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Show "EX-PRIEST" EXPOSED. A Real Priest Attends Lecture and Captures the Audience. The unusual spectacle of an alleged "ex-priest" opening a meeting and a real priest closing it, amid the enthusiasm enthusi-asm and applaudits of all present, is we believe, something unusual in these days; but such an incident occurred oc-curred last wet-k at the little village of AVren, Ohio, ten miles from Decatur, De-catur, Ind. It is just the style of A'illage where such "lecturers" ply their trade-. There is only one Catholic in the place, but he Avas wide awake, and when he saw-the saw-the flamboyant announcements in dodger form of "Father Egbert Stephen, a convert of the Catholic Church," and noted the subject of his lectures, our Catholic friend notified the Decatur Knights of Columbus, who at once took the matter in, hand, and called upon their pastor, ' Rev. H. Theodore Wilken, for advice. Father Wilken consulted Rev.' Valentine Lehnard, C. P., of Cincinnati, who was conducting a retreat for the sisters at St. Mary's school, and who at once signified his desire to meet the alleged ex-priest and answer his charges. With this end in view, Father Wilken, Wil-ken, Father Valentine and Father Eberle of Mishawaka, accompanied by about forty Decatur Catholics, drove over to Wren on Thursday evening, July 14. The lecture took place in the U. B. church, and a largecrowd awaited await-ed Mr. Stephen's startling disclosures. His subjects were announced in large type as: "Why I Left the Priesthood . and What I Saw Therein." "A Priest, a AVoman, a Confession." "The Pope in American Politics." I "An Evening Behind High Walls and Barred Doors." "Hear the Experiences of His Life While in the Monasteries of Rome." He told the game old story that after many years in the priesthood, a Protestant Prot-estant lady gave him a present of a Bible, and he had never read one before, be-fore, and he became converted. He claimed that John Wilkes Booth, the murderer of Lincoln, was a Catholic, and that the murderer of McKinley had been to confession two weeks before be-fore he committed the deed, and maintained main-tained that the priest in the confessional confes-sional had incited him to the murderous murder-ous act. I The fact that three Catholic priests sat just in front of him somewhat dis- I concerted the "reverend speaker, and it was thought inspired lv'm to modify ! some of his statements. When he had J concluded, Father Valentine arose and asked permission of the- pastor of the church to reply to the statements just made, which permission was very I courteously .accorded him. He spoke eloquently and at some length, refuting refut-ing every accusation against the church made by the alleged "Father Egbert," placing 'the truth in such 'l plain and effective manner that he aroused the warmest of enthusiasm among those present. His words, Aveighted with earnestness and the simple truth, carried conviction to the heart? of his hearers. As the Decatur Daily Democrat expressed ex-pressed it: "He took him up in pieces and so completely answered every accusation ac-cusation that it ended In a Valentine reception more than anything else. It was a complete vindication of the fact that the fellow is a dishonest rogue and has no, moral right to appear ap-pear on thfa side of earth championing champion-ing any cause that on its face appears just. The many Decatur people present pres-ent enjoyed the one-sided drama and say that Father Valentine fully, fairly , and completely put the. fellow out of business. Many of those present rush- j ed to the front and shook the hand of ; the young priest and congratulated him upon the ''dignified and just tribute he paid to the Christian cause he represented as well as to the manner in which he flayed the pretender who got up the meeting. The pastor of the U. B. church was also quite indignant and expressed himself In no uncertain tones about tip deception that had been imposed upon them and caused them to open the doors of their church to such an impostor. The meeting closed with the benediction by leather Valentine, who by long odc?u carried away all the honors and was the hero of the hour." I The pastor of the church at once canceled all future datet' with. the alleged al-leged lecturer, and the unfortunate man was so excited at the expose that , he hurriedly left the church without J askmg' for the money he was to have ! received for his talk. J , - VfO- t . |