Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1894-04-11
oRoTTo AT LouRDEs.


 ,..sx ssaaline Waters to Which Thousands
 E S,rippIes Make Pilgrlmages.
 co,,ld hardly restrain my eagerness
 4x bssten nay first glimpse of the grotto
 sbich I was fast approaching The
 snSaSay grew narrower and narrower
 ss tba frowning rocks approached the
 rsrer bank Suddenly on the moment
 <vhan it seemed as if a continuance of
 the bath would bring us into the river,
 xhe htfh rocks which had been so
 tbreatening receded, and the path de-
 sa,sched into an open space between
 trx liver and the rocks, well shaded,
 ana large enough to contain many
 s1,ausands. Yawning before us was
 fbe famous grotto It is deep, dark,
 ,,as,,raI cave about one hundred and affv feet directly under the main altar of the Basilica.
 Thirty-fve years ago, the story runs, the little barefooted peasant child crept trembling into the dreary cave in aearch of fagots to warm her cheerless home; last year over three hundred thousand pebble of many counties and dimes followed in her footsteps The roof and the sides of the cave are in- nr,1sfed with the soot of the many candles which night and day burn be- fore the little improvised altar just in- siaa. the gr0tto As I drew closer I saN Suspended about the entrance to tlfe cave and standing about it hun dreds and hundreds of erutehes, sur ci1al bandages and artificial supports, Isft iy those cripples who have bathed in the waters and have arisen and walked!
 As my eyes again turned to the grotto that sawned before me, caught sight of still another grotto, and for a mo m6fit was startled, for there seemed to De produced before me the scene of tho apparition; little peasant girl, shoeless and hatless, was kneeling be- fore the grotto counting her beads, and In simple, childish treble was recittng tue chaplet of her faith.
 As followed her steadfast gaze, [ which was not directed into the dark ness of the grotto, but up the sheer per pendicular of the cliff, perceived, hid dan from the casual glance and plain only to those who seek it, the image of Our Lady as she appeared to Berna- deffe. About her head are the words she spoke to the simple peasant child, and upon which the cult of Our Lady of Lour6es is founded: q am the Inn machiate Conception"
 The water that sprang so suddenly out of the rock no longer trickles down the messy bank, for the great rush of pilgrims and the absolute impossibility of restraining their impatience and put ting a curb upon their rapture, which led them into such indiscretions as throwing themselves headlong into the waters, years ago rendered primitive Arrangements possible. The waters of the grotto are now re- coiyed in a reservoir covered with steel Ii plate, and only through perforated holes in the covering can the pi1grinis see them. From this reservoir fke water is carried in pipes some thirty yards to the left, where score of spiF- ots gre running night and day Here hepilgrims drink and lave their travel. st6ined foreheads. Through other con. thits and perhaps from the overflow {
 
 tions. the water is carried to the baths which are situated twenty yards ftaif- ther to the left. AsI watched, the rural postman came walking down the road to the grottoy ] Staggering under the weight of two { aeavy mail bags, In front of the altar i young priest met him with great 1ssket into which the postman erdptiea ,ee mail that had that day come ad- l !gessea to Our Lady of Louries. There C :2uiq not have been fewer than five I9pdred letters, in many strange hand f yF}ahgs ana bearing many distant sostpark. The letters contain peti. 7 i9ns aud prayers from those who are 1 . |revented from making the pilgrimage, ( .nd thank-offeriugs from those who $ !lsve l been benefited by their visit to Ae holy places The letters are never | psnsd. yet thSy will tell you at Lourdes ] { -9pa daFesay elsewhere, for why l lse should so many letters come?-that, { 1sng of these unread prayers are, i fanted N Y. WorFd. z