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Show THE FUTURE OF AMERICA. Dr. De Costa Foretells Catholic Pro-gress. Pro-gress. Dr. De Costa of New York, who recently re-cently left the Episcopal miristry and joined the Catholic Church, lectured at Ansonia, Conn., on last Sunday evening. even-ing. The Evening Sentinel says: The discourse was delivered m the chapel of the new Church of the Assumption. The occasion was one of two-fold interest, in-terest, first because the lecture was by a man of national fame and, second, because the chapel for the first time was used for a public gathering. The threatening weather early in the evening even-ing had but little effect upon the attendance, at-tendance, and at 8 o'clock the room was almost filled. Many had arrived as earlv as 7 o'clock in order to first inspect the new meeting place. The audience was made up mostly of Ansonians. although , Derby, Shelton j and Seymour each had a number of i people there. A number of Catholic priests occupied some of the seats in front, among them Rev. John J. Fitzgerald, Fitz-gerald, formerly of this city, but now of Greenwich, and Father Walsh of Norfolk, who is visiting Father Syn-nott. Syn-nott. The interior of the chapel is handsome. hand-some. The pews are veil arranged and the room is lighted with both ga3 and electricity. The lecturer's theme was "America-Historical, "America-Historical, Social and Religious." He i showed that the Catholic religion is at ! home in this country, since America was discovered by a Catholic, named ! after a Catholic by a Catholic and was I first colonized by a Catholic. The Cath-I Cath-I olic is proud of America, whether it be i his native or adopted land. Turn for a moment to the remote past and notice that we have in Genesis the earliest reference to the appearance of drv land. Gaologists tell us that the first land that appeared was a mountain peak in North Carolina. The so-called new world is the old. The continent of Europe was built long subsequent to the American continent. Moses might well be said to ba the father of American Amer-ican history. It formed a long stride from Moses to the Mexicans, yet it is not until the tenth century that we reach the historical date of Central America. The speaker was especially interesting interest-ing when he referred to the future. He said, in part: How shall we forecast the future? Chiefly by a study of. the past. The origin of a people point;; to its destiny. The genealogy of a nation forms an important study. Blood tells, J and whether in a horse or a people. We hear aoout the new woman, but I America is to produce a new man. j composed of the blending of all nationalities. na-tionalities. The power of nature ;.o as-j as-j similate, races is illustrated by the j modern Englishman, the product of I many races. He is not an Anglo-Saxon. I We are not Anglo-Saxons. It is un-I un-I historical to say so, however popular it may be with a class. Our strength is Anglo-Norman. The Saxcns always I were what they are today, a sluggish race. The future man of America will be no Anglo-Saxon. A great revolution is to come in this country, but how or when, one cannot say. We do not now know how we are to get rid of certain slavery any more than they did in I860, when confronted with black slavery. But Abraham Lincoln appred; so Lincolns will come when the time arrives. Present evil conditions cannot last. Every man is entitled to a chance to earn an honest hon-est living. The Catholic Church will be heard from in the future as she has in the past. The missionary conference in New York is the last the world will ever see. It was an attempt to galvanize gal-vanize a dying cause and to discount the herculean efforts of the higher critic, who is pulling down the pillars of the house. Paul no longer speaks with authority to the Protestant, while the Catholic Church holds every part of the Bible to be primarily inspired and infallible. The Church once supposed sup-posed to be hostile to the Bible is now the unique and uncompromising friend. The Catholic Church and the Bible wiU yet do a vast work in America. lle Tocqueville prophesied that ours will be the greatest people on the globe. It will be great because Catho-i lie, pure because devoted to the Blessed Virgin, holy in so far as consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. All nationalities na-tionalities will perform their part, the factor. Farewell, "Anglo-Saxon." Only as a ghost did it, then, ever exist in America. Its unsubstantial shade, even must depart. The future of America will not illustrate illus-trate the victory of any one race, but a conquest by the conquering races. Catholic education is to be a mihtyi factor, as it means religious education The Catholic church in this country is jusct beginnis to live. The lecture tasted about one and a half hours, although to the audience it did not seem that length of time, and many expressed regrets that it did not continue for another hour at least so interested were they. . |