Abbey of St. Vincent, near Latrobe, on September 10, 1859. a novice saw an apparition of a Benedictine in full choir dress. This apparition was repeated every day from September 18 until November 19, either at eleven o'clock at noon or at two o'clock in the morning. It was only on the 19th November that the novice interrogated the spirit, in presence of another member of the community, and asked the motive of these apparitions. He replied that he had suffered for seventy-seven years for having neglected to celebrate seven Masses of obligation; that he had already appeared at different times to seven other Benedictines, but that he had not been heard, and that he would be obliged to appear again after eleven years if the novice did not come to his assistance. Finally, the spirit asked that these seven Masses might be celebrated for him; moreover, the novice must remain in retreat for seven days, keep strict silence, and during thirty days recite three times a day the psalm Miserere, his feet bare, and his arms extended in the form of a cross. All the conditions were fulfilled between November 20 and December 25, and on that day, after the celebration of the last Mass, the apparition disappeared.
" During that period the spirit showed itself several times, exhorting the novice in the most urgent manner to pray for the souls in Purgatory; for, said he, they suffer frightfully, and are extremely grateful to those who co-operate in their deliverance. He added, sad to relate, that of the five priests who had died in our Abbey, not one had yet entered Heaven, all were suffering in Purgatory. I do not draw any conclusion, but this is correct."
This account, signed by the hand of the Abbot, is an incontestable historical document.
As regards the conclusion which the venerable prelate leaves us to draw, it is evident.
Seeing that a Religious is condemned to Purgatory for seventy-seven years, let it suffice for us to learn the necessity of reflecting on the duration of future punishment, as well
