Smyrna times., 1886-12-15
DEL WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. DECEMBER Is,

J
Bile cornices or costly bits of stone lying |
in the streets before unfinished houses |
in our new cities at home. They will |
be set up on pedestals soon, along with
numbers of other idols of smaller size. |
But the two stones that will forever
challenge the awe and marvel of the
world are the calendar stone and the
sacriicial stone, both to be found here
in this remodeled convent and wing of
the old Spanish palace among the hid
eous half-Egyptian images of the Az
tees.
1t is the magnitude and might of
these stones that affects me, and strikes
me dumb with wonder as 1 stand be-
fore them,
The one thing that amazes me most
of all, after the magnitude and weight
of those two stones, is the likeness
between the idols here-many of them
at least-and the idols of Egypt. The
same head-dress, the beard, the singular
fat contour of the facial these are
almost identical with the thousands of
Egyptian figures found throughout
Europe, Asia and Africa and yet these
things have lain here for centuries al
most unnoticed.
The stupidity of a people that could
not see the world scattering its wealth
and intelligence over its land, in order
to study these curious things in safety
and comfort is to me astonishing; and
speculation is busy guessing what may
still be found and put in order for the
world to see when it feels secure to
come this way.
But there one half hOur-a whole
hour, in fact-has passed, and we have
not even entered the Presidents palace
or the great cathedral. Hat in hand,
let us enter the lofty doors of the latter,
if only for a moment. Gold and silver,
and silver and gold Get a book and
read of this cathedral After that YOU
can better understand the splendor and
the squalor that come clashing together
inside these doors, in awful contrast.
Look forward at the far, deep nave
Fifty feet high and forty feet wide!
You see nothing but gold and gold and
gold! The image of God and His an
gels. Old, bald-headed Saint Peter pa
tiently holding his keys and ready to
unlock Heaven to the kneeling world.
And now look down on the dirty
| floor before you. A thousand poor
creatures crawling about, some blind,
some lame, some dying of loathsome
diseases, and all very, very miserable
all naked, and hungry, and helpless !;
yet sea of glittering gold before them.
The music is sublime! Mass is being
said for some dead Mexican robber of
princely fortune, and so the singers, the
priests, the little boys, and the big
boys, too, are all doing their best.
A good many of the cripples that
crawl about over the dirty floor have
lottery tickets to sell. Many an old
woman with a baby on her back offers
you a lottery ticket by way of breaking
the ice and getting we'll enough ac-
quainted to ask you for a cent. Every
day, every hour, in church and out of
church, you are importuned by the
poor to buy lottery tickets. A priest
called on me the day l came to this
curious town, implOring me to buy
some lottery tickets of him, for the ben
eft Of his church and for his poor.
These lotteries are conducted by the
Government, as in Italy. The Gov
ernment gets a large per cent. Those
who sell the tickets get liberal COM
mission. What l mean to say is, you
can buy your tickets directly from the
Government a great deal cheaper than
you can in the stores or on the streets.
Yes, indeed, it is simply awful. Every
one expects to draw grand prize to-
morrow; and so why go to work to-
day? o, Mexico, Mexico, why will
you persist in standing forever in your
own glorious light!
Deeper and deeper the organ sounds,
and louder and louder the prayers for
the dead. The people-the poor, naked
and lazy and dirty peOple-all on theiI
knees, join in the prayer for the de-
parted soul. They fall on their faces,
they spread their naked, dirty arms
wide out on the naked, dirty floor, and
lie there praying and mourning in the
dust on their faces, their splendor oi
hair sweeping up the dust.
Here comes in priest to pray. He
is leading a little boy. Perhaps this
good priest is a sort of schoolmasteI
also. He has book or two in his right
hand, also a very large sheet of lottery
tickets. He brushes the floor a little
with his long greasy gown. He puts
. down the books, and then and there he
. places the lottery tickets, so that nc
one may steal them while he prays
and so he kneels on books and tickets
his head sideways, his eyes closed his
fat and greasy hands are full of greasy
beads. The little boy kneels on his
, robe behind. And the little boy, witt
! beautiful eyes and cheeks like rose
: keeps looking rOguishly about at some
pretty little Mexicans with the mother
: praying at another altar. Let us g
: hence. think God is outside. hide
pendent.