Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1893-11-09
A TRAPPiST ReFEcToRY.
Cold and Gloomy Surroundings and
Scopfv Eltn of

Cold and Gloomy Surroundings and .
Scanty Bill of Fare.
We reached the Trappist refectory. A
great cold room, with whitewashed
walls and five long, narrow tables, with
benches on each side, stretching from
snd to end, was the place Wis g the
Gcnks took their very frugal meals.
The tables were laid for the first meal
There were no cloths, and it is almost
needless to add that there were no nap
kins, although these are considered so
essential in France that even i'll the most
wretched auberge one is usually laid be-
fore the guest. Trappists, however, have
little need of them.
At each place were wooden spoon
and fork, plate, a jug of water, and
another jug-a smaller one-of beer, and
porringer for soup, which is the chief
diet of the Trappists. Very thin soup it
is, the ingredients being water, chopped
vegetables, bread and little oil or but
ter.
Until few years ago no oily matter,
whether vegetable or animal, was al
lowed in the soup, nor was it pernissi-
BILE, except in case of sickness, to have
more than one meal day, but the ne
cessity of relaxing the rule a little was
realized. Now, during the six summer
mouths of the year, there are two meals
a day-namely, at II and 6, but in win
ter there is still only one that is called a
meal, and this is at 4. There is, how
81 20 boo,
the stomach from collapsing-at 20 in
the morning. No fish, nor flesh, nor ami
NAL product, except cheese and butter,
is eaten by these Trappists unless they
fall i'll, and then they have meat or any
thing else that they may need to make
them well. There is, however, very lit
tie sickness among them.
The living of each Trappist probably
costs no more than sixpence day to the
community. Assuming that the money
brought into the common fund by those
who have private fortune-the fathers,
as rule, are men of some independent
means covers the establishment ex-
penses, and the taxation imposed by the
state, there must remain a considerable
profit on the work of each individual,
whether he labors in the fields or in the
dairy and cheeserooms, or concerns him
self with the sales and the accounts, or,
like the porter at the gate, tests with an
instrument the richness of the milk that
is brought in by the peasants, lest they
who have been befriended by the monks
in sickness and penury should steal from
them in return.
To devote this surplus obtained by
life of sacrifice, compared to which the
material misery of the beggars whom
they relieve is luxury, to the lessening
of human suffering, to the encourage
ment of the family. offering the hand Of
charity to the worthy and the unworthy,
expecting no honor from all this, and
not even gratitude, is life that makes
that of the theoretical philanthropists
and humanitarian philosophers look ra-
ther barren.-Temple Bar.
Musical Tones.
A stringed instrument suspended in
favorable position near pianoforte will
sound when tones corresponding to the
open strings are produced on the piano
forte The volume of the answering
tone will depend upon atmospheric con-
ditions, the quality and color of the per-
suading tone and the sensitiveness of the
responding material. There is famil-
lar anecdote told of famous tenor, who
by singing the tone that was consonant
with that of wineglass, could make the
glass shiver SO violently that it would
fall to pieces. It is because of this tonal
sympathy that the cause of harsh, rat
tling tone that may suddenly appear in
pianoforte is detected with difficulty
Though it may appear to be in the in
strument, it is often far away and may
come from loose globe or pendant on
chandelier. Even key in a door has
been known to be the guilty cause.-St
Louis Globe-Democrat.
Inc a grICuIturaI PrOfesstor 1