Part 20 (1/2)
Ibarra had gone in search of Maria Clara, almost on a run. He had so many things to tell her. He heard some gentle voices in one of the rooms and knocked at the door.
”Who knocks?” asked Maria Clara.
The voices were silenced and the door ... was not opened.
”It is I. May I come in?” asked the young man, his heart beating violently.
The silence was not broken. A few seconds afterward gentle steps approached the door and Sinang's cheerful voice murmured through the key-hole: ”Crisostomo, we are going to the theatre to-night. Write what you have to say to Maria Clara.”
Then the footsteps were heard retreating, as quickly as they had come.
”What does that mean!” murmured Ibarra to himself, as he went slowly away from the door.
CHAPTER XX
THE PROCESSION.
In the evening, by the light of lanterns hung from windows, to the ringing of bells and bursting of bombs, the procession started for the fourth time.
The Governor General left the house on foot, in company with his two adjutants, Captain Tiago, the Alcalde, the alferez, and Ibarra. The Civil Guards and the officials of the town preceded them and cleared the way. His Excellency had been invited to witness the procession from the house of the gobernadorcillo, in front of which a platform had been erected for the recitation of a loa, or religious poem, in honor of the Patron Saint. Ibarra had previously declined with pleasure an invitation to hear this poetical composition, as he had preferred to witness the procession from the house of Captain Tiago with Maria Clara and her friends. But, as His Excellency wished to hear the loa, there was no other remedy for Ibarra but to console himself with the hope of seeing her at the theatre.
The procession was headed by three sacristans carrying silver candlesticks. The children of the school, accompanied by their teacher, followed. Then came the small boys, with colored paper lanterns fastened to the ends of pieces of bamboo, each more or less adorned according to the caprices of the boy, for this part of the illumination was paid for entirely by themselves. However, they fulfilled this duty with a great deal of pleasure.
In the midst of it all, men serving as police, pa.s.sed to and fro to see that the files of the procession were not broken or the people jammed together in a crowd. For this purpose they used their wands and inflicted some hard blows, thus managing to add to the brilliancy of the procession, to the edification of souls and to the glory of religious pomp.
At the same time that the officers inflicted these sanctified floggings with their wands free of charge, others, to console those who had been punished, distributed wax and tallow candles, also free of charge.
”Senor Alcalde,” said Ibarra, in a low voice, ”do they inflict those blows to punish the sinners or merely for pleasure?”
”You are right, Senor Ibarra,” replied the Governor General, who had overheard his question. ”This spectacle ... barbarous ... astonis.h.i.+ng to those who come from other countries, ought to be prohibited.”
Although it cannot be explained, the first saint who appeared was San Juan el Baptisto. On seeing him, you would say that the cousin of Our Saviour did not enjoy any great renown among these people. He had slender feet and legs and the face of a hermit, and was carried along on an old wooden litter. In marked contrast to the representation of San Juan, was that of San Francisco, the founder of the great order. The latter was drawn in a car, and, as Tasio said: ”What a car! How many lights and gla.s.s lanterns! Why, I have never seen you surrounded by so many illuminations, Giovanni Bernardone! And what music!”
Behind the music came a standard representing the same saint, but with seven wings. It was carried by the brothers of the Third Order, dressed in guingon and praying in a loud and mournful voice. The next in the procession was Santa Maria Magdalena, a most beautiful image with an abundant growth of hair, a handkerchief of embroidered pina cloth between her ring-covered fingers, and wearing a dress of silk adorned with gold-leaf. Lights and incense surrounded her. The gla.s.s tears from her eyes reflected the colors of the colored fire which was burned here and there, giving a fantastic aspect to the procession. Consequently, the sinful saint appeared to be weeping now green, now red and now blue tears. The people did not begin to burn these colored lights till San Francisco was pa.s.sing; San Juan el Baptisto did not enjoy this honor, pa.s.sing by quickly, ashamed perhaps to go dressed in skins among so many saints covered with gold and precious jewels.
”There goes our saint!” cried the daughter of the gobernadorcillo to her visitors. ”I loaned her my rings, but I did it to get to Heaven.”
Those carrying the illuminations stopped near the platform to hear the loa. The saints did the same. They and their carriers wanted to hear the verses. Those who carried San Juan, tired of waiting, squatted down in the characteristic Filipino manner, and found it convenient to leave their burden on the ground.
”You'll get into trouble,” objected one.
”Jesus! In the sacristy, they leave him in a corner among spider-webs....”
After Magdalena came the women. They differed from the men in arrangement. Instead of the children, the old women came first and finally the unmarried women. Behind these came the car of the Virgin, and behind that, the curate under his canopy. Father Damaso gave the following reason for putting the young women next to the Virgin's car: ”The Virgin likes young women, but not old ones.” Of course, this explanation caused many of the older women to make wry faces, but that did not change the taste of the Virgin.