of Nôtre Dame de la Paix (Our Lady of Peace), which he blessed on December 24, 1893, the sixty-second anniversary of the first expulsion from the Hawaiian Islands of the first prefect apostolic, Msgr. Alexis Bachelot. Secret societies and establishment of Catholic Young Men's Institute Msgr. Ropert's peace-loving nature made him hesitate in enforcing in his vicariate the condemnation by the Holy Office of the secret societies of the Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, and the Sons of Temperance on June 24, 1894. The documents of the Holy See were addressed to the Catholic Bishops of the United States and his wish not to disturb the Catholics of his jurisdiction who were members of the condemned organizations inclined him to the opinion (confirmed by Archbishop Riordan of San Francisco) that the proscription was limited to the United States. On the advice of the Superior General of the Picpus Fathers, Msgr. Ropert later published the Roman decree and extended the Holy See's condemnation of the secret societies to include the Hawaiian Islands. To better counteract membership in these societies, Msgr. Ropert supported the establishment of three councils of the Young Men's Institute. Brother Infirmarians at the Kalaupapa Settlement Prior to his first ad limina visit to Rome in 1895, Msgr. Ropert appointed Father Cornelius Limburg as his pro-Vicar. He then left for France in the company of Father Hubert Stappers and a Portuguese youth, Peter Alencastre (later Bishop Stephen Alencastre) who was to begin his studies for the priesthood at Louvain in Belgium. During his voyage, Msgr. Ropert showed his devotion to the priests of his jurisdiction by paying a visit to each one's family - which caused him to journey through France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. He returned to Honolulu on November 16, 1895 accompanied by Father Pamphile deVeuster, the brother of the late Father Damien, one choir brother and four lay brothers, all destined for the Kalaupapa Settlement. According to arrangements made with the Board of Health, the brothers were given the care of the Bishop's Home for Boys in Kalaupapa. Father Pamphile followed in his brother's footsteps, but being an elderly, scholarly man at the time of his arrival, he could not get accustomed to the surroundings and returned to Belgium on August 25, 1897. Catholic education in the vicariate Msgr. Ropert's continuing concern for Catholic education of his flock led him to erect a girls'