Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 8.djvu/453

 AROUND THE ISLAND OF CEBU ON HORSEBACK 437

same appeal to the aesthetic feelings that comes from the old churches of Europe. Most of the churches are poor and barren. The people are very religious and attend a great many church celebrations. We were present at one of these on Corpus Christi day. There were almost no seats in the church everyone knelt. The women kneeling all over the church made quite a picture

A RELIGIOUS PROCESSION.

with their dark skins, black skirts, and white headdress. The full village band assisted the choir. After high mass there was a procession around the churchyard. Booths were erected at the four corners to represent the going out of the gospels to the four corners of the earth.

The padres generally receive their education in the Spanish seminary in Manila, and it is almost entirely theological. The padres, as a class, are not broad-cultured men, but they are still capable of teaching their people, and are in close touch with them. They show a desire to learn English. In one large con- vent we found the New York Police Gazette, translated into Spanish, the sole representative of American literature.