Some time in the year
1911 the editor of the "St. Peter's Bote, " of Muenster.
Sask., asked for a historical sketch of the German Catholic
Missions of the Province of Ontario for his paper. Thinking that
this was a nice little undertaking, the promise of furnishing it was
promptly given without hesitation.
It did not take the writer long to see
that he had made a rash promise. The sources of information were
scarce and imperfect as far as the parish records were accessible.
The first generation of settlers, as well as many of the second,
had already gone to their reward. The earlier missionaries left
their records scattered so much that no one knows where to look for
them. Hence, the writer was obliged to wade through volumes of
registers of many parishes; to search the scant archives of various
Chancelleries of the Province; to spend days and weeks in the registry
offices in search of land titles, etc., and above all, to interview as
many of the older settlers as possible for information. Letters
of inquiry were sent all over America, even to Europe. Then some
old histories were consulted. Several gentlemen who bad been
gathering notes on the subject were seen. Among these was Mr.
MacIntosh, of Toronto, who deserves special mention for having given
free use of his copious notes gathered during many years.
It is a pity that someone had not
undertaken this work 15 or 20 years ago, when many of the old settlers
were still alive.
A work of this kind was done by Mr. Ezra
Eby, a classmate of the writer at college, in the middle of the sixties
of the last century, for his Mennonite Brethren in Waterloo County.
For 35 years or more he taught school through Waterloo Township,
and assiduously gathered whatever information he could. In 1895
and 1896 he published the results of his lifelong labors in two
splendid volumes, which will forever remain a monument of his ant-like
diligence and perseverance. His financial reward was meagre,
indeed.
Had we Catholics but had such a man!
The Rev. Dr. Tracy, now of Toronto, did some creditable
work of this kind in various missions in which he had been
stationed. Rev. John Gnam, while pastor of Hessen,
published a very complete little history of that parish. So has
Rev. P. J. Donovan, for Dunnville.
If every pastor would endeavor to do the
same in his own parish the future historian of the Church would find
his material ready. No one can do this as readily as the pastor
who is on the spot, and has opportunities denied to others for
gathering information. Moreover, they might keep their
Announcement books in substantial copy books and preserve them
religiously as one of the