And yet to some the name of Mary bears No special meaning, or no gracious power; In that dear word they seek for hidden snares, As wasps find poison in the sweetest flower. But faithful hearts can see, o'er doubts and fears, The Virgin link that binds the Lord to earth; Which to the upturned, trusting face appears Greater than angel, though of human birth. The sweet-faced moon reflects on cheerless night The rays of hidden sun to rise to-morrow; So unseen God still lets his promised light, Through holy Mary, shine upon our sorrow. MORE ABOUT BRITTANY: ITS CUSTOMS, ITS PEOPLE, AND ITS POEMS. All great national gatherings dating from an early period have a religious origin. The assemblies of the Welsh, Bretons, and Gauls were convoked by the Druids, and in the laws of Moëlmud are designated "the privileged synods of fraternity and union which are presided over by the bards." These, in losing their pagan character under the influence of Christianity, nevertheless retained many of their forms and regulations, together with the customary place and time of meeting. True to her prudent mode of action among the peoples she was converting, the church, instead of destroying the temples, purified them, and, instead of overthrowing the menhir and dolmen, raised the cross above them. It was almost invariably at the solstices that the Christian assemblies of the Celtic nations were accustomed to take place, as the pagan ones had done before them, when, in the presence of immense multitudes, the bards held their solemn sittings, and vied with each other in poetry and song, while athletes ran, wrestled, and performed various feats of agility and strength. In Wales, the sectaries who divided the land amongst them have deprived these assemblies of all religious character and association whatsoever, and the manners, language, and traditions are all that remain unchanged. In Brittany, on the contrary, the religious element is the dominant one, and impresses its character not only upon the antique observances, but also upon the rustic literature--that is to say, the poesy--with which the land abounds. The most favorable opportunities for hearing these popular ballads occur at weddings and agricultural festivities, such as the gathering-in of the harvest and vintage, the _linadek_, or flax-gathering--for it is believed that the flax would become mere tow or oakum unless it were gathered with singing--the fairs, the watch-nights, when, around the bed of death, the relatives and neighbors take their turn to watch and pray, while those who are waiting pass much of the time in singing or listening to religious ballad-poems of interminable length, or ditties like the following, _Kimiad ann Ene_--"The Departure of the Soul"--which chiefly consists of a dialogue between the soul and its earthly tenement: THE DEPARTURE OF THE SOUL.