Thomas County cat., 1886-08-19
MONTE vERc,Ne.
The Pilgrimage Of Ncap0lltAn Men IN,
Women to the Holy Mountain.

| The Pilgrimage of NeapOlltan Men and
Women to the Holy Mountain.
Avellino and the villages that lie al
the foot of Monte Vergine can not af
ford accommodation for such an influ,
of strangers. Many sleep or try to dc
so in the carriages that have brought
them; others camp out round field
fires, especially near Mercogliano,
which lies close to the foot of the sacre
mountain. Here picture of southern
! life may be seen which perhaps nc
other place can furnish: but the north
ern youth will do well to remember
that Neapolitans carry their knives
with them even on their pilgrimages,
and that they are sometimes used feq
other purposes than that of cutting
stale bread and raw ham. At the
earliest dawn the sleepers and those
who have not slept arise to climb the
steep ascent to the shrine, where in the
convent square they will find others
who have slept all night in the chilly
upper air without any roof to cover
them, in order not to miss the first
mass. Some in fulfillment of VOW
tread the stony path bare-fOOted. A
number Of superstitions are connected
with this part of the pilgrimage. Most
of the deyotees bring their own provis-
ions with them. and if clouds gather
round the mountain tops and rain
threatens, it is generally believed that
some one has brought meat up the
sacred hill. The crowd is infuriated.
Haversacks have to be opened and
pockets turned inside out, and if even
the remnants of a musty sausage are
found upon any one, he is placed in an
unenviable position. Nay. so far does
this feeling with respect to the sancti-
ty of the mountain 60 that girls care
fully wash all the pomatum out of their
hair at Mercogliano before attempting
the ascent. Strange tales are told
round the field fires of maidens who,
having neglected to do SO, have been
struck by lightning before they could
reach the holy place. There is gener-
ally touch of humorous incrcdulity
in the way in which such stories are
related, and yet half belief in them
still survives. Olive and other veget-
able oils are harmless. Other and
more pleasing traditions surround the
place at this time. The mounta;a and
all the uncultivated country near is
covered with broom, which is usually
in blossom at the time of the festival.
If the wheels of a car or carriage by
chance cut off one of the sprays. it is a
certain omen that any marriagebie girl
who is seated in it will find husband
within the year. To crush without
cutting the branch is of evil augury.
Again, if lovers are separated by the
prudence of their parents or any other
unkind trick of fate, they endeavor to
meet each other amid the crowd which
is constantly ascending or descending
the mountain side, and then they steal
away from the rest, and tie the
branches of two different broom plants
together. This is regarded as a kind
of vow: if the difficulties are over
come and they are united in the course
of the year, it is their duty to return
on the next festival and unite the knot.
1t is sad to see how many branches
thus united remain unloosencd; nay.
how many lie withering on the ground.
Is there not what once seemed to the
chief personages in these untold stories
a tragedy, or at least an idyl, in each?
-!SdturddU Recie,U.