Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1884-04-11
sagacious. Floeks OF goats mcsndet
through the streets, big. well-formed.,,
4 handsome beasts, /

sagacious. Flocks OF goats mcsnder;
through the streets, big, w~ell-formed.
handsome beasts.
Bullocks are used as beasts of burden,
but the cows, like the pope, lead a mer-
~ life" l suppose they belong to some
body, but they walk about the streets
like ground landlords. They are small
cattle, plump and w~ell-favored, forming
a strong contrast with the thin and
care-worn human population among
whom they indolentiy pick their way.
They stroll down the center of the "
row thoroughfares, through the bazars,
frequently stopping the traffic, types of
the idolatry which bars the growth of civ
ilization. Imet one II morning stroll
ing through'the bazaar, %shouldering every
body out of the way. Suddenly she
! caught sight of a basket of green which
q woman was %peddling on the roadway.
Without saving '.By your leave" the
COW stopped, and critically turning over
the greens selected a young and tooth
some caulitlower. The poor woman
feebly battlcd with the marauder, but the
COW took no notice and did not bulge
till it had its caulitlower, when it re-
sumcd its morning stroll through the
bazar. The cow, it is well known, is
one of the idols CT Hindoo worship, and
if the woman's god wanted a caulitiow-
er it would have been sacrilegious too
strenuoasly to resist the desire. Close
by where this monumental transaction
in egreen market stufs took place
there is a temple where under the por-
tico half a dozen bulls are kept, literal
ly in clover. The place is much dirtier
and smells more vilely than an English
farmer would like to have his cowshed.
But the beasts seemed placidly happy,
refleclively munched their grass, won
dering what they did there, and in their
slumbers babb]ing O. green fields. The
cow in bronze figures in various sizes is
in most of the temples. On the pave
ment near n of extra size and super
sanctity I saw two men playing dice.
As for the temples themselves, they are,
more especially to the traveller fresh
from the gorgeous fanes of Japan, in
all ways despieable. At best, they are
so crowded in among other buildings
that any architectural beauty they might
possess is lost to view. In order to see
the far-ramed golden temple one has to
ascend the first story of a shop on the
opposite side of q narrow way before
he can behold the dome, which, for the
peace OF his soul, Maharajah Runieet
Singh had freshly crowned with
plate Of gold. For the most part the
sacred places do not merit the name of
temple, heing rather shrines a few feet
high. Many of them are like deserted
toy shops in which bushes has gradu-
ally dwindled down to the vanishing
point, and the broken-hearted proprie-
tor has gone away, not caring to take
with him the small model OF a cow. the
grotesaue doll, or the strings of faded
m~arigolds which garland the tawdry
shrine. AT all the temples Brahmins
abound in pursuit of their various
functions. the principal one seeming to
be that Of begging. There are many
things in Buddhism incredible to the
Western mind, but not least is the pos.
sibility of paying any kind of reyer-
ence to the lazy fellows who sku1k
about the temples, bleed the pilgrims OF
their uttermost farthing, and poster for
eigners for the smallest copper coin.
Buddha has many yotaries in crowded
India; but the Brahmins are numeri.
cally al appreciate portion of the con.
%gregation. They toll not, neither dc
they spin, and since they must live they
unblushingly beg. All their ministra,
tions, from the solemnest to the mos,
immaterial, end with outstretched hand,
palm uppermost.-Cor. London Daily
Mems.