The Coconino sun. [volume] (Flagstaff, Ariz.) 1891-1891, 1891-10-15
A CURIOUS CEREMONY.
ROYALTY WASHING THE FEET
OF BEoGARS IN SPAIN.
A Bright American Young Lady's Expo
rienoe--The Infant King AMI How
Ho Appears--The Queen
and the Cour'.

! recall a treat while we were in
Madrid last spring, writes Kate Carl
to the Memoirs Appeal Avalanche.
On Holy Thursday OF each year the
regnant sovereign of Spain washes the
feet of twelve beggars gathered from
the streets In commemoration of our
Lords supper and the washing of the
disciples feet This custom was be-
gun in the thirteenth century by King
Ferdinand, who was so pious that he
was called st. Ferdinand, and it has
been kept up to the present day. !
was very anxious to see it. but was
told on arrival in Madrid that it was
next to impossible to get cards for it
but l got them through the American
consul, who had been there two years
and hadn't been able to see it. The
ceremony began by a high mass in the
Royal chapel, when the queen regnant,
old Queen Isabella, all the royal in
fantas and all the Spanish grandees
took part in the mass, which was a
most joyous affair Grand orchestral
music myriads of candles, splendidly
robed priests, gorgeously colored car
dinals all lending their quota to the
brilliant scene. The chapel itself,
glittering with gold and hung with
splendid tapestries was fitting back
ground TO all.
After the mass the queen. the arch
bishop, priests and deacons, followed
by the infantas and grandees, proceed
ed into the banqueting hall where the
twelve beggars were seated all on one
side of the narrow deal table. The
queen herself laid the table and served
them all with meat and drink, after
ward removing the dishes and food
and tablecloth, all this in the most
magnificent of toilets and fairly blaz-
ing with diamonds. All the splendidly
attired infantas, gorgeously uniformed
grandees, diplomatists. ambassadors
and invited guests standing, while the
beggars alone remained seated.
The performance is now merely a
FORM us the queen only goes through
the semblance of washing their feet
(their shoes not even being removed),
and the beggars touch nothing to eat
that the queen serves, but carry it
off in great hampers to sell each for
as much as 5000 or $500. ....
After they are served the archbish-
op blesses each one of the beggars and
gives him purse Of gold.
The beggars are chosen for their
exemplary lives, being not taken by
chance, and are brought to the palace
early in the morning and washed,
shaved and dressed in clean and whole
clothes, and afterward given bounti-
full meal in the servants quarters.
This accounts for their not eating
when the queen serves them, though
| suppose the poor creatures couldn't
get down a mouthful with the queen
and all the august assemblage stand
ing and watching them. They are
glad enough to be able to take away
what the queen gives them (the rich
est dolicacies, such as are prepared
for the royal table. with fine wines),
to sell to the highest bidder on leav-
ing the palace. The purse each re-
ceives contains 800.
The palace itself we couldn't have
seen II we hadn't seen this. The
dressing and jewels were perfectly
magnificent. The queen wore many
diamonds, but the other ladies, the
Infantas wore all sorts of precious
stones. One had .diadem of emer-
aids that were worth a queens ran
som. The queen regent is an Aus
trian. and one would understand what
a display there must have been who
had seen the gems at Vienna
The little king and his sisters, the
young 1nfantas, were not present at
the ceremony, as they avoid as much
as possible all excitement for the
young people, and their only outings
are drives in the parks and rambles in
the royal gardens. The little king.
who is a jolly-looking little fellow,
with blonde curls and blue eyes sa-
lutes any one who bows to him, as do
his sisters when they are out driving.
He looks rather delicate, unfortunately,
the moor little man r