The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1877-05-26

self TO her service and laid his sword on
her altar, which is now preserved at Bar
celona. Here monks and anchorites from
all the noble families and royal houses Of
Spain spent their lives and never departed
from these walls, and their bones lie
mouldering in the crypts below. But
however weird and strange were our
thoughts at night in these gloomy, for
saken cloisters, with owls and bats for our
companions, the morning dispelled all such
gloom. We could see the sunrise on the
high peaks over us, while the valleys were
all dark below. The mist was rising over
the river which threaded its way far below
us down through the valleys The white
villages one by one came out through the
mists as the sun rolled them up the noun
tain sides.
Those old monks had chosen a glorious
place for their home. The chief object of
interest at the monastery now is the chapel
of the Virgin and her image, her dresses,
and the room full of votiye offerings which
have been made to her The chapel is
large, fine church, but its best things have
been carried away by the French. We
cannot but admire the bOldness of the un-
dertaking to build so massive church
in this inaccessible height. The Virgin is
raised to little gallery over the high
altar. She is dressed up in ribbons and
tinselry. She is made Of black wood and
holds child in her lap and ball in her
right hand One room behind the high
altar is devoted to the safe keeping of the
votiye offerings made to the Virgin. The
room is filed with great medley of arti.
cles, among which are faces, legs, arms,
hands and feet, cut from marble; erutches,
canes military hats and coats worn in bat
ties, with the former owners names at
tached.
As yet We are only half way up Mont
serrat. From the monastery 10 the high.
est point of St. Jeronimus it is two thou
sand feet. The whole mountain has been
cleft asunder, making terrible chasm,
running from east to west. 1t is said that
it was rent in twain on the day of the
crucifxion From the monastery to the
top Of St. Jeronimus, scattered along the
steep and difficult path, are twelve stations
or hermitages, each perched on some lofty
and almost inaccessible cliff. The highest
one, on the top of the highest point, is
called the hermitage Of st. Jeronimus,
another st. Andrus, another Santiago, &c.
The way up along the chasm which di-
vides the mountain runs along high, dizzy
cliffs, ascends by steps cut in the rock,
passing these hermitages one after the
other. 1t is called the Via Crucis. All
these hermitages were once filed with
anchortes, who lived each in his cell alone
on these lofty cliffs, from which he never
departed alive after he had once entered
1t; and yet it is said these cells were eager
ly sought as a great prize by the deyotees
of those days The view from the top Of
st, Jerouimus is exceedingly grand. We
stood there as the sun went down; the blue
sea was far to the east; the whole country,
seen from the top, was broken into undu-
lating hills, rising into mountains; the
Pyrenees rose far away on the northern
horizon, covered with snow; mountains
abounded everywhere, aud from these lofty
pinnacles, looking below, it appeared as if
a tumultuous sea had been suddenly petri-
fed in its most angry commotion; the
beautiful Llobregat wound like thread Of
silver at our feet, and far away among the
valleys, just before US, at the north, lies
the city of Manresa; and near by the cave
where Loyola passed whole year in pen
ance before he devoted himself to the
Virgin at MontSerrat, and where, it is said 4,
he wrote his book,-the rules of his fa-
nous order.