The Growth of Our Catholic Population.
Father Stak quotes from the Catholic World the following figures as to the growth of Romanism. No doubt this growth is greatly exaggerated, but, when all allowance is made, there remains an alarming basis of truth under these statements:— “At the date of independence, Catholics numbered about 25,000. In 1789 they were 30,000, in a total population of 3,000,000, or one-hundredth of the whole. It was in 1789 that the church was regularly established on American soil by the erection of a bishopric at Baltimore. The work done up to that time was in the nature of missionary enterprise. “In 1808, Catholics were 100,000, in a total population of 6,500,000, or one sixty-fifth of the whole; in 1830, they were 450,000, in a total of 13,000,000, or one-twenty-ninth of the whole; in 1840, they were 950,000, in a total of 17,070,000, or one-eighteenth of the whole; in 1850, they were 2,150,000, in a total of 23,191,000, or one-eleventh of the whole; in 1860, they were 4,400,000, in a total of 31,000,000, or one-seventh of the whole; in 1870 they were 8,500,000, in a total of about 40,000,000, or more than one fifth of the whole. “Of course bishops and priests increased in a manner corresponding to the increase of the people. The first bishop was appointed for Baltimore in 1789. In 1808 there was one at New Orleans, one at Louisville, one at Boston, one at New York. In 1830 there were eleven bishops; in 1840, sixteen, in 1850, thirty-three; in 1860, forty-three; in 1870, sixty. The whole establishment now consists of one cardinal, seven archbishops, fifty-seven bishops, 4,500 priests, and 8,500,000 people.”