, Hardly anything 
occupied so much of Neale's time as Coadjutor-Bishop of Balti- 
more (1800-1815) as the founding of the Convent at George- 
town. Difficulties never ceased with the community, and it was 
not until 1813 that Bishop Neale permitted the "Ladies" to take 
simple vows as Sisters of the Order of the Visitation. When 
be succeeded as Bishop of Baltimore in December, 1815, one 
of his first ofKcia] acts was to apply to the Holy See for canonical 
power to erect the community into a religious house of that Order. 
By an Indult dated July 14, 1816, Pius VH granted this petition, 
and on December 28, 1816, Mother Teresa Lalor and the two 
oldest Sisters pronounced their solemn vows and were clothed 
in the Visitation habit. On January 6, 1817, the white veil was 
given to seventeen sisters, and e^ht days later the rest of the 
commtmity, then numbering thirty-five, were received as nuns 
of the Order of the Visitation. Archbishop Neale died at the 
convent on June 18, 1817, and was buried in a vault beneath the 
chapel" 

" Sbu, »t. cit., tdI. ii, pp. saj-sa4- 

' Siner Thenu Hunril to CmrroU, Acton, Encland, June a, 1B07. IBMmart 
Ctludral Arcbivti, Catc 4-G7.) 

■• Cf. CttkoUe HiitaricQi Smtm, ToL -n, pp. (Bi'jSS. [H. S. PiHi], A Glory 
ti Uary'tm*. New Yorit, 1017. 



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49^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Bishop Carroll mentions in a letter to Bishop Hubert of 
Quebec, April 24, 1795, the presence of a Minim Sister of the 
Order of St Francis de Paula (Felicity Gerard) who had fled 
from France on account of the Revolution, and he asked that 
an arrangement be made with the Ursuline nuns of Quebec to 
receive her into their community. This nun had accompanied 
several Capuchin nuns from Amiens and Tours, refugees from 
the persecution of the day. They remained for a while with 
the Carmelites at Port Tobacco, and then returned to Baltimore, 
where Dr. Carroll placed them with a Catholic lady. The 
Capuchin nuns set out for Illinois where they hoped to find a 
place in one of the French parishes, but later tiiey went to New 
Orleans. It is not certain what happened to Sister Felicity 
Gerard, but she was probably received into the Diocese of Quebec 
by Bishop Hubert. A loi^ letter, of the same date as Dr. 
Carroll's, from her pen explains her plight. She arrived in 
Baltimore on February 9, 1793 "aupres de Monseigneur I'eveque 
de Baltimore qui a bien voulu m'honorer de sa protection et de 
ses bont^s." Canon De Lavau, who had accompanied the Sul- 
picians to Baltimore, advised her to apply to the Bishop of Quebec 
for permission to enter the Ursulines there. 

There are also in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives several 
letters from a Sister Elizabeth Saladin of the Daughters of St. 
Geneviive, who arrived in Baltimore about this time in the same 
plight as Sister Felicity. Dr. Carroll seems to have been worried 
over their presence in his diocese, for we find him writing to 
Propaganda on July 3 and October 21, 1793, asking for advice 
in r^ard to these refugees. Propaganda replied on August 10, 
1794, urging Dr. Carroll to find them a reft^ either in Canada 
or io Louisiana. Sister Elizabeth found a place in the West 
Indies, and wrote occasionally to Dr. Carroll to assure him of 
her progress. 

The foundation of the first distinctly American congr^ation 
of religious women, the Daughters of Charity, is due to Arch- 
bishop Carroll's personal influence with Elizabeth Bayley Seton 
and to his constant encouragement in the decade of trials and 
afflictions which followed her conversion to the Catholic faith 
in 1805. 



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Religious Orders: fVomen 497 

There are few lives among the aalatly women of America who have 
consecrated themselves in religion to the service of their neighbor, that 
ileserve to be known better by all the citizens of this land, irrespective 
of creed, than that of Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton. She was in reality 
an ideal woman, as described in Holy Scripture, in the best and highest 
sense of the word. She was a devoted wife, a tender mother, and a 
tme religious ; and both by her virtues, the sublimity of her love of God, 
as well as by her prudence and her practical grasp of affairs, her life 
has a charm all its own and is enhanced with the number of great person- 
ages, both civil and ecclesiastical, who shared in her plans and projects.*" 

Chief anwngst these was John Carroll. He was not alone, 
however, in the realization that Elizabeth Seton was destined 
in the providence of God to be the foundress of Catholic ele- 
mentary education in the United States. The Catholic parochial 
school training of the present day may justly be said to have 
been organized by her. The prominent ecclesiastics of the day — 
Bishop Carroll and Fathers Cheverus, Matignon, Du Bourg, 
David, Dubois, and Bruti, all eminent educators, saw in her 
conversion and in her devotion to the training of the young the 
solution of the educational problem which dated back to the 
earliest Jesuit schools in Maryland. The letters which passed 
between Bishop Carroll and Mother Seton give us an unusual 
ins^ht into the saintly character of these two pioneers of the 
Cross in the new Republic. It is this correspondence, together 
with her work for the sanctiiication of souls, which caused the 
late Cardinal Gibbons, in 1880, to urge that steps be taken for 
Mother Seton's canonization. 

Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton was the most noted convert 
to the Church during Bishop Carroll's lifetime. Her father. 
Dr. Richard Bayley, was the first professor of anatomy at 
Columbia University, New York City, where Elizabeth was bom 
on Ai^^st 28, 1774. At the age of twenty, on January 25, 1794, 
she was married to William Magee Seton, a merchant of the 
metropolis. Five children blessed the union — William, Richard, 
Anna Maria, Catherine, and Rebecca. Bom and reared a devout 
Anglican, Mrs. Seton spared no effort to raise her own children 
and the children of her father by a second marriage, in strict 
accord with the Anglican faith. Her husband's health failed in 



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498 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

1S03, and tb^ made a voy:^ to Italy, at the earnest invitation 
of the Filicchi family in L^bom, with whom Mr. Seton had 
business relations. Unfortunately Mr. Seton received no benefit 
from the sea voyage, and died at Pisa, on December 27, 1803. 
Elizabeth became ill about the same time, and during her con- 
valescence, she b^an to study the doctrines and the history of 
the Catholic Church. On her return to New York, in 1804, it 
soon became known that she contemplated asking admission into 
the Church, and the prominence of her family and that of her 
husband made the project of her conversion a widely discussed 
subject Effort was made to dissuade her from taking a step 
which was so unusual at that time. Through her friends, the 
Filicchis, she was introduced by letter to Father Cheverus and 
to Bishop Carroll. After some months spent in prayer and study 
she was received into the Church by Father Matthew O'Brien, 
m St Peter's Church, Barclay Street, in March, 1805." 

Left abnost penniless by the death of her husband, Mrs. Seton 
first opened a home for the boys of a Protestant school, near 
St Mark's Church, but her infiuence in the conversion of her 
sister-in-law, Cecilia Seton, aroused so much resentment that 
she was obl^ed to close the house. Mr. Filicchi advised her 
to settle in Montreal, where she could place her children in a 
convent school and pay for their education by teaching. About 
this time, she made the acquaintance of Father Du Boui^, who 
had founded St. Mary's Collie in Baltimore the previous year 
(1805). Their friendship, begun at this time, turned the 
current of her life towards the fuller consecration of herself in 
religion. Father Du Bourg si^gested that she come to Baltimore 
and found a school for Catholic girls near St, Mary's Coll^:e. 
On November 26, 1806, Mrs. Seton wrote to Bishop Carroll, 
asking his advice and direction "in a case of the greatest moment 
to my happiness here, and to my eternal happiness." " There 
is no doubt that Father Du Bourg, together with her other 
counsellors, Fathers Cheverus and Matignon, saw in Mrs. Seton 
the passible foundress of a community of women who would 
devote themselves to the training of the young, in schools, 

■> C[. QmjMmu omM Melhtr StUa'i Cenvtrtleit, by Sodiat, in thi CMkeKe 
Hiilarift Jtrritm, mL *, pp. Jti->jS- 

■■ Tte Ckiraa-SNoa ca riwp o B dcDM OMd br WUtc, lfcC4«i ud oikw* ii ia A* 
B4Miim* Cttli*4nt Ankku. Cim 7-ll4-». Ni-ij. 



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Religious Orders: Women 499 

asyhuns, and orphanages. The project seems to have been neg- 
lected for a time, probably owing to the attitude Bishop Carroll 
had assumed r^arding the college in Baltimore; but finally in 
Jane, 180S, Mrs. Seton set out by packet for Baltimore, reaching 
the episcopal dty on June 15. A few days afterwards, she 
brought her two sons, William and Richard, whose education 
at Georgetown College was being provided for by the Filicchis, 
to St. Mary's College, so that they might have the advantage 
of her motherly influence. Bishop Carroll had no hesitation in 
warmly secondii^ Mrs. Seton's plan to begin a school for 
Catholic girls in the city and in September, 1808, the institution 
was opened for classes. Only the children of Catholic parents 
were admitted, the main object of the school being to impart a 
solid religious instruction together with the elements of learning, 
"Her pupils said morning and evening prayers in common, 
recited the Rosary together, and assisted at daily Mass. The 
course of studies embraced the usual branches of a young ladies' 
academy, reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, history, plain 
and faiu^ needle work, and the English and French languages, 
to which was added Christian Doctrine, which she impressed 
deqily on their minds." " 

The thought of founding a religious community for this im- 
portant work gradually took possession of her mind, and when 
it became known that such was her intention, other ladies ex- 
pressed a desire to join her at Baltimore. Her first companions 
were; Cecilia O'Conway, "Philadelphia's first nun,"** who 
came on December 7, 1808; Maria Murphy, a niece of Mathew 
Carey, the publisher of Philadelphia; Mary Ann Butler; Susan 
Qossy; Mrs. Rose White; and Catherine Mullen. Father Du 
Bourg drew up a code of rules for the religious life of the tenta- 
tive community, the members being at first known as the Sisters 
of St. Joseph. There was at this time in St Mary's Seminary, 
dose to whkh the little school was begun, a Virginian, Samuel 
Cooper, a convert and a gentleman of means who vras preparing 
for the priesthood.** Mrs. Seton gained his interest and good 



■ t/mn. Lift tf Mr,. BUwabttk Stten. f p. Mioa. Nnr Yoik. iBjj. 
" a. Fuck, Kalhht Jiutt 0'Com»y, in the Rtearit, mL x, pp. >S7->Mi 
S>in. PhOUtlfkUi Firtt Nh, tbid., vol. t, p^ 4i7-I». 
' Cf. Stmareku, tcI. xw, pp. 17M. 



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500 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

will in her project, and the generous sum of e^ht thousand 
dollars was set aside by Mr, Cooper for the new community. 
In choosing a home for her sisters in religion, Mother Seton 
was influenced by Mr. Cooper's choice, the now well-known St. 
Joseph's Valley near Mount St Mary's, Emmitsburg. Bishop 
Carroll gave his approval to this plan, and Mother Seton took 
possession of a little house in the Valley, offered to her by the 
Sulpidans, on July 30, 1809. The Sisters continued to live 
under the temporary rule drawn up by Father Du Bourg until 
t8io when Bishop Flaget obtained in France a copy of the 
constitutions which St Vincent de Paul had drawn up (1663) 
for the Sisters of Charity. These were carefully studied by 
Mother Seton, Archbishop Carroll and Father Du Bour^;. 

After careful consideration and studjr, it was determined to adopt aa 
far as possible the rules of the Daughters of Charity. The prindpal point 
on which the nJes were changed in order to adapt them to American 
conditions concerned the activities of the Sisters in the schools, for the 
Daughters of Charity of SL Vincent devoted themselves entirely to the 
service of children unable to pay for their education. This could be done 
in France because the nuns had an assured incotne from other sources. 
In the Um'ted States, on the contrary. Mother Seton's Sisterhood had no 
income whatever, and the Sisters must therefore earn their daily bread in 
part by their teaching activity. However, from the beginning, Mother 
SetiMi's commtanity devoted themKlves largely to the education of the 
poor, and in later years this has been their prindpal work. Father 
Dubois (then Superior), therefore, felt obliged to recommend to Bishop 
Carroll a change in the rules so as to allow the American Sisterhood to 
take charge of schools for pupils who ^ould pay for their tuition. An- 
other proposed change was temporary. This permitted Mother Seton, not- 
withstanding her vows, to remain the legal guardian of her children.s* 

These changes were approved by Father Jean Tessier, the 
Superior of St. Sulpice, who had been deputed to examine them, 
and the Rule was then formally adopted by Archbishop Carroll 
in September, 1811. He had visited the o>mmtmity at St. Josq>h'8 
Valley, on October 20, 1809, and several tiroes afterwards, and 
continued to show an unfaltering interest in Mother Seton's 
work until his death. Mother Seton was elected Superior of the 
Daughters of Charity, as they were then known, and remained 
in the post until her death, January 4, 1821. In one of his 

*■ HuiiiHAHH, Tkt Sulpidam, tic, p. *14' 



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Religious Orders: Women 501 

letters to Mother Seton, dated September 11, 1811, Archbishop 
Carroll said: 

Asmre yourMlf and your beloved Sisters of my ulmost solicitude for 
your advancement in the service and favor of God; of my reliance on 
your prayerj; of mine for your prosperity in the important duty of educa- 
tion, which will and must long be your principal, and will always b« your 
partial, employment. A century at least will pass before the exigencies 
and habits of this country will require and hardly admit of the charit- 
able exercises towards the sick, sufficient to employ any number of the 
Sisters out of our largest cities; and therefore they must consider the 
business of education as a laborious, charitable, and permanent object 
of their religious duty." 

At this time there were twenty Sisters in the institution at 
St. Joseph's Valley, and with such excellent spiritual guides as 
Father David, who succeeded Du Boui^, and Father Simon 
Bniti, who had been appointed to assist Dubois in the work 
of Mount St. Mary's College, and Father Dubois himself, the 
little community b^an its long and active life of devotion to 
educational and charitable works. In tSio, the Sisters opened 
a free school in Emmitsburg for the poor children of the neigh- 
bourhood, and this, together with the Academy, kept the little 
band busy from morning till night. By June, 1809, forty pupils, 
thirty of whom were boarders, were in attendance in the school. 
Before Mother Seton's death, the Sisters had opened other free 
sduols at Philadelphia, New York, and Baltimore, and bad 
foimded orphan asylums in the same cities. The commimity 
Dtmibered fifty members in 1821. 

Another commtmtfy, the Sisters of St. Dominic, contemplated 
the fotmdation of a house in America. Pk)wden wrote to Carroll 
on July 30, 1791, of a convent of Dominican nuns at Calais, 
whose prioress "Mrs. Gray, highly commended by all here, 
wishes to transport herself and some of her nuns to your coast 
Do you approve of it? The object is to establish a convent 
ex[»%ssly for the education of girls." Dr. Carroll no doubt 
wrote encouraging the nuns to come, for he was most anxious 
to provide for the education of American Catholic girls. The 
Carisbrooke (England) Amuils tells us that the Dominican 
" Whiti, af. lU., p. ju. 



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502 The Life gnd Times of John Carroll 

nuns of Brussels, after their flig^ht to London in 1794, were 
visited by Father Edward Fenwtck, the founder of the Order 
of St. Dominic in the United States and the first Bishop of 
Cincinnati, and with him the nuns discussed the advisability of 
going to America: 

I went lately to see our listers, the nuns of our Order who hsre also 
[P thought] of following me to America u they (Jo not think they can 
prosper and increase in England. The Rev. Mother desires me to men* 
tktn this to you and request your opinion and advice: niean«4iile I de- 
sired them to reconunend the case to Almi^ty God who will dispose 
of all in good time, and promised that I would, after being settled myself, 
look out and calculate for them and when I find a place will inform 
them. The novice there, Sr. Dominica about whom you have been con- 
sulted, requests yon will again consult the General and give advice as 
Bishop Stapleton died before he decided the case. Moreover they were 
not in his jurisdiction but that of Bishop Sharrock of the western dis- 
trict. If the General and you should judge advisable for our Nuns to 
go to America which I sincerely wish, in case I can possibly provide for 
them, will yau please to write to them, or to the Confessor Mr. Brittain 
on the subject. ■■ 

Two Other communities of nuns, distinctly American in origin 
and in scope, were founded durit^ the last years of Archbishop 
Carroll's life: the Sisters of Loretto at the Foot of flie Cross, 
established by Father Nerinckx in 1812, and the Sisters of Charity 
of Nazareth, founded by Bishop David, the same year. These 
two Sisterhoods for a time confined their educational and welfare 
work to Kentucky. 

The: one name which stands out as preeminent in this band 
of women devodi^ themselves to the highest ideals of religion 
and of charity during Dr. Carroll's episcopate (1790-1815) is 
that of Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton. Mother Seton is the 
typical American woman of her day— energetic, gentle, resource- 
ful, unafraid of great undertakings, and profoimdly religious. 
"She brought a new ideal into American life — the ideal of a 
band of women devoted to the care of their neighbours, through 
th« Bame channels so well known in our own day : education of 
die children, asylums for the orphans, and hospitals for the 

" GVUMT, gf. tU^ pp. 4i9-4m. 



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Religious Orders: Women 503 

afck." *• No Catholic woman of America has received the uni- 
Tersal praise Mother Seton has been given during the century 
which has elapsed since her death; and her place in American 
Catholic history as one of the pillars of God's Church durii^ Dr. 
Carroll's episcopate may yet be consecrated in a more solemn 
manner by the Holy See, if the process for her canonizatiOD 
reaches its legitimate fulfilment. 

■* HcCakn, et- cit., Tol. I, p. 18. For ■ (Dcdnct ■ocoont, cf. HcCam, RtUghat 
OritTt of Wim*n »f tk* UwiUi Statu ia the CaOuKe HiMarkal Stvitm, nd. vi 
daai), pp. jifi-ui. 



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CHAPTER XXVII 

THE RISE OF THE REUGIOUS ORDERS FOR MEN IN THE 
UNITED STATES 

Refugees from religious houses visited this country from 
Europe at various epochs of the later colonial period, and, espe- 
cially during the worst years of the French Revolution, Their 
presence in the United States deserves only a passii^ mention; 
and a distinction must be kept between this "strolling clerical 
fraternity" that came here, with or without permission, and to 
whom Dr. Carroll sometimes gave faculties as, for example, Paul 
de St Pierre, Whelan, Nugent, Reuter, Fromm, the two HeiJ- 
brons, Smyth, Roan, Ryan, the O'Briens, the Harolds and others, 
and those members of religious communities abroad who were 
sent here for the express purpose of founding houses of their 
respective Orders in the Unit«l States. The difficulties created 
by so many of the intruders in the reconstruction period of 
Carroll's prefecture-apostoHc did not heighten the value of the 
religious Orders in the eyes of priests and people; and the 
founders of the religious communities of men found strong pre- 
judices and little support when they first proposed to establish 
this important branch of Catholic life in the United States. 

Four attempts of this nature were made: — the Augustinians 
under Dr. Carr, in Philadelphia; the Franciscans, under Dr. 
Egan, in the same city; the Trappists, under three separate 
leaders; and the Dominicans, under Father Edward Fenwick, 
O. P. Only the first and the last of these attempts met with 



The story of these four efforts at religious life for 
men in the United States, with the exception of the rise of the 
first Dominican province, can not be adequately told, since the 
documents for the same are either lost completely or are unavail- 
able. Father O'Daniel's recent study of Bishop Fenwick's life 
has brought to light an astonishing group of materials, all of 
504 



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Religious Orders: Men 505 

which are of value for tiw history of the institutional growth 
of the Church during Carroll's qriscopate.* The Central Arch- 
ives of the Franciscan Order, and the Franciscan Archives in 
Dublin have few letters about the province projected by Bishop 
Egan in Philadelphia.* The Trappists have found a chronicler 
of high ability in Dr. Lawrenw Flick ; * but in the burning of 
St. Augustine's Church and Monastery by the anti-Catholic mobs 
of Philadelphia, in 1844, all the documents for the foundation 
of the Augustioian Order were destroyed.* Meagre as all these 
sources are, the history of the rise of these religious communities 
is a valuable page io our early annals ; and the story of these 
projects, shorn of all llie I^ends which have gathered about 
them, deserves a place in Carroll's bic^aphy. 

Bishop Carroll saw full well that in consa]uence of tiie wreck 
of the religious Orders in France, those amoi^ their members 
who retained the spirit of thdr institutions would look forward 
to the days when the bouses that had been suppressed or de- 
stroyed, would be revived. The United States, he believed, 
would present a good opportunity for carrying out their desires 
of maintaining their communities intact until the restoration of 
order. But, unless they came with the necessary funds, Carroll 
was strongly of the opinion that it was far better for them to 
remain at home. Land was being offered to him in various 
parts of his diocese where religious communities could be estab- 
lished, providing their founders came with money to build. 
Moreover, he believed it was useless for communities to arrive 
here, with all their members ^orant of the English language, 
or knowing so little that they vrould not be acceptable to the 
people. Above all else, such men would require "to be educated 
in so liberal a manner as to be above the meanness and servility 
which, unfortunately, characterize too many of those who have 
been habituated to depend almost entirely on their talents for 
interesting or importuning the charity of others. Men of thia 



■ Lift Bf Ikt Right Rtvtrend Biward Damme Ptmriek, O.F., Ponndtr of tJw 
DfmMeaKt in tkt Untii Statu: Pionttr Jfuiinury of Ktntueky, AfeiU* ef OUf, 
FtrtI Biilwp tf CimeimnaH. WuhJniton, D. C, igii. 

* Cf. Catliolit HiitcricxJ Rtvinr, toI. ii, pp. *io-jji. 

* Pmck Srfugrt TnfUitt in tkt Umitid Statti, in (he Rmrdi, vaL 1, pp. U-iit. 

* LtHer to the anthar fnn Stt. Dr. Mlddleto^ O.SjV., Vilkan*, Fa., Stp- 
teaiber 9, igji. 



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So6 The Lift and Timn of John CarroU 

latter cast, or the institutioiu tiiat are calculated to ioetn Aem, 
are not fit for the present state of thii coontrr." * 

Amoi^ the first to arrive with proper credentials was the Rev. 
Matthew Carr, O.S^., from St Augustine's Monastery, Dublin, 
who came to America with the hope of founding an Augustinian 
province in this country. Dr. Carr was a man of native refine- 
ment of taste, of superior scholarship, and of the worthiest 
aspirations which a priest cotdd have, for the welfare and the 
advancement of our holy Religion. He had a marked versatili^ 
of gifts, was a theologian of no mean character, an erudite 
scholar and an accomplished musician. Coming into a com- 
munity, composed largely of persons who were opposed both 
to his creed and country, he must have possessed a special mag- 
netic power in person and address, to receive the recognitioa 
of men of all beliefs and prejudices. Me succeeded in what he 
essayed and helped very materially to give a respectable and 
honored position to Catholicity in Philadelphia and to enlist the 
sympathies of the rich and the influential in behalf of his strug- 
gling countrymen and co-religionists. His personal priestly life 
was most estimable, and tradition tells us that it would have 
been very difficult to have found in Philadelphia a clergyman 
more beloved by his flock for his dignity and gifts, and more 
admired and respected by his separated brethren. In ^ eyes 
of all he was a model of courtesy and kindness. There was 
always sunshine in his heart, which, great, noble and generous, 
was filled to overflowing with love for his fellow-men. Because 
of his intellectual attainments and his fondness for study. Dr. 
Carr was thought by many to be aloof from the humble and tiie 
lowly. Nothing could do his character greater injustice; for 
he was the very impersonation of the old adi^ that coarte^ 
costs nothing. While he esteemed, loved and laboured for his 
charge, he was most liberal to all — Protestants and Catholics — 
meeting all on the broad ground of American citizenship, widen- 
ing each day the circle of his action tmtil he had broken down 



■ Cvrtill to Tnv. Baltinor^ Ifay ■}, 179C; pclM«d Is H<MUH, StUUtt. Onar., 
Tol. Ui. p. jii. Cf. the iHcmpt of tbc PraDoaMntauiani ot Beto-lc-Doc te can* 
to Amcrioi (Abbot Btckcn to CinplI, AucnM ij, itof, Baltlmar* Ctlktinl Atekhtt, 



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Reliffious Orders: Men $07 

uoconsciously the barrier of prejudice and hate for his faith 
and his race.* 

Dr. Carr was joined io the project of foundii^ St. Augustine's 
Church by Rev. Michael Ennis, who was stationed at St. Mary's 
Church, Philadelphia, and Rev. John Rossiter, stationed near 
Wilmington, Del., where Dr. Carr at first thought of starting 
his community, who is said to have been an officer in Rocham- 
beau's amy, returned to Ireland after the victory of Yorktown 
and joined the At^ustinians. Not long after Carroll's return, 
he came back to America. In 1796, however, the present plot 
of ground occupied by St Augustine's Church, Philadelphia, 
was bought, and in September of that year, the cornerstone of 
the church was laid.* Bishop Carroll was very much encouraged 
over the project of an American province of this great Order, 
although he would have preferred to see the Augustinians go 
out to Kentudgr or Ohio where so many Catholics were falling 
away for want of the Sacraments. He writes to Archbishop 
Troy, 00 May 25, 1796: 

Ifenri. Carr and Rouiter are commissioiied by their brethrra in Ire- 
land to cndeaTour to form an establiihnient for their Order in thete State*, 
in wtdch endearour thej shall have every enconragetnent and aid in my 
power. I wiahed, indeed, that they would have directed their views for 
an establiihment towardt onr great Western country, on and contiguous 
to the river Ohio, because if able and apostolical men could be obtained 
to enter on that field, it leemi to me that it would become a most flour- 
bhing portion of the Church of Christ, and there the means of future 
subsistence may be secured now for a very trifling consideration. I have 
made known to them ray opinioo, leaving them, however, at full liberty 
to determine for themselves, and Philadelphia seems now to be the place 
of their choice— qhoiJ /cImt /oMKnngM sil.' 

On August 26, 1796, Bishop Carroll wrote to Father Carr 
congratulating him on the successful beginnii^ of the new com- 

* HcCowur, HUerittl SkHth ef St. AnfiuHin't Chtreh, PkilcitlpUe, pp. i«-m. 
PbiladdpMa, iSp6. Arddrijbop Trar uuMraooed to Gtrroll on fcbruirr il. i^rs. 
IbU Tidun Cut ud Boni* wan pn^ubw to Imtc lor the Uniud Stats IBalHrnart 
CtitinI ArekivM, Cu* S-Ui-i). 

' Anonc tb* comrllntot* to tlw fund for anctbic St. AogiutlDe'i Chorch and 
Houutar)' w*re Ptcaident Ccori* Wuhintim, CoTcnur Thomu HcKcui, Hob. 
Tbomu ntiSuDooa, Conanedsn Jobs Barrr, ViMxnmt d« Hoaillc*, Ibc br«tlier-iD-Uw 
of Lafarott*, Don JoU Vlar, SpanUk CoudI H PUladdphia, and Sicphaa Cinrd. 
(Ct. KcCowia, »t. d*., p. a4.} 

■ If onui, StUI*§. Ouw., *oL ilj, p. la»^i. 



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5o8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

munity, and appointii^ him vicar-general for the northern part 
of the diocese.* When he was assured of sufficient suK»ort, 
Father Cair applied to Rome for the requisite canonical authority 
to establish the new monastery of his Order, and an indult to 
that effect was sent to Dr. Carroll, on May 27, 1797, stating 
that the same could be erected canonically with his permission. 
Owing, however, to the danger of a loi^ delay in the corre- 
spondence, Propaganda presumed that Carroll's consent would 
be given and so had already granted the indult, and the same 
was confided to Dr. Carroll for transmission to Father Carr. 
This was immediately forwarded to Father Carr, and thus the 
little community at Fourth and Vine Streets became the Mother- 
house for the Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel (now 
known as the Province of St. Thomas of Villanova). In his 
letter of May 27, Cardinal Gerdil, the Prefect of Propaganda, 
expressed in the name of the Congregatioa the great consolation 
all in Rome felt at this signal mark of divine predilection for 
America. With Europe in disorder and with so many deplor- 
able calamnities destroying religion, the progress of the Faith 
in the United States stood out like a beacon light of hope to the 
harassed head of the Church.'* 

Dr. Carr's missionary labours until his death (1819), form an 
int^al part of the history of the Church in the Diocese of 
Philadeljrfua, and as Vicar-General of the Diocese of Baltimore 
before Bishop Egan's consecration (1810), he was practically 
the head of the Church in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. His 
community began very humbly, but from the inception of mon- 
astic life at old St. Augustine's, the Order attracted to itself 
some of the most learned and capable men in the priesthood of 
that day. Among the best known members of the Augustinians 
during these early years were : Father George Staunton, O.S.A., 
who came to the United States about 1799, and remained until 
1809 or 1810; Father Philip Stafford, O.S.A., who was assistant 
at St Joseph's and St. Augustine's Churches from tSoo to 1817 ; 
Father Philip Lariscy, O.S.A., the first priest to preach in Irish 
in the United States, who assisted at St. Augustine's from 1818 
to 1824; and Dr. Michael Hurley, O.S.A., (1778-1837), one of 



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Religious Orders: Men 509 

the most brilliant clergjrmen of tfw time.** Dr. Hurley is said 
to have been born in Philadelphia. He was sent by Dr. Can to 
Viterbo, Italy, to complete his studies, and on his return, probably 
in 1803, he was appointed as assistant at St Joseph's and St. 
Augustine's Churches. Few Catholic priests enjoyed a wider 
popularity with the people of Philadelphia. It is highly regret- 
table that all the documentary material for the history of these 
early years of the Augustinians was destroyed during the Native- 
American Riots of 1844. Only eighteen letters are extant in 
the Baltimore Cathedral Archives, and they are mostly of an 
administrative nature dealing with the Church in Phihidelphia 
under Dr. Carr, as Vicar-General of Baltimore. 

There were Franciscans of the three branches (Friars Minor, 
Conventuals and Capuchins) in this country from the time of 
Carroll's prefectship (1784), down to the coming of Father 
Michael Egan, O.F.M,, about 1799. Mai^ of these were unfitted 
for such a sacred undertaking as the foundation of a province 
of their Order, and it was not until after his aiqwintment as 
pastor of St, Mary's, Philadelphia, in April, 1803, that Father 
Egan placed this cherished project before the Holy See. On 
December 11, 1803, he addressed the Vicar of Rome, Cardinal 
della Somaglia, whom Dr. Carroll and Father Egan believed 
to be Prefect of Propaganda, asking for the requisite authority 
to found a Franciscan province in the United States. Father 
Egan called the attention of the cardinal to the fact that previous 
to his coming to America, he had been Guardian of St. Isidore's 
in Rome, and had spent several years in Ireland before taking 
up missionary work in Pennsylvania. The letter then continues : 

The consregation here is both ntunerous and respectable, but I'm sorrj 
to say there are many places in this extensive country, where the faithful 
are destitute of pastors, and deprived of the hread of life. To remedy 
this evil in sotne manner, application is made to your Eminence (with the 
concurrence and approbation of the Right Rev. Dr. Carroll of Baltimore), 
and is, that you would be pleased to procure for me, from the Superior 
of the Order of Ara Coeli, power of receiving and professing novices, 
and of forming a Province distinct and independent of that of Ireland, 
subject, however, to be called out and serve when and where the Right 



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S 10 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Rev. Doctor Carroll or his taccesior) may thmk proper to wnd Hitm. An 
uutHution of this Idnd has been formed here by a gentleman of Ac 
Order of St. Angnstine ; the effects whereof are already felt ; and, at the 
Franclican Order is more nnmeroos, it it to be hoped the benefit rcnilting 
to religion will be more cxlensiTC.** 

Father ^;ati thea explained to Soma^lia that, owing to die 
strictness of the Franciscan Rule, the Holy See would be obliged 
to grant a dispensation to the members of the Order in the 
United States to acquire and hold property. As pastors of 
churches, they were the legal heads of the corporation made up 
of the church trustees, and they wotild be forced to hold church 
property l^;ally to protect it from alienation or mtstnanagement. 
After several months, not hearing from Rome, though we know 
that Cardinal Somaglia, who was Vicar of Rome, handed the 
letter to Propaganda, Father Egan sent a duplicate of the 
letter to Propaganda, on March 4, 1804. Bishop Carroll heartily 
concurred in the petition for the Franciscan province, and 
addressed Cardinal Somaglia on December 11, 1803, to that 
effect: 

The Rev. Mr. Egan, having communicated his letter to yonr Eminence, 
and desired me to certify that its contents are agreable to tne, I take 
the liberty of adding that they have my entire approbation, and that I 
shall esteem it as a singular favour of Divine Providence to see, befwe 
the close at my life, the measure, which he proposes, carried into effect, 
because it would afford to me a reasonable Iiope, that there [would be) 
a provision made for supplying a portion of this extensive diocese — 
with worthy and edifying priests, to perform the services of our holy 
Religion. As I believe that your Eminence is a member of the Sacred 
Congregation de Propaganda Fide, T request most humbly the favour of 
Iiaving an answer sent to the many urgent letters, which have been 
sent to me during the past years; and am with the greatest respect 



This petition was answered on June 24, 1804, and Father 
^an was told that the Sacred Congrc^tion would take the 
matter up with the superiors of the Franciscans in Rome; if it 
met with their approval, the project would be placed before the 
Holy Father, Pius VH. On June 30, 1S04, Propaganda com- 
municated by letter with the Commissary General of the Order, 



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ReUgiou$ Orders: Men 511 

then in residence at the Ara Coeli, giving him at th« same time 
copies of Egan'a and Carroll's letters. The Secretary of Propa- 
ganda finished his letter with the statement that the erection 
of a Franciscan province was considered by the cardinals of the 
Congr^ation of such great importance that he trusted the 
general would give it his most earnest and immediate considera- 
tion. Permission from the head of the Franciscan Order was 
readily granted, and in a special audience before Pius VII on 
September 23, iSo4) the Congr^ation requested papal approba- 
tion for Egan's design. There was no objection on the part 
of His Holiness, and on September 29, a decree to that effect 
was drawn up by the Propaganda oEfidals and was despatched 
to Dr. Carroll, with a letter stating that Father Egan might 
proceed at once to erect a Franciscan province in this country, 
distinct and independent of the Irish Province ("a provinda 
Fratrum Minorum Hibemiae penitus distinctam atque inde- 
pendentem"). The strict rule of poverty of the Friars Minor 
made it necessary to issue an exemption to the members of the 
American province, but they were forbidden by the general of 
the Order to hold property in their own name; they were to 
have all property belonging to the Order vested In the name of 
Bishop Carroll or of some one not a member of the Franciscans.** 
On the receipt of these documents. Father Egan wrote to 
Bishop Carroll (January 8, 1805), thanking him for his assist- 
ance and for his just and prudent observations relative to the 
establishment of the Province. It would seem as if Dr. Carroll 
had si^;ge3ted to Father Egan, as he had also done to Father 
Carr, the superior of the Augustinians, the great good he might 
do if he established his Order in the Kentucky-Ohio regions 
where priests were so badly needed. A Mr. Gallagher from 
Kentucky was in Philadelphia in 1805, and there was talk of 
transferring the church property at Frankfort, Ky., to Father 
Egan, who makes mention of the offer in his letter of January 
8, 1805 to Dr. Carroll.^* The offer was not accq>ted; no doubt, 
for the reason that Bishop Carroll had ahready obtained the con- 
sent of the Dominicans to go out to the Kentucky Missions. 



>• Pntmtmtm Antim, ScfiUart rifttitt, Am*riea Cntralt, toL li 
(tinted in Hdsih, Lc, p. gtt, (Ct. Rtivrdi, viL sxi, f. ifi.) 



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5 1 2 Th£ Life and Times of John Carroll 

Father ^^an found a patron in the wealthy Catholic land- 
owner of Pennsylvania, Mr. Joseph Cauffmann, who conveyed 
{Avgast 9, i8o6) to his son-in-law, Mark Willcox, and Father 
Carr, O.SA., some three hundred acres of land in Indiana 
County, Penna., which was to be used for establishit^; a Fran- 
ciscan monastery. In case the Order failed to acc^ the gift, 
it was to be turned over to the bishop of the diocese for church 
purposes.*" On September s, i8io, Mr. Willcox and Father 
Carr conveyed the land to Bishop-elect Egan. The disturbed 
condition of the Church in Philadelphia during Dr. Egan's CfMs- 
copate (1810-1814), due to the Harolds and to the trustee 
schism, gave the bishop no opportunity of carrying out his plans 
for the establi^unent of the American province of the Order, 
and after his death (July 22, 1814), his heir. Father Michael 
Du Buigo Egan conves^ed the land (August 23, 1823) to Bishop 
Conwell,** 

The Franciscans had a long history of activity within the 
present borders of the United States when their project of estab- 
lishing a distinctly American province of the Order was aban- 
doned by Bishop Egan. They had been the first to begin perma- 
nent missions in this country, and the list of missionaries, con- 
fessors of the Faith, and martyrs whose names are recorded 
in the Book of Deeds of the American Church, b^ins with that 
of Father Juan Suirez, O.F.M., who came to Florida with 
Narvacz in 1528, and continues down to Egan's own day, when 
Fathers Junipero Serra, de Lasuen, and Tapis were founding 
those glorious relics of a vanished civilization — the Missions of 
California (1769-1823).** In 1672, members of the English 
Franciscan province were at work in the Maryland Missions, 
and here and there throughout the country down to ^an's death, 
were to be found Franciscans of merit — pioneers such as Father 
Theodore Brouwers, O.F.M., who owned a large estate in Indiana 
Comity, Pa., and Father Van Huffel, O.F.M., who came to the 
United States in 1789, took part in the Synod of 1791, and 



■• GuFTiK, L^ of BitJuit Bfu, p. ly, d. A Proitcttd PraaciKam 
Wtittm Pnuujlpai^ (/(ef-it/o), in the Rrctrdi, toL xxi, pp. i;e-i76. 

" '^ i»n not tnc«d the conreraooe fvtber. Ii *B]r part of th« Um 
lor nUgioM pui'iiof " — GuFna, Ibid^ p. 14. 

■■ EaoiLHAWi, Tkt Mittiemt mi MiuiMaHtt irf CaH/on^ 4 vok 
dMO, igit-igi5. 



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Religious Orders: Men 513 

retnroed to Europe in 1805.^* But the failure of Bishop ^an's 
plan seems to have brought an end to the project of a Franciscan 
province. It was only after immigratioti from Germany and 
Austria to the United States had reached its highest point that 
the Franciscans were enabled to carry Bishop Egan's plan to 
completion. 

The history of the Trappists in the United States begins with 
the exodus of the monks and novices from La Trappe, France, 
at the outbreak of the French Revolution, when Dom Augustin 
de Lestrai^, the master of novices, sought a refuge in Switzer- 
land with his community. Later, owit^ to the difficulty of find- 
ing a permanent home there, they wandered over different parts 
of Europe, and in 1802, Lestrai^ decided to send a group of 
Traptnsts to America. Under Dom Urbain Guillet, twenty-four 
members of the Order arrived at Baltimore, on Sept 25, 1802. 
On July 10, 1804, Propaganda wrote to the Superior of the 
Trappists at Civiti Castellana promising him that the Sacred 
Congregation would warmly recommend Dom Urbain and bis 
companions to Bishop Carroll. There is a letter to this effect 
addressed to Carroll in the Propaganda Archives, dated July 14, 
1804. They attempted a foundation at Pigeon Hill, but this 
was deserted in 1805, for Kentucky, where Father Badin gave 
them a hearty welcome. Meanwhile, Dom Augustin had sent 
out to the United States a second group under Dom Mary 
Joseph. The two bands of Trappists united, but in 1809 their 
monastery at Pottit^er's Creek, Ky., was destroyed by fire, and 
they went to Florissant, Mo., where the community was re- 
established. The manner of religious life embraced in the severe 
rule of La Trappe was wholly unsuited to the rough pioneer 
conditions in Kentucky, and many cases of serious and fatal 
illness occurred by reason of their adherence to certain foods 
little calculated to give them the strength necessary for the hard 
life around them. 

Their short stay in Kentucky was not devoid of benefit to that 
struggling portion of the American Church, for the school they 

» Tborpe writo to Curotl (Apiil 7, '7^) Iwt Vu BnSd, who n> tlm tettinc 
out for Amcdn, "ucni to hire BMhinf ol whit i* mcuit here [Rome] br the 
ouBC of Prtr" lBat*fmarw CalMtifl ArcUtnt, Cut t-]6). Ht» depMttw* to 
rtcMded in a letter tnm CarnU to Tror. Honnber t, iSos (AM., Cmc 8-Ft}. 



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j 14 The Life end Times of John Carroll 

established was the beginning of Catholic education among the 
pioneer families of the then Far West, and the rigorous religious 
life they led had its correspondii^ influence upon the people. 
Spaldii^ writes : 

While in Kentucky, the Trappists rekuted in nothing the rigor of their 
institute. They observed a perpetual silence. They slept on boards, with 
notiiing but a. blanket for their covering, and a coarse canvas bag, 
stuffed with straw for their ^Ilow. They gave but four hours in the 
twenty-four to repose— from eight o'clock p. m., until twelve. . . . They 
never ate meat, batter, eggs, nor fish ; their food cotuisted of the coarsest 
bread, and of v^etables plainly dressed. On Good Friday, they took 
nothing bttt bread and water. Their life was thus a continual penance 
and prayer. But, in the climate of Kentucky, these rigid ansterities were 
not compatible with health. The constitntkms of many of the monks were 
greatly impaired; and five priests and three lay-brothers fell victims to 
disease. . . . these afflictions and the ardent desire which Father Urbam 
had conceived of labouring for the conversion and civiiiiation of the 
Indian tribes, together with the aspiration after still greater solitude, 
determined him to emigrate with his Order still farther Westward.** 

And thus bc^an the strangest and saddest odyssey in American 
annals. The monks built a flat-boat and with it set out on the 
Ohio, in the Spring of 1809, towards the Mississippi. On 
reaching the mouth of the Ohio, they camped for several months, 
itt order to build a boat for the rest of the journey. At lengdi 
they reached St. Louis, and fixed upon a site near Florissant, 
now called Monk's Mound, where tb^ set up their establishment 
and renewed their strict religious life. Here again they met with 
almost insuperable difficulties, and, in 1812, the call came from 
the general of the Order for them to return to France. Father 
Urbain sold the property at Monk's Mound and returned to 
Maryland with his community. There he found that a third 
group had been sent otit by Dom Augustin from Bordeaux, and 
had reached Boston on August 6, 1812, under the direction of 
Dom Vincent de Paul. This group consisted of three Fathers 
of the Order, one ntm (Trappisdne) and two lay brotiiers.** 
Father Vincent's intention was to bring out five Sisters with 



" SruDiiio, Skttcliti, pp. i6t-i6«. 

■ a. Uiwtfin tf F^ktr VImtMi D* PmO, Irudued tron the Fnach br Pops 
(aufatumn, P.E.I., iRBC), printed (ia iBTt) In the JUtttthm. vol nil, pp. aC«- 
IS7; d. fU4.. TOL X, pp. ir»-i71. 



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Religious Orders: Men 515 

which to found a Cistercian convent in this country, but the 
French Government would permit only one nun to go. In 
Auj^ust, 1813, he visited Bishop ^an at Philadelphia, and then 
went to Pike County to examine some land near Milford, Pa.,' 
which had been ofFered to his community. Not finding the place 
suitable, he returned to Philadelphia in October, 1813. In the 
ineantiine, Dom Ai^fustin himself took refuge in the United 
States," but, after Napoleon's abdication, be resolved to take his 
monks back to France and reestablish his community at La 
Trappe. Two groups of the monks left New York in 1814-15, 
one under Dom Augustin's care, the other under that of Dom 
Urbain. A third group started under Father Vincent de Paul, 
but the ship was detained at Halifax. Whether by accident or 
design, Father Vincent was left on shore when the boat sailed, 
and he devoted the rest of his life to missionary work in the 
Diocese of Halifax, Father Marie Joseph Dunand remained 
in the West and was given charge of the parish of St. Charles, 
Mo., and several of the lay-brothers remained in Kentucky.** 

The correspondence between the leaders of these groups of 
Trappists and Archbishop Carroll is one of the most numerous 
in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives ; and the references to their 
life and missionary activities in the letters of Fathers Badin and 
Nerinckx are so many as to give the impression that in Kentucky 
in those days little else was discussed.** Fathers Nerinckx and 
Badin, the pioneers of the Church in those r^ons, while in 
generous sympathy with the ideas of La Trappe, realized that 
the monks would be of smalt service in the vineyard.** The 



■ Dom AmuniD to CirTDll, Dunkirk. March at, |S»], BalHmfrt Ctktint 
Arckmi, Cue SB-Ms; nine to wnc, Bordiaax. Jane «. iSii, ibU., U«. 

" Falfaer Vincent De Paol fouiided (iSij) tbe nuouMn o* P*tlt Claimiac 
wUeb, up to 1916, flonriibol >t Tncadie, in the DIoecM of Andcoaith, N.S. (C(. 
Gailuidir. Hittorit ii U Traffe. Cnude Tn>pp«, iSgS; O'Bxiiv, tfmM<n «/ 
BUkof Burit of No/ffu. Ottan, iSf4.) The Artkittiteefitl Arekiptt of QmbM 
eontun nnmgoiii letten on tbe Tnppict project*, cJihteen belna (nitd the pea af 
Father Urbain to Biibop Plenla. For Father Haria Joaepb Dunand, ef. Fuck, 
Dtmy tf Falktt U. J. D., in the Ruardt, ml. xzri, pp. jilaa. 

•■ Uuii Uft of Rn. Ckvlu Ntrmckr, pp. loB-iii. dndnnati, lUo. Thaa* 
Icttera are in the BaUimart Cslhtint Atclmitt. Caac* i, B, « and ia the jnd vol of the 

" On Fcbniai7 g, iSor, FatbcT Badin wrote to Biahop CamU that Palber Urbaia 
had aeat fonrteen of the nonki in the aenreM weather of that winter to the plantatfana 
be had bonfhl on Green Xl*er. They went br wacon and had to cut a road throufh 
the foreat* and the anow-drifta. "The good Father aetma to aah for mlradea,*' he 
wHfd, (?»fiwrv CatJMdraJ Afciik-t, Caaa 1-S6.) Badin himadi hwt »erioaalr 



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5 16 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

American Church was not prepared to receive religious who 
followed the rule of contemplation. Thirty years later, when 
Catholic life was better organized, the Trappists of Melleray, 
* France, sent out ( 1848) a group of monks and lay-brothers who 
established the monastery at Gethsemani, Kentucky. 

The history of the first American province of the Order of 
Friars Preacher is so intimately connected with the Diocese of 
Bardstown that here only the beginnings of the province need 
to be detailed. The founder of the Dominican Province of St. 
Joseph, Bishop Edward Dominic Fenwick, O.P., was bom at 
the homestead of the family, in St. Mary's Coun^, Md., on 
Ai^ust 19, 1768. He was the fourth of the family of eight 
children: six boys and two girls. As the son of prominent 
Catholic parents, he was probably educated at home under private 
tutt)rs> as was the custom with the Catholic families at that time; 
at an early age, he was entered at Holy Cross Collie, in Born- 
beim, Belgium, an Academy for the education of boys founded 
by Cardinal Thomas Howard, O.P. (c. 1758). Edward Fen- 
wick was in his twentieth year when he finished his studies at 
Bomheim, and on September 4, 1788, he entered liie Order of 
St. Dominic, the second American of whom there is any record 
to become a Dominican.** To his baptismal name of Edward, 
he added that of Dominic in honour of the sainted founder of 
the Order. After his profession (March 26, 1790), he began 
his studies for the priesthood, and was ordained in 1793. The 
approach of the French army at this period of the Revolution 
caused the superiors at Bornheim to place the college property 
in his hands, hoping that his American citizenship would save 
the institution. This fact was not, however, respected, for he 
was arrested and the property was confiscated, even though it 
had previously (1793) been protected by General Eustace, an 
American, who led the French troops. Father Fenwick was 
eventually released and went to England, where the English 



coiuiderHl jainiac the TnppuU at Ihii Umc (Inter of Fdmry i^, 1S07, to Cimll, 
ibid.. Cue i-H;), uid he fared that Nerin^x mifht be tempted to Jnn the BViahi. 
"Haro HOelifictiitiir qni pereiTiuntur," Badin nreutic»]lr lenkTla two ran bts 
when the inonki were lettinc oM for Mlnoari. Father Urhain'i letter* to Carroll 
(iWd., Caw 8-Qi-io) *re filled with alternate hope and dapair at eadi Mafe of tk* 
wandering* of U* cwnmnnitr. 
■■ O'Daaiti, cp. dl., p. jm. 



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Religious Orders: Men 517 

Dominicaiis had established a house at Carshalton, in Surrey, 
aome twelve miles from London. Their prospects were not very 
encouraging. O'Daniel writes : 

Fcnwick hjnuelf was nearing middle age. Accordingly, he fetl that the 
time was come when he could and should take steps towards putting his 
pious project into execution. In fact, although we have found no express 
assertion of his to that effect, the good priest seems to have regarded such 
a thing as so sacred a duty, that one is inclined to believe that he had 
taken a vow, if the pennission were granted him, to establish his Order 
in the United States. . . . The prospects of success for the undertaking 
were the more propitious because the property left the humble friar by 
his father was situated in Maryland, and he had been able to obtain but 
little proceeds from it during his residence abroad. This could now be 
used in aid of the establishment Father Fenwick had so much at heart. 
Another circumstance in the good priest's favour was the presence in Rome 
of a learned Irish Dominican, who had long taken a keen interest in the 
missions of the United States, Father Richard Luke Concanen, then assist- 
ant to the Superior-General of the Order, and later the first Bishop 
ol New York.«T 

Father Fenwick secured the permission of the English Pro- 
vincial, to b^n n^otiations with Dr. Concanen and Bishop 
Carroll. It was Dr. Concanen who urged Fenwick to establish 
a distinct and independent province of the Order, rather than 
a succursal house or friary dependent upon Carshalton. Father 
O'Daniel has printed the correspondence which ensued between 
Fenwick and Concanen, and there are stirring pages in his Life 
of Bishop Fenwick, describing the American's difficulties in per- 
suading the English Provincial to allow Father Wilson to join 
him in the project. When the Master-General, Very Rev. 
Joseph Gaddi, authorized the undertaking, Fenwick wrote to 
Bishop Carroll, on Jantiary 12, 1804, that preparations were then 
being made for the proximate departure of the Dominicans for 
Maryland. Another letter to Bishop Carroll, dated Carshalton, 
May 5, 1804, states that he was awaiting "an obedience or fortnal 
order from the General's own hand," so that there would be no 
recriminations after he and the other Dotnintcans had departed.** 

In September, 1804, Fenwick and Father Atigier, his colleague 
at Bomheim, set out from London, and after a tedious journey of 



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5i8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

almost three months, reached Norfolk, Virginia, towards 
tfie end of November, 1804. On November 29, 1804, Fenwick 
wrote to Bishop Carroll, announcit^ the arrival of his companion 
and himself. Dr. Carroll replied on December 5, welcoming the 
two Friars, and offered tiiem the Kentucky missions ai a field 
for their activity. Bishop Carroll had very likely spoken to 
Fenwick's relations about his desire to see the new community 
established in Kentucky; but, in his answer of December 15, 1804. 
Father Fenwick emphasized the fact that the true object of his 
presence in Maryland was to establish a. convent of his Order 
there. He believed at first that Carroll's plan would nullify this 
permission. His design "had always been to found his Order 
in his native Maryland, which he loved with the affection akin to 
that of a son for a mother. Keen, therefore, was his dis^point- 
ment on learning that Bishop Carroll desired that Kentucky 
should be the first sphere of apostolic labour for the Friars 
Preacher. But he was too zealous a priest to hesitate to go 
wherever his services were most needed, as well as a rd^ous 
too thoroughly trained in obedience not to submit readily to the 
voice of authority." '* The nearness of the two Catholic col- 
leges at Georgetown and Baltimore rendered the success of a 
third institution precarious. 

When the winter of 18C4-5 was over, Father Fenwidc decided 
to go out to Kentucky to view the prospects there. He was 
accompanied by his brother-in-law, Nicholas Young. Father 
Stephen Badin welcomed the zealous priest and it was settled 
between them that he should return to Baltimore and accept 
Dr, Carroll's offer. Fattier Badin wrote to Dr. Carroll on May 
1$, 1805, that he would willingly cooperate in the establishment 
of the Dominican monastery and Coll^;e which Father Fenwick 
had in view. Badin asked that Dr. Carroll allow him the liberty 
of transferring the ecclesiastical property vested in his name, 
as well as two hundred and twenty acres of land belonging to 
himself, to the new community. "As Mr. Fenwick and his 
brethren," be writes, "will assume the obligation of fulfilling the 
duties of the mission as well as myself ... I do humUy 
request and confidently hope that you will give me leave to be 



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Religious Orders: Men J19 

associated to St. Dominic's family. I conceived this wish as 
well as the other resolution within two days after Mr. Fenwidc** 
arrival, and have never varied." •• Father Fenwick returned to 
Maryland with this letter ; after his arrival, he wrote to Dr. 
CotKanen an account of all that had taken place, adding that 
Bishop Qirroll "applauds and consents to it." The ditu'ch lands, 
it is true, which Badin wished to transfer to the Dominicans, 
were of minor value at that time, and the log presbyteries whkh 
had been built on them were of the type common to frontier 
towns. 

Shortly afterwards there arrived as Father Badin's co-worker 
in the fields of Kentucky the great Belgian missionary. Father 
Charles Nerinckx (July 18, 1805). The presence of this valiant 
soldier of the Cross gave such hearty encour^ement to Father 
Badin that his desire to become a Dominican disappeared for 
a time, and he wrote to Dr. Carroll (October 5, 1805) repudiadi^ 
bis offer. This letter is the first in a long series which deal with 
one of the most unfortunate episodes in Catholic American 
annals, and it is difficult, with all possible desire for impartially, 
not to see in Badin's sudden change of policy the influence of his 
confrire, Charles Nerinckx. "Since I have made my proposals to 
Mr. Fenwick," Badin wrote on October g, 1805, "1 have evidently 
seen that not only tt would not be advantageous, but it might 
prove very detrimental to religion to surrender the whole ecclesi- 
astical property to one Order, exclusivdy, which in time will 
probably claim besides, privil^es and exemptions from the juris- 
diction and control of the Ordinary." *' There is little doubt 
that the Kentucky missions were a grave problem to Dr. Carroll. 
After receiving Badin's letter of May 15, 1805, offering all 
ecclesiastical properties and himself to the Dominicans, Bishop 
GuToU wrote to Badin concurring in the project of the property 
transfer. What occurred between May and October can easily 
be conjectured, and it is hard to acquit the two Kentucky mis- 
sioners of bad faith, when we find Badin writing to the e£Fect 
that : "I really thought that Mr. F [enwick] at the very time 
I was writii^ my proposals was, with modesty, however, showing 
a grasping disposition; for he was not satisfied with one only 



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520 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

of the church livings; but as two days before I had show'd a 
cheerful disposition to part with everything to establish the 
Order, he insisted on possessing everything; knowing and ex- 
pressly mentioning that such a disposidon should be submitted 
to your corrective, I acquiesced although but little edified." 
Father Badin's "change of mind" precipitated a situation which 
was to last all through Carroll's episcopate and to inaugurate a 
series of letters from the two Kentucky priests — Badin and 
Nerinckx — ^which had much better never have been written. 
The virulent denunciations sent to Bishop Carroll against the 
Dominicans have left an unpleasant echo in Kentucky annals. 
Father O'Daniel has given us a detailed history of this unpleas- 
antness. He says that it deserves no more than a casual refer- 
ence in the life of the founder of the Order in this country, 
Father Fenwick; but, unfortunately, the biographers of Father 
Nerinckx have not been careful in their use of the documentary 
material at their disposal. One of them, at least, has suffered 
somewhat from what historians call "Froude's disease." The 
result has been that a one-sided presentation of the episode has 
passed into Catholic American annals and has been given a place 
of acceptance in the pages of John Gilmary Shea. The most 
charitable explanation of this depressing event in the history of 
the American Church is that given by Father O'Daniel : "Father 
Badin was a Frenchman; Father Nerinckx a Belgian, Three 
of the Dominicans were British. The other was an American; 
but he was of English origin, and had spent the greater [»rt of 
his life abroad with Englishmen. Nearly all the people of 
Kentucky were Americans, but of English descent." " If one 
adds to this the fact that the two pioneer missionaries of Ken- 
tud^— Badin and Nerinckx — had been trained in a more rigid 
school of theolt^y, which savoured greatly of the Jansenistic 
spirit then prevalent in French and Belgian ecclesiastical circles, 
we shall be able better to approach the problem of interpreting 
these years of conflict between the two seculars and the Domin- 
icans. The American Church has been free to a great extent 
from these theok)gical discussions of laxism and rigorism, and 
it is well for the history of our Church that the leader of the 



DigitzfidbyGOOgIC 



Religious Orders: Men 521 

Domtnicuis during this controversy, Father Wilson, was a man 
of wide learning, affable, and retirtt^. Spalding calls him one 
oE the most learned divines who ever emigrated to America. 
Throughout the whole affaire the Dominicans wrote but seldom, 
and then only to defend their good name against charges that 
would arouse the spirit of any good priest. Fenwick refers to 
the matter only once in his correspondence with Dr. Concanen, 
and then it is to say a charitable word about both his enemies. 

Meanwhile, the Sacred Congr^^tion de Propaganda Fide had 
issued (March II, 1805) the formal decree authorizii^ the 
founding of the American province of the Dominican Order. 
On June 22, 1805, the Master-General, Father Gaddi, appointed 
Father Fenwick Provincial. These two documents were sent to 
Bishop Carroll, who received them early in October, and then 
forwarded them to Fenwick, at Piscataway, Md. Fathers Wilson 
and Tuite, two other Bomheim Dominicans who had arrived in 
Maryland, were immediately ordered by the Provincial to proceed 
to Kentucky. Family affairs detained Father Fenwick until the 
following year, and it was not until July, 1806, that he joined 
his brethren. "Here he found that the former generous disposi- 
tions of Father Badin had been supplanted by an attitude void 
of all sympathy, if not positively unfriendly. The plan of con- 
veying the various parcels of church land to the Friars had been 
cancelled ... It was fortunate, therefore, that Bishop 
Carroll had given Father Fenwick, before he quitted Maryland, 
the option of locatit^ his convent and collie in whatever part 
of Kentucky he should judge best suited to his purpose." " 

With his own patrimony. Father Fenwick purchased a farm 
of five hundred acres and a brick house, about two miles from 
Springfield, and there St. Rose's Priory was established before 
the close of the year. The next project was to found a college 
for the instmction of boys. Bishop Carroll had given Father 
Fenwick an open letter of recommendation to the Catholics of 
Kentucky before his departure, and this letter was now printed 
as a broadside and an appeal made for funds : 

The Rev. Mr. Edward D. Fenwick and other Rev. ClerKymen con- 
nected with him, having proposed for themselvea the establiihmcnt of 

■* WtMiMt, Ptmwkk, pp. loC-ier. 



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521 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

M CoUccc Of Ackdemj m Kentncky, for the edncatiMi of Tonth, I not 
only Improve of, bttt greztlr rejoke at thdr having formed tnch a reto- 
httion, which, if carried into effect, cannot fail of prodncing the most 
benelidal effects for improrinE the minds and oiorala of the rismg gta- 
eration, and fortifying their religiotu prindplei. Believing that God in 
his beneficence inspired this design into their miixls, I take the liberty 
of recommending to, and exhorting all my dear brethren and children 
in Christ to grant to it every enconragement they are able, and thot co- 
operate to the sttccess of a work tmdertaken for the glory of God and 
their own advantage. 

•!• JoHH, Bislmf of Baltitnort.** 

In those days money was scarce in Kentucky, all debts being 
paid in barter. Business and trade were carried on in this 
fashion. Iti May, 1807, a smal] college was opened with twelve 
boys, who paid one hundred dollars per annum, and with ten 
poor boys gratis. Six of these became postulants in the Order 
and some were soon capable of taking a place in the teaching 
staff of the college, to which was given the name of St Thomas 
Aquinas. In October, 1807, Father Wilson became provincial 
and Father Fenwick was left free to tour the country on horse- 
back, visiting the Catholics of that sectioti and ministering to 
them. St. Rose's Church, the mother-house of the Dominican 
Order in this country, was completed in 1809, and in 1812, the 
College of St. Thomas Aquinas, through a legacy of two thou- 
sand dollars left by Bishop Concanen, was finally finished. The 
Dominicans ministered to a Catholic population of about twenty 
thousand souls. Father Fenwick's many journeys through Ohio 
had made him familiar with that territory, and it was but logical 
when the Diocese of Cincitmati was erected (1821), that be 
should be chosen its first bishop. After Father Wilson's death 
(1824}, Bishop Fenwick again became Provincial of the Domi- 
nican Province of St Joseph, and held this post until his death 
(September 26, 1832). 

The Church in the United States, during Carroll's ^iscc^te, 
did not reach a stage of progress which warranted the successful 
founding of religious houses, especially for men. Many years 
were to pass before this essential factor in Catholic ^irituality 
would be able to survive the harsh conditions of American Hfe 

•• Ctted br ODurtu, «f . cM. fp. tt»-itt. 



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Religious Orders: Men 523 

in dte banning of the nineteenth century. The communities 
which were able to continue — the Augustlnians and the Domini- 
cans — ^waited several decades before they ventured to multiply 
their activities; and, indeed, it was well on towards the middle 
of the last century that their real development began. 



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CHAPTER XXVIII 

THE RESTORATION OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS IN THE 
UNITED STATES 

(1806-1815) 

From Ai^st 16, 1773, until Ai^ust 7, 1814, the Society of 
Jesus was outlawed by the Church of God. The execution of 
the fatal order of Clement XIV was left to the individual bishops 
throughout the world. With the exception of Pmssia and Russia, 
where the sovereigns refused to destroy the Society, confiscation 
and suppression were carried out to the letter. The English 
ex-Jesuits had obtained in 1778, papal sanction by the Brief 
Catkolici Praesules for their Academy at Li^, where they re- 
muned until 1794, when the masters and scholars migrated to 
Stonyhurst.* The Liege School was the last oasis in an educa- 
tional desert created by Bourbon hatred and papal acquiescence. 
Its continuance under ex-Jesuit control is one of the remarkable 
pages in Jesuit history. Most of the American clergy — all Jesuits 
in 1773 — had, like Bishop Carroll, passed through Liege to their 
ordination and final profession. The same enmity which left no 
stone unturned to suppress the remnant of the Society in White 
Russia, was in evidence as the English Academy at Li^ pro- 
gressed. It is not difficult to surmise what would have been the 
ultimate condition of the Society today, had not the Siqipression 
reacted upon the very courts that had so insolently demanded it 
from the Holy See. 

The Interim (1773-1814) is synchronous with the collapse 
of Bourbonism in Europe. Throi^hout the world, during these 
forty years of Suppression, the members of the Society looked 
to the White Russian Province as a link with their great past, 
in case the future should warrant the restoration of the Society; 
and foremost among those of the Society who were determined 

' Hna«M, Hittery ef Ikt SetMy of Unu, ttc, Docuncols, nL i, put U, p. Ms, 



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Society of Jesus 525 

to profit by every advant^e were the English ex- Jesuits. After 
their migration to Stonyhurst, the Abb^ de Br<%lie, represeotitig 
the Faccanarists, came to London, in 1797, for the purpose of 
urging the English ex- Jesuits to join the new union. Amot^ 
those who became members of this group was Father Charles 
Forrester, who had been present at Carroll's consecration.* The 
movement met a strong opponent in Carroll's life-Ioi^ friend. 
Father Charles Plowden, who preached his consecration sermon. 
"There was much to recommend a junction between the ex-JesuJta 
and the new society," writes Ward, "their anomalous position 
would have come to an end, and they would ha^ found themselves 
members of an Order of similar aims and rules resembling those 
to which they had been so long voluntarily adhering." * The Eng- 
lish ex-Jesuits wisely refrained from taking part in Abbe de 
Broglie's project, for in 1801, Pius VII formally approved by 
the Brief Catholicae Fidei the existence of the Society of Jesus 
in Russia. On May 27, 1803, the English ex-Jesuits succeeded 
in obtaining oral permission from the same pontiff for the aggre- 
gation to the Russian Province.* Father Gruber, the General, 
appointed Father Marmaduke Stone, then President of Stony- 
burst Collie, superior of the affiliated English Jesuits. All that 
was asked of the former members of the Society was to perform 
a spiritual retreat and to renew their vows. Father Stone's au- 
thority was indeed based upon the celebrated vivw vocis oraculum, 
understood to have been granted by Pius VII to Father Gniber's 
agent tn Rome, Father Angelioni. Bishop Milner tells us in a 
letter to Archbishop Troy (February 27, 1805) that "my friend, 
Charles Plowden, stood out for a time, saying that without a public 
instrument under the Pope's hand, it might be disavowed and 
overturned in a moment. At length, however, he complied and 
accordingly pronounced his vows on August 15, 1804." * A regu- 
lar novitiate was opened at Hodder, near Stonyhurst, in a house 
given to the Society by Mr. Weldon, and Father Charles Plowden 



* FomMcr to Cunll, Lulwottli. Hbt G, iSoj IBalHmort CaiktinI Arekivt$, 
Cue 3-OS). 

* Wuni, Bvt ef CutMle BinanetttMon, voL i, pp. toS-aog. London, tgii. 

* Flowden to Ctrrotl, London, Jnly ig, iSoj. Such an ippligation bid b«ai mad* 
■nd tba Ensllita o-Jctnlu expected penniuloa to proceed u tbey deiired in tbe matter 
IBtitimott Cathedral Archivti. cise 6-Qi). 

* Cited br Ward, vf. eit^ «1. 1, p. sis. (7ro« tb* AreMtfitctfl ArMm o( 



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J26 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

became first master of novices. Henceforth they were able to 
live as Jesuits, although the permission granted by Pius VIX was 
of a private nature and was to be kept secret. Even Cardinal 
Borgia, Prefect of the Sacred Congregation of Propt^ianda, which 
was the administrative court for England and America, was not 
told of this partial restoration. 

It was impossible, however, to keep the matter a secret, and 
Cardinal Boi^a wrote rather vehemently to Bishop Doi^Iass, 
Vicar-Apostolic of the London District, on December 3, 1803, 
protesting gainst any recognition of the Jesuits in England. 
He requested him to notify confidentially the other vicara- 
apostolic that the Society existed only within the confines of 
Russia, and then only because the Holy See was powerless before 
the Empress Catherine, who protected the Jesuits. On March 
17, 1804, the Cardinal-Prefect wrote in the same vein to Bishop 
Milner. Cardinal Borgia acknowledged that he had become aware 
of the general opinion that Pius VII had restored the Socie^ 
and that houses might be b^m wherever a sufHdent group of 
Jesuits might be gathered. He called Bishop Milner's attention 
to the fact that the permission granted by the Holy See on March 
7, 1801, was "intra Russiaci Imperii fines dumtaxat et non extra." 
Wherefore, the General of the Society had no right to revive 
the Society outside the Russian frontiers and likewise had no 
right to aggr^ate those living in other countries to the remnant 
existing in Russia. The Cardinal-Prefect then added in no 
unmistakable terms that the vivae vocis oracttlum was false. 
Bishop Milner was warned not to allow the ex- Jesuits of England 
to affiliate themselves to Russia, but to consider them as secular 
diocesan priests.* Later in 1804, Bishop Gibson had written to 
Father Stone, giving him the message contained in Boi^^ia's letter, 
but the English Provincial was too well acquainted with the actual 
position of the Society in tfie eyes of the Holy See to be misled 
by Borgia, who was an acknowledged opponent of the Society. 
Father Stone stood firmly upon the permission granted in the 
vivae vocis oraculum, "for he had received rq>eated assurances 
from the Fjrther-General that the Holy Father had approved all 
that the English Jesuits had so far done, and he was aware that 



idbvGoOgle 



Society of Jesus 527 

the Holy Father m^ht have reasons for not communicatins his 
win even to Propaganda." * 

In spite, therefore, of Cardinal Borgia's hostility, the English 
Jesuits continued with their work at Stonyhurst and at Hodder. 
There were continual difficulties for the next twenty-five years, 
not the least of which was the fact that the presence of the Society 
in England was made an obstacle to Catholic. Emancipation by 
the antagonists of that measure. 

The English Jesuits did not receive the full benefit of the Bull 
of Restoration of 1814 until January i, 1829, when Leo XII 
declared it to have force in England. The Catholic Emancipation 
Bill, which received the royal assent on April 13, 1829, contained 
a penal clause against the existence of the Jesuits in England, 
but it was never enforced. "The sons of the Society in England," 
writes Father Pollen, "probably suffered less under the Suppres- 
sion than did the Jesuits of any other country in Europe. In Eng- 
land, the Society had always been remarkably popular, and the 
proportion of the Jesuits in the total number of the clei^ had 
always been unusually high." * There were strong adhesive forces 
active among the Fathers in England as well as in the United 
States during the Interim, and the Ei^Iish Jesuits were the first, 
the American Jesuits the second, to request a^r^;ation with 
Russia. Both branches of the Society were to be allowed to 
reorganize on the old lines. 

The history of the English Jesuits during this period (1773- 
1814) is an important bacl^;round for the study of the Restor- 
ation of the Society in the United States. Every aspect of the 
Interim in England had its direct reaction upon the ex-Jesuits in 
America. Father John Carroll was one of the very few English- 
speaking Jesuits who were at Rome during the period immedi- 
ately preceding the Suppression. When, on January 23, 1772, he 
wrote from Rome to Father Ellerker, S. J., one of the English 
professors at Liege, that "our catastrophe is near at hand, if we 
must trust to present ^>pearance5 and the talk of Rome," he 
knew that the Society was doomed ; and his letters of this period 
^low how poignant was his grief at being obliged to hide tus 
identity in Rome, even when travellii^ with so prominent a person 



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528 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

as Lord Stourton's son. John Carroll never forgot those days of 
at^uish at the centre of Christendom, and that fact must be 
remembered when in later years, as Bishop of Baltimore, he 
apparently showed reluctance at the prospect of restoring^ the 
Society. 

When Bishop Challoner (October 6, 1773) forwarded to 
America the Brief of Suppression, the Jesuits here submissively 
signed and returned the document which destroyed not only that 
solidari^ but also placed the ban of the Church upon that sub- 
lime religious ideal for which they had sacrificed their home ties 
and their fortunes and by which they had r^ulated their lives 
from youth to manhood and, in most cases, to old age. There was 
no vicar-apostolic around whom they could rally for safety, as 
their brethren in England were able to do; and only upon the 
uncertain authority which remained to their veteran leader, John 
Lewis, could they base their future activities; but the thought 
and the spirit which dominated these men, from 1773 onwards, 
was the restoration of the Society, at least in their own land of 
America. In spite of the Revolutionary War (1775-1783), they 
managed to keep in touch with the former English Jesuits, and 
every step made towards the reorganization of the Society in 
England had its corresponding effect upon the hopes of the 
Americans. 

The decree of Suppression allowed the ex-Jesuits who sub- 
mitted, the privilege of remaining in the parishes where they were, 
but under the jurisdiction of the local bishops. This no doubt 
amused the despoiled Americans, for there were no resident 
priests in the country, except ex-Jesuits, and no bishops nearer 
than London, Quebec, or Santiago de Cuba.* That they felt the 
injustice of the "Gat^anelli Brief" keenly is only too patent to 
him who reads the correspondence of the jrears 1773-1806. The 
disturbed condition of the American colonies during the War 
for American Independence afforded little chance for meetings 
of any sort, and the main endeavour of the American ex- Jesuits 
was to estabhsh regulations for the perpetuation of the labourers 



■ "Ma die cow (i tari eoti ijndli dke nvmui nell'Amarioi, pa etui din, ia tm 
■ItTD Bando Kuza anr In Ion ni Vttcom, aama m PrMe, eh« tia dl no ordlai 
dinrM dd lora"— Cballoncr to Stooar, Lsodon, Saptember 14, tJtii qootKl br 
HniiaEi, ap. til., DocoBBila, nL i, part U, p. 604. Ct. CtHFrau, Tkt Jttati; p. toi. 
N*w York, ipti. 



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Society of Jesus 529 

iQ the vineyard here. Occasionally rumours reached them from 
England that Propaganda was busy planning the confiscation of 
til the old Jesuit estates, and Carroll's attitude to which reference 
has already been made, must have put spirit into his English 
brethren when his letter of September 26, 1783, was read by 
Plowden to the members of the Society in England. Carroll's 
utterance on this occasion is the keynote to his whole life as priest, 
prefect-apostolic, bishop and archbishop, for he formally de- 
clared that "foreign temporal jurisdiction will never be tolerated 
here" in America. 

The earliest voiced declaration that the American Fathers 
wanted the Society restored in the United States is to be fotmd 
in the resolution of the First General Chapter of the Clergy at 
Whitemarsh, imder date of November 6, 1783: 

The Gupter declare for themselves, and as far as they can for their 
constituents, that they will to the best of their power promote and effect 
an absohite and entire restoration to the Society of Jesus, if it should 
pleaK Almighty God to re-establish it in this country, of all prc^erty 
belonging to it; and, if any person, who has done good and faithfttl 
service to religion in thii country, should not re-enter the Society so re- 
established, he is nevertheless to receive it comfortable maintenance whilst 
be continues to render the same services, and to be provided for as 
others in old age or infirmity." 

This resolution embodies the spirit which ruled the ex-Jesuits 
here until the American restoration came in 1806. And so thor- 
oug^y did they believe in the nearness of such an event tliat they 
began oi^anizing at once into a Clergy Corporation for the pur- 
pose of preserving the pr(q>erty of the Society intact for that 
magna dies when they would meet again under the standard of 
Ignatius Loyola. They foresaw that encroachment on these prop- 
" erty rights might arise from two sources : first, from the clerical 
"newcomers" into the country; and secondly from the person 
invested with spiritual jurisdiction in this country. Without a 
novitiate — and one was impossible to a non-existent religious 
Order— their own membership was doomed to constant losses 
by death; priests from foreign lands would undoubtedly come 
with their flocks to this country and soon these "newccnners" 
would outnumber the older men. The properties, while not im- 

■• HnoBU, at- el>: DocoBcali, tcL i, put li, p. 61S. 



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530 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

portant in size or in value, were not considered by the ex- Jesuits 
as belonging to themselves personally or collectively; they were 
pious funds and pious donations of lands and of bouses for the 
support of religion in the American Missions, and as such the 
rigorous tenets of canon law governed their usage and their 
sale. In spite of all that has been written and published to the 
contrary, it is impossible to prove that the ex -Jesuits were ever 
recreant to this trust. Difficulties did arise, after Carroll and 
his successor Neale went to their graves, but through the whole 
controversy in Mar^chal's day, the problem at issue was not 
objectively a personal one but one to be adjudged by canonical 
procedure. They showed no hesitancy in accepting the "new- 
comers," even though amot^st them there were some to be found 
who shared the popular European satisfaction in the suppression 
of the Society. The Clergy Corporation was a protective associ- 
ation not for the ex- Jesuits, but for these estates which to them 
were sacred, in origin as well as in destination. Every newramer 
accepted by Carroll as prefect-apostolic was eligible for mem- 
bership in the Corporation, providii^ he submitted to these wise 
and salutary r^ulattons. As far as the second danger was con- 
cerned, namely from the person who would be ^)pointed over 
the American Church, in whatever capacity, they saw no difficulty, 
if he was one of their own members; but as superior (prefect- 
^HStolic, vicar-apostolic, or bishop) he was to have no power 
"over or in the temporal property of the Qergy." Carroll's ^- 
pointment as prefect-apostolic was the beginning of a more com- 
pact ecclesiastical organization, but it is very clear from the pro- 
ceedings of the other General Ch^ters that, until the American 
priests were certain of the extraordinary and unusual privilege 
of electing a bishop for the United States, a prelate with ordinary 
jurisdiction was not welcome. When John Carroll was elected 
by them as their first bishop, one of his earliest acts (May 26, 
1790) was to sign a declaration to the effect that the See of Bal-, 
ttmore would have no rights accuring to it from the former Jesuit 
estates. Again must this firm stand be interpreted as a protective 
measure with the same end in view. Carroll's declaration ts as 
follows : 

To prevent any diugreonent or contention hereafter between the 
Bisbop of Baltimore and bis Qerg?, or any of them, in conKqncoce of 



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Society of Jesus 531 

any words contained in his Holiness'a brief for erecting the See of 
Baltimore &c.; I hereby declare that I do not conceive myself entitled 
by the said brief to claim any right of interference in the management 
of those estates in Maryland and Pennsylvania, which were heretofore 
applied to the maintenance of the Jesuit missiooers; and since their 
extinction, to the ex-Jesuits, and other Clergymen admitted to partake of 
their labor, in serving the Congregations, which were before served 
by the Jesuits.'^ 

Under this private arrat^ement Bishop Carroll strove to live 
tuitil his death, in 1815. He received annttally the support voted 
in his favor at the General Chapter of 1789, and little difficulty 
arose on this score. 

Meanwhile, the reorganization of the Society of Jesus in the 
United States was not lost to sight. Father Carroll's correspond- 
ence on the subject with the English ex-Jesuits grows in volume 
as the years pass. Evidently, in reply to one of his letters. Father 
Thomas Talbot, the procurator of the dissolved English Province 
of the Society, wrote to Carroll, from London, on September 21, 
1784, stating that, living as the Americans did, in "a free State, 
independent of foreign potentates and cabals, where liberty of 
conscience is not controlled, where Catholicity was first planted 
by the Jestiits, has hitherto been nursed by the Jesuits and solely 
brought by them to the perfection it now enjoys," it shoidd be an 
easy matter for the former members of the Society in the United 
States to affiliate themselves with the Jesuit Province in White 
Russia, which was still unsuppressed, and over which Father 
Gruber, the Father-General presided. If this were done, and 
Father Talbot hopes there was none amot^st the Americans "who 
would not fly to his colours with eagerness," many Eurq>eaD 
Jesuits, and especially those in England, "would flock to you and 
would think themselves happy to end their career under the 
same banner they b^an it," When the dissension arose at the 
Second General Chapter (1786) over the resolution to establish 
a school "for the education of youth and the perpetuity of the 
body of clergy in this country," Father Carroll argued in reply 
that such a school would certainly become "a nursery from whence 
postulants can alone be expected," and in the same document 

■■ Cited br HuDHU, L r, p. 699. » - 



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53* TAtf Life and Times of John Carroll 

we find the followti^ expression of sentiment regardit^ the 
Society of Jesus : 

We most bring to jam mindi that doleful era of the dissolution of the 
Society of Jesus, when we were torn from our dear Mother, whom we 
■aw sacrificed before our eyes to the designs permitted by Divine Provi- 
dence. In consequence of this we were left without father, without 
mother, oppressed with grief, uncertain of onr future destiny. In these 
melancholy circumstances, a formula of subscription to episcopal govern- 
ment was presented to us from our Ordinary, the Bishop of London, 
who was directed by the Holy See to do the same." 

That the former members of the Society in America were dis- 
cussing the Russian affiliation proposals as early as Carroll's ap- 
pointment as prefect-apostolic is evident from a letter of Father 
Partner to Carroll, dated Philadelphia, At^st 7, 1785: 

What concerns our union with the Jesuits of Russia, tho' for my 
[irivate satisfaction I wish it may be affected; yet does it seem to me, 
that the body of our Clergy here in General would not reap benefit by the 
imion. First it is not likely that we could draw thence any supplies. 
2ndly it would not joyn or link us better together unless they were all 
satisfyd and had or reassumed the Spirit of the Society. 3rdly, as it 
seems, supplies must ex parte come from secular or other religious 
clergy; our particular union would create a jealousy. For these reasons 
I keep in my particular desire of the Union ; tho' I am pretty confident 
that Providence had not brought about such a strange establishment, as is 
that of the Society in Russia, did it not mean to continue it." 

Confiscation of the ex-Jesuit estates was being mooted about 
that time by some of the Maryland politicians, as we learn in 
Carroll's letter to Antonelli, of March 13, 1786; and in order to 
avoid such an eventuality, the American Qergy Corporation 
made every effort to secure a legal status before the State. Many 
objections were raised against granting the Corporation a char- 
ter, but it finally passed the Assembly on December 33, 1792.** 



** Ibid; p. 6d]. Carroll wu leag funiliar with the proponl to tmite with tha 
Riuiiani. Then ii extact a letter to thli (Sect from one of the Ruuian Janiti to 
CarroU, dated October 14. 17SS. in tlie Baitmart Cathtirai Arclmrti. Caic j.VS. That 
Carroll wai falljr aware of the Encliih ex.Jeauit ■< 
■• endent from Plowden'i letlen of Uarch ig, 1 
Calhtdral Arcliivit, Caae fi-Jio-ii. Cf. Ciurmx, Tht JtiuUi, pp. Mf-tti. 

" BaJtimw* Catludral Arcktvei, Caie 6-Pii; printed in the Rtcordi. T 
pp. st9-s»<>- 

" BcOBi^ l.t.. pp. Sjs.i^aa. 



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Society of Jesus 533 

An interesting incident occurred at this time. While Carroll was 
in Rome (1772-3), he made an unsuccessful attempt to meet 
Father John Thorpe, who became later his agent at Propaganda. 
Father Thorpe seems to have been one of the party of Jesuits 
who issued at the time of the election of Gement XIV a libellous 
attack on that Pope under the title De Simoniaca Electione. After 
the Suppression, in a series of letters to Father Charles Plowden, 
Itiorpe described the conditions of Rome, and he embodied some 
of the stories anent the Pope, In fine, the letters give a complete 
and intimate sketch of Ganganellt's life. These letters, it is gen- 
erally believed, were indiscreetly published by Father Plowden 
as A Candid and Impartial Sketch of the Life and Government of 
Pope Clement XIV (London, 1785). The work was deemed 
so scandalous that it was suppressed, and Father Thorpe ¥nis 
put on parole not to leave Rome for three months. Bishop Milner, 
Mr, Weld, Lord Arundell, Rev, Thomas Bellamy, Father Charles 
Cordell and others wrote against the book. It is probable 
that the American Jesuits never saw the book, but there was 
another, written by Father Plowden, which had considerable 
influence upon their plans for aggregating themselves to Russia. 
This was the Ms. Account of the Preservation and Actual State 
of the Society of Jesus in the Russian Empire Dominion," to 
which Carroll refers in his letter of July ii, 1786: "I found yeur 
two most acceptable favours . . . and at the same time your in- 
valuable ms. account of the remnant of the Society, miraculously 
preserved, as it seems, to be the seed of a future generation, 
I have read it with great eagerness and infinite pleasure. . . ," " 
Again, on November 13, 1786, he speaks of Plowden's "most 
valuable Ms, which may be called the history of a providential 
deliverance of the Society from utter destruction." " The Ms, 
was passed from hand to hand among the American Fathers, and 
while it seems to have had no appreciable effect tn stimulating 
their desire actually to join the Russian Province, it undoubtedly 
had an influence in their purpose to reestablish themselves as 
members of the suppressed Society. 

■* Printed ta Dolman't Mtagattat, nl. r (i84t-iS4;); ef. Gillow, Biognfkical 
DictiimTI <rf BueHih CslMUt, vol. *, pp. lij-114. 
■■ HooBU, le., p. eSj. 
» /*«., p. 68j. 



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534 r&* Life and Times of John Carroll 

Two years later (April 25, i;^), thirteen of the American 
ex-Jesuits issued a circular, probably the composition of Leonard 
Neale, calling upon all the "Reverend Gentlemen formerly of the 
Society of Jesus in Maryland and Pennsylvania" to attend a 
meeting at St. Thomas' Manor, on the Monday following the 
third Sunday of July, when measures were to be adopted for the 
restoration of the Jesuits in America: 

Moti Esttemed and Reverend Brethren, 

It is with the great distreu of mind that we consider the vuions 
disturbances, \^ch have agitated us in this part of the world, since the 
destruction of the Sodetj' of Jesus. Upon mir exclusion from that 
liappy government, we sincerely endeavored to obviate every inconvenience 
bjr subitituting another fonn of Kovemment, proportioned, as nearly as 
we could judge, to the circumstances in which we found ourselves. But 
it sectns that this established form has not produced that harmcnr 
and regularity, without which all is thrown into confusion, and we 
\_are'\ compelled to surrender the idea of ever enjoying true comfort or 
happiness amidst the fatigues of our laborious Mission. This uncomfort- 
able prospect naturally revives the memory of our farmer feelings and 
ideas. Our eager thoughts, by an uncontrollable biass, fix upon our dear 
and ancient Uother the Society, whilst, by a retrospective glance, we view 
the perfection of her unparalleled form of government, which ever pre- 
served the most perfect union among her members, and, by her inflnendng 
energy filled all with a happiness that sweetened their labours, and 
afforded solid comfort in difficulties and distress. Yes, Revd. Gentlemen, 
we ccmceive diis government of the Society to be the only one that can 
procure us the happiness our hearts are in search after. We have felt 
her control, we have experienced her influence, which have stamped im- 
pressions on our souls not to be eraied. In pursuit of this otir object, 
we will not, we cannot loose sight of a reunion with our darling Uother, 
till such time as Providence shall frustrate our active endeavours, and 
point out this impossibility. We have therefore come to a full detennina- 
ttm of applying for this reunion, a determination not to be baffled by any 
attempts. We most sincerely wish for the unanimous concurrence of all 
our Brethren in this important affair. However, all being free, we reflect 
00 nme. We solicit none to subscribe to this determination, but such 
as are of the sentiments with oorselves-'s 

The names signed to this remarkable expression of belief in 
the future of the Society were: Walton, Matthews, Boarmao 
(John), Jenkins, Pile, Neale (Leonard), Roels, Doyne, Boone, 
Boarman (Sylvester), Beeston, Graessl, and Molyneux, John 



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Society of Jesus 535 

Carroll's name is not amot^ these, and that apparently for two 
reasons. The first no doubt had to do with his post as prefect- 
apostolic. As head of the American Church, his immediate 
superior was the Cardinal-Prefect of the Congre^tion of Propa- 
ganda Fide. The Sacred Cot^egation was certainly then not in 
favour of the restoration of the Jesuits. Even later, Pius VII, for 
example, did not announce to Propaganda the Restoration in 
1814." The second reason is that Carroll had begun to waver in 
his belief that the Society in the United States was capable of 
restoration. About the time of the circular letter, be wrote to 
Father Beeston, one of its signers, at Philadelphia (March 22, 
1788) ; "I considered farther that it is very uncertain bow long 
the spirit of the Society will be kept alive, at least in this country. 
I am afraid not much longer than they live who have been trained 
under its discipline." *° Perhaps, a third reason might be added : 
the attacks being made upon him by Fathers Poterie and Smyth 
in their publications, in which they allied that he showed favour- 
itism towards the old members of the Society. In two letters to 
Charles Plowden at this time, Carroll gives voice to his fear 
of being deluded in the restoration. On May 8, 1789, he says: 
"O poor Jesuits 1 when shall we have you again? You communi- 
cated in your last some dubious information concerning them. 
I have been so often the dupe of my h9pes, that I am becoming 
very incredulous to reports of any favourable turn in their 
affairs." *' Again, on July 12, 1789, he writes : "It is singular 
enough, that some of our own friends are blaming me for being 
too irresolute or indifferent, for not adoptii^ thdr most intem- 
perate councils with respect to restoring the Society ; whilst, on 
the other hand, Smj-th, the Abbe [Poterie] and others, are accus- 
ing me of sacrificing to this intention the good of religion." ** 
We do not know what the results of the July, 1788, meedi^; 
were, but they could not have been very encouraging, for no 
mention of the restoration is made in the Proceedings of the Third 
General Chapter of the Clergy, held at Whitemarsh, May 11-18, 



* Waui, Bv, ttc., ml. i, p. no; cf. Hcanu, L c, p. 

** Hdohii, i. c, p. 616. It ii about Ilili time Ilut Cart 
Father SIricUand on tha qiumIod of the anrecallfm to Saaala beflnc Tfai 
la the SaMmnv Ct>i*6rml ArcUvn, Caw B-As, and Caw g-K4. 

> nU.. p. MS. 



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53^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

1789. The principal questions at issue in that me^ng were the 
proposed bishopric for the United States and the incorporation 
of the ex-Jesuit estates. Carroll himself was preoccupied with 
the thought of his election to the episcopate by his fellow priests, 
and also with the serious troubles sodm of the foreign priests in 
the country were causit^. He gives us also a hint for the proper 
understanding of his attitude on the question of restorii^ the 
Society in a letter to Flowden thanking him for congratulations 
on his election to the See of Baltimore : 

.... Your condolence would have suited better the situation of my 
mind; every day furnishes me with new reflections, and almost every 
day produces new events, to ftlarrn my conscience, and excite fresh 
solicitude at the prospect before me. You cannot conceive the trouble 
T Buffer already, and still greater which I foresee, from the medley of 
clerical characters coming from different quarters and various educations, 
and seeking employment here. I cannot avoid employing some of them, 
and they begin soon to create disturbance. As soon as this happens, they 
proceed to bring in Jesuitism, and to suggest that everything is calculated 
by me for its restoration; and that I sacrifice the real interests of religion 
to the diimerical project of reviving it.*' 

Occasionally letters arrived from England asking for infor- 
mation on the progress being made in the a^^^ation of the 
American ex-Jesuits to the Russian Province. The English 
members of the suppressed Society could not understand why the 
Americans were not more prompt, living in a land where there 
could be no opposition on the part of the Government. 

Father Carroll was now Bishop-elect of the See of Baltimore, 
and therefore bound by even stronger ties to the Sacred Congre- 
gation. He foresaw that as chief shepherd he would be forced 
sooner or later to take action on the restoration being planned by 
his former brethren in the Society. His views on this delicate 
matter on the eve of his departure for London are in a letter, 
dated March 16, 1790, to Plowden : 

My Brethren here have been deluding themselves, for a long time, 
with ideas of a restoration, fotuided on what appeared to me very shallow 
support indeed. But at present I cannot help thinking, that the late 
convulsions in Europe, when traced to their real sources, must discover 

" Cursll to Plowden, Baltimore, Detobei 3j, ifSf, piicied In HuaSii, Le., 



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Society of Jesus 537 

to every thinking mind the necessity of a virtuous edtication, and of en- 
couraginK men, capable of conducting the rising generation throu^ all 
the degrees of moral, religious and literary improvement. On whom then 
can the governing powers turn their eyes, but on those who are trained 
under the discipline of the Society? A few seminarici or universities 
may be indeed supplied with excellent instructors without recurring to 
them. Bui ntunerous professors, sufficient to fill the chairs of every CMi- 
siderable town, cannot be formed and held to their duty, except it be in 
a body, constituted as the Society. . . .** 

During his stay in London, it was but logical that he would do 
his utmost to set aside the charge made by Smyth that he favoured 
the ex-Jesuits in the selection for parishes. This charge was a 
threadbare one to the English Jesuits and it was difficult for 
Carroll to arouse their interest. Dr. CatroU reached London in 
stirring time. Bishop James Talbot, Vicar-Apostolic of the 
London District, died at Hammersmith, January 26, 1790, and 
London for the first time in a century was without a bishop. 
"While Bishop Talbot lay dying, Catholic England was workii^; 
itself up into a ferment over the question of the Oath, nor was 
even a temporary cessation deemed necessary out of respect for 
his memory when he died." ** It was not until the wedc follow- 
ing Carroll's consecration that London received its Bishop in the 
person of the Rt, Rev. John Douglass. The Oath of Allegiance 
had been the cause of dissension, controversy and schism martyr- 
dom since the days of Elizabeth, and durii^ the summer of 1790, 
a war of pamphlets about it was being carried on by the two 
factions among the Catholics. Carroll's friend, Charles Flowden, 
was in the thick of the fight, and it must have been a novel expe- 
rience for America's first bishop to follow the actions of the 
Catholic Committee in its determined stand against accepting 
Bishop-elect Douglass. The opposition lasted until the end of 
the year, but finally the tiew bishop-elect won his way to the 
hearts of the gentlemen of the Committee, and on December 19, 
1790, Bishop Douglass was consecrated at the chapel at Lulworth 
Castle, by Bishop Walmesley, the consecrator of Bishop Carroll. 
Charles Plowden preached also at the consecration of Bishop 
Douglass, as he had done at Lulworth on August 15, when Dr. 
Carroll was consecrated. The summer of 1790 in London broi^ht 

>• Ibid., p. 6B>. 

' Waid, Daam of lh« CathnKc RMvival m Eughmd, ml. i, p. lot. Londoa, igo^ 



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53$ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Dr. C^rcdl into pertonal touch with all the Catholic leaders, lay 
and cleric, of England, and as a consequence, his correspondence 
with Plowden down to 1815 contains many references to the 
Oath and the Catholic Relief Bill. 

On September 2, 1790, he wrote from "King's Street, London," 
to Father Plowden as follows: 

My dear Sir 

Many thanks (or yours of Auff. 3i5t, and for your sollicitude that I 
should clear myself to Cardl. Antonelli from the calumnies of Smyth— I 
am not certain, that the Cardi has ever heard of Smyth's pamphlet; I 
rather suspect, that La Poterie has caused his foTKcries to fall into 
the Cardl's hands. Coghlan brought me today some of that vile Man's 
Perf ormances ; not against me; but some that he foolishly published 
concerning himself, on his first coming to Boston and a sort of pastoral 
tnstructtoa which he had the temerity and folly to publish there before 
the Lent of 1788. I shall give Cardl. Antonelli very satisfactory reasons 
for coming to England. Neither the president of Doway, nor Mr. Wm, 
Heynell are yet come to town; nor even Mr. Thos. Meynell. There is 
great inconsistency in the objections, which some make, not to the truth 
of your doctrine respecting the Pope's Infallibility, but the policy of 
asserting it in print at this time. They say with Mr. Reeve, that the 
English generally understand, that by infallibility we mean to assert the 
Pope's infallible prerogative in all orders he issues, or facts which he u- 
serts. Now if this be true, where is the impolicy of your asserting 
that the pope has no such infallibility; but only in doctrinal points. 
To obviate this observation, which I made yesterday to Mr. Chs. 
Butler, he said, contrary to your other opponents, that the English not 
<nity object to the pope's infallibility in giving orders stating facts (an 
infallibility asserted by no one) but likewise consider his doctrinal in- 
fallibility as a pernicious tenet and dangerous to civil govemoient. I have 
a letter irom the Nuncio at Paris, and another from Monsg. Emery, 
Superior Genl. of the Seminary of St. Sulpice. They both solicit my 
passage to Paris to confer with some gentlemen of the Seminary, who 
wish to employ in the rearing of young clergymen in America, that 
experience, which is made useless by the revolution in their own country. 
They offer to bestow their services gratis. We certainly are not ripe for 
a seminary: it would take some years before we shall have scholars 
far enough advanced to profit by this generous offer. I shall hear from 
them in answer to the letter I shall send tomorrow. On Saturday, I pro- 
pose going to Bury for two days. Mr. Talbot says, I must go to secure 
a handsome donation to the academy which will be bestowed on no other 
condition. This consideration apart, how much more pleasure would I 
have in visiting Lullwordi? 

Our academy, from its situation, would probably be conspicuous. The 
great object is, to procure for it an eminent and good Master. My 



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Society of Jesus 539 

letters from America, u well at tbe public prints infonn ine that the 
district, now settled for the fatnre capital of the United States and 
permanent residence a( Congress, is on Potowmack river. Commissioners 
mder the direction of the President are to determine tbe particular spot, 
in a district of about 50 miles, lybig on that river. The knowledge, I 
liave of the country, makes me confident, it will be either at Georgetown, 
or what would answer better for our school, within four miles of it. 

My poor Nephew, Dani, Carroll, whom you knew, is dead; pray for 
him. I know not when I shall be able to execute my promise relative to 
your book on infallibility." Interruptions of company, letters, long 
dinners, etc, take np my whole time. I cannot yet determine the time 
of my repeating my visit to yon, or whether I can repeat it at all 
Affairs at Boston demaitd tay return to America — I have received from 
the two priests there mutual charges and recriminations. I let Coghlan 
copy tbe preamble of the bull— I bare marked a passage or two, which 
I would have omitted: tbe isL is, that a state cannot be safe, in which 
new and vigorous doctrines are permitted to range (which is contrary to 
die maxim of our policy and 'Our experience in America) : tbe other is 
pro h(K vice tanlum; a clause I wish to keep from the knowledge and 
notice of our rulers, and which wilt probably be altered. I think there 
is in the latter part another clause of tbe same import 

When I write next to Lnllworth, I shall presume that Mr. Weld it 
rettimed, and I shall do myself the pleasure of acknowledging his great 
politeness and still greater kindness.*^ 

There is no mention of restoration plans in this letter, but in that 
of September 7, 1790, to the same correspondent, he says : "I re- 
ceived a letter last night from our worthy Mr. Francis Neale, who 
continues in his old stile to urge the reestablishment in spite of 
every prudential reason against the attempt, till Divine Providence 
opens a better prospect," *' A week later, he informed Plowden 
of the contents of Thorpe's letter from Rome (August 21, 1790), 
since "it chiefly turns on the subject of Cardinal Antonelli being 
haunted with the fears of the revival of the Society in America. 
I dunk it is providential that his alarms have been raised since 
the issuit^ of the bulls for erectii^ the See of Baltimore. I sus- 
pect otherwise it would have been refused. I shall now write to 



•• CfluUmMfou » thi Uaitrm Otmitm of IJw PaUtHUty of Ikt Half Jw ta 
Iht DttUim at DagmaHcal Om/Mhu. Loodon. >790. 

" Tbt Csrnli-PknnkB cDm^aiidaKC ud other HarrtaDd papen In A» Sttmf- 
hwi* ArtUm were mpisd lor tbe writer br 0ie cnineni Jcmdt blKorian, Fsth« Jsha 
HoofarfDhl PoUoi. Tbcr are not cUalofved and uc refctnd to in ttwat pact* dnplr 
M Amjrkant Trmueritti. 

" Slvmylmnl Tfwmttrittt. 



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540 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

the Cardinal in plain language on the subject." " Cardinal Anto- 
nelli's fear was aroused by the calumnies of Fathers Poterie and 
Smyth, and it is for this reason that Carroll tells the head of the 
Sacred Congregation {September 27, 1790) that since his ap- 
pointment as Prefect-Apostolic of the United States (1784) he 
had commissioned thirty priests for the work of the American 
mission; seven of these only were ex- Jesuits, and twenty-three 
non-Jesuits.*" 

The financial affairs of the Society, before the Suppression 
were regulated for England and the American colonies through 
the English Provincial's hands, and while in London, Father 
Strickland and Bishop Carroll signed a joint memorandum ad- 
justing their mutual claims." 

Apart from his interest in the Catholic Committee's activities 
Bishop Carroll found his time rather well taken up in writing 
appeals to wealthy Catholic noblemen of England for monetary 
assistance for his diocese,'^ and with the proposal made to him 
by Father Nagot regarding the foundation of the Seminary in 
Baltimore. On his return to the United States, the two educa- 
tional projects — Georgetown and St, Mary's Seminary — gave 
him little opportunity to be troubled over the revival of the So- 
ciety, and with the grant of the charter for the Corporation 
(December, 1792), he no doubt felt that the old Jesuit properties 
would be sufficiently protected without a restoration. The next 
General Chapter, held at Whitemarsh (November 7, 1792) was 
attended by twenty-two priests, four of whom were non-Jesuits, 
but nothing seems to have been done in the matter of the restora- 
tion. The main resolutions passed refer to the support of George- 
town and the Seminary. Subsequent meetings of the Select Body 
of the Qergy, which directed the use of the ex-Jesuit estates, and 
the correspondence between Rome and Baltimore, were silent on 
the question of the Society's revival until 1795, when apparently 
the Select Board passed a formal resolution to the effect that 
the Holy See was to be asked to reestablish the Society of Jesus 
in the United States. Among the Shea Transcripts at Georgetown 



" Ibid. 

** Pnpaganda ArcMutt, Scritturt eriginali, *dL 893 (not foliotd). 

** A liM of that bencfmcticnu wiD b« found in HvcHU, ^ c, p. 69a, n 



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Society of Jesus 541 

there is a copy of an "imperfect manuscript of Dr. Carroll on the 
Restoration of the Society of Jesus," in which Bishop Carroll 
says : "I have devoted much time to the consideration of the sub- 
ject recommended to me by some of our Brethren whom I greatly 
respect, and latterly by the Trustees who were assembled at the 
Marsh, 1795. This subject is an application to His Holiness for 
a revival of the Society in the United States." Dr. Carroll then 
discusses the precautions necessary in approaching the subject, 
and though the measure is a highly desirable one, he confesses : 
"I am far from an intimate conviction that any considerable ad- 
vantage would be derived from the reappearance of the Society 
with a mutilated and defective Constitution, instead of that one, 
compleat in all its parts, by which the Jesuits were formerly gov- 
erned. Indeed, I should have fears that such a restitution might 
be of prejudice by preventii^ a full and entire one, in some later 
period," '• That Dr. Carroll was justified in these prudent views 
is borne out by the failure of the pseudo-Jesuit Society, then 
established in France, under the name of Faccanarists, 

The general status of the Society at the opening of the century 
was greatly chained by the Fontifical Brief Catholicae Fidei, of 
March 7, 1801, granting a legal or canonical existence to the Order 
as a body in Russia, with the singular privilege of aggregating 
members from any part of the world.** The Russian Frovince 
now had a General of the Society at its head in the person of 
Father Gabriel Gruber (10 Oct., 1802 — April 7, 1805), and it 
was evident to the Catholic world that the full and "compleat" 
reappearance of the Society was but a question of time. It was 
the long captivity of the Pope at Savona which prevented the 
canonical restoration of the Society before his freedom in 1814. 
Father Thomas Hughes rightfully sees a providential action in the 
partial restoration of the Jesuits in the United States in 1806; 
for, when the general revival came in 1814, only one Jesuit of the 
old veteran members of 1773, was alive — Father Charles Neale, 

The year previous to the Russian restoration. Bishop Carroll 
had entered into negotiations with Prince Charles de Broglie and 



" Citrd br Huanu, I. e., p Si8, note 13. 

*• CbitoII recdred tliu intdli(ence (ram Father Stricldsnd in 1 letter dated 
London. September t9. >Sot. IBalHmon Cathtdrtl ATcUvtt, CaM S-Di.) Ct. 
CikKrBiu, Tk* Jttuiti, pp. 636444. 



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542 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Abb6 Rozaven, the leaders of the Society of the Fathers of the 
Faith, commonly known as Paccanarists. Among the many 
attempts made to revive the rule and the aims of the Society 
of Jesus during the Interim (1773-1814) two only were blessed 
with some measure of success. The first of these was the Society 
of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, founded by two young seminarists 
of St. Sulpice (Paris) who had taken refuge in Belgium during 
the French Revolution — Francis Eleonor de Tournely and 
Prince Charles de Bri^lie, a son of tjie famous Marshal, Prince 
de Broglie. They set up a novitiate near Louvain, where they 
were joined by several brilliant young army officers, notably, 
Joseph Varin. In i7<)4, they were forced to flee from Belgium 
at the advance of the French army, but during the wanderings of 
the little community, studies were kept up and several of their 
members were ordained. A final stand was made at Hagebrunn, 
near Vienna, in 1797, and Father Varin was chosen Superior. 
Meanwhile, at Rome, Nicholas Paccanari, a native of Valsu- 
gnana, near Trent, had founded a simitar community, under the 
title, the Company of the Faith of Jesus, This second society 
proved attractive to many of the ex-Jesuits, and a fusion with 
the French Society of the Sacred Heart was proposed and effected 
in 1790, Paccanari, then only a tonsured cleric, was elected 
superior-general of the united community, henceforth known as 
the Fathers of the Faith. In 1800, Fathers De Broglie and 
Rozaven were sent to England in quest of subjects. The Fathers 
of the Faith at this time numbered about 130 members. As has 
been seen, among the ex- Jesuits who joined the new community 
was Father Forrester, the master of ceremonies at Carroll's con- 
secration, but Father Charles Plowden was in the b^nnit^ as 
strongly opposed to a partial resoration of the Society's Constitu- 
tions and Rule as Bishop Carroll was. Abbe de Broglie opened a 
school in Kensington, London, but he came to grief in 1805. 
Paccanari himself proved to be somewhat of an adventurer, and 
disappeared in 1809. Almost all the Fathers of the Faith entered 
either the Russian Province of the Society of Jesus before 1814, 
or the restored Society after its revival. 

Fathers Rozaven and De Broglie wrote to Bishop Carroll on 
July 4, 1800, tellit^ him of the creation of an English Province 
of the Fathers of the Faith, with Father Rozaven as Provincial, 



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Society of Jesus 543 

and urging the American ex-Jesuits to join the new community. 
They offered their services in the missions and especially in the 
work of teaching at Georgetown, Bishop Carroll and his coad- 
jutor. Bishop-elect Neale, relied (October 27, 1800), accepting 
with gratitude the proposal made, and they asked that one or two 
of the Fathers well versed in philosophy and especially in natural 
philosophy and mathematics, and not ignorant of English, be 
sent out from England to Georgetown, where a hearty welcome 
would be given them. Besides these, the Missions needed two or 
three good priests, especially those who knew German. On this 
same day. Bishop Carroll wrote to Father Strickland, saying that 
money would be forthcoming for the expenses of the journey of 
"one or two professors of philosophy for Georgetown Collie." 
Further details of this attempt of the Paccanarists to mal« a 
b^^inning in the United States, are given in Carroll's letter to 
Plowden, under date of December 15, 1800 : 

SiDce tbe receipt of your last, u I probably mentioned to yoa in 
June, I received and answered a letter from London, aent to me by 
Mesirs. de Broglie and Kosaven. They gave the outlines of their insti- 
tute, and its acceptance by the late and present pope. I can entertain 
no doubt of the leal and sound principles of this new body of recruits 
to the church, of which I have heard much from other <iuarters; there- 
fore have requested them to send two of their Society to this country, 
w^ere they will team in the space of a few months, much more con- 
cerning the probability and means of forming establishments here, than 
can be teamed by twenty letters. Their place is, I hope the work of God, 
Ao' in one point they have departed from S. Ignatius, viz: that of en- 
grafting on their institution a new order of nuns, to be under the Kovcm- 
ment of the Superiors of their own Society. I should be glad to hear 
of tbe manner of their reception in England and success there. 

tit. Stone, to whom I send my best respects, will receive a letter 
signed by some of our Brethren, amongst whom is Dns. Doyne, coa- 
ceming this application to me from these two Delegates of the Society 
of the Faith of Jesus. They (our Brethren) met together without a 
general concert of the rest of us, and full of zeal for the re-establishment 
of the Society, have written as if that happy event were already effected, 
and I have seen a letter from one of those, who attended that meeting, 
in which, to the signature of his name, he adds tbe word, Soc. I. This 
is going too fast for one who subscribed his submission to the operation 
of the destructive Brief. In mine to MU. Broglie and Rosaven, at tbe 
request of the Presidt of Georgetown College, I soUicited them to send if 
they could a capable professor of philosophy, \o^c and natural [Wriltr 
began to writt "natural religion" but stopped wiilk "re," wMeh he cait- 



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544 ^^ ^*f' I"'' Times of John Carroll 

celUi, having nalwal untuncelUd] aai who sbonld know Engliah, refer- 
ring them to Mr. Stone thro' Mr. Strickland.** 

The joint letter of the seven Maryland ex-Jesuits to which 
Dr. Carroll refers was one drawn up after a meeting held at St. 
Thomas Manor November 28, 1800, for the purpose of consid- 
ering a union with the Paccanarists," The letter sent to Bishop 
Carroll by De Brc^lJe and Rozaven was carefully considered, atid 
a history of the Fathers of the Faith, by Father Halnat, who had 
brought about the amalgamation of the two communities, was 
read. The leaders of the Fathers of the Faith were then assived 
that they would find the American ex-Jesuits ready for imion. 
Dr. Carroll objected to this proceeding because all the Jesuits 
were not represented, and because he feared, as he had said 
before, any hasty action which might endanger the general restor- 
ation of the Society, 

A year apparently went by before anything further was done, 
though we find on October 19, 1801, Bishop Ncale giving way to 
a spirit of discour^ement in a letter to Father Stone, then Presi- 
dent of Stonyhurst College: "All the members of the Society 
here are now grown old, the youngest being past 54. Death there- 
fore holds out his threatening rod, and excites us to redoubled 
wishes for the re-establishment of the Society, on which the wel- 
fare of this country seems much to depend." " When the newi 
came of the pontifical approval given to the Society in Russia 
(1801), hopes were immediately aroused by the little remnant of 
the Jesuits here that they might be canonically aggregated to that 
Province. On March 12, 1802, Dr. Carroll tells Father Plowden 
that he had heard of the Russian restoration: "I heg you to send 
me, as early as possible, all the authentic information on this sub- 
ject of which you are in possession." ** Father Strickland had 
already sent the news, however, for on April zi, 1802, Bishop 
Neale wrote to Stone : "We have heard of the re-establishment of 
the Society thro' Mr. Strickland. But the clear light does not yet 
shine on us. . . . Anything genuine frcon our ancient body would 



" SUmykmrrt Tratucriptt. 

" A discct ct thii letter li in BvawtM. I. c, p. 7^1. 

" HcaHii, I c, p. 7G1. Hole'* Caimpoadeacc on the Fucaniriit aad Sun 
■woda ii ID the BalHmort Cathtdnl AnMeti, Cau s I*. 0- R- 
" SUmykwrit Tmucriptt. 



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Society of Jesus 545 

be highly gratifying." ■* The Americans seem to have been left in 
the dark for a long time. Bishop Neale was constantly being 
importuned by the old Jesuits to obtain exact information of their 
status, and he wrote to Stone (June 30, 1802) : "For God's sake 
relieve me from my distressed situation," Finally, on August 30, 
1S02, seven of the American ex- Jesuits met at Newtown and sent 
a joint letter to the two bishops, asking that they write at once to 
the General of the Society in Russia, "in our behalf to inform him 
of our wish to be reinstated," They desired also information re- 
garding the status of the ex-Jesuit properties, and they asked for 
an authentic copy of the Catholicae Fidei. The appointment of a 
visitor or commissary-general, to be sent from Russian or Eng- 
land, was likewise urged. Those who signed this Petition were : 
Fathers Charles Neale, James Walton, John Bolton, Ignatius 
Baker Brooks, Charles Sewall, Robert Molyneux, and Sylvester 
Boarman. But direct communication with Father-General 
Gruber, in Russia, was very difficult, owing to the disturbed con- 
dition of affairs in Europe. 

The Paccanarist movement died out in the United States as 
quickly as it began. One of the Fathers of the Faith, Rev. Nicholas 
Zocchi, arrived here about this time. He had gone first to Canada, 
but the government there would not permit him to remain, and 
be came to Baltimore." Dr. Carroll says of him in a letter to 
Plowden (February 12, 1803) : 

One of tbor [PaccoHarist] bodj is now here, Romano di nateiti, his 
name Zocchi. He went frotn England to Canada but the rigor of gov- 
ernment there allows not of anjr foreign Catholic clergymen settling in it; 
he therefore came hither, bnt being of a narrow understanding, be does 
nothinc bnt pine for the arrival of hii brethren, and in the meantime 
will wtdertake no service. From this sample of the new order, I am 
induced to believe that thej are very little instructed in the "=■^''"11 or 
Institute of our venerable mother, the Society. Tho' they profess to have 
no other rules than oars, he seems to me to know nothing of the structure 
of our Society, nor even to have read the regulae comnmiut, which our 
very novices knew almost by hearL*^ 

* HosMU, I. e., V. jia. Sbridduid iaallr (tnt to CuroU the infaimtlisn ukoi. 



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546 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

From this time forward, all hopes for restoratioQ were cen- 
tered on Russia. Shea writes : 



It wa3 i. period of great anxiety and perplexity in whlcli neither 
Dr. Carroll nor his pious coadjutor, Bishop Neale, could see his way 
clearly. They wrote to Father Gabriel Gruber, General of the Jesuits in . 
Russia. "We who write this letter to your Paternity were formerly of 
the Society of Jesus and the Province of England. After the fell de- 
struction of the Sodety in 1773, we returned to this our native land, and 
have latwred in it together with fellow-members of our Society, oun 
being the only Catholic priests who have labored for the salvation of soul* 
since the first entrance of Christians into these lands." They then detailed 
the erection of the Diocese of Baltimore and the influx of other priests. 
The fourteen surviving members of the Society, most of them broken by 
years and toil, remained chiefly in the two States of Maryland and 
Pennsylvania, in which was the oldest and most powerful residence of 
Catholics. They state how joyously they had learned of the preservation of 
the Society in Russia, and the permission given him by a Papal brief to 
enroll again in the Society those who had formerly been memberi. 
"Wherefore roost of them solicit with ardent desire, that hf renewing 
the same vows, which they bad vowed to God in the Society of Jems, 
they may be permitted to end their days in its bosom; and if it can be 
done by the will of Providence, spend the remainder of their lira in re- 
storing the Society among us. Yon know, Very Rev. Father, what and 
how much most be done that not a mere larva of the old Society, but its 
genuine form, the rule, and proper spirit may revive in them alL" To 
effect this the two bishops asked: I. Whether the Sovereign Pontiff 
had pennitted the erection of the Society elsewhere than in Russia, 
by an authentic brief or bull. 2. Whether the Pope permitted only the 
former members to re-enter, or authorized the reception of new members, 

3. What probation was to precede die restoratiixi of former members. 

4. How delegates were to be chosen to the General Congregation. Tbej 
urged him to select some Father of great prtidcnce, ei^erience in the 
direction of affairs, and deeply imbued with the spirit of Saint Ignatius, 
to come over, with such powers of a Visitor as the holy founder con- 
ferred on Saint Francis Borgia and others, and effect the restoration. 
They did not consider any one of the Fathers in America eligible, as 
they had been absorbed in missionary duty and had enjoyed little leisure 
to study the Constitutions and the acts of the General Congregations. If 
no one in England could be found, they preferred an Italian or * 
German. The bislu^ stated that the property formerly belonging to the 
Society had been nearly all preserved, and was stifficient to mw'Ptq'" at 
least thirty Fathers; and that part of it had been employed in fonnd- 
ii^ a College for the education of yotmg men. They further menticmed 
their own elevation to the episcopate and the freedom enjoyed by Catho- 
lics, under which there was no cribstacle to religtotu orders; and dosed 



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Society of Jesus 547 

by expressing their fervent wish that some hope and beginning of the 
restoration of the Society may result from their correspondence.** 

Another year was to pass before an answer to this letter 
reached the United States. Meanwhile, the Society received 
partial restoration in England, having been aggregated to Russia, 
by Father Gruber in 1803, and after the opening of the regular 
novitiate at Hodder, it is easy to recognize Charles Plowden's 
fine hand in effecting a similar restoration in the United States/* 
The long delay in hearing from Rttssia influenced some to con- 
sider the advisability of joining the English Province, then under 
Father Stone, as superior. Georgetown College was not flourish- 
ing, and it was evident that it would continue to show signs of 
decline under Bishop Neale's direction. The only hope of savii^; 
the institution was to place it in the hands of the Society, whose 
estates had helped so considerably in building and equipping it, 
and if the ex-Jesuits here could count upon help from Stonyhurst, 
they would willingly join the English Province. The situation 
was also clouded by the fact that Father Emery had recalled the 
Sulpidans. Bishop Neale wrote to Stone on June 25, 1803: 

Some have already departed, others are on the point of sailii^. Of 
course, the seminary is no longer caltnilated on. The school for boys 
erected there (St. Mary's College), to the great prejudice of George Town 
College, still exists; but as the Spanish youths, their chief support, are 
ordered by their Government to return immediately to their native coun- 
try, it must naturally fall to nothing. Our number of scholars is very 
small, but we still stand in the critical moment of trial. Were it the 
will of Heaven that the Society be speedily rC'Cstablished here, I should 
be happy to deliver up my presidency to their happyer guidance.** 



" S>i«, vp, cit., vol. ii, pp. Si7'5i9, cited tram Ibe Wacdrtaek Ltttm, *<il. i*, 
p. Jt. (Cf. CitriHum-JoLT, HuMrt d* Is Camtaent* it Hjmi, tdI. n, pp. sjSm. 
Parii, 1B46.) The prcwnt Writer fotuid it Inpouible to obuin pemiuiott to Kcnra ■ 
complete Kt irf the Woodttock Lttttri, bnt mi fortunate in beias ible to connlt then 
tn K libnrr abraad. Sefereocei to the Lrttrtt ate not iiTen, liDce in moit can the 
original docnmenti are dted. 

* Beta^ wrote to CamA from Dublin, AnfOlt 6, iSos, that nineteen rouni Iridl 
DOt lMi were under Plowdcn'a direction at Hodder (Saitijtwn CotAedrol Arckk/ttt Caac 
I.04>. A chaiacteriitic aitnation appaia in a letter Irom Striddand, who wrola to 
Carr<4l from London, Julr ii, iSoS, uTioff tiiat Father Flowdoi liad found a acrioua 
dlSctilt; in controUinf the Triih novicea, the l^ider of iriiom told the En^iah Superior 
that tbejF would ober an "Italian, Gennan, or oren a TuiUih Superior, bnt would Dcnr 
MdiBiit to an Escliibman." llbU., Caac S-DS.) 

*• HDOBsa, i. c, p. 7gS. 



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548 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

On November 21, 1803, Bishop Carroll, who was then in New 
York, wrote to Fattier Strickland, in order to hasten Father 
Gruber's answer : 

Rev. and kond. Sir. 

The incloaed letters are for the very Rev. Fr. Gniber, Genl. of the 
Society. One of them la the duplicate of another written in Uay last, 
to which no answer is yet received; and fearful of miscarriage by 
way of Hamburg, to which the first copy was to have been sent, I take 
the liberty of inclosing these to you, and requesting the Genl. to send his 
answers thro' yon. This I was induced to do; after hearing of the station, 
in which you are placed, and chosen by providence, at it may reasonably 
be hoped, to revive the spirit and renew the usefulness of the Society. The 
letters inclosed express the wishes of some of our former Brethren and of 
levcnil others, priests and non-priests to be re-admitted, and first admitted 
into it. Being here on a visitation, I have only time to add, that the vessel 
is sailing, that I hope you will charge the postage on this and similar 
occasions to my account with Thos, Wright and Co., and assure HM. 
Plowden, Semmes, Spencer, and all my other acquaintances of my con- 
timied respect and attachment To Mr. Plowden I will write soon, 
and shall always remain, Revd. boad. Sir. 

Your moti obtdi. and Br. m Xt. 

+ John, Bishop of Ballre.** 

P. S. I leave blank the cover of my letters to the General, that you 
may ^ve to it the proper direction. Rev. Mr. Joseph Doyne died Oct. 
28 of this year. 

Father Gniber eventually received the petition of the American 
ex-Jesuits, and replied on March 12, 1804, e^ressic^ his happi- 
ness at the news of the Americans' desire to revive the Society. 
Father Gruber justified the aggregation of the Americans by the 
vivae vocis oraculum, and admitted all those who wished to unite 
with the Russian Province. He prescribed an eight days' retreat 
to those who should re-enter the Society, and gave a formula of 
oath for the profession. He added : 

Wherefore I beseech you by your love for our most excellent Mother, 
to appoint some one of our old Fathers there, full of the spirit of God 
and St. Ignatius, who may examine th<»e who are to be admitted for the 
first time, instruct, form, and watdi over them : who if it seems best to 
you, may conununicate with Father Stone, Provincial of England, or whh 
Father Strickland at London. ... In the meanwhile I commit the whole 

■ SMiykmrH Trmueritti. 



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Society of Jesus 549 

to the favor, leal, and patronage of yourself. Most lUustrions and Rever- 
ent} Lord and your coadjutor the Bishop of Gortyna. If yon both con- 
sider that it will be easy to communicAte with Father Stone, the Pro- 
vincial of England, let ours turn to him for the necessary government. 
If Father Stone is too distant, bfonn me, and propose some one of 
our Fathers in America whom I can appoint Provincial, In the mean- 
time, let the most Illustrious and Reverend Bishop of Baltimore designate 
one who may govern not only the novices bnt the whole reviving Society, 
with all the powers, which 1 concede ad inlerim to the one thus to be 
selected." 

"Bishop Carroll and his coadjutor. Bishop Keale," says Shea, 
"wrere animated with the deepest affection for the Society of 
which they had been members. Nothing was dearer to their 
hearts than its restoration, and had it then been authorized by a 
brief of equal power with that suppressing it, both would in all 
probability have resigned the episcopal dignity to become once 
nwre simple Fathers of the Society of Jesus." " 

When this letter reached the United States is not known. 
Bishop Carroll wrote to Father Strickland, August 4, 1804; 

I request you in the first place to return for answer to Fr. Gruber, that 
I have not yet received any letter frcna htm, tho' one is expected impa- 
tiently by many of our Brethren. But even when his answer arrives, 
unless it presents the reestablishment of the Society in a view different 
from any that I have yet seen, it will, in my opinion, be very unsafe to 
enter into any engagement in it, at least so as to divest ones-self of the 
means of living independent, if after abdicating one's property another 
Pi^ ahotild declare the re-establishment in virtue of a mere verbal 
promise, void, and contrary to Ecclesiastical institutions, and especially 
ao in countries where it had been abolished in virtue of a brief, accepted 
and intimated by the first pastors, and submitted to expressly, tho' most 
unwillingly, by the members of the Society then living. But if the mem- 
bers of the Society, before their profession do not abdicate their property, 
they will not be truly religious, nor most assuredly Jesuits, according to 
the standard of St, Ignatius — I cannot even conceive, how there can be 
any profeui qmittMr votorum in the present state of things, for reasons 
which it is unnecessary to mention to any one, who like you, remember 
the principles of oiu: Theology concerning the difference between the 
dtssolobility of solemn and simple vows. However, I hope sincerely that 
the Pope will soon be so imfettered, as to be able to issue in full and 
authentic form a bull or brief for the re-establidunent In this hope I 

* CiDlMr to CarrtiU, HarA la, 1S04. BalUmon CMktdirtl Arekintt, Cu* 4-Cr. 
Anotber cop7 In Cue 8A-X1. 

* Of. fit., voL il, pp. sao-sai. 



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j50 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

am encouraged by a letter from Rome, received since I wrote the first 
lines of this; and the more so as it does not come from one of our 
former Brethren who are easily led to hope, what they ardently wish; 
but from a Dominican of note and character there, Fr. dncanen. You 
mention Fr. Angiolini's mission to Naples, only as a rumor, of which 
you expected a confirmation but Fr. Concanen says positively, that he 
was lately gone from Rome to that city to settle the four Houses granted 
by the kingc to the Jts : that an edict had been issued there in 1787 with- 
drawing all Regulars from any subjection to Generals or Superiors living 
out of the Kingdom; that Angiolini insisted on the necessity of preserr- 
ing the Institute inviolate, and consequently of the Jesuits recogniitiig 
Fr. Gruber for their Superior; and that it was believed, he would no- 
ceed in obtaining a revocation of the decree which would be of the greatest 
benefit not only to his own, but all other religious Orders." 

By the end of the year ( 1804) several of the your^ men at 
Georgetown College and at the Seminary had expressed a desire 
to join the Society of Jesus as soon as it was restored ; but Dr. 
Carrcdl was not encouraged by this, bccatise, as he said, "we are 
wretchedly provided with experienced and fit members to train 
and form them." No answer had come by December 7, 1804, as 
Carroll states in a letter to Father Plowden, and he gives his 
opinion quite emphatically that he is not satisfied with the viva 
voce method of being restored to the Society : 

I would neither trust to it myself or advise others to do so; b which 
opinion I am confirmed the more, by Imowing that His Holiness either 
will not or dares not to exert authority enough to prevent Cardinal 
Borgia from writing such a letter to Your W. AA., as a mentioned by 
Mr. Stone. ... So much mystery has been made of all {^oceedings 
ctmceming it [tA« Restoration], that every one is full of entrust, to which 
the genera] state of religion and the influence enjoyed by its greatest 
foes contributes in great measure. 

Again, in this same letter he speaks of Molyneux' dis^)proTal 
of the secretive measures adopted by the English Jesuits. 

Rc^rt is not pleased whh the secrecy which prevails with your pnndpal 
people in the transactions relative to the Society. In general, I do not 
approve of the system of conducting without any communication the 
affairs concerning so small a body as the remnant of the Society in 
England; but, at the same time, it is reasonable to su|q)ose, that there is 
good cause for it, and it would be very rash for any one, at my distance, 

* Sfmyhitnt TmucTifti. 



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Society of Jesus 551 

to bbme a cooduct, of wUch he cannot know the motiTC*. Your Br.'s 
Miind Mnse, great vinuei, and steady attachment to the Society arc a 
lurc warrant of his acting on jirindple, and I have no doubt of othen 
acting equally so, tho' they igret not on the nteans. Uy greatest objec- 
tions to a dependence on a vivae vocit oracHlum (a modern phrase un- 
known for many centuries), is, diat it gives no stability to a religious 
order; that cannot abrogate a poblic and acknowledged instnmient, such 
as the brief of destruction; and that without an authentic bull of appro- 
bation of the Institute, the distindon of simple & solemn vows, so essen- 
tial to the Society, does not exist acxrorduig to the doctrine of our Divines, 
after Suarez. 

Acting on Father Gruber's letter of i^gregation Bishop Car- 
roll, on June 21, 1805, the Feast of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, 
appointed Father Robert Molyneux superior of the restored 
Society of Jesus in the United States. 

Rev. and Dear Sir, 

You know the purport of the letter, which I received from the very 
Rev. Fr. Gabriel Gniljer, Gen. of the Society in Russia. Ueasrs. Bolton 
and Brooke have likewise informed you of the proceedings had thereupon 
at St Thomas's. To give life and vigor to the measures recatnmended 
by the Genl. it seemed necessary to begin with that exercise of power, 
with which I was entrusted by his Paternity; that b, the appointment 
of a Superior, to be one of the former body of the Society, and a candi- 
date for readmission. His authority will last till the General's will be 
further declared. I am therefore now to make known to you, that you 
are appointed to that office; and, as no special form of appointment was 
made use of by the General in delegatmg to me his power for nominating 
a Superior, I am to presume that nothing more than his notification is 
requisite to invest you for the present with all the rights and privileges, 
power and authority, wherewith the Provincials of the Society were for- 
merly invested; which rights, power and authority are to appertain to 
yoo, till the Genl. shall otherwise ordain. Of this appointment notice 
will be sent hence to George Town and S. Thomas's. You will cause 
this letter to be read to those, who desire to belong to the Society in St. 
Mary's County. 

That God may bless this attempt to restore the Society in the United 
States, and all your labours to efiect it, b the earnest prayer of, etc.** 



< Hdobu, /. r., p. tte. Fatber Udymmc ii ncotjomlly ipokcs of u Pnvliidal. 
He w» odIt Superior of tlw ifiliMcd Americui Jenit*. When he died on t>ecadMr 
9, 1S08, FsthcT Charle* Neale becune Snpcrior, aod on Octobv i, iSia, Nol* WM 
iopKseded br Father Kohlnuiap, who roigacd in iSii, to be mcceedtd by Fkther 
John GrsMi. In 1B17, Fsiber Gntd mi foUmnd br KohlmanD, uti oa Nmsiber 
■Si tSii, Cluriea Keala sctin becune SnjKiior. He wu riccceded hj Fatber Dilero- 
sruU, on Angnat i], igij, and In Noranber, 1S30, Father Keiuier vu ^acod in 
(feaite of Aa Amerioa Jeeoiu. It was onlr in 1831 that the Prarinea wai erected. 



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55« The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Tht Society of Jesus in the United States, even though .part 
of such a far-away Province, now possessed canonical rights and 
privileges before the Church and the Church's representative in 
episcopal power and jurisdiction, Bishop Carroll of Baltimore 
Its situation was of course a different one from that which had 
existed in the old days (1634-1^3), when the nearest juridic 
power was the English Provincial across the sea. It was indeed 
a novel situation — one to which the veterans in the restored So- 
ciety were unaccustomed; but even under an easy-going and 
rather inactive leader like Molyneux, the restored Society soon 
took up its old Rule and religious life. There was bound to be 
friction over the transfer of the ex-Jesuit properties, but during 
the episcopate of Carroll and Neale, no serious variance of opinion 
caused any dissension to arise. In fact, as we read in Oirroll's 
letter to Stone (August, 1803), the two bishops had seriously 
considered whether they should not resign their sees (Baltimore 
and Gortyna) and resume their former state in the Society. They 
were held back, fortunately, by the realization that the diocese 
might be entrusted to one who was opposed to the general resto- 
ration of the Society of Jesus, No one realized more profundly 
than Carroll the great boon to religion the Society would he. His 
old fears, however, crowded around him, for it was one thing 
to have the Society restored, and quite another to have its mem- 
bership made up of vigorous, able and learned men.*° Only three 
of the former members had resumed their status at this time — 
Molyneux, Charles Sewall, and Charles Neale. Bishop Carroll 
liked Molyneux; he had lived with Sewall at St. Peter's Pro- 

*lth FalbcT WQIiam UcSbcnr M firH Prarinciil. That ditci are ttka tram ■ 
Mter td B. V. CuBpbdl bjr Father Gtotft Fenwlck, dated October la, iSSJ. in the 
Btllimiin Catktdnl ArcUvti, Sfeial C, D-8. The ratificatien ot Mdljatax't appaiat- 
moit by BnoiowAi U in an official letter tc Carroll froD the Father General, dated 
PebniajT », iSoG. (Ibid., Caae i-Ci.) 

■ The Father-General wrote to Camll, an Jme 9, iBjfi (BiMmart Ctluiral 
Arckivii. Caie i-Cj), telliiw him he need not be troidiled orer Propafanda'a alhtodt 
toward! the American rtMoralion — "de intemii Praetor non iodicatl", be writct. 
Acain. on Aufnat }. 1B07, Brtounrthi wrote to Carroll about hi* ftttt hope* (or 
the Ameiican brand ot the Sodetri the norlcea were to be placed in the care of tht 
wiaeet of the new memben. and the 'Moon were to i>e opened wide" to receive aH 
who wiAed to join the SocJetr (JMdL, Caae aCt)- The oploiaa of Father Siriddaod 
aa Pmpafanda'* attitade !■ np ie ai ei l in a lettv to CarroU, dated London, Oicmtit 
■6, iBoS UHd., Caae S.C]} — "Propacanda Ii a pnblie tfibonal and ennld not impt 
the Blvat vecu oranlam, but wonld have to have official docmnot* of a lecal TBltMi 
uoreonr, if Propafinda reooffniacd the Sodety, certain propeniea wfcleb the Sacnd 
CMrre(BtiaD haj conSaciled, wotdd bsT* to be nrtarcd, partlctdarlr in ttaa Eut." 



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Society of Jesus 553 

Cathedral from 1^86-1807; and he had experienced the peculiar 
bent of Charles Neale's character in several matters of importaDce, 
particularly in his influence over the Carmelite nuns at Port 
Tobacco. But he had no illtuions about any of these men. Of 
Molyneux, he wrote to Plowden, at the time of the former's 
death (December 9, t8o8) : 

About the b^imiing of last December, I advised you of the apprehen- 
rion I was then under, of daily hearing of the death of our old, good, 
and much respected friend, Mr. Robt. Molyneux, which event took place 
at Georgetown cm the 9th of that month, after his being prepared by a 
life of candor, virtue and innocence, and by all those helps, which are 
mercifully ordained for the comfort and advantage of departing Chris- 
tians. Not only your charity, but your friendship for him, with whom 
you passed so many cheerful and happy days of your life, will induce 
you to recommend very often his soul to the Father of mercies. He was 
my oldest friend, after my relation and companion to St. Omers in my 
childhood, Mr. Charles Carroll of Carrollton, who remains amot^ ns. As 
he often and feelingly reminded me the first time I saw him, in the 
month of September, there were very slender hopes of meeting more in this 
world. R. I. P. No successor in the presidency of the College is yet 
appointed. Previous to his death, in consequence of powers vested in him 
by the proper authority, he had appointed Mr. Chas. Neale to be the 
Superior of the body lately revived among us." 

Father John Bolton and Sylvester Boarman soon joined the 
revived community, and to aid the new Province, the Father- 
General Brzozowski, sent over some foreign Jesuits : Father Adam 
Britt, S. J, ; John H&iry, S. J. ; Francis Malevi, S. J. ; Anthony 
Kohlmaim, S. J., and Peter Epinette, S. J." The danger of a 
conflict over property rights and tratisfer was avoided by an 



** SUmykmra Tnntcrim. 

" SuieUind ta Carroll, Londan, Anciut |6, tSo6 IBcMmori Catkiirti Areklv*i, 
Cue 8-Dio). Talhen Brilt, Henrr and Valevi came oat fint, and were {ollowcd 
later bjr Fatfana KoUmiim and Epinctie. The fix pricau were admitied into the 
Select Bodjr of the Derir on Sqitcmber i, 1S07 (Hnonu, op. cil., IlocuiDenta, toI. 1, 
part il, p. B71. Thli action *aa nnllified b]r the Corporation on Uar i>, iSoS, on the 
tnraod that the alx prieMi were forejioera, and aa anch were not recofniied aa 
benefidariea br the Harrland taw). It would be aaking too much of the American 
ot-Jcanita to have been thoroucUy in baraonit with thtae new foreifB monbert of the 
rerived Sodet;. Gnaal, in hia Mtmorit, ttOt ua that nan; of Ihoae who joined the 
Aaerieao Jeauila at thi* period (1801-1817) were former membera of other I'diciotn 
Ordera (pp. 31-37). Tbtt pHeata were immediaCeljF diapatchcd br Carroll to diSertnt 
parta of tail Diocaaa. Father-General Bnoaowild wmie to Carroll from Rvaaia «a 
Ansnat iS, iBoS. eontntolatinc him on the diviaian of the Dioccae of I 
rcfrMtinf that the tnnbled eooditian of Enrope had prevented Um from aeoi 
Jeatdta to the American groop {Baltimert Ctthtinl AreUvn, Caaa a-Cs). 



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554 ^J^ ^U OX'' Times of John Carroll 

tgrtaaeot sigtwd t^ CutoQ and Molyneux (Sqitember ao, 
1805) whereby under certaiii conditions the Society re-entered 
into possession of the old estates, some of which dated back to 
the time of the early Calverts. Bishop Carroll was to receive an 
annuity, allotted to him from the estates, which were to remain 
perpetual and inalienable.** This arrai^ement lasted until the 
time of Mar&:hal, when around it was centered for a time a no- 
torious omtroversy, the last echoes of which do not seem yet to 
have died away. 

The eminent Sulpidan, Father Anthony Gamier, who had 
returned to France in 1803, with characteristic bonhomie wrote 
to Bishop Carroll about this time (January 17, 1806) : 

Je TOIM fais bien stncirement mon compliment de r^tabliuement de U 
trb sainte et tris utile Compagnie de J^nu dans Totre diocise. Cett 
die qid la premiire a jeti le fondement de la foi dani voa contrics, c'eat 
2 eUe qu'il appartient de I'etablir et de le consolider. Pnisse-t-elle m 
ritablir duu toute sa fervrar primitive I Puisse-t-elle prodmre de imhi- 
veanx Frangois-Xavieri proprea i la maintenir et 1 I'itendre dana 
I'tmnKitge diocte que la divine Providence rona a coofiie.** 

To prepare Francis Xaviers — men of learning, of erudition 
even, who would obey in the simplicity of their sanctity the voice 
of the Superior who should send them out to convert the world 
in the name of Christ — required the very diing Bishop Carroll 
feared could not then be ^ven, namely, that special training in 
the novitiate in which the true follower of St. Ignatius Loyola is 
formed to the Fotmder's spirit and ideal. The a>ndition of the 
little band who had set their hands to the task of bringing life 
back to the Society was a lame and crippled'one, and the com- 
mencement of the business, — to use Charles Sewall's phrase — 
was "perfectly awkward." A novitiate was opened at George- 
town with Father Charles Neale as novice-master, and Carroll 
accounts in his tetter of April 2, 1806, to Stricldand, for eleven 
novices, scholastics, and lay coadjutors. Amongst the novices and 
scholastics there were some young men of brilliant talents. When 

" Tbcae iiticlti id 4creeniait will be foniid in Huohu, I. r., pp. gig-nio. Tin 
two paitict isfced that the pnpvtiM hul now bioi n«t«l in the rotorcd Soditr, IhU 
CuToU'i aBOuftj u SopcrioT, tkat im, u Biihop, woBld cooiinBe, ud thit tiM nld 
■oatdtr •hdold be ■ttuhcd In pctpctnitr to the Sec of Billlnote. 

" Gmrgtiaiim CeUtg* Arekh*t, Skf CvtlteMo*, printed in Hdmu, U e^ f. )j* 



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Society of Jesus 555 

Father Molyneux, the first Superior, wss dyii^ (December 8, 
1808) he named Charles Neale as Superior and Father-General 
Brzozowski " confirmed this appointment, making him Superior 
on September 13, 1809. If we arc to accept the word of Father 
John Grassi, whose Memoir on the restored Society of Jeaus in 
the United States (1810-1817) is one of the hterary sources for 
this period, there never had been a strong bond of affection be- 
tween Bishop Carrolt and Charles Neale, and considerable friction 
seems to have arisen between them ( 1808) owing to the Jesuit 
Superior's action in removing at will the priests who belonged 
to his onnmunity. Strictly speaking, if the Society in the United 
States had been given full canonical existence in 1806, as it was 
in 1814, Father Neale was within his rights in usit^ his subjects 
to what he considered the best advantage. But during those eight 
3rears of its private {foro interne) reestablishment. Archbishop 
Carroll could not help taking offense at actions which objectively 
at least were a deri^tion of his episcopal jurisdiction. Apologies 
were made to the Metropolitan of Baltimore by Brzozowski, who 
also wrote a warnii^ letter to Neale, and later relieved him of his 
post to make way for Father John Grassi, S. J., who had arrived 
in 1811. The point at issue was, however, something more impor- 
tant than mere personal dislike, which Carroll certainly had for 
Charles Neale. It was the regulation passed by the bishops in the 
Meeting of 1810 r^arding priests who are members of secular 
or r^ular Coi^egations : namely, that once they have been en- 
trusted to the care of souls in a q>eciiied locality, they ought not 
to be recalled gainst the will of the bishop. This was a protec- 
tive measure highly necessary in the condition of the Church here, 
where priests were so few in munbcr. It was Neale's imprudent 
use of his powers as Superior in removtt^ Father Adam Britt, 
S. J., from Holy Trinity Church, Philadelphia, which finally 
aroused Carroll and caused him to write to the Father-General 
sv^^sting that some one else be appointed as Jesuit Superior in 
the United States.** Father Brzozowski's letter (November 20, 



' father-Geoerel Grnba died on April 7, iSoj, aceordlnc to Bnonnrak) — tattcs 
b> CarroU, Har la, iS«I IBalHmert Caktinl Atikiirtt, Cue IF}). Fithet-Gcnenl 
Bnoiowikl'i appobitmait ii mralioMd In a Idler to Carroll from Strlddand, Novtaibef 
4, iBos lliU., Cue S-DC), lAo added in a poeteript: "How to pnootmee Ui name, 
Ikamrwxl" 

•> Tta« Brilt-CamU cormp<ndaica win be foond la th« BtUimart CMtint 



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55^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

1811) relievii^ Neale sttd appointing Grassi, says that Father 
Kohlmann would have been given the post, but that he was 
needed in New York. 

The most remarkable of the Jesuits sent from Europe by the 
General was Father Anthony Kohlmann, whose career in Amer- 
ica and in Europe as a teacher and missionary places him above all 
who belonged to the American Province during his time here. 
Bishop Carroll quickly saw the brilliant qualities of Father Kohl- 
mann and used him to bring peace to the factions in the churches 
of Baltimore and Philadelphia. When Bishop Concanen advised 
Archbishop Carroll of his inability to set out for America, Father 
Kohlmann was sent to New York as administrator and vicar- 
geoeral during the interim, which lasted until Bishop Connolly's 
arrival in 1815.'^ Here in iSoSnsg he b^^n a classical school, 
called the New York Literary Institute, on the present site of 
St. Patrick's Cathedral. His stay in New York is equally re- 
markable for the famous decision in a confessional case, to the 
effect that confessions of penitents were inviolable and could not 
be revealed in court" In 1815, Father Kohhnann returned to 
Georgetown and became master of novices. Two years later he 
was appointed Superior, and in 1824, when the Gregorian Uni- 
versity was reopened in Rome, he was recalled to take the chair of 
dogmatic theoli^y. One of his pupils was Joachim Pecci, later 
Leo XIH. He died in Rome on April 11, 1836. 

The imprisonment of Pope Pius VII and the partial disorgan- 
ization of business routine at Rome, tc^ether with the blockade of 
European ports and the War of 1812 between En^nd and the 
United States, caused an almost complete stoppage of letters at 
this time ; in a way, this was not an evil to the Church in America, 
or to the restored Society. The leaders, the priests and the laymen 
who were officials in chiu-ch temporalities, were thus thrown 
upon their own resources, and were forced to fight their way 

ArckivH, Cmmc i-Ai-iS. CirroU'* iMten lo tke Flther-Coienl on Halo'i tuM ua in 
the Mna ArdiiTci, Cue a-Cy (ScpteDber ii, iSoB), Cue s-Cg (October iS, iSii). 

" Baltimun Calhtdnl Arckivt, Cue 1-C7. 

" SiunoM, Tk* C^Mi€ QiutHm w Amtric* (New York, iSii), ooouiiu in 
■n tpp^Hilx the report at thia fint leaal tik orer tiia wal of the —*—-—*' The 
bock ■noeed oonidenUe amlxawenj, to whidi KoUbmb n^ied Im ilai, with hia 
l/n< M ri— fam. TktolagictUy and PUIotofUeaUy CiHuUtrtd. Ct. riMCRTi. BMiivni^Ma 
CmlktUea Amtricma, pp. aja-jj*. Boatod, 1B71; Brgmuan'i Qtmritrly Htvitm, TaL ii, 
Jtdr, 1*46. 



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Society of Jesus 557 

through difficulties which outside advice or guidance might only 
have made more complicated and, perhaps, insoluble. 

The College of Georgetown which had passed over to the So- 
ciety of Jesus, at its partial restoration here, began to flourish 
under Father John Grassi's rectorship (1811-1817). Carroll 
writes to Plowden, on December 12, 1813: "Mr, Grass! has re- 
vived the College of G. Town which has received great improve- 
ment in the number of students, and course of studies. His pre- 
decessor (Father Francis Neale, S. J.) with the same good inten- 
tions had no ability for his station, and was nominated by a 
strange combination. There are, I think, nine or ten novices under 
a Fr. Beschter of Flanders, a very holy man, but one, in whom 
the want of a regular education in the Society is very discern- 
ible." " The novitiate was removed from Georgetown to St. 
Inigoes, in 1812. The dai^er of British invasion and other rea- 
sons led the Fathers to prepare the house at Whitemarsh for the 
novices.** The Whitemarsh plantation had been placed under the 
care of Father Germain Bitouzey, in 1801. Father Bitouzey soon 
acquired considerable influence in the Corporation of the Oergy, 
being elected one of the Trustees (1802). He had little love for 
the leaders of the American Jesuits, whom he contemptuously 
referred to as "the Russians," and the Society found it difficult 
to induce him to give up the Whitemarsh plantation. Bitouzey's 
letters are filled with indignation against the restored Society and 
he refused to yield possession of Whitemarsh on the score that 
the Society had not been reestablished in the United States," 
Bi^p Carroll realized the unpleasant effect not only of Bitou- 
zey's attitude, but of Grassi's insistence upon the Society's rights 
over the old Jesuit houses. He writes on October 16, 1813: 

Let me beseech you to recommend to the members of the Society to 
follow the instruction* of the Very Rev. Father-General, and convince 
themKlvea that they have not, and cannot have yet, any corporate right 
in the ecclesiattical property of this country. I see, methinka, a cloud 
gathering and raised up by some anti-Jesuitical clergymen of different 

" StimylnrtI Tnntcnfti. 

** C(. HuoBU, at- cit., Documenu, tdL 1, put 1, pp. jtfi-jGS, |iart 1!, pp. 839-849. 

o BattMwrf CatludTai ArcUtm, Cue I-Rs-9- For Gnni'i anmnent* on Dm 
fordfn JmdUi (Ifmorlf »ila CoM^virfa H Gtti. riitabUUt ntglt SliM UnM 
MTAmiriet SfUntriinult, pp. uuh Me Hua«H. ap. til., Dooumeati, vcL 1, 
pan a, p. Bte, nou 144- 



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5S8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

lutioiu among ua, which threatens much trouble, if they can raise it; but 
their enmity would give me little alarm, if it were not vitiated more and 
more by the presumptuoos lancuajfe and premature pretensions of Kmt of 
your subjects." 

A week later, Carroll again warned Grassi (October 25, 1813) 
that his impetuous desire for the immediate management of the 
old Jesuit temporalities would kindle a Same of resentment against 
the Society; and he warns the Jesuit Superior to proceed with 
the utmost l^al caution.** Father Bitouzey resigned (October 
26, 18T3), and the novices finally reached Whitemarsh after 
staying for a period at Georgetown and at Frederick (1812-1814). 

Archbishop Carroll's letter of January 31, 1814, to Father 
Stone, the English Superior is of the highest importance for the 
proper appraisal of the relations between the See of Baltimore 
and the Jesuits down to Carroll's death, in 181 5 : 

Rtv. and retpected Sir, 

At the time of receivii^ the last letter from toy Venerable friend, 
Mr. Strickland, began by him, and in consequence of his illness finished 
by you, hostilities broke out between our two countries, and rendered 
the conveyance of letters so tmcertain, that I did not presume to answer 
you on the interesting subject, on which you did me the honour to ask 
my opinion. Before touching on it at present I must first express my 
real tmeasiness a.1 not hearing more concerning our common highly rahted 
friend, tho within the last three last months Mr. Grassi had had letters 
from Stonyhurst, and I likewise from both Messrs. Charles and Itobt. 
Plowden. All of these contain a mortuary list of our Brethren, but 
nothing of Mr. Strickland, vAich encourages me to hope, not only that 
he lives, but likewise so as to enjoy comfort, to continue, to a certain 
degree, his accustomed usefulness. 

On the subject, about which you were pleased to advise with me, I 
presume, that our friends in England are precisely in the same state, as 
we are here; that is, that nothing has been done for annulling and 
repealing the destroying Brief of Clement 14th. with equal authority, 
publicity and authenticity; as was given to that PontifTs act, which had 
its full execution in all countries where it was published. Even the mem- 
bers of the Society, namely those at Liige, in Flanders, in England and 
here entered their free, tho certainly reluctant submissiwi to it Review- 
ing the severe injunctions contained in the Brief, the censures on the 
Ordinaires, who allow, and the individuals who attempt its violation, it 
seems to me, that without > derogation from it by an act of equal author- 



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Society of Jesus 559 

ity, and qnite u anthentic ; thoK, who with yon tncl ut, bind themselvo 
by vow to live imder the obedience of the Genl. in RuMia, or to conform 
to the nilei of the Society, will nor can be a reltgiotu body, or enjoy 
the privilegei of luch. Their sacrifice is highly meritorioiu before God, 
but in the face of the Chnrch, those, who enter into Orders, and tbofc 
who are already in them, must be subject to the general discipline as to 
their title for ordination, and be, as secular priests under the authority of 
the Bishops. This has been declared by Fr. Czemiewicz, in his letter to 
Mr. Jn. Howard at Liige, Fr. Gmber and the present Genl., in tiieir com* 
manicatiom to me, copy of which wonld now be forwarded, if 1 were 
not confident that you have received such already. Tho these restraint! 
diminish much the usefulness of our Dear Brethren, and may diacoorage 
some from making the sacrifice mentioned above, yet it is a mitfortune, to 
which submission is due, as long as it pleases God to keep us under it, 
whidi I trust will not be long. 

This matter has often engaged my very serious attention, and caused me 
to refer to the authoritiet of the ablest Divines, from whom many extracts 
were occasionally made to aid my jodgmcnt. I have sometimes hoped, 
that these researches would lead to a different conclusion, but I am sorry 
to say that they all ended in confirming the opinion already expressed. 
Wherever the Brief was executed, die Society was extinguished; and to 
revive it, the same authority was reqnirite, as for the creation and appro- 
bation of a new Order. In Russian Poland, the Brief was not executed 
by die competent auUiority, But where fresh authority has not been 
authentically exercised, I cannot reconcile with the doctrine of our Divinet, 
how the difference between simple and solemn vows, can be established; 
how any who embrace the Society here or in Enghuid can be Proftsri 
qitall>t9r votontm; and consequently, how the Society can exist, unlets 
diere be professed Frs. What must then be the meaning of that part 
of the first vows, promitlo eandtm Soeittalem me iHgretatrum etc? With 
these impressions on my mind and the recollection of the solemn orders 
of his Holiness contained in the Briefs for my Consecration, the erection 
of this, and other Episcopal Sees in the United States, my obligation to be 
subject to the commands of Congn de Propgda fide etc. I never cotild 
persuade myself to admit that our young men, who associate themselves 
to die Society, can be admitted to Orders, tilula rtligionit: they are 
ordained lifufo missiottU under the autiwrity of the Ordinary— As lonf 
as I and my Coadjutor, Bishop Neale continue alive, there will be little 
or no inconvenience; for we shall always act in harmony with the 
Superior of the Society; but in England I am sensible that this must 
be a disagreeable lituaticaL** 

During Father Grassi's rectorship the college was raised by 
an Act of Congress to the rank of a university (March i, 1815), 
and from his day down to the present, it has never lost its place 



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560 The Life and Times of John CatroU 

of eminence in the educational life of the United States. Father 
Grassi returned to Rome in 1817, succeeding to high posts in 
the Society, among which was the rectorship of the Collegio 
Urbano. He died at Rome, December 12, 1849. 

On December 7, 1814, Archbishop Carroll had the happiness 
of receiving a copy of the Bull SoUieitwio omnium ecclesiarmn 
(August 7, 1814) which restored in full canonical form the So- 
ciety of Jesus throi^hout the world. That n^ht he dispatched 
it to Father Grassi, at Georgetown. Laudemus Deum et exuitemus 
in eo, Carroll wrote to Grassi on December lo-ii, 1814.'* It was 
the end of all of his fears that the partial reestablishment in 
Russia, the Two Sicilies, England and America would not last, 
and in a pardonable burst of enthusiasm he proposed to the Jesuit 
superior the rather impractical suggestion of a meeting between 
the ordinaries of the United States and the head of the Society 
of Jesus here. He proposed also to publish a Pastoral to the 
Catholics of the United States, calling to their attention the pro- 
found meaning of the memorable event. Many eloquent pages 
of jubiliation were written by the members of the Society during 
these last weeks of the old year 1814. Dr. Carroll's letter to 
Father Plowden on receiving an authentic copy (January 5, 1815) 
of the SoUicitudo reflects the joy felt in the United States at the 
news of the Restoration : 

My dear ami rtspeeted Sir, 

Your most predons and grateful favour of Octr. 8th accompanied bj a 
copy of the bull of restoration was received early in Deer., and diffused 
the greatest sensation of joy and thanksgiving not only amongst the 
surviving and new members of the Society, but also all good Christiaos, 
who have any remembrance of their services, or beard of the unjust 
and cruel treatment, and have witnessed the consequences of their sup- 
pression; but your letter of Sepr. 37, to which you refer, has not been 
received, nor any other copy of tlie tiuli, nor a scrip of paper from Rome, 
since the Pope's delivery, tho I have written by various ways, and the 
last time, inclosed my letters to the Nuncio at Paris. Yoo, who know 
Rome, may conceive my sensations, when I read the account transmitted 
in your most pleasing letter, of the celebration and mass by his Holiness 
himself at the st^erb altar of St. Ign. at the Gesik; the assemblage of the 

<* Ct. Hoaui. '- '■> pp. S46->4r. Tbcix i* ■ aatottgontT teeomit (br ICirfabair) 
of tkt oowlitiM ot the Sotittr in tha Unlt^ SUto. is tlu BaMmart CMkt^nl 
ArMrtt, LtUtr^tekt, toL I, t< i»5- S«c FenwlGk^ lettw to Gnui la CkMmu, 
Th* JttaUt, r. 705. 



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Society of Jesus 561 

turvivHig Jesuits in the Chapel to hear the proclamation of their resurrec- 
tion; the decree for the restitution of the residence in life and the scene 
of the death of their Patriarch of the Novitiate of S. Andrew, its most 
enchanting church, and the lovely monument and chapel of S. Stanislaus, 
which I fondly hope have escaped the fangs of rapine and devastation. 
Is there no hope, that these acts of justice and religion will be followed 
by the restoration likewise of the Roman College, the magnificent Church 
of S. Ignatius, and the wonderful monument of 5. Aloysius? If as I 
believe, these were appropriated not to private uses, but became the public 
University of the City and Diocese of Rome, they will be restored to 
their former owners with less difficulty. But how many years must pass 
before these bouses will be repeopled by such men as we have known and 
whom sanctity of manner, zeal for the divine glory, science, eloquence 
and talents of every kind rendered worthy of being the instruments of 
divine providence to illustrate his church, maintain its faith, and instruct 
all ranks of human society in all the duties of their respective stations. 
Wboi I consider the length of preparation required to renew this race 
of men, my apprehensions is, that the friends of the Society will be too 
precipitate, too hasty in expecting benefits from it, before its pupils will 
be mature enough to produce them. I was sorry to notice, that you ap- 
prehend opposition in England to its existence there and of course in 
Ireland, notwithstanding the favorable disposition of the Irish Bishops. 
This commendation of them and particularly of the M. Rev. Abp. of 
Ehiblin was the more agreeable to me because [line and a half erased} 
I always esteemed and thought him a real friend of the Society, Here I 
do not yet discover any sensation of hostility in our general, or any 
of the state governments. Little is said in the public papers of the event 
of the re-establishment In consequence of the law, which was obtained 
above twenty years ago and had become necessary for seciving our old 
estates to the purposes of religion, it will be our duty to observe the forms 
of the law, to subsist and quietly let the property pass into the hands of 
Trustees, who will all be members of the Society. Their vows and 
principles will direct them how, and by whom the estates must be ad- 
fninistered for the services of the country and religion. 

You express a wish that all the old members should now return to 
the embraces of their beloved mother. Of these menticmed by you the 
good Mr. Pile has been dead tiearly two years ago. I much doubt 
whether Mr. Ashton, whom I have not seen for several years, will be dis- 
posed to do so, or whether Mr. (irassi wishes it. Concerning Bp. Neale 
and myself, it seems to us that till more is known of the mind of onr 
rulers, it might not be for the interests of our Brethren, even if his 
Holiness would allow us to vacate our Sees, to expose our concerns to 
Successors, unfriendly perhaps or liable to be exposed only to malicious 
misrepresentations. But this matter however has not yet received my full 
consideration. If you should learn thereafter that difficulties have arisen 
concerning the Society m this country, you may be assured that the open 
or surest authors of the opposition are certain forugn Ecclesiastics (not 



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562 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

one of whom is of the retpectabk body, the Sulpidans) who after a 
hospitable reception uid ample partidpatkm of the prospect of our estates, 
proportioiicd to their services, took offense at every arrai^enienl, prcpara* 
torj to the now contemplated restitution of the property. Some of those 
persons would at once sell and divide it amongst the officiating clergy.** 

Father Grassi unfortunately bltindered at this juncture. In 
his excttement he allowed himself to be the spokesman for 
those who had been complainitig for years of Carroll's attitude 
towards the restoration, and the result was an outspoken and 
indignant vindication of Carroll's policy from 1784 to 1814: 

For my theology forbade me to allow, that pretended, or even adoiowl- 
edged vrooM vocii omeula were sufficient authority to set aside the public, 
solemn acts of Pontifical jurisdiction, wherever they had been proclaimed, 
admitted, and long submitted to. I therefore could not, as long as there 
was no public instrament from His Holiness, allowing the bishc^ to 
ordain litnlo pauperlatis religiosae, admit on that ground to Holy Orders 
those, who had associated themselves with the Society in Russia. Till 
such an instrument was issued, I think that the English VV. AA [Vitart- 
Apottalic], as well as the bishops in Ireland, were quite correct in refusing 
to ordain the piqiils of Ston)4iurst and Hodder House Titulo pattp. &e. 
whatever my friend Mr. [CluirUt] Plowden may say, who on this point 
would not be sui^orted by his Br [brother] Robert, the more solid divine 
of the two. Besides the matter of ordination, there were other paints, 
on which my judgment was nowise satisfied, concerning those who became 
associated in this country to your brethren in Russia. In foro exttmo, 
as the General himself declared, they were not a religious body, they had 
no common interest, and they were not united in community, [frttl] only 
by the bonds of charity, being in the eye of ecclesiastical government no 
other than secular clergy; in a word, I saw nothing but contradiction 
between the established discipline of the Church, and the pretensicms of 
Ur. Charles Neale, late Superior, some of his adherents and likewise 
those, which are sometimes asserted by Uessrs. Beschter, Malevi, Malou, 
Ac; but from which I can truly acquit you; though you have latterly 
discovered an impatience to be released from such restraints as were 
introduced through necessity, and cannot be removed otherwise than 
gradually, without irritating certain passions.^' 

No doubt Father Grassi, who had been strongly influenced 
by tibe Neales, reseated the somewhat patronizing tone of 
Carroll's letter after the receipt of the SolUcitudo, but certainly 
the old and revered archbishop — he was then in his eightieth 



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Society of Jesus 563 

year — might have been spared that attack upon his hc»iour.** 
Father Kohlmaiin, as a foreigner, despite his great learning, 
would naturally take Grassi's side against the Americans. The 
incident might be allowed to pass unnoticed, but it has its place 
in the general scheme of ecclesiastical life at that day in the 
United States— domination by aliens. Archbishop Carroll could 
not bear anyone ill-will, and so it is not surprising to find no 
mention of Grasst's insinuations in his letters to Plowden aronnd 
this time. He went on also with his project of issuing a Pastoral 
"to the congregations of my diocese on the subject of the restora- 
tion of the Society," but he was being hindered, as be wrote to 
Grassi, on March 16, 1815, not "through foigetfulness or indif- 
ference but truly and really for the want of time. There are 
now but few hours of the day during which my mind is fit for 
ai^ serious application; and so many uigent affairs have the 
first claim on those hours that you must have a little patience. 
as my desire is to make the address not absolutely unworthy of 
the occasion." *' 

It is evident that death alone saved Carroll from the misery 
of an open break with the Jesuit Superior ; and while it was with 
no intimation of its dread approach, we can catch a glimpse of 
the man's soul in conflict with these annoyances which robbed 
his last days of comfort. In one of his last letters to Plowden, 
dated June 25, 1815, be says : 

Uy dear and rtipeettd friend. 

My lait was aboat one month ago; it informed 700 of manj of your 
letters having been received, notwithstanding the impediments which for 
tome years emtttrraued oar correspondence ; tho, I regret the mis-carriage 
of others to yAiidn yon refer. When I wrote, Acre was a pleasing expec- 
tation of a long and universal peace ; but the late advices from France 
direaten to overwhelm again tfie world in trouble. For my own part, it 
(ball be ray endeavour, tho' I fear for my constancy, to keep my aoo!, 

•* Fa(hci TlnoH Hogbc* Inttcprcl* Bubop Curdl's attitndt towmrdi tba r«*lnl 
tt tbs SccMt u ■ cooMqaenoe ot Ui ^npttlir wi^ Ptowdca. "Hi* wooU iaOeua!' 
B>«ba writn, "tkst Curoa «u m f u oat sf Wnct witb lb* wbol* body of EocUth 
Jonlli u the Hcale p«i^ coodderal ha wa* aot of wjratt&j wUk tba Amarfcaa 
laaBfta.'' TUa vior faUa to (in a proper r a cBt nhto u bctmaa CatroU'i attUodc bete* 
he becaine the appoiDted Irader ol the American Church and afletwanU. Ai Snpetior 
and ai WAof It m* hia dntr to arold an; anifilciea that bia aetloaa were aot Id fqH 
Prapacaada'a tspn 
iia, Lc, p. Bss> 



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564 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

as dear as I can, from those tumultttoos sollidtudes whidi have agitated 
it so much for the losses and success of contending nations. Such degrad- 
ing immorality, and sudi base treachery have blackened the histories of 
aomt of them, that an old man, especially, sees the bene5t of restraining 
all partialities and placing his entire reliance of the wisdom and providence 
of God 

Yet there is one point, on which I feel, and in some d^ree cherish 
sollidtude, it is for the effect, xrtiich the irruption of Bonaparte into 
France, and consequent events may have on the progress of the newly 
restored Society. Your friend, Mr. Grass!, is doing his best for it here, 
but it seems to me, that he consults chiefly, if not exclusively, foreigners, 
that is, his Brethren from Russia, Germany, Flanders, ftc all of them 
good religions men, but not one of them possessing an expansed mind, 
discerning enough to estimate difference between the American character, 
and that of the Countries which they left. Tho' I have noticed yet much 
of this partiality in himself, yet I apprehend that dissatisfaction, complaint 
and perhaps remonstrance will arise against certain acts of his adminis- 
tration. I shall advise, even in matters of the interior government of the 
Sodety whenever I can be useful, but if what has been noticed and 
reported hitherto is not mis-stated or misunderstood there b great reason 
that he will undesignedly beget a jealousy on the part of the Secular 
Clergy in this Diocese and perhaps other Orders, against the Sodety, an 
evil, which I most earnestly deprecate and against which our old Brethren, 
who saved property here after dissolution, so peculiarly guarded. '<* 

Father GrassI needed the letter referred to, which Archbishop 
Carroll wrote to him on February 21, 1815, and in which the 
venerable old man, wearied with the petty attacks upon his 
policies durhig the Interim, strikes back with atl the vigour of his 
earlier days : 

... I must do myself the justice to say that, if ever any measures were 
taken to organize a system for the preservation of tlie property, which 
formerly did, and now again does, belong to the Sodety; to prevent it 
from being liable to waste and individual usurpation; if the Collie over 
which you preside obtained exbtence and legal capacity to acquire prop- 
erty and receive donations; if the very spot on which it stands, as well 
as the church, is now vested in the representatives of tlie College these 
were originally my acts alone; they were performed without the small 
[est] expense to those who have since enjoyed the property; my journeys 
year after year, my attendance on the general assemblies, my soUicitations, 
my care and watchfulness over the wording of the different acts of the 
L^slature, which were necessary to erect corporations for the clergy 
and the College, so that they might not be a bar against the Sodety in 
case of its revival; these were done by me alone, tho I was very much 

" iViMThmt Tmutriftt, 



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Society of Jesus 565 

0(90sed by those, who have since eojoyed the possession and administra- 
tion of all which was acquired by them. The proofs of their opposition are 
still in my possession, and every one knows how they have profited by my 
exertions, labours and expense. I think therefore that, contrary to my usual 
custom, I may claim to be, in an humble d^ree, de SocietaU bent meritut, 
as having protected those interests, which may by a prudent administra- 
tion aid the prt^ress of the body so miraculously restored. To which tt 
may be added that, whilst all others were remaining with folded arms, 
without moving a step to prepare the way for a return of the Society, I 
alone opened and continued the correspondence with the General in Russia, 
and with his concurrence gave all that existence to it, which it could 
receive without a full and authentic repeal of the destructive brief of 
Clement XIV. I am ashamed for having said so much of myself, which 
nothing should have extorted from me but the undeserved insinuations 
of my unfriendliness for not adopting the suggestions of a zeal, which 
appeared to me so precipitate as to endanger the harmony of our fellow- 
labourers, to hurt tfie interests of the Society, and to embarrass my con- 
science as long as the Ganganellian brief remained unrepealed." 

Archbishop Carroll did not, however, allow Grassi's saspicions 
to change his admiration for the learned Italian Jesuit, who was 
Superior of the Society in the United States. But they undoubt- 
edly differed on the property question which was Carroll's legacy 
to Archbishops Neale and Marechal, and one fortunately that 
Dr. Carroll was never called upon to settle definitively. After 
his death, the Grassi-Kohlmann view of the old Jesuit Kstates 
began to prevail amot^ the members of the restored Society and 
for many years clouded the good name of all who shared in the 
controversy. But this cloud soon passed, and the reestablished 
Society in its complete canonical form — the only restoration that 
Dr. Carroll would consider sympathetically — b^an its great work 
of education in the Church here.^* All the difiicutties and mis- 



" HiraHM, L e., put I. p. JJS- 

n Even tlic apMtate Jcnit Wluirtaa rejoiced in the restontlaa of the Sodetr. 
la CM of Father George Fenwlck'i Itfter* to B. U. Cuipbdl (April >6. 1S44), tbora 
I* ■ qiMatian Iron Whartoo'i correepondence, dtted Febnurj' 14, iStt, WKtiiit'- 
*^oo uk mr opinion ropectlDg the reMontioa of ttit Order of Jeaaiti. I Ihiak it a 
fietl Btntke of policgt if not of Jtutice in the Konun PooiiS. They were certainly tba 
RioM eolishtened and italon* chan^ooi of hia authority. But what li mocta mora la 
Ihdr eredll. they formed tinqueatioDably the moM learned and exemplary Body of 
Qerty in the Boaun Chnieb. They Itad the ttfrit it eatpt to a high decfree; bnt in 
olber rcipeeta a more diainlerealed and virtoon* coBuntmity aera ciiMed Thia la 
By Icatiaway concemina thes. and I know it ia tme." (SoAiour* ColJMJraJ Arckivtt, 
SpteU C, Da.) 



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S66 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

tmderstandings of the iDterim (1773-1806), of the Revival 
(1806-1814), and afterwards, appear negligible in the light of 
the Society's glorious conquest for Christ during the century 
which has intervened since that time. 



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CHAPTER XXIX 

THE DIVISION OF THE DIOCESE OF BALTIUOSE 

(1808) 

Bishop John Carroll ruled over a diocese greater, probably, 
in extent than any Eur<^>ean see of the time. At his accession 
in 1790, the limits of his vast diocese were uncertain, althouj^ 
it was understood by all that his jurisdiction was coterminous 
with the new Republic. No official act of the Holy See, how- 
ever, had decided whether the missions in upper Maine and New 
York, and in the Northwest Territory (1787) — Ohio, Indiana, 
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and part of Minnesota- — were 
under the direction of Quebec or of Baltimore. In a similar 
way, the Bishop of Santiago de Cuba still claimed caitonical 
jurisdiction over the territory around Natchez, Baton Rouge 
and other places within the area disputed by Spain and the 
United States. In other words, the tenor of Dr. Carroll's 
appointment did not state whether jurisdiction comprised the 
Thirteen Original States or the whole territory claimed by the 
United States. The two geographical expressions — Thirteen 
Original States and United States of America — are used in the 
Bull erecting the See of Baltimore as if they were synonymous. 
The question was referred to the Hoiy See for decision and on 
January 13, 1791, the Congregation of Propaganda Fide set the 
matter at rest by placing the whole territory of the United States 
under Dr. Carroll's jurisdictioa. England, however, still claimed 
tiie dty of Detroit and a large part of Michigan and Ohio ; and 
Spain considered the Natchez territory as part of her American 
dominions. When these territories were later relinquished by 
England and Spain, Dr. Carroll's jurisdiction automatically ex- 
tended over them. 

No one realized more keenly than Bishop Carroll the difB- 
cuhies he would have in ruling this great territory/ At the 



■ That Biibop CuToU had jre ti m J ti* oaodoHka of an ■naUiarr lor Ibc Dioooa 
r* In 1790 for Lnhmdi, to nideit tnm sot of Fattm 

si* 



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568 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Syood of 1791, he expressed a wish to see his labours divided 
with a younger man, and all the priests present gave their consent 
to the appointment of a coadjutor. Apart from the necessity 
of having some one to share his labours, Dr. Carroll saw also 
the wisdom of having a coadjutor-bishop who would be able to 
assume episcopal authority immediately in case of his death. 
The delay in writing to Rome and in receiving replies from 
Propaganda were well known to them all. The proceedings of 
the S3'nod were sent to Rome in due time, and in the spring of 
the following year (April 23, 1792), Bishop CarrotI pemied 
his detailed Report on the condition of the Church in the Diocese 
of Baltimore. As previously stated. Bishop Carroll wrote that 
he had spoken to the priests present about the advisability of 
requesting either the creation of a new diocese or the appoint* 
ment of a coadjutor: "If anything should happen to me, my 
successor could be sent to Europe for consecration, only at great 
expense. Several with whom I consulted on the matter, feel 
that the Holy See should be petitioned to create a new diocese 
here. For although neither the number of the priests nor of 
the laity is so great that they could be not taken care of properly 
by one bishop if they all lived within easy reach, nevertheless, 
on account of the great distance which separates them from the 
bishop and from one another, it is impossible for them to know 
their priests or to be known by them." * For this and for other 
reasons, as we have already seen. Bishop Carroll asked that a 
second episcopal see be erected, either in Philadelphia or New 
York, with the Susquehanna River as a boundary line between 
the two dioceses. Of the two cities, he preferred Philadelphia, 
because the Catholic life there was more vigorous and there 
were more churches. 
He writes to Plowden at this time: 

I have written to Rome, reconimaiding and requesting the erectioa of 
another diocese in the United States: this, I hope, will be granted; if not, 
I press for the grant of a coadjutor. To avoid giving offence to our 
own government, it is proposed to the Propaganda to allow the ten oldest 



Therpe'i lettcri, d*ted Rome, Auiiut i 
prcM tit petition unlQ after hU retain I 
Ow S-Kg.) 

* FrotagomJa Arckntt, AtH (179a} B, i43-iS5i no. ij, neci*ad befort Avftm 



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Division of Diocese 569 

clergTinen here, and five othen to be nomiiiatfd 1^ myadt, to be the 
electors of the new Uubop, ordinaiy or coadjutor. Bnt in my toUdtode 
to provide for a close and intimate uiuon with the H0I7 See, I desire that 
if the grant be made agreeably to request, it nu7 be under the cxprcu 
condition of reiervinK a right in the Holy See, to reject the person 
elected, as long as one be not elected perfectly agreeable to it I am, I 
own, principally lolidtons to form establishments which will be lasting. 
To pass through a village, where a Roman Catholic clergyman was never 
seen before; to borrow of the parson the use of his meetingbouse or 
church, m order to preach a sermon; to go or send about the village, 
giving notice at every house, that a priest is to preach at a certain house, 
and there to enlarge on the doctrines of our Giurch; this u a mode 
adopted by some amongst us for the propagation of religion. But I would 
rather see a priest fixed for a continuance in the same place, with a grow- 
ing congregation under him, than twenty such itinerant preachers. The 
only effect which I have seen from these, is to make people gaie for a 
time, and say that the preacher is a good or a bad one; but as soon as 
be is gone on his way, to think no more about him.* 

When this report was taken up formally by the Congrc^tion 
of Propaganda Fide, on August 13, 1792, it was decided that 
in place of a second see at Philadelphia or New York, the 
Atnerican clergy would be permitted to propose the name of a 
worthy priest who would be appointed by the Holy See as 
coadjutor to Bishop Carroll. On September 29, 1792, Cardinal 
AntoiKlIi wrote a lengthy letter to Bishop Carroll advising him 
of Propaganda's decision. Carroll's letter of April 23, made a 
profound impression upon the Propaganda officials, who were 
particularly delighted with the news about St Mary's Seminary 
and Georgetown College. Nothii^ wotdd give the Holy See 
greater pleasure, Antonelli wrote, than to accede to the desire 
of Dr. Carroll and his clergy in the question of dividing the 
episcopal labours with an auxiliary bishop. But the sentiment 
prevailed at Rome that it would be more prudent to name a 
coadjutor than to create a second episcopal see, since church 
unity would be thus better preserved. Moreover, the privilege 
(pro hoc vice tanlum) granted in his own election, could hardly 
be permitted a second time by the Holy See, even thoi^h, as 
Carroll had pointed out, a direct appointment by Rome might 
be interpreted by the enemies of the Church in the Republic as 
violating the spirit of the Constitution. Antonelli urged Carroll 

' Cited br Bunt, tf. dl., pp. if4-i5S. 



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570 Tht Life and Times of John CarroU 

to consult with the oldef prieett of tui diooeae and to nii^ait 

the name of a worthy candidate for the coadjutorship. 

Dr. Carroll's personal choice was one of the most lovable 
characters in the American priesthood of that day — Father 
Laurence Graessl of Philade^hia. Laurence Graessl was bom 
in Bavaria on Ai^^st i8, 1753. After complcdt^ his coll^iate 
studies, he entered the Society of Jesus, and was in the Jesuit 
novitiate at Munich when the decree of Suppression was issued 
in 1773. He became a secular priest and was servii^ in one 
of the churches in Munich when Father Fanner's appeal from 
Philadelphia reached him. On Augfust i, 1786, he wrote to 
his parents from Munich, telling them that he had decided to 
leave for the Pennsylvania missions where there were many 
German Catholics. There is extant a letter from his pen, dated 
London, August 3, 1787, in which he tells his parents that after 
a delay of eight weeks in London, he was about to set sail for 
America. The journey across the Channel from Ostend to 
Dover occupied 36 hours, and the high cost of living in London 
has almost depleted his little treasury, "I go to Philadelphia, 
he writes, "the largest city in America . . . Pray for me 
that I may land safely in America. I resign myself entirely to 
the Holy will of God. Should I be swallowed by tfie waves or 
be made a slave in Africa by the pirates, I shall always remember 
the litany we used to say every week at home : Thy holy will 
be done, O Godl" Father Graessl arrived in Philadelphia in 
October, 1787. A year later (December 9, 1788) he wrote from 
Philadelphia to his parents that he had spent a busy twelve 
months in the Pennsylvania and New Jersey missions, and had 
heard many confessions in German, English, French, Italian, 
Dutch, and Spam'sh. He had been inoculated in January, 1788, 
against the smallpox which was then prevalent The presenti- 
ment of death never seems to have deserted him. "Should it 
be God's will," he writes, "that I die in America and should 
not see you in this world any more, let us console ourselves with 
the sweet hope that the separation will not last long, that the 
heavenly Father will soon unite us, and that forever." • 

In May, 1793, the election of the first American coadjutor 

* Cf. Rtmrthtt, TOL xxl, pp. 49-sS. 



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Division of Diocese 571 

took place, and Father GraessI was chosen by his fellow-priests 
to be Carroll's coadjutor.* On June 19, 1793, he wrote for the 
last time to his parents, from Philadelphia, giving them the news 
of his election: "There is but one bishop in this extensive 
cooDtry. Should he die, another of the clergy would have to 
travel to Europe to receive episcopal consecration. Therefore, 
the Pope gave permission to select 3 coadjutor-bishop who should 
succeed our worthy bishop. The election took place in the be^n- 
nisg of May, and, dearest parents, the choice fell upon your poor 
Laurence . . . Nothing was more disquieting to me than 
this news ; but God has heard my prayers. He wants to deliver 
me, unworthy as I am, fr<mi this heavy burden to make room 
for one worthier than I." In this, his last letter, he tells his 
parents that the jrellow fever had caught him in its fearsome 
toils: "Dearest friends, I am sick and accordii^ to human 
understanding my days are counted. Probably before you read 
this, my body will rest in the grave, but let the splendid view 
of eternity be our consolation. There, I hope to God, we shall 
see each other again and never be separated any more." * 

In the spring and early summer of 1793, Philadelphia became 
a haven of refuge for a large number of fugitives who fled from 
the West Indies when the French Revolution reached those 
islands. Most of them had come from places where the yellow 
fever was r^ng, and without doubt the plague was brought 
by them to Philadelphia. The plague was as mysterious in its 
attack as the influenza epidemic of 1918, and Dr. Rush, then 
the foremost physician of the dty, frankly admitted that only 
experience of a sad nature with his patients had taught him how 
to cope with the malady. "So dreadful was the disease, so 
revolting and rapid in its prepress, and so generally fatal in its 
results, that a panic of fear seized the city. All who could do 
so fled from the contagion, and it is estimated that of the fifty 
thousand inhabitants about twenty-three thousand left the dty." * 
Physicians and clergymen of all denominations proved their 
heroism during the horrors of the pl^;ue. During the five or 
■IX weeks of its pn^^ress, ten of the leading pt^rsidans gave vtp 

' B t M man Cathtdral ArtUatM, Lrttir-Bimlu, mL U, pp. 9a, loj. 
*IU4. 



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57* The Lift and Times of John Carroll 

their lives for the citizens of Philadelphia, and ei^ non-CathoUe 
ministers of the Gospel died martyrs to their sense of duty. 
Of the three Catholic priests stationed at St Mary's Church, 
not one escaped. Father Christopher Keating was at death's 
door for weeks, but recovered, while Father Graessl and Father 
Fleming both died before the epidemic had run its course. 

Bishop-elect Laurence Graessl died in October, 1793, and was 
buried in St. Joseph's Churchyard. 

Meanwhile, the letter of Bishop Carroll to Propaganda an- 
nouncing the election of Father Graessl reached Rome, and was 
favourably acted upon by the Sacred Congregation. In an 
audience granted on December 8, 1793, two months after Father 
Graessl's death, Pius VI granted the request of the American 
clergy, and the dead priest was forthwith named Bishop of 
Samosata and coadjutor to Bishop Carroll of Baltimore. Bishop 
Carroll had written in October to Rome informing the Holy See 
of Father Graessl's demise, but it would appear that it was only 
through his letter of July 3, 1794, that Propaganda was made 
aware of the fact. For that reason Bishop-elect Graessl's ap- 
pointment went throi^h all the formalities of the pontifical 
chancery. On January 18, 1794, two letters were despatched 
from Rome, one to Bishop-elect Dominic Laurence Graessl, 
announcing his election and elevation to the purple, and one to 
Bishop Carroll in the same tenor, but contatnit^ a significant 
clause to the effect that should the Holy See deem it expedient 
to divide "so large a diocese, embracing as it does so many states, 
into several dioceses," it will be done, "even during your own 
lifetime and even should you unreasonably (irrationobUiter) be 
opposed to such a step." 

To Bishop-elect Graessl, Propaganda wrote as follows (Janu- 
ary 18, 1784) : 

The most worthy John Carroll, Bishop of Baltimore, having written to 
their Eminences the Cardinals of Pro[KiKanda and to His Holiness in the 
highest terms at praise of your piety and religious spirit, His Holiness 
has thereupon deigned to raise you to the episcopal dignity and to choose 
joa as coadjutor of the aforesaid Bishop. From this you will perceive 
bow earnestly and zealously and with what care and diligence you should 
labor in so extended a part of the Lord's vineyard as has been entnuted 
to your charge. For the rest His Holiness in the fulness of His Apostolic 
power reserves to Himself the right to determine hereafter whether it 



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Division of Diocese 573 

be not more expedient to divide so large a dioceae, embracing ai it does 
so many states, into leveral dioceses, even should the present tncumbcnt 
dissent. For the spiritual comfort and welfare of souls must be looked 
to, and should the Catholic Faith spread more widely and the batrest 
become more plentiful, the task of caring for it will be unequal not only 
for one Bishop but even for two. Their Eminences and His Holiness 
hope that imitating the virtues and most ardent zeal of your superior 
prelate for the Catholic Faith you will by your labours bring forth most 
abundant fruits to the gain of the Catholic Religion. From your superior 
prelate therefore you will receive the ordinary and extraordinary facul- 
ties that have been given to him by His Holiness for that purpose. In 
the meantime 1 pray God to increase in you His bleuings and to pro- 
tect yoa 

The letter to Carroll is addressed "Reverend Charles Carroll," 
and is of the same date : 

We desire to inform you by these letters that in the one addressed to 
the Rev. Dominic Graeasl, your coadjutor-elect we have told him that 
the Supreme Pontiff reserves full liberty to himself, should the welfare 
of souls at any time demand it, of dividing your very extended diocese 
into other episcopal dioceses, even during your own lifetime and even 
should you unreasonably be opposed to such a step. For while the present 
condition of affairs does not warrant the erection of new sees, although 
you yourself have petitioned for them, and it seems to us more advisable 
by the appointment of a coadjutor to secure a tmity of gfovernment and 
a unity of discipline, now especially in the begiiminK of your infant 
church, yet should the Catholic Religion, luider the Divine blessing, spread 
further and the harvest of the Faithful prove more plenteous, it may 
be necessary for the Apostolic See to appoint more labourers and rulers 
(pratsidts) of souls in the several states with episcopal jurisdiction and 
character — (.jure et charactere). Nor have we the slightest fear that 
either you or your coadjutor, well known as you both are for your piety 
and religious zeal, will ever oppose this projected dismembering of your 
diocese and the erection of new diocese whenever such a step seems 
proper to the Apostolic See. Still in order to guard against any occasion 
for complaints hereafter, we deem it enough at this fitting moment to 
inform both of yon of the views and intentions of the Sovereign Ptmtiff 
in giving you a coadjutor, and we wish you now without any delay to 
bind him never to put himself in oi^msition to tlK erection of new sees. 

The words, "never to put himself in opposition to the erection 
of new sees," must have had a curious sound to a prelate who had 
already twice ur^ the division of his diocese. They are, how- 
ever, but the fonnal phrase contained in all such documents. 



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574 The Life and Times of John Carrott 

though there is every reason to suspect that the traditional routine 
of ecclesiastical procedure had not forgotten the exceptional 
request of the priests in 1788, that they be permitted to elect 
their own spiritual chief. Doubtless, another letter from Dr. 
Carroll, dated September 21, 1793, which was then under con- 
sideration by the officials of Propaganda added to their fear of 
novelty in the American Church. In the formula of the oath 
taken by the bishops at that time, there was the traditional phrase 
— "I will to the utmost of my power seek out and oppose schis- 
matics, heretics, and the enemies of our Sovereign Lord and 
his sua:essors." Such a clause might easily be misused by those 
who opposed the presence of the Church in the United States, 
and Dr. Carroll wisely asked for the suppression of these words. 
This was granted; and in a General Assembly of Propaganda, 
held on June 16, 1794, their Eminences permitted the future 
bishops of the United States to take the same oath as was taken 
by the bishops of Ireland. The summary contained in the Atti of 
1795 states : 

Now by the aforesud letter of September 2t, he (Rt. Rev. Bubop 
Carroll] acquaints your Eminence with the efforti made by many sectari- 
ans, who are led by a partisan and unfriendly spirit, to decry motives of 
attack and calumnies against the Apostolic See; he especially notes their 
inveighing against the fonn of oath required by the Roman Pontifical 
in the consecration of Bishops, principally because the words of d>e 
following clause, namely, — "haeretieos, tchUmatieos, et rtbelUt etdem 
Dommo Nostra vti tueeessoriimt prtudictis pro potse perseqwir, imfng- 
nabo. tie." moreover, their misinterpreting Ae real meaning of the afore- 
said clause, by purposely trying to make it ottt as implying hostility to 
the form of government, as established in the aforesaid United States, 
where every one is allowed freely to possess whatever kiiid of religion be 
chooses. 

Wherefore as Bishop Carroll is confident that large mmibers of sectari- 
ans will be present at the consecration [of Bishop GraessI] to hear and 
misinterpret whatever they can, he petitions this Holy See for leave M 
omit the aforesaid clause in the oath required to be taken by his Bishop- 
coadjutor, so as to deprive the above sectarians of every diance of mis- 
representation. (The copyist adds here that a mar^nal note in the orig- 
inal minutes states that "news have just reached us that the Rev. Dominic 
Lawrence Graessi, coadjutor, [has] passed away to elemal life.") ■ 

■ The docnmeott rctetina to tht appoliitDMati of Gncul taA Naal* [rmfaj— <■ 
ArtUvt. AtH (i7«l). a. Su.1, were tniulaud b^ Pr. MUdltto*, O.SjL, wd wOt 
ba faaod Id the Rti4trehti, vd. xxl, pp. 59-64. 



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Division of Diocese 575 

In a general assembly held June 16, 1794, their Eminences 
decided that the petition should be answered as follows, namely : 
That their Eminenos grant the dispensation asked and order 
a copy of the letter sent to the Archbishops of Ireland, June 25, 
1791, to be sent with the requested changes to the Bishop of 
Baltimore ... In an Audience granted by His Holiness, 
July 10, 1794, the aforesaid mentioned decisions of the Sacred 
Congrq^tion having been laid before Him, He has deigned to 
ratify them all, and has accordingly permitted the same form 
of oath, as was taken by the Bishops and Archbishops of Ireland, 
to be taken by the Bishop of Baltimore," A copy of this oath 
was sent on August 2, 1794.* 

After the death of Bishop-elect GraessI, Father Leonard Neale 
was appointed pastor of St. Mary's Church, Philadelphia (De- 
cember 21, 1793), and with the advice of the older members of 
the dei^. Bishop Carroll decided to send the name of Father 
Neale to Rome as a worthy successor to the honours which had 
fallen posthtmiously upon Bishop-elect GraessI. On October tS, 
1794, Dr. Carroll wrote to Antonelli from Philadelphia, that the 
choice of the clergy had fallen upon a man truly pious, endowed 
with the highest prudence, humility and suavity of manners, and 
highly skilled in ecclesiastical learning and discipline. Bishop- 
elect Neale was about forty-four years old at the time. On April 
>7. '79S> the Bulls appointing Father Neale Bishop of Gortyna 
and coadjutor of Baltimore were issued and were sent by as 
unusual route, owit^ to the disturbed condition of France. 
Months passed by, and Bishop Carroll gave up all hope of receiv- 
ing them, A set of duplicates which Dr. Carroll had asked for, 
met with the same fate, and it was not until the summer of 1800, 
that another set of duplicates, sent by Cardinal Stephen Borgia, 
reached Baltimore. On October 12, 1799, Carroll wrote to 
Antonelli expressing his great solicitude over the delay, since he 
feared grave inconvenience to the Church in the United States in 
case the Bulls of consecration did not arrive. He asked that 
cc^ies be sent in care of Monsignor Charles Erskine, who was 
in London at the time. Bishop-elect Neale remained in Philadel- 
phia until 1799 when Dr. Carroll named him President of George- 

> Cf. Frfgmia .ifrcUvw, StritHin f^irfb. Amaftmi Ct*tnU, •ni.W.t. wav. 



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J76 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

town Collie. The feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary, September 8, 1800, was set apart for the consecration of 
the new coadjutor-bishop, but the yellow fever again made its 
^pearance, and Bishop Carroll was unwillii^ to call any of his 
clergy to Baltimore for the ceremony, lest the Catholics suffer 
during their absence. Finally, the feast of the Immaculate Con- 
ception (December 8) was appointed. On the day previous 
(December 7), for the first time within the borders of the United 
States, episoqtal consecration was conferred on Bi^op Neale. 
Father Nagot, President of St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, and 
Father Beeston, then pastor of St. Peter's pro-Cathedral, acted 
as assistants in the ceremony. It had been the intention of 
Bishop Carroll that his coadjutor should reside in Philadelphia, 
so that the labours of the diocese might be divided ; but Bishop 
Neale was needed at Geoi^own College, where he continued to 
preside until the restored Society of Jesus assumed charge of the 
institution (1806). 

In an account of the difficulties which had delayed Neale's 
consecration, Carroll says to Plowden (September 3, 1800) : 

The accumulation of letterg, which I must abaolutely answer, ia pr»- 
digiotis: of many I must keep copies; and havbg no secretary or astist- 
ant, my labour is incessant, and indeed too much for my time of life, 
especially when united with my other episcopal duties. It is not therefore 
■ttrprising, if some degree of self-indulgence gains upon me, when I can 
obtain a respite from my writing desk, and if I allow a part of it to 
reading, which, as you know, was always my favourite employment I 
have now a prospect of diminishing my labour, and particularly my toil- 
some joumies every spring and fall to different congregations. The brief 
of Pius 6th for the consecration of rv. Leonard Neale, which has been 
five years in its progress, has arrived at length, not even now the first 
copies of it, which were committed to rv. Connell, but duplicates sent in 
consequence of my repeated representations. His consecration was to 
have taken place at Baltimore on the 8th inst., but since my departure 
from home, the fatal yellow fever, that new pest of our cotmtry, has 
broken out there about the middle of August, and will rage till the first 
frott, which can hardly be expected before the la^t of October. On this 
account it is judged inexpedient to collect in that town so many priests, 
as will be necessary for the performance of the ceremony which will 
therefore be delayed for some time. The whole body of the clergy insist 
on my continuance in the country till I have provided a Successor to my 
See. I submit to their opinion, tho' I suffer perhaps much greater anxiety 
by my absence, than I would at home. We have lost already smcc 1^3, 



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THE DIVISTON OF THE DIOCESE 

OF BALTIMORE 

1&08 



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Division of Diocese 577 

the first epoch of that dreadful diior<ler in Philda., eight of our best 
clergymen; and in coniequence of their death, many Congregations remain 
vnthout paston.'o 

Since Bishop Neale's activities were divided between George- 
town College and the founding of the Visitation Convent, 
Georgetown, he does not seem to have taken a very prominent 
^re in the discipline of the Church during the five years of his 
coadjutorshtp. No doubt had he been consecrated in 1795, 
when he was first appointed, and while he was pastor of St 
Mary's Church, Philadelphia, the scope of his cooperation with 
Bishop Carroll would have been a wider one and the administra- 
tion of the Diocese of Baltimore might have proceeded on more 
practical lines. Practically speaking, Neale's coadjutorship was 
of little value to Bishop Carroll, except the satisfaction of know- 
it^ that ecclesiastical life and discipline would continue in case 
he should be incapacitated by old age or called to his reward by 
death." 

For this reason, among others, only one relief seemed prac- 
ticable — that of dividing the Diocese of Baltimore and of placing 
it under at least four extra bishops. John Carroll had borne the 
burden of the episcopate for ten years when his coadjutor, Leon- 
ard Neale, was consecrated, and he was to continue bearing that 
burden for another decade, before a division of his pressing 
labours was to take place. As we have already seen, it was the 
sentiment of the priests who gathered at Baltimore for the Synod 
that the vast Diocese of Baltimore should be divided and that 
Philadelphia be made a see for the Northern States. Baltimore 
would retain its chieftainship over the South — with its limits the 
Susquehanna River, and an im^nary line running to the west- 
ernmost settlements, thus dividit^ the work of church discipline 
and government. For a long time. Propaganda was convinced 
that the condition of the Church in the United States hardly war- 



■■ Sl0*jli%rit Trantcriftt. 

" Ftdoi coDtaaponnr iritDOHi, it would wcm tlwt Dr. Nc>l« wu • dinppoJBt- 
cmt u CmitdII'i coadjaior. Jims Birrr'i corropondenee with Carrdl ipcaki niber 
•llchtin^V of the new Bidop; in one letter (Juat is, iSo;), he ut>: "There !■ no 
diDcer of Neale lettinc the Patomu on fire" IBalHnort Citludrai AreUiiti, Cm« 
i-Ks). Father John Thijrer, lAile tx Slonyhnnt in iSaj, to qiuu Plovdai'i wonb: 
"Spoke of yaai coadjotar u ■ nun of do ■billtiet" IBattimott (.WkcJrol ArcUv; 
die 6-O5). Ct. alfo Hitlmcal Rrcordi aaif Sluiliei, vol. xt (i»«i). pp. loi-aia. 



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578 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

ranted the extension of the hierarchy." Unity of government 
and unity of discipline were first to be established, especially in 
the bediming of the infant Church, but the time might come when 
more bishops would be needed. The long delay (October 15, 
1794 — summer of 1800) caused by the loss of the several sets 
of duplicate Bulls only increased Carroll's anxiety over the situa- 
tion of the Church in this country. "I foresee, indeed, a great 
inconvenience," be wrote on At^st 20, 1799, to Antonelli, 
"unless another copy of the Bulls be sent before my death and 
arrive quickly, so that I may impose hands on this most worthy 
priest." Added to this delay were the series of "stirs" caused 
by insubordinate priests in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Charles- 
ton, S. C, who were dcfyit^ Carroll's jurisdiction in the most 
vital of all episcopal powers — that of delegating pastoral faculties 
to them for the good of souls. Fathers Elling, Goetz and 
Heilbron were leaders of a schism in Philadelphia; Father Felix 
Gallagher was causing unrest in that old centre of Southern 
culture, Charleston, S. C. ; and the noisy Reuter was the centre 
of sad disorder in the ranks of the German Catholics of Balti- 
more. On October 12, 1799, Bishop Carroll wrote to Antonelli, 
saying that if any action were to be taken to divide the diocese, 
he would hear with pleasure that the Holy See was considering 
the same favourably. He had desired such a division as early 
as 1792, though some were beginnit^ to doubt the wisdom of 
carrying out such a scheme when there were so many petty rebel- 
lions against his authority : 

If any action is taken to divide this most vast diocese. I would hear 
witb great pleasure that this had been done by the Holy See, as I desired 
it dme in my letters in lyga; and it was my purpose to solicit it as soon 
as I was sure of having a coadjutor to succeed me in this see. It wilt, 
however, be for you in yotir wisdom to decide whether this can be done 
safely now, while these commotions lessen ecclesiastical jurisdiction. For 
I solemnly aver that those who excite these troubles maintained in my 
presence by their lawyers in a public tribunal, and upheld with all their 
might, that all distinction between order and jurisdiction was arbitrary 



" CUToll {oond ■ (tTDDs iiipportci for tbc dinrioa oi the diocae io the aninBit 
DoBintcan, Dr. Coocuibi, who wu thsi mctinf u Americmn ■cent in Rome tor the 
Ordiurr of Blltinure, (cf. Baltiniore Catludrai Arckim, CoDcanen to Carroll, 
DecoBbCT n. i8o], CaK *-Wi— "I Ions to hear of Tonr harins ealablialied a hierarchr 
Id thai htppf sniatrT and of haTfiW the aatiafaction at sreetiiv Your Lordibip M 



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Division of Diocese 579 

and fictitious ; that sll right to exercise ecclesiastical ministry was derived 
from the people; and that the bishop had no power except to impose 
hands on the person whom the people presented as their chosen minister; 
or to inquire whether hands had been previously imposed on him. Then 
they deny that they arc or ever have been subject to my episcopal author- 
ity; and when the words of the Pope's brief were shown them, in which 
all the faithful of the United States are subjected in spiritual government 
to the bishop, they impudently dared to assail the brief as imposing a 
yoke on them contrary to the American laws. And yet these are the men 
who are now sending an agent to the Holy See to obtain what had never 
before been granted.'* 

The continuaiKX of the German schism in Philadelphia and 
in Baltimore had the effect of delaying Rome's action in the 
matter. The disturbance in Charleston caused by the irr^fu- 
larities of Father Gallagher caused an interchange of many let- 
ters between Baltimore and Rome, and so helped to obscure the 
main problems of the American Church, But finally, Carroll's 
insistence upon the necessity of dividing the diocese won a hear- 
ing. On learning of the elevation of Pius VII to the Chair of 
Peter, Bishop Carroll put the case sqtiarely to Propaganda, and 
requested that the problem of dividii^ Baltimore be taken up by 
the Sacred Congregation and brought before the new Pontiff 
for decision. In replying to this letter, on June 26, 1802, Cardi- 
nal Borgia, then the Prefect of Propaganda, expressed the opin- 
ion that the creation of one new diocese would scarcely relieve 
Carroll of the burdens of his episcopate. Four or five suffragan 
dioceses would be necessary, with Baltimore as the metropolitan 
see of the United States. In this way a true ecclesiastical 
hierarchy would be formed in the Republic, especially since it 
seemed clear to Propaganda that no hindrance would be placed 
in the way of this action by the Govenunent of the United States. 
Carroll's opinion was asked about the feasibility of the plan, and 
he was requested to send to the Sacred Congr^ation a memoran- 
dimi containing the names of the cities where these episcopal sees 
might be erected, the limits of each diocese, the means of sus- 
tenaiKe for the new bishops, and the names of the priests he 
deemed worthy to occupy the new sees." 

■■ Cf. Shu, of. cit.. vol. ii, pp. 410-411, ■«(* j. 

** PfBtagmuda Areltivtt, Lttttr*. ml. iSj, f. j6». In tliii Ictta CutoU li infomcd 
that the obliotiaa of Wf\Bt hii *d Bmiat vteit la tha Hdljt See *ru deferred until 



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58o The Life and Times of John Carroll 

It is not certain when this letter reached Carroll, for the mails 
in Europe were badly disorganized at this time. He mentions 
its contents, however, in a letter to Plowden, dated Baltimore, 
December 7, 1804 : "My last advices from Rome concerning my 
own diocese gave me considerable pleasure. In compliance with 
repeated solicitations, it is to be divided, and it is even wished here 
to have it parcelled into four or five, which tho' not too much for 
its extent, is rather premature, considering the number of Qcrgy- 
men and the means of support for the different bishops. Prob- 
ably a multiplication of dioceses may be the means of hiultiplying 
priests, of whom there is yet a lamentable dearth."** 

About this date the burden of governing the Church in the 
Virgin Islands and the newly-purchased territory of Louisiana 
was placed upon Carroll's shoulders. The following year, on 
July 13, 1805, Cardinal Borgia informed Carroll that Father 
Joseph Harent, a Sulpician, who was then in Lyons, had informed 
the Holy See of the splendid growth of Catholicism in the United 
States and had supplicated the Holy See to erect new dioceses 
there as soon as convenient. For the support of the new bish<^s. 
Father Harent believed that an arrangement might be made with 
the Clergy Corporation of Maryland, which held all the property 
formerly belonging to the Jesuits. Bishop Carroll was asked to 
reply as to the practicability of this arrangement'" Dr. Carroll's 
answer to Borgia's request is dated November 23, 1806. Four 
at least, he writes, is the number of new sees which should be 
created in the United States. The first of these should be at 
Boston, which would have jurisdiction over five States fPro- 
vincae), namely. New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, 
Connecticut and Vermont. The second should be New York City, 
and should embrace New York State and East Jersey. The third 
should be placed at Philadelphia, with jurisdiction over Pennsyl- 
vania, Delaware and West Jersey." The fourth should be some- 



GonTctiieat (proncmTit u) coDsruum tempi)* libi beoeninm), incl that he ihould n 
while •aid a complete ind iccante usount of the DioccK of Baltinun 

" StmykKTit Tnuucrifli. 

" HuoBii (of. cit,, DDcumcDli, vol. i, ptrt ii. pp. 711-714) nr* that thii letta 
"doM not appar in the Pnrpagamia Ankviet, Amtrita CenlraSt" : it ia to be tonnd 
b«dl]F mntihtcd in the came archivei, Ltllm. yd. iSg, f. 344. 

" In the t/n York Afckii»ctn% ArcUvtt fUartckal USS.). there ia a letter 
[rem Uarfchal to Biihop Connolly, dated BallinBre. Noranber 1, iSiS, llrioc tiw 
limUa of the Diocoe of Philadelphia in Kew Vorh. 



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Divisiou of Diocese 5 8 1 

where in Kentucky, with jurisdiction over the territory of that 
State and of Tennessee. What city would be convenient for the 
episcopal see was uncertain. Carroll himself thought that Frank- 
fort or Lexington should be chosen, but a worthy priest who had 
spent many years in those regions as his vicar -general wished to 
see the episcopal see erected at Bardstown, because most of the 
Catholics in Kentucky resided in that vicinity. There was but 
a handful of Catholics at Frankfort, he was told, and no church 
there, while Lexington had been but recently settled. A fifth 
diocese would be highly opportune and should embrace all that 
territory lying between the Ohio River and the Mississippi, and 
the border of Canada. It was true that this vast region had few 
Catholics, and therefore it might very well remain for a time 
under the direction of the Bishop of Kentucky, The Bishop of 
Baltimore should retain jurisdiction over Maryland and the rest 
of the eastern States down to Georgia inclusive. 

On June 17, 1807, Carroll wrote to Cardinal di Pietro, Prefect 
of Propaganda, recommending for the See of Boston Father John 
Cheverus. He would have preferred Father Matignon, but that 
exemplary ecclesiastic threatened to return to France if Carroll 
persisted in naming him for that See, On April 6, 1807, Father 
Matignon wrote to Bishop Carroll : 

My Lord 

Advices that I received the same lime from Baltimore and New York 
compel me to address to you humble but strong representation on a sub- 
;ect of the grealest importance for you, for me, and for the good of 
rehgion. Can it be, my lord, that you seriously think of me for one of 
your future suffragans? I am thoroughly convinced that if the distance 
Aat I have always lived from you had not made it an impossibility (or 
you to know me, you would never have thought of such a choice. Conse- 
qnently it is my duty to make myself known to you, without any affectation 
of humility, but with the same impartiality as t would speak to you about 
another. Tlie good tfiat has been done here is nearly exclusively the 
work of Ur. Cheverus; he it is who occupies the pulpit, who is oftenest 
in the confessional, and who is my counsellor in all that is to be done. 
For a long time his aversion to have himself known abroad has often 
caused us to be identified one with the other, and occasionally I have 
received compliments which in all justice were due to him. At present 
in spite of his love for self-conculment he is known; and probably with 
the exception of himself alone, in the estimation of everybody else, I have, 
as I deserve, but second place. My memory is actually so weakened and 



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582 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

$0 little to be trusted that within twenty-four hours I am apt to forget 
the names and the features of persons who have business with me, and 
what they tell me and have told me, which as has several times happened 
forces me to avoid all society for fear of thus putting myself in a. ridicu- 
lous position, which also causes me even more embarrassment in the con- 
fessional. The same defective memory hampers me in recalling word* 
that for some years were most familiar to me and at times compels me to 
stop short in the midst of a sentence. I experience the greatest difficulty 
in composing the simplest exhortation, and the growing weakness of my 
sight makes reading very painful to me, if it be something I have com- 
posed or copied; so that in seven months I have mounted to the pulpit 
bm once. I am not used to write even a simple letter in English, and I 
doubt if I could do even that without submitting it to a critic Finally, 
I am at present almost incap^le of undergoing fatigue, even of a short 
journey. Exposure to an east wind is enough to give me painful attacks 
of rheumatism which have made me very ill at various tiroes during the 
past two years. 1 am very far, my lord, from wishing to direct or even 
to influence your choice. But I cannot help saying that if you liave decided 
to choose one of your suffragans from Boston, were this to be in open 
competition, there is not a single Cattiolic or Protestant here of eitbcf 
good or little judgment who would not name my confrtre. If he knew 
that I am telling you this he would not thank me, for he is far from 
having any ambition for the jdace. But the same notice of conscientious- 
ness which would imperiously command me to refuse it, should dictate 
to him its acceptance. If in fine yon wish, my lord, one who unites several 
characteristic traits such as you yourself possess, especially the precious 
gift of gaining hearts without failing to inspire respect, 1 can assure 
you that he possesses them in an eminent degree. The title of doctor of 
theology which is the one advantage I have over him cannot assuredly 
supply for the lack of all virtue. As for the rest, I am far from desiring 
that this dignity should fall on him, since naturally therefrom would result 
more frequent absences, which for me are a great trial, especially as 
regards preaching. It is undoubtedly useless for me to forecast the conse- 
quences of a pleasantry I have often indulged in with him by calling him 
a Jansenist, merely because he spent three years of his seminary course 
under the Oratorians, a joke to which he lent himself good humoredly. 
His sentiments, finally, when he is serious are exactly the same as mine; 
he labours heart and soul in fostering frequent Communion, and in his 
sermons has often adroitly eulogized both the founder and die society 
whose missionaries have done such great things. I might, perhaps, have 
atitl more forcible things to tell you about my incapacity and absolute 
unfitness for the dignity of which there is question; but what has been 
said above ought certainly to suffice to induce you to deny the rumours, 
which could not be but injurious to the episcopate, and which really torment 
and afflict me. It seems to me that this dignity would lose much of its 
lustre if it were said that it was conferred upon another only after my 
reftml of it You will certainly not thus imperil it, my lord, if yoa have 



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Division of Diocese 583 

the goodnesi to reflect seriously on the content* of thu tetter, or even 
to consult the wisest and most zealous persons of this city.'* 

For Philadelphia, Dr. Carroll proposed Father Michael Egan, 
O.F.M., who was then about 50 years old. He could not con- 
scientiously offer the name of any priest for the See of New 
York, and he suggested that it retnain for the time being under 
the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Boston, until a suitable choice 
could be made.'* For the Diocese of Kentucky, he mentioned 
four priests — Fathers Stephen Badin, Charles Nerinckx, Benedict 
Joseph Fl^et, and Thomas Wilson, O.P. To these nominations 
the Propaganda added the names of three Dominicans, Father 
Richard Luke Concanen, Father John Connolly, and Father 
Joachim Cowan, for the Diocese of New York. All three of these 
friars resided in Rome and had been proposed for various sees 
in Ireland. 

The cities chosen by Bishop Carroll'and the nominations made 
were approved by Propaganda and ratified by Pius VII. The 
new dioceses were : Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Bards- 
town. The bishops appointed for these sees were: for Boston, 
the Rt. Rev. John Chcverus, D.D.; for New York, the 
Rt Rev. Richard Luke Concanen, O.P. ; for Philadelphia, the 
Rt Rev. Michael Egan, O.F.M.; for Bardstown, the Rt. Rev. 
Benedict, Joseph Flaget, S.S. On April 8, 1808, Pope Pius VII 
by two Briefs, know as Ex debilo pastordis officii and PontificU 
muneris, created Baltimore a metropolitan see, with the four 
sufFr^ans as named above. '° 

From two letters written to Charles Plowden at this time, we 
learn how eagerly Bishop Carroll awaited the official documents 
for this most important reorganization of the Church in the 
United States. On December 3, 1808, Carroll writes: 



* BaUimart CiMtirol Arehivet, Cue 3-I7, printed io tke Rtctrdt, vcl. ix, pp. 

■ Tb mirt promineiil dergyBuia oi Pouurlvanu at that tinw, Dr. Uatthnr 
CaiT, O.S.A.. wu mil aeqiuinled with the eonditieo of the Cboidi in New Yark 
Slate, but, Dsfortiuiatclr, he wm imilei' > cloud •( the time, nwins to diffieultici with 
Otfaen memben of tit Oi^er. «nd Dr. CerrcAl wu limid cbont RineAtiiiff hii name for 
the New Tork See. (Cf. BtUimort Cttludnl ArclUutt. Cue 4-G8-11, Hl-i.) 

■■ Prof^amlt Atckitut, ScrMare riferiU, America Cntrale, vol. iii. S. a6S-i74. 
Both dacnmenti will be fonod (with inueurudis) in DiUuTimi, Jnt Pamtifieium 
U Pnfatttnia Pidt, <rol. iv, pp. S09.S11. Rime, 1891. The fint (£r dtbila, tit.) 
iMita the DioccM of Biltiinare', the wcond (PohH/kh Mmurit) raliee BahiBore to 
the difnttjr of > metropoiitui See. 



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584 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

You have heard no doubt of the new ecclesiastical order of things in 
our ecclesiastical government here; that four new Bishops are nominMed, 
and this See is erected into an Archbishoprick— As the most excellent 
Dr. Matignon refused absolutely to be comprehended in the number of 
new Bishops, and was determined rather to return to Europe, than accept, 
Rv. Chevenis is named for Boston, having under him the five States of New 
Hampshire, Massachusetts Rhode Island, Connecticut and Vermont — 
Amongst the Clergy resident in N. York, when my letters went to some 
there was no one here whom I ventured to recommend for the Episcopacy, 
and suggested the propriety of leaving that Diocese subject for some time 
to the Bishop of Boston: but his Holiness was desirous to fill all the Sees, 
and nominated for N. York, Fr. Concanen, an Irish Dominican at Rome, 
of whom, I have always had a favourable account. All the necessary 
documents for the Abprick and new Bpricks were put under his care; 
he was detained at Leghorn by the embargo on American vessels there 
at (he last of July, and says to me, that he was afraid he could not come 
till spring: and in my view of things, the appearances of his then obtaining 
a passage are less favourable (han when he wrote. The Bishop of Philad. 
is the Rev. Michael Egan, a very worthy Fnmciscian, ex Ord. RecalUe- 
torum; and of Kentucky, the Rev. Mr. Flaget, a Sulpician, who hitherto 
professes a determination not to accept. The States south of Maryland 
quite to Georgia inclusively, belong to the Abprick of Bal. For hitherto 
BO few ecclesiastical Stations are formed beyond the Potomac, and ape- 
cially beytmd Va. that there can yet be no want of a Bishop. On reading 
the list of the new Bishops you will observe that in nominating subjects 
for them, I respected the Institute of the Society, and did not make 
mention of any of the members of it, tho' I was sensible of the aid which 
Bishops may afford towards its reestablishment, or rather its solidity in 
these States. Of those nominated, with whom I am acquainted there is 
no doubt; nor of the Bishop of N. York, if a judgment can be fortned 
on his letters to me, and the sentiments conveyed in them. For some 
years past in consequence of some services voluntarily and kindly per- 
formed for me at Rome before any previous correspondence with him, I 
was induced to avail myself of his benevolent offers, and requested him 
to feel the pulse there, and see if a brief might not be obtained, granting 
for this country authenticity and solidity to that establishment for which 
you have laboured so long without obtaining the desired sanction. His 
letters from Leghorn say. that besides the authentic documents above 
mentioned he has special communications to make to me, which assurance 
excites some hopes of success. As there is not this year any course of 
Philosophy at G. Town, I have sent Mr. Kohlmann to N. York where a 
zealous pastor was much wanted, and he is accompanied by a countryman 
of my own, lately ordained and out of his novitiate, of great promise, 
and with four scholastics who have begun a school from which much good 
is effected.'! 

■■ Sttmyhurit Tmucrifli. 



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Division of Diocese 585 

Two days later (December 5, 1808) Carroll returned to the 
question of the division : 

The immeniity of the late Diocese of Baltimore, and the impossibility 
of extending my care equally over every part of it. has made tne long 
BoIIicit its division, which, however, has been long deferred, but is now 
granted. By letters from L(«hom dated 23rd and 26th of July, written 
by Dr. Concanen, late of the Convent of the Minerva, I have full con- 
firmation of this event, first conununicated by Dr. Troy of Dublin. His 
Holiness has nominated four new Bishops for as many New Dioceses in 
the United States, subject to the Bp. of Baltre. which S«e is erected 
into an Archbishoprick, aim um pallii &c and besides this he has appointed 
an administrator of the Diocese of Louisiana or New Orleans. Some of 
the new Dioceses have yet few Catholic settlements, and consequently 
few clergymen: but I have no doubt of their multiplying fast when they 
have at their head zealous Prelates. The new Bishoprics are to be at 
Boston, New York, Phitado. and Bardstown in Kentucky. The first of 
these will have for its Bishop Mr. Cheverus, a French priest of great 
eminence and exceedingly beloved. Dr. Matignon would have been 
appointed had be not refused it in the most determined manner ; fully 
resolved to return to Europe rather than submit to his nomination. Mr. 
Concanen is already consecrated at Rome for N, York. I had suggested 
no one for that station because when I wrote, amongst the clergy in that 
State there was none, whom my judgment approved, as fit for it, and 
therefore I purposed leaving it vacant for the present but to remain 
under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Boston. His Holiness wished to 
provide at once for all the places and nominated Fr. Concanen. The 
Rev. Mr. Egan a most worthy Irish priest of the Order of St. Francis 
(Recollectorum) resident some years at Philda. is the Bishop there, and 
Mr. Flaget a French Sulpician, now here, but who was for a considerable 
time at Foste Vincennes, an old station of the French Jesuits between 
Ohio and the lakes, is appointed tor Bardstown. The Rev. Mr. NcriiuJai, 
formerly a parish priest in Brabant, near Mechlin, a most holy man, and 
actually a missionary in Kentucky, is made the Administrator of Louisiana. 
The proceedings in consequence of this new regulation are stopped by 
the detention of the official papers, which are in the hands of Mr. Con- 
canen. He went to Lef^om in hopes of obtauitng a passage, but it seems 
that all the American vessels were detained there, and his hopes were 
very feeble of reaching America before the spring. But I see as little 
prospect of his being able to come then, as at present : indeed the prospect 
is thickening more and more between this country and the two great 
belligerent powers of England and France; a crisis, which moderate coun- 
sels on this and your side of the Atlantic mi^t have prevented. Our 
future opportunities of correspondence will be very rare; and I even 
fear that we may not have long even that of the monthly packets. 
Already the operation of our disastrous embargo is such that I can see 



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586 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

any vessel arrives Uom Enrope [im], which keeps tis without intelligence 
ever since the last of Sept, which is painful to me, particularly on account 
of the situation of the Pope so unhappy to himself, and still more to the 
Church. Mr. Concanen says in his letters that when the Holy Fr. had 
sanctioned the decrees for the erection of the new Dioceses, his joy 
was extreme, and he never ceased speaking of it 

I should have mentioned above, that my Diocese stilll comprehends 
Maryland, and the States to the South of it, including Georgia. It would 
indeed be prenuture to apportion out other Dioceses in that country— 
where Religion even hitherto has little or no prospect; Perhaps you may 
ask why so [MS. lorn] cause, abstracting from other reas«ws founded 
on prejudice and a dissolution [MS. lorn] of manner, clergymen were 
long wanting, not absolutely, so, but those, ^Ato united with sufficient 
talents, holiness of life, and a zeal for religion. This may be remedied 
hereafter: during this year four priests were ordained at G. Town, and 
two from the Seminary here, and many more are in the course of prep- 
aration. One of the first objects of the tiew Bishops will be undoubtedly 
to raise Seminaries for supplying their Dioceses with pastors; and then 
they who live to see this accomplished, may likewise see much greater 
advances made m the reunion to the church of those, who now are 
estranged from, or entirely ignorant of it." 

The oflidal Briefs were brought personally by Cardinal di 
Pietro, Prefect of the Sacred Congregation, to Bishop-elect 
Concanen, who lay ill then in Rome. Few ecclesiastics in the 
Eternal City were so well acquainted with the state of the Amer- 
ican Church as Dr. Concanen, and the tragedy that foUowed 
his reception of these doctiments stands alone in our annals. 
He recovered sufficiently by the end of April to accede to di 
Pietro's request for an immediate consecration, and on April 24, 
1808, as the first Bishop of New York, he was consecrated by the 
Cardinal-Prefect. It was the intention of the Holy See that he 
should proceed at once to America with the docimients authoriz- 
ing the consecration of the other bishops. The story of his failure 
to find passage on an American boat and his death at Naples on 
June 19, 1810, has been admirably told by the Dominican his- 
torian, O'Daniel.** Dr. Concanen's death delayed the receipt of 
these ofhcial papers and caused Archbishop Carroll keen embar- 
rassment. He had been informed by letter of May 24, 1808, of 
the decision made by Propaganda. This letter, together with the 

■ IhU. 

" Cimciuitt,-t EUetkm te tkt St* ef Ntm York (itoMtia), in the CiMic Hi- 
Itritat Rrmtm, tdI. U, pp. i«-4<. 



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Division of Diocese 587 

Pallium and the two papal Briefs, was entrusted to Dr. Concanen, 
who was empowered to invest America's first archbishop with 
the insignia of his office,'* Dr. Concanen found it difficult to 
conununtcate directly with Archbishop-elect Carroll, owing to the 
embargo laid upon American vessels in the harbors of Italy. 
"This will render my departure from here very difficult," Con- 
canen wrote to Archbishop Troy, from Rome, on March 25, 1808, 
"and I fear the only way I shall have is to attempt gettii^ to 
Palermo, and there embark on an American ship, or in one 
bound for England," *' This letter reached Troy on July 4, 1808, 
and the DubHn prelate copied it and forwarded it to Baltimore. 
"Allow me now, my dear L^rd," he writes to Carroll, "to con- 
gratulate Your Lordship and venerable Brethren on the acces- 
sion of dignity to the North American Catholic Church, of which 
I may say you are the Apostle and Founder." *" Dr. Troy's letter 
reached Carroll on September 25, 1808, and Carroll replied the 
same day, thanking Troy and expressing the hope that Dr. Con- 
canen would be able to leave Italy soon with "the official docu- 
ments for the erection of the new Episcopal Sees." " Dr. Con- 
canen wrote several letters direct to Archbishop Carroll, and in 
those which arrived at Baltimore it is evident that the first 
Bishop of New York had b^un to realize the impossibility of 
settii^ out from Europe, owing to the distracted condition of the 
times, occasioned by the Napoleonic campaigns." On August 9, 
1809, he informed Carroll that he had "left all these papers sealed 
up in separate bundles, in the care of Messrs. Filicchi [at Leg- 
horn], with directions to forward them immediately to your 
Grace, if ever safe occasion offered." " In the autumn of 1809, 
Concanen had cc^ies made of these American documents and a 
duplicate set was forwarded to Father Emery, the superior of the 
Sulpidans, at Paris.*" Bishop-elect Flaget had in the meantime 

** Frttagauia AriUttt, trttirt, voL i«4, f- 'I- 

■ From the D»bH» AnUtfittopal AreUeti, died br O'Dahiu, Cmxtun't 
fibcMM, tit.. Is tbe Cortolic Hitlarleal Snint. voL ii, p. n- 

" IbU.. p. 17- 

" PHtned in tbe RmarckH, ni, xt, pp. iio-tji, frooi the DiMin ArdHtfiicofat 
ArcUvn. The letter it lito in Uoun, SpltiUg. Oitor., vol. Ui, pp. Ji4'5>}- 

" Bammott Calkiinl Ankipa, Cite (-Ti, SpcciaJ Ci, Cue SA-t (letten of 
Julr'AntDit, I Sag). 

■* Ibid., Caic i-Ti. 

** CoaeuMa to Hir&iM), then M Ljroiu, Oetcber it, tad Noronber je, iBog. 
•od Uarch ii-jS, ttia (BattiHwn Catkrdrat AreUvti, Csm t4-Ui-4, Cue ■iA-A4). 



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588 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

gone to Paris to obtain Emery'a support in declinii^ the See of 
Bardstown, and it was on this set of duplicates brought back t^ 
Flaget in August, iSio, that Carroll proceeded with the consecra- 
tion of his suffragans. This fact we learn from Carroll's letter to 
Bishop Plessis, of Quebec, dated Baltimore, October 15, 1810: 
. . . The excelltnt & Rerd Kentlemen Mars. Cheveras, lutive of France. 
Egan of Ireland, & Flaget likewise of France, were respectively created 
bishops of Boston, Philade1[Ma and Bardstown. The R. Revd. Concanen, 
of the order of St. Dominick, & who had resided for more than thirty 
years in Rome, was appointed and consecrated there bishop of New York, 
and he was entrusted with the Bulls and all other official docmnents, the 
proper and requisite evidences of the new organization. For two years 
he anxiously sou^t an opportunity to sail for his diocese, and bring with 
them the papers so necessary for us. But the rigorous embargo, or rather 
confiscation laid on all American vessels in Italy, by order of Napoleon, 
put it out of his power to sail in safety; or, as he thought, to hasard the 
writings in his possession. However, he was prevailed on last spring to 
have authenticated copies taken of the bulls for the erection of an archie- 
piscopal see, the division and establishment of the new dioceses. & of dte 
nomination and constitution of their Bishops, he reserving the originals. 
These copies were sent to a confidential friend in France, and providen- 
tially were brought to me by Mr. Flaget, who on hearing of hu nominaticm 
to a bishopric went to France, & returned last August. He, with the 
Bishops of Boston and Philadelphia, will be consecrated on the 38th of 
this month, the first & 4th of Novr. As to the venerable Dr. Concanen 
himself, after many fruitless endeavours to obtain a passage to America, 
he thought at last that he had succeeded, & fortified by a passport, he 
went from Rome to Naples, intending to embark on board an American 
ship which was allowed to bring home the unfortunate American seamen, 
whose vessels had been so treacherously confiscated in Naples. But Mr. 
Concanen on his arrival at that city, was put under arrest & prtdiibited from 
going out ; which disappointment made such impression on him that lie fell 
ill & died in a few days, June 19. As his appointment was made, & I 
received news of his being consecrated, & his directions to constitute, in 
his name, a diocesan Vicar, I left him to regulate with your Lordship 
services which some of your clergy were graciously pleased to render to 
the good people on the lake. But it was my duty to have answered and 
given notice accordingly to your Lordship; for neglecting this, so great 
a duty, as no apology will be sufficient, I shall offer none, and only pray 
for your forgiveness.'* 

Arrangements were made at once for the consecration of the 
three prelates. Bishop Egan was consecrated at St. Peter's, the 
pro-Cathedral of Baltimore, on October 28, 1810. On All Saints' 



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Division of Diocese 589 

Day, in the same church, Bishop Cheverus was consecrated. On 
St. Charles' Day, November 4, Bishop Flaget was consecrated 
at St. Patrick's Church, Fells Point, now within the city limits 
of Baltimore. Bernard Dornin, the Catholic publisher of Balti- 
more, issued a small pamphlet entitled Instructions on the erec- 
tion of the four new Catholic Episcopal Sees in the UniteiU 
Slates and the Consecration of their first Bishops, etc., to which 
he added the principal ceremonies and prayers." The Dominican 
William V. Harold, who preached an eloquent sermon on the 
obedience due to bishops when Dr. Cheverus was consecrated, 
issued his discourse in pamphlet form, shortly after the cere- 
mony. The eloquent Dominican said : 

You have not to resort to antiquity for an example of Episcopal virtne. 
That bounteous God, whose manifold blessings overspread this land, whose 
boundless mercies claim our wamiest gratitude, still preserves for your ad- 
vantage, a living encouragement to such virtue and a fair model for your 
imitation. You will seek both in your venerable and moat reverend Pre- 
late—you will find both in the Father of the American Church, and under 
God the author of its prosperity. In him you will find that meekness 
which is the best fruit of the Holy Ghost, that htunility which for 
Christ's sake makes him the servant of all, that richly polished character 
which none but great minds can receive, which nothing but virtue can 
impart.** 

The bishops remained in Baltimore for several weeks in con- 
sultation with the venerable archbishop, and their time was 
spent in drawing up an Agreement for the uniformity of Cath- 
olic discipline throughout the country. This Agreement, to- 
gether with the data of the Synod of 1791, forms the earliest 
code of canon law in the American Church. Shea speaks of it 
as the Pastoral, but it forms rather a deliberation between the 
bishops, by which they were to regulate their dioceses, until the 
first national council should meet, namely, within two years from 
that date (November 15, 1810) : 

The most Reverend Archbishop and Rt, Rev. Bishops assembled in 
Baltimore took into their serious consideration the slate of the churches 
under their care, but not being able to extend their enquiries and collect 
full information concerning many points, which require tmiform regulation 
and perhaps amendment, they reserved to a future occasion a general 

*■ Ct. Fmom, Bitl. Colli. Amtr., pp. 176-177. TUi little worii wu printtd 
in French ■nd Ei«|jib. 
" a. Ibii, p. t]6. 



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590 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

review of the ecclesiastical discipline now observed throughout the differ- 
ent dioceses and the reducing of it everywhere to as strict conformity with 
that of the universal Church as our peculiar situation, circumstances and 
general benefit of the Faithful will allow. Some matters requiring imme- 
diate attention were maturely discussed, on which, after humbly invoking 
the assistance of the Divine Spirit, resolutions or ordinances were made, 
which in due time, will be communicated to the Gergy or ttie laity as they 
may be concerned in them. The following are some of them and are now 
published for general information : 

I. Pastors of the different churches, or they who in their absence are 
intrusted with the care of the church, chalices, and sacred vestments, are 
not to permit any strange and unknown priests to exercise priestly func- 
tions before they have exhibited authentic proofs of their having obtained 
the Bishop's permission. 

a. Conformably to the spirit of the Church and its general practice, the 
Sacrament of Baptism shall be administered in the church only, in all 
towns in which churches are erected excepting only cases of necessity. 

3. Some difliculties have occurred in making inunediately a general rule 
for the celebration of marriages in the Church; as a practice most con- 
formable to general and Catholic discipline it was thought premature now 
to publish an ordinance to that effect; yet all pastors are directed to 
recommend this religious usage universally wherever it is not attended 
with very great inconvenience, and prepare the mind of their flocks for 
its adoption in a short time. 

4. The pastors of the Faithful are earnestly directed to discourage more 
and more from the pulpit, and in their public and private conferences an 
attachment to entertainments and diversions of dangerous tendency to mor- 
ality, such as to freijuent theatres, and cherish a fondness of dancing 
assemblies. They likewise must often warn their congregations against 
the reading of books dangerous to Faith & morals and especially a promiscu- 
ous reading of all kinds of novels. The faithful themselves should always 
remember the severity with which the Church, guided by the Holy Ghost 
constantly prohibited writings calculated to diminish the respect due to 
our Holy Religion. 

5. The Archbishop and Bishop enjoin on all priests exercising in their 
respective Dioceses faculties for the administratitm of the sacraments, not 
to admit to those of penance and the Bd. Eucharist such persons as are 
known to belong to the association commonly called Freemasons, unless 
these persons seriously promise to abstain forever from going to tlieir 
lodges and professing themselves to belong to their Society, and Pastors 
of Congregations shall frequently recommend to all under their care never 
to join with or become members of said fraternity. 

•f J. Ab'p. of B-re. 

+ Leonard, Bp. of Gortytta, Coadjutor 

•{• Michael, Bp. of Phila. 

•{■ Benedict Joseph, Bp. of Bardstoum 

•i- John, Bu'p of Botlon. 



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Division of Diocese 59^ 

The result of tbdr further deliberations was a more detailed 
set of regulations for the administration of the Church: 

I. Promtdat Council. 

It appears to the Archbishop and Bishops now assembled, that the 
holding of a Provincial Council will be more advantageous at a future 
period when the situation and the wants of the different dioceses will 
be more exactly known. This provincial Council will be held at furthest 
within two years from the first of November, 1810; and in the mean- 
time the Archbishops and Bishops will now consider together such matters 
as appears to them the most urgent & they recommend an uniform prac- 
tice in regard to their decisions, until tite holding of said Brovincial 
Gnmcil. 
a. Diocesan Synod. 

The difficulty of fre<iuently holdmg Diocesan Synods will be represented 
to the Holy See; and the time of assembling them be left to the dis- 
cretion of the respective Bishops. But in the case any shonld neglect 
the calling of a Diocesan Synod, when easily practicable & requisite 
for the good of his Diocese, the Archbishops shall take lawful measures 
for the convocation of such Synod. 

3. Episcopal Visits. 

It shall be represented to the Holy See that annual visits of the whole 
Diocese are in this country, altogether impracticable, and would prove 
an insupportable burden to the Bishops. The time and frequency of such 
visits ought therefore to be left to the discretion of each Bisliop. Every 
Bishop however is requested to visit every year part of his Diocese & 
to bear in mind the importance and usefulness of such visits. 

4. NominatioH of Bishops. 

In case the Holy See will graciously permit the nomination to vacant 
Bishopricks to be made in the United States, it is humbly and respect- 
fully suggested to the Supreme Pastor of the Church to allow the nom- 
ination for the vacant Diocese to proceed solely from the Archbishop 
and Bishops of this ecclesiastical Province. 

5. Prittts who are members of secitlar or Regular Congregations. 
When Priests belonging to Secular or R^ular Congregatkxis have, 

with the consent of their Superiors, been intrusted with the care of 
Souls, it is our opinion that such Priests ought not to be at the disposal 
of their Superiors, & be recalled against the will of the Bishops. At the 
same time we profess most willingly our esteem and respect for these 
Coogregations so useful to our Dioceses, and our confidence to their 
Stqwriors. We shall see with pleasure our Diocesans follow their voca- 
tions, vAko they wish to becMoe members of said Congregations. Nor 
do we intend to insist upon employing in the ministry such subjects as 
are really wanted by the said Congregations or even to oppose the recall 
of the Priests already employed in the ministry, provided such recall 
shall appear to the Diocesan Bishops absolutely necessary for the exist- 
ence or welfare of such Congregations. 



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592 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

6. Priests retidmg on the conjiues of digereni Diocests. 
Priests approved in any Diocese of the United States may < 

their faculties in the neighbouring Dioceses, but if such priests leave 
their own Diocese without obtaining an exeat, they are not allowed to 
exercise their faculties any longer than two months, except they obtain 
authority from the Bishop of the Diocese to which they have emigrated 
whose duty it shall be to proceed with them agreeably to the Canons of 
general discipline provided tor sHch cases. 

7. Strange Priests. 

Pastors of the different churches, or those who in dieir absence arc 
intrusted with the care of the church, are never to permit any strange, 
unknown Priests to exercise Priestly functions, before they have exhibited 
authentic faculties, or letters from the Bishop, and obtained his permission. 

8. Holy Scripture. 

The translation of the old and new testament commonly called the 
Douay Bible is to be literally followed and copied, whenever any part 
of the Holy Scripture is inserted in any prayer-book or book of devotion ; 
and no private or other translation is to be made use of in those books, 
g. Vtmacular Language. 

It is being made known to the Archbishops and Bishops that there 
exists a difference of opinion and practice among some of the clergy of 
the United States concerning the use of the vernacular language in any 
part of the public service, and in the administration of the Sacraments, 
it is hereby enjoined on all Priests not only to celebrate the whole Mass 
in the Latin language, but likewise when they administer Baptism, the 
Holy Eucharist, Penance and Extreme Unction, to express the necessary 
and essential form of those Sacraments in the same tongue according to 
the Roman ritual, but it does not appear contrary to the injunctions of 
the Church to say in the vernacular language the prayers 
previous and subsequent to those Sacred forms, provided however, that 
no translation of those prayers shall be made use of except one authorized 
by the concurrent approbation of the Bishops of this ecclesiastical 
Province, which translation will be printed as soon as it can be prepared 
under their inspection. In the meantime the translation of the late 
venerable Bishop Ctialloner may be made use of. 

10. Registers. 

All Priests are requested to remember the obligation of recording and 
carefully preserving in a book for that purpose the Baptisms, Marriages 
& Burials of their respective Congregations. 

11. Baptisms. 

Conformably to the Spirit of the Church and its general practice, the 
Sacrament of Baptism shall be administered in the Church only, in all 
towns where churches are erected except in cases of necessity. 
,2. Sfon^m 

When a sponsor for a child to be baptized cannot be procured, the child 
is to be solenuily baptized with the usual ceremonies, but only receives 
what is called private baptism. 



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Division of Diocese 593 

IJ. Coiitribtititins for Mattes. 

On account of the rise in provisions and other necessaries of life the 
contribution for a Mass is now lixed at fifty cents. 

14. Marriaget. 

Many difGculties having occurred in regard to the forming of a 
general rule that atl marriages should be celebrated in the church as a 
practice most conformable to the general discipline; it was judged 
premature to make now an ordinance on that subject; but all Pastors 
are directed to command this usage universally, and prepare the minds 
of their flocks for its adoption in a short tnne. 

15. Vtittti of Chattily. 

Perpetual vows of chastity ought not to be advised or even allowed 
to individuals or pious associations of persons of either sex who are not 
members of some approved Religious Order. 

16. Public EHlertainmeutt. 

All pastors of Souls are earnestly directed to discourage more and more 
from the pulpit and in their public and private conferences an attachment 
to entertainments & diversions of a dangerous tendency to morality, 
soch as a frequentation of the theatre and a fondness for dancing assem- 
blies. They are likewise to prohibit the reading of books tending to 
corrupt faith or manners, especially the promiscuous reading of all kinds 
of novels. The faithful themselves are to bear constantly ia mind the 
severity with which the Church, guided by the Holy Ghost, has always 
proscribed writings calculated to diminish the respect due to oar holy 
religion. 

17. Fret Matons. 

The Ardibisbop and Bishops enjoin on atl Priests exerdstng their 
faculties in their respective Dioceses not to administer the Sacraments 
of Penance and Eucharist to such persons as are known to be of the 
association of Free Masons unless they seriously promise to abstain from 
going to their Lodges, and professing themselves to belong to their 
Society. And Pastors of Congregations shall frequently recommend 
to all tmder their care not to join with or become members of the said 
Fraternity. 

18. Bewdiction of the B. Sacranunl. 

An uniform mode of giving Benediction with the B. Sacrament wilt 
be transmitted by each of the Bishops to the clergy of their respective 
Dioceses. 
Baltimore, Nov. 19, 1810. •{• John, Archb. of Baltimore 

4* Leohabd Neale, Bp. of Goriyna, 

Coadj. of Ball't. 
•}• Michael, Bp. of Pkiladelpkia 
•{• John, Bishop of Boston 
4" Benedictus Joseph, Bp. of Bardlotm.^* 

■* Btliimort Cat^iral AreUvti, C*K 3-Ji; printed in CurnM, Bgan, pp. 44'4S- 
Copia ol lUa afrtement wtn nude to be wnt WH to the prioti; a certain mmibcT 
an itill (xUDt UU4.. Cut ii-Ii-j). 



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594 "^f" ^'/« f""^ Times of John Carroll 

On February 17, 1810, Archbishop Troy, in the name of the 
Catholic hierarchy of Ireland, sent to the American prelates a 
copy of the letter of the archbishops and bishops of Ireland on 
the imprisonment of Pope Pius VII. This letter was read by 
Archbishop Carroll to the new bishops at their informal meeting 
in November, 1810, On November 15, 1810, the archbishop 
and the four American bishops drafted and signed a solemn pro- 
test against the captivity of Pius VII : 

We undersigned, by divine pennissi<m, and with the approbation of the 
Holy See, Archbishop and Bishops of our respective Dioceses : 
To our beloved Brethren, Grace and Peace from God ottr Father, and 
from the Lord JESUS CHRIST. 

The many outrages committed against the person of our chief Pastor 
Pius the 7th, the vicar of our Lord Jesuf Chriit in the government of 
the Holy See, have been long known to you, our beloved Brethren, and 
excited in your breasts sentiments of deep affliction and indignation. 
These acts of aggression were not only unprovoked, but, to avert them, 
our Holy Father employed all means of forbearance, meekness, patience, 
paternal admonition, charitable remonstrances, and even condescension as 
far as his conscience and duty would allow him, thus evincing his sincere 
desire to preserve peace, unity and true religion in the whole fiock com- 
mitted to this charge. But fruitless were his endeavours to restrain 
violence and infuse principles of justice. The work of oppression went 
on to its consummation, in defiance of all law, natural and divine. After 
suffering with that placid constancy, which only the God of fortitude 
could inspire, the most disrespectful and insulting treatment, and being 
stripped of the dominions, which had been held by his Predecessors for 
more than a thousand years, to the immense benefit of the Christian 
world, he was first made a prisoner within the walls of his own palace, 
and then, as was his immediate and Holy Predecessor of blessed mem- 
ory Pius the 6th, forcibly dragged away from the chair of St. Peter, and 
the sacred ashes of the Apostles ; he is detained in a foreign land, as a 
prisoner, and debarred from communicating with any part of the flock 
committed to his pastoral care and solicitude. Thus has Divine Providence 
permitted bim to drink of that cup, and share in those sufferings, of which 
the first of his Predecessors St, Peter, and many after him, had so large 
a portion; to the end that their constancy in resisting the impiety of the 
enemies of Jefuj Christ might be as conspicuous, as their high rank in the 
Church of God; and that their public testimony for the honour of his 
sacred person and religion might confound, and leave without excuse the 
malevolence or ignorance of those men, who continue to calumniate the 
Bishops of Rcone, as corrupters of the faith, and worship of God the 
Father, and his Blessed Son, the Saviour of mankind, for whose sake so 
many of them sacrificed their liberty and their livei. 



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Division of Diocese 595 

But, though the Church is glorified by their meritorious sufterings, it is 
not less the duty of all its members, during the oppression of our common 
Father, to offer up our fervent prayers for his deliverance from the 
power of his enemies, that he may freely and efficaciously exercise, for the 
advantage of our souls, his important pastoral duties. When St. Peter, 
Prince of the Apostles, wu cast into prison by the impious Herod, and 
loaded with chains, the Primitive Christians regarded it as a common 
calamity, and prayer teas ptade wilhout ceaiing by the Chvrch to God 
for him. Acts, ch. iz. v, 5. Their prayers were graciously heard, and 
an angel of the Lord stood by him. . . . and the chains fell off from hit 

Encouraged by their example and success let us beseech the Almighty 
Founder, Preserver and continual Protector of his Church to manifest 
his power in these our days, as heretofore, by delivering our chief Pastor 
out of the hands of his enemies, and restoring peace and tranquillity, so 
that he, and other Pastors under him may again every where and in all 
freedom minister to their respective flocks in sll holy things. To render 
oitr prayers acceptable before God, they must proceed from penitential 
hearts, deeply humiliated by a sense of their past transgressions, fully 
resolved to follow no more their sinful lusts, and disorderly affections, and 
filled with an assurance of obtaining mercy and favour through the 
merits of our Saviour Jesus Christ. 

Wherefore, on every Sunday and festival, either immediately before 
Mass or Sermon, the respective Pastors shall recite the 120th psalm with 
the prayer thereto annexed; and all priests, at the daily celebration of 
Mass, besides the proper collects, shall add that for the Pope, as in the 
missal— D?HJ, omnium Fidelium pastor et rector, &c. These directions are 
to be observed, till further notice. 

May the grace of God, through Jesus Girist, and that peace, which 
the world cannot give, remain always with you. 

Baltimore, Nov. 15. 1810. 

•1* JoaM, Archbishop of Baltimore, 

4- Michael, Bishop of Philadelphia, 

•h John, Bishop of Boston, 

4* Benedict Josbph, Bishop of Bards-toum. 

PSALM J20. 
I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains; from v^ence help shall 

My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 

May he not suffer thy foot to be moved'! neither let him slumber who 

keepeth thee. 
Behold he shall neither slumber nor sleep who keepeth Israel. 
TTie Lord is thy keeper: the Lord is thy protection upon thy right hand. 
The Sim shall not bum thee by day — nor the moon by nig^it 
The Lord keepeth thee from evil: may the Lord keep thy soul I 



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59^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

May the Lord keep thj coming-in, and thy going-ont, from hencefortii, 

now and forever I 

Glory be to th* Fathtr, &c. 

As it was in the begiHniitg, &c. 
V. Let m pray for our chief Bishop Pius. 
R. Our Lord preserve him and give him life, and make him blesMd on 

earth, and deliver him not to the will of his enemies. 
V. O Lord hear tny prayer. 
R. And let my supplication come imto thee. 
V, The Lord be with yon. 
R. And with thy spirit 

Let us pray. 
God, the Pastor and Governor of all the faithful, look down in thy 
mercy on thy servant Pins, whom thon hast appointed to be Pastor over 
diy Chord): Grant, we beseech thee, that both by word and example, be 
may be profitable to those, over whom he presides, that, together with the 
flock intrusted to him, he may obtain everlasting life. Tlirough Christ 
our Lord, Amen. 

This first joint encyclical of the American hierarchy was trans- 
mitted to Archbishop Troy of Dublin, on November 26, 1810, 
with the following letter : 

Agreeably to your Lordship's dciire, I delivered a copy of the printed 
letter of the Most Reverend Archbishops and Bishops of Ireland to my 
Coadjutor, and the Bishops of Philadelphia, Boston, and Bardstown, Ken- 
tucky, and we perused it with all the veneration due to those eminent 
prelates, who now constitute perhaps the fairest hope and strongest bulwark 
of the Church throughout the Christian world, for you enjoy, throu{^ 
Divine Mercy, the privilege of openly declaring the genuine sentiments 
which may animate and enlighten not only the pastors, but likewise all 
members of the Catholic Church. To make the communication to the 
Right Rev. Brethren, I availed myself of the circumstance of their 
being all brot^ht together at this place to receive their consecration on 
the 38th October, ist and 4th of this mmth. 

The consecrations being done, the Bishops remained two entire weeks 
with me, to advise on many points of regulation, and discipline, that we 
may follow an uniform practice in the government of our Churches; 
and likewise to take into consideration the present state of the Catholic 
Church, of its visible head, our Venerable Pontiff, and the consequences of 
his being withdrawn from his captivity, either by violence, or the ruin of 
his constitution by interior and exterior sufferings. In these discussicms, 
the Encyclical letter from your Most and Right Reverend Lordships neces- 
sarily offered Itself to our minds, and though we know not whether the 
Vicars Apostolical in England, or the Bishops of any other country, have 
expressed themselves as a body, on the obedience due to any acts emanat- 



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Division of Diocese 597 

ing ostensibly from the Pope, or on the cauticxi to be used in recogniiins 
his successor; yet we jodKed it our duty to transmit you an answer, 
which I have the honour to enclose. We were too sensible of our in- 
sufficiency, and recent dates of our establishment, to prescribe to our- 
selves, or profess before the venerable Fathers of the Church, an adhesion 
to specific rules of conduct in all the most intricate situations that may 
happen; humbly trusting, that if the exigency should arise, we shall be 
directed by that Divine Spirit which is promised to the Pastors, successors 
of the Apostles. We therefore pledged ourselves to those general princi- 
ples, which are now indispensable and essential, not doubting, bul your 
determination and luminous examples will, under God, be our directi<m 
in the disastrous times and events so likely to ensue.'* 

The text of the joint encyclical of the American bishops is 
as follows: 

Creelmg m the Lord to the mojt Illustriout and Most Reverend Arch- 
bishops and Bishops of Ireland from the appointed Archbishop and Bishops 
of the United Slates. 

The letter whidi your charity. Venerable Brethren, addressed on Feb- 
ruary 37 to all the Ordinaries of the Catholic Church has been received 
by ns with gratitude and that respect ^rilich is due to you. We are de- 
termined with God's help, to defend both the Unity of the Church of 
Christ and the authority of the Holy See on which that unity depends, 
and to saf^uard and defend the primacy of honour and of jurisdiction 
which bekmgs to the Sovereign Pontiff by divine right. It is our sacred 
and pleasing duty to pledge our fullest faith and obedience to Pope Pins 
VII who at present holds the supreme Pontificate. To him to whom all 
praise is due as Pontiff we adhere and declare our submission, as members 
cling to their head. And if, according to the words of St Paul, the 
affliction of one member causes suffering to all the other members, how 
much more severely must the bitter affliction the head itself affect all the 
members P 

We grieve then with you, Venerable Brethren, and are roused to indig- 
nation in the Lord; and we declare it together with you an unspealcable 
outrage that the aged Pontiff should be driven from his home and country, 
a blameless bishop sadly afflicted, the Mother Church stripped of her 
patrimony, and a worthy Pontiff thus maltreated. We oursctvei are not 
tuuundful of the benefits which Pius VII has bestowed on us in this 
distant country. For it was due to his provident and apostolic care that 
this portion of the Lord's fold in the United States has been formed 
into an ecclesiastical province of four suffragan Bishops with the Arch- 
bishop of Baltimore at their head. 



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598 The Life and Times of John CarToU 

We trust in the Lord that the singular fortitude of soul which shone 
forth so gloriously in Pius VI of happy memory, may likewise be the 
conspicuous note of the reign of Pius VII ; and we have no doubt that 
he will continue to exhibit, for the consolation of the Church, that con- 
stancy of soul which he has already shown in bearing up amidst afflictions, 
whenever there will be any occasion to act, or to speak, or perchance to 
suffer. 

In the mean time we openly proclaim that we shall listen humbly to 
the admonitions of the Holy Father, tho he be detained in captivity; and 
that VK shall promptly obey his wishes and commands, so long as these 
bear the authentic stamp of the voice and mind, and the requisite notes 
of the Pontifical authority; but we shall not consider ourselves obliged 
as boiuid by letters or documents of whatever description, pretending to 
emanate from him and circulated in his name, unless it shall first be made 
clear beyond all suspicion that Pius VII has been perfectly and entirely 
free in his deliberatioas and counsels. 

But if the Sovereign Pontiff should die (which God prevent amidst the 
present dangers of the Church) we, together with you Venerable Brethren, 
shall confide in the Almighty not to desert His Church in so great a 
calamity, which, though she may be bereft of her Sovereign Pastor for 
a l<mg time on earth, shall rather sustain lesser evils than that any one 
should either by violence or threat ascend the throne of Peter and tear 
the mystic body of Christ. Hence we are prepared with full determina- 
tion, and shall endeavor to persuade the people committed to our care, 
that no one b to be recognized as the true successor of St. Peter, unless 
he be accepted as such by far the greater part of the Episcopate of the 
whole world, and by nearly the entire Catholic people. 

If we, who as yet barely enjoy a name among the Churches, have 
decreed to open our minds to you. Venerable Brethren, it was due to your 
courtesy in as much as you felt moved to send to us also your encyclical 
letter addressed to the other Bishops of the Catholic world; and it 
would be wrong in us not to respond to the high honor you have done 
us; for you are the heirs of those episcopal sees which have been made 
illustrious for ages by the virtue of the long lives of saintly bishops your 
predecessors. You are preserving the people committed to you in the 
ancient and true faith and piety, and you exhilrit the singular and per- 
chance unique example of unbroken fortitude in safeguarding and propa- 
gating Catholic dogma, despite the opposition of all human artifices, fraud 
and violence. 

Humbly commending ourselves to your prayers, we beg that yon may 
receive every blessing which can prosper your country, your churches 
and each of you individually.** 



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Division of Diocese 599 

Dr. Carroll refers to this important action of the American 
hierarchy in a letter to Plowden, dated January 17, 1812, as 
follows : 

At the same time we had before us the ctrcnlar Latin letter of die 
Prelates □{ Ireland, officially transmitted by Abp. Troy. It related, as yon 
know, to the calamitous state of the Pope, and the Chtirch. To aoiwer 
it was incumbent on ns; but on account of the infancy of our hierarch]', 
we felt a diffidence. Vet we did answer, and I hear that our answer 
was published in England and Ireland, which was not foreseen here. 
We were mare reserved, as ynu may have observed, than our Irish 
Brediren, not daring to anticipate the specific course to be pursued here- 
after in the future contingencies of the Chnrch, humbly trusting to the 
guidance of the Holy Ghost, if those contingencies should ensue, to the 
examples given us by the more antient churches, and fortifying ottr- 
selves by the promises of Girist, dtat the powers of hell shall not pre- 
vail against that Church, which be acquired with his blood. We re- 
solved likewise at ottr meeting to attempt the opening of an avenue to 
the incarcerated Pontiff.*^ 

The consultations at Baltimore were finished with the ded«on 
to hold a Natiotial Council in November, 1812, and the three 
new bishops were free to set out for their appointed sees. 
Bishops "Egan and Cheverus journeyed from Baltimore to Mount 
St. Mary's College, Etnmttsbtirg. No mention is made of this 
visit in the Story of the Mounlaitt, but Mother Seton writes to 
Bishop Carroll, on November 29, 1810 : "I need not tell you our 
consolation in receiving the Blessed Bishops nor how many bene- 
dictions they poured upon us. We have been very sensible of 
this special favor." Bishop Egan's niece, Mary Egan, was then 
in the Academy directed by the Daughters of Charity at Emmits- 
bui^. Bishop Egan also had the pleasure of meeting again the 
first three ladies — all from Philadelphia — who had joined Mother 
Seton's community, Miss Cedlia O'Conway, Miss Mary Ann 
Butler, and Miss Maria Murphy, the last-named being a niece 
of Mathew Carey, one of the prominent Catholic laymen of 
Philadelphia. To Bishop Cheverus, who had an important share 
in the conversion of Mother Seton, in 1805, the visit to Emmits- 
burg was the source of profound satisfaction. Strangely enough, 
although he had been her friend and counseller in al! her imder- 
takii^ after her conversion, she had never seen Dr. Cheverus 

" Stnylnnl Tranictiflt. 



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6oo The Life and Times of John Carroll 

until he presented himself to her on this menwrable occasion.** 
From Emmitsburg the two prelates set out for their respective 
sees. It is not certain whether they travelled together, althoi^h 
there is a letter extant from Father Dubois, then President of 
Mount St. Mary's College, to Mother Seton, asking her to prevail 
upon Bishop Cheverus to celebrate pontifical Mass for the col- 
legians the following Sunday. In all probability they were to- 
gether for a few days in Philadelphia, before Bishop Cheverus 
started on his long journey to Boston. Bishop Flaget was less 
fortunate than his two brethren in the episcopate. After his 
consecration he found that he had not sufficient money to pay 
for his journey to Kentucky; and when the venerable Archbishop 
infortned him that he, too, was unable to assist him, it was no 
kinger possible to keep his indigency a secret. Bishop Flaget 
had numerous friends in Baltimore, and by a private subscription 
the necessary amount was quickly collected. It was not, how- 
ever, til! May of the following year, i8i i, that Bishop Flaget was 
able to begin his arduous journey to Kentucky. Some years 
afterwards. Bishop Flaget described this period of embarrass- 
ment in a letter to the Society of the Propagation of the Faith. 
He writes : 

It was in June g, 1811, that I made my entry into this little village 
[Bardstowi] accompanied by two priests and three young students, for 
the ecclesiastical state. Not only had I not a cent in my purse, txtt I 
was even compelled to borrow nearly two thousand francs, in order to 
be able to reach my destination. Thus, without money, without a hoose, 
without property, almost without acquaintances, I found myself in the 
midst of a diocese, two or three times larger than all France, contaming 
five large States and two territories, and myself speaking the language 
very imperfectly. Add to all this that almost all the Catholics were 
emigrants, but newly settled and poorly furnished.** 

Bishops Egan and Cheverus were better prepared to meet the 
expenses of their journey and were going to dioceses where the 
Faith had been growing for nearly a century ; but i f they met with 
a more encouraging outlook than the intrepid Flaget, difficulties 
of another and more serious kind were awaitii^ them both. 

The close of the year i8ro, the twentieth in the history of the 



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Division of Diocese 60 1 

American episcopate, found the American hierarchy composed of 
one archbishop, one coadjutor-bishop, three suffragan bishops, 
one vacant see, that of New York, with Father Anthony Kohl- 
mann, S. J., as vicar -general during the interim; about seventy 
priests and eighty churches. There were three theological sem- 
inaries: St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore; the Jesuit novitiate, 
at Georgetown, and St, Rose's Dominican novitiate in Kentucky. 
Three colleges for the education of young men were in existent : 
St. Mary's College, Baltimore; Mount St. Mary's College, 
Emmitsburg, and St. Thomas' College, in Kentucky, conducted 
by the Dominicans. There were several academies for the educa- 
tion of young ladies, the best known being St. Joseph's Academy 
at Emmitsburg, directed by Mother Seton. An orphan asylum 
for Catholic children had been incorporated at Philadelphia (De- 
cember 17, 1808). Private Catholic schools existed in the main 
centres of population. "With the exception of six priests in Ken- 
tucky and seven or eight farther West, the clergy were all sta- 
tioned east of the All^hanies.*'' 

No accurate description of the general condition of Catholic 
life in the five dioceses can be given. It was a time of pioneer 
evai^^elization. The waves of the great emigration which flowed 
toward the shores of America hardly reached our coasts until 
after Archbishop Carroll had passed away to his reward. The 
object nearest the hearts of these our earliest spiritual shepherds 
was the strengthenit^ of the faith of their people, the building of 
churches, the preparation of yom^ men for the priesthood, and 
above all, the creation of a thorough system of Catholic educa- 
tion for the young. 

To a great extent the remaining five years of Archbishop Car- 
roll's life would seem at first glance to be overshadowed by the 
march of events in the dioceses suffragan to Baltimore; but a 
careful study of the state of religion in these different parts of 
the country reveals the grasp he possessed to the very end on all 
that concerned the good of religion and of Catholicism as a factor 
in American life. To understand these last years of the venerable 
prelate's life, an account of the growth of the Church in these 
five dioceses during the period of Carroll's episcopate (1790- 
1815) is necessary. 

*■ Warn, at' ol., p. ni. 



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CHAFl'ER XXX 

THE SUFFRAGAN SEES: I. BOSTON 

(1792-18IS) 

As constituted by the Brief Ex debito pastoralis officii ol 
April 8, 1808, the Diocese of Boston embraced all the New 
England States: Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, 
Vermont, New Hampshire, and the District of Maine.* It is 
impossible to say how many Catholics were residents in this great 
extent of territory, all numbers given being merely conjectures 
or based upon evidence that cannot be sustained. From 1689, 
when it was asserted that there was not a single Catholic in all 
New England,* down to the report sent to Dr. Carroll by 
Matignon in 1798, nothing is certain on this question. New 
Er^land is not mentioned in Carroll's Report of March i, 1785, 
and no priest is given as ministering in that territory. Fathers 
Poterie, Rousselet, and Thayer, who lived at and around Boston 
from 1788 to 1792 can hardly be trusted as capable observers of 
the Catholic life about them. 

Bishop Carroll's experience with the Catholics in Boston had 
not been an encouragii^ one. At his accession to the See of 
Baltimore in 1790, one priest in good standing at the time, the 
convert Father John Thayer, was in charge of the little congre- 
gation of Boston. Thayer was not, as has been seen, a construc- 
tive genius; and the real beginnings of the Catholic Church in 
Boston must, therefore, be credited to his successor. Father 
Francis Anthony Matignon, who arrived in Boston in the summer 
of 1792. Matignon was one of the best types of the refugee 
French clergy of the period. Bom in Paris in 1753, he was 
ordained priest in 1778, and received the d^ree of Doctor of 



' "Tcniam BoHooiae cum dioecai, iotn qium idu indudimiu 
inatdam Rbodi, ConsccticiiC i 



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Diocese of Boston 603 

Divinity at the Sorbonne in 1785. He was appointed R^us 
Professor of Theology in the College of Navarre, and at the out- 
break of the French Revolution was exiled with many of his 
fellow-cleigy. Durii^ his stay in England he made the acquaint- 
ance of several members of the former English Jesuit Province, 
all friends of Bishop Carroll; and especially was he known to 
the procurator. Father Thomas Talbot, then living in London. 
Father Talbot was in dose touch with the American Church 
through his correspondence with Dr. Carroll, and he persuaded 
the Sorboone professor to go out to America to assist Dr. Carroll 
in the missions. Dr. Matignon's talents were of the highest 
quality, and in his manner all the accomplishments of the gentle- 
men of the French court of the day were visible. Bom amid 
wealth and culture, his circle of friends in Paris included nobles, 
prelates, and cardinals, and even the unfortunate Louis XVI. 
- When be came to Boston, life was crude in many ways in the 
future home of American culture. 

He found the people of New England more than suspicious about the 
great designs he had in view. Absurd and foolish legends of the Pope 
and Popery had been handed down from father to son since the first 
Cidonization of New England, and a prejudice of undefined and undefin- 
able dislike, if not hatred, to everything connected with Rome reigned 
supreme in the minds of the Puritan commimity. It required a thorough 
acquaintance with the world to know precisely bow to meet these senti- 
ments of a whole people. Violence and indiscretion would have destroyed 
all hopes of success ; ignorance would have exposed the cause to sarcasm 
and contempt! and enthusiasm too manifest would have produced a re- 
action that would have ruined the infant establishment. Dr. Matignon 
was exactly fitted to encounter all these difficulties; and he saw them and 
knew the extent of his task. With meekness and humility he disarmed 
Ihe proud; with prudence, learning, and wisdom, he met the captious and 
slanderous; and so gentle and so just was his course that even the cen- 
sorious forgot to watch him, and the malicious were too cunning to attack 
one armed so strong in his poverty.* 

During the latter half of the year 1792, Ei^lish Catholics, 
writes Ward, "became occupied about new and tmexpected events, 
which not only had the most desirable effect of distracting them 
from their own internal disputes, but likewise brought about 
results which had a permanent and far-reaching influence on the 

* Onilti Statu CtthoKt Uagamtt, vri. viii, f. i66. 



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604 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

future of Catholicity in this country. This was the arrival of the 
French refugee priests, most of them in a state of poverty, or 
even destitution, which brought about one of the greatest national 
acts of charity recorded in our history,"* Protestant and Catholic 
alike came to the rescue of these unfortunate victims of the 
French Revolution, whose numbers in England increased after 
the passage of the Civil Constitution of the Qergy in July, 1790. 
Many of these French priests corresponded with Dr. Carroll, and 
there are several letters from Monseigneur Count de la Marche, 
Bishop of St. Pol de Leon in Brittany. With the advent of the 
horrible massacres which occurred in Paris and in other cities 
of France, in September, 1792 — it was during the night of Sep- 
tember 2, that the unspeakable crime at the Carmes took place — 
the Catholic clergy saw only one escape from death by the 
Jacobites, namely, the road to exile. In England there were at 
this time about three thousand French refugee priests, and six- 
teen bishops. The Abb^ Barruel has described their plight in his 
History of the Clergy during ihe French Revolution, and his work 
contains many remarkable pages for the history of Catholicism in 
England. Committees were immediately formed to relieve the 
distress of these cultured French gentlemen, and more than once 
the plan was proposed to induce some of them to go out to the 
new Diocese of Baltimore. Few came, however, from England. 
The Sulpicians and the others, like Fathers Souge and Tisserand, 
came directly from France. Francis Matignon was among these 
refugees, and Cheverus, who followed him to London, is said to 
have founded the present congregation at Tottenham, London 
(1794-1796). After a short stay in London, where he acquired 
English, Father Matignon decided to come to Baltimore to offer 
his services to Carroll, He was thirty-nine years old at the time 
of his arrival. His companions across the Atlantic, Marechal, 
fiichard, and Ciquard, were immediately given posts by Bishop 
Carroll. Father Marechal was first sent to Bohemia, and then 
to Philadelphia ; Father Richard was sent to Detroit as assistant 
to Father Levadoux, and Father Ciquard, who had expressed a 
wish for missionary work among the Indians, was sent to the 
Indians in Maine.* 



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Diocese of Boston 605 

The condition of the Catholic Indians in Maine was brought to 
Dr. Carroll's attention when John Allan, who had been an agent 
for the Government in that district, wrote to the Bishop of EalH- 
more (May 23, 1791), appealii^ for a priest to minister to these 
faithful children of the Church : 

Rever'd and Respecttd Sir: 

I do myself the honour to inclose you a Speech deliv'd at a Council of 
the Indians in this country, solidting the indulgence of a clergyman of 
the Roman Catholic profession. From a long acquaintance with this 
people, and having command of them during the late war between 
America & Britain, I am in some degree knowing to their sentiments 
and disposition respecting their religious tenets ; they are a very exem- 
plary people (consistent with their customs and manners) as are to be 
met with — zealous and Tenacious of the rites of the church and strictly 
moral, cautious of misbelieving in point of religion, even to be observed 
when intoxicated. I have been surprised so little notice has been taken of 
them in this respect, tho' rude and uncultivated in many other matters, 
they are truly civilized in this, and it was always observ'd by the French 
Gentlemen of the Clergy, which we were favoured with during the war, 
that they never saw a more respectable collection in France, & excepting 
the Cathedral & some particular places of worship, their performance, 
chants in latin, etc., were in most instances superior to any. — I have been 
myself charmed with them, when shut up in the woods, & tho' of a dif- 
ferent sentiment, believe them to be truly Christians, meriting the pe- 
culiar blessmgs of the deity — they teach their children when able to lisp 
a word, the service, and as they grow up become in a manner innate, 
this owing to the assiduity of the French missionaries— ^much to their 
honour. 

Their attachment to America is great, even with those whose hunts go 
within the British provinces, & I think, I have sufficient authority to assert, 
that the number who continued with me during the war, behaved with 
as much fidelity and zeal as any people whatever within the United States. 

It is certain they are of great use in this quarter — their trade is con- 
siderable, but the benefits this infant country receives, by supplying it with 
wild meats — is much more — they behave with moderation and prudence 
when they come among the inhabitants 1 no complaints of any consequence 
have I beard since I have been in this country {15 years).— As to their 
circumstances, I presimie from what I have already seen, there wottld 
not be a more profitable mission [than] this [in] the States, nor a situa- 

joincd the SnlpicUni, *Dd Itfl for Canada in i^Sj. Later, be retmiiHl to Fianet 
where he became Rector of the Semioitr of Bourfca. At the ontbreak cA the Kenla- 
lion, he relumed to America, and ireil, at Cairott'i requen, to the Indiana. With 
the advent of Onenii, he left Maine, and aettled at Frcderidtovn, N. B. Later, h* 
came to Baltinore, and there ia a record on Hay so, 179S. of an mol (ranted to bin 
for Qoebec {ArcliitpiKopal Archivii of Quibtc, ito*i-UnU, J-Ji). 



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6o6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

tton more agreeable, for a person who is actaated Sc influenced with a 
Spirit of Giristianity. Should you Rev. Sir grant the favour to them, 
we have it in contempiation to build a chappie— having several tracts of 
land of my own, I shall give a spot for it, or procure one from Govern- 
ment. The Speech is as literally and accurately translated u the two 
languages will admit; if any thing appears deficient or prenimptive in 
the mode, you will please excuse, as well any irregularity in ray address- 
attribute only to the want of knowledge in such sacred business. You 
will perceive my name mentioned. I was against it, but bcuig a confidant 
in all their concerns, from a long intimacy before I left Nova Scotia, 
and the command in the department during the late Revolution, they in- 
sisted on it, & I confess, I have so great attachment, I wish to do 
everything in my power for their satisfaction and comforL 

It may not be amiss to mention, that they are a very moral people 
among themselves {tho' some drink hard, it is not universal) and admire 
it in strangers. As their mind is never in pursuit of many objects at 
once, they are consequently very attentive, with much taciturnity and 
sagadty, on the particular object they have in view — they soon know a 
priest, a priest's character, and tho' they will be all obedience for his 
dignified station, should they observe any imprudence, will ijuickly observe 
and resent it. Wben a person is exemplary for his life & conversation — 
Strictly attentive to the duty of his calling — open, affable, free & gener- 
ous (within the bounds of that distinction to be always observed by 
spiritual teachers) they will sacrifice all for him, nothing they can do 
will be too good. . . . 

I have wrote to Ur. Thayer twice, I presume he has acquainted you 
with the particulars. The Cross sent, belongs to a family — has been 
in many generations, they are very anxious for its safety, would recom- 
mend to have it returned. I was at the village yesterday where much 
solemnity appeared in closing the business, they are daily arriving. 
Should this, or any further information I can give be acceptable and 
satisfactory, in this or any other business, you will please command 
freely, at any time, as I have nothing in view but the happiness of those 
people. Ejicuse any imperfection & incorrection, as I write in a hurry.* 

Dr. Carroll had no priest to send to the Maine Indians at this 
tttne, and their sittiation was not bettered when Rousselet, after 
beii^ di^raced in Boston, had gone to live amongst them. On 
March 20,-1792, Carroll wrote to President Washington, askii^ 
him to assist the Church in making provision for the spiritual 
comfort of these wards of the United States. Washington re- 
plied on April 10, 1792, to the effect that application should be 
made to the State of Massachusetts : 

• BaWmon Ctktint ArcUvii. Cue s-Aj; printed ia ibe Rtcttit, vol. idm. pp. 



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Diocese of Boston 607 

Sir, I have received and duly considered your memorial of the 30th 
ultimo, on the subject of instnictiiiK the Indians, within and contiguous 
to the United States, in the principles and duties of Christianity. 

TTie war now existing between the United States and some tribes of 
the western Indians prevents, for the present, any interference of this 
native with them. The Indians of the Five Nations are in their religious 
coocems tmder the immediate superintendence of the Reverend Mr. Kirk- 
land ; and those, who dwell in the eastern extremity of the United States, 
are, according to the best information that I can obtain, so situated as 
to be rather consitlered a part of the inhabitants of the State of Massa- 
chusetts than otherwise, and that State has always considered them as 
under its immediate care and protection. Any application, therefore, rela- 
tive to those Indians, for the purposes mentioned in your metnorial, would 
seem most proper to be made to the government of Sassachusetts. The 
original letters on this .subject, which were submitted to my inspection, have 
been returned to Mr. Charles Carroll. 

Inqiressed as I am with an opinion, that the most effectual means of 
securing the permanent attachment of our savage neighbours is to convince 
them that we are just, and to show them that a proper and friendly inter- 
course with us would be for our mutual advantage, I cannot conclude 
without giving you my thanks for your pious and benevolent wishes to 
effect this desirable end, upon the mild principles of religion and philan- 
thropy. And, when a proper occasion shall offer, I have no doubt but 
such measures will be pursoed, as may seem best calculated to communi- 
cate liberal instrtKtion, and the blessings of society, to their imtutored 
minds. With very great esteem and regard, etc.'' 

Allan's letters to Carroll, of June 17, and June 28, 1792, from 
Boston, tell of the joy he experieiKcd in learning that the Catho- 
lic Indians were to be blessed with a spiritual leader. The 
interest of the United States was concerned in this, he wrote, and 
the Republic would be benefitted by pacifying the Indians in a 
matter they cherished so dearly. On June 17, 1792, he wrote: 

Revd. Sir: A very severe attack of the gout during the past winter, 
and the expectation of going Westward in the Spring, prevented my 
communicating some matter respecting the Indians. A speech was de- 
livered in answer to your indulgent letter, with the several articles inclosed 
in the tin cover, all of which came safe to hand. The joy and thanks- 
giving exhibited is beyond my description. So warm did I experience their 
gratitude for the little I did, that no doubt could arise in the sincerity of 
their acknowledgm'ts. Near twenty families winter'd around my house, & 
1 dare say not an address to the throne of Grace was passed without a 
remembrance of you, or myself during [my] indisposition. I will take a 
suitable time to prepare the particulars and transmit to yott. 

< StABKi, IVrilimei ef Wthiugton, nJ. x, n- u8-a*g. BmMo, iIjC. 



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6o8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

1 left them about three weeks ago, very aiwious and uneasy, constantly 
inquiring when a pastor might be expected.— I have just received a letter 
to inform me that a number of canoes from Canada, St. John's and Nova 
Scotia have arrived, many more coming— let me b^ of you Rev'd Sir to 
hasten on the Gentleman intended for them — nothing would hurt my 
feelings more than a disappointment— the damage and expense to ^m 
Indians very great — give me leave to request a line from yon on the sub- 
ject. Pennil me the liberty to observe the Interest of the United States 
is concerned in this. The extensive communication these Indians have 
with the Northern & Western tribes (which I presume is not known but 
to those who are conversant & particular acquainted with them), what- 
ever attention may be paid them will in a degree have influence with 
others more distant, for during the late conflict with Britain, I had some 
with me as far as the Iroquois — reciprocal offices & types of friendship 
by marriage etc, has become imiversal, so that everything that passes is 
soon known thro' the whole tribe. The present evil day (Indian War) 
requires delicacy & circumspecticn, with the whole of this Colour— great 
conferences among us have taken place respecting the hostility in die 
Western country, news has been sent by Canada to them. I sincerely wish 
my circumstances permitted me to go among the present hostile Indians. 
1 flatter myself from past success and experience to bring about a recon- 
ciliation, but this is troubling you, by going too far from my btisiness 
and nature of correspondence; still I must be so free [tu] to observe, 
that however I may be neglected and passed by, bro't to work for subsis- 
tence, in my decline of years, after making such a sacrifice of my Prop- 
erty in Nova Scotia by beii^ concerned in the late war, I shall to the 
last moment, exert all my powers as a Citizen for the Interest of the 
United States.* 

Attached to this letter was a second copy of the appeal made 
the year before to Dr. Carroll by the chiefs of the various tribes : 

Right River'd Father 

The chiefs, sachems & young men — the women & children of the several 
tribes of Indians, situated on St. John's Fassamaquaddy, and other Rivers 
adjacent would address you with all humility, praying your acceptance of 
their tmfeigned respect and dutiful obedience. 
Falher 

It is to you we look for help, as children to a bountiful Father. It ii 
long since we were blessed with the sight of a spiritual teacher. Great 
numbers of our Young are grown up, who have never received the 
sacred ordinance of Baptism. Our Women deprived of attending the 
Holy Rites of the Church, after child-birth, & all of us cover'd with 
multitudes of Transgressions. 
Father 

' Baltimtrt Cathtdrol Anhivtt, Ctie s-Ai; ptintcd In tb« Rteart; yiA. «*-, 



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JOHN CARDINAL CHEVF.RUS 



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Diocese of Boston 609 

We have applied several times to our brothers the Americans. We have 
sent to the Fathers in the church of this state for a Priest, bttt none 
comes — it looks [as] if we were shut out from all the blessings and beoe- 
fit! of our Religion. We pray you, Father of the Church in this land, to 
think of us, & send one suitable for our purposes, to continue a year.— 
We wait, with anxious heart hoping a gracious answer. 
Father 

We speak for all the Indians, Northward & Westward as far as 
Canada. We all wish to be united with our brothers the Americans. 
Should a priest come there will be an assemblage of the whole tribe) 
from the Bay Chelens to Penobscod. We have all been told that numbers 
of trading men have been trying to get a Priest for us, but as we know 
they have nothing else in view but what concerns trade, we fear they may 
encourage some person who is not qualify'd, which has been dme already— 
therefore no attentim must be paid any applicaticai but what comes from 
ourselves thro* the hands of our brother John Allan, who was our chief 
in the War. 

In token of our sincerity and duty, we send with this the Holy Cross, 
by the consent & desire of all the tribes. Don* at Iht mouth of tht River 
C in Ike Bay of Passamaquaddy, this 17th day of May 17^1^ 

Again, on Jtdy 28, 1792, Allan returned to the same subject. 
The United States was at war with the Indians in the West at 
the time, and it was highly desirable to keep peace with those 
tribes on our northern frontier : 

Rev. Sir: I did myself the honour of writii^ you the 17th ulto, & 
wait impatiently for an answer. ... I have received letters from Passa- 
maquaddy, with messages from the Indians, which infonns me that Ntdco- 
sellet is among them— his conduct gives satisfaction to the Indians, as well 
as the Inhabitants. 

Before I received this I had an interview with Mr. Thayer, who 
acquaint) me there is not probability of any clergymen from France — be 
proposed going himself, if an Indian chief would come and give assur- 
ance (in behalf of the tribes) of such desire — upon receiving my letter 
I inunediately gave intelligence to him— he still is willing to go, provided 
I persuade the Indians to leave Nokosellet This is a matter too delicate 
and sacred for me to interfere in & might be the means of makiqg trouble 
and confusion among them (which I wish to prevent all in my power) 
they are tmacquainted and unaccustomed to such disputes. As the Indians 
have put themselves under your protection & received your acquiescence 
(however they may have deviated from rule and methods by the insinuat- 
ing address of Nokosellet) I think it more illigible [sie] & expedient to 
do nothing more on the subject until your pleasure is known, of which I 
have natify'd Mr. Thayer. 

* Ibit., CiM s-Aa; printed in tbc Rteardt, itA. ziz, pp. Ji7.aig. 



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6lo The Life and Times of John Carroll 

In my last I hinted the advantage thii attention to the Indians would 
be to the States. I am now confident of it. Tho' my circumstances 
oblig'd me to return to Pnblick life, difft from the mode I was bro't up in, 
still my mind is greatly interested in the prosperity of our country. About 
the time your answer came to the Indians, we heard of the horrid scene* 
which happened at the Westward— my mind much agitated & distressed, 
on the evils impending, led me to examine into the state & situation of 
this business. It is not for me to say what may be the motives & reason* 
for carrying on this war ; but if Paci&c measures are necessary & de- 
sired to bring it to a conclusion, it is in the power of the States, at a small 
expense to do it, thro' this channel — the Indians, in our quarter may 
appear to some, contemptible, but I can assure such that however they 
may appear, their great experience, with the intercourse and omnection 
with distant parts, makes them respectfull, formidable Sc maybe lueftil— 
this I fully experienced in the late contest. It is not in my power at 
present to communicate minutely every particular necessary to support 
this — I was determined to make a tryati (without suggesting to any per- 
son whatever). It has so far succeeded that by communicating at a 
distance, there was to be an assemblage of Indians to meet the priest, a* 
well to have a conference on other matters. Several (supposed to be 
concerned in the late Tragedy) have sent for permission to come in — how* 
ever this may be, a communication is open'd & can be easily keep'd up 
into that hostile country, which by prudent and careful management, 
might have a happy effect 

I thought it my duty to acquaint you of these circumstances. I have 
mentioned them to a few in this place but there seems a spirit for other 
pursuits than what concerns the publick weal. Whatever may be said 
against this, I loiow by long experience, it can be done, and all may 
end to our wish, if Peace is desired. Give me leave to urge your attention, 
respecting a Priest, at the same time requesting a line from you oa the 
subject. I expect to proceed to Passamaquaddy in a few days, as the 
Indians are pressing for my return, there is some arriv'd from Canada. 

P. S.— All business with Indians should be secret, both in regard to 
coming to the knowledge of opposite powers, as what concerns them- 
selves, nothing permanent, can be established, or sure until the con- 
clusion.' ° 

Meanwhile, Bishop Carroll had written to the Indians (Sep- 
tember 6, 1791) assuring them that he would send a priest to 
Maine as soon as one could be spared : 

Brethren and Beloved Children in Jetm Christ: 

I received with the greatest pleasure the testimony of your attachment 
to your holy religion, and I venerated the sacred crucifix, sent by yon, 
as expressive of your faith. 

* Ibid., Ciw S-A41 printed ia lb* Reetrda, voL six, pp. im-u4. 



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Diocese of Boston 6ii 

Brethrett and Children: 

I embrace you with the affection of a father and am exceedingly de- 
liroos to procure for you a worthy teacher and minister of God's holy 
sanctuary, who tnay administer to your young people, to your sons and 
dauf^ters, the sacrament of baptism j may instruct them and you in the 
law of God and the exercises of a Christian life; may reconcile jron to 
God, your Lord and Uaker, after all your transgressions and may per- 
form for your women after childbirth, the rites ordained by the Church 
of Christ. 
Brflhren and Beloved Children: 

As soon as I received your request, and was informed of your necessity, 
I sent for one or two virtuous and worthy priests to go and remain with 
you, that you may never more be reduced to the same distressed situation 
in which you have lived so long. But as they are far distant, I am afraid 
they will not be with you before the putting out of the leaves again. 
Thb should have been done much sooner, if I had been informed of your 
situation. Vou may depend on it, that shall be always in my heart 
and in my mind; and if it please God to give me time, 1 v/ill certainly 
visit you myself. 
Brethren and Beloved Children: 

I trust in that good God, who made us all, and in His Blessed Son, 
Jesus Christ, who redeemed us, that all the Indians, northward and 
eastward, will be made partakers of the blessing which my desire is to 
procure for you; and I rejoice very much that they and you wish to be 
united with your brethren the Americans. You have done very well not to 
receive amongst you those ministers who go without being called, or sent 
by that authority which Jesus Christ has established for the government 
of His Church. Those whom I shall send to you will be such good and 
virtuous priests as instructed your forefathers in the law of God, and 
taught them to regard this life only as a preparation for and a passage 
to a better lite in heaven. 

In token of my fatherly love and sincere affection I send back to you, 
after embracing it, the Holy Crucifix which I received with your letter; 
and I enclose it in a picture of Our Holy Father the Pope, the Head 
on Earth, under Christ, of our Divine Religi<Hi; and this my answer 
is accompanied likewise with nine medals, represeotii^ our Divine Lord 
Jesus Christ, and His most Holy Mother. I desire these may be re- 
ceived by the Chiefs of the River St. John's, Passamaquaddy, and Mic- 
macs, who signed the address to me. They came from and have re- 
ceived the blessii^ of our Holy Father the Vicar of Jesus Christ in the 
Government of the Church. 

That the blessing of God may come down upon you, your women and 
children, and may remain forever, is the eariKSt prayer of 
Your loving Father, friend and servant in 
Jesus Christ, 

+ John, Bishop of Baltimore." 

" trinted in Ritearchit, toI. xri, pp. 117. iiS. 



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6 1 2 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Finally, after the arrival of Father Ciquard, Bishop Carroll 
wrote again in a style similar to the simple and childlike letter 
he had received from the Indians, telling them that at last a 
priest was on the way to them : 

My Dear Brethren and Children in J. C. 

I promised to joa last year that I would inunediately endeavour to pro- 
cure a worthy pastor for your souls, to give to your children the holy 
rites of baptism, to administer to yourselves the sacrament of reconcilia- 
tion & exercise all the other functions of the ministry. 
Erothert: 

It was not possible for me to obtain one so soon as I desired; many 
difficulties were first to be overcome. At length, however, thro' the 
goodness of our best Father, God himself, I have procured and send 
you one who will carry you thb letter. 
Dear Brothers: 

In him you may put the utmost reliance. He will renew in your hearts 
those sentiments & the same good customs of prayer & the service of 
God, which some of you yet remember in your good Fathers of former 
days. Hear his counsels, & you will be virtuous here and happy hereafter. 
Brolhers: 

He will not be afraid of, but will partake with yourselves of all hard- 
ships. He seeks no reward from you but the salvation of your souls. 
He will content himself with a very moderate subsistence such as neces- 
sity re<iuires but as he has been at great expense to go to you, I hope 
that you will by degrees, and as you get able, make him some compensa- 
tion for this expense. 
Brothers: 

Him you are to receive as the only person appointed to give you the 
Sacraments of Holy Church, to instruct you in the ways that lead to a 
virtuotis life here & to happiness in heaven. My most fervent prayer shall 
be that yoti all obtain that blessing; and I beseech you to pray that I may 
be your companion hereafter in the enjoyment of eternal bliss." 

Father Francis Ciquard remained with the Indians from 1792 
until the arrival of Abbe Chevems in 1796. For five years 
Father Matignon struggled atone in the missions of New England, 
with Boston as a centre for hts sacerdotal work. Among his 
former students in France was a young priest, then in exile in 
England, Father John Lefebvre de Chevems, then in his twenty- 
seventh }'ear. Father Matignon needed assistance for the scat- 

■• BaUimon Catktdrat AreUntM, Cue i-Kf, printed in tbe Rettr**, nL xiz, 
pp. Jai-iiJi cf. Pnrittiu md Indian tlUtiou, hj G. F. O'Dwm, In Amtrita. 
nl. xxri, pp. i7S-s7fi (JunuT t, ipii). 



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Diocese of Boston 613 

tered missions of his vast parish, which was coterminous with 
the present New England States, and accordingly he wrote to 
Cheverus, soliciting his help for these missions. 

John Cheverus, New England's first Catholic bishop, was 
bom at Mayenne, France, on January 28, 1768. At a very early 
age, as was then the custom in France, he received tonsure, the 
mark of his selection for the ecclesiastical state ; and while still 
a youth, he was nominated to a benefice and was entered in the 
College of Louis-le-Grand at Paris. After completing his clas- 
sical studies, he entered the Seminary of St Magloire, Paris, 
where he had 35 fellow-students the famous preacher, Abb£ 
McCarthy and the future Bishop Dubois of New York. On 
December 18, 1790, Cheverus was ordained to the priesthood 
and was sent to assist his uncle, the parish-priest of Mayenne. 
After his uncle's death (January, 1792) Father Cheverus was 
given the parish and was appointed Vicar -General of the Diocese 
of Mans. The Revolutionists soon marked him as a victim, and 
Cheverus was obliged to flee to England, where he arrived in 
September, 1792, It was here, in the capacity of private tutor to 
the children of a Catholic nobleman, that Father Madgnon's 
letter found him. He concluded to accept the offer of his friend 
and set out for America, arriving in Boston on October 3, 1796. 
His first duty was to announce his arrival to Bishop Carroll, and 
in a characteristic letter written after his arrival, he says : "Send 
me where you think I am most needed, without making yourself 
anxious about the means of my support. I am willing to work 
with my hands, if need be." " At first, Bishop Carroll desired to 
place the young French priest at St. Mary's Church, Philadelphia, 
But he begged permission to decline, being unwilling to forsake 
his friend Father Matignon. Dr. Carroll allowed him to remain 
in Boston, but placed under his care the Indians of Maine.'* 
When the General Court of the State of Massachusetts awarded 
(179S) an annual salary of two hundred dollars for a Catholic 



a CaTraS, Boiltn, Jaoiury *6, im, BaMatort Calludnl Artkivtt. 
Cue »M9. For a biUioffnplir on Chercnu, cf. CalXotic Hiitorical Rtvlta), mL v, 
pp. iga-igj. Tit bcM biofiaphiei of thi* tint Americia CirdituJ are: HjUIOH, 
Vl4 da Cmriimal Ctmmt, Pari*, 1837, tnnabud br Stbwau, BoMmi, iSjsi 
Dd Bomo, Cariim^ Dt Chtvmt, traniUtcd bjr Wuia. PhUaddpbia, 1839. Ct. ilu 
Uj f/afaNmn Cham br "AaimcBni^ (Nnr Yoifc, i«ir). 
» Cf. Vrntii Statu CBtMit MagtHmt. toI. W. p. s«]. 



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6 14 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

missionary to care for these Indians, Father CJquard had already 
left for Canada, and Father Cheverus itow took tq> the work 
systematically, visiting the Indians every year until his elevatton 
to the episcopate. His letters to Dr. Matignon from Pleasant 
Point, Me., and from Penobscot, Me., contain interesting side- 
lights upon the life of these Catholic Indians. In 1797, he de- 
cided to send to London for Father Romagne, a refugee Preach 
priest, who was also born in Mayenne, and who arrived in 1799, 
and remained for eighteen years ministering to them. 

One untoward incident marred the generous welcome accorded 
Father Cheverus by the non-Catholics of New England. While in 
Maine, in January of 1800, in the performance of his du^, be 
married two Catholics. The law of Massachusetts (of which the 
district of Maine was then a part) prohibited all marriages ex- 
cept before a Protestant minister or a justice of the peace. Father 
Cheverus advised the couple to have this dvil ceremony performed 
the following day. The Attorney-General of the State, James 
Sullivan, was the son of Catholic parents, but had fallen away 
from the Church. He seemed moved to hostility against the 
religion of his parents, and instituted of his own accord legal 
proceedings against Father Cheverus, who was arrested in Oc- 
tober, i8co, and brought to trial at Wicasset. Two of the judges, 
Bradbury and Strong, were rather vehement in their denuncia- 
tion of the gentle priest, the former threatening him with the 
pillory. Cheverus was quite undismayed in the presetKe of this 
brutality; he had seen specimens of it in Paris in the days of 
the Jacobins, and he fought the case to the end. The civil action 
was finally allowed to go by default. The Constitution of Massa- 
chusetts did not at that time contain a clause grantit^ toleramx 
in religious affairs. The judges of the Supreme Court unani- 
mously declared at Boston (March 5, 1801): "The Constitu- 
tion obliges every one to contribute for the support of Protestant 
ministers, and them alone. Papists are only tolerated, and as 
long as their ministers behave well, we shall not disturb them; 
but let them expect no more than that" " 



» Chercnu to Carroll, Battaa, Ifareh to. iSot, Baltiiner* CtUuOral ArcUvtt, 
Cue a-Nji Hitianon to Cimill, BoMon, Ihrdi tt, iBoi, tbU., Cik jC-4: "The 
Jndve dcclind tkc ward Pnttttamt wu klio tuderftood before the mnl i/lmitUr," 
The lCiti|iion.CuTdl m f wep m idBini on tbit caie ■• printed io the SKorJt, toI. zx. 



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Diocese of Boston 615 

Fathers Matignon and Chevenis were providential men during 
these days when the last embers of the old Puritan bigotry were 
djring out. Both were uncommon characters. Their piety, their 
blameless lives, and their thorough disinterestedness won the 
good-will of all their neighbours in the old Puritan stronghold; 
and especially were Cheverus' brilliant mind and innate refine- 
ment prized by the leading social and intellectual families of the 
city. He became an American citizen and identified himself in 
an public movements. At a banquet given by the State to Presi- 
dent John Adams, Father Cheverus was placed next to the dis- 
tinguished guest. "The whole population began to know him," 
says one writer, "some on one side, some on another, of his lai^ 
personality. Before long, with no effort, by the magic of simple 
triendliness, he had laid the Puritan community under something 
like a spell." " Besides the two pastors of the Boston mission, 
there were other priests from time to time in New England. 
Father John Thayer was at Hartford in 1796, and in 1797 
Canon Soug£ resided there as Chaplain to Vicomte de Sibert 
Comillon; in 1798, he was joined by another French refi^ee, 
Father Tisserand. 

From one of Father Matignon's letters at this date (April, 
1798), we learn that within one year (1797-1798) the number 
of baptisms was 81, marriages 17, deaths 14, and Easter Com- 
munions 249.*^ 

Baptisma Marriages Deaths Easter Commwunns 

Boston: 17 U 179S 

30 children Boston aio About ' 

7 adults Plymouth 15 

Other Places: Newbury 21 

30 children Salem 3 

I adult 

Among the Indians : 249 
13 children 

Unfortunately, these statistics are of little value for estimating 
the number of Catholics under the care of Matignon and Chev- 
erus. Shea gives total Catholic population as between six and 

" LsitBT, Tk* ArehHoeat of Baiton, in Ibe Hittarj of Ikt Cslkotic Churth 
im the Ntm Bngltud StMtt <■ nU., BdMou, 1899), nl. i, p. 17. 

" BtMmart CMktirtt Artkklt. Cue J-Gg; ptinwd in the Ktetrdt, toI. >z, p. tM. 



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6l6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

seven hundred. There was comparatively little change in the 
condition of the Church in New England from this time down 
to the consecration of Chevenis as first Bishop of Boston. The 
lease held by the Catholics on the building in School Street, which 
served as their church, was about to expire in 1799, and the 
growth of the congregation warranted their securii^; a larger 
house of worship. On March 31, 1789, a meeting was held and 
a committee of seven was formed to consider plans for building 
a new church. A subscription was opened, Fathers Matignon 
and Cheverus actii^ as treasurers, and both non-Catholics and 
Catholics quickly responded to the appeal of the two priests, 
v'ho enjoyed a singular popularity with all classes. President 
John Adams, who had a high regard for Cheverus, headed a 
special list of subscribers.^* In all, some sixteen thousand dollars 
were collected. On May 2, 1799, Matignon wrote to Carroll of 
their success up to that date : 

My Lord: 

At last I have the satisfaction of being able to tell you that a subacrSp- 
lion has been opened among our Catholics for the purchase of the 
ground and for the building of a church in this city. The subscription 
amounts to nearly $4,000, of which a little over f 1000 is already paid, the 
rest to be given between now and next October. The sum will probably be 
scarcely enouf^ to pay for the ground; wc shall be fortunate if we can 
get for that amount a lot that is suitable and in a convenient location. 
For there is hardly a comer to be found here that is not built upon, 
unless we go to the remotest parts of the city, which would be a great 
disadvantage. We hope for some help from the people of the city; but 
as since the death of Mr. Russell we have no one who is remarkable 
for generosity, this help will likely not amotint to much. Our consul 
(Spanish) thinks that he con get a thousand dollars from the King of 
Spain through his family influence, if communication become freer. God 
grant that that poor kingdom may not be destroyed before that time I 

You are, my lord, the father of your entire flock, and as yon have 
shown in many circumstances the tenderest interest in your poor faithful 
children of Boston, we have no doubt but that you will be anxious to help 
us by all the means in your power, and that you, much more than any one 
else, will be convinced of the great importance of the success of this enter- 
prise. Without a church here there will probably be in a few years no 
longer any congregation, and hopes for the progress of the faith through- 
out the state will end in smoke; whereas if we have a chivcb, decent 
in appearance and of sufficient siie, whilst we have Mr. Cheverus here, 

* [/«CM Slalti Catholic itaoaiiar, nL it, p. aSy 



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Diocese of Boston 617 

there ii reason to hope that God wilt bless his indefatigable labors by 
more numerous conversions and more important ones than the small num- 
ber that have taken place up to the present time. 

In accordance with your advice I have written to Mr. Du Bourg to 
ask him if he will undertake to do some collecting for us at Havana; 
I have had no answer ; I do not know if he have started. The only other 
place, outside the United States, from which we can hope for anything, is 
Martinique. Mr. Cheverus and I have already written there with this ob- 
ject. But in order that the affair may be done in a regular manner and 
with greater success, it is essentia] that we address to our ecclesiastical 
superiors, and perhaps to the government authorities, a request supported 
by your recommendation and under your seal. So as not to dottble or 
triple the postage, I have written some points on the following page. 
Will you please, my lord, after having made whatever changes and addi- 
tions that you may judge proper, fiave three copies inscribed by one of 
the gentlemen of the Seminary, to which add in your own hand whatever 
you think it necessary to say that would be most effectual by way or 
recommendation, and after having appended your seal, send them to as 
by the first boat, or other safe opportunity. We have great assurance 
that your recommendation will not be without fruit. Mr. Cheverus re- 
ceived in due time the consecrated (altar) stones, and he as well as I 
make our grateful acknowledgments to yoiL The little congregation 
at Newbury Port has experienced a great diminution through the depar- 
ture for the islands of four or live French families of whom Mr. 
Cheverus had made fervent Christians. He proposes to return in abont 
a month to visit his beloved Indians. No news from England yet abont 
a missionary. Our governor (Mr. Simmer) is in the last extremity, 
with DO hope for his recovery. He is a great loss to us; he was imiver- 
sally respected, and rich, and his name at the head of a subscription for 
us, would have had great influence. The lieutenant governor who will 
succeed him tmtil May next is a close man and of limited capacity. 
Your huM^le and obtdient servont, 

Matighon.i* 

The printed circular asking for subscriptions makes an earnest 
appeal on the score that "this country is probably destined to 
serve as an asylum for the Catholic religion, persecuted in Eu- 
rope." *' No church existed at the time "in the five United States 
that compose New England;" and in the joint letter sent by 
Mati^on and Cheverus to Carroll, on March 19, 1800, we learn 
that within the short space of a year, through the liberali^ of the 
citizens of Boston, they were ready to begin building the first 

• BilUmen Ctthtinl AnUvt; Cue i-Gii: pristol in the Rteardt, voL zz, 
pp. 1 93- '95 ■ 

■■ IbU., C«ie j-Bt; printed in the Rtterii, voL iz, p. tgG. 



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6i8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Catholic Qiurch in Massachusetts." Dr. Carroll was invited to 
lay the cornerstone, but owing to the outbreak of yellow fever 
in Baltimore, he was unable to go to Boston until the completion 
of the church two years later. 

The Church of the Holy Cross, as the edifice was called, was 
conq>leted in 1803, and on September 29, of that year. Bishop 
Carrol], who had journeyed to Boston for the occasion, dedicated 
the new house of worship. Chevenis preached the sermon, and 
tradition has it that Carroll was so overcome by his eloquence 
that tears covered his face when Cheverus concluded his discourse. 
No doubt, another reason which induced Carroll to make the 
long journey to Boston was the fact that Cheverus was then 
contemplating a return to his own diocese in Franoe. He wrote 
to Carroll on May 3, 1803, stating that he had been asked to 
return, not only by his own family, but by the Vicar-General 
of Mans: 

R(. Rev. Sir: 

Uy mind is perplexed with doubts, my heart full of trouble and 
anxieties, Datj, retpect and confidence bid me apply to you for advice 
and comfort I received last week a letter from the Vicar-General of 
the ancient Bishop of Mans who died three years hence. On the de- 
cease of the Bishop this same Vicar-Genera] was appointed by the Sacred 
College Apostolic Vicar to Kovern the diocese, lede vacante, and now the 
new Bishop of Mars has made him his Vicar- General, His letter to me 
is dated June 10, 1802. Three copies of it have been sent, only one has 
come to hands and not till last week. He writes as follows ; 

II n'est plus temps de balancer. Nous avons un tr^ bwi fireque, 
Mons. Pidot, SufEragant de Treves. II va incessament prendre pos- 
session. II s'occupera i fixer les limites des paroisses, et aussitot apris 
ce travail il nommera les cur£s. Votre intention n'est pas de re- 
■Ipncer & votre patrie et k votre Diocise. Je vous sonrnie en conse- 
quence de votre parole; et je vous prie de partir auasitot la prjsente 
re^e pour venir vous rinnir & nous. It I'agit de rtiablir la Religion 
dans notre pays, et vous y etes nicessaire; nliisitez done pas, je 

He alludes to what I wrote to him, before the articles of the Concordat 
were known. He then begged of me to return to my pariah, but I an- 
swered, that being usefully employed here and being exposed to find 

■■ a. Dmn, Boiten'i PirM CathfUc Church, id the Rttarit, vol. xv, pp. »-4S. 
The ioint IMUr IBattimort Cthtinl ArcUvri, Cue j-Ha) ii printed in tb* Rtcatit, 
ToL KX, pp. i»-ipS. 



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Diocese of Boston 619 

another Pastor appuinttd in my place, I thought it better to defer mj 
return, although it was not my intention to forsake either my cotmtry or 
my Diocese. My Father and other relatives who have written to me and 
hegged of me to return to France immediately, call the tetter of Mr. Duper- 
rier a positive order from my Eccleaiaittcal Superior ; but for my part 1 do 
not see any such order in it, but merely a strong invitation. My Father 
says; Si tm Pire pouvait avoir encore de I'autoriti sur loa cber 
tils, ce serait I'occasion de s'en servir et de le sominer . . . pour venir 
se joindre i nne familie qui le desire depuis si longtemps et i un Pire 
i qui il donnerait dix ann£ea de plus. ... In consequence of these letters 
I had resolved to return to France next May, and was going to write to 
you upon the subject, but the whole coagrqation here have shown such 
a grief, and have so str<Kigly represented the case to me that I have 
promised, if you think I can do it conscientiously, to stay at least until 
next Autumn. Even, if in yonr opinion, the good of Religion requires 
my presence here, I am very willing to remain in this mission. I shall 
beg the Almighty to give myself scad my dear Father the strength to 
make this sacrifice to him. Dr. Matignon will give no advice in this 
case, where, he says, his heart feels too interested, he confines himself to 
Prayer that I may remain here. 

For Uk present be ao kind as to write whether yon think I can at least 
wait mitil next autumn. The rest will be settled when we shall have the 
happiness to see yon in Boston. The hope of seeing you then, would be 
a snflicient motive to put off my going to France, if I can do it I must 
observe that I am uncertain whether I am reappointed to my former 
station and under the present circumstances, I do not wish it, have even 
some objections to the oath, tho' after the decision of the Holy See, 
1 think, I wonid, if necessary get over that difficulty. Last year forced 
by the importunities of my Father I promised to go and at least pay him 
a visit this Spring, but then I had no idea the Gmrch should be fit to be 
consecrated and that we would be honored with your visit. You have 
the goodness to express the wish to be personally acquainted with me, and 
I assure yon that I shall think it a happy day when I shall have the oppor- 
tunity to pay you my respects. As I wish to write soon to the AbM 
Duperrier and my Father, I hope your known condescension will excuse 
me if I presume to request the favour of a speedy answer. Begging your 
prayer and blessing, I have the honor to be with the most profound 
respect, etc.»» 

On April 29, 1803, he wrote to Carroll again sayitig that after 
mature consideradon he had decided to remain in America.'* 
From this time tmtil his election as Bishop of Boston in 1S08, 
no letters exist in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives from either 

■• BaUimoTt Cthtdral AreUvft, Cue •■Hsi pristed in the Rieertt, vol. xaiii. 



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620 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Matignon or Cheverus, upon which an historical account of the 
growth of the Church in New England might be based. There 
were congregations at Salem, Newburyport in Massachusetts; 
Damariscotta, Portland, Newcastle, and Pleasant Point, in 
Maine; at Poitsnwuth in New Hampshire; at Providence and 
Bristol in Rhode Island; and at New Haven, Hartford, and 
New London, in Connecticut. These existed before the year 
of Carroll's death, since evidence exists for Cheverus' visitation 
of these towns. But the real growth of the Church in New 
Ei^Iand must be traced to his successor. Bishop Benedict Jo- 
seph Fenwick (1823-1846), 

After his consecration as first Bishop of Boston, Dr. Cheverus 
returned to his episcopal city and took up the old routine of 
duty without changing in the slightest his simple mode of life. 

Among the qnalities which nude him a ftvtunate interpreter [a/ Cath- 
olic life] to the Pnritans was his aversion to luxury. He had seen the 
Korgeous civilization of France fall to pieces by its own weakness and he 
knew the hollownesa of pomp. It was by poverty and simplicity that the 
creed of Christ had wcni its earliest triumphs. He strove to bring himself 
daily nearer to these virtues of its Founder. His episcopal house was a 
two-story cottage; his reception room the chamber in which he slept. 
When the chairs were all occupied, visitors sat on the bed. His dress 
was almost shabby. He rarely took more than one meal a day, and he 
studied all winter without a fire in his room. Even in his later years, 
when he was a Cardinal and a peer of France, he absolutely refused to 
own a carriage. Yet people flocked to his barren threshold. The man 
interested them more than trappings and furniture. A bishop n4u> 
dwpped his own wood was, at least, a good democrat, and might bring a 
e worth heeding.'* 



Shortly after his consecration Bishop Cheverus received a 
letter of congratulation from Bishop Plessis of Quebec (Janu- 
ary 6, 1811), in which the Boston prelate was appointed a vicar- 
general of the Canadian diocese, and in which Plessis asked for 
a similar concession for himself. This was to facilitate the exer- 
cise of episcopal jurisdiction along the borders of the two con- 
tiguous dioceses : 

Momeigaeur : 

A young notary of this city, Canadian-bom and Catholic, of the hi^iest 
respectability as you will judge (or yourself when yon have seen him, 
** LCAKV, M tufn, p. )i. 



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Diocese of Boston 621 

has requested me to recotmnefM] him to your Lordship to wbom be intends 
to pay his respects in the course of a few weeks' trip he is making in the 
United SUtes. 

I reproach myself, Monseigneur, with not having sooner satisfied the 
desire I felt to congratulate you on your accession to the episcopate, or 
rattier, to congratulate j'our diocesans for having at their head a Pastor 
according to God's heart, whose piety and enlightenntent will place on a 
good footing their new-bom church. Judging by the difficulties of every 
nature offered me by a Diocese established 137 years ago, I well under- 
stand how many your Lordship will encounter in establishing a diocese 
which is still in a fallow condition and under a government of a different 
religion. But divine Providence whose will it is that the Kingdom of 
God wrested from several nations of Europe be transferred to America, 
will render even your ways and will arm yon with a courage propor- 
tionate to the contradictions inseparable from our labouring ministry. 

I have requested, Monseigneur, tlie Archbishop, to be so kind as to 
acquaint me with the divisions of the new Diocese so as to know those 
bordering on mine. I have also asked him to tell me who was the admin- 
istrator of that of New York. His answer has not yet reached me. But, 
as I have no doubt that your diocese and mine are coterminous in the 
direction of New Brunswick and apparently in several other places, I take 
the liberty of addressing you the letters of a Vicar- General, which will 
also be common to all your Vicars-Generat, so as to avoid inconven- 
iences arising from uncertainty or a want of jurisdiction. The only 
extraordinary powers I am empowered to communi(;ate and to which the 
enclosed Commission alludes, are those in 2q articles which the Holy 
See is accustomed to give to Missitniaries Apostolic and which your Lord- 
ship has doubtless received as well as L I trust, Monseigneur, that you 
will have the goodness of appointing me your Vicar- General, and that my 
Vicars-General will share in the same favottr. As we are luiited by the 
bonds of a same commission and of a same priesthood, nothing will be 
more agreeable to me, in any and every case than to correspond with your 
lordship, and to be often able to repeat the sentiments of esteem and 
veneration with which t remain etc." 

Bishop Cheverus received this ktter on January zo, 181 1, and 
immediately penned a reply, of which the following is a trans- 
lation : 

Monteigntvr: 

It was between Mass and Vespers that M. Bisserer came to bring me 
the despatches from your Lxtrdshig. You may be assured that in hu 
behalf and in that of any body else you may recommend to me I shall 
be happy to do all in my power. 

I ef Q%ebtc, Btati-Unii, 7ii4a; rrinlcd In the Xc- 



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622 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

I received with respect and gratitude the faculties you were kind enough 
to conutnmicate to me. I have already made use of them by communi- 
cating them to M. Romagn^, a respectable priest who is here, but will soon 
leave Boston, and who lives with the Indians at Passamaquoddy, on the 
frontier of tiie United States and of New Brunswick. M. Duvert, who 
leaves tomorrow morning at four o'clock does not give me time to send 
you official letters like those with which jrou have honoured me. I shall 
do so on the first occasion, and I pray you meanwhile to consider a* 
suiiident the request I make you to look upon such faculties as being 
granted and to deign to accept all the powers I am entitled to oommmii- 
cate to Your Lordship and to Your Vicar-General. My lately conse- 
crated colleagues and myself have received the 29 articles which jrou 
mention, and moreover the faculty of dispensing from the impediment 
between sponsor and godchild, of reciting Matins every day of the year 
at two o'clock in the afternoon, of granting permission to read and to 
keep prohibited books, provided this faculty be used sparingly, and with 
the exception of obscene books and several others described by name. 

I will try to obtain from Baltimore, a copy of the Bull indicating the 
limits of the diilerent dioceses, and I will try to have it sent to you. 
My diorase touches yours East by the District of Maine towards the 
frontier of New Brunswick, North by the State of Vermont, and in the 
Nordiwest of the district of Maine on the frcmtier of Canada. My 
diocese comprises the whole of New England, namely, Massachusetts and 
Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Vermont. The 
Diocese of New York which also tottches yours, embraces all the states 
of New York and a part of New Jersey. The Diocese of Philadelphia 
does not touch you. It comprises all Pennsylvania, Delaware, and die 
southern portion of New Jersey. The Diocese of Bardstown in Kentucky 
includes all the Western territory from Louisiana to the Northern lakes, 
like Erie and Huron, and is, consequently, one of your neighbours, at 
least so I think, for I don't remember exactly the limits of that immense 
diocese. That of Baltimore comprises Maryland, Virginia, the two Caro- 
linas and Georgia. 

The Vicar-General at New York, sede vacaute, is Mr. Kohlmaim, 
pastor of the Church of New York. He is a holy priest and most zealous. 
I shall write to him and he will give without delay the faculties you 
desire. I am also going to write to Monseigneur Flaget, Bishop of 
Bardstovm, who will leave for his diocese early in the spring. He intends, 
I believe, to bring M. Vegina who edified everybody at the Seminary of 
Baltimore, where I saw him myself during four weeks. Monseigneur the 
Archbishop had written to you concerning him and was expectii^[ an 
answer. He had received him on November 19th when I left him. [/ am 
rather] a Bishop in partibus, than a Bishop with a [diocese]. God grant 
that I may do some good. When passing through New York I gave 
confirmation. I have an immense field to cultivate, but, as you say, it is 
fallow, and I have, at the present moment, only two fellow labourers to 
help me to clear it. My very dear and very worthy friend, M. Matignon, 



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Diocese of Boston 623 

asks mt to present you his respects. I beg of you a share in your prayers 
and holy sacrifices and I have the honor to be with deep respect, etc.*' 

On February 11, iSii, Bishop Chevenis conferred equal rights 
and privileges upon the Ordinary of Quebec : 

To all those who may these presents behold, be it known that as the 
Diocese of Boston (to the government of wliich, howsoever incapable 
and unworthy. We have been elected and canonically consecrated) borders 
upon the Diocese of Quebec, and it has pleased the most Illustrious and 
Reverend Lord Bishop of Quebec to create and appoint Us his Vicar- 
General. We, desiring to give a token of our gratefulness and of our 
profound veneration to the said most illustrious Prelate, and providing 
at the same time for the needs of our Diocesans, earnestly and beseech- 
ingly pray the most illustrious and Reverend Joseph Octave Pletsis, 
Bishop of Quebec, to deign to bear the title and to assume the duties of 
our Vicar -Genera], and, by these presents, according to the best and 
most efficacious form, right, way and manner within our capacity, we 
create and constitute him our Vicar-General so that on all our diocesans, 
wheresoever they may be found, he may, either by himself, or, in those 
nutters that do not require the episcopal order by his Vicars-General, 
exercise the same jurisdiction as we ourselves exercise towards them 
either according to ordinary law, or by a special Indult of the Holy Apos- 
tolic See, inasmuch as it is communicable, promising that We shall ratify 
whatsoever shall have been acted, ordained or desired by the said Most 
Illustrious and Reverend Lord Joseph Octave Plessis, Bishop of Quebec, 
in his aforesaid quality of Vicar-General, or by his Vicars- General, either 
within or beyond the limits of our Diocese. 

In testimony whereof we have delivered this present letter under our 
Seal and Signature at Boston, New England, on the eleventh day of 
February, in the year one thousand eight hundred and eleven. 

+ John, Bishop of Boston." 

The juridtc effect of this interchange of canonical power was 
tfiat both bishops might give faculties to the priests of both 
dioceses. Plessis and Cheverus were to meet in 1815, when 
the Ordinary of Quebec made a visit to the United States. As 
early as 1812, Bishop Plessis had planned such a journey, but 
the outbreak of the war deferred his visit until the sttmtner of 
1815. On May 22, 1815, Cheverus wrote to Plessis: 

MoHttigneur: 

A letter which Mr. Ryan, bearer of the present, handed me on the part 
of Mr. Burke, allows me to expect the happiness of seeing you here thi:! 



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624 "^ff^ Liff '"'*' Times of John Carroll 

nunmer. I greatly desire to know at about what time foa calculate to 
be here; it would cnielly disappoint me to be absent, and to mus the 
precious occasion of bcomin^ personally acquainted with Your Lordship. 
It is only to an Apostolic prelate that I may offer a cell in my little 
dwelling, and, 1, therefore, do not hesitate in offering it to you and hope 
you will accept it, I will receive you as well as I can and in the joy 
of my heart. I have just returned from New York where I presided at 
the dedication of the beautiful Cathedral Church of St. Patrick. As the 
New York papers reach Quebec, you have no doid>t read a description of 
the ceremony. They daily expect the Right Reverend John Connolly %Ao 
was consecrated in Rome Bishop of New York in the month of November 
last. He is a Dominican and has lived in Rome 37 years. My worthy 
and vener^le fellow- worker, M. Matignon, presents his respects to Your 
Lordship and rejoices with me in the hope of seeing you here. Please 
honour me with a word through Mr. Ryan. I have the honour to be, &£.** 

We have an account of this visit in Henri Tetu's Visites Pas- 
torales par Mgr. J. Octave Plessis, &veque de Quibec.** Plessis 
visited Father Ronu^ne at Pleasant Point, Maine, in August, 
1815, and from that town set out for Boston. Here he was 
entertained by Matignon and Cheverus in the bishop's house, close 
to the cathedral. "These two worthy ecclesiastics," he says in the 
diary of his visit, "by their virtues, their talents, their hospitality, 
and their politeness have overcome the prejudices of Protestants, 
and have attracted many to their congregation, which is on the 
whole very edifyii^, and their new converts persevere fer- 
vently." ■* One of these converts, Thomas Walley, of Brookline, 
entertained the distii^uished visitor, and here Plessis met Father 
Brosius, who was then conducting a private school near Harvard 
College. From Boston, Bishop Plessis set out on September 7, 
for New York City, stopping at Worcester, Hartford, and New 
Haven, where he noted the preparations for the Commenoement 
at Yale College. From New Haven he journeyed by sea aboard 
the steamboat Fulton, and arrived at New York on September 9th. 
There he remained for several days, jotting down in his diary 
valuable historical data for the future historian of that city. 

Bish<^ Cheverus was to rule the Diocese of Boston for eight 
years after the death of Archbishop Carroll, and had he been 
able during that time to dispose of a score of priests for his 

■ Ibid., L c. p. IS. 

* OimImc, tftvj; cf. Rteordt, <nL xv, pp. ijiM, 

■* Cf. Rttardt, vol. xvlU, p. 44. 



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Diocese of Boston 625 

extensive diocese, there is little doubt that religion would have 
made much greater progress. It was, in fact, only after Carroll's 
death that Dr. Cheveras received his first missionary recruits, 
such as Father Denis Ryan, Philip Lariscy, O.S.A., Paul Mc- 
Quade, Patrick Byrne, William Taylor, and Virgil Barber — all 
pioneers in the upbuilding of the great Church of the present- 
day New Ei^land. Cheverus had resisted the entreaties of his 
friends in France to return when Catholic worship was restored 
there in 1801, and in 1816, when the question arose of naming a 
coadjutor to Archbishop Neale, the Metropolitan of Baltimore 
urged him to accept^ the nomination. His desire to remain with 
his flock in Boston was granted, and Marechal was selected in- 
stead. The traditional story that, witli the return of the Bourbons 
to the throne, Louis XVIII, who had known and befriended 
Cheverus as a boy, had him nominated in 1822 to the See of 
Montauban, is not altogether correct. It would seem, rather, 
that Cheverus, who had begun to feel the burden of age and the 
fatigue of so many years in the arduous missions of New Eng- 
land, decided to return of his own accord, without announcing 
that fact to the authorities in France. Some time after his return 
he was appointed to the insignificant See of Montauban, and 
three years later he was transferred to the Archbishopric of 
Bordeaux. Charles X made him a peer of the realm, and on 
February i, 1835, he was created cardinal. He died at Bor- 
deaux, July 19, 1836. 

Such was the man whom the non-Catholics of Boston called 
"a blessing and a treasure in our sodal community." They joined 
in the protest to the Church of France, which they believed had 
coveted Cheverus for so long, declarii^ that they could not part 
with him, for "without injustice to any man, we may affirm," 
they wrote, "if withdrawn from us, he can never be replaced." 



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CHAPTER XXXI 

THE SUFFRAGAN SEES : II. NEW YORK 

(1790-1815) 

The history of the Catholic Church in New York State during 
the first twenty years of Carroll's episcopate (1790-1810) centres 
around that valiant missionary, Father William O'Brien, of the 
Order of Friars Preacher, The year of Carroll's consecration 
saw the end of the notorious quarrel between the factions devoted 
to the two Irish Capuchins, Nugent and Whelan, and with Father 
O'Brien's appointment as pastor of St. Peter's Church (1787) 
there began an era of domestic peace, which was not to be dis- 
turbed for many long years. For the next two decades. Father 
O'Brien, with his brother. Father Matthew O'Brien, Fathers Mc- 
Mahon, Mahony, Flynn, Matignon, Fitzsimons, Byrne, Bourke, 
Bushe, Stbourd, and others of whom there are but faint records 
in our annals, laboured amongst the scattered Catholics of New 
York and New Jersey. St. Peter's Church was the centre of this 
widespread activity. As pastor of St, Peter's, Father William 
O'Brien governed the Church in New York City so admirably 
that Dr. Carroll's letters are filled with praise for the Irish 
E)omintcan. His loyalty to Bishop Carroll gained for him the 
enmity of the erratic pamphleteers. Fathers Poterie and Smyth. 
In order to complete the interior of St. Peter's Church, Fattier 
O'Brien obtained Dr. Carroll's permission to make a visit to 
Mexico Gty, where his former classmate at Bologna, Archbishop 
Alonzo Niitiez de Haro was metropolitan, with the result that 
he brought back some six thousand dollars in donations and sev- 
eral handsome paintings for the adornment of the Church. He 
was not present at the Synod of November 7-11, 1791, and so 
was probably absent about a year. During this time. Father 
Nicholas Bourke, who, according to Shea, was drowned in Feb- 
ruary, 1800, officiated at St. Peter's.' Some time after Father 



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Diocese of New York 627 

Witliam O'Brien's return he wrote to his brother, Matthew, who 
was also a Dominican, and then living in Ireland, asking him to 
come out to assist in the work of caring for the faithful in New 
York City and State. Father Matthew O'Brien-came to America 
probably in 1798, and Dr. Carroll appointed him to the congre- 
gation in Albany. He was a man of erudition and an attractive 
preacher. In those days the sentiment of the Catholics was rather 
outspoken in the matter of pulpit oratory; and the pastor of 
Albany pleased his flock so much that they readily voted him all 
the financial support he needed for his church, parish school and 
residence. Dr. O'Brien was offered a parish in Natchez by Bishop 
Carroll on September 23, 1799,' when that territory was ceded to 
the United States by Spain, and there are several letters tn the 
Baltimore Cathedral Archives from the trustees of Albany (No- 
vember 10, 27, 1799) protesting against his departure,' His suc- 
cessors in the Albany parish (between 1799-1808) were Rev. Dr. 
Mahony, Luke Fitzsimons, John Byrne, and James Bushe, The 
congregation was made up almost exclusively of Irish immigrants, 
and they had little respect for a clergyman unless he were a good 
preacher. 

It was in St. Peter's Church in March, 1805, that Father 
Matthew O'Brien received Mrs. Seton into the fold, and it was 
there she made her first Communion on March 25 of the same 
year. A very serious riot occurred at St. Peter's on Christmas 
Eve, 1806. It originated, as we learn from the American Reg- 
ister, with "a desperate association of unprincipled men, calling 
themselves Highbinders, who under pretence of demolishing 
houses of ill fame, commit the most disorderly practices iq>on 
peaceable and unofFending citizens." * A group of fifty of these 
banditti assembled in front of St. Peter's, hoping to create a dis- 
turbance at midnight Mass. The next evenlt^ the rioters attacked 
the locality where the Catholics were then residing, and one man, 
a watchman, was killed. This aroused the fury of the mob, and 
only the presence of the Mayor, DeWitt Ointon, saved the Catho- 
lics from further outrage. 

This same year (1806) saw the repeal of the last intolerant 



'« C*th*drai AreUivi, Cut 5-U1. 
* IbU., Cue 11-1.7-91 printed io tbc Rtteanhtt, 
' Cf. Rttimrehtt. vol. xri, pp. I4ihi5<>. 



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628 The t'ife and Times of John Carroll 

clause in the New York State Constitution. The law of 1700 
iigsinst "Popish Priests and Jesuits" was repealed by the Legis- 
lature in 17S4, but the clause requiring an oath for public officials, 
which no Catholic could in conscience take, was passed in 1801, 
and reniained a law of the State until 1806, when, on the occasion 
of the election of Francis Cooper, a Catholic, to the State As- 
sembly, a petition asking for its repeal was drafted by the trustees 
of St. Peter's Church.' On June 23, 1805, the trustees, who Aen 
included such prominent citizens as Thomas Stoughton, Andrew 
Morris and Cornelius Heeney, wrote to Dr. Carroll requesting 
an assistant priest for St. Peter's : "In consequence of the pleasii^ 
circumstance of the daily growth of the congregation of St. 
Peter's Church, which keq>s pace with the rapid extension of 
the city of New York, they find it morally impossible that one 
clergyman, however active, zealous and diligent, can attend to 
all the functions and important duties required by so numerous 
a Congregation." * Carroll's reply to this letter has not been 
found, but it would appear that he sent the Rev. Louis Sibourd to 
New York to assist Father O'Brien. The followit^ year we find 
the trustees writing again, on March 9, 1807, asking Carroll to 
remove the "little Doctor," because of his lack of facility in 
Et^lish.' The following year the German Catholics of the city 
sent a formal petition to Bishop Carroll asking for a priest of 
their race, or at least one who could minister to them in the 
German tongue. On this petition (March 2, 1808) Dr. Carroll 
took no action, knowing that the division of the Diocese of Balti- 
more had already been decided upon and that it was a matter 
to be dealt with by New York's Bishop. This petitioa is an 
exception both in spirit and in tone from those Carroll had grown 
accustomed to : 

Right Revtrend Falhtr in God. ■ 

We the underaigficd lor ourselves and a considerable number of our 
German Brethren, who are all educated in the holy OUholick faith, 

• Hurley to Omll, New York, Juiiury $, iRoS. BaltimaTt Ctlkfdrat Archhtt. 
Cut 4-GS-g; cf. A Utmoriat of Petal Timtt i» Km York, is ths Uulttt Sllrt 
Cothatic ManoMint, vol. n, pp. 3g4-j9f; Hihmt, Sliplum Girmnt, id the CaUuKf Hit- 
lorini Rniita, ml. iv, p. 180. 

■ Baitimori Catktdrat Architm, Catt II-Lj. Far u intereKinc cMimOe o{ CoT' 
odiui HttBtT, ef, A Stlftgactd PlulmiUhropitt: CantHut Httuty (i7J<-i«l), br 
HuBAH, in the Calkollc Hiilcrieal Rnitw, nL It, pp. j-i;. 

< BtUimert Catktdrtt Arehim, Cue a-Ei. 



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Diocese of New York 629 

approach your Reverence and pray yon to allow and send us a Pastor 
who is capable of undertaking the spiritual care of our Souls in the 
German Language, which is our Mother Tongue. Many of us do not 
know any Engliah at all, and those who have tome knowledge of it, are 
not well enough versed in the English Language as to attend Divine 
Service with any utility to themselves. As we have not yet a place of 
worship of oiu* own we have made application to the Trustees of the Eng- 
lish Catholic Church in this City to grant us Permission to perform oar 
worship in the German Language in their Church, at such times as not 
to interfere with thctr regular Services. This permission they have 
teadily granted us. During the course of this year we shall take care 
to find an opportunity, to provide ourselves with a butldbg of our own, 
for we have no doubt that our number will soon considerably increase. 
We leave it entirely to your Reverence to choose for us a man, who is 
capable of Taking upon him otu* Spiritual Concerns and instruct us in 
our htAy religion, and we humbly b^ to grant otu- prayers as soon as it 
b possible for your Reverence. In our religion the diversity of Language 
makes indeed no difference but from the reasons alleged. Your Reverence 
will deign to perceive that it is of consequence to our repose that we 
perform our Worship in the Language we best understand. We shall 
take care to provide for our Pastor as our abilities go. If your Reverettce 
will deign to answer this our earnest prayer, we humbly beg you to direct 
the answer to Mr. Wemeker, No. 32, Comer of Warren and Church Street 
in New York. 

For this great favor we shall feel ourselves for ever grateful to your 

Reverence and beg leave to Subscribe ourselves with the greatest Respect, 

Your Reverence's Most Humble and obedient Servants.* 

These are scanty records, indeed, for the early years of the 
great Archdiocese of New York, but few as they are they are 
precious memoranda of those days. Both Father Wilham O'Brieo 
and his brother. Father Matthew, were men of fine ecclesiastical 
training, and on several occasions Dr. Carroll had made use of 
Father William's talents in settling delicate matters in church 
discipline. Father Matthew O'Brien was a better scholar than 
his brother, and had attracted favourable notice from the members 
of the L^slature at Albany by his clear and fearless interpreta- 
tion of Catholic doctrine. During the days of uncertainty, when 
the opposition to the creation of a bishopric at Baltimore was 
strongest. Dr. Carroll found a supporter in Father William 
O'Brien, as is evidenced by the correspondence which passed 
between them.' Notwithstanding the prominence of the two 



vol. i, part ii, pp. 689, 9a j, 97], 



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630 "^fte Life and Times of John Carroll 

brothers, Dr. Carroll says in his letter of nomination to Cardinal 
di Pietro (June 17, 1807), regarding the priests to be chosen for 
the new dioceses, that for the time beii^ the Church in New 
York State should be left to the jurisdiction of the Bishop of 
Boston, "for among the priests there seems none fit to be intrusted 
with the episcopate and therefore I refrain from recommending 
anyone to such a grave post (Namque inter sacerdotes UUc con- 
stitutes nuUus mihi videtur episcopatus capessendo idoneus, 
ilaque supersedeo cuidam ad tarn grave ministerium commend- 
ando)." Carroll was ill at the time these nominations were for- 
warded to Rome, as we learn from a letter to Father Plowden, 
dated Baltimore, January 10, 1808: 

At the tine of recxiving the first [Plowden's letter of May 27^ 1807]. 
I was exceedingly ill at my sister's in the City of Washington, and had 
not recovered when it was followed by the second [dated : July aS-August 
12 (?), 1807]. Uy complaint originated with a most excruciating and, 
I may say universal, rheumatiim, and was afterwards accompanied with 
other disorders, especially an influenza which was universal through the 
U. States. After enjoying an uncommon state of health to my 73d year 
(on the 9th, inst. I closed the 72d), I ought to expect and gratefully 
submit to the dispensation of divine providence, when it pleases to give 
me a serious admonition of my mortality.'^ 

On December 3, 1808, he writes from Baltimore to Father 
Strickland : 

You have heard no doubt of the new ecclesiastical order of things in 
our ecclesiastical government here; that four new Bishops are nomitiated, 
and this See is erected into an Archbtshoprick. As the most excellent Dr. 
Matignon refused absolutely to be comprehended in the number of new 
Bishops, and was determined rather to return to Europe than accept, 
Mr. Chevenis is named for Boston, having under him the five states of 
New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Vermont. 
Amongst the clergy resident in N. York, when my letters went to Rome, 
there was no one here, whom I ventured to recommend for the Episcopacy, 
and suggested the propriety of leaving the Diocese subject for some time 
to the Bishop of Boston : but His Holiness was desirous to fill up all 
the Sees, and nominated for N. York, Fr. Concanen, an Irish Dominican, 
at Rome, of whom I have always had a favourable account." 

This he repeats substantially on December 5 in a letter to 
Father Plowden. There is no mention in this part of his cor- 



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Diocese of Neva York 631 

respondeoce with the English Jesuit of either of the two Fathers 
O'Brien. One other clergyman at that time stood out promi- 
nently among his brethren as capable of ruling a diocese, as great 
in extent as New York, and that was Father Matthew Carr, the 
Ai^stinian, of Philadelphia. But, unfortunately, Dr. Carr was 
at the time in difficulty, a serious charge having been made 
against him by some of his fellow-priests, and he had lost heart. 
On November 22, 1807, he wrote to Carroll that his usefulness 
in Philadelphia was ended owing to the malicious calumny spoken 
against him.'* He resigned his vicar-generalship, but at Carroll's 
request remained at St. Augustine's. Dr. Carr was undoubtedly 
the man for the Bishopric of New York in case neither of the 
O'Briens should be nominated. And it is difficult to understand 
just what prompted Carroll to allow the see to remain vacant. 
The most careful search among his correspondence in the Balti- 
more Cathedral Archives has failed to reveal his secret motive 
for this strange omission. Judged by ordinary standards, the 
missionary success of Dr. Carr or of the two O'Briens far out- 
shone that of the priests nominated for the new sees, with the 
one exception, perhaps, of Flaget. 

In any account of John Carroll's life and character, this action 
— so singular at the time and as far as the early history of the 
Catholic hierarchy in the United States is concerned, so filled 
with danger to the independence of the American Church — ot^ht 
to be more thoroughly understood. To most historians of the Dio- 
cese of New York and of the American Church in general, Car- 
roll's abstension from nominating either of the O'Briens, is 
viewed as having proved fatal to the peace of the Church in this 
country, since it seemingly threw open the door to intriguers and 
to foreign ecclesiastical politicians. Father William O'Brien, the 
elder of the two brothers, had come to America in 1787, well 
recommended by Archbishop Troy of Dublin, who, at that time 
and till long afterwards was friendly to Carrroll and to the Amer- 
ican Church ; and in Carroll's correspondence with the Metropol- 
itan of Dublin there is occasionally a flattering reference to "my 
very good friend, Mr. O'Brien of New York." '* But until 
further documentary evidence is broi^ht to light, the problem 



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632 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

must remain unsolved. It is true that Father Anthony Kohlmann, 
as a member of the Society of Jesus, was prevented by its consti- 
tutions from acceptii^ the episcopal dignity; but the Society was 
not then completely restored, and as one of the most distinguished 
priests in America at tiiat time, it is curious that Bi^iop Carroll 
did not mention his name among the possible recipients of epis- 
copal power," 

The choice of Richard Luke Concanen, as first Bishop of New 
York, could not come as a surprise to Bishop Carroll, who had 
learned to value the learned Dominican's judgment during the 
years he acted as American Qergy Agent at Rome (1792-1808)." 
Concanen had escaped the burden of the episcopate on several 
occasions before his nomination to the See of New York, and 
when that post was offered to him, he pleaded the fact that he 
was then too old to take such a laborious task upon his shoulders 
and urged the appointment of his fellow Dominican, Father John 
Connolly, who succeeded him in 181 5. Concanen looked upon his 
own selection as an "unfortunate appointment." He confessed to 
Carroll (August 9, 1809), that he had ever had "a sensible pre- 
dilection for the Americans and a desire of serving on that 
mission ; but never indeed had I the ambition of appearing there 
in the quality of a Bishop, especially in my advanced ^e and 
weakened by my late infirniities." " Propaganda did not hide its 
pleasure in having the opportunity of concurring in the election 
of Concanen for one of the new American sees, and Carroll could 
have taken no exception to its action ; for, "as Your Grace did not 
propose for New York any clergyman whom we could place over 
that diocese as its prelate, the Holy Father himself chose for 
this position a man whom long experience and the high esteem of 
all Rome prove to be most worthy of so exalted a dignity, and 
whom Your Grace has time and again shown to be very dear to 



" Fitber WUliun O'Brien ii nid to luvc loit holth ot mind mnd bodj at thU 
tima, thoBBh b« rcmiiiMd >l St. Pcter'i imti] hli dath, oo Mar i4. iSiE. Hii 
brodicr had b«a truuferred auanwhile to Philaddphia, and later to Baltimore, where 
be died October 15. 1816, 

■• Cf. O'Dahiil, C»*ea*ttt-t EltctiiM U> tht Si* of Nm York litet-llie), 
in the CalhaHc HiiUrrieal Rtvitw, ToL ii, pp. i^^^fi. 

<■ BalHmrrt Cathtiftl Arckiv; Cue i-Ti; printed in CDanid'a artide, ■! 
npr; p. aj-a4- 



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BISHOP RICHARD I.UKE CONCANRK 



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Diocese of New York 633 

yourself — Richard Luke Concanen, of the Order of Saint Domi- 
nic, and one of the theologians of the Casanate," ^' 

Richard Luke Concanen, the first Bishop of New York, was 
born in Ireland about the year 1747. Entering the novitiate of 
the Dominican Order at an early a^e, probably at Louvain, he 
came to the Minerva in Rome for his philosophical studies. Hav- 
ing completed these, he entered the College of San Qemente, 
Rome, for his theological course, where he studied under the 
learned Father Thomas Levins and Father Thomas Troy, who be- 
came Archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland in 1786. 
Ordained to the priesthood in 1770, he continued the study of the- 
ology, obtaining the lectorate on February 4, 1773. On March 
17 of the same year, he was appointed master of novices at San 
Qemente, a position which he held with great credit and skill for 
six years. Various posts of prominence in his Order were con- 
ferred upon him, and he was ably seconded in all his undertakings 
by his fellow-countryman and future successor in the See of New 
York, Father John Connolly, O.P. When Dr. Troy became 
Bishop of Ossory in 1776, Father Concanen was employed by him 
as ecclesiastical agent at Rome, and when ten years later Dr. Troy 
was promoted to Dublin, Father Concanen's duties involved much 
of the correspondence between the Church in Ireland and the 
Roman Curia. After the death (1792) of Father John Thorpe, 
who had been Agent for Dr. Carroll, Father Concanen was 
asked by the Bishop of Baltimore to arrange various ecclesliastical 
matters for the Church of the United States. In November, 1798, 
Pius VI appointed Concanen to the united Sees of Kilmacdui^h 
and Kilfenora in Ireland, but Father Concanen dechned the ex- 
alted dignity. "I am resolved to live and die," he wrote to Father 
William O'Brien in New York, "in the obscure and retired way 
of life I have chosen from my youth." Again in 1802, he was pro- 
posed for the See of Raphoe in Ireland, but again his humility 
saved him from the honour. Both Pius VI and Pius VII claimed 
Concanen's intimate friendship, and this friendship proved of 
great value to Bishop Carroll. Through Father William O'Brien 
of New York and Archbishop Troy of Dublin, Dr. Carroll cor- 

>' Prcpagtuia Arcliivtt, Scritturt originol; Ameriea CmtraU, vol. iji, S. jeA-jD> ; 
printed in O'Daniel, ni nfra, pp. »-i] For the priodpil docuDwnti on CoiMaiiea'l 
dacticm, ct. CatluHt HUlerical Rtvim, ToL ii, pp. 7i-tt- 



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634 ^'t* ^'/^ """^ Tiiites of John Carroll 

responded with the eminent Dominican, and many of the letters 
in this correspondence, together with Carroll's direct correspond- 
ence with Father Concanen are still preserved," Father O'Daniel 
rightly claims for this correspondence a spirit of absolute trust, 
confidence and strong friendship between Carroll and the future 
Bishop of New York, No one showed a more profound interest 
in the progress of the Faith in the United States than Dr. Con- 
canen, and it is highly interesting to see that on the same day 
Bishop Carroll sent to Propaganda his list of names for the new 
Sees (June 17, 1807) he wrote to Father Concanen asking him 
to act as his Agent in the matter at the papal Court. Father Con- 
canen's busy career in Rome had extended over a period of more 
than thirty years when this request came to his hands, and with no 
thought of himself, the learned Dominican set to work on the com- 
mission entrusted to him. At a special session of Propaganda 
(March 4, 1808), the business of increasing the American hier- 
archy was considered. In a recapitulation of previous acts of the 
Sacred Congregation under date of 1814, we learn that Propa- 
ganda suggested in 1807, three names for the See of New York 
— Concanen, Connolly and Joachim Cowan, all three £>ominicans. 
Father Concanen was without doubt the choice of the Congrega- 
tion, and also the choice of Pius VH, who wrote in the Brief of 
his appointment to New York : "We immediately turned our eyes 
upon you." Concanen's great love for America was so well 
known, as was also his friendship with Dr. Carroll, that the 
Roman officials felt certain he would accept the appointment. 
On April 24, 1808, Dr. Concanen was consecrated by the Cardinal- 
Prefect of Propaganda, Di Pietro, in the Church of St. Catherine, 
Rome.** Of the sad days which now set in for the zealous old 
bishop, who was anxious to proceed at once to America, there 
is no need to make repetition here. It was not until the spring 

" In tbe ArckU^ctpal ArcMmi af Dublin (pirtlr pabUihal in the tbird volmoe 
of Cardiiu] Honn'l Sticilteium Oiieriemt, (DoUin, 18E4); in the BmStimon Cmtkt- 
inl ArchiiHt (partly pubtiahcd in the Rtmrclut, for which cf. Iititr, Phibddphia, 
1916} ; In the Prapaganda Ardnm; utd in AtcUvci of the Domiaican Hmiter-GeDenl, 
It Rome, fur which cf. Nolam, Tht Iritk Dminicatu m Ramt (Rome, 191J), aiiil 
espedilly O'Dinid'* two tAolttlj article* in the CatkoUc HittBrical Rrvim (toL i, 
pp. 400-411, *ol. U, pp. iv-46), where the important docomenti wiQ be tound. 

■ It ii to be noted that the diarEC made by De Coi:irC7-Shea, b]t Clarke, and bf 
otheri thai he declined the appoiatment in Irdaod to accept that oi Hew Verk ia 



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Diocese of New York 635 

of 1810, owii^ to the blockade of all shipping in Italy by the 
French fleet, that he was able to obtain a berth in the ship Frances 
of Salem, Mass., then in the harbour at Naples. But even after 
boarding the vessel, the authorities refused to accept his passport, 
and he was obliged to disembark and take up temporary lodgings 
in the city. The vessel was scheduled to sail on June 17, and two 
days later Bishop Concanen died in the arms of Father Lombardi, 
a fellow Dominican, who was to accompany him to America. 
The next day he was buried in the Church of San Domenico 
Maggiore, Naples. 

The new See embraced the present State of New York and 
what was then known as East Jersey. Geographically it was a 
compact diocese, and had Concanen been successful in quittii^ 
Italy with the group of missioners he contemplated choosing for 
his new field of labour, the early history of the diocese would no 
doubt be filled with splendid things planned and achieved for the 
Church of God. Concanen would have had as his chief aid in 
oi^ntzing his diocese a member of his own Order, and one who 
liad spent more than a score of years ministering to the congre- 
gations within its limits. When it became evident to the venerable 
Dominican that his journey to New York might be delayed much 
toiler than he had at first anticipated, he wrote to Archbishop 
Carroll (July 23, 1808) authorizing him to appoint to the New 
York Diocese a vicar-general "with all necessary powers you 
and I can delegate to him." "* Again it would seem but logical 
that "my old friend and companion. Rev, Mr. William O'Brien," 
as he styled him, would have been chosen for this important post, 
but on the receipt of this letter (October 11, 1808), Carroll ap- 
pointed Father Anthony Kohlmann, S.J., to this position. 

Father Kohlmann was bom in Alsace, June 13, 1771. Or- 
dained to the priesthood at Fribourg, Switzerland, during the 
French Revolution, he joined the Fathers of the Sacred Heart, 
and laboured for some time tn Austria and Italy. In 1803 he 
entered the Jesuit Novitiate at Dunaburg in the restored Russian 
Province of the Society, and the following year came to America 
to take part in the restoration of the Society of Jesus in this 
country. He was one of the most distinguished members of the 

■• Bdtimart CaHuirai ArcMmi, Cue i-Ti; ct. O-DAirtu, U tuprt, p. (i. 



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636 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

restored Society, and when Bishop Carroll sent him to New York 
in October, 1808, he brought along with him Father Benedict 
Fenwick, SJ., and four scholastics, with whom he organized the 
New York Literary Institution, a classical school for boys. 
Bishop Carroll sedulously avoided naming any of the members 
of the Society of Jesus to the new Sees, otherwise Father Kohl- 
mann might have found a place in the list As pastor of St. 
Peter's Church, and vicar^eneral or administrator of the dio- 
cese, in the absence of Bishop Concanen, Father Kohlmann was 
virtually the founder of the New York Archdiocese, 

Father Kohlmann was about forty years of age at this time, 
and had under his immediate care in the city about 15,000 Catho- 
lics. His presence in New York City filled a double necessity — 
that of occupyii^ the place of the bishop until he should reach 
the newly-created see and also that of satisfying the German 
Catholics of the city who had appealed to Dr. Carroll in March, 
1808, for a pastor who could preach to them and hear their con- 
fessions in German. The appointment of Kohlmann proved satis- 
factory to New York's exiled bishop, but a misunderstanding 
arose later, when the energetic Kohlmann, in his desire to pro- 
vide for Catholic education in the city, founded the New York 
Literary Institution, which was at first located near St. Peter's 
on Barclay Street, but was later moved to the site of the 
present Cathedral. "From the very start it rejoiced in no less a 
number of pupils than fifty, amot^ them the children of Protes- 
tants like Governor Tompkins ; and had circumstances permitted 
its founders to continue their good work, undoubtedly it would 
have been the foundation of a great College." *^ In 1807, Father 
Kohlmann visited the German Catholics around Goshenhoppen 
and in the city of Philadelphia, where he remained for two weeks, 
instructing the children in Christian doctrine, preparing them for 
their first Holy Communion, and hearing the confessions of 
many who had grown careless. "Almost all the confessions I 
heard," he wrote to Carroll, "were general or at least for three, 
six or ten years back." " The leading Catholic laymen in Phil- 
adelphia at that time was James Oellers, the proprietor of Oellers' 
Hotel, where many an historic banquet occurred during the days 



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Diocese of New York 637 

when the city was the nation's capital ; and like all his race, who 
have emigrated to America, the chief interest of Oellers was the 
education of the young. Oellers had been a leader in the opposi- 
tion to Bishop Carroll's authority and was likewise an opponent 
to Bishop Egan. At the time of Kohlmann's visit, peace had been 
established temporarily, and Oellers proposed to the Jesuits to 
found a college in the city. He promised to bestow the land and 
the buitdii^, if the Society would furnish the masters. Dr. Car- 
loll does not seem to have approved of the project, no doubt con- 
sidering it prudent to allow the problem of collegiate education 
to be decided by Philadelphia's bishop. Perhaps, also, he knew 
of the sentiments expressed by Kohlmann, March 7, 1808, in 
which the Jesuit said : "At this critical moment of the appointment 
of five [sic] new Bishops, the great point for the Society is to 
take possession of Boston, New York and Philadelphia, for fear 
we may be prevented by others." " Father Anthony Kohlmann 
was far-sighted enough to realize, more keenly perhaps than the 
Americans themselves, that the future of the United States lay 
no longer with the South and that it was in New York that the 
nation would find its greatest centre of population. Hi^hes gives 
us an abstract of a letter written by Kohlmann to Grassi, then the 
American Superior of the Jesuits, dated April 24, 1815, in which 
the shrewd Jesuit protests against confinement of the Society 
within the State of Maryland — "the State of New York is of 
greater importance to the Society than all the other States to- 
gether." Next in importance, he places Pennsylvania, and he 
trusts that the leaders of the Jesuits will not "doom" the Society 
to such a State as Maryland. Referring to the suppression of 
the New York Literary Institution (1813), he says quite boldly 
that had the Superior been far-sighted he would have sacrificed 
Georgetown College in preference to the New York CoII^e. 
The narrowing influence of the Neales was, however, predomi- 
nent in Jesuit circles at the time, and "instead of getting a (ootii^ 
at New York, there appears a determined disposition to recall 
all ours to a State [Maryland] the worst and poorest in the Union, 
a State from which even seculars retire into the wilderness of 



' Cf. Rtttarckei, nl. i 



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638 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Kentucky ... a State ... in which the Society will be eternally 
buried as in a tomb . . ." ** 

Bishop' Concanen was in correspondence (1809) with Mar^ 
chal, then Rector of the Lyons Seminary, France, with a view to 
the establishment of a college and seminary in New York City, 
and when the news reached him of Kohlmann's foundation, "the 
good man, mild as he was, was somewhat indignant that such a 
step should have been taken without his knowledge and con- 
sent." " He expressed his opinion in no uncertain terms to Troy, 
and for a time seems to have harboured the feeling that Dr. Car- 
roll had overreached his authority. Letters from the Archbishop 
of Baltimore, however, set his mind at ease. In a letter to Mare- 
chal, on February 10, 1810, Dr. Concanen, by way of apology, 
as O'Daniel states, explained that the New York Literary Insti- 
tution "was erected, as he (Carroll) informs me, before he heard 
of my appointment to that See. He gives me, moreover, the 
pleasing news of the thriving state of religion in my Diocese, and 
that there is also a Catholic school opened at New York for female 
children . . . Had I known before of the establishment of the 
new Academy at New York, I probably would not have engaged 
the two your^ Franciscans to accompany me . . . Another piece 
o£ news that Doctor Carroll gives me is, that there is a new 
Church now building at New York, which is to be dedicated to 
St. Patrick." " 

Fathers Kohlmann and Fenwick had persuaded the trustees 
of St. Peter's that a second church was necessary in the metrop- 
olis, and accordingly land was purchased on the outskirts of the 
city and the new church (Old St. Patrick's) was begmi on June 
8, 1809. When the news of Dr. Concanen's death reached New 
York, a solemn Mass of Requiem was celebrated on the first 
Sunday in October, 1810, for the happy repose of his soul." 
Father Kohlmann remained in New York as administrator of the 
diocese. The Jesuits sealed the fate of the Institution by trans- 
ferring it to the Trappists, who arrived in New York in 1812- 

** Cf. HuGHEi, I.e., pp. ■t4S-946 ootc; thit Ckrroll uw tbe opporlunilia for 
Catholic education mud proirtu in New York it crident (iiNn bia eorretpoadcnc* at 
ttaii time. (Cf. HuoHia, I. c, pp. SoD-Boi.) 

■ O'Dahixl, m «i#ra, pp. 37-18 

■■ BaMmon Cathedral ArcUmi, CaM 14-Ui: prioMd in O'DimaL, ■>■ npra, f. jS. 

" Ibid., Cmtt 4-Us. (Kohlmann to Carroll, October ip, iBio.) 



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Diocese of New York 639 

1813 ; and when the Ursuline nuns, who came in 1812, returned to 
Ireland in 18:5, Catholic education in the diocese was at a 
standstill. 

From the death of Concanen (June 19, 1810) until the conse- 
cration of Father John Connolly, his fellow-Dominican, as second 
Bishop of New York, on November 6, 1814, the see remained 
vacant It was during these years, especially, that correspondence 
between Rome and Baltimore practically ceased. The imprison- 
ment of Pius VII by Napoleon, the decision of the Holy See not 
to appoint bishops to vacant bishoprics so long as the Pope was 
kept in duress, and the disturbances caused by the War of 1812, 
rendered it impossible for Dr. Carroll to provide for the Diocese 
of New York. The appointment of Bishop Connolly followed 
quickly upon the return of Pius VII to Rome; and it may be 
safely concluded that the Holy See had decided shortly after 
Concanen's death to name his companion to the vacant diocese. 
On the eve of his death. Bishop Concanen had proposed for the 
appointment of Father Ambrose Marshal as his coadjutor ; and 
it is evident from Carroll's correspondence at this time that 
Mar^chal was also his own choice. The election of Father Con- 
nolly has been interpreted by the historian of the Catholic Church 
in the United States, John Gilmary Shea, as the culminating 
point in long years of intrigue for the control of the American 
Church on the part of the Irish hierarchy, the chief offender 
being a member of the same Order to which Bishop Concanen 
and Connolly belonged — Archbishop Troy of Dublin. Shea sums 
up the charge of foreign interference as follows : "The dai^r 
which the old Maryland priests had feared had proved no delu- 
sion. Bishops and others in Europe were urging appointments to 
Sees in this country, ignorant of the actual state of affairs and 
of the qualities required. Archbishop Troy of Dublin was the 
centre of these movements, and his interference can be traced in 
Canada and England, as well as in the United States. The nom- 
ination of Bishop Concanen had been chiefly on his recommenda- 
tion . . . Archbishop Carroll and Bishops Flaget and Cheverus 
saw with gloomy forebodings their advice set aside at Rome in 
deference to that of prelates strangers to the country," *' 

" Of. cit., <n». U, ff. M4-66S. 



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640 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

After the death of Dr. Concanen, continues Shea : 

The appointment made for New York at the instance of Archbishop 
Troy and other Irish bishops was one almost unparalleled. The choice 
fell on Rev. John Coonolly, of the Order of St. Dominic, and a subject 
of George III. The United Stales and Great BriUin were then actually 
at war, and no country in Europe would have failed to resent, under 
similar circumstances, the appointment of an alien enemy to a bishopric 
within its borders by refusing him admittance into its territory. The 
nationality of Bishop Concanen had prevented his reaching America ; but 
without leammg experience from that appointment, the authorities at 
Rome conmiitted a grave national discourtesy in electing to an American 
See the subject of a country actually at war with the United States, aixl 
which had just laid its national capital in ashes." 

This is the popular American tradition of Dr, Concanen's ap- 
pointment, as well as of that of his successor. If it is to stand 
as historic fact, then the problem rests between an error of -judg- 
ment on Bishop Carroll's part tn not protecting his Church from 
this alien interference and an error of judgment on the part of 
Rome. The appointment of Dr. Concanen has been studied from 
the original documents by the Rev. Victor O'Daniel, O.P., the 
historian of the Dominican Order in this country. As a Domin- 
ican, it must be conceded that Father O'Daniel's interpretation of 
so important a page in American church history, in which all 
three of the participants were members of his own Order (Troy, 
Concanen and Connolly), might be open to question, but he has 
given us from the Archives of the Dominican Master General at 
Rome and from other important archival collections all the docu- 
ments bearing on the problem. It is his interpretation, therefore, 
which should settle the question of interference, at least in the 
appointment of Dr. Concanen, in which Archbishop Troy of 
Dublin had no part. "Nowhere," say O'Daniel, "in these lengthy 
minutes of Propaganda is the name of the great metropolitan of 
Dublin mentioned. Other documents show that all communica- 
tion between Ireland and Rome at this period had been inter- 
rupted by the enmity between France and Et^Iand, and that 
Troy had no idea of his friend being appointed Bishop of any 
place."** Bishop Concanen's letters to Archbishop Troy prove 



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Diocese of New York 641 

quite conclusively that there was no intri^e in the appointment 
of New York's first Ordinary, and what is true of Dr. Concanen's 
elevation to the American episcopate is equally true of his suc- 
cessor. In summing up this interestii^ problem, Father O'Danicl 
says : "It is but fair to Shea's memory to suppose that he had at 
his di^>05al only partial or imperfect copies of these documents; 
for he could hardly have written as he did, had he seen the orig- 
inals ... the great churchman (Troy) in no way deserves the 
swe^ing accusation of interference urged against him by various 
authors and especially by Shea," *^ That Dr. Carroll shared the 
opinion with his fellow-priests regarding the interference of the 
new prelate can be seen in his correspondence with Troy, which 
Cardinal Moran must have deliberately kept out of his Spici- 
Ugium.** But Carroll does not accuse Troy in the case of Con- 
nolly; he brills the charge to Troy's own act in the question of 
the Irish ecclesiastical politicians who were determined at this 
time to foist the unwelcome disturber of the peace, Harold, on the 
vacant See of Philadelphia. In this instance, as will be seen in 
the next chapter, Troy protests against having acted irregularly 
or improperly. 

On March 22, 1815, Troy wrote to Carroll to say that he had 
been requested by Bishop Connolly to announce the latter's Sec- 
tion and consecration.*' Dr. Carr wrote to Carroll from Philadel- 
phia, on May 22, 1815, saying that the news of Coimolly's con- 
secration had reached him; and on October 29, 1815, Carroll 
heard that Connolly was about to sail for New York.** Bishop 
Connolly was about sixty-five years old when he landed in New 
York City on November 24, 1815. As a British subject, he pru- 
dently waited until the Treaty of Ghent before comii^ to the 
United States. 

Archbishop Carroll, at this date, was in his last illness. There 
were few who did not know that the venerable prelate was near- 
ing the end, and it would be much to Bishop Connolly's credit, if 
among the Carroll documents, a letter announcing his arrival to 



■ Vl luprt, pp. aj-iC note. 
" Bammon Cathidnt AtcUm, Cue e-Ti-s. 
« tut.. Cue 8-N8. 

•• IbU., Cue J-P7; ef. Curotl to Plowden, June 
UoriTUre to Canon, Londaii, Jane 19, iSij (prio 
■ Conaollr'i ncu departnre. 



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642 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

his metropoUtao were to be found. Archbisluq) Neale wrote on 
December 3, 1815, to New York's Ordinary, annouodi^ Car- 
roll's death, and on the ^h Connolly replied : "I have long admired 
and esteemed him on accotmt of his learning, zeal and piely. His 
death will be regretted in Europe as well as in America, particu- 
larly at Rome, where his Holiness often spoke to me of him . . . 
My intention during my voyage to America was to wait on Dr. 
Carroll before I should take possession of this See, but I have 
been hindered from so doing by a cold contracted at sea, whidi 
still continues, with a cough . . . " " Bishop Connolly's faihire 
to communicate with Archbishop Carroll seemed to many at tlie 
dme to indicate that in some way a strong prejudice against 
Baltimore's archbishop had grown up at Rome. Carroll was past 
caring at the time, but a visit from Bishop Connolly would have 
cheered his final days on this earth. Two days before Connolly 
arrived in New York, Archbbhq> Carroll had received the last 
sacraments, and a week later, on December 3, 1815, John Carroll 
passed away. 

At the time of his arrival, Bishop Connolly found in his Diocese 
five priests (Fathers Benedict Fenwick, SJ.; Peter Malou, S.J.; 
Maximilian Rantzau, S.J.; Thomas Carbry, O.P., and Michad 
Carroll). His cathedral (Old St. Patrick's) had been dedicated 
ty Bishop Cheverus on May 4, 1815, and his fiock was estimated 
at between thirteen and fifteen thousand souls.** Bishop Plessis 
of Quebec, who visited New York in September, 1815, makes men- 
tion of the fact that the Church then had suffered much owing to 
the uncertainty of canonical jurisdiction. Kohlmann's resignation 
left the diocese under the care of Fenwick; but without an 
express del^ation by Connolly, the young priest could exercise no 
power. Archbishop Carroll could not name an administrator, since 
the see was filled, and so, in summary, the condition of Catho- 
lic affairs in the metropolis and in the State was acephalous. 
Bishop Connolly, according to Plessis, was not received with 
mtKh enthusiasm at first*^ The following year (1816) Fenwidc 



■■ BtMman CMUnl ArxMttt, C»Mt ii-lfB. 

■ CnatUr to Tnttfaala, Vtbtmrj tf, iSiB, Prapagmiia ArMvu, SeriUnrt 
riftrUt, AmKtica CtmtrmU, tdL It, ao. *i. 
' Ttrn, wf. cU., pp. ifo-i6i. 



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Diocese of New York 643 

was recalled by his Superior, and during the ten years of his 
episcopate (1815-1825) Bishop Connolly found himself out of 
sympathy with some of his priests and people, and more than 
onoe during that period his attitude on grave questions imperilled 
the safety and the peace of the Church in his diocese. 



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CHAPTER XXXII 

THE SUFFRAGAN SEES : III. PHILADELPHIA 

(1793-1815) 

"On the division of the original Diocese of Baltimore, which 
had embraced the whole United States, Pennsylvania and Dela- 
ware, into which the services of the Church had been extended 
from Maryland, and which had even in colonial days enjoyed a 
freedom and toleration denied the faitiiful and their devoted 
priests in the land which Sir George Calvert had made a sanctu- 
ary, were erected into a bishopric with part of New Jersey. Next 
to the Diocese of Baltimore that of Philadelphia seemed to prom- 
ise most consolii^ results ; but in the course of time it suffered 
more than the Church in any other part of the country from ene- 
mies within and to a terrible extent from enemies without." ' 
In his Report to Propaganda (April 25, 1792) on church condi- 
tions in the new Republic, Bishop Carroll penned what is virtu- 
ally the opening paragraph for the history of the disorders in 
Philadelphia, which lasted during the whole of his own episcopate 
(1790-1815) and during that of Bishops Egan (1810-1814) and 
Conwell (1820-1842). Laymen fretting under church discipline, 
and unruly priests who had not brought with them to America 
a respect for ecclesiastical authority, were the chief causes of 
the disturbed condition of affairs in Philadelphia for half a cen- 
tury. The schism of the priests and the trustees of Holy Trinity 
was no sooner brought to an amicable settlement than a similar 
situation arose In the parish of St. Mary ; and if a minor share 
of the energy displayed in writing and publishing pamphlets and 
diatribes had been expended for the good of souls and for the 
promotion of religion, Philadelphia might have held the pre- 
eminence in Catholic American life it enjoyed at the time of 
Bishop Carroll's consecration. The Philadelphia "stirs" do oot 
furnish an edifying chapter in the Catholic history of Carroll's 
* Sbia, ef, at., *oL ili, p. aat. 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 645 

time; but they are essential to an adequate knowledge of his 
episcopate. Bishop Carroll in his lengthy Report says : 

Besides those distiu'bances at Boston, of which I have already written, 
a certain prejudice to the state of religion both here in Baltimore and in 
Philadelphia ha« been enkindled. The origin of the whole trouble comes 
from two priests whom, on account of the great need of labourers and 
pressed by necessity, I accepted some years ago as sharers of my labours. 
Both were impatient at any subjection to rule, and one of them, already 
led gradually to the height of irreverence, has done hig best to arouse a 
factions spirit among certain German Catholics, on the pretext that they 
rarely hear sermons in their own tongue, and are without churches spe- 
cially set aside for their own nationality. Smce both these priest* are 
Gennan, they have gathered about them a certain number of followers, 
men indeed of a humble condition in life; and having deserted the posts 
assigned to them both in Baltimore and Philadelphia, without any authority, 
in fact against my express command, they are daring to minister sacri- 
legiously to these people. 

The trouhle in Philadelphia, as we have seen, started with the 
foundation of Holy Trinity Church and the appointment by the 
trustees of the Capuchin, Father John Charles Heilbron, to the 
pastorate there. Philadelphia and the surrounding rountry had 
attracted German immigrants from the days of Pastorius, the 
founder of one of its suburbs, Gennantown; and many Catholics 
came with these emigrants. Pastorius mentions a Catholic as one 
of the servants he brought with him to Philadelphia. All through 
the colonial history of Pennsylvania down to the death of Father 
Farmer, on August 17, 1786, the German- and Et^lish-speaking 
groups in the Catholic Church were about equally divided. When 
Father Greaton, in the 'thirties, gathered his little flock at St 
Joseph's Chapel, the congr^ation niunbered thirty-seven souls, 
fifteen of whom were Germans. From that time, down to the 
period under study, German Jesuits were sent to Pennsylvam'a, 
and the names of Father Schneider, who mitiistered to the Ger- 
man settlement of Goshenhoppen ; Father Fanner (Steinmeyer) 
at Lancaster and Philadelphia; Father Manners (Sittensberger) 
in New York County; Father Luke Geissler at Conewago, and 
Father James Pellentz, who was Carroll's vicar-gcneral — all 
Germans, are written indelibly into the history of the Catholic 
life of the State. There is hardly any doubt that the German 
Catholics formed a majority of the congregations in the State 



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646 The Life and Times of JoHh Carroll 

down to the end of the eighteenth century and even later. In 
Father Harding's official census (1757} of the 1,365 Catholics 
in Pennsylvania, 949 were Germans. When St Mary's Church 
was erected in 1763 to relieve the burden of the little Chapel of 
St. Joseph's, not a small portion of the money advanced for its 
construction came from the German Catholics, and in 1768 we 
find them takii^ the first steps towards separation by purchasit^ 
a burial-place of their own. The death of Father Farmer had 
deprived the German Catholics of the advants^ of religious 
ministrations in their mother tongue, and shortly afterwards meet- 
ings were held for the purpose of founding a separate German 
church. Dr. Carroll appointed Father Laurence Graesst to 
take up the work left vacant by Fanner's death. He arrived in 
October, 1787, whether before or after the advent of the two 
German Capuchins, the brothers. Fathers John Baptist and Peter 
Heilbron, is uncertain. These latter priests had come unan- 
nounced and apparently without the consent of the superiors, in 
response to the rather fervid letter written on June ID, 1785, 
by Paul Millar, a prominent Catholic of Conewago. The need 
of priests was so pressing that Dr. Carroll welcomed the two 
brothers and appointed them to the congr^ation in Goshen- 
h<^>pen.' In 1784, a German Franciscan left his convent with- 



■ la oat of IfolrBtu'i intontinc letten ta CunU (miaddphlB, NokbAb ■«, 
■7*1), ha rdato* IhU ft Utter, wUck ha cndoaca, Inn ■ jaaas Catholic priaat In 
IidtBd, wu braaiht to him br ■ Ifr. John Irwin, ■ PnabTtsiui, who had Utdr 
ntBtBcd ta FbUadilphu fnim Irdind. The lena- ii u foOinn: "I hire "*«■'-*< 
•criaaalj ud with itMstloa lata the method ot bcinc otabllthtd u a Calholle PiieM 
Id North Ameiiai, and I find that there hai Utdr been ■ Vicar Apoatolick appointed 
hif the Hoi)' Set, with all ordiniir power In SpiHtnaU, oader whom In eonaaqoBict 
and br whott tolt direction ercrrthiBc raKardiac the Cadiolie UialoD of tW II. S. 
aan bt eoodtictad. There are two thine* thodora Beecaaarr toward! mr liaal 
•atabUihment. The fint ta to be called upon br V. Apoat. and the id li to hart a 
Ee rtl niony of mr paat cdaduct, and an explicit approbation of mj undeitaUn^ and the 
iataatioiL ef B^ iiiiaiiliini froB the Ordinarr, or the Biihop of the Dlocett, in 
■Aldi I have been ordalnad and where at preient I am cmplared ai a Ulnloaarr. 
The latto- will be readilr cianud. and there are nnmben of out GtttTTiHa totaUr 
■noecnfied In thii dioceaa; and the former I do not beaitat* to oUiIb b<r yt- hind 
esertlaaa in nj taTou on whiil I tUaflr relr. The Vicar ApoatcUdi will doabtlttt 
be wdl plmied to find labjeeti qnaliSed to nndertalie the ardnona taak of 8 Miiiianaiy 
11 tha Jim^ and the Oerfr of Cathotick Conntiiee arc Olirdr nnqnatlfitd throoih 
the want of tha haawltdca ol tha Enctlah tansiace. Yen wiQ bt Uod awmch Ihtrafen 
la enqoire tor the principal KtMBan CathoUek Prleat at Phlla. and rtprcMOt ts Vm, 
that a Prieit of rr. ae^naintanec employed at preaent npon the ■nFfTi*?fl la Itdaad 
•ha can be wdl aKctted br hia Snpcriar ai w^ a* fo neccaaarr aUUtiei ai motal 
taodnct mahaa Urn an offer of hii atrrloea. I have had an acct. daca rr. dapattttce 
[real Irdaad tint a Piieet ia much wantad at BalMmortt ai wdl aa in aaay Other 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 647 

out permission and came to Philadelphia. This was the Rev. 
John Baptist Causse, or Father Fidentianus, as he was known 
in religion. Father Farmer took pity on the ft^tive and obtained 
his pardon from his siiperiors, and Father C^roll authorized 
him to ministel- in case of necessity to his fellow countrymen.* 
Causse was another of the vagabundi who caused so much unrest 
to the infant Church of the United States, He went to Boston, 
then to Quebec, spent the winter of 1784-1785 at Halifax, and 
after many trials returned to Philadelphia on Aug^ust 5, 1787. 
He was then sent to Lancaster, but the lure of Philadelphia caQed 
him back (1789). It is interesting to note that in 1787 he was 
one of the original trustees of Franklin College, Lancaster, in 
the foundation of which he had a part* 

On November 22, 1787, when Father Carroll was in Philadel- 
phia, the Germans presented him with a petition requesting his 
approbation of Father John Heilbron as thdr pastor. The 
prefect-apostolic considered it prudent to refuse this request, 
stating that he had already ai^inted Father Graessl to th^ post 
Two days Uter, James Oellers, in the name of the Germans of 
the city, wrote to Father Carroll, stadt^ that, in their opinion. 
Father Graessl was unfitted for so important a task as caring for 
the Germans of Philadelphia. They were persuaded, he mites, 
that Father Heilbron "is the Gentleman best fitted to answer our 



^■cn tn Aataiia aad wmM DDdonUcdlT brnvc act ofl span tbi> CDCOttnscnwtt, if I 
had mar umrniiee of naetiiis the *|ipnitation of tht Vtcar ApoMolidi; itA. I ttt* 
abodr BDtifitd to Ton )i itoolntdT M»iiiill«l f« ■? nndcittkiiw. B«rid* it «d. W 
k timt uvamcBt of Moeritr *Bd inprndeDce in me to proceed vltbovt th* kut 
MrtalBtr of bdBs cmptorad aad bcnbr acpat ajnlf pcrhBp* to aiiBT ud A* 
diBBB of alMiybif Ib ■ forcIfB bud; wtCTrfore to wiU obtain tb« Vie Ap. t-ppnibttkm 
la Kripli with th* ^HUmaila I nsT wpcct tai dcpnd apaa, Euht Cohwbu." 
(PrintMl ia th« Sttgrti, toU zxiz, pp. 171-17C) ThlrtT-ftrc Tou* latv, Cotiwdl 
«u to cong to PUladdphia u iM Mcond BUwp. 

* BaUbnon Cttlnint AniHKti, Cmc j-Hi. 

* C*BH«'i Uter career ia not Iraown with certaiMT. It woidd aeoB that aftw 
bdnc ouUcred bj Carroll aboM itS*, he took refute with Father Thaodor* Broawcra 
■1 Oe SportanuB'i Ball, now the alte of St. Vincent'a Abber. BealtT. Pa., whon he 
attvided dntiBC hia Uat lllBcaa. Father Brottwtra died oa October ag, 179*. Attai 
tiUa dale, Canaae bonfht a dretu called "Jenualon," with which be toored the 
ce tiBtT T. Ob Jium 4. 1793. bt wrote to Cairdl! "I wimld acli my tbow called Ibt 
JenualoB, If I coold be reinatated aa pattor •omnrbCTe." Carroll accepted thia alcn 
cf rctnrBJnt nuUIr, asd praaiaed to pardoo Ibt Fnndacan, if he wotdd make a poblic 
rqaralieB for the icaadal be had ilTetL Afcr thia Canaaa ia loM to rishl. (BoMmh 
CatJwdral ArcUvtt, Caaa a-lfi.) There ia a racoid of a pcadDB Itft-t^) P>U te 
Caoaae br the Select BodT on HaT iB, 17(9, "a faalaaee dn* fmo the tine ha eoaa- 
MOKed to acTR the C Mn rB Kt tintM of Laneaattr." (Cf. Bdobu, of. ctl., i 
ML i, fut B. ^ 6*.) 



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648 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

purposes, as we are all confident that he will by his good Example 
in a very short time Collect the Flock again together, which has 
in some Measure through N^lect gone astray within this 15 
months past . . . Should it be still your determination to have 
the said Mr, Crcsler [Graessl] appointed against our will, we 
beg leave humbly to request that you will be pleased to leave us the 
Rev. Mr. Heilbron, Junr. here, whom we will support in all 
necessaries at our own Expense ..." * What part Father John 
Heilbron (or Helbron, as the name is sometimes spelled) had in 
this declaration of independence is difficult to say. The project 
of the separatists continued, however, and at the house of Adam 
Premir a subscription was latmched for the new Church. The 
ground was purchased by Adam Premir on February 21, 1788, 
and two days later, Premir, as "President of the Society of Ger- 
mans," wrote to Carroll, disclaiming any other reason for their 
action than the good of souls. Carroll replied on March 3, 1788, 
upholding the right of the prefect-apostolic alone to promote 
priests to pastoral chains in this country. The actual buildii^ 
of the church was begun on March 31, 1788, and in April the 
leaders wrote to Carroll asking him to come to Philadelphia to 
lay the cornerstone of Holy Trinity Church, as the new edifice 
was to be called. Dr. Carroll was unwilling to go to Philadelphia 
for the ceremony ; and gave authority tv any one of the priests 
in Philadelphia to lay the cornerstone. This ceremony took place 
on May 29, 1788, with Father John Baptist Causse and the two 
Fathers Heilbron present. Carroll's letters show that he had ac- 
cepted the assurances of the German leaders that peace and unity 
in the Catholic ranks of Philadelphia should be preserved.' They 
now proceeded to elect a pastor, and on March 2z, 1789, Father 
John Heilbron was elected to that post. Both Causse and GraessI 
were candidates and the result of this unique election gave Heil- 
bron 75 votes, Causse 12, and GraessI 5. The result was an- 
nounced by letter to Father Carroll on the same day. Basing 
their action upon the old canonical right of patronage, they be- 
lieved, and no doubt with honesty, that having built the church 

* The itorr of thii phuc of the Khinn m 
In ■ Ibonmchlir documciitKt war fajr Cimm. 
(Md., pp. 11-13.) 

i (orifJMab la th« BalUmcr* Cttinint AnMmt, 



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BISHOP MICHAEL F.GAN 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 649 

oat of their own resources and assuring the pastor of mainten- 
ance, they had the ri^ht to elect their own spiritual chief. Car- 
roll, naturally, could not agree to this novelty in his prefecture, 
and he refused to accept Heilbron's election, A letter to Car- 
roll from Father John Charles, dated Philadelphia, October 8, 

1789, showed a good spirit, for Heilbron averred that he would 
never be "anywhere placed as an officiating clergyman without 
submission and dependence to the Ecclesiastical Superiority." 
Nevertheless, Heilbron imprudently exercised parochial functions 
in the church, and was given peremptory orders from Dr. Car- 
roll that he would be suspended unless he acknowledged the 
prefect's authority. This he did, signit^ a doctmient to that effect, 
and Carroll then accepted him as pastor of the new church. The 
trustees, however, showed fight for a time, on the ground that 
they could not "under any consideration cede those Rights so 
gracefully granted by our Dear Mother in promoting rel^on in 
particular in this country." Peace came Enally on January 6, 

1790, when Bishop-elect Carroll came to Holy Trinity to admin- 
ister Confirmation.* The following year Father John Heilbron 
left for Europe in order to solicit alms for the completion of 
Holy Trinity Church. In August, 1791, he applied to Bishop 
Carroll to have his brother Peter appointed locum tenens during 
his absence, and Father Peter assumed the pastorate on Septem- 
ber 3, 1791. Carroll gladly gave permission to John to leave, 
hoping tlutt he would not return. Nothing was further heard 
of him, and it is supposed that be was a victim of the Frendi 
Revolution. For the next five years, the situation of the Church 
in Philadelphia was a satisfactory one. As an example of the 
difficulties, which seemed to multiply with the years. Dr. Carroll 
had to fear the effect upon Antonelli and the other officials at 
Rome of such misguided explanations of these revolts against 
his authority as that contained in Smyth's Present State.* 

Father Peter Heilbron was assisted in 1793 by the Rev. Law- 
rence Phelan, and everything appeared to be going well under 
their administration until July, 1796, when there arrived in 
Philadelphia from Austria a "trouble-breeder, intriguer, an inter- 
loper, the hireling," Rev. John N. Goetz, who presented himself 



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650 Tht Life and Times of John CttrroU 

to Bishop-elect Neale at Philadelphia, asking penniidoQ to exer- 
cise his priestly duties at Holy Trinity Church,' He wis ac- 
cordingly appointed assistant to Father Peter Heilbron, and was 
so elected by the trustees. The subordinate position hardly tallied 
with Goetz's opinion of his own worth, and he protested that 
nothii^ less than equal pastoral rights would satisfy him. A 
breach ensued, the congregation being soon divided into two (ac- 
tions. On September 28, 1796, the trustees passed twenty-six 
resolutions that are models for lay effrontery and ignorance. 
Father Peter Heilbron wisely refused to accept them, and the 
trustees then deposed him (October 14, 1796) from the pasttwate, 
appointing Goetz in his place. The city soon learned of the bitter 
dispute these outrageous proceedings had caused, and after being 
informed by Bishop-elect Neale of the sad condition of affairs in 
Holy Trinity Parish, Bishop Carroll warned the rebellious trus- 
tees that they and Goetz ran the grave danger of excommomca- 
tion. Goetz was joined at this time by another "trouble-breeder," 
Father William Elling, who had already given Bishop Carroll 
much concern at Lancaster and Goshenho|^>en. On December 8, 
1796, Bishop-elect Neale published a Pastoral to the GermoH 
Catholics frequenting Holy Trinity Church in Philadtlphia, in 
the hope of averting the coming schism : 

Dtarett Brethren, 

It is with the greatot concern I see the rer;r a^tated wbA diMrcanized 
itate of Trinity Church; and the more especialtf u I have been ever 
studions to promote its intereat, welfare and respectability, both by rcmor- 
ing from the mindi of my own people all animosity and mifavomablc 
impressions b your r^^ard, and also by restoring that cordial and fraternal 
intercouTK between the Pastors of the two Churches, which bad imfw- 
tunately been too long tnternipted. Yon cannot have forgotten the period 
when I appeared in yottr Chnrch in public testimony of restored peaca 
and harmony. You yourselves as well as other well-disposed brethren, 
felt the happy effect and mutually congratulated each other on the 
occasion. 

Indeed, so happy a union of Parties could not fail of exhilarating both 
your and my feelings, as it reflected respectability on the body of Cath- 
olics at large, and held forth the fairest prospect of ivotaoting the grand 
cause of religion. — But, alas 1 . . . How soon did these ans^ciont ^pear- 
ances vanish I . . . Scarcely was peace restored without, when you borit 
into mternal rebeltioa. But against whom did you rebel? . . . Againit 



«^ (A., p. 4B. 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 6$ i 

jronr lawful and utNtned Pastor . . . ftgainst your Diocesan Bishop . . . 
nay, and ereo against yonr Uother the Church. . . . But howP 1st. 
Agaiiut your Pastor by expelling him in a most humiliating manner 
from the Chnrch where he had officiated for five years, both to your 
satisfaction and the edification of the public — adly. Against your Bishop, 
by refusing to abide by his decision, by openly rejecting his authority and 
jurisdiction; and 3dly. Against your Mother the Chnrch, by uniting with 
and patroniiiiic the unfortunate, the unhappy Priest, Goetz, who under 
the heavy weight of ecclesiastical censure, even a total suspension liaai 
all Priestly Functions, continues to add profanation to sacrilege, by a 
prohibited celebration of Holy Mass, and an unauthorized administratioo 
of the Sacraments. 

But you will lay, that your Pastor was turned off for refusing to 
subscribe to the regulations of the Trustees. — To which I answer, as those 
regulations included many things totally distinct from the temporalities 
of the Church, he did right, he acted the part of a true and genuine 
Pastor, in refusing to subscribe to them; and his conduct, in that par- 
tkular, merited not only your approbation, but also your firmest support — 
Let us however for a moment suppose that you were really aggrieved 
by his conduct. — Why then did you not apply to his superior, the Bishop, 
whose conscience was charged to redress the grievance? Why did you 
arrogate to yourselves the power of discarding him? Who gave you this 
power? Or has the Catholic Church in any case whatever, acknowledged 
in the laity a power of dlschar^ng their lawful Pastors at will? No. 
She neither has, nor ever will. — But you will say that you were authorized 
to act as you did by a title termed /m Patroiiottu. — Ahl my brethren, 
and it is thus you expose yourselves to the lau^ter and pity of a discern- 
ing public, by spouting forth terms, which yon understand not, and 
repeating the reveries of an illiterate and factious Leader, who will 
never reflect honour ou you? The truth is, you have no Jut Patro*iatus: 
You can have none, because your Church has no Fixed, PEauAHEMT 
and UHALiENAaLK ftmd for the support of a Pastor. Such is the 
doctrine of the Council of Trent: and therefore Doctor Carroll in his 
letter to me on this subject dated nth of October, 1796, speaks thus: 
"Tbeir pretended jut fotronattu, must be resolutely resisted, and is abso- 
lutely untenable." — Besides, though you really possessed the /tu patron- 
ahu, it would entitle yon merely to present, and not to appoint or discharge 
your Pastor. For according to the practice and doctrine of the Catholic 
Chnrch, from the Apostles' days down to the present time, all Pattori 
are appointed by their respective Bishops, without whose concurrence and 
approbation they can have neither mujton nor furisdictitm. And therefore, 
to aasert and obstinately maintain the contrary, would be Schismatical and 
Heretical. — The sentiments of our Bishop Doctor Carroll, on this subject, 
will appear from his letter to me bearing date aoth of Oct 1796, which is ai 
follows : "You call for my opinion and directions oa the contents of your 
alarming letter of the isth and i6di instant. — My opinim is obvious; vis. 
that the proceedings of Goeti and his adherents, are idiisnutical and 



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6s2 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

deserving every censure, even the highest which the Church can inflict: 
and that the inan, who can put himielf at the head of such a party lo 
soon after getting footing in the country, must be a man of most turbti- 
lent and unprincipled disposition. My farther opinim is, that unlet* the 
poor misled Germans can be nndeceived and reclaimed aooa, they and 
their church will shortly be separated from the Catholic commmikm, aa 
Ihote of Ihem already are who have excited and fomented this rebellion; 
and Goetz in particular, who with his better knowledge, has gone into so 
outrageous a breach of episcopal authority in those points which are 
purely spiritnaL and entirely unmixed with any thing of a temporal nature. 
And on this account it becomes necessary to proceed with every act of 
vigour against him. Wherefore you did right to signify to him a total 
suspension a dhAnis: And as there is too much reason to apprehend that 
he will disregard the suspension, and act in violation of it, it will be 
proper lo have it published in such manner, u is sufBcieni to caution all 
concerned from attending his mmistry, or partaking in his sacrilegious 
administration of the Sacraments. If you find it necessary to publish 
his suspension in the face of your congregation, you have my approba- 
tion." And again, in another letter dated November a4th, he says: "If 
ever there were cause for excommunication against any one, Goetz, the 
trustees, and Elling, deserve it." Thus far Doctor Carroll. 

Now, my brethren, from all that has been said, yon may form a just 
idea of the situation in which you stand. — You have at your head an unfor- 
tunate priest, who cannot offer the sacrifice of Uass without sacrilege, 
who cannot administer the Sacraments without profanation; who cannot 
absolve with any validity; who acts in open opposition to, and defiance of, 
his Bishop, whom he is botmd by oath to obey; and finally, who, in the 
judgment of his Bishop, has by his misconduct separated himself from 
the communion of the Catholic Church. .... And will yon unite 
with him in his unwarrantable proceedings? Will you communicate with 
him in his sacrilegious profanations? Will you support him in his obsti- 
nate contumacy against the authority of his Church? ... To do so would 
be to place yourselves in the same predicament with biro; to render 
yourselves equally guilty with him; and finally to separate yomselves 
from your Church equally with him. — Ahl . . . Can you bear the idea? 
What? ... To be separated from the Catholic Church 1 Is it possible 
that you should have come to this determination? And sttU such infal- 
libly must be the case, if you persist to adhere to, and patroniie that 
tmhappy maiL For the Catholic Church, which is as immovable In her 
doctrines as the Rock upon which she was built, cannot long contain 
within her bosom those her deluded children, who obstinately fix them- 
selves in opposition to her decisions. She, indeed, like a tender mother, 
alarms them by her cries, and solicits them to return to their duty. But 
if they obstinately resist her motherly call and pressing solicitations . . . 
Oh . . . then, though reluctantly, she will, nay, she must raise her 
melancholy voice, to pronounce the sentence of separation. . . . 

But still, I cannot entertain the idea of your desiring lo be separated 



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Diocese of Phtladetphia 653 

from the Catholic Church. I still persnade myself that your departure 
from duty has arisen, not so much from malice, as from misrepresenta- 
tion, and an undue influence of a designing and corrupt party. I still 
persuade myself, that, being now called on by the Church, through me, 
though an unworthy instrument, you will by a speedy return to your 
duty, convince the world that your deviation was merely human, and 
that you deem it honourable to correct your error, as soon as you are 
rendered sensible to it That the Father of Mercies may enlighten your 
minds, and dispose your wills to this happy effect, is the most earnest 
prayer of 

Your sincere friend, amd Humble Serva»t in Christ, 

Leonb. Nmle, yic. Gen. 
Philadelphia, Dec. 8, 1796." 

By the end of the year, however, Goetz was in c^en schism, 
and after vainly striving to bring the trustees to a saner counsel. 
Bishop Carroll addressed (February 22, 1797) a Pastoral Letter 
To my beloved brethren of the Congregation of Trinity Church, 
Philadelphia, exhorting them to unity : 

Your peace and union, my dear Brethren, have been disturbed for some 
time past, by a daring invasion of the sacred and purely spiritual authority 
transmitted by Christ to his Apostles, and their Successors in the Apos- 
tolical ministry. Though the occasion was sufficiently important and 
alarming, yet I deferred till the present time to address myself imm^' 
dialely to you; still hoping, that the violent breach of the laws of die 
Church, which originated, as I knew, with a few only, would be sooa 
disavowed by your almost general voice. It was not difficult to persuade 
myself of this; for I relied much on the sincerity of your attachment to 
your religion, to the faith you received in Baptism and v^ich you have 
cherished ever since in your hearts. But my expectations have proved 
vain: some of you have supported the usurpation, and deserted the pastor, 
who, to use the langui^^e of the Saviour of Mankind, entered by the door 
into the theepfold, and have delivered themselves up a prey to him, whose 
intrusion has all the marks attributed by Christ to a hirelittg, not entering 
by the door with the fold, but im a thief and a robber. . . . Some months 
ago, the clergyman, who is the chief author of all this evil, arrived in 
the United States: according to the regular and established usage of our 
Church, he exhibited to the Vicar-General, at Philadelphia, the certifi- 
cates of his ordinaticMi, and others respecting his conduct and manners; 
and he wrote to me, most humbly requesting, to use the expressions of his 
letter of July 28, 1796, to be admitted into the diocese, and to be allowed 
to exercise priestly functions, m Trinity Church, at Philadelphia, solemnly 
promising— that he would to dUigenlly acquit himself of the sacerdotal 

■* FitD printed copr in BtMmort CtMeirel ArelUves, Cim iiB-V). 



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654 rfte Life and Times of John Carroll 

duliet vMch might be commilled to Aim, ai to rendtr ktmulf owrtAji of 
further favowt. 

Dr. Carroll then recotints the different stages of Goetz's msub- 
ordinatton, and lays special stress on the new element brougttf 
into American life by the schismatics — namely, the declaration 
on the part of the trustees of their independence of Rome and of 
the bishops appointed by Rome, on the plea that the hierarchy 
tq)resented a foreign jurisdiction. The fatal consequences of the 
action of the trustees is then accurately set forth, and Carroll 
concludes with an appeal to all the malcontents to ob^ the sfMrit- 
ual authority of the Church. 

A« this revolt against the lawful authority of yonr ecclesiastical aape- 
riori was begun without any pretense of injtn?, or a single cause of 
cconplaint, ever made known to me; and as I am conscions to myadf 
of feeling every disposition, not only of good-will, but of tender solici- 
tude to promote the welfare and respectability of yonr congregatiaa, 
and the increase in all godliness; so I cherish the hope, that a sense 
of religion towards God, of due submission to the ri^ful anthoritj of 
his ministers, an attachment to revealed truths, and an awful horror of 
the guilt of schism and apostasy, will revive in all hearts and banish 
out of them discord and disobedience, and bring back again the ^easing 
prospects o( extending the reign of Jesus Christ in truth and holiness.*^ 

When this appeal failed, he excommunicated Goetz and ElUi^ ; 
the first for having the erroneous doctrine that "the power of 
ecclesiastical ministry and government is derived to pastors from 
the community or congregation of the pe(^le"; the second for 
having "disr^;arded his suspension," and for daring "profanely 
to administer the Sacraments and even to offer up the great 
Christian sacrifice, thus adding sacrilegious aggravation to his 
other guilt." " 

The schismatics now made common cause with another German 
disturber of the peace — Father Reuter, in Baltimore. Goetz 
was dismissed for other reasons by the trustees and dis^ipeared, 
but Elling continued the schism in spite of the decree of excom- 
munication. The following year, 1798, Bishop Carroll came to 

■> Printed eopr in Btitlmort Cttktdral Arekhtt, Cue i»Wi. IWi putonl ttt 
printed from a nte eopjr, bjr ArctabUbep Uarfahal, ia iSse <copr ia Cnfc«iie UnWenitr 
of Anwrica Ubrur. S6S.3 ;P.igs) ; priattd alio in Rteardi, voL xdii, pp. i»»-ii4. 

» BtWman Cttktint AnUpa. C»m iiB-Vt; printad la Stetrit, voL vHH, 
pp. 1 14-116. 



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Diocete of Philadelphia 655 

Philadelphta to bring concord to the distracted parish and was 
arrested on complaint of the trustees. He was brought into 
court "to hear from your lawyers," he writes to Oellers, one of 
the schismatical ringleaders, on November 17, i8or, "the foulest 
abuse of our Church, its laws, doctrines, and government, Pope 
and Holy Council of Trent, etc., as if they had ransacked all 
Protestant tibranes to defame it. You, with others, were present, 
without attempting to moderate the rancor of their invectives. 
On that occasion your counsel denied on your behalf that I was 
your Bishop, saying that Trinity Church was out of my juris- 
diction." '• 

Renter had meanwhile gone to Rome to petition for the erec< 
tion of a Gennan diocese with a German bishop in the United 
States. 

The trustees of Holy Trinity still maintained their rdiellion 
against Bishop Carroll, even after the excommunication of the 
two clergymen, "but their supporters were dwindling away or 
growing lax in their allegiance, for men who had rebelled against 
authori^ are not apt to be submissive to the usurper. The better- 
minded among the people had grown weary of their anomalous 
position of a Catholic coi^cgation cut off from the Catholic 
Church and banned by their fellow-Catholics. No doubt the 
hopelessness of securing their unreasonable demands for inde- 
pendence had much to do with bringing the schism to a dose. 
At any rate n^otiations were entered into to bring about the 
restoration of the congregation to Catholic unity."" There was 
no longer any doubt to all concerned that so far as John Carroll 
was concerned, the incident was closed. Submission to his 
iq>iritual authority alone would restore the congregation to Church 
unity, as he told Thomas FttzSimons, Philadelphia's leading 
CathoUc layman, when the latter tried to make peace. The trus- 
tees made overtures to Carroll in November, 1801, and Dr. 
Carroll commissioned his vicar-general. Dr. Carr, O. S. A., to 
treat with the insurgents. On November 30, 1801, James 
Oellers, secretary to the trustees, wrote to Bishop Carroll asking 
for a "speedy reconciliation."^* Dr. Carroll agreed to the terms 



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656 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

proposed by Oellers, except in one particular : the formal sub- 
mission of Father Ellii^ to his episcc^ authority. Dr. Carr 
was not successful in persuading the unhappy priest to submit to 
his bishop, as we learn from Elliot's letter to Carroll, dated 
Decembei- i, 1801 : 

Right Rev. and itar Sir: 

I wu extremely pleued, when a few days ago your favour of No- 
vember 18 and 19 wai banded to me, in which you mentioned that you 
had commissioned Revd. Mr. Carr to receive proposals at a reunion 
between you and tis at Holy Trinity Church. Mr. Cur and I met to- 
gether yesterday at Mr. Primer's, and after a mutual communication ol 
opinions, I told Mr. Carr that in my opinion the only one and most 
peaceable way of effecting a reunion would be: 

I. to bury into everlasting oblivion all kinds of animosities occasioned 
by the unhappy differences t>eginning in the year 1796, and lasting 
till this day 

3. to withdraw all law suits. And then 

3. to transact everything as it was done ante dittidium. 

If yon will not disturb the congregation of Holy Trinity in the axr- 
cise of their rights, which they claim as free and independent dtizens, 
subject to nothing but the laws of God and the land where the; live, 
on which account they surely have the same power of choosing and 
rejecting what other most Christian, most Catholic, most Apostolic, and 
tnoit faithful nations or their kings and parliaments have chosen or 
rejected; if yon let them enjoy their rights, then they will never fall 
out with you, they will love and revere you. I am sure they will then 
not hesitate to present me to you as the object of their choice to be 
their pastor and all things will be done with the greatest hamicmy, and 
edification. May the Lord of peace dwell in your heart and all wQl 
be at once settled. I remain with the highest veneration. 
Right Revd. and dear Sir. 
Yr. m. o. k. Servt., 

Wm. Elung. 

P. S. — Very often I would have written to you these five years, but I 
always apprehended that you would not like to enter into any correspondence 
with mi, but Mr. Carr encouraged me, by saying if not I myself would 
communicate to you these proposals, which I asked him to transmit to 
you [flV]^» 

The following day (December 2, 1801), Dr. Carr informed 

Carroll that "the pleasing prospect of reuniting the Germans of 

Holy Trinity had vanished. Nothing will meet their ideas, but 

what you never will concede. At Elliog's particular request, I 

" SsMmst* CaOtSrwl ArtUvM. Cut ■1B-W9. 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 657 

had an interview with him in the presence of Premir, after sev- 
eral amicable conversations with Oellers ; the result of all is that 
if you leave them to go on as in 1795 and 1796, and allow them 
hereafter to nominate a clergyman, they will become your dutiful 
children. . . . Everything must be left in Statu Ante." " 
Further reflection, however, led the trustees to the realization that 
Carroll would never sacrifice the principle of non-interference in 
the sanctuary, and In January of the next year, the trustees sub- 
mitted. Elliog agreed to sign a form of submission, which he 
did on January 28, 1802, and these documents Carr sent to Balti- 
more on February 2, 1802." EUing had written to Dr. Carroll 
(January 6, 1902) : "I shall always acknowledge in 3TOU my 
Common Father and Bishop, so as I did formerly. ... I ask 
>'ou one thousand times pardon, my dear Sir. . . . Was it not 
winter, I would have immediately gone to see you at Baltimore." " 
The church was reconciled by Dr. Carr, and all censures were 
removed from Father Elling, who was then appointed pastor of 
Holy Trinity by Bishop Carroll. Thus ended the first schism in 
the Church of the United States. Father Elling resigned the 
pastorate of Trinity Church on October 25, 1806. He remained 
in Philadelphia for several years; probably he went to New 
Orleans, but later returned to the scene of his former labours, 
find died in Philadelphia, on April 2, 181 1.*" 

Bishop Carroll then appointed one of the priests who had 
come to America for the purpose of reestablishing the Society of 
Jesus, Rev. Adam Britt, S. J., to the pastorate of Trinity. It is 
highly interesting to find Britt writing on August 31, 1807, that 
he needs an assistant who can speak English, since so many of 
the Germans who make up his congregation have forgotten their 
mother-tongue : "Et omnino necessartus est aliqius propter Ger- 
manos complures qui cum a Germanis hie nati descendunt ]it^:uae 
patriae obliti, non nisi Anglicam fere loquuntur, et tamen in eadem 
quam frequentant ecclesia confiteri cuperent, et etiam concio- 



" INd., Cue iiB-Wto. 

<* IbU., Cue tiB-Wtj; primed in Hektioih, op. rit., pp. fj-fS. 
* IbU.,Ctm iiB-Wii. 

■■ FMher Thorpe bad advlMd Camll (September i$, 179s) when EUing « 
■nnin( to to OM to Amerio, that he "bu an itd for nmUiof," and warned h 
(Baltiman Catkidnl Archivn, Caw a-Kio.) 



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658 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

nantetn At^Hce audire."" Father Kohltnann was the first to be 
sent to Philadelphia for this purpose, and later Father Patrick 
Kenny was appointed by Bishop-elect Egan, as "English Pastor." 
As a priest. Father Britt was subject to his immediate superior. 
Father Qiarles Neale, and it was Britt's removal from Trinity in 
January, 1811, which precipitated the last phase of Carroll's diffi- 
culties with the restored Society and ultimately broi^ht about 
Neale's deposition by the Father-General. 

Father Michael Egan, the future Bishop of Philadelphia, who 
had been appointed pastor of the neighbouring congr^;ation of 
St. Mary's on April 12, 1803, was chosen by Carroll to be Phila- 
delphia's first bishop, and his election on May 24, 1808, separated 
Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Jersey from Baltimore and 
constituted the third of the new dioceses. Michael ^an was 
bom in Ireland, 1761. At an early ^e he entered the Franciscan 
Order, and advanced so rapidly that in his twenty-sixth year he 
was appointed Guardian of St. Isidore's, Rome. Three years 
later (i79i),he was sent to Ireland, and after labourite there for 
a short time, came to America with the double purpose of assist- 
ing in the scattered missions and of establishing a Province of the 
Franciscan Order in this country. It was at St. Mary's that the 
letter of May 24, 1808, from Propaganda, announcing his elec- 
tion to the newly-created See of Philadelphia reached him. 
Archbishop Carroll described him at the time as a man of about 
fifty, endowed with all the qualities necessary for the proper 
discharge of the functions of the episcopate. Bishop Egan was 
never very robust; his experience was not a wide one; and a 
greater degree of firmness in his disposition might have bettered 
conditions during his episcopate. He was a learned, modest and 
humble priest who maintained the spirit of his Order during his 
whole life. Cardinal di Pietro, Prefect of Propaganda, in his 
official appointment advised Bishop Egan to begin immediately 
after his consecration a Visitation of his large diocese, in order 
that all bad customs might be corrected, abuses abolished, and the 
[iriests encouraged to perform their duties zealously (ut ttaviter 
lua munera sequantur). He was especially warned against allow- 
ing his clergy to be too lenient in administerii^ the Sacrament of 

> BatHman CalUiral ArtUvti, Cmmk a-tno. 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 659 

Penance, and he himself to neglect nothing that would tend 
towards the peace and tranquillity of the Republic.** 

During the two years' delay before his consecration (October 
28, 1810), the trustees of St. Mary's, then the cathedral church, 
welcomed (November 24, 1808) an assistant to Bishop E^an in 
the person of the eloquent Dominican, Rev. William Vincent 
Harold. Father Harold had come to New York in 1808, hoping 
to find Bishop Concanen already installed there and expecting to 
be assigned to parochial work in that diocese. He came well 
recommended by Archbishop Troy, and the trustees of St. Mary's 
elected him to that church as assistant-pastor with the bishop- 
elect and Father John Rossiter. On December 3, 1808, Harold's 
arrival was joyfully announced by Egan to Dr. Carroll : 

When the good and worthy Rev. Mr. Byrne arrived here in N. York, 
on hig way to Georgetown, I endeavoured to prevail on hitn to remain 
with me during the winter and he seeing how very much I wanted an 
assistant, consented to remain, provided His l^ordship the Bishop had 
no objections. He had preached and given public instructions during 
Advent very much to his honour as well as edification and spiritual ad- 
vantage of the congregation, and now as another Rev. gentleman is 
arrived, who can supply his place, he wishes to go to Georgetown as 
he originally intended. Whenever he goes I shall always consider myself 
very much indebted to him. The Rev. gentleman who is to supply the 
good Mr. Byrne's place here, is a Rev. Mr. Harold of the Dominican 
Order, just arrived from Dublin with strong recommendations from 
Doctor Troy and the Provincial of his Order. I hare also received 
letters from Ireland in which he is mentioned in a very favourable light 
as a gentleman of good sense and most excellent conduct. He heard in 
Ireland, long before the news had reached America, of the appointment 
of the new Bishops and came with the intention of fixing in N. York 
where he thought Dr. Concanen was already arrived. But finding that 
dty well provided with Clergymen, and hearing of my situation and bow 
much I wanted an assistant, he arrived last Saturday in Philadelphia 
and offered me his services which I joyfully accepted. He preached 
yesterday at St Mary's and gave general satisfaction, so much so indeed 
that the trustees and several others came to congratulate with me on 
having so able an assistant. As there are some doubts of my jurisdiction 
as Bishop, as the authentic documents for the establishment of the new See 
are not yet received, I have given him the requisite faculties as the 
Bishop's V. G., and hope my so dobg will meet his Lordship's approba- 

' Prepagtitia Atchivti. Ltttm, voL ag*, f. 1 1. 



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66o The Life and Times of John Carroll 

tion. His arrival is very providential, as Mr. Rossiter continues in a 
feeble state, and I will gain fresh strength and health bjr having his 
assistance. 

Prayers were offered up yesterday m all the R. C. Churches of the 
city for the repose of the soul of the Rev. and much lamented Mr. 
Molyneux and next Thursday there will be a Solemn Requiem at St 
Mary's for the same purpose. I am with profound respect your 
Most hitmbU Sert/t 

Michael Egak.*" 

Father William Vincent Harold accompanied Bishop Egan to 
Baltimore for the consecrations (October z8-November 4, 1810), 
and the brilliant Dominican's sermon at the consecration of 
Bishop Cheverus was by far the best delivered in this country up 
to that time. On Bishop Egan's return to Philadelphia towards 
the end of the year 1810, there occurred the first of a long series 
of misunderstandings and quarrels between the trustees of St. 
Mary's Church, the pro-Cathedral at that time, and ^iscopal 
authority in Philadelphia. The story has been told so often and 
with such largess of detail that only those aspects of the local 
history in which Archbishop Carroll played a part are here neces- 
sary. Harold first came into conflict with the trustees over the 
amount of his salary; his overbearing attitude towards the gentle- 
men who made up the Board aroused some to question the pro- 
prietary right of Bishop Egan and the clergy over the Church 
itself. This, in another form, was the same vital question which 
had alienated the Church of the Holy Trinity.** 

There came about this time (March, 1811) to Philadelphia a 
priest who "was destined to play an important part in the history 
of Philadelphia, as a source of scandal and disruption," " — the 
Rev. James Harold, uncle of Father William Vincent. James 
Harold was parish priest of Saggart in Ireland in 1798, when he 
was transported to Botany Bay by the English Government, on 
suspicion of being concerned in the political movement of that 
year. In 1810, he obtained permission to go to America, and he 



' CatMk ArcWivti of Amrrica, Ntir* Damt Umvmity, printed ia tbt Jtf 
mrckei, vol. is, pp. ii3-i>4. 

■• Tbc propcny wii Drifinillr deeded to FKtber Hardina and hii bein. Hardinf 
IraiutoTcd the prDpertr to Father John Lnrii; Lewli, to Hdrnmi; and Hdrneni, 
to Father Francii Neale, SJ., who deeded it to Biihop Conwdl, on Nonmber 7, ili{. 
(Cf. HuGBii, of. cit., DocutneDlg, to), i, part ii, pp. 161-364.) 

■ KiiLiH, «/, cit., p. igp. 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 66i 

was welcomed by Bishop £gan, since Father John Rossiter of 
St. Mary's was then in ill-health.'* James Harold was chosen 
aa a trustee of the Church, and his nephew was appointed by 
Bishop Egan vicar-general of the diocese,*^ Kirlin has well 
said : "The installing of the two Harolds in power seems to have 
been the signal for the beginning of the trouble," which broke out 
after Bishop Egan's return from his Visitation of the diocese in 
the late summer of iSii.'* 

The Church in Pennsylvania outside the limits of Philadelphia 
possessed a venerable history and tradition." The chief centres 
of Catholic life were the districts around Loretto, where the 
prince-priest, Gallitzin, was stationed; and around Lancaster, 
Conewago. and Pittsburgh, The Catholic history of Pittsburgh, 
one of the first of the second series of dioceses created in the 
United States (1843), goes back to the days of the French occupa- 
tion of Fort Dtiquesne, the present site of that city. Mr, Felix 
Hughes came to Baltimore in 1784 to sohcit the establishment of 
a parish there from the prefect-apostolic, and in the long list of 
missionaries who laboured there from that time down to Bishop 
I^n's visit are found the names of the celebrated Carmelite, 



■■ Egan to Carnal, Usrdi it, i8ti. Bahimon Ctihtdrtl Arckivtt, Cue ]'H6. 

" Cf. Rrcorii. vol. xA, pp. g}-94. 

" Op. tit., pp. igg-Mo. Etan hid ttol been T«r7 pmdcBI in the intctira, wUIt 
a* diocew «u awaitiof the oSeiil documcnii for bit eoniecniloB. Carr wrote to 
Carroll (April i6, iBo«) that Eian wai ciubus aiudety hj ■uumlnc the anliwritr of 
an ordinary biihop (Baltmarw Cotktdral Arr-kivri, Caae a-I^). 

■ "Wben Ihe ace of Philadelphia waa exubliahed, thm were in Pbiladtlphia 
St. Jeaepb'a and St. Hair'a Ehurchea, allended br Rer. Iflehacl E(aB, O.S.F., tha 
Biahop-dcct, aaaiMed bj Rer. John Rottiteri HdI^ Triolt]', attended bj Rer. Willian 
Ellinc and Fr. Adam Brill; St. Aufuiiine'a, by V. Rer. Uatlhew Can, O.S.A., and 
Rer. H. Hnilcy, O.S.A. HoIt Trinity had by a (ucecuful lottery in iSoG erected a 
pancnace and St. Joaeph'i Orphan Aaylom, the firM ioitituliaa of in hind erected 
by Catfaolici in the United Suii*. Rev. Loui* de Barth aHended at LancaMer and 
ConewacD; Her. Faol Enttai had betun in 179} hit quarter century paitorahip at 
Goahenhoppeo; Rer. S. V. PheUn had reared a loa chnreh at Sugar Creek, and Father 
Peter Hailbrm. O. HIn. Cap., another log ehapd in Wcgtmordaad Connty; Rev. 
Demetriua A. Gallitiin vai laborini in the district of which Loretto was the centra, 
and Re*. W. F. O'Brien had joat left BrowiuviUe to reatore to a permanent fooling 
CithiJicitir In Plttibnifh, where in the daya of the French the brave men who eo 
gaOanlly atrove to hold that p«nt knelt before the alUr of Our Lady. There were a 
few chnrchea without reaideni prieit*. at at Eliabetbtown. Wolcheater, Carliile, and 
not i few atationi acattered far and wide. Such wat the dioceae over which the 
BiUd and humhie Fmnciacan waa called to exerdic hia pastoral care, create reaoorcel 
to meet ever-increasing wants, and iutill into all the leaions of hannony and peace." 
(SaiA, of. cH., vol. iii, pp. xog-aio); ci. Smaa, Tks Church at LaiKUttr, in the 
SteonU. vol. v, pp. 107-156; Gaass, Hitlery of St. Pttrhyt Church, CtlUU, ibid., 
vol. vi, pp. 166-411. 



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662 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Father Paul de St. Pierre; the C^)uchiii, Charles Whelao, who 
had been io badly treated in New York City by his brother re- 
ligious, Nugent; Flaget, who visited Pittsburgh in 1792; Fathers 
Badin and Barrieres (1793); Father Michael Fournier {1796- 
'797) ; Father Theodore Brouwers, who became the first resident 
priest in 1790; and Father Peter Heilbron, who retired to 
Pittsburgh in 1799, when the schismatics of Holy Trinity Church 
dismissed him. The Rev. William F. X. O'Brien, who had been 
ordained at Baltimore on June 11, 1808, came to Pittsburgh as 
resident pastor (1811-1820). and began the erection of the church 
known as "Old St, Patrick's." This church was dedicated by 
Bishop Egan in August, 1811."' The little community known as 
Maguire's Settlement, and later as Loretto, where Prince Gallit- 
zin began his long and faithful career of missionary, was 
visited by Bishop Egan, who confirmed there some two hundred 
Catholics." He visited also Lancaster where Father Beschter 
was then stationed. 

On his return to Philadelphia in October, 181 1, Bishop Egan 
found himself very vreak, and, in the presence of the priests, he 
informed them that his physician strongly recommended him 
not to preach for a time, owing to a weakness of the chest." The 
Harolds refused to accept his request that they preach on alternate 
Sundays, so as to save his strength. The bishop was so hurt by 
this action that he endeavoured to persuade Father James Harold 
and Father William F. X. O'Brien to change places. Pittsburgh 
had no attractions, however, for the turbulent Irishman, and 
Bishop Carroll could not persuade him to accept the appointment. 
On October 8, 1811, Bishop Egan wrote to Eh". Carroll, express- 
ing his satisfaction in the progress of the Faith he had witnessed 
during the three months of his Visitation. He had administered 
the Sacrament of Confirmation to about 1460 persons in the 
different congregations he visited. 

The first sign of ^e coming scandalous condition of affairs in 
Philadelphia appeared in a Circular Letter of August 22, 1812, 



■• CI. Lamhio, HUtary tf thi Diocin of Pitttlmrelt. FitUbiiTib, iS3«. 

" Souvtmr of Lontto Cntnttry, pp. 11C-21S. LoKtto, 1S99. 

" A> iax\j u October j, 1S05, Fatlui Bnxiua wrMe to Carroll from PbiUddpUa 
Aat Dr. Egu wu appircotlr niSeriiw froa tobcKoIodi. (BatttMor* CMMnJ 
AnkhMt, Cue i-Bfi.) 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 663 

aigned by Bishop Egan, and the two Harolds, protesting against 
the non-payment of their salaries. 

A letter from one of the leading Catholic laymen, one of the 
trustees of St Mary's, John Carrell, dated Baltimore, September 
15, 1812, to Archbishop Carroll, tells us of the effect of this 
Grcular Letter: 

Most Rev. Sir: 

I greatly regret that I have twice this Summer, miised the pleasure of 
meeting; you here. I have now brought my ion William to place him at 
the Ojllege. Tlie trustees of St. Uar/s Clnu^ requested me to present 
to you the inclosed pamphlet and to explain to you OKire fnlly than it 
does, the causes that led to the fatal disunion which tmfortunately prevails 
in that congregation, which has heretofore been remarkable for peace, 
unity and liberality in support of the Church and Clergy. 

The address of the Clergy being circulated here and elsewhere, the 
Trustees are desirous their answers to it should have a co-extensive circu- 
lation, to remove the unfavourable impression that would otherwise prevail 
against them, where they are not known; to you, Rerd. Sir, most of 
them are personally known. 1 have long served the Church with them, 
and I believe their motives to be as pure, as disinterested at least, aa 
those of their accusers. There is besides the papers now gent you, a pro- 
test against the proceedings of the meeting, signed by a great number of 
the most respectable pewholders, and m circulation for more, when I 
left the City, I vras present at the meeting, and was grieved at the 
shameful disorder and tyrannical conduct that prevailed there, and moved 
for a postponement, to give the Trustees time to vindicate themselves, 
this was opposed violently by some of the Clergy, and denied; I en- 
deavored to remonstrate against this act of injustice, and was several 
tiroes threatened to be knocked down, by some of the fellows who were 
placed in different parts of the house, to intimidate everyone that ven- 
tured to speak in behalf of the Tnistees, my life was threatened by an 
Irish porter. Mr, Carey, Mr. Byrnes, my brother and several other 
gentlemen were also insulted, the friends of the Trustees had to quit 
the meeting, and leave it to themselves to avoid bloodshed; there was 
a set of fellows collected, as infuriate as your Baltimore mob, and as 
keen for blood if they had an opportunity; most of the Trustees had 
received letters, threatening their lives, and the burning of their property, 
one of them had five such letters. Is the cause of the Clergy to be 
supported by such means as these ! The Trustees and their friends are 
not to be intimidated by such conduct, they are determined to pursue 
all lawful and honorable means, in order to prevent the affairs of the 
Church going into the hands of the Men, whom the Messrs. Harold 
have selected as their creatures. The causes alleged in the address are 
only made use of, to inflame the minds of the people against the T^ustee^ 
in order to remove them and put in Men, who are mostly of a class 



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664 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

to be dreaded in any society, violent Jacobins, and nearly strangers 
amongst us and however subservient thejr may be at present, to the 
views of those gentlemen, will injure the Church and in the end tyran- 
nize over the Clergy and people; should they ancceed most of the respect- 
able members will leave the Church. I was twenty-three years a Trus- 
tee, and for more than 20 years of that /time, was honoured with the 
confidence and friendship of all the Qergy, and of my colleagues; 
the business was always conducted with harmony, until the Revd. 
W. V. Harold entered the board, when he immediately opposed all former 
rules of condncling the business that did not accord with his will, he 
found in me a steady opposer of his innovations. When the Church 
was about to be enlarged, I differed in opinion with my colleagttes to 
the manner of opening the Subscriptions, I thought the rights of the 
old Pewholders were unjustly sacrificed to accommodate the new sid>- 
scribers (this 1 could dearly demonstrate to you was the case). Mr. 
Harold took advantage of this to remove me from the trust, and se- 
cretly empbyed every measure to prevent my election, by aspersing 
my character and even sending his Tickets out by the Newscarricrs the 
morning of the election; I was not apprized of this until jnat before 
the election, when some of my friends called on me and wished to 
take measures to defeat him, I refused to permit it I was at 6rst put 
into the board without my knowledge, and contmued in it since without 
ever having solicited a vote, and had no desire to serve with Men I 
could not agree with. I had for several years before been desirous 
to quit the trust, but remained in it at earnest request of Dr. Egan and 
Mr. Rossiter. Whilst the Church was buildii^, Mr. Harold flattered 
the members of the trust, as they very liberally devoted their time 
and money for tliat purpose; but no sooner vras it finished than he 
began to turn them out by degrees, and to put his creatures in their 
places, the old members who were re-elected refused to serve with those 
he put in, the consequence was that the whole proceedings of last year 
were illegal, some of the board not being citizens they could not form a 
board as required by our laws. The whole of the old members, with 
the addition of my brother Edward, were elected last Easter since when 
Mr. Harold has been constantly at variance with them, and I firmly 
believe there never will be peace in the Church whilst him and his Uncle 
remain there, they ought not to have been appointed Pastors of the 
Church; the secret manner in which the former left Ireland leaves room 
to suspect that his conduct was as turbulent there as it has been here 
and they were glad to get rid of him, we know that Clergymen of abilities 
cannot easily get leave (o come here. As to the latter, I refer you to Sir. 
Rich'd Musgraves hist, of the rebellion in Ireland, for an account of his 
conduct there, and to "Wonders of Nature and Art" published lately in 
Philadelphia by Dr. Mease, in lOth Vol. Pages 59 and 62 for a sketch 
of his conduct in Botany Bay, from which he was afterwards exiled to 
an Island for his misconduct, and I am sorry to say that his conduct 
since he has been in Philadelphia fully confirms these statements; are 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 66^ 

"swch Men as these" fit Pastors for St. Mary's Church? When they 
taking advantage of Dr. Egan's timidity and love of peace tyraraiiied 
over him and his family, he threatened to put Gevd. J. Harold away be 
defied him and told him he had ten friends in the Congregation where die 
Bishop had one, and gave him abusive language; this I know from the 
beat authority and Dr. Egan told me himself a week after the quarrel 
that he had not then recovered from the effect it had on him. I 
strongly urged Him to remove htm and try to get over his Cousin — he 
said it was his intention to do so— but he has since said that he could 
not remove Mr. H., in fact he cannot do anythmg they will not approve 
of. I am Most Revd. Sir, your devoted son, 

John Cakbell.** 

Bishop Egan's interpretation of the quarrel is contained in a 
letter to Archbishop Carroll, dated September 28, 1812: 

MotI Rev. Sir: 

It is painful to me to be under the necessity of writing to the Arch- 
bishop on any subja:t that could for the moment give him the least un- 
easiness. I think it however my duty to inform him that the unfriendly 
dispositions, and I may say hostile spirit manifested by the Trustees of 
St Mary's against their clergy since their election into ofiice, and a just 
apprehension of consequences injurious to Religion if they were permitted 
to proceed in their designs without meeting any opposition on our part 
induced me to call a meeting of the pewholders at the school-room on die 
24 of Aug. where Resolutions were passed disapproving the conduct of the 
present board of Trustees. I believe I have no occasion to inform the 
Archbishop with what extreme reluctance I had recourse to this measure. 
But there was no alternative. Every conciliatory expedient was previously 
tried in order to redress the grievances we complained of. A respectable 
Person of the Congregation was deputed to them, for that person, even 
Charles Johnson, a Member of the Board, but who declined having 
anything further to do in their designs, was informed by us of our 
intention to call the congregation and allowed full liberty to commtmi- 
cate this our information to the Trustees, but all to no purpose. I did 
hope that after the Congregation had expressed their disapprobation of 
their conduct in so public and unequivocal a manner, they would remain 
quiet, and give no further trouble, but in these expectations I have been 
unhappily disappointed. They have made a reply to our address, in the 
form of a pamphlet, and to make the circulation as extensive as possible, 
they have caused 1000 copies to be printed. Of this pamphlet, I am told 
there are several copies distributed in Baltimore, and the ArchbiriK>p 
will find, in perusing it, many gross misrepresentations, and expressions 
highly injurious to our character which if passed by unnoticed, would 
make such an impression on the minds of our People as would effectually 

" BaltimoTt Cathtiral Ardiim*, Cmmk i-E*. 



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666 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

destroy all coofidaice in their pastors. Under the drcunutancea, I con- 
sidered a Kcond meeting of the penholders absolutely necessary. And in 
order to render it more Mlemn, and the tauK {Ume\ prevent any dis- 
turbance which otherwise might arise, in discussing a subject of this 
nature. I appointed the little chapel as the most convenient place to bold 
the meeting. Accordingly on Monday evening the 23 of September the 
meeting took place, and the result was such that reflects the highest 
honour on tbe Congregation of St Mary's, and will prove an instructive 
lesson to all future Trustees in what manner they ought to conduct them- 
selves toward their clergy. I enclose the resolutions passed at the last 
meeting, and have only to observe that the reason why the Gwgregatiai 
lejected the motion made by Mr. Carey was because it supposed a division 
in the Congregation, which they denied to be the case. This unfortunate 
Business has made some noise, but I hope it will be soon forgotten. 
While the minds of the Trustees continue in their present perturbed state, 
and their passions irritated, I can have slender hopes of their submission, 
but when their passions begin to cool, and they seriously reflect on the 
scandal they have given, in so wantonly attacking their clergy, I am 
persuaded that some of them at least, will return to their duty. All I 
shall require of them in that case is an acknowledgment of their regret 
for an expression contained in their pamphlet injurious to their clergy, 
and permission from them to mention this from the pulpit or altar. One 
of them with whom I had a conversation on that subject last Saturday 
morning declared that was not requiring too much. But in the after- 
noon of the same day, I found him a quite different Person. He had 
then seen and consulted with his colleagues, and neither my entreaties 
nor those of Mr. Harold had any effect in persuading him to make the 
necessary reparation, at least for the present. I shall say no more on this 
disagreeable subject, which I know must be painful to the Archbishop, 
and has kept my mind in constant agitation since it happened 
/ rttixain, mott Rev. Sir, your most humble and obtdt 
Servt and Br. m Xt. 

•{■ Michael, Bishop of PMlada.** 

Bishop Egan later confessed in a letter to tbe Archbidwp 
(October 29, 1812) : "I candidly acknowledge the words of 
that address were never approved by me though from pliability 
of disposition I unfortunately sanctioned it by my signature, 
but it has been an instructive lesson to me by which I shall profit 
on all future occasions." " Bishop Egan b^an to realize that 
the Harolds were fighting the trustees with his episcopal author!^ 
as their ^eld. 

•• Ibid., Cue j-P7i cf. CuroU to Ptowden, Jnoc jj. iSij, StoHykurti TmuaiHi. 
■■ Ecu to CamJ], October ■«, iSii, Baltimen Ctthtdnl Arciiwtt, Can f Ha, 
printtd In Gumv, Bgam, p. t». 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 66"] 

Another interesting letter, sent to Bishop Egan, over the sig- 
nature "A Catholic," found in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives, 
throws still further light on the situation in Philadelphia at this 
time: 

Philadelphia. Jany. 30th, 1813. 
Ri. Rtvd. Sir, 

It would ill comport with the duty I owe you as my Bishop, or those 
under your charge, my fellow-Christians, to preserve a criminal silence, 
when I behold you beirayrd into measures, so injurious to your own, as 
well as our eternal welfare; instead of endeavoring to avert the evil, by 
showing', in the most respectful manner, the dangerous tendency of the 
proceeding. You cannot question the propriety of my motive when yon 
consider the important stake we all have in your doing right, nor of the 
mode adopted, so long as truth and reason are my guides. 

A report, believed to be founded on fact, is in circulation, that yon 
have signilied your intention of depriving one of your clergy of his 
trust, without any cause, you could safely allege as a juslificatioii, and the 
inference necessarily is, that it is done to appease those who are known 
to be hostile both to them and yourself. It is to show the injustice of 
this step both to yourself, your clergy and your flock, that I now ad- 
dress you, and altho the wound inflicted on your reputation requires to be 
probed, in order to be healed, I confidently hope the spirit of wisdom 
and charity may enable you to appreciate my motive and profit by the 
operation. 

However strange it may seem, nothing can be more certain than that the 
adoption of such a measure would be the highest injustice to yourself 
inasmuch as it would hold you up to your flock either as the instrument 
of unprincipled men, to gratify the most abandoned designs ; or as un- 
gratefully sacrificing your best friends, to conciliate your enemies, for 
some purposes you cannot avow, and thereby shake the confidence of your 
charge in your understanding, or heart. Should the former be the result, 
in what a deplorable situation will you have placed yourself, when those 
under your care are furnished with such good grounds for questioning 
the propriety of, perhaps, your most necessary action; and, in the latter 
case, how poignant must be your anguish, when you will find your exam- 
ple cited to justify any conduct, however reprehensible. In the first 
instance you deprive yourself of all means of doing good; in the latter it 
were preferable never to have been born. Let me beseech you not to be 
so unjust to yourself. 

The injustice of this measure in regard to your dergy is so glaring as 
to exdte the astonishment of those who heard of it, that you could, for a 
moment, harbour the intention. They have rendered themselves obnoxious 
to some of your relatives by introducing reforrn and economy in your 
household; a treasure of which yon must now be sensible of the benefits, 
and which you should have anticipated, and to the present Board of 



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668 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Trustees by their generous exertions to enhance your mesns of comfort 
and dignity as well as by their able defence of your character and cm- 
duct, when both were assailed in the most insolent and shameless manner 
by those men, whom you are about to gratify in dismissing oar aged 
pastor in this shameful maiuter. How can you reconcile such a proceeding 
to your conscience, or any idea of gratitude or honor? Surely you can- 
not have forgotten that scandalous compound of falsehood and bsolence, 
m which you arc represented as avaricious, unfeeling, mean and intriguing? 
or how could the manly, eloquent and admirable defence of your conduct 
by the man you are now about to injure in the tenderest point, ever be 
obliterated from your memory? Well might he ask for which of these 
services he is now to be recompensed by the banishment of his beloved 
Uncle? When you announced from the altar of the searcher of hearts 
that a reconciliation had taken place between "us" (meaning yourself and 
clergy) and the Trustees, was it to be expected that the terrna of it were 
of such a nature, that those very clergy, so immediately concerned, could 
not be entrusted with them, much less that you would so shortly give the 
strongest reasons to believe, that they were of the most unjustiliable 
nature, by proscribing one of your clergymen, to satisfy the diabolical 
malice of those whom you thought fit to take to your bosom, without 
making the least apology or atonement, that I could ever hear of, for 
their former abominable proceedings? How must that transaction appear 
in the sight of him, "who searcheth the reins and the heart," which could 
not be submitted to the consideration of a f ellow-mortal ? 

The injustice that would be sustained by your flock is by far the most 
deplorable of all the evils that would result from this infatuated deter- 
mination, as it would poison at once the great source of their consola- 
tion in this world and happiness in the next ; for let the matter be pre- 
sented in whatever sliape it may to their view, it must exhibit either their 
Bishops or Pastors in the wrong, and thus furnish one of the most 
powerful arguments ever made use of by Infidelity or Corruption for the 
destruction of souls ; and which, in this case, would no doubt prove fatal 
to many for whom you must consider yourself accountable. And as it 
is highly probable that if one of your clergy is sent off in this way, the 
other cannot be prevailed upon to remain, it is not to be supposed they 
will be so destitute of all regard for their reputation as to leave it to the 
mercy of those who have evinced such an uncharitable, rancorous and 
malicious disposition towards them. Be assured they will exhibit the 
transaction in such a way as it will be difficult for the ablest of your 
advocates to palliate; and the probability is that the first Catholic Bishop 
of Philadelphia may appear in such a light to its inhabitants as he would 
gladly relinquish his mitre to be relieved from. Pause for a moment, I 
entreat you, before you adopt a measure that would not only justify, but 
render such a proceeding indispensable, and consider the injustice you 
should do your tiock by inducing this scandal and disgrace to religion, the 
c<»ise<iuences of which are horrible to think on. I trust it is unnecessary 
to dwell on the injury we should sustain in being deprived of the s 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 669 



of men we have so much cause to love and venerate. Yourself can bear 
witness to the uncommoti abilities of one of them, and their tiseful appli- 
cation. SufRce it to say, the poor of St. Mary's would be deprived of 
their ablest advocate, and all ranks of the benefits of a Pastor of the 
most capable of any they have ever known to lure them to virtue and 
deter from vice— besides declaring in a manner that cannot be mistaken, 
they must ever look for the permanent services of any other, who is not 
prepared, when interest may reqtiire it, to lay down his integrity and 
independence at the feet of that portion of the Congregation who may 
happen to have wealth or influence, however profligate or unprincipled. 
In this case, all they could hope for, would be to mitigate the evil by 
turning out those from their trust and confidence who should abuse it — 
which, from all I can learn they intend doing with the present viorthy 
inaunbents. 

Believe me. Sir, this has been a painful duty, I trust to your good 
sense that it may not prove unprofitable; but that you v/ill give the 
subject of it all the consideration its importance demands, and act thereon 
at you could wish to have done on the last day. 

A Catholic** 

When a temporary peace was imposed in the beginnit^ of 
1813, it was agreed to on condition that the Harolds be sacrificed. 

Secure in their hold on the people whcmi they felt sure Bishop Esan 
could not oppose, the two Harolds arranged a dramatic coup, which for- 
tunately failed in effect On Sunday, February ai, 1813, the Rev. James 
in the presence of the Bishop and Father William Vincent, announced 
from the pulpit that both he and William Vincent had resolved to perform 
no more duties in that church. Obviously the scheme was that the 
Harolds considered themselves invaluable, and that a public resigitatioa 
might have the effect of bringing forth a public and popular request that 
they remain at St. Mary's. To their amazement the design was frus- 
trated by Bishop Egan gladly accepting their resignation.*^ 

The trustees now took up the gage for the Harolds, and 
threatened to build a separate church for them unless they were 
both reinstated in the pastorate of St. Mary's. But the bishop's 
"pliability of disposition" had passed, and he refused to listen 
to any threats. Father William Vincent journeyed to Baltimore 

■ BalUmorw Calheirai Ardmiti. Cue lMi. 

" EiiiiH, op. tit., t. JiD. "Noli irritare lionBnl"_WiUi*m Vincent nid Id 
Ec*n in in interrtev in Fdimur, iSij (.Ballinwrt Cellieiral ArMvti, Cue ii-Og>. 
Batth vrMe to Curnll, Philadelpliia, September 7, 1B14: "Rn. Wm. Hmndd, Sr. 
[/Hivf], ii M Sea at lull All ptrtiei wiihsi him to be (one, and were all kUrmed, 
vfaen the Tend ni Knt beck to Wilminston on ■oconni of uttat iiregnkritr in Ae 
p>P«n . . . ctamtt mm, atitt fgtttwtf IBaUimtn Ctlktirtt Arcklvtt, Cut 



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670 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

and placed his side of the case before Archbishop Carroll, and 
there is no doubt that he impressed the Metropolitan of Balti- 
more, since Carroll wrote to Bishop Egan recommending his 
reinstatement as pastor of St. Mary's. This Bishop Egan 
refused to do, in a letter, dated April 27, 1813, even though it 
meant that the diocese would suffer for want of priests, saying 
that in the event of the Harolds' restoration "the peace of the 
Church would be insecure, the advancement of piety will not be 
favoured, and my personal happiness would be sacrificed. Every 
day and every proceeding give additional force to this my unal- 
terable resolution." " Thus the situation remained until July 
22, 1814, when Bishop Egan passed away. Later, when the 
schism at St. Mary's had been reopened by another unfortunate 
priest. Father William Hogan, the stormy petrel of Bishop 
Conwell's episcopate (1820-1842), the trustees of that day stated 
that the real cause of the quarrel was Bishop Egan's refusal to 
have William Vincent Harold appointed his coadjutor. The 
prospective coadjutor left Philadelphia for Ireland in 1813, in 
company with another malcontent. Father John Ryan, 0,P., who 
had been in Baltimore, and who caused difficulty for Carroll in 
Ireland and England. Later the younger Harold went to Lisbon, 
only to return to Philadelphia (1821) and to become a leader 
in the scandalous Hogan schism then at its height in Philadelphia. 
Father James Harold returned to Ireland, and did not come back 
to America. 

As Father Kenny, who had been appointed pastor of St. 
Mary's in Harold's place, said in a letter to Archbishop Carroll, 
dated Philadelphia, July lo, 1814: "He (^an) is incontestably 
a Martyr of the following truly Catholic principle: That the 
laity never had nor never will acquire by any means the right 
of nominating and appointing their priests as Pastors, it] defiance 
of the will and approbation of a Catholic Bishop." '* On the 



■■ 'The CDOdition of the dioeeae in 1S13 but be itited briefly. BUhop Ecmn 
wu M St. Uarr'* with Rer. T. HeGirr; Rcr. U. Carr U St. Ancortine'*, irith Kn. 
Ulchael Hurler; Rn. Ur. RoloS al Hoir Trinitr: Rer. Uichid T. Bjrtie at Ua- 
caster; Rev. Dr. A. Callitiin at LorctW; Rer. Mr. CBiicn at Pituborsb: Re*. L. 
de Barth at Cooemto; Rev. Piol EratKn waa at Goihenboppen; Her. PitdA KcnoT 
mi in Delaware." (Sua, of. eit., vol. ili, p. 116.) 

■• fiaJtMur* Cathtdral Arclmrtt. Caie 4-La; as iutereatini iketch of FaUlcI 
Kemv will be fonnd ia the Rteardt, nl. I, pp. ii^-isg. Cf. ibid., Tol. vii, pp. tj-Jt, 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 671 

day of ^an*B death, Kenny wrote: "But fell persecution 
effected what sincere attachment and best medical art could not 
prevent — I mean his dissolution. That he has been the first 
Victim of Episcopal rights, there can be no doubt . . . He 
bid the ungrateful City an eternal adieu." *" 

Sometiroe before his death Bishop Egan had appointed the 
Rev. Louis de Barth, then pastor at Conewago, Vicar-General 
of the Diocese of Philadelphia ; and when the news of the Bishop's 
demise reached Baltimore, Archbishop Carroll wrote to the 
trustees (July 2"^, 1814), informing them that Father de Barth 
would act as administrator of the diocese until the Holy See 
had appointed a successor.*^ Father Louis de Barth de Walbach 
was born in Alsace, in 1764. He was the son of Count de Barth, 
Baron de Walbach, and a brother of General John Barth de 
Walbach of the American Revolution. After his ordination 
(1790) he came to America, and for many years was in the 
mission fields of Maryland and Pennsylvania. At the time of 
his aK>ointment to the Vicar-Generalship of Philadelphia, he 
was one of the most noted priests in the diocese ; and on receipt 
of Bishop ^;an's letter, he wrote at once to Archbishop Carroll 
refusing the appointment. "Death," he said, "would not be so 
frightful to me as Philadelphia." Unmoved by his appeal. Arch- 
bishop Carroll insisted upon his administratorship of the diocese. 
This included the pastorship of St. Mary's, and the trustees 
immediately rebelled against his presence there, setting up the 
old cry that they would have Harold or none. "While the 
trustees of St. Mary's were writing these abusive letters to the 
Archbishop in the summer of 1814, that prelate's soul was filled 
with the horrors of the war raging about him. Washington had 
been seized by the English, and .... the victors destroyed 
the public buildings and public library, and the govertmtent 
archives. Baltimore was infested by the enemy. Fort McHenry 
bombarded and along the Potomac sacrilegious destruction and 
pillaging of churches took place." ** 

Philadelphia was not to escape the baneful influence of the 



* BaHiwuirt Cathedral Arthmt, Caie 4-L4. 

" Ibii., Cu« ii-Fjoi cf. FoiM, Tht Rtv. Lo%U dt Barth, in the Rttordi, nL U, 
HP- '9-n- 

* Knoia, »t, tU, p. an. 



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672 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Harolds, even in the long interim of six years which followed 
Bishop Egan's death, as we learn from Carroll's letter to Plow- 
den, dated June 25, J815 : 

By letters from Ardibishop Troy, it is given to me to understand that 
a Rev. Mr. John Connolly, Dominican resident at Rome for 37 years, 
was nominated in Sept. and consecrated in Novr., as Bishop of N. 
York. . . . the foregoinK lines having remained by me for several days, 
it has afforded me time to receive a letter from Card. Litta, the prefect 
of Prgda., by which he confirms the intelligence sent by Abp. Troy of 
Mr. Connolly's nomination; he moreover states his surprise, that no ad- 
vices from me have been received at Rome for a long period, that the 
Rev. Mr. Harold, who two or three years ago was one subject of aomt 
correspondence between us, in consequence of his leaving the U. States 
after an outrageous quarrel with his (now) deceased Bishop and Coun- 
tryman, Dr. Egan of Phila., and who reported gross falsehoods to Bbp. 
Milner and others, concerning his Revd. Brethren here, and of myself 
likewise; that this Mr. Harold is recommended to the Congr. as a fit 
subject to succeed the deceased Dr. Egan. An uncle of the former, a 
priest transported from Ireland many years ago to Botany Bay, for 
disafEection to the British Govt., and who either took or obtained leave 
to quit that station, arrived at Philadelphia after Dr. Egan's appoint- 
ment to the government of that diocese, and was associated by the Bp. 
himself to the pastoral functions of one of the churches there, But he 
soon differed, Mr. Harold Junr, with his uncle from Botany, gave such 
continual disgust to the worthy and infirm Bishop, that in a few months 
after tlie uncle and nephew were dismissed from pastoral functions, the 
nephew left America, and some months after, the poor Bishop died. It 
now seems that tho' the nephew remains in Ireland, the uncle, who was 
not allowed to return thither, is gone to France and writes from Bor- 
deaux, previously to Bonaparte's return into that kingdom, that the 
Rood Abp. of that city had recommended Mr. Harold Junr. 10 hii 
Holiness to be appointed Bp. of Phila. Dr. Troy confirms this advice 
adding that some prelates of Ireland have joined in this recommendation, 
without, however, avowing or denying that he is one of tfiose prelates as 
I believe he is. (N.B, By a subsequent letter the Abp. acknowledges that 
he has done so.) How any of these Prelates, and particularly the Yen. 
Abp. of Bordeaux, could determine themselves to interfere in an affair 
so foreign to their concern, and to which they are so incompetent, is a 
matter of surprise. Intrigue must have been very active, but besides this 
some fatality bas befallen my letter to Rome. The original of Novr. 
1814, and triplicate copies of them were forwarded, and two of them by 
safe persons, under cover to the Nuncio at Paris. Yet tuxk were re- 
ceived at Rome, March nth. They conveyed the names of the two 
persons rec<Mnmended by all the Bishops here, one of n4iom shall fill 
the vacant See. I need not add that not roe had an idea of nominating 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 673 

Mr. Harold. It i» a satisfaction to read the following words in Cardl. 
Litta's letter — "Relatum est S. Congri. neminem ad regendam illam 
Diocesim aptiorcin esse P. Gul. Vinco Harold, concionatore praestan- 
tissimo. Non satis nobis compertum est, an in illo concurrant reliquae 
dotes Dtnnes (luac Episcopum decent, et num illius electio satis probata 
sit Amplitudini Tuae, quae in ipsa diocesi Metropolitanum jus exercet 
Cupio igitur ut sententiam tuatn de proposila hac electione mihi aperire in 
Domino velis; ac optata tua responsa quani dtius expectans, etc" Ai 
to my personal feelings on this subject. T am almost indifferent, but 
for tlie sake of the Clergy and congrs, of Pennsa. and especially Philada., 
I deprecate his appointment which would be a signal for rancour, reli- 
gious, and political ; reliKious, between the friends of the holy deceased 
Bp. and partisaiu of Harold; political between the opponents of furious 
democracy and innovators upon established governments, or rather, those 
who are always ripe for innovations, glossed over with the fair pretexts 
of the rights of the people.*' 

Notwithstanding the assurance contained in Cardinal Litta's 
letter, as above quoted, the Haroldites of Philadelphia were 
exhibiting some correspondence from William Vincent to the 
effect that he had been actually appointed to the See of Phila- 
delphia, chiefly on the recommendation of the Irish bishops. 
Archbishop Carroll lost no time in infonning the Metropolitan 
of Dublin that he would brook no interference from foreign 
sources in the management of his archdiocese, and that no 
"irregular interposition or recommendation" of the friends in 
Ireland of Mr. Harold, not even of Archbishop Troy himself, 
would be allowed to stand without a strong protest. "I do not 
and probably shall not hear of Harold's appointment," he caus- 
tically remarks to Plowden in a letter dated October 13, 1815 — 
probably his last letter in a correspondence stretching over forty 
years.** That he was ready to o^ntest Harold's reappearance 
in Philadelphia, even though appointed by Propaganda to the 
See, is evident from a letter to Bishop Neale, orderii^ him to 
communicate at once with Father de Barth, so that "no time 
should be lost in giving directions to Mr. de Barth to repair to 
Philadelphia, maintain the mastership of the house, the old chapel 
and premises." *• 



' Homis, of. cU., Doc«ncDt«, voL I, part U, p. Kt. 



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674 r*« -f-'/* '*"'' Times of John Carroll 

Shortly after Bishop ^^'s death, Archbishop CarroU com- 
municated with the other bishops of the country (Neale, Chev^ 
ems, and Flaget), calling their attention to the fact that the 
suggestion made in their joint letter to Rome (November, 1810) 
to the effect that the nomination for vacant dioceses proceed 
"solely from the archbishop and bishcqis" of this country, had 
not been answered : 



Right Revd. Sir, 

The lamented death of our venerable Brother in God, the Rt Revd. 
Dr. Michael Egan, Bishop of Philda. 00 the 23d of July, has without 
doubt caused you to reSect with pain that an answer has not been re- 
ceived to our joint letter to His Holbess written in consequence of our 
deliberations in Novr. 1810, concerning several points for the future gov- 
enunent of our American churches, and especially for filling up the va- 
candci, which would certainly ensue in the Episcopal Sees. That of 
New York has been long vacant, and the sane has lately happened in 
Philada. You may remember and see by referring to our proceedings, 
chapter 4th, that we respectfully solicited the permission of the Holy See, 
(provided it would permit the nomination to proceed solely from the 
Archbishop and Bishops of this ecclesiastical province). 

Mo answer has been received, nothing can be done authoritatively in 
this matter. Yet the ctMiditions and distractions of the Church of Philada. 
require immediate attention. With respect to N. York, it has trans- 
pired, that His Holiness whilst prisoner at Savona, soon after the death 
of Dr. Concanen, had it in consideration to appoint a successor, but it 
being uncertain whether the appointment was made, no step should be 
taken in that concern, till we hear from Rome. The case 4S different at 
Philada. for the reason alleged above, and tho' no nomination can pro- 
ceed for any person or persons m the United States, yet I deem it 
advisable to consult you on the propriety of recommending one or more 
subjects to the Holy See, one of whom may be approved and appointed 
to succeed Dr. Egan. If such be your opinion, and that of the other 
Bishops, I propose moreover to you to inform me whetlier in your opinion 
likewise we may proceed immediately on the business, transacting it by 
letter on account of our immense distance. The mode, which appears to 
me the best suited to the present exigency is for the Bishop of Boston, 
tlK administrators of the diocese of H. York and Philada., the Bishop of 
Kentucky, the Ciadjutor Bishop of Gortyna and myself to join in 
choosing one, two or three persons, best esteemed by us and send on 
their names, character &c. to Rome, with our respective rennnmendation. 
But however our choice be completed, I must request your approbation 
for me to consult the most discreet and experienced of the clergy of 
Pennsylvania, as to their opinions concerning the persons who will tp- 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 675 

pear to us most worthy and fit to govern the Diocese witii advantage 
and restore its peace.'* 

Bishop Neale replied on September I, 1814, from Georgetown 
as follows: 

Right and Most Revd. Sir: 

Your esteemed favour of the sjd ult. came to hand five days after date 
The confmed slate of things here has delayed ray answer till now. As 
to the two points on which you have requested my opinion, viz. : whether 
it be advisable tc recommend one or more subjects to the Holy See, and 
one of whom may be approved and appointed to succeed Dr. Eifan in 
Pennsylvania, and, 2d — whether it be not proper to proceed immediately 
on the business and transact it by letter on account of our immense 
distance. 

I answer aSirmatively to both, and I think that the distiu-bed and 
agitated state of the Church in Philadelphia loudly calls for sui imme- 
diate dispatch in the business, as may possibly be. 

The mode of procedure proposed in your R'v'ces favour Is, in my opin- 
ion, the best that can be adopted, because it will not only effect the 
business more speedily but also will avoid tumult and bustle. Mr. Nesper 
being on his return to Europe, and well disposed not only to take charge 
of our dispatch, but also to have them conveyed to their destination, 
affords us the most favourable opportunity of approaching the Holy See 
and settling Church matters in America, give me leave to suggest the 
propriety of applying to His Holiness to furnish us with something in 
favor of the Society of Jesus, in America, which may extricate the 
Bishops from those dilliculties which arise from the Ganganellian Brief. 
Perhaps we shall never meet with a better opportunity of effecting so 
desirable an object and I confide you will deem it obligatory to embrace it. 

You have no doubt been fully informed of the humiliated situation of 
the City of Washington. I need say nothing about it, as the Federal 
Republican has given a temperate and just detail, not only of the de- 
stmctira affected tn the City, but also of die principal transactions that 
took place on the occasion. The British vessels are now lying in Alex- 
andria, loading their craft with the spoils of the distressed inhabitants. 
Geo, Town is completely fortified against them and puts them in defiance. 
Porter, Rogers, and Perry with their chosen band are fixt some distance 
below Alexandria, waiting for the enemies' descent. Their situation is 
such as to afford sound expectations of completely intercepting them. 

George Town has to be singularly grateful to God for His extra- 
ordinary protection. For during the enemies' stay and rage in the City, 
not one of them entered George Town nor injured anything belonging to 
it Deo infinitas gratias. All are well here. The Sisters present their 



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676 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

profound respects. Be pleased to remember tne kindly to the Rev. 
Messrs. Fcnwick, Uertx, Marshall, Mortnville, and the Gentlemen of 
the Seminary. Receive my uncerest wishes and believe me with all 
respect and esteem. 

Yr. Most Obt. H. Svt. and Br. m Xt. 

+ Leond. Nbale, Bishop of Grtna." 

Bishop Cheverus wrote on September 2, 1814, from Newcastle, 
Maine: 

I have sincerely lamented the death of tmr venerable brother in Phila- 
delphia and the trottbles and divisions which, I am told, have accele- 
rated the mournful event. The mode you propose for recommending a 
fit person for bis successor appears to be the best that can be devised, 
and I think, like you, that it is proper and even necessary that you should 
consult the most discreet and experienced of the diocese of Pennsylvania. 
Your Grace remembers, no doubt, that at the same time that the 4th 
resolution was agi'eed to, the recommendation to the Holy See of a fit 
subject for New York was left to you alone. I wish also in the present 
instance that you would take upon yourself to recommend a subject for 
Philadelphia. For my part I am not competent to give any opinion. 
I am very little acquainted with the clergy of Pennsylvania and I have 
never known exactly what were the difficulties of St. Mary's. Should 
you however wish that I should concur with you in this affair, have the 
goodness to direct me. I shall feel safe in following your directions- 
Whatever we do must certainly be done by letter. The distance and the 
times do not allow of any other mode. But the best mode would be that 
the venerable Father of the American Church should alone recommend 
whomsoever in his wisdom will be the most likely to restore peace to the 
distracted Church in Philadelphia." «* 

In order to facilitate the speedy nomination of Egan's suc- 
cessor, the archbishop wrote to Neale, on September 27, 1814, 
announcing his choice of candidates: 

Right Rev. Sir: 

After having received the concurrent views of those whom it was my 
duty t» consult, excepting that of Bishop Flaget not yet come to hand, 
I have now to consult you (privately) for your vote and nominatim of 
the two persons whom you prefer for the See of Philada., not conceiving 
ourselves confined in our choice to the Diocese of Philada. I have the 
following persons particularly in my views: The Revd. Messrs. David, 
Du Bourg, Hurley and Gallitzin. As to Mr. Du Bourg I have some douM 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 677 

of the propriety of his being offered by us to the consideration of His 
Holiness, he being out of this ecclesiastical province and his present station 
being that of iidtninistrator of the diocese of New Orleans immediateir 
dependent upon the Pope, tho' he is quite disgusted with the situation 
which probably he would be willing to exchange for the Bishop of Philada., 
and which he tvould adorn by his talents and virtues. But there appears 
to me much more constancy and perhaps more prudence and perhaps more 
useful talents in Mr, David There is in the opinion of all a great fund of 
capacity in Mr. Hurley, but some contend that his outward demeanor 
requires to be matured by the lapse of a few more years and that his im- 
petuosity is rather too vehement and uncircumspect. Of Mr. Gallitzin, for 
many years, I know but little, the load of debt which he has contracted 
and the uneasiness thereby produced is a serious objection. To give every 
information in my power it is proper to add that Mr. de Barth, now Vicar 
Gen'1 of the Diocese has been mentioned by some as a fit person. He ■■ 
certainly so in some respects, and in particular his firmness of mind is 
qualified to stand a turbulent party at Philada.; but his temper is very 
warm, his passions sudden and fearless ; theological knowledge too limited 
for the contemplated station without a hope of improving it, and he has 
been long unable to bear steady reading, and very little writing, at least 
in his account of himself. One of the Pennsylvania clergymen is desirous 
of including the Rev. Ben. Fenwick in the nomination for Philada., and 
tho' I am sensible to the impropriety, if not the improbability of re- 
moving him from New York, yet to make you as knowing as myself it 
is proper to mention him to you.** 

To the other bishops, Carroll sent the following letter : 

Right Rev. Sir: 

The Right Rev. Bishops and Rev. Gentlemen, who have been consulted 
about providing for the vacant Diocese of PhiladeliAia, conceive it to 
be their duty to look for the fittest subject and most likely to promote 
the glory of God, and the benefits of true religion, not only amongst the 
clergy of the vacant Diocese but likewise of other Dioceses, with a view 
of exhibiting their names and qualifications to His Holiness the Pope. 
The fallowing persons have been mentioned hiiherto of whom some one is 
most likely to meet the approbation of all concerned in the appointment 
to be made at Rome. 

They are Messrs. David of the Diocese of Bardstown, and Du Bourg, 
administrator of the Diocese of I.ouisiana. The first of these is nominated 
by all consulted, and the second by Messrs. Gallitzin and Hurley, of the 
Diocese of Pennsylvania. The only objection to Mr. David is the diffi- 
culty of removing him from the good Bishop of Bards- 
town. He is eminent in prudence, constancy, ecclesiastical learn- 
ing, piety, leal for instruction. The talents of Mr. Du Bourg are 

* PiiDlnl in the Riinrclut, vol. z, pp. 18S-1S4. 



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678 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

generally known, bnt it may be doubted whether it ii proper to nominate 
him, who is out of this ecclesiastical province, and in an independent sta- 
tion, as administrator of the Bishopric of New Orleans, dependent im- 
mediately to the Holy See. You should know however that Mr. Du Bourg 
is much dissatisfied with his situation, and probably would be glad to 
exchange it with the Bishop of Philadelphia. The Rev. Mr. Gallitzin 
has for many years lived $0 far distant that I cannot speak with confidence 
of his present dispositions. He has made sacrifices of worldly rank and 
performed actions of disinterested zeal ; his literary and I presume Theo- 
logical requirements are considerable. But a strong c^jecHon to his pre- 
ferment is a great load of debt, incurred rashly though for excellent and 
charit^Ie purpo&es. The Rev. Mr. Hurley has uncommon talents which, 
with some leisure for improvement of them, will enable him to acquire 
eminence in science. He might now be a useful prelate, but in the opioiou 
of some will be more unexceptional at a more advanced period of life. 

While the prelates of the Church were counseling and recom- 
mending proper candidates to the Holy See, as successor of 
Bishop Egan, the Haroldttes were not inactive. It has been 
stated that the ambition of Rev. Wm, V. Harold, and the cause 
of his discontent with Bishop Egan, was that he desired to be 
named as coadjutor with right to succession, but that Bishop 
Egan would not consent to so nominate. 

After the death of the Bishop, however, the adherents of 
Father Harold b^an a vigorous movement to have him nomi- 
nated as bishop. The influence of some of the prelates in Ire- 
land was brought to the aid of the Holy See in determining the 
selection of a bishop in the United States."** 

William Vincent Harold's activities in his own behalf brought 
to unenviable light the plotting for episcopal power in America 
which was brewing in certain ecclesiastical centres abroad. On 
March 22, 1815, Archbishop Troy reported to Carroll that James 
Harold was busy securing recommendations from French prelates 
for his nephew's nomination to Philadelphia," On September 
t, 1815, Plowden, who was prejudiced against Troy for other 
reasons, repeated to Carroll the current gossip of the day: "I 
must assure you of the interest which I take in your very 
grounded and just complaints of undue interference in the nomi- 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 679 

nations to your new American Sees. I have long known the 
wonderful activity of Irish Friars [Dominicans] to get thdr 
heads into mitres, and I have often been amazed at the success 
of their paltry intrigues," •* That Troy had directly interfered 
in the case of Harold is not altogether true, since in reply to 
one of Carroll's letters, he says : "If I interfered in the appoint- 
ment of a Bishop for Philadelphia by a direct recommendation 
of Rev. Mr. Harold, I must confess my havit^ acted irregularly 
and improperly. But, if I recollect right, I only stated the 
interference of others, for your Grace's information. However 
this be, I rt^et exceedingly any irregular act of mine should 
afford a moment's uneasiness or anxiety to your Grace." " This 
statement naturally has no bearing on the question of Concanen's 
election to the See of New York. Whether Troy was responsible 
for that appointment has already been discussed in a previous 
chapter. Plowden wrote again (October 2, 1815), saying that 
the news was abroad in England that Harold's appointment had 
been decided upon at Rome. Archbishop Carroll's letter to 
Cardinal Litta, July 17, 1815," placed the problem in a more 
definite light before the Roman officials, and the candidaqr of 
Harold, so far as Propaganda was concerned, was not received 
with favour." 

Before a final judgment is passed, however, on Father William 
Vincent Harold's part in this first stage of the ecclesiastical 
history of the Diocese of Philadelphia, it is only fair to give 
verbatim a letter, written in his favour by Father John Ryan, 
O.P., dated Lisbon, December 14, 1819. Ryan, as will be seen 
in a subsequent chapter, had little affection for Dr. Carroll and 
caused him months of anxiety by certain charges he made regard- 
ing Carroll's attitude towards Bishop Milner on the Veto ques- 
tion, then being intensely mooted in English Catholic circles. 
The letter, so far as can be ascertained, seems to have escaped 
research-students, and it is one of the few documents in English, 
in the Propaganda Archives. It is impossible to ascertain to 
whom the letter is addressed : 



• IhU., Cue Sfi-Ci. 

• IM., Cua BB-Ks. 
> lUd.. Cu« IB-Ci. 

' ProfagKiJ* Anitmt, Seriltim riftritt, Amtrin C*Mnh, ToL iU, £ JtS-tW- 



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68o The Life and Times of John Carroll 

My Lord. 

If I were not well coorinced of your Gnice's esttcm for my friend 
Harold, and of the interMt you take in his welfare, I should hardly 
put even your Grace's characteristic condescension, to the test, by a 
letter from one >o insignificaiit as myself. The tnith however is; that 
accounts from Rome have lately reached him, which place faim in a 
predicament, such as requires a defence of his conduct in America; and 
I agree with him in the opinion that be himKlf could not well nndertake 
that task, withont betraying some sort of egotism in its execntioa. 

Yottr Grace is aware that the Catholics of Philadelidiia have long, and 
most anxiously besooght the Holy See, to give them Mr. Harold as their 
Bishop; whilst Doctor Marechall the Archbishop of Baltimore, has 
evinced >n tqatl eagerness to procure the appointmnet of a Frenchman 
whom they consider incompetent to the duties of auch a itation in tiieir 
Church. In truth the Catholics of the United States, consider tiie 
Archbp. and his advisers as engaged in a systematic plan, for the cxcln- 
•ion from the Church of America, of every clerByman who is not a native 
of France. The pertinacity with which this system is continued, togedier 
with the ridicule, and contempt excited among the various sectarians in 
America by the attempts of these foreigners to preach in the English 
language, has already goaded the Catholics to such a state of irritation 
that consequences truly alarming are but too likely to result from this 
conflict, between the ambition of the Frenchmen on one side, and the 
indignation of tlie people on the other. The laws of the United States, 
give each denomination of christians, an undoubted right to elect their 
clergy. Your (irace will perceive how injuriously the exercise of such 
a right, might operate against the essential spirit which pervades the 
discipline of the Catholic church. This consideration has served hitherto, 
in restraining the American Catholics, from any serious attempts to avail 
themselves of this legal right How far it may continue to restr^ them, 
must depend on the prudence, and moderation of their Prelates, and on 
the promptitude of the Holy See, in removing all reasonable causes of 
discontent. 

It now appears that the Cardinal Prefect of the Propaganda had made 
arrangements to gratify the Catholics of Philadelphia, by the appoint- 
ment of Mr. Harold, but was hindered by the interposition of the Archbp. 
of Baltimore, who stated that as an objection some former disagreements 
between Mr. Harold and some of the higher clergy in America. I flatter 
myself that by the time your Grace shall have perused this letter, you 
will have p«rceived, how shamefully the interested cunning o£ the Arch- 
bishop's advisers, has influenced or deceived him and through him misled 
the Cardinal Prefect. Altho' I am sure that the explanation will be too 
late, to affect the nemination to the See of Philadelphia, I do earnestly 
beseech your Grace to make it known at Rome, in justification of Ur. 
Harold's character. 

The disagreement to which the Archbishc^ alludes, took place in 1813. 
The late Doctor Egan was then Bishop of Philadelphia and Mr. Harold 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 68 1 

his Vicar General was one of the Pastors of the Chorch of St. Mary's; 
The Revd James Harold was tlie second. Doctor Egan was attached to 
this church as his Cathedral, and resided with the Messrs. Harold, the 
congregation allowing a stipulated sum for their joint support. It is 
necessary to observe here, that most of the congregations in that country 
are legal corporations, and that they annually elect certain individuals 
as Trustees. These officers became in point of law, the exclusive man- 
agers of the temporalities of their Church. Unfortunately, the persons 
elected to this office iix the year 1813, entertained some unaccountable 
antipathy against old Mr. Harold. Their first act under their new 
authority was to announce to the Bishop, that they considered his lordship 
and the Reverend William V, Harold suilicient for the performance o! 
the various duties of the Church, and that they therefore demanded the 
dismissal of the Revd. James Harold. That this proposal should have 
appeared offensive to the Bishop, under any circumstance, will not surprise 

your Grace How much more so when you hear that the Congregation 

of the district consisted of more than twelve thousand souls, and that the 
proposal of the trustees, implied nothing less, than that the Bishop 
should do the duties of a curate. He rejected it of course; and imme- 
diately received a notification from the trustees that they would discon- 
tinue all pecuniary support, not only to the Revd. James Harold, but also 
to the Revd. W. V. Harold, and even Doctor Egan himself. 

This proceeding appeared to his Lordship not only an act of injustice, 
but an invasion of his right in the government of his church, which 
could not be opposed too soon, or too strongly; especially as it might 
lead to further innovations totally subversive of Catholic discipline. He 
therefore summoned a meeting of the whole Congregation, who heard 
of this strange conduct, with the utmost indignation, and passed resolu- 
tions reprobatini; the trustees, and declaring that not one of them should 
ever again be tlected to that office. Such however was the strictness 
of the law, thit no power remained in the ccmgregation to remove these 
men, imtil the expiration of the year; so that the Bishop and clergy of 
St. Mary's were left destitute of all means of support, except what the 
voluntary aid of individuals, might casually afford. 

Unfortunately Doctor Egan could not number the virtue of fortitude, 
among the many other virtues which certainly belonged to his character; 
and the Revd. James Harold who was the occasion of many privations 
now imposed on the clergy, became gradually an object of dislike to him. 
It was equally unfortunate that this poor old man's temper had been 
soured by age and misfortunes ; and in a very short time, they became 
so totally estranged from each other as to involve the younger Mr. Harold 
in the utmost ptrplexity. Warmly attached to the Bishop as well by ties 
of personal regard, as by the respect due to his Lordship's station, Mr. 
Harold could not venture to espouse his Uncle's conduct, nor did it 
become hini, on the other hand, to abandon his relative— Wishing to 
escape from tiiis distressing alternative, he could find only one way; 
which was to lesign his own place, and thus afford to his Uncle the 



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68i The Ufe and Times of John Carroll 

example of that nbiiiianon to circnnittancei, which became both. Yet 
before Ur. Harold finally adopted tblt meanire, be besoa^ the mtcr- 
ference of Doctor Carroll, the late Archbishop oE Baltimore. 

Hitherto your Grace has had no better anthority than mitie, for the 
truth of the facts I have mentioned. Pennit roe now to gnve yoa a 
much better, in that of Doctor Carroll— I transcribe his letter to Mr. 
Harold, dated Febniary ao, 1813 

"Rm. Sir— 

Yesterday I attempted in vain to pve an answer to your esteemed favour 
of the 16th, received the preceding day. The bad weather this mocntng, 
will probably preserve me from tbe interruptioDS v^ich I daily experi- 
ence — You do me justice in believing that 1 have endeavoured, as much 
as I ought in discretion, to settle the differences of St. Mary's Church. 
When I undertook to advise the Bishop to hold an extra official confer- 
ence with the trustees, it was with the f<md expectation of its terminattng 
b friendly explanations and a good understanding between himself and 
bis two Revd. brothers on one side, and die trustees on the other. This 
expectation proved vain. I proposed nothing further, until you came to 
Battimore—at least nothing which is now remembered. After your arrival 
here (tho' it gives me pain to mention, what it is painful to you to hear) 
the Bishop wrote, that your Uncle had again embittered his peace of 
mind, by giving vent to new outrageotu sallies of temper, which made it 
hi^y inexpedient for them to live together, and that your Uncle must 
be removed. In this I concurred with him; knowii^ how common it is 
for families, and individuals, to cease living together, for some bcom- 
patibilities of humours, withotit a breach of charity or cause of disedifica- 
tion — I am still of this opinitm, but do not foresee how matters are after- 
wards to be regulated. My grtattst apprehension u yovr disgust, and 
consequent determinalioH of leaving Pkiladflphia; which indeed yotor 
letter indicates, as a matter concluded, and which, in my estimation, if one 
of the greatest Misfortunes that can befall that Diocese, and the American 
Cfiureh generally. The -Bishop as I liave been informed is to leave 
Philadelphia next week for Baltimore — For heaven's sake, suspend any 
further proceedings or engagements, until I can see him." 

So far for Dr. Carroll's testimony on the real state of the differences 
which the present Archbishop has objected as a bar to Mr. Harold's 
appointment— Before I transcribe for your Grace's perusal a further con- 
firmation of those facts from the same high authority, it is light to 
mention that Doctor Egan not having gone to Baltimore; and his dis- 
putes with the Revd. James Harold becoming more disagreeable to the 
Revd. W. V. Harold, he formally resigned his place & proceeded to 
Baltimore where I resided at that time. 

The departure of Mr. Harold was productive of ocosequences whidi 
he could not have foreseen — On the following Sunday, the Church was 
quite deserted by all, except the trustees, and the renters of the pewa, 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 683 

locked out, fcoing to other churchu to hear mass. As soon as an account 
of this transaction reached Baltimore, I proceeded to Philadelphia, at 
the earnest request of Mr. Harold, and with the approbation of the Arch- 
bishop, and prevailed on the Congregation to return to their church. For 
this act which was, I assure your Grace, a matter of some difficulty, I 
received the warm acknowledgments of the Bishop of Philadelphia, who 
shed tears when 1 told him that I had come at the earnest request of 
W. V. Harold. He was however too far committed with the trustees 
who had lately begun to practice on him, and in tmth too much irritated 
against old James Harold, to leave any hope for an adjustment of their 
differences. 

Under circumstances thus distressing to the feelings of Mr. Harold, 
he conndered it most pnident to return to Ireland, and make arrange- 
ments for his Uncle's settlement there — I returned with him for the 
same purpose, but before our departure from America the Catholics of 
Baltimore, made us most flattering offers to induce' us to settle there. 
Your Grace will perceive the allusions of the Archbishop to this last 
circumstance, in the copy of his letter to the Archbishop of Dublin, 
which I now proceed to transcribe, for the purpose of proving to you 
that Dr. Carroll's testimony on this occasion as to the nature of the 
differences with the Bishop of Philadelphia, was the same at our departure, 
as his letter already quoted, shows it to have been in February 1813 — 

"Most Revd. md dear Lord, 

The intended return into Ireland of the Rev. Messrs. W. V. Harold 
and Ryan, presents to me some prospects of the following lines reaching 
your Grace's hands, and I wish it could be added that there is some reason- 
able expectation of the renewal of our long interrupted correspondence. 
When the former of the above named Gentlemen came to America, he 
fell under the authority of the Right Rev. Bishop of Philadelphia, of 
course 1 have not enjoyed the advantage of his talents, excepting m 
transitu on which occasions his manners were always dignified, and 
hi^ly becoming; and his sermcms, when he was able to gratify public 
curiosity, and the earnestness of solicitation, will render his departure 
a lasting subject of regret. It belongs to the Bishop of Philadelphia in 
whose diocese, he has been constantly employed, to furnish him with the 
proper, and usual testimonials of his regular conduct, which he undoubt' 
ediy has done notwithstanding some late dissatisfaction, not occasioned, 
as far as I know and believe, by any impropriety in his public, moral, or 
ministerial department, but by discordancy of opinion. My flock, at least 
a considerable portion of them, were very anxious for his establishment 
here, and indeed I myself wished to preserve him in this cotmtry — He 
will be accompanied by his intimate friend Mr. Ryan. Since his coming 
to the United States, or soon after, he resided at this place, and gave 
not only to me, but to the Congregations generally, entire satisfaction, 
by the beauty and solidity of his discourses, and the suavity of his man- 
ners. I owe to him my testimony for his religious, and regular cxmduct 



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684 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

in my dioccK. The loss of clergyinen of their abilities, will be felt here 
very much. 

(Siened) •{• John, Abp. of Baltimore 
Baltimore, April li, iSij"— 

I owe your Grace, many apoloRies, for this intrusion on your valuable 
time, and yet I must claim somewhat more of your kind indulgence wlule 
1 allude to (Hie more to^c which, for aught I know, may have its ihare 
in aSordii^ to the French clergy matter for the ingenuity they have 
evinced, in deceiving the present Archbishop of Baltimore. 

Previously to the American revolution, the piety of many Catholic 
individuals and the industry of the Jesuit missi<Miaries, had a(»:umu]ated 
a landed property amounting to many thousand acres, and lying in varbus 
parts of Maryland. Theie estates are now under the care of two or three 
clergymen allotted to each, and are cultivated by slaves. The whole (that 
is both land and slaves) belongs to the Clergy of Maryland in their 
capacity as a lay corporation, by law established. Your Grace is aware 
of the leal of many sects in America, to discourage slavery. A trite topic 
of remark, and no trifling occasion for scandal, among those people, is 
furnished by the fact, that the Catholic clergy are principal slave owners, 
in their corporate capacity, and a great portion of the Catholics, lament 
the existence of such a system, which they consider injurious to the char- 
acter of their religion, and consequently to its progress. 

On the return of Mr. Harold and myself from America, we spoke of 
this circumstance, as an exception to those reasons which led to a hope 
for our faith rapidly advancing in America. This conversation vriiich 
took place at the house of a London Clergyman, found its way to Arch- 
bishop Carroll, loaded with some misrepresentation, and in the year iSiS, 
he wrote a rather angry letter to Bishop Moylan of Cork, on the subject 
This being communicated to us, we lost not a moment, in giving an 
explanation which we requested Bishop Moylan to communicate to Arch- 
bishop Carroll. While we disclaimed any idea of blaming him for evils 
resulting from the system in question, we took occasion to urge our 
objections agamst it ; in the hope (however faint) of inducing the corpo- 
ration to farm out their estates; and thus remove a source of scandal 
to weak Christians. So anxiously did we feel on this subject, that we 
sent a copy of his Grace's letter of complaint, with our answer, to Cardinal 
Litta. His Eminence after perusing these documents told Bishop Con- 
nolly of New York who was j^ at Rome, that they had made such in 
impression on his mind, as should induce him to preserve them. 

I beg to refer his Eminence the Prefect of the Propaganda to the 
letters which I am sure that the above mentioned illustrious Cardinal 
will readily explain to him; and I confidently lely on their producing a 
conviction on his mind, not only that they cannot afford the least pre- 
tence for objections against Mr. Harold's nomination; but also that they 
will appear to possess some claim to his Eminence's attention, as connected 
with the slave establishments of the Maryland Corporation of Clergymen. 



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Diocese of Philadelphia 685 

Uay I entreat your Grace to pardon my boldnets in giving to mnch 
trouble — I remain with affectionate regard and veneration, 

Your Grace't obedient Servant, 

John Rvan " 

The vacancy in New York was four years old Jn 1814, and 
the vacancy in Phibdelphia was to last even longer. Without 
an answer from Rome to the Agreement of 1810, Archbishop 
Carroll had felt great hesitancy in doing anything r^arding 
these two vacancies. Nevertheless, he decided that the danger 
of foreign meddling was so proximate, that the names of several 
candidates should be sent at once to Rome. But no decision 
was reached before the end of the year (1815), and Archbishop 
Carroll passed away before a settlement for Philadelphia was 
made. Disaster was in the air, and "the angel of the Church 
in Philadelphia" must have shielded its face with its wings, 
when Irish meddlers prevailed at Rome, and the man, whose 
appointment to Philadelphia was more surprising to Archbishop 
Curtis of Armagh than if he had been made Emperor of China — 
the Rev. Dr. Conwell, of Dungannon, Ireland, arrived in Phila- 
delphia, December z, 1820, with what result it is unnecessary 
to mention here,*' John Carroll had fought all his life long to 
maintain independence for the Church he governed. He died 
with the consciousness of failure and defeat. 



■■ PnpvgBnda Archivfi, Scrittnrt rijtrilt, America Cmlrale, vol. It, S. 348-31 
Thij letter votdd hoc to be In replr to m demand froi 
itifonutiiin on tile difficoltie* in Philadel^u, lince Father 1 
PnCect, from Liabon, en Januarr ifi. iSig, (inng the Ha 
AnUrtt. fbU.. S. 17J'>75-) 

" CI. CotheKt HUlaricat Stvitv. vol. vi, p. j6>. 



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CHAPTER XXXIII 

THE SUFFRAGAN SEES : IV. BARDSTOWN 

(1808-1815) 

"The story of Kentucky," says Father O'Damel in his schol- 
arly Life of Bishop Fcminck of Cincinnati, "with the fascinatiDg 
I^^ds of its battlefields and hunting grounds of the aboriginal 
American, and the traditions of its daring explorer, Daniel 
Boone, the bold, hardy pioneer hunters, and its brave, picturesque 
backwoodsmen, never lacks interest. Indeed, the early annals 
of few of our States so abound in lustre, or are so rich io a 
charm that is ever old, still always new." * Few sections of the 
Catholic Church in the United States have been so thoroughly 
studied during the past century. One of the earliest, and from 
a critical point of view, one of the best local histories we possess 
is Badin's Origine et Progris de la Mission du Kentucky, pub- 
lished in Paris in 1821. Spalding's Sketches of the Early Cath- 
olic Missions of Kentucky (17S7-1827), published in Louisville, 
Ky., in 1844, and his Life, Times, and Character of Bishop 
Flaget, published in 1852, are the main sources for the history 
of the vast Diocese of Bardstown. Later works, such as Maes* 
Life of Rev. Charles Nerinckx (Cincinnati, 1880), Alerding's 
Diocese of Vincennes (Indianapolis, 1883) and especially 
CDaniel's Life of Bishop Fenwick (Washington, D. C, 1920), 
have added considerably to the documentary evidence for the 
story of Flaget's immense jurisdiction. In the Brief Ex debito 
pastoralis of April 8, 1808, which divided Bishop Carroll's dio- 
cese into five parts, the Diocese of Bardstown is thus outlined : 
"Quartam Barj — Goun, id est in oppido seu dvitate Bardensi, 
eique in Diocesim statuimus provindas tam Hentuchiensen quam 
Tenassensem, ac illas quoque a Sede hac Apostolica aliter pro- 
videatur regiones, quae a ripa ocddentali flumiois Ohio inter 
ocddentem et septentrionem excurrunt ad ingentes lacns, qui eas 
* Of. tk., p. 64. 

686 



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Diocese of BardstowH 687 

inter et Canadensem Dioecesim interjacetit, hasque legcndo pertin- 
gunt ad fines Pennsilvamae." * Today this original territory is 
divided into twenty-five dioceses.* With Kentucky and Ten- 
nessee as the actual limits of the Diocese of Bardstown in 1808, 
Bishop Flaget held temporary jurisdiction over all the territory 
northwest of the Ohio and east of the Mississippi. Bardstown, 
sajrs Shea, differed essentially from the bishoprics erected on 
the Atlantic roast — Boston, New York, and Philadelphia: 

The State oE Kentucky began to be settled about the commencement 
of tbe revoIutiiMiary tronblci. Then men from Virginia and Maryland 
made their way to the lands south of the Ohio, and began to clear the 
forest and build np a new commonwealth. Many of the emtgranti were 
Catholics; some of the first to fall by the way, or, after reaching Ken- 
tucky, by the liandt of the Indian foe, were Catholics. They helped to 
found and build iq> the new State; sturdy backwoodsmen, strong, brave, 
earnest, they were the peers of those around them. Life was plain and 
rude, comforts were few, luxuries unknown. Priests struck into the 
wilderness to attend these clustered bodies of the faithful, who in God's 
providence selected generally the poorest, but perhaps the healthiest sitU' 
ations. The Carmelite Paul of St Peter, the Capudiin Whelan, and Rer. 
Father Rohan, effected little. It was not till Bishop Carroll had ordained 
his first priest. Rev. Stephen T. Badin, and sent him to Kentucky, that 
any real commencement was made for the Chu-ch. Then came the day 
of log churches, and long priestly journeys to the Catholic settlements. 
Rev. John Thayer came and went. Rev. Fathers Salmon and Fonmier 
came to labour till death. Rev. Charles Nerinckx came to toil like a hero, 
form chtvch after church, create a sisterhood, draw recruits for the 
priesthood from his own Belgium, as well as vestments, plate, paintings, 
and other requirements for tbe churches, which he divided ungrudgingly. 
Tbe Dominicans, guided by the advice of Bishop Carroll, established a 
convent and college. Thus Kentucky had a life of its own.* < 

There were Catholic congr^ations scattered over the whole 
of this large territory. On the morrow of his arrival at Bards- 
town, June 9, 1811, Bishop Flaget found himself chief shepherd 
of a flock that was scattered from the Canadian border south- 
wards to the savannahs of Georgia. Where were his people 



* DalfAiTiHit, 7w Ptptiftimm U P. P., voL Iv, p. jio. 

■ Nuhrllle, Loidnille, Coriagton, Cdttobia, Ctudiuiiti, OerdaDd, Toledo, DMnit 
Cnad Sipidi, Uatqaette, Superior, Cthd Bwr, HUwaokea, La CroMe, Dnlnth, Crotfc 
■taa, St. OoBil, Sb Psnl, Oiofo, Bodriord, Poori*, Align, Bdlrrilta, tuA Wijam 



* Op. tU^ mL Ok, n- ■C4-aC5' 



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688 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

located? what churches had already been built F what ones were 
under construction? who were his clergy? and what were the gen- 
eral conditions, favourable and adverse, under which his faithful 
were living in these wild and only partly known r^ons? — these 
were some of the problems he discussed with his companion and 
successor in the Bardstown episcopate, Father John David, as the 
two misaonaries and apostles of the Faith made thetr way over 
the mountains of Maryland and western Pennsylvania down the 
broad Ohio during that wonderful journey in the summer of 
1811. The States of Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, Indiana, 
Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and a part of Minnesota were to 
be his field of labour for the next forty years. In Kentudcy 
alone was there any great nucleus of Catholics. Spalding, in his 
Sketches, says : "In the State itself there were about a thousand 
Catholic families, with an aggregate population, not exceeding six 
thousand souls. There were thirty congregations, ten churches or 
chapels already built, and six in process of creation."* The 
earliest Catholic emigrants into Kentucky had come from Mary- 
land and Virginia in 1775; and as the Catholic population in- 
creased they settled mainly in and around the little hamlet of 
Bardstown. After 1785, distinctive Catholic colonies came from 
Maryland, and settlements were made at Pottinger's Creek, 
Harrod's Town, and elsewhere. It was to these little congr^a- 
tions that the first resident missionary. Father Charles Whelan, 
came in the spring of 1787. After Father Whelan's departure 
(1790), the Rev William de Rohan visited the Kentucky mis- 
sions, and it was he who built the first Catholic church in the 
State, that dedicated to the Holy Cross, at Pottinger's Credc. 
The Rev. Stephen Badin, the next missionary to come to Ken- 
tucky, had accompanied Flaget, David, and Chicoisneau from 
France in 1792, and arrived at Baltimore on March 26 of that 
year; he was then in minor orders. After ccMnpleting bis the- 
ological studies at St. Mary's Seminary, be was ordained by 
Bishop Carroll on May 25, 1793 — the first priest ordained in 
the Diocese of Baltimore. Father de Rohan's activities did not 
meet with Bishop Carroll's approval, and on September 6, 1793, 
Fathers Badin and Barri^es, the latter as vicar-general, were 



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Diocese of Bardstown 689 

sent to Kentucky by Dr. Carroll. The tide of immigration 
towards the West had set in so strongly, that in 1792, when 
Kentucky gained admission into the Union, the population 
amounted to about seventy thousand. No portion of the Amer- 
ican Church, says the author of the Sketches, owes more to the 
exiled French clergy of the time than that of Kentucky; and 
among these reft^rees the name of Kentucky's great Catholic 
I»otieer, Stephen Badin, will always hold, in spite of his eccen- 
tricities, a place of preeminence.* Young as he was — he was 
then twenty-five-~there was no one among the clergy of the 
country better suited to the rugged missionary life of Kentucky 
than Father Badin. Travelling on foot from Baltimore to 
Pittsburgh, Badin and Barrieres took a boat and descended the 
Ohio, past Wheeling, Marietta, and Gallipolis, where they saw 
the last broken remnants of the Scioto colony. They remained 
for three days with this destitute congregation, baptized forty 
children, and reconciled many others to the Sacraments. From 
Gallipolis they travelled to Maysville, Lexington, and other vil- 
l^es. Father Barrieres settled at Bardstown, and Father Badin 
at White Sulphur, Scott County, about sixteen miles from Lex- 
ington. Father Barrieres soon grew despondent at the magni- 
tude of the task before him, and, unable to accommodate himself 
to the rude condition of the times, deserted his post and set otit 
on foot for New Orleans. This was in April, 1794; and alone 
amid all the dangers of a newly-settied country, the young Badin 
fought bravely to bring the message of salvation to every part 
of the State. There can scarcely be any picture more noble or 
inspiring than that of this cleric of twenty-six, standing bravely 
at his post, perilous in every way from Indian incursions and 
from bigots. For three years he was alone in what was a wilder- 
ness. The nearest Catholic priest was Father Rivet, who was 
sent to Post Vincennes in 1795. For many years (1794-1819), 
Father Badin attended to the spiritual wants of his people, 
and it is estimated that he spent over three-fourths of that time 
in the saddle, travelling at least one hundred thousand miles. 
Dtying this time he received occasional help from other priests — 
Father Michael Fournier (1797-1803), Father Anthony Salmon 



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690 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

(1799)1 Father John Thayer (1799-1804), and from the Tr^>- 
pists. Father Rivet died in 1804, and so with the ext^ption of 
two other priests in the whole of the Northwest — ^Rev. 
Donatien Olivier at Prairie du Rocher, Illinois, and Father 
Gabriel Richard at Detroit, Michigan — Father Badin was again 
alone from 1804 to 1805, when there came to Kentucky one of 
America's best-known missionaries. Father Charles Nerinckx, 
who was destiited to have even a greater share in the Catholic 
history of Kentucky than Father Badin.' Charles Nerinckx was 
ordained to the priesthood at Malines, Belgimn, many years 
before his arrival in Kentucky. He was thea (1805) forty years 
old, and seven years Badin's senior. 

The same year (1805) saw the establishment in Kentucky of 
the American Province of the Order of Friars Preacher, Bisht^ 
Carroll, as we have seen, desired that they should make Kentucky 
the first sphere of their labours ; and accordit^ly in the autumn 
of 1805, Fathers Wilson and Tuite set out for these missions, 
and were followed in 1S06 by the Superior, Father Fenwick. 
A house and land were purchased near Springfield in December 
of that year, St. Rose's Priory, as the place was named, the 
Mother-House of the Dominicans in the United States, was then 
established. Bishop Carroll (April 25, 1806) had given his 
formal consent to the foundation of St. Thomas of Aquin Col- 
legt, which was opened in 1809.* 

The resources of the Diocese of Bardstown were not, however, 
very abundant when Bishop Flaget arrived there in Jtme, 1811. 
The West was not a new territory to Flaget. Bom in France, 
in 1763, the first Bishop of Bardstown joined the Sulpidans and 
was ordained at Issy in 1787, having for his Superior in the 
Seminary there the future apostle of Michigan, Father Gabriel 
Richard. Flaget came to America in 1792, and after spending 
a short time at Georgetown to study English, Bishop Carroll 
sent him (1792) to Post Vincennes, then on the frontier of the 
Baltimore Diocese. Recalled by his Sulpician Superior in 1794- 
95, be became professor at Georgetown College during die 



' XjiMt, Hi* of tiu Rtv. Charlwt Nnimtkx. Ciodiuuti, iSBo; Howun, Uf* d/ 

* a. A Ktm Pratima af Dantlnltuu, in O^uiu, L^t nf tin Ktkt KtP. 
B im ar i Dtmimic Fnarick, O.P., pp. H-1D9. WuUacuo, D. C:. igM. 



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Diocese of Bardstovm 69X 

presidency of Father Du Boui^. In NoTember, 1798, be went 
to Havana to share in Du Bourg's collefe scheme, and returned 
to Baltimore (1801), taking a post on the staff of St Mary's 
Coll^;e, Baltimore, in 1805. He was at Enunitsburg when the 
Holy See chose him to be the chief shepherd of the Church 
beyond the Alleghanies.' 

Bishop Carroll thousht Father Flaget espectallj fitted for the See of 
Bardstown because of his virtues, his remarkable qualities as a ruler 
and his acquaintance with the country with whose spiritual government 
he was to be entrusted. But Father Flaget was unconscious of all this, 
being convinced that neither his theological learning nor his other well- 
tried qualities fitted him for the position of bishop. Besides had he not 
promised never to aspire to an Episcopal See and never to accept one 
except by the peremptory orders of the Holy Father? When, therefore, 
the news of his elevation reached him at Enunitsburg, he hurried down 
to Baltimore and set every expedient in motion to nullify the Bull."* 

His friends went with him to Bishop Carroll in order to 
decline the honour, but Carroll said it was not in his power to 
decide, since the nomination had been ratified by the Holy See. 
On October 18, i8o8, Flaget wrote to Dr. Carroll the following 
letter of protest against his own election : 

When I had signified to you my positive determination to decline the 
dreadful honour to which your goodness is endeavouring to raise me. I 
began to enjoy a peace of mind to which I had been a stranger from the 
moment I heard of my promotion. Beii^, however, told from several 
quarters that you insist on your unfortunate choice, in hope that time 
and reflection will wear off my opposition to it, once more I feel tnj' 
heart overwhelmed with the deepest grief. Dearest father, nothing dis- 
tresses me more than to afflict or disappoint you, but the motives of my 
refusal are of such a nature as to make my determination invariable. I 
earnestly beg of you to oppose it. All that remains then is to improve 
time to prevent the consequences of useless delay. Bishop Concaoen is 
yet in Italy and will continue there long oiongh to receive a letter from 
you before his departure. You have time to make known my refusal 
to his Holiness, and provisions for another candidate as early as yon can 
expect one. You certainly cannot be at a loss for subjects more meri- 
torious than I am. Were I permitted to offer my ideas, I wonld suggest 
that of requesting Bp. Concanen to present one of his own order for 



■ HuMaiiitiiD, rjU SmltMaiu, etc, p. 144. Cf. Ltt tfottn iu ShninaiTt dt 
BaMmoTt, ij ttXktr Te*d«r (Mill in MSS.), dtcd br Huqhh, op. cit., DccuawDlt, 
voL I. put U, pp. jit-166. 



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692 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Hbcxn be could absolutely rely for correctneas of principles: f <«- u the 
Fathers already settled here will gain great uifluence, no check would 
be more necessary and more effectual than the authority of a Bishop of 
(hdr own Order. It is to be observed that the elected should be acquainted 
with the French languaKc, the third port of the Diocese speaking nothing 
but French. Should this hint be contrary to your views, could you not 
present Mr. Moranvill^, his talents, his principles, his zeal and concilia- 
tory spirit are well known to you, and he can hare none of the reasons 
for declining the burthen which compel me to deprecate it. 

Once more, my Rev. and beloved father, I throw myself at your feet 
to beg you will put an end to my anxieties. For God's sake have pity on 
your child, drive him not to extremes, but above all do not render this 
situation worse by provoking an order from his Holiness; for convinced 
as I am that it is the will of God I should refuse, I should be placed 
irn a most painful situation, from the impossibilities of reconciling tiie 
interests of my conscience with my obedience to the head of the Church. 

Allow me to add a prayer that you will put in my hands two duplicates 
of your letters for Rome, which I engage to convey thither, and if your 
occupation permit you not to write them yourself, I will have them done 

Later he wrote to implore Carroll: "With tears in my eyes, 
to let tne forever enjoy unmolested the humble post I occupy, 
which suits a thousand times better than the conspicuous one I 
obtained through your goodness; without presuming too much, 
I am'confident that I will prove more useful to your Diocese 
by remaining in the College than in going to Kentucky as a 
bishop." '* The appeal was not welcomed by Dr. Carroll, and 
Flaget then decided to go to Paris to etilist the aid of his Su- 
perior, Father Emery. His journey to France in 1809-10 not 
only broi^ht him the command to accept Ae See of Bardstown 
but was also providential jn this, that it ensured the safe arrival 
of the pontifical documents of 1808, which were necessary for 
the consecration of the new bishops. He left Bordeatix on April 
10, 1810, accompanied by Father Brute and five young ecclesi- 
astics. The little party arrived in Baltimore some time in July 
of that year;** and, as we have already seen, Flaget's consecration 



■> BtMmart Cmlluinl Architti, Cbw s-Ui; printed in the RfMorcftM, ^tL xril. 
pf. iJ-is. 

» /KJ. 

** In Ui npoit to Fiiu VII (Apiil lo, iSis), FUccI Mtta that tk* IcKtn 
tnmating hiia to llu Sec of Barditown did not arri** in Amarka until AnroM lo, 
tSto. "Tfai* titututtt of Bidiop FlifO, that the letter* oi Fitu ^ 
t» th( Sm of Batdatown did not arriva in Anetica tuitil Ancoit ii 



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Diocese of Bardstown 693 

took place on November 4, 1810. The foUowii^ May, Bishop 
Flaget set out for Bardstown. At Pittsburgh, he and Father 
David, with a Canadian priest, Father Savine, and the subdeacon, 
Chabrat, met Father Fenwick and his fellow-Dominicans, and 
the party set out on a flat-boat down the Ohio.'* Some years 
later Father David in a letter to a friend (November 20, 1817) 
described this aspect of their journey in these picturesque words: 
"The boat on which we descended the Ohio became the cradle 
of our Seminary, and of the Church of Kentucky, Our cabin 
was, at the same time, chapel, dormitory, study-room and refec- 
tory. An Altar was erected on the boxes and ornamented as 
far as circumstances would allow. The Bishop prescribed a 
regulation which fixed all the exercises, and in which each had 
its proper time . . . After an agreeable journey of thirteen 
days, we arrived at Louisville, next to Bardstown, and finally 
at the residence of the Vicar-General."" Bishop FUget was 
installed in the little building which served as a church on June 
9, 181 1, by Father Badin, who was vicar-general of the diocese. 

donbt on thrte pdnti in tbi hiitor? of the Church in the United Sutci, which Ihoivh 
af Bdncr atmoA, Iba CkthoUc hlHoiiui wonld Ufca to *« definitdy uttlnL Tba 
oricinat papal document* ercctins oar fint archbishopric and tour new American 
■eea and appointinf their oecupaatii aecm to have been loat or destroyed fay French 
tAdala on the death of Doctor Cancanen. Bttt ConcaDca, before be attempted to nfl 
irsm Naplet, had anthentic copica of these papen made, one set of which ha placed 
1b A« hands oi (Rer.F) John Aaenti, his aaant at Ronw, and lent another to father 
Xmeiy, ■npcriar of the Sulpidant In Fiance, and > (tiend c( Archbishop Camdl. 
(CODOuen, Home, lUreh s6, tSio. to Rer. Ambrotc Uar&faal. Lyoni, Fiance: BiM- 
men Artkivtt, Caae i4-U4). In the meantime, Biihop-dect FUgeC had rone to 
FMnce in the bop* of bdns freed freo the episcopal baidto. Obllsed to aec^ Oa 
See of Birdttown, be returned to America for his consecration. Shu (Lift and 
TtHHf af Arckbitkap CarreU. p. 6tS), tells us that Honsiisor Quaianlotti for- 
warded copies of the abave papal papers to Archbisliop Carroll by Rev. Maurice 
Vtiola, O.S.F., bttt that Flacet relnmed to the United Sutaa in Atvst, tSio, biioflnfl 
with hiB Iha eopiei sent to Father Emery: asul that ArcfaUshop Camdl acted on tbo 
aathotby of tba copies brontht by Hacet, when he proceeded la the eoosecntioa of lb* 
new bishops and to place thrir dioceses under their charge. On the other hand, 
Sr«uiiR«, (Lift af Biihot Floflrt, p. 6s), says FIsget returned to Baltimore early 
in July, iSlo. WlBI, (7lu Cnttnarj ef Catluliaty in Kentucky, p. S14), airees 
with Spaldinf. The three doubtful prrints are: (i) The date of Bishop Flaget'a 
return to Baltimore, (a) Did FU(et bring with him to America the copia o( tba 
papal documoita which Concanen sent to Father Emery r This woold seem improbable^ 
if, as Spalding (a#. at., p. l6j) states, Flaget sailed from France, April 10, 1810; 
tor Coneanen'a letter to Uarichal, of Uarch 36, shows that these copia were not 
then completed. (1) What copies of thtae document* did Archbishop Carroll use aa 
anthoriiation for consecntinB Bisbopa Cberem*, Egao and Placet?" O'Damiil, in the 
CalhoKf Hirtmcal Revim, vol. i, p. 311 note. * 

H CDabhi, of. tit., p. ■74. 

" Stueiao, PUgft, tu., pp. («-ro. 



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694 Tfce Life and Times of John Carroll 

His clergy consisted of three secular priests (Fathers Badin, 
Ncrinckx, and O'FIynn), four Dominicans, and the Sulpidan 
Father David. The following Christmas, he ordained Father 
Guy Ignatius Chabrat. 

Father David had been released from Baltimore by his su- 
periors in order to establish a seminary at Bardstown, and some 
time after their arrival, a permanent foundation was made on a 
farm bequeathed to the bishop by Thomas Howard. The pro- 
fessors and the seminarians made the bricks and cut the wood 
to build this Seminary of St Thomas, the first institution of its 
kind to be erected west of the All^hanies.^* Both Father 
Nerinckx and Father David saw the necessity of a religious 
order of women in the diocese for ecde»astical and charitable 
work, and the Sisters of Loretto and the Sisters of Charity were 
founded in 1812, the former with its mother-house at Loretto, 
and the latter at Nazareth, Kentucky.^^ 

After a year spent in visiting his diocese. Bishop Flaget set 
out for Baltimore. It had been resolved at the meeting of 1810 
that a Provincial Council would be held in that dty in November, 
1812, and although Dr. Carroll had decided that the time was 
inopportune, the news of its postponement did not reach Flaget 
in time to prevent his journey to the East He arrived in Balti- 
more on November 3, 1812. On April 22, 1813, he set out 
again for Kentucky. The remainder of the year and the first 
months of 1814 were spent in completing the Visitation of his 
diocese; and the result of his loi^ journeyings is embodied in 
one of the most remarkable papers we possess for this period— 
his Report of the State of the Church in this great territory, 
sent to Pope Pius VII, under date of April 10, 1815. This 
document, published for the first time in the Catholic Historical 
Review,^* shows how admirably Bishop Flaget visualized the 
conditions of Catholic life in every part of his jurisdiction. In 
Kentucky, at that time, there were ten priests besides the bishop, 
six subdeacoos, four students in minor orders and six who had 
been admitted to tonsure. Four of tiie priests and Sve of the 

■■ Cf. Howun, HiHorieal Tribttt to Si. numW Stmiaorj. St. Loni*. i»oC. 

■ Cf. WiM. Tin Ctntnary of CalhaMeity <■ Kntuckj, pp. >»->44 ITkt SUttf- 
t«Brf of Lartne): pp. nt-*6^ (.Tki Siittrt of Charity af SamarttKt: cf. D«Krt. f. 
tit., pp. ]«, sB; Iliaoen, Lantta Aimalj tf thi Cmttry. New York, ipis. 

" Vol i. pp. )os->tp- (TnuktiiiB br En. V. F. O'Daold, O.P.) 



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Diocese of Bardsloton 695 

nibdeacoDS belooged to the Domimcana. Nineteen churdies bad 
been erected up to that time." 'It is difficult," Flaget writes, 
"to give the exact number of Catholics living in each congregation 
(of the State) on account of continual emigrations, either from 
the older states to Kentucky, or from one part of that State to 
another, or also to the Territories, or to Louisiana, on account 
of the desire for new and more fertile land. However, it seems 
certain that the Catholic souls in this State number not less than ' 
ten thousand. Your Holiness will easily understand how impos- 
sible it is for so many souls to be looked after properly by ten 
priests." *° The oongr^ations were far distant, and four of the 
ten clergymen were engaged in teaching at the seminary and at 
the Dominican Collie. In the neighbouring State of Tennessee 
there were at that time about twenty-five Catholic families, "who 
are destitute of every help of the Church." On his journey to 
Baltimore, he had found fifty families in the State of Ohio. 
There was no hope for their faith, because Flaget had no one to 
send to them. Not even once a year could he spare a missionary 
to visit that part of his diocese. In Indiana, he mentions Post 
Vincennes where he had recently confinned over 230 persons. 
Altfiough there are 130 families there, he can do no more than 
send a priest twice a year to them. In Illinois he mentions the 
three parishes of Cahotda, Kaskaslda and Prairie du Rocher, 
where Fathers Olivier and Savine were ministering to the people. 
He writes: 

The Americaos who inhabit thoM r^ons are for the most part bere- 
tici and are genendly without roinisters of their own sects, and conld be 
brongbt into the Catholic faith witti little difficulty if there were mission- 
tries there who joined to their zeal and doctrine a knowledge of the lan- 
gaagfis of these people ... In the territory of Uichigan there is a parish 
called St Ann's, in 3 town known as Detroit. It is so large that it seems 
necessary to divide it into two parts. One contains 1500 souls. The other 
ii in a place called La Riviire anx Raisins, the name of which I do not 
know [Joinf Ar.lhony of Padua\, which contains about 500 souls. Each 
is in charge of i. Sulpician ... I could not visit these places on accotmt 
of the War which was raging at the time of my visitation in these pUcet. 
Besides these, on my journey, I heard of four French Congregation! 
settled ia the midst of the Indians, who belong to my diocese ; one on the 
upper part of the Mississippi {prob<d>ly Prairit du Chien, fVis.\, one in 

:, FnmUli, etc., p^ 7*^*. 



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6^6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

the place conunonlj called Chicago, another on the liwre of Lake Ukh- 
igan [Green Bay], and a fourth near die head of the Illintns River. But 
neither the time nor the War would permit me to visit them." 

Apart from the "unpleasantness" which had arisen in 1805-06 
between Fathers Badin and Nerinckx and the Dominicans, the 
last echoes of which had by no means died away when Bishop 
Flaget arrived in 181 1, there was another unpleasantness which 
clouded the early years of his episcopate. Whm the creation of 
the Diocese of Bardstown was first mooted, Father Badin, who 
was vicar-general of this territory for Bishop Carroll, assured 
the venerable prelate of Baltimore that sufficient revenues for the 
proper support of a bishop were in existence. This fact Badin 
repeated in several letters to Flaget before the latter set out for 
his diocese. "But when I arrived in my diocese," he says in 
his Report to Pius VII, "and asked that this [property] be 
transferred to me, on various pretexts, [£(uJm] said that he 
wotild not do so. After many discussions and letters written / 
between us, and even threats of censure, because of his stubborn- 
ness in his opinion, fearing that great scandal might arise if the 
man's boldness and contumacy were known, I waited patiently 
and kept putting the matter off." It was to bring the matter 
to a settlement that Flaget was anxious to meet Archbishop 
Carroll at the proposed Provincial Council in 1S12. Badin was 
a difficult type of dei^man to treat with ; and, in order to keep 
peace, Flaget allowed him to draw up a deed, makii^ over the 
single property of St. Thomas. He did not doubt Badin's good 
faith, and consequently the document was drawn up in stich s 
way "that it was thought that his right to the whole property 
was transferred to me, but he really transferred only his right 
to half of the property, and the very house in which I am now 
livii^ with my seminarians was not included in the document." 
Badin boasted of his chicanery, and Fk^et hesitated between 
two difficulties: "If I suffer any longer such conduct 00 tlw 
part of that man, I am afraid of failing in my duty ; if I punish 
his delinquency, I feel that by his stubbornness and open rebellion 
he will stir up great scandal and perhaps break out into schism." ** 

■> Ibid., pp. 116-jie. 

' Thi ibHT of Father BuUd'i rrfnul to eooTBr tht choreh propertr in Scutni^ 
to Bubop FUcal ■!•«• lu * p«coIi« ipcdBiea of cuoa kv. DtBiO( tba run that b* 
wu Doctor CaiToU'a vinr^enerU ia tlie State, Badin acquired coiuidenble land 



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BISHOP BENEDICT JOSEPH PLACET 



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Diocese of Bardstown 697 

Eventually, in 1819, Badin left Kentucky and returned for a time 
to France, and the problem solved itself in his absence.** 

In the other States and Territories outside of Kentucky, the 
Status animarum is described with an accuracy of detail which 
arouses great r^ret that the other bishops who were pioneers 
at this time, Carroll included, have not left behind them such 
abtmdant records for the history of the Church in this country. 



for tbc Cburdu Thii, ends Cimill'i iutnwtloai, he hdd {& Ui ewn name, bU Im 
ITOM (or the Ctaorch. Yet, when the arw biAop irrivBd, Badin puillTdf refuaed 
to gtn him deeda to tor of tUa propertj. Thnst* of Tarloni eeeledaati e al peaahica 
and actual depoallioo from the poaltion ol ricar-tCDnrnl failed to hare anr effect. 
The mailer dngf ed along from the time of th« biahop'a arriial In Kentockr until the 
■Btomn of tSia, when the two went to Baltimore. There the alhir waa laid befon 
CarroO. Biahop Hacel offoed to reltnqniih bii daim la the revenaei (retainint, 
bowerer, the richt of aoperriaiaD} from all the other dlaceaan land, prmided Badia 
would (JTe him an unconditional deed to Ihe farm on which the aemlnarT and the 
biahop'i reaidence Hood. Thia Badin agreed to do, and Carroll waa a witoeaa to the 
■irteneBt A deed waa handed lo FUgct wbich, u he bdiend ererTthlng had been done 
In accordance with the abore aireement, he accepted in lood faith and did not e»aniln»i 
Kcsrir two rcata later, htaiina that Badin often boaated that he itill hdd legal rishta 
to tho aeminarr. the biihop exanloed the deed and found that he had been fifen only 
Dn»balf ol the farm; and that thia half waa not that on which were hla reiideaca and 
ScnUnary. (Biihop Ftaget, Feb. i6. iSij, to Her. John Martcbal, Baltloora; Baltt- 
man Cathidrat Arckivti, Caae aiA-C4; and Rer. John Daiid, St. Tboenaa' Semlnarr. 
June ig, iSis. to Arcfabiabop Carroll, Baltimore; Oiid., Caae 3-Aa). Father Badin 
writing to Rer. John HarMial, Julr 14, iBis, pvea hia aide of the controverar in a war 
that ii quite characterLatic of him. If the miaaionarr'a letter ma; be Iniatcd, it would 
acem, indeed, that, unknown to the biibop. Father Heriockx, who conrered hli rigfata 
to the farm in queatton to Flagel without protcM, encouraged Badin in fall peetdiar 
~ r In thia Irtter Badin telli llar&±al that ha had been adflaM . . . "br 
d tbc original writing! ..." Aa 
t oolr fiisid Badin bad left anoog Iba dagr of 
Kentnckr, at diia time, he would aeem to hare been the advlaet. <B«T. Stephen T. 
Badin, Jtdr 14. iBiS, to Rer. Jobn hfar^chal, Baltimore; Btltimurt Catludni dtrekmt, 
Caae 13-I1). 

■■ "Tbc qneatioB haa often been aafced in my hearing: 'Whf did Father Badin 
abandon the mlaalon of KeBtDdqFT' I have no Idea that he bad anr ■neb pnrpoaa 
when, in the earljr apring of 1819, be entered npon tbc long {onmej bj land and acn 
that brought him in time to hia native land and the light of hia lurviTing kindred. 
Hii jonrnar had for ita nccolnal objecta. firtt, needed bodily reit and reenpemtion; 
and Mcondl)', attention to cexttin mattcra connected with bii palcenal inherltaneo. ThU 
bia action waa influcoced. In Mae degret^ at Icnat, bf a coaaidention that waa onlr 
aupactad at Ihe time, and that by only a few of hia aaaoelatca ol the clergy of 
Kentocky, la now lodi^tnable. Ha had bccowe andiitiotta of epiacopal dladactlon: 
and knowing that Biihop Flagct bad appealed to the Holy See tor an aaalKanl, he 
tbonght to Mcnte the appdntmeot for blmadf thnragb hli peraonal Influence with 
leading clergymen in France. The fact here atated ibonld not affect untanarably 
the fame of tbc grand odd miaiionary who waa privileged to write after bii name, 
PTM>SactTdot Statmmn Fotdiratorum Amtricat Stftentriantlii. Ambition ii not alwayi, 
logically and neceaaarily, an emanation from man'i perrerled nature. I bare reaaeti 
for beliering that Father Badin'i ambition na entertained from reaaonabla and Cbria- 
llan mMltca, and henee, that it wai tree from all taint of Tidooantaa. He bad mad* 
a willing lacrlfice of bimaelt and all hla facnilict for the good of the Catholic people 
of Iba dioccao. He had been Ibeir father, and be looked upon tbam aa hla (Ublrv. 



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698 Th4 Life and Timet of John Carroll 

One part of his diocese, ^ <ipper portion of the State of Midi- 
igan, and the district around Detroit bad been the subject of 
correspondence between himself and Bishop Plessis of Quebec 
On January 14, 1796, Bishop Hubert of Quebec had written to 
Bishop Carrull that "according to the treaty which has been 
concluded between the United States of America and Great 
Britain, the missions of Upper Canada are to be restored and 
will in consequence become a portion of the Baltimore Diocese 
. . . The city of Detroit and its outskirts form a large enough 
parish of Catholics to have a resident priest" Bishop Hubert 
stated that the pastor in charge at tibe time desired to return to 
Quebec, and he proposed that Carroll accept the services of 
Father Edmund Burke, who had been up to the time of the 
transfer, Vicar-General of Quebec in the old Illinois country. 
Dr. Carroll replied on March 2, 1796, that he would Inve pre- 
ferr«I the pastor in charge. Father Frechette, to remain; that 
Burke, who was to become first Vicar-Apostolic of Nova Scotia, 
was in ill repute with the American soldiers; and that he would 
arrange to provide the Catholics in that region with a pastor. 
That same year he sent the Sulpidan Father Levadoux to De- 
troit as his vicar-general, and two years later he entrusted 
Father Gabriel Richard with the same jurisdiction. On March 
6, 1811, Bishop Flaget wrote to Bishc^ Plessis, Hubert's suc- 
cessor in Quebec, granting him the powers of a Vicar-Gencral in 
the Diocese of Bardstown, in order to fadlitatt the border s 



Idea, that he, better tli*D another, would be able to fin diitctioa ta *"*■*"*- for thdr 
■piritml ■dnBoeneDtt I Udok not. Bi4 then wu Mill uolbcr modn wUdk, la 
tbe abtenee of tboee ennuenited, would utnnUr incline the i(ln| [»iM to aenr, 
for a time at leait, hi* rdatloa irith tbe mtwion he bad foandcd. Bctwen Unatlf 
and Biihop Fl>aeli there bad eneoed direricncc of opinion in rcipect to the lettiaBeat 
of titia to certain propertle* that bad been aeqnlred far him fur the OmrA, betora 
the See of BatdMown wu created, and whid waa Mill hdd in hia own naaa. Hm 
nioat Tatnable of tbeae prottertiea wai tbe 'Howard' place, near Barditown, npoa 
wblch Mood, at the time, tbe chnrdi of St. Tbonaa and the dloccBB aoninarr bnildlncK 
It ii dtw to the memoTT of Father Badin to mr that he nna bd a tbooiU of 
alienatlBf one foot of tliii propstj from tbe uaea to which it had been dented far Iba 
(CBcrona donor*. He wai onlr atudoni In regard to the abaolotc reqnii^aeiaa of Iba 
lawi of th* land, U theae afiecUd the beqaeata and the tetiu npoa whkfc Ifa^ had beta 
made, Fnilhenwre, be in^ated npcm hia riflit to hdd l«al title to the pnpettr. 
null prorinoa wa* made lot the lii^nidBtuHi at iAtM contracted bt Um la bdatt ol 
the Churdi. and fcr tbe bencdt of the nriMioa of KaModcr." Wm^ Ct Mt nmj, 4te^ 
pp, 44i-44>- 



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Diocese of Bardstown 699 

istry of the two diocwes." On February 10, 1811, Bishop 
Plessis returned this courtesy, and a correspondence was begun 
between itx two prelates which lasted down to Plessis' death 
(December 4, 1822)." The more substantial part of the history 
of the Diocese of Bardstown belongs to the period after Carroll's 
death. In July, 1816, the oomerstone of St. Joseph's Cathedral, 
Bardstown, was blessed, and the following year the edifice was 
opened for divine worship. Father David was appointed coad- 
jutor of the diocese, and was consecrated on August 15, 1817. 
In 1833, Bishop Flaget resigned, and Bishop David succeeded 
as second Bishop of Bardstown. In May, 1833, Bishop David 
reined, and Bishop Flaget was reappointed, thus becoming 
third bishop of that see. On July 20, 1834, Guy Ignatius 
Chabrat was consecrated coadjutor of the diocese; he resigned 
in 1847, *°d retired to France, whare he died on November 21, 
1868. Bishop David passed away on July i2, 1841, and that same 
year the Holy See transferred the diocese from Bardstown to 
Louisville. Martin John Spalding, the historian of the Church 
in Kentucky, was consecrated coadjutor to Bishop Flaget on 
September 10, 1848, and at the latter's death (February 11, 1850) 
succeeded to the See,** 

Veritably iqipalled by the immensity of the tasic which lay 
before him. Bishop Flaget told his Holiness that one great joy 
came to him and encour^ed him more than he could describe — 
"the news of the restoration of that remarkable Society of Apos- 
tolic men who brought the light of the Gospel in years gone by 
to so many barbarous nations." And he utters a prayer to the 
Holy Father that the members of the restored Society of Jesus 
will cast their eyes in his direction, for, they "are the men," he 
says, "whom God has ordained for this magnificent work." 
Bishop Flaget lived to see his prayers answered, for one has 
but to recall &e name of one Jesuit — ^Father De Smet — to picture 
the magnificent work the Society of Jesus performed in evan- 
gelizing and civilizing the great unexplored West of the United 
States. 



*■ Balllmon Clhidr*! ArckiwM, CaM lO'Ji, i>rinted IB tbc Rtearit, ToL ax, p. ». 
ArrUttlitotal ArcUpti of Qaibtt, flXj-Unir. MUe., C. iij. 

■ Prioud Ib the Stcar4i, nL », pp. 11-41. 

•■ CI. CounuB, Cliramtlegs of Uu AmtticMt Himnhy, In tba CtkMc Hlf 
tartnl KmUw, toL U, pp. a^-*»i- 



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CHAPTER XXXIV 

ARCHBISHOP CARROLL'S EXTRA-DIOCESAN 
JURISDICTION 

When Louisiana was transferred by treaty from France to 
Spain on November 3, 1762, the King of Spain, by virtue of 
royal privil^es dating back to the time of Ferdinand and Isabella, 
acquired ecclesiastical power over the largest known territory in 
what is now the Republic of the United States.* As a result of 
these privileges "in the course of time, things came to such a 
pass that without the royal assent no ecclesiastical official, not 
even a sacristan, could be appointed, transferred or dismissed; 
none might enter or leave the Colonies; diocesan or parochial 
boundaries might not be set down or altered; and no church, 
school or convent be erected." * Practically spealdng,^ as one 
Spanish historian puts it, the King of Spain was the Vicar of 
the Pope." This intimate imion of Church and State became 
the fortune, or the misfortune, of old Louisiana, when after three 
years of manana, Spain actually took possession of the territory 
in 1766. No official notice of the change in the political govern- 
ment of Louisiana seems to have been taken by the Holy See 
at this date ; and the Bishop of Quebec retained his jurisdiction 
over this Spanish proving until about the year 1773. Quebec 
had always shown a lack of wisdom in its jurisdiction over this 
vast appendage to its power. It is true that the population of 
the Louisiana Province was never very large. In 1766, the whole 
French population is given as 1400 families, or roughly 5,600 
souls. The majority of these resided in what is now the State 
of Louisiana, and the greater portion of them in and around 

* Ct. FinoM, Hittory of M« Popii, etc., nd. W, p. igj; ml. t, pp. jjS-jjg; 
vdL Ti, p. 161; Fmucott, Firditiaad tni Iiabtlla, vol. ii, p. 16 (Edition of 1891); 
LowBT, StamM SttlUmtnli in tkt Umttd SttUt, toI. Ii, p. 671. Thii ■object hM 
b«B tratcd in deUil hj Re*. Edwin Rrsn, Dioctnn Ortamtatta* <■ M« Spamitk 
Colot^t, In the CfttaUe Hirtwieal RtvUw, ToL ii, 9p. iit(-ij6; To), iv, pp. I7a-i>5. 

* Ktui, 1. c, ToL 11, p. tja 

■ SoLOUiRO y Fiuvo, Potitica /nJuM, t. ti, book iv. 

700 



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Extra Diocesan Rule 701 

New Orleans.* John Gilmary Shea quotes Mai^jry in confirma- 
tion for his statement that in the time of the unamiable De Saint- 
Vallier, second Bishop of Quebec (16881727), the French Gov- 
ernment planned to divide Louisiana into several vicariates, but 
that the bishop objected to a dismembering of his diocese.* 
Down to the change of Government in 1763, Quebec ruled this 
vast province by means of vicars-general. On May 16, 1722, 
Louisiana was apparently divided into three spiritual jurisdic- 
tions. The first, allotted to the Capuchins, with a centre at New 
Orleans, extended on the west from the mouth of the Mississippi 
to the Wabash ; the second, allotted to the Jesuits, comprised the 
old Illinois Country, with a centre in Kaskaskia; the third, taking 
in all the rest of the territory east of the Mississippi, was placed 
in charge of the Carmelites, with a residence at Mobile. The 
three superiors of these Orders were made Vicars-General of 
the Diocese of Quebec.' When the Carmelites returned to 
France ( 1 722 ) , their territory was added to that of the Capuchins. 
A little later, the Jesuits were given charge of all the Indians 
in the province, and their Superior was permitted to live at New 
Orleans; but they were restricted in the performance of their 
duties, being obliged to obtain the consent of the Capuchin Su- 
perior in many things. All this was hardly more than a paper 
organization, and was bound to create disorder. On February 
26, 1726, the Superior of the Jesuits in the Province of Canada, 
Father Beaubois, signed an agreement to the effect that the 
Jesuits should exercise no spiritual functions at New Orleans, 
except by the consent of the Capuchins. When Bishop De 
Saint- Vallier appointed Beaubois vicar-general at New Orleans, 
a quarrel began between the two cot^egations, which was not 
settled, even when after the Suppression of the Jesuits in the 
French Dominion (1763), the members of the Soctefy were 
expelled from Louisiana. 
When the cession of New France to England was made by 



* GouiUH, L'BgHit du Canada aftii la Con^ullt, p. jii. 

* Shia, ep, cU., vol. 1, p. J17; Haicxt, Dttmvtrtti tt tlablitittiittiu iti Pratt' 
fail, ttt., «oL iii, p. ng, P>ria. 'ij7- No tnxx of these docuaenU ma {onnd in 
Iha Propafuid* Anjiivo. A Stlation of the "Hiulon of the MiHimppi," niida' dite 
of i;ji (pp. jii-jii) it in the ArelUtpUeotal AreUvti ef Qa^tt. 

* ArchiipiicBfal AreMvtt of Qurbie, Tranttrifti, pp. iii-jjt; tba doenaeati in 
in tlic AlH li Propacuida of 1711, f. (S; ijtt, S. ]|l, iSj-184, 4io-«ii, 



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702 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

the Treaty of Paris (1763), Louisiana, as anderstood by the 
Treaty, was that vast stretch of country on both sides of the 
Mississippi extending from New Orleans to the boundaries of 
Canada. The eastern part of the Territory became American 
by the treaty of 1783 ; the western part had been ceded to Charles 
III of Spain on November 2, 1762. It was this western section 
which was retroceded to France in 1800, and was purchased by 
Jefferson in 1803. After the cession to Spain of this western 
section, the ecclesiastical government of the country was trans- 
ferred to the Bishop of Santiago de Cuba. The Capuchin, 
Father Cyril de Barcelona, was sent to New Orleans as his 
vicar-general, and, in 1781, was consecrated Auxiliary of 
Santiago with his residence in New Orleans. In 1787, the 
Diocese of Santiago was divided, and Havana became a separitte 
bishopric with jurisdiction over Spanish Louisiana. Bishop 
Trespalados of Porto Rico was transferred to Havana, and 
Bishop Cyril, who became his auxiliary, b^an a ^stematic 
reform of the diocese, and soon incurred the ennu^ of vaaxty 
in New Orleans. On November 23, 1793, a royal decree was 
issued erecting Louisiana into a separate diocese, and bishtq) 
Cyril of Barcelona was ordered to return at once to his Capuchin 
monastery in Catalonia, vrith a pension of one thousand pesos 
a year. He went to Havana a broken man, the result of his 
efforts to institute a stricter clerical discipline in Spanish Louis- 
iana. Where he died is unknown. The jurisdiction of Tres- 
palacios, who had schemed the harsh banishment of Bishop 
Cyril, came to an end with the erection of the Diocese of Louis- 
iana and the Floridas, with boundaries touchii^ Baltimore on 
the east and Linares and Durango on the west The priest 
chosen as bishop for the new diocese was Luis Peiialver y <^de- 
nas of Havana, who arrived at New Orleans on July 17, J795. A 
long report to the Spanish authorities at Madrid, written 
before the end of the year, gives us a melancholy sketch of the 
state of reUgion in the province.^ PeiiaJver was very much in 
earnest, as is evidenced by his Instruccidn para el goviemo de 
los Pdrrocos, and by the reflations published for his Visitation 
of the diocese.* His chief difficulty was io protecting his people 



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Exira Diocesan Rule 703 

from tbe "gang of adventjirers" who were flocldi^ in to the - 
Province of Louisiana from the neighbouring United States. The 
Drive on Mexico had begun. And Peiialver was far-sighted in 
relating to his superiors the custom of the Americans "qf patting 
their sons on the shoulder, when they are very stout, saying; 
"You will go to Mexico.' " Peiialver was vigorous in his support 
of improvements for tbe province, and attempted to introduce 
better methods in agriculture and commerce. He encouraged 
education, extending tbe stope of the work done by the Ursulines, 
and lost no opportunity of beautifyii^ the churches in his dio- 
cese. There is a letter from his pen in the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archives, dated April 12, 1799, asking Bishop Carroll if some defi- 
nite agreement could not be reached in the matter of controllisg 
the clerical adventurers who found Carroll's discipline too strict 
and were seeking refine in Louisiana. There was a va-ett/ient 
system across the borders of the two dioceses, and disdpline 
suffered accordingly. There is little doubt that Pe&alver's sys- 
tematic reform of the religious life of his people met with much 
opposition, and, on July 20, 1801, he vras promoted, ut amoveatur, 
to the archiepiscopal See of Guatemala.* Before his departure 
(November 3, 1801), he appointed two of his priests. Irishmen, 
Rev. Thomas Canon Hassett and Rev. Patrick Walsh, Vicars- 
General for the interim.^* Meanwhile, by the Treaty of San 
Ildefonso (Oct i, 1800), Spain was coerced into an agreement 
with France to retrocede the Province of Louisiana to the French 
RqHiblic This transfer had not been made ofBdally when 
Bonaparte, as First Consul, ceded Louisiana to the Republic of 
tbe United States, by the treaty of April 30, 1S03, for the sum 
of fifteen million dollars. On November 30, 1803, Spain finally 
transferred the province to France; her Government of the 
province, in spite of the Treaty of 1800, had not been disturbed. 
And on December 20, the representatives of France handed tbe 
province over to the United States at New Orleans. Similar 

Oatti CatJMie HuterfcoJ Uaaamu, nL i, pp. 417H. Cf. Gatau^ Hittory of 

* Ciw^ Stritt EfiuatanHm, p. 174. KatirtoB, 1B7J. A McUom of tbe CBrrstl- 
PcfUlTcr comtpatimet i« in tha Catholic AreMvti rf Ammc» <Ka(re Duuc 
Uslvtnitjr). 

■■ Shu [o^ (A., nL U. p. jti) Kri tlut be n* mnthoriicd to da w ^ a 
iwctlpt tnm tbs H«tr Sm daMd S«ftaAci 14, 1)194. 



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704 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

ceremonies for Upper Louisiana took place at St Louis, March 
9-10, 1804, "and thus expired the last vestige of French power 
on the mainland of North America, almost exactly two centuries 
after the first successful settlement in Nova Scotia."*' By a 
rescript from the Holy See, dated January 29, 1791, Bishop 
Carroll had been informed that "all the faithful living in com- 
munion with the Catholic Church, both ecclesiastics and lay 
persons, whether they dwell in the provinces of Federated 
America, or in the neighbourii^ regions outside of the provinces, 
so long as they are subject to the Government of the Republic, 
will be and shall be hereafter under the jurisdiction of the Bishop 
of Baltimore." " Consequently, this whole tract of the Missis- 
sippi Valley, the very heart of the nation, became automatically 
a part of Carroll's extra-diocesan jurisdiction. On December 
23, 1803, Canon Hassett, prestmiably the ecclesiastical siq>erior 
of the province, wrote to Carroll to acquaint him with the 
official transfer of Louisiana to the American Republic and of 
the situation of the Church there : 

My Lord: 

The retroceuion o( this Province to the French Republic haveing taken 
place the 30th nltimo, and the Mine being since ceded to the U. 5. of 
America, are cinmnutances tli&t induce me to acquaint your Loidshtp 
(without loM oi time, and aa briefly as possible), of the present Ecclesi- 
astical State of this portion of my Jurisdiction, doubting not but it will 
\-ery soon fall under your Lordship's. 

The ceded Province consists of 21 parishes, including this of New 
Orleans, of which some are vacant owing to the scarcity of Ministers; 
tlie Irish priests enjoy 40 D* salary per month from the King, and the 
Spaniard, French, &c 30. besides the obventions arising from the publick 
acta of tlteir parochial functions, such as fiuierals, marriages &c and 
established by larif: the functionarys are allowed each, a dwelling house 
and a few acres of land by their respective flocks : none has a coadjutor 
excepting the parish priest of N. Orleans, who is allowed four, and 
enjoys as dollars each per month, together with their share of obven- 
tions, which are equally divided between the parish priest and them. 

Previous to the Retrocession, the Spanish commissioners have explored 
officially the wills of all those that derive from his C. Majesty, and are 
employed in his service; the Ecclesiastiks being of the number. I found 
on examination that out of 26 that have been at yt. time in ye Capital 

" Thwaitu, Fnmct to Amtrica, pp. ag4->9S- New York, igoj, 
° Pratagtrndt Arcklmt, Ltlttn, vol. B91. not ioUocdi primed in tbc Rieerit, 
Tol. zvlU, p. i6a> 



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Extra Diocemn Rule 705 

and Prorince, only four agreed to cootiune m their respective statiotu tuida' 
French Govenunent, and whether many more than the same number will 
remain mider that of the U. S. God only Icnowa; whereat, although the 
KTvke of Almighty God and the particnlar apiritoal neceisity of ye 
portion of his vineyard, are motivei ye most cogent on one hand, to 
engage all, not only to continue their labours here, but also to redouble 
their zeal in the execution of their aacrcd functions, yet yr. Lordship 
well knows that ttie amor Patriae and the King's bounty (offered to be 
cootinaed to all those that follow his colours) are alloreing and flattering 
ones on the other. As for my own part, I candidly assure yr. Lordship, 
that I find myself in a most disagreeable dilenuna, obliged to leave the 
country on account of my weak and declining state of health, and repair 
to some odier climate more suitable to my constitution, notwithstanding 
the ardent desires I have of being serviceable in my present situation, 
besides my place of Canon, I cannot warrantably or with any degree 
of propriety relinquish, and consei]uait1y only wait for superior orders 
to take my departure hence. 

The Revd- Mr. Patk Walsh, Vicar-Genl & auxiliary Gov of ye diocese, 
justly entitled '.as he really it) to a recompense for his long services 
and imwearicd Zeal in the service of God & his Country, may hourly 
expect a competent one from our Sovereign; but yet declares when he 
leaves ye country, he will ccmsider himself as, in a manner, torn from 
it, for the reasons above mentioned, and assures that he is determined 
not to abandon his post, as long as he can with propriety hold it, not 
being in the least influenced by motives of interest or aggrandizement 
so to be. 

I forgot to mention yt ye Cathedral Church possesses some property 
arising from houses thereunto appertaining— it is a decent temple and 
decently supplyed with Ornaments &c necessary for divine service. The 
country churcbrs are also on > tolerably good footing. Mr. Walsh desires 
to be most affectionately reroerobered to yr Lordship, & says he will write 
to jron by next opportunity. 

I have the Honour to be with the highest respect, my Lord, yr Lord- 
ship's most obed* Humble Servt 

Thomas Hassktti* 

Carroll had written to Propaganda on Febntary 14, 1804, 
announcing the purchase of the old French Territory,'* and on 
April 21 of the same year, Propaganda a^ed him to send the 
names of three or more priests so that the Holy See might select 
bishops for the new territory. Meanwhile, Father Patrick 



" BiMmt* CMktdnl ^reJUm, Cue 4-Dj; printed In the Rtcordi, td. n. 
FP> T-t*- BiAop Carroll'* MaMaudu on tlw teck of tUt IMtar Mius thtt H 
was i t ai iai Ttttmrr iS, >Si>4> and wu ucvbh) Ike foUowInt dar- 

■* /■rvtsfosda ArMvt, Lttttri, nL >Sg, t, SSC 



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706 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Walsh wrote to Rome a long letter (April 12, 1S05) mfonning 
the Holy See of the iiuubordination of one of the Capuchins, 
Father Aothot^ Sedella, parish-priest of New Orleans, who had 
defied Walsh's authority.^' Father Walsh withdrew the Ca- 
puchin's faculties and placed the parish church under a quasi- 
interdict A schism ensued, in which Sedella was upheld by 
Governor Qaibome who "lent the whole influence of his position 
to break down the discipline of the Catholic Church and maintain 
in the Cathedral of New Orleans a man whose immoral character 
and neglect of du^ were notorious, and who would in any New 
Ei^and village have been consigned to jail." ^* Father Walsh 
died in the midst of these troubles (August 22, 1806) , and the 
diocese was left without anyone to regulate it, until Dr. Carroll 
acted upon Propaganda's letter of September 20, 1805, and 
assumed jurisdiction." Dr. Carroll was permitted to appoint 
an administrator to whom all powers, except those requiring 
episcopal character, were to be granted. He was urged to 
extinguish as quickly as possible the flames of the schism so 
that all scandal might be removed from the diocese. The follow- 
ing day, September 21, 1805, Propaganda wrote to Father Walsh, 
tellii^ him that his powers as vicar-general had ceased and 
that faculties for the governance of the diocese had been con- 
ferred upon Dr. Carroll, to whom he would henceforth be subject. 
Fatiier Walsh probably received this letter before his death. 
With the two administrators appointed t^ Bishop Pefialver 

■* Itid., Cmgrtgnlotii ftrtirtUri, toL hs< '■ 9i-9^- 

■• Sbu, Df. cO., TvL il, p. jgo. 

" CuoB Buwn died In Apiil, tUn, and on Ifwtk 17. 'tej, ttthtr VftUk 
publlilKd • Putonl IBalHmort Catluinl Arclmrei, Cue iiB-Cj) c^tUi* spaa all to 
rcsagniie bU own tpiritiial ■nUunity. On April u, iBos, CMtillon, proidsM s( 
th* tnatea of Hew Otieui, wrote to Carroll fUtlnf Oat tbey nitmei to ucepi 
Walah'* ■ntboritr. on tbe icore that it ccued «rith Ibe tnntfer of Biehop PefialTcr t 
Cerdena* to the See of Guatemala la iSoi iBaHimon CthHrat ArehiBtt, Caia *-U). 
Cattilloo wrote acain on Jnlr I5> iBoi, anpportinc Seddia in hii inaolnrdiiiatiaB. 
Tfaa newa of Falbcr Walah'i death reached Carroll hj a letter from Loni* Ken, dated 
Hew Orkana, Antnit 29, iBa6 (SottMwn Catiuiral Archiuti, Caw iiB-U; printed 
in the Rtcerdt, Tol. xz, pp. iSe-iSi). "Undentandinc Aat ros are liaised with 
Bo^ aupertntendence orcr the ecdcaiaaticat intereata of thii dioceae," Kerr wrote to 
Carroll, "I take the llbcrtj to add from mjadf, though jou an poaiiblT aware of It. 
that br tbe death o( mr ropected friODd the Chord here i> now irithont any lecittnaM 



wM eitaatko of otu ecrleaiaitifal affaira, napectlof whicb nn witlMWl doobl bave 
I loaf rinoe lafomwd." The letter froB Pn>pa(anda of SepteoUwr >o, i8«s, pladnc 
WaiM HDiler CarroO'i Joriwlktion. waa aent br Coocanen on Septcaiber >1 CBaMfr 
» Cmkttfl Artkltitt, Caae (-Wt). 



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Extra Diocesan Rule "joy 

absent from the scene, the Church in New Orleans was a prey 
to the intriguii^ Scdella, who was known to many in the city as 
politically opposed to American interests. 

In Propaganda's letter to Carroll, it was suggested that the 
United States Government be approached regarding church disci- 
pline in Louisiana; and, accordingly, on November 17, 1806, 
Dr. Carroll wrote to James Madison, then Secretary of State, 
repeating in part the letter he had recdved from Rome: 

I wu not M satisfied with the accounts of Loniiiaiu, of the dergrmai 
irriag there, as wodM justify a recommendation of any of them for the 
important trtui, which requires not <»ily a virtuous but very prudent 
conduct, great learning, especially in matters of a religions nature, and 
sufficient resolution to remove gradually the disorders which have grown 
up during the related state of dvil and eccleiiastical authority. I there- 
fore directed my views to two others, who tho' Frenchmen, have been 
tong resident in this country and steady in their attachment to it. But 
the removal of either of them to I»uiaiana was rendered impracticable, 
and circumstances have since occurred which perhaps make it unadvisable 
in the opinion of this government, to nominate for the bishop of that 
country any native of France or Louisiana. I therefore declined hitherto 
taking any concern in this business, tho' the situation of the church there 
has long required, and requires now more particularly a prompt inter- 
ference, not only for the interests of religion, but likewise for quieting 
and composiiv the minds of the inhabitants. You vrill observe that my 
first cranmission to take a provisional charge of the diocese of N. Orleans 
was received long before the intermeddling of the Emperor Napoleon. 
This has been procured, as I am credibly informed from M. O. by s 
mission to Paris from a Mr. Castillon, who is at the head of the munici- 
pality, and an artful Spanish friar, Antonio de Sedilla, the intimate 
friend of the Marquis of Caso Calvo. This mission was entrusted to a 
certain Castanedo, who was furnished with $4,000 to obtain a recom- 
mendation from the Emperor Napoleon for the immediate nominati<m of 
de Sedilla to the bishopric: but the attempt has completely miscarried, as 
you will see by the duplicate copy of the commission sent to me, Ac To 
this commission allow me to subjoin an extract from a letter of Card. 
Pietro, prefect of the Congreg. de Prop, fide at Rome, which I received 
at the same time. . . . From which it appears, that the acqajesceoce 
of our government is necessary with respect to the measures to be adopted 
for settling the ecclesiastical state of Louisiana. Something, as has been 
mentioned, is immediately necessary, before I proceed to determine on 
the choice of a subject fit to be recommended for the future bishop. If 
a native of this country, or one who is not a Frenchman, tho' well 
acquainted with the language, cannot be procttrcd, would it be satisfactory 
to the Execntive of the U. S. to recoamMttd a native of France who has 



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7o8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

long resided amongst us, and is desirotu of continuing under dils gov- 
ernment? In the mean time, as the only clergyman in Louiiiana, in any 
degree qualified to act with vigor and intelligence in restoring order tn 
the Cath. church, is a French emigrant priest, far from any attachment 
to the present system of his country. May he be ^pointed to act a> my 
vicar, without the disa^robation of our Executive? I have many reasons 
for believing that this person rejoices sincerely in the cessjon of that 
country to the United States.^* 

Madison replied, on November 20, to the effect that the 
American Govenunent would welcome an end to the religious 
strife which was distracting the city of New Orleans. Sedella 
was regarded as an artful conspirator, and the appointment of 
an exemplary priest as head of ecclesiastical affairs would be 
highly satisfactory: 

Right Reverend Sir, 

I have had the htmour to receive and lay before the President yoor letter 
of the 17th bst, enclosing a duplicate of the commission which places 
under your care the Roman Catholic Church in New Orleans and request- 
ing the sentiments of the Executive on certain discretionary points affecting 
the selection of the functionaries to be named by you. 

The delicacy towards the public authority and the laudable object 
which led to the enquiry you are pleased to nuke, are appreciated by the 
President, in the manner which they so justly merit But as the case is 
eotireir ecclesiastical it is deemed most congenial with the scrupulous 
policy of the Constitution in guarding against a political interference 
with religious affairs, to decline the explanations which you have thought 
might enable you to accommodate the better, the execution of your trust, 
to the public advantage. I have the pleasure, Sir, to add, that if that 
consideration had less influence, the President would find a motive to 
the same determination, in his perfect confidence in the purity of your 
views, and in the patriotism which will guide yoo, in the selectioa of 
ecclesiastical individuals, to such ai combine with their professional merita, 
a due attachment to the independence, the Constitution and the prosperity 
of the United SUtes. 

I enclose tbe document which you requested might be returned, and 
pray yon to accept assoranccs of the perfect respect and esteem with 
which, 

/ remam, 

Your most ob* Sen^ 

Jambs Madisox.** 



' BtMmer* Cathtdnl ArtUvtt, CaMt 4-Er; ef. Sku, of. cil., pp. Spi-jg*. 

■* BaUimart Ctlhtdral ArehiMt, Cim s-E?; printed Id (kc Rtctrit, foL xx, 
pp. 6a-6j. Ob March j. iSor, Cairoll wrota to U* ncpliew, Oanld Brant, wbo ma 
tbm in tba Stat* DepaitatM: "Ha [Hr. Ifadlaea] nar ba aatond that if w 



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Extra Diocesan Rule 709 

With this letter came a private answer from Madison, treating 
the matter more in detail: 

Yon will find by the enclosed letter that an official answer to the 
oiquiries in yours of the 17th has not been given. The reason for declin- 
ing it does not however forbid my saying in a private letter that nothing 
being known concerning Mr. L'Espinasse except from yonr account of 
him in which all due confidence is placed, no objection can lie against the 
oat you propose to make of him: and that in general it affords satisfaction 
to find you, as might well be presumed, so fully in a disposition to admit 
into the stations for ^ich you are to provide as little of alienage of any 
sort as will consist with the essential attention and duties of them. Of 
the Spanish Friar Antonio di Sedella the accounts received here agree 
with the character you have fanned of him. It appears that his intrigues 
& his coimections have drawn on him the watchful attentim of the 
Govenunent of that Territory. 

Altho' I am aware that in the arrangements committed to your discre- 
tion & execution, considerations operate very different from those of a 
political nature, I will not conceal my wish that instead of a temporary 
s«^rdination of the R. C. Church at N. Orleans to the General Diocese, 
the subordination had been made permanent, or rather that it had involved 
a modification of some proper sort leaving less of a distinctive feature in 
that quarter already marked by siuulry peculiarities. I am betrayed into 
this expressicHi, or rather intrusion of such a sentiment by my anxiety 
to see the union and harmony of every portion of our cotmtry strengdiened 
by every legitimate circumstance which may in any wise have that 
tendency. 

The letter from Mr. Portales had been forwarded hither in several 
cc^es from N. O. where it has excited the sensations likely to result 
from it This foreign interposition, qualified as it is, was manifestly 
reprehensible, being in a case where it could be foimded neither in any 
political nor ecclesiastical relation whatever. It is probable, at the same 
time, that the step was produced less by any deep or insidious designs, 
than by the flattering unjust importunities of the parties at N. O. & by 
a tenderness towards a people once a part of the French nation, and 
alienated by the poU^ of its Gov't not by their own act The interposi- 
tkm will be made by our Minister a topic of such observations, as without 
overchargii^ the wrong, may be calculated to prevent repetitions.'^ 

Dr. Carroll appointed as his vicar-general. Father John 
Olivier, the brother of the venerable missionary at Post Vin- 

a aj >nlludtr ihoBld arer bttnj diipcMitbiu or coDntomnct 

t SottidgatT of the United Sutd; or, 11 ever ha ibodd 

■aga BatioB, he ihall bt d^riirfd 

' (CaMoJtc ArcUvtt tf Amirba, 



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7 lo The Life and Times of John Carroll 

teams, Father Donatien OKvier. On April 5, 1808. Propaganda 
sent a further Brief to Dr. Carroll defining his powers over 
Louisiana and ordered him to appoint Father Charles Nerindoc, 
"on whose zeal and virtue we greatly rely in Our Lord," or, 
if the latter feel unequal to the task, some other worthy priest 
as administrator-apostolic of that diocese. Father Nerinckx 
refused the task, as did several others to whom Archbishop 
Carroll offered the burdensome post. In the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archives, there is a letter, remarkable because of its fotu- signa- 
tures (Badin and the three Dominicans, Wilson, Angier and 
Tuite), dated September l, 1809, approvii^ Father Nerinckx's 
stand against accepting the Louisiana charge." On December 
17, 1810, Archbishop Carroll informed Pius VII that he had 
found grave difficulty in persuading any of his priests to go to 
New Orleans, but that he deemed Father William Du Bourg as 
well fitted for the task. The n^otiations with the Holy See 
lingered for two more years, until finally Du Bourg accepted 
the post and was appointed Administrator-Apostolic of the Dio- 
cese of Louisiana and the two Floridas. He left Baltimore on 
October 18, 1812, for his distant charge.** 

Louis-Guillaume- Valentin Du Boui^ was bom at Cap Fran- 
cois, San Domingo, in February, 1766. He entered the Sulpidan 
Order after the completion of his theological studies at Paris, 
where he was ordained in 1788. He was Superior of the Issy 
section of the Preparatory Seminary founded by Father Nagot, 
when the French Revolution broke out; in 1794, he emigrated to 
America and offered his services to Bishop Carroll. As President 
of Georgetown College (1796-1799), and as the founder of St 
Mary's College, Baltimore (1800), Du Bourg's place in the 
history of American Catholic education is secure. It was he 
who turned Mother Seton's thoughts towards the education 
of C^liolic girls (1S06), and it was largely through his influ- 
ence that the Society for the Propagation of the Faith 



" Cue I.J4. Th« |«rt the Pomtnietni Uak ia — i-n-j Hwladai ta rrMiiin In 
KaUndr bad tha cood diact of iMlMios both lUct tomrdi ■ better nadantuidiac. 
Cf. CDikHtu, Fttmikit, p. i£o. The rtacrlpt of PropaiuuU <Apill {, iSsS) will 
be foBDd Ib Sau, p^. at., ml. U, pp. lg£-sgr; Mue, NtriKekr, p. Jei; Howibtt, 
N*ti*ekx, p. If I. 

* Cf. SouvAi, A Ctttimial of tk* Chnrck fn Si. Loaii, in th« CthoUe HtHtrial 
JUvitm, ToL iv, p. sj. The lellet of appolaMwat will be fooDd tUi^ p. iC 



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Extra Diocesan Rule 71 1 

(organized at Lyons, France, in 1&2), supported the educa- 
tional institutions of the United States. For three years Father 
Du Bourg remained in Louisiana striving to brii^ order into the 
Church there. In Lower Louisiana at the time there were more 
than 50,000 Catholics, but the parishes were few, and there were 
not enough priests to take charge of them. 

In contemporary reports on Louisiana to Propaganda we read : 

Uany Catholici die without the sacrainents, many children are tmbap- 
tizcd; other! scarcely see a priest once in a lifetime; marriages are con- 
tracted withotit a blessing: Christian doctrine is not tao^t, and such a 
decay of Catholic life is to be observed, that within a few years dK 
Catholic faith will be entirely obliterated . . . There is rife in the dty 
of New Orleans a spirit of unbelief, or rather of godlessness vrfiich is 
gradually cormptuiK the whole mass. This pla^ae is to be attributed to 
the coming of a great number of free-masons and hucksters of every 
description, to the spread of French maxiffli, to infrequent preaching of 
the Gospel, to love of lucre and pleasure, so much intensified by the 
climate and the number of female slaves; above all to the scandals given 
by the clergy.** 

To make things much worse at the time, at On very gates of 
the dty stood an English army ready for attack. 

After the victory tmder General Jackson at New Orleans, on 
January 8, 1815, Father Du Bourg decided to go to Rome to 
lay bis problems before the officials of Propaganda. The long 
detention of Pope Pius VII by Napoleon, at Savona and Fon- 
tainebleau, had disorganized the ordinary relations between the 
head of the Church and the American dioceses, as we have seen 
in the long delays caused in the succession to the Sees of New 
York and Philadelphia ; and correspondence was so often inter- 
mpted or destroyed, that Du Bourg thoi^ht it best to go to Rome 
personally for the affairs of his vast administratorship. Sedella 
still remained in New Orleans, and though quiescent during 
Du Bourg's residence in Louisiana, the wily Capuchin saw in 
the appointment of Father Louis Sibourd as vicar-gcneral in 
the absence of the administrator, another opportunity for caus- 
ing disorder. Du Bourg realized that once he had departed. 



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712 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Seddla would renew the old schism; but he detenniDed to face 
that difficulty, and on May 4, 1815, he set out for Europe. 
When he arrived in France (JiUy, 1815), the country was in an 
uproar, consequent upon Waterloo and the abdication of Napo- 
leon. From Bordeaux, on July 12, he sent Cardinal IJtta, 
Prefect of Propaganda, a preliminary report on the Church in 
lx>uisiana. Of Sedella he says : "This man, inq«ttent of con- 
trol and quite expert in the art of tickling the popular fanqr, 
who for thirty years and more has lorded it in the Cadiedral and 
holds and twists at will in his hand the minds of nearly all the 
inhabitants of a large city, this man, I say, challenging my power 
to del^ate my authority, is, now that the first schism kindled 
by him has been quenched, threatenii^, to start another. Unless 
treatment is promptly applied to this frightful calamity, the evil, 
I fear, will soon be past remedy." ** Propaganda now had all 
the documents on the Louisiana Church in its possession for 
decision, as can be seen from the Ada of September 14, 1815. 
When Du Bourg reached Rome, he was consecrated Bishop of 
Louisiana (September 24, 1815).** Archbishop Carroll died 
before the news of Du Bourg's elevation to the episcopate reached 
Baltimore. With this appointment, the Diocese of Baltimore 
was relieved of further anxiety over church affairs in old Louis- 
iana. Bishop I>u Bourg proposed to the Holy See, while he 
was in Rome, the division of his dio(%se into two parts — ^Upper 
Louisiana, with its see at St. Louis, and Lower Louisiana, with 
a see at New Orleans. For the Diocese of Upper Louisiana, 
he advised that Bishop Flaget be transferred from Bardstown, 
and that Prince Gallitzin be consecrated Bishop of the Kentucky 
see. Propaganda wrote to Archbishop Carroll and to Bishop 
Fiaget, on December 23, 1815, asking their advice and consent 



" PtDtaeamU Arckim, ScrtOtrt riftrlU, Amtrba CtatnU, ToL ir, NoHA 4* 

■■ He bid bMB tittmSt ippolntcd (or Ibe fint tima in i8i>, ■bortlr atter banc 
nude AdmidlstntOT, abd tud ucepted the appoiBtmaiL Hii Bulla, bowercr, tov 
ddaynL Fatha Mai^chal, then in France, wrote that he «» P « ct eil to be the bearer 
ef then! but he returned to Baldmote wUham than. Pope Plna VII, lliwerini in 
priun and voni out hr the intiifoei and baraatinc nsatiDU of hia {nvcriat (aider, 
Gnnlr declined to iaiue in; more Bulla, Sruoiaa, Plaftt, pp. ifi3.|64. A now 
lofonna na that all thtae pirticolin are gathered (ran a letter o( Dn Boorr to 
Biiltap Flafat, dated Baltidura, Anctot ii, iSia. SoOtat, at ittrm, p> ft, MIe Iij 
ifaw, AtH (1B14), f. ■». 



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BISHOP DU BOURG 



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Extra Diocesan Rule 713 

to this plan.** Archbtsbop Carroll had passed away, before this 
letter was written; Flaget, who had prtiiiMy suf^ested the plan 
to Du Bont^, subsequently changed his mind, and the latter 
remained as bishop of that immense territory from the Gulf of 
Mexico to the Canadian border.*' 

Sedella, the inimicus homo of the diocese had not been idle, 
and when the news of his machinations reached Bishop Du Bourg 
at Bordeaux, that prelate — like a general who wishes to conquer 
a country, and does not therefore stop to besiege fortified cities — 
decided to fix upon St. Louis as his episcopal city.** He felt 
free to do this, since he had been consecrated Bishop of Louis* 
iana. Cardinal Dngnani, Pro-Prefect of Propaganda, approved 
this design. Correspondence with Rome was stow in those days 
and Bishop Du Bourg, while waiting for an answer to other 
matters submitted to Propaganda, spent his time going about 
France, preaching and collecting for his new diocese. He sailed 
for America on July i, 1817, accwnpanied by twenty-nine recruits 
for the Louisiana Mission: five priests, four subdeacons, nine 
clerics, three Christian Brothers, four ecclesiastical students and 
four workmen. This par^ arrived at Annapolis, Md., in Sep- 
tember, 1817, and then started westward (November 4) to St. 
Louis, where Bishop Du Bourg arrived on January 5, 1818, after 
a journey of nearly six thousand miles. The subsequent lustory 
of this remarkable prelate's career belongs to the period after 
Carroll's death.*" 

The most remarkable page in the history of Louisiana, though 



" Prtfaiida Arcknti. Lttttrt, vi. *96, I. nB. 

' Sfaldims, Pl*g*t. Vf- iM-i<9- 

" Ihi Book to Fxbcr Dc AsdraU, Ljreii*, Vttatt, April 14, iStC. Ct, Samxr, 
W tufn, p. 6». 

■* Sonny bu flven ■ wdl-docmncnted histoiT of tUi oooplex p*(< in Aoojcan 
Cktkalte >0B*1* in hto Brticle on Uu CmlfinW of tin Chmk ha St. Upit (at nfrt). 
ud la Roiatrt EltcHtm te tkt CaaiiutonWtp of Nrm Or1fm4 (CafhoKc Hii—rtal 
Rtvin, VOL lii. pp. j-Ji, itj-iM). On Julr 18, iS>«, Pep* La> XII divided tb* 
DiooCH of LoaitUu, erectins the Diocoo of New Orltui (nd of St. tmU, Ud 
the Vicariile of Uiuiiiippt. Biihop Db Bonrf reilfiied, ud New Oricani wu placed 
DDdet the joiiidictieii of bii couUntor, Blihop Souti, C.U., who had beat t» ni icfi t «d 
in i8s4, ud 1A0 wu appdMed Biihep of St. Lonia. Ifaith n, iSar. BiAtp Da 
Bonrs wai Iniutemd to the Dlocoe of Uonlaiihui In Tiaacc (Ancoal ij, iSj6), 
and later (1833) bCEatne Archtriahoti of Beaan^on. Biahop Leo do Ntckere, CM,, 
btcame the fint naidtnt Blrikop o( New Otieana (1S19) and aa AdminiMnlDr-ApoMolic 
of New OrleanB <iSi6-]o}, Biibop Rouli rnled the VicariaU oi Miaaliaippi. The 
Dioctae of Natchea waa eatahliahcd (i8}7), whea Biahop JcAb Qanche uimDed 
juriadktion. 



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714 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

belonging to this later period, is the coining of the Vincentiiii 
Fathers or the Congr^[ation of the Mission to St, Lotus in 1817. 
Few events of the years under review in this life of America's 
first Catholic bishop would have given Dr. Carroll more reason 
for rejoicing than the scenes at Baltimore and Annapolis, when 
the several groups of Apostles for the Middle West arrived, their 
journey but half completed. Father Felix Andreis, the founder 
of the Vincentian Order in the United States, was a man after 
Carroll's heart But Carroll's relations with this far-off part of 
his jurisdiction were not of so important a nature as to demand 
a more detailed treatment. The same may be said to a certain 
extent r^ardii^ his extra-diocesan jurisdiction over the West 
Indies. 

The West Indies, the first islands to be discovered in the New 
World, enter the p^es of English Catholic history as early as 
1605, when Father Robert Persons in a celebrated decision o£ 
March 18, of that year, gives his judgment against the Winslade 
project of founding a refuge there for the persecuted English 
Catholics. The restrictions placed upon all who wished to set 
out for the New World were sufficiently irksome, and the great 
Jesuit leader threw the weight of his influence against the "goinge 
thither of a whole nation," and it was only when Maryland was 
founded in 1634, that the first available refuge for the proscribed 
Catholics of Great Britain and Ireland was begun. The near- 
ness of the Spanish West Indies had been brought up as an 
objection to the plantation of Maryland ; the fear being that the 
Catholics of Maryland might combine with the Catholics of the 
West Indies, to the detriment of the Protestants of Virginia 
and New England. The objectors were reassured that distance 
would save these Protestant colonies "from their blood-thirsty 
Catholic brethren." ■' With the growth of Ei^lish coloniration 
in the West Indies and the transportation of offenders, criminal 
and political, to certain of the islands, the necessity arose of 
caring for the spiritual welfare of the Catholics in those {daces 
under British control. The ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the 
Lxmdon Vicariate from 1685 onwards was understood, though 
erroneously, to include all the English colonies in the New World, 

" Cf . Ruwu, at eU., ft. M4«. 



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Extra Diocesan Rule 715 

and the condition of the Church in the West Indies forms, as 
has been seen, s paragraph in Dr. Challoner's Report to Propa- 
ganda (1756).'^ 

The clergy supply was a haphazard one all through the eight- 
eenth century, and we know practically nothing of the priests 
who laboured in the Islands nor how they were sent or governed. 
Whether there were any relations between the Maryland Jesuits 
and the Islands is equally uncertain. At the time of the perse- 
cution of the Jesuits in Maryland (1645-46), a plan was afoot 
among the Fathers to ask the King of Spain for a refuge there 
for themselves and the Catholics, since they all feared expulsion 
from Maryland; but the General refused to give his consent to 
the plan (November 10, 1646)." Numerous changes of political 
overlordship in the Islands occurred during the eighteenth cen- 
tury, the chief of these being that effected by the Treaty of Paris 
(1763). Even at that date, however. Dr. Challoner was obliged 
to confess that be was "entirely ignorant of the present state 
of the Catholic religion in them, or what the ecclesiastical govern- 
ment is."" In 1771, Dr. Challoner proposed to Propaganda 
that a French Franciscan, Father Benjamin Duhamel, be ap- 
pointed Vicar-Apostolic for the West Indies; but the Sacred 
Congregation rephed that Duhamel's powers as Vicar-General 
of the London Vicariate were sufficient for the former French 
islands and that one of the Irish Dominicans in Monserrat should 
be given equal powers for the Et^lish-speaking Catholics. Dr. 
Challoner was told also that an application to the Holy See should 
be made for both vicars-general to be given power to administer 
the Sacrament of Confirmation.'' A secular priest, Father 
Christopher McEvoy had been appointed about this time Prefect- 
Apostolic for the Danish West Indies, and later in March, 1776, 
Father McEvoy's jurisdiction was extended to the Barbadoes, 
St Kitt's and other adjacent islands. The condition of the 
Church in the West Indies was not a very encouraging one ; and 
with the outbreak of the French Revolution, especially in the 
larger islands like Santo Domingo, plantations were burned and 



L u, p. ■«>. 

■ Cf. HuBHU, cf, eil., PoeiimcnH, voL 1. put i, p. 31; Ten, toL i, pp. S^yi^ 

■ CI. BnTOB, pp. eUntLlUr. IM. 
• IHA, p. 140. 



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•ji6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

white cxtlonJBts put to death, in some cases with horrible tortures. 
A general exodus of white families occurred and several of the 
larger cities. Savannah, Charleston, S. C, Baltimore, and Phila- 
delphia, became places of refuge for these exiles, most of whom 
were Catholics. 

It is not oertaia when the doleful condition of the Church in 
the West Indies was made kix>wn to the authorities at Rome, 
thoi^h from a letter sent by Propaganda to Dr. Cftrroll, under 
date of March lo, 1804, it would seem that Robert Tuite's letters 
regarding the state of the Faith in the Danish Islands had aroused 
the Sacred Cot^regation to the necessity of brii^i^ order into 
the Church there. Accordingly, on this day, Propaganda wrote 
to Dr. Carroll, enclosing a copy of Tuite's letter, and informing 
him that juridic powers over the Danish Islands, St. Eustace, the 
Barbadoes, St Kitt's, Antigua, and all other islands not tmder 
the rule of a bishop, or a vicar-apostolic, or a prefect-apostohc, 
were thereby vested in him.** Dr. Carroll was to appoint a 
priest as administrator in his name, and to the administrator, 
the Holy See conceded the privilege of asnferring the Sacrament 
of Confirmation. The jurisdiction over these West Indian 
Islands was confirmed by letter of March 24, 1804, and instead 
of one administrator, the Holy See gave Dr. Carroll the power 
to select two ; since, as Dr. Concanen had explained, the distances 
were so great that one would be insufficient for the task involved. 
One of these prefects or administrators should be assigned to the 
Danish Islands, another to all the other islands. Bishop Carroll 
accepted this added responsibility and appointed Father Henry 
Kendall, Prefect of the Danish Islands. Carroll made an eflfort ' 
to ascertain the state of religion in the other islands, but whether 
he actually appointed any one to the prefectship over them is 
not known. At any rate, he seems to have sent no word to Rome 
about the West Indies, since, on March 11, 1815, Propaganda 
wrote to the effect that, owing to the lack of information it 
possessed, the Sacred Congr^ation was ignorant of the condition 
of the Church in the Islands. "I ask Your Lordship, therefore, 



■ BsMiwr* Ctktdral ATcMm, Cue 4-Jia. Cue ia-Ki-6, Can iiA-Vt. Sbo 
■ins th* dau of Oil appolBtnaiK aa iSii (cf. of. cA., fd. U, p. Cji): bat we were 
imaUa la fiikd aar docsnanU of tU* date «tlh«r In ProfgnUt or in the BaMmert 



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Extra Diocesan Rule 717 

to inform me as soon as possible in regard to a matter of such 
great moment as this, and at the same time you are requested 
to make a survey of the condition of things in Santo Domingo 
and in the other islands committed to your care." •• By the time 
this letter reached Archbishop Carroll, he was not able to attend 
to so laborious a task, and the jurisdiction granted to him as 
metropolitan seems to have fallen into disuse after his death. 

■■ Fr^tataitdu Atehtfti, LtHtrt, vd. *»6. f. 47. 



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CHAPTER XXXV 

THE CHURCH IN THE DIOCESE OF BALTIMORE 

(1808-1815) 

The history of Carroll's jurisdiction over the Diocese of Bahi- 
nwre falls into two distinct periods : the first begins with Bishop 
CarroH's return to Bahiinore on December 7, 1790, and ends 
with the consecration of the three suffragan bishops — Flaget, 
Chevenis, and Egan — in November, 1810; the second begins 
with the creation of the American hierarchy at this latter date 
and ends with Carroll's death on December 3, 1815. The change 
that came with the suffragan sees was not a definite one, even 
geographically. There was left, of the original Diocese of Balti- 
more, the States of Maryland, Virginia, the two Carolinas, and 
Georgia. The territory south of Tennessee and west of Georgia 
also remained part of the Baltimore See, although Carroll had 
recommended to Propaganda (December, 1806) that it be an- 
nexed to the Diocese of Louisiana and the Floridas. When 
Louisiana became United States territory in 1803, this vast 
acquisition was placed under the administration of John Carroll, 
and in 1805, as we have seen in the last chapter, his jurisdiction 
was extended by Rome to certain islands of the West Indies. 
Besides, the Diocese of New York in the interim between Con- 
canen's death and the consecration of Connolly, remained under 
his rule. The division which came, therefore, in 1808-1810, was 
not of a nature to lighten considerably Carroll's burden as Chief 
Shepherd of the flock in the United States. little was done in 
the Dioceses of Boston, Philadelphia and Bardstown from 1810 
to 1815, without his being called upon for advice and direction. 
To all practical purposes, the soUicitudo omnium ecclesiarum 
of the United States rested upon Carroll's shoulders durii]^ the 
twenty-five years of his episcopate (1790-1815). 

The first authentic history of the condition of religious life ta 

the Diocese of Baltimore is contained in Carroll's Relation to 

7I« 



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Diocese of Baltimore 719 

Propaganda, dated April 23, 1792.* There is hardly any para- 
graph of this long letter which has not been used already in these 
pages in describing the origin and growth of Catholic life within 
the Republic. A summary of this valuable document is, however, 
necessary at the beginning of this chapter. Carroll relates the 
arrival of the Sulpicians in July, 1791, and the foundatbo of 
St. Mary's Seminary ; he thanks Propaganda for its generosity 
in the establishment of Georgetown CoU^e; he deplores the 
lack of priests for his vast diocese, and mentions in particular 
the neglected condition of the old French congr^^tions of the 
Illinois County in Vincennes, Kaskaslda, etc French priests 
were bdng handicapped by their want of facility in the English 
language. The Scioto Colony had been badly shattered by dissen- 
sions which arose among the (xilonists, many of whom held 
religion and piety in scorn. He had visited Boston shortly after 
his return from Europe and administered Confinnation there. 
He vros obliged to dismiss the priest who was stationed there and 
he hopes that Thayer, as an American, will be more acceptable 
to the people of that region. The schism in Philadelphia was 
caused by two priests who were disr^arding his authority, and 
who were men of low morals, and organizers of anti-episcopal 
factions. The disorders in Philadelphia are matched by the 
insubordination of a Franciscan in Baltimore (Renter) who was 
contiiming to celebrate Mass even though suspended a divinit. 
The "newcomers" in general are a source of grave concern to him, 
and he had set his hopes on Georgetown College and on St. 
Mary's Seminary for the creation of a native American clergy, 
through whom alone he sees the possibility of ruling the Church 
peacefully and efficiently. For that reason he is awaiting the 
return of the two Americans who were then nearing the priest- 
hood in the CoUcgio Urbano. The Carmelite nuns have by this 
time been fairly well established in their life of prayer and^con- 
templation, and their devotion has already made a deep impres- 
uon on the non-Catholics of the locality where tbey lived (Port 
Tobacco). They would be, however, of tar greater utility to the 
Diocese, if th^ were to establish an academy for young girls. 

The Synod of 1791 is then described. The legislation enacted 
by the twenty-two priests who were present embraced the better 

^ Frafat M is Anhivrt, Scrittan mtimtli, toL Sm, not faliotd. 



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720 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

government of the diocese, clerical discipline, liturgical muform- 
hy, and the support of the clergy. Carroll took advantage of 
the presence of his priests to emphasize the immediate need of 
a coadjutor or a division of the Diocese of Balthnore. His 
reasons for this are set forth clearly, and if the Holy See agreed, 
then ddwr Philadelphia or New York was to be the choice of 
the second see. The Susquehanna River was to form the divid- 
ing line of the two dioceses. His own choice would be Phila- 
delphia, since it was the larger city, was already well furnished 
with priests and churches, and possessed a clergy-house large 
enough few the episcopal residence. Carroll then recalled the 
fact that the Missal and the Breviary being used by his clergy 
were those la use in England, containing the supplements for 
England. He asked that these might be abandoned from the 
Roman Missal and Breviary, and that certain privileges regarding 
feasts be accorded the American clergy. The "Proper" for Eng- 
land had always been used in the English Colonies, but it seemed 
best to abandon it for the reason that the American Churdi was 
definitely separated from London. Besides, the Irish clergy in 
the United States refused to celebrate the English saints. He 
requested the episcopal privil^^ of conceding certain indulgences : 
Plenary, frmn Christmas to Epiphany, the first and second Sun- 
days of Lent, from Pentecost to the octave of Corpus Chrisd, 
the feast of SS. Peter and Paul, from the Sunday preceding 
the Assumption to the end of the octave, and the same for 
the feast of St. Michael, and for AU Saints'. He recalled to 
PixqAganda that at the Synod of 1791, he had placed the Church 
ia America under the protection of the Blessed Mother of God, 
as the principal patroness of the diocese. He had been conse- 
crated on the feast of the Asstmiption, and at the express wish 
of the cl«i^ be had set aside the Sunday within the octave of 
the Assumption as the principal feast for the people of the 
diocese. He asked the Holy See, therefore, to add to the in- 
dulgences already granted for that feast, sjiedal privileges which 
would add to the fervour and devotion of the flodc The disad- 
vantage under which lay certain congregations that saw a priest 
but once every montii or every two months is mentioned, and 
q>eclal privities are asked so that they may not be deprived of 
the benefit of these indnlgeoces. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 72 1 

Before coQcIuding his Relation, he felt it necessary to return to 
the question of creating a second see in the United States or of 
naming a coadjutor for the diocese. Again, he asks for the same 
concession which was granted on his own election, namely, free- 
dom of choice on the part of the priests of the diocese. Until a 
regular procedure be established, he suggested that the priests 
name ten electors, the ten oldest priests in the diocese, and that 
he name five more, who would be chosen for their prudence and 
worthiness. This electoral body of fifteen would then proceed to 
choose a coadjutor. By this time (April, 1792) John Carrdl 
knew the conditions prevailing in his diocese well enough to 
realize that at the very outset a decided stand should be taken in 
order to preclude individual interference in the independence of 
his episcopal jurisdiction. The French intrigue, the Scioto affair, 
and the Oneida scheme had been sufficiently dai^rous to the 
autonomy of the American Church to arouse the American priest- 
hood to a sense of danger from alien intrusion. Carroll naturally 
added the clause that the Holy See would reserve to itself tite 
light to reject the election decided upon by the American priests, 
and that the clergy here would proceed to a second election in 
case of such a rejection. 

On August 13, 1792, this Relation was read before a general 
coi^iregation of the cardinals of Propaganda Fide, and the Atti 
of that date show how thoroughly each paragraph of Carroll's 
Relation was studied.* The Report drawn up by Antonelli con- 
sisted of nine chapters : Chi^r I — The Seminary at Baltimore ; 
Charter II— Gewgetown College; Chapter III— The Carmelite 
Nuns; Ots^ti IV— The Missions; Chapter V— The German 
Priests; Chapter VI — The Scioto Colony and Dom Didier; 
Chi^ter VII— The National Synod of 1791 ; Chapter VIII— The 
"Postulati" of Carroll, namely, a coadjutor, the change in the 
Missal and Breviary, dispensations, indulgences; the national 
Catholic feast of the Assumption, and the q>edal privilege o£ 
the Sulpidans to retain their own Divine Office; Qapter IX— 
Tbe "Ehibbi," namely, the continuance of the subddy to George- 
town, the education of girls by tbe Carmelite nuns, the insubordi- 
nate German priests, the proposed Diocese of Philadelphia, etc., 

■ IbU., AM (I7B*}, vo. I), f. 14*. 



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722 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

etc. At the end of these "Dubbi" comes a list of resoluti(Mia 
passed in the general coi^^ation, chief of which is the decision 
of Prc^aganda to allow the American clergy to elect a coadjutor 
for the Diocese of Baltimore, the creation of a second See beii^ 
deferred. Then follow a short history of Catholicism in the 
United States, based upon the archives of Propaganda Fide, and 
a valuable series of historical notes on the American Giurch by 
the Archivist of the Sacred Cot^regation. 

This long document was sent to Bishop Carroll on September 
29, 1792, accompanied by a letter of congratulation from 
AntonelU.' Carroll's diocesan organization met with the warmest 
praise from the cardinals present, and the Holy See was very 
much encouraged by the establishment of Georgetown CoU^fe 
and St. Mary's Seminary — "Num non erat mirihce laudanda 
sedulttas ilia ac diligentia tua, quam tarn egregie, tam naviter, ac 
tarn ingenti studio, ac praeclara voluntate christianam rem ad- 
ministras, ac regis in amplissimis istis foederatae Americae 
rhombus? Imo vero nunquam satis te extollere laudibus arbi- 
trati sunt Eminentissimi Patres. ..." Propaganda r^retted 
to announce the death of Carroll's friend. Father Thorpe. Car- 
roll is commended for his staunch stand against the insubordinate 
priests of Philadelphia and Baltimore. R^arding the request 
for a division of the diocese, the Holy See was prepared to grant 
any wish Carroll might make, but the opinion in Rome was 
against the division, for the reason that the organized Church in 
the United States should remain during its infancy under one 
liead. Propaganda, therefore, was in favour of granting a coad- 
jutor for the Diocese of Baltimore, and gave permission to the 
American priests for a second time to elect the priest th^ be- 
lieved to be worthy of the dignity of the episcopate. All the 
other "postulata" were granted, and a final word is added about 
Smith and Dougherty, the two young Americans in the Collie 
Urbano. Carroll is told also that Propaganda feared that 
Thayer would prove to be a difficult subject to rule. 

We have already seen how the American clergy first made a 
selection of Father Laurence Graessl, who died before his con- 
secration, and how in his place Father Leonard Neale was chosen 

* nu., LMtn, voL aej, I. stS. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 723 

and was consecrated in 1800, as Coadjutor-Bishop of Baltimore. 
Very little correspondence appears to have passed between Balti- 
more and Rome for the next few years. The conditions in Europe 
were adverse to the safe-conduct of letters. The first documents 
we meet are those concerning Bishop-elect Graessl's appointment. 
Propaganda, unaware that Graessl had passed away during the 
yellow fever epidemic (October, 1793), wrote to him on January 
r8, 1794, congratulating him on his election.* The Holy See had 
decided, the letter runs, to postpone the division of the Diocese 
of Baltimore, because it was felt in Rome that one or two suffra- 
gan Sees would be insufficient for the complete organization of 
the American hierarchy. On this same day. Propaganda des- 
patched two letters to Carroll: the first announces Graessl's 
election, and the fact that the cardinals of the Sacred Congr^:a- 
tion insisted on the freedom which the Holy See would exercise 
at any time it was deemed advisable to divide the Diocese of 
Baltimore; the second letter is apparently in reply to a Relation 
sent by Carroll in June, 1793, and contains sundry details of 
administration, among which is the instruction that Carroll estab- 
lish a cathedral chapter to be made up, however, only of 
honorary members, without any jurisdiction in diocesan affairs. 
Carroll is likewise to appoint a vicar-general, according to the 
decree Ex sublimi of Benedict XIV (January z6, 1753), who 
would become administrator in case the see fell vacant.' 

Again, a silence of several years. This time it is broken by 
the charges made at Rome against Carroll by the insurgent Ger- 
man priest, Reuter, the founder of St. John's German Church 
in Baltimore. Durii^ the time that Goetz and Elling were carry- 
ing part of their German flock in Philadelphia into schism, Father 
Caesar Reuter, who was stationed at St. Peter's, Bishop Carroll's 
residence, for the purpose of ministerir^ to the German Catholics 
of the city, oi^^anized a similar plot in Baltimore. Much corre- 
spondence r^;arding these unfortunate priests is in the Archives 
of Prop^anda. The difficulties they caused during Carroll's 
q>iscopate are, so far as the documents are concerned, out of all 
proportion with the more encouraging aspects of Catholic prog- 
tess during these same years. Reuter was one of that class of 



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724 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

intruders who came with the ambition to rule independently of 
all Intimate authority. He had been accepted (1797) by Bishop 
Carroll for the purpose of ministering to the German Catholics 
of the dty of Baltimore, and he soon ur|;ed his compatriots b> 
erect a separate church. This was attempted against Carroll's 
wishes, and within a year it was evident that the congrq^atton 
could not support a pastor. Renter then returned to Germany, 
and, making his way to Rome, lodged complaints s^nst Carroll 
fdmtlar to those of the Philadelphia recalcitrants. On April 33, 
1798, the Secretary of Propaganda informed Carroll of these 
charges, and of Reuter's demand that the Germans of the United 
States be given a German bishop for themselves. Among these 
charges were the alleged fact that Carroll would not permit 
German children to be instructed in their own tongue, would not 
allow the use of a German catechism, and threatened ti excom- 
municate any priest who preached in German. While Propaganda 
admitted that if these charges were true, Carroll must have had 
sufficient reasons ; nevertheless, stress is pUced on the last of them, 
and the bishop was warned that the punishment of exconummi- 
cation was too severe. Renter had prepared a catechism in Ger- 
man which be presented to Propaganda for inspection ; but the 
ufBcials in Rome advised him that it would have been better had 
he translated into German Cardinal Bellamiine's excellent cate- 
chism, since the multiplication of such books had often caused 
difficulties in the Church — "cum tanta -hujus generis librorwn, 
ut experentia docuit o^ia detrimento potius fuerit quam udli- 
tati." Cardinal Gerdtl, the letter continues, had once said that it 
was far easier to write a Curstis umversae theologiae than a small 
r^echism. The Holy See had relieved Renter of the censure 
Carroll had placed upon him, but on condition that he did not 
return to America. Meanwhile the Germans had completed the 
Church of St. John, and in 1799, Reuter returned; and despite 
his suspension by Carroll, the unfortunate priest took possession 
of the church and carried the little congrqration into schism. On 
April 19, 1799, Reuter wrote to Propaganda from Baftimore, 
accusing Carroll of endeavouring to Americanize the Germans, 
and Propaganda replied (from Venice) to Reuter, on December 
21, 1799, upholding the authority of Bishop Carroll and rebuking 
Reuter for his bold and irreverent letter. In stating that CarroO 



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Diocese of Baltimore 725 

bad forbidden the Germans to be instructed in their own tongue, 
Pn^Mtganda answered that Reuter was lying — "in twelve 
churches, at least, of the diocese, even in the one the Bishop 
(Carroll) uses at present as a cathedral, sermons are delivered 
in German, and 3rou, yoursdf, before you came to Rome, often 
preached in that cathedral in German to the people of that 
language." Propaganda saw no necessity for erecting a separate 
church for the Germans in Baltimore ; and as r^arded Renter's 
request for a German Bishop, there was no answer except an 
absolute refusal. The Sacred Congregation was amazed at such 
a request — "Illud vero absonum prorsus, atque omnino iniquum 
est, quod a te petitur. . . , Cui unquam hoc in mentem venire 
potuit? . . . Ergone in omni diocest quot nationes sunt, tot 
episcopienmt? Sed supervacaneum est in re tam absurda tamque 
ecclesiasticae disdplinae adversa vel minimum immorari." More- 
over, the Sacred Congr^ation saw no need of Reuter's catechism, 
and the letter concludes with a severe rebuke on Renter's un- 
seemly lai^uage rqrarding Dr. Carroll." Bishop Carroll had 
experienced the sad efforts of men of Reuter's type of mind in 
the Philadelphia Schism, and he wrote on February 9, and August 
24, 1799. informing Propaganda that Reuter finally had accom- 
plished a schism in the episcopal dty. On December 14, 1799, 
Propi^anda replied (from Venice) urging Carroll to stand firmly 
for episcopal authority — ^"ut nullum unquam vulnus ordinariae 
potestati fiat, nullisque illius exercitium vinculis coarctctur." ' In 
bis letter of February 9, 1799, Carroll explained the animus 
behind the movement of Reuter and his associates, and it does not 
make pleasant reading to-day. It would be too tedious to repeat 
the whole history of this schismatic movement, in which Phila- 
delphia and Baltimore had joined hands against Carroll, but the 
closing sentence of Carroll's letter is indicative of its contents: 
"Non ignore alia scripta fuisse adversum me, sive a sacerdote 
Gulielmo EUing, qui unus est eonim contra quos lata est excom- 
mnnicationis sententia, quique nihilominus pro pastore se gerit 
schismaticae Philadelphiae SSmae. Trintatis ecclesiae, sive ab alio 
cui nomen Frandscus Rogatus Fromm ex quodam r^^ularium 
Ordine sacerdos. Longum foret hujus viri historiam texere, aut 



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726 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

critnina et infidelitatem narrare, quam vehementer coelibatum 
ecclesiasticum condemnet, ac quoties matrimonium sollicitaverit. 
Si talibus obnoxius non easem, neque illonim calumniis impetltus 
magis quam unqtiam episcopal] charactere indignus essem."* 
Carroll's letter of Ai^rust 20, 1799, is one of the most emphatic in 
his correspondence with Rome. Reuter had appeared in Balti- 
more with letters from the Holy See authorizit^ the huildiog of 
the German church which was to be independent of his episcopal 
jurisdiction. Carroll was certain, he wrote, that the Holy See 
would never exercise its influence to diminish the authority of a 
diocesan bishop by granting such powers to a youthful priest 
(adolescentulo sacerdoti), one too who belonged to a religious 
Order; if such were the case, it would undoubtedly diminish 
ecclesiastical discipline and disturb the peace of the diocese. He 
urged Propaganda to write clearly and distinctly and without 
tergiversation, just what authority he, as bishop, held ; and to tell 
him whether he or the malcontents and disturbers of the peace 
were to rule the diocese. "We live amoi^ non-Catholic sects," 
Carroll writes, "and there is no hope of the civil magistracy or 
the secular powers putting these stubborn men in thur place. 
Thereforr, it seems to me that it is of grave importance to 
strengthen episcopal jurisdiction rather than to lessen it by 
exemptions ; for, if the power of the bishop fails, then all h<q>e 
of r^iilating the moral conduct of the clergy and of the laity 
perishes."* His priests were so impatient with Rome's apparent 
solicitude for the wishes of the rebels that they were then pre- 
parit^ a letter to the Holy See to vindicate Carroll's action. The 
unfortunate affair is mentioned in another letter from Carroll's 
pen, dated October 12, 1799, in which he asserts that there were 
not at that time thirty Germans in the city who were unable to 
speak English, and that even the children of these were more 
familiar with English than with the language of their parents. 
It was on the receipt of these letters that Cardinal Gerdil wrote 
(December 14, 1799) from Venice, where he had gone for the 
election of Pius VII, assuring Carroll that he was extremely sorry 
to learn that the Congregation's kindness to Reuter had given 



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Diocese of Baltimore 717 

the latter ground to cause so much trouble in the diocese,*** The 
esteem of the Holy See for Carroll's prudence, piety, personal 
character and learning was a high one, and the Holy See fdt 
certain that the episcopal dignity and authority would never suffer 
by his administration. Gerdil's letter to Reuter on December 21, 
1799, left the insurgent priest little hope of success in his schis- 
matic church movement ; but the scandal continued for four years. 
In 1801, Reuter showed a desire to be reconciled to the Church. 
He wrote to Bishop Carroll, from New York, on September 4, 
1801, asking to be restored to his priestly functions;'* and on 
November 19, 1801, Dr. Carroll laid down the conditions for 
his submission, namely, the recognition of no other ecclesiastical 
jurisdiction in the Diocese of Baltimore except that of the Holy 
See and the Ordinary, the submission of all, no matter of what 
nationality, to that jurisdiction, and the necessity of delegation by 
the Bishop for the legitimate and canonical exercise of priestly 
functions :" 

1. The Bishop will require pothing from the German Catholics, which 
can be refused by any one, who uDderstands the doctrines of his chorch, 
her invariable goveniment and discipline, and wishes to avoid the dreadful 
evils of schism, and a shameful degradaticBt of the Spiritual authority, 
committed by Christ to the Apostles and their Successors in the pastoral 
oflke. 

2. If he should consent to the building of a new church in Baltimore 
for the Geimans, it wiH be on the following conditions: i. that the sud 
church be subject in all spiritual things to episcopal govemment and visita- 
tion, as it is expressly directed for all other churches, in the Pope's Brief 
for establishing the Bishoprick of Baltimore. 2. that no clergyman, who 
is not allowed by the Bishop; or, who having been allowed, be suspended 
afterwards, shall perform any ministry in the said church, teach, preach, 
or adminbter any Sacraments therein. And if this ever be done, in 
defiance of episcopal right and the laws of the Church, the Bishop may, 
without opposition, interdict & forbid divine service in the aforesaid 
Church. 

3. That it must not be pretended, that the Church so to be bnilt, shall 
be entitled to the rights of a parochial church, but only be considered as 
a chapel of ease to St. Peter's church, which alone shall enjoy the pre- 
rogatives of a parish church, till it be otherwise ordained by the Bi^op 
or his Successors. Therefore, the Rector or pastor of St Peter's almie 

» Ibid., f. 68. 

" BaltimoTt Catktdral Archiui, Cue T-A8. 
" Ibid.. C»te 7-Ag. 



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7z8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

(hall perform all putoral ftmctions, tncli m baptiuni, nurriagci, burials, 
the administration of the vck, regulatEoni for Eaater commnnion, and 
the first communion of young perioDt. He alooe ihall keep the register 
of baptisnif, marriage* ft burials. 

4. The Germans, who wish to build nich a church, ihould chuse and 
by a written paper signed with their own hands, constitute ft appoint a 
few of their own number to transact with the Bishop all necessary arti- 
cles, relating to the said church, & authorizing the persona so sppomted 
to sign the articles of agreement in their name, binding themselves to 
keep faithfully all, that shall be agreed on; and declaring, that if ever 
hereafter they themselves, or others, their sttccessors, should act contrary 
thereto, that alone shall be a good and suffideut cause for the Bishop to 
forbid the perfonnance of divine service in the said churcfa.>* 

These conditioiu Keuter was influenced against accqiting by 
the tnistees, and the conflict between Carroll and the rebels, who 
were led by a Mr. Shorb, came to a head, when he ^)pointed 
Father Brosius to the pastorate of the church. The case was 
then carried to Court, and was won by Doctor Carroll in May, 
1805." 

One of the principal reasons, apart from the paud^ of Ger- 
man Catholics in Baltimore, allied by Bishop Carroll, for refus- 
ing the foundation of St. John's Church, wag the fact tiiat he 
was planning a Cathedral for his episcopal city. On his return 
(o Baltimore in 1790, Bishop Carroll made bis residence at St. 
Peter's Church, which was the pro-Cathedral during his episco- 



■■ Prttaeanda Archmt, Scntluri rifrnlr, Amtrica Cntrait, voL iij, ff. 117-119. 
(In Itsllu and Endith.) 

" A cue, toauwbM dmilar, hsd occurred in Pcnuirl"*''!* ilionl/ before Rcbcct** 
•cbisa. Tb* FnncUon, Fitber Fnad* Fnman. iriu> bad left a booae o( Ui order 
in Halm, and who bad been dewmDced to tfw Papal Nnndo at Colocne by the Ardt- 
bUhop of Ifiini m Jdr i£, ira^, on account of bereliea] tcachinfi, fled to Anurka 
and prcaented eredentiali of himKlf to Dr. Carroll, who aent Un to the mlationt in 
York and Laocaiter Connlitt, FoinirlTania. It wotdd Mcm fran a do eunn B l in 
Fmpacanda Ardurea that he had taken pOMceiloa hf frattd of Father Brainrcr*a 



to Roae aogiettina that ■ biibopric be created In Fconijivania with thia ptopei tT m 
the Biihop'a demctoe. NatmaUr, he propoted Umiclf for lb* See^ In Janmrr, tm, 
Propaianda Informed Carroll of FroBua'i ititaa, endoainc tba Ardbiabiv'i letts-, 
and adiiw for Inttber iofotmatioa about the renegade Frandacan. FnmiB defied 
Dr. Camll'i j Driidiclion, and a ta-A caie aroae between Father Broowo-'a consntatlaB 
and Fromai, the Gnt of Ila kind to lie tried before the American courta. Dr. CarrDll 
ifai nphdd and Fromm ma onated, the p i ep er ty belnf restored to its rishtfd owner*. 
It ii now tbe Mc of St. Vineent'i Archabbejr, at BcMt)', Penna. Fromm wait to 
Philiddphia (irgB) to have the oac tried before ■ hither coort and died there oi 
Tfllow tcTcr without beli« reconciled to At Fkitb. Carroll wrota to PropagaiA on 
FdiruarT lo, iSoJ, atatiiic that he had email bopea that dM "*'—*'- would recant 
U>r«#WMita Artkhn, SrrlHurt r^tritt, Amifiet CmtrtU, voL Bi, £ iK-tt7-i 



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Diocese of Baltimore 729 

pate. In the Brief Ex hoc apostolicae, creating the See of Bahi- 
more. Dr. Carroll was comtnissioned to erect in that dty a Cathe- 
dral church, whenever the times and circumstances would allow. 
Thirty years were to pass, however, before the Cathedral was 
ready for Divine service. The first act towards the building of 
the Cathedral was the legfal incorporation of the "Trustees of 
the Roman Catholic Church in Baltimore Town," in November, 
1795.'* The trustees met at St. Peter's presbytery on December 
29. I795i and it was resolved that subscriptions should be taken 
up to build a Cathdral Church. "The courage of the Bishop," 
writes Riordan, "in undertaking so great a work bordered on 
audacity, considering the slender means at his disposal." " Money 
came in slowly and on June 23, 1803, Dr. Carroll published a 
Pastoral appealing for support on the great project. The part 
dealing with the Cathedral is as follows : 

My beloved Brethren: Knowing, that you are mostly rnider the inune- 
diate charge and direction of virtuous and tealous Pastors, it did not 
appear to me necessary to add my frequent instructions to thdr usefttl 
lessons and Christian exhortations; but, being required by the occasion, 
of which I shall now speak, to solicit your aid for the effecting of an 
important purpose, interesting the whole diocese, I cannot omit availing 
myself of it so far, as to renew the assorances of my solicitude for your 
progress in true Godliness and tlie exercise of a religious life, most con- 
dticive to your everlasting happiness. This is the first object, not only 
of the ministry committed to me by oar Supreme Pastor and Lord Jesns 
Christ, but should be so of every act of my life, and particularly in my 
intercourse with you: It is the object of this address. Having long enter- 
tained an anxious desire of dedicating a Church to God, to be created 
by the imited effort of all our brethren in this Diocese, to stand as the 
evidence of their attachment to the tmity of the episcopal gov- 
ernment, as well as their unity in faith, (for these are insep- 
arable) ; and being made duly sensible by my descent into the vale of 
tears, that I ought not to expect to see this work accomplished, unless 
it be soon imdertaken ; I am induced to recur to, and entreat you, by yotir 
attachments to the interests of our holy religion, and affection for its 
author, and the object of its worship, Jesus Christ, to lend your aid 
towards carrying this design into effect. 

The partiotUr exigencies of every Congregation for btnlding and pre- 



r BcT. M. J. Riordin. 
te BuJM a CtthHrtt 



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730 Tkt Life and Times of John Carroll 

serving tbdr churches and places of worship, and affording a snbsiitcooe 
to their pastors forbid the expectation, and even the desire of ample 
contribution from the generalttT of our Brethren, living; at a distance 
from the Seat of the intended Cathedral. But ^o are there amongst 
yon, thai cannot, without inconvenience to yourselves, manifest your 
good disposition for the advancement of God's glory, and your admiration 
of the examples left by our Catholic brethren in all those countries, on 
v^ich the rays of true religim have shown and where its energy has been 
felt? What illustrious monuments of their faith and piety still subsist 
in the venerable Cathedral churches, that seem to defy the devastating 
hand of time, and still replenish beholders with awe and reverence? You 
are not invited to contribute your aid to raise a church of the same 
grandeur and sublimity; but one, which in an humble style, may remain 
as a testimonial of yottr devotion to the glory of God your creator, and 
that you concurred to erect the altar, on which the blood of the spotless 
Lamb will be daily offered for all, abiding in the fellowship of pure 
doctrine, worship and charity, under the spiritual authority of the epis- 
copal see established in the city of Baltimore by the Vicar of our Lord 
Jems Christ. 

I therefore pray and exhort the head of every Catholic family in the 
United States, and other Catholics, who, though having families, can 
nevertheless afford it, to place in the hands of their Pastor, one dollar 
annually in the month of December, for four successive years; and far- 
ther, if it be consistent with their several situations, to take an interest 
in the Lottery instituted on this account With this aid our desired 
purpose will be easily effected, and witiiont distress or burden on any. 
And I particularly recommend to, and intreat my Reverend Brethren, to 
solicit, receive, and transmit these yearly contributions, and at the same 
time, the names of the Contributors, to remain as perpetual memorials 
of the sincerity and integrity of their faith, and to entitle them, living or 
dead, to a participation in the offerings and prayers, which will be pre- 
sented in the intended Church, before the Throne of Mercy.^' 

We have no means of knowing with certainty the resiitts of 
this subscription. Three years later. Bishop Carroll appealed 
(August 26, 1803) to N^raleon Bonaparte, then First Consul 
of the French, asking for assistance : 

In the name of the Catholics of the United States, the Bishop of 
Baltimore has the honour to beg your assistance in an undertaking, which, 
strange as it would appear in the country which owes its happiness to 
>-ou, should not be so in the beneficent views that you have shown in the 
favour of religion. The glorious use that you have made of your power 

" BaUimert CaHuJnl Ankivtf, Que i»Ji: printed is the K*tnrek*t, vaL Ix, 



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Diocese of Baltimore 731 

to rebuild its altars is a sure guarantee of the interest with which it 
inspires you, and of the zeal that you will exert to streogtben it irtierever 
it needs your aid. 

It is owing to this consideration, General First Consul, that the Cath- 
olics of the United Stales presume to turn to you in the impossibility 
which confronts them of erecting a public monument of their piety. 
After having long groaned under oppression, they now enjoy under a wise 
and moderate government the exercise of their religion. But they lack 
a worthy and fitting temple in which they can assemble; and their past 
misfortunes have so reduced them that they are not able to bear by them- 
selves the outlay that this building would require. 

Are they presumptuous, General First Consul, in believing that you 
would not disdain to second their wishes and to let them experience yonr 
liberality for the construction of a cathedral in the city of Baltimore? 
This fresh proof of your devotion to the good of the Church, in a country 
so closely allied to yours, would cause the Catholics of the United States 
to participate in the sentiments which tliose of France ever show towards 
you; and would unite in tliem a sense of personal gratitude to the admira- 
tion which they (eel for your great qualities and achievements. 

As for myself, happy to act as their spokesman with you, I shall take 
the liberty to say that I share their confidence and to offer you the assur- 
ance of the profound respect with which, I am. General First Consul, 
Your humble and obedient servant, 

+ J. Bithop of BaltimoreM 

A lottery was announced in 1803 by the trustees, and in 1805, 
a controversy srose over the action of the trustees in transfemng 
the site of the proposed edifice. It was resolved to abandon the 
land on what was known as Cathedral Hill and to build on the 
burial ground adjoining St. Peter's Church, "When the space 
had been partly cleared," says Shea, "and some of the bodies 
were already removed, there arose a strong feeling of disa|^ro- 
bation, and a memorial was presented to the Bishop, remonstrat- 
ii^ against the use of that spot, and especially against the 
disturbing of the dead."" The Sulpicians joined with those who 
made this protest, and on February 26, 1806, they sent a joint 
letter, signed by Fathers N^ot, Tessier, David, Badad, Flaget, 
and Du Boui^, in which they appealed to Carroll ikA to allow 
the Cathedral to be erected on "such tmsuitable grotmd." ** As 
the "standing clergy of the Cathedral," the Sulpicians were within 

■■ IhU., Cue ioOt: prittad in tlie RKurii, toL nc, pp. 6*4s. 

■ Op. e«., tqL U, PPL s». 

" See tU> Uennrial in Itl0«M«, »p. ril;, pp. u-ij. 



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732 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

their rights in making this l^itimate protest; and although 
Bishop Carroll had already made final arrangements for the 
building of the Cathedral, Father Du Bourg was successful in 
obtaining Dr. Carroll's consent to erect the new church on the 
present site. A new subscription was opened, headed by the 
leading Catholics, and the land was bought from John Eager 
Howard, the former Governor of Maryland. On July 7, 1806, 
the blessing of the cornerstone took place. An interesting series 
of letters which passed between Bishop Carroll and Latrobe, the 
architect, is in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives.** In May, 
1808, Dr. Carroll made another appeal in the form of a Pastoral 
Letter to the Catholics of the United States for support in the 
project, asking the clei^ to cooperate in raising the necessary 
money; 

After the settlement by due authority of a Catholic Episcopacy within 
the United States, it was natural for the faithful members of the Churdi 
to h(^ that an event so important in the history of religion miEht here 
be followed by the same happy consequences which have been produced 
in other countries in similar establishments. So soon as it pleased God 
to weaken and disable the hand of oppression which fell so heavily en 
the first disciples of Christ and their Successors during the early ages 
of Christianity, they began to express their gratitude for Ihdr deliverance, 
by adding solemnity to the public acta of Divine worship and consecrating 
augiut and venerable temples to the service of their Maker. In succeed- 
ing ages, and in proportion to the extensicai of the Gospel, its increase was 
constantly signalised by the same leal for the beauty of the house of God, 
and where the glory dwelleth, to which ardour of Faith and religious devo- 
tiMi are to be attributed the innumerable monuments of the piety of our 
ancestors still subsisting m Catholic countries, aiul those which once were 
Catholic, they subsist as so many evidences of the Faith transmitted 
from the Apostles, and by the efficacy of which the nations of the earth 
were brought into the fold of Jesus Christ and into the cMununion of 
his true Church. 

By such examples, recorded in the annals of the Church, we likewise 
were called upon to express our gratitude, as well as it pleased Divine 
Providence to rescue our Faith from the depression and obscnrity in which 
it had been held. In obedience to this duty, a resolution was conceived 
to celebrate our auspicious delivery from iniquitous laws and the intro- 
doction of an episcopal government to the Catholic American Chtaxh, by 
raising everywhere as much as possible, places of Catholic worship for 
the encouragement and convenience of the faithful, and also by a general 

' Ttat eotin Mrica of thoe docmenti ti puUiilMd In Kioidav, »p. eil., pp. jm*. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 733 

contribution to erect a Cathedral and mother chnrch of thu vast Diocese, 
in which the Vicar of Christ has established the Episcopal See. 

It is a subject of consolation that much has been done towArdt the 
multiplication of our churches and chapels throughout the United States. 
For carrying into effect the otlier object of my solicitude, the erection of 
a Cathedral, a letter was sent some years ago, to all the congregations, 
earnestly solicitinK their co-operation in a work, undertaken as a momi- 
ment of general gratitude, and which, when completed, might afford to 
the other Churches of the Diocese an example of the majesty and solem- 
nity of divine service, when it is conducted according to the form prescribed 
by our liturgy. Whilst the inhabitants of Baltimore, who will be more 
constantly benefited by the erection of the Cathedral, are using their 
best endeavours to promote it, to their praise be it said, they have gen- 
erously contributed to aid and assist their brethren of many of the congre- 
gations, in order to complete their churches. The assistance required 
from all was such as could not be burdensome to any individual, though 
the general result would go far to promote the great work which is 
begun. The contribution of one dollar in the year, for a few years, 
from every Catholic of mature age— if that be too burdensome, from 
every Catholic family was the utmost of my re<inest, not doubling but 
that if some should prove deficient, their deficiency would be amply com- 
pensated by the liberality of others who would not limit their donations 
merely to the sum re<iuested. Small as this demand was, it has not been 
complied with, except in a very partial manner. But I do not attribute 
it so much to the unwillingness of our Brethren in Christ, as to the 
subject not having been recommended with due earnestness and perse- 
verance. 

Allow me therefore, to entreat you, by the leal for the honour of God, 
the Majesty of His Worship, and desire of its being performed in that 
expressive manner which tends so much to elevate the beholders to the 
contemplation of things celestial, to read this address to yoor respective 
congregations, to enforce it with your own exhortations, to repeat the 
readings and exhortations at least twice during a few years, to allot a 
time for the payment of the contributions and to take upon yourself the 
trouble of collecting and transmitting them to Batiimore.** 

Bishop Carroll did not see the completion of the edifi(%, which 
was litiished in the episcopate of Marshal, and optatA for Divine 
worship in May, 1821.** 

The Catholics in the south-eastern part of the City of Balti- 
more arranged as early as 1792 to have Mass said on Sundays 
for themselves. The Sulptdans from St. Mary's Seminary took 



copT in BalHmar* Catkrdrtl Archivtt, CmC la-Yii printwl in lbs 
ia. tP- 14S-I44. 
C(. Sxu, of. eU., vd. iii, p. i6i: Riowi*a, 0^. eU., pp. jo-Si. 



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734 ^** ^*f' ""^ Times of John Carroll 

charge of the little congregation, and in 1795, Bishop Carroll 
placed that section of the city under the pastorate of Father John 
Floyd, whom he had ordained to the priesthood, on December 
17, of that year. Father Floyd, who erected St, Patrick's Church, 
at Fell's Point, died in the yellow fever epidemic of 1797. 
and was buried before the door of the modest church he had 
built. In 1807, a new and more substantial church was erected 
on the same spot, and it was in this second Catholic church in 
Baltimore that Bishop Flaget was consecrated on November 4, 
1810. Alongside the Seminary, the Sulpicians had constructed 
the Church of St. Mary, and these three churches sufficed durii^ 
the rest of Carroll's life-time to accommodate the Catholics of 
the city. Outside Baltimore, there were churches at Frederick, 
Eramitsburg, Hagerstown, Leonardtown, Bohemia, Washington, 
D. C, and Georgetown, D, C, and in the old Jesuit centres of the 
four lower counties of the State. Bishop Carroll resided at St. 
Peter's pro-Cathedral from the year 1786-87 until his death. 
Father Charles Sewall was pastor of the church from 1782 until 
1793, when he was succeeded by Father Beeston. When the 
latter died (1809), Father Enoch Fenwick was appointed to the 
charge and governed the parish for the next decade. The city of 
Baltimore had about one thousand Catholics at the time of Car- 
roll's consecration. In 1815, the number had increased to ten 
thousand. 

The history of the Catholic Church in Virginia is intimately 
connected with that of Maryland. During the years when the 
Jesuits governed and directed the Church in the thirteen col- 
onies, the Jesuits of Maryland visited the scattered Catholic 
families along the Potomac. During the early part of the eight- 
eenth century, as Virginia's Catholic historian has pointed out, 
certain Catholic families had formed a settlement on the south 
side of the Potomac, along Aquia Creek. There they built a log 
chape!, dedicated to the Mother of God, and the Maryland priests 
came about once a month to celebrate Holy Mass.** In his 
Relation of 1785, Dr. Carroll stated that there was not a single 
priest in Virginia, and that the Catholic flock of the State num- 
bered about two hundred souls. In 1791, Father John Dubois, 



• Uiow, Tkr CatMic Ckimk l» Hit dly and Diaam tt Kickmoui, pp. t7-I*. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 735 

the future Bishop of New York, with some French prieata, 
arrived at Norfolk, with letters of introduction from Lafajrette to 
President Monroe and to the Randolphs, the Lees, and other 
prominent Virginia families. Father Dubois came to Richmond 
during the following winter, and celebrated Mass, at the invita- 
tion of the General Assembly, in the House of Del^ates there, 
Amoi^ the priests who ministered to the Catholics of Virginia 
after Father Dubois had left for the Maryland Missions, were 
Father T. C. Mongrand (1798), and Father Miguel, who was 
sent to Richmond by Archbishop Carroll in 181 1. Apparently 
no resident pastor was sent to Richmond until 1820, when Father 
John Mahoney b^an his priestly ministrations in the old Capital 
In Norfolk, a church was begun by Father Bushe, but the date is 
uncertain. On November 26, 1801, he wrote to Bishop Carroll 
from Norfolk su^esting that the congr^^tion there should be 
offered to Father Egan, the Franciscan, The trustees of Norfolk 
were not in syn^thy with Father Bushe, against whom they 
made the strange charge that he did not consecrate at Holy 
Mass.** Bushe was succeeded by Father Michael Lacy, prob- 
ably in 1803, who remained in charge until his death in 1815.** 
One of Archbish<^ Neale's first appointments was that of Rev. 
James Lucas to the church in Norfolk. The trustees, led by a 
Dr. Fernandez, refused to receive the new pastor on the score 
that they had not been consulted before bis i^>pointment. A con- 
flict ensued, and the church was placed under an interdict by 
Archbishop Neale. The Norfolk schism was at its height when 
Archbishop Mar^chal visited that city (June 12, 1818) with the 
hope of bringing peace to the malcontents. The schismatics then 
tried unsuccessfully to send Rev. Richard Hayes to Utrecht for 
consecration as their bishop, with a view to founding an indqten- 
dent Church. Confusion worse confounded reigned in Norfolk 
from Carroll's death down to the action of the Sacred Congr^;a- 
tion in sending a bishop to Norfolk in 1821. The house of 
Colonel Fit^:erald, Washington's secretary, in Alexandria, was 
the placx where Holy Mass was said for the Catholics of that city 
and vidnity before the little town had a chapel of its own. Father 



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736 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

John Thayer tninistered to the CatboUcs there in 1794." In 
1796, Father Francis Neale erected the first church in Alexuidria. 
Charleston became another hot-bed of rebellion gainst 
authority in the last years of Carroll's episcopate. The first 
priest sent to Charleston by Dr. Carroll was Father Ryan, prob- 
ably about 1788, He rented an abandoned, half -ruinous Protes- 
tant church, and Holy Mass was celebrated here by himself and 
by Father Keatii^, who succeeded him in 1790. By that time the 
conurbation numbered two hundred souls. Dr. Carroll menticHis 
his strong hopes for the Church in Charleston in a letter to 
Antonelli, dated February 6, 1790.** The Charleston Catholics 
a{^>ealed to Don Jos£ Ignado Viar, Spanish consul at New York, 
to enlist Ac sympathy of the King of Spain in their project of 
building a church in their city. On April 12, 1790, Viar wrote 
to Carroll that he had received word from Madrid that the con- 
ditions of the Church in Charleston should be investigated, and 
that the King wished to know how much money would be needed 
to build the church there.** Carroll replied on April 20, 1790, 
expressing the deep sense of his gratitude towards the King of 
Spain, and giving Viar the facts about Charleston as he knew 
them. Carroll stated that he was about to -leave for England, 
and hoped that by the time he had returned the answer from tiie 
Spanish Court would have reached the United States.** In June, 
1790, however, he wrote to the trustees of the Charleston con- 
gr^ation, vmrnii^ than that while he could not withhold his 
approval of their method of raising the necessary money, be 
r^etted that a foreign Court should be allowed to have sudi 
a privilege — "I cannot help expressing a wish that your dei^ 
may be entirely independent of aid unconnected with any foreign 
prince. . . . Neither you gentlemen nor the ecclesiastical 
superior in these States can effectually interfere in the appoint- 
ment of Qergymen protected and supported by foreign princes. 
. . . "" Further correspondence between Carroll and Viar 
exists in the Baltimore Cathedral Archives, but it is not c 



' Cf. RtitaTchti, •m, xxtI, pp. S>-Si. 

* Prof^anJa ArcUvtt, Seritturt origbialt, mL Sg], i 
> BailiwiaTt CathtJral Artklvrt, Cue yCj. 

* IbU.. Cua B-Bi. 

* IbU^ Cut t-Fj. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 737 

whether the Kii^ of Spain extended his generosity to Charleston, 
as he had already done to New York. 

In the spring of 1793, Rev, Simon Felix Gallagher came 
to the United States, strongly recommended by Archbishop 
Troy of Dublin.** Dr. Gall^her was "a man of extraordi- 
nary eloquence, of a superior intellect, and finely cultivated 
mind." " Bishop Carroll liked the man and sent him to what 
was then a difficult post, the congregation at Charleston. Gal- 
lagher's talents were not accompanied, as was so often the 
case during Carroll's episcopate, with a proper respect for 
authority, or with an adequate appreciation of the priestly 
d^nity and character. Piety was rarely linked with eloquence 
in the character of many of these brilliant Irish priests who came 
to America at this time. Shortly after Gallagher took up his 
duties at Charleston, Troy wrote to Carroll (Dublin, December 
18, 1794) warning Bishop Carroll of the uncertainty of the man's 
character ; '* and the trustees were soon obliged to report serious 
misdemeanours on the part of their pastor.*' Dr. Carroll removed 
Gallagher and sent a priest to Charleston in his place. Gallagher 
then appealed to Rome against Bishop Carroll,** and on March 
13, 1802, Propaganda sent Gallagher's letter to the bishop, assur- 
ing Carroll that the Sacred Congregation had every confidence 
that his action in regard to the Irish recalcitrant was just and 
prudent. But since it has always been the usage of the Holy See 
to give a hearing in every case, Carroll was asked to send to 
Rome a defence of his episcopal action in Gallagher's case." 
On November 25, 1802, Dr. Carroll replied to Gallagher's 



■ "The Sn. ill. Gilbflwr prcwnled me with Yonr Lotdthip'* faTOur at F^ 
muT jnL Ai hii txIcDti an commeDded by lo (ood ■ judge u Yoor Once, and b* 
■■n indeed a jtij pteuinc apediiieB of them in a aermoo before the concresatim 
of thii town, I ba*e appirfiited Um to tlie care of CharteMon, S. C.. lAich la a place 
leqaiiinc a man of ccoilderable abiliiiet wtaidi Hr. Gallactacr poiienee, and ireat 
pniitT of mauiera, whleb J hope ia another trait of bii diaiacter." — Carroll to Tror, 
BahiiBare, Mar lo, i7gj, Baltipior* Catluirai ArcMvi, Caae lo-Ap, printed in the 
Rttttrcktt, Tol. xili, p. 166. 

■ Eaouas. Tin Barlj HUtory ef On Dhcm af CharUttou, In Ui IFtflu, 
nL ir, p. jof (UeanneT edition). Ocfdud, i»oai Four, Tkt CtkMe CImrth hi 
F«rjK», mannw^pt. 

•• SaMiiort Ctktirtl Anlnnti, Cue 8-Ui. 

■■ Samnd Onbett to Curoll Cbarleatoa, October ig. iSoi, BalHmort CtHudnl 
ArcUM,, Cate •■U4. 

■■ Protagmi* Arekhtt, Striantt rtftrUt, Amrricm Ctntnh. nt, Ui, f. ijS. 
" IHd^ LMtrt, ToL M»i. I. vs. 



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738 The Life and Timet of John Carroll 

charges.** and ttie Irish priest, realizing that the suspension n^ht 
be upheld by Rome, decided to go tn person to prosecute his case. 
During his absence. Dr. Carroll sent Father Le Mercier to 
CharlestoQ (September, 1S03), but the trustees refused to receive 
him, except as locum tenens until Gallagher's return. Le Mercier 
refused to be treated as a conditional pastor, and the trustees 
might have been brought to a saner view of their attitude, had not 
Gall^her returned and prevented Father Le Mercier from say- 
ing Mass in the church. On August 15, 1805, Bishop Carroll 
suspended Gallagher, forbidding him to celebrate Mass outside 
his own house." The trustees then threatened to tear the church 
down, and Dr. Gallagher opened a public chapel in his own home. 
Thus was bom another independent Church in the Diocese of 
Baltimore, and a schism which was not settled until Bishop Eng- 
land's day (1820-1842). The schism lasted during the remainder 
of Carroll's episcopate, and was one of the unfortunate situations 
which Marshal had to deal with after the death of his two 
predecessors. Dr. Carroll spared no effort to put a stop to the 
scandal. One of his last appeals to the trustees of Charleston 
(September 15, 1811), might have succeeded in creating a better 
understanding,*' but by this time Gallagher was joined by another 
rebel, the Augustinian, Father Robert Browne, whom Carroll had 
appoimed to the congregation in Augusta, Ga., in 1810.*^ Mean- 
while, Carroll had received Propaganda's letter of March 12, 
1803, in which the Sacred Congregation admitted that the 
officials at Rome who were at first in favour of Gallagher's side 
of the controversy had been deceived. It is somewhat curious 
to find Propaganda excusing its own officials on the score that 
they had believed Gall^her to be a parochus, with a "parochia 

" Ibid.. Scrlltiut Tiftritt, Amniet CtntraS*. toL iii, S. 144-14S. "Sn rclisioiii* 
Doitrae in 111* dvilate ntiuro loco cue, putini at nc«llsentU, piitim ei pnTii moribia 
lu cnpnlo iudnlieret, nt nan pin UUum Md omiiei hota^am dTai 



" The ipedfic chariei will tw fDOnd in letten In tlis Baltimort Catlitjral Arckivtt, 
Oueti-Fi.Fi. 

" Cf. Vnitid Stalti CalMIc UitctOmy, toI. ii, p. 04. 

•> CaiToll hid been tfai rcdpiad oi treqaoit tetten {ram Gcorfiiu aiUnf for 
pricM* to miaiitcr to the flock* there. On Junarr aB, 1B04, John C*Kr wrote to 
hiia. nHtif: "The dmomlutiaii of Somui Cithalica ii fxmaideiBd « fora o( C3ul>- 
tiuii who wonhlp jdoli" (Bo/'Mwrr Cotlt4drai Archmet, Cue a-Lj); od P rmnhfr 
j6. 1805, ma uonjiaoDi correspondent wrote to CbttqII from Anfu*t«; "A few More 
yare without ■ putor ud the Romu CithoUa of thii town and the neifhboaikood 
wOl kK eren the nune." {IbU., Chc iAS.) 



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Diocese of Baltimore 739 

veri nomiius, certis fintbus circumscripta, et in titulum conferri 
solita,"** when these same officials had silenced the Philadelphia 
schismatics with the decision that there were no parochi in the 
United States. The rest of this unsavoury episode belongs to the 
episcopate of Neale and Marechal. Archbishop Neale ordered 
Father Browne to return to Augusta, but instead of obeying, he 
went to Rome in Dr. Gallagher's behalf. Dr. Gallagher sub- 
mitted to the archbishop and was pardoned, but was told his 
services would not be needed further in the diocese. Meanwhile, 
Father Browne returned with a letter (October 8, 1816) from 
Cardinal Litta, Prefect of the Congregation of Propaganda, in 
which both Gallagher and himself were vindicated. Archbishop 
Neale was ordered to reinstate the two priests and to recall Father 
Qorivi^e from Charleston. This is the meaning of Marechal's 
somewhat bitter complaint about the facility with which Propa- 
ganda listened to these calumnies. This letter Gallagher handed 
to Archbishop Neale in person, who immediately explained the 
case to Pope Pius VII in one of the strongest letters (April 13, 
1817) which ever reached the Holy See from America.** This 
correspondence exists in the Shea Transcripts, Geoi^etown Col- 
lege Archives (1815-1818). Neale's letter opened the eyes of the 
authorities at Rome, but before the Brief (July 9, 1817) rectify- 
ing the mistake had come, the Archbishop died (June 18, 1817). 
The Brief will be found in the Jus Pontificium de Propaganda 
Fide, Pars Prima. IV, 577-S. Archbishop Marechal suspended 
both these men, and sent two Jesuits (Fathers Fenwick and 
Wallace) to settle the schism. The affair now assumed larger 
proportions. One whole volume of documents in the Propa- 
ganda Archives {Scritture riferite, America Centrale (1813- 
1820)], bears the sub-title: CaroHna-Cawse di Browne e Gal- 
lagher che appeUano alia S. Sede, dal 1813 a it. U 1820. 
C^illagher died at Natchez, December 13, 1825, aged sixty-nine. 
The Church in Savannah was begun about 1797 by Father 
Le Mercier. The Cathedral Registers tell us that on May 30, 
1800, the cornerstone of the "Roman Catholic Church" was laid 
after the Mayor had granted "the humble petition of Le Merder, 



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740 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

priest, on behalf of his congregation."" In February, 1803, 
Father Felix McCarthy's name appears, and that same jrear there 
came to Savannah the Abbe Carles, who had been a member of 
the Asylum Colony in Pennsylvania.** The Abbe Carles had 
gone to Ban Donilt^ some time previous to December 7, 1803, 
the date of his arrival in Savannah; and after announdi^r his 
presence in that dty to Bishop Carroll, he was instructed to 
assume the pastorate of the Church there. On February 3, 1804, 
Carles wrote to Carroll describing the unfortunate situation of 
the French refugees from the West Indies. In 1805, Carles 
was obliged to return to France to arrai^ some family affairs, 
and after his return in 1S07, he wrote to Dr. CarroQ, saying that 
he had gone to Augusta, Ga., where there was a considerable 
number of Catholics. The trustees of the congrc^tion in Augusta 
wanted Carles to divide his time between that city and Savannah, 
and they wrote to that effect to Dr. Carroll, on August 24, 1807: 

The Roman Catholicks of Augusta with the greatest respect for jaar 
Lordship, and perinaded that they can attribute to nothmg but the diffi- 
culty you have experienced in procuring a clergyman such as you wish 
to send them, their being so long deprived of the consolations they would 
derive from the exercise of their religious duties; lately held a meeting 
in order to prevail on Mons'r I'Abb* Carles, to divide his time between 
the Catholicks of Savannah and them. He has replied in the most satis- 
factory manner to the propositions tnade to him in behalf of their meeting 
and assures us he will most willingly consent to spend three months alter- 
nately with each of the two congregations, provided such arrangement 
receive the approbation of your Lordship. 

As Mons'r I'Abbi Carles will have the honor of writing to you himself 
on this subject, we at present content ourselves in making known the 
object and wishes of the Catholicks of this place, in order to obtain your 
consent thereto and appointment of this amiable and much respected 
clergyman.** 

Bishop Carroll then instructed Ahbi Carks to minister to the 
Augusta Catholics, and on October 12, 1807, Carles wrote that 
he feared his Savannah congr^ation would be unwilling to agree 
to this division of labour : 



*• Cf. Rrtrarckti, toI. zniil, p. 64. 

* Cf. Rieorit, toI. xriii, p. 155. 

** fiaMmsn Caliuirat Arckiptt, Cue J-G;! printed in tbc Rtetrit, nL x% 

pp. 4i'-4a*- 



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Diocese of Baltimore 741 

My Lord, 

I have received jn due time your esteemed favour of the 29 June last, 
with ao much more satis f action, that from your long silence I felt appre- 
hension, that my involuntary long absence, or some previously taking 
advantage of the same, might have indisposed your lordship against 
myself. 

I have after your assent and even agreeably to your desire, undertaken 
a journey to Augusta in the beginning of Ai^^ust, with the intention of 
visiting the neighbourbg places where my presence should be required. 
But unfortunately I fell sick ten days after my arrival, my illness which 
first proved very severe, terminated in an intermittent fever which only 
left me after my return to Savannah, and the fortieth day and thanks to 
the Almighty I am now upon the recovery. 

The good reception I met among the faithful of Ai^;usta has been 
beyond my expectations; they have offered me as your lordship will see 
by their inclosed letter to divide my time between them and the congre- 
gation of Savannah, so as to spend a quarter alternately among each. 
Considering perhaps the increasing of my yearly emoluments which at 
present are barely sufficient for a decent maintenance, but more impressed 
with a sentiment of gratitude for bestowing their confidence on me, I 
have answered them, that I had not any objection to comply with their 
wishes, provided we mi^t have the approbaticm of your Lordship, without 
considering whether the congregation of this city would agree to these 
arrangements. I could not yet form a meeting of the vestry, the majority 
of the members being absent, owing to the sickly time ; but I have reason 
to believe that there will be a strong opposition. By principle as welt 
as by duty I am averse to all kind of contest, and I would be extremely 
sorry if any was to take place which should become of no advantage to 
cither side; and consequently, setting my pecuniary interest aside, in order 
to avoid it, I respectfully beg leave to suggest to your lordship, that if 
possible another clergyman was sent to Augusta it would prevent and 
settle at once all future difference. I leave to your lordship's wisdom to 
determine upon; and will be at all times ready to receive and obey with 
submissiMi such orders as you will be pleased to direct*' 

To avoid any further trouble in this southern part of his 
diocese, Archbishop Carroll sent to At^usta, the Rev. Robert 
Browne, O. S. A., probably in the year 1810. Father Browne 
visited Dr. Gallagher at Charleston for the purpose of tnaldng a 
collectioa among the members of that congregation for the 
church in Augusta. On October 6, 1812, Browne wrote to Dr. 
Carroll that the church was nearly completed, and on May 29, 
1813, he announced that it had been blessed on Christmas Day, 



** Ibid., Cue J-C8; piintcd Id the Rtcordt, nl. xx, pp. 4S>-4]S- 



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74» The Life and Times of John Carroll 

1812. "It was a novel spectacle for the inhabitants of this part 
of Georgia to behold. They a[q>eared on the whole to be well 
pleased."*' The two Irish priests, Gallagher and Browne, now 
seem to have formed a conspiracy to control the Church in the 
States of North and South Carolina and Georgia, and tbey nearly 
succeeded in setting up an independent Church in this territory. 
Father Le Mercier died in 1806, and in 1812, Dr. Carroll sent to 
Charleston, the Rev, Joseph Pierre Picot de aoriviire. Few 
clergymen of the period had a more astonishing career than this 
dashing Major-General of the Vendeans. Ctorivi^re was bom 
in Brittany in 1768, and was an officer in the French army when 
the Revolution b^an. A Royalist, he was obliged to flee from 
Paris, although about to be married to a youi^ lady of Versailles, 
and as a general under Cadoudal, he rendered excellent service 
to the Royalist cause. In 1800, the Count d'Artois (Charles X), 
on behalf of his brother Louis XVIII, decorated him with the 
Order of St. Louis. Qorivi^ was suspected of complicity in the 
attempt on Napoleon's life, and was again obliged to take refuge 
in Brittany. When Napoleon became Emperor, Qorivi^ de- 
cided to quit France ; he came to Baltimore, where he entered St 
Mary's Seminary, and was ordained to the priesthood by Arch- 
bishop Carroll in 1812.** It was to the difficult post at Charles- 
ton, "torn by divisions and saddened by scandals," that Carroll 
sent the worthy French priest, then in his fifty-fifth year. There 
are few correspondents whose letters are preserved in the Balti- 
more Cathedral Archives, who show a more thorough knowledge 
of the world and of the affairs of the Church in general than 
Qoriviere. On his arrival in Charleston, as he wrote to Carroll, 
November 16, 1812, he was told that there were more French 
Catholics there than in any other city of the United States — "but 
it is not in Church that they may be seen principally," he adds.** 
A conflict with the independent Church of Gallagher was unavoid- 
able, and the scandal was soon the chief topic of conversation in 
the city.*^ Gallagher and his adherents were not innocent of par- 
ticipation in the disturbance which occurred in June, 1814, when 



* Ibid., Cud a-Ge; printed in tiie Ricordt, nd. iriii, p. 410. 
■ Cf. Latbiot, a Stary of Cmne; pp. ipi-ig£. 
■* BaMmen CttktinI Ankhn, C—t *^4- 
'* IbU.. Cue M-Qli. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 743 

aoriviire celebrated the deliverance of Pope Pius VII with a 
Te Deum. French anti-clericals and others joined in a conspiracy 
to kidnap Cloriviere the day before the ceremony, and only the 
prompt action of the police saved the church and its pastor during 
the ceremony.'* Qoriviire left Charleston for France in 1814-15. 
He writes to CarroU from London, April 7, 1815, inveighing 
against Pkomme de matheur (Napoleon), and telb the arch- 
bishop that he was "fort mal inspire en quittant votre diocise," " 
On November 28, 1815, he wrote from Charleston, announcing 
his return. Three years later. Archbishop Neale offered him the 
directorship of the Visitation Convent at Georgetown, and on 
January 13, 1818, he took up his duties at the Convent, remaining 
there until his death, September 29, 1826. 

On September i, 1814, Dr. Carroll wrote for the last time to 
Gallagher, appealing to the insubordinate priest to leave the city 
of Charleston and thus put an end to the schism. ' He offered to 
give Gallagher a letter of recommendation to any other bishop 
in the United States or in Ireland, if he would rid the Diocese 
of Baltimore of his presence.** Apparently, Gallagher never 
answered this letter, and for the next decade of years he led 
a campaign of abuse against Neale, Mar^chal and England ** in 
the United States and at Rome. 

The status of the Diocese of Baltimore at the time of John 
Carroll's death can best be studied in Mar6chal'a Report to Pro- 
paganda of October 16, 1818." The number of Catholics had 
increased to one hundred thousand by that date, the majority bang 
resident of the State of Maryland, There were fifty-two priests 
in the diocese — one Italian, three Germans, four Englishmen, 
seven Belgians, twelve Americans, eleven from Ireland, and 
fourteen from France. In the city of Baltimore there were four 
churches (St. Peter's, St. Patrick's, St John's, and the Seminary 
Chapel). The chapel at the Seminary was a very popular place 
of devotion. The Plain Chant was much admired, and the Stil- 



■ lUd., Cue >07-io. 

■ IbU., CiM j-Ki. 
■* Ibid., Cut s-Rs. 

■■ IbU., Cue 9-11$. Pnrioat to thli, on Jttac Ji, ■S14, Blihop ^mn wrote to 
CuTtD oSerinc GiIleclMT > refuse in PUbileJphli (cf. lUcerii, toL si*, pp. 4II-4m). 

■■ Printed In Hw CaAntlt HUtvricat JUvitm. vd. i, pp. 4M-4S3> (Pnpfauda 
Artkhn, Strithtn r^tritt, AnrHcm CrmtnU, tsL It, bo. jj.) 



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744 "^he Life and Times of John Carroll 

pidan Fathers estimated that in the course of the preceding 
year almost ten thousand had received Holy Communion. St. 
Peter's pro-Cathedral was too small to accommodate the pec^e 
of the parish and Mar^chal hoped to be able to consecrate the 
Cathedral within eighteen months. "Even the Protestants are 
hajq>y over it, for it is the greatest ornament in the city." 

The last subdivision of the Diocese of Baltimore made during 
Carroll's lifetime occurred about three months before his death, 
when Father Du Bourg was consecrated Bishop of Louisiana on 
September 24, 1815. The diocese, therefore, to which Leonard 
Neale succeeded on the morrow of Carroll's demise consisted of 
the States of Maryland and Virginia, the two Carolinas, Geoi^^ia, 
and the country west of Georgia and south of Tennessee, extend' 
ing to the Mississippi. 

One of the most noteworthy events within the diocese was 
the Memorial Service in St. Peter's pro-Cathedral on February 
22, 1800, in observance of Washington's death. On December 29, 
1799, Bishop Carroll issued a Pastoral to the Qergy of the diocese, 
reoimmendii^ that Washington's birthday, February 22, of the 
followit^ year, be set aside for ^ solemn service in memory of 
the illustrious leader : 



Rtv. Sir:~ 

We, Roman Catholics, in common with our fellow-dtizeni of the United 
States, have to deplore the irreparable lots our countrr has sustained by 
the death of that great man, who contributed so essentially to the estab- 
lishment and preservation of Its peace and prosperity. We are therefore 
called upon by every consideration of respect to hit memory, and gratittxle 
for his services, to bear a public testimony of our high sense of his worth 
when living ; and our sincere sorrow, for being deprived of that protection, 
which the United States derived from his wisdom, his experience, his 
reputation, and the authority of his name. The Executive of the State 
of Maryland having appointed the 22nd of next February as a day of 
general mourning for the death of General Washington, and for a solemn 
tribute of respect to his memory, I likewise recommend to and direct my 
Reverend Brethren to give notice to their respective Congregations, to 
observe that day with a reverence expressive of their veneration tor the 
deceased Father of his Country, and founder of its Independence, to 
beseech Almighty God to inspire into those who now are or hereafter 
may be, invested with authority, to pursue his wise, firm, just, and peace- 
able maxims of government and preserve us in the enjoyment of those 
public blessings, for which, next to the merciful dispensations of Provi- 



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Diocese of Baltimore 745 

deuce, we are chiefly indebted to his unwearied perseverance, temperate 
valor, exemplary disinterestedness and consomnute prndence. 

Those of my Reverend Brethren who residing in towns and very 
populous parts of the States, may think themselves called on, as well by 
melancholy occasion as by public expectatkm to renew in the minds of their 
bearers, their recollection of the talents, virtues, and services of the 
deceased General, are advised not to form their discourses on the model 
of a funeral sermon, deduced from a text of Scripture, but rither to 
compose an oration, such as might be delivered in an Academy, and on a 
plan bearing some resemblance to that of St Ambrose on the death of 
the young Emperor Valentinian, who was deprived of life, before his 
initiation in our Church, but who had discovered in early age the germ 
of those extraordinary qualities which expanded themselves in Washing- 
ton, and flourished with so much lustre, during a life of unremitting 
exertions and eminent usefulness. 

If these discourses shall be delivered in churches, where the Holy Sac- 
rament is usually kept, it will be proper ta remove it previously with due 
honour, to some decent place.'^ 

On the day appointed, before a large and distinguished as- 
semblage in St. Peter's Church, Bishop Carroll pronounced a 
eulogy of the dead president. His discourse is too lengthy to 
be repeated here, but the opening thoughts will give the reader a 
general idea of the theme and the treatment. It is undoubtedly 
the best q>eci[nen of Carroll's eloquence : 

When the death of men distii^nished by superior talents, high endow- 
ments, and eminent virtues to their country, demands the expression of 
public mourning and grief their loss is acctHnpanied generally with this 
mitigation, that, however grievous and painful, it is not irreparable; 
and that the void, caused by their mortality, will perhaps be filled up by 
others, uniting equal abilities with the same zeal and watchfulness for 
the general welfare. Hope then wipes off the tears, with which sorrow 
bedews the grave of departed worth. But on the present occasion no 
such consolation can be administered; for he, whose expectations are so 
sanguine, dares not promise again to his country the union of so many 
splendid and useful virtues, as adorned that illustrious Man, whose mem- 
ory excites our grateful and tender sensibility, and ,at whose tomb the 
homages of his country is to be solemnly offered on this day. Whether 
we consult our own experience, by bringing into comparison with Wash- 
ington, any of our contemporaries, most eminent for their talents, virtues 
and services; or whether we search through the pages of history, to 
discover in them a character of equal fame, justice and truth will acknowl- 
edge, that he stands super-eminent and unrivalled in the annals of man- 

" PiiMod In the Stuarthtt, voL xrii, pL sj. 



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746 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Idnd; and that no one before him, acting in such a variety of new and 
arduoiu aituationB, tore with him to the grsn a repotatioa ai dear from 
lawless ambition, and as midefiled by injustice or oppression; a repnttttioii 
neither depressed by indolence, or weakened by irresolution, nor shadowed 
by those imperfections which seemed to be the essential appendages of 
hmnan nature, tilt providence exhibited in Washington this ex traordinary 



What language can be equal to the excellence of such a character? 
What proportion can exist between eloquence, and the tribute of praise, 
due to so much virtue? Nevertheless, my fellow citizens, I read in the 
eagerness of your attention, your desire to offer this tribute: Methinks 
f hear your filial piety, your tender reverence for your best friend, the 
Father of bis Country, calling on me to bear for you, at least a feeble 
testimony of your unextinguishable gratitude for his services, your immor- 
tal rememtirance of, and veneration for his virtues. In your name, there- 
fore, I presume to add some grains of incense to the homage which 
throughout the United States every friend to their happiness now presents 
at the shrine of Washington, Pardon, O departed Spirit of the first of 
Heroes) if with the cold accents of an exhausted imagination, I likewise 
dare attempt to celebrate thy name, whilst so many sons of genius, ardent 
b youthful vigour, delineate in glowing colours tlie vivid features of thy 
mind, and the glorious deeds of thy virtuous life. With imeqaal steps I 
venture <m the same career, not seeking to add lustre to the fame of 
Washington, or perpetuate his memory to future times; but humbly 
hopng, that a redtal of his services will open to our countrymen the road 
to true honour, and kindle in dieir breasts the warmth of generous emula- 
tion, and real patriotism. To contribute in this manner to the best 
interests of his beloved country, will be to htm the most gratifying com- 
mendation, if in the regions of immortality, htmuu affairs still claim a 
share of his solicitude. 

To superintend the movements, and operations of such a revolution; to 
control during its progress, jealousies, enmities, suspicions, and other coo- 
flicting passions; and from their collision, to create national and individual 
prosperity, peace, order, liberty and r^ular government required the 
discernment and masterly contrivance of that Supreme Director and 
Artist, who unites together the links and holds m his hands the chain of 
all human events. Contemplating, as much as is allowed to feeble mor- 
tals, his divine agency in preparing the means and conducting the progress 
of the American revolution, we may presume to say, that heaven impressed 
a character on the life of Washington, and a temper on his sonl, which 
eminently qualified him to bear the most conspicuous part, and be its 
principal instrument in accomplishing this stupendous work. 

Washington beheld from his retirement, as the Jewish legislator from 
the summit of Mount Phasga, the flourishing prosperity of bis cotmtry. 



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Diocese of Baltimore 747 

Health sweetened his repose and rural occupations; his body and mind 
retained their usual vigor. We flattered ourselves with the expectaticn 
of his continuing long to retain them : Joy beamed in our hearts, when 
oa every annual revolution, we gratefully hailed this, his auspicious birth- 
day. But, alas I how dark is the cloud, that now overshadows it? The 
songs of festivity converted into the sobs of mourning I The prayers of 
thanksgiving for his health and life changed into lamentations for his 
death ! Who feels not for him, as for his dearest friend, his protector, 
and his Father? Whilst he lived, we seemed to stand on loftier ground, 
for breathing the same air, inhabiting the same country, and enjoying 
the same constitution and laws, as the sublime, magnanimous Washington. 
He was invested with a glory, that shed a lustre on all around him. For 
his country's safety, he often had braved death, when clad in her most 
terrific form ; he had familiarized himself with her aspect ; at her approach- 
ing to cut the thread of life, he beheld her with constancy and serenity ; 
and with his breath, as we may believe from knowing the ruling passion 
of his soal, be called to heaven to save his country, and recommended 
it to the continual protection of that Providence, which he so reverently 
adored. May his prayer have been heard I May those United States 
Nourish in pure and undefiled religion, in morality, peace, miion, liberty 
and the enjoyment of their excellent Constitution, as long as respect, 
honour, and veneration shall gather round the name of Washington; that 
is, whilst there shall be any surviving record of human events.'* 

The only parallel to the growth of the Church iti the Diocese 
of Baltimore duritig Carroll's quarter of a century of leadership 
is to be found in the early history of the Faith. Shea writes: 
"When Archbishop Carroll resigned to the hands of his Maker 
his life and the ofiice he had held for a quarter of a century, the 
Church, fifty years before so utterly unworthy of consideration 
to mere human eyes, had become a fully organized body instinct 
with life and hope, throbbii^ with aQ the freedom of a new coun- 
try. An archbishopric and four suffragan sees, another diocese 
beyond the Mississippi, with no endowments from princes or 



■ The orisinal intt ii in the BaMmert CthtJral Areliim, SHeiat C-Wj. It 
hu been printed in the RttfrtWti, nL xi, pp. tit-iji. The tnditioii that Fkther 
FruicU Neile h*d been oiled to vidt Wuhbigtoo teat honn btfar* hU dath U 
qnlte erroaeoiu. Among the other Catholic Htmoriil Senics on Fdmnir is, iSoo, 
wu tint at Phil»ldphi>, In St. Uarr'i Chnrdi, wh«» Father Hatthew Cair, the 
AncnrtMin. pTonomoed an doqncnt culotr- In the Uniud Stalit CttMic Ulttoricat 
MwotM* <T0l. i, pp. 187-igi}, will be found the ontioo simi br Scr. Dr. O'BriM. 
ia St. Uanr'i Cbtu^ Albanr, N. Y., that day. The anmcBuratiTe enrowa, hdd 
at Ceoci«lo«in Collcte. were amoac the moot daboiatc in the covattr. fiobert Walih, 
the (utnre Utttnttw and diplomat, then aixtecn, ddiTered "an iBgeniou and 



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748 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

nobles, were steadily advancii^ : churches, mstitutions of learning 
and charity, all arising by the ^xmtaneous offerings of those 
who in most cases were manfully stri^gling to secure a liveli- 
hood in modest competence. The diocese of Baltimore had 
tbeol(^c3l seminaries, a novitiate and scholasticate, colleges, con- 
vents, academies, schools, a community devoted to education and 
works of mercy; the press was open to diffuse Catholic truth 
and refute false and perverted representations. In Pennsylvania 
there were priests and churches through the mountain districts to 
Pittsburgh; and all was ripe for needed institutions. In New 
York, Catholics were increasing west of Albany, and it had been 
shown that a collie and an academy for girls would find ready 
support at the episcopal city, where a Cathedral had been com- 
menced before the arrival of the long-expected Bishop. In New 
England the faith was steadily gaining under the wise rule of 
the pious and charitable Bishop Cheverus. In the West, the 
work of Badin and Nerinckx, seconded and extended by Bishop 
Flaget, was bearing its fruit. There was a seminary for priests, 
communities of Sisters were forming, and north of the Ohio the 
faith had been revived in the old French settlements, and Catholic 
immigrants from Europe were visited and encouraged. Louis- 
iana had been conSded to the zealous and active Bishop Du 
Boui^, destined to effect so much for the Church in this country. 
Catholicity had her churches and priests in all the large cities 
from Boston to Augusta and westward to St. Louis and New 
Orleans, with many in smaller towns, there being at least a 
hundred churches and as many priests exercising the ministry. 
Catholics were free; the days of penal laws had departed; pro- 
fessions were open to them, and in most States the avenue to 
all public offices." ■' 

• Of. cil., Tol. it, pp. 6jS^r9- 



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CHAPTER XXXVI 

THE AMERICAN SECULAR CLERGY 

The year 1791 forms a line of division in the history of the 
American secular clergy. That year saw the establishment of 
St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, by the Sulpidans, and the First 
National Synod, held in the same city in November. The creation 
of a school for ecclesiastical training in the new Diocese of 
Baltimore under any conditions whatsoever would have been an 
important factor in the growth of clerical learnit^r and discipline ; 
but to have such an institution, so vitally necessary to diocesan 
growth, founded and planned by a successful body of teachers 
of the ecclesiastical sciences, with a staff of scholars who had 
already spent a portion of their lives in the work, was a blessing 
which none recognized more gratefully than Bishop Carroll 
himself. His return to Baltimore in December, 1790, was a signal 
to groups of Catholics in every part of his diocese to write to 
their Chief Shepherd be^ng for a priest to come to minister 
unto them. Among Carroll's papers in the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archi\'es are many letters from Maine to Georgia and from 
Maryland to the Far West of that day, telling him that land had 
been purchased for churches and rectories.^ The news of bis 
^>pointinent to the See of Baltimore in 17S9 had spread quiddy 
over the United States, and even before his departure for Eng- 
land, these appeals had grown so nimierous that in many cases he 
expressed his surprise to learn that Catholics were living in these 
little known parts of the new Republic His efforts in England 



■ Cue !«, McdoD* K to T contain miny of tboe litten, and ■» dDobt muy 
otlian biTc been toM. The remarkable factor In thia cotrcapondcnee Ii that In each 
caae the little frcnp of Catholica state no prefermee; it ii a print ther want; and ao 
lone aa be can miniiter to thon, ther aeem to care little vbettaer be can ipcak to 
them in Ibdr own toncoe. Ai Catholica became pnntlneol in inch dvio ccMna, 
howner, ther fdt a certain amonnt of pride in tbdr cbarcb; and they wanted, 
capedaOr the Iriah amoos thou, a prieat of pleuinc mtnncn, and with power* of 
eloqnenee. Onir in one place did I find a conditiMi placed ea CarroU'i dusica loi a 
certain pariifa. One larman wrote (December G. i8oi) — "nu' entre on Fr*D(ali qui 
ne parioit paa Angloia et nn Irlaadaia iwntrr le eboix ne denrit pa* ttre doBteai" 
iBMmert Cthtirwl ArcMvri, Caie i-Qi). 
7« 



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750 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

to secure misstonera were not successful, for he returned to Hut 
United States unaccompanied by any volunteers for the Amer- 
ican missions. Smyth's diatribe had undoubtedly influenced many 
against making the sacrifice of the long journey and of the harsh 
living conditions in the new diocese. It meant a handk^ of no 
mean weight in those days to be an ex- Jesuit ; and with all the 
old prejudices revived owing to the controversy then being w^ed, 
and waged bitterly, between the leaders of the Church in Ireland 
and England over the Oath of Allegiance to the Crown, any 
accusation that savoured of bias against those who had not been 
members of the Society, had its subtle effect upon the priests who 
may have considered the new field of activity. The London Vicar- 
iate was without a head at the time. Bishop James Talbot had 
passed away on January 26, 1790, and his successor, Dr. Doug- 
lass, was not consecrated until after Carroll's return to America.' 
Consequently, Dr. Carroll had no one in London at the time to 
whom he could appeal officially for volunteers to the new diocese. 
It was only after he had taken up the episcopal burden that he 
was able to give his attention to the most important part of his 
work — the supply of the clergy for the missions. He could not 
have left England, however, with any misgivings on that score, 
for arrangements had been made with the Sulpidans to found 
the Seminary in his episcopal city. In the century of organized 
Catholic life which has gone by since their comity, the Church 
in the United States from the Atlantic to the Pacific can recog- 
nize on every side the fruits of the labours of these worthy fol- 
lowers of Father Olier. They have given a service unmatched in 
our annals. The bare recital of the difficulties they encoun- 
tered, mastered, and turned to profit for the American Church is 
but a part — the shadow, as it were — of their substantial and lasting 
inSuence on the country at large. They came here in 1791, to 
found a house of ecclesiastical studies in the Catholic heart of 
the nation. Behind them, in France, they had left the work of 
over a century wrecked and ruined by the flood of hate that 
liad grown in volume and was soon to destroy all things like a 
deluge. They left cities where the best things in civilization and 
in refinement once existed, to come to a young country, scarcely 

• WuD, Dtmt. ««c., Tot. 1, p. ■!*. 



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Secular Clergy 751 

recovered from the aftermath of a long and bitter war, to a 
city that was scarcely larger than a modern village, and to 
GODditioas which must have made men — even priests, quail, aa 
they rect^nized the sacrifices American life demanded at die time. 
Poverty sat high on everything. They had paid their own pas- 
sage across the seas; they brought the funds which would be 
needed to start this first American seminary; and, though many 
pages have been written to describe the early years of their work 
in Baltimore, no one can describe the agoi^ of the ^tporent 
failure of their plans a decade later, when only the intervention 
of the Holy Father saved the Seminary of St. Mary to the Qiurch 
in this country. 

Had the Sulpidans closed the Baltimore Seminary in the dark 
days of 1801-1804, the history of the American secular clergy 
could hardly find a place within the years of Carroll's episcopate. 
Their arrival in this country, once wrote Cardinal Gibbons, 

was coeval with the establiahment of the American hierarchy . . . What 
Biahop Carroll has been to the hjerarchy of the United States, the Snl- 
pician Father) have been to the clergy. He has been the model of the 
American episcopate; they have been the model of the clergy. They 
have been with ns now for nearly a century and a quarter, and during all 
that time they have upheld the honor and the dignity of the priesthood. 
No stain has ever sullied their bright escutcheon. No breath of calumny 
has ever dimmed the mirror of their fair names ... I have never m 
the whole course of my life met a Sulpician who was not worthy of bis 
high calling.* 

The training for the priesthood is always a long and tedious 
task, and a score of years were to pass before St Mary's Semi- 
nary was to furnish sufficient priests for the Church in this 
country. Meanwhile, as during the years of his prefectship, 
Carroll had to dQ}end upon the coming of priests from the Old 
World, Before his death in 1815, thirty young men were ad- 
vanced to the priesthood in St. Mary's. Five of these joined the 
restored Society of Jesus before their ordination. Two were con- 
verts to the Church, and one had been a leader of the Vend&ms, 
with a price upon his head.* Of these thirty, Carroll ordained 
nineteen.* The first American-bom student to be ordained to the 

' Cardinil Gibboni Is HuuufAMM, Sutpiciaiu, itc, pp. 340-141. 

* Luaior, A SMtj tf Cttiract, tie., p. igti. 

■ KhmtW Vtl»mt of tk* CttOtmary af SI. Umr^i, «to., pp. 4^10. 



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75* The Life and Times of John Carroll 

priesthood was Bishop Neale's nephew, Father WUliam Mat- 
thews (1800), who for fifty years was pastor of St. Fatrick't 
Church, Washington, D. C. ( 1805-1855). During the first twelve 
years of ecclesiastical training in Baltimore, St. Mary's Seminary 
could not boast of many students; and this in spite of every 
effort made by Carroll and the Sulpidans to find vocations among 
the young men of the diocese. Bishop Carroll saw that only one 
avenue lay open to secure missioners for his diocese— to recruit 
priests from Europe. 

His diocese contained at this time Catholics of Irish, French, 
German, and Spanish origin, with the greater part, however, 
native-born Americans. The ^'anguard of the immense amry of 
immigrants that came to America during the nineteenth century 
had already made its presence felt in the targe commercial centres ; 
and in each case they came with their own appreciation of 
ecclesiastical harmony. Dr. Carroll needed mainly priests of 
three races — French, German, and Irish. That a grave danger 
was to be feared from the presence of a certain type of French 
clergymen can hardly be gainsaid. Even those whose loyal^ 
to the Holy See had driven them in large numbers into exile in 
England were not always able to withstand the changed conditions 
of life around them; and the ntmiber of those who had sworn 
to obey the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, which was essai- 
tially Galtican in spirit, was large enough to cause Propaganda 
to send a warning to Dr. Carroll that some of these " constitu- 
tional priests" might seek a place in his diocese. "I hope that 
many priests will set out from France for your country," the 
Cardinal wrote, on January 18, 1794, "for they will be of untold 
value to you in the ministry there on account of their faith in God, 
Beware, however, of any tainted 1^ the sacrilegious oath of that 
nation, even if they give signs of retraction, for they are sus- 
pended from exercising any sacerdotal functions, by the express 
condemnation of His Holiness, a copy of whose letter I send 
you herewith." ' The Blanchardist Sdiism which disturbed the 
peace of the Qiurch in England shortly after the advent of the 
French emigrants proves the wisdom of this advice.' Some time 
after Carroll's return to Baltimore, the acknowledged leader of 



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Secular Clergy 753 

the imigri priests. Count Jean Francis de la Marche, Bishop 
of St, Pol de Leon, wrote to him r^arding the advisability of 
inviting some of the French priests to America. The English 
Govenmtent at the time was generously aiding the exiled French 
clergy, and had proposed to some of them to go out to Canada. 
The Bishop of St Pol de Leon wrote on December 12, 1792 : 

It is proposed to oSer in March next, a free patMge to all who with 
to go there, to give them land to dear and cultivate, to fumiih them 
with all that is needed for thia, with means of support for a whole jear, 
for two-thirdi of the following year, and for one-diird of the third Tear. 
We think that as a return to France continues to be impouible, and as 
help fails on all sides, a great number should locdt upon it as their duty 
to enter upMi this new life which Providence seems to open up for them. 
My idea is that those ecclesiastics who go should form a community and 
that no one should aspire to individual ownership, the labor and profit! 
being in common. As the country is Catholic, it is desirable that the 
priests who go there should be models of virtue and walk in the footstep! 
of the early fathers of the descit They should moreover be under the 
jurisdiction of the local bishops to labor for the salvation of souls In 
iriiatever work is confided to them. Our four envoys, three ecclesiastics 
and a military man, are a sort of commissaries whose business it ii to 
prepossess the inhabitants in favor of the guests about to come to them; 
to discuss with the dvil and ecclesiastical authorities the means of looking 
after them temporarily upmi their arrival, and to allot to them the places 
assigned for their settlements. I find it difficult to believe that priests 
can succeed in an undertaking of this kind without greater assistance, 
but it is hoped that the Government will give help proportioned to the 
needs. 

Some priests have a desire to go to New England [1. t., tkt United 
Slatts] and to labour tmder your jurisdiction. The knowledge that I have 
acquired of that country shows that there are resources for but VC17 
few, perhaps twenty priests; also that to be of use they should know 
English well enough to hear confessions and give instructions in that 
language. I know thai you hare some French sections but not many, 
and that perhaps they are tfa- places where it would be most difficult to 
accomplish much good because they are the ones that need it most, seeing 
that it is not there that good morals and right principles predominate. 
Still if I have been misinformed, and if that portion of the country offers 
a wider and better field than I think, I shall be greatly obliged to yoii 
if yon let me know. It may perhaps be possible for me to have yotir 
answer in April or May.* 



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754 ^Atf Life and Times of John Carroll 

On February 19, 1^3, Bishop Carroll rqilied that it afforded 
him the greatest pleasure to know that the English Government 
was interesting itself in the project of sending a number of refu- 
gees, espedalty priests, out to Canada, where he was sure the 
Bishop of Quebec, who needed missioners, would give them a 
cordial welcome. "How I wish," he adds, "that it were possible 
to offer them an asylum here and to employ for the needs of my 
diocese a like number of your worUiy and estimable priests ; but 
I understand from your letter that you are well acquainted both 
with my limited means, and with the absolute necessity of some 
knowledge of the English lat^uage for a priest, that he may be 
of any use in the performance of ministerial functions here." * 
However, in case there were any who understood sufficient Eng- 
lish, Carroll had written to the former Procurator of the Eim;lish 
Jesuits, Father Thomas Talbot, asking him to make inquiries. 
He needed four priests at the moment, and wanted Talbot to 
arrange for their passage. Nothing further came of this exchange 
of letters. 

Instead of having to depend on these unfortunate refugees, Dr. 
Carroll's diocese was fortunately blessed by the coming of a 
group of men who represented the finest culture and the highest 
sanctity of the French Church. In a century that was the most 
un-Christian France had seen, these humble followers of Father 
Olier, who obeyed the call in 1791, and who came to the United 
States, were the very flower of the Catholic priesthood of their 
day. Dr. Carroll never failed to praise the zeal and learning of 
these providential men of the American Church, thoty;h he did 
not at all times feel certain that their methods in St. Mary's 
Seminary were calculated to form the clergy he needed. "We 
have now twelve young Qericks in the Seminary," he wrote to 
Plowdcn (December 7, 1804), "prt^essing towards Holy Orders. 
If a succession can be kept up, as there is an appearance, we shall 
be able in a great d^ree to supply all our Congregations. But 
whether the Sulpicians and their mode of studies are calculated to 
produce eminent scholars, is a doubt with me. In the meantime, 
if they form virtuous priests with divinity enough to perform 
the functions of the ministry and guide the souls committed to 

• ibid., Cu« >-T6; pilntad In the Ktcarit, voL zx, pp. ts^tfT- 



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Secular Clergy 755 

their care, w« must be satisfied, till time and opportunity give 
the means of introducing a more solid and comprehensive system 
of education." ^' Some years later, when Dr. Carroll b^^ to 
see the results of the Sulpician training, he wrote to the same cor- 
reqx>ndent (January 27, 1812) : "Too much praise cannot be 
given by me to the priests of St. Sulpice here for their zeal and 
sacrifi(%s to the public cause. They now maintain and educate 
at their own expense twenty-two Seminarians for llie ministry, 
I wish as favourable an account could be given of the CoU^e of 
Geo.<Town, which has sunk to the lowest degree of discredit." " 
On another occasion, when confessing to Plowden his own grow- 
ing "symptoms of laziness," he says: "Amidst the many advan- 
tages which this Diocese had derived from the example, zeal and 
labours of the French clergymen employed in it, I have to lament 
one inconvenience arisii^ from them, and that is, their overload- 
ing me with unceasing letters on subjects, which they might 
terminate as well as by referring them to me; and being very 
punctilious in requiring answers, there is no sayii^ how much of 
my time they absorb." '* A man of nearly eighty years can be 
forgiven this petulant pan^aph — few of which are to be found 
in his large correspondence. 

The first group of these excellent French priests was com- 
posed of Fathers Nagot, the superior of the new seminary; 
Levadoux, who was to go out to Detroit as Carroll's vicar- 
general; Tessier, who had been director of the seminary at 
Viviers ; Gamier, who held a simitar post at Lyons, and Canon 
Delavau, who participated in the Synod of 1791, and who returned 
to France when the worst period of the Revolution was passed. 
They arrived in Baltimore on July 10, 1791. The following year, 
in March, Fathers Chicoisneau, David, and Fk^et, with the first 
student to be ordained by Bisht^ Carroll, Stephen Badin, arrived 
in the episcopal city. In June, 1792, four other French priests, 
who were to leave a lastii^ memory on the Church in the United 
States, came to Baltimore — Fathers Marechal, Richard, Gcquard, 
and Matignon. With tnit few exceptions, all these priests had a 



■ Ston^mra Trmucrtptt. 

■ md. 
• nu. 



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75^ The Life and Times of John Carroll 

share in tbe early history of ecdesiastical and coUq|iate training 
in this country.'* 

Dr. Carroll's experiences during the first decade of his ^ia- 
copate with the German clergymen who, with few exceptions, 
had come ut^licited into this country, did not tend to aug- 
ment his desire to see more of them arrive in his diocese; and yet 
the imprudent and insubordinate attitude of priests like Fathers 
Goetz, Elling and Renter ought not to dim the memories of those 
pioneer men of God — Fathers Farmer, Manners, Schneider, 
Geissler, and his first coadjutor. Bishop-elect GraesaL "The want 
of good clergymen is felt ever)nvhere in tbe Diocese; but more so 
of German priests," he told Plowden in 1803 ; " and his n^oti- 
ations with Fathers de Bn^lie and Rozaven, the Paccsnarists, 
who were in England at the time, were partly for the purpose of 
filling this need. When tbe partial restoration of the Jesuits oc- 
curred in 1806, three of those sent by the General were Germans 
— Father Adam Britt, S.J., whom Dr. Carroll sent to Holy Trin- 
ity Church, Philadelphia; Father Anthony Kohlmann, S.J., who 
was sent to the Germans in New York City, and Father John 
Henry, S.J,, who was kept in Baltimore. The st^ly of priests 
for the German parishes in the original Diocese of Baltiniore 
(1790-1808) never met the demand, althot^h Dr. Carroll seldom 
lost an opportunity in his correspondence, especially with Fadwr 
Plowden, to appeal for clergymen who were able to speak German 
and to direct German congr^ations : "I will receive with pleas- 
ure and give employment to . . . any German priest, young 
and healthy, and endowed with talents to make him useful, and 
with virtues which entitle him to the esteem and recommendation 
of his Bishc^, and if a religious, of the Superior of his Order. 
The sooner they arrive the better, and they may take their pas- 
sage from Bremen, Hamburg, or a port in Holland, for Phil- 
adelphia or Baltimore; and it is much to be wished tiiat Aty 



" Sbu, op. cit., pp. 379-407. "The Calliolic diutdi in tbe United Swtm ia 
dccpir indeUcd to tlw mbI of the exiled FrcDck decfji do paction of tiu Anaiam 
Chnnji oire* more to them thu tkat of Ke atucl iy. Tbeir mppUed onr Infant Biiariani 
with moat of their eerUeW and moot (caloiia labovren; and thejr UkewiM lava oa dot 
Snt Biihcqit. There i* aomnliitu Id tbe daatlcltjr and Inioyaner of the ehiraeter of 
the Fmtch, which adaptt Ihem in a peculiar manner to fofdfn ninioni," StaLDiKO, 
la Skttektt, til., p. it. 

" Stimjiinrtt TrantciipU. 



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Secular Clergy 757 

would endeavour to learn, in the meantime, all the English they 
are able." " 

Outside of Pennsylvania, the majority of his people were of 
English and of Irish or^n, and as Carroll admits in his letter to 
Dr. Troy, on August 24, 1791 : 

I recur to your Lordship with the utntosl confidence in every concern 
of religion, where your advice, direction, or co-operation can be obtained. 
Such ii my csicem for your Grace, and the abilities to direct and guide 
with ii^ch God has blessed you, not only for the good of your own 
Country, but also, I trust, of this. I stand now in need of three clergy- 
men for the service of poor abandoned Catholics. They promise faith- 
fully to provide a comfortable support for their pastors. As I know no 
country but Ireland which can supply our wants, I presume to make them 
known to your Grace, not doubting but you will, with your wonted leal, 
make known my desire to some virtuous clergymen. Allow me to request, 
that none may be selected for this service, of whose fitness your Grace 
has not the fullest conviction, either from personal knowledge or from 
such testimoiy as is entirely satisfactory. The stations for which they 
are destined require men of solid and approved virtue, for they will be 
left in great measure out of the reach of control or eye of inspection; 
consequently, unless they be thoroughly established in the habits of a sacer- 
dotal purity of manners, sobriety, and of zeal, they will not be qualified 
for that destination which is intended. Besides this first requisite of an 
irreproachable conduct, strength of bodily health is absolutely necessary 
to undergo the fatigues and constant hardships of labour and diet to 
which they will be exposed. Finally, they will be placed amongst stran- 
gers and bitter enemies to our faith and Church, who will often seek 
opportunities of engaging in ccmtroversy, and not unfreqoently with much 
dexterity. This renders it advisable and indispensable for the clergymen 
to be gentlemen fond of study, of improved understandings, and, above 
all, skilled in theological science. If your Lordship can find out such, 
disengaged from more important employment, and zealous to bestow their 
labours in my diocese, I shall ever esteem it a great favour to receive 
them from your hands.^* 

This naturally gave considerahle discretionary powers to the 
Metropolitan of Duhlin, and the traditiotial place he occupies in 
American Catholic annals, as a resuh, is not an enviable one ; for 
he has been held up by John Gihnary Shea as the proto^rpe of 
foreign meddler who caused so much uiKasiness in the Church 

« nu. 

» Btltimmr* Clkttnl AreU^a, Cut S-G4, pdUAod in M«ua, of. eU.. voL ill, 
pp. S09-SIO. 



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758 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

here, down to the time of the First Provtnctal Council of Balti- 
more (1829), when the American clergy declared its indq>end- 
ence of European interference. It is unfortunate, indeed, for 
Archbishop Troy's reputation for judgment that among the first 
whom he was instrumental in sending to the United States, there 
should be some who turned out so very badly. The Harolds in 
Philadelphia and Dr. Simon Gallagher in Charleston, S. C, kqit 
the diocese in a ferment during the last ten years of Carroll's 
life. Their spirit of rebellion and of conduct unbecoming to 
gentlemen has cast a deplorable shadow over the rest of the clergy 
who had come from Ireland during these early years of the 
American hierarchy; and it gave Marechal the opportunity of 
saying in his Report to Propaganda (1818) : 

Hibemi qui spiritu Dei aguntur, et moribuj vere ecdesiuticis sunt 
imbuti, retigioni felkiter lerviunt. Sunt enitn prompti ad Uborem, non 
mediocriter eloqnentes, zelo animBmm praestantissiini. Laetor valde 
quidem quod plurtmi sunt hnjusce Kcneria in mea diocesi; atque certe 
multoi eis similes ambabus ulnig ultro reciperem. At vero tot ex Hibemia 
hie advenerunt sacerdotes, turpi dirietatis vitio dediti, ut non nisi pojt 



Qnando enim semel a nobis facultates obdnuerunt, si subinde crapalae in- 
dnlgeant, did non potest quantis tnalis obnunt ecclesiam Dei. Neque 
tunc ullum fere mAis relinquitur remediutn quo icandalis finem imponere 
possimus. . . . Non Americani, non Angli, non afianim europeanaruni 
gentium advenae, pacem pcrturbarunt aut perturbant, Carolopoli, Nor- 
folkio, Philadelphiae, etc., etc., sed sacerdotes Hibemi, intemperaotiae 
ant atubitioni dediti, taia cum contribulibus suis, quod imiumerig artOKH 
■ibi derincituit" 

Archbishop Marechal felt keenly at this time an accusation 
made anonymously by some of the Irish clergy thar it was lus 
intention to establish a French hierarchy and a clergy entirely 
French in the United States and to expel all the Irish; but 
e^hteen years before this time. Dr. Carroll was forced to admit 
to Plowden (March 12, 1800), that "of Irish clergymen, I am 
afraid, for tho' we are blessed with some worthy and able men 
from that class, yet many have caused disorders here; and in 
many parts of the country have excited prejudices against them 



>' Pnftamia Artiivtt. ScrMuTt r^tritt, Amtricf CuHraU, voL ir, no. », 
prinud In tiw CokeUe HUtorical Kniftt, voL 1, pp. 4i9-4sj. Hofbci priot* thoa* 
pansiapht of thia muiJaUc docimait which rdit* to tba Jcmdti (of. tU., Doen- 
anti, Tii. i. part f, pp. ■4S->4<> joa; put ii, pp. gii-914. ft]7-«5*. >»49>. 



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Secular Clergy 759 

very diffictih to be removed. "'' Dr, Carroll indeed had every 
reason to fear grave inconvenience "from the medley of clerical 
characters coming from different quarters and various educa- 
tions, and seetdi^ employment here. I cannot avoid employ- 
ing some of tbem, and they begin soon to create disturbance." ^* 
Happily at the very time these unruly characters were disturtnng 
the Church of God here, other priests of Irish origin, such as 
Dr. Matthew Carr, O.S.A., and Bishop Egan, were creating for 
themselves and for their race a tradition of the highest zeal and 
piety. 

In the spiritual things in this world "the evil that men do lives 
after them ; the good is oft interred with their bones." The study 
of the letters extant for this period heightens one's prejudice 
against the entire body of foreign clergy who found their way 
into the United States durii^ the whole of Dr. Carroll's qus- 
copate ; and yet, we must be willing to admit that among all these 
priests a goodly number were worthy of their sublime calling. 
There were many "missionary adventurers," *• as Dr. Carroll 
called tbem ; there was a "strolling clerical fraternity," as Charles 
Plowden, who was not favourably impressed with the thousands 
of French refugee bishops and priests then in England, called 
them." And certainly the memory of the Whelan-Nt^^ent scan- 
dal in New York, the Poterie fiasco of Boston, the Holy Trinity 
schism, and the actions of other unworthy- men of the doth were 
not inclined to make Dr. Carroll sanguine over those who would 
be accepted for the American ministry. His dilemma was be- 
tween the acceptance of men to whom the American Church was 



* Stanjkaril TrantcripU. 

" Hdohii, of. lit,, Docimioiti, mL 1, put U, p. M8. There la hardl]i a dsfie 
Iriah ptlcat tbreoth wbnm womm Id aome toim did dM conw dntliic theee jtnt of 
recoBatmetion. Father Cahlll at Hagentown fomid h difBcult to aee how Bliiwp 
Camdl ccnld rseretae juriadictlDd over a pariih-prieat. ai he bdlered hiimdf to ia, 
and prapoadded the doctHne that aa auch he could idnumate]- the Saeraaientt when 
•od where he wiahcd, without CkrroU'a approtiation {Baitimort Caiktirtl ArtUvi, 
Caie I-Ti-j): Father Bodkin, on whom CarroQ waa depodins for mlHlooarr worii 
in weateni Pennarlvanlai reaicscd without notice aod atarted for New Orioiu ^bid., 
Caae I-T^). Acctuation* were made acainat GaUafher mt CharlcMon, S. C, acainat 
Bnade at Korfotk, and ereo the two prieata mcnUoiied In the text w bdat cxcctitiotia 
were not allowed to bo nnattacked. Carr found fault with Ggaa beciUM he waa 
aaannnns epjacopal power! before hia conaecratlon ; and Harold WM to wan E|aa in 
the dar* of their oooflict— WaM {rrftara Uomtmr (BalUnurt CMJWdraJ Arcklrn, 
Cut ii-Og.) 

■* HnsHM, I. c, p. £ie. 

■■ vttMP, tf. wi., V. a 



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760 The Ufe and Times of John CarroU 

a happy-hunting ground, and the neglect of Uttk dusters of 
Catholics in various parts of the country. On more than one oc- 
casion he states emphatically that be preferred to aee these ouUy- 
ing colorations suffer for a time rather than to send them 
priests of whose doctrine and conduct he was uncertain. 

No better reSex of the status of the dei^ at the tune of his 
consecration could be given than that contained in Father John 
Ashton's sermon at the dose of the Synod in 1791, which will 
be found in these pages. There was more than a conventional 
appeal by a priest to priests for the high ideals of the priestly 
calling in Ashton's words. His paragraphs are so many mirrors 
in which the status of the dergy can be dearly seen. "We hold 
the place of angels," he says, "who offer up incenae and tbe 
prayers of the Saints at the House of God, and like thmi, this 
sacrifice should come through pure and unstained hands." The 
duties of mental and vocal prayer, of zeal for the salvation of 
souls, and the necessity of a life free from all reproach, are 
espedally emphasized. "From whence it follows that all affec- 
tation of worldly vanity in fashion of dress, elegance of furniture 
and equipage, extravagance and sum^Muousness of living, are 
wholly inconsistent with the character we bear." But it is 
particularly on clerical scandals that he dwdls with insistence; 
and thoi^ none were present whose lives were not in con- 
formity to the strictest ecclesiastical discipline, all realized how 
necessary his warnings were. These scandals were not as liable 
to occur after the Synod as before. The secular clergy had 
met for the first time as a canonical body, and in the resolutions 
taken by the members of the Synod, we can recognize the ban- 
ning of a new era in clerical disdpline. 

At the time of the consecration of three new bishops (rSio), 
there were among the seventy priests, secular and regular, in the 
archdiocese, only a few whose conduct gave the hierarchy any 
concern. As is always the case, the presence of the rdigious 
Orders — the Jesuits, the Augustinians, the Dominicans, and even 
the rambling Trappists, although through them the secular clergy 
lost some splendid types of priestly zeal and scholarship — made 
for a higher sacerdotal idealism ; and from this period onward, the 
difHculties or disorders which did arise were so few that Carroll 
and his successors found ft easy to control the disturbers. The 



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StcuUr Clergy 761 

spirit of antagonism evinced by some of the "newcomers" against 
the (rfd body of the clei^, not only as members of the txxp- 
pressed Society of Jesos, but espedally as co-proprietors of the 
old ex- Jesuit estates, had loi^ since died away ; but it found a 
successor in the desire for racial distinction within the American 
Church on the part of some. Gradually, however, the stem exig- 
encies of missionary life in America forced the self-interested, the 
restless, the disobedient, and the grasping to return to their 
fatherlands, and the Church here was liberated from their influ- 
ence. Difficulties arose also over the question of maintenance; 
and the proceedings of the different Queers of the Select Body 
of the Qergy from 1783 down to the end of Dr. Carroll's epis- 
c(q>ate, have many resolutions rq^ding the support of the priests 
in the missions. Up to the time of the Suppression of the Jesuits 
(1773), the missionaries being all members of the Society of 
Jesus, were supported from the funds belonging to the Order. 
In some cases, particular parishes were supported by incomes 
derived from particular holdings by the express wish of the 
donators, but in general all the expenses of the Society as such 
were paid out of the common fund by the Procurator. At the 
time of the Suppression, the danger of confiscation seemed im- 
minent, since "every bishop in the world was directed to take 
provisional possession of all the property, goods, rights, and ap- 
purtenances that had belotiged to the extinct Society." ** This was 
not done in the United States, owing to the absence of a bishc^ 
for nearly two decades after the Suppression. During that time 
(1773-1790), the Corporation of the Roman Catholic Clergymen 
(or the Select Body of the Qergy looorporated) was established 
along the lines Dr. Carroll had su^ested in his Plan of Organi- 
zation (1783) at the General Chapter held in 1783. From that 
time down to the first Synod, every priest in the United States, 
in good standing, and obedient to the rules of the Select Body, 
was given support.'* The Coll^^ of Georgetown was founded 
and supported out of the common funds ; the Seminary was given 
certain benefices; and even invalid priests were not forgotten, 
annuities being granted for their expenses. Special pensions were 
allotted to missioners who had extra demands upon tbdr rt- 



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763 The Life and Times of John CtrroU 

sources. At the Ssnod of 1791, however, a depertnre «u ina<k, 
and the old system was changed. Stipends, konorttria, and col- 
lections at Mass were authorized for the first time in the history 
of the Church here. These were to be divided according to the 
ancient usage of the Church: one-tbird for the support of the 
clergy of the parish, one-third for the needs of Divine worship 
and the upkeep of the Church, and one-third for the poor. After 
the l^al incorporation of the clei^ (1792), three methods of 
support prevailed : there were first the revenues accruing from 
the old Jesuit estates, and these were used in various ways (or 
the good of religion. The two bishops (Carroll and Ncalc) were 
members of the Board which regulated the Corporation and by 
their influence as well as by the express wishes of the members 
of the Corporation, the whole of the United States benefited by 
the wise and generous use of the moneys arising from this soiure. 
After 1810, these funds were naturally limited, little by little, to 
the Diocese of Baltimore, but this limitation again was of benefit 
to the entire American Church, since St. Mary's Seminary and 
Geot^;etown College were especially the objects of the Board's 
administration. There were also the r^ular collections talttQ 
up at Mass and the honoraria customary between the clergy and 
the people. These were r^ulated all through Dr. Carroll's qiis- 
copate and for a loi^ time afterwards by a Board of Trustees 
chosen by each congregation, and on which the pastor usually sat 
as chairman. It is from this second financial method of support 
that much of the trouble in churdi affairs arose, both in Dr. 
Carroll's time and for a half-century afterwards. There were 
also the voluntary gifts of the people. These were of a personal 
nature and did not fall within any ruling on the part of the church 
authorities. 

Closely united with their maintenance went the discipline of 
the clergy. The only sanction Dr. Carroll possessed, for exatt^le, 
in dealing with the recalcitrant clergy, was the threat of with- 
drawing the faculties "by which, according to our articles of ec- 
clesiastical government, they will lose their maintenance."** 
This was one of Father John Ashton's particular grievances in 
his attack on Bishop Carroll (October 11, 1802) : "This I think 

» HcoBu, L e.. n. tti-tn. 



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Secular Clergy 763 

the defective and rotten part of our Constitution and ought to be 
altered . . . What I shall it be in the power of a bishop, who gives 
or takes away faculties at pleasure, to deprive an innocent man of 
his honour and living I" ** In the meeting of October 4, 1793, of 
the Select Body of the Clergy, this sanction is defined as follows : 
"That notorious immoral conduct, grievous, uncanonical disobedt- 
ence to ecclesiastical authority, habitual neglect of the duties of 
a clergyman engaged in the care of souls, open exposition and 
violation of the established regulations of the Select Body of 
Clergy, shall be suffident causes for depriving the person or per- 
sons guilty of any of them from a share in the administration or 
profits of the estates secured by law." ** Undoubtedly this r^u- 
lation would have had considerable weight in controIUt^ clergy- 
men of a fractious disposition, had there not been in existence a 
system of church finance which removed from the jurisdiction 
of the Ordinary that complete diq>osal of his subjects which now 
prevails in the United States. In the trusteeism of these years 
clergy and laity met, in some cases to build up, but in many others 
to break down, the spirit of obedience on the part of the faithful. 
One of the truly admirable pages in the history of the American 
dergy during Carroll's episcopate is that which contains the 
story of the devotion of the priests to the people of the various 
cities which were victims of the yellow fever epidemics. Bishop 
Carroll summarizes that story in a pastoral to the people of 
. Baltimore, on August 26, 1800, when for a third time the plague 
had fallen upon that city : 

It has pleued Divine Providence to visit again the city of Baltimore 
with that contagious fever, which has swept away heretofore so many 
of our Brethren and spread desolation thro' many of your faniilies. It 
is an awful warning to remind us all of the micertainty of our con- 
tinuance in this life, and the necessity of being prepared for the coming 
of the Lord. Its destructive effects have not been confined to particular 
classes or professions of our fellow citizens. It has raged indiscrimi- 
nately amongst all : but its malignity has been felt in a more special 
manner by the ministers of the altar, and those especially, who have been 
called by their station and nmnexion with the Laity, committed to their 
care, to expose themselves continually, in cases and places of the greatest 
danger, and to the most infections virulence of the disorder. Since its 



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764 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

first appcanmce in the year 17^ the Amcricui Cburcb htu suffered, br 
tMi disease alone, the loss of eight of the inost useful, ft in every respect, 
most valuable pastors of souls, besides six or seven others, who contracted 
the disease and were reduced to the point of death, so that their re- 
covery appears rather a miracle of God's fatherly beneficence than the 
effect of natural causes. It is not possible for Religion to bear, in its 
present state in onr country, a cbntinuance of such heavy losses. The 
number of Clergymen is so reduced that many numerous Congregations 
are deprived of all spiritual assistance. Those in foreign countries, who 
are disposed to enter into and share in the labour of this vineyard of the 
Lord, are disheartened and deterred by the deaths, of which they have 
heard ; and there is no prospect before us, but an increase of the evil ft 
a still greater want of shepherds for your souls, if those whom you now 
have, continue, as heretofore, to run every danger. I am not ignorant 
that it is Ihe duty of a good pastor to lay down his life for his flock, 
but if it be foreseen, that by sacrificing himself for the sake of a few, 
he will leave alt, who survive him, without any spiritual assistance, and 
religion without any public ministry, ft that the scarcity of clergymen 
gives little hopes of any future successor, he then must endeavor to 
make the best provision he can, for all, in a case of so great extremity, 
for those, vrtio may be assaulted by the destructive disorder, & for those 
who ontlive it, for the first by affording them an opportunity of settling 
their consciences, & fortifying themselves, by the Sacraments against the 
terrors of an unhappy death, and for the others, by a prudent caution, 
in withdrawing themselves from the most dangerous scenes of infection. 
Wherefore, my dear Brethren, as you must be sensible of your peri- 
lous situation, and how much you are exposed to contract the disorder 
now raging in tfK city, it is incumbent on you, to remember the tmcertainty 
of your lives, ft to prepare yourselves for death in the same manner, as 
you vipould 00 your deathbeds. You can now do so with better recollec- 
tion, with more presence of mind and application, than when labouring 
under the pains & apprehensions caused by a grievous sickness. If any 
n^lect now to do so they can blame none but themselves, if in the day of 
disease and t^proaching death, they be deprived of that charitable asstst- 
ance, which is offered to them. Your pastor will remain & be ready 
to give his ministry to all of you, who will recur to it, and will 
strengthen you in the grace and love of God, ft best dispositions to stand 
before this awful tribunal, by committing your heart to the tribunal of 
reconciliation, and feeding you with the heavenly manna, as a passage 
from life to death. After affording sufficient opportunity for all to 
acquit thcinselvea of this duty, he must be governed by the rules of 
Christian prudence in preserving himself for the benefit of others; and 
I, as equally bound to take care of all the faithful diffused over the 
United States, cannot continue to see Congregati<ms, one after another, 
stripped of their pastors, and of all opportunities of attending on divine 
worship, by committing to every hazard of their lives, so many priests in 
the seaports, to which alone this dreadful visjtatica has been hitherto 



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Secular Clergy 765 

extended. After thii piblk notice, ytmr putor to bMnxttd to visit only 
those in their sickness, who have not had opportunities of recnrrinB to 
him before; & even these are exhorted to repent themselrs moat sin- 
cerely before God, & rather to trust thetoselves to His adorable mercy, than 
be perhaps the cause of depriving so many of their Brethren A fellow 
Christians of any share hereafter in the benefit of a Catholic ministry. 

My dear Children in Christ, I feel an ardent desire of being now 
amongst you, & sharing in all your dangers and anxiety. Nothing with- 
holds me, but the universal voice of all my Brethren in the priesthood, 
who consider it as improper and almost criminal for me to run into 
danger, before a Successor in my Episcopacy be consecrated This was 
to have taken place on the 8th of next month, the Feast of the Nativity 
of the Blessed Virgin, the great patroness of this Diocese; but the mis- 
fortune of Baltimore canses an unavoidable delay. Kay heaven in 
its mercy put a speedy end to that misfortune. Unite your daily prayers 
for this purpose ; and be asttired that I offer up my daily supplications in 
yonr behalf, and that all blessings here and hereafter may be vouchsafed 
. to you. 

•f J.. Bishop of Balfe*^ 
City of Washington, Aug. ^6, tSoo. 

The relations between the regular and secular clergy were 
generally speakii^, amicable and fraternal. The rise of the 
religious Orders for men before 1810 had necessitated a niling 
on the share of jurisdiction exercised over them by the bishops 
and by their own superiors. At the meeting in 1810, the resolu- 
tion which was passed by the five bishops, summed up the diffi- 
culties that had arisen up to that date.** This synodal article, the 
authenticity of which has been apparently questioned by the Jesuit 
historian Hughes,** formed the basis of the relation between the 
r^ular clergy and the bishops down to 1829, and around it some 
of the inevitable clashes between the seculars and the religious in 
Carroll's and Mar^chal's episcopates centred. Both these prelates 
had unfortunately to deal with religious superiors who failed to 
understand the conditions of church life in this country, as was 
the case with Charles Nealc and Grassi. Old World traditions, 
exemptions, rights, privileges and honours were boimd to cause 
trouble ; and it is for diat reason, not to mention others, that the 
American hierarchy in later years followed with much interest the 

" Baitimort Catktinl Ankkm, Cut lo-Gi; printed In tbc Rtitwrcttt; voL is, 
pp. tio-ija. 

■■ Ct. Gtint*. Bgau, p. 4<. 
■ Of. cH., L t., p. »6S. 



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766 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

last chronicled stage of this time-worn discussion when Vat:^;haii 
of Salford fought his chief's fight in the centre of Christendom. 
In spite of the difficulties caused by many of those who came 
from other dioceses to that of Baltimore during Carroll's episco- 
pate, there is a bright and cheerful aspect to the history of the 
American secular clergy, and that a^KCt coincides with the story 
of St. Mary's Seminary, during these years. To know the ooe 
is to know the other ; and fortunate indeed it was for the nascent 
American Church that the ideas of the priestly calling were im- 
planted on the heart of Catholic America by the Congr^^atioa of 
St. Sulpice. 



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CHAPTER XXXVII 

CHURCH DISaPLINE AND THE LAITY 

(1790-1815) 

Is it possible ta give a complete picture of the Catholic life 
and action of the laity during the twenty-6ve years of Carroll's 
episcopate in the See of Baltimore? Is it possible to separate 
fact from fancy in the documentary remains that are extant, 
and describe, as Galliard Hunt has done in his charming Lift in 
America One Hundred Years Ago, with the same delightful 
minuteness of detail all the various aspects of Catholic family life, 
with its social, political, devotional, literary, and charitable sides 
clearly brought out from the somewhat cold picture of Carroll's 
day? Unfortunately, it is not possible. Most of the documentary 
materia] at our disposal comes from Dr. Carroll himself or from 
the priests in the missions, and their minds were preoccupied with 
the spiritual and disciplinary aspects of the life of their people. 
The books written by those who were able to appreciate Catholic 
activities, such as Abbe Robin's Nouveaux Voyages and Luigi 
Castellani's Viaggia, are not much concerned with the social or 
religious activities- of the American Catholics at that time. Only 
in the dry-as-dust reports sent to Propaganda do we find anythii^ 
for our purpose, and with these sources, truncated as they are, 
we must needs be content. 

The first of these is Dr. Carroll's Letter and Report of 1785. 
The facts contained in these lengthy documents are of two 
kinds: his own observations on the status of Catholics at that 
time, and his version of the information which had been sent to 
him by the priests in the various Catholic centres. It is not 
improbable that a man of methodic habits in his correspondence, 
as Carroll was in these earlier years, would outline for his own 
guidance the topics he wished to touch upon in this Brst direct 
communication between the new Republic and Rome. But neither 
Carroll nor any of the other members of the su[q)ressed Society 
767 



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768 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

seem to have remembered the necessi^ of handing down to the 
generations to come an exact, accurate, and complete historical 
accoant of die Church in the rising American nation. Even 
Joseph Mosley, who had a sense of historical detail far above his 
fellows, stops with the story of his own missionary difficulties 
and gives us little information about the institutional life of the 
Catholics in the nation as a whole. It is only long after the older 
men had passed away, and when he himself was preoccupied 
with one of the largest and most difficult dioceses in the United 
States, that Bishop Bnit£ of Vincennes (1834-1839) projected a 
work, called Catkolie America, which, however, never went fur- 
ther than the barest outlines. But even this work, judging by 
the plan which he has left behind, would not be of much help for 
our purpose. The general facts of American Catholic history are 
not indeed of a nugatory value; but it is the inner life of the 
members of the Church in the United States which we would 
prefer to see described in these pages. It is the hidden life in 
Christ, the action of the Spirit of God on the Catholic flocks, 
the intimate and sacred ties that bound Catholic to Catholic, and 
laity to clergy, that would mean so much in the personal story of 
these all-important years before Carroll's death, which shoubl 
be delineated in all their charm and with all the force of thetr 
exan^le for tiw Catholics of later years. But it is idle to attempt 
this more elusive aspect of Catholic American history with the 
documents at our disposal. Only a few high-lights remain to the 
picture which has already been blurred and partially obscured 
by artists and amateurs who have attempted to restore the whole 
canvas. John Grassi's little volume — the first American Catholic 
history — the Notieie varie st4llo Stato presente della ReHgtcne 
degli Stati Uniti, though written here, was completed in Italy 
and published at Milan in 1819.* Grassi also is over-influenced by 
the material facts of our Catholic life at the time ; and even these 
are based on secondary sources. Had we a series of documents, 
similar to Carroll's Relatio of 1785, between that date and Flaget's 
Relatio of 1815,* the ta^ would be easy. Carroll complained more 
than once that the French ecclesiastics in the country bothered 

> Cf. Puioiti, Thi CalhOit Church im Awutict (iBi»), in tbe Cthotic HutunnJ 
X*vUtr, *tiL 1I. pp. jei-jte. 

* PfioMd io tb* CttktHe HUttrifl Btvitm, t«L 1, PP- a«l-li9. 



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The Laity 769 

him continually with long letters with minute details on problems 
of church administration; but this faculty never seems to have 
been used in the larger field of Catholic life and action, social, 
political and religious. The picture given us, even by such a 
master hand as that of John Gilmary Shea, is incoherent; for 
the Catholic laity of the time were assuredly doing more and plan- 
nit^ more for God's Church than the movements for inde- 
pendence frcan church aothori^ with whkh the documents 
abound. 

If Dr. Carroll's impressions of 1785 are to be followed, then 
it would appear that the chief problem of his people was the dvil 
disability under which they were living after the close of the 
Revolution. Carroll wrote two years before the passage of the 
Federal Constitution (1787), and he contrasts the period previous 
to the Revolution with the time of which he speaks in his Relatio 
of 1785. Before 1776, Catholics were l^;ally permitted freedom 
of worship in two States only, Maryland and Pennsylvania — and 
even in these States were deprived of the franchise. After 1776 
Catholics could, unmolested, assemble for Divine worship in any 
of the Thirteen States. In most places, however, before the 
adoption of the Constitution, they were not admitted to any office 
in the States, unless they renounced all foreign jurisdiction, civil 
and ecclesiastical. In four States, Catholics were admitted to 
all the rights of citizenship — Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, 
and Virginia. There were rumours current that the old civil dis- 
abilities would be revived when it came to planning a Constitution 
for the Republic, but Dr. Carroll cherished the hope "that so great 
a wrong will not be done us." He knew his priests and people 
well enough to assert that the greatest evils, even that of perse- 
cution, would be borne cheerfully by the Catholics in the United 
States, rather than a sacrifice be made of their devotion and loyalty 
to the Holy See. Their whole future before the Government lay 
in a just and reasonable adjustment of their devotion to the Holy 
Father, and their duties as citizens of a Republic which had re- 
nounced all allegiance to foreign powers and courts. From the 
framework of public affairs here, he wrote, all foreign juris- 
diction will be objectionable to the Americans. He feared that the 
old hue and cry of "double allegiance," which has always been the 
shibboleth of political Protestantism, might be raised in the infaid 



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770 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Rqmblic, to the great detriment of the Church's peace and pros- 
perity ; and Dr. Carroll voiced the unanimous desire of the Catho- 
lics that "no pretext be given to the enemies of our religion b> 
accuse us of depending unnecessarily on a foreign authority." 
SooM leading Catholic gentlemen who had been and who were 
then in the Assemblies of Maryland and Pennsylvania, as elected 
rqiresentatives, had approached Dr. Carroll on the idvisabiliqr 
of presenting a Memorial to this effect to His Holiness, but be 
counselled them to wait until he had explained matters to Rome. 
The ideal system for the Catholics to live under was to provide 
in every way that both the Faith in its integrity and their solemn 
duty as citizens be protected. The Holy See was watching the 
new Rqmblic with a lovii^ eye, and this privilege of electing a 
bishop was granted in the case of Bishop Carroll, Bishop-elect 
Graessl, and Bishop Neale, the founders of the American 
hierard^. Civil disabilities were not automatically removed in 
the States by the Federal Constitution of 1787. To those who 
were elected or chosen to hold office oaths which Catholics could 
not conscientiously take were administered in some of the 
States. There was a reluctanw in many parts of the country to 
forfeit old prejudices by admitting Catholics to equality before 
the law. However the main groups of Catholics lived in States 
where equality was practiced — Maryland, Pennsylvania, Debt- 
ware, Virginia, and Kentucky ; and New York, once the hotbed 
of bigotry, abolished its own test oath in 1806 to allow Francis 
Cooper, the first Catholic so elected, to take his seat in the 
Assembly. 

That there had been a serious falling away from the Faith in 
the families of the first Maryland colonists is evident from Dr. 
Carroll's admission that only a few of the leading wealthy families 
had remained faithful to the Church. The greater part of the 
Catholics outside the cities were planters ; and those living in the 
chief centres of pc^nilation were merchants or mechanics. Tlie 
piety of the CathoUcs at that time (1785) had reached a low ebb. 
They were for the most part careful not to neglect their spiritual 
duties, but they tacked fervour. This was due to the fact that 
many of the congregatirais heard the Word of God once a month 
or once every two months. The dearth of priests (there were 34 
at the time in Maryland and Pennsylvania) made it diflkolt to 



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The Laity 77 1 

administer to the faithful. Dr. Carroll drew a sharp contrast 
between those who were born and reared here and those "who in 
great numbers are flowing in from different countries of Europe." 
Many of the native-born Catholics n^lected their Easter duties, 
and "you can scarcely find any among the newcomers who dis- 
charge this duty of religion, and there is reason to fear that their 
example will be very pernicious, especially in the commercial 
centres." It must be admitted that before the Revolutionary 
War, the Catholic Church lost many of her children in the thir- 
teen original States. How heavy that loss was can never be 
known with anything like historical accuracy; but the number of 
Catholics at this date (1785), 25,000, can only be a minor put of 
the hundreds of thousands of Catholics who emigrated to the 
English colonies during the two centuries preceding the Revolu- 
tion. It is true that those who came from the British Isles 
experienced here, with very n^ligible exception, the same unholy 
persecution against their Faith which had prevailed there from 
Elizabeth's reign ; but there was no open persecution, unless one 
sees in the hanging of John Ury a vicarious punishment inflicted 
on the Catholic priesthood. The chief element in the loss must 
be attributed to the want of churches, to the absence of Catholic 
education, and to the scarcity of priests. The Catholic Faith was 
despised and in some cases hated ; and without any of those moral 
supports necessary for the continuance of Catholic life, thou- 
sands, perhaps more than thousands, drifted away from the 
religion of their forefathers. Catholics who settled in the farm- 
ing regions, far removed from avenues of travel and from easy 
access to the cities, were gradually lost to the Faith by the dead 
weight of spiritual inertia. Catholic life can and does flourish in 
the midst of poverty, even of abject poverty ; hut its light flickers 
and dies out in the midst of ignorance. Then, as now, the main 
hopes of the Church lay in the education of the little ones ; and the 
contrast between the growing numbers of Catholics who came to 
the United States during Carroll's episcopate (i790-i8i5), and 
the scarcity of the schools tells the story too graphically for one 
to deny the actual status of the Church in those critical years. 

American life, moreover, was an uncouth one at the time. It 
was the pioneer period of the eastern States; and life, while 
romantic, was devoid to a great extent of those nicer traits of 



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77* The Life and Times of John Carroll 

social intercourse, which make for refinement. Abuses of a 
moral nature were to be seen in many of the cities and in some 
cases even more so in the rural sections. There was a laxity in the 
relationship between the young people of opposite sexes, and Dr. 
Carroll is forced to confess that Catholics had also allowed their 
sons and daughters more freedom "than is compatible with 
chastity in mind and body." There was among his spiritual chil- 
dren "too great fondness for dances and similar amusements, 
and an incredible eagerness, especially in girls, for reading love- 
stories which are brought over in great quantities from Europe." 
The lack of effort on the part of parents in educating their chil- 
dren, and the deplorable moral standards allowed to exist among 
the Catholic negro slaves, are also mentioned in his Report as 
causes for uneasiness to the pastors of souts. To quote but one 
witness, we find Father Badin writing to Carroll, from Bards- 
town, in 1809: "More disorders in all the congr^ations than 
we had for several years together before this epoch — quarrels, 
blasphemies, imprecations, violences, drunkeimess even among 
females, spending days and nights in revelling — the evil must be 
great indeed ... the love of pleasure creeps in like a canker 
and in proportion to its progressing, devotion, retreats, and re- 
ligious practices dwindle." * It might be unfair to take the almost 
unbelievable immorality in Kentucky, as described by Spalding in 
his Sketches, as symptomatic of the entire country ; but one thing 
is certain : the priests were ministering to a rot^h, and in some 
cases, a disappointing population. Added to this, was the fact 
that the Catholics, in equal proportion to their non-Catholic fellow 
citizens in the Republic, were experiencing the first results of their 
very successful struggle for self-determination. Keen-sighted 
observers such as Fenwick the Dominican, and Kohlmann the 
Jesuit, point out as signs of the times the small number of yout^ 
men and women who felt a desire for the religious state. Fen- 
wick wrote to Grassi in February, 1815 : "What can you do or 
expect from young harebrained Americans . . . intoxicated 
with the sound of liberty and equality;"* and Bishop CarroD 
notes, in 1811, that "the American youth have an almost in- 



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The Laity 773 

pindble repognaoce to the eccle»astical state." * Shall we admit 
that it was only after the Catholic boy in the United States had 
become leavened with the fervour and devotion of the sons of 
Patrick and of Boniface that real Catholic life saw its rise here 
in America? There was also the national or racial problem in 
the lay body with which the leaders were obliged to deal. The 
racial problem never troubled the authorities of the American 
Church. Catholicism is always one — one in spirit, one in truth, 
one in doctrine, and in discipline; and the racial antagonisms 
which appeared at the very outset of our national Catholic life 
were of such a nature that the best healer of all — time — would 
eventually settle them. The national problem had then, as ever, 
two aspects : one which r^;arded it from within ; the other, which 
regarded it from without. There was danger of disagreement 
between Baltimore and Rome, although at length both saw the 
problem in the same l^ht. America, to be America, to admit 
what was even then apparent to all, could not be made up of 
juxtaposed little nations, America, to follow the providential 
guidance which had been bestowed upon its great leaders, should 
become one nation, made up of peoples speaking the same tongue, 
enjoying the same privileges, and living for the same purpose: 
the glory and the prestige of the new Republic The Church in 
America, to fulfil to the utmost its destiny as the most compact 
religious body in the nation, should be American in its appeal and 
American in its sentiments and its spirit. How well John Carroll 
guided the Bark of Peter in this land during these days when so 
much was inchoate and insecure, is his greatest monument. There 
may have been moments when, to the minds of superiors, 
especially those of the Congregation of Propaganda Fide, this 
national spirit appeared to be approachit^ a clash with the uni- 
versality of the Church's polity. There were moments when 
the superiors of the Church in America lost patience and showed 
it, at the conservatism of the central authority and at its apparent 
inability to see the American Church nationally, and not as an 
appanage of any one European Church, But these were only 
ii^tive misunderstandings, and from Antonellt's day down to our 
own time, Rome and the official Ministries of the Roman Court 

' Bailit, op. at., p. ft. 



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774 rfc* Life and Times of John Carroll 

have never been out of sympathy with American idealism. The 
proUem then, as now, was the line of demarcatioa between the 
spiritual and the temporal. It was not a question of the Church 
and State with all its thorny by-paths, but solely a question of 
administration. And it is significant to note that in the first con- 
flicts which arose, the* cause was not the inability of our spiritual 
chiefs across the seas to understand our singular situation in the 
midst of r^niblican institutions, but sheer inability on the part of 
some American Catholic laymen to recognize the limits of their 
own privileges within the fold. The Catholic Church during 
Carroll's episcopate was indeed a pusillus grex in the ever-broad- 
ening acres of the young Republic. Its influence as a humao 
agent in the moral and social uplift of the people was a very wreak 
one. Higher education and scholarship were not prized by the 
Americans of that day, and although the most educated gentlemen 
of the day were the sons of wealthy Catholic planters who had 
studied at Lijge, Bruges, and Paris, their social impress upon the 
times was a faint one. They could not mingle with their fellow 
citizens with that feeling of equality which begets social and 
intellectual intercourse. One source of influence there was which 
might be good, bad, or indifferent as the person in question real- 
ized the obligation of his or her Faith : and that was mixed mar- 
riages. There is no mention of this problem, which has always 
been a serious one in the canonical legislation of the Church, in 
Dr. Carroll's Report of 1785 ; but after that time there is scarcely 
a letter to Rome which does not ask for a stipulated number of 
dispensations for mixed marriages, and every rq>ort to Rome 
contains the note of fear on this score. 

Between this Report and that of April 23, 1792, giving ao 
account of the Synod of 1791, Dr. Carroll was busy visiting his 
vast diocese and learning at close range the good and the bad 
influences at work among his people. There is no doubt that 
the twenty-two priests who gathered at Baltimore in November, 
1791 — some to see Bishop Carroll for the first time — came pre- 
pared with reports on the condition of Catholic life and activity 
in their districts. Not all their proceedings were put into writing ; 
and less, even, was printed than might be eiq>ected from so 
important an assembly. The administration of the Sacrameott 
of B^)tism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penace, Extreme 



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Uncdon, and Matrimony, wa* discussed; and certain definite 
regulations laid down for the uniformity of discipline through- 
out the diocese. But in none of the printed Statutes of the Synod 
do we find explicit statements as to the condition of Catholic life 
in the country at that time. In his Report of April 23, 1792, Dr. 
Carroll merely outlines the purpose of the first National Council: 
to regulate the governance of the diocese and the discipline of the 
clergy; and to brii^ about uniformity of ritual in this country. 
The most emphatic part of the printed Statuta has to deal with the 
maintenance of the clergy. When the Synod was closed, how- 
ever. Dr. Carroll issued a short Pastoral to the Faithful on Chris- 
tian Marriage, and the principal point dealt with in this circular 
letter was the fact that all Catholic marriages were to take place 
in the presence of the priest. "It is judged necessary to say 
this, because lately some of the congr^ation have been so r^ard- 
less of their duty in this respect as to recur to the ministry of 
those whom the Catholic Church never honored with the commis- 
sion of administering marriages." All those who had been guilty 
of this violation of church law were to be refused absolution nntil 
"they shall agree to make public acknowledgment of their dis- 
obedience before the assembled congregation, and b^ pardon for 
the scandal they have given." This severe punishment was the 
general rule during Dr. Carroll's episcopate, and indeed it sur- 
vives in some places almost down to the present day ; for there are 
Catholics liivng to-day who can remember such scenes of recon- 
ciliation taking place in the Church on Sunday mornings before 
or after Holy Mass. As an example of the spirit which animated 
Dr. Carroll in his relations with the laity, we cannot do better 
ttian reproduce his Lenten Pastoral of 1792: 

JOHN 

hj DivjiM Permission and witli the approbation of tbe Holy See, 

Biabop of Baltimore 

To my dearly btloved Brethren, the Fottkful of my DioetJi, Htaith mid 

the Blessing of (htr Lord: 

The approaching icason of our aolenm yearly Lent revivei, dear Bretii- 

ren, the ronembrance of that lolicitude, which ha« been always cxprested 

by tbe Church for its due and faithful observance. Coniecrated ai this 

greal Fast is, by the example of oar Blessed RedeenKr: instituted by 

His Apostles, and continued thro' so many ages, in the Catholic Ontrch, 

rl has acqaired a most venerable antbority, which renders it incumbent 



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776 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

ra tbe Pastors of Christ's flock to be ever watchful for the preservation 
of so sacred a pMtit of ecclesiastical discipline; and on you my Brethren, 
to observe punctually the rules of rigid temperance and self denial pre- 
scribed during its continuance. The primitive and most etninent Fathers 
admonish us to look on this Fast, as a penitential remedy against our 
daily transgressions, and one ot the most effectual means by iirtiich, 
becoming imitators of Jesus Christ, we may come likewise to a felloW' 
ship of his sufferings and be made comformable to his death. — Phil. III. 
10. For Christ cruciBed is the great example, to which it bdioves us 
to turn ow eyes, especially in these days of public penitence. He spent 
His life in fasting, in suffering, in self-denials; and thus He entered 
into glory; nor must we expect to obtain it on any other terms. Christ, 
says the Apostle St. Peter, suffered for us, leaving you an example, that 
yon should follow his steps. — I Peter, II. 21 ; In which words we are 
admonished not only to submit patiently to the hardships, and afflictions 
which happen by divine permission, but likewise to take up the Cross, 
and lay it on ourselves. It must not be enough for the true Christian 
to be led in the steps of Christ, but we must follow them. 

This voluntary mortification and self-denial is essential to the char- 
acter of a disciple of our crucified Lord and Master. If any man, says 
He, will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, 
and follow Me.— Matthew, XVI. 24. This is a duty of all times and 
seasons; for our Lord says elsewhere — if any man will ccaae after Me, 
let him take up his cross daily. — Luke IX. 23. But in these days of 
Lent, more especially, we are commanded to use a severity of discipline 
over ourselves; and this for many important reasons; isl. Because the 
Church governed by the wisdom of its Author and Head, Jesus Chrbt, 
knows that many of Her Children would neglect and disregard all self- 
mortification, unless a certain time and manner for the exercise of it were 
more particularly enjoined; 2ndly. Because religious fasting disposes our 
souls to conceive lively sentiments of compunction, suitable to the aimi- 
versary commemoration, which happens in the last days of Lent, of 
Christ's sufferings and death for us; jrdiy. That we may be excited to 
receive worthily at Easter, with the forgiveness of sin, and with the 
grace to amend our lives, the adorable Body and Blood of Jesns Christ 
in his sacrament of Love. 

Wherefore, my dear Brethren, enter on this yearly Fast with a fixed 
purpose both of fasting, and of attending the exercises of Piety and 
Religion, without which it will not be available to your salvation. Our 
heavenly Master teaches us, that some disorders of the soul, some 
devils, cannot be cast out but in prayer and fasting.— Mark IX. 26. To 
whom of us then are not both of these necessary, in order to subdue our 
domestic enemies, the passions, which transport and seduce us? Be 
watchful over your irregular appetites, let not your sensuality, or the 
examples of others, withdraw you frtxn the obedience due to the vener- 
able authority, from which the ordinance of Lent is derived. Let not 
every trivial inconvenience be deemed a sufficient cause of dispettsation 



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The Laity 777 

(roRi a law, having for its authort the Apostlet of Chritt; and made 
sacred by its perpetuity through all ages and nationi of Chrtatendooi. 
"There is no land," sayi a very ancient and Holy Doctor of the 
Church, "no continent, no city, no nation — in which this fast is not 
proclaimed. Armies, travellers, sailors, merchants, though far from 
home, everywhere hear the solemn promulgation, and receive it with 
joy." — S. Basil, Horn. On Fasting. In those times, the discipline of kee^ 
iiV lent was not only generally received, but much more rigorous, than 
at present ; not that Christians had more sins to expiate, or stood more 
in need of appeasing the wrath of God; but because they meditated oftener 
on the truths of the gospel and felt a greater anxiety to appease God's 
ofEended justice. Be you also alarmed by the same thought (i Peter IV.), 
dear Brethren, and observe with puictuality the measure of fasting, 
which is prescribed; so as to transgress neither in the quantity or 
quality of your meals. 

To this act of self-denial, join other means of appeasing God's anger 
and drawing blessings on yourselves, on the whole Church, and on man* 
kind. Besides greater assiduity in fervent prayer, both public and pri- 
vate; in serious and frequent meditation on the momentous truths of 
religion; in reading those books which will strengthen you in the 
principles of faith and habits of virtue; fail not moreover to perform 
some works of charity; and relieve distress according to the ^ility given 
you by Almighty God and wherever you find objects needing your benevo- 
lence. Without charity, fasting is in vain. New, says the Apostle, he 
that has the substance of this world, and shall see his brother in need, 
and shall shtit np his bon-els from him, how doth the charity of God 
abide in him? — I John, III. 15. Wherefore, that this season of Lent 
may be to every one of yon an acceptable time, a day of salvation, a Cor. 
VI, 6, 2, as I certainly beseech the Father of Mercies that it may, let it 
be attended with all those exercises of religion, and virtues, which I 
have now recommended. Be mindful of the advice of the Prince of the 
Apostles, so that the fruit of yottr fastitm be such as he expresses it in 
the following words : Christ having suffered in the flesh, hath ceased from 
sins, that now we may live the rest of this time in the flesh, not after the 
desires of men, but according to the will of God; For the time past is 
sufficient for them to have walked in riotousness, lusts, excess of wine, 
revellings, banquetting.— I Peter IV. I. 

My dear Brethren, have not these irregularities been the employment 
of your former years? Were they not devoted to forbidden and shame- 
fnl pleasures, to gross intemperance, and to the interests only of this 
world? Ah I let those unhappy years suffice for iniquity; let this Lent 
be the ceasing of sin, and the beginning of a life of perfect obedience to 
the law of Godl O Lord, grant this blessing to thy people, grant 
this consolation to him, whom thou hast made accountable for dieir 
souls I 

Having reminded you, my dear Brethren, of the respect, with whidi 
)'oa ought to submit to the commandments of the Church for the otMerv- 



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778 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

ance ol I.ait; and exhorted yoa to the practice of diofc TiTttKs, wliMi 
will render yonr fasting profitable; it remains for me to inform yon, in 
what that fasting coiuitti, which is preKribed at thii time of pobUc 
penance. They who are acquainted with the rvoroos discipline fomerly 
observed, or even with that which is still used by many Quistian nations, 
will find a great mitigation in favor of this Diocese. Necessity canpds 
the mitigation on the first settlement of our country, and hitherto it has 
not seemed advisable to restrain it Wherefore all are to conform them- 
selves to the following regulations if they wish to comply with tbdr 
duty of kecpbg Lent Persons of a competent age, that is who have 
ctanpleted their twenty-first year, and who, for special reasons are not 
dispensed from the common obligation, are ist, to abstain from flesh 
meat during the whole Lent, unless the Pastors of the Church should 
see a jnst and reasonable cause to make an exception of certain days, 
as will be mentioned hereafter. Necessity and custom have authorized 
amcHigst us the usage of hc^'s lard instead of butter in preparing fish, 
vegetables, 8k. 3dly. They are only to take one meal each day excepting 
Sundays, jdly. The meal allowed on fast days is not to be taken till 
towards noon. 4thly. At this meal, if on any days permissions should be 
granted for eating flesh, both flesh and fish are not to be used at the 
same time. Sthly. A small refreshment, commonly called collation is al- 
lowed in the evening. No general rule, as to the quantity of food, at 
this time is, or can be made. But the practice of the most regular 
Christians is never to let it exceed the fourth part of an ordinvT sap- 
per. 6thly. The quality of food allowed at a collation is, b this Dio- 
cese, bread, butter, cheese, alt kinds of fmit, salads, vegetables, and fish, 
though not warm, tmt fish previously prepared, and grown cold. Milk, 
tggi, and flesh meat are prohibited. Tthly. General usage has made it 
lawful to drink in die morning some warm liquid, as tea, coffee, or thin 
chocolate, made with water, to which a few drops of milk tnay be 
added, serving rather to colour the liquids, than make tbetn substantial 
food. 8thly. The following persons are exempted from the obligadon of 
fasting: young persons under twenty-one years of age; tlw sick, preg- 
nant women, or giving suck to infants; diqr who are obliged to hard 
labour; all who, through weakness cannot fast without great prejudice. 

Stich, my dear Brethren, are the rules by which you are to be governed 
in your fasts; and which I trust, yoo will religiously follow, so that 
your example may not contribute to introduce any further relaxation in 
the venerable discipline of the Church. It is indeed more particularly, 
the duty of Pastors to watch over its preservation ; but they are like- 
wise bound to moderate its severity on just and necessary occanons; 
estimating on one hand the usefulness and sanctity of the institution of 
Lent; and on die other, the ability of the faithful, and their mews tff 
providing substitutes for the nourishment pr<rfubttcd during it, by the 
general law of the Churdi. 

Wherefore, having taken all these things into ray serious consideration, 
and consulted many of my Rererend Brethren in different parts of my 



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Th€ Laity 779 

Diocese; I hereby make known that daring the enniing Lent, I grant 
permtision to all the {ahhfnl to eat meat once on each of the following 
days, th«t is on the Rr>t Stmday in Lent, and all other Sundays, exc^ 
Palm Sunday; and on every Saturday, except during the firit and last 
week of Lent With respect to every other duty, which has been recom* 
mended for this time of penance and public atonenKnt, I coifide, and 
pray that you may redouble your solicitude to perform them, I beseech 
you. Brethren, by tiK mercy of God, that you present your bodies a living 
sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, your reasonable service: And be not 
conformed to this world: but be ye reformed in the newness of your 
mind; that yon may prove what is the good and the acceptable, and the 
perfect will of God.— Romans XIL 1, 2. 
The Grace of our l,ord Jesos Christ be with you all. Amen.* 

The same year (May 28, 1792), Bishop Carroll published the 
Pastoral to the Catholic laity making known to them the rules 
adopted by the Synod/ This Pastoral explains much that is 
implied in the Statuta, and emphasis is placed upon the necessity 
of a proper Catholic education of the young. The attention of 
the Faithful was called to Georgetown Collie and to the Semi- 
nary, both of which had just been founded, and the support of 
the priests in their ministry is also m^^. Many churches were 
without chalices, without the decent and necessary furniture for 
the altars, without a proper supply of vestments and altar linens. 
Moreover, there were congr^;ations, rich enough to support a 
resident priest, where Mass was celebrated but once a month, and 
these were ui^;ed to call meetings at once for the purpose of 
arranging maintenance for a pastor. There was a spirit of in- 
difference, especially among the native-born, towards permanenqr 
of Catholic worship.' 

Twenty years, however, were to pass before a National Council 
was to meet. In 1810, after the consecration of his suffragans, 
there was nothing more, as we have seen, than an informal series 
of meetings between Archbishop Carroll, his coadjutor Keale, and 
the three new bishops, Cheverus, ^an and Flaget. Again, the 
subjects discussed give us scarcely any glimpse beneath the sur- 
face of Catholic life. The admiaistratton of the Sacrament of 
Marriage had always caused trouble, and tbe bishops felt that 

• BtOimort Cltttiroi Ardtkru, Cam i»Ji; prinUd tn tbi Ritttn}ni, vid. Ix, 



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78o The Life and Times of John Carroll 

it would take titne before their flocks would be ready to accept 
a general rule for its celebration. We have the key to this diffi- 
culty in one of Dr. Carroll's letters to Plowden (Feb. 12, 1803) : 

Here our Catholics arc so mixed with Protestants in all the intercourse 
of dvil society and business public and private, that the abuse of inter- 
marriages is almost universal and it surpasses my ability to devise any 
effectual bar against it. No general prohibition can be exacted without 
reducing many of the faithful to live in a state of celibacy, and in 
sundry places there would be no choice for tbem of Catholic matches; 
and tho' sometimes, good consequences follow these marriages, yet, often 
thro' the discordancy of the religious sentiments of parents, their chil' 
dren grow up without attachment to any, and become an easy prey to 
infidelity or indifferentism, if you will allow the word.* 

The fourth of these regulations, which has already been cited, 
gives us a closer insight into the life of the people at this period 
since it is in fact a resume of the abuses which had crept into 
the fold: 

The Pastors of the faithful are earnestly directed to discourage more 
and more from the pulpit, and in their public and private conferences 
an attachment to entertainments and diversions of a dangerous ten- 
dency to morality, such ai to frequent theatres, and cherish a fondness 
for dancing assemblies. They likewise must often warn their congrega- 
tioni against the reading of books dangerous to faith and morals and 
especially a promiscuous reading ef all kinds of novels. The faithful 
themselves should always remember the severity with which the Churd), 
guided by the Holy Ghost, constantly prohibited writings calculated to 
diminish the respect due to our Holy Religion,^" 

A last resolution placed the ban of the Church on all Catholics 
known to be Freemasons. To those who are aware that, two 
years previous to this ban on the Freemasons, the Ursuline Nuns 
of Nantes wrought a beautiful Masonic apron of satin, with 
gold and silver mountings, for George Washii^ton, this r^ula- 
tion will appear curious. From the year 1735 down to the end 
of the century. Freemasonry was prohibited by many of the 
European Govenmients : Holland ( 1 735 ) , Sweden { 1 738) , 
Bavaria (1784), and Austria (1795). The earliest papal pro- 
notmcements gainst Freemasonry were those by Clement XII 



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The Laity 781 

(1738). and Benedict XV (1751). The condemnation of the 
lodges by Pope Qement left no freedom to Catholics in the 
matter, and since that time Catholics becoming members of the 
Masonic societies are excommunicated. In Carroll's day there 
seems to have been some doubt whether the Qementine order 
bound the Church universally, and even in our own times there 
are some misgivings on this point, since in certain parts of the 
American continent, the two ideals — Catholic and Masonic— are 
not considered incompatible.^' The situation in Bishop CarroU't 
life time is given to us in his letter to a layman, dated Baltimore, 
January 7, 1794: 

Your favour of September 25, 1793, would hive been answered by 
the return of the bearer, had I sot been prevented by uninterrupted occu- 
pation in the morning, subsequent to its delivery. 

Severe and heavy censures, even that of excommunication, have been 
denounced by two successive Popes against all persons who continue in 
or join the Society and frequent the lodgts of Free Masons, and the 
reason alleged is that their meetings are (found by experience) to be 
destructive to morality, and to diminish very much the habit of religious 
exercises. I do not pretend that these decrees are received generally by 
the Church, or have full authority in this diocese; but they ought to be 
a very serious warning to all good Christians not to expose themselves 
to dangers which the Supreme head of the Church has judged to be so con- 
tagious. I myself likewise, have been well informed by those who have 
retired from the meetings of the Free Masons that their principal induce- 
ment was to shun the dangers of immorality which attended those meet- 
ings. They did not accuse the institution of masonry as having inunor- 
ality for its object, but they assured me that intemperate drinking, obscene 
conversation, and indelicate songs, to say nothing of other vices, were 
almost always the consequence of holding a lodge; and that there were 
ceremonies not very consistent with decency practiced on certain occa- 
sions. Besides these general reasons, I have heard often that the most 
improper meetings of all were those which are held in the small country 
villages, or at solitary taverns ; that in general, diey were rendezvous 
for intemperance and the vices which follow it. Now the knowledge of 
these things may have been the inducement with Mr. Boarman for 
deciding on your case, and if he really knew that you exposed yourself 
without necessity, to the above dangers, he cannot be blamed for his 
ctmducL 

However that may be, allow me, yaw pastor, to recommend to you 
and others of our Church to live mindful of the advice of the apostle, 
virork your salvation with fear and trembling, and therefore not to trust 

" Cf> Rtir»rehei, veL xxt, pp. lo-ji. 



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782 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

to youricIvM so far u to mix in societies which the first pastors and 
the most eminent prelates of the Church have deemed to be hnrtful to pietj 
and religion. It Is alleged, I know, by friends of this institution that it is 
directed to most hnmane and benevolent purposes, and from their con- 
current testimony I have no doubt but that some objects oi this natnre 
are contemplated bj it; but it onght not to be enough t<x a Christian 
that good may result from it; he should likewise have well grounded 
reasons to fear that by becoming a member he will not be led himself 
nor be the cause of leading others into vicious dissipation. 

Such. Sir, is the opinion, which after much dispassionate and anxious 
inquiry and much observation I have formed of freemasonry. I therefore 
conclude with earnestly advising you and every other member of onr 
Church to avoid forming or continuing any connectim with it.'* 

Durii^ these last five years of Dr. Carroll's episcopate, Qic 
evolution of church discipline in this country reached one of 
its most serious phases, that of open rebellion led by some of 
the laity in the lai^er cities against the most essentia] part of 
all canonical legislation — the spiritual authority of the bishop 
over the pastorates within his diocese. This rebellion is known 
in American Catholic annals as the Trustee System. The right 
to administer ecclesiastical property belongs to the Church. This 
right can be delegated to others, cleric or lay, as accessory admin- 
istrators responsible to her for their management of such prop- 
erty." Their deputies are known as ckurck wardens, sidesmen, 
fabrica, fabrique de Feglise, or as trustees. From the very 
earliest times the revenues of the Church were divided in three 
parts, for the suiqwrt of the dergy, for the poor, and for the 
upkeep of the church itself. That part of the revenues set aside 
for the upkeep of the church itself was called the fabric of the 
church, and in one form or another down the centuries, the 
Church has allowed those who contributed to this a certain 
amount of responsibility in the distribution of such funds. 
This system was universal in the Church down to the sixteenth 
century and was recc^nized by the Council of Trent Id almost 
all Catholic countries today the old system of the fabriqne de 
Vlglise still prevails. From the time of the Reformation the 
system died out among the Catholics of Great Britain and Ireland, 

■■ Ballfmert Ctthtdral AtcUvti, Lttltr-Saoki, vol. 1, p. 1091 prisud In the 
lUitarchtt, toL xxv. pp. SJ-se. 

■■ Cf. Tavntdh, Tk* Law of tk* Chmrch, pp. iiT-iiS. Lcodon, igcC 



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The Laity 783 

and it has not been in general usage in these countries since that 
time. In the United States, lay trustees are found at the very 
beginning o£ the organized Church, and the system of trustees 
has prevailed down to the present; it has been recognized by the 
Plenary Councils, particularly by the Third Plenary Council of 
Baltimore. The Board of Trustees is composed of the Pastor 
as Chairman or President, and by a certain number of priests 
and laymen elected by the congregation. In no way are these 
laymen empowered to interfere in or to direct the spiritual rights 
of the pastor on the religious life of the people. It required a 
goodly number of years to bring about a proper adjustment of 
the relations between the lay trustees as representing the ma- 
joriQr, at least, of the congr^ation, and the pastors of the 
parishes, representing the bishops of the dioceses. Practically 
speaking, all the dissensions which arose in the system during 
Dr. Carroll's episcopate (17^)0-1815} came from the presumption 
on the part of certain trustees in New York, Philadelphia, Balti- 
more, Norfolk and Charleston, S. C, that the trustees exercised 
the old jus patronattu. Patronage has also existed in the Church 
from time immemorial. It is a quasi-contract between the 
Church and a benefactor, whereby among other privil^es the 
latter has the legally granted right of presenting the name of a 
suitable person to the vacant benefice or living. During the 
Middle Ages, this right was exercised, even to excess, by lay 
patrons, especially in Germany, and these excesses led to various 
regulations which confined the spiritiial side of the patronage to 
the jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical superiors. In the old canon 
law patronage was acquired in any one of three ways — the dos, 
aedifUoHo, or fundus. By fundus is meant the land on which 
the church stands; by aedifUatio, the building of the church 
itself ; and by dos, the endowment for the upkeep of the church. 
These three ways of acquiring the jus paironatus do not, bow- 
ever, give one the right ipso facto. Such a right must be 
acknowledged by ecclesiastical authority before it has a legally 
binding canonical effect. Moreover, the right of presentation 
even in the time when patronage was widely exercised to the 
detriment of ecclesiastical unity, was never accepted by the 
Church as a congi d'iliri, or the lack of choice in the appoint- 
ment. This, in brief, was the heart of the controversy which 



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784 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

disturbed tbe peace of the Church in the United States down 
to the time of Archbishop Hughes, In Philadelphia, Baltimore, 
Norfolk and Charleston, the point in dispute was whether the 
power of choosing the pastor lay with the congregation, whkh 
had indeed bought the land, built the church, and which assured 
the pastor of support; or with the bishop. Archbishop Carroll 
contended, as did his successor. Archbishop Neale, that to claim 
such a right on the part of the laity by these congregations was 
a pretension, since they were not patrons accordii^ to the defini- 
tion of the Council of Trent. Patronage involved a recognized 
canonical right, and in the United States no one had the right 
to appoint or remove 3 priest except the bishop of the diocese. 
Moreover, the American bishops had the power of removing 
priests at will, since parishes in the strict canonical sense did not 
exist in this country. In most cases where the lay trustees came 
in conflict with the bishops of these early days, a priest was 
their leader ; but in bis contest with the trustees of New York 
Gty and of Norfolk, Carroll found laymen leading the rebellion. 
The chief document on the pernicious trustee system, for the 
period under study is Bishop Carroll's Pastoral Letter to the 
Congregation of Holy Trinity Church, Philadelphia, dated Feb- 
ruary 22, 1797, which has already been quoted at length in these 
p^es. It was when the "intruder (priest) received from the 
Trustees a pretended appointment to the pastoral office ; that is, 
the power of loosening and binding ; of administering the Holy 
Eucharist to the Faithful of God's Church; of teaching and 
preaching, and performing all those duties, which, being in their 
nature entirely spiritual, can never be within the jurisdiction of, 
or subject to the dispensation of the laity," that Bishop Carroll 
decided it was time, for the future as well as for the present, 
to call a halt to such proceedings. Dr. Carroll says also that 
he was not surprised to hear "that the turbulent men, who foment 
the present disturbance, have declared themselves independent 
of Christ's Vicar, as of a foreign jurisdiction." This appeal to 
a stock objection of those who do not beloi^ to tbe Church 
showed, says Carroll, the desire on the part of the turbulent 
clergy and their abettors, to make the good name of the Church 
odious in this country. After explainit^ to them the distinction 
between their allegiance to the Government of the United States 



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The Laity 785 

and their spiritual dependence on the Holy See, Carroll exhorted 
them all to unite together in prayer that these schisms pass away 
quickly. Bishop Carroll realized the danger of the tenets held 
by the recalcitrant trustees from the very beginning of these 
"stirs," namely that in New York City in 1786. "If ever the 
principles there laid down," he wrote to the trustees of St. 
Peter's, "should become predominant, the unity and catholicity 
of our Church would be at an end . . . the great source 
of misconception in this matter is that an idea appears to be 
taken by you . . . that the o0iciating clergyman at New 
York is a parish priest, whereas there is yet no such office in 
the United States." These ideas prevailed, however, for we have 
seen them guiding the trustees of Holy Trinity Church in 1797, 
the trustees of St. Mary's Church, Philadelphia, during Bishop 
Egan's episcopate (i8ii>-i8i4), and especially in Norfolk and 
in Charleston, S. C, in which last dty the eloquent Irish priest, 
Dr. Simon Gallagher, used the trustees in order to retain his 
pastorate, long after Bishop Carroll had removed him for conduct 
unbeconliI^r a gentleman and a priest. How vital the conflict 
had become in the life of the Church here is evident from the 
fact that Dr. Gall^her and the Augustinian Browne carried 
their case to Rome and won a decision against Archbishop 
Carroll. "The coarse and rude way they [Propaganda] have 
treated me," writes Archbishop Neale, "in favor of Messrs. 
Gallagher and Browne, both notoriously refractory, plainly 
shows, unless effectual opposition be made in the present instance, 
our authority by the government of the unruly will be reduced 
to inanity," " During Dr. Carroll's episcopate the Church came 
out the victor in all these contests except in that with Simon 
Gallagher; but even that was soon decided in favour of Arch- 
bishop Neale, when the true facts of the case were given. The 
trustee trouble needs very delicate treatment, if one is to do justice 
to all parties concerned. Many of these laymen believed that they 
were upholding the just rights of the parish, against one who, not 
being one of their own — for to the Germans Dr. Carroll was Irish ; 
to the Irish, he was English, or at least pro-French; to the 
secular clergy, he was an ex- Jesuit ; and to the partially restored 

" cited br Hvoni, tf, tit., Doc un M nU , *ol. i, fait i, p. jsa, not* {«. 



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786 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Society of Jesus, he was looked upon as an uncertainty in the 
efforts they were making (or full canonical revival — could not 
understand their feelings in matters which touched them so 
deeply. Sacerdotal leaders like the Harolds, the Heilbrons, 
Goetz, Elling, and Gallagher did much harm by imparting to 
their followers a mistaken idea of the canonical side of the 
dispute; and others, both laymen and priests, who were imbued 
with Jansenist or Gallican tenets, added their influence to the 
confusion of the times. And, as it is almost always the case 
in disputes that find their origin in a difference of theolt^ical 
opinion when once a stand was taken by certain bodies of tnis- 
tees in the country, it was very difficult to brit^ them back to 
unity and harmony.** The losses caused by the trustee scandals 
were meagre in comparison to the rapid growth of the Church 
during these last years of Dr. Carroll's Ufe. Moreover, the 
power of the bishops was strengthened instead of lessened ; the 
prest^e of the dei^ was upheld; and the loyalty of the faithful 
who had not participated in these "stirs" in the early Americao 
Church proved a strong incentive for piety and generosity to 
the weak and faltering. 

We have no document from John Carroll's hands in which 
to read and judge the condition of the religious life of the 
laity at the time of his death. But certain sources exist, 
written within three years of that date, from which a sum- 
mary may be taken. The iirst of these is Grassi's Nottsie Varie, 
which has been cited above. This little work is an Old-World 
interpretation of the progress made up to that time in the 
New, and while its main value is statistical. Father Grassi, 
who occupied the Presidency of Georgetown College (1812- 
1817), was imquestionably well-placed for keen observation 
and analysis of the lights and shadows in the American Church 
at that time. A second and far more important source than 
Grassi's popular account is Archbishop Marechal's Report to 
Propaganda on the Stale of Religion in the Archdiocese of 
Baltimore (October 16, 1818).'* This document is the most 
accurate of all we possess for this period of American Catboli- 

" Cf. Tk* BvOt of Tnutniim, kriicic by Tuact in tkc Hutorinl Ktctrit ami 
Stp4Ui. <nL Tin, pp. ijC-tsS. 

" Priotad Id tbe CMmKc Htttorif! Rtvitm, toL 1, pp. 419^13. 



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Th€ Laity 787 

dstn. A great change was visible by that date in the attitude 
of Protestants in general towards the Catholic Church. The 
prejudices which kept so many in Dr. Carroll's day from appre- 
ciating her properly were vanishing slowly but surely, and 
Protestant ministers were not expected by their flocks to calum- 
niate the Catholic Faith in their sermons. On Sundays, the Cath- 
olic churches in the cities were frequented by many non-Catholics, 
attracted by the beau^ of the ritual or by the singing; amver- 
sions were becoming more numerous; and beyond all other 
aspects the rapid growth of the Catholic Church tn the United 
States was talked of by everyone. Marechal notes as the prin- 
cipal abuses in the American life of the times — inebriety and 
the desire for money. It is incredible, he says, how avid all 
Americans are to hear sermons. He praises their lighthearted- 
ness, their love for argumentation, and their skill in trades 
and avocations. He lauds the modesty of American woman- 
hood, but he sees danger in their love of dress, which is carried 
to such a pitch that it would be hard to distinguish a cobbler's 
daughter from a French countess. The young girls are much 
addicted to the reading of novels, to the theatre, and to dancing. 
He described the book-stores of the day, with their shelves filled 
with promiscuous readii^, many of the books being inimical 
to faith and good morals. There were, he claims, more news- 
papers in the State of Maryland alone than in Italy and France 
t(^ether. The situation of the Church at large, the priests, 
their congregations, and their trials, are all well described, and 
of the difficulties which were his legacy from his two prede- 
cessors. Archbishops Carroll and Neale, he gives the following 
as the principal ones: (i) the insufficient number of priests; 
(2) the inability of many young men to pay for their education 
towards the priesthood; (3) the schisms which arose in Dr. 
Carroll's day and which still existed in some places. 

Marechal sums up the whole case in a word when he says that 
the chief cause of these schisms arose from the fact that the 
American people were enjoying a civil hberty to which they held 
cmore ardenlissimo. The methods of church government which 
prevailed amot^ the Protestant churches appealed very forcibly 
to the Catholics, but side-by-side with the desire to emulate their 
non-Catholic friends, Marechal places, as a causal quaoti^ of 



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788 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

the highest power, the desire of unworthy priests to rule the 
flocks entrusted to them without the restraining hand of authority 
which never allowed them to forget their responsibility for the 
souls of the faithful. Dr. Carroll had allowed the trustee system, 
says Marshal, because he believed that it would effect a compact 
parochial organization in each centre of population. But so 
many dissensions and schisms grew out of the system that before 
he died, he told Neale he r^retted the day he had given his 
consent, even implicitly to the marffuilliers. We have yet, how- 
ever, to be given an impartial history of trusteeism in Carroll's 
time. The whole question must be treated from another angle 
from that usually taken, namely, the presence of presumptuous, 
arrogant, and turbulent lay-folks in the congregations where the 
evil arose. 

But these difficulties were all surmountable, for the foundations 
of the Church had been laid well and deq> by John Carroll. 
He it was who gave form and substance to the discipline of the 
Church during the twenty-five years of his episcopate ; and, as 
the evenii^ of his long and active life drew to an end, he was 
able to gaze over the entire expanse of the great country of 
which he was the Catholic shepherd, and see the signs of the 
harvest of souls his successors were to reap in the days to come. 
He left in his vast archdiocese a laity increased over fourfold, 
a clergy more than doubled. There were three Seminaries 
for the training of ecclesiastics, three Colleges for the higher 
education of young men, and two Academies for young girls; 
there were three convents wherein women rould consecrate their 
lives to religion and to the betterment of humanity ; and there 
were three religious Orders for men. These are bis greatest 
works. Who shall tell of his influence not alone upon his 
fellow-citinns of other faiths, but more particularly upon the 
rising generations of Catholic men and women who were proud 
to call their Father one whom the entire country respected 
and revered? For the Catholic laity, for their increase in piety 
and in devotion, their allegiance to both Church and State, their 
knowledge of their Faith and of its practices, he spared no pains 
during his long episcopate. If needs there vrere in the Catholic 
organization of the land at the time of his death, even for these, 
and especially the one he recognized more clearly than any of 



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Th€ Laity 789 

his generation, be pointed out the signs, which his suo^ssors were 
to follow. Possibly, if it had entered his mind to lament any 
deficiencies in the Church he had organized and brought to a 
state of remarkable perfection, he would have r^p'etted two^ 
the lack of more educational facilities for the youi^ and the 
want of charitable institutions for the care of the sick, the 
aged, the orphan and the unfortunate. 



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CHAPTER XXXVIII 

EDUCATIONAL AND CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS 

(1790-1815) 

The Life of Archbishop Carroll would be incomplete without 
a chapter devoted to the educational efforts made by the Church 
in this country durii^ the twenty-five years of his episcopate. 
But to trace, even slightly, the growth of primary and secondary 
education at this period is a task which by no means promises 
success. The first united action of the bishops of the United 
States in the matter of education was made at the first Provincial 
Council of Baltimore in 1829, when Archbishop Whitfield, the 
third successor of John Carroll in the See of Baltimore (1828- 
1834) , with Bishops Klaget, S.S., of Bardstown, Bishop Benedict 
Fenwick, SJ., of Boston, Bishop B/iward Feowick, O.P., of 
Cincinnati, Bishop England of Charleston, and Bishop Rosad, 
CM., of St. Louis, met for the purpose of creating a more effi- 
cient ecclesiastical organization in the land. It was at this Council, 
the first of its kind in the United States, that the law was enacted 
which has since been the norm of church discipline in the matter 
of education, namely, the establishment of a parochial school in 
each parish. Before this time, the Synod of 1791 and the 
informal meeting of 1810 are the only assemblies of a conciltar 
nature; and the conditions prevailing in Catholic life during 
that epoch (1790-1829) and more especially during Carroll's 
time hardly warranted placing the burden of a parochial school 
system upon the priests and laity. 

That education for the young was a subject dear to the hearts 
of all the dei^ from the very beginning of organized Catholic 
life in the new Republic needs no proof. The efforts made in 
every centre where Catholics had formed themselves into parishes 
are so numerous, in proportion to the number of congr^ations 
and priests, that the general Catholic interest in primary and 
secondary schools is granted by all. Before the found^ion 
790 



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Education 791 

of Georgetown College in 1789, there was no mccessfnl Cath- 
olic school for secondary training; and of elementary or paro- 
chial schools before the American Revolution we know hardly 
anything, since "exceedingly little has come down to us 
about the academic side of these early schools,"* The reason 
is apparent to all who are o^nizant of the social and political 
status of Catholics in the Et^lish colonies. The century and 
a half precedii^ the victory of Yorktown was an epoch of 
life-in-the-catacombs for the Catholics in the future Republic 
This fact has been repeated so often In these pages, that it need 
rot be emphasized. Ignored socially, crushed by iniquitous 
laws, persecuted by ingenious methods which came to life in 
Elizabeth's reign. Catholics living under the British flag found 
it to their advantage to hide from those who would rob them 
of their Faith. From all the professions, in the army, the navy, 
in the skilled crafts and in places of political prefennent, Cath- 
olics had been eliminated completely. The freedom which came 
to the American Catholics under the Federal Constitution of 
1787 came also to English, Irish, and Scottish Catholics at the 
very time the First Provincial Council of Baltimore was holding 
its sessions, in 1829. It is this element of crypto-Catholidsm 
in the English colonies which must be known and appreciated, 
if in a subject so essential to Catholic life as the education of 
the little ones, we hope to understand the absence of elementary 
school training in the days before the Republic was thoroughly 
organized. The historian of the American Church, therefore, 
finds only a blank wall of silence when he questions these early 
years for the facts of its educational origins. The reasons are 
apparent. Catholics did not write much about their methods of 
education. Prejudice was still a vital factor in the social and 
civic life about them; for, thoi^h in leaving England, Ireland 
and Scotland, Catholics felt they were freeing themselves and 
their children from the incubus of hatred which had never 
lessened from the reign of Elizabeth, in reality they were enter- 
ing a land where that spirit had not lessened to any appreciable 
extent. Dr. Burns says : 

> Bnsi, Tk* ClhtHc Sthtol Sylttm fe tin VuUti SfH4, p. (j. N«w Totk, 



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792 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Even for the post- Revolutionary period, the materials for a thorough 
study of the academic development of the sdiools are very (cant and hard 
to be got at. Except in a few initancei, nothing bat yet been done to 
collect, from local sources, materials relating to the history of the schools 
during the last century. An abundance of data exists in local records, 
covering the history of the longer established schools during at least the 
past half century. . . . Only after local and diocesan historians have done 
their work, can a history be written of the Catholic educational move- 
ment which will do justice to the subject in all its aspects.* 

For Pennsylvania only can the story be told with any degree 
of accttracy. There are records of schoobnasters in most of the 
towns founded by Ihe German Catholic settlers of that State, 
and in »ome cases Catholic schools were built long before the 
little congregations could afford to erect a church. The combi- 
nation school and church which is so common today was wdl 
known in these early years of the Republic, for church and school 
were always looked upon as one and indivisible. All the priests 
who laboured here during Dr. Carroll's episcopate were men of 
learning and most of them had been teachers. The German 
ex-Jesuits, who laboured in Pennsylvania, were parttctilarly men 
of this type ; and it is not difficult to surmise the interest taken 
in education by scholars of such high standit^ as Father Schnei- 
der, who had been Rector Ma^nihcus of Heidelberg University, 
and Father Farmer, a member of the original Board of Trustees 
of the University of Pennsylvania. Father Molyneux's pastorate 
in Philadelphia bridges over the Revolutionary period, and his 
was the initiative which began that more compact system of 
parochial school training which places Philadelphia so high today 
in the Catholic educational prc^ess of the country. "Father 
Molyneux was the first in this country, so far as ts known, to 
publish textbooks for the use of Catholic schools. He had a 
catechism printed, and other elementary books, among which 
was a spelling primer for children with the Catholic Catechism 
annexed, printed in 1785." • The first Catholic parochial school 
in Philadelphia was begun in 1781 in a house purchased from 
the Quakers. A new building was added the followii^ year to 
accommodate the nimibers of Catholic children of St. Mary's 
Parish. The school itself was near St Joseph's Church, and 



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Education 793 

was two stories high, with the younger children occupying the 
upper floor. Two lay teachers were employed, and the school 
was directed by a board of managers, at the head of which were 
the priests of Philadelphia. In the beginning the pupils paid a 
stipulated tuition charge — those in the upper schoolroom seven- 
teen shillings a term of nine months, and those in the lower 
room twenty shillings a term. Provision was made to educate 
six poor scholars annually. The teachers received a salary from 
sixty to seventy-five pounds a year, and the children paid for 
their own text-books, which were cheap enough for the poorest 
to procure. Cash prizes were offered four times a year to the 
value of twenty shillings to the pupils excellii^ in their studies. 
Dr. Bums has pointed out that the greatest diflicul^ experienced 
by the managers of St. Mary's School came from their inabili^ 
to hold the best teachers. Between 1789 and 1800, for example, 
the schoolmaster was changed eight times. As far as possible 
the boys and girls were kept separated, though not necessarily 
in different rooms, and within the second decade of the school's 
existence a woman teacher was placed over the girls. The 
school was supported then, as now, by r^ularly announced 
school collections made during Mass on Sundays, and occasion- 
ally a "charity sermon" was given for ffiis same purpose. 
Legacies and donations of various kinds were made in favour 
of St Mary's School, and among these benefactors was the 
Father of the American Navy, Conunodore John Barry, who 
left an annuity of twenty pounds to the school. A night school 
was in existence in the schoolhouse as early as 1805. The im- 
portance of St. Mary's parochial school in the history of Catholic 
education arises from the fact that Philadelphia was then our 
lar^st city, and St Mary's, the largest and the richest parish 
in the United States. Dr. Bums calls Sl Mary's: "The 
mother-school of all the parochial schools in the English-speaking 
States." * 

The second parochial school was that founded by the Holy 
Trinity parish of Philadelphia in 1789, when the basement of 
the church was set apart for that purpose. Later (1803) by 
means of a lottery, a separate school building was erected, and 
in this school the German Catholic children of the city were 



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794 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

instructed.* Philadelphia's third parish, St. Augustine's, organ- 
ized in 1796, sent its children to St Maiys parochial school 
and) 1811, when St. Augustine's parochial' sc1kx>1 was opened 
oodtf the title "St. Augustine's Academy." Frcm an old 
prospectus it would appear that the original idea of Dr. Out, 
its founder, was to begin a boarding-school for advanced students, 
but this was soon abandoned and it became a day school for 
the children of the parish. "This first attempt at a Catholic 
high school failed because of the fewness of the pupils and 
probably also because of the expense attached to its mainten- 
ance." ' These three parochial schools served the Catholic chil- 
dren of the ci^ until the episcopate of Bishop Kenrick (1830- 
1851), at which epoch dates the beginning of the growth of 
systematic Catholic education in Philadelphia. Schools existed 
also at Conewago, Goshenhoppen, McSherrystown, Mt. Airy, 
where Father Brosius was principal, and at Loretto, where Prince 
Gallitzin opened a school in 1800. 

An interestir^ and instructive comparison might be drawn 
between these early educational efforts of the Philadelphia Cath- 
olics and those of the State of Pennsylvania itself. Custis writes : 

Prior to the year 1818 meagre provision was made by the State for 
the education of its youth. The principal schools were privately en- 
dowed institutions, which admitted a limited number of indigent pupils 
free of cost The Convention which revised the State Constitution (1789- 
go), amended the article which provided for the establishment of free 
schools, in which it was stated that the masters were to be paid such 
salaries as should "enable them to teach at low prices," to read as 
fallows: "The Legislature shall, as soon as conveniently may be, provide 
by law for the establishment of schools throughout the State, in such 
a manner that the poor may be taught gratis." A number of Acts of 
Legislature were passed prior to 1618, providing for the education of 
poor children at the public expense in existing schools. The broadest 
of these Acts was that of 1809, which was supplemented in 1S12, with 
a provision which gave the County Commissioners power to erect and 
establish schools under the direction of Councils.' 

The erection of these public schools was a slow process, and 
Philadelphia itself was rather dilatory in providing schools for 

* HuTiixH, ff. lit., pp. J7-J9. 

* llcGoWAR, HUterital Skeick, etc., p. 3B. 

* CDtnt, Tk* Fablie Seheelt tf PhlUitlHtU, p. le. PhtladdpUa, ilgr. 



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Education 795 

the children of the poor. The private schools stood in the way 
for a long time, and it was only in 1S17, five years after the 
enactment mentioned above, that public schools, modelled on 
the Lancasterian (monitorial) system of England were b^un. 
These schools were not poptdar, for the "pauper act" which 
established them was not well received. Parents disl^ced to 
admit their poverty and children were equally unwilling to be 
dubbed "charity scholars,"' The actual foundation of the 
present Public School System, which did not materialize with- 
out much opposition, for education was by no means a popular 
thing in the early nineteenth century, came much later (1838) 
in the history of Penn's city.* The subjects taught were mainly 
the three R's — reading, writing, and arithmetic, though gradu- 
ally geography took a prominent place in the school-room. The 
school discipline was rigid and sometimes very severe, and a 
teacher was judged more by the order kept in the classroom 
than by the progress of the pupils. In 1819, there were in 
Philadelphia ten schools with as many masters, and the nimiber 
of pupils is given as 2345- 

At New York City there were only two parishes during the 
years of Dr. Carroll's episcopate — St. Peter's (1785) and St. 
Patrick's (1809). In 1800-01, at the urgent request of Bishop 
Carroll a parochial school was h^iun in St. Peter's parish, and 
it soon became one of the largest in the dty. In 1805, the 
pupils numbered a hundred boys and girls. In 1806, Frands 
Cooper presented a petition to the New York State Assembly 
askii^ that a portion of the State money devoted to education 
be allotted to St. Peter's school, and the bill was passed with 
only one dissenting vote. St. Peter's parochial school was the 
only Catholic institution for primary education in New York 
City down to the year 1812, when three Ursuline nuns from 
Ireland came to New York to found a school for girls. An 
elementary school and a high school were opened, but the Sisters 
grew discouraged at the faint response to their efforts, and they 
returned to Ireland in 1815. 

When Bishop Cheverus began his qnaoopate in Boston in 



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796 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

1810, there were but three Catholic churches in New England — 
one in Boston, one at New Castle and one at Damariscotta, 
Maine. Only two priests were in the diocese, and the niunber 
of Catholics is estimated at not more than one thousand. It 
was not until the second decade of the nineteenth century that 
New England began to benefit by the great tide of Catholic 
inunigration ; the first parochial school of the diocese was not 
erected until five years after Archbishop Carroll's death. 

In the Diocese of Bardstown, private Catholic schools were 
opened shortly after the settlement of Kentucky by Maryland 
Catholics, but these schools were temporary in character, their 
existence being dependent on their founders. The first school 
for primary education was that opened by the Trappists at 
Pottinger's Creek in 1805. This school was a combined ele- 
mentary and secondary institution and while it lasted (1805- 
1809), it was successful. In 1807, the Dominicans opened 
a school, known as St. Thomas' College, in Washii^on 
Co., with a curriculum comprising elementary and classical 
studies. The pupils lived at the school and were required to 
spend from three to four hours a day in manual labour. In this 
way, the cost of their tuition was reduced, and they were trained 
in farming and in various trades of that section of Kentucky. 
At Vincennes, Father Flaget opened a school in 1792.^* He 
taught school himself with the help of others, and the studies 
were a combination of elementary knowledge, of agriculture 
and the trades. In Detroit, a Catholic school had been estab- 
lished shortly after the foundation of that city, and it appears 
to have flourished from 1703-4 down to 1796, when Detroit 
passed under American control. In June, 1798, Father Gabriel 
Richard was sent by Bishop Carroll tt assist Father Levadoux, 
and, when the latter retired in 1801, Father Richard became the 
pastor and vicar-general for the district. Father Richard Is 
one of the most attractive figures in the history of American 
education. His parish was the largest at that time beyond the 
Alleghanies, and, during his long career in Michigan, he was 
assuredly the leadit^ educator of the old Northwest. With a 

a, Hittary itf Oit Diacttt tf 



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Education 797 

view to raising the standards of education in E>etroit, he estab- 
lished (1802) a high school for boys and young men and a 
primary school for the younger children. For the advanced 
trainii^ of young girls, he opened a normal school in order to 
prepare teachers for this important work ; and it is noteworthy 
that the four young ladies who entered the normal school were 
directed to specialize in certain branches. After a two years' 
normal course, a girl's high school was opened (1804), and, 
shortly afterwards, the boys and girls in the primary school were 
separated, each having a school house to themselves. Like all 
the priests of this period, interested in the foundation of Catholic 
education. Father Richard believed in manual training; and he 
brought from the East spinning-wheels, looms, carding-machines, 
electrical apparatus, and materials for a physical and chemical 
laboratory. The fire of 1805 destroyed the city of Detroit, and 
the loss of the schools and their equipment was a great blow 
to this remarkable educator; but within a short time he had 
housed all his pupils in a large warehouse beloi^ng to the 
United States Government. Father Richard's educational activi- 
ties carried him outside the city of Detroit, and at this time 
Catholic schools were opened in other centres. Financially em- 
barrassed at all times, his whole educational system was placed 
in jeopardy when he was sued by the United States for the rent 
of the warehouse at Spring Hill. In 1809, he brot^ht from 
the East a printing-press and a printer, and that year was begun 
the Michigan Essay or Impartial Observer, the first Catholic 
paper published in the United States. From 1809 to 1812, this 
press, dK first of its kind in the Northwest, published a series 
of text-books for the use of the pupils. The teaching in the 
schools, primary and secondary, was in French, since the ma- 
jority of the children knew only that language. The War of 
1812 interfered with his educational work, and Father Richard's 
patriotism cost him a long imprisonment by the British forces. 
Father Dilhet is also credited with a participation in the founda- 
tion of the University of Michigan, since he was the first to 
draw up a systematic plan for advanced studies in that institution. 
Being the leading authority on education in the State, Father 
Richard was chosen as Vice-President of the University at its 
opniing in 1817. Richard's election to Congress in 1823 was a 



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798 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

"graceful recognition of the distinguished services he had ren- 
dered to the people of Michigan." " 

The problem of providing teachers for the elementary schools 
of Kentucky was met when Father Charles Nerinckx succeeded 
in organizing the Sisterhood of Loretto (1812). That same 
year Father David, subsequently coadjutor -Bishop of Bardstown, 
organized the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, who devoted them- 
selves to the care of the sick and to the education of poor chil- 
dren, and a school was opened by Mother Catherine Spalding 
of this community in a little log house next to the Chiuch of 
St. Thomas near Bardstown. 

In all these projects for elementary and higher education out- 
side the Diocese of Baltimore, Archbishop Carroll had an in- 
terest and a directing influence. His own diocese was bein^ 
rapidly equipped with academies for advanced learning, but the 
three parishes, St. Peter's pro-Cathedral, St. Patrick's and the 
German Church, St. John's, were without parochial schools until 
1815, when Father John Moranville opened a school for poor 
children in connection with St. Patrick's Church, of which he 
was pastor. Pupils of alt creeds were admitted. The Diocese 
of Baltimore possessed several private schools where elementary 
instruction was also given to a limited number of boys and girls. 
Among the best known of these was the Visitation School for 
girls at Georgetown (1^99) and Mother Seton's school in Balti- 
more (1808), where girls also were taught, until the transfer 
of the school to Enunitsburg (1809-10). St. Mary's Colle^ 
(1805) also received a certain number of boys, without distinc- 
tion of creed, for the elements of learning, and provision was 
also made at Georgetown for those unable to begin high school 
or collegiate studies. Mount St. Mary's College at Enunitsburg 
(1809-1810) had its class of "minims." 

Such in brief is the history of elementary Catholic education 
in the United States. It was but "a system in embryo." Its real 
development was not to begin until after the First Plenary 
Council of Baltimore (1829), when for the first time the Catholic 
hierarchy took up as a body the problem of a Catholic parochial 
school system. It is to be regretted that so little is known about 

» Bdiii*, ap. eit., p. t(6; ct. Fa*i«i*. TMt Hillary ef Dttnit tmd MiiMtwm, 



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Education 799 

the methods employed and the text-books used. So far as the 
studies and the methods are concerned, these earliest of our 
Catholic parochial and elementary schools did not diSer much 
from those of other denominations or from those supported by 
the States. The best developed of all the primary Catholic 
schools during this time was that conducted by the Ursulines 
in New Orleans. From 1803 to 1815, the success of this oldest 
girls' school in the United States belongs to the history of the 
Church in the Diocese of Baltimore, since their school fought 
alone the battle for educatioQ for a century before the Church 
io the old French territory came under the jurisdiction of Arch- 
bishop Carroll. Under the new social conditions produced by 
the American Revolution, Catholics, especially in the great region 
west of the Alleghanies, where the members of their Faith largely 
dominated, soon saw their opportunity to organize a school 
system devoted to Faith and to learning. But the total number 
of Catholics there (probably not 10,000 in 1815) was too small 
for any successful standardizit^ of a school system. No claim can 
be made for superiority over the non-Catholic schools in this 
early period, but it is a remarkable fact and worthy of the 
historian's notice that in spite of their fewness, their poverty, 
and the lack of everything essential to such a system, the Cath- 
olics of Dr. Carroll's time did succeed in laying firmly and well 
the foundations of a school development which has been called 
"the greatest religious factor in the United States today." 

For the history of collegiate education during these early 
years of church development, there is a greater number of docu- 
mentary materials. The colleges for boys and young men from 
179D to 1815 were: Georgetown (1789), St. Mary's, Baltimore 
(1805), Mount St. Mary's, Emmitsburg (1809-10), St. Thomas 
Collie, Kentucky (1807) and the New York Literary Institu- 
tion (1809). The first and the last were the work of the Jesuits; 
the second and third, of the Sulpicians, and the fourth, of the 
Dominicans. In 1822, St Thomas College ceased to exist; in 
1813, the Jesuits transferred the New York Literary Institution 
to the Trappists, who abandoned it in 1815, and it was closed; 
in 1852, St. Mary's College, Baltimore, was merged into Loyola 
Collie in that same dty ; and, in 1826, Mount St. Mary's ceased 
to be directed by the Sulpicians and was placed under the direc- 



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8oo The Life and Times of John Carroll 

tion of the secular clergy. It is no dispan^ement to these 
Colleges to say that Georgetown occupied the largest share of 
Dr. Carroll's attention and concern. His letters to Father 
Plowden seldom fail to mention the condition of affairs in this 
establishment of his own creation, and though occasionally we 
find a reference to the other schools of higher learning, it is 
quite clear that he centred all his hopes for an educated laity 
upon this now venerable institution. Even after Georgetown 
Oill^e had passed into the control of the Society of Jesus, Dr. 
Carroll followed its every phase of progress and knew every 
detail of its crises during these years. Father Molyneux, the 
first Jesuit President (1S06-1808), was succeeded by Father 
William Matthews. Father Francis Neale, S.J., succeeded to 
the presidency (1808-1812), and Father John Grassi, S.J., was 
head of the College at the dme of Archbishop Carroll's death 
(1812-1817). Carroll saw small hopes for any project super- 
vised by his friend, Robert Molyneux, whom he considered to 
be inclined to indolence; and Molyneux himself never made 
any pretence at energetic organization, since his physical condi- 
tion did not allow him much activity. About Francis Neale, 
as President of Georgetown College, Carroll was never enthus- 
iastic In writing to Plowden, April 2, 1808, Dr. Carroll says : 
"You know that the latter [Francis Neale] is virtue and piety 
itself, but too illiterate to have any share in the direction of a 
literary institution ... In this country, the talents of the pres- 
ident are the gauge, by which the public estimates the excellency 
or deficiency of a place of education; to which must be added 
affability, address and other human qualities for which neither of 
the Brs. [Bishop Neale and Francis] is conspicuous." ** Long 
before this time, in Bishop Neale's presidency (1799-1806), Dr. 
Carroll expressed his dissatisfaction over the regimen of the 
Collie, in a letter to Plowden (March 12, 1800) : 

We have now a few juniors learning philosophy; but the College of 
G-town does not at present flourish in the number o{ students ao as to 
promiae a fresh supply of many more. Its president, tny Coadjutor, and 
his Br. Francis, who are its principal administrators, and both of them, 
as worthy men as live, deter parents from sendbg their ions thither by 
some vigorous regulations, not calculated for the meridian of America. 

■■ Stonjhmftt Tntutrittt. 



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Education 80 1 

Their principles are too monastic; and with a laudable view of excluding 
inunorality, they deny that liberty which all here will lay claim to. 
Indeed it is a difficult problem to solve, wliat degree of it should be 
allowed in literary establishments : and never have I been able to satisfy 
my own mind on this subject tho' it has been much employed in thinking 
of it Theory and experience are constantly at variance in this cause: 
for tlio' the principles of religion and morality command the Instructors 
of youth to restrain their pupils from almost every communication with 
the men and things of the world, yet that very restraint operates against 
the effect intended by it, and it is too often found that on being delivered 
from it, young men, as when the pin which confined a spring is loosened, 
burst out of confinement into licentiousness, and give way to errors and 
vices, which with more acquaintance with the manners and language of 
the world, they would have avoided." 

There was opposition during this year (1800) between George- 
town and St Mary's Seminary, and Carroll deplored the fact 
that six or seven youim; men who were ready to begin their 
ecclesiastical studies were being induced to remain at George- 
town for the course of philosophy just then opened instead of 
entering at the Baltimore Seminary. This opposition, due to 
"unreasonable prejudices" against "the worthy priests of S. 
Sulpice and the system of education pursued in the Seminary," '* 
contributed to Archbishop Carroll's anxieties over the future 
of higher education in the country. Dr. Carroll placed great 
h<q>es in the accession of Father Kohknann, S.J., to the com- 
munity at Georgetown, in his letter to Plowden (April 2, 1S06), 
when be "has become more informed of the customs of this 
country, and understands that a Collie, fotmded like that of 
G. Town, for the education of youth generally, must not be 
governed on the principles and in the System of a Convent." ** 

Bishop Carroll had never given any but a reluctant consent 
to the fotmdatioa of St. Mary's College in Baltimore by Father 
Du Bourg, since he looked upon it as a detriment to the progress 
of Georgetown. At one time he calls Du Bourg "a man of very 
pleasing manners, of an active and towering genius ;" but five 
years later (Dec. 12, 1813) he describes him to the same corre- 
spondent as "a priest of great talent, but delighting more in the 
brilliam, than solidity," who carried the «}Ilege on "with much 



nl. I, put ii, p. 7^1, 



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802 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

apparent success and splendour for a few years ; but the conse- 
quence was an enormous debt which has ahnost ruined both 
College and Seminary, a more deplorable event, for truly a nnre 
exemplary and worthy company of ecclesiastics [Sulpidans] 
nowhere exists."** 

After Father Grassi's acceptance of the Presidency of George- 
town, on October 1, 1812, Dr. Carroll wavers constantly between 
praise and blame for the college there. Stonyhurst's success 
was a constant stimulus to all who wished to see Georgetown 
prosper. "Oh I how we do want a vigorous and literary member 
of the Society with one or two good Scholastics, to take care 
of that fine establishment," he wrote of Geot^etown to Plowden 
in die banning of 1812;'^ but before the end of the next year 
he is honest enough to confess, at a time when his relations 
with Grassi were beginning to be strained : "Mr. Grassi has 
revived the Collie of G. Town, which has received great im- 
provement in the number of students and course of studies. 
His predecessor [Francis Neale] with the same good intentions 
had no abili^ for his station, and was nominated by a strange 
combination." " 

His last letters to Plowden in 1815, the ytai of his death, 
are all optimistic as to the future of the Collie, which had 
become a Universt^ that same year (March i, 1815). On 
October 13, 1815, he tells Plowden that Father Grassi "continu- 
ally adds Celebris and reputation to the character of his Collq^e, 
excepting the blame incurred on one account : Protestants, whose 
sons are sent thither, sometime conq>lain, perhaps, without cause, 
of the means said to be used to bring them over to the Church." ** 
If any reasonable fears for the future of Georgetown existed 
before 1815, certainly after that date the University, as it was 
henceforth called, made such rapid and substantial progress that 
its future place as the leader by age and by learning in the 
Catholic educational life of the country was an assured fact 
To Father John Grassi, the Universi^ owes this b^inning of 
its most thorough academic organization. Although Georgetown 



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Education 803 

suffered during the War of 1812 as did all higher schools of 
leamit^, the number of pupils was on the increase. The cessa- 
tion of the New York Literary Institution in 1815 led several 
New York families to send their sons to Georgetown, and witti 
these first accessions from without the State of Maryland, 
Georgetown's national infiuence began. 

Side-by-side with the educational development of Catholic life 
in the yout^ Republic went the rise and growth of charitable 
institutions. The plague of yellow fever which had swept the 
country in 1793 awoke Philadelphia to the realization that the 
hospital accommodations were woefully inadequate and in the 
first outbreak of the plague, the Guardians of the Poor com- 
mandeered the Hamilton mansion and converted it into Bush 
Hill Hospital. Mathew Carey, then the leading Catholic layman 
of the city, has left us a Short Account of the Malignant Fever 
lately Prevalent in Philadelphia, and some of his descriptions 
of the n^lect almost surpass belief. Five hundred died in the 
hospital at the rate of about seven a day, from September to 
November, 1793. Other outbreaks occurred in 1795 and 1797. 
The fever became epidemic in this last year, while in the fol- 
lowing year (1798) twenty-four per cent, of the people of the 
d^ died from the disease. The dreadful scourge which bad 
decimated the city in five years, had left many children orphans, 
and means were taken at once to furnish them with homes. 
An association was formed for the purpose of caring for the 
Catholic children, and these were confided to the care of a Cath- 
olic woman and lodged in a house near Holy Trinity Church.** 
In 1807, this association was incorporated under the legal title 
of "the Roman Catholic Society of St. Joseph's for Educating 
and Maintaining Poor Orphan Children," and it was to this 
house of nearly two hundred orphans that seven years later 
(1814), three of Mother Seton's Sisters of Charity came from 
Emmitsburg. This was the only institution of its kind in the 
archdiocese up to 1815. The welfare work of the Daughters 
of Charity of Emmitsburg and of the Sisters of Charity, of 
Nazcrcth, Kentucky, the pioneer Sisterhoods of the United 
States saw the beginning of its present development in the decade 
following Archbishop Carroll's death. 

■■ HlHEocH, »p. Ht; pp. $1-59; KiuiH, of. tU., p. iga. 



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CHAPTER XXXIX 

THE LAST YEARS 

(181I-1815) 

Archbishop Carroll was invested with the pallium on August 
18, 181 1, by Bishop Neale.* His position as first metropolitan 
or chief shepherd of the Catholic Church in the United States 
was at last made officially public, and the organization of the 
American hierarchy finally completed. The United States at 
this time comprised a single ecclesiastical province, divided into 
five dioceses, with a sixth in process of formation for Louisiana. 
As Ordinary of his own Diocese of Baltimore, Dr. Carroll had 
all the obligations and the burdens that are common to every 
bishopric. As Metropolitan of the United States, it was to 
Carroll that the other bishops looked for guidance in all matters 
touching the Church within the nation. He was the ordinary 
and immediate superior of the American bistwqK, tboi^h his 
jurisdiction did not extend to their subjects. In matters con- 
cerning the national Church he was the presiding judge, and it 
was to Carroll that the Sacred Coi^egation de Prop^anda 
Fide looked for all official information concerning the Church 
in general in the United States. All national Catholic matters 
passed throi^h his hands to the Holy See. When the bishops 
separated after their consecration at Baltimore in 1810, it was 
agreed that a Provincial Council would be held in November, 
1812. Had this council taken place, there is no doubt that the 
organization of the American Church would have been blessed 
with a more efficient general administration than it possessed 
during these last years of Dr. Carroll's life. Two obstacles 
prevented the holding of the Council: the War of 1812 and the 
captivity of Pius VII. 

It was only after long years of growing bitterness and resent- 
* The p^inm m* btoucht Is Baltimore br tb« Britidi lliaiMa M Ike United 



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Last Years 805 

ment against England's high-handed actions towards America 
that Congress declared war in June, 1812. The creation of 
the French Empire, with Napoleon as Emperor of the French 
in 1804, meant a world war upon a scale hitherto undreamed. 
The wars between 1792 and 1802 were the direct outcome of 
the French Revolution, but those from 1803 to 1815 were Napo- 
leooic wars, in which Europe, with England at its head, com- 
bined as allies to overthrow the great military genius. Napo- 
leon's conquest of Austria and Prus»a in 1805-1806, and the 
subsequent alliance of France and Rush's by the Peace of Tilsit 
in July, 1807, brought England and France out into decisive 
conflict. Napoleon had failed on the sea, when his navy was 
defeated at Trafalgar by Nelson (1805), and in revenge he 
prepared a Continental blockade with the design of ruinii^ 
England by cutting off her commerdal relations with the Conti- 
nent England replied with a blockade of her own. Both these 
¥rar measures of England and France violated international 
equity, in ignoring the rights of all neutral states to carry on 
commerce. The action of the two nations brought financial ruin 
to many American merchants and shippers. Despite the protests 
of the Americans, no alleviation was granted, and the popular 
cry for war soon arose. Jefferson's Embargo Act of December, 
1807, was for the purpose of bringing both England and France 
to terms, but the direct result was the ruin of American trade. 
The South and West particularly bore the brunt of the American 
blockade, while along the Atlantic our ships lay at anchor in the 
harbours. The repeal of the Embargo Act in February, 1809, 
helped little to relieve the distress ; and Madison's succession to 
the Presidency in March, i8og, was not viewed with much 
pleasure by those who were loudly clamouring for American 
r^hts. England's method of impressment on the high seas only 
intensified the anger of the Americans, many of whom were 
determined on a second War of Independence. 

Dr. Carroll gives us a glimpse into the national animus of the 
day in a letter to Plowden, dated September 19, 1809: 

The raising here of onr embargo and subsequent Convention with Mr. 
Erskine \tht British mittUltr at fVtuhoigloH] set all oar American ship- 
ping afloat, but the disavowal of that Conventim has very much damped 
the spirit of enterprise; the nunteroua partisans of your inveterate foes, 



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8o6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

and of orderly govenuDent, try to av&il themsetves of the most wamac 
and impolite conduct of your government to inflame the pusiou of thb 
country against yours; in which they are too successfully seconded by 
the numerous Irish emigrants, who bring hither with them all the preju- 
dice and violence excited by past and recent most iniquitous tyranny to- 
wards them: these are kc^l alive by some rancorous editors of news- 
papers, tho' in this country these emigrants have no cause to disttirb 
our peace, by the diffusion of their sentiments. You may be sm'e that 
little would remain here of that factious spirit, which is the bane of 
most free countries, if it were not for the busy intriguing French and 
headstrong Irish amongst us; these last deserve sympathy, for they have 
been goaded by their sufferings into madness. Your new Envoy, Mr, 
Jackson, ha^ lately arrived; after the disappointment caused by the 
rejection of Mr. Krskine's treaty, we lovers of peace hope that he has 
brought terms of conciliation, or much asperity will arise against your 
new enemies : for heaven knows that she [England] is the bulwark of 
public welfare — sfet ultima muudi.* 

Archbishop Carroll was personally opposed to the policy which 
insisted that the problems which were causing enmity between 
America and England had to be settled by war. Three years 
later, on January 27, 1812, he wrote to his friend: 

Our American Cabinet, and a majority of Omgress seem to be in- 
fatuated with a blind predilection for France, which no injuries or 
insults from that country can extinguish,* and an unconquerable hos- 
tility to England. This last is nutured by the unaccountable impolicy 
of the latter in still maintaining the orders of Council so detrimental to 
itself, and so irritating to us. Every day seems to bring us nearer to 
open hostility, in which wc have everything to lose and nothing to gain. 
In this state of things I long for the period when your Regent will be 
loosed from his trammels, and it will be seen what course of policjr 
lie will pursue,* 

The outbreak of hostilities on June 18, i8t2, rendered the 
conveyance of letters between America and Europe so uncertain 
that from this time down to Dr. Carroll's death we have very 
little dociunentary evidence for the history of the Church in this 



> Stanjkarit Tmucripti. 

' The fiilor* at Gmt Briula b> lappurt Enldaa U npwlim tin vdvi in •naail 
wu 'TT'lf ■""■•"' te • (nipsulati ol timde with EnsUndi but wbia Nftpolaon la Mvi 
1R19, DTdend all Amciicui tmhIi In FtokA purta to ba ■and, the loM to AmolnB 
■Uppins unounted to fortj miUtoB dollars. Madiaon'a mack anbmiaaloii to titia ootnga 
had the eSect of arooaiuc the war apirit of the 00011(17. Ct. IfcCunaT, HiOery of 
Ik* UaiUi Stttit, p. aj9 note. N«w York, i»>9. 



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L0st Ytars %0^ 

country. When Pntident Madiaon appointed a day for prayer 
in the crisis which came upon our nadonal life, Archbishop 
Carroll issued a Charge to his people, calling upon all Catholics 
to offer their prayers in unison with their fellow-citizens in 
order that Divine Providence might guide the Republic in the 
crisis. On August 6, 1812, he sent this Charge to the pastors 
of the diocese : 

Rtv. Sir:~ 

The President of the United Slates haj recororoended to the people 
thereof to set apart Thursday, the 20th of August, for the purpose of 
rendering public homage to the Supreme Ruler of the universe, humble 
adoration of His infinite perfections, and supplications to him for the 
protecting of peace and prosperity to our common Country. In compliance 
with this recommendation and considering that we, the members of the 
Catholic Church, are at least, equally indebted as our fellow-citiiens to 
the Bestower of every good gift, for past and present blessings, stand 
in the same need of His protection, and ought to feel an equal interest 
in the welfare of these United States during the awful crisis now hanging 
over them: I cannot hesitate to require the respective clergymen employed 
in the care of souls throughout this Diocese to invite and encourage the 
faithful under their pastoral charge to unite on Thursday August ao, for 
divine worship, and most particularly in offering through the minister 
of the church the august and salutary sacrifice of Grace, the Body and 
Blood of the Lamb of God Which takes away the sins of the world, to 
implore through it divine protection in all our lawful pursuits public and 
private, to shield us in danger, and to restore and secure to us the 
return of the days of peace, a happy peace in this life and above all that 
peace which the world cannot give. 

+ John, Archbp. of Ballimort.' 

His young relation, Mr. Henry Carroll, went out as secretary 
to one of our plenipotentiaries, sent to negotiate a peace with 
England — Carroll wrote on January 31, 1814, to Plowden.* 
But the war draped on, with dangerous elements at work, 
especially in New England, which tended towards the disruption 
of the Union; and in August, 1814, the greatest htmitUation in 
American history occurred when General Ross entered Wash- 
ington, and burned the Capitol, the President's home, and other 
Government buildings. With the nation's capital in his posses- 
sion, Ross joined with the British Seet in the attack on Baltimore. 

• Btltimort Cathedrgl ArcUoa. Cms Ii-l4i printRl in the Rtttorclitt, ToL viii, 
p. 18; tf. Sbu, of. dl., tbL ii, pp. SsS4j7. 

• Sivmjkmnt TrmmtaitH. 



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8o8 Th€ Life and Times of John Carroll 

In the midst of the alann created, Archtnshop Carroll issued a 
letter to the Catholics of the dty: "It is hereby recommended 
to our Catholic Brethren in this City during the present state 
of alarm and danger to imi^ore the powerful aid and protection 
of our Heavenly Father over ourselves and fellow citizens, and 
those particularly who now must leave their homes and families 
for the common defease. ■ Let them be recommended to Divine 
mercy through the intercession of the Bd. Virgin Mary as the 
chosen Patroness of the Diocese not doubting of Her readiness 
to intercede for those who have recourse to Her in the time of 
their need."' 

The guns of Fort McHenry successfully defended the dty, 
and, in a land attack, Ross was killed. Dr. Carroll describes 
the bombardment of his episcopal dty in a letter to Plowden, 
January 5, 1815: 'The visit of your countrymen last summer 
to Washington has nearly ruined several of my nearest con- 
nexions. They came next to this dty in thdr shippii^; it was 
an awful spectode to b^old — before us at least 40 vessels great 
and small and for about 25 hours fire bomb ketches, discharging 
shots on the forts of upward 200 lb. wdght each. You may 
suppose that we did not sleep much. Heaven preserve us from 
another such visitation!" ■ On March 20, 1815, he wrote ^ain 
to Plowden : "Having lived, thro' God's providence, to witness 
the return of peace between our respective countries, I resume 
with pleasure, and, whilst I can, propose to continue that corre- 
spondence, which for so many years has been so delightful and 
beneficial to me, and I flatter myself not altogether unentertaining 
to you. The restoration of tranquillity in Europe, and now to 
these States, will make it free from any more interruptions, I 
hope, forever." ' He repeats his thought in a subsequent letter 
(June 23, 1815), in which he says that "now in my 80th year, 
my sincere prayer is that [the peace between our respective 
countries] may never be disturbed again; yet sc»ne are afraid 
that the new state of things in Europe [Napoleon's return from 
Elba, etc] will tend to embroil us, unless wiser counsels direct 
our Rulers than heretofore. After witnessing and standing the 

' BtlUmert Cthtdral Artkivn, Special C-Aio; printed In th* Rtuarthti, ToL vlil, 

■ Stonjimra Tmuarittt. 
* Ibii. 



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Last Years 809 

tremendous bombardment of our fire bomb vessels, Congreve 
rockets, etc., for 27 hours incessantly at Baltimore, my mind 
recoils from the idea of beholding more of such scenes." ^0 His 
last letter to Father Plowden (October 13, 1815) contains a 
valuable reflection for the history of the period: "The great 
revolutions which then (after Napoleon's return) bqpn to ap- 
pear, which are since disclosed, render the times in which we have 
lived uncommonly eventful, and fruitful of serious reflections. 
The glory of your country is at its highest elevation. To have 
stood alone against an overwhelming power, which compelled 
submission from every power in Europe until it was met by 
British arms, and to have at length reanimated the trembling 
nations to shake off their yoke, is the exclusive merit of English- 
men, as His Holiness trttly compliments them in his letter to 
the Bishops of Ireland." '• 

The Catholics of the United States had no hesitation in lending 
their loya! support to the Government during the war, and when 
Baltimore was delivered from the peril of capitulation. Arch- 
bishop Carroll issued a Pastoral i^>pointing a solemn Te Deum 
to be sung in both St. Peter's and St. Patrick's, on October 20, 
1814. We have already described the splendid heroism of the 
Ursuline nuns during the battle of New Orleans, and Bishop 
Du Bourg's welcome to the American leader, Andrew Jackson, at 
the door of the Cathedral, on the day of thank^iving for the 
victory." 

The inconveniences arising from the War of 1812 were mainly 
of a domestic nature in the church organization of the day, but 
the stoppage of correspondence caused both by the War and the 
imprisonment of the Pope, had its effect upon ecclesiastical 
prc^ess in this country. Of the five suffragan sees. New York 
had been vacant since 1810; Philadelphia was not only vacant 
but was the pawn of ecclesiastical meddlers abroad ; and Louisi- 
ana was distracted with a schism which threatened to become 
permanent under the leadership of the Capuchin, Sedella. The 
closing years of Carroll's administration are marked by silence 



• Ibid. 
' Ibid. 
■ VfiiuAut, Amtrtemt CatMiet tm lit War. pf. 4^47- WuUvtan, D. C. 1 



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8 10 Tht Lift and Tinus of John Carroll 

between Rome and Bahmure. Propaganda wai cloted (1806- 
1S13) and the Holy See refused to deal with church affairs so 
long as the Vicar of Christ was under duress. The practical ces- 
sation of all direction from Rome left Archbishop Carroll without 
any help in the difficult task of preserving the unity of the 
Church in this country; and added to this was his growing con- 
viction that he had lost favour with Roman officials. 

The captivity of Pius VII b^:an with Napoleon's decree at 
Schonbrunn on May 18, 1808, abolishing the temporal sovere^^ty 
of the Pope and annexing the Papal states to the French Empire. 
Pius VII was forcibly removed to Savona, where he was kept a 
prisoner for three yeass. He was then transferred to Fontaine- 
bleau, during Napoleon's Russian campaign (1812), and on Jan- 
uary 18, 1813, there occurred the first of that remarkable series 
of interviews between Pius VII and the Emperor, the result of 
which was the Concordat of Fontainebleau, signed on January 
25. i8i3. This Concordat was repudiated by the Holy See in 
March, 1813, and the Pope was kept under close surveillance 
until January, 1814, when he was taken under escort back to 
Savona. On May 17, 1814, he was liberated, and the ^ed pris- 
oner set out for Rome, where he arrived on May 24. Napoleon 
had s^ed his abdication (April 11, 1814) in the very place 
where he had confined the august Head of the Church, and 
though the "hundred days" were to come before Waterloo (June 
]8, 1815), Europe was on the eve of a return to normal conditi<His. 
During these years of the Captivity of Pius VII ( 1809-1814) 
ecclesiastical business was almost at a standstill. Cardinal di 
Pietro, Prefect of Propa£:anda (1805-1814) under whose juris- 
diction lay the Church in the United States, was first removed to 
Semur, and then to Paris. When he refused to assist at N^>o- 
leon's marriage with the Archduchess Marie Louise, he was 
arrested and thrown into the dungeon of Vtncennes. Later he 
was liberated, for we find him at Fontainebleau with Pius VII. 
During di Pietro's absence from Rome, the Sacred Coi^^atioa 
was in charge of the Secretary, Monstgnor John B^)tist Quaran- 
totti, who, it spears, acted during this time as Vice-Prefect of 
Propaganda. Quarantotti was then nearly eighty years old, and 
was by no means possessed of the ability such a critical juncture 
demanded, as is well known to all familiar with the English 



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Last Years 8ii 

Catholic history of this period." The conseqnence was that with 
the Holy Father separated from his counsellors, and with the 
heads of the various Congregations either in prison, or forbtddeo 
to remain in Rome, or to consult the aged Pontiff, the organiza- 
tion of the Church suffered as at no time in its history. The 
blocus continental had demoralized shipping all over the world; 
and hence letters, when sent, were despatched in duplicate and 
triplicate by different routes.'* Some few letters exist for the years 
1804-180S but the remaining years down to Archbishop Carroll's 
death are particularly barren of correspondence between Rome 
and Baltimore. The case of Bishop Concanen, who had been 
consecrated in 1808 for New York, is typical. He did not suc- 
ceed in leaving Italy, owing to the blockade, and his every attempt 
to send Dr. CarroU first-hand information of all that had been 
done by Propaganda for the Church in the United States, failed. 
Dr. Concanen was entrusted with the Briefs for the consecration 
of the three bishops, with various letters from the Holy See to 
Archbishop Carroll, and with the latter's pallium. Everything 
seems to have been lost except the pallium, which reached Car- 
roll through the British Embassy at Washington, in i8ri. 
Fortunately some of the letters written during this period were 
later recovered, and they can be consulted ; but their non-recep- 
tion left Archbishop Carroll in a quandary over many things that 
vitally affected the peace and unity of the Church.^* 

Letters may still be found from Propanganda or frtnn Pius 
Vn during these years, but the Roman and Baltimore Archives 
do not contain any, and it would appear as if the last oflicial rela- 
tion between Baltimore and Rome was the bestowal of ibe 
pallium on August 11, 1811. We know of letters written to 
Rome by Archbishop Carroll during this time, but their absence 
from the Archives of Propaganda would lead one to believe that 
they were lost in transit. The news of Pius VH's liberation 
and return to Rome reached Carroll quickly, however, and 00 
July 3i 1814, he issued a Pastoral to his people, appointing a 
I Te Deum to be chanted in St. Peter's pro-Qithedral on 



■ a, Wus, fin of Cithalic Smamcitaliom, nl. il, pp. /t-ioi; Qiixow, B^ dt., 

r, p. Jj. 

' CunOI td Plowilai, April *, tSoS, Stamykurrt TralUCfipU. 



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8i2 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

July loth. This, it will be remembered, was but a month before 
the bombardment of the dty. The following passages from the 
Pastoral contain an accurate reflection of Carroll's anxiety during 
these years of silence : 

The Hoi; Catholick Church has mourned for nuuiy years over the 
Eufferingi and captivity of her vtsibte head, the successor of St Peter, 
and Vicar upon earth of ow Ix>rd Jems ChritL Every day at the August 
Sacrifice of the New Testament, we offered our prayers and entreated 
Almighty God, for the deliverance of His Servant Pius VII, and for a 
renewal of a free intercourse between him and the Christian people, 
committed to his fatherly solicitude. United together on the Lord's 
day, we repeated, with redoubled confidence our hmnble pethion, that it 
would please Divine goodness to enable our chief Pastor to feed the 
flock of Christ with the food of wholesome doctrines and salutary in- 
structions, as well as to edify them by continuing to exhibit bright exam- 
ples of patience, restgnatioii, magnanimity and unlimited confidence in the 
promises made to that Church, which was purchased by the blood of the 
Son of God. 

Nevertheless the rigour of confinement was encreased; new obstacles 
were interposed to intercept all conunuoications between his Holiness and 
those who needed his paternal counsels and guidance. Entire regiMis and 
provinces were destitute of any pastors. The integrity of Catholidc doc- 
trine, the maintenance of ecclesiastical discipline were exposed to the open 
violence and hostility of their declared enemies, and liable to be under- 
mined by the artiliccs of corrupt seducers. Infidelity boldly stept for- 
ward, encouraged to effect, and presumptuously to f ortell the downfall of 
the Apostolic chair of St. Peter, and the extinction of those splendid 
evidences, which from the earliest periods of Christianity to the present 
day illuminated and directed the sincere lovers of truth to discover and 
follow the Church, of which it has been spoken, that the spirit of truth 
should abide with it all days even to the consimmiation of the world 

This assurance and other numerous promises, cooiing from the mouth 
of Infallibility itself, were our support and consolation, in the midst of 
the tempests which assailed the bark of Peter, that is the stability of his 
Episcopacy, and the rock on which the Church is built How often did 
you hear the presumptuous denunciation, that the present venerable Pon- 
tiff would be the last of the Successors of the Prince of the Apostles? 
That their faith, the Catholick faith, the object of so much and often, 
it is feared, of wilful misreprcsentaticM, and bitter enmity would be 
effaced from the minds of all men? Yet allow me, my dear Brethren, 
to rejoice with you, and glorify God for your steadfastness and tm- 
shaken confidence in the words of Christ to St. Peter, recorded by St. 
Luke, ch. 2z: / havt prayed for Ihte, that thy faith fail not; and thou 
being once comierltd, confirm thy brethren. Eternal wisdom, for reasons 
impenetrable to human understanding, perhaps for a more splendid dis- 



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Last Years 813 

plar of divine goodness, pennitted the foes of virtue and truth, to exer- 
cise wicontrolled power for the accomplishment of their blufdianous 
purposes. Fanaticism always iocotuistent, and infidelity disguising itself 
under the false garb of human reason, and philosofdiy, vainly boasted, 
that being freed from the thraldom of laws and ecclesiastical restraints 
they would deliver mankind from the terrors of a pretended revelation, 
and dissipate the darkness of prejndioes and deep-rooted error, expose 
to the scom of the world the pretended delusions of folly, and unmask 
the idolatry (for so they dared to express themselves) of the doctrines 
and the worship of the Church of Rome. Id the career of their un- 
bridled licentiousness, they were favoured by the passions of those who 
desired to indulge themselves with impunity, and without remorse. The 
civil authority was generally leagued with infidelity; that of the Church 
can act only on the conscience, and of course inspired no terror; for the 
voice of conscience was heard no more. Every facility was granted to 
insure the success of irreligion, and to aid the display of its boasted ad' 
vantages of superior sense, learning, talents and reason. The record of 
the past ages, sacred and profane history, were ransacked and falsified 
to vilify the Church of God, the lives and sacred character of the 
Vicars of Jesus Christ Even the holy scriptures were tortured in a 
thousand contradictory and absurd senses to render them objects of cmi- 
tempt, and degrade that only religion, which by its uniform, uninter- 
rupted testimony in behalf of their divine authority, established a claim 
to our highest veneration. 



Uy beloved brethren: We have passed days and years of painful 
anxiety; for thou^ we did not lose sight of Him, who after declaring 
that His Church was built on a rock, and that the gates of Hell should 
not prevail against it. yet we knew not the term allotted for our chas- 
tisement, nor for the return of mercy. That term is now come, and we 
are bound by duty and sentiment, to hail it with the accents of thanki- 
giviog and praise. You are convoked together today for the performance 
of this duty. O my brethren, let it make a lasting impression on yon; 
let the occasion, as well as the celebration be deeply engraven on your 
memory. This is the day which the Lord has made; let us exult ex- 
ceedingly, and rejoice therein. 

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, after encouraging you to meditate 
profoundly on the economy of divine Providence, in preserving, conducting 
and giving perpetuity to His Church, and maintaining, in spite of worldly 
opposition, die Apostolical See of St Peter, it was judged advisable and 
necessary to give publicity and solemnity to this act, by which in union 
with the Christian world, we shall cel^rate the restoration of His Holi- 
ness, Pins VII, to the prerogatives of his high dignity, the peaceful 
government and admimstralton of the Catholick Church. To this effect, 
on Sunday, July the loth, immediately after the celebration of Hi^ 
Mass in SL Peter's Church, Baltimore, the hymn (Te Drum) of praise 
and thanksgiving is to be solemnly performed which will be followed 



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8i4 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

whb the benedictum of &e most holy Sacrametit. In other drarchea of 
the city and diocess, this mandate shall be read on the Sunday after Hi 
being received, and the laine hymn of praise and thanksgiving be &ac 
lung, or reverently read. . . >* 

It is difficult to say when the first communications from Rome 
reached Archbishop Carroll; evidently he had not heard from 
Propaganda before March 20, 181 5, since he wrote to Plowden 
that day : "Since the return of His Holiness to Rome, I have 
not received the least communication from him, or any of his 
Congns. actii^ under his authority, tho' it is certain that some 
letters written in my own name and 'others jointly with the other 
bishops were received by the Pope before his liberation, and I 
cantMt doubt that others have reached him since." " Archbishop 
Carroll wrote to Pope Pius VII in July, 1914, expressing the 
congratulations of the Catholic Church in the United States on 
his restoration to the Eternal City; and at the same time he 
wrote to Cardinal Litta, Prefect of the Sacred Congregation, 
giving him a brief account of the condition of religion in this 
country." The grave inconvenience was that, thus cut off from 
the centre of authority, the Church in America lay at the mercy 
of malcontent priests at home and of meddlers abroad. 

Carroll's hopes of iSio that the organization of church life 
was at last begun had almost wholly disappeared by the summer 
of 1814. New York was still without a bishop, and some 
uneasiness was felt at Father Kohhnann's attitude. That 
thoroughly observant Jesuit was far in advance of his brethren 
in power of vision; for he told the Superior, Father Grassi, that 
it was time for the Society to break the bonds which from time 
immemorial had bound the Jesuits to Maryland.'' The state of 
New York, he assured Grassi, was of greater importance than 
all the other states together, and the moment was opportune for 
the Jesuits to secure control of the Church in that diocese. He 



■■ Batttmorr CathtinI Archivti, Cue is-W^i printed In the tUitmrcku, Td. TJii, 
lip. 14C15B. 

" SUmylmrtt TmueripU. 

" CvToU to Litu, Novmber >8, iBm. Octebec lo, ilij, SaMFvrr Ctkttnl 
Arckirtt, Cata »A-Ci (roD|b dnfti). On Usrch ly 1B15, lilts wrote MMint that 
tba Sacred Coacnfsllen bid do newi ot the ArcbdloccM of Baltimore for leTen) rtmn 
tai reqneMed that Carroll lend * report on eoo^tknu UbU,, Owe S-Aj); bat ft 
li not certtin vtclber Carroll relied to (Ui htur. 

' HOOHU, 0f. cit.. Document*, vol. 1, part li, p. g4j. 



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Last Years 815 

protested, as we have seen, against the Society being "etemally 
buried as in a tomb," in Maryland. The lethargic influence of the 
Neales was paramount at the time and Kohlmann was unable to 
rouse them with his strictures on their "blessed farms." Neither 
the presence of the Jesuits in New York City nor the transfer of 
Georgetown College "bodily to New York," as Kohlmann urged, 
affected the situation of the vacant bishopric itself, for that see 
was tilled without any effort on the part of the Holy See to 
ascertain the wishes of Carroll and his suffr^ans. From a 
standpoint of polity, the fault lay not so much with Rome as it 
did with the Americans. The Atti of 1814 show that Pius VII 
hesitated somewhat over Connolly's election to the See of New 
York,*" and there is large room to surmise that more interest on 
the part of Carroll might have kept the nomination within the 
hands of the Americans, After four years of a disinterested- 
ness, which may have been admirable at the time, Cheverus 
was hardly within his rights in writing to Flaget (May 27, 
1815) ; "I am afraid that His ^Holiness is not sensible of the 
real state of our Missions in appointing Connolly to New York."** 
Carroll, it is true, never seemed to think New York worthy of any 
anxiety, and in his many complaints to Plowden, to Troy and 
to his own suffragans, on the foreign interference of these last 
years, it is rather the intrigues to place the notorious Harold in 
the See of Philadelphia which Anally roused him. In Philadel> 
phia, after almost fours years of di^raceful insubordination on 
the part of the Harolds, Bishop Egan had broken down under the 
burden and had gone to his reward, leaving that diocese open 
territory for intriguers. 

With the chief characteristics of Carroll's life already described 
in these pages it is difficult not to recognize in the uncertainties of 
these last years one causal element which might easily have been 
eliminated. If there is the weight of Rome's silence in American 
Church affairs from 1808 to 1815, there is likewise an equally 
unfortunate silence on Carroll's part for a longer period; and 
one feels that Thorpe, his earliest adviser, realized the non- 
chalance of the prelate he was representii^ in Rome, when on 
January 21, 1792, he ui^ed Carroll to write oftener, to write 



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8i6 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

more freely, to Propaganda : "A little management on your part 
would suffice to hold the Propaganda in good humor." *" It was 
true that everything Jesuit in the earlier period of Carroll's epis- 
copate was a lapis offensivus to Propaganda ; but Antonelli was 
at least sympathetic, and we have seen how eagerly Borromeo 
and even Borgia responded to the pleasant little surprise of 
American tobacco Thorpe had suggested to Carroll to send. It 
would be idle to read motives into Carroll's policy of intunatit^ 
to Propaganda that he would welcome the completest freedcno 
of action ; but if a venture may be made, perhaps the reason, or 
at least, one of the chief reasons which caused the gradual cold- 
ness between Baltimore and Rome was the Holy See's silent on 
what the American bishops believed to be a most necessary 
prerogative for the good of the Church in this otuntry; luundy, 
freedom in election to American sees. The five American 
bishops had emphasized this factor in their joint letter to Rome 
in November, 1810; and, doubtless, had it been promptly granted 
by the Holy See, they would have held their projected Meeting 
of t8i2 in spite of the War. As the autumn of 1812 approached, 
Carroll wrote to Bishops Chevenis, Egan and Flaget postponing 
the Meeting. Cbeverus, no doubt, had influenced the Archbishop 
not to call the suffragans tf^ether. "When two years ago," he 
wrote from Boston, August 31, 1812, "we fixed the time of our 
next meeting, I supposed and understood it was in the hope that 
we should be able to hear from the Holy Father, that the vacant 
Sees of New York and New Orleans would be occupied. . . . 
But as unhappily everything remains in the same situation where 
we left it two years since, you must excuse me when I say that I 
do not see either the necessity or even the great utility of a pro- 
vincial council being held at the present moment." " On Decem- 
ber 30, 1812, Cbeverus wrote again to Carroll, saying that 
rumours had reached him that the other bishops were blaming him 
for postponing the Meeting,** and on January 5, 1813, he wrote to 
say that if the others insisted, he would go. "I should feel very 
sorry to furnish a precedent to Bishop Flaget and others for 
absenting themselves on a future occasion." Cbeverus did not 

■■ IbU., Cue S-Lii. 

■ BalUmar* Cttktinl AreMvti. Cue i-OS. 

■• IbU., ClM »09- 



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Last Years 817 

see the necessi^ of taking the long and then unpleasant journey 
to Baltitnore to settle a few questions which "the professors at the 
Seminary onild just as easily decide." ** 

Two years later. Bishop Egan's death (July 22, 1814) re- 
awakened Carroll's desires to have the question of autonomy in 
episcopal elections settled; and his letters to Bishops Chererus 
and Floret, dated August 23, 1814, which the reader has seen in 
a previous chapter, warned the suffr^ans that interference 
m^ht be expected. 

Shea claims that Archbishop Carroll felt a delicat^ in thrust- 
ing unsolicited his views as to suitable candidates on the author- 
ities in Rome.** But that fact, if it be true, cannot excuse the 
American hierarchy from the charge of neglect. It was their 
duty, by the canon law of the times, to proceed at once with the 
business of filling each vacant see in the archdiocese. That 
Rome might reject each and all of their candidates was another 
matter. Connolly's qipointment was a discourtesy not so much 
to the American bishops as to the nation; for it was scarcely a 
dignified thing to see a prelate appointed to an American see 
obliged to wait until his country had made peace with the United 
States before he could enter his bishopric. But the traditional 
attitude of those who have accepted Shea's interpretation of 
Troy's "management" on filling the vacant See of New York 
cannot be justified by the documents for this particular instance 
in our possession. Coimolly knew shortly after Concanea's death 
(1810) that the Holy See intended to send him to New York, 
and nowhere does the Metropolitan of Dublin, though a fellow- 
Dominican with Concanen and Comiolly, appear in the letters 
r^ardii^ the New York episcopate. Nor does Carroll ever 
intimate that he saw Troy's hand in the New York appointment. 
That Carroll felt differently about the campaign to foist Harold, 
another Dominican, on Philadelphia, is, however, only too evident 
from his letters to Plowden and to Troy himself,** And we have 



" nu.. Cm »Oia. 
■■ 7#. <«., tdL U, ». «6i. 

* CuraO to Trar. AnfoM 4 It}, iSis iBaUlmtrt Cttkiinl ArtUeu, Cue g-L>i 
priatcd In Iba Rttarit, TvL n, pp. 67-<«)— "^mdd tl not ba nMDtcd u ■ tot 



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Sl8 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

seen how CvtoH states that Troy has admitted this infiuence in 
favour of Harold, whereas Troy himself asserts that he merely 
chronicled the interference of others to Carroll. In such a phase 
of misunderstanding between the Metropolitans of Baltimore and 
of DuUin, it is best to suspend judgment until further documents 
come to light.** 

One of the most interesting episodes of these last years of 
Carroll's life is his unwilling share in the affairs of the Catholic 
Church in England; and the author of the Eve of Catholic 
EmoMcipatioH has missed a valuable series of documents on the 
Catholic question in not making use of the Carroll-Plowden 
correspondence. These letters are of importance to the American 
Catholic historian not only as reflections from the mind of an 
outsider on the grave conflict in England between 1797 and 1829, 
but also as affording an opportunity of drawing a conq>arison 
between the acknowledged leaders of the English and American 
hierarchies of the day — Milner and Carroll. After the first Act 
of Relief for Roman Catholics had been passed by Parliament in 
1788, the first of a series of Catholic Committees of laymen, with 
Charles Butler as the leading spirit, was formed for the purpose 
of brii^t^ about complete emancipation for those who belonged 
to the Faith. The parties soon developed : the one, eager to 
placate the Government by means of compromises, the chief of 
which was to be the Veto ; and the other, determined to obtain 
complete redress of Catholic grievances, unacconq>anied by any 
conditions or fetters. The first was led by several of the Vicars- 
Apostolic and the celebrated Charles Butler ; the second, by Dr. 
Milner, who became Vicar-Apostolic of the Midland district in 
1803. Bishop Milner was supported by the Irish hierarchy, at 
whose head was Archbishop Troy. From 1803 imtil his death. 
Archbishop Carroll followed with great uneasiness the trend of 
Catholic affairs in England. As early as March, 1803, he wrote 
to Father Plowden that Milner's History of Winchester and his 



■ Tbt pTovtnanei at CtrTaO'i dUtroM oi Troj can be eaiilir iraetd in Plowdea'i 
iMUn to the AnUtAop of BlltiDore; and Plowdca ¥rritet at one under the atren 
of eonlliot between 111* Englieli and Iriih triihopa ii tbe time of the Oath canCroTcrey. 
No farther doeontotu coold be fomd in the Dublin Areliitpittepmi Anhmt. The 
reader b rrffared ta Rjan'* rcmarkaUe letter from Liabop, Decanbcr 14, i%\^ 
Zwierlcin'i treataitnt of tbe qaeatioc will be tound in hia Let Nemiuatjemt ititeattUt 
au trtmirri ttrnfi U nptaftiit Amfticain, io the MtUngti UetUtr. ToL U. 



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Last Years 819 

"triumphant reply to Sturges" (Letters to a Prebendary, etc., 
Winchester, 1800) caused him to consider the valiant and learned 
vicar-apostolic as "the Hero of the Catholic Cause." Father 
Plowden furnished him with all the books which were written 
during the controversy on the Veto question, and Dr. Carroll, in 
acknowledgii^ these, wrote: 

In the late controversies, which have arisen with you, both in the Cath- 
olic Question before Parliament and generally on disputed points, Protes- 
tants are so totally defeated that nothing remains for them but to repeat 
mbrepresentations, which they know to be such. The triumph of tmth 
is manifest, and must have its eftect. Besides Bishop Mllner'a works, I 
caused to be reprinted here and have given as wide circulation to a late 
production of your island, which I wonder that you have not mentioned. 
It is entitled An Essay on Religious Controversy and ascribed by Ur. 
Betagh of Dublin who sent it to me, to the Rev, Mr. Fletcher of Hex- 
ham.** It is an admirable performance for its elegance and solid acute 
reasoning and 1 should not exaggerate in saying that I have read it 
over at least four times.°i> 

The following year he mentions this book again, asking Plow- 
den (February 21, 1809), to 

be sure to let me know smnething of the Rev. Mr. Fletcher, wfaose 
Reflections on the Spirit of Controversy delight me more and more, and 
of which I caused an edition to be printed here, and it has a great effect 
on Catholics and Protestants. . . . We are now reprinting Milner's Lei- 
lers to Stvrgcss. I wish much to receive his account of the miraculous 
cure at St. Winifred's, concerning which so much controversy has been 
excited in the Gentlemen's Magaxine, and it must give pleasure to the 
friends of religion to find the Bishop so superior to his antagonists.*! 

How intimate a knowledge Archbishop Carroll possessed on 
all the literary movements of the day can be judged from a para- 
graph in one of his letters about this time (June 2, 1809) to 
Plowden : 

I know not whether another of my young country men, named Walsh, 
who has been near two years in England, has taken Stonyhurst in the 

' Cf. GiLLOw, at. tit., nL ii, p. 19S. 

" Slonyli%Tii TramcrifU. In the Carroll corrdpandeiicc U Notre Dune Uninr- 
Mj ICathoUc ArcUvei ef AnUTica.), then I* ■ letter frooi Uilner to CarroD, dated 
WalTerhudpton, linj 4, 1811, in which Ibe Enflish buhop Mra: "There ia Oo 
Prdate to whom I \aA np with more veoeralioa tli*a to the ArditMibcip of BaltiDOK.** 

" ttid. 



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S20 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

course of his peregrinatioiis. For hii age, be ii equal in hii extent of 
literature to any youth I ever knew, and tut ioamey and obaervatiooi in 
Europe, especially in France and your country, nnut have added ver; 
considerably to his stock of knowledge. If you see him, jtm will be 
much gratified by his ccnversation. Having been much with Mr. Pindcney, 
the American minister, and m his confidence, he has formed an acquain- 
tance with many of your leading characters and acquired an insight into 
public affairs which may amuse and disclose to you some transactions 
with respect to the Catholic question, of which perhaps you hare not 
beard." 

Robert Walsh, one of the foremost American political writers 
at that time, was then in his twetity-fifth year. He was bom 
at Baltimore in 1785, and was one of the first students to enter 
Georgetown Collie. There his mental powers were the admira- 
tion of his teachers and his oration on February 22, 1799, at the 
Memorial in honour of George Washington, yoimg as he was, 
ranked him among the coming orators of the coimtry. After his 
graduatioti in 1801, he studied law, and then began an extensive 
tour of Europe. In 1811, he established at Philadelphia the first 
American quarterly review, the American Review of History and 
Politics. His Appeal from the Judgment of Great Britain Re- 
specting the United States (1811) was tmdoubtedly the most 
widely circulated book of the day. It is Robert Walsh who has 
given us the best character sketch of Archbishop Carroll,'* 

Archbishop Carroll and his suffragans were appealed to in 
181 1 by the Vicar-Apostolic of England on the Catholic ques- 
tion, then before Parliament; and a copy of the Resolutions 
passed by the bishops of England at Durham, in August, 1811, 
"respecting their differences with Milner and the Irish Bishops," 
was sent to Dr. Carroll that year, ti^ether with a letter asking 
him to communicate it so far as he judged wise to the other Amer- 
ican bishops. If the American hierarchy had met in November, 
1812, as was decided at their meeting in j8io, a rather interest- 
ing situation might have arisen, had the Resolntiotis been con- 
sidered.** With Dr. Carroll as a partisan of Bishop Milner, but 
suspicious, as were most of the American clergy, of Dublin's 



•> Ibid. 

" Robot Wslih wai Counl-Geoenl U P4rU Utn-ii**}, and died in Fui> 

(1859)1 b* «ai tbc Gnt to crtalc > taccenfnl American jaJn in tha Ptvndi cfittL 

— TbcM AcmIkIwiw will bt fnmd la Wud, Bvt, wit., toL ii, pp. ajfi->ij 



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Last Years 821 

interest in the Church here, the result might have broi^ht the 
whole question of a Veto before the American Catholic puhlic 
How perilously near such a question had come into ecclesiastical 
affairs here none of them realized ; and with the English back- 
ground to judge from, Carroll's letter to President Madison in 
November, 1806, concerning the appointment of an administrator 
to New Orleans, might easily have been made the opening wedge 
by a less indolent politician. 

In June, 1809, Dr. Carroll asked Plowden to extend his "best 
dvilides in favour of a young gentleman, who lately sailed for 
Er^;land. . . . This young gentleman is Mr. Archibald Lee, 
son of my highly respected friend, Thomas Sim Lee, Esqre., 
twice governor of Maryland, Member of Coi^ess, etc. Ardi- 
ibald is likewise my Godson and the great nephew of our late 
Venerable Mr. Thomas Digges. . . ."" It would seem that 
Plowden told young Lee of the report current in London that Dr. 
Carroll had "expressed some disapprobation of Bishop Milner." ** 
The fact was, as Carroll protested, "that I have never expressed a 
sentiment derogatory to the conduct or character of that most 
reverend Prelate, that the amount of all which I have beard about 
him from Mr. Lee was that many of the principal Catholics, 
ecclesiastics and laymen, had lost confidence in his prudence or 
consistency," " These reports were spread by Father John Ryan, 
O. P., the friend of the Harolds, who had accompanied William 
Vincent Harold to Ireland. This is the same John Ryan we find 
delivering on St. Patrick's day, 1810, in the Cathedral at Cork, 
a sermon filled with denunciations of the English Catholics, whom 
he described, with the single exception of Milner, as "a fallen 
Church." The sermon caused considerable pain to all who were 
participants in the controversy, and Ryan was obliged to leave 
Cork, taking refuge with Dr. Troy, in Dublin." Ryan came out 
to the United States that same year, not with a view of entering 
the Mission, but to see his sister, then in business in Baltimore. 
Dr. Carroll no doubt was glad to have the opportunity of dis- 
cussing the Veto Question vnth him; and on his return, the 

■ SlanykurH Trtatcrifti. 

- IbU. 

" IbU. 

" WuD, Bvt, tic., tA. i, pp. 141-14*, ltJ-156. 



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822 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Dominican took advantage of their conversations to discuss 
Bishop Carroll in a personal interview with Milner. "If they 
(Ryan and Harold) return here, they must account for their 
foul representations," Carroll writes to Plowden (December la, 
1813) "before they will be readmitted by me to any function." •* 
Another charge (made by the two Dominicans) was that Dr. 
Carroll upheld the Blanchardists. The Blanchardist schism arose 
in London at the time of the Concordat between Pope Pius VII 
and Napoleon (1801), and was created by Abbe Blanchard, one 
of the refugee French priests, who had gone so far in his pub- 
lished writings as to call Pius VII a "material heretic", and in a 
pamphlet issued in 1808, called upon his readers to denounce Pius 
VII as unworthy of the Papacy. Milner attacked the Blanchard- 
ists in a Pastoral, dated June i, 180S, ordering prayers for Pius 
VII, and charging them with scandalous calumnies against the 
Holy Father. Milner now found himself the centre of attack 
from the refugee French clergy who sided with Blanchard. 
Father Ryan's charge and the silence of the American bishops 
may have induced Bishop Milner to believe that Archbishop 
Carroll approved the stand of these turbulent French priests, who 
were disturbing the order of the house of their hosts, the EngUsh 
vicars-apostolic. "It is my intention to write to Bishop MHner," 
Carroll says in a letter to Plowden (December 12, 1813), "for 
he could not surely think that I was an upholder of Blanchard. 
The Bishop and the other W^A. have sent to me and my 
suffragans the statement of their controversy on which it becomes 
us not to give any opinion." *" It would be interesting to see a 
copy of his letter to Dr. Milner, to whom he wrote in December, 
1813, but it has not been found. On February 3, 1814, Carroll 
wrote again to Plowden : 

... I was indignant at the glaring falsehoods of the report made by the 
two Dominicani, Messrs. Harold and Ryan, to the good Bishop, and 
others in which, however, I cannot persuade myself that tiie former, 
Harold, who always seemed to me a man of real abilities, virtue and 
hoaatj, coSperated othera-ise, than by being in the company of his 
friend. Even the latter, tho' he manifested some glaring tokens of in- 
sincerity immediately before his departwe, I esteemed incapable of so 



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Last Years 813 

I appeu-i from Dr. Milner'a letter, and of 
another of your corrMpondeou to you. The miarepretentatioti <ljd not only 
comprehend our good Frs. of the Society, who rest in the Lord, and to 
whran this Diocese owes whatever of religion remains in it, my Rev. 
Brethren now living and myself, but likewise associates Mr. Lee, then 
lately returned from Europe, as havin^r traduced B^. Milner, by reprc- 
tenting bim as insane, whereas in truth that young gentleman spoke with 
resentment against some persona in England, who affected to consider 
him as such. Possibly Mr. Ryan may have delivered himself to that 
effect in his bearing, or I may have told him what I beard from Mr. Lee : 
this was the n4io1e foundation of the most disingenuous and ver^ uncivil 
tale, related to the Bishop. This much I have taken the liberty to repeat 
from the contents of my preceding letter; as to the other slanders about 
trafficking in negroes, declension of religion etc., I will no more detgn 
to notice them.*' 

To Father Plowden (March 20, 1815), Dr. Carroll wrote on 
the Veto Qiiestioa with special reference to the position assumed 
by the Et^lish Jesuits in the controversy, and he deprecates any 
action on the part of men who are bound by ties of the religious 
life : "Whether the Pope admits a limited Veto or not, is not the 
concern of religious men, who are called not to the govenunetit 
of the Church but to labour in it for the salvation of souls and 
under the authority of its legitimate pastors." ** Dr. Carroll 
experienced great anxiety at the time lest the members of the 
restored Society in England should be drawn into the controversy. 
Bishop Milner had proved himself a warm advocate of the Jesuits 
in the difficult days which followed the Restoration of August 7, 
1814, and there was danger that they might be involved in the 
Veto Question, since it soon became evident that the opponents 
of the Catholic Emancipation meant to sacrifice the Society of 
Jesus in case it was necessary. ^ 

It is in this letter that Dr. Carroll says : "I have no hesitation 
in saying to you that the former [tke Irish Bishops] in my esti- 
mation are, in point of abili^, far st^Hor to the latter [the 
English Bishops], tho' I entertain a high (pinion of the talents 
of one, who is their advocate and indeed their guide." ** This 
exception was Charles Butler. Not to know Charles Butler is to 
be ignorant of all that led up to Catholic Emancipation in 1829; 



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824 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

and it is significant that Carroll was broad-minded enough to find 
praise (or Buder's heroic stn^le for Catholic freedom, even 
when he found him at sword's-point with Bishop Milner. Of 
Charles Butkr, Carroll said : "His desire to effect the entire 
destruction of penal and restricted laws carries him sometimes 
much too far in his compliance with the views of govemment." ** 
In his letter of June 24, 1815, to Plowden, Dr. Carroll wrote: 

I conclttde by iotreatins jroo not to encourage our Brethren of the 
Society to adopt, ss a maxim of the body, an adhesion to the Veto or 
Antiveto system. Let the individuals know the opinions, which thqr 
deem most consonant with the practice of f<xiiier ages mider the best and 
most enlightened Popea, and most useful to the preservtttion and extennon 
of pure religion; and this liberty of opinion should be tnaintatned, till 
the Head of the Church has spoken definitely on the subiect Hy dis- 
tance, and the principle of this Govt not to meddle with the doctrines 
or discipline of the various religions denominations, exempt me from 
studying the question, or forming an absolute opinion on it, further than 
this: that if it were possible, which I fear cannot be done^ to allow 
a negative to the King in the nomination of Catholic Bisbc^ without 
endangering the freedom of election and nomination and tntrodncinc ser- 
vile tools of the ministry to preside over the Cath. churches, the privilege 
might be allowed in Enj^and and Ireland, as has been done in other 
countries. But when the evasions and impositions of former times are 
remembered which were practised iqion the Catholics of England, and 
more so of Ireland, one cannot wonder at the distrust now felt of similar 
promises. Thus far <mly have I reasoned on this subject The Pope 
has a difficult task before him, his obligations to Engd. are great, and 
tho* there is no doubt of his making all consideratiofiB yield to the dic- 
tates of his conscience, yet it will be painful to him to offend a Prince, 
who did so much for his restoration to the chair of St. Peter; especially 
when so many Catholic clergirmen and Laity contend that he tnay law- 
fully yield the grant requested.** 

This is the last reference to the English Catholic situation 
found in his correspondetice with Plowden. Running through 
all the letters there is a quiet satisfaction which he can hardly 
repress at times, over the peaceful relations between the State and 
the Catholic Church in this country. For forty years as priest, 
and for thirty years as the highest Catholic spiritual leader in the 
land, he had watched the flock entrusted to him in 1784 grow with 
the country's growth and strengthen with the nation's pn^ress. 



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BALTIMORE CATHEDRAL 



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Last Years 825 

Numbers mean little when such an increase is to be measured in 
the balance of its power (or good and (or the wel(aie of 
humanity; but even the changed statistics o( his Report o( 1785, 
with its twenty-four priests and its tweoty-five thousand Cuh- 
olics, to a hierarchy of six dioceses with over twice the number 
of priests, and nearly four times the number of Catholics, must 
have cheered him amid all the turmoils of war and the difficulties 
gratuitously brought to the American Church by aliens, as he 
(aced the setting sun of his Ii(e. "I am the only slu^ard and do 
no good" amidst this wonderful growth of the Faith, he wrote 
to Plowden in the beginning o( the year which was to be his last 
Throi^h the summer, while the country was recovering from 
the sharp effects of the war, it was seen that his days wert 
rapidly growing few. 

His last public act was to decline the gracious invitation sent 
to him by the Committee-in-charge to pronounce the chief dis- 
course at the layii^ of the cornerstone of the Washii^ton Momi- 
ment, on July 4, 1815. To Father Enoch Fenwick he wrote : 

You will not fail to preaenl imiiMdiatelr my very reipectful and sratefnl 
acknowledgments to Ur. Gibnour and throogh him to the Gentlemen of 
the Committee for the distinguished honour done me by their choice of 
me, as the person de^gnaled to open the angnit ceremony of the Fourth 
of July, and remind our countrymen of the only tnie sources of real 
honor and glory, the moral, civil and military virtnet of that illustrious 
man whose monument will that day begin to be raised, which even without 
the aid of marble, will remain tmdefaced and imperishable in the hearts 
of his fellow-citizens . . . with pride would I obey a call which honouri 
me so much, tho' at all times it would exceed my power to do it justice; 
but now more particularly at my advanced period of life, and with a half- 
extinguished voice, I must unavoidably fall so much below the solenutity 
of the occasion and public expectation, that respect for the supereminent 
Washington, and for my fellow-citizens compels me to offer my excuse 
to the Committee.** 

Archbishop Carroll was taken to Georgetown at this time, with 
the hope that the change would benefit his health ; but early in 
July, 1815, he returned to Baltimore, and towards the end o( 
November became so feeble that the approaching end of his life 
was reo^zed by all about him at St. Peter's. "The best 

■ BiMmort Catkiint Arthiutt, Special C-Dia. 



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836 Tht Lift and Timtt of John Carroll 

medical aid was summooed, but it wai loon evident that there 
was a general decay of the vital forces arising from the weakness 
of advanced age." " On November 22, J815, Bishop Neale was 
sent for from Georgetown to visit the venerable prelate and when 
it was known that his recovery was despaired of, his illness 
became the general concern of the city where he had so hag 
enjoyed universal respect, veneration, and esteem. The day 
followit^, at six in the evening, Carroll received the last Sacra- 
ments in the presence of the clergy of his household and of the 
seminarians from St. Mary's. After a few momenta of thanks- 
giving, he made a pathetic address to these young Levites on the 
beauty of the vocation to which they were called. In the Bald- 
more Cathedral Archives, there is a paper in Marichal's hand- 
writing describing this affecting scene: 

Affdibishop Carroll being very sick on the 33d Nov., 1815, he received 
at six o'clock in the aftemoon the last Sacr. Rev. Ut. Fenwick admin- 
istered to him. 

1*. They prepared a table in his room — i crucifix and two candle- 
sticks upon it, aiM the necessary linen for reposing on it the Blessed 
Sacr>. The Archb, had his rich stole on and his head uncovered. 

2*. Mr. Fenwick accompanied by Mr. Tessier, Moranviilf, Merts, 
Marichal, Joubert, Harent, Babad, Dainphoux and five or tix seminarians, 
went into the church to take the Blessed Sacr*. They all went in a 
procession; at the head of it was two Acolytes, saying the Psahn 
Miserere. 

3'. After Mr. Fenwick had given the Sick, Holy Water, he was 
asked by the Archb. to read the prayers of the administration in Distinct 
Audible Voice. Then he made a sign that he wanted to speak, which 
he did in a weak but distinct mamier: 

"My Reverend Brethren, I have freqttently and earnestly begged your 
prayers, but I beg them particularly at this moment. To all appear- 
ances I shall shortly appear before my God and my Judge. Entreat 
His infinite mercy to forgive me my sins. The abuse I made of His 
graces and the bad example I may ever have given, the Sacraments I 
have received without sufficient respect, the days in my life which T 
ought to have consecrated only to the promotion of His honour and 
glory. I was appointed to extoid His holy religion in this country and 
to gain over to His service and love multitudes of Souls. Ah I if any 
(here the Archbishop raised his eyes and hands to Heaven) Ah I if any 
one should be lost through my fault, beg Heaven to forgive me. 1 
repose all my confidence in the goodness of God and the merits of our 

* Sbka, e/. «t., vd. ii, p. 6}4- 



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Last Years 827 

dear Lord, J. C. I recommend myself to the powerful interceuion of 
His BlesMd Mother and of all the taints, in hope that they will obtain 
for me the pardon of my offenses. 

4*. After this exhortation he received the Blessed Sacrament . . . 

S*. He received Extreme Unction. He did not expect that they would 
give him that Sacrament. He put on the stole he had already taken off 
after the prayers were over. He gave his solemn blessing to the assist- 
ants, who went away reciting the TV Dtum. 

6*. Tfao' sick he seemed to be very fatigued. Too many people were 
suffered to enter the room. He nearly fainted away and the room bad 
to be cleared.** 

During the week which followed before his de^h, he was sur- 
rounded by the priests of his household. His sister, who had 
come from Washington, watched at his bedside. His nephew, 
Daniel Brent, Consul of the United States at Paris, has given us a 
page describing his illustrious uncle's last days. Baltimore then 
as now felt that its archbishop belonged to herself ; and all day 
loi^ a throi^ of reverent and prayerful friends, among them 
some of the distinguished Protestant clergymen of the city, came 
to take a last farewell. "His mind is as vigorous as it ever was," 
his nephew wrote at the time, "and whenever any person goes to 
his room, you would be pleased and astonished at his readiness tn 
adapting his conversation and questions to the situation and cir- 
cumstances of the person introduced. At times he is not only 
cheerful, but even gay, and he ts never impatient or fretful." ** 
Robert Walsh is the authority for the following incident which 
occurred just before his death. 

His life was almost at the last ebb, and his surrounding friends were 
ccnsulting aboot the manner of his interment. It was understood that 
(here was a book in his library which prescribed the proper ceremonial, 
and it viras ascertained to be in the very chamber in which be lay. A 
clergyman went as softly as possible into the room in search of it He 
did not find it immediately, and the Archbishop heard his footsteps in 
the room. Without a word having passed he called to the clergyman, 
and told him that he knew what he was looking for ; that he would find 
the book in such a position on a certain shelf; and there accordingly it 
was fotmd.*" 

•■ C4M t>Vi iCopT-badit; printed In the Rimrdui, toL xzlt, pp. j<a-*6t, 

* B«i»T, op. eit., pp. xai-ioi. 

** Id du Rttarii (toL xxriii, pp. iffi-iSo) them li printed m munncripti nciw la 
a* CothoMc Anhiett of Amtrict, at the Unlnnilr of Notra Dime, wtiiA pnmmvUr 
CUM inm th« BmtHm*n Cthrini AreUvif. mnalnli^ u Kcoant of Iha lut jUbbm 



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828 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

ArchlMshof) John Carroll died on Sunday, December 3, 1815, 
in his e^hty-Grst year. 

On the Tuesday following, the Solemn Mass of Requiem was 
chanted in St. Peter's pro-Cathedral, and he was laid away in 
the vault of the Seminary chapel. Here his body remained until 
the completion of the present Cathedral, when in 1824 it was 
removed to its present restii^-place, beneath the altar of that 
historic edifice. Shea says : 

Fottcrity ha^ retained the veneratioa and esteem entertained in this 
country for Archbishop Carroll, and the calm icrutiny of history in our 
day recognizes the hig^ esttnute of hia personal virtues, hii purity, meek- 
ness, prudence, and bis providential work in mouldii^ the diverse ete- 
ments in the United States into an organized church. His administrative 
ability stands out in high relief when we view the results produced by 
others who, unacquainted with the comitry and the Catholics here, rashly 
promised themselves to cover the land with the blossoms of peace, but 
raised only harvests of thorns. With his life of tai^ experience in civil 
and religious vicissitudes, through whose storms his faith in the mission 
of the Church never wavered, closed a remarkable period in the history 
of the Church in the United States." 

Brent, his first biographer, has collected the sketches of Arch- 
bishop Carroll which appeared at the time of his death. Never 
before tti the dty of Baltimore was there witnessed a funeral pro- 
cession "where so many of eminent respectability and standing 
among us, followed the train of mourners," wrote one eye- 
witness. 

Distinctions of rank, of wealth, of religious opioioti, were laid aside in 
the great testimony of respect to the memory of the nun. . . . According 
to the partkolar disposition of every one, we heard the venerable Arch- 
bishop praised and lamented The extent of his knowledge and the enlarge- 
ment of his mind, fastened upon the men of liberal science. The 
ISxrality of his character, and his Christian charity, endeared him to his 
Protestant brethren, with whom he dealt in brotherly love. He was a 
patriot and loved his native land, nor should Americans forget that his 
exertions and benedictions as a man and as a Christian prelate were 
given to the cause and itKkpendenoe of his country. 

The praise heaped upon him after his death does not, liowever, 
help us to see the man himself. To say that his manners and 



icUh of ArAbidwp CamlL It U natlriiic aore tbxD Wilih'* Irilnite wlikii to 

<t hen. 

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tost Years 819 

dqwrtment— to quote one witness — ^were a model of the clerical 
character, d^nified, yet simple, pious, but not austere — is to 
picture him as many an ecclesiastic since his day might be pic- 
tured. His purity of life, his tenderness to the poor, and his 
affectionate attachment to all of his Faith and opposing faiths, are 
the principal notes struck at the time of his death. Robert Walsh 
gives us an insight into the man himself : 

No being that it hu ever been our lot to admire, erer insi^ed ui widi 
so nmcb reverence as Archbiahi^ CurolL The confignration of hii bead, 
his whole mien, bespoke the metropolitan. He bore his ■ttperitv facul- 
ties and acquirements, his well-improved oppor tu nities of information and 
refinement, abroad and at bcme, his profeasiona] rank and hii daily 
honours, we will not saj meekly, but so courteously, happily and un- 
affectedly that while his general character reftratned in others all pro- 
pensity to indecorum or presumption, hti presence Added to every one's 
complacency, -and produced a tmiversal sentiment of earnest kindness 
towards the truly amiable and truly exalted companion and instructor. . . , 
He was wholly free from guile, uniformly frank, generous and placable; 
he reprobated all intolerance ... his patriotism was as decided as his 
piety ... he entertained no predilectioa for Great Britain or her govem- 
ment. He loved republicanism ; and so far preferred his own country, 
that if ever he could be excited to impatience or irritated, nothing wottld 
have that effect more certainly than the expression of the iligfateit prefer- 
ence, by any American friend, of foreign institntiaaa or measures. He bad 
joined with heart and judgment in the Revolutioa ; he retained without 
abatement of confidence or favour, the cardinal principles and American 
sympathies and hopes upon which he then acted.** 

Flaget could write from the pioneer surroundings of Kentud^, 
when he heard the news of Carroll's death : "This holy man has 
run a glorious career ; he was gifted with a wisdom and prudence 
which made every one esteem and love him," ** but then cckik 
words of praise that run into pan^yric and so spoil the effect of 
his eulogy. Du Bourg, with whom he had more than one mmtvois 
quart d'heure over the project of St Mary's College, wrote from 
France, probably from Bordeaux : "He has certainly finished a 
beautiful and glorious career ; and we should rejoice for his sake 
that God has called him to the recompence of his Ioi% labors." 
Father Grassi in his Memorie ( 1818) has summed up Archbishop 
Carroll's character in the followii^ words : "To his courtesy of 



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830 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

demeanour was joined a rare goodness of heart, qualities which 
won him the merited esteem and respect of the public, not only 
Catholic, but non-Catholic most hostile to the name of Roman 
Catholic. In the eyes of some he was not cautious enough in 
his choice of confidants, and he was prone to give in to Protes- 
tants, more than he should have done, and to appoint trustees 
over churches when he could have done well without them, and 
so averted all the troubles which our missionaries suffered at 
the hands of those same persons, with damage to religion itself," 

This, Father Hughes, the Jesuit historian, takes to be a fair 
estimate of his character." But John Carroll did not create the 
trustee system, nor did he approve it ; he suffered it because it 
was necessary as an American legal institution for the protection 
of church property. Nor did he create all the methods employed 
by the Corporation of the Qergy to protect the Jesuit estates 
during the days of the Interim. 

But with one phrase from Grassi, the word-picture of 
America's first bishop might begin — rare goodness of heart. 
"Some may impute to me a too easy credulity," he wrote to 
Plowden (June 2, 1809), "and the want of discernment in judg- 
ing of mankind" (at the time of the difficulties between himself 
and the revived Society), "but I have great difficulty in per- 
suading myself that men whose whole lives have been devoted to 
the se^^'ice of religion and who, under trying occasions, have 
served it successfully, can be acting a false and dishonorable 
part." " This ingenuousness he never lost until the end. The 
treachery of priests to whom he confided important posts in the 
Church of God in this country ; the deception practised upon him 
by influential leaders in the Church; the impossible trustees; and 
the difficulty he experienced when a foreign vai^uard arrived to 
restore the American province of his old Society — these and other 
misunderstandings down the years of his leadership never seem to 
have chilled the natural tenderness of the man's heart or to 
have blighted the ecclesiastic's optimism. 

Durii^ the whole of his spiritual reign, he ruled the flock 
entrusted to him unperturbedly, despite the constant checks upon 
its progress and its harmony. With the troublesome, the rebel- 



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Lasi Years 831 

liou3, the schismatic, and the scandal^ving, he acted with caution 
and delicacy ; but with such firmness that misrule saw no chance 
to succeed within the borders of his government. Frankness was 
his chief defect in a world bristling with chicanery and deception. 
His piety does not obtrude, nor are his letters to his friends chan- 
nels for the devout expressions so common to a certain kind of 
religious correspondence. The devout priest of God is often 
revealed from beneath the pallium which designated his power to 
rule; as for instance on his death-bed, when he told Father 
Grassi: "Of those things that give me most consolation at the 
present moment is, that I have always been attached to the 
practice of devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, that I have 
established it among the people under my care, and placed my 
Diocese under Her protection," " Archbishop Carroll's last will 
and testament contain many personal bequests, among them 
being "four hundred pounds sterling in five per cent stock" for 
Georgetown College; "four shares of the stock of the Potomac 
Company" to his nephew, Daniel Brent of Washington, D. C, to 
whom he bequeathed also "my black servant Charles, to be how- 
ever manumitted within twelve months after my decease, unless I 
should do so previously thereto" ; his horses, carriages and har- 
ness to his sister, Elizabeth Carroll ; and to Fathers Enoch Fen- 
wick and Grassi the books he had recently ordered from 
Louvain."^ 

One unpublished estimate of Archbishop Carroll should be 
given a place in these pages. It is that by Robert Gilmore, 
written on May 9, 1844, and sent to the historian, B. U. Camp- 
bell : "I was too young when he came to reside here in 1786 to 
know much about him. It was somewhere between '95 and 1800 
that I became intimate with him, from the kindness which he 
always showed to young people which won their affections. He 
was so mild and amiable and always cheerful, that we all took 
delight in his society. My father esteemed him highly, and I 
have often met him at his table, as well as those of most of the 
gentlemen in town. He had great conversational powers, derived 
from his extensive reading and his long stay abroad in England 



•* UnUti Stattt Calhalic Utgatiiu, ml. ii, p. aid. 

*> Tfce irill ii dated, BaltinorB, Noronbcr », iSij (.Btltbiuiri Calhtdnl AnMnt, 
C—* ii-l4i prinMd in tb« Xrttmtlut, nL fill, pp. i>-ss>. 



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832 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

and on the continent. There were few subjects he was not 
master of. He enjoyed the pleasures of the table in moderation, 
and cheerful as he was, he never lost his dignity, but alwa^ 
commanded respect and attention without the slightest appear- 
ance of doming either. It was impossible to treat him with 
disrespect or even levity, for he had spirit enough to resent any 
inq>roper liberties taken with him and awed by his manner any 
approach to iii^>ertinence. . . . The Archbishop in fact was a 
thoroughbred, and a polished gentleman who put everybody at 
their ease in his company while delighting them with his con- 
versation." ■• 

As the charioteer whom God set over the American Church — 
so Qievcrus had addressed him in 1810 at the establishment of 
the hierarchy, usii^ as his text the words addressed by Eliseus 
to Elias — Pater mi, Pater mi, currus Israel el auriga ejus. As 
charioteer he led the army of God through every danger with 
a courage that none could gainsay, and with a success which is 
his perennial memory in the annals of the Catholic Faith in the 
Republic he had helped to create and to mould, 

■• SaMwir* CatluirttI AteUott, Spcdil C-Dio. 



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CHAPTER XL 

CRITICAL ESSAY ON THE SOURCES 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL AIDS 

There is no complete bibliographical guide for church history 
in general or for the general history of the Catholic Church in 
the United States. The latest contribution to the subject — Mode, 
Source Book and Bibliograpkical Guide for American Ckurch 
History (Menesha, Wis., 1921) — is of very minor value to the 
student of Catholic American history. Dr. Mode speaks of 
"Rev." John Gilmary Shea ; and his selection of references dis- 
plays not only a vague acquaintance with current Catholic his- 
torical literature, but also a lack of technical knowledge of 
archival source-material. We have for the Catholic Church in 
the United States no book similar in character to the Guide 
to the Study and Reading of American History by dianning- 
Hart-Turner (Boston, 1912). It must be remarked however, 
that this excellent bibliographical work systematically ignores 
the subject of Catholicism in this country. Finotti's catalogue 
of 'works written by Catholics and published in these United 
States" has a misleading title: Bibliographia Catholica Amer- 
icana (New York, 1S72), since it includes only works pub- 
lished from 1784 to 1820. The book has, however, a bibliophile 
interest of a high degree. The bibliography printed in O'Gorman, 
History of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States 
(New York, 1907), is compiled without method and shows no 
discrimination between works written by scholars and those by 
amateurs. We have not, for example, for the eastern part of the 
United States, such a critical disquisition on the source-material, 
as will be found in Engelhardt, Missions and Missionaries of 
California (cf. vol. ii, part i, pp. 21-46. San Francisco, 1912). 
Shea gives no bibliographical list in any of his four volumes on 
the History of the Catholic Ckurch in the United Stales (iSSd- 



idbvGoOgle 



834 rft« ^'Z" ««'' Times of John Carroll 

1892). His references are not always to be trusted and tfuy are 
given for the most part without method. The bibliog;raphical 
guides published in the Catholic Historical Review are of two 
kinds : the "Catholic Encyclopedia" Diocesan Bibliography, 
where tmder the Dioceses of Baltimore, New York, Boston, 
Philadelphia, Bardstown and New Orleans, a very inadequate list 
of authorities is printed (cf. vol. iv, pp. 264-265, 267-272, 391- 
392) ; and the Guide to the Biographical Sources of the Amer- 
ican Hierarchy, where under the names of Carroll, Neale, 
Chevenis, ^an, Flaget, Concanen, Connolly and Du Bourg, 
archival material as well as printed sources are listed (Ibid., vol. 
vi). An admirably chosen bibliographical summary, of value for 
the years of Carroll's life, is in O'Daniel, Life of Bishop Fen- 
wick, pp. 445-452 (Washington, D. C, 1921). The Register and 
Notices of the Sources, published in Hughes, History of the 
Society of Jesus in North America, Colonial and Federal {Text, 
vol, i, pp. 1-45; vol. ii, pp. 19-25. New York, 1907-1917), is 
without doubt one of the most important contributions to Cath- 
olic American bibliography in recent years. The rat^ of 
Father Hughes' searches was world-wide; and, although the 
Register is compiled for the distinct purpose of studying the his- 
tory of the Jesuits in colonial and national America, the citations 
are invaluable for the student of this period. The English 
colonies were (1634-1773) exclusively a Jesuit Mission. The 
support of the Church during the American Interim ( 1773-1806) 
came largely from the revenues of the incorporated Jesuit estates; 
and during the remainii^ years of Carroll's life (1806-1815), 
the restored Society had almost reached its former prestige as 
the cluef missionary body in the country. Hughes' two lists of 
books on American Catholic life is the most complete published up 
to the present day. The best general description of works on 
American Catholic history is that contained in Shahan, L'Histoire 
de I'&glise Catholique aux £tals-Unis in the Revue d'Histoire 
Ecclisiastique (Louvain), vol. i, pp. 679-684. Bishop Shahan 
has classified the writings in American Church history under 
the followit^ heads: Relations with the Holy See; Conciliar 
Legislation; History of the Missions; State of the Clergy; 
Catholic Press; Catholic Historical Societies; and Archival 
Depots. "Rien ne nous manque," he says at the end of his essay. 



idbvGoOgle 



Criticdl Essay 835 

"tant qu'une bibliogri^hie generale de notre histoire eccl£sias- 
tique." The members of the American Church History Seminar 
at the Catholic University of America, Washington, D. C, have 
in preparation a Guide to the Printed Sources for American 
Church History, which will include all printed documents, books, 
and periodical material on the history of the Catholic Church 
within the present borders of the United States, from 1492 
to 1920. 

LIVES OF CARROLL 
The earliest Life of Carroll is that by Brent, Biographical 
Sketch of the Most Rev. John Carroll, First Archbishop of Balti- 
more, with Select Portions of his IVritings (Baltimore, 1S43). 
This is a hastily compiled account of little historical worth and of 
no literary value. It contains a few latters which are now lost, 
but it cannot be wholly trusted. Bernard U. Campbell published 
a series of articles entitled Memoirs of the Life and Times of the 
Most Rev. John Carroll, in the United States Catholic Magasine 
(Baltimore), vol. iii (1844), pp. 32-41,98-101, 169-176, 244-248, 
363-379, 662-669, 718-724; vol. v (1846), pp. 595-601, 676-679; 
vol. vi (1847), pp. 31-34. 100-104, 144-148, 434-436, 482-485, 
592-599; vol. vtt (1848), pp. 91-106. From letters now in the 
Baltimore Cathedral Archives Special C-D, i-io), it is evident 
that Campbell pursued his subject in a systematic and methodical 
manner. His queries to those then living who were able to 
enlighten him on the events of Carroll's episcopate, are clearly 
those of a scholar, and it is to be regretted that he never completed 
his work. (Our citations in these p^es to the United States 
Catholic Magaxine are to Campbell's Memoirs.) From Camp- 
bell's time down to that of John Gilmary Shea, no attempt seems 
to have been made to study Carroll's life. Shea's volume. The 
Life and Times of the Most Reverend John Carroll (being vol. 
ti of his History of Ike Catholic Church in the United States), 
was published at New York in 1888. Shea used the Baltimore 
Cathedral Archives, and secured copies in Rome and elsewhere 
of many of the documents necessary for his subject. These now 
form the Skea Transcripts in the Georgetown College Archives. 
Shea was a pioneer in this field and one of the earliest of our 



idbvGoOgle 



836 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

historians to recognize the necessity of going back to the sources. 
As the father of American Church history. Shea's volumes are a 
monument to himself and to his inspirers. Here and there, in his 
Life of Archbishop Carroll, he has marred his work with bias, 
and occasionally the former Jesuit scholastic prevails over the his- 
torian. His method is somewhat haphazard, and the chronological 
rigidity which prevails in his Life of Carroll often produces 
curious juxtapositions of facts and persons. Shea wrote quickly ; 
too quickly, for accurate scholarship; but a comparison of the 
sources he possessed with the numerous letters and documents he 
failed to notice, or which have been since brought to light both 
here and abroad, reveals more than anything else the man's mas- 
tery in this difficult field. It was not that he allowed his imagina- 
tion to fill the lacunae which can be detected today in his pages, 
but that he was abnost invariably correct in his deductions. 
Hughes has stated: "Nothing could be more at variance with 
the principles and practice of critical editing in our days, than 
Shea's open confession that 'at the solicitations of a venerated 
friend, I have given the authorities in my notes, although schol- 
ars generally have been compelled to abandon the plan by the 
dishonesty of those who copy references and pretend to have 
consulted books and documents they never saw and frequently 
could not read.' " (op. cil.. Text, vol. i, Preface, p. 11). We have 
traveled far from this sentiment in critical historical scholarship. 
Shea's Life of Carroll has never been popular for the reason that 
it is not readable. The first and essential law of biography is that 
a man's life should flow continually from birth to death like a 
river. To describe an assemblage of facts, strung together by a 
chronolc^cal thread, is not the fluent narrative of biography. 
This is Shea's great failing, just as his great virtue is a well- 
balanced devotion for his subject, of which biographers in gen- 
eral do not always give evidence. Since the publication of Shea's 
work, Catholic historical writers in the United States have 
simply been repeating his pages; and, as he himself expressed 
it in several of his letters, they have been content to plagiarize his 
Life and Times without giving him due credit Among these 
volumes, based almost exclusively on Shea, may be mentioned : 
Clarke, Lives of the Deceased Bishops of the Catholic Church in 
the United States, vol. i, pp. 32-113. (New York, 1888) ; and 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 837 

ReuM, Biographical Cyclopedia of the Catholic Hierarchy in the 
United States (Milwaukee, 1898). 



UNPUBLISHED SOURCES 

The source-material still existing in archival depots for the 
period embraced in Carroll's lifetime (1735-1815) is so widely 
scattered that the student who is unable to visit these centres 
must depend to a large extent upon the Guides which have been 
published for this purpose. Broadly considered, the archival 
material for the period under study was found in the follow- 
ing places: 

1. Rome — a). — ^At the head of the Roman collections may be 
placed the General Archives of the Society of Jesus, although 
these were removed from Rome some years ago. Hughes has 
given us an excellent general account of these archives in his 
History, etc.. Text, (vol. i, pp. 9-13), and his second chapter tells 
in detail the history of the collection and the use made of it up 
to his time. So far as these General Archives were necessary for 
this work, the documents needed for this Life of Carroll were to 
be found in the two volumes published by Hughes, entitled Docu- 
ments, and in Foley's Records of the English Province of the 
Society of Jesus (London, 1877-1883). b). — The next collection, 
of the greatest importance to our subject, is the Propaganda 
Archives. A general sketch of these archives will be found in 
Pieper's article in the Romische Quarialschrift (vol. i, pp. 
80-99, 259-^5)- "^c i^rst attempt at the catalogue of all the 
papers relating to American history is that contained in Fish, 
Gfidt to the Materials for American History in Roman and 
other ItaHan Archives, pp. 119-195 (Washington, D. C, 1911). 
Through the generosity of friends, John Gilmary Shea was 
enabled to have a large number of these papers transcribed for 
his History of the Catholic Church in the United States. These 
are now housed in the Georgetown Collie Archives. Personal 
research work extending over a lot^ period, forced upon me the 
conclusion that transcribers as a body were highly unreliable; 
and so through the generosity of several friends, I hid all the 
documents used by Shea, and many others which had escaped his 
notice, photographed. This collection of photostiU copies is sap- 



idbvGoOgle 



838 The Life tnd Times of John Carroll 

plemented by another valuable collection in the possession of the 
Doniioicana at Washington, D. C, made some years ago under 
the personal supervision of Rev. Victor F. O'Daniel, O.P. It is 
not necessary to subjoin here a table of the contents of the docu- 
ments used in these volumes. The general division of the Propa- 
ganda Archives (Atti; Scritture originali riferite; Scritture non 
riferite; Lettere, of which there are 225 volumes for the years 
1669-1795; Vdiense; Istrumoni; MiscelloHea, etc), is one of 
convenience rather than of historical merit. The catal<^rue given 
by Fish is incomplete ; and occasionally the papers are cited in a 
way that might have been avoided, had the author been more 
familiar with American Catholic history. 

2. Baltimore — a). — After the Prop^anda Archives, the most 
vauable collection for Carroll's life is the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archives. Through the kindness of the late Cardinal Gibbons, 
and with the help of the Archivist, I was enabled to make the 
fullest use of these documents. With but very few exceptions, all 
the papers relating to Carroll's episcopate are in an excellent state 
of preservation and are well cared for. Thoi^h the main divi- 
sions are made by the episcopates. (Carroll, Neale, Mar£chal, 
etc.), the order in the arrangement of the papers is an arbitrary 
one. The boxes containing the papers for our subject (1735- 
1815) are divided as follows: I. Letters to Archbishop CarroU 
(Case I A-B, Case 2 B-C, Case 3 D-E-F-G, Case 4 H-J-K-L, 
Case 5 L-M-N-O, Case 6 O-P, Case 7 R-S, Case 8 S-T-U- 
V-W-X-Y-Z) ; II. Supplement : Letters to Archbishop Carrott 
(Case 8A A-Z, Case 8B A-Z) ; III. Letters from Archbishop 
Carroll (Case 9 A-Z) ; IV. Letters from and Manuscripts of 
Archbishop Carroll (Case 9A A-Z) ; V. AdnUtUstration of Arch- 
bishop Carroll (Case 10, Case 11, Case iiA, Case iiB, Docu- 
ments, Papers, etc.); VI. Special (Case A A-Z, Case B A-Z, 
Case C A-Z) ; VII. Letter Books— z volumes. The research 
student must bear in mind, however, that the initials have no 
reference to the writers; the division by letters being merely 
for the purpose of cataloguing. Each initial letter is followed 
by a numbw, e. g.. Case 1-A3, Case 8A-R3, and in this way 
the references given furnish a ready means of findii^r the docu- 
ment in question. The system is not an ideal one, and is quite 
different from the usual method employed in archival econonty; 



idbvGoOgle 



Crilieal Essay S39 

but with documents of this nature it is practical. At the present 
time these ample archives are being reorganized under the care 
of the Cathedral clergy, who have taken great interest in the 
preservation of these precious monumenta of America's oldest 
See. b). — Baltimore contains another collection, the Maryland- 
New York Provincial Archives of the Society of Jesus, but they 
pertain mainly to financial matters connected with the old Jesuit 
properties. Hughes has published from this collection the prin- 
cipal documents necessary for our subject. There are in these 
archives two folio transcripts (pp. 98, 34) containing copies of 
some American documents in the Stonyhurst Collection. These 
Shea used for his Life of Carroll. Through the kindness of the 
English Jesuit historian, Father John Hungerford Pollen, copies 
of all the letters from Carroll to Plowden, Strickland, and others, 
now in the Stonyhurst Archives, were made for this present 
work. (They are referred to in these pages as Stonyhurst 
Archives.) 

3. Georgetown — The Georgetown College Archives are the 
best arranged of all the ecclesiastical collections in the United 
States. The main division is that of Manuscripts and Transcripts. 
The Transcripts are those made for B. U. Campbell and for John 
Gilmary Shea. The Shea Transcripts are of two kinds: those 
from Some and from other centres. As has already been indi- 
cated, these Transcripts are now supplemented by the photostat 
copies in my possession. Too often it was my e]q>enence while 
at work in the Vatican and Propaganda Archives to find mis- 
takes in Italian documents transcribed by Italians who make a 
profession of copying in these centres. 

4. London — a). — The Westminster Diocesan Archives (Cardi- 
lial-Archbishop's House, London), contain a few documents ol 
importance for the period during which the Vicars-Apostolic of 
London ruled the Catholics in the English colonies (1685-1784). 
Shea had this collection searched when he was writing his His- 
tory, but the manuscripts were not in good order at the time 
(1887). The present writer published in the Catholic Historic<J 
Review (vol. v, pp. 387-401), a catalogue of these Westminster 
p^>ers which related to the United States. In the Guide to tht 
Manuscripts for the History of the United Slates to 1783, in the 
British Museum, in Minor London Archives, and in the Libraries 



idbvGoOgle 



840 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

of Oxford and Cambridge, by Charles M. Andrews and Pnuids 
G. Davenport (Washington, 190S), there is a short list of docu- 
ments (twenty in all) from these archlvea, relating to American 
Catholic history before 1783. In 1914, when I worked among 
these papers, the Westminster Diocesan Archives were divided 
as follows: (i) Thirty-seven bound volumes of original docu- 
ments concerning the Church in England and the English colo- 
nies from 1509 to 1700; (2) many bundles of unbound docu- 
ments, not then classified, covering the later period, 1700-1850; 
(3) pamphlets and other manuscripts. There was also in manu- 
script a catalt^ue for the bound volumes, made by the late Father 
Stanton of the Oratory, The two historical students who have 
made most use of these Archives are Bishop Ward and Canon 
Burton. In a letter dated October 12, igi8, Bidiop Ward wrote 
to me from Brentwood to say that he did not remember having 
seen many p^>ers relating to America. The period he studied 
b^an in 1781 ; and Canon Burton has given us all that he found 
in his chapter on Bishop ChaUoner's American Jurisdiction 
{1758-178 1). b).~Thc Archives of the Old Brotherhood of 
the Et^lish Qergy, formerly the English Chapter. These were 
(in 1914) in the possession of the Secretary of the Old Brother- 
hood, the late Rev. Raymond Staniield, at Hammersmith. There 
is a catalogue of these Archives in the Fifth Report of the His- 
torical MSS. Commission (1876, pp. 463-476) ; but it is far from 
beit^ complete. The writer has in his possession a MS. catal(^[ue 
of these Archives given to him by the late Superior of the Oblates 
of St. Charles, Bayswater, London. 

5. Quebec — In Parker, Guide to the Materials for UnUed 
States History in Canadian Archives (Washington, D. C, 1906), 
the research-student will find a section (pp. 224-270) devoted to 
the Archiepiscopal Archives of Quebec, compiled by the Rev. Dr. 
Zwierlein of St. Bernard's Seminary, Rochester, New York. 
These Archives are described by the late Canon Lindsay in the 
Records of the American Catholic Historical Society (Philadel- 
phia), vol. xviii, pp. 8-11, and almost all the documents relating 
to American Catholic history, especially of Carroll's day, have 
been published by Lindsay in the Records (cf. vols, xviii, xx, 
xxv). Other documents from this depot will be found in the 
American Historical Review, vol. xiv, pp. 552-556, and in the 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 841 

Illinois Historical Collections, vol. v, pp. 534, 547, 586, 590. 
I am particularly indebted to the Rev. Dr. Browne, of the Catho- 
lic University of America, for collating some of these papers and 
especially for the disco\-ery of one letter which escaped the notice 
of other research-students. 

6, Philadelphia — The Archival Department of the American 
Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia contains in its rich 
storehouse of documents for American Catholic history many 
letters and manuscripts, which have fortunately been made avail- 
able through tfie Researches and Records. No more systematic 
and scholarly work has ever been attempted for the Catholic 
history of the United States than that accomplished during the 
past thirty-eight years by the members of the American Catho- 
lic Historical Society of Philadelphia. The reader has but to 
glance through these pages to see how frequent are the refer- 
ences to the late Mr. Griffin's Researches, and to the printed 
Records of this Society. This group of Philadelphia students 
has never been unfaithful to its original design of 1884: that 
of creating a national archival centre for the preservation of 
the materials of our Catholic history, and its thirty-odd volumes 
of published articles and documents are a veritable delight to 
the student. 

7, Diocesan Archives-^Tkvt Diocesan Archives of Philadelphia, 
New York, Boston, Bardstown (Louisville) St. Louis, and New 
Orleans, were not of much help for this work. The New York 
Diocesan Archives contain practically nothing before the episco- 
pate of John Hughes (1842-1864) ; the Philadelphia Diocesan 
Archives contain little prior to the episcopate of Francis Patrick 
Kenrick (1830-1851). All the papers of importance for this 
Life in the Boston Diocesan Archives have either been published 
in the Records, or are to be found in the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archives, which contain many letters from Poterie, Rousselet, 
Cheverus, Matignon and others. 

8, Catholic Archives of America — This unique collection at 
the University of Notre Dame was the life-work of the late Pro- 
fessor James Farnham Edwards, of that institution. Edwards 
was one of the first to appreciate the neglect shown for the docu- 
ments of the past ; and he started on a missionary tour throtigh 
the United States, be^^ing for these historical materials. The 



idbvGoOgle 



842 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

fruits oE his labours are far greater than is known, and be must 
have possessed rare eloquoKC to have succeeded as he did. Ed- 
wards knew better than any living Catholic o£ His day the sad 
story of neglect, of voluntary burning, and of wanton destruction 
of the early monumenta of our Church. One such instance is 
recorded by the Rev. Dr. Folk, C.S.C., the custodian of these 
archives : 

Bernard Campbell, the historian, who began the life of Ardibiabop 
Carroll in the United States Catholic Magiuitte, collected and studied for 
years; be obtained many documents from Bishop Fenwick, the second 
Bishop of Boston, and from Rer. George Fenwick. Mr. Campbell thus 
gathered a remarkable collection of material concerning the Church in 
this cotintry. At his death his wife placed these manuscripts in a trunk, 
and as she traveled much, she carried the papers with her and preserved 
them for a considerable length of time, expecting to ftnd some one who 
would realize the valtK of the papers and endeavor to procure than. 
Bttt, unfortmtately, no interest was taken in the collection and she burnt 
ihenL (Cf. Catholic Historical Review, vol. i, p. £4.) 

The loss of the New Orleans Archives during the occupation 
of that city by General Butler (i86z) is an irreparable one. 
The St. Louis Diocesan Archives are in a fair state of preser- 
vation in the Old Cathedral of that city. They form the nucleus 
of the documents being studied by the St. Louis Catholic Histor- 
ical Society and many of them have been published in the St. 
Louis Catholic Historical Review. 

9. JVashinglon, D. C. — a). — The Dominican Archives (Ar- 
chives of St. Joseph's Dominican Province) consist of a well- 
catalogued collection, made by the Dominican historian. Rev. 
Victor F, O'Daniel, O.P. These are housed in the Dominican 
House of Studies at the Catholic University of America, They are 
photostat copies from Rome (Propaganda Archives, Archives of 
the Dominican Master-General, Archives of the Irish Dominicans 
of San Qemente) ; from England (Archives of the Dominicans 
of Haverstock Hill) ; from Ireland (Dublin ArchJepiscopal 
Archives, Archives of the Dominicans of Tallaght) ; and from 
various other centres. O'Daniel has made a scholarly use of 
these Archives in his Life of Bishop Fenwick (Washington, 
D. C, 1921) and in his studies in the Catholic Historical Review. 
All these documents were graciously placed at our disposal for 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 843 

this work. b).^The archival collection In my own pOHcssion 
(Rome, Vienna, Munich, Simaocas, Seville, Paris and London) 
is already an ample one, and has recently been enriched throi^h 
permission granted by the Sacred Congr^ation de Propaganda 
Fide to have all the Propaganda documents, dealing with the 
church history of the United States, photographed by a com- 
petent archivist. At the present time, these copies are finished 
down to the year 1840. 

PUBLISHED SOURCES 
Foremost among the «>llections of published sources for Amer- 
ican Catholic history is the series of quarterly volumes, the 
Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadel- 
phia, to which reference has already been made. Next in order 
of importance come the twenty-nine volumes of the American 
Catholic Historical Researches (1884-1912), published by that 
indefatigable research-student, Martin I. J. Griffin. Griffin's 
printed collection Is a mine of documentary material ; and though 
lacking in that scholarship which would have resulted in a far 
more careful reading of the papers he puUished, he will always 
rank amoi^ those who had few equals in their sincere love for 
the historical past of the Church in this country. An Index to the 
Researches (1884-1912) was published by the Society (Philadel- 
phia, 1916), but it is not always accurate and appears to have been 
done stnnewhat hastily. Whenever possible in these p^es we 
have given reference to the Researches, though in practically all 
cases, the original has been seen and is cited ; hence, the differ- 
ences of readii^ which appear at times between the printed copy 
in Grif&n's collections and in these pages. The fifth volume of 
Raphael de Martinis, Jus Pontificiuni de Propaganda Fide 
(Rome, 1892), contains a few documents, especially the Ex debito 
Pastoralis and the Pontificii muneris of April 8, 1808, dividii^ the 
Diocese of Baltimore. (Both documents contain typographical 
errors.) On two occasions we endeavoured to secure the Wood- 
stock Letters; but these volumes are considered of such an inti- 
mate and family nature that the request was not granted. In a 
library abroad, however, we found a complete set of these volumes 
(1872 ) and had an index of the same compiled. Shea used 



idbvGoOgle 



844 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

this collection. The Catholic historical renewi (Acta tt Dicta, 
of St. Paul ; the Maine Catholic Historical Magaxine; the Illi- 
nois Catholic Historical Review; the Historical Records and 
Studies, New York, and the St. Louts Catholic Historical Review) 
contain many documents which have never been printed before; 
and the department of documents in the Catholic Historical Re- 
view (Catholic University of America) published a series of 
original papers, chief of which are Flaget's Report on the Dio- 
cese of Bardstown, April lo, 1815 (ibid., vol. I, pp. 305-319), 
and Marechal's Report on the Diocese of Baltimore, Oi^ber 
16, 1818 (ibid., vol. i, pp. 439-453). The documents from the 
Simancas Archives rdatinf to the founding of St. Peter's 
Church, New York City (1785), will be found in the Caiho^ 
Historical Review (vol. i, pp. 68-77) '• those relating to the ap- 
pointment of Concanen to the See of New York (iSoB-iSio), 
will be found ibid., (vol. ii, pp. 73-82) ; the Scioto documents, 
ibid., (vol. ii, pp. 195-204); the Oneida bishopric project, ibid., 
(vol. iii, pp. 79-89) ; the Propaganda documents on the Jesuit 
Missions of the United States (1773) are in vol. ii, pp. 316-330; 
and scattered through the Notes and Comments of the first six 
volumes of the Review are ntany original sources published there 
for the first time. An indispensable series of documents for this 
period is that selected by Carl Russell Fish and published in the 
American Historical Review (July, 1910, pp. Soi-829) under the 
title: Documents relative to the adjustment of the Roman Catho- 
lic organigafion in the United Slates to the Conditions of Na- 
tional Indeperxdence (lySs-iySp). The late Jesuit historian. 
Father E. I. Devitt, S.J., of Georgetown, published translatioiu 
of these under the caption: Propaganda Documents: Appoint- 
ment of the First Bishop of Baltimore, in the Records, December, 
1910. (We have referred to these as the Fish-Devitt Trans- 
cripts). 

Among other rollections of published sources the following 
have proved of value for the history of Carroll's episcopate : the 
American Archives (the fourth volume, published by Peter 
Force, Washii^on, 1837) ; the Journals of the Continental Con- 
gress (Washington, 1906) ; the Archives of Maryland (Balti- 
more, 1883) ; the Fund Publications of the Maryland Histor- 
ical Society; Brodbead, Documents Relative to the Colonial His- 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 845 

tory of New York (Albany, 1856-1861, devcn vols.) ; O'Calla- 
ghan, Documentary History of the State of New York (Albany, 
1849-1851, four vols.) ; Perry, Historical Collections relating to 
the American (Episcopal) Church (Hartford, 1870-1878). 

None of these, however, can be compared in value to the docu- 
ments published by Hughes in his History of the Society of 
Jesus in North America, Colonial and Federal. The two volumes, 
entitled Documents, contain original papers from 1605 to 1838, 
and without this rich collection, it would have been impossible to 
complete this work. Foley's Records of the English Province of 
the Society of Jesus (eight vols., London, 1877-1883) is of spe- 
cial value to the American Church historian, particularly the 
volumes entitled Collectanea, which contain biographical sketches 
of all the Jesuits of the Province. Gillow's Biographical Diction- 
ary of English Catholics (6ve vols., London, 1898) is more than 
its title would imply, since many references to unpublished ma- 
terial are given, and some of these sources are cited. Oliver's 
Collections towards Illustrating the Biography of the Scotch, 
English, and Irish Members of the Society of Jesus (London, 
1901) supplements the work of Foley. Dilhet's £tat de &glise ou 
du Diocise des £tais-Unis, which has remained in manuscript 
dtu-ing the past hundred years, has recently been translated and 
puUished 1^ the Rev. Dr. Browne (Quebec, 1932). 

GENERAL WORKS 

Entering upon a course of study in the history of Catholicism 
in the United States, the student soon tinds himself confined to a 
very small number of books. Of general histories of the Church 
in this country, there is but one which pretends to offer a com- 
plete narrative — Tkt History of the Catholic Church in the 
United States by John Gilmary Shea (New York, 1886-1892) ; 
of special histories, limited by either time, place or idea, very 
few do more than copy from the volumes of Shea. In the 
Preface of his first volume, which carries the story of Catboli- 
cism from the days of Columbus down to the end of the French 
and Indian War (1492-1763), Shea describes the projects for 
such a general history which had been outlined up to his day. 
The earli^ of these is that of Bishop Brute, of the Diiyxst of 



idbvGoOgle 



846 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Vinceanes (now Indianapolis), a work to be called Catholic 
America, which was "to give an outline of the history of the 
Church in South America, Mexico, Central America and Canada, 
before takit^ up the annals of religion in the Thirteen Colonies 
and under the Republic. The sketch would have been necessarily 
very brief, and from the beads of chapters, as given by him, 
would have been mainly contemporary." So far as is known. 
Bishop Brute never began the actual composition of this work. 
No mention of it is found in Bayley, Memoirs of Bishop Bruti 
(New York, 1865), or in Bruti de Remur, Vie de Mgr. Bruti 
de Remur, premier hfique de Vincennes (Rennes, 1887). In the 
Baltimore Cathedral Archives (Special C-Oi) there is a map 
of the Catholic Church in 1815 by Bishop Brut£, which is repro- 
duced in this work; and in the same Archives (Special C-Gi), 
under date of May 23, 1821, there is in Brute's hand a paper 
entitled Synoptica Tabula gestorum in Americae Catholica Ec- 
(lesia per Clerum Galium a saeado decimo quinto ad praesens 
usque decimum nonum. Another valuable map of the Kentucky 
missions (by Badin) is in these Archives (Special C-Ll). The 
Rev. Dr. Charles I. White, the biographer of Mother Seton, also 
proposed to write a history of the Church in this country, and 
with Campbell collected a mass of source-material for that pur- 
pose. Shea says that "he never actually wrote any part of his 
projected work, nothing having been found among his papers 
exc^t a sketch of his plan." Dr. White contributed to the Eng- 
lish translation of Darras, General History of the Church (New 
York, 1865), an Appendix (vol. v, pp. 599-662) entitled: Sketch 
of the Origin and Progress of the Catholic Church in the United 
Stales. It is this Sketch which has given life to many Ic^iends 
about John Carroll, which are still current in American Catholic 
circles. 

The first noteworthy contribution to the general ecclesiastical 
history of the United States appeared in the Paris Univers, from 
the pen of Henri De Courcy de U Roche Hiron. During De 
Courcy's sojourn in this country, John Gilmary Shea placed at his 
disposal all the historical material he had gathered up to that 
time, and after the articles ceased in the Univers, Shea translated 
them and put them into book form: History of the Catholic 
Church in the United Slates from the earliest Settlement to the 



idbvGoogle 



Critical Essay 847 

Present Time, with Biographical Sketches, Accounts of the Re- 
ligious Orders, Councils, etc. (New York, 2d edition, 1879). 
"This voliune," Shea wrote in 1892, "has been for some thirty 
years the most comprehensive account accessible of the history of 
the Church in this country." De Courcy treated only a limited 
part of the subject, however, and immediately after the Third 
Plenary Council of Baltimore (1884), the Fathers of the Council 
commissioned Dr. Shea to fulfil his long-cherished desire of writ- 
ing and publishing a complete History of the Catholic Church in 
the United States. At the time of Shea's death, Archbishop Cor- 
rigan, his Maecenas, wrote: "No one could have brought to the 
task a better preparation — unremitting study of a lifetime; a 
greater devotion to the cause, or more painstaking attention to 
accuracy of detail. The Church in the United States owes to his 
memory a deep debt of gratitude. Future historians will find in 
his lifelong researches a mine of wealth, and generations to come 
will rise up and call him blessed." John Gilmary Shea had begun 
his historical publications at the age of fourteen, when in 1838 he 
contributed a striking historical portrait of Cardinal Albornoz to 
the Young People's Catholic Magaeine. His first classic study was 
the Discovery and Exploration of the Mississippi Valley (New 
York, 1852). There followed his History of the Catholic Mis- 
sions among the Indian Tribes of the United Stales (1^29-1854) 
(New York, 1854); his twenty-six small volumes entitled the 
Cramoisy Series, begun in 1857; and The Hierarchy of the Catho- 
lic Church in the United States (New York, 1886). The prepa- 
ration of the History of the Catholic Church in the United States 
can really be said to have begun as far back as 1837, when he 
became a clerk in a Spanish merchant's office in New York City. 
The first volume of his History appeared in 18S6, the second in 
1888, the third in 1890, and the last chapter of the fourth volume 
was finished on his deathbed, in February, 1892. Shea's History 
covers the years 1492 down to 1866. He left considerable material 
for the years which follow down to his later days, and through 
the generosity and historical-mindedness of the Society of Jesus, 
his manuscripts, papers, and library, were purchased and are now 
safely housed in the Georgetown Archives and in the Ri^s 
Library. A considerable collection of Shea's materials for the his- 
tory of the Church from 1866 down to 1890 is said to be in the 



idbvGoOgle 



848 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

possession of a Philadelphia publisher. Thomas D'Arcy McGee's 
Catholic History of North America (Boston, 1853) is a series of 
five discourses, delivered in the winter of 1853-1854, and is hardly- 
more than a sketch-book of a literary writer of talent, written 
under the Catholic reaction to the anti-foreign politics of that 
day. Another volume of a general nature is John O'Kane Mur- 
ray, A Popular History of the Catholic Church in the UnUeS 
States (New York, 1876). Of little historical value because of 
its many inaccuracies, Murray's volume contains some excellent 
^>pendices on various aspects of Catholicism in the United States, 
particularly on the problem of loss and gain in the American 
Church. O'Gorman's History of the Roman Catholic Church in 
the United Slates (New York, 1893), is a serviceable manual. 
The Sisters of Notre Dame of Namur published in 191 1 a Brief 
History of the Catholic Church in the United States for use in 
Catholic Schools, compiled chiefly from Shea. This little com- 
pendium, much marred by inaccuracies, contains fotu- ecclesiasti- 
cal maps which will not be found elsewhere. To the Franciscan 
Sisters of La Crosse, Wisconsin, we owe two volumes: Our 
Country in Story, intended for use in the fifth and sixth grades 
of our elementary schools (Chicago, 1917), and a History of 
the United States for Catholic Schools (Chicago, 1914), which 
is valuable for the emphasis it places on the Catholic background 
to American history. The latest addition to these general works 
is the excellent manual by McCarthy, History of the United 
States (New York, 1919), wherein the conspicuous facts of our 
religious history, of special interest and importance to CathoL'cs, 
are included. 

For the political history of the United States durit^ the period 
contained in this work (1735-1815) we have found the first 
twelve volumes of The American Nation: A History, published 
~ under the editorship of Albert Bushnell Hart (New York, 1900) 
ot good service. This is especially true of vol. i, Cheyney, 
European Background of American History, and of vol. vi, 
Greene, Colonial Comtnomveatths. 



idbvGoOgle 



Criticat Essaf 64$ 



SPECIAL WORKS 

These may be divided into five classes: i. Provincial Histo- 
ries; 2. Diocesan Histories; 3. Parociwl Histories; 4. Histories 
of the Religious Orders; $. Ecclesiastical Biographies. 

1. ProvincvU Histories 

For the Archdiocese of Baltimore, no such work has been 
written. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has found its historian 
in Monsignor J. L. J. Kirlin, whose Catholicity of Philadelphia 
(Philade^hia, 1909) is based on archival and printed sources; 
though not professedly a history of the province, it has many 
pages devoted to the activities of the early missionaries in Penn- 
sylvania. The best history of this class is the History of the 
Church in New England (two vols., Boston, 1899) which com- 
prises the Archdiocese of Bostoa It is written by different 
authors, and fumishes a model for works of a similar nature. 
The History of the Catholic Church in New York, by Rev. Dr. 
John Talbot Smith (two vols.. New York, 1905), begins with 
the foundation of that metropolitan See in 1808. No history of 
the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, of which the Diocese of Bards- 
town-Louisville is a part, has yet been begun ; Lamott's History 
of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati (1821-1921) deals only with 
the Diocese of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, 1921). 

2. Diocesan Histories. 

A list of these will be found in the Catholic Historical Review 
(vol. iv, pp. 264-273, 389-393, 542-546). The five dioceses which 
comprised the Archbishopric of Baltimore during Carroll's rule 
(1808-1815) — Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Bardstown, and 
New Orleans (Louisiana), are treated in detail in the works cited 
above. Special reference, however, should be made to the fol- 
lowing : a). — for Baltimore — Riordan, Cathedral Records from the 
beginning of Catholicity in Baltimore to the Present Time (Bal- 
timore, 1906), which is one of the scholarly productions of recent 
years, and a work of value for the Life and Times of Carroll. 
The author has made a generous and critical use of the Baltimore 



idbvGoOgle 



850 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Cathedral Archives, and his volunw is one of the best diocesaa 
histories we possess. Stanton, History of Ike Church in Western 
Maryland (Baltimore, 1900) supplements for that part of the 
Diocese the work of Riordan. The Concilia Provincialia Baltimori 
habita ab anyio iSs^ ad 1849 (Baltimore, 1S51), contains the 
Statuta of the Synod of 1791 and the Agreement of 1810. b). — 
for Richmond there is Magri, The Calholic Church in the City and 
Diocese of Richmond (Richmond, 1906). c). — for Charleston, 
the student should consult £ngland. The Early History of the 
Diocese of Charleston, in his Works (vol. iv, pp. 307 ss ; Messmer 
edition, Cleveland, 1908) ; and O'Connell, Catholicity in the Caro- 
linasand Georgia (New York, 1867). d), — for the other dioceses 
of what was then tlie sole Diocese of Baltimore, namely. Wheel- 
ing, Savannah, Wilmington, Del., St. Augustine and the Vicariate 
of North Carolina, no special histories of value can be cited, 
e). — for the dioceses, once included in the sole Diocese of New 
York, that is, Albany, Buffalo, Brooklyn, Newark, Rochester, 
C^densburg, Trenton and Syracuse, the following are useful: 
Bayley, Brief Sketch of the Early History of the Catholic Church 
on the Island of Manhattan (New York, 1854) ; Flynn, The 
Catholic Church in New Jersey (Morristown, 1904); Timon, 
Missions in Western New York (Buffalo, 1862) ; Donahue, His- 
tory of the Catholic Church in Western New York (Buffalo, 
1904) ; Mulrenan, A Brief Sketch of the Catholic Church on 
Long Island (New York, 1871) ; Smith, History of the Diocese 
of Ogdensburg (New York, 1885) ; Leahy, The Diocese of 
Trenton (Princeton, 1907) ; Hewitt, History of the Diocese of 
Syracuse (Syracuse, 1909). f). — for the history of the dioceses 
once included in the original Diocese of Bardstown, namely, 
Louisville, Nashville, Covii^on, Columbus, Cincinnati, Qeve- 
land, Toledo, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Marquette, Superior, Green 
Bay, Milwaukee, La Crosse, Duluth, Crookston, St. Qoud, St. 
Paul, Chicago, Rockford, Peoria, Alton, Belleville, Fort Wayne, 
and Indianapolis, the following works have been consulted : Mc- 
Cann, History of Mother Seton's Daughters (2 vols.. New York, 
1917) ; Die kathalischen Kirchen und Institute in Cincinnati 
(Cincinnati, 1889) ; Spalding, Sketches of the Early Catholic 
Missions in Kentucky (1787-1827) (Louisville, 1846) ; Webb, 
Centenary of Catholicity in Kentucky (Louisville, 1884) ; Badin, 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 851 

Origine et Progris de la Mission du Kentucky (Paris, 1821) ; 
Maes, History of the Catholic Church in Monroe City and County, 
Michigan (Monroe, 1885) ; Alerding, History of the Catholic 
Church in Vincennes, now Indianapolis (Indianapolis, 1S83) ; 
the History of Fifty Years (Diocese of Columbus), 1918; Hen- 
ntng, The Catholic Church in Wisconsin (Milwaukee, 1898); 
Houck, The Catholic Church in the Diocese of Cleveland (2 vols., 
Oeveland, 1903) ; Rezek, History of the Diocese of Sault Sainte 
Mtaie and Marquette (2 vols., Houghton, 1906-1907) ; Beuck- 
mann. History of the Diocese of Belleville (Belleville, 1914) ; 
Schaeffer, History of the Diocese of St. Paul in Acta et Dicta, 
vol. iv, pp. 32-71 ; Garraghan (Rev. Gilbert J,, S,J.), The Catho- 
lic Church in Chicago (1673-1871): An Historical Sketch (Oii- 
cago, 1921), which ranks easily as the best diocesan history we 
have. g). — for the other dioceses once included in the original 
Diocese of Philadelphia, that is, Pittsburgh, Erie, Harrisburg, 
Scranton, and Altoona, the following, besides Kirlin's volume, has 
been consulted : Lambing, The History of the Diocese of Pitts- 
burgh and Allegheny (New York, 1880). h). — for the dioceses 
once contained within the borders of Bishop Du Bourg's original 
diocese, the following were consulted : Thornton, Historical 
Sketch of the Church in St. Louis; Walsh, Jubilee Memoirs (St. 
Louis, 1891); Catholic History of Alabama and the Floridas 
(New York, 1908) ; History of the Catholic Church in the Dio- 
cese of San Antonio (San Antonio, 1897). 

3. Parochial Histories. 

The number today of these is legion, and they need not be 
mentioned in detail in this section, since few of them are based 
on first-hand informatiotL The exceptions are Frederick, Old 
St. Peter's, or the Beginnings of Catholicity in Baltimore (Balti- 
more, 1911) jHertkorn, Retrospect of Holy Trinity Parish (1789- 
1914) ; McGowan, Historical Sketch of St. Augustine's Church, 
Philadelphia (Philadelphia, 1896), and Devitt, Boston's First 
Catholic Church (1798-1801) Jn the Records, vol. xv, pp. 35-45. 

4. Histories of Religious Orders (1796-1815). 
The hte Bisht^ Currier published in 1904, A History of the 
Religious Orders in the United States, but the work is of little 



idbvGoOgle 



852 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

historical value; Dehey's Religious Orders of Women in the 
United States (Chicago, 1913), while of secondary value, has 
the advantage of having been compiled under the direction of the 
superiors of the coimnunities contained in the volume; Heim- 
bucher. Die Orden nnd Kongregationen der katholiscken Kircke, 
(3 vols., Paderborn, 1907), contains numerous references to the 
American religious communities. 

A. — Jesuits: Hughes, History of the Society of Jesus in North 
America, Colonial and Federal. The two volumes, entitled Text, 
contain the history of the American Jesuits from 1580 to 1773. 
The method followed by Hughes is quite disparate from that of 
Astrain, Fouqueray, Tacchi-Venturi, etc., who have written the 
history of other national bodies of the Society. Brucker, La 
Compagnie de Jesus (Paris, 1921 ) ; and especially Campbell, The 
Jesuits, 2 vols. (New York, 1921). 

B. — Augustinians : Nothing has been written on the general 
history of the Order in the United States, except McGowan's 
little history of St. Augustine's Parish (Philadelphia), the cradle 
of the Augustinians in this country. Historical Sketch of St. 
Augustine's Church, Philadelphia (Philadelphia, 1896). 

C, — Dominicans: O'Daniel's studies in the Catholic Historical 
Review, which have been cited and his Life of Bishop Femuick, 
are indispensable for the history of the Dominicans in this 
country. 

D. — Trappists: No complete story of the wanderit^ of this 
community has as yet been written. The best account is that by 
Flick, French Refugee Trappists in the United States, in the 
Records, vol. i, pp. 86-116. 

K.-—Sulpieiam : Herbermann, The Sulpicians in the United 
Slates (New York, 1916) gives an account of the growth of 
the Society of St. Sulpice in this country, though it is marred 
by occasional inaccuracies. 

F. — Ursuline Sisters: The Ursulines in Louisiana, ij2y-i834 
(New Orleans, 1886). 

G. — Carmelite Nuns: Currier, Carmel in America (New York, 

■906)- 

H. — Visitation Nuns: Lathrop, A Story of Courage: Annals 
of the Georgetown Convent of the Visitation of the Blessed Vir- 
gin Mary, from the Manuscript Records (Cambridge, 1895). 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 853 

I. — Sisters of Charity: McCann, History of Mother Seton's 
Daughters: The Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, Ohio (180^- 
1917), 2 vols. (New York, 1917). Apart from the biographical 
sketches of Mother Seton, the Etnmitsburg Mother-House has 
published no complete history of this community, 

J. — Sisters of Charity of Nasareth: McGill, Sisters of Charily 
ofNasareth (New York, 1917). 

K. — Sisters of Loretto Foot of the Cross: Minogue, Loretto 
Annds of the Century (New York, 1912). 

EPISCOPAL BIOGRAPHIES (1790-1815) 
r. Carroll: The Lives hy Brent, Campbell, and Shea have been 
already mentioned. 2, Neale: (M, S. Pine) A Glory of Mary- 
land (New York. 1917). 3. Flaget: Spalding, Sketches of the 
Life of Rt. Rev. Benedict Joseph Flaget (Louisville, 1852). 
4. Cheverus: Walsh, Life of Cardinal De Cheverus (Philadel- 
phia, 1839). 5. Concanen: O'Daniel, in the Catholic Historical 
Review (vol. i, pp. 400-421, vol. ii, pp. 19-46) has given an ex- 
cellent biographical sketch of Bishop Concanen. 6. Connolly: 
An account of Bishop Connolly's life will be found in the United 
States Catholic Historical Magazine, vol. iv (1891-1893), pp. 
58-61, 186-198. 7. Egan: Griffin, History of the Rt. Rev. Michael 
Egan, D.D., First Bishop of Philadelphia {Philadelphia, 1S93). 
8. Du Bourg: Biographical sketches will be found in Herber- 
mann, Sulpicians, etc., pp. 170-180, 199, 222-226, 231, and in the 
Researches, vol. x, pp. 144-152. 

Corrigan's Chronology of the Catholic Hierarchy of the United 
States, which appeared in the Catholic Historical Review, is the 
first attempt at a systematic history of the American bishops. 
(For Carroll, see vol. i, p. 373.) 

WORKS ON SPECIAL TOPICS 
There is no necessity of giving here a detailed list of the special 
works used in these two volumes. Such a list would lengthen this 
critical essay beyond its proportionate limits. Amot^ the books, 
however, to which special attention should be called, are the 
following : Van Tyne, The Loyalists in the American Revolution 
(New York, ijpjs) ; O'Brien, Hidden Phase of American His- 



idbvGoOglc 



854 r*« ^'7« «"'' Times of John Carroll 

tory (New York, 1920) ; Fisher, The Struggle for Am4rictm 
Independmue, 2 vols. (Philadelphia, 190S) ; TifFany, The History 
of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of Amtr- 
tea (New York, 1895) ; Fiske, The Critical Period of American 
History (Boston, 1888) ; and Steiner, The History of Education 
in Maryland (Washington, D. C, 1894). 

The history of Catholic education in the United States has 
been admirably treated in three volumes by the Rev. Dr. James 
Burns, C.S.C, of the University of Notre Dame. His CaihoUc 
School System in the United States: Its Principles, Origin, and 
Establishment (New York, 1908) brings the story of Catholic 
education down to the year 1840. For the educational institu- 
tions abroad, to which American boys and girls were sent in the 
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, cf. Guilday, English Catho- 
lic Refugees oh the Continent (London, 1914). For the Ei^lish 
background to our colonial church history, the best account has 
been given by Burton, in his Life and Times of Bishop Chal-< 
loner (2 vols., London, 1909). Madden, History of the Penal 
Laws Enacted Agmnst Roman Catholics (London, 1847), is a 
good introduction to the No Popery l^islation of the American 
Colonies. 

HISTORICAL PERIODICALS 

Chief among these is the Catholic Historical Review, pub- 
lished at the Catholic University of America, Washington, D. C, 
which from 1915 to 1921 was devoted exclusively to American 
church history. The provincial historical reviews were of con- 
siderable service, and reference has already been made to the 
Catholic historical quarterlies published at Philadelphia, New 
York, Chicago and St. Louis. Among the older magazines, now 
suspended, which contain valuable first-hand materials for the 
period are: the United Stales Catholic Magagine (1844-1849), 
the United States Catholic Historical Magaaine (1888-1892), 
and the United Stales Catholic Miscellany (1822-1861). The 
Annals of the Society of the Propagation of the Faith (Paris- 
Lyons, 1822), and the Berichte of the Leopoldine Association 
(Vienna, 1830), also contain in their earliest issues valuable con- 
temporary records. The Ecclesiastical Review is an indispensable 
source for the American Church historian. 



idbvGoOgle 



Critical Essay 855 



WRITINGS OF ARCHBISHOP CARROLL 

First among these should be classed Carroll's theological and 
philosophical tracts and essays, still in manuscript and preserved 
in the Georgetown College Archives, These are noticed by Sum- 
ner in the Woodstock Letters, vol. vii, p. 6 (April, 1878). Car- 
roll's Journal of -the European tour of 1771-1773 is printed in 
Brent's Biographical Sketch, pp. 223-276. It is discussed in vol. 
i. chapter iii, of this work. Shea (op. cit., vol. ii, pp. 35, 43) er- 
roneously credits to Carroll the Narrative of the Proceedings in 
the Suppression of the Two English Colleges at Bruges, whidi 
may be the work of Father Ralph Hoskins, S.J., who was born 
in Maryland in 1729, and died in England in 1794. Shea also 
claims authorship for Carroll of the Account of the Condition of 
the Church in the United States, which Pise first published in 
the Metropolitan for 1831. There is in the Baltimore Cathedral 
Archives in Carroll's handwriting a draft of the reply he was 
preparing i^inst Father Smyth's Present State, etc. This has 
been printed tn the Researches (vol. xiii, pp. 205-212) ; it is men- 
tioned in the Woodstock Letters, vol. xv, p. 99. Shea mentions 
{op. cit., vol. ii, p. 204 note) a Sketch of Catholicity in the United 
States, written by Carroll. This is the manuscript published by 
Dr. Pise. Carroll's only real literary composition is his Address 
to the Roman Catholics of the United States, published at Annap- 
olis, 1784, in reply to the apostate Wharton. The Report and 
Letter (1785) to Antonelli, mentioned in these papers, are 
lei^hy enough to form a compact sketch of the history of the 
Church in this country at that date. They were first published 
in the Catholic Historical Review, vol. vi, pp. 239-246 (cf. Guil- 
day. Appointment of Father John Carroll as Prefect-Apostolic, 
ibid., pp. 204-248), and are reproduced in the original Latin 
in this work. Plowden's, Short Account of the Establishment 
of the New See of Baltimore (London, 1790) had the benefit 
of Carroll's corrections. It was republished in the Researches 
(vol, X, pp, 19-24). It is not certain whether Carroll wrote 
the Address from the Roman Catholics of America to George 
Washington, to which his name is attached. Carroll's biograph* 
ical sketch of Father Beeston in Kingston's, New American 



idbvGoOgle 



856 The Life and Times of John Carroll 

Biographic Dictionary, pp. 40-41 (Baltimore, 1810), is the 
only specimen of this class of essay we have from his pen. Among 
Carroll's Pastorals may be mentioned : The Pastoral on the Synod 
(1792), the first document of its kind in the United States; the 
Pastoral to the Congr^ation of Holy Trinity Church, Philadel- 
phia (1797) ; the Lenten Pastoral of 179S; the Pastoral on the 
Yellow Fever Plague (1800) ; the Charge to the Qergy on the 
Death of Washington (1799); the Pastoral on the Baltimore 
Cathedral ( 1803) ; the Pastoral on the Erection of the Suffragan 
Sees (1810) ; the Pastoral on the War of 1812; the Pastoral on 
the Liberation of Pius VII (1814) ; and the Pastoral on the 
Peace of 1815. Bishop Carroll's Discourse on George tVash- 
inglon, delivered at St. Peter's Pro-Cathedral, February 33, 1800, 
was ranked at that time as the most eloquent of all the tributes 
paid to the dead leader on that day of national mourning. 



In order not to give undue length to this chapter no list is 
given here to the literature in general or to the q}ecia] works 
dealing with the political history of the United States during this 
period. Citations will be found in the proper places of all the 
sources consulted, and the reader is again referred to Channing- 
Hart-Turner, Guide to the Study and Reading of American His- 
tory (Boston, 1912). 



idbvGoOgle 



INDEX 



'■ (Ch«I- 



Acadian sdlo, 66-9 
"Account of Caurch id 

Adami, 'john, Prcaident, 79, iSi, 413. 

"Addrcaa to the InbabJCinti of Quebec" 

(Oct. m6, 1774). 79-So 
"Addrcai to the People of Great Britaio" 

(Oct. II, 1774). 79-Bo 
"Addreu to tbc Kcman Catliolica of the 



culari 



■3S-9. ■ 



Alltti, Tot . 

Allen, Williioi, Cardinal, ijj 
Aodrni, Key. Felix, C.U., ;i4 
Anclcr, Re*. Robert, O.P., 117 
Aniooelli. Leonardo, Qirdinal. Prefect of 
Propiwand*, and American Seminarr 
Kbeme, idd-i, 138-9; and Cannelitea, 

S>1 and Catrall ai bighop, 356-7; and 
rroll'i juritdictJDQ, 169-71: tnd Or- 

'-i-^i^ 



and Gallfp' 

oJ^^p! 

ttrie'. d 



Bartfa, Rev. Louia dc, 404: in PhUadd- 

Baylej'', Dr- Richard, 497 

Beauboia, Fr,, joi 

BeealDD, Rev.Francia, S.J-, in Baltimore, 
57G; biographical detaila, 30>t ■> »t 
national Synod, 42a; in niitadelphia, 
191-3; and rotoration of the Sodely, 

B^lany, Re*. Thomu, 533 
Berincton, Rev. JoaepB, 117. tH-33 
Bertrand, Jtan-Baptiile, 406 
BHchter, Rev. WOliui. S.J.. isr, 66' 
Bill of Right* (Virtinift, 177^, 71, >41 
Biahop, Willian^ bill>op. 116 
Bitouzer, Rev. (jerraain. SJ., isj-t 
Blanchardiili, Sil 
Blount, Rev. Richard, SJ., tj7 
Boarman, Rev. John, SJ., £>■ M4i bio' 

grajdiical detail*, 301-1 

Boarman, Rev. SjrlveMcr, SJ., and 

American biahopnc, 319; UoiraphiGal 

detail!, 101; at lat Natiour Sjrniid, 

ind reatoratioB of the Sodety, 



College, 456, 460; 



■Dd Fr. Wbdao 



'■^JV^ 



Arnold. Benedict, 84, 93, 08-g 
Arundell, Henry, Lord of^Wardour, 49, 

A^ton, ifcv, John, S.J,, act of aubmia- 
«ioD, 66; biosraphic^ doaili, 301^ at 
md (General Clupter, 533, fis, 3*9; 
Jind Jeiuit property, 455: and Memo- 
riil" to Holy Sec, 346-B, isn at lat 
Nitionat Synod, 419, 434-41 

AlwDodj Rev. Peter, SJ., S3 

Au»o»tini»ni, SOT -9 

Anra, Nlebolai de, 3$! 

Bahad, Fr., Sul^dan, 47s 

Bodin, Re*. Stephen, 383; and Domini- 
cana, ji8-iDf and Bp, Flajet, 696-80; 
and daUipolia colony, 404.5; in Ken- 
lucky, 638-9; ordained, 469; in Filta- 
burgli, 661: and Trappitti. 513, jij 

Baltimnre. Md.. 384: Acadiana in, 69; 
cathednl, 719-33: Catholica in, 314; 
dioceae, 196, 333. 71S-48; dioceae, divl- 
aion, s67Mq.; dioceae, extent, }S6; 
dioceae, laAicaUB, 583; dioceae, Irtutec 
ayMem, 718; adtuation, Clatholic, 798; 



Bohemia Manor Academy. 
Bolton, Rev. John, SJ,, 1 

aion, 66; biosraphical d 
lit National Synod, 4 
reatoration of the Soeiei 
Boone, Re*, John, SJ„ 
gTRphical detaila. 



Birbi de Uarboii, 177, joi, loj, ur: 

Barbo-, Knid, 7B 
Barber, Re*. Vinil, 635 
Bardatovn, dioceae, jSj, 686-99 
Barlow, Jod. and Sdoio Comuny, 394 
Bamirn, Fr., *icar«eneta], 404; 1 
Kentodir, 68S-9; in Pittabtirgfa, 66 J 

parnr,' Jdhn. B6,'507n; and (Uthollc ed 



414s 
Boudicr, Re*. T 
Bourke, Rev. H 
Briaod. Jea ~ 



t of ■abinia< 

'"';3l";S 

.' S4S, 'sji 
4, S34! bio- 

S, J79- 



iehola), 616 

liibop of QudMC, B8, 93, 

Bnlt," RCT-'Adam,"s'X,'sia, 555. tS7-i 
Broflic, Charles de, 525, 541-'- - 
Brooke, Rev. lanatiua Baker, 
Brooke (Brocy. Rev, Ji ■ ' 
Brooke. Rev- Rober- " ' 
Broaiua, Rev- F, K, 



51. S45 

. . S-h. Si 

iobert, S.J., 53 
Rev- F, K„ 376, 614 
a. Rev. TlKodore, O.F.ld., jii, 

Bro«e, Rev. Robert, achlam. 738-9. 74,-1 

Bru«e* Cdlltst at, 30, 40 

Brut* de R«mur, Simon William (bbrtd. 

Biibop of Vincennci, 347; and (Jalli- 

POli* colony. 39sni at Honnt St. 

Uary'a, 477; and Mothei Seton, 497; 

and Siaieri of (:harit)>, (01. on Synod 
„ (1790, 446; and Fr- Wharton, iit-9 
Brioiinriki, Rev. Thi-'-' — " • '"-- 
i5J, SSS 
-ic. Sir John, 1; 



~i--: 



B^^° 



1, 698 



Buahe, Rev. Jamei, 616-7; in Norfotk, 

luiler, Charlea. and Catbdic EmaiKip*- 
tion. S18, 833-4 
5070; and (Uthollc edu- Butler, Uarr Ann, 499, 599 
By™^ Rev. John. iXi "" 

(Pp. 1-41^ Vol. I; w- 419-856, Vol. II.) 
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858 

Brne, Rer. Patrick, 61; 

Cahokia, in.. 5S, JS7 
Caldwell, Edward, 468 
CampJoD, B1. Edmusd. it. ii 
Canada, and American Knoliitiau, 1 

onqq.; Quebec Act, jfi. TS> 7>> 91 
Cari>r7, Rev. Tluwiai, O.P., 641 



i, J<A^ and iru 



Carrolt, Cbarle*,Attome]' Gensat, 1 
Carrolt, Cbartea, of Carrollton, a; and 
"Adilreu" lo Wiibinitoo, 164; and 
Amrrian RendDtion, S4, 71-4, 85; 
Canadian niinon, vjaqq.! and Dedai^ 
ation i7f Independence, Aan, 86, ajsn; 
educatian. 4, 14, iq 
Carroll, Charlea, of Douahoresan, 154 
Carroll, Daniel, of Duddington. a 
Canoll, Danid. of Rock Creek, 3. 114. 

Carroll'. Danid, of Upper Marlboro, i 



Cixi. Jiront, Ardibidup of Bordeam, 

Ciquardi Rer. FiaOfoia, 470, 604, 611 

Cbibonie, Charies Cole, GoTcmor of 
Loainana, Jo6 

ClaA. Georn Roaera, and Fr. GibatUt, 87 

Qcment XIII. 4B 

Clement XIV, 4a, 48, 48. Ml 

ClentT. and Church diicipline. 41«-m; 
conatitutioD, 164; corporation, 539-10, 
S3), s8e, 763; lat General Chapter 
(1783), 169-70. »S, »07. aaj. 4S0, 
SJ9: and General Chapter (1780}, a7]. 
3^3, 32s, 331, 450; 3rd General Chap- 
ter (<789J, 314, 461, sij-61 4lh Gen- 
eral Clupler (irga). ]4o; maintenaaoe, 
76i'3: 111 Nadonal Synod (1791), 440, 
438-46; leal, 76<-( 

Qinlon. Alfred. Lt.-Col., 8t 

Clinton, De Will. 617 

QoriTitre, Rev. Jotepb Pierre Picot de, 






Lenten pai ,.,,-,. ,. 

ter*' accepting prcicctihip, * 1 4-^^ , 
"Paatoral Lrtier to the Contregalion 
of HolT TriBitr Chartb, Phila." 
0?97)i *i3-4; "Planof OrMniiation," 
166-a, 4471 ''Reiation of the State of 
Rd«iDn in the U. S.," iai-7, 300-11 
Wrilinn, B5J-6 
Carroll, Re*. Michad, 641 
Caatdli, Joaeph, Cardinal, si, 149, 138 
Catholic Emancipation BQl, Sa7, 537 
CauSmann, Dr. Joaeph, 86, 
Cauaae, Rer. Jolin Baptii 

647 n, 648 

Cerfoumont, Ret. SUnialaui, 4>g 

Cbabrat. Ret. Gar Iipatiua. 693-4. 699 

Cballoner, Richard. Bidup, vScsr-Apoi- 

lolic of London, on Cburu in America. 

60-1, I4;3-S. iSa, iSS. 157; and furi«- 

diOion 10 America. 141, 143. 146-so; 

and Societf of Jcgui. 49, 51, 9s. 141. 

Qiancbe, Jidin Uarj Joaeph. Biahoo of 

Natchei. 4J6 
Charity, Daoghlen of (EnmitaburB). 

Ct£rlc*| 

Charleaton. S. C.. S7, 386; actuuiC : 

Cl^iieataw" ^™\^ 

Chaae. Samud. 73. 93-4 

Chevenu. Jan-Louii Lefdwre de, Biahop 
of Boaion, j8i; and John Adam*. Gij- 
6j appoiniucBt, 383; biofrapfaical de- 
tail!, £ii-j, Gij; in Eogland, 604; 
epiacmai^ 6i;-9; in Maine, 614: aod 
Bp. Fteaw*. 610-4; and Mother Seton, 
497.-8, SK. 600 

C^ieotaoeaii, Fr.. Snlpidu, 4JI1 

(Pp. 1-418, Vol. I; 



CLoaay. Snaan. 49, 
Cofiee Ron, Delai 
Cole. Robert, 
Cdlete Oath 



See Student Oath 

QBeaneni Richard Luke, O.P.. 
of New Y( ■ ' 



.. -'ork, i6d. ;]6. 63SJ appoint- 
5B3, 639-41 ; taoirajAical dctaila. 
013; and At^. CarrcJl, jSr, 6j4; death, 
5S6, 63J; and Darainicana, J17 
ConewjB, Pi^«, »^1-JJ^ 
Connecticut, rdigioua freedom, lis 
Conndl7, John, Biahop of New York, 

s8). 6ja-4; appoioiment, 639-4) 
Conlinanial Concieai, Canadian raianon, 

93>q(|-: and rdifiona libenr, io4 
Conwell, Henry, Siahnp of Phiiaddphia, 
685 

■ ^— lua, 4w 

'jiiilii 

. riector St. Job 

Croocb, Br. Ralph, SJ., > 

Cutler, Manaaacb, 391 

Cyril of Barcelona, Biahop, 481, 7DJ 

Daman icstta, Me., 6ig 

Damall, Hennr. i, 134-!. 3*9 

David, Jcan-Baptiate-Harie. Biahop of 

Barditown. 470. 694. 699; and Bp. 

FlaiEt. 688, 693; at St. Uary'a Utu- 



Deer Creek. Md.. 64, 386 
DeL*viu, Rev. Louii, Canon, 419, 496 
Ddawarc, rdicioua liberty, iii, iij 
De Rilter, Rer. John Baptiil, SJ.. 66, 

344; bioBiaphieal detaili, 30s 
Detroit, Mich., jS, 387; education. 

Catholic, 796-7 
Dickinaon, Sr. Oarc Joacpb, 488 
Diderick, Rev. Bertiard <J(An Baptiatl, 
S.J., act of •ubuiaaiaiL 66; biofraph- 
ical detail), jo); and Diahqpric, 0^0- 
ailion to. 17c 177 3*8; Carroll on, 
3)9J at lit Oeneral Chapter, 169.70; 
at and Geneni Chapter. 3)3-4 
Didier. John Baptial, 404 
Didier. Rev. Peter JoMpti, 374, 39J-404. 



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snpbical deUili, < 



I of, B37; Quebw, 840-1 



Colitge Kholanhipi, IMS', "id 

Whdin, ISO 
Dornin, BEmsrd, publiiher. 589 
Doagbaly, Fdii, aai, 3ir-«9 
DouElua, John, Bisbm, ilg, S16, SJ7 
Doine, Rev, Joseph, SJ., S34. S*» 
DuiniB. Jobn, Bidiop of Kn> Vorli, 1 



n£oi« 



■nd Sulpiciau, 47^-7: 



JJ4S 



??Al-J 



L Si. Hit 



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litr, 4r6; • 



Ennig, Ret. Michid. IS7 
EpiBrtte, Rev. Peter, S.J.. S53 
Erakine, Usr. Ourlet. S75 
Eaprteeiiiil, Jcan-Jicqua DutiI d', 

"Ek drbiio pkitoralit officii," s8j. 6di 
"Ex hac iponolieae," 356-«r, 369, jS;, 
461 

(Pp. 1-418, Vol. I; 



j.Liilii.GuJii'umVV ■ 1 e n t i n, 
Biihop of Louisiiu, 481, 484-5; in 
Baltimore, 470: biognphiisl detail*, 
710-11: and Siiteri of Ouritr, 499- 
" ir^etown Collie, ' 



f* 859 

"Familr Compact," Bonrboa, 460 

Farjon, Mother Marr Tercn, *la-] 

Pamer, Re<r. Ferdinand, S.J., act of 

■ubmioioQ, M; biofraphleil detula, 

joj: and Bp. Briand, ijg-fil : and 

Abp. Carroll, 106-8; and Catholic rm- 

menl, S3; and Fr. Cauiae, 647; death, 

i77, 189-01; and UniTenity of Fesn., 

44S; ia Philaddpbia, 144-e. 64); 'nd 

SocietT of jMua. SSi; »nd Fr. wieUn. 

m8-9, isa-S, iS] 4. 167-B 

Fathera of ihe Failh. See Pai 

Fenwidr, Boiediet Toacpb, S.J., 

63B, 641 
Fenwick, Edward Dominie, Biriiop 



Filicdii. (aniilY, 498-0, 587 

Fiiher, Rrr. P£itip. S.J., u 

Fiticerald. John, 86 

Fitrferbert, Rev. Franei*. S.J-, JJ 

Fituimona, Rev. Luke, 616-7 

FitiSimons. Thomai, 86, l)5n, 141, 365, 

» Joseph. Btibop of Bardi- 



Uother Seton, 41)7-- 
Dner, William, 393 
Ducnani, Aoloine, Cardinal. 336, 395, 

D^mri, Rev. Benjamin, 71J 
Dnnand, Rev. Uarie JOMph, JiJ 
Dderoiriuki, Rev. Francis, S-J., sjin 

Ecdeaton, Samud, ArchUdiop of Balli- 
moTV, 4r< 

Eden, Rev. Joa«ih, 419 

Edncitkin, Catnolic, 79o>Sdj: Charit:r. 
Sialett of, 499, joi; Georgetown Col- 
lege, 447-611 in Kenludc)'. 796; in 
iSryland, ;, is; in New York, 79s; 
in Pkiladripbia, 791-4; Sulpicians, 46a- 
77; Unulines, 4SD-1 

Egan, Mary, ;gg 

Egin, Michael, Bishop of Philadelphia. 
ego, 600; appointment, s8i; biograph- 
ical details, 6jG; and Franciscans. 
509-13; and trustee aritem. 665-6 

Egm, Michad Du Burgo, 311 

ETuaiiethtown, Pa., 3B7 

Dicrker. Rev. Tbonus, 36-9 

Elling, Rev. William, achism, 439, 6]d, 

Emery, Bev. Jacquea-Andri. Stilpician, 



. Rev. Frai 



details, 
Flnnin 

Fimd!!.' "■ 

j8, 61 
Floridabli 

Florilaanl. ».i^, ,.,-, 
Floyd, Rev. John, 46B, 734 
Forest Glen, Md.. m 
Forrester, Re». Charlea, lJl-4i 5*6. S4» 
Forstn, Rev. Michad, 5.5-, S3 
Faumler, Rev. Michael, Mi, £89 
Franbich. Rev. Jamei, S.J.. 4»n; act 

of submiisiDn. 66; biHrapbical diMils. 

.... ._. »T'..- — , '7j,nQ(i_ ^^ 



74-S. JS> 



and Anu 






.trovmr, .36;.Car- 
146, 163; French 



Franklin, Beniamin. 91-4, 103. ijBaqq. 
Frederick, Md., 66, 3S6, 491 

Fl^^^Srp£lli™Bs ' ' 

Fribourg^ Ret. Sulpitina de, iSan 
Froronilin, Abb^ 4041), 406 
Fromm, Rev. Fraud*, mdIuh, 7180 



Galfipolis Colony, 374, 379, 393-" 
CangancUi, Cardinal. See Ctaa, 
Galliti^- "-■--- " 



Gamier 

• 68, 
Ganli 

^cS'J^til 
30s. 307, 313. 4 JO. 3 

pp. 419-856, Vol. II.) 



, uiiqtu ue, :i4D, ^74-D, jjw 

Str. Anthony, Sulpician, 4 

cmiei-, ' Rev. Luke, SJ., act of • 
mission, 66; biographical details, 3 
'- Pennsylvania^ 144-1, «4S 



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Gncnl Chipts-. Scsond U}»6), »ti. 

Geaenl c£iptcr,' itird C17B9). iS4. 4fi>. 

Gcnenl Qiipler, FooTih (1791), S40 
G«or(e IIIi 90 
Gtoraetown ColteEC, 

8oD-i; under Fr. urii 

oppoaition to fminditioi 

Jjo, SS9 



4«o-». 



IJ: ^r; 



Gnod, .. 



6;S 



Hlrtford, Conn., 6 
Hartwell, Rev. Ben 
Harver. Kei. Thon 



Hawkitia, John, apostate, 137 

Hayes, Rft. Richard, in Norfolk, 735 

HeenCT, Corneliui, 61S 

Heilbcon, Rer. John Chaiiei, achiim, agi, 

tchlwn, 391, S46- 



Kdlbron, Rer. Peter, 



Hermaii, AatruMine, g 

Hienrcoy, American, Carroll'a "Plan ol 

OrsmiutioB," 166-S; in iBio, Sai; 

tint encyclieil, S96-S; French inter- 



erty, G6, iii. 115 
Gerard, Sr. Fdidty, »S 
Gerard, Rer. John, S.]., iB 
Gerdil. Hyadnlhe SLciamoad. Cardinal, 

loS 
Gannani, (d Baltimore, 713-8; in New 

York, 61B1 in PhiUdelphia, 191 
Cibanlt, Rer. Pettr, B7-g, 19J-6 
Gibbona, Jama, Cardinal, on Sul^dana, 

Gifiard, BonaTRIlnre, Bishop, 138-40 

Giiard. Stephen, iora 

Goeti, Rev. Jobs N., schitDI, 649'50, 

6S3-4 
Goidwell, TboDUa, Bishop, t]4 
"— "- — iboppen, Pa., 66, J44. 3*7 

I, Rev. LanTeace, S.J.,l>ioKraphicai 
, i7o; death, 493, sri-aj, d«- 
J7J-1; a1 Kt National Synod, 

U9. in Philadelphia, apt, £46-6; and 

Society of Jeaai, 334 
Gnsai, Rev. John, S.J., s;in, jjj; and 

Abp. Carroll, s6a-SJ death, jia; at 

GcDrfctown Cdltge, 357, 359: and 

Jesnit BTOpoiy, sjB 
CrcatoD, ^Rcv. Joinh, S.J., 33 
Greea Bay, Catholic misiion, jS 
GrMBlburf, Pa., 387 
Gruber, Rrv. Gabriel, 33s, sji, 541, 34s, 

Gullirt, Dom Urhain, 513-15 

Hachard, Sr. StaDislsus, «Ba 

HuertlDwn, Md., 3B6 

HalBai, Fr., 344 

Hancock, John, Govemor of Mass., and 

Thayer, 4"d, «3, 413 
Hardinf, Rev. Hoberl, S.J,, 344 
Harent, Rev. Joaeph, Slilmcun, 5 Bo 
Harold, Rev. Jamei, achiini, 660-1, 670, 



to Hoi* See (ijti), 170-1; "PctitiDB'* 

to Holy See (ijBS), 34S-130B 
"Hiihbindera," 617 
Hill, Ann LoDiaa (Mather Ann OS Our 

Bleaaed Lady), ^7S-6. 487 
Hfwan, Rev. WilliaDi, 67a 
Holy Crosi Chnrch, BdMhq, 1B4, A18 
Holy Trinity Charch, Philaddphia. 193, 

648 
Howard, Thoraai, Cardinal, O.P., S16 
Hubert, Jean Francois, Biinopof Undwc, 

196 -B, ifii, j8a 

Hufhes, Felix, 



Hon 



F. George, SJ. 



■1 " -, 



ucent XII, 13B 

teon. Andrew, and Uranlinea, 4S4'S 
ne* II, Dnke of York, i46n 
r. Jtlin, 79. >8» 
leraon, Thonaa, 7a, 90, 481-3 
ildni, Rev. Auaniliae, S.J., act cd 
lubmiBsioo, 66; biogiaphiol details, 
'■"1 of the elersj. 



jU*ci,"'«i,"i 

jDurdain, Nicholas (Shakerad). 409 

'"Journal," of Abp. Carroll, 33-3 



. "'"jSi 



Kcndail. Rev. Heiiry,_7i6 
Kenney, Rev. Peter, S.J., ssin 
Kenny, Rev. Patrick, 658, 670 
Kentucky, «86i church in, 6Si 



Kinaer, Anna, laj 
KirUltid, Samuef, aoB 
" ■ ' , Rev. Anthony, 



Society of Jesus, 5510, 637; and tlrao- 
linci, 486 

Lacy, Rev. Michael, 243, 735 
Lafayette, Marquis d^ 86 
"Laity Remonstrance,'' 1543 
Lalor, Teresa (Alice). 491-! 

La Luieme. Anne Cisar de, 185, 188, 

Lancaster, Pa., 66, 144. iS 7 

Lariscy, Rev. Philip, O.S.A., S08, 613 

La Rouchefoucauld, Mother Celeste de, 

Lanaaat, Pierre-Clement de, 481 

Lee, Archibald, 811 

Lee, Richard Henry, 79 

Leslie, Rev. Georse, minister, 416 

LeXraose, Dom Aosnstin de, sij-i} 

Lrvadoua, Rev. Micnad, Sulpidan, 410, 



Lewis, Rev. John. S.J., Jj, 69, 9J, "M. 
1 88; act of luhmiaaion, 64: hiqfraphieal 
details, 303; and Carroll, 36; at lit 
General Chapter. 1&9.70 
Leyhume, John. Bishop, Tsy 
Licge, collcte, 18, 30, 44S, 439 

pp, 419^56, Vol. n.) 



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Lorello, Siitert of, j 



the Foot of the 



■ XV, », *s 

1 XVt 83, 90, I7« 
) XVIIl, 6js 

•tou, 481; chureh Ie, 7*0-14; r«l"- 

gioiu libmr, £1 
Lofola Collcac. 476 
Lnta*, Rn. Jima, is NDrfoUc 73s 
Lulworth Cutle, 373-4 
Lynch. Dominick, ijio, 36s 



McNibb, JcAn, 314 

Hicopin, N. J., ^6 

McQuade, Rer. Panl, 6ij 

UcRcadr, Detmis. Mt 

UcShnrr, Riv. WUlltDi, ssm 

MidiKm, Jama, EpJMOpd iatbop ot Vir 

HidiKB, jttaa, Proideat of the Unitoj 

Sum, 481, ;n7-p, Bos 
HihoncT, Bct- John, in Riehtnond, 73S 
Idahoor, Fr., in New York. 616-7 
Mahotiiie. Jan d« U, 4oB-g, 411 
Ua1n«, R«. Fnncii, S.J., 553 
Maloa, R«. Pettr, SJ., 641 
Hinncn (Sittenabereer), Rer. Matthiai 

S.J.. 66 645 



"Micfaicin Eaaar or Impartid Obtntt," 
Uichilimackiuc, Cadudic miiiiiin, 3B7 



, s»6. Si3! 

Catholic Enuncipatioa, SiS-io 
Hinllea, Ddd Jiun de, S4n. loB 
Miuion Oalh. See Stndcnt Oath 
Mobile, Ala., jS 
Motrneux, Rev. Richard, S.J., S3; act 

of tubmiuion, 66; and Am ' '■- - 
aphical < 



-rail, I 



:■ ii'j 



Fr. Fan—., .,. ., _. 

Chapter, su, jsi; at Georactown Col- 
We, 447i 461.1; on Geiniani, i«a; 
aod "Ucmcrrial" to Holy See^ 346<S( 
II III National STDod, 410. 4a»i in 
Philadelphia, 166, 144-$, 1891 and 
renontion of the SodelT, 114, 34 s, 

Hansn'nd, Rer. T. C, in Virfinia, 733 
MoH's Mouiid, Mo., ji4 
MontdMr, Jean de, 46B 
Montcomer]'. Richard, General, o], 90 
MoranviUd, Ker. John, and educatfon, 

(^tholic, 7«B 
Morris, Andrew, 6aS 
Morris, Rer. Peter, S.J., 66 
Horrii, Robert, 74 
Moaler, Rev. Joseph, S.J.. 66, 1J3, I73i 

biosTapfaiciI details, 304 
Molte, Eev. Heniy de la, 143 
Mount St, Miry'i Collece, fnuniEibuis, 



.; in Uar; 



e, 474. 61S, 6]g, 7!^; 



Mlrr Joaoih, Bom, Trappist, 313 
HaiyUnd, Acadian* in, 67-8: Catholic 
eduntioB, %, 13: church in, 60, 65, 



Matiinon, Rev. Francii Anthonr. Uo- 

inpbical detaili, 601-4; in Bocton, Mg, 
414, 436, 611-1. 613-P1 and Abp. Car- 
roll, jSi-j: and Mother Stton, 497.8 

Matthews, Ann (Mother Bernadue of 
SL Jo»eph), 457-8. 490 

Maichewi, Aon Thereaa (Sr. Mair Aloy 
■ia), 48; 8 

Matthew), Rev. Itnatina. S.J., act of 
.„k.„:.«-^ At. biographical detail 



Moylan, Stephen. 86 
Mullen, Catherine, 49$ 
Muiphy, Maria, 490, ; 
Muiphy, Timothy, 86 



oil, 179, 467; at S 

National ^ynSd!'4aV;*'at '^ig™ HUl, 

476 
Napoleon, 411, 803: and Abp. CarToU, 

7301 and Piui Vll, Bio 
Naicbei, Miu., 38, 387 
Natareth, Siaten of Charity of. soa 
Nsle, Rfv. Benedict, hJoinphicBl de- 

Neale.'Rev. Benjamin, SJ., 66 

Neale, Rev. Chaiiea, SJ., and Cannd- 
ilei, 4B7-B; and Abp. Carroll, 35 J, 65S J 
at Georvetown, JS4: and realoration 01 
the Societ!', S4i, S4S. 5iin, SSa 

Neale, Rev. Fnneii, S.J.. i;7, 735, Boo 

Neale, Kev. Henry, 144 

Neale, Leonaid. Archlnibop ot Baltimore, 
414, 577; appointment, S7S; biofraph. 
ical deiaila, 3941 al Bohtmla Aodanj, 

of the clergy, 31^: al Georgetown, 447, 

Eional Srnod, 419; and oppoiition to 
biahopric, 3;i8; Faatoral to Gennan 
Cathollci, 6jo-]; and reatoration of 
Society, J34, J43-4, (49i and Viuu- 



Uattliewi, Rev. William, 470, 334, 7 

Hlttingly, Rev. John, 61 

Meade. George, S6 

"Meraarial," of American clergy (1784), 

Midjgan, 196; education, Catholic 7»6<7 
CPj. I-418, VoL I; 



lev. Charlei. <Sj, 710; and 
II, jig.io; in Kentucky, 6go; 



Nedncki, Rev. 






T; IST'Ti 



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Hnr Esfluii), IrUb KbootniHUi*. iJl 

rdiaioDi liberty, 14) 
Naw Hampthire, rdJKiDu* libertr, 111. 

Nn^Hircn. CoBii, 61a 

New TencT. Carroll, in. nt; rdi(icnu 
libCTtr, 111. MS 

New Landoo, Caiiii., 6ao 

New OrKani. Li., jS; ichiim, joiS; 
Unulinet in, 481. 4S1 

Newport. Md., t86 

New Snyma, Flarid*, jS 

Nnrtown, Hd.. 6», 65, jS£ 

Newtown School, g 

Hew Yoth, CuTOlI ia, t*6; dioecfe, 6i«- 
41; dioccM, crecdon, jSj; dioceM, 
txtent, 6fs: dioeeu^ Iriih Inierfereace, 
6ja-4i ; dioMH, troMcclnn, *£i-S, ];4-5. 

adueiiioB, C*tlH>lie, 791; popuUtioo, 

i;i:'ar.»;'" '■■"■ 

Hew Vork UlenUT laMllute. sj6. 636-1 
NM[IIn, VlMODBt de. so^n 
Norfolk, truttee lyiten, tji; ■china, yjc 
Norfolk, Duke of. 71 
North C*ra!iaa, reliaiona libcrt;', iii, 115 
Nufent, Rer. Andrew. Khiim. 361-g. 
171, 171, 377-g, iBi. iSm, joS 

O'Brien, Rev. Uattbew, 616-7, <>9. 631 

O'Brien, Re*. WaiUm, O-P., in BoMciti, 

185: and Carroll. 378, ago, 6n, 6]l, 

6]j; death, 630; In New York. aSi, 

437, 636-g; in PhiUddphui, 14s; and 

O'Brien," ^CT. William F. X., 6ti 

O'CarroU, Florence, i 
O'Conwar, Cecilia 499. !«« 

Oellera, Jamea, and t — ' ■ 

„IS47. 6ss 



"Petition," of American Ger(7 (l7ts), 
170-1; (17B8), ]46-3Son 

"Petition to the iflng'* <Oct. aS. 1774), 
7980 

Pctrc. Denjamin, Biihop, Vicar-ApoitoIIc 
of London, 61, 143-3, 146-7 

Prtre. Lord, 38 1 

PheUn, Ker. Lawrence, 649 

Philadelphia, Calbolio in, 144; church 
in, 66, aS9-95, jS6, 494. ja8. ^13, 6611 
dioccae, 644-85; dioceae, erection, 1S3; 
dioceae, Inib interference, 673. 679; 
dioceae. Inutcdam, aga, 6^, 6ja*qq.: 
education. Catholic, 793-4; Sermaaa in, 
64s. 647-8H)q'i poBulalion, j7; achiun, 
647-57. 66o-8s: Tcllow fe»er, 171. 803 

Fietco, MicheJe di, Cardinal, jSi, jM, 



d truate* aritctn, 636-7, 



O'LimiT, Ke*. Arthor, 117, 130 
OJier. Ker. John Jamca, 466 
OliTler, Rer. Donatin. 690 
OliTier. Rev. John, 709 
Oneida Primacy, acheae. 407-17 
Onddaa. 407-9. 411, 416 
Orooo, FtDobacot chief, 73, 86 



—- -, — — »anl Hichad. 483-4 

Palafox r Ueadon, Juan de, 4a 

Panl. Rer. Viacat, un 

Paria, Treaty of, 134 

Parker, Dr.. 414 

Paaaarj, Rer. Fnnda Xavicr, 340 

"Pen 7 Stewart." 74 

Palham (Warren). Rev. Henry. S.J., <j 

Pdlanta, Ber. Jamea, 5.J.. act nf anV 

' . miarion, 66 1 biocTaphiciJ dalaila, 304-c : 

at lat Naliooal Synod, 418; in Penn- 

aytvania, »44. 4»o, 643 
Paial Lawa, lo-ia 
Paulrer y Catdanaa, LouIj, BUhiv, 481, 

Penet, Peter. 408 

Penniacton, Rev, Fratula, S-J., jt 

Pannaylvania, Carroll in, •44; Cathidiea 
in, 18. 61, 63. 344; diurch in, 66, 387: 
■dneailoo, 79a, 7M-i; population, 17: 
rdivtona libRty, 60, 73, 111, 1(3 

Paorfa. III., a8 

PoTTBl. tttr. NidwUi, 408 

(Pp. 1-418, Vol. I; ] 



(raphietl detaili, 301 
Piot. Fr., Prior, 4osn 
Fiseon Hill. Pa., collefe, 4767; Trap- 

Pillini' Rev- William, 137 

Pile, Rev. Charles CooaUntine, ]8, 86 

Pittihunh. Pa., 661 

Piui Vf 48, ,5=.,, 471. 6j3 

Piua VII. capuvitr, si6, »4-<: and 
church in AiiiBrica, S79, S'i, 81 ■■4; 
and Bp. Concanen, 633-4; election. 471: 
and Iranciacaoa, 511; and SoeiMy of 

"Plan of Orga'miation" (Carnil), 16S-B, 

Pleasant Point, Uc. 610 

Pteuia, Joieph Ocuve. Biahop of Qn6bie, 
SS7, 610, 613-4, 64] 

Plowden. Rer. Charlei, 451-3; on Ameri- 
can biihopric, 358-9; and Berinaton, 
ii»i at Brusca, 491 and Carroll, 14, 
aS'. 17'. 373-4. J77; on Fr«ch in- 
trigue, 173-4, 199. 1I3-4; and Oath 
of Alleiianc^ "'■ -"^ ,— .~_^ — 
of the Socict 

Plowden, Rer. Richard, 139 
Plunkett, Rev. Robert, 419, 460-a 
Pompadour. Madame de, 19. 4! 
Pontbriand, Henri du Br«i) de, 1 

of Quebec. i47n. ison 
"Pontiiicii muneria.'- 58 j 
Piwr Oarei, -=.-. * * 



and Wl«r. 



488- 



Portland; Me.;-!;"!^ *'*"* 

Portunouth, N. H.. 610 

Port Tobacco, Ud., 6a, 6 

487. 489 
Pmerie, Claudiua Florent „ 

la, ichiam, Bj, j^i, i83-fl, 399. 37* 
Pottinger-i Creek. Ky.. sij 
Poulton, Rev. Thoniaa, S.J., i>, (3 
Prairie du Chien, Catholic miaaion, il 
Prairie du Rocber. Catholic miiaioD, 3 87 
Premir, Adam, 191-3, 648 
Preaa, Catholic, 133 
Frintins-praa, 797 



ProTidcnce 



Quarantotti, Kgi. JiAs Baptiat, Bio 
Quebec, or. 9«i i47, MS 
Quebec Act, j6, 7$, 78, pa 
Raiain River, Calbolie miwlnn. jSy 

p. 419-856, Vol. n.) 



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