effect, as we may hope, of divine grace. And what is the conclusion to draw from all this? does it not cry with a loud voice for help from the faithful by prayer more and more general and fervent? and who are to be, if I may use the phrase, the apostles and the advocates of this devotion, or rather of this great effort for the conquest of England to the Holy Church, as the first step to other conquests still more extensive? Who shall I say, if not the sons of the Blessed Paul of the Cross, whose zeal for this object is spoken of by all Catholics throughout the world, especially since the period of his solemn Beatification? In our last General Chapter it was resolved that we should seriously devote ourselves to this work of prayer. I have already said that I now speak for the purpose of returning thanks for that, which has been done already. But what I now have at heart is nothing else than what the words of the apostle express, that "you should abound more and more." It is then, if I may say it, my earnest desire that while we, who belong to the English Province, are following our special vocation of carrying out the great object for which our Blessed Founder offered up such continual prayer, according to the spirit which his worthy son and imitator, Father Dominic of the Mother of God planted in our own England, his other sons, our dear brethren who remain here in Italy, should give us the powerful help of their prayers, rekindling more and more in themselves a spirit, in this especially like to his own, and striving to unite in the same spirit all the devout souls of this their country, Italy, specially those that are consecrated to God in the various religious houses established therein. "We approve that the above document be printed after obtaining the revision and approbation of the Right Rev. Father General of the Order." "Brother G. Gigli, Master of the Sacred Apostolic Palace." "We approve there is no reason to object." "Peter Paul of our Lady of Sorrows, General Provost of the Passionist Congregation." ORIGINAL POETRY. QUOMODO SEDET SOLA CIVITAS PLENA POPULO!". WHERE a dark sea against a darker shore, -- Of those great passionate waves; and I can wait, For there was a time,-not long And called us to adore His Presence sweet They came with force of arms, and we were weak. Our Abbess strove to save them from the deed G They spurned her, and she fell, and yielded up We wandered here and there upon the coast I wander here alone; a little cave Shelters me from the storm of men and waves. Athwart the blackness of the tossing waves. G. A. S. THE SATURDAY REVIEW. "LEARN to live, and live and learn," For once (I believe) I believed in truth And love, and the hundred foolish things One sees in one's dreams and believes in one's youth. In Angels with curls, and in Angels with wings, In Saints, and Heroes, and Shepherds too; The pictures that David and Virgil drew From very life, but now I find A Shepherd is but an uncouth Hind, Songless, soulless, from time out of mind And though to confess it may well seem strange I really have liked my cousins, And schoolfellows too, and can bring to mind And I used to think it might be kind, Not to speak of the virtuous poor, I thought Might be mended a little, though not of the sort And so as we're going along with the Priest And Levite (the roads are more dry in the East) We need have no hesitation, When the mud is lying about so thick, To scatter a little and let it stick To the coat of the Good Samaritan, used To be spattered, battered, blackened, and bruised; These sort of people don't mind it the least- Yet sometimes I've thought it a little strange,— When the few who are grieved for sorrows and sins Meet never a line's reproving; Heenan and Sayers may pound and thwack And only get a pat on the back And I sometimes think, if this same Review, Should last, will the Violets come out blue; We may think that we're bored by the grass and the trees; Or an Operatic delusion. Fathers and Mothers may have to go, And though so easily learnt and brief When we've said, “I believe in a Round of Beef We come to another region of facts That are met quite as well by the Gospel and Acts As by any teaching that's newer Life has its problems hard to clear, And its knots too stiff to be cut by the sneer October, 1863. DORA GREENWELL. |