Leaves from a Madeira Garden 



waves ? To the faithful such blatant evidence 

 of the triumph of the world must indeed be a 

 stumbling-block and an offence. 



By a convenient if somewhat illogical ar- 

 rangement, the week of the Passion ends at 

 the moment of noon on Saturday. The op- 

 pressive silence changes suddenly to exuberant 

 noise. The Alleluia is sung in the cathedral ; 

 rockets and shells are discharged ; and the 

 ringing of bells announces that the long period 

 of mourning is over, and that the joyful cele- 

 brations of Easter have commenced. The 

 startling transition has that happy touch of 

 dramatic effect in which the Roman Church 

 excels. If the hour does not quite agree with 

 the details of the gospel story, it is only one 

 more instance of her perspicacity in adapting 

 her service to human needs. 



A great feature of the religious life of this as 

 of other Catholic countries is the procession. 

 Processions take place at all seasons, but they 

 are especially used to relieve the monotony of 

 Lent. On March 25, the feast of Our Lady, 

 a day we unfortunately associate with the 

 disagreeable incidents of rent and unpaid bills, 

 takes place one of the most attractive of these 



230 



