This pamphlet was conceived in enthusiasm by men and women who are bristling with PEP to build a Beautiful Church in St. James Parish. They are impatiently waiting: they are clamoring for action. They want YOU to know what they propose doing. They hope you will be with them. Don't look for a seat in the Grand Stand-People who do things move-the disinterested sit and watch -- Our Parish Big Drum is beating a marching tune – “LET'S GO."
My dear Parishioner;
The cornerstone laying was an occasion of magnificent enthusiasm and great rejoicing. I am proud of you. You surpassed my expectations, the parade was the finest expression of parish loyalty that a people could give, and it was not lost on the visitors, distinguished and otherwise, who honored us with their presence. I received innumerable compliments on your discipline and numbers and good deeds from the clergy and other well wishers. St. James Parish seemed to raise in a few short hours from comparative insignificance to greatness; the New Church made a favorable impression on everyone present and many a former parishioner was aroused to a high pitch of emotional delight.
The success achieved was not an affair of chance; it was the result of clever planning and excellent execution, and was made possible from the fact that every parishioner who was asked to do anything threw himself heart and soul into the task assigned to him and remained with it until it was finished, there was not a hitch in the whole arrangement except possibly in the taking of the collection. I thought I would be free to direct it and found myself called off at the last moment by the Archbishop to make a speech.
The willingness of the parishioners to cooperate with their pastors is one of the best assets of St. James Parish and makes our leadership very delightful: there were no meetings held prior to the Silver Jubilee of the School or to the laying of the cornerstone: the plans were drawn up in the Rectory, and many of those assigned to the working of them did not know of their appointment until they saw their names and duties published in Let’s Go. There was no hesitation, no grumbling; each one did his allotted task with efficiency and discretion.
The enthusiasm and good-will of the laity is essential to the success of all parish activities. It ought not be confined to a few, and should be regarded as a duty by all. The smallest parochial affair is a link in the chain that holds together the parish moral: hence, I would like to see the parishioners present at every social gathering under parochial auspices. There are many social events scheduled for the fall and early winter months, such as card parties, plays, minstrels, etc. These are planned to get the parishioners better acquainted; the charge of admittance will be trifling, as money is a secondary consideration. Prizes are always acceptable and the ladies of the parish are requested to devote their spare time to fancy work and the making of garments that are desirable prizes at card parties and bazaars, that a sufficient number of articles may he forthcoming whenever a call is made by the parish.
Preparatory to these events each parishioner should start a campaign of advertising; he should inform his acquaintances and neighbors of the event and speak of it with enthusiasm, an invitation is always a manifestation of goodwill and a zealous Catholic is known by, and appreciated for, the interest he takes in parish affairs.
If there is not in your estimation enough of entertainment in the parish, start something yourself, and thereby become a leader, You have the same right and a similar duty as the rest of the parishioners and your services to the church will be appreciated by the rest of the flock.
My anxiety about completing the decorations of the church before the day of dedication inclines me to hope that every wage earner in the parish will extend his generosity to the breaking point and contribute his full share to the parish fund. I can go only as far as your money permits me, and if I stop before the goal is reached it is because someone did not play well his part.
Statements were mailed to each wage earner in September and the total of each one’s contributions made in the past 35 weeks was stated. Examine the one sent to you and ask yourself if there is reason for mutual satisfaction. I make it a point not to harass anyone; there are times when one cannot be generous, but constant neglect is usually a sign of chronic niggardness or weakening of faith, and the one who has reached this condition has my sympathies.
I wish especially that you would extend our deep appreciation to the Catholic Charities Band of Maplewood, Daughters of Isabella Drum Corps of Maplewood, St. Edwards Drum Corps, the Knights of Columbus Zouaves, the members of neighboring parishes and to your many friends and relatives who participated in the parade and were present at the cornerstone laying, and who helped to contribute to the solemnity and grandeur of the occasion.
Congratulating you all in our success
Yours in Christ,
PATRICK J. O’CONNOR, Adm.
Uncle Henry has written a critical, comical and personal comedy for the minstrel show which is to be given under the auspices of the Holy Name Society at Yale Hall Sunday afternoon and evening on October 30th.
He has jokes on everybody and most probably if yon attend yon will hear the latest one on yourself. You may not be witty nor can yon recall anything spectacular and comical about your personality or your conduct, but Uncle Henry hears and sees things that you never suspect, and in his own inimitable fashion will narrate happenings that will make your neighbor laugh, and probably will make yourself smile at your eccentricities, abnormalities, manner of speech or manner of dress.
For end men he will have Frank Walsh, Bennie Kelly, Ed. Ryan, Ed. Loyett, Tom Hankens and Leo. Jenneman, and he himself will be some place in a comical situation from beginning to end. The other members of the cast are the following : Eddie Burke, Johnnie Maloney, Louis Riegel, Joe Pieschel, Hy. Hugeback, Geo. Wiber, John Kelly, Wm. Hense, Jerry Corbett.
In addition to the songs and jokes, a few expert dancers and the parish orchestra will also entertain.
When the cornerstone of St. James Church was laid on Sunday, September 18th, there was a reunion such as was never witnessed before in the history of the parish. Old men who were present when the cornerstone was laid for the first church in ‘61, with tear-dimmed eyes watched the archbishop place the stone for the magnificent new edifice, and later in the exchange of recollections, reviewed the years that have gone by, and were apparently happy that they have lived to see the success for which so many hoped. They talked of Father Tobin, Father Wilbey, Father Kelly and Father McNamee, former pastors who are long since laid to rest, and whose reputations are little more than undeciphered memories. There were old ladies, too. now grandmothers, who had vivid recollections of the morning when they were brides in the modest building that was long since destroyed by fire: they told their children and grandchildren of the struggle and the stress of the fires and the storms, of the merrymaking and the funerals, that were to them a vivid part of the past and which now are covered with the dust and ashes of bygone days. It was pathetic to hear them talk and see them move with a half-animated effort to revive their youthful ambitions, and a ray of gladness and of satisfaction crept over their withered faces as they pointed to the site and marked the location of former parochial edifices.
One old lady said, “There used to be a school down where the stage at present stands. There I learned my first lesson what a severe old fellow was Mr. Murphy, who was the schoolmaster in the first school that was erected in the Cheltenham district. He was a County Wexford man and he ruled with a rod and he needed it in those days to discipline some of the boys that went to his school. Jos. Robinson and Jim O’Gorman probably remember him. I am not sure that Ben Gratiot went to that school, but I remember well hearing it said that the site of the building was donated by his Father to the parish”
There were others whose memories did not go so far back they shared in the parish life when Father Casey was Rector and they told many a humorous tale about him. They spoke of the first carnival that he gave and of Mrs. Saxton being in charge of the ice cream stand. It was easy, they said, to get chickens in those days because the parish looked like a country district with a scattered home here and there and lots of room for poultry. Women knew how to milk cows and pluck geese, and Pat McGuire kept the biggest flock on the hill. There were ponds and streams and gullies, cow paths and byways over rough ways and dangerous quarries and the miner’s hut and the shaft of a clay pit were the only distinguishing marks that made it possible for the traveler to find his way in the gloom of the night. Fortunate was the one whose pathway was illuminated by the modest lantern. The street cars came before the street lamps and the conductors, when they came to Tamm Ave. and wished to intimate to many a drowsy old timer that he had reached the point of his destination, called out “Dolans Saloon.”
At 3 :45 p.m. the parade began to form at the southwest entrance of Forest Park and in the quarter of an hour that elapsed before Mr. Frank Walsh gave the signal to start there was much hand-shaking and many affectionate greetings. It appeared that everyone who ever lived in the parish even for a short time, had returned and met someone who knew him and who greeted him with gladness.
The school children quietly moved into line by the Dewey School, the Knights of Columbus Zouaves in their colorful costumes mixed with the assembly, the Catholic Boy Scouts in uniform gave a military appearance to the occasion, the Daughters of Isabella Drum Corps in white costume struck up a tattoo, the boys of St. Edwards Drum Corps jumped from their busses, the motorcycle cops and police officers from the mounted district cleared the way, and when the marshal gave the signal, with military discipline the parade formed on Clayton Road and before it had proceeded far it was joined by the Archbishop who picked up Father O’Connor and led the way to the church.
It was a surprise to many that the parade started on time, and the cornerstone ceremony began at 4 o’clock, the exact time scheduled. The weather was beautiful, the burning temperature of the preceding days receded during the night and a cool breeze made marching less difficult.
In the morning there were heavy clouds and stormy forebodings which many prophets of evil omen associated with former parochial festivities: “as usual,” they said, “we are going to have rain and everything will be spoiled,” but it was not so, the Blessed Mother under whose benign guidance Father O’Connor has placed the erection of the church, was on duty and She saw to it that there were sunshine and smiles and the tradition of gloomy days had passed.
As the procession approached the parochial school it was reviewed by a large gathering of the diocesan clergy and a vast concourse of people. First appeared Capt. Hannah and Lieut. Hussey and their adjutants of the Mounted District, followed by the Knights of Columbus Zouaves, immediately preceding the boys from the parochial school marshaled by Dan Murphy and Dan Sheehan; each boy carried an American flag and marched with military bearing and religious fervor. The little girls came next, the young ladies of the parish, the married ladies marshaled by Martin Coad, and the men of the parish preceded by Michael Maloney bearing the flag of St. James. This line of men was impressive and made one doubt that there was such an army in the parish. Mr. Kelly, president of the Holy Name Society, and many others wore the insignia of the Hole Name. The Daughters of Isabella, led by Mr. Ryan, enlivened the march, and the Catholic Boy Scouts, the Knights of Columbus, the Holy Name Societies of the neighboring parishes, the Catholic Church Board of Maplewood, Charity Band of Maplewood and St. Edwards Drum Corps, increased its impressiveness.
Mr. Frank Walsh, the marshal, was responsible for the good order, the military precision, and the promptness with which the parade moved. There was no hesitation, no confusion, as the lines swung into place at the site of the new church parishioners were permitted to go within the walls of the building and very quickly filled it.
Father Prendergast, Master of Ceremonials, in the absence of Father Spencer, who was ill, formed the altar boys in line. Antony Palumbo the only parish student, carried the Cross. A way was opened through the crowd and the clergy, about thirty in number, followed by the Archbishop, robed in Mitre and Episcopal regalia, proceeded to the Cross erected at the place where the main altar will set, then the cornerstone was blessed, a trowel was handed to the Archbishop, who smoothed the mortar where the cornerstone was to rest, the stone setters set the stone in place, the chanters sung the litany of the Saints, the clergy responding, and the procession moved around the church whilst the Archbishop sprinkled the outer walls of the foundation with Holy Water. This completed the ceremony and the Archbishop, accompanied by Father Lyons and Father O’Sullivan, went to the speakers stand which was erected at the front of the building, facing Tamm Ave., where a vast concourse had already congregated.
In the speakers’ stand were also Father Souvay, President of Kenrick Seminary, and Father Ryan, ex-President, Father Lavery, who made the chief address, and Father O’Connor. As might be expected, Father Lavery gave a very eloquent address explanatory of the ritual pertaining to the cornerstone laying, and paid a generous tribute to the sacrifice and generosity of the people of the parish and to Father O’Connor, about whose title he seemed to he uncertain. ‘‘I don’t know’’ he said, ‘‘whether he is pastor or administrator, but whatever he is. he has done splendid work.’’
Father O’Connor, on being motioned by the Archbishop to speak, addressed himself to the former parishioners, to whom he extended a welcome, and an invitation to continue to be in the parish. ‘”There are,” he said, “thirty acres adjoining the Rectory recently subdivided, where streets and sidewalks and sewers are built, and splendid locations for homes are possible at a moderate price. These I would have you occupy.” He referred to the two big donations made to the parish by Mr. Macken and Mr. John A. Quinn as being tributes of faith and generosity made by men from outside the parish who vied with one another in having the honor of erecting an altar in a parish church. It was given, he said, to Mr. Macken because he had already donated the site and Mr. Quinn, whose wife became a convert in St. James, was satisfied to have the distinction of erecting the beautiful Stations of the Cross which will adorn the new church. He jocularly said that he was fortunate in having reached those before the Archbishop begun his drive for the Seminary, for undoubtedly these donations would have passed into that fund. He added a few complimentary remarks about the Archbishop’s helpfulness, referring to his judicious suggestions and gentle manner. He finally asked the people to show their appreciation of His Grace by wholeheartedly co-operating with him in creating a fund for the new seminary.
The Archbishop was brief in his remarks and spoke mostly about the seminary in its relationship to the parish church. He congratulated the pastors and parishioners on their good work and completed the ceremony by giving his blessing.
The following priests were present:
Rev. John Nugent, St. Catherine’s Church; Rev. Mark Carroll, Rev. John Kane, Sacred Heart ; Rev. John Long, St. Agnes: Rev. P. J. O’Rourke and Rev. Robert McKeon, St. Mark’s; Rev. C. Maxwell, St. John’s ; Rev. John O’Neil, St. Edward’s ; Rev. Joseph Newman, St. Teresa’s; Rev. J. J. McGlynn, St. Rose; Rev. John Peters, St. John Baptist; Rev. Tim Meaher, St. Pius, Rev. Joseph McMahon, St. Luke’s ; Rev. John Ryan, Maplewood.
Col, Joseph A. Gerk wrote a letter to Father O’Connor in which he says “I am glad to note from your letter of Sept. 21. 1927, that you found the police details for the cornerstone laying of St. James Catholic Church at Wade and Tamm avenues on Sunday last efficient and energetic. It was kind and considerate of you to write and I intend to publish your letter in our Police Journal so that the officers who did the work may share my pleasure over its receipt."
Yours very truly,
JOS. A. GERK,
Chief of Police, St. Louis.
St. James Alumni Dramatic Club in future will hold its regular monthly meeting in the School Hall on the Thursday following the first Sunday of the month. Next Thursday, October 6th, the meeting will he followed by a dance, and refreshments will he served.
The generosity and self-sacrifice which has made the New Church possible still continues. Little Jack PahI Roles did not live to see his subscription of $50 paid, but Mr. Pahl had discharged this obligation and has given on the barbecue promises, $100 for himself, $100 for his wife, $50 for Arthur and $50 for Jack. Mr. John A. Murphy, though he has given his subscription and paid regularly his 4 per cent, dropped fifty dollars into the collection at the cornerstone laying. It is regrettable the baskets were not passed among the entire crowd many former parishioners were well disposed to give and as it was the collection amounted to approximately $500. There was about $130 taken on the sale of badges though the young ladies letup on the sales when the whole assemblage was at the church site. One hundred dollars was made at the soft drink stands.
Other donations received during the month include one of $200 from John J. Brady toward a memorial window for his late wife, $100 from 3 James Zubiena, 6123 Clayton Ave., and very many nice checks from various parishioners with expressions of determination to do better, such as the following from Louis Riegel.
Dear Father: I am enclosing my personal check for $25 as part of my contribution to the parish funds for the year of 1927. I intend before the first of the year to add a considerable amount to this check and wish to take this opportunity to thank you for the leniency shown me this year in the matter. Hoping this will be satisfactory, I remain yours very truly,
Louis Riegel, 6429 West Park Ave.
By the grace of God Almighty in the year one thousand nine hundred and twenty-seven of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, in the month of September, on the eighteenth day, at the hour of four in the afternoon, in the fifth year of the glorious reign of Anchille Ratti, Pius the Eleventh, Vicar of Christ and Successor of Saint Peter, Supreme Pontiff of the universal church, represented in these United States of America by His Excellency, the Most Reverend Pietro Fumasoni-Beondi, the twenty-third year as Archbishop of Saint Louis of the Most Reverend John Joseph Glennon, the ninth year as administrator of this St. James Parish of the Rev. Patrick J. O’Connor, assisted by the Reverend Norbert E. Pohl, in the presence of numerous clergy and an immense gathering of the Catholic lay organizations and laity of the City of St. Louis, the cornerstone of this elegant edifice dedicated to the glory and worship of the Triune God and under the special patronage of the Apostle Saint James the Greater was blessed and sealed by the hand of the Most Rev. John J. Glennon, Archbishop of Saint Louis, assisted by Rev. John Lyons, and Rev. Timothy O’Sullivan as deacon and sub-deacon, Rev. Ed. Prendergast and Rev. John Nugent, master of ceremonies, and Rev. John Kane and Rev. Mark Carroll as chanters, in the memorable year of the great devastating flood of waters in the lower Mississippi Valley when Col. Charles A. Lindbergh flew alone in a monoplane from the American Continent to Paris, France and many European aviators lost their lives in fruitless endeavors to cross from Europe to America, in the third year of the Honorable Calvin Coolidge (second term) President of these United States, in the third year of the Honorable William Baker, Governor of Missouri, in the third year of the Honorable Victor Miller, Mayor of the City of St. Louis, and on the spot designated as 1351 Tamm Ave. at south side of Forest Park and in the City of St. Louis, the above mentioned cornerstone was deposited.
At this time St. James Parish has been established sixty-five years, and has a parochial school directed by seven Dominican Nuns in which there are three hundred and thirty pupils. There are approximately seventeen hundred souls in the congregation and the majority of them are instructed in the rudiments of the faith and appreciate the grandeur and dignity of being Christians.
May this worthy ecclesiastical structure which was designed by O’Meara and Hills, architects, and made possible through the generosity of many who were comparatively poor, serve to gather and to keep the faithful of this and future generations in peaceful union and loyal worship of God here in the church militant and assist them to the blissful union and celestial joy of the Church Triumphant in Heaven.
It is impossible to give accurately the names of all those who worked in preparation for the Jubilee and cornerstone laying, and we will not attempt to do so. We recall seeing Arthur Paul, Jr., Danny Murphy and Charles McVey painting the walls of the parish hall, and later scrubbing the floors assisted by John P. Dolan, Mrs. Plengemeier, Mrs. Wiber, Mrs. Engelhardt, Mrs. Ludden, and Mrs. Mary Jones. Mr. and Mr. Will Hefele, Mrs. Helen Dolan Walsh, Mrs. Scherzinger, Genevieve Mahon had a great deal to do with general arrangements and assumed much of the responsibility for the success of the affair. Over twenty women plucked and cleaned chickens for the banquet. Mrs. LaGarce and Mrs. Bisso of McCausland Ave. cooked them, and fifteen young ladies served the table.
The Silver Jubilee cake was donated by Mrs. Dan Murphy. Mrs. Eckhoff presented a cake that created a sensation; it had frosted upon it a very perfect reproduction of a Dominican Nun. Mrs. Stephen Leahy, a newcomer to the parish, sent in an attractive floral offering, Chas. Drennan and Edna Willer of the Wellston Flower Shop sent a bouquet of roses edged with silver.
Flowers and plants for the altar were donated by the Houlihan Nursery, John Moore procured machines for the Sisters’ Outing and Charles Brady assisted in many ways.
On the evening before the cornerstone laying a gang of men assembled to erect booths, make walks and clean up the grounds. Louis Riegel appeared to be foreman, Clem Placke and John Kelly carried the heaviest lumber on their shoulders.
John Kelly, Geo. Jenneman, Geo. Wiber, Jos. Eckhoff, Ben Plengemeier and Joseph Pieschel used their brains and hands and got into a sweat that from the point of an interested observer was very admirable. It does one good to see men take off their coats and willingly make sacrifices.
On the day of the cornerstone laying, Mrs. Plengemeier had charge of the sandwiches, most of which were served next day to the children of St. Joseph Orphan Home, Mrs. Bersch attended to the ice cream, Mrs. Irvin to the soda, Geo. Gibson, druggist, Delmar Ave., volunteered to set up a stand and furnish orangeade. He reported a donation of a box of oranges from Sharamitaro’s Vegetable Stand, and other workers were given a boiled ham by Angelo Poncirola, 5 gallons of ice cream by the Arrow Ice Cream Co., 13 cases of soda by the Blue Ridge Soda Co., 1500 lbs. of ice by the local branch of the Polar Wave, a donation of bread received from the WelIe-Boettler Bakery Co., Daugherty Tent Co. furnished canvas for the booths. Mr. Arthur Pahl, Sr. was general director and treasurer. The Canary Flower Shop supplied the plants that were set around the cross in the new church erected at the place of the altar, so it might he said the first decorations for the sanctuary of the new church were made by this florist.
A lunch was prepared and served to the drum corps and orchestra by the Kern sisters, back of the old church, while the cornerstone was being laid. One of the boys said he had eaten so much chicken he was ready to crow.
Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Lott, 6162 Victoria Ave., entertained and refreshed Knights of Columbus Zouaves at their home. Father O’Connor gave lunch to the priests at Garavelli’s, where the management assigned them a secluded hall.
Among the young ladies who sold buttons and volunteered their services, the pastors wish especially to thank Genevieve Mahon, Edna Willer, Frances Doering, Mae Collins, Aurelia Aydt, Camellia and Euphronius Jones, Helen and Agnes Saxton, Margaret Wiber. Gladys Huger, Eugenia Morrissey, Mary Jane Wynne, Margaret McDonnell, Vera Bersch, Mae McCauley, Helen Sullivan.
Robert Joseph Marks, 1443 Hampton Ave.
Mary Carolyn Greenweil, 6510 West Park Ave.
Sarah Ann Havens, 6814 Plateau Ave.
William Paul Birkley, 2002 Knox Ave.
James Gerald Steger, 1127 Louisville Ave.
Albert Theodore Hofstetter, 1319 Ripple Ave.
The Mother General of the Dominican Order, Reginald, accompanied by Sister Loyola, one of the pioneer Sisters who taught in St. James Parochial School after it was opened in 1902, came from New York to be present at the Silver Jubilee celebration of the Dominican Sisters’ first mission, which was established in St. James Parish. The Alumni Association of the school attended to the arrangements for the celebration, which opened with a solemn high mass in St. James Church at 10 o’clock Sunday, Sept. 11th.
Under the direction of Mr. Arthur Pahl, President of the Alumni Association, a banquet was tendered to the forty-three Dominican Sisters who teach in the St. Louis district, and to the clergy who were present at the mass.
In the afternoon, parishioners and members of the Alumni Association drove the Sisters into the country and had them back in time for Benediction, which was set for 4 o’clock. Immediately afterwards, the Sisters had a reception for parishioners and in the evening for the Alumni Association.
During the day many telegrams were received by the Alumni from Sisters who formerly taught in the school, or were themselves pupils there, extending greetings and regretting that they could not be present.
Father O‘Rourke celebrated the mass, assisted by Rev. Father Thomas Mullin, former pastor of St. Malachy’s, and Father P.D. O’Connor of the immaculate Conception parish, Rev. P. J. Dooley, Holy Redeemer parish, Webster Groves, was Master of Ceremonies, and the Pastor, Father O’Connor, preached the sermon.
The Alumni Association assisted at the mass and Benediction, and as many of them as could find a reasonable excuse for being at the banquet listened to the toasts that were made.
Mrs. Helen Dolan Walsh directed the waiters at the dinner and everything was served with elegant dispatch and much cleverness.
Toasts were responded to by Rev. O’Rourke, Fathers Mullin, Tammany, English, P.D. O’Connor, P. J Dooley and the Mother General and Sister Loyola also said a few words in appreciation of the honor that was conferred on the Order by the children and people of St. James.
Ray Dolan gave the address of welcome of welcome in behalf of the Alumni Association. Mrs. Bovard spoke for the parishioners and presented Mother General with a purse which contained $5 for each year that the Sisters had been in the parish. It is understood the Alumni Association also made an offering.
Mrs. Wm. Hefele gave a well delivered and appropriate recitation. The ladies of St. Ann’s Sodality prepared and cooked the dinner.
The Sisters were very delighted with the celebration and the various convents sent letters of appreciation since then to the Alumni Association. One of the letters expressed the sentiment of all in the following terms: Rev. and Dear Father O’Connor: May we ask you to accept our heartfelt and sincere appreciation for all the kindness and goodness shown to us on Sunday by you and the St. James Alumni Association. We did, indeed, enjoy every moment of the day and we assure you that many happy memories of ”St. James will he ours. May God bestow His choicest blessings upon you and your dear parishioners is our fervent wish.”
The Alumni Association regretted very much that Sister Alphonsus and the other Sisters who taught in St. James School and are still living, could not be present and there was many an affectionate remembrance made of Sisters Catherine and Louis, and of the late pastor, Rev. E. A. Casey.
When the city imposes a special tax for a tube to enclose the River Des Peres or makes a bond issue for several million dollars for city and school improvements we pay our part with good grace and think we have benefited ourselves and others. There is a special tax called for by our ecclesiastical authorities for the erection of a much-needed Preparatory Seminary. It is to provide a training school for the future clergy of our archdiocese. It is an absolute necessity and everyone who wants a priest when he is dying or appreciates the Mass and Sacraments, should dispose himself to cheerfully contribute a reasonable amount to this fund.
Priests do not come like flocks of wild ducks nor can we pull down from the clouds the ones we need and leave the others pass on. They have to he selected in their childhood, placed in Seminaries and trained over a period of at least twelve years. Their parents make a sacrifice in denying themselves the profits that might be expected and often sorely needed from the child’s labor, they must clothe them, supply them with books and pocket money from the time they go to the Kindergarten until they are ordained. It is not reasonable to expect them to do more. The people in the various parishes should do the rest and provide proper encouragement to boys who are willing to enter this arduous and self-sacrificing avocation.
The country boy who shows signs of a vocation cannot he overlooked; usually his parents are struggling farmers who are not keenly concerned with the needs of the church. A good sister or priest fosters in the boy an ambition to be a priest; his pious mother notices his attractive personality; she would induce his father to set aside his objections and fears: the pastor is consulted, the boy must leave his quiet home and go where? To a boarding house in St. Louis! To a big city where he may he exposed to danger! Who will defray the expense? The struggling country pastor or the boy’s parents? There has arisen an insurmountable barrier to the boy’s ambition and in all probability a good priest is lost to the church.
What an immense amount of good that boy could do were he ordained and sent into the country where there are people without priests, and children without religious instruction. There are now seven whole counties in Missouri without a Catholic priest, and missionaries are needed who understand the mentality of the Missourian. They cannot he had unless a Seminary is provided for the country boy and the Archbishop has a solemn duty imposed upon him by the Council of Trent and the Canon Law of the Church to erect such a building and develop a native clergy.
The campaign for raising funds has begun and an organization is being perfected in each parish in the diocese. Every wage earning Catholic and property owner will be approached the week beginning Oct. 8th and subscription blanks will be submitted to them. A record will be made of each one’s answer to this demand and the solicitor is expected to confer with each individual, and his duty will not he discharged until he has done so.
No cash will be solicited nor accepted. All payments are to be made to the Chancery Office and will extend over a period of at least two years.
The directors of the campaign expect about $100 subscription from all who earn over a thousand dollars a year, and intend creating a fund for a Catholic colored children’s school and a teachers’ home for the McBride High School.
The campaign organization for St. James Parish consists of the following:
Chairman, Rev. P. J . O’Connor.
Colonel, Ray R. Dolan.
Major, John C. Houlihan.
Capt., Arthur B. Pahl; Lieutenants, Joseph Crotty, M. P. Foley, Gus Beinecke, M. C. Coad, Daniel Sheehan.
Capt., Joseph Pieschel Lieutenants, Bernard Cunningham, Wm. C. Koneen, Geo. Lederle, H. V. Lutz, Michael Maloney.
Capt., Clyde K. Stiff; Lieutenants, Edw. Kramer, Ray T. Melican, W. H. Henkel, Mr. Hillenbrand, D. B. Jackson, Geo. S. Kletzker, Stephen Leahy.
Capt., C.W. Klasek; Lieutenants, James P. Harris, Henry Hugeback, John J. Kelly, P. H. Murphy, John McAnnar, George Wiber, Louis . A. Riegel.
Helen C. Dolan and David Wilson were married in the rectory by Father O‘Connor, Aug. 29th.
Mrs. Pearl Walters, 6106 Wilson Ave., was buried front St. James Church Sept. 24th and many tears were shed by a large gathering who were present at the funeral. Pearl Meyers, the name by which she was best known, was vivacious. pretty, and not given to tears, but they came, and human nature could not restrain them they were the outburst of mother’s love and were shed in three succeeding years on the coffin of her child. Her first baby lived six months, her next two or three, and so her third, and she was childless and sick and still trying to smile, but the strain was too much so she went to join her little ones at the age of 23. Pearl was a convert to Catholicity, the rest of her relatives are not Catholic. She received her instruction at the Rectory when she was only an over-grown girl. She was deeply spiritual and was much attracted by the teachings of the church, and she taught them to others by word and example. For many years she was a collector of the Quarter-a-Week and she grieved if donations were not regular. She was enthusiastic about the new church and a few weeks before her death mailed us a cheek for $12.50.
Her mother also had three children and is now childless. Pearl had the consolation of religion in her sorrows and we are confident she spent her purgatory on earth. She lived a good life and was well prepared for death. May she rest in peace.
The devotion of the Forty Hours will open in St. James Church Friday morning, October 7th. and close Sunday afternoon at 4 o’clock.
The opening ceremony will consist of Solemn High Mass and procession of school children to the Altar of Adoration at 7 a.m.
Confessions will be heard from 3 :30 on Thursday until 6 p.m. and from 7:30 until 9. A Plenary Indulgence can be gained by all who go to Communion on any one of the three mornings in any church, and pay a visit to St. James Church during the Forty Hours and offer prayers for the intention of the Holy Father.
Friday evening at 8 o’clock there will be devotions and a sermon. On Saturday evening from 7:30 to 8:30 there will be the Holy Hour and on Sunday at 4 o’clock will be solemn closing and sermon.
The various sodalities are asked to appoint members to watch before the Blessed Sacrament especially during the hours from 4 to 7:30 and on Sunday after the Masses the Holy Name Society should attend to the watch.
FOR RENT: 6418a Lloyd Ave., 5 rooms, $45; hardwood floors, hot water heat and other modern conveniences. HIland 6041.
FOR RENT: A five-room cottage, newly decorated, at 1325 Ripple St. $25.00 a month.
Donations for flowers and sanctuary equipment will he taken in the vestibule of the church today and during the time preceding the Forty Hours. There is no altar society in St. James Parish but there is a custom of having the ladies of the church supply money to the Sister Sacristan, who does the work. These donations are made at the Forty Hours, Candlemas Day and Holy Thursday and the basket collections on these occasions are also devoted to this fund.
Last year the expense of keeping the sanctuary amounted to over $500 and thanks to the ladies of the parish, all the bills were met and very many pieces of fancy work were given and several articles necessary to the sanctuary were also donated.
There is a sample of the stained glass for the church in the Rectory which the Pastor will be glad to show to anyone who is interested.
Stained glass windows are a study in themselves and vary in worth almost as much as other paintings. There are few people in a congregation who know very much concerning their value. The majority are impressed favorably or unfavorably by the general effect of the picture and take little or no interest in the artistic merit of the material or the color scheme.
Stained glass is a word that is generally applied to any glass that is stained or colored, the cheapest kind is what you have seen in saloons where plain glass is coated with a solution of epsom salts and is given by this simple process a silver sheen. Other and more lasting effects are produced by burning glass with acids and adding colors and even producing pictures that are to the uninitiated not unattractive but real art glass differs entirely from these in material and craftsmanship and its value increases in proportion to the ability of the artist and his skill in harmonizing colors and expressing sentiment in glass.
Art glass of merit is manufactured in a variety of colors, and the tints are burned in the glass and not on the surface. The artist assorts in one window hundreds of small pieces which he selects because of fitness of color, and sets like mosaics these are again put in a kiln and united; on being returned to the studio they are covered with a coating of flux or ground glass which is rubbed with a finger or brush to produce the desired impression of light or figure, and put back into the fire; a third time they are touched and burned and are now ready to be leaded into hundreds of little frames that go to form a single section of one window. The process is so tedious physically and mentally, one who understands the composition must be astonished at the producer’s patience and when he effects a work of merit, his genius must be admired.
The windows for St. James Church are real art glass and not imitation. The name of the donor or one to be remembered shall he burned into the glass and shall prove to be a very attractive and spiritual memorial.
Mrs. John J. Steffan, 1014 Tamm Ave., died Sept. 7th at St. Mary’s Hospital after a lingering illness, and was buried from High Mass at St. James Church Sept. 10th.
Mrs. Steffan will he remembered for her wit and radical expressions of original and humorous thought.
She was very faithful to her duties and went to communion every few weeks. Her donations to the church were always generous, and her relationship with her neighbors was always agreeable. Her neighbors, who are non-Catholics, were her best nurses. Mrs. Pate is her sister and Mrs. Dan Kelly of Lloyd Ave. is her sister-in-law. She received the last Sacraments with great fervor and was reconciled. — R. I. P.
The Halloween party annually given by the Holy Name Society will be anticipated this year on the Sunday preceding when a Minstrel Show will he given at Yale Hall. Note date -- October 30th.
William T. Byrne of the Dolan Real Estate, and nephew of Bishop Byrne, will be married to an alumna of St. James School, Miss Emily McKenna, at St. Mark’s Church. October 12th. Bishop Byrne will perform the ceremony. Miss McKenna is daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Fred McKenna, former parishioners, who among other distinctions have a family of ten children, all of whom are splendid Catholics and a credit to their parents and St. James School.
Mr. P. J. Ludden has been spending the past few weeks at Hot Springs, anticipating a possible attack of rheumatism.
Miss Marie O’Gorman has returned from her trip to Detroit.
Mrs. Jirauch, 1111 Central Ave., was for several days in a critical condition at St. Anthony’s Hospital, but is now out of danger.
Mr. Stephen Boyer’s condition is slightly improved.
There were a great many big prizes left to the Angelic Warfare Society after the parish picnic which will be offered at a Euchre and Lotto on Tuesday evening, October 18th, in the school hall.
On previous occasions the side halls were availed of by all who desired to play bridge or pinochle and prizes were furnished in accordance to arbitrary decisions of the players.
Miss Rose Mary Kelly, president of the Angelic Warfare Society, has charge of the arrangements and she will be assisted by Helen Kelly, vice-president; Eileen Houlihan, treasurer Mary Carney, secretary; Antonette Palumbo, prefect, and their parents and friends.
Monsignor Crane assisted at the Mass and preached the funeral panegyric of John E. Godfrey, 1100 Louisville Ave., who was buried from St. James Sept. 7th. Father John Godfrey, a relative, was also in the Sanctuary.
Mr. Godfrey lived in Holy Name Parish for many years and was a church worker. He lived to the good old age of 72 and is remembered in St. James Parish as a fine old gentleman who used to visit the church every day and assist at Mass or make a visit to the Blessed Sacrament. He had ended his work and attended to that which was most important, his eternal salvation which in his youth and busy days he did not neglect. May he rest in peace.
Many letters were mailed to us on the occasion of time cornerstone laying, in one of which there was a check of $50 front Charles DeBlase, 1372 Clara Ave., a relative of Mr. Mackens, and in most of time others smaller donations, all expressive of the deep affection in which the parish is held by many who were associated in the past with its life.
There is one of special interest from E. J. Madigan, 3848 Cleveland Ave., who has a daughter a Nun in the Loretta Order, which in part reads as follows: Dear Father O’Connor: The laying of the cornerstone of your new church recalls to my mind memories of 65 years ago. I am now 74. In the year 1862 I was an altar boy at St. John’s Church and was called upon on Sunday morning to accompany Rev. Constantine Smith, assistant to Father Ring, to St. James Church, which was then called The Cheltenham Church. As we came out the Manchester Road everything was country and farm land. Tamm Ave. was but a country lane. My remembrance is on entering it that the little frame church was the only building to be seen. Mass was celebrated about 10 o’clock and as soon as it was over, all the parishioners folded their tents and hied away. There was no one to give a cup of coffee to Father Smith and as we returned to St. John’s he crunched a little lunch of bread and cheese with which fortunately he had provided himself. I shall always remember that long ride and the pieces of cheese and crackers that he passed to me. Dear Good Father Smith is in heaven now and I hope he remembers the little boy who served his Mass that day.
I am not bountifully supplied with the world’s goods, but I enclose a small check which I trust you will accept with my best wishes for your health and happiness.
We are rather surprised that Father Smith and Mr. Madigan fared so poorly at St. James. The parish has always had the reputation of being considerate about the clergy, and the old-timers inform us that priests who said Mass in the little church of Cheltenham in those distant days were always invited by the parents of our present parishioners, the Robinsons, where they were given lavish hospitality and much good cheer.
Mrs. Paul Birtley, 2002 Knox Ave. gave birth to twins, one of which died after receiving Baptism.
This Association will meet in St. James Parochial School Hall on the third Thursday of each month. Many necessary improvements in this district are being requested of the City of St. Louis and to give the Association a strong voice every citizen who is a property owner in this locality ought to be a member.
The leaves are falling and thoughts of death enter our mind. Many whom we love have gone, and the cares of life and the many distractions of the day make us less conscious of their absence.
The church, mindful of its duty to its children, reminds us once every year in a very special manner to pray for our dead. It has set aside the 2nd of November as the special feast for the dead. On that day the faithful are invited to go to church and by alms and pious works make atonement for the venial faults and the remains of sin which pious souls carried with them into eternity, and for which they must suffer in purgatory until the last farthing is paid, for nothing undefiled, tile Scripture says, can enter Heaven, and it is a holy and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be released from their sins.
Three masses are offered by each priest on the Feast of All Souls. This is an unusual privilege and it is a manifestation of the church’s desire to do something very special for departed souls. Everyone who has a deceased relative, friend, or neighbor has a duty at this time to remember them in their prayers and to assist at one of the masses and offer communion for their repose. Flowers on the grave is a very pretty act of remembrance but faith teaches that a single communion, or a short prayer is more helpful to the soul of the departed than all the wreaths and monuments that can he set up at the grave.
An excellent method for having a daily memento made of your dead is to join a purgatorian society. There is one in the parish. The spiritual director, Father O’Connor, offers a special mass on the Feast of All Souls for all those whose names are sent to him on the Purgatorian sheet. There is also a mass offered in honor of the Sacred Heart the first Friday of each month, and each day in the mass at the Memento of time Dead your beloved ones will he commemorated.
The person who sends a list of deceased ones should sign his name to it if he desires to become a living member. There are no special obligations but it is fitting that those who are living members should, when possible, attend the masses on First Fridays and offer three communions for other living members who may die during the year. The Spiritual Director also promises to offer three masses on the death of a living member. If there are several in a family who want to become living members, each one should write his own list of deceased.
The special advantages of becoming a member of the purgatorian society are: if you should forget to pray for your loved ones, you will know that they are not entirely forgotten. Each day a memento is made of them and each month a mass is offered for them in the parish church. You yourself also are remembered and should you die during the year you will have the assurance that three masses will he offered and that all your fellow members will pray and offer three communions for you.
Instead of a certificate of membership as in former years, members’ names will be listed in Lets Go. The Purgatorian Society’s dues are $1 a year for membership.
You may not be able to give much toward the Seminary collection, but don’t give an absolute refusal. You have two years to pay your subscription and with a little good-will you can give something.
Those who are members of the Purgatorian Society on death are sure of prayers and three masses. The society is for men as well as women, yet few men are members and there is practically no obligation.
There are three hundred and thirty children in the Parochial School. The rooms in which the higher grades are housed are not crowded. There are twenty-eight children in Room 1; thirty-three in Room 2; thirty-six in Room 3; thirty-six in Room 4 ; thirty-eight in Room 5; seventy-four in Room 6; and eighty-five in the baby room. It will be seen the children in the higher grades have a splendid opportunity of getting a great deal of attention. The public schools of St. Louis have an average of forty-five pupils to each teacher.
Fifty workers are needed to cover the parish in the week’s campaign for the Seminary fund. Mr. Ray Dolan has charge and it is to be hoped no one will refuse to co-operate with him. If he asks YOU, say YES.
An ad for Rent was run in the Post-Dispatch one Sunday and brought no response, and in Lets Go the next Sunday brought five interested callers, a fact which inclines us to inform parishioners who have a house to rent or sell in this locality, there is no better medium of advertising than this little paper. We would ask those who want to rent or purchase a home in the parish to communicate with the pastors, as they are usually well in formed in such matters.
Father O’Connor, Dan Sheehan and Arnold Clepp, on hearing of the destruction caused by the tornado, drove to the hydraulic press plant where three men were killed and many others injured. Father O’Connor, on being informed that an ambulance was on the way to Barnes Hospital, rushed there and met many callings for a priest. He administered the last Sacraments to James Fitzgerald, 5067 Northland Ave., Al. W. Lauck, 4118 Gratiot, James F. Roach, 5120 Wells.
The October Devotions will he held in the church every evening at 8 o’clock. A Plenary Indulgence can be gained by all who go to communion within the Octave of the Feast, which occurs Friday, October 7th, also any time during the month by those who attend the public recitation of the Rosary ten times.
Father O’Connor spent a few days in Portageville last week, where Father Galvin has built up a magnificent church, rectory and school. He was delighted to find Sister Mary Austin, formerly Josephine Morrissey of St. James parish, in charge of the school. He also spent a day in Chaffee, where Ella Morrissey, now Sister Incarnata, is teaching. On entering the room where she teaches, he noticed a copy of Let’s Go on her desk. Both Sisters are very well and are doing splendid work. They made many inquiries about old parishioners and were jubilant about the many things that have recently taken place at St James.
The New Church is insured against tornado. Fortunately no damage was done to it, though the force of the storm and the path of ruin began about five blocks east of the church site. The convent was badly shaken and the plaster of the ceilings of one room fell. The children were taken to the basement of the school and were not very excited.
Father O’Connor’s foot has improved and he has a reasonable hope he will not have to sit at home during the hunting season.
UNCLE HENRY'S LETTER
July 3, 1927.
dear Charlie:
wel Charlie, i dont think this naborhood has ever had a turn out lik the 1 we had for the layin of the corner stone on the 18th of the mo. we had a monster parade an everybody was their, but they wus some peeple what might of though they was 2 dignified to march in a church parade, an they stood on the side lines, but when they saw peeple like John Houlihan, wot has been pretty sick for sum time, and john Murphy dot i don’t think has ever been in a parade befor, an all the other peeple that wus not 2 proud to march, they must of decide it wus all right, an so they droped in also. i guess it wus a lot like what the Irishman said on the 17th of March: “even thim wot didn’t b’long, got in fur safety.”
You ought to of saw that parade, Charlie, on account of without seein it, you wouldn’t believe that so many peeple would turn out for a parish affair, an i understan since they see how St. James has woke up an wot a swell church we are goin to have, they is a lot of the old parishioners which would like to get back in the parish, an i was talkin to Geniveve o’gorman, an she was surprise at the way things is goin, an i got a sneakin idear that she wus wishin she was back in old St. James again. An i saw Ed houlihan in the parade, an he would probably come back only he is mayor of Richmond Heights now, an so i guess he will stay in St. Lukes, for a wile, anyways, of course we would like to have all of the old timers back but we aint oferin no speshul indusment like free rent, nor nuthin like that, on account of St. James is got there heads up, for the 1st time in the history.
frank Walsh certainly made a good job of organizin the parade, an he had everyone in there place, and start the thing off right on time, an you no how hard that is with a crowd of peeple that everyone nos everybody else, and maby aint seen one and other for quite a wile an sum of the women wants to talk with there husband -- or sumbody elses husband -- but Frank give out orders like he meant it an they all got in there places and keep perfeck order, an it jus goes to show how easy it is to do things rite, if you have a reel organizer.
the new Church is goin rite along, an i guess it will probly be finished before you get hear to see it. i wus lookin at it the other day an comparin it with other churches wot cost as much money, an i reely believe we are goin to get more church for the money than enybody has got since the high prices went in effeck, an you crtinly have to give the pastor credit for the way he watches the parish funds an get all he can for wot he spends. just to show you how close he watch every penny, the other evening i herd him askin ray Dolan if he would repersent the parish on the comitte wot the Archbishop is organizin to get funds for the new preparatory seminery wot is goin to be bilt, an he was tellin Ray that he had to get sumbody quick or else the Archbishop would get after him, an he said, “they have sent me several letters already an this morning i got a special delivery letter with a reques that i send in the names today sure, an they inclose a stamped envelope so i will hav to send in the names at once,” an i wus thinkin that such thrift should certainly be commended. jus imagin holden out all of that time for a 2 cent stamp.
wel Charlie, i have never saw enything wot empress me so much as the Silver Jubilee wot the Alumni give to the Sisters on the 10th of the mo. for a cupple of weeks befor, i seen arther Paul an Charlie Mcvey an jonnie Moore an a few more of the former “St. James kids,” an they wus washin paints an scrubbin floors an patchen walls, lik a bunch of women doin spring house cleanin, an finaly they had the asembly hall lookin lik a different place, an then the women fixed the place up like the Statler banquet room, an then St. Anns Sodality come on with there pots and pans, an i never seen such cookin sence you an me wus boys, an they had everie Dominican Nun for a hundred mile an about a dozen priests an sum influntial after dinner speakers lik ray Dolan, an they all said that the food an service was the best they ever had, an them women was still washin dishes at 10 o’clock that night. everyone of them seem to enjoying the work they was doin an they is only 1 way to esplain the love an devotion which the peeple have for the Nuns an that is “they must deserve it.”
they is goiir to be sum big doins hear on the 30 of Oct., on account of the Holy Name Society gives there minstrel show on that day, an i understan they hav got sum clever talent an hav worked up a good show. frank Walsh is goin to be interlocutor an you no wot a line he can hand out, an then they have several good comediains like Ed Ryan and ben Kelly and Geo. jenrman and ed Loyett an tom Hankins an a cupple more clever dancers, an a bunch of good singers like Lou Riegel and jonnie Maloney and Eddie Burke. an i understan they are figerin on using the orchester wot is just been organized an that they are fixin up sum clever scenic effecks, so you will be missin sumthing if you don’t get down to see it.
Your particlar friend and uncle,
HENRY
BACK TO LET'S GO, 1927
BACK TO LET'S GO, 1925-1932
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