CANADA
The Telegram
Barb Sweet
Published on April 15, 2016
Early 1950s interaction between the archbishop and the child welfare minister of the day seemed to not include the Christian Brothers in detailed discussions about admission policies for orphanages, questioning by lawyer Geoff Budden of an expert witness indicated Friday in the Mount Cashel civil trial at Newfoundland Supreme Court.
Budden continued to cross-examine historian John FitzGerald, witness for the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corp. of St. John’s.
The trial Friday drilled down into some history of the Brothers establishing the orphanage, but then zeroed in on several letters post-1950, including such things as fundraising, the establishment of sea cadets at the orphanage, as well as discussions between the archbishop and Smallwood-era cabinet minister H.L. Pottle on admissions policy for orphanages.
As part of that, a lengthy letter from Pottle to the archbishop included the suggestion that parish priests be informed of the department’s policies.
“You would acknowledge that’s a fairly detailed discussion with regard to the operations of child welfare, particularly with regard to placing children in orphanages?” Budden asked after FitzGerald finished reading out the letter.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.