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482 BENEDICT VADAKKEKARA Portuguese by the British signified that the Padroado government would no longer be in force in British India. Hence the Padroado personnel doggedly held on to their prerogative and publicly challenged the claims of the represen– tatives of the Propaganda. In the ensuing tug of war, both sides used to meet with ups and downs, while parish communities got split, and pastors and flocks changed sides at the slightest enticement or provocation. In between 1840 and 1849 there were various attempts on the part of a sizeable section of the congregation of St Andrew's in Bandra (Bandora in documents) on the island of Salsette to pass over from the Padroado line to the Propaganda one. None of these moves on account of hitches of various nature had a run of luck until 1852. In November 1851 a mass petition by 1900 sig– natories was presented to Mgr Hartmann praying to be admitted among his flock. The Bishop had no second thoughts about welcoming them. What was forthwith needed in order to accommodate these faithful was to immediately provide for them a church. As the Apostolic Vicar just did not have the wherewithal at his disposal to construct it 23 , he was constrained into applying for a loan of Rs 4000 from the bank. The loan had to be paid back with inter– est. The Documents I-II given above are about this bank loan of Rs 4000 and the way the Vicariate intended to raise the money for settling the loan account. The letters are addressed to Fr Maurice of St Albert and Fr Moses of Tus– cany24. Those responsible for the construction of the church and the disburse- 23 Since Mgr Fortini had died intestate the funds and other assets of the Vicariate were attached by the Ecclesiastical Registrar of the Supreme Court at the beginning of 1848 on the petition by a rivalrous group mastermind::d by the former general vicar Fr Joseph De Mello. Mgr Whelan and after him Mgr Hartmann had to keep on borrowing amounts on interest from banks for covering the extraordinary expenses of the Vicariate. However, the everyday administration went on without undue difficulties because the British colonial ad– ministration had been monthly paying Rs 200 to the apostolic vicar, Rs 140 to the Catholic military chaplain of Bombay and Rs 150 to the seminary of the vicariate. Cf. AGCarm, Gran Mogul 268-d2, Fr Michael Anthony to Fr General of Carmelites, Bombay 29 July 1850. It was only on 12 August 1854 that all the restrictions on the use of the funds were lifted and the Apostolic Administrator had his hands free regarding the administration of the funds. 24 The Bomb'!)' Catholic Examiner 1 (12 April 1251) 291, reports the arrival of Fr Moses in the Vicariate: "The last and the preceding Steamers have brought to our shores nine Mis– sionaries, of this number four are destined for this Mission, two for Patna and three for the Malabar Coast. Their arrival has relieved the Bishop of much anxiety, since the number of our Clergymen is barely adequate to meet the increasing demands of the Vicariate". The