The Holly chieftain., 1916-04-21

attendant crowds. At the door Of the
palace across the square the king ana
queen stepped into their carriage.
They were followed in the procession
by the Crown Prince Constantine ana
his wife, the sister OF the kaiser, then
by Prince George and his bride, the
Bonaparte princess, whom the Greeks
welcomed with open arms. as the only
member OF the royal family who 10
Greek, since the Bonaparte family
were residents of Corsica while 1t was
Greek territory. Napoleon being born
only a few days after its transfer to
France.
The procession. accompanied BY
bands OF music and brilliant array
of mounted soldiers, proceeded to the
church of the metropolitan where
mass was held.
On the afternoon of Easter Tuesday
all eyes were turned toward Megara.
distant from Athens two hours BY
train, where the far-famed peasant
dances take place.
In the large public square Of the
little town the women, dressed In hol-
iday attire. Joined hands alternately
across each other, forming long,
straight lines, and danced, first In one
direction and then in the opposite, .
performance of no special grace or
beauty, but made attractive by their
pretty faces and curious costumes. and
the great numbers of lines, tripping
one way and then the other.
Beneath the black skirts bordered
with broad, red band hung several
inches of handmade thread lace, from
the white petticoats, the pride of the
industrious wearer. The tight black
bodices and yellow head scarfs were
adorned with many loops Of silver
and gold coins, the dowries Of tho
wearers, and some Of the more wealthy
were Respondent in trimming OF gold
lace. They were pleased when we ad-
mired the beauty of the embroidery
which their own hands had wrought
on their aprons Of bright-colored silk.
The crowd of spectators encircling
the dancers was SO dense that we took
refuge In balcony that overlooked
the square and gained most compre-
hensive and picturesque view. Here
and there the long lines formed into .
circle and single man. attired in the
abbreviated costume OF the Thessalo-
mans or in checked gingham jumper
with an equally short, full-ruffied skirt.
led the national dance we had seen in
Athens, to the accompaniment of
stringed instruments.
And thus closed the Easter festivi-
ties, but not the holidays. for the pam
Hellenic games were celebrated for
four days, beginning with Thursday
in the wonderful ancient stadium. re-
stored to pristine glory by the munifi-
cence OF Greek of Alexandria.
The games engaged In by athletes
from all parts Of Greece were um-
pired by Crown Prince Constantine,
while the royal seats, covered with
crimson velvet. were occupied by other
members of the royal family.
There were the usual running, wres-
Ting, pole vaulting, hammer throwing
and shot putting. but the day Of great
est interest was on Sunday, when the
Marathon race was run-begun at the
scene of lhe battle, and covering the
course Of the original runner. who
bore the news Of the defeat Of the
Persians. AS the first man came into
sight the great middle gates were
thrown open-the only time they are
ever unlocked. and the runners dn-
ished their 26-mile race between the
goal posts at the upper end OF the
stadium, amid the deafening cheers
of the waiting audience.