Memoir | Page 4

send for them when I should find a suitable site for the two projected
establishments. I paid my respects to His Grace the Archbishop of
Baltimore, who received me kindly, but appeared at a loss where to
find a site such as we desired. After many unsuccessful efforts and
researches, he established me temporally on a farm belonging to the
Society of Jesus (of which he was a member) until such time as we

could procure the sort of place we wanted; then as I thought that time
might be long in coming, I summoned my brothers to me, and arranged
for a suitable lodging for the nun.
During our stay, a rich man of Baltimore, who was once a Protestant
and had been converted, offered us 2000 acres of land in the mountains
of Pensylvania, near a river called the Delaware. He was even generous
enough to offer me the services of his son, who was also a recent
convert, and who came with us to point out the property which,
however, I was not able to inspect thoroughly as I remained there only
one day.
I returned soon after with two young men who were inclined to join our
Order. They commenced a somewhat rude novitiate, for we fasted and
kept silence on the way, going always on foot for want of money. After
great suffering from fatigue and heat (as it was summer), we arrived at
a little town, distant about sixty miles from Philadelphia, whence we
had started on our tour of inspection. This little town, which was called
Milford, was quite near to the land that was to be ours.
On the way we passed through many Protestant villages whose
inhabitants appeared to be anxious for the light of the true faith, and
this budding town of Milford did not look askance at us, as almost all
of its inhabitants came to mass on Sunday. After mass one of the young
men aforementioned, who knew English well, expounded the catechism
to them, and they listened with attention. The Protestant minister came
afterwards to preach, but we were told that none of the people went to
hear him which without doubt annoyed him greatly. One of the
principal men of the place, a Protestant, as indeed they were all, begged
me to remain with them, saying that they would subscribe me a pension,
and that he would head the list with the sum of fifty dollars. But we had
not come to this country to be missionaries, so we left Milford to go
and inspect our land.
Travelling through these immense and trackless forests was very
difficult, and we often went astray. One day when I was alone with a
child who served me in the capacity of guide, we were greatly puzzled.
We wished to find a little hut that we had built in the woods in which to
sleep; nightfall was coming on, and there seemed no chance of finding
our camp before sundown. I said to the child: "here is a low, flat rock,
on which I will spend the night." He replied that if I remained there I

should be devoured by the bears, of which there were a great number
on these mountains; we had already heard their cries and hideous
howlings. At length, thanks be to God, we found the cabin, which was
not a very safe refuge for us, as it was only a little hut built of young
trees. The two novices and I slept there like Indians, either on the bare
ground or on couches formed by heaps of the branches of trees.
Having no provisions with us we were obliged for the first few days to
eat what we could find in the woods, such as certain little blue berries
that they call "bluets," and other wild fruits, which the people of the
country despise. On the third or fourth day help came. A Jew and a
Protestant appeared on the scene, bringing us potatoes. This Jew
showed a leaning towards our religion, and the Sunday previous I had
said mass in his house. I do not doubt that if we had remained longer
with these people many would have been converted. There was one
entire family, of father, mother and three children, whom I had
instructed, and who were to receive baptism and embrace the Catholic
religion. Unfortunately the woman was the victim of evil counsel at
Milford, and was deterred from her good purpose. There were many
people in Milford who were bitter enemies to the truth.
I often said mass in our cabin. One day we made a cross and carried it
in procession for nearly a mile: we sang psalms, and part of the way
went barefoot, until we reached the spot where we