three priests, attended by thirty
or forty choir boys, acolytes, and others, and placed upon a black
pedestal about thirty feet high and completely surrounded by hundreds
of candles, many of which were held in gilded figures of cherubim;
the whole was surmounted by a flambeau made by immersing cotton in
alcohol. The general effect was of a huge burning pile. Incense was
burned every where in and about the edifice, which was elaborately
decorated with satin festoons, palms, artificial flowers, emblems
wrought in beads, all in profusion and arranged with native taste. All
this, with the intonation of the priests, the chanting of the choir,
and the blaring of three bands, made a weird and impressive scene
never to be forgotten. After the ceremony, which lasted about an
hour, the body was taken to the cemetery, and, as it was by this
time quite dark, each person in the procession carried a torch or
candle. I noticed quite a number of Chinese among the following,
evidently friends, and these were arrayed in as gorgeous apparel as
the natives. The remains having been disposed of, there was a grand
reception given in the evening in honor of the deceased.

It is customary to have a dance every Sunday evening, and each woman
has a chair in which she sits while not dancing. The priests not only
attend, but participate most heartily.

I was told that among the papers captured in Manila was a document
which proved to be the last bull issued by the Pope to the King of
Spain (1895 or 96). This was an agreement between the Pope and the
King, whereby the former conveys to the latter the right to authorize
the sale of indulgences. The King, in turn, sold this right to the
padres and friars in the islands. Absolution from a lie cost the
sinner six pesos, or three dollars in gold; other sins in proportion to
their enormity and the financial ability of the offender. The annual
income of the King of Spain from this system has been estimated at
the modest figure of ten millions.

The discovery of this and other documents is due to a party of
interpreters who became greatly fascinated by the unearthing
process. In the same church in which these were found, the men
investigated the gambling tables and found them controlled and
manipulated from the room below by means of traps, tubes, and other
appliances. An interesting fact in this connection is that one of
the interpreters was himself a Romanist, and loath to believe his
eyes, but the e