The new Provincial did entertain one visitor from Minnesota, however. Late one morning, he heard somebody asking for him in the outer office and say he hoped Brother Henry wouldn’t mind not being called “Father.” Unfortunately, just as the visitor was being shown in, the Provincial had one of his attacks, which, as usual, wiped out what had gone immediately before, so that when he faced the visitor he had no idea who would be there, and did not realize that a minute before, between trains, he’d said, “I’ll be with you in a minute, Father.”
Mr. Studley, to give him credit, let it pass. He was in Chicago for a reunion of his old squadron, he said, and having got the new Provincial’s new address from the folks at the Hill, he’d thought it might be a good idea to stop by and say hello and also to say that Frank had died. Mr. Studley was invited to stay for lunch, did, and had a wonderful couple of hours meeting priests and brothers, faring somewhat better with the latter than with the former. There wasn’t much news from home, he said. Zim, and all that crowd, were in Florida. Frank had died.
Father Wilfrid wrote often. In January, the weather was very cold in Minnesota, and also in February. The blower had made a big difference, but the house was a bit chilly just the same. In March, Father Wilfrid said he was grateful for permission to set up a speakers’ bureau at the Hill, and, as directed, he and Father Louis would confine themselves to subjects of a religious nature, as would Brother Harold in his chalk talks to teenagers. Rex was fine. In April, Father Wilfrid wrote that the Bishop and Father Feld had been out to the Hill, on a friendly visit.
And the new Provincial, replying at once, said that he was pleased to hear that the Bishop had been out to the Hill, and urged Father Wilfrid to do everything, within reason, to assure continued good relations between Order and Diocese. But the new Provincial was worried. Oddly enough, although for many years he’d traveled out of Chicago, he seemed to think of the Hill as home.