Ck XV. SOUTH AMERICA. ISl 



untiling-, and are attended with that care and tender- 

 ness their state reqiiires. The^e charitahle employ- 

 ments take up so g-reat a part of the day, as often to 

 leave him no timo for assistini^the father coadjutor in 

 the services of the church. ' One useful part of the 

 duty of the latter is to catechize, and explain some 

 portion of scripture m the church every day in the 

 week, Thursdays and Saturdays excepted^ for the iii- 

 struction of the young of both sexes ; and tiiese in 

 every town are not less than two thousand. On Sun- 

 days all the inhabitants never fail to attend divine 

 service. The priest also visits the sick to confess 

 them ; and if the case requires it, to c^ive them the 

 viaticum ; and to all these must be added the other 

 indispensable duties of a priest. 



Bx' tlie strictness of the law these priests should be 

 nominated by the governor, as vice-patron, and be 

 qtiaiiiied for their function by the consecration of the 

 bishop; but as among ihe three persons recom- 

 niCEded on such occasions to the governor, there will 

 of consequence be one, whose virtues and talents ren- 

 der him most fit for the oiiire ; and as no better 

 judges of this can be supposed than the provincials 

 of the order, the governor and bishop have receded 

 from their undoubted rights, and the provincials al- 

 ways collate and prefer those v. hose merits are most 

 conspicuous. 



TiiL missions of the Guaraníes arc also undergone 

 s^iperior, who nominates the a.^isisiant priests of the 

 other towns, ilis residi^nce is at Candelaria, which 

 lies in the centre of all the missions ; but he ireqwently 

 visits the o- her towns, in order to superintend their 

 governments ; and at the same time, concerts mea- 

 sures that some of the fathers may be sent ammig the 

 heathen indi;ins,to conciliate their aOectlons, and by 

 degrees work their conversion. In this important 

 ofticehe is assisted by two vice-superiors, one of whom 

 resides at Parana, and the ether on the river Uruguay. 



^ All 



