Father Devine Buys 100 Krags

[Knute1]

Why in the....world.... would Father E. A. Devine, Catholic priest from the Transfiguration Rectory in Philadelphia, purchase 100 Krag rifles in 1926? I could see a few, maybe. It still had to be a small sum of money, that went to what purpose? Anyway, below is a link to a Congressional report on munitions. It shows the Father's purchase along with many others by Bannerman, etc.

https://books.google.com/books?id=BbZFAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA13582&lpg=PA13582&dq=father+e+a+devine&source=bl&ots=r26-obCQ8d&sig=ACfU3U3OZll0tnEusLHUIMMnCiHxFdmOMg&hl=en&ppis=_e&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi5uYWir73oAhVHV80KHYdZBHoQ6AEwAHoECAcQAQ#v=onepage&q=father%20e%20a%20devine&f=false

Here is a link to the same report highlighting other Krag sales.

https://www.google.com/books/edition/Munitions_Industry/BbZFAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=krag%20rifle

[Baltimoreed]

There was a lot of unrest in Ireland with a surge in 1919-21. Was he an Irish sympathizer buying arms for the next go round?

[Knute1]

From the same report on page 13297, Sedgley reports that the rifles were purchased for a "Boys Brigade". This is a recorded discussion with Bannerman, Sedgley and others by an investigator (Wemple) for Congress. I hadn't seen this before doing my original post.

https://books.google.com/books?id=BbZFAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA13297&lpg=PA13297&dq=munitions+industry++13297&source=bl&ots=r26-obFU5e&sig=ACfU3U140DA3s4ku_O8Kcf0gCneJ9eKN6w&hl=en&ppis=_e&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjOiMvpu73oAhVDAp0JHYy_CfkQ6AEwAHoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=munitions%20industry%20%2013297&f=false

See a little bit of humor further down on the same page, just for kicks.

[Baltimoreed]

Are you referring to the ladies underware gun salesman? Takes a rather large gal to carry a Krag in her unmentionables.

[Knute1]

Yeah, I was. I haven't read thru this whole inquiry from 1937, but it seems to be the start of machine gun control along with other gun control measures by the government.

[butlersrangers]

Transfiguration Church in Philadelphia was under construction in 1926. The Parish also constructed a huge parochial school.

100 Krag rifles and a 'cadet corps' are rather surprising features for a Catholic Parish.

I wonder if the 100 Krag Rifles were in a Sedgley/Bannerman "Transfigured" to School Rifles?

(It should be remembered that, before and during the WW1 era, New York Schools, through the Public School Athletic League, had some Krag rifles & carbines, as well as, Sub-Target Gun Machines).

[Knute1]

The "Boys' Brigade" concept seems to have been started in Protestant churches in Great Britain in the 1800's. In the U.S. it was used by churches to keep the older boys interested in coming to church. There were a lot of debates over the years about the "military" teachings of the Boys' Brigade program. It involved drills with dummy and real rifles. Rifles were meant for killing and that is where the rub was. Churches had a problem with teachings involving weapons of killing.
Father Devine must have been a promoter of the Brigade. Not sure where his teachings of it was coming from. Couldn't find anything on the net about him.

[butlersrangers]

Sedgley and Bannerman's Congressional Committee Testimony certainly establishes that Sedgley's Company routinely did gun work and repairs for the Bannerman Company.

[butlersrangers]

I guess the Boys Brigade movement started in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1883, and spread Worldwide, (and still exists). It spread to the U.S. around 1915.

It influenced the creation of the Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, and many other youth groups.

The Catholic Boys Brigade seems to have started in Boston, spread to New York, around 1910, and was picked-up in most urban areas.

As 'Knute' mentioned, in the early days real rifles & 'Drill' rifles and military style uniforms were in use. This practice eventually died out.

Catholic Boys Brigade movement eventually 'fizzled out', probably morphing into CYO - Sports and Scouting.

attached: Philadelphia Catholic Naval Battalion photos with enlarged detail showing some type of drill arm.

[Knute1]

Here is an article on the Boys Brigade from a Catholic bulletin in 1921 with background.

https://www.google.com/books/edition/Bulletin/Ydt21H4FsYIC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=the+catholic+boys+brigade+of+the+united+states&pg=PA11&printsec=frontcover