Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-05-01

band Of men and officers from the chief
priests and Pharisees, COM eth hither with
lanterns and torches and weapons" This,
then,
EXPLAINS THE LAMPS AND TORCHES
OF the procession, and as the cure went on
mlnutely describing the circumstances. one
who represented the spy, with horrible
mask like pigs head, was seen peering
through the trees where Jesus was con-
cealed; and shortly afterwards, Judas, his
tace covered with black Grape, and followed
by band of soldiers. glides through with
stage stride worthy 1.-The crushed TRACE
dian " in his palmiest days.
Now, said the curate, what does the
traitor do? He hath given them a sign,
saying, Whomsoever l shall kiss, that
same is he-hold him fast He goes-he
approaches the sacred person of the Lord y
Here Judas stepped forward and embraced
the wooden image.) at is donel" groaneG
the priest, " the horrible act of treachery is
completed And forthwith he came to
Jesus and said, Hail Master, and kissed
him. But now Jesus, knowing all things
that should come upon him, went forth
and said unto them, Whom seek We? They
answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus
said unto them, | am he As the cure
pronounced these words, the entire process
sion suddenly fell PROSTATE upon the
ground. Mark" said he, the power of
the word They came out to take him
with swords and slaves, but at the sound
of the Divine voice they acknowledge the
power of God and fall at his feet But it
is only for moment Behold Now
they bind him-they buffet him-they
smite him with the palms oftheir hands
they lead him away to the high priest"
All this was faithfully enacted, amid the
tears OF the people, and the wooden Christ
WAS NEARLY DEMOLISHED
BY the blows and buffetings it received,
though sometimes the good cure was
obliged to repeat himself several times be-
fore the Jews and Romans remembered
what to do while a few of them persisted
IN falling down at the wrong place, or in
hitting the Savior before his time This
ended the first act, as the figure was bound
and borne away to prison, followed by all
the people-many of the women in tears
and the men repeating ave Marias and
pater nosters with pious fervor.
In the evening the same procession filled
the streets, always surrounded by crowd
OF men, women and children from the ad-
Jacent villages. Bonfires were lighted be.
fore all the principal houses, and every
body carried lighted lamps, candles or
torches-Betsy and | among the rest, with
smoky lanterns of MISUNDERSTANDING
OIL as much out of Difference to the Gus
toms of our kind entertainers as from the
knowledge that when in Rome it is safer
to 81 do as the Romans" The figure now
carried about the streets was called " our
Savior of the column and represents
Christ tied to pillar streaming with blood
from the Scourging, and crowned with
affa h,-t Io
of lamps and torches, was more weird than
can be imagined, heightened by the widest
and saddest music ears ever heard, per
formed by Indians on curious wind instru-
ments made of reeds, fashioned in as prim-
tive manner as that which the great god
Pan may have played upon among the
PUSHES. As the Savior was led from door
to door the people pressed to kiss his
wooden feet, trampling upon each other in
their eagerness, and mothers held aloft
their babes that they might
TOUCH THE HEM OF HIS GARMENT.
All this sounds profane, and would be rid
lculouS anywhere outside of Mexico but.
strange to say the effect is intensely solemn
rather than calculated to call a smile from
the most unbelieving. The poor Indians
are so devoutly in earnest, all with such
saddened faces, and many with streaming
eyes, DeatnS their breasts with such pltlful
blows of contrition, as the tragedy enacted
nearly nineteen hundred years ago in far
away Calvary was thus made real to them.
For another thing, the music is always
good, though in the poorest rural hamlets
where the squalid Indians have nothing
but reeds to play upon, for these simple
hearted children of the tropics are natural
musicians, as they are natural idolators
and image worshipers But the most
narrowing part of the Passion Play is vet
to come on :" Holy Thursday" and Good
Friday" of which my next letter will tell
you. FANNIE B. WARD.