I saw a story today in the New York Tribune from 100 years ago—14 October 1915, about a priest who went to the aid of a person being robbed and beat up the robbers. The writing of this particular article is entertaining with phrases such as “whom he had knocked senseless” and sent the two badly battered one to the workhouse”. Another entertaining piece of information was the statement from the second robber who “Was pleading with the clergyman not to hit him again.” The writing of the article truly brings the story to life and the dramatic language truly allows the reader to picture what happened. This is a form of journalism that has been lost in an effort to be standardized or “proper”. A well written story, I believe, is one that is written just like this one—vivid and easy to picture the action that is being described.
Father Philip McGrath was the director of Saint Peter’s Union for Catholic Seaman and the Sailor’s Reading Rooms based on The Official Catholic Directory of 1922. The Catholic Sea-man’s Mission was a well-known place to visit for sailors during shore leave in New York City. And, it seems that Father McGrath was there for at least ten years and probably more. Interestingly enough, the New York Times on September 24, 1912, said that Father McGrath was known “along the north water front as the sworn enemy of the thugs that prey upon seafaring men.” It seems that Father McGrath was a vigilante of the north water front. I don’t know of any other adventures that Father McGrath went on, but what a wonderful story!
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Story: New-York tribune. (New York [N.Y.]), 14 Oct. 1915. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress. <http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1915-10-14/ed-1/seq-1/>