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Frequently
also, three crosses are seen in conspicuous places near the roadside
or even in the middle of the road. They are supposed to propitiate the
Almighty, and pious persons mumble prayers as they pass them. When the
destruction wrought by the Martinique volcano became known here, the
dismay of the countrymen was responsible for more than one "calvario"
(calvary), as these collections of crosses are called. It is
especially desired by the country people to receive the last
sacraments from the priests before death. On one occasion far out in
the country I met a crowd of people engaged in transporting a dying
man many miles to the priest in the nearest town. When asked why the
priest was not called to the sick man, they explained innocently: "He
couldn't come. The priest is too fat."
There are in the territory of the Republic several shrines of more
than usual renown, which at certain seasons of the year attract crowds
of worshipers, some coming all the way from Porto Rico. Wonderful
cures of invalids are registered which recall the miracles of Lourdes.


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