Solitude [pp. 358]

THE LADIES' REPOSITORY.
ent to my mind. But these altars were
to "unknown gods," or lacked the sacrifice. They are square stone structures,
large enough to contain the statues or
pictures, and kneeling-boards for two or
four persons. But more frequently the
kneeling-boards are outside-but always
a kneeling-board —the face of the stone
structure, shut off half-way up by wooden
or iron lattice. Some have the crucifix
over the altar, but most Maria, as she is
at Mariazell. In one was a large family
of Marys, all the way from a foot tall, to
no larger than the little finger. In another, to the right of the crucifix, Peter
stood, with the cock roosting at his elbow.
But most of the stone structures are
solid, and have only recesses on the outside for statues or pictures. Many shrines
are red boxes, nailed to pine-trees, full
of cheap pictures and artificials. Some
are squares in the tree trunk itself, containing images and odds and ends, covered by glass, and the trunk stuck full
of little pine crosses. Tapers are kept
burning before many of these all night.
The knees of Christ are always represented as bleeding, and are black with
the kisses of the people.
Toward Bruck, from Mariazell, on a
green mound, were three crosses and
two standing female figures, of wood,
painted. The thieves were in a most un
comfortable position. Five shrines led
up to these, all supplied with kneelingboards. Further on was a great shrine
with two kneeling-boards, thirty feet long
each, and very slight accommodations at
that, for a procession.
At Wegscheid, where we spent our last
night before taking post to Bruck, our
sleeping-room was not only, as is usual,
supplied with a crucifix, but also a kneeling-board, cushioned.
When we went down for supper, all
the household were chanting prayers before a Mary in the eating-room. Just as
at Mariazell, all the faithful gathered at
night round a ghastly Christ on the wall,
and in loud, monotonous tones, made
their repetitions. It does not seem to be
so hard a matter to hold prayers here, in
a public-house, as in America.
The next day, at noon, down off of the
mountains, through snow standing six
feet high, while the peasants carried sun
umbrellas, we had the pleasure of taking
dinner at the quaint little dorf Aflenz;
and, as a kind of dessert, walked in the
church-yard and entered the bone-chamber, two-thirds full of human bones,
piled in regular order, in ricks, destined
to be used in making sugar, the ultimatum of all common human bones, in
this part of the world.
SUE M. D. FRY.
SOLITUDE.
EAR, solitary groves, where peace doth dwell,
Sweet harbors of pure love and innocence,
How willingly could I forever stay
Beneath the shade of your embracing greens!
Listening the harmony of warbling birds,
Tuned with the gentle murmur of the streams;
Upon whose bank, in various livery,
The fragrant offspring of the early year,
Their heads, like graceful swans, bent proudly down,
See their own beauties in the crystal flood.
358
[April,