,frontispiece3 ,,mother ,,philippine    
,,duchesne      ,venerable ,philippine  
,duchesne    ,,by    ,g4 ,e4 ,m4    ,a  
,,brief ,,sketch ,,of ,,the ,,life      
,,and ,,work ,,of ,,the ,,foundress     
,,of ,,the ,,society ,,of ,,the         
,,sacred ,,heart ,,in ,,america         
,,new ,,york   ,,the ,,america ,,press  
#aiad     ,,nihil ,,obstat   ,,angelus  
,,mariani1 ,s4,c41 ,,adv4   ,sacr4 ,rit4
 ,congregationis ,assessor    ,,nihil   
,,obstat   ,,remigius ,,lafort1         
,s4,t4,l4   ,censor    ,,imprimatur     
,,john ,,cardinal ,,farley   ,archbishop
 of ,new ,york     ,,copyright #aiad    
,,by   ,,the ,,america ,,press    ,in   
accordance with the decrees of ,urban   
,,viii4 and other ,sovereign ,pontiffs1 
we hereby declare that the terms holy   
and saintly1 as applied to the          
,venerable ,philippine ,duchesne1 or    
other personages mentioned in the       
following pages1 are used merely in     
their ordinary and untechnical sense1   
without any thought of anticipating the 

decision of the ,church which alone is  
empowered to pronounce authoritatively  
in such matters4    ,,preface4  ,there  
have been many heroic figures in the    
history of ,american ,catholicity4 ,the 
sowing of the faith in our beloved land 
was not accomplished lightly4 ,anguish  
of soul and weariness of body were      
required of our pioneers1 no less than  
of those of other lands4 ,our           
predecessors in this portion of ,god's  
vineyard left home and kindred and      
friends and cast themselves on a strange
 shore1 wanderers for ,god's cause1     
giving their lives in labor and anguish 
of spirit1 that the glad tidings of     
salvation might be spread far and wide4 
,some of these folk were martyrs in very
 truth4 ,through the mercy of ,christ   
their heart's blood has sanctified our  
soil4 ,others by living their length of 
days in the midst of privations and     
sorrows1 that ,christ might be known and
 glorified1 fell little short of the    
martyrdom of blood itself4 ,the memory  

of these still lives1 enshrined in      
hearts that love them for their tireless
 zeal and their dauntless courage4 ,of  
such pioneers was the ,venerable        
,philippine ,duchesne1 a truly valiant  
woman1 to whom the ,american ,church    
owes a debt of gratitude too great for  
payment4  ,the following pages are too  
few to give more than a glimpse of her  
heroic labors1 but they have caught     
inspiration from their subject1 and     
something1 too1 of her fragrant piety4  
,no one will read them without          
admiration for one who was so weak and  
yet so strong1 so humble1 and yet so    
daring in work for ,god4  ,mother       
,duchesne has a lesson for this age of  
softness and indolence4 ,she has shown  
us the way to heroism and offers us     
motives for entering thereon4 ,for this 
gratitude is due4 ,this sketch is       
conceived in a spirit of thankfulness1 a
 tribute of appreciation that will speak
 a clear1 forceful message to sad hearts
 and selfish hearts and timorous souls1 

inspiring all with great ideals and holy
 ambitions to do a mite for the leader1 
,christ4  ,r4 ,h4 ,t4      ,,contents   
,,chapter   ,i    ,volunteers for       
,american ,missions   ,,ii   ,first     
,schools in ,new ,world   ,,iii  ,trials
 at ,florissant   ,,iv   ,st4 ,michael's
 ,established   ,v    ,serious ,crosses 
,,vi   ,mission to the ,pottowatomie    
,indians   ,,vii  ,affection for ,mother
 ,barat   ,,viii ,last ,days   ,,ix     
,some ,fruits of ,mother ,duchesne's    
,work    ,,chapter ,i  ,,volunteers     
,,for ,,the ,,american ,,missions  ,in  
the early annals of the ,catholic       
,church in this country1 no name stands 
more preeminent than that of the        
,venerable ,philippine ,duchesne4 ,she  
was one of the first1 and altogether the
 greatest1 among the spiritual daughters
 of the ,blessed ,madeleine ,sophie     
,barat1 so well known as the ,foundress 
of the ,society of the ,sacred ,heart4  
,the pioneer of that ,institute in the  
,new ,world1 it was in the midst of     

sorrow1 and penury1 and strenuous toil1 
that she cast the seed of the harvest   
whose plentiful sheaves are carried with
 joy by those who have come after her4  
,she was a valiant cooperator in the    
work of the ,catholic missionaries      
during the early part of the last       
century1 and ,american ,catholics can   
scarcely fail to be interested in her   
story4  ,she was born in ,grenoble1     
,france1 ,august #bi1 #agfi1 the same   
year as ,napoleon ,bonaparte4 ,her      
father1 ,pierre ,francois ,duchesne1 was
 a prosperous lawyer1 practising in the 
,parliament1 or law court of ,grenoble1 
the capital of the ,province of         
,dauphiny1 while her mother1 ,rose      
,perrier1 belonged to a family of       
wealthy merchants of the same city4     
,pierre ,francois ,duchesne had adopted 
the false teachings of ,voltaire and his
 school1 but his wife was very pious1   
and carefully brought up her children in
 the love and fear of ,god4 ,philippine 
was the next to the last in a family of 

six4 ,from her earliest years she was   
noted for her serious turn of mind4 ,one
 of her chief pleasures was reading1 but
 even this had to be of a serious kind4 
,roman history was an especial favorite1
 but what she loved most of all was the 
lives of the saints1 particularly the   
martyrs4 ,another of her pleasures was  
to assist the poor4 ,all of her pocket  
money1 with everything else that she    
could dispose of1 went to them1 and she 
loved to distribute her alms with her   
own hand4  ,at the age of twelve she was
 placed as a pupil at ,sainte ,marie    
d'en ,haut1 the ,visitation ,convent of 
her native city1 to be prepared for her 
first ,holy ,communion4 ,the remarkable 
spirit of prayer1 of which she had given
 very early evidence1 developed itself  
here1 and her happiest moments were     
those she was permitted to spend in     
adoration before the ,blessed           
,sacrament4 ,a diligent and             
conscientious student1 so ardent was her
 piety1 that she was allowed by the kind

 nuns the privilege of making her       
morning meditation and reciting the     
,office in choir with them4 ,the year   
after her admission into the school she 
made her ,first ,communion1 and it was  
on this happy occasion that she heard   
the call to a perfect life4 ,her        
parents1 suspecting what was in her     
mind1 removed her from the ,convent4    
,she silently acquiesced in this        
decision1 keeping her own counsel1 and  
continuing her studies with great       
success1 in company with her cousins1   
the young ,perfiers1 who were afterward 
at the head of a great banking business 
in ,paris1 under the rule of the first  
,napoleon4  ,after four years of patient
 waiting1 in the hope of obtaining her  
parents' consent1 and convinced at last 
that they never would grant it1 she     
decided that it was time to act1 and    
entered the novitiate of the            
,visitation4 ,her family became somewhat
 reconciled to her choice1 after        
striving in vain to induce her to return

 home2 but when the time for her        
profession came1 her father absolutely  
forbade her to make it1 on account of   
the dangerous political conditions of   
the time4  ,four years later1 in #agib1 
when the revolutionary storm was at its 
height1 religious communities were being
 everywhere expelled from their homes1  
and ,monsieur ,duchesne withdrew his    
daughter from her convent1 which was    
soon converted into a prison1 and went  
to reside with his family in the        
,chateau of ,granne1 situated in a      
retired part of the country4 ,by this   
time all her sisters were married1      
except the youngest1 a child in her     
'teens2 and when her mother was         
overtaken by her last illness1 she it   
was who cared for her with devoted      
affection1 and finally closed her eyes  
in death4 ,after this the family        
possessions were divided among the      
children1 and ,philippine surrendered   
her share to the others1 reserving only 
a small pension1 barely sufficient for  

her needs4  ,this business being        
settled1 she removed to a modest        
apartment in ,grenoble1 in order to be  
able to devote herself to works of      
mercy4 ,her ardent charity and intrepid 
energy found a wide field of action in  
those calamitous times4 ,she visited and
 succored the unfortunate victims doomed
 to the guillotine1 with whom the       
prisons were crowded4 ,she ministered to
 the sick1 and sought in their hiding   
places1 the devoted priests who would   
not abandon their posts1 to bring them  
to the bedside of the dying4 ,she did   
all this at the constant risk of her    
life1 often hearing sounds and          
witnessing sights that made her shudder 
with horror4 ,as soon as the            
revolutionary storm had spent its fury  
somewhat1 she was enabled to turn her   
attention to the neglected boys she     
found in the streets1 assembling them in
 her own lodgings to teach them to read 
and write1 and above all1 to prepare    
them for the ,sacraments4  ,at last1    

when the advent of ,napoleon to power   
restored political and social order1    
,philippine ,duchesne who1 during all   
these years1 had considered herself as  
irrevocably consecrated to the service  
of ,god1 observing the rules and customs
 of the ,visitation as closely as the   
adverse circumstances of the time would 
permit1 resolved to reestablish in their
 old home the surviving members of the  
community of ,sainte ,marie d'en ,haut1 
and resume a religious life with them4  
,she obtained possession of the convent 
through the influence of her cousins1   
the ,perriers1 but her attempt to       
reorganize the community was not        
successful4 ,in the meantime1 however1  
several companions had gathered around  
her1 forming a little community with the
 title of ,daughters of ,faith1 under   
the direction of the ,vicar ,general of 
,grenoble1 the ,abbe ,rivet4 ,this was  
in #ahjc and the following year4  ,in   
the meantime1 ,madame ,duchesne had     
heard1 through the ,abbe ,rivet1 of the 

,society of the ,sacred ,heart recently 
founded by ,mother ,madeleine ,sophie   
,barat1 under the guidance of ,father   
,joseph ,varin4 ,it was through the     
latter that she applied for admission   
into the new ,society4 ,father ,varin1  
in reporting the case to the holy       
,foundress1 declared that ,madame       
,duchesne was a soul worth seeking for  
even to the end of the world4 ,lack of  
space does not permit us to dwell upon  
the beautiful humility1 submission and  
childlike docility this valiant woman   
displayed in her intercourse with her   
new superior1 who was ten years younger 
than herself1 or her joy at finding     
herself under religious discipline and  
obedience4 ,nor can we stop to describe 
her heroic devotedness1 zeal and charity
 toward all2 her incredible activity1   
her self-immolation1 the wonderful      
spirit of prayer that held her          
motionless the livelong night before the
 ,tabernacle1 when holy obedience       
allowed her the privilege4  ,the ten    

years that followed her profession were 
spent at ,sainte ,marie d'en ,haut1     
toiling with an unflagging energy       
vivified and made fruitful by her       
intimate union with ,god4 ,it was during
 that interval that the death of her    
father occurred4 ,in his last illness1  
she surrounded him with the most loving 
care1 and had the consolation of        
bringing him back to the faith of his   
baptism1 and seeing him atone for the   
errors of a lifetime by a sincere       
repentance and an edifying end4  ,in the
 depths of her heart1 ,mother ,duchesne 
had felt from the first an intense      
longing to devote herself to the        
evangelization of the barbarous tribes  
still sitting in darkness and in the    
shadow of death2 but hitherto she had   
not seen any opening in that direction4 
,so she was patient and put out her     
hands to all the strong things that     
,divine ,providence placed in her way4  
,one day1 however1 the illustrious ,dom 
,augustin de ,lestrange1 ,abbot of ,la  

,trappe1 visited ,sainte ,marie d'en    
,haut1 on his return from a tour among  
the ,north ,american missions4 ,it was  
on the feast of ,pentecost1 a           
circumstance that did not escape the    
piety of ,madame ,duchesne2 and the     
account he gave of the labors1 dangers  
and fatigues endured by the missionaries
 in the ,new ,world1 communicated a new 
and almost uncontrollable intensity to  
her apostolic yearnings4 ,after this1   
she was possessed by one thought and one
 desire1 that of devoting herself to the
 conversion of the savages of ,america4 
,a few days later1 she wrote to ,mother 
,barat to tell her of ,dom de           
,lestrange's visit and of the ardent    
desires his discourses had aroused in   
her heart for the missions of ,america  
in particular4 ,mother ,barat was       
delighted1 but insisted that she must   
school herself to patience1 until some  
providential opening should offer4 ,for 
this she waited twelve long years1 but  
with what burning desires1 what tears   

and prayers6 ,it would take too long to 
relate the circumstances which led to   
the visit of ,mgr4 ,louis ,valentin     
,dubourg1 the newly consecrated ,bishop 
of ,louisiana1 and describe the touching
 scene1 when ,mother ,barat1 in presence
 of the humble yet ardent entreaties of 
her strong-souled daughter1 recognized  
the will of ,god1 and gave the consent  
she implored1 to let her have a share in
 the missionary labors of the zealous   
prelate in the far-off region of        
,louisiana4  ,in the hearts of ,god's   
saints1 joy and sorrow are in close     
alliance4 ,mother ,duchesne was         
overwhelmed with joy on seeing the      
realization of her ardent and           
long-cherished desires2 but a midnight  
blackness settled upon her soul1 when   
she found herself about to sail away    
from the shores of sunny ,france1       
leaving behind her all that her loving  
heart held so dear1 and with the        
conviction that the parting was final1  
as far as this life was concerned4 ,but 

her strong spirit did not flinch for an 
instant1 and the world would never have 
known how keenly she felt the sacrifice1
 were it not for a few lines in one of  
her letters to ,mother ,barat4 ,her     
companions were ,madame ,octavie        
,berthold1 a fervent convert1 whose     
father had been secretary to ,voltaire2 
,madame ,eugenie ,aude1 a young lady    
whose grace and elegance had been       
admired at the court of ,savoy1 and two 
lay sisters of tried virtue4 ,after a   
tedious voyage of ten weeks in a small  
sailing vessel1 they reached ,new       
,orleans on the ,feast of the ,sacred   
,heart1 ,may #bi1 #ahah1 and as soon as 
it was possible1 they set out for ,st4  
,louis in one of the primitive          
steamboats of the time1 a trip of six   
weeks1 with numberless inconveniences   
and a very rough set of                 
fellow-passengers4    ,,chapter ,,ii    
,,first ,,schools ,,in ,,the ,,new      
,,world  ,mgr4 ,dubourg cordially       
welcomed them to his ,episcopal city1   

but the best he could do for them was to
 assign to them a log-house1 which he   
had leased for their use at ,st4        
,charles1 a village on the ,missouri    
,river1 at a distance of thirty miles   
from ,st4 ,louis4 ,here they opened a   
boarding school which at first was only 
very scantily attended4 ,they also      
opened a school for poor children1 which
 immediately gathered in twenty-two     
pupils4 ,as the nuns could not afford to
 keep a servant1 they themselves had to 
cultivate the garden which1 when they   
arrived1 was a wilderness of weeds and  
briars4 ,they also had to care for their
 cow and milk it1 to chop wood for their
 fires1 to bake their bread1 to do the  
cooking and washing1 besides teaching   
the two schools4 ,for their supply of   
water1 they were compelled to depend    
upon the muddy current of the ,missouri 
,river1 brought to them in small        
bucketfuls1 for which they had to pay an
 exorbitant price4 ,the summer was very 
hot1 and the cold of winter was so      

intense1 that the clothes1 hung up to   
dry near the kitchen stove1 froze stiff4
 ,they had to be careful in handling the
 tin plates1 etc41 which served for     
their meals1 lest their hands should    
adhere to them4 ,the white fingers of   
,mesdames ,aude and ,berthold soon      
became hard and grimy4 ,as for ,mother  
,duchesne her hands had become rugged   
and horny long ago1 from the hard1 rough
 work to which she had devoted herself1 
especially after her reentrance into    
,sainte ,marie d'en ,haut4 ,indeed1 it  
had always been her custom to reserve to
 herself1 as much as possible1 every    
kind of work that might be most painful 
or fatiguing for others4 ,these         
particulars offer but a faint idea of   
the sufferings and privations endured by
 these refined and accomplished ladies1 
during those hard beginnings of the     
,society of the ,sacred ,heart in the   
,new ,world4  ,during this trying time1 
,mother ,duchesne's desolation of heart 
was extreme1 and her sense of loneliness

 indescribable4 ,whatever labors and    
austerities she had imposed upon herself
 hitherto1 she had always had a circle  
of friends of the choicest kind and     
spiritual directors with whom she felt  
at her ease1 but now all this was a     
thing of the past4 ,neither did she find
 any consolation in prayer4 ,her soul   
seemed dead within her1 and yet1 besides
 keeping up her own courage1 she had to 
sustain that of her young companions1   
less inured to suffering and without her
 granite endurance4 ,still they were    
very brave and ,bishop ,dubourg could   
not but admire the valiant spirit and   
the cheerfulness of all4  ,but the      
establishment at ,st4 ,charles was only 
a temporary arrangement to last for one 
year2 and1 as the house that was        
building at ,florissant was not yet     
ready when the lease expired1 ,bishop   
,dubourg gave them the use of his farm  
near that village during the interval of
 waiting1 with the log house upon it    
built by the consecrated hands of the   

bishop himself and of his heroic fellow 
missionaries4 ,toward the middle of     
,september1 #ahai1 followed by the      
intense regrets of the ,abbe ,richard1  
,cure of ,st4 ,charles1 and by the tears
 of the children of the free school1    
,mother ,duchesne moved to the farm     
which had been thus placed at her       
disposal4 ,the boarders1 now increased  
to about twenty1 accompanied them to    
their new home4 ,here one room and a    
garret was all that the nuns had for    
themselves and their pupils2 but they   
had also a poor little chapel1 where    
they were able to keep ,him1 who was the
 source of all their strength1 and whose
 presence among them sweetened their    
life of toil and privation4  ,mother    
,duchesne's presence and supervision had
 hastened the work upon the new home1   
that was going up on a piece of ground  
given to them by the bishop2 and by the 
end of ,december1 it was sufficiently   
advanced to be habitable4 ,before       
leaving the farm1 a great consolation   

was granted to the devoted nuns1 in a   
retreat given by ,father de ,andreis1   
the saintly ,lazarist missionary1 who in
 #aijj was placed on the list of        
candidates for canonization4 ,he cleared
 up ,mother ,duchesne's perplexities on 
various points1 and between those two   
kindred souls1 there sprung up a holy   
friendship1 which was for her a         
consolation and a support4              
,unfortunately1 less than two years     
later1 a malignant fever carried away   
this great servant of ,god1 in the midst
 of his fruitful apostolic labors4  ,on 
,christmas ,eve1 the removal to the new 
house took place4 ,mother ,duchesne and 
,aude were the last to leave the        
farmhouse1 and it was late when they    
reached their destination1 for they had 
made the entire way on foot1 through    
deep snow1 and in the face of a freezing
 wind4 ,the little community set at once
 to the work of preparing their small   
and humble chapel for ,midnight ,mass1  
at which nuns and pupils1 and also the  

workmen employed on the house1 assisted 
and received ,holy ,communion4 ,with    
regret we find ourselves compelled to   
pass over many interesting and touching 
particulars1 such as the blessing and   
encouragement sent by the ,sovereign    
,pontiff then reigning1 the saintly     
,pius ,,vii1 and the gift of several    
relics and pictures from ,bishop        
,dubourg1 among the latter one that     
,mother ,duchesne had greatly longed    
for1 that of ,st4 ,francis ,regis1 her  
special patron1 whose name is so        
intimately connected with her own4  ,at 
,florissant1 a new field was opened to  
her charity4 ,bishop ,dubourg's farm was
 intended by him as a quiet and         
healthful retreat1 where his            
missionaries might1 for a while1 rest   
and refresh themselves after their      
toilsome apostolic journeys1 or when    
their health required particular care4  
,madame ,duchesne was a mother to them1 
furnishing them with their meals at any 
hour of the day1 as they dropped in1    

often three or four at a time1 washing  
and mending their clothes1 and replacing
 them when needful1 giving them the best
 of everything she had in the house4    
,this occasioned a great deal of work   
and no small expense1 and money was very
 scarce with her1 to say nothing of the 
debts which had been incurred for the   
building of the house4 ,but this valiant
 woman counted upon the ,providence of  
,god which never failed her1 though its 
gifts were usually bestowed upon her so 
sparingly1 as barely to keep her afloat4
 ,it was a great joy to her to help and 
serve the missionaries1 and she declared
 that she would consider her life happy 
and well-spent1 could she do nothing    
more than cook their meals for them4    
,this generous hospitality was all the  
more heroic from the precarious         
condition of her own finances4 ,besides 
the debts1 very heavy for the time1     
which were pressing upon her1 and which 
she had been obliged to incur for the   
building of her house1 a great business 

depression throughout the country       
reduced the number of her pupils1 thus  
diminishing the small returns from the  
school1 and1 in #ahbj1 a prolonged      
drought dried up the wells and compelled
 her to send to the river for all the   
water they needed4  ,toward the end of  
#ahbj1 when matters began to improve1   
the community was visited by sickness4  
,mother ,duchesne's turn came last1 and 
so serious was her illness that it      
brought her to the verge of the grave4  
,she recovered1 however1 and was able to
 resume her work at the end of two      
months4  ,it was just after this that   
vocations began to come in4 ,the first  
were ,emilie ,saint ,cyr1 one of her    
pupils1 and the sisters ,eulalie and    
,mathilde ,hamilton1 of a very          
distinguished family related to the     
,fenwicks of ,maryland1 and also two lay
 sisters1 ,mary ,layton and ,mary ,ann  
,summers4 ,these five formed the nucleus
 of a novitiate whose numbers increased 
by degrees4    ,,chapter ,,iii  ,,trials

 ,,at ,,florissant  ,in #ahba1 the      
little community of ,florissant sent out
 its first offshoot4 ,with the consent  
and approbation of her ,superior        
,general1 ,mother ,barat1 ,mother       
,duchesne made her second foundation in 
,lower ,louisiana1 as it was then       
called1 at a place known as ,grand      
,coteau1 in the ,opelousas region4      
,mother ,eugenie ,aude and ,sister ,mary
 ,layton were sent to begin it4 ,a      
little later1 ,mother ,duchesne was able
 to send them valuable help in the      
person of ,madame ,xavier 7,anna7       
,murphy1 who had just arrived from      
,france with ,madame ,lucile ,mathevon1 
another valiant woman1 who had a notable
 part to play in the early history of   
the ,society of the ,sacred ,heart in   
,america4  ,the school at ,grand ,coteau
 had soon filled up1 but ere long       
,mother ,duchesne heard of the          
distressing condition to which the new  
community was reduced1 through sickness 
and overwork4 ,with the uncalculating   

charity that characterized her1 she at  
once determined to go in person to their
 assistance1 though it was in the middle
 of summer and the journey must         
necessarily be long and painful1 as well
 as expensive4 ,she took with her       
,madame ,st4 ,cyr and a lay novice to   
leave at ,grand ,coteau1 and ,therese   
,pratte1 whose family had so hospitably 
entertained her and her companions      
during their two weeks' stay in ,st4    
,louis1 after their arrival4 ,the young 
girl was one of her pupils1 who had     
obtained her father's consent for a     
visit to ,mother ,aude4  ,the voyage was
 long1 full of difficulties and endless 
interruptions and delays1 and marked by 
very dramatic and even tragic incidents1
 especially on the return trip1 of which
 alone we will give a brief account4    
,among other particulars1 she had to go 
from ,plaqumine all the way down to ,new
 ,orleans to find a boat for ,st4       
,louis4 ,in ,new ,orleans she was       
stricken with malarial fever1 still the 

physician advised her departure by the  
first steamer1 because at the time      
yellow fever was epidemic in the city4  
,scarcely1 however1 had the steamer     
started on her voyage1 before the dread 
disease broke out on board1 the captain 
being the first to die of it4 ,mother   
,duchesne1 though reduced to a state of 
great prostration1 gathered up the      
remnant of her strength to take care of 
one of the yellow fever patients on     
board1 to whom no one else seemed to    
give any attention4 ,she not only       
ministered to his needs1 but converted  
and baptized him before he died4  ,weak 
and exhausted as she was1 foreseeing    
that under the existing conditions the  
steamer would scarcely be able to reach 
her destination1 she determined to trust
 in ,providence1 and land with her young
 companion at ,natchez4 ,but the        
quarantine excluded her from the town1  
nor would any one in the neighborhood   
take them in1 for fear of the prevailing
 epidemic4 ,providence came to their    

assistance1 for1 as they sat by the     
river bank upon their trunks1 alone and 
friendless1 a young man chanced to pass 
by1 and seeing them so forlorn1 offered 
his services and went in search of      
shelter for them4 ,soon he found an     
honest ,german who willingly took them  
in1 but he had no bed to offer them1    
except the one in which his wife had    
died of yellow fever a fortnight        
previously1 and of which not even the   
sheets had been changed4 ,from this     
place ,mother ,duchesne found means of  
making her distress known to the ,abbe  
,maenhaut1 ,cure of the church in the   
town1 and in later years ,rector of the 
,cathedral of ,new ,orleans4 ,he came   
promptly to her assistance1 and had her 
removed to the hospitable home of a     
family of the name of ,davis4 ,complete 
rest and change of air restored her     
health1 and in a few weeks she          
reembarked for ,st4 ,louis on the       
steamer ,cincinnati4 ,on their way up   
they passed by a steamboat tied up and  

partially wrecked1 in charge of three   
men4 ,it was the ,hecla1 the boat from  
which she had landed at ,natchez4 ,then 
it was that she could see how           
providential had been the change she had
 made4 ,the yellow fever had continued  
its ravages on the unfortunate boat1 and
 on a little island nearby could be seen
 the graves of thirteen of its victims4 
,moreover1 the boilers had exploded and 
several men had been severely injured4  
,at last1 after another delay of two    
weeks1 caused by the grounding of the   
,cincinnati1 ,mother ,duchesne and her  
companion reached ,st4 ,louis1 after an 
absence of five months4 ,the account of 
this terrible journey contained in      
,mother ,duchesne's letters to ,mother  
,barat is such as might come from the   
pen of a saint4 ,there is not a word of 
complaint1 and no regrets for herself1  
save for the ,communions and ,masses she
 had lost4  ,on her return to           
,florissant she found the school greatly
 diminished and in a state of           

insubordination2 this latter condition  
prevailed not only among the pupils1 but
 also among the orphans1 of whom she    
always had several in the house1 and    
whom she educated and provided for      
entirely4 ,her firm hand soon           
reestablished order1 but it was not in  
her power to remove what had been the   
cause of the state of disturbance1 in   
which she had found the school4 ,the    
times were very hard2 there was little  
money in circulation1 and ,bishop       
,dubourg had been obliged to borrow in  
order to finish his new cathedral1 which
 the rapid increase of the population   
rendered necessary4 ,the great bishop's 
administrative ability was above        
question1 but the resources he had      
counted upon failed him1 through the    
dishonesty of an agent1 and this1 with  
the difficulty of the times1 made it    
impossible for him to meet his          
obligations2 while his creditors1       
finding themselves in much the same     
situation1 were clamorous against him1  

breaking out into abuse and menaces4    
,they were even threatening to seize his
 residence and have it sold for their   
benefit4  ,as a matter of course1       
,mother ,duchesne and her community     
shared largely in the odium that had    
fallen upon ,bishop ,dubourg4 ,she was  
afflicted1 but chiefly on account of the
 indignities offered to the great       
missionary prelate1 and the harm done to
 religion by the nature of the          
difficulties in which he found himself  
involved4 ,after a time the storm       
subsided1 leaving1 however1 in the      
public mind a feeling of rancor and     
resentment1 one of whose effects was a  
settled enmity with regard to ,mother   
,duchesne and her community4 ,soon1 of  
the pupils left to her1 there were only 
two whose schooling was being paid for4 
,still her courage and her reliance upon
 ,god never wavered1 and her confidence 
was rewarded4 ,she does not say how it  
happened1 but she affirms that she was  
never less pinched by poverty than at   

this time4 ,she met this crisis in her  
usual heroic fashion4 ,disregarding the 
idle talk of which she was the subject1 
she refused to dismiss any of the       
boarding pupils who were being educated 
gratis4 ,she already had a free school  
for girls1 and she opened another for   
boys1 as also two classes1 one for the  
poor women of the village and one for   
the grown-up girls4  ,and how1 with such
 scanty resources1 did she manage to    
make both ends meet8 ,by her own thrift 
and ingenious industry1 which enabled   
her to turn the least trifle to account1
 with an occasional remittance of a few 
hundred francs from her relatives1 and  
such assistance as ,mother ,barat could 
spare out of her own penury4 ,but her   
surest asset was her confidence in      
,divine ,providence1 which always came  
to her assistance1 often in the most    
remarkable manner4 ,with these she      
covered the expenses of her convent1    
extinguished by degrees her             
indebtedness1 and at the same time was  

prodigal in her charity toward the      
missionaries1 and very liberal toward   
the poor4  ,in the situation above      
described1 ,st4 ,louis was no place for 
,bishop ,dubourg4 ,leaving in charge    
there his newly-consecrated coadjutor1  
,bishop ,rosati1 he took up his         
residence at a short distance above ,new
 ,orleans4 ,the last of the many        
benefits he had conferred upon ,missouri
 was a foundation for a little company  
of ,jesuit ,fathers and scholastics1 to 
whom he donated his farm at ,florissant4
 ,they arrived just at this time1 and on
 account of their connection with the   
prelate met with a cool reception from  
many of the people4 ,this was another   
heavy affliction for ,mother ,duchesne1 
who felt that1 in view of the good they 
could surely do in the country1 neither 
she nor any one else could do too much  
for them4 ,their poverty was very great1
 and she did not hesitate to beg for    
them4 ,the friends she still had left in
 ,st4 ,louis responded generously to her

 appeal1 and sent her whatever they     
could afford to give4 ,from others1     
however1 to whom she had recourse1 she  
met with harsh refusals4 ,she despoiled 
herself and her community of all she    
could manage to do without4 ,she took   
care of the altar linen and vestments   
for their domestic chapel1 and spent    
part of her nights mending and making   
clothes for them4 ,in the beginning she 
sent them their meals already prepared1 
and later on she supplied them with many
 articles for their missionary outfit4  
,in fact1 the ,jesuit ,mission of       
,missouri might have perished at its    
birth had it not been for her fostering 
care4 ,it was to her an immense joy to  
see the abundant fruits the zeal and    
devotedness of the ,fathers soon began  
to reap in the country around1 to the   
distance of a hundred miles and more4   
,she considered it a priceless benefit  
to have their ,superior1 ,father ,van   
,quickenborne1 as chaplain1 and above   
all1 as confessor for the community4    

,after the coming of the ,jesuit        
,fathers1 ,bishop ,rosati's missionaries
 seldom made any stay at ,florissant1   
but they were constantly passing through
 it to and from their missions1 and     
,mother ,duchesne continued to keep open
 house for them as heretofore4  ,her    
apostolic longings for the work of the  
evangelization of the ,indians had never
 died out1 and great was her delight    
when1 one day1 ,father ,van             
,quickenborne brought her two little    
,indian girls1 shyly hiding under his   
cloak1 and asked her to take them and   
educate them4 ,this was the beginning of
 the ,indian school which1 while it     
lasted1 was the joy of her heart4       
,however1 it never counted more than    
twenty children1 and came to an end in  
two years1 the ,indians being driven    
back further and further by the         
inflowing tide of white immigration4    
,,chapter ,,iv  ,,st4 ,,michael',s      
,,established  ,in #ahbe1 ,mother       
,duchesne was called upon for another   

foundation4 ,father ,delacroix1 the     
predecessor of ,father ,van             
,quickenborne1 as pastor of ,florissant1
 was a holy and learned ,belgian priest1
 whom ,bishop ,dubourg used to call his 
angel4 ,he had the highest opinion of   
,mother ,duchesne's sanctity1 and became
 a lifelong friend of hers4 ,after      
leaving ,florissant1 he was stationed   
upon the ,mississippi ,river1 at a      
considerable distance above ,new        
,orleans4 ,before long1 with the        
approbation of ,bishop ,dubourg1 he     
asked for a foundation of the ,religious
 of the ,sacred ,heart in his           
neighborhood4 ,his petition was readily 
granted1 and a location was chosen in   
the ,parish of ,st4 ,james4 ,to meet the
 first expenses of the building1 the    
zealous pastor handed over eighteen     
thousand dollars1 which he had collected
 for the purpose4 ,this was the house   
known as ,st4 ,michael's4 ,mother ,aude 
was its first ,superior1 and soon it was
 in as flourishing a condition as that  

of ,grand ,coteau4  ,two years later1   
#ahbg1 ,father ,neil1 one of the        
resident pastors of ,st4 ,louis and     
director of the college founded by      
,bishop ,dubourg1 asked for and obtained
 a foundation in that city4 ,this was   
what ,mother ,duchesne1 as well as      
,mother ,barat1 had been wishing for    
from the very beginning4 ,moreover1     
though ,mother ,duchesne had no idea of 
giving up ,florissant1 it was too       
distant from the city for convenience1  
and besides various other drawbacks1    
every rain flooded the convent grounds1 
greatly adding to the hardships endured 
by the nuns4 ,she applied to ,mr4 ,john 
,mullanphy1 a wealthy capitalist1 asking
 him to sell her one of the houses he   
owned in ,st4 ,louis1 and he gave her   
one1 with twenty-four acres of ground on
 the outskirts of the city1 together    
with some assistance in money1 on       
condition that she would1 in perpetuity1
 keep twenty orphans4 ,the house had the
 name of being haunted on account of the

 strange1 unearthly noises heard in it1 
especially at night4 ,that circumstance 
did not frighten ,mother ,duchesne1 who 
soon discovered that the ghosts were    
nothing but cats that dropped down the  
chimneys to hold their nightly          
assemblies in the vacant rooms4 ,on the 
first of ,may of that same year she took
 possession of the house with one       
companion1 and remained there as        
,superior1 leaving ,mother ,lucille     
,mathevon in her place at ,florissant4  
,the following year she had in her      
charge twelve boarders1 ten orphans and 
forty day pupils1 most of the latter    
having been received gratis4  ,here1 as 
elsewhere1 her life was one of extreme  
poverty1 privation and unremitting toil1
 to which1 as she had always done1 she  
added fasts1 vigils and bodily penances1
 such as have rarely been equalled in   
the lives of the greatest canonized     
saints4 ,she was often without a cent in
 the house1 but this did not prove a bar
 to her charity4 ,the poor never left   

the convent door empty handed1 and the  
priests1 most of whom were doing        
missionary work1 and were as poor as    
herself1 became the objects of her      
particular care4 ,she supplied them with
 clothes1 especially cassocks1 that they
 might make a suitable appearance at the
 altar1 and also altar linen and        
vestments1 which she embroidered and    
made herself4 ,during the first year of 
her stay in ,st4 ,louis1 her greatest   
privation1 for herself and her          
community1 was the lack of spiritual    
assistance4 ,on week days they were     
often without ,mass1 and on such        
occasions ,mother ,duchesne would remain
 fasting until noon1 in the hope that   
some priest might drop in to offer the  
,holy ,sacrifice at a later hour1 as it 
sometimes happened1 or who at least1    
might give her ,holy ,communion4  ,in   
the meantime1 the ,jesuit ,fathers had  
been making great headway1 and they     
acquired a firm footing in ,st4 ,louis1 
when ,bishop ,rosati handed over to     

,father ,van ,quickenborne1 the head of 
the newly-organized ,mission of         
,missouri1 the college founded several  
years previously by ,bishop ,dubourg1   
and which1 in the course of time1       
developed into the present ,st4 ,louis  
,university4 ,but ,father ,van          
,quickenborne was replaced some months  
later in the office of ,superior by     
,father ,verhaegen1 who had come with   
him from ,maryland in #ahbc4 ,in this   
same year1 #ahbg1 the latter founded a  
permanent mission at ,st4 ,charles1 and 
made it his headquarters4 ,he also      
established1 at the same place1 a school
 for boys1 and applied at once to       
,mother ,duchesne to found one for      
girls4 ,it seemed a rash undertaking to 
make two foundations in the same year1  
with such scanty resources in subjects  
and money2 but what tempted her was the 
spiritual destitution of the people1 who
 were all ,catholics1 and among whom the
 ,protestants were busily at work4      
,mother ,barat1 tempted in the same way1

 gave her consent1 and ,mother ,lucille 
,mathevon was placed in charge of the   
new house4 ,it did a great deal of good1
 in spite of a long struggle with       
poverty and adversity4  ,just a little  
before this time1 at ,bishop ,rosati's  
desire1 ,mother ,duchesne1 with ,mother 
,barat's approbation1 had taken charge  
of the house of the ,daughters of       
,charity1 founded by the ,father        
,nerinckx1 near the head of the ,bayou  
,lafourche1 in the present ,state of    
,louisiana1 and now threatened with     
extinction for want of vocations4 ,the  
devoted prelate's earnest request could 
not be refused1 but the foundation was  
an unpromising one from the beginning1  
and a few years later it had to be      
closed4  ,the following year1 #ahbh1 as 
there were already six ,american houses1
 ,mother ,barat directed ,mother        
,duchesne to assemble their superiors in
 a ,provincial ,council1 in order to    
take measures for securing uniformity of
 action among them2 and1 to spare them  

the trouble of coming to her1 ,mother   
,duchesne went down to meet them at ,st4
 ,michael's4 ,after the ,council she    
visited the houses in ,louisiana1 and   
was able1 in her report to the ,mother  
,general1 to give a very favorable      
account of them all except that of      
,lafourche where1 to say nothing of     
other obstacles to success1 the         
directions given by her in accordance   
with the intentions of ,mother ,barat1  
had not been understood or carried out4 
,,chapter ,v  ,,serious ,,crosses       
,god's saints have never been spared the
 cross of contradiction1 and ,mother    
,duchesne was no exception to the rule4 
,mother ,barat heard from various       
persons that she was too austere1 too   
narrow1 too unwilling to adapt herself  
to the requirements of the times2 and   
this1 it was said1 was why the houses in
 ,missouri were not progressing4 ,by    
these critics1 their backwardness was   
contrasted with the flourishing         
condition of the ,southern houses4      

,there were numerous reasons for this   
difference4 ,louisiana had been         
colonized a century earlier2 its people 
were wealthy and prosperous2 nearly all 
spoke the ,french language1 and as yet  
there was little or no competition2     
whereas entirely opposite conditions    
prevailed in ,missouri4 ,mother ,barat1 
however1 heard these charges so often   
that she began to fear they were true1  
and to consider that it was time to     
place the government of the ,st4 ,louis 
house1 at least1 in the hands of a      
younger superior1 who would have a      
clearer understanding of the needs of   
the times4 ,but before taking a step    
which was very much against her         
inclination1 she consulted ,bishop      
,rosati1 in #ahcb4 ,his answer was that 
the removal of ,mother ,duchesne from   
her office would result in the collapse 
of the houses in ,missouri1 as there was
 no one else capable of bearing the     
burden of governing them2 that the      
slowness of success for which she was   

blamed1 was due to difficulties inherent
 in the situation1 while her recognized 
sanctity gave her an influence for good 
that no one else would wield4 ,this was 
not ,mother ,duchesne's opinion of      
herself4 ,on the contrary1 she thought  
herself an encumbrance and a drawback   
upon ,god's work2 and again and again1  
ever since she had been in ,america1 she
 had begged to be replaced by some one  
who would possess the virtues and       
abilities in which she thought herself  
entirely lacking4 ,bishop ,rosati's     
reply was a great relief to the heart of
 ,mother ,barat1 and ,mother ,duchesne  
remained in office for the time being4  
,the years immediately following brought
 the holy ,mother many crosses1 of which
 we can only name the most notable4     
,mother ,regis ,hamilton1 the dearest of
 her ,american daughters1 had to undergo
 a severe operation1 according to the   
rude surgical methods of the time4 ,the 
ravages of the cholera in ,france filled
 her with anxiety for the fate of the   

,french houses1 as also for that of her 
own relatives and friends1 and letters  
were long in coming4  ,the cholera broke
 out with great violence in ,st4        
,michael's1 where it carried away five  
of the community1 and finally it reached
 ,st4 ,louis4 ,one morning1 after her   
brief rest1 she arose to find every one 
in the community ill except herself4    
,happily the disease had appeared among 
them in a milder form1 known as         
cholerine4 ,no one died1 but during     
three months all the sick suffered from 
continual relapses4 ,the devoted ,mother
 seemed to multiply herself to be able  
to attend to them all1 and at the same  
time to look after the house4 ,often she
 was up the whole night with those who  
were the more seriously affected4       
,fortunately1 the orphans were spared1  
and so were the houses of ,florissant   
and ,st4 ,charles1 but ,mother ,duchesne
 heard1 with great desolation of heart1 
that besides the five religious already 
mentioned1 the pestilence had carried   

off her old friends1 the ,abbe ,martial1
 ,mgr4 de ,neckere1 first ,bishop of    
,new ,orleans after the division of the 
diocese1 and twenty priests--an immense 
loss to the ,church and to souls4  ,she 
had been compelled to dismiss all her   
pupils except the orphans1 and was      
consequently obliged to borrow from the 
bank to meet ordinary expenses4 ,under  
the pressure of so many sorrows and     
trials1 ,mother ,duchesne determined to 
appeal to ,heaven by a day of fasting   
and penance1 ending with an expiatory   
procession4 ,she and the older orphans  
made it barefoot and with a rope around 
their necks1 in the old medieval        
fashion4 ,a few days later all the sick 
were well1 and the following week she   
was able to reopen the school4 ,another 
great sorrow was the intense sufferings 
of ,mother ,octavie ,berthold1 one of   
her first companions1 whom a cruel      
malady was now hurrying to the grave1   
and who died a holy death in ,november  
of that same year4 ,during these years1 

likewise1 she heard of the closing of   
her beloved convent of ,sainte ,marie   
d'en ,haut1 in ,grenoble1 while at the  
same time there was question of closing 
those of ,florissant and ,st4 ,charles4 
,under the weight of these crosses and  
many others1 her affliction was         
indescribable4 ,in a letter to ,mother  
,barat she gives vent to the anguish of 
her soul1 and with touching humility    
expresses the fear that her sins are the
 cause of so many calamities4  ,but     
,mother ,duchesne was too heroic a soul 
ever to be discouraged4 ,she set herself
 to work anew with unflinching          
fortitude1 and went on with the building
 of an addition to her house4 ,the next 
year1 #ahcd1 had opened prosperously    
with thirty-two boarders1 when the      
cholera broke out afresh1 and the       
bankruptcy of several business houses in
 ,st4 ,louis reduced their number to    
one-third4 ,just at this time ,mother   
,aude was called to ,france1 and        
received orders to visit all the houses 

before leaving1 that of ,st4 ,louis     
included4 ,a few months later ,mother   
,duchesne was removed to ,florissant1   
while ,mother ,thieffry took her place  
at ,st4 ,louis4 ,we may mention here    
that the new ,superior did not find a   
way of overcoming the difficulties of   
the situation1 and several years more   
went by before the ,st4 ,louis house    
entered upon an era of prosperity4      
,mother ,duchesne resumed her old life  
at ,florissant--a life of prayer1 toil  
and self-immolation4 ,she could be seen 
engaged in the hardest labor of the     
house1 the stables and the grounds1     
cooking1 washing the dishes1 scouring   
the kitchen utensils1 chopping wood1    
working in the garden with hoe and      
spade1 like an industrious field        
laborer1 sweeping and cleaning in the   
house1 and1 in fact1 taking upon        
herself1 according to her invariable    
custom1 all that was hardest and most   
repulsive to nature4 ,she took care of  
the sick herself1 and would let no one  

else sit up with them at night1 on the  
plea that the others needed their rest  
more than she did4 ,she took entire     
charge of the sacristy1 which1 like the 
care of the sick1 was for her a labor of
 love4 ,she made the morning call and   
night visit1 directed the different     
schools1 and took a share in the        
teaching4 ,her correspondence was       
usually done at night1 and it was also  
at that time she made up her accounts   
and prepared the church for great       
feasts4 ,during the night1 likewise1 she
 spent long hours in prayer1 in her     
usual motionless attitude before the    
,tabernacle4 ,her thoughts were all upon
 ,god1 and her prayer was unceasing4    
,when returning from ,holy ,communion a 
nimbus of light was sometimes seen      
around her head4 ,the mere sight of her 
recalled the presence of ,god2 her      
intercessory power was universally      
recognized1 and her words had a         
wonderful efficacy for strengthening1   
consoling and enlightening souls4  ,her 

hands were rough and hard1 like those of
 an old farm laborer1 and in winter time
 they were swollen1 cracked and bleeding
 with chilblains4 ,to avoid offending   
the eyes of the children1 she used to   
wear1 during the cold season1 mittens   
which she made of scraps of calico or   
other stuff1 sewed together so as to    
cover them only on the backs1 and thus  
leave them free for work4 ,she wore the 
same clothes in winter as in summer2 her
 habit was so patched with different    
shades of black1 that the original      
material could not be distinguished2 her
 shoes were made of pieces of old       
carpet1 and everything that she made use
 of for herself bore the stamp of her   
love of poverty1 and gave evidence of   
her contempt for all that the world     
loves and seeks after4 ,in fact1 she    
presented an appearance which1 in       
others1 would have seemed grotesque1 but
 which in her inspired veneration and   
awe4 ,the pupils wondered and looked    
upon her as a supernatural being4 ,they 

were very fond of her1 and when they    
caught sight of her during their        
recreation hours1 they flew to meet her 
like a flock of birds1 and were         
delighted when they could offer her the 
least service4  ,for her scanty meals   
she gathered up the scraps and leavings 
from the children's refectory2 and      
wherever she lived at any time1 she     
would have no other cell than the closet
 under the stairs4 ,her mattress was    
barely two inches thick1 and she was    
never known to have any other covering  
for her bed but an old funeral pall4    
,she ruled the children with a firm     
hand1 but with the affectionate         
solicitude of a loving and prudent      
mother4 ,she trained them to be strong  
,christians and lovers of duty4 ,those  
of her pupils who were called to move in
 the higher ranks of society1 were      
noted1 not only for their prudence and  
,christian reserve1 but also for their  
refinement and distinction of manners   
and language4 ,the poorer children came 

in for an equal share of her kindness   
and care1 and her motherly solicitude   
followed them after they had gone forth 
into the world4 ,she had warm friends   
among the most notable families of ,st4 
,louis1 but ,mother ,duchesne was no    
respecter of persons1 and the poor were 
equally welcome1 even more so1 perhaps1 
to her time1 her counsels1 her prayers1 
her sympathy1 and her services4         
,,chapter ,,vi  ,,mission ,,to ,,the    
,,pottowatomie ,,indians  ,she had been 
six years at ,florissant when ,mother de
 ,galitzin arrived as ,visitatrix of the
 ,american houses4 ,one of ,mother      
,duchesne's first petitions to her was  
to be deposed from her office of        
,superior1 on her usual plea of her     
total unfitness for it4 ,to the         
sincerity of her estimate of herself1   
her letters to the ,mother ,foundress   
bear ample testimony4 ,in one of them1  
for instance1 she affirms that she was  
of the nature of a servant1 and1 she    
adds1 it takes more than that to make   

one fit to govern others4 ,mother de    
,galitzin granted her request1 and sent 
her to ,st4 ,louis to take her place in 
the ranks as a simple religious4 ,the   
,superior of the house1 ,mother         
,eleonore ,gray1 was one of her former  
novices4 ,here1 for the first time in   
her life1 and to her intense            
mortification1 one of the best private  
rooms in the house was assigned to her1 
and she was treated with all the respect
 and deference due to her4 ,it was a    
heavy trial to her to be waited upon so 
continually and attended to so          
carefully1 especially as it interfered  
with her dear practices of poverty and  
penance4 ,however1 her stay in ,st4     
,louis was not long4 ,early in the year 
#ahda1 she had a visit from the great   
,jesuit missionary1 ,father de ,smet1   
whom she loved as a most dear son1 while
 he revered and loved her as a mother4  
,one of the first things he always did1 
when the needs of his missionary work   
brought him to ,st4 ,louis1 was to visit

 his holy friend2 but this time he had a
 special object in view4 ,he wanted a   
foundation of the ,religious of the     
,sacred ,heart among the ,pottowatomie  
,indians1 whom the ,jesuits had lately  
taken under their care4 ,this was for   
the heroic ,mother ,duchesne like the   
blast of a trumpet for a warhorse4 ,her 
apostolic zeal was ablaze in a moment1  
and her longing to work among the       
,indians was as ardent as when she      
listened to the discourses of ,dom de   
,lestrange1 just thirty-five years      
previously1 day for day2 for the        
,father's visit took place on the ,feast
 of ,pentecost4  ,mother ,duchesne's    
eloquent appeals1 with those of ,father 
de ,smet1 prevailed with ,mother de     
,galitzin and the ,superior ,general4   
,the foundation was decided upon2 and   
likewise1 though after much hesitation1 
,mother ,duchesne1 in compliance with   
her eager desire1 was allowed to be one 
of the foundresses4 ,she was seventy-two
 years old at this time1 and suffering  

from many and painful infirmities1 but  
nothing could dampen her ardor2 and     
,father ,verhaegen1 when consulted about
 her going had said1 ,let her come1 even
 though we should have to carry her upon
 our shoulders4 ,her prayers1 her mere  
presence1 will draw down the blessing of
 ,heaven upon our ,mission4 ,the four   
foundresses were ,mother ,duchesne1     
,mother ,lucille ,mathevon1 who was to  
be the ,superior1 another choir         
religious1 and a ,canadian lay ,sister1 
who had had some experience in dealing  
with ,indians4 ,the whole party was     
under the leadership of ,father         
,verhaegen4  ,the ,pottowatomies        
testified their joy at the arrival of   
the little missionary band by going out 
to meet them in gala attire and in all  
their war paint4 ,the great red circles 
around their eyes gave them so ferocious
 an expression that the nuns were seized
 with terror1 except ,mother ,duchesne1 
who was beaming with joy1 like a mother 
meeting her beloved children after a    

long separation4 ,the task of the nuns  
was not an easy one4 ,they had to live  
at first in a hut which one of the      
,indians had vacated in their favor1 and
 to manage without the most elementary  
conveniences of civilized life2 for1    
grateful as their new charges were1 they
 had not yet been reclaimed from the    
ways and habits of savage life4 ,her    
companions experienced a certain        
revulsion of feeling during the first   
few days2 but ,mother ,duchesne herself 
was in the joy of her soul1 because she 
was among her dear savages1 and because 
of the poverty and exceptional hardships
 and repulsiveness of her surroundings1 
which responded to one of the most      
powerful attractions of grace in her    
soul4 ,in fact1 she had never before    
enjoyed so much sensible consolation1   
except1 perhaps1 at the time of her     
admission into the ,society of the      
,sacred ,heart4  ,she had hoped to take 
her share in the work of the little     
community1 and she even set herself     

courageously to the task of acquiring   
the language of the ,pottowatomies1 but 
she only succeeded in learning a few    
words and phrases4 ,these1 however1     
served her in good stead during the     
winter1 which was severer in those days 
than it is now4 ,the poor ,indians were 
as heedless and as lacking in foresight 
as children1 and did not know how to    
take care of themselves4 ,many of them  
fell sick of throat and lung diseases1  
and nearly one hundred of them died1 in 
spite of the best efforts of the        
,fathers and the nuns4 ,during this time
 ,mother ,duchesne was very assiduous in
 her care of them1 visiting them in     
their miserable huts1 assisting and     
consoling them in their sufferings1 and 
helping them to die piously4 ,at the    
same time she prayed ardently for these 
dear children of her heart4 ,they were  
touched beyond measure and would have   
laid down their lives for her4 ,to give 
expression to their gratitude and       
admiration1 they offered her the best   

things they could find--living birds1   
which they trapped1 meat from their     
hunting1 dried pumpkin1 ears of new     
corn1 when it was in season1 and eggs   
from the nests of the prairie hens4     
,they were delighted when they could    
offer these gifts to the ,great ,queen  
of the ,great ,spirit1 as they called   
her4 ,the other nuns were ,queens of the
 ,great ,spirit1 she was the ,great     
,queen4 ,but they also had another name 
for her4 ,they were struck with her     
appearance in prayer1 and impressed by  
her intense recollection and the length 
of time she devoted to it4 ,as her      
weakness increased so that she was      
compelled to give up her active work by 
degrees1 she prolonged her prayer1      
spending many hours every day before the
 ,blessed ,sacrament1 in her well-known 
motionless attitude4 ,the ,indians      
seeing her thus were filled with awe1   
and looking upon her as a being more    
than human1 they called her by a name   
which meant the woman who always prays4 

,they would steal up to her1 and        
kneeling down they would reverently kiss
 the hem of her dress1 and then withdraw
 as noiseless as shadows1 fearing to    
disturb her communings with the ,great  
,spirit4 ,mother de ,galitzin found her 
very much prostrated when she visited   
the mission1 in the spring of #ahdb1 but
 seeing her so happy where she was1 she 
had not the heart to remove her4 ,four  
months later1 however1 ,bishop ,peter   
,richard ,kenrick1 ,coadjutor of ,st4   
,louis1 having arrived there for his    
pastoral visitation1 and finding her so 
exhausted1 declared that to leave her   
there would be to condemn her to a      
speedy death1 and resolved to take her  
back with him4 ,this was the matter of a
 heroic sacrifice on her part1          
especially as she herself did not       
realize its necessity2 but seeing that  
his mind was made up1 she obeyed with a 
good grace4 ,he took her to ,st4        
,charles1 where she was welcomed with   
great rejoicings2 but her ,indians never

 forgot her1 and the religious who went 
later to share in the labors of the     
mission1 could bear testimony to the    
veneration in which she was held among  
them4 ,nor did she lose any of the      
interest she had always felt in them4   
,she continued to pray for them1        
appealing especially in their favor to  
her great patron1 ,st4 ,francis ,regis4 
,moreover1 she used all her influence in
 obtaining supplies for the mission1    
sending them clothes and bed quilts1    
which she made herself1 as also whatever
 suitable articles of piety were given  
to her by her friends4  ,at ,st4        
,charles1 ,mother ,duchesne had the     
consolation of finding the office of    
,superior held by ,mother ,regis        
,hamilton1 the dearest of the daughters 
she had trained in the way of           
perfection4 ,she could no longer do any 
hard work as of old1 but she employed   
her remaining strength in the service of
 ,god and of the community4 ,she        
presided at the studies of the children 

preparatory to their classes2 she taught
 the catechism to those of the servants 
who were without proper religious       
instruction1 and prepared them for the  
sacraments4 ,she was often seen engaged 
in the lighter household labors1 and    
even in the garden when the weather was 
favorable4 ,long after her death the    
nuns could point out the trees she had  
planted with her own hands4 ,we have    
already mentioned her occupation in     
making quilts for the ,indians1 and the 
same service she rendered also to the   
orphans of the ,st4 ,louis house4 ,her  
spirit of mortification showed no       
decrease as she grew in years4 ,indeed1 
it seemed to have reached the limit of  
possibility even from her youth1 and    
,mother ,hamilton wisely refrained from 
interfering with habits which1 through  
long practice1 had become a second      
nature4 ,many pages might be filled with
 touching anecdotes illustrating her    
regularity1 humility1 obedience1 zeal1  
and all the religious virtues she       

practised in so heroic a degree4 ,she   
spent1 as usual1 long hours in the      
chapel in prayer2 and on ,sundays1      
,feast-days1 ,first ,fridays1 and all   
,exposition days1 she scarcely left it  
at all4 ,so notable was her assiduity   
that the people of the town designated  
her as the ,sister of the ,blessed      
,sacrament4 ,here also she was sometimes
 seen with a supernatural light forming 
a halo around her head1 or shining upon 
her face4    ,,chapter ,,vii            
,,affection ,,for ,,mother ,,barat  ,her
 life1 to all outward appearances1      
flowed on quietly enough at ,st4        
,charles1 but it was marked by several  
heavy crosses4 ,the one which caused her
 the bitterest affliction1 and weighed  
upon her longest was the suspension of  
,mother ,barat's correspondence4 ,it    
began at the time of her return from the
 ,pottowatomie ,mission1 #ahdb1 and     
lasted until #ahdg4 ,her letters1 all   
but one1 reached ,mother ,barat2 but the
 first two written after her arrival at 

,st4 ,charles having remained           
unanswered1 she thought herself in      
disgrace with her ,mother ,general1 to  
whom she had always been so tenderly    
united1 and did not venture to write    
again except on one or two important    
occasions4 ,the silence of ,mother      
,barat1 or the suppression of her       
letters to ,mother ,duchesne1 if it     
really took place1 is a mystery which   
will probably never be explained4 ,the  
,superior ,general had no reason for    
displeasure against her old friend and  
one of her dearest daughters2 nor was   
there any one1 either in the ,mother    
,house or in ,st4 ,charles who could    
have any motive for intercepting her    
letters1 or was capable of conduct so   
unworthy and so cruel4 ,the motive which
 led ,mother ,duchesne to write to      
,mother ,barat in #ahdc1 and again in   
#ahdf1 was to save the houses of ,st4   
,charles and ,florissant from the       
suppression with which they were        
threatened4 ,the former escaped1 but the

 latter was closed1 to the great sorrow 
of the holy mother1 who grieved not from
 personal motives1 but because of the   
loss it would entail upon the poorer    
people of the town1 since it was the    
only ,catholic school in the place4     
,from the beginning the house of        
,florissant had been scarcely supporting
 itself2 and ,reverend ,mother ,cutts1  
the ,vicar1 thought it better to close  
it1 and so strengthen the other two     
communities4  ,in #ahdg a business      
affair required ,mother ,duchesne to    
write to the ,mother ,house4 ,this time1
 not venturing to address ,mother ,barat
 in person1 she directed her letter to  
one of the ,assistants ,general1 who was
 well known to her2 but her anguish of  
soul was too keen not to find expression
 in it4 ,the kind heart of the ,mother  
,general was filled with sympathy and   
compassion2 and as she was about to send
 to ,america1 ,mother ,aloysia ,jouve1 a
 niece of ,mother ,duchesne1 she        
directed her to go to ,st4 ,charles     

immediately on arriving1 in order to    
comfort her aunt by her presence4 ,at   
the same time she made her the bearer of
 a letter full of the warmest affection4
 ,mother ,duchesne's joy and gratitude  
were in proportion to the bitterness of 
her past sorrow1 and for the remaining  
years of her life1 her correspondence   
with her beloved ,mother ,general was   
all that her faithful heart could       
desire4 ,the latter often sent her      
presents1 which she knew the aged       
,mother would be happy to bestow upon   
the other houses1 or upon the ,indians1 
or upon the poor4  ,during the latter   
years of her life1 many of her most     
valued friends1 both in ,france and in  
,america1 passed into their eternity1   
among others ,father ,van ,quickenborne1
 and ,bishops ,dubourg and ,rosati1 with
 whom1 during so many years1 she had    
borne the heat and the burden of the    
day1 in the harvest field of her        
,missouri mission4 ,several times1 also1
 during those years1 she was tried by   

severe illness1 to say nothing of the   
infirmities which overtook her after her
 arrival in ,america1 and caused her a  
great deal of suffering without         
impairing her wonderful activity or     
inducing her to relax either in her     
austerities or in her devotions4 ,as she
 advanced in years1 though growing      
naturally weaker1 she was never idle for
 a moment4 ,when not on her knees in the
 chapel1 she was busy knitting1 seated  
with a prayer-book open before her1 in  
her narrow cell1 which to her great     
consolation1 was separated from the     
chapel only by a partition wall4        
,sometimes1 when the weather was fine1  
she would go and sit under an old       
pear-tree in the garden with her        
knitting4 ,this she would lay down now  
and then to take up her ,french hymn    
book1 and with a weak and quavering     
voice1 she would sing the beautiful     
hymns she had always loved4 ,one of     
them1 entitled ,beau ,ciel1 was her     
favorite1 for it gave expression to the 

longing of her soul for her eternal     
home4    ,,chapter ,,viii  ,,last ,,days
  ,her dear ,mother ,regis ,hamilton1   
whom she had found as ,superior at ,st4 
,charles1 on her return from the        
,pottowatomie ,mission1 was replaced    
three years later and sent to ,canada4  
,the aged ,mother missed her greatly1   
and when ,mother ,barat asked her at a  
later period1 what she could do to give 
her pleasure1 she begged for the return 
of ,mother ,regis1 though1 with her     
usual disinterestedness1 it was for the 
benefit of the community rather than her
 own1 that she desired it4 ,her petition
 was granted1 and on ,new ,year's ,day1 
#aheb1 it was with great joy and        
consolation that she welcomed back her  
beloved daughter4 ,mother ,regis was    
pained to find her venerable ,mother so 
worn and weak2 but the joy of the latter
 on having her dear ,mother ,regis with 
her again1 together with the tender and 
tactful care with which she was         
surrounded1 restored her strength to    

some extent and probably prolonged her  
life for a while4  ,two other           
consolations were given her at this     
time4 ,she learned that ,mother du      
,rousier was coming to the ,united      
,states as ,visitatrix1 and that ,father
 ,verhaegen1 who for twenty years had   
had all her confidence1 was come to ,st4
 ,charles as resident pastor4 ,during   
the following summer she was seized with
 a violent fever which1 though soon     
broken1 left her so debilitated that it 
was thought prudent to anoint her4 ,the 
next morning1 with her usual energy and 
fortitude1 she wrote three letters2 one 
to ,mother ,barat1 another to her       
sister1 and a third to ,father de ,smet4
 ,she realized that her end was now very
 near1 and she longed for the moment    
that would unite her to the ,god she had
 so ardently loved1 and so faithfully   
served during the whole of her long     
career4 ,but she awaited the call with  
the utmost patience and serenity of     
soul4 ,she still spent a great deal of  

time on her knees1 after her usual      
fashion1 before the ,tabernacle1 where  
she was now and then taken with a spell 
of weakness4 ,those who happened to be  
at hand would help her out1 but as soon 
as she had recovered she would return to
 her prayer as before4  ,to the last    
,mother ,regis ,hamilton was a          
ministering angel to her1 rendering her 
all the personal services1 that nothing 
but her weakness and exhaustion would   
have induced her to accept4 ,she lived1 
as it were1 in an atmosphere of peace1  
gratitude and love1 humble1 simple and  
docile as a little child4 ,faithful to  
her habits of mortification1 she would  
not consent to have a fire lighted in   
the little stove that had been placed in
 her room1 even when the chilly autumn  
days had come4  ,on the #agth of        
,november1 ,mother du ,rousier arrived1 
after traveling in great haste over a   
long distance1 and by very bad roads4   
,their meeting and the long and intimate
 communication that took place between  

these two holy souls was a great        
consolation to both1 and a source of    
light and strength for ,mother du       
,rousier in her great mission of        
foundress of the ,society of the ,sacred
 ,heart in ,south ,america4 ,a little   
combat of humility terminated the       
interview1 each claiming a blessing from
 the other1 and considering that it was 
not her place to give hers to any one so
 far above her4 ,the touching contest   
ended in a compromise1 and together they
 blessed each other4 ,then after        
exchanging their profession crosses1    
they parted1 looking forward to a future
 meeting in the realms of the ,blessed4 
,twenty-eight years went by before that 
happy meeting took place4  ,mother      
,duchesne had taken to her bed only the 
day before the greatly desired visit1   
and no one thought that her release was 
so immediately at hand4 ,for this reason
 it was that ,mother du ,rousier1 who   
had interrupted pressing business to    
hasten to her bedside1 left the same    

day1 ,november #ag4 ,the following night
 the venerable patient was very         
restless4 ,she could not sleep1 but kept
 repeating prayers with acts of faith1  
hope1 charity and contrition4 ,early in 
the succeeding forenoon1 ,father        
,verhaegen came to give her the last    
,sacraments and the indulgence in       
articulo mortis4 ,she continued to sink 
visibly from hour to hour1 but kept     
again and again repeating her prayers   
with the greatest ardor until exhaustion
 would compel her to stop4 ,then she    
would murmur expressions of gratitude   
for the charity of ,mother ,hamilton and
 the community4 ,finally1 she remained  
for a considerable time perfectly calm  
and united to ,god1 whispering once in a
 while the ejaculation1 ,jesus1 ,mary   
and ,joseph1 ,i give you my heart1 my   
soul1 and my life4 ,at last1 at noon    
exactly1 on ,november #ahth1 #aheb1 her 
pulse ceased to beat1 and all was over4 
,the ,religious felt that in her they   
had lost a treasure of holiness1 a      

shining model of the most heroic        
virtues1 and they could find consolation
 only in the thought that1 in her also1 
they had henceforth a powerful          
protectress in ,heaven4 ,the news of her
 decease spread rapidly throughout ,st4 
,charles and the surrounding country1   
profoundly stirring all hearts4 ,the    
,saint is dead6 ,oh1 what a loss for us6
 were the exclamations heard on all     
sides4 ,the ,religious and pupils who1  
with great emotion1 knelt in prayer     
about her remains were struck with the  
look of celestial serenity and happiness
 upon her features4 ,mother ,hamilton1  
convinced that she would one day be     
canonized1 wished to preserve her       
portrait for posterity4 ,the only artist
 in the place was a ,mr4 ,le ,faivre1   
who was in the last stages of           
tuberculosis and confined to his bed2   
but such was his veneration for the holy
 ,mother1 that he had himself dressed   
and carried over to the convent in an   
armchair4 ,there he took the ambrotype  

picture of her which is still extant1   
and then he was carried home again to   
die a few days later4  ,the funeral took
 place on the #bjth1 and was attended by
 a vast concourse of people from ,st4   
,louis1 ,st4 ,charles1 and all the      
country around4 ,mother ,hamilton1      
having still in view her future         
canonization1 buried her1 not in the    
common cemetery1 but quite near the     
church adjoining the convent1 and upon  
the slope of the low hill on which it   
stands4 ,some time after the crowd had  
dispersed1 a poor woman whom ,mother    
,duchesne had often assisted in many    
ways1 came running to the house full of 
joyful excitement4 ,her story was soon  
told4 ,she had lingered weeping and     
praying near the new-made grave1 when   
suddenly she had thought of asking      
,mother ,duchesne to intercede for her1 
that she might be freed from an         
inveterate and incurable malady that had
 been tormenting her for years4 ,no     
sooner had she uttered her petition than

 she was instantaneously and completely 
cured4 ,many other cures and graces of  
various kinds similarly obtained1       
contributed to confirm ,mother          
,duchesne's reputation for heroic       
sanctity1 and to inspire confidence in  
her intercession4  ,three years after   
her death1 there was question of opening
 a street through the convent grounds4  
,this would have separated from the     
house the spot where the holy religious 
was buried4 ,mother ,jacquet1 who was   
then ,superior1 determined to remove the
 precious remains to a little oratory to
 be built quite close to the entrance   
from the street in front4 ,when the     
grave was opened1 the lid of the cedar  
coffin was found to be in a decayed     
condition1 and the coffin itself was    
full of mud and water2 but the body was 
so perfectly preserved that every       
feature was recognizable1 and an        
ambrotype could again be taken1 ,october
 #bc1 #ahee4 ,this first exhumation was 
rendered more memorable by a signal     

occurrence1 which caused a great        
sensation in the general public4 ,this  
was the cure of a ,mrs4 ,anne ,king1 who
 was suffering from a cancer that had   
already eaten away a considerable part  
of her face4 ,the application of a relic
 of ,mother ,duchesne caused it to      
disappear completely1 leaving her face  
in its natural condition4 ,mrs4 ,king   
was from ,portage des ,sioux1 a village 
thirteen miles from ,st4 ,charles1 and  
the story of her wonderful cure is one  
of the traditions connected with the    
name of the holy ,mother4  ,twenty years
 later1 the little oratory needed       
repairs1 and it was thought advisable to
 ascertain the condition of the remains4
 ,this time1 nothing was found but a    
considerable part of the bones1 and a   
quantity of ashes4 ,these were          
transferred with all the ceremonies     
appointed by the ,church for such       
occasions1 to an iron coffer1 about a   
yard in length1 which was placed in the 
vault under the floor of the oratory1   

,june #ac1 #ahgf4  ,the third exhumation
 took place on ,january #bh1 #ahif1 on  
the occasion of the canonical           
authentication of the remains1 which was
 to close the ,ordinary ,process1 begun 
in ,st4 ,louis1 in ,may1 #ahie4 ,they   
were found just as they were when placed
 in the iron coffer twenty years        
previously1 except that the latter was  
full to the brim of water as pure as if 
it had been distilled4 ,this water was  
drained off and carefully kept2 and by  
the use of it several cures were        
obtained1 one of them a case of         
tuberculosis in its last stage4 ,after  
the ceremony1 the remains were restored 
to their resting place as before4 ,a    
fourth exhumation will take place at the
 close of the ,apostolic ,process begun 
at ,rome in ,april of #aiaa4  ,by the   
approbation of the ,ordinary ,process1  
and the regular introduction of her     
cause1 ,december #h1 #aiji1 ,mother     
,duchesne became entitled to the        
appellation of the ,venerable ,servant  

of ,god1 ,philippine ,duchesne4  ,a few 
words before closing1 concerning the    
work of ,venerable ,mother ,duchesne4   
,we have seen that she had personally   
founded six houses1 three in ,missouri  
and three in ,louisiana1 and also that  
the mission among the ,pottowatomies1   
was due in a great measure to her       
prayers and exertions4 ,just at the time
 of this last foundation1 the ,society  
of the ,sacred ,heart entered upon a    
period of rapid expansion1 and when the 
venerable ,mother died1 ten years later1
 it already counted sixteen houses in   
the ,united ,states and ,canada2 while  
now1 there are twenty-seven in the      
former country1 and five in the latter4 
,but the great tree1 of which ,mother   
,duchesne was the vigorous root1 spread 
its branches still further4 ,for she it 
was who had enkindled the sacred fire of
 the apostolic spirit in the heart of   
,mother du ,rousier who1 in the designs 
of ,god1 was to be the pioneer of the   
,sacred ,heart in the vast regions of   

,south ,america4    ,,chapter ,,ix      
,,some ,,fruits ,,of ,,her ,,work  ,when
 ,mother ,duchesne with her companions1 
was on her way to ,bordeaux to take     
passage for the ,new ,world1 she stopped
 at the convent of ,poitiers4 ,there1 as
 everywhere1 her enterprise excited the 
deepest interest and admiration4 ,the   
children were1 of course1 eager to see  
and hear her2 and1 in the youthful crowd
 that gathered around her full of       
expectancy1 there was one child1 not yet
 in her 'teens1 broad-browed1 and with  
eyes full of earnest thoughtfulness4 ,as
 she listened to the burning words of   
the missionary1 she caught the glow of  
her holy enthusiasm1 and felt that she  
too would one day be called to follow in
 her footsteps4 ,this child was ,anna du
 ,rousier4 ,when next she saw ,mother   
,duchesne1 it was at the deathbed of the
 latter1 as already related4 ,when she  
came to ,america1 it was with the       
understanding that1 after giving a year 
to the visitation of the houses of the  

,society1 she would proceed to ,south   
,america1 and see how conditions were in
 various places of that part of the     
world1 where foundations had been asked 
for4 ,it can not be doubted that she    
earnestly recommended her future mission
 to ,mother ,duchesne1 and received from
 her a fervent promise that she would   
intercede for it4 ,the year following   
her deathbed interview with the saintly 
,mother she received orders to set out  
for ,santiago de ,chili under the       
guidance and protection of a small      
company of ,chilian priests bound for   
that city1 and to begin a foundation    
there4 ,when this order reached her1    
,god permitted that she should be seized
 with so violent a repugnance for this  
mission that1 though she did not for a  
moment think of offering any objections1
 it was only after spending an entire   
night on her knees before the ,blessed  
,sacrament1 in agonized struggles and   
supplications to her ,divine ,master1   
that ,he stilled the tempest of         

temptation1 and gave her the victory4   
,mother du ,rousier was a character of  
heroic type1 worthy of a place beside   
even such women as ,mother ,barat and   
her great daughter1 ,mother ,duchesne4  
,it was after a long and dangerous      
journey1 with ,mother ,mary ,mc,nally1  
an ,american professed from the ,new    
,york ,vicariate1 and one lay sister1   
that she reached her destination1 and   
began the foundation at ,santiago in    
#ahec4 ,at her death in #ahhj1 two years
 after celebrating its silver jubilee1  
she left five houses1 four in ,chili and
 one in ,peru1 while a sixth was in     
preparation in the city of ,buenos      
,aires4 ,at the present time there are  
two ,vicariates on the ,south ,american 
continent1 and a house at ,bogota1 in   
the ,republic of ,colombia4  ,we have   
still to speak of two other offshoots1  
sprung from the same root as the ,north 
and ,south ,american ,vicariates4 ,these
 are the ,vicariates of ,mexico and     
,oceania4 ,the former is due1 under the 

direction of the ,superior ,general of  
the ,society1 to the enterprise and     
devotedness of the then ,vicar of       
,louisiana1 ,reverend ,mother ,elizabeth
 ,moran1 at that time residing in ,grand
 ,coteau1 ,mother ,duchesne's second    
foundation1 of which she had been a     
pupil4 ,with a few companions from her  
own ,vicariate1 she began the foundation
 of ,mexico in #ahhb4 ,about seventeen  
years later when she was removed to     
another field of labor1 she left behind 
her a fully organized ,vicariate        
comprising eight houses1 including two  
in ,havana and one in ,puerto ,rico1 all
 founded by herself except the          
boarding-school of ,havana1 which was   
the work of that other great religious1 
,mother ,aloysia ,hardey1 who was       
herself a pupil of ,grand ,coteau1 and  
the foundress of most of the ,eastern   
houses of the ,society4  ,perhaps the   
most remarkable of the ,religious of the
 ,sacred ,heart trained by ,mother      
,duchesne in person1 was ,mother ,anna  

,shannon1 who was such a power in       
,louisiana1 especially during the ,civil
 ,war4 ,she was then in charge of the   
,vice-,vicariate of ,louisiana and      
resided in ,st4 ,michael's1 while not   
far away1 also fronting the ,mississippi
 ,river1 stood the old-time ,jefferson  
,college1 which the calamities of the   
time had closed4 ,the war was not yet   
over when it was reopened by a band of  
,french ,marist ,fathers1 invited by    
,bishop ,odin1 and ,madame ,shannon1 as 
she was generally called1 with the      
warmhearted liberality that             
characterized her1 gave them every      
assistance in her power4 ,they became   
the chaplains of the convent1 and were  
the kindest of neighbors4 ,ten or twelve
 years later1 ,father ,chataignier1 one 
of the ,fathers who had reopened the    
college1 was engaged in missionary work 
in ,new ,zealand4 ,having been consulted
 by ,archbishop ,redwood of ,wellington1
 as to the religious ,congregation to   
which it would be advisable to entrust  

the academy for girls he wished to found
 in his diocese1 the good ,father at    
once proposed the ,society of the       
,sacred ,heart4 ,the negotiations which 
followed resulted in the foundation of  
,timaru1 made in person by ,reverend    
,mother ,suzanna ,boudreau1 who had also
 been educated at ,grand ,coteau1 and   
had succeeded ,reverend ,mother ,anna   
,shannon as ,vicar of ,louisiana4 ,at   
this time1 however1 she was in charge of
 the ,vicariate of the ,west and toward 
the end of #ahgi she set out with a     
little band of her own daughters1 for   
the first foundation of the ,society of 
the ,sacred ,heart in ,oceania4 ,mother 
,boudreau was to have returned to ,st4  
,louis as soon as it was organized2 but 
early in the following year1 an acute   
laryngitis carried her off in a few     
days4 ,this sorrowful event placed the  
stamp of the cross upon the new-born    
foundation1 which has since grown into a
 ,vicariate of ten houses1 including the
 two recently established day schools in

 ,japan1 at ,tokio and ,kobe4  ,sixty   
years have gone by since ,venerable     
,mother ,duchesne was laid away to rest1
 close to the old ,rock ,church         
adjoining the convent of ,st4 ,charles2 
but she still lives in the memory of the
 people among whom she toiled1 and      
prayed1 and suffered4 ,in the convent1  
the staircase that cut off a large      
corner of her cell has been removed to  
another place2 and that narrow little   
room1 still known as ,mother ,duchesne's
 ,cell1 has been converted into a       
sanctuary in which are kept all the     
mementoes of the holy mother1 which have
 not found their way elsewhere4         
,conspicuous among those remaining at   
the convent1 is the picture of ,st4     
,francis ,regis1 which in fulfillment of
 a vow1 she had placed above the altar  
of the ,church at ,florissant4 ,in the  
community1 her virtues are still        
recalled1 and her actions recounted4    
,the little oratory in the front garden1
 often sees the religious on their knees

 in prayer1 beside her tomb1 and it is  
likewise piously frequented by people of
 the town1 and of the neighboring       
country1 as also by pilgrims from ,st4  
,louis and elsewhere4 ,her name is a    
household word among the ,catholics of  
,missouri1 and her pupils and their     
descendants have borne it with them1    
wherever the vicissitudes of life have  
carried them4 ,even the remnants of the 
,pottowatomie tribe1 now located in the 
,indian ,territory1 still speak with    
veneration of ,the woman who prays      
always1 whom it was the happiness of    
their grandfathers to have known4 ,she  
is one of the traditions of the country1
 and has left a stamp upon it so        
strongly marked that even the casual    
traveler1 if at all observant1 can not  
fail to notice it4 ,catholic ,france has
 had a very considerable share in the   
upbuilding of the ,catholic ,church in  
this country1 through the labors of so  
many heroic missionaries whom she sent  
out to us1 even in the midst of her     

struggles against persecution at home4  
,and among the many gifts by which she  
has acquired a title to the gratitude of
 ,american ,catholics1 one of the       
greatest was the ,venerable ,philippine 
,duchesne4    ,,the ,,frank ,,meany     
,,co41 ,,printers4 ,,inc41 ,,new ,,york