short prayer, if only the three Hail Marys faithfully said every day in honor of the Blessed Virgin? Some may object and say, "What great things could be expected as the result of such an easy and short devotion?" An answer to this may be found in the fact that God is so anxious to save all, that He seizes what we would call a small thing, and, in His generosity, makes it a great thing; also in the wondrous saving power of His blessed Mother, "the sweet bait by which He catches the worst sinners."
Another objection may take the following form: There is something presumptuous, if not superstitious, in thinking that salvation may be certainly secured by such a form of devotion. I agree with the objector if a person simply and formally practises it, and it alone, with this sole intention. We read rather amusing stories — I hope they are only stories — of robbers lighting candles, or performing some other form of devotion, in order to have success in their unholy work. I read lately of a notorious brigand in the south of Italy, whose hands were red with blood, having such a devotion to the Madonna. This of course would be, if true, rank superstition of the worst kind. It is generally spoken of as confined to the south
