The  churches  of  Sassari  are  very  numerous,  but  for  the  most  part
uninteresting.  The  fagade  of  the  cathedral  is  striking,  but  over-
decorated.  In  bright  sunlight,  however,  the  peculiar  yellow  tinge  of
the  stone  produces  wonderful  effects,  and  the  lofty  cornices  and
profuse  sculpture  gleam  almost  like  burnished  metal.
As  usual,  my  errant  footsteps  led  me  to  one  of  the  pompous  but
lugubrious  ceremonies  which,  in  all  these  Mediterranean  islands,
invest  death  with  the  horror  attached  to  it  by  the  Catholic  Church,
when  she  speaks  of  it  as  one  of  the  "  four  last  things  to  be  remem-
bered." Entering  the  cathedral  one  evening,  I  found  the  nave
dark  and  full  of  mystery.  A  black  carpet  embroidered  with  yellow
lay  on  the  flags  in  front  of  the  choir.  The  design  on  the  carpet
was  a  representation  of  Death  in  the  form  of  a  crowned  skeleton
sitting  on  a  throne,  with  a  sceptre  in  one  hand  and  a  scythe  in
the  other,  while  at  his  feet  were  heaped  a  tiara,  a  mitre,  a  bishop's
crosier,  a  helmet  with  waving  plumes,  some  half-opened  books,
and  a  bird.  Immense  candelabra  stood  at  the  four  corners  of  this
strange  tapestry.  On  one  side  stood  a  priest  holding  a  thurible
in  one  hand,  while  the  other  was  over  his  heart.  Opposite  him
was  an  old  server  bearing  a  silver  cross,  the  stem  of  which  rested  on
the  ground.  On  the  third  side  were  three  priests  in  black  capes,
bordered  with  yellow,  the  midmost  one  of  whom  was  chanting
the  service  for  the  dead.  When  the  prayers  were  over,  the  officiating
priest  blessed  the  black  tapestry  with  holy  water,  while  another  priest


A    HYGIENIC    WORKING-DAY,


269


censed  it.  The  candles  were  then  extinguished  and  the  carpet  was
rolled  up  and  removed.
