New-York tribune., 1868-03-18

ing radically better than this Ola l'''h IA "
deemer the angels, saints, and oDedlehce' anu So'
might offer d saving competition III we" Vi '"a'
moral stagatiOn against Whlch ''cA'0o mo '''i'
mentng for the last forty years.
Tho Church is terrible Iealist In the walls OF one
NJ tbo minor paroauias appears a sculpture of chll-
ducn in fine flames. and waySide walkers are thus
warned 10 kneel at the shrine of which 1t Is the an
cient ornament. The same preSentment territeS the
scene of various altars showing what value the
Church in every form has always put upon
fire as a means of purgatOn and as an
element of aspiration. Hence St. Lawrence is
depicted in the act Of being roasted alive, and even
from his cfgy the cruel spit of maryrdom is not ex-
cluded. Worse it is with the supreme type of holi-
ness and suffering; the dead room of San Pabo's
containing a STOPPING Christ, ghastly as the most
morbid realiSt could desire. In the Church OF La
Santa del Aqua which gives name to a fine old basin
and fountain at Carlos lids AQueduct over the way,
the corpse of this figure is Laid out in tomb of glass
There particular image at the Cathedral, sad and
sallow, and dashed with bloody spray. So. too at
the Church of La SantissimO, Of whose image the
only distinct recollection preserve just now is that
some poor old women were beating their breasts
mournfully before it. San Lorenzos is not far from
San Domingo, and its now ruined monastery OF
the InQuisitiOn, near to which Niduari was
shot. San BorenzO's is not much more than chapel
into which convent of nuns used TO gaze at mathis
and vespers through barred gate An altar adjacent
TO the street displays a number OF the Apostles
niched into background of gilt work. IN the mlddle
of which is the scene of the Cross and below II a
regally dressed image of tho Blessed Virgin. shrined
in glass. All the divine ladies of the Mexican
churches are cOstumed with expense and with pretty
much the same anachrOnsm as i'll the case OF the
cloaked Redeemer. When entered San Lorenzo's
A. lugU a
broken foot of life-szcd image of Christ upon the
Cross whose ghastliness had been half concealed by
cloth. 1t being necessary to expose portion
of the figure. the padre standing near by
made use of the opportunity to stoop with
reverence aud kiss one of the cruciicial wounds.
Throughout the churches repeat the same story OF
the agOnizcd cross. There has been pteous
demand for this realism in cOnventual and
mOnastc life so common in Mexico 1t could not
have been more highly intended TO subdue the
passions and exalt tho imagnatons of the ignorant
than to keep vivid the faith and sympathy OF the
professors Some of the sects will scarcely give due
credit to the downright worship and belief which
has animated the Catholic conception of the tragedy
of Calvary; but no elder who has attempted lifting
himself to heaven by his suspenders has imagined
any better. The practical Church of Mexico,
however, has meant neither peace nor knowledge.
1t might have taught more and suffered less, and
were it not monopoly have had less to do with the
social and political vices rigid, engrossing,
unrelaxng church it is-its blessed phantasmagora
of martyrdoms offset by generation of suterings,
! from Iturbide down to Macmillan.
The churches of the capital have sameness OF
architecture and illustrations but Of them have
force of situation and are adjusted to the scene
The cathedral and chapel at Guadalupe are vugaTly
enriched but as mere features comparative treas
ures to the landscape. short distance from the
! Alameda or public garden, there is q small chapel
which boasts four saints in the comfortable inches of
a well-elaborated facade. A large old fountain and
basin is near by, where ragged Indian women, bare
legged bare-bOsOmed. and brawnier than Rebecca,
come to fill their pitchers The antique little chapels,
the drOwsy patriarchs, and the running fountain,
have something between them costly in harmony.
but bereabout, as ELSEWHERE, there is poverty and
uncleanness enough to spoil any picture. Delf and
porcelain sof the use of which remarkable instance
is presented near the statue Of MOrelos the side
of house belonging to one of the old COndes-are
frequently employed for ecclesiastical inscriptions.
The churches contain few good pictures and much
rubbish the better class of paintings having been
stolen during the war; Some interesting remains,
chiefly relics of the 10th aud 18th centuries, took re-
fuge in the Academy of San Carlos, which had in its
laurclcd DAYS the best art gallery in America. Here
are some fine portrait panelings of the masters OF
art Charles Vernets passage of the Romans to Jeru-
/ salem monster canvases by Xuarez, Rodriguez Lu-
dovicus Joachim bearing date after the close of the
10th century, a very melodramatc descent from the
crucilx by Balasar do Chaue and better than all,
beautiful Shepherd Boy by Ingres Among the best
! known of the Mexican artists were Juarez, Aimenez
Cabrera Morales and there are some Others. OF the
most modern of these Morales the only work have
seem is canvas in hospital chapel at Vera Cruz.
1t is the correct picture of saint who cured crppes
and shows at every point the influence Of the school
of MurillO.
At last reports there were in the Republic 1,229
parishes with 1928 eccesiastcs Its nunneries were
80, with l1S9 protesting inmates; monasteres, 14G,
with population of lj41 exclusive of servants
some 500 in number: colleges of propaganda, s, with
23S individuals. The religious army thus constituted
comprised Gill Individuals number about as
large as the division of Gen. Diaz and greater per-
haps than that of the legislatures and ayuntami-
cntos Of the several States added to the force Of the
National Administration and Congress. As an exam
pie of the clerical facility for making money, the
College of Our Lady of Guadalupe had at one time
two lotteries in monthly operation with fund of
$4,000 each and it calculated in 1850 by Miguel
LeTdO de Tejado author of the plan for nationalzng
the church property that the value of rentpaying
houses and grounds thus owned i'll the district of
Mexico was not less than s5O,OOO,OOO. The same au-
thory estimated that the total rents of the clergy
in one year were from $lsOOOOOO to s2OOOOOOO
These facts supply their own comment II is plain
that the Church of Mexico had erected itself into
State with numbers great at least its political
rival. IT was a monarchy in the midst of repub-
lie. To put the case more squarely, the great army
OF the Church were at issue with minority in the
Government as TO whether the Church should en-
olo fba TtG xybo
was imperial and retrogressiye. The figures of the
contest clearly show the nature of the victory paincd