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 EWEI-CHOU

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KWEI-CHOU

Motte Lambert. The priosts of the Missions Etran- geres then preached there together with the Jesuits, the Franciscans, and tlie Doniiiiicans. From l(iS2 to 1710, Mgr de Guemi'ner and Fathers de Cicc and Diicarpon estal)lislied themselves at Canton and Shin- chou. The tomb of Mf;v de (iuemener (d. 1704) is at Shin-chou, as is also that of Pcre Lirot (d. 1720). When the persecution of Emperor Yong-ching broke out in 1732 there were 30,000 Christians in the prov- ince of Kwang-tung, but all the missionaries were then expelled.

From that time until 1S44, when Mgr de Lagrenee obtained the proclamation of religious liberty, the missionaries did not enter Kwang-tung except in disguise. The bishops of Macao had meanwhile re- gained jurisdiction over the provmce, but the number of Christians tended by native priests had fallen to 7000 or SOOO. On 30 September, 1848, the Congre- gation of the Propaganda confided this mission to the Soci^te des Missions Etrangeres de Paris without removing all jurisdiction from the Bishop of Macao. Father Libois, procurator of the Societe at Hong- Kong, was named prefect Apostolic, and Father Guille- min was the first missionary sent to the province. The progress was slow at first: there were 115 bap- tisms of adults in 1S51, 214 in 1S54. In 1853 Father Guillemin was named prefect Apostolic instead of Father Libois. A persecution broke out, and seven missionaries were arrested and thrown in prison. Difficulties having arisen with Macao, Rome put an end to them on 8 Aug., 1S56, by nominating Father Guillemin Bishop of Cybistra in partibus infidelium, and by giving him on 17 September, 1858, com- plete jurisdiction over Kwang-tung, Kwang-si, and Hainan. In 1856 Blessed Auguste Chapdelaine was martyred in Kwang-si with two companions. Blessed Laurence Pe-mu and Blessed Agnes Chow- kong.

As the result of the Anglo-French expedition, which ended in the taking of Peking, a treaty was signed on 25 October, 1860. This was the signal for wider liberty for the missionaries. In compensation for the churches which had been destroyed and the property which had been taken from the mission, the bishop obtained the site of the ancient palace of the viceroy, on which were built the seminary and orphanages. With the assistance of Napoleon III and the Catholics of France was also built the fine cathedral of Canton, one of the most beautiful religious monuments of the Far East. A chapel in honour of St. Francis Xavier was built at Shang-ch'wan, and this island became a place of pilgrimage for the faithful of Hong-Kong, Macao, and Canton. Baptisms became more numer- ous, amounting to 740 in 1862 and to 922 in 1867. There were some troubles in 1868 and 1869. In 1875 the Province of Kwang-si was separated from the Mission of Kwang-tung, while the island of Hai-nan and the district of Heung-shan were ceded to the Dio- cese of Macao. Three districts were given to the priests of the Missions Etrangeres de Milan, who were established at Hong-Kong. The mission then ministered to 15,000 Catholics; in 1880 it had 23,730 under its care. In 1881, Mgr Guillemin, worn out with labour, left Mgr Chausse, titularBishop of Capsa, in charge of the mission. In 1884, at the time of the war of Tongking, the missionaries were orderetl to discontinue the mission, and had to stay at Hong- Kong for nearly a year. The Christian establish- ments of Canton were destroyed. The districts of Shun-tak, Sha-tan, Shin-hing, Tong-kun were laid waste, but it is worthy of remark that the districts nearest Tongking suffered the least. In some of these the missionaries were able to remain throughout the hostilities. On the restoration of peace the mis- sionaries and the Christians who had followed them returned to the country. No indemnity was granted either to the missionaries or the Christians, on the

pretext that the French wouU not restore the vessels sunk at Fu-chau.

The report for 1889 gives 1 bishop, 43 missionaries, 7 native priests, 150 churches or chapels, 1 seminary with 30 students, 135 schools or orphanages with 2067 pupils, 28,852 Catholics. In 1894 and 1895, during the war between China and Japan, there were some disorders. A missionary was besieged for nine days in a Christian village by a band of soldiers returning from Formosa, and the mandarin of the place had to pay several thousand dollars to induce the soldiers to raise the siege. After the war there was a great conversion movement which lasted several years, especially at Kit-yeung ami Tong-kun. In 1898 Father Chanes was slain with eight Christians in liis district of Pok-lo. In 1900, during the Boxer uprisings, several mission- aries were ordered by the viceroy, then the famous Li Hung Chang, to leave the province, but they all re- mained at their post. However, in September, when the troops of the allies had been in Peking a month, the chief Christian settlements of Shun-tak, Sha-tan, and Tong-kun were destroyed and the chapels burned by the populace. Mgr Chausse, who was ill, could not survive these disasters, and died a few days later. However, the arrival at Canton of European and American warships soon brought the pillagers to rea- son. In 1901 Mgr Merel was named Bishop of Orcisto and Prefect Apostolic of Kwang-tung. In January, 1902, Father JuUen was assassinated with his two servants at Ma-tsz-han, a district of Chi-hing on the frontiers of Kiang-si. In 1905 five American Presby- terian missionaries were massacred at Lin-chou, on the borders of Hu-nan, by an infuriated populace. Since then peace has lasted. The inhabitants of Kwang-tung seem to have a decided leaning towards the things of Europe and America. Numerous stu- dents go to be educated in Japan, the LTnited States, and Europe. Mgr Merel has founded the College of the Sacred Heart, to teach English and French to the Chinese without distinction of religion. The number of students exceeds 250.

In 1908 the mission of Kwang-tung ceded to the Diocese of Macao the civil prefecture of Shin-hing and the two districts of Yang-ping and Yeung-tsum, he- longing to Shin-hing at the time of the fuhnination of the decree by the Holy See, instead of which the Island of Hai-nan was given to the Prefecture Apostolic of Kwang-tung. But, as Shin-hing possesses more than 2500 Catholics, wliile the Island of Hai-nan has only 300 or 400, it will be readily understood why the re- ports of the Mission of Kwang-tung number less Cath- olics in 1908 than in 1907. The statistics for the two years are as follows: 1907, 65 missionaries, 20 native priests, 66 seminarians, 455 churches and chapels, 210 schools, 2050 pupils, 2037 baptisms of adults, 7002 baptisms of pagan cliildren, 60,000 Catholics; 1908, 73 missionaries, 24 native priests, 70 seminarians, 484 churches and chapels, 250 schools, 3500 pupils, 2214 baptisms of adults, 9586 baptisms of children of pa- gans, 58,917 Catholics to about 30,000,000 pagans.

Launay. HisloiTe de la SociHt: des Missions Etrangires: Idem, Atlas des Missions de la Sociite des Missions Etrangires; Catholic Missions (New York, July, 1909); Comptes rendus de la Societe des Missions Etrangires (1907 -S).

V. H. MONTANAB.

Kwei-chou, Vic.\biate Apostolic of. — The mis- sion of Kwei-chou embraces the entire province of that name. The country is very mountainous and is principally inhabited by Chinese emigrants from other provinces and the race of aborigines known under the generic term of Miao-tze, who are subdivided into numerous tribes. The Faith was carried for the first time into Kwei-chou by a Portuguese Jesuit towards the end of the sixteenth centiu'v. The first vicar Apostolic of the Paris Society of Foreign Missions, Mgr Pallu, was created a<lministrator of Kwei-chou in 1658. In 1708 Father Claude Visdelou was made