The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-08-26

photograph; but afterwards the absurdity Of
the whole performance so impressed us, that
we resolved that we never would again con-
tribute one mite to these mummeries. The
things That interested us most here were the
ola Drown friars themselves. Everywhere
we had seen these poor old brothers clothed
IN coarse brown cloaks and cowls, and felt
pity for the forlorn poverty of their outward
appearance. When we met them in this
shabby church, which will so soon pass away
to make room for the hero of liberty, we al
most prayed that it might last until they had
been called yonder, so that their eyes might
never behold their temple topping over into
crumbling masses, like the piles of pagan ru-
ms, which have lain about their paths all
their lives. They have none Of the self as
sorting look of the other priests in Rome,
who are fat and well kept and go about
dressed in the finest of broadcloth and broad
plush hats these we meet sight seeing every
where in Europe. But the brown friars hum
bly, take the edge of the walk and give lady
room, which no other Italian will do, who
rush along Indifferent to everyone, as if bent
on some good errand. We saw them at the
door of cottager, waiting with bier to
bear poor brother to his last home. They
seemed to be part and parcel of the church
| and to have grown gray in its service. We
can see them now, STOPPING almost to the
| ground, their white boards struggling over
| their breasts, their uncombed locks straying
| out of their cowls, their dirty white skirts
| hanging below their coarse robes about their
unclean ankles, as they scutfed about the
| church, in their wooden sandals which were
strapped over their bare feet. We saw young
priests in white, blue and black vestments,
but none in this uncomely garb We do not
| believe the present generation will take to
| severe self denial and uncleanliness.
| A few days afterward, the proverbial curl
| osity of woman overcame our good resolu-
| tions, and yielding to temptation, we paid
1ir0 W oov the cIypGs Ur tile Cappucln1 Monas-
| terry. Of course we did not care fig to see
| such things, but for the sake of telling the
| children about these follies and drawing
| some lessons for their spiritual good, we ex-
| onerated ourselves from blame in our appar-
ent countenance of such monstrous absurdi-
| ties, gotten up for a source of revenue to
| swell the rich Golfers of the church,
Here under the church is a little patch OF
earth, about large enough to hold twenty
poor mortals, over whose graves little sticks
stand with tags giving their names and dates
| of their burial We do not know the order
| of procedure, but suppose the brothers, as
| they drop out of life, are placed beneath the
sod until the worm has done its work, and
| the first stages of decay are accomplished,
| and then the skeletons are exhumed and
| dressed to take their places as sentinels
about the ROOM Death is hideous at best,
| but we fail to understand the good to be de-
| rived from adding to its horrors, and the mo-
| tive in making such spectacle of CHASTITY
monks in dirty clothes, who with out
| stretched palms and sightless eyes glare atyou
as you enter. If their poor souls are wearing
| the robes of righteousness today in better
land, why not commit these disgusting carl
| catures of their perishable dust unto the
| dust? The bones of many are made into
rustic baskets and wall brackets, or are
nailed in designs upon the ceiling and door
posts. NJ. Z. L. b.