life-like agony on the priests who were
vesting in the sacristy. Enormous chests lined the walls of several
rooms, and in those were stored gorgeous vestments, wonderfully
beautiful in color and material, and enriched with gold and precious
stones. Costly presents from kings and Spanish grandees were shown to me
by the brother sacristan, who took an honest pride in exhibiting those
blessed things. Magnificent society banners, used during processions on
great festivals, were subjects of intense interest to the good brother.
I saw lace albs there, with crotchet work marvellously executed by hand,
and adorned with brilliants. Each of these cost $1,500. The chapel of
St. Placidus, attached to the church is a perfect gem with its pillars
of white and gold. While in Havana, I had the pleasure of saying Mass in
the Jesuit Church. Other priests were celebrating at the same time, and
a magnificent congregation of men and women attended. The music was
exquisitely rendered, but I could not see how the people could continue
standing and kneeling so patiently all the time. In this, as in the rest
of the Cuban churches, there are but a few pews. The majority of the
people, who bring neither seats nor cushions with them, stand, kneel, or
sit on their heels at intervals. I do not think our Catholics in the
United States could muster up sufficient courage to endure all this.

After seeing the handsome, dark-eyed boys of the college, its fine
library and other interesting apartments, I ascended with Father Osoro
to look at the observatory en the top of the building.

This solid and business-like structure possesses the newest and most
complete astronomical and meteorological instruments, and the accuracy
of the scientific results arrived at by the Fathers, has become justly
celebrated. They received a manifestation of merit from the Centennial
Exposition of '76, on account of their meteorological observations, and
the Parisian Exhibition presented them with a magnificent medal. Father
Benito Vines, the president, communicates regularly with Washington and
nearly every civilized nation. After viewing the interior of the
observatory, we came out on the roof, and here I beheld a novel and
wonderfully lovely sight. Stone and brick walks, four or five feet wide,
with railings at each side spread away, intersecting each other at
different points, and all were above the dark, red-tiled roofs of the
institution. Strong little edifices like watc