ve the kingdom of God as a _little child_,
shall not enter into it. And embracing them, and laying His hands upon
them, He blessed them."--(Mark x. 13-16.)

The motives, then, that should induce every priest to devote himself
zealously to the spiritual welfare of youth, are: First, the great
interest which Jesus Christ takes in children; and second, the more
abundant fruits reaped from the care bestowed upon the young.

The Son of God came into the world to redeem all who were lost. But do
children profit by His abundant redemption? Do they draw from the source
of graces that are open to all? Will they be marked with the seal of
Divine Adoption, and be nourished with His own Flesh in the Sacrament of
His love? Will they be counted, in the course of their career, among the
number of His faithful disciples, or among the enemies of His law? Will
they one day be admitted into His kingdom? Will they be excluded? Is it
heaven or hell that will be their lot for all eternity? It is we
priests, and almost we only, that are expected to solve these problems.
Children are the noblest portion of the flock that is confided to our
care. Their fate is in our hands. If our zeal is not active in their
salvation, Jesus will lose, in them, the fruit of His sufferings and
death. How many are deprived forever of the sight and possession of God,
because they have not received a good Catholic education. Who is to
blame? Has the pastor sufficiently instructed, warned, and watched over
them? How many lose their baptismal innocence almost as soon as they
are capable of losing it, grow up in vicious habits, grow old in sin,
and die impenitent at last, because they were neglected in early youth,
were not subjected to the amiable yoke of virtue! "Bonum est viro, cum
portaverit jugum ab adolescentia sua."--(Thren. iii. 27.) If the first
years of life are pure, they often sanctify all the after life; but if
the roots of the tree are rotten and dead, the branches will not be more
healthy. "Adolescentes, cum semel a malitia fuerint occupati, quasi
incaptivitatem essent adducti, quoquo diabolus jusserit eunt."--(S.
Chrys. Hom. 19 in Gen.) Education is the mould in which a man's moral,
intellectual, and religious character is formed. Man will become, in his
old age, what education made him in his youth. "Adolescens juxta viam
suam, etiam cum senuerit, non recedet ab ea."--(Prov. xxii. 6.) All is a
snare and seduction for youth. If the fear of God, the hor