USA > New York > Niagara County > History of the Seminary of Our Lady of Angels : Niagara University, Niagara County, N.Y., 1856-1906 > Part 21
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" The celebration began with a solemn high Mass, at which Very Rev. Father Kavanagh was celebrant. Right Rev. S. V. Ryan, of Buffalo, was present in cope and mitre. The assistants at the Mass were Revs. Jas. O'Connor and F. J. Henneberry as deacon and sub- deacon respectively. The deacons of honor to the Rt. Rev. Bishop were Revs. J. Nugent and M. Taylor. Rev. J. J. Mallen acted as first master of ceremonies, while Rev. Thos. H. Barrett held the posi- tion of second master of ceremonies. The sermon was preached by Rev. Martin Carroll. It was an eloquent effort and worthy of the speaker. In words of feeling and deep conviction he traced the history of Niagara from the days of its early trials and struggles down to its present prosperous condition and high standing. Touch- ing, indeed, was the tribute paid to the present Head of the University, through whose untiring devotion and care is due in a large measure the success that has crowned Niagara's educational career. Delicately did he picture the loyalty and love that Father Kavanagh always manifested towards his spiritual father, Saint Vincent. It must have made his noble heart burn with joy as he heard expressed so eloquently the sentiments of esteem in which he is held by all his brother priests and by those not numbered among the clergy. In glowing words did the preacher allude to the many glori- ous traits in Father Kavanagh's character, traits, too, that are known so well to every one who has had the good fortune of experiencing his guiding hand. Deeply moved were the attending priests and lay- men who, with all their hearts and souls, readily assented to every word the speaker uttered. Fervent were the prayers offered during the solemn sacrifice that the choicest blessings of heaven would fall upon the celebrant, and that many happy and fruitful years might
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be added to those already passed by him in the exercise of his sacred functions.
" Shortly after Mass the committee in charge of the order of exercises for the day requested Father Kavanagh and the visitors, together with the students of the junior and senior departments, to repair to the Shakespearian Hall. When all had assembled, the entry of Father Kavanagh was the signal for an ovation. It would seem that the ardor of all had been confined so long that now, when the opportunity came at last, the pent-up enthusiasm of years had broken forth. On the stage with Father Kavanagh were the Rt. Rev. Bishop Ryan, of Buffalo; Very Rev. H. Behrens, Buffalo; Dr. J. Cronyn, of the Medical Fauclty ; Rev. J. J. Mallen, Brooklyn ; Rev. L. A. Lambert, Rev. Jas. O'Connor, of Rochester ; and Rev. D. Walsh, Buffalo. The exercises were opened by a congratulatory address from the students of the study hall, read by Mr. E. L. Dondanville. Occasion was taken here to present to their President a handsome mis- sal and stand.
" It now came the seminarians' turn, and Mr. J. H. Walsh, in a few well-chosen and happy remarks, expressed the well wishes of the students of the senior department, and in their name presented a golden chalice. Dr. John Cronyn, of Buffalo, then arose, and ex- pressing the pleasure he experienced in representing his profession on the present occasion, handed to Father Kavanagh the following address presented by the Medical Department of Niagara University : "'Very Reverend and Dear Father Kavanagh:
"'Considering that the Medical Department of Niagara Uni- versity owes you much for the great interest you have always mani- fested in its success, and that an opportunity is now afforded to show the appreciation of its Faculty towards you while celebrating a jubilee of years of good and faithful labor, we beg to offer our congratula- tions, and a small mite in addition to the larger gifts of others, with the fervent hope that your years may be long in the service you so nobly adorn.
Buffalo, October 14, 1891.
JOHN CRONYN, M. D., PH. D., President. For the Faculty.'
" When the applause that greeted the address had died away, the Rev. M. J. Dorney, of Chicago, stepped upon the stage, and for over half an hour held the large assemblage in rapt attention. The gifted orator was never in a happier mood, and allowed the feelings excited in his breast by the occasion to take form and come from his
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lips in bursts of eloquence. This was truly the speech of the day. The love and attachment of 'Old Niagara's' students for Father Kavanagh was clearly pictured and the reasons for his endearment enumerated and explained. The kindly care of Niagara's President for those in his charge was commented upon, as well as those distinct- ive marks of a nature at once pure, simple, and manly. The speaker pictured his idea of the ideal man, and could not find a single quality that was not strongly marked in him whom he considered it the great- est honor to be permitted to address. In concluding, he desired, on behalf of the Western Alumni, to congratulate the very reverend gen- tleman, and to offer as a slight token of the good will and esteem of Niagara's Western sons a purse of $1,500.
" When the applause that greeted Father Dorney at the close of his remarks had sufficiently subsided, Rev. Nelson H. Baker stepped forward. In words of the deepest feeling and gratitude he expressed the debt of love and thankfulness that all present owed to Father Kavanagh. The distinction, he said, had been conferred upon him of speaking in the name of the Eastern Alumni, and that it was his pleasant duty to present in their behalf a small token as a pledge of the esteem and love they bear for their former Professor and Presi- dent. The gift proved to be a purse of $3,500.
" Little did the noble assemblage dream of what was yet in store for Father Kavanagh. Rt. Rev. Bishop Ryan, seizing the opportu- nity, came forward, and was received with the wildest enthusiasm. He had a gift, he said, for his dear friend and former confrere which he was sure would be more heartily appreciated by him than anything that could possibly be given. It was nothing less than the Papal ben- ediction, which he had been empowered to grant Father Kavanagh.
"Father Kavanagh's overflowing heart could not contain itself any longer, and he rose to convey his sincerest thanks for the many tokens of esteem he had received. Eloquent, indeed, were the words as they poured from that noble heart. Never did man receive a heartier welcome than did the honored President of Niagara. With the tenderest feeling he alluded to his past connection with Niagara's Alumni, and proclaimed his attachment to them and his interest in their welfare. In alluding to the several purses that had been given him, he requested that they be employed in founding a scholarship in the University. This, however, was not the will of the donors, and they requested Father Kavanagh to use the money for whatever pur- pose he desired.
"Among the presents which were laid on a large table in front of
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the stage, as well as around the front of the platform, were the fol- lowing: An elegant missal and stand from the students of the junior department; a gold chalice, seminarians; pyx and oil stocks, Sisters of Charity, Edward Street, Buffalo; cut glass cruets on silver stand, Sisters of St. Joseph, Suspension Bridge; large silver tilting water pitcher, Albany Orphan Asylum; beautifully bound missal, Rt. Rev. S. V. Ryan ; silver water pitcher, Mrs. P. J. Doran, Baltimore; silver inkstand, Rev. J. W. Moore, C. M.,; silver snuff box, Rev. J. J. Talley, C. M .; cruets and silver stand, Mr. Thomas Kavanagh, Buffalo; picture of St. Vincent in elegant silver frame, Sisters of St. Vincent's Orphan Asylum, Syracuse; silver watch, Niagara Fac- ulty; two elegant chairs, Mr. Jas. O'Donoghue, Rochester, and Sisters of St. Joseph, Suspension Bridge; ivory cross tipped with silver, six large framed pictures of Cardinal and Bishops, Mr. J. McBride; easy chair, Mr. and Mrs. Albert, Baltimore; silver topped blotter, Miss Alice Kavanagh; silver watch charm, Sister Virginia, Chicago; silver medallion, Industrial School, Albany; card basket with chaplets, Sisters of Charity, Troy; silver topped cut glass inkstand and silver pen, and a beautifully embossed testimonial from Niagara's students now in Brooklyn Seminary.
"At the banquet which followed the meeting the different toasts responded to were : 'Father Kavanagh,' Rev. J. O'Connor; 'Our Country,' Hon. James Duncan; 'Niagara Laity,' Rev. L. Er- hardt ; 'Niagara in the West,' Rev. J. Nugent; 'Niagara's Early Struggles in Journalism,' Rev. J. J. Mallen. Songs were sung by Mr. E. Kelly and Rev. J. McIncrow.
"Among the guests were noticed: Bishop Ryan, Rt. Rev. Mgr. Gleason, Very Revs. J. McGill and J. F. O'Hare, Revs. J. Mallen, J. Killahey, J. O'Hara, W. Power, J. Durick, J. Hartnett, A. O'Rourke, M. Carroll, M. Dennison, and Dr. Creamer, Brooklyn. From Buffalo diocese were: Revs. C. O'Byrne, T. Carraher, R. G. O'Connell, M. Pyne, P. Mullaney, M. Noonan, J. Gar- diner, N. Gibbons, P. Grant, Dr. Donohue, A. Bachmann, J. Fen- ger, W. Wilber, J. Schaus, J. McGloin, L. Smith, J. Dealy, P. Connery, M. Darcy, A. Barlow, D. English, T. Haire, T. Brougham, J. Biden, W. McNab, M. O'Dwyer, J. Cain, T. Koz- lowski, J. Gleason, J. Baxter, P. Hoelscher, D. D., T. Hines, R. M. Barrett, O. M. I., Dr. Quigley, P. Cannon, E. McDermott, Frs. Sestor, J. Sheehan, J. Roche, J. Leddy, M. Kean, F. Naughten, P. Berkery, P. Milde, F. Sullivan, D. Walsh, N. Baker, D. Daley, T. Barrett, M. O'Shea, R. O'Donoghue, C. Shaus, D. O'Brien;
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Messrs. E. Kelly, W. Corcoran, J. McCarthy ; L. Hanley, M. D., J. Kavanagh, M. Lyons, Drs. J. Cronyn and G. Fell, Buffalo; P. Ga- vin, J. Reiger, F. McKenna, J. Lynch, Niagara Falls; E. Laurier, Dr. Talbot, Suspension Bridge. Chicago diocese was represented by Revs. F. Henneberry, P. Conway, T. Smith, D. McCaffrey, M. Dor- ney, M. F. Sullivan, A. Horan, M. Dinneen, F. Lynch, J. Walsh, J. Morrissey, J. O'Brien, F. J. Quinn, M. Foley, J. Hynes, F. Lynde, as also Messrs. O. Walsh, J. Vidvard, Hon. J. Duncan, Charles Plamondon, E. Cummings, T. Durkin. From other points: Revs. J. Gilchrist, and J. Nugent, Iowa; W. Ryan, J. Dolan, J. Halpin, J. Adler, Mr. Chas. Sutherland, Syracuse; Revs. F. Howard A. Cush, Dr. J. Gallagher, Cleveland ; Revs. M. Ryan, Watkins ; T. F. Carroll, Providence, R. I .; T. J. Sullivan, Thorold, Ont .; Leo Hal- lin, Ivy Mills, Pa .; Revs. P. McHale, and J. Landry, Germantown, Pa .; M. Cavanaugh, New Orleans; J. W. Moore, Baltimore; W. Casey, Palmyra, N. Y .; L. A. Lambert, Scottsville, N. Y .; J. J. Gormeley, Renova, Pa .; R. J. Powers, Cohoes, N. Y .; J. O'Connor, Seneca Falls, N. Y .; J. Davis, Lawrence, Mass .; J. McIncrow, Amsterdam, N. Y.
" We publish below a few of the letters of regret received by Father Kavanagh. They explain themselves :
ST. MICHAEL's PALACE, Toronto, Oct. 12, 1891.
MY DEAR FATHER KAVANAGH :
I regret exceedingly that I shall not be able to be with you on the 14th inst. to join your hosts of friends in their heartfelt congratula- tions, and to testify to you my deep respect and esteem for you as a man and as a priest. The sad occasion of the celebration of the month's mind of my only brother in the Cathedral here on Wednesday next is the cause that prevents me from being present with you on that day. I wish you a most happy celebration, and I say to you ex imo corde ad multos annos.
Believe me to be with sincere esteem, faithfully yours in Xt, JOHN WALSH, Archbishop of Toronto.
DIOCESE OF COLUMBUS, Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 13, 1891.
VERY REV. P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Dear Friend,- I thank you very cordially for your kind invi- tation to attend the Silver Jubilee of your ordination to-morrow ; and I regret very much that I must forego the pleasure and the honor of
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taking part in it. It has long been my desire to pay you a visit at Niagara, and I had anticipated doing so on the occasion of your Jubi- lee. Receive my warm congratulations, however, and, as in a case like yours, the anniversary should be an occasion also of thanksgiving to Almighty God on the part of all your friends for the good work that twenty-five years of faithful and zealous service, especially in the cause of Catholic higher education, have accomplished. I unite with my felicitations to you a fervent act of thanksgiving to our Lord for your ministry in behalf of ecclesiastical as well as secular educa- tion. I hope that you will be long preserved to illustrate the Church in the United States by still more fruitful labor, and that you may live to see at least your Golden Jubilee. I think if any of your fellow workers in the ministry have reason to be grateful to you, they are the Bishops, to whom you have furnished so many pious and efficient assistants. Hoping again that your Jubilee may be the occasion of many encouragements to you from men, and consolations from God, I remain sincerely yours in Xt,
JOHN A. WATTERSON, Bishop of Columbus.
EPISCOPAL RESIDENCE, $1 and SS Washington Avenue, Detroit, Mich., Oct. 14, 1891.
VERY REV. P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Very Rev. Dear Friend,-Your kind invitation was on my desk when I returned home last evening. It would afford me great pleas- ure to attend the celebration, but I am prevented by home engage- ments. Permit me to offer my hearty congratulations on the happy event.
Yours faithfully in Xt, JOHN FOLEY, Bishop of Detroit.
ST. PATRICK'S CHURCH, Hartford, Conn., Oct. 11, 1891.
VERY REV. FATHER KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Your kind invitation to your Silver Jubilee is to hand. I am sorry I cannot be present, for many reasons. I always like to honor a veteran of the fold, but, as you know, my labors for the last nine months have been overpowering. All I can say is to wish you many years of future usefulness, good health, and happiness.
Yours very sincerely, JAS. HUGHES, V. G., Administrator.
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ST. JOSEPH'S CHURCH, Albany, N. Y., Oct. 18, 1891.
VERY REV. AND DEAR FATHER KAVANAGH :
Accept my most heartfelt thanks for your formal and for your very kind personal invitation to the celebration of your Silver Jubilee. It would afford me the greatest pleasure to present you my congratu- lations in person, but I will not be able to enjoy that privilege. I must therefore content myself with uniting with all your friends in offering you my most sincere and warm congratulations upon the happy completion of twenty-five years in the sacred ministry. Pray- ing that God in His infinite mercy may spare you for many years to come, in order to labor for the advancement of higher education and the extension of our Holy Faith, I remain, Very Rev. and Dear Father Kavanagh, Yours very sincerely, THOMAS M. A. BURKE.
MT. ST. MARY'S COLLEGE, Mt. St. Mary's P. O., Near Emmitsburg, Md., Oct. 11, 1891.
VERY REV. P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Very Rev. Dear Father,-Your kind invitation to be present at the celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of your ordination has just been received. I wish I were free to accept it, for it would afford me great pleasure to be with you on this happy occasion. I have some duties to attend to this week which will not allow me to go so far from home. Thanking you for the invitation, and praying that God may grant you many years to continue your work at the head of the noble institution over which you have for years presided with great success, I remain, Very Rev. Father,
Sincerely yours in Xt, EDW. P. ALLEN, President.
CARMELITE MONASTERY, Falls View, Ont., Oct. 12, 1891.
VERY REV. AND DEAR FR. KAVANAGH :
Our whole community joins me in offering you at the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of your ordination our most cordial congratulations. May God preserve your useful life for many years to come, and allow you to celebrate a Golden Jubilee on earth before you celebrate in Heaven. Yours sincerely in Christ,
A. J. KREIDT, O. C. C.
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ST. PATRICK'S CHURCH, Brooklyn, N. Y., Oct. 11, 1891.
VERY REV. P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Very Rev. Dear Sir,-I beg to acknowledge the receipt on the 9th inst. of your very kind invitation to the celebration of your Sil- ver Jubilee. I should consider it an honor, as it would, indeed, be a great pleasure to me, to be one of the many friends who will greet you on the joyous occasion, but the circumstances in which I am just now placed deprive me of all this gratification. I pray you to accept, however, my hearty congratulations and sincere wishes that the Gold- en Jubilee of your ordination will find you in health and vigor in the great work in which you are engaged, if not in a more exalted sphere.
Very sincerely and respectfully, THOS. TAAFE.
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH RECTORY, Utica, N. Y., Oct. 12, 1891.
DEAR FATHER KAVANAGH:
Thanking you very much for your kind invitation, I regret that my engagements are such as to make it impossible for me to take part in the happy festivities. Please accept my heartfelt congratu- lations, with the wish that your years may be lengthened out until the golden comes to take the place of the Silver Jubilee.
I remain, yours sincerely in Christ, J. S. M. LYNCH.
ST. JOSEPH'S CHURCH, Albany, October 10, 1891.
MY DEAR FATHER KAVANAGH:
Until to-day I was confident I would be with you ; now I find to my regret I cannot go. Well, God bless you. I am certain I will meet you at the Golden Jubilee. How pleasant that will be! Meantime wishing you health and blessing, I am sincerely yours,
M. SHEEHAN.
CATHEDRAL OF THE HOLY NAME, Chicago, Oct. 12, 1891.
VERY REV. P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Dear Father Kavanagh,-I regret very much that it will be im- possible for me to be present at the celebration of your twenty-fifth anniversary. Up to the present time I hoped to be one of Niagara's
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Western sons who could personally offer his congratulations to you on this occasion ; but as I was sick some time during the past couple of months, and only yesterday got out of bed after a relapse, the doctor thinks it would be absolutely dangerous for me to travel, and nothing but such a circumstance could prevent me from being pres- ent. Though absent, I consider myself second to none in the sin- cerity of the heartfelt congratulations I send you to-day. I shall be with you in spirit and shall offer the Holy Sacrifice on that morn- ing for your intention, and shall not forget to pray that God may make your life as useful and fruitful of good in future as it has been in the past. Accept my sincere congratulations, with the earnest hope that I may be able to attend the celebration of your Golden Jubilee.
Very sincerely, JAMES M. SCANLAN.
ST. VINCENT'S SEMINARY, Germantown, Pa., Oct. 12, 1891.
VERY REV. P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M .:
Most Esteemed Confrere,- Gratia Domini nostri sit semper no- biscum! At this time thousands of testimonials of esteem, reverence, and love are pouring in upon you from a host of sincere friends. Thousands like ourselves are rejoicing because God has spared you to complete a quarter of a century of valuable labor in one of the choicest portions of the Lord's vineyard. So far-reaching is the in- fluence of that labor that we do not hesitate to say that there is not a place in the land which does not with gratitude acknowledge its salutary effects. Hundreds of devoted priests remember with deepest gratitude the one who watched over them and guided them during the long years of study that prepared them to ascend the altar. Pro- fessional men are everywhere to be found who can never forget him under whose immediate care they received the knowledge which enables them to hold the first places among the masters of their respective professions. Hundreds of these will return to "Old Niagara " to rejoice with you on this twenty-fifth anniversary of your ordination, and to join with you in thanking God for the blessings He has be- stowed on you, and on themselves through you. We, who address these few lines to you, will be unable to be present on that joyous occasion. Perhaps it is well it should be so, for in such a gath- ering, notwithstanding the hearty welcome we know we would receive, we could not but feel out of place.
Hence we write these few lines, not only to testify that we are
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rejoicing with your numberless friends on this occasion but also to express our personal love for you - a love which, for many of us, it would be ingratitude to withhold. Be assured that on next Wed- nesday we will not fail to join with you in thanking God for the num- berless blessings bestowed on you and your labors during the past twenty-five years. To these acts of thanksgiving we will add our humble petitions to God and His Blessed Mother, that you may be spared for many a year to render hundreds still unborn as deeply your debtors as many of the undersigned feel themselves to be.
We are, in love of our Lord and Saint Vincent,
Your unworthy confreres, THE STUDENTS AND NOVICES OF ST. VINCENT'S SEMINARY.
After the celebration of this historic event in the life of Father Kavanagh, he feared lest he had not been cordial enough or explicit enough in expressing his thanks to all who had been instrumental in making the event such a gigantic expression of love for himself and the institution so dear to his heart. To allay his apprehensions he inserted the following card in the Index under date of November 19, 1901:
" Owing to the extensive and varied programme carried out at the recent Jubilee exercises held in my honor, I did not have the oppor- tunity to thank at length those who were chiefly instrumental in making the occasion a success. To the Executive Committee especi- ally I desire to express my appreciation of their untiring efforts. Rev. Dr. Quigley, Fathers Henneberry, Baker, Nugent, Walsh, Dor- ney, Biden, Conway, Messrs. Duncan, Vidvard, Plamondon, with many others, at the expense of valuable time and with much trouble to themselves, perfected arrangements in a manner most flattering indeed to me, yet only in consonance with their reputation as gentle- men of marked executive ability.
" The presentation to me of a purse of $5,000 from our com- bined alumni was an act of generosity for which I take this public occasion to express my sincerest thanks. I am deeply grateful for the good will and liberality which prompted the presentation of so munificent and substantial a gift. When I reflect, moreover, that the disposition of this sum has been left entirely in my hands, I would be indifferent to noble sentiment if I failed to acknowledge, as I now publicly do, the deep sense of gratitude which I feel at this new proof of our alumni's confidence in me, their old Prefect and Pre- ceptor. Therefore to each and every one of the combined Executive
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Committee, as well as to the rest of our devoted alumni, I beg leave to express here formally, but none the less sincerely, my deepest ap- preciation of the honor which they conferred upon me by their wel- come presence, their congratulations and their munificent gifts. I can only pray that God may long preserve them in their spheres of usefulness, keeping them what they have always been, honorable and cherished children of " Old Niagara."
P. V. KAVANAGH, C. M.
The remaining three years of Father Kavanagh's administration ran along with that monotonous quiet which seemed to be, after all, the element of life most agreeable to him. To use a common but significant phrase, he was a great home body, disliking extensive trips which necessitated any lengthy absence from our institution, and preferring representation by others instead of attending per- sonally those gatherings, official or social, which make such frequent demands upon men in his position. A brisk walk along our river bank, especially when the elements were in their wildest mood, or a gentle saunter through the vineyard, orchards, or smiling fields, so plentiful within our own domains, was all the relaxation that he cared to seek when brain was heavy or heart was sad from labor or pain, or both. For, it was an open secret among the members of his faculty that for many years Father Kavanagh had been ailing from a malady which Dr. Talbot had foretold to a few would terminate his life.
When studies opened in September, 1894, Father Kavanagh was missing from his accustomed place, having resigned the presidency of Niagara and accepted an appointment as pastor of our church of the Immaculate Conception, Baltimore, Md., thus changing places with his successor, Rev. Father P. McHale, C. M. Sorrow at Father Kavanagh's departure was widespread among priests, students, and domestics who had lived under his fatherly rule. The fact that he himself had long petitioned to be relieved of a burden which he had never borne except through obedience to his Superior's, com- mands, mitigated the grief of Niagara's household, while the advent of his successor, so admirably suited in every way to preside over Niagara's destinies, plainly indicated that God had provided wisely for our future.
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