Chapter VI: Extraordinary Graces (2)

"Many persons knew what I suffered for six whole years, how I
was worn out with a nervous, worrying cough, whose attacks were
so frequent and so prolonged that one can scarcely imagine how I
ever survived them. My physician himself told me that, for the
first three years, my life was in imminent danger, and if in the
last three I was less exposed to death at every step, as it were,
the giving way of my stomach, the weakness of my chest, were such
that all my days were filled with bitterness, and new crosses
were laid upon me. In this condition, what ecclesiastical fasts
could I keep? Four or five years ago, the desire of complying,
in some degree, with the precepts of the Church led me to fast
the Ember week before Christmas, and the prejudice to my health
was such that I was not permitted to fast again even for a day.
Abstinence from meat became impossible, and for having attempted
this slight mortification, how much I suffered in consequence, even
in the very month of July, 1834! Whilst my health was so impaired,
and I saw only a lingering end to my afflictions, it pleased my
Superiors to give me a year's rest. I received with gratitude this
additional evidence of their consideration for me, and endeavored
to co-operate with them in re-establishing my health, of which they
had been so thoughtful; but, in my condition, the recuperative
powers of nature were of slight avail. Even amidst perfect
quiet and rest for four whole months, I experienced but little
alleviation of my sufferings, for though my chest became, at least,
apparently stronger, my stomach grew weaker and more disordered,
so that I was obliged to diet, which, added to the dieting I had
already practiced, reduced me to such a state of exhaustion that I
could not foresee the consequences.

"O, Mary, how deplorable was my condition when you cast upon
me a look of mercy! The 15th of November, 1834, I was sent a
medal, struck in honor of the Immaculate Conception, and already
celebrated as the instrument of many miracles. In receiving it,
I was penetrated, for the first time, with a strong feeling
of confidence, that this was the Heaven-sent means by which I
would reach the end of my afflictions; I had not foreseen this
hope, still less had I excited it, for I believe I can say,
conscientiously, that I felt naturally disinclined to ask a favor
of which I deemed myself unworthy. However, the feeling became so
strong that I thought it my duty to consider it prayerfully next
morning; and not to oppose so good an impulse, I determined to
make a novena, and I commenced it on the 16th. From that moment my
confidence was boundless, and like a child who reasons no longer,
but sees only what he feels sure of obtaining, it sustained me
amidst the new trials to which I was subjected; for on the 19th,
and several days after, my sufferings were redoubled, affecting at
once both stomach and chest. On the 22d I felt considerably better,
on the 23d I believed myself strong enough to abandon a diet on
which I had subsisted a long time, and on the 24th I wished to eat
just what was served the Community; that very morning I commenced,
like the hearty seminarians, to take a little dry bread and wine,
and it agreed with me. Thus my desires were accomplished. I had
implored the Blessed Virgin to give me health to live according
to the rule, and she had done so; but a good Mother like Mary
would not leave her work imperfect, and she chose the very day of
her Conception to bestow upon me her crowning favors. I was still
troubled with a slight indisposition of the stomach accompanying
digestion after dinner, but it was not positive suffering, and even
this remnant of my old infirmity disappeared entirely. On the eve
of that Feast my devotion to Mary, which had lost a little of its
first fervor, was, when I least expected it, excited anew, and I
felt urged to implore the consummation of a good work so happily
begun. I did so that evening, and next morning at prayers, at Mass,
at my thanksgiving, and it was in finishing this last exercise
before a statue of the Blessed Virgin, after a most fervent prayer,
that I realized the recompense of my confidence--I felt assured
that my petitions had been granted. Since then I have experienced
no indisposition worthy of attention. I was able to fast the Ember
week before Christmas and the eve of that great solemnity; I sang
the ten o'clock High Mass the fourth Sunday in Advent; I followed
all the offices of the choir on those days the Church consecrates
to the celebration of our Divine Master's birth, and, instead of
regretting these efforts, I find in each one of them a new motive
for blessing the Lord and testifying my gratitude to our good
Mother.

J.B. FERMIN."

"Though surpassing our hopes, we have witnessed the speedy and
perfect recovery of M.J. Fermin, which appears to be something
supernatural, since he employed no other remedies than great
devotion to the Blessed Virgin and a novena in her honor.

"AUBRY, RAIGECOURT GOURNAY."

II.

_Graces Obtained during the Year 1835, in France, Switzerland,
Savoy and Turkey._

CURE OF MADEMOISELLE JOUBERT.

NOTE.--The account of this very striking cure was sent us by M. Poinsel, Vicar General of Limoges, whom I took the liberty of asking for it.

"_Bishopric of Limoges._

"Glory to God! honor to Mary!

"The 10th of February, 1834, Mlle. Joubert, aged twenty-nine
years, a person of solid piety, was suddenly cured of a painful
and very serious infirmity. For more than a year, she had carried
her left arm in a sling, by reason of an unaccountable disease
which extended from the shoulder to the hand, and was of such a
nature that the afflicted member seemed dead; when necessary to
be handled, it had to be done with extreme precaution, and even
then the pain was so excessive that often the patient fell sick
in consequence. The disease was successively styled rheumatic
gout, inflammatory and gangrenous rheumatism; science employed in
combating it, baths, shower baths, poultices, liniments of all
sort, vain remedies which only aggravated the evil and varied
the suffering. Sometimes amputation was spoken of: 'Would to
God, Mademoiselle, you had but one arm!' said the physician,
not concealing his anxiety and fears of her death, as spring
approached, for the diseased arm was pale, livid, and frightful to
behold.

"The young lady, a true Christian, was resigned to all; by
meditations upon the cross, she encouraged herself to suffer,
and, perceiving the progress of the disease, she thought only of
dying the precious death of the just. A friend, one day, proposed
to her that she should wear the medal with confidence, and make a
novena to Mary. She acted upon the suggestion; at the end of the
novena, on the usual day of her confession (she was accustomed to
confess weekly), she approached the sacred tribunal, and lo! at the
very instant when recollected, contrite and humbled, she received
the moral effect of the priest's benediction and holy words, an
extraordinary physical change took place in the arm heretofore
judged incurable, it suddenly became unloosed and free, all
suffering vanished! 'I scarcely knew where I was,' said she, 'but
it seemed to me as if a cord that had been tightly drawn around my
arm was unwound, ring after ring, and I was cured! My surprise, my
joy, were extreme and beyond all power of expression!'

"On reaching home, she exclaimed: 'A miracle! light a taper, light
two, come, come, see the miracle! I can move my arm, animation is
restored to it, I am cured!' Oh! how great the joy of that family!
They surrounded the favored one, they looked at, they touched the
resuscitated member, they tested its powers in various ways, making
her lift divers objects and execute a variety of movements; then,
all the members of this truly Christian family, moved even to
tears, fell on their knees, and recited that hymn of thanksgiving,
the _Te Deum_.

"Since then, (that is, for more than a year), her arm has been
perfectly well. The physician himself was struck with this event,
which it would be difficult to attribute to concealed resources,
or the sudden agency of nature. What is nature without the
intervention and action of God? He is sole Master of nature, life
and death are at His will. It is not necessary, then, to reason so
much on the subject; a little faith will easily make us recognize
here a special grace of God, through the intercession of Mary, our
kind, sweet Mother, to whom we must ever repair, invoking her with
love and confidence.

"Such is the simple and conscientious account of the event given
me, the undersigned, by the person herself, in answer to my
questions, in the presence of an intelligent, reliable individual
who saw all, having several times dressed the arm, and who, by
reason of her skill and long experience, was well calculated to
judge of the danger.

"In attestation of which, etc.

"POINSEL, Vicar General.

"_February 14, 1835._"

These details are confirmed by two letters of Madame and Mademoiselle Joubert, by the testimony of the Superior of the Daughters of Charity of Limoges, and that of M. Dumonteil, a lawyer and friend of the family.

CONVERSIONS AND CURES WROUGHT IN SWITZERLAND.

Letter from Sister Boubat, Superioress of the Daughters of Charity in Chesne:

"_February 12, 1835._

"I have not great miracles to recount to-day, but the facts I give
are certainly very striking traits of protection. However, I shall
tell them just as they are, and let you judge of them for yourself.
Those of which I was not an eye-witness have been told me by very
reliable parties who were.

"1st. A woman who had been sick a long time, and given up by the
doctors, received, one evening, the Miraculous Medal, and was
restored to her usual health that night; feeling perfectly well,
she said to her husband next morning that she would get up and
prepare breakfast. He treated this as nonsense, and when she really
did arise, his astonishment was great, and beyond all bounds when
he found that her health was fully restored.

"2d. In the same village, a young mother had two children, one six
the other eight years old. The latter was attacked by a violent
malady, described to me as a convulsion, and died in a few days.
The younger had a similar attack, and seemed on the verge of death.
The poor mother was in the depths of grief, when some one thought
of offering her a medal. She received it as a treasure. It was
evening; she put it on the dying child, who soon fell asleep, and
slept soundly the whole night. In the morning he awoke perfectly
cured! This good woman afterwards came to me to get medals for
herself and some others. Oh! I wish you could have seen her as she
wept for joy whilst expressing to me, with all simplicity, the
transports of her soul! Never will I forget it, so deep was the
impression it made upon me.

"3d. A child five years old had been racked for several months by a
fever, which resisted all efforts to check it. One day, he was in
his grandmother's arms when the paroxysm began. This woman, full of
faith, applied the medal; the child soon grew better, and the fever
never troubled him again.

"The attending physician was a relation; on seeing him after this,
the child ran towards him, exclaiming with all the animation and
artlessness of his age: 'I am cured, but it was not you who cured
me, it was the medal.' He repeats these words nearly every time he
sees the doctor.

"4th. A young man, on his death-bed, filled all his friends with
serious apprehensions for his salvation. After several vain efforts
of the most charitable zeal, the curé induced him to accept a
medal, and very soon the dying man expressed a wish to confess. He
expired in the most edifying dispositions.

"5th. Three sinners obstinately refused to assist at the exercises
of a mission given in their parish, and even sought to oppose it.
One of the missionaries persuaded them to accept a medal, and as
soon as they had received it, a great change was visible. They
not only made the mission, most devoutly, but became its zealous
advocates.

"I get these details from a very venerable curé, who gave them to
me himself.

"6th. There came to me recently a woman from the neighboring
mountainous district, who said without any previous explanation:
'You cured one of my daughters whom all the physicians had given
up; I now wish you to give me the same thing.' I tried at once to
recollect what medicines I had prescribed, and asked question after
question concerning the nature of the malady, so as to know what
remedy I had dispensed. After puzzling my brain to discover, she
told me it was a piece, thus suddenly reminding me that I had given
a medal to a young woman from that place, who came to consult me
about her failing health. To verify the fact, I sent word for the
young woman to come to see me.

"I pass over in silence a multitude of other events which, without
being termed miracles, are none the less real graces; and in my
eyes one most precious and great grace for us is, that the Blessed
Virgin deigns to make use of our poor little house to propagate
devotion to her. Oh! if you could see these good mountaineers
of every age and sex come with the greatest confidence and most
touching simplicity, asking for _na médaillot_--a medal. It has
affected me deeply, and I cannot sufficiently express my gratitude
to our tender and Immaculate Mother.

"Even Protestants have asked us for these medals, and I am
assured it was with perfect sincerity. The pastors in Savoy are
also very zealous in propagating this devotion to Mary. Since
reading the notice, they have mentioned it from the pulpit to
their parishioners, many of whom have, in consequence, procured
the medal. Likewise, do we see young men about to enter the army
fortify themselves with it, and persons undertaking a voyage
wearing it as their safeguard; indeed, every one has recourse to it
as the universal remedy for soul and body."

CURE OF SISTER HYACINTHE, A RELIGIOUS OF CALVARY.

It is the Mother General of the Community who has given us these details. Her letter is dated February 7th, 1835.

"I am overwhelmed with joy; our poor patient is perfectly cured
by virtue of the Miraculous Medal. I could say our patients,
for our prayers were offered both for the paralytic and that
young person whom I told you had been sick eleven months;
she was able to remain out of bed only a few hours each day;
whenever she could go to Mass, and that was rarely, she had to
be assisted, and the support of an arm was necessary when she
approached the Holy Table. Since Thursday she walks alone and
eats without experiencing the slightest symptom of her former
infirmity, except a little weakness. I hope the Lord will
finish His work and restore her to perfect health; but let us
speak of our dear Sister.

"The following is a copy of the account I wrote of this marvel
to our holy Bishop day before yesterday, after Mass:

"'I acquaint Your Grace with an incident of God's great mercy,
displayed to our Community in the sudden cure of one of our
choir religious, named Hyacinthe, aged forty-seven years.
This good Mother, the 14th of last January, had a stroke of
paralysis. It did not affect her head, but immediately fixed
itself in the left side, which became motionless and devoid
of feeling. We hastened to summon the physician, who bled
her freely in the arm; next day we tried leeches, medicines,
a blister on the neck, and three days after one upon the
paralyzed limb, but all of no avail. The poor patient, as well
as ourselves, must submit to the decrees of Him who strikes
and heals at will. At the end of fifteen days I was inspired
with the thought of making a novena in honor of the Immaculate
Conception, the medal of which, called the miraculous, we all
wear. On the fourth day of the novena, as we were about to
recite the prayers around her bed, the good Mother desired Holy
Communion. She was taken to the choir by three persons; after
receiving, the limb felt a little better, and she could return
with the aid of two persons only. Her confidence in the Mother
of God increased daily; yesterday she asked permission to come
down on the last day of the novena, and this morning, with the
assistance of a cane and some one to support her, she came down
and had the happiness of receiving Holy Communion. Immediately
after, we finished the novena prayers, just at the end of which
she was seized with a pain in the paralyzed arm, followed by an
icy chill and then a sensation of extreme heat. She came to me
with both arms lifted, exclaiming, "I am cured!" And perfectly
cured she was, being able to walk and use her limbs as freely
as if she had never felt a symptom of paralysis.

"'To give you an idea of our joy and gratitude, Monseigneur,
would be impossible. The patient fainted, and I came very near
doing the same; it was with difficulty I could continue our
prayers of thanksgiving, so marvelous did it seem that the Lord
should have granted this favor to our Community, under the
government of one of His most unworthy servants.'

"I send you this copy, which we had kept, of the letter.

"In the same letter I asked Monseigneur's permission to have
a _Te Deum_ chanted at the end of Benediction. His Grace
hastened to send word that he not only permitted but ordered
it, which order was joyfully complied with. The Vicar General,
our Superior, wrote, asking me to defer our Vespers half an
hour, as he wished to assist at the _Te Deum_. Several other
ecclesiastics also came, and saw our healed ones blessing God.
Since that day our good Mother Hyacinthe follows the rules,
complies with all her duties, and has never felt the least
return of her malady.

"This miracle created great excitement in our city; the
laborers who were working at the house having learned it on
the spot, immediately spread the news; the evening previous,
they had seen our poor Sister dragging her limb, a cane in
hand, and almost carried by two persons, and next morning they
beheld her perfectly cured! These men, who have seldom much
religion, sang the praises of God's power, and asked me to
give them medals. I gave a medal to each with great pleasure.
Clergymen have come to learn the particulars of this event, and
I let the miraculously cured herself recount the wonders of the
Lord.

"I must not omit informing you that the physician having vainly
exhausted all remedies, had been nine days without seeing the
patient; and the very eve of her recovery he told one of our
boarders that the disease having settled itself he believed
our afflicted one might be able to walk, but she could never
use her arm again. On coming next day to visit his other
patients, he was surprised beyond expression when she appeared
before him perfectly cured. Wishing to get his candid opinion
on the subject, I remarked that probably it was not real
paralysis, but only a numbness. 'It was a strongly marked case
of paralysis,' he answered, 'and there is certainly something
supernatural in her recovery.'

"In thanksgiving we continue the novena prayers, but preface
them with the _Laudate_.

"Make such use of this letter as you may deem advisable. If
you insert it in the notice, you are at liberty to name our
city and house. Oh! how we long to spread abroad the knowledge
and love of God's power, signally displayed in answer to our
invocation of the Immaculate Mother of His Divine Son.

"SISTER ST. MARIE,
"_Superioress of Calvary of Orleans_."

CURE OF MADAME LEBON (DIJON).

NOTE.--"The venerable lady upon whom this cure was wrought belongs to a highly honorable family of Dijon, and her personal character is very well calculated to inspire the utmost confidence," says _L'Ami de la Religion_, in its issue of April 17th, 1835. Moreover, the letter she wrote, March 12th, to one of her friends, and which she was anxious should be transmitted to us, is accompanied by the certificates of the pastors of St. Michael of Dijon, of Dampierre and Beaumont-sur-Vingeanne, also of five members of the municipal council, and several other very reliable persons, some of them members of her family; more than this, it is followed by a detailed account given by the medical attendant, who had charge of her case for sixteen years.

"_Dijon, March 12, 1835._

"_Madame and Dear Friend_:

"You ask me the details of the miraculous manner in which it
has pleased God to restore me to health. Well! it might be
summed up in these few words: I implored Mary to obtain my
recovery, and she did obtain it instantly; having said this,
you know all, but you desire me to recall the circumstances of
my sickness and my experience subsequent to the cure. I give
them as follows:

"You doubtless remember that, for more than twenty years, I
could not walk, in consequence of an abscess on the intestines,
which left me in such a state of sensibility that ever after a
walk of more than a hundred steps I was exposing myself to the
most serious accidents. Neither are you ignorant of the fact
that, nearly fifteen months ago, by reason of influenza, a
second abscess formed, and so increased the irritability that I
hovered between life and death, and even when at my best I was
scarcely able to drag myself from one room to another. But you
have probably never heard that, since the 1st of last December,
my condition was so critical that, with great difficulty, could
I remain out of bed three or four hours at a time, which made
me, as well as those around me, think my end was near and I
would not survive the spring.

"This was my condition, dear friend, when some one mentioned
to me the medal of the Immaculate Virgin, and urged me to get
it. I was a long time deciding to do so, for I considered it
presumptuous to solicit the cure of an infirmity the physicians
had pronounced incurable. At last, having thought, on the one
side, that the more desperate the malady, the greater God's
glory should He deign to cure it; and, on the other, that He
had wrought the most wonderful miracles for those who were
least worthy, I decided to mention it to my confessor. I did
so, and he encouraged me to make the novena.

"The 2d of February, Feast of the Purification, the first
day of the novena and one ever memorable for me, I was taken
to church in a carriage; my daughter, sole confidante of my
intentions, assisted me to the Blessed Virgin's altar, where,
after hearing Mass as well as my infirmity would permit, I
received Holy Communion. Scarcely had I knelt to make an act
of adoration, when I was obliged to take my seat. A Sister of
Charity, whom I did not know was there, for I had not hoped to
receive the medal just yet, put it on my neck. Immediately,
I got on my knees to beg the Mother of the afflicted to
intercede with her divine Son for the restoration of my health,
should He foresee that it would be conducive to God's glory and
her honor, to my salvation and the happiness of my husband and
children. Scarcely had I pronounced a few words, petitioning
our Lord to graciously hear His holy Mother's prayer, ere Mary
had interceded and God in His great mercy had hearkened; I was
cured, Madame, entirely cured.... I finished all the prayers
of thanksgiving after Communion and those of the novena on my
knees, and, without experiencing the slightest inconvenience,
my malady had disappeared and I have never felt the slightest
symptom of it since. I walked, unassisted, to the church door,
sent away the carriage and returned home on foot.

"I have given you a detail of the facts, but to express the
feelings that filled my heart on re-entering my house would be
impossible; my joy, my astonishment, were boundless; I could
hardly realize it myself. Cured in an instant! The thought was
overpowering! It seemed as if I must be in a dream, but my
husband's astonishment, my mother's, and that of the servants,
who, seeing the great change wrought in me, although they were
ignorant of the means, could not forbear exclaiming: 'But a
miracle must have been worked upon you!' convinced me that I
was not asleep.

"Since that time I walk as well as any one; scarcely was my
novena finished ere I could go from one end of the city to the
other. It has not been six weeks since my cure, and I have
already walked more than three miles at a time, and could have
accomplished twice as much. You see, Madame and dear friend,
that the miracle is a most striking one.

"I now beg of you, as well as all other pious souls, to unite
heartily with me in thanking God and His august Mother.

"Your ever devoted
"ÉLIS. M. DARBEAUMONT LEBON."

The physician's certificate ends thus: "Whatever may have been the cause of a cure, heretofore regarded as impossible by all the doctors who attended Mme. Lebon, it should be considered none the less certain and positive, for the evidence of the fact is indubitable.

"Wherefore, I sign the present attestation, which I declare sincere and true.

"FOURNIER, Doctor.
"_Dampierre, March 19, 1835._"

CURES WROUGHT AT SMYRNA AND CONSTANTINOPLE.

Extract of a letter from M. Le Leu, Lazarist missionary:

"_Constantinople, March 16, 1835._

"It has been a long time since I proposed writing you something
about the medal. In my eyes, one of the greatest miracles it
has ever worked is the rapidity of its propagation and the
confidence it inspires. By our demands upon you for medals, you
may judge of their effect in this country. We could dispose
of thousands and yet not satisfy the innumerable calls we
have for them. At Smyrna, it is the same. We had occasion to
send a few into the interior of Asia, and the Blessed Virgin
showed herself no less powerful or beneficent there than in
Europe. At Angora, an old man was deprived of the use of all
his limbs, and had neither walked nor worked for years; he
lived in frightful poverty, and sighed for death, for he was
especially grieved at being so long a burden upon a family in
indigent circumstances. (In this country there are numbers of
Armenian families very devoted to the Blessed Virgin, and this
was one of them.) He had no sooner heard of the Miraculous
Medal, than he solicited the happiness of obtaining and wearing
it. In these countries the Faith has retained its primitive
simplicity; this recipient of a medal does not content himself
with praying before it, or hanging it around his neck, but he
kisses it with profound respect and applies it to the affected
part; the Blessed Virgin cannot resist such confidence, and the
good old man instantly recovers the use of his limbs--he now
works and supports himself.

"Here is another incident: A young woman belonging to a
respectable and very pious family had, for a long time, been
a prey to a disease, the nature of which neither the French,
Greek nor Turkish physicians could understand. Its symptoms
were most violent pains in the side, which prevented her
walking, eating or sleeping, and which sometimes disappeared,
only to return with renewed violence. Having heard of our
medal, this lady felt interiorly urged to employ it for her
recovery, but believing herself unworthy of obtaining a direct
miracle, she besought the Blessed Virgin to enlighten the
physician and make known to him the proper remedy. Thereupon,
she went to the country. At the end of several days, she was
astonished to see her physician, who exclaimed as soon as he
saw her: 'Madame, good news! I have found the remedy for your
disease. I am sure of it; in a few days you will be perfectly
well. I do not know why it is, but your case has constantly
occupied my mind since your departure, and by a careful study
of it I have at last discovered the cause of the disease and
the manner of treating it.' The lady recognized at once that
this knowledge came from above, and she had not implored Mary
in vain. To-day she is in excellent health. It was from the
mouth of her mother I received these details. 'O Monsieur,'
exclaimed this good mother, 'how happy I am at my poor
daughter's recovery! It is the Blessed Virgin who has restored
her to me. If you could only get me a few more of these medals;
I am overwhelmed with requests for them.' The physician himself
published the details I have just given. So persuaded is he of
the efficacy of the medal that he calls it his final remedy,
and advises his patients to wear it whenever he is at a loss
concerning their malady. And the Blessed Virgin has rewarded
his faith; for one of his own daughters, a most pious person,
but in miserable health, has just experienced its beneficial
effects.

"I could mention numberless other incidents, as many
conversions as cures, but one more will suffice for to-day.
Not long ago the mother of a family had every symptom of an
attack of apoplexy; she had already lost consciousness, when
her son, a very pious young man, who wore one of these medals,
took it off his neck and put it around hers. He then ran for a
doctor and a priest. On reaching the house they were all three
astonished to find that she had quite recovered. That evening
the son asked his mother for the medal, and she returned it,
but a moment after was stricken with another attack. The
protection of the Blessed Virgin seemed to have been withdrawn
with this sign of her power. He immediately put the medal on
her neck again, this time to remain, and she has been well ever
since.

"Oh! do not delay, I beg you, in sending us the medals we have
asked of you."

CONVERSION AND CURE OF AN OLD MAN AT CASTERA-LES-BAINS.

NOTE.--These details are sent us and attested by M. Bellos, clerk of registration at Auch, and by other very reliable persons.

"In the early part of March, 1835, an old man in the parish of
Castera-les-Bains (Gers), fell dangerously ill. The venerable
parish priest, M. Barère, hastened to visit him, hoping he
might persuade the poor creature to cast himself into those
arms that were extended on the cross for all sinners. Our
patient, who had not been to confession for long years,
received him like an infidel as he was, refused all religious
assistance, and ended by saying: 'M. curé, I would rather
lose my speech than comply with your wishes!' The charitable
pastor retiring, though very reluctantly, now thought of the
Miraculous Medal he wore, and, taking it off, gave it to one
of the household with instructions to put it in the patient's
bed; advising, however, in case the ruse were discovered, no
allusion to the subject, so as to spare the unhappy one all
occasion of invective against religion. But, oh! marvelous
to relate! a little while after, the dying man awakens as if
from a profound slumber, and earnestly begs that the curé
be sent for to hear his confession. At this news, the good
pastor flies to his lost sheep, who receives him with every
expression of joy, begs his pardon, and asks to receive the
Sacrament of Penance. It would be superfluous for us to dwell
at length upon the sentiments and language of the charitable
minister of religion. He was so touched by his penitent's
dispositions, that he did not hesitate to take him the Holy
Viaticum next morning. Many of the faithful accompanied the
Blessed Sacrament to the sick man's chamber; confessing again,
he abjured his errors before all the assistants, and earnestly
entreated them to pardon the scandal his past conduct had
given them. Every one was affected to tears, and it was in
the midst of this universal emotion that he received the good
God, with the deepest sentiments of humility and compunction,
and recommending himself to the prayers of all present. In the
course of the following night, fearing he might be carried
off by a spell of weakness, he requested Extreme Unction, and
received it with the same evidences of faith and piety. This
conversion was followed by his perfect recovery, and the good
old man now blesses Divine Providence, which, through Mary's
protection, rescued him from the borders of a frightful abyss
into which his infidelity would have plunged him forever.

"The undersigned, who got these details from the mouth of
the curé of Castera, vouches for their authenticity. He has
neither added to nor taken from them in the slightest, knowing
full well that the Blessed Virgin has no need of falsehoods
to prove her power and goodness. It is, then, on his word of
conscience he gives this fact, which none of the inhabitants of
Castera and the neighboring country would deny, even were he
incredulous."

CURE OF ROSALIE MORVILLIERS, ACKNOWLEDGED AS MIRACULOUS BY ALL THE PARISH.

"_Hangest_ (_Somme_).

"I have mentioned to you the cure wrought by the Miraculous
Medal upon a person aged fifty years; the fact is
incontestable. Rosalie Morvilliers, the recipient of this
favor, had never been free from suffering since her seventh
year; an affection of the nerves caused almost constant
palpitations of the heart and severe headaches, which, however,
did not hinder her performing some slight work without
aggravating the malady. But about five years ago, she was
afflicted by an unmistakable attack of epilepsy, which threw
her family into the greatest consternation. Henceforth, she was
obliged to keep her bed, and saw no one but her most intimate
friends; the very sight of a face that was not familiar was
sufficient to throw her into dreadful convulsions for several
hours. Independent of any external cause, these paroxysms
usually came on three times a day, and so violent were they,
that it was with great difficulty she could be kept in her
room; she uttered most frightful cries, her features were
horribly distorted, her mouth covered with foam, and, indeed,
according to the testimony of those who usually witnessed the
attacks, it was some time before she regained consciousness.

"Such was her condition when some one gave her a Miraculous
Medal. She received it with the greatest confidence, and
immediately applied it to that part of her head where the
pain was most acute; the pain disappeared immediately. From
that moment she felt urged to make a novena in honor of the
Immaculate Conception for the cure of her epilepsy. But
diffidence in mentioning the matter to her director made her
defer the execution of this pious design six weeks. At length,
she yielded to her desires, saying she felt fully persuaded
that this novena would ensure her recovery through the Blessed
Virgin's intercession, and her confidence was not misplaced.
The curé immediately began the novena, engaging in it the
sodality of the Holy Family. Whilst at Mass on the morning of
the last day, the 17th of Mary's month, the patient was seized
with the most violent attack possible, the worst she had ever
had, although during the novena, the paroxysms had increased
in intensity. Suddenly it ceases. A number of persons begin to
pray and recite the chaplet; the patient, regarding them with
a smile, gently falls asleep. A few minutes after, she opens
her eyes and exclaims: 'I am cured! I am cured! The Blessed
Virgin has just cured me of epilepsy! Oh! how good she is, how
powerful! It seems to me as if there had just been a general
revolution throughout my body. I feel confident, my friends,
that this disease has been banished from my system forever.'

"It was very easy for the assistants to believe that some
extraordinary change had really been wrought in her, for her
countenance presented not the slightest vestige of the attack.
She now desired to communicate, and oh! with what transports of
faith, gratitude and love she received the good God!

"The noise of this cure soon reached the neighboring villages.
How beautiful yet, Monsieur, is the simplicity of the faith in
these rural districts! Henceforth, every one wished to wear the
medal.

"This event took place on the 17th of May, at nine o'clock
in the morning. Since that time the patient has not felt the
slightest symptom of epilepsy. She leaves her room, walks about
the garden, and receives visitors indiscriminately, without
experiencing any ill effects. However, the Blessed Virgin
did not cure all her infirmities; she still has the nervous
affection that existed before the epileptic attacks, but I
should observe that as the novena was made solely for the cure
of epilepsy, the Blessed Virgin has obtained all that was asked
of her.

"This, Monsieur, is the exact statement. Some, no doubt, would
attribute the cure to natural causes; as for ourselves, we,
like the patient, feel convinced that it was owing to Mary's
powerful intercession. The curé agrees with us, and so do all
who glory in the truths of religion. Honored, then, be the
power and goodness of Mary conceived without sin!"

CURE OF A DAUGHTER OF CHARITY AND ANOTHER PERSON (DIOCESE OF MOULINS).

The following letter was sent by a gentleman of unquestionable veracity to the _Journal du Bourbonnais_, and published in its issue of June 6, 1835:

"_Monsieur_:

"We are all Mary's children; at the foot of her Divine Son's
cross did her maternal heart adopt us as her own. All ages
have felt the salutary effects of her powerful protection; our
fathers have admired them, we ourselves admire them, and our
days are filled with marvels. Even recently has she appeared,
shedding torrents of grace upon a privileged kingdom, and this
kingdom is France. The vision is verified, for the age which
saw it has also witnessed the multiplication of countless
miraculous cures and conversions.

"And shall Bourbonnais, our dear country, be excepted in the
distribution of Mary's favors? Oh! no; it also shall have a
share in this harvest of glory. The truly astonishing rapidity
with which the thousand Miraculous Medals brought to our city
have been disposed of is to me a sufficient guaranty of our
hopes, and it would keep one's pen in daily use to note the
wonderful traits of Mary's protection.

"1st. Sister Chapin, of St. Joseph's Hospital, was for more
than two years racked by pains and a fever that defied all
medical skill.

"This angel of earth lamented her inability to fulfil the
duties of her noble vocation; far from abating, her charity,
zeal and resignation seemed to increase with her gradually
declining health, which now excited our serious fears. Having
vainly exhausted all the resources of medicine, she turned her
back upon art and nature that she might address herself to
faith alone. Full of confidence in the Miraculous Medal, she
began a novena to Mary for the recovery of her health. Before
the novena was ended, both pains and fever had disappeared, and
henceforth, she began a new existence, her strength returned,
and she is happy to prove herself by deeds (fulfilling with
ease the most painful duties) what her virtues have ever
proclaimed her, a true daughter of St. Vincent de Paul.

"2nd. Yesterday, again, was witnessed in our Bourbonnais,
another wonderful trait of Mary's protection. Here are the
facts: On Monday, June 1st, at eight o'clock in the evening,
in the parish of Montilly, near the borders of Allier and the
castle of Beau-Regard, a woman was stricken with a violent
rush of blood to the head; the lamentations and piercing cries
of the family attracted their neighbors. Two alarming crises
succeeded; they were followed by a third, which was thought to
be mortal. The patient, after violently struggling against the
combined efforts of four men to restrain her, fell motionless
and apparently lifeless; her limbs were stiff and chill, her
face a livid blue, her features distorted, her eyes fixed, her
respiration insensible, death seemed imminent. This frightful
attack had lasted about half an hour, when some one present
thought of the Miraculous Medal; she approaches the dying woman
and lays the medal upon her lips. At that instant the latter
arouses from her slumber, she breathes, she clasps her hands
as if thanking the person who had restored her to life she
recognizes all around her, speaks to them and thanks them for
their kind attentions.

"The next morning, Tuesday, it was not at the gates of death
she was to be found, but in the streets of Moulins, where I saw
her myself and spoke to her.

"Pardon me, O divine Mary, if among a thousand striking
traits of your power and goodness, I dwell upon some which
are comparatively slight, it is only because of their recent
occurrence in our very midst. Happy shall I esteem myself to
awaken among my brethren a passing tribute to Faith, that
living, salutary Faith, whose efficacy I have experienced, and
whose truths I long to see planted and nourished in all hearts!

"Deign to accord, etc."

We have learned that Sister Chapin's recovery is permanent.

CURE OF MARIE LACROIX (DIOCESE OF LANGRES).

NOTE.--It is M. Barillot, Vicar General, who sends us this account:

"_Bishopric of Langres, June 20, 1835._

"_Monsieur_:

"M. Regnault, curé of Ormoy, canton of Chateau-Villain, in our
diocese, an excellent pastor and judicious priest, writes me
the subjoined letter of the 19th inst.:

"'A very extraordinary thing has just taken place in my
parish. A young woman aged twenty went blind in consequence
of a fall; her hip was displaced, and she lost all use of
her limbs, except the arms. For three months she was at a
hospital of Bar-sur-Aube, under treatment for these severe
afflictions, but in vain. At last, judging her case hopeless,
the physicians sent her back to her parents at Ormoy. Here,
as at Bar-sur-Aube, she endured for three months incredible
sufferings, not even being able to turn herself in bed or
change her position in the slightest. Her recovery was now
despaired of by all, and lately the minister received a
petition (with the accompanying certificates of the two
physicians who had attended her at Bar-sur-Aube) asking her
admission into the hospital of Quinze-Vingts. Meanwhile,
this young woman, who had always appeared to me very pious
and submissive to God's will, having received a Miraculous
Medal, immediately begins a novena. Seven days elapse, and
her sufferings, far from diminishing, are intensified; on the
eighth she is bathed in a profuse perspiration, after which she
suddenly rises, dresses herself, and walks through the streets
to church, to the great astonishment of all the people, who,
seeing her, cannot restrain their tears.

"'I questioned her closely, but did not express my opinion
on the subject. I went to Bar-sur-Aube to get additional
information; the physician declares it astonishing, especially
when we consider her former hopeless condition. The hospital
Sisters, the curés of Bar-sur-Aube, the patients, all say it is
truly a miracle. The people of Ormoy and even of the vicinity,
who come to see her, wonder that I do not mention it from the
pulpit. I beg of you to let me know how to act in the affair,
and also that you will speak to the Bishop about it.'

"The Bishop has since sent word through me to the curé
of Ormoy, to publish this miraculous occurrence to his
parishioners; he has also charged me with forwarding you a copy
of the good curé's letter, leaving to your discretion the use
you may make of it.

"I am, etc.,

"BARILLOT, Canon, Vicar General."

Before printing this, we wished to ascertain if the cure were permanent, and the Vicar General sent us the following response from the curé of Ormoy:

"The cure is permanent; for several months past the young
woman has been with the Ursulines of La Chapelle, who consider
her physically able to share in the labors of the house; her
condition having been attested by three doctors. Her sudden
recovery, as above mentioned, leads us to believe that it was
surely supernatural. I was far from meriting this favor which
has been granted my poor parish. I hope the Blessed Virgin will
finish her work.

"_November 3, 1835._"

CURES WROUGHT IN THE CHABLAIS DISTRICT (SAVOY).

"_The Borders of Lake Geneva, June 18, 1835._

"_Monsieur_:

"The country purged of Calvin's heresy by the labors of
Geneva's holy bishop, is not a stranger to the blessings
figured by the medal's mysterious rays. This wonderful
instrument of Mary's liberality has been propagated with
astonishing rapidity, though only a few months since we heard
of it in our midst. I consider it a pious obligation to offer
you a few small stones towards the construction of that temple
of glory now in process of erection, to the honor of her,
who has lately proved herself more powerful and merciful on
earth than ever before. I am a young villager living amidst my
family; I do not announce miracles to you, but merely recount
facts just as I have seen or heard them. I could have subjoined
a list of signatures, but I did not judge it necessary, the
docile, religious heart deeming them superfluous, and the
skeptic, fraudulent, like the facts. On a perusal of the first
few phrases in each incident, persons living in the vicinity
will recognize the individuals concerned, and thereby be more
deeply impressed.

"1st. In the month of July, 1824, Mlle. C., aged twenty-nine
years, bade, as she thought, a last adieu to her family; she
and some other generous companions were going to one of the
large cities in southern Italy to consecrate themselves there
to the service of the sick and poor. After a few months'
novitiate in a religious house devoted to works of this nature,
she was attacked by one of those debilitating, wasting maladies
that physicians are at a loss to define. Attributing it to the
climate, the Superiors, after twenty-two months' ineffectual
treatment at the novitiate, sent her to breathe her natal
air. But change of air proved vain also, and the doctors at
last ceased their visits, judging the re-establishment of
her health an impossibility. About six years ago, she had
improved sufficiently to walk a few steps beyond her chamber,
and even remain in the open air some minutes, but amelioration
was illusory, and since 1830 she had not been able to leave
her couch of suffering except for a few instants. Many times
during these last five years was she apparently on the verge
of death, and that for several consecutive days, always,
however, retaining her hearing and intellectual faculties,
since she could respond by signs to the priest who visited
her. It was he who gave me these particulars. Her condition
had become such that it was judged advisable to administer the
Last Sacraments. This house was now a school of edification,
where Christians might study the price of sufferings and the
heroism of patience. Finally, about the end of last April,
this poor creature, so tortured for the past eleven years,
conceived a hope of relief through the Miraculous Medal,
but, mistrusting the somewhat extraordinary impressions the
thought made upon her imagination, it was only from obedience
she could be induced to commence a novena. The sole exercises
consisted of repeating, three times a day, the invocation: 'O
Mary! conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to
thee!' On Wednesday, April 24th, the second or third day of
the novena, she felt an irresistible desire to arise. It was
yet very early in the morning; a little child assisted her
to dress. Finding that her limbs support her, she begins to
think it must be something miraculous, and, filled with joy,
she wishes to announce the news to her mother, who is in an
adjoining room. Arrived at the door, she is seized with fright,
and precipitately turns back; but, being reassured of her newly
restored strength by the facility with which she reaches her
own chamber, she overcomes herself, and, retracing her steps,
seeks the embraces of her mother, her sister and brother.
Her unexpected appearance fills them with great emotion, and
abundant tears attest the depths of their joy and gratitude. A
clergyman, who often visited this lady, soon heard rumors of
her recovery, but gave no credit to them. Meeting her mother
on the street not long after, she burst into tears at sight
of him, and was unable to express the cause of her emotion.
Suspecting it, he went immediately to the house, and saw for
himself what a miracle had been wrought. With Mlle. C., he
unites in blessing her powerful protectress, the Immaculate
Mary.

"Since that time, April 24, to the present date, June 18th,
Mlle. C. rises about seven o'clock, hears Mass on her knees,
employs herself in various duties during the day, makes visits
and walks of half an hour's or even an hour's duration, and
continues well, even her complexion begins to assume a healthy
tinge. Her legs are still a little swollen, and she cannot yet
take much nourishment.

"The sudden appearance of this person, whom every one had
known to be seriously afflicted for eleven years, created an
extraordinary sensation. All eyes were fixed upon her, and many
persons even followed her. This took place in the capital of
the province.

"2d. In the month of August, 1833, my sister, at the sight of
a child who barely missed falling through an open trap door,
was suddenly attacked by frightful nervous convulsions, which
henceforth returned daily, and even as often as fifteen times
a day. It was only at the end of two months that remedies, and
a four weeks' strict hospital treatment, succeeded in checking
them. Last year, they manifested themselves again in the month
of February, but disappeared, leaving her a prey to great
weakness, and a fever that kept her in bed four weeks.

"In the February of this year, the nervous convulsions
returned, and with a frequency and force that were truly
alarming. The patient wasted visibly, the paroxysms were
renewed seven and ten times a day, and were of a most frightful
character; the circulation of her blood seemed checked, her
feet and hands were deathly chilled, she jerked her head with
violence and precipitation, an agitated cry escaped her breast;
the attack lasted from three to six minutes, and left her
completely exhausted. The witnesses of this painful spectacle
were affected to tears. She was taken to a skillful physician,
who after seeing her in one of these convulsions, pronounced
the case hopeless, saying, 'it baffled him, he could not
understand it.' However, he prescribed remedies. Meanwhile, the
first medals arrived in our midst. On Shrove Tuesday, my sister
had five attacks, which she assured me were the worst she had
ever had. Next day, wearing the medal, she began a novena, and
the two convulsions she had that day were the last; never since
has she felt the slightest symptom (and that without employing
the prescribed remedies), neither has she had a sign of the
fever, which last year replaced the less violent convulsions.
This cure was wrought in an insensible, but very efficacious
manner, the first day of a novena made through the medal. My
sister immediately resumed the manifold duties of a laborious
household. She attributes, and we also, her recovery to Mary
alone. Thousands of times be love and glory to this good Mother!