jesters and the enormous giants with grotesque faces which were
carried along on these occasions. The tall houses with their
projecting wooden gables were gay with flags. The windows and
balconies were hung with rich tapestry, and from them the wives and
daughters of nobles and wealthy merchants looked down upon the scene
below. A Queen of France once rode in a procession through the streets
of Bruges, and was moved to jealousy by the sight of so many ladies
decked in jewels as rich as her own. "I thought," she said, "that I
alone was Queen, but here I have hundreds of rivals."

[Illustration: AT THE KERMESSE.]

One of the most splendid of these pageants was in the summer of the
year 1468, when an English Princess, Margaret of York, married a
Prince called Charles the Bold, who was Duke of Burgundy. On that
occasion there was a famous tournament in the market-place of Bruges,
in which many valiant knights took part. It was called the "Tournament
of the Golden Tree." Two years ago, in the summer of 1907, there was a
pageant at Bruges, when the marriage festivities of Charles the Bold
and Margaret of York were represented. A young Belgian lady took the
part of the English Princess, and a Belgian gentleman appeared as
Charles the Bold. There were knights in armour, ladies of the Court of
Burgundy, heralds, men-at-arms, and pages, all dressed in the
picturesque costumes of the Middle Ages. There was tilting in the
lists, when lances were broken, and, in short, everything was done
very nearly as it was 440 years ago. This spectacle, which was
produced on three days, was attended by thousands of people, who came
from all parts of Belgium to see it. It was a very good example of how
well the Belgians can manage a pageant, and how popular these shows
are with the people.

A very celebrated pageant takes place every year at Bruges, the
"Procession of the Holy Blood," which devout Catholics from every
country in Europe attend. There is a small chapel in that town, where
they keep, in a crystal tube, what is said to be some of the blood of
our Lord. It has been there for more than 700 years. The tube is
preserved in a beautiful case adorned with precious stones, which is
carried through the town on the first Monday after May 2. The houses
are decorated with flags, and candles burn in almost every window.
Through the streets, between crowds of people standing on the
pavements or looking down from the windows--while the church