WELD Charles Richard - A Vacation in Brittany

But the interior of the church was not the only holy place in the eyes of the peasants. Without, numerous groups, the men bareheaded, paced slowly round the building, saying prayers and telling their beads as they went; while others, for the most part women, circumperambulated the church by the slower and more laborious process of progressing on their knees,—humiliation of course not without reward. The Calvary too had devotees, though I am bound to say that a tobacco-stall propped against it came in for a large share of patronage. Indeed nothing was more curious in this motley scene than the strange mixture of apparent godliness and positive worldliness. Prayers being over, drinking began, and, though the day was not far spent, many men were already in a hopeless state of horizontal insobriety. One peasant in this condition was espied by a set of young fellows evidently on the look-out for fun; a heap of stones near him suggested mischief. Quick as thought were his bragous filled with these; then rousing the drunken boor, they bade him with fierce shouts get up. Vain, most vain were his attempts! for no sooner was he on his legs than, ballasted as he was, he came to the ground with a run, and, after numerous attempts with no better result, it was ludicrous in the extreme to see him, when made aware of the weighty cause of his downfall, emptying his capacious bragous of their stony contents.

A little before three o'clock a general move took place in the direction of the church, which in a few minutes became full to suffocation. This was preparatory to the great event of the day, the procession of the relics. Psalms, more loud than harmonious, were sung by the excited peasants within, and repeated by those without the church. The order of march was then arranged, and precisely at three o'clock the procession left the church. This was headed by a dozen bareheaded priests, wearing their robes and carrying breviaries, from which they sang scraps of Latin prayers: they were followed by about two hundred peasants, also bareheaded, bearing flags and banners, those representing St. Kerdevot and his miraculous deeds preceding the rest; then came six girls, arrayed in white robes, lace, and flowers, supporting a kind of frame covered with satin: in the centre of this, on a cushion, lay the relics of the Saint and an image of the ubiquitous Virgin. The procession was closed by troops of peasants carrying lighted candles. Thrice, singing loudly, they wound round the church, passing between serried ranks of spectators, who fell upon their knees when the relics were in sight, and then the procession passed round the meadow outside the line of tents. It was curious to mark the effect which the display of the holy relics had on the peasants, who were, to use Jack's phrase, "half-seas-over:" a moment before they might be seen surging through the crowd, but as the pious chant fell upon the ear and the procession drew nearer, religious awe seemed to obtain mastery over them; their steps became steadier, and, doffing their huge hats, they stared with a half-crazed expression at the show, but, when the relics had passed, resumed their boisterous merriment.

Britons are said to have five virtues and three vices; the virtues being—love of their country, resignation under the will of God, loyalty, perseverance, and hospitality; and their vices,—avarice, contempt of women, and drunkenness. Judging by the Pardon at Kerdevot I should say that the Britons deserve to be charged with the last-named vice; brandy was in far greater request than cider, and besides numerous large casks of fire-water standing before each tent, others, slung upon horses, were continually arriving on the ground. With regard to the penultimate vice recorded above, I must say that the Britons showed no contempt for the women who graced the Pardon; among the young men Cupid was decidedly in more favour than Bacchus, and it was no uncommon circumstance to see a row of gaily-dressed fellows making les yeux doux to girls evidently not disinclined to receive these attentions, and others of a less refined nature.

These Pardons are indeed Cupid's chief field-days in Brittany, and to be prevented attending them is the greatest punishment that can befall a girl. Married, the scene changes, and then her lord and master is said to merit by his behaviour the character given to him of contempt for the weaker sex. A Breton song sung by peasant brides, touchingly alludes to maiden pleasures and married woes:—" Farewell! farewell, dear friends of my youth! I have thrown myself away, and exchanged a life of joy for one of pain. Sorrow and grief await me: I am but a servant now, for I am married. Then hasten, O ye who are free, to Pardons, and enjoy life while ye may! Farewell! dear friends of my youth, farewell !".

The great desire to attend Pardons, which possess other attractions besides those of religion, was strikingly exemplified by a terrible catastrophe that happened on the Sunday preceding that of the Pardon of St. Kerdevot when another Pardon was held at Benodet, eighteen miles south of Quimper. Thirty young persons of that town having set their hearts on going to the Pardon, took advantage of the ab fence of a gentleman to carry off a boat which he had secured to a chain, in consequence of the bark being no longer seaworthy. In this frail craft the party, "Youth at the helm, and pleasure at the prow," started on their ill-fated expedition. About half the trip had been accomplished when the boat was found to be rapidly filling. Presence of mind and coolness might have saved the unfortunate company; but shriek succeeded shriek, and in their terror they hastened their destruction. The boat speedily sank, and only six contrived to reach the shore, the rest perished; and as successive flowing tides cast up the bodies, the great cathedral bell of Quimper rang out for many days the awful tale of woe.

The long procession had now made the prescribed rounds; the banners were restored to their resting places, the relics carefully placed in the shrine over the high altar, the last blessing was said, and the multitude were let loose to run up a fresh score of sins.

Strolling through the scene, my attention was attracted by a crowd round a half-ruined house. Wedging my way to the entrance, I saw a man standing in the middle of a room armed with a formidable pair of scissors, with which he was clipping the hair from a girl's head with a rapidity and dexterity bespeaking long practice. For not only was the operation performed with almost bewildering quickness, but when the girl was liberated her head assumed the appearance of having been shaved. There was great laughing among the peasants as she emerged from the house, leaving the long tresses in the hands of the hair-merchant, who, after combing them carefully, wound them up in a wreath and placed them in a basket already nearly half-full of hair. For, as I heard, he had been driving a highly profitable trade all the day; and girls were still coming in willing, and in some cases apparently eager, to exchange their fine chevelure's—which would have been the glory of girls anywhere but in Brittany—for three poor little handkerchiefs of gaudy hues, scarcely worth a dozen sous! This terrible mutilation of one of woman's most beautiful gifts distressed me considerably at first; but when I beheld the perfect indifference of the girls to the loss of their hair, and remembered how studiously they conceal their tresses, my feelings underwent a change, and I looked at length upon the wholesale cropping as rather amusing than otherwise.

Great was the apparent disappointment of girls whose tresses, although seemingly abundant and fine, did not come up to the hair-merchant's standard; but the fellow had so abundant a market that he was only disposed to buy when the goods were particularly choice. His profits too must have been great, as the average price of a good head of hair, when cleaned, is eleven shillings.

A Pardon without dancing would be wanting in one of the chief features of pleasure. Accordingly, when the procession was over, the excited peasants formed a vast ring and whirled round in the same fashion as I witnessed in the ronde at Châtelaudren. At the conclusion of each dance a general rush was made towards the refreshment booths, where strong drinks were in great request; with these, cakes called crepe were eaten, consisting of flour, sugar, and milk, rolled out to the consistency of a wafer and baked; they were sold in sheets about three feet square, and extensively patronized by young Breton gallants, who presented them to their partners, folding them with their brawny hands for convenient stowage within the mouths of their sweethearts. The price of the cakes was one sou per sheet, so, as may be supposed, though superficially large, one was not a pièce de résistance to the jaws of a Breton girl, accustomed to the severe discipline of hard black bread.

As the evening fell the mirth and jollity partook more of a boisterous character, and scenes were enacted which showed that the proverb respecting the moral distance between God and Church holds good in Brittany; for the grey walls of St.Kerdevot within which so many prayers had been muttered in the morning, looked down, as the moon silvered the exquisite finials of the lofty spire, on broken vows and wild revelry, which, regardless of the sanctity of the church, desecrated the walls of the building. But such is a Breton Pardon,—commenced by penitence, groans, and tears, concluding in As the evening fell the mirth and jollity partook more of a boisterous character, and scenes were enacted which showed that the proverb respecting the moral distance between God and Church holds good in Brittany; for the grey walls of St. Image within which so many prayers had been muttered in the morning, looked down, as the moon silvered the exquisite finials of the lofty spire, on broken vows and wild revelry, which, regardless of the sanctity of the church, desecrated the walls of the building. But such is a Breton Pardon,—commenced by penitence, groans, and tears, concluding in shouts, imprecations, and debauchery; and as evidence that this description is not exaggerated, hear Emile Souvestre' testimony in his account of a Pardon at Guimgamp :—" La sainte cérémonie finit le plus souvent par une orgie. À peine le cantique est-il achevé, que les rangs des pèlerins se rompent ; des cris de joie, des appels, des rires éclatants succèdent au recueillement de la procession. La foule des pénitents se rassemble sur la place, où tous doivent coucher pêle-mêle sur la terre nue. Femmes et garçons se mêlent, se rencontrent, se prennent au bras, s’agacent, se poursuivent à travers les rues obscures ; et le lendemain quand le jour se lève, bien des jeunes filles égarées rejoignent leurs mères le front rouge et les yeux honteux, avec un péché de plus à avouer au recteur de la paroisse." ** This was written twenty years ago, and if the Pardon of St. Kerdevot be a fair example of these ceremonies in Brittany, Souvestre's description requires no modification; and as I withdrew from the strange scene which I have attempted to portray, I came to the conclusion that while the Breton has retained the costume of his forefathers, he has also retained their love for intoxication and boisterous merriment.

Villemarqué and other writers declare that the clergy in Brittany have long endeavoured to curb the excessive license prevalent at Pardons. If this be true, it must be conceded that their influence is very slight. Ballad-makers appear to have been more successful. It is related that some of these rude poets, shocked by the scenes which they witnessed, composed ballads reproving drunkards and showing the fatal effects of intoxication. These were sung in the Communes prior to fetes with such good effect, that the number of drunken peasants was greatly diminished.

Mais l'intérieur de l'église n'était pas le seul lieu sacré du point de vue des paysans. A l'extérieur, de nombreux groupes, les hommes la tête nue, processionnaient lentement autour de l'édifice, disant des prières et leurs chapelets tout an marchant ; alors que d'autres, en majorité des femmes, tournaient autour de la chapelle en progressant lentement sur les genoux, - humiliation bien sûr mais avec la promesse d'être exaucées. Le Calvaire aussi a ses admirateurs, bien qu'il faille vous révéler qu'un kiosque à tabac installé à proximité y soit pour quelque chose. Vraiment rien n'est plus curieux que cette scène hétéroclite et ce mélange de dévotion apparente et de réjouissances positives. Quand les prières sont finies, les rafraîchissements démarrent et, la journée ne venant que de commencer, de nombreux hommes sont dans un état désespérant d'ivrognerie à l'horizontale. Un de ces paysans est observé par une bande de jeunes hommes à l’affût évident de divertissements ; un tas de pierres à proximité appelait à des sottises. En en tour de main ses bragoù [2] (braies, pantalon) en furent remplies ; ensuite le rustre complètement ivre se réveillant, ils le forcèrent en criant à se lever. Ses multiples tentatives furent vaines ! car à peine il se mettait sur ses jambes, lesté comme il l'était, il se retrouvait de suite par terre, et d'autres tentatives sans plus de résultats, et il fut ridiculisé à l'extrême, quand, se rendant compte que le poids était la cause de ses chutes, il dut vider ses larges bragous [2] de leur contenu pierreux.

Un peu avant trois heures un mouvement global s'organisa à destination de la chapelle, qui d'un coup fut pleine à craquer. C'était la préparation de la grande manifestation du jour, la procession des reliques. Les chants religieux, plus sonores que mélodieux, y étaient entonnés par les paysans excités, et répétés par ceux se trouvant à l'extérieur. L'ordre de la procession fut organisé, et à trois heures précises le pèlerins sortirent de l'église. Ils étaient précédés d'une douzaine de prêtres sans couvre-chefs, portant des aubes et tenant leurs bréviaires d'où ils lisaient des fragments de prières en latin : ils étaient suivis par deux cents paysans, aussi tête nue, portant étendards et bannières, celles représentant St Kerdévot et ses miracles précédant le reste ; ensuite venaient six jeunes filles, vêtues de robes blanches, rubans et fleurs, et portant une sorte de cadre en velours satiné : au centre, sur un coussin, reposaient les reliques du Saint et une image de la Vierge éternelle. La procession se terminaient par des groupes de paysans portant des cierges. Trois fois, chantant à voix déployée ils tournèrent autour de la chapelle, passant entre les rangs serrés des spectateurs qui tombaient à genoux quand les reliques passaient devant eux, et ensuite la procession s'engagea autour du placître autour de l'alignement des tentes. C'était curieux l'effet que provoquait la vue des reliques sacrées sur les paysans, qui étaient, pour reprendre le phrasé populaire de Jack, "saoul à moitié sous la mer" : un instant auparavant ils étaient immergés dans la foule, mais car le chant pieux arrive à leurs oreilles et que la procession se rapproche, l'adoration religieuse devenait la priorité ; leur démarche devenait plus assurée, et soulevant leurs grands chapeaux, ils se figèrent dans une expression ahurie devant la manifestation, mais, une fois les reliques passées, ils reprirent leurs agapes bruyantes.

Les Bretons ont, dit-on, cinq qualités et trois défauts ; les qualités étant — l'amour de leur pays, l'obéissance à la volonté divine, la loyauté, la persévérance et l'hospitalité ; et leurs vices , — l'avarice, le mépris des femmes, et l'alcoolisme. En observant le Pardon de Kerdévot, je dirais que les Bretons sont surtout caractérisés par le dernier de ces défauts ; le Cognac ou Brandy est bien plus consommé que le cidre, et de plus ldes tonneaux entiers d'alcool fort disposés devant chaque stand, d'autres, transportés par des chevaux, arrivaient continuellement sur le site. Pour ce qui concerne l'avant-dernier vice, je dois avouer que les Bretons ne manifestaient pas de mépris vis-à-vis des femmes qui honoraient le pardon de leur présence ; parmi les jeunes hommes Cupidon était plus apprécié que Bacchus, et ce n'était pas rare qu'une rangée de types bien habillés fasse les yeux doux à des filles appréciant évidemment leurs attentions, et d'autres types montraient une toute nature moins raffinée.

Ces Pardons bretons sont les lieux de Cupidon par excellence, et être empêchée d'y assister est la pire des punitions qui puisse arriver à une fille. Une fois mariée, la situation est différente, et alors son seigneur et maître est réputé être méritant s'il manifeste du mépris pour le sexe faible. Une chanson bretonne, chantée par des chanteuses paysannes, fait une discrète allusion aux plaisirs de jeunes filles et aux malheurs des femmes mariées : — " Adieu ! adieu, chers amis de mon enfance ! J'ai jeté mon passé par dessus bord, j'ai échangé une vie de joie contre une vie de douleurs. Malheurs et regrets m'attendent : je ne suis plus qu'une servante, car je suis mariée. Donc hâtez-vous, vous qui êtres libres, d'aller aux Pardons, et appréciez la vie comme vous l'entendez ! Adieu ! chers amis de ma jeunesse, adieu !"

L'attirance des Pardons, qui sont dotés d'autres attractions que celle de la religion, a été illustrée par une terrible catastrophe qui a eu lieu le dimanche précédant le Pardon de St Kerdévot, car ce jour-là un autre Pardon était organisé à Bénodet situé à 30 km au sud de Quimper. Trente jeunes gens de cette ville, ayant planifié d'aller au Pardon, profitèrent de l'absence d'un quidam en prenant son bateau qui était attaché à une chaîne pour raison de non étanchéité. Sur cette frêle embarcation le groupe, "Jeunesse à la barre et plaisir à la proue" entama son expédition malheureuse. À la moitié de leur traversée l'embarcation prit rapidement l'eau. La présence d'esprit et un peu de calme auraient sauvé ces aventureux malchanceux ; mais les cris s'enchaînèrent, et leur panique accéléra leur naufrage. Le bateau coula à pic, et seulement six d'entre eux réussirent à rejoindre la rive, les autres périrent ; et après que les corps furent découverts à l'occasion de plusieurs marées successives, la grosse cloche de la cathédrale de Quimper sonna pendant plusieurs jours de son horrible timbre funèbre.

La longue procession avait fait son tour réglementaire ; les barrières furent rangées à leurs places, les reliques mises dans le reliquaire au-dessus du grand autel, les dernières bénédictions furent dites, et les nombreux pèlerins furent autorisés à confesser leurs pêchés.

Déambulant, mon attention est attirée par une foule autour d'une bâtisse en ruines. Me faufilant jusqu'à l'entrée, je vis un homme se tenant au milieu de la pièce armé d'une formidable paire de ciseaux, avec lesquels il coupait les cheveux d'une jeune fille avec une vitesse qui dénotait d'une longue pratique. For not only was the operation performed with almost bewildering quickness, but when the girl was liberated her head assumed the appearance of having been shaved. There was great laughing among the peasants as she emerged from the house, leaving the long tresses in the hands of the hair-merchant, who, after combing them carefully, wound them up in a wreath and placed them in a basket already nearly half-full of hair. For, as I heard, he had been driving a highly profitable trade all the day; and girls were still coming in willing, and in some cases apparently eager, to exchange their fine chevelure's—which would have been the glory of girls anywhere but in Brittany—for three poor little handkerchiefs of gaudy hues, scarcely worth a dozen sous! This terrible mutilation of one of woman's most beautiful gifts distressed me considerably at first; but when I beheld the perfect indifference of the girls to the loss of their hair, and remembered how studiously they conceal their tresses, my feelings underwent a change, and I looked at length upon the wholesale cropping as rather amusing than otherwise.

Great was the apparent disappointment of girls whose tresses, although seemingly abundant and fine, did not come up to the hair-merchant's standard; but the fellow had so abundant a market that he was only disposed to buy when the goods were particularly choice. His profits too must have been great, as the average price of a good head of hair, when cleaned, is eleven shillings.

Un pardon sans pouvoir danser serait considéré comme un manque évident de plaisirs. De ce fait, quand la procession est achevée, les paysans énergiques forment une grande chaîne et font une farandole comme je l'ai déjà signalé à propos de la ronde de Châtelaudren. À la fin de chaque danse, les danseurs se pressaient tous vers les baraques de rafraîchissements qui proposaient des boissons alcoolisées, avec lesquelles on mangeait des gâteaux appelés crêpes et faites de farine, sucre et lait, roulées pour former une galette, et enfin cuites. Celles-ci, vendues en feuilles de presque un tiers de mètre carré (30 cm de rayon), faisaient la joie des jeunes galants bretons qui les achetaient en grandes quantités pour les offrir à leur cavalière, et les pliaient de leur grosse main charnue pour les faire entrer plus commodément dans la bouche de leur petite amie. Le prix des gâteaux est d'un sou chacun, et ainsi, comme on peut le deviner, bien que de taille raisonnable, cette portion n'était pas une pièce de résistance pour l'appétit d'une jeune Bretonne, accoutumée à mâcher du pain noir très dur.

As the evening fell the mirth and jollity partook more of a boisterous character, and scenes were enacted which showed that the proverb respecting the moral distance between God and Church holds good in Brittany; for the grey walls of St.Kerdevot within which so many prayers had been muttered in the morning, looked down, as the moon silvered the exquisite finials of the lofty spire, on broken vows and wild revelry, which, regardless of the sanctity of the church, desecrated the walls of the building. But such is a Breton Pardon,—commenced by penitence, groans, and tears, concluding in As the evening fell the mirth and jollity partook more of a boisterous character, and scenes were enacted which showed that the proverb respecting the moral distance between God and Church holds good in Brittany; for the grey walls of St. Image within which so many prayers had been muttered in the morning, looked down, as the moon silvered the exquisite finials of the lofty spire, on broken vows and wild revelry, which, regardless of the sanctity of the church, desecrated the walls of the building. But such is a Breton Pardon,—commenced by penitence, groans, and tears, concluding in shouts, imprecations, and debauchery; and as evidence that this description is not exaggerated, hear Emile Souvestre' testimony in his account of a Pardon at Guimgamp : —" La sainte cérémonie finit le plus souvent par une orgie. À peine le cantique est-il achevé, que les rangs des pèlerins se rompent ; des cris de joie, des appels, des rires éclatants succèdent au recueillement de la procession. La foule des pénitents se rassemble sur la place, où tous doivent coucher pêle-mêle sur la terre nue. Femmes et garçons se mêlent, se rencontrent, se prennent au bras, s’agacent, se poursuivent à travers les rues obscures ; et le lendemain quand le jour se lève, bien des jeunes filles égarées rejoignent leurs mères le front rouge et les yeux honteux, avec un péché de plus à avouer au recteur de la paroisse." ** This was written twenty years ago, and if the Pardon of St. Kerdevot be a fair example of these ceremonies in Brittany, Souvestre's description requires no modification; and as I withdrew from the strange scene which I have attempted to portray, I came to the conclusion that while the Breton has retained the costume of his forefathers, he has also retained their love for intoxication and boisterous merriment.

Villemarqué and other writers declare that the clergy in Brittany have long endeavoured to curb the excessive license prevalent at Pardons. If this be true, it must be conceded that their influence is very slight. Ballad-makers appear to have been more successful. It is related that some of these rude poets, shocked by the scenes which they witnessed, composed ballads reproving drunkards and showing the fatal effects of intoxication. These were sung in the Communes prior to fetes with such good effect, that the number of drunken peasants was greatly diminished.