Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-08-21
MEXICAN CUSTOMS.
COMMUNICATING THE LAST SCENES
IN THE LieE or CHRIST.

COMMUNICATING THE LAST SCENES
IN THE uIFE OF CHRIST.
Fanny b. WARDS Description sftss Lad
Of Flowers and Gaitars and Faa-
DANCES a.A soaes-Goed In
| day Festivities.
| fCor. New York Sun.l
Good Friday is oh erved as q sort Of May
festival This year, as usual. the Passo de
las Flores Flower Promenade was held
along the Viga, the picturesque canal which
stretches away between willows and poplas
20 the fsr-famsd duating gardens Of tn
ancient Aztecs. The scene along tho his
toric causeway was astonishing to foreign
srA and as charmingly peculiar as it was
typical Of a poetic and pleasure-ioving peo-
pie. They are carly risers in this land Of
the sun, where breakfast is not taken till
midday. and everybody is enjoying . long
siesta during those hours when Americans
| are most actively at work At sunrise the
Viga and it. boulevard were thronged
with the aristocracy OF thu city and q vast
concourse Of plebeians and Indiana By
O'Clock the festivities were ut their
| height For miles along the tree-lined
| avenue q constant procession Of vehicles,
horsemen. and pedestrians packed the space
between green booths on either side, while
the canal was crowded with canoes and Ven
| stian- like gondolas Everything imaginable
on wheels WAS here-the stately closed car.
ria9e OF the Mexican millionaire, open ba-
rouches, coupes, vict0rias, dog carts, wagon
cites, even velocipedes and tricyclss, while
thousands OF hOrseman galloped gayly b.
tween The severe simplicity Of tho Ger
man and English style OF the riding habit
contrastei well with toe gorgeou ly capsr-
isoned, silver-decked equestrianS Most Of
the ladies were dressed in what Va would
consider full ball or opera costume-pals
| silks or satins, no wraps or covering for the
head, except now and then q lace mantills.
drapsd Spanish fashion. upon the back hair,
and wealth Of jewels such as the4air Next
canas are famous for.
Although the laws Of propriety are 50
vigorously strict that a gentleman may not
ride in the same carriage with the lady TO
whom be is betrothed, yet flirting is openly
| INDUCED in to an extent which would put
| to blush New York, Chicago, or San Fran
cisco. Following . senorita up and down
the promenade and staring intently in her
face is an accepted mode Of compliment here,
doubtless gratifying t. the young lady.
but sometimes dangerous to the adorer il
she happens TO have others equally devoted;
and it not infrequently happens that duels
are the result, she being prominently the
belle who can toast the greatest number
! Of such encounters
The canal was hidden by boats, big and
little. the majority being long, clumsy,
H. ~~sN
space in the middle, and a deck at
both end, and propelled by three or
four Indians, who push their long poles
| sgainst the canal bottom, singing as they
60. Others were enclosed with an airy
lattice work Of woven rushes, intertwined
with flowers, thus shading the happy occu-
PANTS Many, gay with flags and awnings,
were exact limitations of Venetian gondolas,
and thousands were simply dugouts, the
primitive chalupas which Cortez found in
use among the natives nearly four centuries
| ago. Most Of the canoes carried guitar
| players, n few were seen with harps or
| viols and Others had reed instruments,
which may have been patterned from that
of the great god Pan among the river
rushes Here everybody sings, for these
happy gc- lucky children Of nature are full
of music. Tine air was vocal with their
meaningless folk song, rendered in softest
Castilian, or high pitched patriotic hymns.
which just now incorporate q great deal
about the transcendent virtues Of "Por
fi-ri-a Di-i-i-az'
The banks were lined with booths Of green
branches festooned with garlands. where
loads of flowers, lemonade Of various colors,
CHA, delightfully."- cooling drink made from
the seeds of flower and favored with
orange or pineapple juice. pulque, orchata,
and other Mexican beverages were sold.
But .he great attraction along shore was the
flowers offered for sale by Indian girls.
whose deft brown fingers darted back and
forth. like shuttles, as they fashioned bou-
quets with surprising rapidity. From
earliest days Mexico has been noted for the
beauty and diver-ity Of its fora, and here
were fragrant heaps Of the choicest sPeci-
MEMS Wicker caskets lined with moss were
ELL d with carnations, pan sizes, Engli-h
violets, lilies, forgetme-nots. and the most
me- ynificent roses-soryeous basketfuls
which in New York could not be purchased
for less than SIS wore sold for one or two
reals.
Near the bridge Of the Embarcadero the
city council had erected an enormous booth
Of leafy branches at a cost Of several hun
tary bands playei alternately during the
day In this delightful retreat, command
ing n view up and down canal and cause-
way, chairs were let at q real, or lex cents
each. A detachment Of gendarmes role
constantly back and forth as guardians OF
the peace, and police were sta
toned every twenty feet along the
boulevard, from the bridge to the bronze
statue commemoratiny Guatimotzin. the
youthful poet, priest and so.dier-king OF an
Glen: Mexico II IS estimated that fully TO-
600 people visited ths Viga on this Friday of
Sorrows All bore in their hands or on their
heads some floral tribute. whils boat loads
Of blossoms were coming down from the
great gardens beyond Santa Anita and the
floating islands Of Ixtacalco.
The festivities were kept up, though in
diminishing scale, until Sunday night Dur
ing all these days the shrill, discordant rat
tie of 900 matracas rose above the Babel
of human voices. These little instruments
OF auricular torture are made Of tin, iron,
ivory, wood, even of gold and silver. and in
all imaginable shapes. Some are in the
form of humming birds, peacocks. birds Of
paradise, chickens, parrot; others are like
gridirons, frying PAM musical in struments.
fruits, flowers. or reptiles. Everybody
must have one, from the dignihed grand.
parent to the baby in arms, and by tTirling
them rapidly n INST unearthly, rasping,
grinding sound is produced by wooden
springs inside. The noise is intended to
typify and riiicuie the cries of the Jews.
Cruelty Himi Cruelty Him'' az they fol-
lowed Christ to his death.
Already the sale of Jndases had com
menced, fer on the following Sunday the
strangest Of all Mexican ceremonies took
place. in the burning Of tho traitor. Dur
ing all Holy Week men were continually per-
ambulating the streets, holding high above
the heads Of the multitude long poles en-
circled by hoops, upon which were su,-
pended the most grotes que figures, in every
conceivable color, shape and degree of de-
formity, and all with horns and crooked
backs AMI twisted limbs These are filed
with firecracksrs. the moustache or tail
forming the fuse, and millions Of
them are annually exploded. At
10 O'Clock Oh Easter Sunday. when the
cathedral bells peal forth In commemoratiou
Of Christ's resurrection, they are all touched
of at once. and tina air is filed with flying
traitors everywhere over the length and
breadth Of Mexico
In the Churches Of Paris
Chicago Times