The First Apparition

I had gone down one day with two other girls. They began to cross over the stream: they started crying and I asked them why. They answered it was because the water was cold. I asked the other girls to throw some stones in the water to help me see if I could cross without removing my shoes. They said that if I wanted to cross the stream, I could do as they had done. I went a little further to see if there was a place where I could cross without removing my shoes, but it was no use. So I went back to the Grotto and began to take off my shoes. Scarcely had I removed my first stocking, when I heard a noise like a sudden gust of wind. When I turned my head towards the prairie, I saw that the trees were not swaying at all so I began removing my stocking again. I heard the same noise again. When I raised my head and looked at the Grotto, I saw a Lady in white. She was wearing a white gown with a blue sash, a white veil and a golden rose on each foot, the same colour as the chain of her rosary. When I first saw her, I rubbed my eyes; I thought I was mistaken. I put my hand in my pocket and took out my rosary. I tried to make the sign of the Cross but I was not able to raise my hand to my forehead; my hand just fell down. Then the Lady made the sign of the cross herself. At the second attempt, I managed to do the same, though my hands were trembling. I began to say the rosary while the Lady passed the beads of her rosary through her fingers, without moving her lips. When I had finished praying the rosary, the vision immediately vanished. I asked my two companions if they had noticed anything, but they said no. They wanted to know what I had been doing. I told them that I had seen a Lady dressed in white, though I did not know who she was. Then they said that I should not go back there again; I told them no.

Your most humble and devoted,
Bernadette Soubirous

Extract from the first autograph manuscript of the Apparitions addressed to “The Very Reverend Fr. Gondrand, of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate at Bétharram.” This handwritten account followed numerous spoken accounts that Bernadette related to pilgrims and several “statements” given to officials.