The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-02-06
TO BLESS THE BEASTS.
A Sight on st. AnthOny's Day in All
Old Mexican Towns,

| OuICdSO IultT-OCSan.
In Cd Mexico Jan. II is a day sacred to
the birds and beasts. To every shrine in
Mexico the people on that day brought
their pets and their four-footed possess
sions that the priests might sprinkle holv
water upon them.
The church at San Luis de La Paz pre-
sented a curious sight during the cere-
mony. The hour was late, and the pur-
| pie sierras girdling the town We're be-
ginning to glow with sunset light as the
people fiocked toward the church, lead
ing or carrying the animals for which they
sought a benediction. The women and
children who carried birds or dogs in
their arms crowded up the stately stone
| steps into the churchyard, where thew
! squatted about on the ground, chatterins
| together while they waited for the priest
Men and boys leading horses, burros
cows, pigs and sheep stayed below the
church steps, covering in a dense crowd
an acre or SO of the hillside.
| The owners of the animals seemed to
be oil of the peon class; but on the outer
edges of the crowd stood a small pro-
portion of the people who wear shoes
and hats and occasionally take BATH
and are the genie decente. that is the
Four Hundred, of the community. They
WERE lOI the iUOSL IldII, lOOhllR on Will
sympathetic though condesccnding in
tcrest at the actions of the others There
among others, stood the jefe poltlco, who
as mayor of the town, chief of police and
government agent, all IN one, commands
| from the common people reverence such
aa the German Emperor might envy. lie
was laughing and talking to his friend
the customs agent, who was watching the
| scene with a cynical smile under the COR
ners of his fierce mustache.
why yes; my horse is here. He's had
a sore back ever since L bought him. Pan
| cho, my mozo, wanted to bring him to-
| day, and I'm sure / shan't object If the
| holy water can cure the beast"
| 1t was said laughingly, but underneath
! it all Mr.. Jefe Politico nurSed a tiny SUI
perstition that there might after all be
some efficacy in the priests blessing. Else
why had he given Pancho S. to buy rib
bonS for the horses adornment on thar
day? There was something very amusing
and yet pathetic in the efforts of the poor
people to decorate their pets for this i'm
portant occasion. Barefooted women who
had scarcely enough to cover them, car
ried under their tattered rebozos, or cot.
ton scarfs, which take the place of man
tie and hat, gay old rooster decorated
| from comb to tail with bits of colored tis-
sue paper.
My hens haven't laid we'll this year,
said one bent old hag land I think it's
just because 1 didn't bring the rooster to
be blessed last year. So here have him
to-day"
Sir Chandelier, seeming to understand
her words, lifted up it's voice and cheered.
Just then a typical Indian boy, with the
peaked head and coarse black hair of his
race, the poems characteristic dress cf
white cotton trousers and shirt the coarse
leather sandals strapped by rude thongs
to his feet, the torn straw sombrero, and
the misunderstanding disposition of any 9TH
er little boy, approached the old woman
with rooster of his own that was spoil
ing for a fight. Evidently not having the
price of tissue paper, much less ribbon,
he had used what he had found to deco
rate the rooster. That happened to be or
ange Feelings cast aside. Before the old
woman realized what he was up to he
began to circulate about her, thrusting
the rooster up against the bird she carried.
The old womans rooster made a sudden
lunge from her arms to the ground and
few at the other, spurs out.
"Pelea de gallosi Pelea de gallosr Cock
fight. Cock fght) shouted the crowd joy
fully, and closed around the group. Bue
the old woman with the grasp of despair
fastened her clutch on Sir Chandeliers
spreading tail feathers and drew the roos4
ter from the fray before any serious dam
age was done. Then she fixed her dark
eye on the boy. and he thought it best
to disappear with his chicken at once
lie WhulSn udQ exercised great lnge%
nuity in trimming their bird cages. Dis
porting themselves in Vine-hung wooden
cages were sober-looking mocking birds,
warranted proficient enough to pass the
government school examinations in sing
ing. Behind tin bars on perches trimmed
with paper flowers sat parrots of brilliant
plumage capable of swearing strong Cas-
lillian oaths al the padre or the Pope
himself. In gilded cages, beribboned and
furnished with fresh lettuce leaves and
parsley, swung canary birds, awed into si-
ience by the strange sights around them
The children had brought their pets. One
little girl had two turtle doves held close
10 her brown cheek while she danced
around impatiently wishing that the padre
should come. A little boy brought QUIZ
from beneath his ragged shirt, where they
had nestled warm against his fat, little,
bean-hlled belly, pair of fuzzy yellow
chicks not two days out of their shell. An
Their child. better clad than his fellows
with a waistcoat six sizes too large for
him that made him look grotesquely like
diminutive old man, struggled under
the double burden of a sleepy baby on one
arm and a spotted white pup under the
! other. He has assisted nature in her
work of adornment by painting red, purple
and green spots all over the dogs already
notified skim
The canine world was well represented
for no peon is too poor to keep yellow
creatures
dogs are, the terror Of the lonely or belated
/ traveller. They all need a blessing The
same sort of man who maintains six dogs
and ten children on % cents day finds
room for litter of pigs in his one-room
! dwelling. They were all there waiting
for a blessing, fat porker, old SOW, and
! little pigs, each with tssue-paper cap
| tied under its snout and a wreath of corn
husks twined in the kinks of each curly
! tail.
just az the sun was setting the church
bell pealed and the priest Issued from
the church door. He was arrayed in cer-
emonial robes Back of him walked tho
acolytes, the middle one bearing aoft a
large brazen crucifx, the other two car
rylng tall brass candelabr in which light
cd candles burned. The people crossed
themselves as the padre approached and
then crowded around him, holding high
their dogs and bird cages. The priest
paused and from a book began 10 read
aloud the words of ST. Anthony, patron
saint of the animals. He was heard rev.
erently, but when he had finished and be-
gan to move forward sprinkling holy wa
ter TO right and left those In the rear