Graphic Story of How Fathers Laffan and Linehan Were Taken Prisoners: Sientaochen Church Desecrated A letter written by Bishop Galvin from the Vicariate of Hanyang has been received by the St. Columban Mission in Shanghai, In it-Bishop] Galvin gives the details of the capture of the two Irish priests and the sisters which took place April 25 when bandits entered Sientaochen, looted the town, and made off with their captives. Bishop Galvin writes that some weeks before Easter con-[ditions around Sientaochen seemed be again normal, the priests and he were in favour of bringing up the Sisters and Father Laffan went to Hanyang to get them. They arrived in Sientaochen on the Wednesday] before Easter, On Easter morning Bishop Galvin /came down from Baosanchao to see the Sisters. On April 25 he had almost finished Mass when he heard the sound of rifle fire, not far from the church, At the altar rails he was met by Father O'Collins and Father Linehan who had scaled the }wall at the rear of the compound and come to the church. Continuing, down the body of the church Bishop Galvin met Mother Lelia, followed by Sister Dolores, the latter returning, to the house for Sister Patrick, All tthe priests and Sisters were quickly the church and had gone to the sacristy as it afforded the greatest protection from bullets, the Bishop went to the door and saw a number of Communists shouting for admittance at the front gate. Ina moment they were inside the compound and /Bishop Galvin met them in the centre. of the church, A young fellow of about 30 in' military uniform came forward to meet him with a smile, There was about him none of the roughness which one generally associates with bandit leaders and he was very polite. He-said their quarrel was with the rich people of the town who were oppressing the poor and that they had no quarrel with the Catholic Church for they knew the priests were good people who helped the poor. He had @ look around the fchureh and then all of them went out, a number remaining on guard outside the front gate of the com pound.
The firing shifted to snather section of the town but on all sides fof the compound men with rifles had been posted and they were completely surrounded with no hope of escape.
ishop Galvin went out to interview the bandit leader, again he was\ friendly and polite, and the Bishop invited him nto the Sisters' house for breakfast. He accepted gladly. He assured the Sisters that they had nothing to fear, Then he bowed himself out of the door in the most polite Chinese fashion, When breakfast was almost finish-two men with revolvers opened the dining room door saying. that} they wanted the priests to go to the town with them to talk things over. While Bishop Galvin was arguing that they should talk in the church instead, Father Laffan came into the: oom with the news that the bandits were breaking up the church, The church was filled with bandits, all Tooting. The statue of the Virgin was smashed, the statue of the Sacred Heart broken, the altar cloth: taken away, and the sacristy was absolutely wrecked.
The leader ordered them out of the church and Bishop Galvin, Father Laffan and the bandit. went to the Sisters' house again, Suddenly the who had been joined by two others' with revolvers, turned to Father Laffan, asked his name, and said he would have to go. Father Laffan went into the dinning room, put his stole on the table and asked ing of agitators about _sove rights. Foreign mercantile marine officers have never to our knowles empted to interfere with China's Fights and much less have attempted to prevent qualified Chinese officers from obtaining employment, Indeed, they are always p pared to help generously in training Chinese officers and they have, more than once, expressed their readiness to step out, when the proper time comes and" when they may, in safety, hand over the lives and property of their passengers to qualified Chinese officers, solution, Father 0'Collins to give him abasked the Sisters to pray for and said to Bishop Galvin, "I'll meet you on the other side of the [grave, write home and tell them all it." As he was going he added, "Whatever I write you, you Know what I mean." Then he turned and waved good-bye, his face [deathly pale but still smiling, 1
In the meantime bandits had been' coming into the Sisters' dining room and it was thought better to move the Sisters into another room, Father O'Collins went in with them, while Father Walsh, Father Linehan and Bishop Galvin remained outside to }do what they could. Several times Bishop Galvin went round the whole compound looking for some way of There was none. The front guarded, inside the back ate were three bandits on guard and dividing their spoils, on either side of the compound were other groups, all with rif_es. He met Father' Linehan and they tried to think if there was anything that coald be done. While they were standing talking two bandits entered the compound and presented their revolvers, "Another man must go," they said.
Bishop Galvin replied, "One of our men has already gone.
"One, is not enough" came the reply, "There is a man here by the name' of Linn, we want him to go."
name).
(Ling is Father' Linehan's Chinese Father Linehan was quite cool though his face was very pale, he showed no trace of nervousness and went out, followed by the two bandits, very much as if he was going to some ordinary duty of the jay. Father Walsh and Bishop Galvin decided that if they came for another man Father Walsh was to go and Bishop Galvin to remain with the Sisters and protect them as long as he could. The bandits never seemed to suspect that Bishop Galvin. was the Bishop. Father Laffan had told them that the Bishop was aman who had only just arrived from Baosanchao and' that Father fan himself was the Pastor and had been for the past three ye Another band began to loot the sisters? dining room. The leaders came in and there was another dis cussion in which the bandits said, "You are in league with the Im= penalists of Ireland who will follow You here to occupy our country." Bishop Galvin replied that Ireland tot an Imperialistic nation but leader said, "Your soldiers and battleships are here." When asked where they were he said in Hankow and Shanghai, Bishop Galvin assured him that there wasn't an Irish soldier in the whole of China, and that Ireland had never occupied any country. The Teeder seemed impressed and the Bishop asked him if they might, not go away from there. He consented but another leader suddenly cut in, "No, they can't go to-day, they can 'Then there was a demand that the Jdoor to the Sisters' room be opened. As soon as the Sisters had gone upstairs a horde of bandits rushed in grabbing left and right at everything. It was Mother Lelia's office and. there were many important letters, the parish registers were there also and if the bandits got these they would have had the names of every Catholic in the parish. Father O'Collins, by coolness and diplomacy, succeeded in saving many Valuable things, including the parish registers.
Suddenly Bishop Galvin discovered the back gate to be unguarded. The ign bandits had gone to the house to get their share of the loot. He returned and told the Sisters to follow him, passing the sentry with out difficulty for he had the impression that they were being taken to some other room at the back. They went out the gate and slipped. from one clump of trees to another, and keeping a sharp lookout. People en the way gave every help with directions as to the safest paths.
Their way lay across one of the main roads and just as they gained the road a bandit on horseback passed within 15 yards, He went on hig
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.