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11 - Chateau and Country Life in France by Mary King Waddington · Chateau and Country Life in France

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  Speaker 1: Section eleven of Chateau and country Life in France. This
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  Speaker 1: is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the
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  Speaker 1: public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit
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  Speaker 1: LibriVox dot org. Chateau and country Life in France by
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  Speaker 1: Mary King Waddington, Chapter five, Ceremonies and Festivals, Part three, Melroy,
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  Speaker 1: October thirty first. It has been a beautiful, warm, bright
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  Speaker 1: autumn day, and for a wonder we have had no
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  Speaker 1: frost yet, not even a white one, so that the
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  Speaker 1: garden is still full of flowers. And all day the
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  Speaker 1: village children have been coming begging for some to decorate
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  Speaker 1: the graves for to morrow. I went into the churchyard
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  Speaker 1: this afternoon, which was filled with women and children looking
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  Speaker 1: after their dead. It is not very pretty, our little churchyard,
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  Speaker 1: part of a field enclosed on the sea of the hill.
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  Speaker 1: Not many trees, a few tall poplars and a laurel hedge,
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  Speaker 1: but there is a fine open view over the great
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  Speaker 1: fields and woods, always the dark blue line of the
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  Speaker 1: forest in the distance. They are mostly humble graves, small
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  Speaker 1: farmers and peasants, but I fancy they must sleep very
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  Speaker 1: peacefully in the fields. They have worked in all their lives,
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  Speaker 1: full of poppies and corn flowers in summer, and a
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  Speaker 1: soft gold brine in the autumn, when the last crops
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  Speaker 1: are cut and the hares run wild over the hills.
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  Speaker 1: I think these two days, the Toucsonts and the jour
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  Speaker 1: des Morts, are the two days I like best in
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  Speaker 1: the Catholic Church, and certainly they are the only ones
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  Speaker 1: in our part of the world when the churches are full.
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  Speaker 1: I walked about some little time, looking at all the preparations.
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  Speaker 1: Every grave had some flowers, sometimes only a faded bunch
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  Speaker 1: of the last field flowers, except one where there were
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  Speaker 1: no flowers, but a little border of moss all around,
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  Speaker 1: and a slip of pasteboard on a stick stuck into
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  Speaker 1: the ground with am amare written on it. All the
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  Speaker 1: graves are very simple, generally a plain white cross with
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  Speaker 1: headstone and name. One or two of the rich farmers
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  Speaker 1: had something rather more important, a slab of marble or
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  Speaker 1: a broken column when it was a child's grave, and
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  Speaker 1: were more ambitious in the way of flowers and green plants,
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  Speaker 1: But no share of any kind, none of the terrible
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  Speaker 1: bead reeds one sees in large cities there was a
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  Speaker 1: poor old woman, nearly bent double, leaning on a stick,
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  Speaker 1: standing at one of the very modest graves. A child
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  Speaker 1: about six years old with her, with a bunch of
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  Speaker 1: flowers and a broken cup. She was trying to arrange
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  Speaker 1: at the foot of the grave. I suppose my face
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  Speaker 1: was expressive, for the old woman answered my unspoken thought, Ah, yes, madame,
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  Speaker 1: it is I who ought to be lying there instead
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  Speaker 1: of my children, all gone before me except this one grandchild,
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  Speaker 1: and I a helpless, useless burden upon the charity of
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  Speaker 1: the parish. On my way home I met all the
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  Speaker 1: village children carrying flowers. We had given our best chrysanthemums
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  Speaker 1: for the Paberni, which we offered to morrow to the church.
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  Speaker 1: Three or four times a year. At the great fates,
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  Speaker 1: the most important families of the village offer the pamberni,
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  Speaker 1: which is then a brioche. We gave our boulangees carte blanche,
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  Speaker 1: and he evidently was very proud of his performance, as
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  Speaker 1: he offered to bring it to us before it was
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  Speaker 1: sent to the church, but we told him we would
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  Speaker 1: see it there. I am writing late. We have all
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  Speaker 1: come upstairs. It is so mild that my window is open.
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  Speaker 1: There is not a sound except the sighing of the
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  Speaker 1: wind in the pines and the church bells that are
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  Speaker 1: ringing for the vigil of all saints. Besides our own bells,
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  Speaker 1: we hear others faintly in the distance from the little
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  Speaker 1: village of nerf Shell, about two miles off. It is
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  Speaker 1: a bad sign when we hear nerf Shell too well.
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  Speaker 1: Means Rain. I should be so sorry if it rained
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  Speaker 1: to morrow, just as all the fresh flowers have been
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  Speaker 1: put on the graves. November two, Jieur des Morts. We
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  Speaker 1: had a beautiful day yesterday and a nice service in
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  Speaker 1: our little church. Our Pambernie was a thing of beauty
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  Speaker 1: and quite distracted the school children. It was a most
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  Speaker 1: imposing edifice, two large round brioche, four smaller ones on top.
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  Speaker 1: They went up in a pyramid. The four small ones
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  Speaker 1: go to the notabilities of the village, the curee, two
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  Speaker 1: of the principal farmers, and the miller. The whole thing
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  Speaker 1: very well arranged with red and white flowers and lighted tapers.
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  Speaker 1: It was carried by two enfant cour preceded by the
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  Speaker 1: beadle with his cocked hat and staff, and followed by
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  Speaker 1: two small girls with lighted tapers. The enfant de coeur
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  Speaker 1: were not in their festal attire of red soutanes and
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  Speaker 1: red shoes, only in plain black. Since the inventories ordered
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  Speaker 1: by the government and all the churches, most of the
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  Speaker 1: people have taken away their gifts in the way of vestments, soustines, vases,
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  Speaker 1: et cetera. And the red soutanes, shoes and caps with
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  Speaker 1: a handsome white satin embroidered vestment that Sea gave the
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  Speaker 1: church when she was married are carefully folded and put
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  Speaker 1: away in a safe place, out of the church until
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  Speaker 1: better time should come. After luncheon we went over to
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  Speaker 1: the Soissans in the auto, the most enchanting drive through
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  Speaker 1: the forest of Ville Ectteret, the poplar trees a line
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  Speaker 1: of gold, and all the others taking the most lovely
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  Speaker 1: colors of red and brown. Souissan is a fine old
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  Speaker 1: cathedral town with broad squares planted with stiff trees. Like
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  Speaker 1: all the provincial towns in France, many large old fashioned
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  Speaker 1: hotels entre cours jardins, and a number of convents and
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  Speaker 1: abbeys now turned into schools, barracks, government offices of all kinds.
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  Speaker 1: But the fine proportions and beautiful lines are always there.
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  Speaker 1: The city has seen many changes since its first notoriety
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  Speaker 1: as the capital of the France of Clovis, and one
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  Speaker 1: feels how much has happened in the quiet, deserted streets
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  Speaker 1: of the old town, where almost every corner is picturesque.
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  Speaker 1: The fine ruins of Saint Jean de Vignes faced us
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  Speaker 1: as we drove along the broad boulevard. A facade and
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  Speaker 1: two beautiful towers with a cloister is all that remains
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  Speaker 1: of a fine old abbey begun in ten seventy six.
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  Speaker 1: It is now an arsenal. One cannot always get in,
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  Speaker 1: but the porter made no difficulty for us, and we
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  Speaker 1: wandered about the courtyard and cloister. The towers looked beautifully
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  Speaker 1: gray and soft against the bright blue sky, and the
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  Speaker 1: view over Swassans, with all its churches and old houses,
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  Speaker 1: was charming. It seems that Thomas A. Beckett, Archbishop of Canterbury,
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  Speaker 1: lived at the abbey when he was exiled from England
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  Speaker 1: and had taken refuge in France. We wanted to go
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  Speaker 1: to the service in the cathedral, but thought we would
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  Speaker 1: go first to the patissier, an excellent one well known
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  Speaker 1: in all the neighborhood, famous for a very good bonbon
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  Speaker 1: made of coffee and called toward as Soissons. The little
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  Speaker 1: place was full. Every school boy in Swassans was there
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  Speaker 1: eating cakes and bonbons. There was a notice up in
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  Speaker 1: the shop lipped and tea, and we immediately asked for some.
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  Speaker 1: The woman made a place for us with difficulty on
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  Speaker 1: a corner of a table and gave us very good
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  Speaker 1: English tea, toast and cakes. I complimented the patron on
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  Speaker 1: her tea, and she said, so many automobiles with foreigners
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  Speaker 1: English principally passed through Sassons in the summer, all asking
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  Speaker 1: for tea, that she thought she must try to get some.
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  Speaker 1: One of the ladies told her where to get lipped
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  Speaker 1: and tea and how much to pay for it. She
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  Speaker 1: has found it a very good speculation. We walked to
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  Speaker 1: the cathedral through a grand old square planted with fine
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  Speaker 1: trees that had once been part of the garden of
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  Speaker 1: the Aveche. As it was getting dark, we could not
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  Speaker 1: see the outside very well. A gigantic mass of towers
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  Speaker 1: and little steeples loomed up through the twilight, but the
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  Speaker 1: inside was very striking crowded with people, lights, banners, flowers everywhere.
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  Speaker 1: Five or six priests were officiating, and the bishop, in
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  Speaker 1: full dress with his gold miter on his head, was
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  Speaker 1: seated on his red velvet throne under the big cruise.
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  Speaker 1: The congregation there are a good many men was following
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  Speaker 1: the service very devoutly, but there are a great many
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  Speaker 1: people walking about and stopping at the different chapels, which
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  Speaker 1: rather takes away from the devotional aspect. Unfortunately, the sermon
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  Speaker 1: had only just begun, so we didn't hear any music.
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  Speaker 1: The organ is very fine and they have a very
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  Speaker 1: good choir. Neither did we hear the famous chimes, which
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  Speaker 1: we regretted very much. Some of the bells have a
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  Speaker 1: beautiful sound. One in particular that used to be at
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  Speaker 1: Saint Jean d'avigne had a wonderful deep note. One hears
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  Speaker 1: it quite distinctly above all the others. All the bells
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  Speaker 1: have names. This one used to be called Simon, after
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  Speaker 1: a Bishop Simon le Gras, who blessed it in sixteen
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  Speaker 1: forty three. When the voice got faint and cracked with age,
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  Speaker 1: it was refondu past and called Julie Pauline. It was
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  Speaker 1: quite dark and cold. When we started back, we had
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  Speaker 1: to light our big lantern almost as soon as we
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  Speaker 1: left Soissans. For some little time after we got out
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  Speaker 1: of the town we met people walking and driving, all
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  Speaker 1: with holiday garbs and faces. But once we plunged in
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  Speaker 1: the long forest alleys, we were absolutely cut off from
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  Speaker 1: the outside world. It is a curious sensation. I have
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  Speaker 1: never got accustomed to those long, dark, lonely forest roads.
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  Speaker 1: The leaves were still so thick on the trees that
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  Speaker 1: we could hardly see the last glow of a beautiful
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  Speaker 1: orange sunset. The only sign of life was the charbonnier's
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  Speaker 1: hut in a clearing quite close to the road. They
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  Speaker 1: had a dull light, just enough to let us see
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  Speaker 1: dusky figures moving about. This morning, our church looked quite different.
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  Speaker 1: No more banners, embroideries or bright flowers, all draped in black,
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  Speaker 1: and a bier covered with a black pole in the
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  Speaker 1: middle of the aisle. The curet in a black sat investment,
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  Speaker 1: all the congregation in black. I went out before the
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  Speaker 1: end of the service. All the black draperies and the
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  Speaker 1: black kneeling figures and the funeral psalms were so inexpressibly
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  Speaker 1: sad and dreary. I was glad to get out into
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  Speaker 1: the sunshine and to the top of the hill, where
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  Speaker 1: the cemetery gates stood wide open, and the sun was
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  Speaker 1: streaming down on all the green graves with their fresh
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  Speaker 1: flowers and plants. Soon we heard the sound of the chaunt,
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  Speaker 1: and the procession wan slowly up the steep, straggling village street,
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  Speaker 1: a banner and cross carried by the boys and girls.
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  Speaker 1: Then the curee with his ostensoir, followed by his enfant
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  Speaker 1: de coeur carrying books and tapers. Then the congregation. There
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  Speaker 1: were a great many people already in the cemetery. The
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  Speaker 1: little procession halted at the foot of the cross in
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  Speaker 1: the middle. There were several prayers and psalms, and then
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  Speaker 1: the cure made the tour of the cemetery, sprinkling all
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  Speaker 1: the graves with holy water and saying a short prayer
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  Speaker 1: at each. The procession broke up into groups, all kneeling
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  Speaker 1: at the different graves, praying for their dead. There were
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  Speaker 1: not many men, a few old ones. They were not kneeling,
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  Speaker 1: but stood reverently with bowed heads when the cure passed.
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  Speaker 1: It was a pretty sight. The kneeling figures, the flower
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  Speaker 1: covered graves, the little procession winding in and out among
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  Speaker 1: the tombstones, the white sutas of the boys shining in
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  Speaker 1: the sun, and not a sound except the droning of
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  Speaker 1: the chaunts. As it was fate, one of the great
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  Speaker 1: religious fates of the year. There was no work going on,
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  Speaker 1: no labors in the fields, no carts on the road. Nothing.
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  Speaker 1: With the great stillness of the place. We had Arcuirie
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  Speaker 1: at dinner. We were quite sure no one else would
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  Speaker 1: ask him, and it seemed a shame to leave him
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  Speaker 1: in his empty presbyteriere on a fate day. I think
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  Speaker 1: his evenings with us are the only bright spots in
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  Speaker 1: his life. Just now, the situation of the priests is
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  Speaker 1: really wretched, and their future most uncertain. This government has
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  Speaker 1: taken away the very small stipend they allowed them. Arkire
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  Speaker 1: got his house and nine hundred francs a year, not
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  Speaker 1: quite two hundred dollars. In many cases they have refused
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  Speaker 1: to let the priests live in their presbyteris unless they
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  Speaker 1: pay rent. The churches are still open, they can have
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  Speaker 1: their services if they like. But those who have no fortune,
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  Speaker 1: which is the case with most of them, are entirely
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  Speaker 1: dependent upon the voluntary contribution of their parishioners. Our little
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  Speaker 1: Cure has no longer his servant, the traditional plain, middle
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  Speaker 1: aged bond of the priest. They are not allowed to
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  Speaker 1: have a woman servant under fifty. He lives quite alone
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  Speaker 1: in his cold, empty house and has a meal of
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  Speaker 1: some kind brought in to him from the railway cafe.
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  Speaker 1: What is hardest for him is never to have an
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  Speaker 1: extra franc to give to his poor. He is profoundly discouraged,
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  Speaker 1: but does his duty simply and cheerfully. Looks after the sick,
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  Speaker 1: nurses them whether there is a long illness or an accident.
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  Speaker 1: Teaches the women how to keep their houses clean and
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  Speaker 1: how to cook good, plain food. He is a farmer's
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  Speaker 1: son and extraordinarily practical. He came to us one day
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  Speaker 1: to ask we had a spare washing tub we could
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  Speaker 1: give him. He was going to show a woman who
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  Speaker 1: sowed and embroidered beautifully, and who was very poor and unpractical,
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  Speaker 1: how to do her washing. I think the people have
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  Speaker 1: a sort of respect for him, but they don't come
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  Speaker 1: to church. Everybody appeals to him. We couldn't do anything
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  Speaker 1: One day with a big kite some one had given
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  Speaker 1: the children. No one could in the house, neither gardener, chauffeur,
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  Speaker 1: nor footman. So he sent for him, and it was
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  Speaker 1: funny to see him shortening the tail of the kite
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  Speaker 1: and racing over the lawn in his black sutan. However
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  Speaker 1: he made it work. He was rather embarrassed this evening,
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  Speaker 1: as he had refused something I had asked him to do,
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  Speaker 1: and was afraid I wouldn't understand. We were passing along
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  Speaker 1: the canal the other day when the ecclusier came out
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  Speaker 1: of his house and asked me if I would come
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  Speaker 1: and look at his child, who was frightfully ill, his
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  Speaker 1: wife in despair. Without thinking of my little ones at home,
• 15:40
  Speaker 1: I went into the house, where I found in a dirty,
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  Speaker 1: smelly room a slatternly woman holding in her arms a
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  Speaker 1: child about two years old, who I thought was dead
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  Speaker 1: such a ghastly color. Eyes turned up. However, the poor
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  Speaker 1: little thing moaned and moved, and the woman was shaken
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  Speaker 1: with sobs. The father and two older children standing there,
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  Speaker 1: not knowing what to do, They told me the doctor
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  Speaker 1: had come in the early morning and said there was
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  Speaker 1: nothing to do. I asked if they had sent for
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  Speaker 1: the cure. No, they hadn't thought of it. I said
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  Speaker 1: I would tell him. As I passed the presbyter on
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  Speaker 1: my way home. He wasn't there, but I left word
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  Speaker 1: that the child was dying. Could he go. The child
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  Speaker 1: died about an hour after I had left the house.
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  Speaker 1: I sent a black skirt to the woman, who was
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  Speaker 1: then obliged to go to Paris for two or three days.
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  Speaker 1: When I came back, I asked my gardener, who is
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  Speaker 1: from this part of the country and knows everybody, if
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  Speaker 1: the child's funeral had been quite right. He told me
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: it was awful. There was no service. The ciure would
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  Speaker 1: not bury him as he had never been baptized. The
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  Speaker 1: body had been put into a plain wooden box and
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  Speaker 1: carried to the cemetery by the father and a friend.
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  Speaker 1: I was very much upset, but of course the thing
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  Speaker 1: was over and there was nothing to be done. However,
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  Speaker 1: when we talked it over, I understood quite well. To
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  Speaker 1: begin with, all priests are forbidden to read the burial
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  Speaker 1: service over any one who has not being baptized. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: he had no choice. And this man was not only
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  Speaker 1: an unbeliever, but a mocker of all religion. When his
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  Speaker 1: last child was born, he had friends over from some
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  Speaker 1: of the neighboring villagers who were Freemasons. They are a
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: very bad lot in France. They had a great feast
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  Speaker 1: and baptize the child in red Wine. I rather regretted
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  Speaker 1: the black frock. I sent the mother, but she looked
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  Speaker 1: so utterly wretched, and perhaps she could not help herself.
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: The little Curee is very pleased to have his midnight
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  Speaker 1: Mass this year. On Christmas Eve, last year it was suppressed.
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  Speaker 1: There was such angry feeling and hostility to the clergy
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  Speaker 1: that the authorities are afraid there might be scenes and
• 18:05
  Speaker 1: noisy protestations in the churches, perhaps in some quarters of
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: the big cities, but certainly not in the country, where
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  Speaker 1: people hold very much to the midnight Mass. It is
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  Speaker 1: also one of the services that most people attend. It
• 18:20
  Speaker 1: is always a pretty sight in the country, particularly if
• 18:23
  Speaker 1: there happens to be snow on the ground. Every one
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  Speaker 1: that can walk comes. One sees the little bands arriving
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  Speaker 1: across the fields and along the canal, five or six
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  Speaker 1: together with a lantern. Entire families turn out, the old
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  Speaker 1: grandfathers hobbling along on their sticks, the women carrying their babies,
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  Speaker 1: who are generally very good, quite taken up with the
• 18:47
  Speaker 1: lights of music, or else asleep. We always sing Adams
• 18:52
  Speaker 1: Noel in almost every church in France. I think they
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  Speaker 1: sing it, even in the big Paris churches like the
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  Speaker 1: Madeleine and Saint Eustache, where they have orchestras and trained choirs,
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  Speaker 1: though we sing the Noelle at some period of the service. Maroi.
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  Speaker 1: The twenty four May to day was the premiere communion
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  Speaker 1: at La Fetee, and I had promised the Abbe d'avigna
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  Speaker 1: to go. I couldn't have the auto, as Frances was
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  Speaker 1: at a meeting of a syndicate Agricol in quite another direction.
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  Speaker 1: So I took the train about seven minutes, and I
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  Speaker 1: really believe I had the whole train to myself. No
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: one travels in France on Sunday in the middle of
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  Speaker 1: the day. It is quite a long walk from the
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  Speaker 1: station to the church. The service was at Notre Dame,
• 19:44
  Speaker 1: the church on the hill with rather a steep climb
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  Speaker 1: at the end. The little town looked quite deserted, a
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  Speaker 1: few women standing at their doors, and in all directions.
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  Speaker 1: White figures of all ages were galloping up the hill.
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  Speaker 1: The bells were ringing, and we were were a little late.
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  Speaker 1: The big doors of the church were wide open, the
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  Speaker 1: organ playing, and a good many people standing about. The
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  Speaker 1: altar was bright with flowers and candles and oriflam of
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  Speaker 1: blue and pink gauze worked with gold and silver. Lilies
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  Speaker 1: were stretched across the church between the pillars. One or
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  Speaker 1: two banners with the head of the Virgin and flowers
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: painted in bright colors were also hanging from the columns.
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: Two or three priests with handsome vestments white embroidered in
• 20:31
  Speaker 1: gold were officiating, and the choir boys wore their red petticoats,
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: soutans trimmed with lace, and red shoes and caps. The
• 20:40
  Speaker 1: Swiss Beedle with his cocked hat, silver embroidered coat and
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: big cane, was hovering about keeping order. Just inside the
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: chancel sat the commugnon fifty boys and girls. The girls
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: all in white from top to toe, white dresses, shoes
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: and gloves, and long white veils come in to the
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: edge of the dress, and either a white cap which
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: looks very pretty and quaint on the little heads, rather
• 21:08
  Speaker 1: like some of the old Dutch pictures, or a wreath
• 21:11
  Speaker 1: of white flowers. With them sat about half a dozen
• 21:14
  Speaker 1: smaller girls also in white with wreaths of white roses.
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: They were too small to make their first communion, but
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: they were to hold the cordons of the banner. When
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: the procession passed down the church. The boys were all
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: in black short jackets, white waistcoats, and white ribbon bows
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: on their sleeves. The church was very full, mostly women,
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: a few men at the bottom. It was a pretty
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: sight when the procession moved around the church. First came
• 21:44
  Speaker 1: the sacristan in his black skirt and white sutan, Then
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: the banner held by two of the big girls. The
• 21:51
  Speaker 1: group of little ones, some of them quite tiny and
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: so pretty, with the wreaths of white roses on their
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: black hair, holding the cords and looking most pleased with
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: their part of the function. Just behind them came the
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: good old religious sur Saint Antoine, hovering over her little
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: flock and keeping them all in their places. Then all
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: the commugnon, the smallest girls first, the boys behind, all
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: carrying lighted tapers and singing a hymn to the accompaniment
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: of the organ. They went first to the font, stopped there,
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: and one of the girls read a sort of prayer
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: renewing their baptismal vows. Then they started again in the
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: same order to the Chapel de la Viege, always singing
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: their hymn, and knelt at the rails. Then the hymn stopped,
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: and they recited all together a prayer to the Virgin.
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: The little childish voices sounded quite distinctly in the old church.
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: One heard every word. The congregation was much interested. There
• 22:56
  Speaker 1: wasn't a sound. I don't know if it was any
• 22:59
  Speaker 1: sort of religegeous feeling, some dim recollection of their early days,
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: or merely the love of a show of any kind
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: that is inherent in all the Latin race. But they
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: seemed much impressed. While the collection was being made, there
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: was music, very good local talent too, violin solely played
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: by a young fellow from one of the small neighboring chateaus,
• 23:25
  Speaker 1: whom we all knew well. And the panas Angelicus of
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: Ces Frank very well sung by the wife of the
• 23:32
  Speaker 1: druggist The Cure of la Ferte, a very clever, cultivated
• 23:37
  Speaker 1: man with a charming voice and manner, made a very
• 23:40
  Speaker 1: pretty short address quite suited to childish ears and understanding,
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: with a few remarks at the end to the parents,
• 23:49
  Speaker 1: telling them it was their fault of their children grew
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: up hostile or indifferent to religion, that it was a
• 23:55
  Speaker 1: perfectly false idea that to be patriotic and good citizen
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: meant the abandonment of all religious principles. We waited until
• 24:05
  Speaker 1: the end of the service. Frances and his friends arrived
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: in time to hear the cure's address, and watched the
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: procession disappear down the steep path and gradually break up
• 24:16
  Speaker 1: as each child was carried off by a host of
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: friends and relations to its home. The Caire was very pleased,
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: said he had had a bell fate. People had sent
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: flowers and ribbons and helped as much as they could
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: to decorate the church. I asked him if he thought
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: it made a lasting impression on the children. He thought
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: it did on the girls, but the boys certainly not
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: until their first communion. He held them a little, could
• 24:45
  Speaker 1: interest them in books and games after school hours, but
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: after that great step in their lives, they felt themselves
• 24:52
  Speaker 1: men and were impatient of any control. End of section eleven,
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: recording by Florence said. She said