ANOTHER METHOD OF "QUESTIONING ST. CATHERINE"--THE STATUETTE OF THE SAINT IS AFFIXED TO A TREE AND A HEAD-DRESS PLACED UPON IT. IF IT FALLS TO THE RIGHT THE GIRL WILL MAKE A HAPPY MARRIAGE; IF TO THE LEFT, SHE WILL BE AN OLD MAID. _From a Photograph._ ] The statuette of St. Catherine--the patron saint of old maids--was then placed on one of the banks, and the girls, taking out their needles, began to see if they would float on the surface of the water. If they succeeded twice out of three times in making them float, then the saint had answered in the affirmative; they were to have a husband, and perhaps before many months had gone by. But if the needles went to the bottom, then they would remain spinsters all their lives. In the eyes of the Breton girl this is a terrible fate; and Géniaux told me, as we continued on our way towards the ancient cathedral city, that sometimes those who go on needle-floating excursions do not play fair: they take care to grease their needles well, so that they cannot do anything else but float! In other parts of Brittany, especially in the northern departments, another method of questioning St. Catherine is adopted. The statuette is affixed to a tree in an orchard. One after the other the girls then arrange a head-dress above the saint's head. If the wind blows the _coiffure_ down to the right, it is regarded as proof that the girl to whom it belongs will make a happy marriage; but if it falls to the left, she will be an old maid all her life. To the girls in the Côtes-du-Nord this is an absolutely reliable test, and no amount of argument will make them believe that St. Catherine does not control the wind in such a manner that it answers "yes" or "no." [Illustration: IN SOME PARTS OF BRITTANY IT IS BELIEVED THAT NO MARRIAGE WILL TURN OUT WELL UNLESS THE YOUNG MAN DEPOSITS A CERTAIN SUM OF MONEY WITH HIS INTENDED--IF THE MAN BREAKS THE ENGAGEMENT HE LOSES HIS MONEY. _From a Photograph._ ] [Illustration: THE VILLAGERS OF BILLIERS PUT LARGE CROSSES IN WHITEWASH OVER THEIR DOORS TO PROTECT THE HOUSES FROM LIGHTNING. _From a Photograph._ ]