"'Recommending him to Mary,' says the Sister, 'I left him. Towards evening, I heard a noise in the ward in the direction of his bed, and the attendant came in haste to say that the patient had sent for me.' 'Ah!' said the latter, in a tone very different from that of his morning's speech; 'I am dying, baptize me, I beg of you.' 'Giving him briefly the necessary instruction, I administered the holy rite, and a few hours later he peacefully expired.' "Rarely did these poor soldiers complain of their fate; though but little accustomed to the rigors of military life, they bore them with admirable patience. However, there was one exception to the general rule, that of an old soldier, who murmured continually and accused God of afflicting him unjustly. Arguments were worse than useless, they served but to aggravate the evil. Failing in this means to bring him to a better state of mind, I offered him a medal of the Blessed Virgin. By degrees, his complaints ceased, his countenance became composed and serene, and I had the consolation of seeing him expire in the most edifying dispositions." THE WAR BETWEEN PRUSSIA AND AUSTRIA, 1866. Letter of Mr. Stroever, Priest of the Mission, July 1st, 1867: "The wounded arrive in great numbers, and all our houses are filled. Every one wishes to have a medal; I inquired of one, who had begged for a medal at any price, if he were a Catholic. 'No,' was the answer; 'I am a Protestant but I would like to have it as a souvenir of yourself;' and he received it most gratefully. "We observe a certain degree of piety among the soldiers, and the sick are most eager to receive the Sacraments. The Protestants show a remarkable inclination to Catholicity. Not only the private soldiers, but even persons of distinction, wishing to have medals, scapulars or a crucifix. They take no measures to conceal these objects of devotion, and no one seems surprised at seeing them on their persons." REMINISCENCES OF THE COMMUNE, PARIS, 1871. Notes of a Sister of the Hospital d'Enghien: "During the siege, we had placed Miraculous Medals over all the doors and windows of the house. As one of our Sisters expressed the intention of concealing them, Sister Catherine exclaimed: 'No, no; they must be seen; put them in the middle of the principal entrance.'