第302章

Thus， at bottom， the institution was really good， and if it had to be cauterized it was merely essential to remove the inert or corrupted parts and preserve the healthy and sound parts. -- Now， if we take only the monastic bodies， there were more than one-half of these entitled to respect. I omit those monks， one-third of whom remained zealous and exemplary-the Benedictines， who continue the "Gallia Christiana，" with others who， at sixty years of age， labor in rooms without a fire； the Trappists， who cultivate the ground with their own hands， and the innumerable monasteries which serve as educational seminaries， bureaus of charity， hospices for shelter， and of which all the villages in their neighborhood demand the conservation by the National Assembly.[43] I have to mention the nuns， thirty-seven thousand in fifteen hundred convents. Here， except in the twenty-five chapters of canonesses， which are a semi-worldly rendezvous for poor young girls of noble birth， fervor， frugality， and usefulness are almost everywhere incontestable. One of the members of the Ecclesiastical Committee admits in the Assembly tribunal that， in all their letters and addresses， the nuns ask to be allowed to remain in their cloisters； their entreaties， in fact， are as earnest as they are affecting.[44] One Community writes，"We should prefer the sacrifice of our lives to that of our calling. . . . This is not the voice of some among our sisters， but of all. The National Assembly has established the claims of liberty-would it prevent the exercise of these by the only disinterested beings who ardently desire to be useful， and have renounced society solely to be of greater service to it？""The little contact we have with the world，" writes another "is the reason why our contentment is so little known. But it is not the less real and substantial. We know of no distinctions， no privileges amongst ourselves； our misfortunes and our property are in common. One in heart and one in soul . . . we protest before the nation， in the face of heaven and of earth， that it is not in the power of any being to shake our fidelity to our vows， which vows we renew with still more ardor than when we first pronounced them."[45]

Many of the communities have no means of subsistence other than the work of their own hands and the small dowries the nuns have brought with them on entering the convent. So great， however is their frugality and economy， that the total expenditure of each nun does not surpass 250 livres a year. The Annonciades of Saint-Amour say，"We， thirty-three nuns， both choristers and those of the white veil， live on 4，400 livres net income， without being a charge to our families or to the public. . . If we were living in society， our expenses would be three times as much；"and， not content with providing for themselves， they give in charity.

Among these communities several hundreds are educational establishments； a very great number give gratuitous primary instruction. -- Now， in 1789， there are no other schools for girls， and were these to be suppressed， every avenue of instruction and culture would be closed to one of the two sexes， forming one-half of the French population. Fourteen thousand sisters of charity， distributed among four hundred and twenty convents， look after the hospitals， attend upon the sick， serve the infirm， bring up foundlings， provide for orphans， lying-in women， and repentant prostitutes. The "Visitation" is an asylum for "those who are not favored by nature，" -- and， in those days， there were many more of the disfigured than at present， since out of every eight deaths one was caused by the smallpox. Widows are received here， as well as girls without means and without protection， persons "worn out. with the agitation of the world，" those who are too feeble to support the battle of life， those who withdraw from it wounded or invalid， and "the rules of the order， not very strict， are not beyond the health or strength of the most frail and delicate." Some ingenious device of charity thus applies to each moral or social sore， with skill and care， the proper and proportionate dressing. And finally， far from falling off， nearly all these communities are in a flourishing state， and whilst among the establishments for men there are only nine， on the average， to each， in those for women there is an average of twenty-four. Here， at Saint-Flour， is one which is bringing up fifty boarders； another， at Beaulieu， instructs one hundred； another， in Franche-Comté， has charge of eight hundred abandoned children.[46] -- Evidently， in the presence of such institutions one must pause， however. little one may care for justice and the public interest； and， moreover， because it is useless to act rigorously against them the legislator crushes them in vain， for they spring up again of their own accord； they are in the blood of every Catholic nation. In France， instead of thirty-seven thousand nuns， at the present day (1866) there are eighty-six thousand-that is to say， forty-five in every ten thousand women instead of twenty-eight.[47]

In any case， if the State deprives them of their property， along with that of other ecclesiastical bodies， it is not the State that ought to claim the spoil. -- The State is not their heir， and their land， furniture， and rentals are in their very nature devoted to a special purpose， although they have no designated proprietor.