Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-06-07
Foot-Washing.

The ancient ceremony of foot
washing, the Eastern Budget tells us,
was performed at Vienna this Easter.
Twelve of the most hopelessly poor
old men and women that could be
procured were brought out of their
rags and dirt, properly bathed and
attired in suitably picturesque old
German costumes, and then placed
in the throne room, in the presence
Of the Royal family of Hanover and
the principal court dignitaries, to-
gether with an immense crowd of
visitors, invited, let us hope, for the
moral effect Of the spectacle, rather
than from any consideration Of rank.
The twelve impersonations of pow
erty were then seated to q cold col
lation which was placed before them
by the Emperor and Empress they
were not, however, allowed to eat
anything, the dishes being immedi-
ately removed and placed in wooden
vessels. The feet of the women
were then washed by the court cham
berlain, the Empress touching them
with a laced towel, Hohenlohe and
the Emperor performing the same
Office for the men. The Emperor
and Empress (after washing their
hands, then hung round Che neck of
each bag containing thirty pieces
of silver, and the poor old wretches
were sent back to the squalor in
which they had spent their lives in
court carriages, each with a bottle
Of wine and his dinner, while the
Imperial party, let us hope, betook
themselves to their accustomed rou-
tine, secure of approving conscience
and smiling heaven" with the
sweet consciousness of having dis
charged their duties to poverty for
another year, and vindicated their
claim to be faithful disciples of the
meek and lowly Savior.
The ceremony does not seem to us
so unique as some would have us be-
lieve. There is a great deal of foot
washing going on in the word
Poverty manifests itself to Napoleon
just now in a less ideal form than
the twelve old men in ancient Ger
man costume" of Viennes BROTHER
He offers it, therefore, the bonnie
b0uche of vote instead Of a cold
dinner in q wooden pail bat the
one gift has about as much meaning
and is as lasting and effective as the
other. There are certain prelates
in Catholic and Protestant churches
who live in palaces and draw prince
ly incomes solely on the strength of
a triennial sermon, in which they
declare themselves the humble fol-
lowers Of him who had not where to
lay his head. This is one of the most
profitable and remarkable feats of foot
washing known and has long been
an envy of the unconsecrated world.
For the truth is, we are all of us
addicted more or less to foot-wash-
ing. We have all of us some favorite
short and easily scrawled note of
hand with which to pay our enor-
nous debt to right or to virtue
And it is curious to observe how very
small an amount of cash the world
will accept as payment for that
debt, and how long we can keep our
credit up with boldly written due
bills.
Religion has long been fashionable,
and penitence classically severe may
be said to have become the ruling
style in vogue of late, Eugene or
dercd Passion Week to be observed,
in the Chapel Of the Tuilleries, "with-
out bonnets, the heavy Spanish
mantila expressing humiliation bet
ter" TO which some of the most de-
vout court ladies, we are told, added
"b0ufdnte trains of black tulIe.-
Pearls and diamonds were worn bat
no colored jewelry." We also in our
humber fashion, keep the fasts. No
balls or weddings are admissible dur
ing Lent In circles which desire to
be correct in the mode. We have
all of us, too, our favorite preacher
of charity, whose cause they defend
a P0utrGnce against all assailants.-
We bewail ourselves OF our sins in
concert on Sunday, and during the
week feel free to devote ourselves to
the details of the last murder trial
and decide upon the sins of our
There is an old story of
a woman who was q sinner, but who
out of her great love washed the
Savior's feet with her tears, and did
wipe them with the hair of her head.
But other times, other Manners
That was not the same foot-washing
as ours.-Nea0 York Tribune.