216 THE PATH OF DEGENERATIVE EVOLUTION 



guild of weavers in Eegliem represents the third 

 stage only that of a religious confraternity. The 

 office of mutual aid has disappeared, and only the 

 Saints' Day Fete and the convivium remain : " The 

 first Sunday after the fete of the Trois-Eois, which 

 is the annual fete day of the weavers, the guild 

 proceeds to the parish church, headed by a banner, 

 accompanied by a jester, and with drums beating, 

 where mass is celebrated in honour of Saint Severin. 

 The rest of the day is passed in diversions." 



The guilds of Saint Crispin at Iseghem, all that 

 remains of the old corporation of shoemakers, are 

 representative of the final stage of degeneration : 

 the association has resumed its most primitive 

 character, and is reduced to a mere dining society 

 the primitive convivium. 



There are from 1500 to 2000 shoemakers in 

 Iseghem. At the time of the Revolution their 

 ambacht, having resumed its archaic form, was 

 divided up into six or seven guilds. Some years 

 ago a vain attempt was made to reconstruct these 

 guilds and adapt them to modern requirements. 

 At a time when success in this project was still 

 hoped for, one of the promoters of the reconstruction 

 wrote as follows : 



" The members of the guild still recognize Saint 

 Crispin as their patron saint, but they no longer 

 assemble in church to do him honour by the cele- 

 bration of mass. They keep the anniversary instead 

 by going from one public-house to another, with 



