Wax figures of Mary

[L Verge]

During my teaching days in the late-60s and early-70s, my 8th graders spent a weekend each fall in Jamestown and Williamsburg and a Saturday in the spring at Gettysburg. One of the sites we visited in Gettysburg was the old wax museum. At the entrance to the actual exhibit area, there was often a Civil War soldier standing guard -- made up to appear of wax. As the first students would start through the entrance, he would either speak to them or pinch them. It would totally freak them out because they were not expecting a real, live human. The worst part was getting everyone to calm down after that and be polite through the exhibits.