Irish Franciscans began their College of St. Antony of Padua in Louvain, they had still in their possession fifty-eight convents in Ireland. And we may also recall the fact that the College in Louvain was but one of the colleges of the Irish Franciscans on the Continent. Ireland owes much to the great Franciscan Order. Father Hugh Ward, a native of Tyrconnell, undertook the great task of writing an account of Irish Church history. Both as professor of theology and as guardian of his convent he expended his energy on the study of the antiquities of Ireland. While he was Superior at Louvain, a man already advanced in years came to ask admission into the Order as a lay-brother. This was the great Michael O'Clery, whose name will always be dear to the historians of Ireland. He had already trained himself as an archæologist, and soon became Father Ward's most valued assistant. During fifteen years he travelled all over Ireland collecting materials and copying manuscripts of the lives of Irish saints, which together with other material he sent to Father Ward. In 1617 a young Irish noble, Christopher Fleming, was admitted amongst the novices at Louvain on the Feast of St. Patrick, whose name he adopted instead of his own, so that later he is always known as Father Patrick Fleming. He, too, became an assistant of Father Ward, and searched the libraries of France, Italy and Germany for the lives and works of Irish saints, which he transcribed and placed at the disposal of Father Ward. Father Fleming was Professor of Philosophy at Rome and at Louvain, and ended his life as a martyr in Bohemia in 1632.

To the names of Ward and Fleming must be added that of Colgan, who finally completed the Acta Sanctorum. He, too, was celebrated as a professor of theology, and filled the chair with great distinction, until after more than twelve years he became a lector jubilatus, when he retired from teaching. Then it was that he threw himself into the work of editing the great work which Ward had planned, but had not lived to complete. We cannot here enter into history of the Acta Sanctorum. The first volume was printed at Louvain in 1645. The title is important: "Acta Sanctorum veteris et majoris Scotiae, seu Hiberniae, Sanctorum Insulae, per Joannem Colganum, in conventu F. Minorum Hiberniae strictior. ob servantiae S. Theologiae Lectorem Jubilatum. Tomus primus, qui de Sacris Hiberniae Antiquitatibus est tertius Louvanii apud Everardum De Witte, MDCXLV." It was in his preface to the Acta Sanctorum that Colgan bestowed the title of Annals

of the Four Masters on the compilation of historical facts which was due to the initiative and enterprise of Michael O'Clery: "But since these Annals, which we shall very frequently have occasion to quote, have been collected and compiled by the assistance and separate study of so many authors, neither the desire of brevity would permit us always to quote them individually, nor would justice permit us to attribute the labours of many to one, hence it sometimes seemed best to call them the Annals of Donegal, for in our Convent of Donegal they were commenced and concluded. But afterwards for other reasons, chiefly for the sake of the compilers themselves, who were four most learned masters in antiquarian lore, we have been led to call them the Annals of the Four Masters." The names of the Four Masters, as given by Colgan, are Michael O'Clery, Farfassa O'Mulchrony, Peregrine O'Clery and Peregrine O'Duignan. Amongst other benefits conferred on Irish learning by the Franciscans of Louvain was the printing of many works in the Irish language in Gaelic characters. O'Reilly gives a list of such works printed on the Continent between 1608 and 1742, many of which were issued from the Louvain press. They were chiefly of a grammatical and religious nature.

Space does not allow us to recall the names of the Irish Rectors of the University, and of the famous Irishmen who were associated with Louvain, many of whose names are still to be seen carved on the stone slabs of the Franciscan chapel, where lie the remains of Ward, Colgan and O'Clery. In these days Louvain was a fortified town. The remains of the ramparts still remain as walks and boulevards. As we walk round the old town we come to Mont César, which is now occupied by a Benedictine Monastery, but which was formerly a stronghold. Here Hugh O'Neil rested on his flight to Rome. From this spot there is a fine view of the town. Prominent against the sky is the Church of St. Michael, which belonged to the Jesuits before their suppression, and which has not been given back to the restored Society; around this striking edifice are the buildings of the old Jesuit College where Lessius taught. Bellarmine preached in this church, though the pulpit from which he spoke is now, if the writer does not mistake, in the Church of St. Gudule in Brussels. The other prominent features are the turrets of the Hôtel de Ville and the Church of St. Pierre. Nearer to us is the beautiful steeple of the Church of St. Gertrude, which looks like lace-work against the sky beyond. Inside this church are the famous stalls of carved oak which

every tourist goes to see. Close at hand is the less graceful steeple of the Church of St. Jacques, which, however, has its own peculiarity in that its bell is attached to the outside of the spire. Just below the Church of St. Michael is visible the high roof and front of the University Library-or, alas, has that central point of interest disappeared?

Near Mont César is the Porte de Malines. If we walk a little along the road to the rising ground we soon get a view of the great tower of the Cathedral Church of St. Rumold or Rombaut. This great church, with its magnificent tower 318 feet high, is the metropolitan Cathedral of Belgium, the present eminent occupant of the See being the learned Cardinal Mercier, formerly the founder and moving spirit of the College of Leo XIII. at Louvain. Noble as are the proportions of this church, it is not yet completed according to the original plans, which are carefully preserved at the National Library of Brussels. A model of the completed tower was exhibited at the last International Exhibition at Brussels. According to these plans the completed tower would be the highest building in the world. As it is, the solid tower is perfectly visible from Louvain a distance of fifteen miles. And here again we are brought back to Ireland, for St. Rumold was an Irishman ! One of Ward's important works was a dissertation in which he proves that in the first nine centuries of the Christian era the name Scotia applies exclusively to Ireland. The chief part of the treatise is a "Dissertatio historica de sancti Rumoldi patria, quam Hiberniam esse scriptorum consensu demonstratur." We should like to be able to dwell on the poetic story of St. Rumoldi ; how he was of kingly birth, and became Archbishop of Dublin ; and how returning from his visit ad limina to Rome he passed through Mechlin, where he was entreated on account of his sanctity and miracles to remain; and how he died as the Apostle of Mechlin at the hand of certain notorious sinners, whose evil deeds he had felt bound to condemn. When the writer was wandering about the great church he had the good fortune to get into conversation with one of the priests of the Cathedral, who was glad to meet a fellow-countryman of the Cathedral's patron. And then the conversation turned on the question whether the continental custom of priests always appearing in soutane, or the Irish custom of dressing en clergyman, was the more conducive to religion! I fear some of his pious flock would have been shocked at his view, that in our days the Irish custom is the more desirable. The news comes that

this noble church has suffered cruelly from the outrages of war; let us hope that no irreparable damage has been done. But we must not wander so far afield from Louvain.

The new period of Louvain's University life dates from the year 1834, when its ancient glories were restored, and when its modern life of fruitful activity began. We do not here intend to dwell on the internal constitution of the University. All the studies which go to make up a great school of learning flourish there. I shall not use the past tense, because though every building of Louvain be levelled to the ground the University will live on, and will rise again, phoenix-like, from its ashes to continue its work of civilisation. For a Catholic University is the greatest civilising power in the Church.

We need not lose heart about the future. If need be every right-thinking man will be proud to assist in its restoration Indeed, this is not the first time Louvain University has suffered destruction. In a letter, written in 1597, by one Gregory Martin to Blessed Edmond Campion, dated Rheims, 13th February, we read: Louvain is a great desert on account of the plague and the multitude of soldiers. There is hardly any trace of the University: horses are stabled in the desolate and ruined colleges." This took place during the Calvinistic wars in which Germany had so great a part.

In 1909, as we have said, the University celebrated the seventy-fifth anniversary of its restoration. The Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Dublin, Strasburg, Prague, Friburg, Paris and the rest sent their delegates with messages of felicitation. Other Universities sent their congratulations, and first in the list are the names of fourteen German Universities. On the occasion Cardinal Mercier made a notable discourse, in which he described in exalted language the functions of a University:

"Universities are the levers of the intellectual world. The fact that a nation possesses a chosen band of searchers after truth, who, with disinterestedness and without any anxiety as to an immediate practical result, whether economic, moral, or religious, extend as far as they can their intellectual horizon, and with serene patience, which has been called the foundation of genius, submit the new truths which they have discovered to the test of document, observation, experiment-this very fact raises the level of every element of the nation."

On that occasion the Cardinal-Primate of Mechlin invited

its members to unite in an effort to enable the University to celebrate with even greater magnificence the centenary of its restoration in 1934. Long before that day the present storm shall have passed away. To-day the fair fields of Belgium lie desolate under the devastating scourge of war. Her noble Catholic King, her Cardinal and her brave people are bowed down under the greatest material sorrow which could come on any people. Ireland sorrows with her. Belgium and Ireland have been linked in the past by many a tie of friendship, learning, and arms. Irish students have been welcomed to her schools, and in turn none have been more welcome in Ireland than our Belgian brothers. We in Ireland claim that our soldiers know no superiors on the field of battle, and we are proud to stand by the side of Belgium in her struggle against an unjust aggression which Ireland can but too well sympathise with.

God's ways are not man's ways. As it is with individuals so is it with nations. The servant is not greater than the master. Christ suffered to save the world, and no individual and no nation does great work for Christ who has not shared in the sufferings of Christ. Belgium has a great work to do in the world, and, therefore, Belgium has been privileged to share in her Master's crucifixion.

HOW PROTESTANTISM PREVAILED IN

A

ENGLAND

QUESTION, a rather painfully interesting one, which must from time to time confront the mind of any average thoughtful Catholic in these countries, is the question suggested by our title: How did Catholic England lose the Faith, and lose it so quickly? Why was not the vigorous and determined effort made that would have saved it and stayed the incoming tide of heresy? It is not easy to give an offhand answer to such queries. We are helped to some extent to realise the difficult position in which English Catholics were placed by reliable works of fiction, such as Mgr. Benson's By What Authority? with its vivid pictures of family life at the time. But there was room for the brief, clear and interesting work on this period of religious