Page 107 - March On! God will Provide by Brother Aubert

Chapter 14
CONSTITUTION APPROVED

p norurn Ryrr,N HAD opENED on January 15, 1844, a
-l-,t primary schooi in the shadow of the cathedral {rom
which it took its name, St. Saviour Primary School. He
had rented an idle inn, "La Bellevue," at 450 francs a
year. In spite of the hard times he had he continued to
operate this venture, chiefly because Father Scherpereel,
the Diocesan Inspector of Primary Schools, and Father
Carton, Secretary of the Commission on the Infant
Schools of Bruges, had guaranteed the rent and the taxes.
On July 15, 1846, with the encouragement of these
two priests, Brother Ryken entered into an agreement
to lease the property for a period o{ nine years at an
annual rental of 500 francs, This shift from the previous
practice of paying an annual rent was to assure the
guarantors that the school would continue for at least
several years.
Once Brother Ryken had committed himself to remain
for nine years, he had to face a delicate problem in
diplomacy. For some months his school had been the
target of a ruthless recruiting campaign carried on over
energetically by the younger members of the staff of
the preparatory section of the Bishop's College.
On July 24, 1846, Brother Ryken and the authorities
at the Bishop's College entered into an agreement. The
Xaverian Brothers agreed not to accept at St. Saviour
any boy above the age of ten with the proviso that any
boy in school could remain until he was twelve. For its
part the Bishop's College bound itsell not to accept
those under ten. More than likely it was the prestige of