The Green Forest tribune., 1896-06-18
A Letter from Rome.


vanished temporal power. On almost
every street corner there is little
shrine, picture or statue of the Madon-
ma, adorned with artificial flowers and
covered with glass. Women stop to
murmur prayers before them with
heediessness Of the passers-by that in
dicates either very mech anicai or very
sincere devotion. And in the churches
the same thing is noticeable. Fancy
tourist walking around during religious
service in America, striking the pillars
and turning opera glasses on the stained
glass windows, on the frescoes, and On
the priest himself. The scene that may
be hourly observed in st, Peter s, of
worshipers kneeling before the statue
of the patron saint and reverentially
kissing his toe while visitors watch
them through lorgnettes, speaks elo-
queptly of the good-natured passivity
of the Italians and the needless curios-
ity of sight-seers.
Almost every week during the winter
in Rome there is church festival, and
some Of them are interesting and
unique in their way as the Obermagan
the-walls, on the third Saturday in Ian
uary, occurs the blessing of the lambs
from whose wool certain sacredotal
robes are made. All day long there is
g pilgrimage from the city to the
church, and the road beyond the Porta
Pia is full of carriages and cabs and
pedestrians. Two lambs, shampooed
into an unprecedented condition of
cleanliness, with their fleece curled in
the latest style, are carried into the
church. They are bedecked with rib
bon until they look like toys. For fear
that they might fail to appreciate the
honor that is being paid to them and
make unseemly efforts to escape, they
are securely tied on cushions. They
are bourne in state to the altar, sprink-
led with holy water, and enveloped In
incense. Mass is said, interrupted by
their bleats Of helpless remonstrance.
Then the people crowd around and try
to touch them, and the puzzled lambs
again say that they want to go home.
But they must first be taken to the Vat
ican to receive the papal blessing, and
then the fleece is solemnly sheared and
the lambs are allowed to return to COM
fort and dirt.
Another curious festival is the Dis
tribution of Dowries, in the church at
st. Agostino. Some generous persons
who evidently believed that marriage
was q success, established a Dowry
Fund to encourage maidens to enter the
holy bonds. Courageous and cheerful
candidates are not king-indeed,
there are usually SO many rhat the
committe has difficulty in choosing
The only conditions are that the appli-
cant and Roman. About fifty maid :
ems this year publically proclaimed
the altar Of matrimony, and their phi
lanthropy was rewarded by gift Of l50
lire $500 apiece. Very pretty and un-
mercenary did they look, in their white
dresses and wells. Those costumes will
probably soon be used again at the con-
sumation of the sacrifice; for suitors
wait on the door steps of the dowried
maidens. Indeed, in more than one
case the marriage is arranged before
hand, with the condition that the dot
be received.
Rome has not monopoly of festi-
walls. We saw one few mon tbs ago
on Lake Como, in honor of the infant
st, John. A procession Of small boys
with carmen ts Of sheepskin (probably
the nearest they could get to the ira
ditional camel's hairl were leading
lambs, the latter, of course, represent
ing Christ. Very pretty would it be in
theory; but the day was warm and the
road dusty. The little st. Johns grew
tired and wept noisily, and the lambs,
with no sense of proprieties, occasional
lv stopped short and refused to bulge.
1t kept priest busy running along the
line, stirring up the obstinate one with
stick and catching fugitives. | asked
one of the peasants accompanying the
procession what were the contents of a
silver box, that was carried in much
nornn at tho hnad .tThat - he an.