Mexico weekly ledger., 1918-10-31

sprirr the whets Eran4 edct upQa -
81 orcsa "a = erime - ny r. - I
on paper. ne k.Eh vsult1 cetiix
the uirhty pllsu that uphch ~
rvs u thra. marbie-the fouats e
hciy water And. In front he altar.
rorrcoas n iis tApcFtnc and figures
And canEea And In thc rear the gresi
orran - In = gallery TIE whele e.
feet : . pecuiiAr on. and Il Il an
cult 30 find = uerd 10 convey a. i
think ! shall cheese the word tefeniss.
n reminds va e = great bare ersE,
high up IN ths mountains. that has
been hufetcd b wind and rain and
snow for = hurdred centuries and VII
stand in dignIllrd indifercnee for al
hundred more. II seems somehow
apart from the little everyday Affairs
| 81 life. Just think. ed man. the huge,
nat stones upon whieh Se now stand
wcrc placed here near tkc Beginning Of
the tenth ceniury-vhick people stn
thought the weird was Cat, and gun
powder was an unknown magic. The
structure was finished about the time
Columbus discovered America. And
yet here Il stands. very much n Il
stood thcn-except that now at any
time Il may be mutilatcd by an aircraft
bomb. or a gun belonging 10 the devils
who DO not know the meaning Of beau-
~ or reverence. and whose only law Is
military necessity" Here Is history
in panorAmA-frOm bows and arrows
10 long range guns. During that time
think how many thousands have uod
those old flag stones, or have knel.
before one Of the many images In pray
er. as that black-robed nun Is kneel-
ing there. OF that poor woman to vi
can tell it by her faee.) What impress
left. IHer husband is at the front. You
sive ceremonies those old saints paiat-
ed above the altar have witnessed.
How many earnest or hypocritical Pc
titions that pathetieally beautiful i'm
the music from that majestic old or
gan must have rung and re-echoed
through those doors and archways.
land how it will sound out the "Te
Deus again n Of these days when
liberty and brotherly love once more
brood over the earth.) But let's not
stand here with our mouth open all
age Of the Virgin has listened to. How
day. Come; let's go round a bit.
On the various sides are tiny chap
els, hardly more than nitches in the
thick walls. But each has its own I'M
age and little altar, where one may go
to pray. How the childlike love of
beauty these people possess is shown
here-a pretty candle or a lamp burn
ing, a bunch of flowers, a lovely altar
cloth. Further along down the side is a
little place that strongly reminds one
OF a telephone booth. 1t is a conses-
sional stand-a tiny place with two
compartments just big enough for one
person each. You occupy one, the
priest, your eonfessor, the other. There
is a lattice work between, and through
this you tell him how mean you are
Personally, l don't like this second.
= hand way Of doing things.
But notice that pulpit, a little boxlik,
altar on one of the big columns
and reached by a flight of winding
stairs. Observe the carvings, how per
feet they are-and think that tn,
: priests did them all BY HAND, Ope;
that big side door, and you can lool
n down into the cloisters-the long
gloomy row Of stone cells where tn,
priests lived and still lives, impossible
" as it may seem. Too bad that most o
the finest tapestries and pictures ant
e carvings have been taken down. Blu
d better to have them out Of reach o.
huns bombs and shells. Much Of tn
u beautiful stained window glass, too
d has beee removed. Here and there on,
h remains-ione in particulars grand
70 high, gorgeous blaze Of color, through
" which the afternoon sun casts a rub,
Ie light upon the tortured face Of Chris
ID upon the cross there. Wouldn't so,
IS like to spend the whole day here
," There are so many, many little thing
h to Settings too small to be men
,s toned, but contributing wonderful,
e to the whole effect. But-here ~,
been raving about this place an,
Is s~quandering superlative adjective
upon it with all the recklessness of
ct l~5-year-old girl about her first party
1t And all to little purpose, too, for, a
ID said before, a cathedral is something
lo that must be experienced, not req
10 about.
But it's nearly 6 o'clock. Amt yol
Il, hungry? I'm nearly starved. Let
/ go get a real feed, at a place wher
n you forget about tin mess kits an,
At army slum. You do not seriously OBJ
re ject. Very well. We go to the Hota
IS one Of the best in the city. Out il
front is a little plaza arrangement
lp with three tall palms in tubs, and be
~ hind this more or less efficient screeI
ct are little tables, where scores o
French and American soldiers sit
re drinking tall brown glasses of beer
ii But we're after something more sub
ut stantial, so we pass through the lob
TO by into the dining room, where we ar
!" met by a rather pretty and a~ttractiv
little French lady,-all smiles-wh
If leads us to a table. Oh, the unutter
able JOY Of sitting at a real table
be with a table cloth and a napkin big a
~ a young sheet, and real dishes to ga
q! from. Perhaps you wonder why | ar
70 80 Wild for such things, when, consid
a crlng the camp life I've had | shout
" not miss them so much. But you mus
BY remember that our camps didn't las
more thar two or three weeks at
ou time, and we'd come back to our HON
~ comforts, enjoying them more tina
ul ever. Just you wait until you haven
r. had a silver fork in your mouth 70
ty months at a time, and you'll kno,
nd what | mean.
n But by this time our little waitres
friend has brought US the wine care
OF Shall we have a bottle Of wine. frien
rs Teddy? You are not particularly en-
IL thusiastic? Well, let me recommen,
al a bit OF this Saneine--a light whit
w VINE, hardly more alcoholic than ri
OF DER III guarantee that you will b
oH able to walk straight afterward. And
nc unlike most of the French wines. bot
81 red and white, Santeine is really quit
ca paletable. So we dispatch little smilv
O. face after a bottle. Now for the din
ner itself. Bread and butter and win
~ the French food essentials-are Of
ne me table all the time; the rest of In,
" dinner is served in courses. A cours,
IN dinner for a soldier! Can I believe m,
a. eyes? First comes a dolioiane |"