lolyfiibian. E L^6 ^J%^ lebration. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS DDaDfi3S?2=3A W^ ^^i^i.>ii5*sik ^^5^^''»^ A -*»;• 5S .'^^, ^V.';i r^^>:^^4 #. '^ (lass EJ4^- lioolv X^\%_ #^l-*' ^ [^lil SI Ml I) \\\ ^-^-5#^J' »• )T ^^ ^ii T^o.,^^- >< •1^^-l^r fr ' *1'.^^ :/^.rit4j;im:.^^:^?^'#. FATHER HORRIGAN. FATH ER O'MAHONY. FATHER HICCINS. ^ FATH ER O'N El I ■/6H^ n / -y/^ THE Columbian Celebration THE PART TAKEN BY THE CONGREGATION OF ST. LOUIS BER- TRAND, WITH FULL TEXT OF THE LECTURE ON CATHO- LICITY IN THE DISCOVERY OF AMERICA, 7a.XTX^S Lo\AvS O'W^Ni u LOUISVILLE, KY.: CHAS. A. ROGERS. 1892. Em MY REVERED FATHER AND BElvOVED FRIEND, Very Rev. C. H. MCKENNfl, 0. P., PREACHER -GENERAL, DEDICATE THIS VOLUME, WITH THE ASSURED CONFIDENCE THAT THE ESTEEM IN WHICH I HOLD HIM IS CORDIALLY SHARED, NOT ONLY BY THE PEOPLE OF ST. LOUIS BERTRAND'S CONGREGATION, BUT BY THE MANY OTHERS FOR WHOM HE HAS SO ZEALOUSLY AND FAITHFULLY LABORED. PREFACE In writiiioj a preface to this unpretentious little volume, which is published with the ap- proval of our Prior, Very Rev. Father Horrigan, I do not intend to invest it with any of the airs of a book, but merely to say a few words of ex}tlanation that may insure a more favorable reception for this new wayfarer in the literary world. The publication of the lecture is an answer to a request that seemed to me to indicate the wish of the people of St. Louis Bertrand's congregation. That kind words in similar strain came from distant friends is an encouragement cordially appreciated ; but the manuscript would not have seen the light had it not been for the desire, so afiectionately expressed, by those before whom the lecture was delivered. The description of the part taken by the people of St. Louis Bertrand's in the Louisville Columbian parade is chiefly of local interest; but it has a further value as a contribution to 6 PREFACE. the history of a magnificent celebration, of which the Catholics of Louisville may justly feel proud. For those for whom this volume is particularly intended, I think its publication will have that special interest which comes of works done by members of a parish in the union of a family spirit. With feelings of peculiar gratification we can all look back on labors that were inspired by patriotism and religion ; and it will, therefore, be an added pleasure to keep in permanent form a memorial of our Columbian feast. The gratitude of priests and people is here publicly acknowledged, and with great pleasure, to the Satellites of Louisville. Besides the loan of their elegant chariot, kindly granted for Deza's use, they supplied us with many prop- erties, trappings and costumes. These largely contributed to the fine appearance of the parade. In connection with the publication of the lecture, I wish to put on record my deep sense of indebtedness to my esteemed friend, John A. Mooney, LL.D., of l^ew York. Generously he placed at my disposal the fruits of his ripe PREFACE. study, of which I have freely availed my- self. Moreover, he carefully revised the lecture so that it now appears enriched with farther benefits, for which my obligations to his friend- ship and learning are much increased. Grate- fully and cheerfully do I make this acknowl- edgment in testimony of a scholar and Chris- tian gentleman, whose pen is as ready as his mind is richly stored with treasures, that are ever at the service of God's holy Church. J. L. O'NEIL, O. P. CONVENT OF ST. LOUIS BERTRAND, Lonisville, Kij. FEAST OF ALL SAINTS OF THE DOMINICAN ORDER. November 9, 1892 CHRISTOPHORO COLOMBO This engraving was made by A. Capriolo, in Rome, 159G. It was taken from a photographic collection of the same author. Madrid, 1st July, 1862. D. de Veragna. THE LOUISVILLE COLUMBIA^! PAPADE. 'The Part Taken by St. Louis Bertrand's Congregation. When the Rt. Rev. Bishop McCloskey an- nouDced the commemoration in honor of Col- umbus, as prescribed by the Holy Father, the Catliolics of Louisville, priests and peo})le, made immediate preparations for a becoming dem- onstration. The result, as fully set forth in the daily press and in the Catholic Advocate of this city, was a splendid manifestation of patriot- ism and faith. Every parish jtarticipated, a wholesome rival r}' stimulating each one to generous eftbrts for the success of the com- bined display. Solemn masses, the singing of the Te Deum, ap[)ropriate sermons were the religious features of the festival, while the great night parade closed in splendor a day always to be remembered by the people of Louisville. It is estimated tliat fifteen thousand men took part in the procession, while one hundred thou- sand people viewed its passage. The city was thronged with visitors, while the citizens in o-en- 10 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. eral manifested the liveliest interest in the cele- bration. Houses along the line of march were handsomely decorated and illuminated, our non- Catholic friends heartily joining with their Cath- olic neighbors. St. Louis Bertrand's people, it is admitted, took the post of honor. Considered as a spec- tacle and a living historical panorama, the dis- play presented by this congregation was truly magnificent. While discarding the conventional float, they offered a series of moving tableaux that in conception, appointments and presentation won the admiration of all. The plans had been designed by the Dominican Fathers who, in union with Mr. Thomas J. Batman, an able organizer and a gentleman of skill and experience, accom- plished the work made possible by the generosity of the people. Mr. Batman was effectively as- sisted by Mr. Wni. Sherley, and to both of these gentlemen the thanks of the parish are due. Only a few preliminary meetings were held, but contributions were liberal and enthusiasm ran high. All seemed animated by one spirit, a determination to make the parade a great public act of Catholic faith, in gratitude to God and in THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 11 memory of His devoted servant, Christopher Columbus. The celebration opened on the morning of October 21st with a solemn high mass cele- brated by the Prior, Father Ilorrigan, assisted by Fathers O'Mahony and Iliggins. A brief address was delivered by Father O'Neil on patriotism and religion. The church was beautifully decorated — Papal, Columbian and United States flags in graceful profusion, and generous distribution of red, white and blue, starred and shielded bunting so displayed as to make a most beau- tiful effect. Tlie work reflected great credit on Miss Ellen O'Keil and Miss Ellen Aylward, the designers. During the day the scene was a lively one, all feeling that their repeated prayers in the Kosary had been answered, as the sun lighted up convent, school and church, all richly draped in red, white and blue, flags waving everywhere — Papal, Columbian, United States. The Dominican Sisters labored untiringly, contributing in many Avays, by the work of their deft fingers, to the ornamentation of the 12 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. various equipages. It must have been a grati- licatiou to them as they watched the departure of their pretty girls grouped in the tableaux. At 6:30 p. M., when the procession moved from the church every man was at his post. A loud bugle-blast, blown by a trumpeter on foot, announced the approach of our division. It was headed by C. A. Curtin, as grand mar- shal, wlio was accompanied by the following aides: Dennis Conway, James Wolfe, L. II. Bell, T. J. Conway, John Reardon, T. J. O'Sul- livan, Mark Feighan, C. A. Kogers, Edward Leahy, A. D. Ross, Augustine Ross, Joseph Hetiger, Edward McDonough, M. Moriarty, W. N. Webb, P. Delany, John Moriarty, Ed- ward Wagner, A. And, A. J. Fitzgerahl, John Hetiger and J. J. Score. All were well mounted and rendered effective service alono^ the line of our division. Next came the Liederkranz band of twenty pieces. They were followed by the bearer of the parish banner— J. Edelin. Accompanying torches lighted it up, and all could read St. Louis Bertrand's. " Columbus having returned from his iirst THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 13 voyage, proceeds in state from Palos to Bar- celona, to meet Ferdinand and Isabella." This explanation gave to the witnesses zest and nnderstanding for the cavalcade that fol- lowed in martial array. The royal standard- bearer came first. Frank Breslin was a worthy knight. His Spanish costume and the exquisite silk banner, richly embroidered and beautifully mounted, were admiringly observed. He rode well a spirited charger. Here it may be said of all the costumes, that they were not only elegant in material and rich in decoration, but historically correct; and of the horses, in general, that they were all in good form, richly caparisoned and skilfully managed. The standard-bearer was escorted by a guard, P. McGlynn, James Meyer, J. J. Kenealy, D. Meagher, M. J. Maloney. A detachment of Columbus' sailors came next, all carrying arquebuses, and appropriately costumed: Thomas Conway, Patrick Monahan, W. Doyle, J. Gilniartin, P. Muldoon, P. "Kil- kenny, John Dealy, B. Gallagher, T. Higgins and L. Smith. Another band of sailors (W. Snell, D. J. 14 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. Rearcloii, M.IIughes, J. M.Dolan, Joseph Woods, M. Coleman, J. P. Glynn, P. McGljnn, M. Flynn and F. Greenougli) carried specimen products of the new world. There were par- rots alive, and stuffed ; hirds of various plumage ; a live alligator, corn, tobacco, maize, gourds, squashes and yams. Mingling with these and showing them to fine advantage were men wearing red dominos and carrying red lights. Similar groups accompanied the seven Indians, who were next in line. In single file they walked, bearing spears and bows and arrows. It was a picturesque scene. The Indians were represented by John Toomey, John Lawless, W. Connell, P. Gleem, John Iledley, Patrick Burke and D. Kenealy. With befitting escort — forty cavaliers, all Spanish and knightly — Columbus, personated by Mr. T. J. Batman, next appeared, finely mounted and splendidly arrayed, carrying in his hand a beautiful ^silk banner* (the standard of the Admiral). He was the Columbus of the parade. His escort, all richly attired and present- ing the finest mount of the evening, included -=TIii8 banner .-md the royal standard, were the work of 3Irs. M. H. Feighan. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 15 Robert E. Watson, Edward Hetiger, Bernard Gordon, Samuel Joyce, John Eusli, Wm. Ansbro, John ConAvay, M. J. Cassin, P. Lncy, W. Lucy, T. Langan, T. Wagner, J. McKiernan, M. Gahen, M. J. Kearns, J. McDonnell, P. Fallon, M. Lancaster, J. J. Hennessy, ]). J. Ileffernan, C. J. Callahan, M. J. Reilly, J. Dealy, J. Evans, G. Mutchman, W. Iliggins, W. McGrath, E. Wagner, M. Moriarty, J. Moriarty, J. Duane, J. B. Wathen, J. Reardon, D. Moriarty, S. C. Toomey, L. Greenongh, W. R. Ilensley, J. Over- berg, E. Cowan and M. Callahan. Next came a splendid tableau — Ferdinand 'and Isabella presenting to Columbia, Faith, Hope and Charity. The setting and costuming were superb. Keil Ditto was Ferdinand ; Miss Kate Green, Isabella; Miss Mary Kelly, Columbia; and the little Misses Blanche Gordon, Eliza Hannan and Mary Walsh, bearing their respect- ive symbols, represented Faith, Hope and Charity. Red lights and flambeaux were all around. Then the magnificent chariot of Rex, kindly loaned by the Satellites, appeared, brilliant with electric lights and containing Rev. J. C. 16 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. O'Mahony, 0. P., as Archbishop Deza. A purple and white standard proclaimed " Diego di Deza, O. P., Archbishop of Toledo, Primate of Spain." Under this was the follow^ing quotation from a letter of Columbus to his son Diego : " The Lord Bishop, Deza, has always favored me and has ever desired my glory since I came into Castile." Two pages, handsomely attired — Tello Webb and John Dunn — stood on the steps behind ; James Connell, in Spanish costume, drove the four horses ; George Kilcourse acted as crozier-bearer ; Thomas Batman, Jr., held the mitre, and ^eh. Webb bore aloft the archiepiscopal cross. A pretty feature of the chariot was the grouping of three little boys — Eddie Hetiger, Eugene Iletiger and Willie Gor- don, in sailor suits crossed with red, white and blue. The next carriage contained Very Rev. M. A. Horrigan, 0. P., personating Las Casas. The de- vice here displayed read : " Las Casas, Protector of the Indians and First Abolitionist in America." Three little sailor pages, attired as those in Deza's chariot, occupied the first seat — Willie Condon, Mattie Brennan and Willie Brady. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 17 The episcopal cross, the mitre and the crozier were held by James Duaiie, James O'Neil and Richard Langan. After this the emblem read was : " Father Louis Cancer, O. P., the first to shed his blood in territory now belonging to the United States, June 20, 1549." He was represented by Eev. J. R. Higgins, 0. P., accompanied by two acolytes : Joseph Coakley and Charles Score. Then came the announcement, "St. Louis Bertrand, 0. P., Apostle of New Granada, and Wonder-worker of theNew World— 1562-1569." In this carriage rode Rev. J. L. O'Neil, 0. P., with Willie Kil- course and Henry Lancaster as acolytes. Sur- rounding each carriage was a troop of footmen bearing torches, red lights and Roman candles. The picture presented by the priests in their Dominican black and white, and by the acolytes in their appropriate colors, with mingling of red, white and blue, was in itself unique, but the historical significance of the moving tableaux was especially admired. The line was closed by the spectacle of the girls. Three conveyances bore them, and every one who saw and heard them could well under- 18 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. stand why we were proud of our girls. They represented the States and Territories and the District of Columbia. The States were in white, the Territories in black, the District of Columbia in red, white and bkie. All carried their hair flowing. Crowns of red, white and blue, topped with gilt stars, were worn by the States ; crowns without stars by the Territories. Across each girl's breast a red, white and blue sash was worn, on which was displayed on white ground in red and blue letters, the name of her State or Terri- tory. They all carried Columbus flags, while the vehicles were loaded with bunting. United States, Papal and Columbian flags. Japanese lanterns shed soft and many-colored rays over all, while the eflTect was heightened by the con- stant glow of the red lights. Rockets were sent up at regular intervals by running attendants in fantastic costumes. A mounted body-guard escorted the girls' conveyances— Harry Manly, G. J. Hackemiller, James McDonough, Vincent De Courcy, Harry Colgan, John McDonald, Martin Callahan, M. Greenough, D. Moriarty, T. Brown, Richard Quinn, R. E. O'Sullivan. Enthusiastically the girls waved their flags and THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 19 sang in a spirited manner, to the air of America, the beautiful Columbian ode written by Rev. W. D. Kelly for the Catholic Columbian^ of Columbus, 0. Copies were kindly sent to us by the editor of the Columbian. We were not only grateful for the courtesy, but heartily glad for the liberal spirit of the Columbian in making gratuitous distribution of the ode to Catholic schools. A COLUMBIAN ODE. With swift and tireless tread, Four hundred years have sped, Four ages flown, • Since hither o'er the main, Columbus brought from Spain That faith whose gifts and gain Were here unknown. Her patronage to claim, His flagship Mary's name Aloft displayed ; And as the deep they braved, From dangers to be saved, The mariners oft craved Her gracious aid. 20 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. Hymns in her honor sweet Rose from the little fleet Morn, noon and night. With pious prayers that she, Across the trackless sea, Their guiding star would be. Their beacon bright. And when the Pinta's gun Proclaimed the goal was won, The voyage o'er, Columbus, sword in hand, Knelt on the sea-kissed strand, And named the first-found land San Salvador. Four hundred years, and lo ! The light whose genial glow Was kindled there, Now, with effulgent beams, O'er all this new world streams. Than its revealer's dreams, Far, far more fair. Oh, land of all lauds best, In that discovered West, His name revere ! THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 21 Who, scorning storm and scath, Defying wrack and wraith, Enriched with Christian faith This hemisphere. The thirteen original States rode in a tallyho; the thirty-one, later admitted, in a large wagon, and the Territories and District of Columbia in a third conveyance. The following gi rls participated : Fannie Kennedy 3Iaine. Sallie O'Connor Xeiv Hampshire. Susie Becker . . Massachusetts. EllaHensly . . Rhode Island. Bertha Hensly . Connecticut. Teresa O'Malley New York. Mary Duane . . . . . . Xew Jersey. Carrie Rickert . Delaware. Xellie Brown . . Maryland. Mary Brown . . Virginia. Josie Houlihan . North Carolina. Laura DeCourcy South Carolina. Julia Woods . . Georgia. Mary O'Malley . Texas. Winifred Flaherty .... Vermord. 22 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. Sarah Keegan Pennsylvania. Mary Deely Indiana. Lillie Gordon Illinois. Clara Flaherty Ohio. Annie Ilannan Kentucky. Mary Edelen Tennessee. Mary Egan Alabama. Mary Coleman ...... Mississippi. I^ora Ahearu Louisiana. JSTellie Connanghton .... Florida. Lillie Cambron Colorado. Mary Eirck Michigan. Josie Gallery . Wisconsin. Gertrude Cambron .... Idaho. Alice Devaney Montana. Bessie Dolan JVyotning. Hannah Keefe Nevada. Maggie Mooney Washington. Mary Finnegan Oregon. :N"ellie Brown Kansas. Katie Lee Nebraska. Delia Hughes Arkajisas. Mary Hughes California. Katie Dolan West Virginia. Katie Lucy Missouri. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 23 Nellie Ahearn ..'.... Iowa. Annie Diiane Minnesota. Maggie Iloulihan North Dakota. Josie Hartnett South Dakota. Josie Dwyer Utah. Bridget Flannigan ... Arizona. Mary Crotty New Mexico. Elsie Edelen Indian Territory. Katie Brennan Alaska. Josie Reardon Oklahoma. Pliilomena Mutchman . . . Dist. Columbia. The following members of the congregation took part in the procession as torch-bearers, carriers of red lights and Roman candles : T. McTighe, P. T. Conway, F. H. Clay, J. Eiler, J. E. Brown, H. Brady, E. P. Dwyer, J. Fitzgerald, J. Hennessey, J. Kilkenny, F. Mc- Guire, J. Rossfield, J. Sheehy, Thomas Sheehy, J. P. Winn, J. Higgins, J. Kenealy, Wm. Brod- erick, Lewis Rafferty, John O'Connell, Thomas Broderick, M. Brown, M. Connolly, W. Con- nolly, James Cody, Edward Crowley, Cosmas Meagher, J. E. Collins, John Duffy, J. Crotty, H. A. Crotty, J. T. Chalk, W. J. Chalk, R. Crowley, Frank Brown, W. Doyle, James O'Neil, 24 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. E. Dolan, J. O'Malley, T. Dwyer, A. Delany, W. Delany, W. Flahive, J. Fanning, E. Fanning, M. Grogan, J. Gallery, D. Lucy, J. Graham, M. Kennedy, J. Kelly, T. Kilcourse, T. Kelly, H. Kennedy, M. Kilkenny, T. Lynch, E. Leahy, J. Linihan, P. Muldoon, W. McHugh, E. Mutch- man, E. Mitchell, P. Monahan, N. McDevitt, J. McCue, J. J. Murphy, F. J. Monahan, C. Maher, J. Mutchman, M. Morgan, E. ;N"orton, J. Norton, W. O'Connell, F. O'Connell, J. O'Sullivan, P. Kilkenny, T. Lynch, Eobert Mitchell, James Norton, Eichard Norton, Austin Delany, M. J. Eeardon, E. Fanning, J. Fitzgerald, F. O'Con- nell, M. O'Malley, W. Eeilly, M. J. Eeardon, J. Eeilly, M. Shaughnessy, John L. Sullivan, J. Snell, M. J. Walsh, N. Walsh, J. J. Wynn, Joseph Wynn, J. J. Moriarty, John Casey, P. McAuliffe, Timothy O'Sullivan, M. Baldwin, T. Eeagan, Timothy Kelley, Michael Hogan, P. Cardift, J. Broderick, Joseph Gilmore, M. Egan, M. Broderick, J. Hughes, John Monahan, J. Bell, P. Glynn, J. Delany, J. Kelly, T. Kelly, J. Eoss, L. Murphy, Thomas Higgins, M. Duane, P. Duane, J. Devany, T. Devany, F. Conway,' Patrick O'Neil, D. Flanagan, M. Flanas^an, J. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. liD Hetiger, Jr., O. Flanagan, Thomas Muldoon, J. Ford, F. Watson, Thomas Duffy, J. Cavanagh, T. Cavanagh, J. Lamont, J. Kearney, B. Curley, P. Degnan, J. McCabe, J. Tobin, Wm. Cuff, T. Moore, Joseph Gilmore, John Donnelly, J. Ker- rigan, Wm. Rush, John Slavin, Timothy Mc- Donough, Philip Larkin, Geo. Gleason, P. Neaghan, J. Mooney, Philip Stark, J. L. O'Neil, T. Swift, J. D. Ilennessy, W. T. Hennessy, Pat- rick Murphy, Joseph Kennedy. Others failed to send in their names, but according to the estimate on the night of the parade, there were about five hundred men in line, besides the girls and boys who participated in the procession. It was a glorious event for Catholicity in Louisville, and the people of St. Louis Bertrand's may, in a special manner, be congratulated on their beautiful, historical pageantry. Supplementary to the parade, there was also a celebration in our church on Sunday evening, October 23d. The exercises commenced with a reproduction of the tableau of Ferdinand and Isabella presenting Faith, Hope and ii ^1< During the fifteenth ceutury the spirit of com- merce and of exploration was particularly active. A new impulse liad moreover been given to affairs by the improved methods of manufacturing paper, and by the invention of tlie art of i)rint- ing. The mariner's compass had made navigation more secure, and thus hastened the all-important moment when a new workl would be revealed. The fall of Constantinople in 1453 having driven a troop of refugees — G-reek scholars — from the barbarism of the Turk to the hospitality of their western Christian neighbors, a new learn- ing was brought into Europe, and with it a new intellectual movement. Italy was especially favored. Her welcome to the stranger, to his literature and thought, was indeed princely, and Rome and Florence led and ruled the world of science, of art, of learning. The Italian States, lighting among themselves for territory and power, contended even more THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 43 earnestly on the field of elassic letters. It was indeed a period of transition, of renewal Co- pernicus was studyini^ at Cracow, but lie was not the only one who was questioning the planets. In the world of philosophy, as of art and of natural science, a new fervor was ap- parent. The revival of learning had its advantages, but its dangers were not a few. Against its pagan tendencies higher motives were contend- ing. In the pregnant womb of those seething times,, rival powers, opposing forces — like Esau and Jacob — strove for primogeniture. While the world was in tliroes so fateful, champions were needed in the interest of truth and virtue — in the cause of the Church of God. Two 'such men stood forth, each destined in his own way, to immortal renown. Savonarola and Cohimbus were not only conteniporaries, they were kindred spirits, tired by the same divine spark and burning alike with holy desires to lead men into a new and better world of thought and action. At the very time that the great Prior of San Marco was thundering against the abuses of the day and the corrup- 44 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. tioii and pagan inclinations of Florence ; while he was straining every nerve and bending all his energies to bring men to tlieir senses, that they too might see the glorious light that was flooding his own pure soul, Columbus — the man of unconquerable will— w^as ploughing the gloomy ocean, urged on by convictions that were reali- ties to liim and that made liim long to open to Spain and to the world regions that for him shone with a brilliancy born of his own grand faith. Both these heroes, alike in their passing honor and in the bitterness of their lowly end- ing, resembling each other in the glory that has followed their sufferings, were urged on by higher powers to their great work. Not always well-defined was their end, at least in all its details, but Ave may feel assured that Columbus and Savonarola knew^ they were in the van of a mighty movement. Both were men of prophetic mind (inspired, may I not say ?), both carried the undaunted heart of a hero, and may we not say that both died as martyrs ? Ingrat- itude during life was the portion of one and the other, and in death calumny has denied them even the quiet of the grave. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 45 ever lill- It is ail old story, as old as Calvary. N can it be more sacredly told than on that 1 top, and in its glory have they shared who have followed in its way. Snch a man was Christopher Colnmbus, the beantifnl significance of whose names, as Christ- bearer and Dove, well become him as the head and front and divine instrument of permanent Catholicity in this western world. The history of the Discoverer illustrates the important truth that men who are divinely aj)- pointed to nuy great work live a life all their own, dwelling in a region apart, with their own fiery and consuming tlioughts, their own splendid ideals, their own mighty projects. Thither the multitude can not go. Understanding they have not. How can they have sj^mpathy ? To few only, and they also divinely chose coadjutors, is admittance granted to the mystie abodes where the world's great leaders dwell. Thus it was with Columbus. ^N'ature and grace had combined to fit him for his work. But when the grand triumph came, exhausted nature resignedly yielded the crown to her imperial mistress, grace. May we not see in this the ex- i n as 46 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. quisite chisellings that came with the Master's final strokes ? May we not say that the complete deprivation of all that spoke of human pride or the lawful pomp of conquered worlds, was the last oflering demanded of this sorely-tried spirit, this oft-chastened soul ? Yes, we Cath- olics measure his glory on earth and in Heaven by standards that we know are divine. To trace the career of the great Admiral is not my purpose. Rather would I engage your minds with a study of his character, of the motives that inspired him, of the hopes that cheered him — a fitting prelude to an under- standing of his life's work. The fierce light of the world's criticism is heat- ing on the name of Colundjus to-day, but a halo encircles him in glory as he is revealed to us in his life and labors and as he stands out a singu- larly grand and heroic figure among the world's few great men. The majesty of his personality is outlined before us, vested with rare gifts of body and mind. " He was a man of noble and commanding presence, tall and powerfully built, with fair, ruddy complexion and keen, blue- gray eyes that eiisily kindled, wliile his waving THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 47 white hair must have been quite picturesque. His manner was at once courteous and cordial and his conversation charming, so that strangers were quickly won ; and in friends who knew him well he inspired strong affection and respect. There was an indefinable air of authority about him as befitted a man of great heart and lof*^y thoughts. Out of those kindling eyes looked a grand and poetic soul, touched with that divine spark of religious enthusiasm which makes true genius.'"'' Clothed with the sacred dignity of religion, he proclaims a prophet's message. As one sent by God, he would go and see and con- quer. Unfaltering faith in himself was only the refiection of his ardent faith in God. Fast- accumulating difficulties only called forth re- newed energ}', chastened and strengthened by the discipline of Christian suffering. Lofty ideals were spiritualized, and a world-embracing ambition was sanctified by zeal for souls. lie would find gold^he would become rich, power- ful — but only that he might redeem the holy places, that he might worthily lead a trium- phant army to Jerusalem. He would give his •*■ Fiske. 48 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. name to a new world, but that world he would give to Christendom with unnumbered souls to God. This shows, as Irving says, " how much his mind was elevated above selfish and mercenary views — how it was filled with those devout and heroic schemes which, in the time of the Cru- sades, had infiamed the thoughts and directed the enterprises of the bravest warriors and most illustrious princes." lie accomplished his task in the face of untold obstacles, and while a throng of wretclies preyed upon his rich posses- sions, and an unjust king deprived him of his rights and titles, he lay down a broken old man, with ingratitude, poverty and abandonment for his portion. And as his dying eyes passed, in their last fitful gleams, from his own chains to his Redeemer's cross, perhaps he caught a glimpse, in heavenly light, on that blessed Ascen- sion day, of the home of the Father into whose hands he commended his soul, with glorious serenity of spirit. How Christlike ! Verily, for human nature, how divine ! Nor is the dignity of his sorrow lessened by the fact that Valladolid knew it not, and that the tattling chronicler did not find time to record it. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 49 The gifts and early training of the future Admiral were eminently such as befitted his final work. Natural talents and natural bravery were necessary foundations, and the young mariner who dared the seas at fourteen had been well trained. Mathematics had been his delight, and the science of the stars he had pondered, i^o mere sailor was he. To the North he went, and to the East and to the West ; to Guinea, to England, to Iceland — but always in contempla- tion, in research, in preparation. He had heard of St. Brendan's land, but to him it was an island containing the earthly paradise. This land was not the object of his search. '' I am convinced," he wrote, "that the earthly paradise is on the Island of St. Brendan, which nobody can reach except by the special will of God." Prescott considers it " singular that Columbus in his visit to Iceland, in 1477, should have learned nothing of the Scandinavian voyages to the northern shores of America in the tenth and following centuries ; yet if he was acquainted with them, it appears equally surprising that he should not have adduced the fact in support of his own hypothesis of the existence of land in 50 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. the West, and that he should liave taken a route so different from that of his predecessors in the path of discovery. It niay be, however, as Hum- boldt has well remarked, that the information he obtained in Iceland was too vague to suggest the idea that the lands thus discovered by the [N^orthmen had any connection with the Indies of which he was in pursuit." Columbus was a marvellous observer, a lover of nature, who allowed nothing to pass unnoticed that might eventually aid him. He discovered the line of non-magnetic variation ; he first described the equatorial current and the move- ment of waters between the tropics. " Botanists, geologists owe something to him. To commerce, to the art of navigation, to nautical astronomy, to all the physical sciences, he gave an extra- ordinary impetus. How few give a thought to all the benefits conferred by him on mankind, and to the lasting eifect of his various discoveries and theories. Yoltaire told many a lie, deliber- ately, but he did not exaggerate, saying that Columbus doubled the works of creation."* During the earlier years he not only studied maps * J. A. Mooney. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 51 and globes, but made them, too, and beautifully. A most skillful navigator, he was every inch an admiral long before the Catholic sovereigns conferred the title on him. But while he sailed the seas he stored his mind with rich treasures of general knowledge. As Humboldt says: " When we consider his life we must feel aston- ishment at the extent of his literary acquaint- ance." A most learned man Columbus was a giant I would say. Cosmography, history, philosophy, theology— these were his pursuits. He read, as Hum^boldt declares, Aristotle, Julius Caesar, Strabo, Seneca, Pliny, Ptolemy, Aver- rhoes, Isidore of Seville, Rabbi Samuel of Israel, Bede, Duns Scotus, Nicholas of Lyra, Alphonsus the Wise, Cardinal B'Ailly, Chancellor Gerson, ^Eneas Sylvius (afterward Pius II.), the Scrip- tures through and through, of which he after- ward made such good use in refuting even theo- logians. His writings fairly bristle with quota- tions made off-hand from the inspired books, from Christian Fathers, Jewish Rabbis and Moorish philosophers. By natural temperament imperious and even prone to anger, he subdued these tendencies 52 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. and without abating his spirit of high resolve or wavering in his purpose, he became a pattern of dignified mildness. Religion was his con- stant support, and the guide of his life. A faithful member of the Third Order of St. Francis, he daily recited its office. During his residence in Lisbon, it was at the convent where he heard mass every day that he met his first wife ; and his religious piety was only the crown of his natural piety towards his parents. Frequently he visited them at Genoa, bringing to them some savings out of his scant earnings. This deep spirit of religion dominated the whole man. It enabled him to overcome almost in- surmountable obstacles that had accumulated during the years of waiting, hoping, wan- dering, pleading. He triumphed over scorn and deceit, contempt and treachery; the vicious taunts and the pitying sneer that marked him as a madman; over the trials of poverty; the in- credulity of the learned ; the disappointments of kings. Well might he have felt, as he knelt in the confessional, and as he strengthened himself with the Holy Eucharist in La Rabida chapel, on the morning he sailed from Palos THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 53 Harbor, that he was the ambassador of the Most High, chosen by His infinite goodness "to an- nounce the enterprise of the Indies to the most potent princes of Christendom, laboring unceas- ingly for the faith." "^ Well might he write, as he always did, at the head of his letters and journal : " Jesus cum Maria sit nobis in via.'' His glori- ous Catholic faith was ever present — a divine aid to his indomitable will, his superb courage. What other man would have sailed with such a crew, in such vessels, on such a message ? He had with him only two of his own countrymen. The rest were Spaniards, with the exception of two Portuguese, one Majorcan, one Englishman and one Irishman. The crew had been gathered almost by force. Ignorant many of them were ; cowards, not a few, and some vicious. The rudder of the Pinta, deliberately injured in order to compel a return, proves the disposition of a part of his crew. Their mutiny he suppressed, not by capitulating to them under a promise to return if land were not sighted in three days, but by his genius to command. Loyal to the Church, he would extend her * His letter from Trinidad, 1503. 54 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. dominions. Devoted to Christ the banner of the Crucified was a constant reminder to all of Him in whose name they had sailed. Like every true follower of Christ, Columbus was a true knight of our Lady. His vessel bore her name. From Gal lego, " the E'orthwest Wind," he changed the name to '' Santa Maria." As a man of God, therefore, he could address his crew on the night before they sighted land reminding them of the many divine blessings that had come to them, and of the glory of the mission in which they were engaged. Landing in the new — the unknown — world, three times he devoutly kissed the ground on which he then raised the cross — high in air. The inspiration of the Cross was with him as he called the island San Salvador ; and with him it continued in the fulness of his gratitude till he gave the last name, to the last discovery made on the first voyage, of " Cape Gracios a Dios." " I pray you, therefore," he wrote to the sovereigns, '' to suffer no stranger to put foot into this land except he is a Christian, or to have any dealings here unless he is a Christian ; for this has been the object of the discoveries I have made by THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 5» order of your Highnesses, and I have undertaken these voyages only for the purpose of aiding in the propagation and glory of the Clu-istian religion." " When I read of this achievement," writes Emilio Castelar, " the most living, evident and eltnlgent lesson it bears is the triumph of faith. In that bark the undoubting Columbus set sail, and at his journey's end found a new world. Had that world not then existed, God would have created it in the solitude of the Atlantic, if for no other end than to reward the faith and the constancy of that great man. America was discovered because Columbus possessed a living faith in his ideal, in himself and in his G-od." This sounds well, especially from one who has forsaken God. We may not agree with it wholly, but we can say that religion was in all and through all the work of Columbus; and that as his faith was the true faith, and his God the true God, and his ideal the Catholic ideal, we can par- take of the enthusiasm of Columbus, as Chris- tian zeal spurred him on, and as the Christian ideal excited him to hope for the day when the light of Christ would shine over this new land. 56 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. With the flame of its fire, with the beauty of its ideal, the Christian religion sanctified the great work. With glowing light, religion, Christ's religion, encircles the hero of the grandest of epics — an epic the creation of relig- ion ; an epic to be completed by religion — the religion of Christ. What a series of moving pictures this epic presents to the Catholic mind ! The early mass at La Eabida ; the humble confession ; the devout communion ; the blessing of the loved and revered friend — the generous and noble Franciscan ; the watching friars, with their eager eyes and heartfelt prayers following the little caravels; the Ave Maria rung out, night after night, from one of those sweet bells that carried with their melody the memory of some fair shrine; the Ave Maris Stella, the sea- man's faithful greeting to the Star of the Sea ; the Salve Regina, in pious chant, as twinkling stars came out by night or silvery moonbeams were poured upon the sea, lighting up its restless waves and seeming to soften the splash of the murmuring waters as they beat against the keel — these were the expressions of Catholic life. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 57 Who ciiii count the devout aspirations that were breathed to Heaven from the decks of the frail ships? Who can say how often Admiral and crew proclaimed their gentle Lady, the Star of the Sea, fairer to them than the moon w^ith Heaven's serenest light ? Of all this Catholic life the center was Colum- bus, bearer of the banner of the Crucified. And did not the immortal genius, who beneath that banner won a world, have a right to declare, as he did in a letter to his friend Sanchez : " Let the King, the Queen, the princes and their fortu- nate kingdoms, in concert with Christendom, offer thanks to our Saviour, Jesus Christ, who has accorded us such a victory and so great success. Let there be processions, let solemn feasts be celebrated. Deck the churches with branches and flowers that Jesus Christ may thrill with joy on the earth as He rejoices in Heaven, seeing the near salvation of so many people heretofore devoted to perdition. Let us at the same time rejoice because of the exaltation of our faith and because of the increase of temporal goods by which not Spain alone, but the wJiole of Christendom will be benefited." And to the 58 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. sovereigns : '' Gold and silver, power and honor are good; but the main object of my voyage has been the propagation and the glory of the Christian religion and the conversion to our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, of the countless savages who have been so long in the grasp of the devil. Your love of the Cross I well know, and all that you have done for its honor in these, your king- doms. By God's grace I hope that your High- nesses' souls may be admitted to the vision of God, especially because you have dutifully spread the holy Christian religion, the religion of the Cross, throughout these new regions." A second time he sailed from Spain, and his flagship was the " Maria Galante " (Gracious Mary). Dominica he called the first island dis- covered, in honor of the Lord's day. The second, he called Gracious Mary, and then came Guadaloupe (after the Spanish sanctuary of our Lady where he had fulfilled the vow on his first return in the name of the crew) ; Montserrat (another shrine of our Lady) ; Santa Maria la liedonda; Santa Maria la Antigua; San Martin ; Holy Cross; St. Ursula and her companions ; St. John the Baptist. Splendid record of sainted THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 59 names and worthy of the devout Admiral who had placed his fleets and voyages under the protection of her he loved to honor ! To Mary he had solemnly vowed pilgrimage after pilgrim- age, as the raging storms threatened the destruc- tion of himself, his companions and his hopes. Humbly bowing to the stroke of God's hand he yet appealed to the Queen of Heaven. The beauty of his sentiments, his resignation, his sohcitude for his crew, his anxious thoughts for loved ones far away, his natural and noble de- sire that he himself should bear the tidings of his discovery to Spain; his humble declaration, saint-like, that perhaps God, in punishment* for his sins, had decreed to cut him off without farther honor — all shine out in the darkness of the storm. To him the cross was not alone a standard of faith and hope; it was also a bitter reality. As Irving says, referring to the cruel and dishonor- able conduct of the Portuguese governor of St. Mary's Island (Azores), in arresting the Ad- miral's men on their way to the chapel of our Lady, and in attempting to seize Columbus him- self: '' Such was the reception on his return to 60 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATIOX. the old world — an earnest of the crosses and troubles with which he was to be requited throughout life, for one of the greatest benefits that ever man conferred upon his fellow-beings." Yet the " great constancy and loftiness of soul," for which Las Casas praises him, never deserted him. Constant, lofty he was in the- beginning of his inspiration, as he read the prophetic books and resolved to find '' the ends of the earth." Constant, lofty he was while ignorant scorn and learned mockery piled up obstacles that threatened ftiilure. Constant, lofty he was to the last; in the griefs of his waning days when poverty joined forces with disease and pursued him relentlessly. Even then, loftily, he demanded his rights, his titles, his honors, his revenues, his emoluments, guaranteed over tlie royal name. Religion ennobled his ambition. lie strove not for selfish aggrandizement, but for the honor of his name, for the rights of his descendants, for the high and holy purpose of his vow. To head 5,000 horse and 50,000 foot equipped at his own expense, and to rescue the hol}^ sepul- chre — this was his high resolve. Sacred in his THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 61 eyes were all the treasures he might win ; yea ! as the very chalice into which was wrought the lirst gold brought to Seville.* Over such a man God watched in His own divine way. Again and again his enemies tri- umphed, but even during his life some of them experienced the anger of God. The shameful end of Alonzo Pinzon, who would have usurped the Admiral's honors by preceding him on the return to Spain and claiming the discovery as his own, is a sad blot on an otherwise noble name. However, remembering Pinzon's weak- ness, let us not forget his splendid services. The fate of Bobadilla who sent Columbus back in chains, of Roldan who rebelled against him, and of many of their confederates, seems to have been a providential visitation. The storm pre- dicted by the Admiral, shelter from which cruelly and brutally was denied him, by the Viceroy, Ovando, in his own port of San Domingo, burst with all its fury on BobadiUa and his comrades * A portion was also sent to Rome — a votive offering-. It was a happy thought that suggested its dedication to our Lady, by using it to gild the ceiling of her chief basilica — that of St. Mary Major. 62 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. who were escaping to Spain witli much plunder wrung from the Indians. The fleet was scat- tered, Bobadilla's vessel was wrecked, and he and his friends perished. On the smallest and weakest of the ships the share of revenue belong- ing to Columbus had been placed ; it was the oidy one of the fleet that made its way to Spain. The Admiral's vessels were also saved, "an evi- dence," says Las Casas, " of an awful and divine judgment on the enemies of Columbus." In the years that elapsed after the first burst of enthusiasm, and after the splendid reception accorded to him by the sovereigns, disasters came thick and fast. Treachery, malice, envy, calumny, hatred, fraud, were plentifully meas- ured out to him. Conspiracy compassed his humiliation and disgrace, yet few were the words of bitterness he spoke, and tender the charity with which he repaid them. His grand soul magnanimously forgot his indignities and still thought of the holy sepulchre. He believed the world near its end and, anxious that the Gospel should be preached to all, he longed to crush the Mohammedan power that enslaved so many in error. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 63 While waiting for an opportunity to continue the work of exploration, he compiled a book of prophecies, collating various texts from the Scriptures, and from the writings of the Fathers and the Saints, bearing on the recovery of Jeru- salem. He believed himself called to the under- taking. He presented liis compilation to the sovereio:ns and urs^ed them to confide in him for the crusade as they had for the discovery of the new world. Nothing came of his efforts. Deprived of his own revenues he could not, of himself, equip the force he had vowed to raise. He could scarcely pay for liis lodging at times, nor did he have a trifle for the church offering, yet he wrote hymns, religious poetry and a stir- ring letter to Alexander VI., in which he told the Pontiff how he had longed to go to Rome, to present in person to his Holiness an account of his discovery, but that obstacles had prevented him. On returning, however, from his next voyage he would go to Rome and lay all before His Holiness. In the meantime he requested that the Pope direct the lieads of the different religious orders to allow him, from each institute, six of their subjects to become Missionaries 64 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. Apostolic, "because," lie adds, "I hope in our Lord to spread His holy Name and Gospel over all the world." But it was not to be. God's inscrutable ways had otherwise ordained. By his courage the path to the new world had been opened, and erstwhile cowards soon thronged it. Though he longed to continue his work of dis- covery, he rejoiced for the good done by other good men. They could follow where he had led. Unfortunately, the policy of wordly craft in the face of such glorious promise as he had opened, suggested relief from him and from his importunity. Isabella, whom he loyally served and chivalrously loved, had gone to her reward. The King had little of her generous spirit. "It was believed of Ferdinand," says Las Casas, " that if he could have done so with a quiet conscience, and without disgracing his name, he would have utterly disregarded every privilege which he and the Queen had granted to the Admiral, and which had been so justly merited." Nevertheless, Columbus adhered loyally to the King, following the court and pleading not only his own cause, but the just claims of his seamen. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 6i> Many of them had been his enemies, but now that they were friendless, they could count on him as a friend. In the greatness of his own misfortune he pitied them. His fatherly tender- ness for his beloved Indians in Hispaniola, whose destruction he foresaw, added anguish of mind to the tortures of the disease that racked his body. In this state he begged from the canons of Seville, a loan of the litter on which Cardi- nal Mendoza's body had been carried, that he might suffer less in his journey to the court. After parleying and consulting they consented, provided he would furnish security for its re- turn ! Great Columbus, what a fall ! The litter was not used. Worn out he took to his bed, and from it in a last appeal to the King, he offered to renounce his rights for himself, provided they would be allowed to his son, Diego. How he loved the honor of his name! How his heart bled because a stain seemed to rest upon it by reason of his deprivation of offices and titles ! Living on loans of money, the long days passed wearily. The night brought some relief in the loosening of his poor cramped and knotted fingers, and 66 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. then he would take up his pen in behalf of his rights. But the weary struggle brought only crushing disappointments in fair promises, in lies, in deceit, in blackest ingratitude. He felt that the King was only waiting for his death, for in a last letter to Archbishop Deza, he wrote : " It seems His Highness does not think lit to fulfill the promises which I received from him and the Queen (who is now in the bosom of glory) under the faith of their word and seal. To contend against his will would be contending against the wind. I have done all that I ought to have done and leave the rest to God." Snch is the spirit of the great Admiral against whom the calumniators and infamous pigmies of our day, in blind, malicious bigotry, have joined hands with the cowardly defamers of his own day in a dastardly attempt to besmirch his name. It is against the Catholic claim, personi- fied in Columbus, that the bigots are now raging. They would revile the Discoverer, simply because he was a Catholic. Irving was not consciously a bigot, yet he omits mention of the raising of the cross by Columbus when taking possession THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 67 of the new world. Humboldt did not enter in- to the sublimely religious element of the dis- covery, and that narrow Scotchman, Robertson, snarls out that if Columbus had not been the pioneer some one else would have found America. But it is the contemporary bigots that we must pillory — the tribe of magazine writers, a very viper-brood spitting out their venom against the man who represents to them Catholicity associ- ated with the grandest achievements of the race. Pirate they call him, and other vile names ; but as my distinguished friend John A. Mooney neatly puts it: "The magazine writers who palm off the cheap plunder on our unsuspicious editors are the only pirates in the case. Have an eye on them," he says. " The crime of steal- ing good reputations many a scribbler lives by." Columbus is hated with an inextinguishable hatred, because Catholicity is hated. Harjoefs Magazine has, of late, somewhat toned down the well-known bigotry of the house, but the Arena, of Boston, is positively vicious in the ravings of some foul nobody named Dunlop. The Century has published a series of papers from the pen of Emilio Castelar, in which this Spanish Liberal 68 THE COLUxVlBIAN CELEBRATION. and Freemason betrays not only the national jealousy of Columbus, but sneers at him as a visionary and a banker, a man who ruined the new country by his wretched administration, his inordinate thirst for wealth, his duplicity as a schemer, his propensity to sell himself, body and soul, to the highest bidder, his continual bargain- ing. All this is as cheap as it is false. But the true meaning of his malignity is understood when he ridicules those Catholics who would canonize Columbus. Blasphemously and ignor- antly he talks of them as wishing to proclaim him free from original sin, impeccable, in the category of the Immaculate Conception. To us this is shocking, and yet such stuff finds a ready sale. There are other lying scribblers who tell us that Columbus was a tyrant, a slave- holder, an impure man. Chief among these slanderers we find Justin Winsor, Librarian of Harvard University. If, in his volume on Columbus, he had confined himself to geographical questions he might not have diminished whatever reputation he had already gained by his " I^arrative and Critical History of America; " but he has violently and THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 69 bitterly attacked the character of the Discoverer. Animosity against the Church apparently in- spired his baseless charges, long ago refuted by. honorable historians. The proven falsity of these charges brings into more painful relief the unworthy motives of the so-called historian. "^^ John Fiske, himself a non-Catholic, rebukes the evident unfairness of Winsor. " No one can deny," says Professor Fiske, " that Las Casas was a keen judge of men or that his standard of right and wrong was quite as lofty as anyone has reached in our own times. He had a much more intimate knowledge of Columbus than any modern historian can ever hope to acquire, and he always speaks of him with warm admiration and respect. But how could Las Casas ever have respected the feeble, mean-spirited driveller whose portrait Mr. Winsor asks us to accept' as that of the discoverer of America? " In tliis mean warfare against Columbus ignor- ance has been as conspicuous as malice, but over Doth, Catholic truth prevails, and all honest men are willing to repeat the stirring words of Oviedo -In the America?i Cat/iolic QuarfeHy, for October, 1892, Mr. Mooney most efFectually disposes of this ignorant bigot. 70 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. to Charles V. : "A statue of gold Columbus well deserved." But, to quote again from John A. Mooney : "The world which is so immeasurably indebted to him, and which will be indebted to him as long as the world lasts, has cast no golden statue in his honor. Shameful to say, in our day and in our country, on the eve of the first public tribute that can be said to have come from the people, a purchased band of ingrates has been enlisted under the banner of calumny. What of malice, w^hat of ignorance, American money could not buy at home, has been sought and found abroad. A statue of muck these newest Oviedos would freely, generously raise to the man who has been the greatest benefactor of mankind. ' Had he lived in pagan times,' said Herrera, ' not to speak of the temples, the statues they would have raised in his honor, they would have lifted him high up among the stars like some demi-god.' Evidently there are professing Christians and neo-pagans with meaner souls than the pagans of old. But the colossus of muck can not stand, and when it tumbles down the designers and modellers and founders will be as unclean exteriorly as they are interiorly — a THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 71 consummation most devoutly to be wished for." Yes, mists before the sun disappear not more quickly than are these charges against Colum- bus dissipated by the light of truth. We have heard Humboldt testifying to his learning, and can therefore well understand the womanly enthusiasm of Isabella when she declared that he knew more than any other living man. By this, too, we understand his influence with the Spanish nobility, with whom, as Prescott tells us, no man was accounted truly noble who did not esteem science. They were not the ignorant barons of an earlier day who gloried in theiF ignorance, and whose pen was their sword. Columbus was a tyrant, we are told. An unusual amount of cheap sympathy is wasted on the insolent hidalgos whom he compelled to obey. Bernal Diaz, a proved conspirator is paraded as a martyr. Instead of executing him on the spot, Columbus merely sent him to Spain for trial — "moderate treatment," says Irving. As to the other worthies let us hear Mr. Fiske : " A few scoundrels," he says, " were hanged, but many more should have been." And Prescott, speaking of the first colonists, says: "Most of 72 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. them were adventurers who had embarked with no other expectation than that of getting a fortune as speedily as possible in the golden Indies. They were without subordination, patience, industry, or any of the regular habits demanded for success in such an enterprise. As soon as they had launched from their native shore they seemed to feel themselves released from the constraints of all law. They harbored jealousy and distrust of the Admiral as a foreigner. The cavaliers and hidalgos, of whom there were too many in the expedition, contemned him as an upstart whom it was derogatory to obey. From the first moment of their landing in Hispaniola thev indulo^ed the most wanton license in resrard to the unoffending natives who, in the simplicity of their hearts, bad received the white men as messengers from Heaven." Tarducci writes even more strongly. '' Wretch- es," he says, "just escaped from the prisons and galleys of Castile, or saved from the executioner's hands by the sovereigns' grace, put on all the airs of grand cavaliers, were attended by great trains of servants and kept a harem of fair girls. And the liigher the birth or rank of a woman THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 73 the more she was exposed to their cfiprices ; and sisters and daughters of caciques, who in for- mer years had been regarded witli a soi*t of ven- eration, were now" dragged, trembling and weep- ing, in the train of some robber or assassin who was indebted to the discovery of tlie new world for his escape from the gibbet. In travelling the}^ disdained to ride on the backs of mules or horses, of which there were more than enough for their use, but luxuriously stretched on a hammock or litter, they were gently borne on the shoulders of fainting Indians, and while some groaned under the burden of the galley- slave, others were forced to hold enormous palm leaves over his head to shield from the exces- sive heat of the sun a face bronzed in working in the galleys ; and still others had to move a great feather fan across his face so that he mio^ht not feel the inconvenience of the burning atmos- phere. Las Casas affirms that he himself saw the shoulders of the unfortunate Indians who bore the litters all raw and bleeding after a long journey." Against such scoundrels Columbus was obliged to act with severity. Tender pity for such un- 74 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. mitigated wretches, coming from the Admiral's bitter enemies, is a poor proof that he was not a good administrator. To us it seems hard that the great explorer was distracted from his legiti- mate work by the cares of government over an almost lawless horde. Yet he proved himself an able commander. I^othing could break his spirit, nor could he be moved from the path of justice to the Indians, from whom he would not suffer a pin's value to be taken without compen- sation. His second fleet had been insufficiently pro- visioned, even the list of medicines having been cut down. Fort J^ativity he found in ruins, the garrison all dead. Sickness confined him to his bed, and yet he devoted himself to building the town of Isabella, while contemptible jealousies were sedulously nursed, culminating among the impatient and greedy seekers for gold, in the conspiracy of Diaz, in threatened revolt and desertion. But Columbus overcame every oppo- sition, and with strictest impartiality he com- pelled all in health, proud hidalgos included, to work for the common cause. And when it became necessary to diminish the supply of food THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 75 lie began with himself and spared not even the Viear Apostolic. This man, whose designation to the post was a piece of trickery, was an occasion of disturbance in many ways. On the 7th day of July, 1493, Alexander VI., in his solicitude for souls, appointed a Fran- ciscan — Father Bernard Boil, Vicar Apostolic. The King had asked the promotion of a Bene- dictine of the same name; so that the transfer of the bulls was not a difficult matter. The Franciscans, thus deprived of a deserved honor, may derive a grim satisfaction from the recollec- tion that the actual Vicar was a conspicuous failure. He crowned his perversity towards the Admiral by excommunicating him and interdict- ing the chapel. Columbus promptly and justly retaliated by cutting off the Vicar's rations alto- gether till he revoked the harsh decree. The injustice done to the Discoverer appears the more glaring when we contrast the wretched provis- ion made for him with the equipment so splen- didly arranged for his successors. And there is something more than poetic justice in the fact that these same successors under whom the con- dition of affairs gradually grew w^orse, were (h THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. finally compelled to adopt the plans and methods of the thwarted, abandoned, slandered Admiral. To sum up, in the words of Roselly de Lorgues : " When, after the discovery of the new conti- nent, he returned sick to Hispaniola, to find insurrection rife among the natives, the Span- iards in rebellion, his own orders contemned and his subordinates traitors, his position seemed hopeless, for he was without troops, money or moral aid. j^evertheless, by adroit concessions and able temporization, he subdued violence, disarmed crime, re-established authority, organ- ized production and initiated the prosperity of Hispaniola. If that is not administrative abilit}', explain the prodigy. How can we doubt the administrative talents of Columhus, when we behold this seaman become suddenly — accord- ing to necessity — agriculturist, architect, mili- tary engineer, constructor of roads and bridges, economist and a specially able magistrate ? " The charge of cruelty to the Indians tliat is brought against Columbus, rests only on tlie punishment inflicted for thieving and on the in- troduction of slavery. As to the first, it may be ])riefly stated that Columbus abolished the pen- THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 7 7 alty — that of impaling — recognized among the Indians themselves, and substituted for it a dis- figurement, partly as a warning to others. Stern measures were necessary in a new settle- ment. Moreover, let us remember that we are at the end of the nineteenth century — not at the close of the fifteenth. As to the second count of the indictment, history declares that Colum- bus never owned a slave. The charge can be traced to Fonseca, his bitter enemy — himself the o^vner of two hundred Indians, and the abettor of Ojeda, who publicly sold others in the markets of Spain. That Columbus recommended the subjugation of the man-eating Carribees by means of slavery, we admit. The gentle Isabella agreed with him. This was the only method that prom- ised hope of any improvement. At most, it might be termed an error of judgment as to means; and, therefore, I am surprised at the severity with which Gilmary Shea refers to this event in Columbus' life. Let us remember the times ; let us not forget that the evil which so soon grew beyond limits ever dreamed of by Columbus or Isabella, was vigorously fought. 78 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. Spanish rapacity was checked and bohlly re- buked by Spanish zeal. As early as 1511, Las Casas had won concessions from the King in favor of the oppressed, and from the pulpit of San Domingo, Montesino and his fellow-Domini- cans, courageously assailed the highest in the land. Las Casas, Protector of the Indians by decree of Ximenes in 1517 (confirmed by Charles Y., in 1519), was the first abolitionist in Amer- ica. For fifty years he was the apostle of the Indians, and his labors until his death were in their behalf. On the Dominican Order a noble lust-re is shed because of tlie stand its members took in defense of the Indians. Hallam, a grave and solid writer, and a Protestant, praises the two Dominicans — Dominic de Soto and Francis de Victoria — for their theses in defence of human liberty. We know also that in 1537 Pope Paul III., by Apostolic letter, proclaimed the rights of the Indians to the pursuit of happiness and the enjoyment of freedom. He condemned slavery and annulled all that had been done in its favor. Five years later Charles V., issued a decree for- bidding slaver}^ under any pretext whatever. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 79 How do these facts and dates compare with the record in our own country? And what are the fruits to-day? Look North and South. Let Catholicity de(;lare its splendid work, and let Protestanism hide for shame. We can stand proudly by our record in freedom's holy cause — freedom from the thraldom of the body, freedom from the darkness of ignorance. As Gihiiary Shea writes: ''The Indian tribes evangelized by the French and Spaniards sub- sist to this day, except where brought into con- tact with the colonists of England and their allies or descendants ; while it is notorious that the tribes in the territories colonized by England have in many cases entirelj^ disappeared and perished without ever having the Gospel preached to them. The Abenakis, Caughnawa- gas, Kaskaskias, Miamis, Ottawas, Chippeways, Arkansas and the new Mexican tribes remain and number faithful Christians. But where are the Pequods, the ITarragansetts, the Mohegans, the Mattowax, the Lenape, the Powhattans? They live only in name in the rivers and mount- ains of our land." In Spanish and Portuguese America to-day seven-eighths of the population 80 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. are either of pure or mixed Indian blood. !N'ew Granada, now the United States of Colombia, evangelized by St. Louis Bertrand, contains more than one million civilized Catholic Indians. In Canada, where French and Catholic influence prevailed, many survive of pure and mixed blood. Bear these things in mind as you think of the destruction that has come upon the Indians under English and Protestant domination. And as Americans let us blush to-day for the iniqui- tous policy that has disgraced the country by its treatment of the few red men that remain. From this digression which, however, bears essentially on our subject, let us return to Col- umbus. He was avaricious, his enemies say. The whole tenor of his life proves this charge calumnious. He desired treasures, but only that he might devote them to religion. His portion he never received, but out of the pittance that was paid, he gave generously — even to the un- friendly seamen. For justice to them he pleaded as earnestly as for his own rights. He is assailed because he accepted the reward offered by Isabella for the one who would first see land. He had first seen the lisrht on shore, and as THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 81 Irving says : '' This was a subject in which his whole ambition Avas involved, and he was doubt- less proud of the honor of being personally the discoverer of the land as well as projector of the enterprise." In his will he directed that all his debts be paid ; and, mindful, in gratitude of kindness that had been done to him, he ordered that return should be made to his benefactors, or to their heirs if the benefactors were dead. And this return was to be made in such a way that those who received would not know to whom they were indebted. How unlike avarice is all this and how touch- ing is the case of the poor Jew, of Lisbon, who had befriended him in the days of his need^ whose name he had forgotten, but whose place he remembered as near the Jewry gate ! To him also should return be made. Glenerous Columbus ! But the most serious charge against the dis- coverer is on the score of morality. To Catholics who think with delight of his devotion to the Immaculate Virgin, and who know the esteem in which Isabella held him, this is a painful charge. It falls, however, and the lustre of a pure name is all the brighter. 82 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. It is a cruel thing, a vile deed, a cowardly act, to stain a woman's name — to breathe one word that might sully what she so dearly prizes. Beatrix Enriquez is long since dead, but as a gentle lady of good old Catholic Cordova, as the second wife of Columbus, and the mother of his son Ferdinand, we love her memory and we honor her name. A contemptible lawyer more than a hundred years after the Admiral's death was the first to insinuate that Ferdinand was an illegitimate son. His dastardly thrust was ruled out of court, but two centuries later it was revived and bigotrj^ and malice sent it on its way. It is a choice morsel for the unclean and cowardly herd who hesitate not to defame a noble and virtuous lady in order to slander great Christopher. Thus far we have considered the Catholicity of Columbus himself; it remains to speak of his Catholic helpers. A panegyric of the Ad- miral would not receive his approval, for he was a gallant knight, that would omit a generous tribute to that beautiful and saintly queen, Isa- bella of Castile. The facts we know, and I, for one, say, let us be glad that it was a woman's THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 83 pure smile that encouraged the weary waiter, and a queen's royal bounty that made it possible for him to sail. Castile she would exalt, but she thought more of Catholic interests, and a woman's enthusiasm threw a glow around a queen's devotion, while a woman's gentle del- icacy poured a comforting balm over the bruised spirit of our lonely hero. Ferdinand's part we also know. His kingdom furnished the money. Let us forget his calcu- lating ways, the craft that he could not disown ; let us forgive him even the wrongs he did Columbus; let us, for respect of the dear Isa- bella, who loved him so truly, love him too, for, with all his faults, he was a good (Catholic and a great king. Let us record another woman's name in honor. The Marchioness of Moya, favorite of Isabella, exerted all her influence for Columbus, and it was by no means light. The Sovereign Pontiff, Alexander VI., took a deep interest in the discovery, and from the letters of Columbus we learn that he feared the Holy Father would be displeased with him un- less he fully informed the Pope of all that had 84 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. been done. Alexander's zeal was proved by the early appointment of a Vicar Apostolic for the newly discovered territory. It was this Pontiit who drew the celebrated line of dernarkation for Spain and Portugal, cutting the terrestrial globe from pole to pole and assigning the entire new world to Spain. But the courts were not satisfied, and a new line was drawn by Spanish and Portuguese commissioners. By this Spain lost the vast territory now known as Brazil. Columbus always rejected this line and stood for the one drawn by the Pope. Comment is un- necessary. Another friend of the discoverer was Cardinal Mendoza, Archbishop of Toledo and commonly known as "the third king." His name is in renown. So, too, Louis de Santangel, the Treas- urer of Aragon, and Quintanilla, of Castile, both ecclesiastics, were true to Columbus and, there- fore, blessed be their names. Talavera, the Jeromite, was at first an opponent but later he, too, became a friend. But higher than these names let us inscribe the name of the Franciscan, Juan Perez, Guard- ian of the convent of La Rabida. It was he THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 85 who first introduced Columbus to tlie Queeii, wIjo remained ever faithful, who never mocked him, as Columbus declared, who gained over the people of Palos necessary for a crew, who won the support of the Pinzon brothers when all was about to be lost through the ignorant fear and superstition of the sailors. A word from John Fiske is appropriate here : ''In popular allusions to Columbus it is quite common," he says, " to assume or imply that he encountered nothing but opposition from the clergy. Without cordial support from them no such enterprise as that of Columbus could have been undertaken, in Spain at least. It is quite right that we should be free-thinkers," he naively adds, " but it is also desirable that we should have some respect for facts." * •■• At this stage of the lecture I paused ta comment on the utterances of Chauncey Depew at Chicago, in which he spoke unjustly of the Church, and also to denounce the ftilse state- ment made by a local clergyman who had declared that the Church had opposed and vilified Columbus. Some of the newspapers misrepresented my remarks, and in a manner that showed bigotry and dishonesty, tried to kindle religious strife. Forced into an unpleasant controversy, I was obliged to correct io;norance and to chastise insolence. The Catholics of this 86 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. There were other worthy men — lay and cleri- cal — who seconded Columbus, but we must con- clude with the mention of Diego di Deza, often forgotten and generally passed by with the brief remark that he was a Dominican favorable to Columbus at the Salamanca conference. After noticing the career of this illustrious prelate, we shall allow the Admiral to tell his own estimate of his friend. Long before Ximenes was known beyond his Order, Deza was prom- inent in Spain. A learned professor at Sala- manca, he was also preceptor to the Infante, confessor to the King" and Queen, successively Bishop of Xamora, of Salamanca, of Jaen and of Palencia; Grand Chancellor of Castile, Grand Inquisitor, Archbishop of Seville, one of the executors of Isabella's will and, finally. Arch- bishop of Toledo and Primate of Spain. The red hat he had declined, and he died before tak- ing personal possession of the see of Toledo^ He was then in his eightieth year. A great city are aware of the conduct of one paper in revenge for the just punishment it received. Its stupidity, bigotry and libel- lous statements have brought upon it general contempt and indignation. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 87 statesman he was, a great theologian, a great churchman, a college builder, a cathedral builder, counsellor to the King. Remarkable record for a friar ! But I count it not the least of Deza's glories that he was ever the Admiral's friend. After Columbus' appeal to the sovereigns, the King Avould give no decision till he could hear the advice of learned men. Talavera was ordered to assemble the doctors, before whom Columbus would plead his cause. This was in 1487. Though many famous colleges were gathered around Salamanca, St. Stephen's, directed by the Dominicans, was selected for the meeting. Co- lumbus had been pre-judged by many who took part in that conference, and to his sensitive na- ture the ridicule of the ignorant was less painful than the learned obstinacy of these counsellors. Remesal tells us that the Dominicans alone, ac- customed to acute theological disputation, heard him understandingly, and Deza led them. He brought others to his side, though the confer- ence was adjourned without definite result. In the meantime he obtained from the sovereigns suitable allowance and accommodation for Co- SS THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. lumbus during his stay in Salamanca. Four years later the commission was re-convened. A report unfavorable to Columbus w.as made, but Deza's influence, with the aid of others, prevented an adverse decision by the sovereigns. His part in the final favorable judgment we shall learn from Columbus himself. Kearly twenty years later, when misfortunes had overtaken him, the Admiral wrote to his son, Diego : " The lord bishop, Deza, bas always favored me, and has desired my glory ever since I came into Castile. Now I must beg him to occupy himself with the means of remedying the wrongs which I am compelled to suffer, and of obtaining that their Highnesses prescribe the execution of the conventions and grants which they accorded me, and that they have me in- demnified for injuries so many." Always favored me ! Always desired my glory I Need I add a single word to these notable words of Columbus? On returning from his fourth voyage, Colum- bus again wrote to his son, Diego, reminding him that Deza w^as the cause of their Highnesses possessing the Indies, and the cause of his re- THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 89 maining in Castile, when, as he says: ''I was ah'eady on the road with the intention of leav- ing it." The tribute to the Dominican is com- plete, positive. Deza sways king and queen, and with San- tangel, Qnintanilla and others, causes the accept- ance of Columbus' terms. The indignation of the Genoese Deza also allays. The effect of his acts we know. " To Diego di Deza, therefore, the Discoverer of the new world, within eighteen months of his death, attributes his return to the court in 1492, and, more noble still, to the Dominican he gives the credit of Spain's ownership of the new world. What Columbus of his own notion conceded to Diego di Deza we should willingly concede. All honor from America to the Spanish Dominican."* To the Archbishop Columbus also commended his unpaid and angry seamen. To the Arch- bishop he sent a copy of his letter to the Pope, lest there be any false interpretations. And when, after seeing Ferdinand at Segovia and re- ceiving acknowledgment of his claims, he learned that the Kins: wished to refer the matters in dis- J. A. Mooney 90 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. pute to arbitration, he manfully maintained that the question of his titles and honors he would submit to no man, but that in reference to all accounts- he would cheerfully leave his case in the hands of Archbishop Deza. The dispute was not referred ; God took the cause before His own tribunal. Deza survived his friend more than fifteen years. To Las Casas he was also a benefactor, fully sharing his generous views and presenting him to the King on his arrival from America. Here we shall leave the great prelate with the Protector of the Indians, with the Dominican, Matienzo, then confessor to the King and Las Casas' warm friend and helper, and we shall close with a few words on Catholicity in America after Columbus and in our own time. To many this is a sealed book. The story of the Mayflower is more familiar, and many a Catholic child has been taught Mrs. Hemans' cant of the sounding aisles of the dim wood ringing to the anthem of the free. I suppose if Columbus had been called Winthrop or Alden, and if his flagship had not been the Holy Mary, he would be in greater repute with a certain class. THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 91 Be it SO ! Our duty is to know and proclaim facts — to compel attention, where bigotry would be deaf to the truths of history. Seville is the grand old mother of the Church in America — Korth and South. We hold her iu reverence with San Domingo, established in 1512, Yucatan, 1519 (the first on the continent), to which that fine old Dominican, Julian Garces, was called ; Santiago de Cuba, to which a Domin- ican, Bernardine deMera, was appointed in 151(3, though neither he nor his Franciscan successor in 1522, took possession of the see which was first occupied by another Dominican, Michael Ramirez, in 1528; Mexico in 1530. Following these and depending on them came bishoprics, to which we can trace the line through California and Mexico. Then there were the English Catholics who came over with Cabot in 1497. A few years later wlien the seventh Henry still reigned and before the Eighth had begun his career of destruc- tion, the Gospel was preached in English along the shores supposed to have been St. Brendan's. Later the French came, " Cartier with the blessing of the Bishop of St. Malo," and after THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. him Champlain, who founded Quebec. From Canada they spread out till the Pacific coast was reached, and from Mexico they came till the Mississippi was found. The country was dot- ted with missions: Franciscan, Dominican, Jesuit. Lovers of freedom, true apostles of liberty, they carried the Cross and proclaimed the redemption of Jesus Christ to all that sat in darkness. Their record is one of unflagging zeal, marvellous cour- age, i-eady martyrdom. Franciscans, Domini- cans, Jesuits, have the honor of canonized saints in these western fields, and we Dominicans are proud, not only of St. Rose of Lima, and of St. Louis Bertrand, but of Father Louis Cancer, martyred in Florida, in 1549, the first to shed his blood on soil now apart of the United States. And education ! Of course we are called its enemies ! Monks are used to the stale charge. It is true we cannot praise these latter-day public schools as models of perfection, but hear one word out of liistory : When the English were exterminating the natives of the northern parts of America, the Spaniards were educating the Indians of the South, where they as tenderly provided for their relief in sickness and misery THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 93 as they zealously labored for their spiritual welfare. The wretches who disgraced humanity in the early days of exploration were compara- tively few. The Spanish name they tarnished, but it shines, nevertheless, with glory due to deeds of undying fame. It was a Spanish Dominican, Jerome de Loaysa, who came over in 1526 and was ap- pointed Bishop of Carthagena in 1537; that afterward became first Bishop and Archbishop of Lima, Peru. He not only built a splendid hospital in his episcopal city, but as early as 1548 he also established a university there, with all the privileges of Salamanca. This was nearly one hundred years before the foundation of Harvard College, which was commenced on a small scale in 1640. And the Jesuits ! Miserable politicians de- stroyed their grand work in Paraguay, but that work adds to the glory which they have further increased by untold merits in other fields, espec- ially in the Korth. There is nothing that can batter down facts or make just figures lie; and facts and figures are great friends of the Church in America. To- 94 THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. day, we are ten millions, they say. ' Spiritually, we possess the land. The Cross is everywhere — on schools, academies, colleges, on asylums, hospitals, refuges of mercy and charity, on convents as well as cliurches. Ours is a o:lorious inheritance. Great are our opportunities. Splendid are our prospects. But are we doing all we should do? America awaits conversion. There is no ahiding place here for infidelity or irreligion. Millions long for bread, to whom a stone is given. Are we aware of our trust ? Do we realize our mission ? Are we anxious that all shall know the truth ? Are we ever ready to give the lie to bigotry and to overwhelm the calumniators who prate about loyalty to Rome and treason to the Constitution ? Do we keep in faithful mem- ory the story of Catholic Maryland, with relig- ious freedom first proclaimed? I^ot the narrow, bitter Puritans, nor even kindly Roger Wil- liams, but the followers of Lord Baltimore, were the pioneers of liberty of conscience in our land ! But I fear that we have Esaus among us, who not oidy know none of these things, but who sell their precious inheritance of faith. We THE COLUMBIAN CELEBRATION. 95 need more Colunibuses — more Christophers — more Christ-bearers — men and women who, while they look with reverence on the material cross surmounting our steeples and domes, yet feel in their hearts the living Cross of Christ, and in their lives show forth the precepts of the Crucified. Great in honor, great in misfortunes, Colum- bus ever loved the Church of God, to whose glory and triumph, in the name of Christ, he dedicated his intellect, his will, his means, his life. Ere we bid him farewell, let us hope that from his home in Heaven the breathing of his noble spirit may come into ours, quickening in us, with joy and pride, the realization of our glorious Catholicity. JESUS CUM MARIA SIT NOF.IS IN VIA. 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