The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1913-06-11

the Carnival festivities which have held
sway In many places on the continent
for the past two weeks. Festivities in
Brussels opened more than week ago
with the arrival Of the ephemeral king
of the Carnival, who has since ruled
benignly over merrymaking commu.
nifty Of laughing boys and girls along
with grown ups who have retained the
wisdom Of children.
From morning until night and in
most cases until morning again, the
streets we're lined with joyous crowds.
On the boulevards, the roadway was
ankle deep with confetti, and anyone,
VINO ventured out, ran the risk Of being
deluged with tiny paper dishes before
they had gone dozen yards.
There was regular pitched battle
on the Grand Place where everyone
engaged in frolicsome warfare. Harle-
quins and hundreds of girls in masks
and daring short skirts, innumerable cow
boys and cowgirls in the tabled costumes
ofthe Western States, taken from the
pages of Buffalo Bill Of the penny
Dreadfuls"-the French translation
q these blood and thunder series are
VERY popular here.
Bands of students in gavroche caps
and endless bands, who were not stu
dents, passed and repassed the streets
in every kind Of costume, and every
where was boundless hilarity and good
humor and irresistible fun. The pupils
Of the university, several hundred
strong, marched in solid column to
the sight OF Fairer's new monument,
while the cries of "Vine Farrer"
which accompanied them, but deep
err significance to the day.
At the little Students Cafe-"Diable
de Corps" indescribable gayety
regned. This has been the students
haunt par excellence for more years
than most people care to remember.
And madame had to call in all her rel
atives to assist in dispensing the Faro,
the Lamlic and the half dozen other
Flemish beers that do not taste like
beer at all.
But the chief glory of the Carnival is
the gille. The origin of the name is
rather misunderstanding to the most
probable version, it was introduced by
the Spanards, and later by the masters
of the Netherlands The gille is prin-
cipally clad in yellow canvas, decorat-
ed with Belgian lines, alternating red
and black, red rosettes and lace at
sleeves and trouser bottoms. From the
ribbon around the neck is suspended
hawk bell and from his waist hang
,NSnaller ones. But the head-gear is the
II st wonderfully and fearfully
,ought. Imagine cylinder, the wide
jm of which is turned up in front.
de cylinder itself is decorated on top
tn ostrich feathers of various hues.
Feathers and all this creation stands
out four feet above the head of the
asker The gille dance is as strenu-
Jus as Russian dance ever dared
be--it is not in reality dance, but a
stamping up and down in the same
spot-taking good care that the bells
at waist and neck ring in good time
with the music. 1t will be seen at
glance that this requires no little prac.
tice. A gille dancer is always popular
lAwith the girls. for aside from the fact
That he carries basket of oranges for
I'm. the hundred francs or more that
costume cost means that he has
lore to spend.
A After midnight the noise increases,
murdered music, from countless, help
less Instruments, mingles with the
cries and the confetti. Everybody is
happy-some drunk with happiness
and the rest happily drunk. And so it
goes until morning, where the few
stragPlers walk, as best they can. out
Of the Cafes to the boulevards with
lights now palIng before a morning
sun. Ills then that the taxi driver
thanks the gods for mardi gras, and all
thAt it brings. Now period of three
nd half weeks of toll and sober in