Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1890-07-25
THE DANCING PROCESSION.
Sacred Festivities of the Pious Peasants at
Echsternach.

While the Passion play is going on at
Oberammergau there has been going
on in the grand ducEy of Luxenburg the
annual dancing procession of Saint Wilt
brord, writes the Brussels correspondent of
the New York Tribune. occurred at the
small town of Echsternach on the 9th of
May, the Tuesday after Whitsuntide
SAINT Willibrord. who lived in the seventh
century. was to the Netherlands, Flemish,
and lower countries what st. Patrick was
to Ireland. He carried the Christian
faith to those regions. civilized them DIS
much as 1t was possible IN those bar
barlan times, and finally sought rest for
his last days at Echsternach, where he
founded an abbey. The legend says that
when the saint died the marble tomb pre-
pared for receiving his body was found to
be too short, but that it was micltulOusly
heightened, SO that the sanity corpse could
be laid in it. Tradition claims that when
St. WillibrOrd returned at last from his
holy pilgrimage to Echsternach the vii
layers could not restrain their Joy and
demonstrated it by the sacred dances.
which are renewed every year, two days
after Whitsuntide. Only during tn
French revolution was the custom inter
rupted. 1t Is now more than ever kept
up, and 10000 persons took part in the
latest ceremony. The peasants believe in
the legend, according to which the saint
Furnishes the Indifferent and increduIous
10y affecting their cattle with an epidemic
tie effects of which are like epilepsy.
The pilgrims arrive from all places
within a radius of forty miles. Most of
them come on foot. camping wherever
they can, in open air or In barns. All
among them who possess and can play up
Oh musical instruments bring them along,
such as flies. drums, comets. etc, and play
on them as accompaniment to the dance.
In the morning all his crowd forms Itself
on the German territory, beyond the
bridge which crosses the Sure, the river
frontier betv cen the grand duchy and
GERMANY A priest. who must have been
born at Echsternach. addresses the crowd.
places himself at the head. and the pill
grams begin to tramp on the bridge, IN
the direction Of the old church. The
advance guard. proceeded by sexton
dressed in red clerical robes, sings the
praises of itanies OF St Willibrord in a
calm. dignifed, religious tone, which
strangely contrasts with the clamor of the
thousand instruments which accompany
extraordinary dances Of the people form
ing the bulk of the procession. Those
dances are Lothing bat repeated jumps;
and the highest jumps are considered the
greatest evidence ,oTadevo.lon. The pill
CRIME advance slowly in rows, blocking up
entirely the streets. women holding chill
dred in their arms. old people being sup
ported on both sides by friendly assistants,
peasants with satcheIs on their backs con-
tanning provisions to last during the pill
grileage All these people never cease for
a moment to dance, or rather to jump as
high as they can, until they reach the old
church. where the priests bless the many
articles they wantto place under St Will
brord 5 invocation. lie pilgrims spend
the remainder of the day in the streets Of
Echsternach. where regular fete, sCue-
what like Flemish hermesse, Is held.
They then take up again their tramp to
their homes.
John Whitaker Watson Dead
NEW YORK, July 20.-John Whitaker
Watson, the real author Of Beautiful
Snow and other poems which have given
him a worldwide literary reputation,
died In this city to-day. aged o. he had
been living for some time past In poverty
and obscuiIy.