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diff --git a/44177.txt b/44177.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 74893fc..0000000 --- a/44177.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5440 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Myths and Fables of To-Day, by Samuel -Adams Drake, Illustrated by Frank T. Merrill - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - - - - -Title: The Myths and Fables of To-Day - - -Author: Samuel Adams Drake - - - -Release Date: November 14, 2013 [eBook #44177] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MYTHS AND FABLES OF TO-DAY*** - - -E-text prepared by Greg Bergquist, Charlie Howard, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images -generously made available by Internet Archive/American Libraries -(https://archive.org/details/americana) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 44177-h.htm or 44177-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/44177/44177-h/44177-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/44177/44177-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive/American Libraries. See - https://archive.org/details/mythsfablesoftod00drak - - -Transcriber's note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - Text enclosed by equal signs is in bold face (=bold=). - - - - - -THE MYTHS AND FABLES OF TO-DAY - - - * * * * * * - -BY THE SAME AUTHOR - - - =The Watch Fires of '76= Illustrated =$1.25= - =The Campaign of Trenton= =.50= - =Burgoyne's Invasion of 1777= =.50= - =The Taking of Louisburg= =.50= - =The Battle of Gettysburg= =.50= - =Our Colonial Homes= Illustrated =2.50= - =Old Landmarks of Boston= Illustrated =2.00= - =Old Landmarks of Middlesex= Illustrated =2.00= - =Captain Nelson= A romance of Colonial Days =.75= - =The Heart of the White Mountains= Illustra'd =7.50= - =The Same= Tourists' Edition =3.00= - =Old Boston Taverns= Paper =.25= - =Around the Hub= A Boys' Book about Boston =1.12= - =New England Legends and Folk Lore= Illus'd =2.00= - =The Making of New England= Illustrated =1.50= - =The Making of the Great West= Illustrated =1.50= - =The Making of Virginia and Middle Colonies= =1.50= - =The Making of the Ohio Valley States= Ill'd =1.50= - =The Pine Tree Coast= Illustrated =1.50= - - _Any book in the above list sent by mail, postpaid, on receipt of - price, by_ - - LEE AND SHEPARD BOSTON MASS. - - * * * * * * - - -THE MYTHS AND FABLES OF TO-DAY - - -"_Lord, what fools these mortals be!_" - - -[Illustration: HALLOWE'EN.] - - -THE MYTHS AND FABLES OF TO-DAY - -by - -SAMUEL ADAMS DRAKE - -Illustrations by Frank T. Merrill - - - - - - - -Boston -Lee and Shepard -MCM - -Copyright, 1900, by Samuel Adams Drake. - -_All rights reserved._ - -THE MYTHS AND FABLES OF TO-DAY. - -Norwood Press -J. S. Cushing & Co.--Berwick & Smith -Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - I. A RECKONING WITH TIME 1 - - II. THE FOLK-LORE OF CHILDHOOD 25 - - III. WEATHER LORE 34 - - IV. SIGNS OF ALL SORTS 47 - - V. CHARMS TO GOOD LUCK 55 - - VI. CHARMS AGAINST DISEASE 85 - - VII. OF FATE IN JEWELS 109 - - VIII. OF LOVE AND MARRIAGE 122 - - IX. OF EVIL OMENS 144 - - X. OF HAUNTED HOUSES, PERSONS, AND PLACES 182 - - XI. OF PRESENTIMENTS 208 - - XII. THE DIVINING-ROD 229 - - XIII. WONDERS OF THE PHYSICAL UNIVERSE 234 - - XIV. "SHIPS THAT PASS IN THE NIGHT" 244 - - XV. FORTUNE-TELLING, ASTROLOGY, AND PALMISTRY 259 - - - - -[Illustration] - -I - -A RECKONING WITH TIME - - "Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too - superstitious." - - -To say that superstition is one of the facts of history is only to -state a truism. If that were all, we might treat the subject from -a purely philosophical or historical point of view, as one of the -inexplicable phenomena of an age much lower in intelligence than our -own, and there leave it. - -But if, also, we must admit superstition to be a present, a living, -fact, influencing, if not controlling, the everyday acts of men, we -have to deal with a problem as yet unsolved, if not insolvable. - -I know it is commonly said that such things belong to a past age--that -they were the legitimate product of ignorance, and have died out with -the education of the masses. In other words, we know more than our -ancestors did about the phenomena of nature, and therefore by no means -accept, as they did--good, superstitious souls!--the appearance of a -comet blazing in the heavens, or the heaving of an earthquake under our -feet, as events having moral significance. With the aid of electricity -or steam we perform miracles every day of our lives, such as, no doubt, -would have created equal wonder and fear for the general stability of -the world not many generations ago. - -Very true. So far as merely physical phenomena are concerned, most of -us may have schooled ourselves to disunite them wholly from coming -events; but as regards those things which spring from the inward -consciousness of the man himself, his intuitions, his perceptions, -his aspirations, his imaginative nature, which, if strong enough, is -capable of creating and peopling a realm wholly outside of the little -world he lives in--"ay, there's the rub." Who will undertake to span -the gulf stretching out a shoreless void between the revelations of -science and the incomprehensible mysteries of life itself? It is upon -that debatable ground that superstition finds its strongest foothold, -and, like the ivy clinging round old walls, defies every attempt to -uproot it. As Hamlet so cogently puts it,-- - - "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, - Than are dreamt of in your philosophy." - -Superstition, we know, is much older than recorded history, and we now -stand on the threshold of the twentieth century; yet just in proportion -as humanity has passed over this enormous space of time, hand in hand -with progress, superstition has followed it like its shadow. That -shadow has not yet passed away. - -There is no sort of use in denying the proneness of weak human nature -to admit superstition. It is an open door, through which the marvellous -finds easy access. Imbibed in the cradle, it is not even buried in the -grave. "Age cannot stale, nor custom wither" those ancient fables of -ghosts, giants, goblins, and brownies told by fond mothers to children -to-day, just as they were told by mothers centuries ago. Even the -innocent looking Easter egg, which continues to enjoy such unbounded -popularity with old and young, comes of an old Aryan myth; while the -hanging up of one's stocking, at Christmas, is neither more nor less -than an act of superstition, originating in another myth; or, in plain -English, no Santa Claus, no stocking. - -How much of childhood's charm in the greatest of all annual festivals, -the world over, would remain if Santa Claus, Kris Kringle, and St. -Nicholas were stripped of their traditional, but wholly fictitious, -character? One of our popular magazines for children--long life to -it!--flourishes under the title of St. Nicholas to-day; and during the -very latest observance of the time-honored festival, a leading journal -in New England's chief city devoted considerable space in its editorial -columns to an elaborate defence of that dear old myth Santa Claus, -with whom, indeed, we should be very loth to part, if only for the sake -of old associations. - -It is also noticed that quite recently stories of the wonderful -brownies have enjoyed their greatest popularity. For a time these -spindle-shanked, goggle-eyed puppets could be seen in every household, -in picture-books, on book covers, in the newspapers--in short, -everywhere. Should the children be told that there never were any -such creatures as fairies or brownies, there would be an end to all -the charm they possess; for, unquestionably, their only hold upon -the popular mind rests upon the association with olden superstition. -Otherwise they would be only so many commonplace rag dolls. - -Kipling's popular "Jungle Stories," probably more widely read than any -stories of the century, give still further effect to the same idea. - -Now, is not the plea that these are mere harmless nothings by far the -most short-sighted one that could be advanced? The critical thought -to be impressed here is that about the first teaching little children -receive is a lesson in superstition, and that, too, at a time when -their young minds are most susceptible to lasting impressions. We have -yet to hear of the mother, nursery-maid, or governess, who begins the -story of Cinderella or Bluebeard with the warning that it is not "a -real true story," as children say. - -Are children of a larger growth any less receptive to the marvellous? -"Great oaks from little acorns grow." The seed first planted in virgin -soil later bears an abundant harvest. Stage plays, operas, poetry, -romances, painting, and sculpture dealing with the supernatural -command quite as great a popularity, to-day, as ever. Fortune telling, -palmistry, astrology, clairvoyance, hypnotism, and the rest, continue -to thrive either as a means of getting a living, or of innocent -diversion, leaving their mark upon the inner consciousness just the -same in one case as in the other. - -So much being undeniable, it stands with every honest inquirer after -truth to look these facts in the face without blinking. Ignorance we -dare not plead. The dictates of a sound common sense will not permit us -to dismiss what we do not understand with a laugh, a shrug, or a sneer. -"To scold is not to answer." - -Superstition is not easily defined. To say that it is a disposition to -believe more than is warranted by reason, leaves us just as helpless -as ever; for where reason is impotent we have nothing tangible left to -fall back upon. There is absolutely no support on which to rest that -lever. Religion and philosophy, which at first fostered superstition, -long ago turned against it all the forces they possessed. Not even -science may hope to overthrow what can only be reached through the -inner consciousness of man, because science can have little to do with -the spiritual side of man. That intangible something still eludes -its grasp. If all these combined forces of civilization have so far -signally failed to eradicate superstition, so much the worse for -civilization. - -We might also refer to the efforts of some very erudite scholars to -interpret modern superstition by the aid of comparative mythology. -Vastly interesting, if not wholly convincing, theories have been -constructed on this line. Instructive, too, is the fact that some -of our most familiar nursery stories may be traced to the ancient -folk-lore of still older peoples. Even a remote antiquity is claimed -for the familiar nursery tale of "Jack and Jill"; while something very -similar to the story of "Little Red Riding Hood" is found, in its -purity, in the grewsome werewolf folk-lore of Germany; and "Jonah's -Gourd," of the East, we are told, probably is the original of "Jack and -the Beanstalk" of the West. - -But the very fact of the survival of all these hoary superstitions, -some of them going back so far that all further trace is lost, -certainly furnishes food for thought, since they seemingly enjoy as -great a popularity as ever. - -Superstition being thus shown to be as old as human history, the -question naturally arises, not how it may have originated in the Dark -Ages, but how it has kept its hold so tenaciously throughout all the -succeeding centuries down to our own time. - -Most peoples, barbarians even, believed in some sort of a future state, -in the principle of good and evil, and of rewards and punishments. -There needs no argument then to account for the insatiable longing to -pry into futurity, and to discover its hidden mysteries. The same idea -unsettled the minds of former generations, nor can it be truthfully -said to have disappeared before the vaunted wisdom of this utilitarian -age. Like all forbidden fruit, this may be said to be the subject of -greatest anxiety to weak human kind. - -What then is this talisman with the aid of which we strive to penetrate -the secrets of the world beyond us? - -Man being what he is, only "a little lower than the angels," endowed -with the supernatural power of calling up at will mental images of both -the living and the dead, of building air-castles, and peopling them -according to his fantasy, as well in Cathay as in Spain, of standing -by the side of an absent friend on the summit of Mont Blanc, one moment -among the snows, the next flitting through the garden spots of sunny -Italy--if he is thus capable of transporting himself into an enchanted -land by the mere exercise of the power of his imagination--what could -better serve him as a medium of communication with the unknown, and -what shall deter him from seeking to fathom its deepest mysteries? -Napoleon said truly that the imagination governs the universe. Every -one has painted his own picture of heaven and hell as well as Dante -or Milton, or the divine mysteries as truly as Leonardo or Murillo. -Surely, the imagination could go no further. - -Assuming this to be true, there is little need to ask why, in this -enlightened age, the attempt should be made to revive vagaries already -decrepit, that would much better be allowed to go out with the departed -century, unhonored and unsung. Such a question could proceed only from -a want of knowledge of the true facts in the case. - -But whether superstition is justified by the dictates of a sound common -sense, is not so material here, as whether it actually does exist; -and if so, to what extent. That is what we shall try to make clear in -the succeeding pages. The inquiry grows interesting in many ways, but -most of all, we think, as showing the slow stages by which the human -mind has enfranchised itself from a species of slavery, without its -counterpart in any direction to which we may turn for help or guidance. -Even science, that great leveller of popular error, limps here. -Certainly, what has existed as long as human history must be accepted -as a more or less active force in human affairs. We are not, therefore, -dealing with futilities. - -Of the present status of superstition, the most that can be truthfully -said is that some of its worst forms are nearly or quite extinct, -some are apparently on the wane, while those representing, perhaps, -the widest extremes (the most puerile and the most vital), such, for -example, as relate to vapid tea-table gossip on the one hand, and to -fatal presentiments on the other, continue quite as active as ever. -Uncivilized beings are now supposed to be the only ones who still hold -to the belief in witchcraft, although within a very few months it has -been currently reported as a fact that the judge of a certain Colorado -court admitted the plea of witchcraft to be set up, because, as this -learned judge shrewdly argued, more than half the people there believed -in it. The defendant, who stood charged with committing a murderous -assault upon a woman, swore that she had bewitched him, and was -acquitted by the jury, mainly upon his own testimony. - -Unquestionably modern hypnotism comes very close to solving the problem -of olden witchcraft, which so baffled the wisdom, as it tormented the -souls and bodies, of our ancestors, with this difference: that, while -witchcraft was believed to be a power to work evil, coming direct from -his Satanic Majesty himself, hypnotism is a power or gift residing in -the individual, like that of mesmerism. - -But if it be true that there are very few believers in witchcraft among -enlightened beings to-day, it cannot be denied that thousands of highly -civilized men and women as firmly believe in some indefinable relation -between man and the spirit world as in their own existence; while -tens of thousands believe in such a relation between mind and mind. -Indeed, the former class counts some very notable persons among its -converts. For example, Camille Flammarion, the distinguished scientist, -positively declares that he has had direct communication with hundreds -of departed spirits.[1] And the Reverend M. J. Savage, pastor of the -Church of the Messiah, in New York, is reported to have announced -himself a convert to spiritualism to his congregation not long ago. - -The true explanation for all these different beliefs must be sought -for, we think, deep down in the nature of man, which is much the same -to-day in its relation to the supernatural world as it was in the days -of our fathers of bigoted memory. In reality, the supernatural element -exists to a greater or less degree in all of us, and no merely human -agency can pretend to fix its limits. - -Unquestionably, then, those beliefs which have exerted so potent an -influence in the past over the minds or affairs of men, which continue -to exert such influence to-day, and, for ought we know to the contrary, -may extend that influence indefinitely, are not to be whistled down -the wind, or kept hidden away under lock and key, especially when we -reflect that the most terrible examples of the frailty of all human -judgments concerning these beliefs have utterly failed to remove the -groundwork upon which they rest. - -There still remains the sentimental side of superstition to consider. -What, for example, would become of much of our best literature, if -all those apt and beautiful figures culled from the rich stores of -ancient mythology--the very flowers of history, so to speak--were -to be weeded out of it with unsparing hand? What would Greek and -Roman history be with their gods and goddesses left out? With what -loving and appreciative art our greatest poets have gathered up the -scattered legends of the fading past. Some one has cunningly said that -superstition is the poetry of life, and that of all men poets should be -superstitious. - -As a matter of history, it is well known that our Puritan ancestors -came over here filled full of the prevalent superstitions of the -old country; yet even they had waged uncompromising warfare against -all such ceremonious observances as could be traced back to heathen -mythology. Thus, although they cut down May-poles, they had too much -reverence for the Bible to refuse to believe in witches. Writers like -Mr. Hawthorne have supposed that the wild and extravagant mysteries of -their savage neighbors, may, to some extent, have become incorporated -with their own beliefs. However that may be, it is certain that the -Puritan fathers believed in no end of pregnant omens, also in ghosts, -apparitions, and witches, as well as in a personal devil, with whom, -indeed, later on, they had no end of trouble. In short, if anything -happened out of the common, the devil was in it. So say many to-day. - -A certain amount of odium has attached itself to the Puritan fathers of -New England, on this account, among unreflecting or ill-natured critics -at least, just as if, upon leaving Old England, those people would -be expected to leave their superstitions behind them, like so much -useless luggage. As a matter of fact, rank superstition was the common -inheritance of all peoples of that day and generation, whether Jew or -Gentile, Frenchman or Dutchman, Virginian or New Englander. Of its wide -prevalence in Old England we find ample proof ready to our hand. For -example: - -"At Boston, in Lincolnshire, Mr. Cotton being their former minister, -when he was gone the bishop desired to have organs set up in the -church, but the parish was unwilling to yield; but, however, the bishop -prevailed to be at the cost to set them up. But they being newly up -(not playing very often with them) a violent storm came in at one -window and blew the organs to another window, and brake both organs and -window down, and to this day the window is out of reputation, being -boarded and not glazed."[2] - -Still further to show the feeling prevailing in England toward -superstition at the time of the settlement of this country, in the -historical essay entitled "With the King at Oxford," we find this -anecdote: The King (Charles I.), coming into the Bodleian Library on -a certain day, was shown a very curious copy of Virgil. Lord Falkland -persuaded his Majesty to make trial of his fortune by thrusting a knife -between the leaves, then opening the book at the place in which the -knife was inserted. The king there read as follows:-- - - "Yet let him vexed bee with arms and warres of people wilde, - And hunted out from place to place, an outlaw still exylde: - Let him go beg for helpe, and from his childe dissevered bee, - And death and slaughter vile of all his kindred let him see." - -The narrative goes on to say that the king's majesty was "much -discomposed" by this uncanny incident, and that Lord Falkland, in order -to turn the king's thoughts away from brooding over it, proposed making -the trial himself. - -We continue to draw irrefragable testimony to the truth of our -position from the highest personages in the realm. Again, according to -Wallington, Archbishop Laud, arch persecutor of the Puritans, has this -passage in his diary: "That on such or such a day of the month he was -made archbishop of Canterbury, and on that day, which was a great day -of honor to him, his coach and horses sunk as they came over the ferry -at Lambeth, in the ferry-boat, and he prayed that this might be no ill -omen.F - -Our pious ancestors put a good deal of faith in so-called "judgments," -or direct manifestations of the divine wrath toward evildoers, as all -readers of Mather's "Remarkable Providences" well know. But they were -by no means alone in such beliefs. It is related of the poet Milton, -after he became blind, that the Duke of York (later James II.) asked -him if he did not consider the loss of his eyesight as a judgment -inflicted upon him for what he had written of the late king. In reply -Milton asked the duke, if such afflictions were to be regarded as -judgments from heaven, in what manner he would account for the fate of -the late king; ... he, the speaker, had only lost his eye, while the -king had lost his head." - -John Josselyn, Gent., an Englishman, but no Puritan, who spent some -time in New England, chiefly at Scarborough in Maine, published, in -1672, in England, a little book under the title of "New England's -Rarities Discovered." Some things which Josselyn "discovered" would be -rarities indeed to this generation. For instance, he describes the -appearance of several prodigious apparitions--all of which has a value -in enabling us properly to gauge the tone and temper of popular feeling -where the book was written, and where it was published. One of his -"rarities" is worth repeating here, if only for the pretty sentiment -it embodies. He says of the twittering chimney-swallows, "that when -about to migrate they commonly throw down (the chimney) one of their -young into the room below, by way of gratitude," presumably in return -for the hospitalities of the house. He then goes on to say, "I have -more than once observed that, against the ruin of a family, these birds -will forsake the house and come no more." This comes from a more or -less close observer, who himself occupied the relation we desire to -establish, namely that of a transplanted Englishman, so thoroughly -grounded in old superstition that all the marvels he relates are told -with an air of truth quite refreshing. - -An amusing instance of how far prevalent superstition can lead astray -minds usually enlightened is soberly set forth in Governor Winthrop's -celebrated history. It is a fit corollary to the organ superstition, -just narrated. - -"Mr. Winthrop the younger, one of the magistrates, having many books -in a chamber, where there was corn of divers sorts, had among them -one wherein the Greek Testament, the Psalter and the Common Prayer -were bound together. He found the Common Prayer eaten with mice, every -leaf of it, and not any of the two other touched, nor any other of his -books, though there were above a thousand." - -All these superstitious beliefs were solemnly bequeathed by the fathers -to their children under the sanction of a severe penal code, together -with all the accumulated traditions of their own immediate ancestors. -And in some form or other, whether masquerading under some thin -disguise or foolish notion, superstition has continued from that day to -this. As Polonius says: - - "... 'Tis true, 'tis pity; - And pity 'tis 'tis true." - -Although a great many popular beliefs may seem puerile in the extreme, -they none the less go to establish the fact to be kept in mind. Since I -began to look into the matter I have been most astonished at the number -of very intelligent persons who take care to conform to prevailing -beliefs in things lucky or the reverse. It is true Lord Bacon tells -us that "in all superstitions wise men follow fools." But this blunt -declaration of his has undoubted reference to the schoolmen, and to the -monastic legends which were such powerful aids in fostering the growth -of superstition as it existed long before Bacon's time:-- - - "A bone from a saintly anchorite's cave, - A vial of earth from a martyrs grave." - -The class of persons just spoken of, is, however, so keenly sensitive -to ridicule that only some chance remark betrays their real mental -attitude. - -With the unlettered it is different. Superstition is so much more -prevalent among them that less effort is made at concealment. Perhaps -the many agencies at work to put it down have not had so fair a trial -in the country as in the city. And yet the recent "Lucky-Box" craze -makes it difficult to draw the line. Be that as it may, it would hardly -be an exaggeration to say that some rural communities in New England -are simply honeycombed with it. Indeed, almost every insignificant -happening is a sign of something or other. - -One result of my own observation in this field of research is, that -women, if not by nature more superstitious than men, hold to these -old beliefs much more tenaciously than men. In the country, it is the -woman who is ready to quarrel with you, if, in some unguarded moment, -you should venture to doubt the potency of her manifold signs. In the -city, it is still the woman who presents her husband with some charm or -other to be worn on his watch-chain, as a safeguard against disease, -inconstancy, late hours, or other uncounted happenings of life, -believing, as she does, more or less implicitly, in its traditional -efficacy. In all that relates to marriage, too, women are usually most -careful how they disregard any of the accepted dicta on a subject of so -much concern to their future happiness, as will appear later on. - -Fifty years ago the poet Whittier declared that "There is scarcely -a superstition of the past three centuries which has not, at this -very time, more or less hold upon individual minds among us." The -broad declaration demands less qualification to-day than is generally -supposed. - -Most of the examples collected in this volume have come under my -own observation; some have been contributed by friends, many by the -newspapers. If their number should prove a surprise to anybody, I can -only say that mine has fully equalled their own. But let us, at least, -be honest about it. We can conceal nothing from ourselves. Silence may -be golden, but it makes no converts. - - - - -[Illustration] - -II - -THE FOLK-LORE OF CHILDHOOD - - "Why this is the best fooling when all is done."--_Twelfth - Night._ - - -The trite saying that "children and fools are soothsayers" goes -straight to the heart of those familiar superstitions with which the -folk-lore of childhood abounds. We, the children of a larger growth, -often call to mind with what avidity we listened in our childhood's -days to the nursery tales of giants, dwarfs, ghosts, fairies, and the -like creations of pure fancy. We still remember how instantly all the -emotions of our childish nature were excited by the recital of these -marvels--told us, too, with such an air of truth, that never for a -moment did we doubt them. Oh, how we hated Blue Beard, and how we -adored Jack the Giant-Killer! Are we not treated, just as soon as we -are out of the cradle, as if superstition was the first law of nature? -What is the wonder, then, that the effects of these early impressions -are not easily got rid of, or the impressions themselves soon, if ever, -forgotten? "Brownie" is put into the arms of toddling infants before -they can articulate two words plainly. Just as soon as the child is -able to prattle a little, it is taught the familiar nursery rhyme of - - "Bye, bye, Baby Bunting, - Papa's gone a-hunting," - -drawn from ancient folk-lore, with which the rabbit and hare are so -intimately associated. After the innocent face rhymes, found with -little variation, in no less than four different languages, giving -names to each of the chubby little features,-- - - "Eyes winker, Tom Tinker," etc. - -come the well-known button rhymes, like this: - - "Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief, - Doctor, lawyer, merchant, chief;" - -or this one, told centuries ago to children across the water:-- - - "A tinker, a tailor, - A soldier or sailor, - A rich man, a poor man, - A priest or a parson, - A ploughman or a thief." - -The virgin soil being thus artfully prepared to receive superstition, -the boy or girl goes forth among playmates similarly equipped, with -them to practice various forms of conjuration in their innocent sports, -without in the least knowing what they are doing. Here are a few of -them:-- - -Making a cross upon the ground before your opponent, at the same time -muttering "criss-cross," when playing at marbles, to make him miss his -shot, as I have often seen done in my schoolboy days. This is merely a -relic of that superstition attached to making the sign of the cross, as -a charm against the power of evil spirits. - -The innocent sounding words "criss-cross" we believe originally to have -been Christ's Cross. - -Children of both sexes count apple seeds by means of the pretty -jingling rhymes, so like to the German flower oracle, often employed by -children of a larger growth. It has been set to music. - - "One I love, - Two I love. - Three I love, I say, - Four I love with all my heart, - Five I cast away; - Six he loves, - Seven she loves, - Eight both love; - Nine he comes, - Ten he tarries, - Eleven he courts, - Twelve he marries." - -Holding the pretty field buttercup under another's chin, in order to -see if he or she loves butter, is a good form of divination. So is the -practice of blowing off the fluffy dandelion top, after the flower has -gone to seed, to determine the hour, as that flower always opens at -about five in the morning, and shuts at about eight in the evening, -thus making it stand in the room of a clock for shepherds. This plant -has also been called the rustic oracle. To find the time of day, as -many puffs as it takes to blow away the downy seed balls gives the -answer. The same method of divination is employed by children to find -out if their mothers want them; or to waft a message to some loved one; -or to know if such or such a person is thinking of them; and whether he -or she lives north, east, south, or west. - -To the same general purport is the invocation: - - "Rain, rain, go away, - Come again another day." - -We understand that the equally familiar form,-- - - "Snail, snail, put out your horn," - -is repeated in China as well as in this country, though sometimes -altered to - - "Snail, snail, come out of your hole, - Or else I'll beat you black as a coal." - -One equally familiar form of childish invocation appears in the pretty -little lady-bird rhyme, so often repeated by the young:-- - - "Lady-bird, lady-bird, - Fly away home, - Your house is on fire, - Your children will burn." - -A favorite way, with boys, of choosing sides for a game of ball is by -measuring the stick. To do this, the leader of one side first heaves -the stick in the air, skilfully catching it, as it falls, at a point as -near a hand's-breadth to the end as possible, as his opponent must then -measure the stick with him, alternately hand-over-hand, from the point -where it is caught. The one securing enough of the last of the stick -for a hold, has the first choice. This is determination by lot. - -Still another form of invocation, formerly much used to clinch a -bargain between boys, when "swapping" jack-knives or marbles, runs to -this effect:-- - - "Chip, chop, chay, - Give a thing, give a thing, - Never take it back again." - -The process of counting a person out in the familiar phrase as being -"it," is fairly traced back to the ancient custom of designating a -criminal from among his fellows by lot. The form that we know the best -in New England, a sort of barbaric doggerel, according to Mr. Burton, -is still current in Cornwall, England, and goes in this wise:-- - - "Ena, mena, bora, mi: - Kisca, lara, mova, di: - Eggs, butter, cheese, bread, - Stick, stock, stone dead." - -The resemblance between the foregoing, and what is current among -playfellows on this side of the water easily suggests that the boys -of the "good Old Colony times," so often referred to with a sigh of -regret, brought their games and pastimes along with them. As now -remembered, the doggerel charm runs as follows:-- - - "Eny, meny, mony might, - Huska, lina, bony tight, - Huldy, guldy, boo!" - -In getting ready for a game of "tag," "I spy," or "hide and seek," the -one to whom this last magic word falls becomes the victim or is said to -be "it." So in like manner the rhymed formula, following, is employed -in counting a child "out":-- - - "One-ery, two-ery, ickery Ann, - Fillicy, fallicy, Nicholas, John, - Queever, quaver, English knaver, - Stinckelum, stanckelum, Jericho, buck." - -A more simple counting-out rhyme is this: - - "One, two, three, - Out goes he (or she)." - -"Tit, tat, toe," is still another form, repeated with variations -according to locality. - -These few examples may serve to show that what the performers -themselves regard only as a simple expedient in the arranging of their -games, if they ever give the matter a thought, is really a survival of -the belief in the efficacy of certain magical words, turned into rhyme, -to propitiate success. If this idea had not been instilled into our -children by long custom and habit, it is not believed that they would -continue to repeat such unmeaning drivel. Yet, as childish as it may -seem, it advances us one step in solving the intricate problem in hand; -for here, too, "the child is father to the man." - - - - -[Illustration] - -III - -WEATHER LORE - - "Fair is foul, and foul is fair."--_Shakespeare._ - - -There is a certain class of so-called signs, that from long use have -become so embedded in the every-day life of the people as to pass -current with some as mere whimsical fancies, with others as possessing -a real significance. At any rate, they crop out everywhere in the -course of common conversation. Most of them have been handed down from -former generations, while not a few exhale the strong aroma of the -native soil itself. - -Of this class of familiar signs or omens, affecting only the smaller -and more casual happenings one may encounter from day to day, or -from hour to hour, those only will be noticed which seem based on -actual superstition. Many current weather proverbs accord so exactly -with the observations of science as to exclude them from any such -classification. They are simply the homely records of a simple folk, -drawn from long experience of nature in all her moods. As even the -prophecies of the Weather Bureau itself often fail of fulfilment, it -is not to be wondered at if weather proverbs sometimes prove no better -guide, especially when we consider that "all signs fail in a dry time." - -The following are a few examples selected from among some hundreds:-- - -When a cat races playfully about the house, it is a sign that the wind -will rise. - -It is a sign of rain if the cat washes her head behind her ears; of bad -weather when Puss sits with her tail to the fire. - -Spiders crawling on the wall denote rain. - -If a dog is seen eating green grass it is a sign of coming wet weather. - -Hang up a snake skin for rain. - -If the grass should be thickly dotted in the morning with cobwebs -of the ground spider, glistening with dew, expect rain. Some say it -portends the exact opposite. This puts us in mind of Cato's quaint -saying that "two auguries cannot confront each other without laughing." - -If the kettle should boil dry, it is a sure sign of rain. Very -earnestly said a certain respectable, middle-aged housewife to me: -"Why, sir, sometimes you put twice as much water in the kettle without -its boiling away." - -If the cattle go under trees when the weather looks threatening, there -will be a shower. If they continue feeding, it will probably be a -steady downpour. - -A threatened storm will not begin, or the wind go down, until the -turning of the tide to flood. Not only the people living along shore, -but all sailors believe this. - -Closely related to the above is the belief that a sick person will not -die until ebb tide. When that goes out, the life goes with it. I have -often heard this said in some seaports in Maine. - -These popular notions, concerning the influence of the tides, be it -said, have come down to us from a remote antiquity. The Pythagorean -philosopher, indeed, stoutly affirmed that the ebbing and flowing of -the sea was nothing less than the respiration of the world itself, -which was supposed to be a living monster, alternately drawing in -water, instead of air, and heaving it out again. - -Again, an old salt, who had perhaps heard of Galileo's theory, once -tried to illustrate to me the movement of the tides by comparing it to -that of a man turning over in bed, and dragging the bedclothes with -him, his notion being that as the world turned round, the waters of the -ocean were acted upon in a like manner. - -To resume the catalogue:-- - -A bee was never caught in the rain--that is, if the bee scents rain, -it keeps near the hive. If, on the contrary, it flies far, the day -will be fair. The ancients believed this industrious little creature -possessed of almost human intelligence. - -When the squirrels lay in a greater store of nuts than usual, expect a -cold winter. - -If the November goose-bone be thick, so will the winter weather be -unusually severe. This prediction appears as regularly as the return of -the seasons. - -Many meteors falling presage much snow. - - "If it rains before seven, - It will clear before eleven." - - "You can tell before two. - What it's going to do." - -There will be as many snow-storms in a winter as there are days -remaining in the month after the first fall of snow. - -Children are told, of the falling snow, that the old woman, up in the -sky, is shaking her feather-bed. - -High tides on the coast of Maine are considered a sign of rain. - -When the muskrat builds his nest higher than usual, it is a sign of a -wet spring, as this means high water in the ponds and streams. - - "A winter fog - Will kill a dog," - -which is as much as to say that a thaw, with its usual accompaniments -of fog and rain, is invariably productive of much sickness. - -Winter thunder is to old folks death, and to young folks plunder. - - "Sound, travelling far and wide, - A stormy day will betide." - -Do business with men when the wind is northwest--that signifies that a -clear sky and bracing air are most conducive to alertness and energy; -yet Hamlet says: "I am but mad north-northwest; when the wind is -southerly I know a hawk from a handsaw." - -That was certainly a pretty conceit, no matter if it has been lost -sight of, that the sun always dances upon Easter morning. - -One of the oldest of weather rhymes runs in this wise:-- - - "Evening gray and morning red, - Brings down rain on the traveller's head; - Evening red and morning gray, - Sends the traveller on his way." - -Science having finally accepted what vulgar philosophy so long -maintained, namely that the moon exerts an undoubted influence upon -the tides of the sea, all the various popular beliefs concerning her -influence upon the weather that have been wafted to us over, we know -not how many centuries, find ready credence. If the mysterious luminary -could perform one miracle, why not others? Thus reasoned the ignorant -multitude. - -The popular fallacy that the moon is made of "greene cheese," as sung -by Heywood, and repeated by that mad wag Butler, in "Hudibras," may be -considered obsolete, we suppose, but in our youth we have often heard -this said, and, it is to be feared, half believed it. - -Cutting the hair on the waxing of the moon, under the delusion that it -will then grow better, is another such. - -As preposterous as it may seem, our worthy ancestors, or some of them -at least, firmly believed that the Man in the Moon was veritable flesh -and blood. - -In "Curious Myths," Mr. Baring-Gould refers the genesis of this belief -to the Book of Numbers.[3] - -An old Scotch rhyme runs thus:-- - - "A Saturday's change and a Sunday's prime, - Was nivver gude mune in nae man's time." - -If the horns of the new moon are but slightly tipped downward, moderate -rains may be looked for; if much tipped, expect a downpour. On the -other hand, if the horns are evenly balanced, it is a sure sign of dry -weather. Some one says in "Adam Bede," "There's no likelihood of a drop -now an' the moon lies like a boat there." The popular notion throughout -New England is that when the new moon is turned downward, it cannot -hold water. Hence the familiar sayings of a wet or a dry moon. - -If the Stormy Petrel (Mother Cary's Chicken) is seen following in -the wake of a ship at sea, all sailors know that a storm is brewing, -and that it is time to make all snug on board. As touching this -superstition, I find the following entry in the Rev. Richard Mather's -_Journal_: "This day, and two days before, we saw following ye ship a -little bird, like a swallow, called a Petterill, which they say doth -follow ships against foule weather." - -Therefore, in honest Jack's eyes, to shoot one of these little -wanderers of the deep, not only would invite calamity, but would -instantly bring down a storm of indignation on the offender's head. And -why, indeed, should this state of mind in poor Jack be wondered at, -when he hears so much about kraaken, mermaids, sea-serpents, and the -like chimera, and when those who walk the quarter-deck readily lend -themselves to the fostering of his delusions? - -A mare's tail in the morning is another sure presage of foul weather. -This consists in a long, low-hanging streak of murky vapor, stretching -across a wide space in the heavens, and looking for all the world like -the trailing smoke of some ocean steamer, as is sometimes seen long -before the steamer heaves in sight. The mare's tail is really the black -signal of the advancing storm, drawn with a smutty hand across the fair -face of the heavens. Hence the legend,-- - - "Mackerel sky and mare's tails - Make lofty ships carry low sails." - -If the hedgehog comes out of his hole on Candlemas Day,[4] and sees his -shadow, he goes back to sleep again, knowing that the winter is only -half over. Hence the familiar prediction:-- - - "If Candlemas day is fair and clear, - There'll be two winters in the year." - -The same thing is said of the bear, in Germany, as of the hedgehog or -woodchuck. - -The Germans say that the badger peeps out of his hole on Candlemas Day, -and if he finds snow on the ground, he walks abroad; but if the sun is -shining, he draws back into his hole again. At any rate, the habits of -this predatory little beast are considered next to infallible by most -country-folk in New England. - -A similar prediction carries this form: On Candlemas Day just so far as -the sun shines in, just so far will the snow blow in. - - "As far as the sun shines in on Candlemas Day - So far will the snow blow in before May: - As far as the snow blows in on Candlemas Day - So far will the sun shine in before May." - -From these time-honored prophecies is deduced the familiar warning:-- - - "Just half your wood and half your hay - Should be remaining on Candlemas Day." - -An old Californian predicted a dry season for the year 1899, because -he had noticed that the rattlesnakes would not bite of late, a never -failing sign of drought which few, we fancy, would feel inclined to put -to the test. - -An unusually cold winter is indicated by the greater thickness of apple -skins, corn husks, and the like. - -The direction from which the wind is blowing usually indicates what the -weather will be for the day,--wet or dry, hot or cold,--but here is a -rhymed prediction which puts all such prophecies to shame:-- - - "The West wind always brings wet weather - The East wind wet and cold together, - The South wind surely brings us rain, - The North wind blows it back again. - If the sun in red should set, - The next day surely will be wet; - If the sun should set in gray, - The next will be a rainy day." - -This falls more strictly in line with many of the so-called signs -which, like the old woman's indigo, if good would either sink or -swim, she really didn't know which; or like the predictions of the old -almanac makers, who so shrewdly foretold rain in April, and snow in -December. - - - - -[Illustration] - -IV - -SIGNS OF ALL SORTS - - "Authorized by her grandam."--_Macbeth._ - - -If you sneeze before breakfast, you will have company before dinner. - -If you pick the common red field lily, it will make you freckled. - -A spark in the candle denotes a letter in the post office for you. - -To hand a cup with two spoons in it to any one, is a sign of a coming -wedding in the family. - -If a cat is allowed to get into bed with an infant, the child will be -strangled by the animal sucking its breath, or by lying across its -chest. - -If my right ear burns, some one is talking about me, hence the familiar -saying, "I'll make his ears tingle for him." Pliny records this omen. -Also in "Much Ado About Nothing," Beatrice exclaims, "What fire is in -mine ears!" - -When the right ear itches or burns, the person so affected will shortly -cry; when it is the left, he will laugh. One version runs in this -wise:-- - - "Left or right - Good at night." - -Late blossoming of vines or fruit trees will be followed by much -sickness. This probably rests upon the theory that a mild autumn will -be a sickly autumn, which is the same thing as saying that unseasonable -weather is pretty sure to be unwholesome weather. The same prediction -is expressed by the old saying that "A green Christmas makes a fat -church-yard." Both predictions agree with the observations of medical -science. - -A spoon in the saucer and another in the cup denote that the person -using them will be a spendthrift, and probably come to want; but two -spoons to one dish of ice-cream denote foresight and true thrift. - - "Sing before you eat, - Cry before you sleep." - -Or, if you sing before breakfast, you will cry before supper. - -Pull out one gray hair, and ten will grow in its place. - -Should you happen to let drop your scissors, or other sharp instrument, -and they should stick upright in the floor, it is a sign that you will -soon see a stranger.[5] - -Dropping the dishcloth has the same significance. - -Two cowlicks, growing on the same person's head, denote that he will -eat his bread in two kingdoms--that is, be a traveller in foreign parts. - -Should a cow swallow her cud, the animal will die, unless another cud -be immediately given her. - -Hard-hack[6] was thus named by the early colonists, who declared that -the tough stalk turned the edge of the mower's scythe. - -If you see a white horse, you will immediately after see a red-haired -woman. - -Bubbles gathering on top of a cup of coffee or chocolate indicate, if -they cluster at the middle, or "form an island" in prophetic parlance, -money coming to you. If, however, the bubbles gather at the sides of -the cup, you will not get the money. - -Two chairs, placed by accident back to back, are a sign of a stranger. - -Coming in at one door, and immediately going out at another, has the -same meaning. - -A tea-stem floating in the tea-cup--a common thing before the day of -tea-strainers--also foreshadows the coming of a stranger. Old people -say "you must butter his head and throw him under the table, if the -charm is to work." A tea-leaf means the same thing, its length denoting -whether the stranger will be short or tall. - -To let fall your fork is a sure sign that you are going to have a -caller on that very evening, or, as the girls declare, have "a beau." -A very estimable lady said when telling me this, that when she was -a young girl she never had that accident happen to her that she did -not immediately get ready for a caller; and she added that seldom, or -never, was this sign known to fail. - -If a young girl has the nosebleed, it is a sign that she is in love.[7] - -If your nose itches you will either - - "See a stranger, - Kiss a fool, - Or be in danger." - -If your left hand itches, you will shortly receive money; if it is the -right hand, get ready to shake hands with a stranger. - -A ringing or "dumb-bell" in the ear denotes that you may expect -startling news of some sort. - -A swarm of bees in June is worth a silver spoon. - -Four persons meeting in a crowded place and shaking hands cross-wise, -is a sign that one of the party will be married within the year. - -Should you meet a person on the stairs, one or the other must go back, -or some misfortune will happen to both. - -If you should fail to fold up your napkin after a meal at which you are -a guest, you will not again be invited to that table. - -Think of the devil and he is at your elbow. The point of this robust -saying is now much softened into "think of some one and he is at your -elbow"; but it seems at first to have had reference to an enemy or to -one you would rather avoid. The saying is quite common to-day. - -A very old rhyme about the way in which one wears out a shoe, runs in -this way:-- - - "Tip at the toe, live to see woe, - Wear at the side, live to be a bride, - Wear at the ball, live to spend all, - Wear at the heel, live to save a deal." - -Even the days of the week possess peculiar significance to the future -welfare of the newborn infant:-- - - "Sunday's child is full of grace, - Monday's child is fair of face, - Tuesday's child is solemn and sad, - Wednesday's child is merry and glad; - Thursday's child is inclined to thieving, - Friday's child is free in giving: - Saturday's child works hard for his living." - -This saying is familiar to every one:-- - - "Whistling girls and crowing hens - Always come to no good ends." - -Or, as they say it in the Old Country:-- - - "A whistling woman and crowing hen, - Are neither fit for God nor men." - -An old woman, skilled in such matters, declares that when vagrant cats -begin to collect around the back-yards, "it's a sure sign the winter's -broken." - -Whistling to keep one's courage up, or for a wind, are rather in the -nature of an invocation to some occult power than a sign. Sailors, it -is well known, have a superstitious fear of whistling at sea, believing -it will bring on a storm. - -Yawning is said to be catching. Well, if it is not catching, it comes -so near to being so, that most persons accept it as a fact; and laugh -as we may, daily experience goes to confirm it as such, and must -continue to do so until some more satisfactory explanation is found -than we yet know of. - - - - -[Illustration] - -V - -CHARMS TO GOOD LUCK - - "The nights are wholesome; then no planets strike, - No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm." - - -Of the things closely associated in the popular mind with good or bad -luck, what in short one may or may not do to obtain the favors or turn -aside the frowns of fortune, the list is a long one. We say "God bless -me!" when we sneeze, as an invocation to good luck. Then, for instance, -it is considered lucky to find a cast-off horseshoe, or a four-leaved -clover, or to see the new moon over the right shoulder, or to have a -black cat in the house, especially one that comes to you of its own -accord. Then there also is the lucky pocket-piece, which the owner -will seldom part with, although I once heard a man loudly lamenting -that he had "sold his luck" by doing so. There also is the lucky-bone -of a haddock,[8] the wishing-bone of a chicken, the lucky base-ball -bat, and, what is still more strange, the lucky spider, if one happens -to be found on one's clothes,--though this will hardly prevent, we -imagine, all womankind from screaming out to the nearest person to come -and brush off the hateful little creature. Many will not kill a spider -on account of this belief, which is supposed to be derived from the -romantic story of King Robert Bruce and the spider. - -The familiar saying, "There's luck in odd numbers," lingers in song -and story. Does not Rory O'More say so? Odd numbers or combinations of -odd numbers are almost invariably chosen in buying lottery tickets. -Moreover, they have received the highest official sanction for a -very long time. In the "Art of Navigation," printed in the year 1705, -the following rule is laid down for firing salutes by ships of the -royal navy: "to salute with an odd number of guns, the which are to -be answered with fit correspondency. And the number of odd guns is so -punctually observed, that whenever they are given _even_ 'tis received -for an infallible sign that either the captain or some noted officer is -dead in the voyage." - -The above rule or custom has held good to this day. In the United -States the prescribed salute to the President is twenty-one guns; -seventeen to the Vice-President, and so on in descending scale, -according to rank, in the several branches of the civil, military, and -naval service. Medicines are often taken an odd number of times, though -not invariably, as they once were. A hen is always set on an odd number -of eggs, although I could never find any one who could give any other -reason than custom for it. What Biddy does when she "steals her own -nest" is not ascertained. - -It appears from such data as we have been able to gather that -the number Three and its multiple Nine were formerly held to be -indispensable to the successful working of the magician's arts. In -"Macbeth," the weird sisters mutter the dark incantation:-- - - "Thrice to thine, and thrice to mine, - And thrice again to make up nine!-- - Peace!--the charm's wound up." - -And yet again, when concocting their charmed hell-broth, while awaiting -the coming of the ambitious thane to learn his fate of them, the mystic -rite begins by declaring the omens propitious:-- - - "1 _Witch_. Thrice the brinded cat hath mewed. - 2 _Witch_. Thrice and once the hedge-pig whined." - -With the Romans, three handfuls of salt cast over a dead body had all -the virtues of a funeral. Pirates were formerly hung at low-water -mark and left hanging there until three tides had overflowed them. -Shakespeare makes Falstaff say: "This is the third time; I hope good -luck lies in odd numbers." Even now, the cabalistic phrase "third time -never fails," prompts the twice unsuccessful candidate for fortune's -favors to renewed and more vigorous effort. In short, there seems to be -no end to the virtues inherent in odd numbers. - -But as all rules have their exceptions, so with this prophetic rule -of three, the fates would seem to have ordained that it might be made -to work both ways. Simply by keeping one's eyes and ears open one -sees and hears many things. An enterprising news-gatherer jots down a -bit of superstition touching the fateful side of the rule in question -that came to him in this easy sort of way: "I heard," he says, "a most -sensible person, the other day, exclaim because Queen Victoria had been -obliged twice to postpone her trip to the south of France, once on -account of the unsettled state of affairs over there, and again because -of the unsettled state of the weather. 'The third time will be fatal -to her,' added this cheerful individual; 'you just mark my words.'" - -It is nevertheless true, however, that the cabalistic number Thirteen -stands quite alone, so far as we are informed, as the sombre herald of -misfortune. But here, as elsewhere, the exception only goes to prove -the rule. - -A gentleman holding a lucrative office under the government once told -me that two of his clerks wore iron finger rings, because they were -supposed to be lucky. It is a matter of general knowledge that certain -gems or precious stones are worn on scarf-pins, watch-chains, finger -rings, or other articles of personal adornment solely on account of the -prevailing belief in their efficacy to ward off sickness or disease, -prevent accidents, keep one's friends,--in short, to bring the wearer -good luck. This branch of the subject will be more fully treated of -presently. - -More unaccountable still is the practice of wearing or carrying about -on one's person a rabbit's foot as a talisman, that timid little -animal always having been intimately associated with the arts of the -magician and sorcerer. But it must always be bunny's hind foot. The -insatiate passion for novelty, we understand, has now installed a -turkey's claw in the room of the rabbit's foot, to some extent, showing -that even credulity itself is the obedient slave of fashion. Of course -neither the rabbit's foot nor turkey's claw is worn in its natural -rough state, but under the jeweller's skilful hands, tipped with gold -or silver and set with the wearer's favorite gem (topaz, amethyst, or -whatever it may be), the charm, or mascot, becomes an ornament to be -worn, either suspended from the neck, the wrist, or belt, or as a clasp -for the cape. The practice of wearing a caul,[9] or an amulet blessed -by the priest, clearly denotes that here rich and poor meet on common -ground. It is not proposed, however, to treat of those beliefs which -may be directly traced to the teachings of a particular church, or -that have become so embedded in the faith it inculcates as to be an -inseparable part of it The Protestant world, or that part of it we live -in, is intrenched in no such stronghold. - -To continue the catalogue:-- - -A black cat, without a single white hair, is a witch of the sort that -brings luck to the house. Keeping one also insures to unmarried females -of the family plenty of sweethearts. - -A branch of the mountain ash kept in the house, or hung out over the -door, will keep the witches out. - -Good luck is frequently crystallized in certain uncouth but expressive -sayings, such, for example, as "nigger luck," "lucky strike," or -"Cunard luck," referring to the remarkable exemption of a certain -transatlantic steamship company from loss of life by disasters to -its ships. This particular saying has been quite frequently heard -of late in consequence of the really providential escape of the -steamship _Pavonia_, of that line, from shipwreck, while on her voyage -from Liverpool to Boston. What was uppermost in the minds of some of -the passengers and crew may easily be inferred from the following -extract, with which a relation of the good ship's fortunate escape from -foundering concludes:-- - -"The change of the moon passed at 9.30 A.M., and the light breeze -changed at almost the same moment. The gulls were sitting on the water, -which was a sign of luck, according to the sailors. Then we discovered -a lot of 'Mother Carey's chickens' near the ship, which was also a -lucky omen, so we felt that Friday was to be our lucky day." - -Unquestionably, the horseshoe is the favorite symbol of good luck -the world over. You will seldom see a man so much in a hurry that he -will not stop to pick one up. Although the iron of which the shoe is -fashioned is no longer endowed with magic power, as it once was, no -sooner has it been beaten by the smith into the form of a shoe than, -_presto_, it becomes a power to conjure with. Popular _dictum_ even -prescribes that the shoe must be placed with the prongs upward or its -virtue will be lost. It must, moreover, be a cast-off shoe or the charm -will not work. - -The luck of the horseshoe has become proverbial. We are now dealing -with facts of common knowledge. Indeed, we do not see how any form -of superstition could be more fully or more freely recognized in the -everyday affairs of life. Even those who scout the superstition itself, -as a thing unworthy of serious attention, do not hesitate to avail -themselves of its popularity for their own ends, thus giving it a still -wider currency. In short, this hoary superstition is thriftily turned -to account by every imaginable device to tickle the fancy or to turn a -penny, although in being thus employed it has quite cut loose from its -ancient traditions. - -Thus it is that we now see the horseshoe stamped on monograms, on -Christmas cards, on book covers, or even used in the title of a book, -most effectively, as in the case of "Horseshoe Robinson." It also is -seen worked into floral designs to be hung above the bride's head, at -a wedding, or reverently laid upon the last resting-place of the dead. -Surely superstition could go no farther. - -The horseshoe has also come to be a favorite trade-mark with -manufacturers and dealers in all sorts of wares. It is elaborately -worked up in gold and silver charms for those who would rather be lucky -than not, regardless of the original _dictum_ that, to be serviceable, -the shoe must be made of iron and nothing else. There lies before me, -as I write this, the advertisement of a certain farrier, who rests -his plea for custom upon the fact that as horseshoes bring luck to -the purchaser, therefore every horse should be shod with his shoes. A -certain horseshoers' union attributes its victory over the employers, -in the matter of shorter hours, to the efficacy of its trade symbol. -And not long ago the fortunate escape of Boston from a disastrous -conflagration was heralded in a daily paper with a cut of a horseshoe -prefixed to the account. - -Of late years, too, the horseshoe has grown to be a favorite symbol in -the house,--a sort of household fetich, as it were,--if not because of -any faith in its traditional ability to bring good luck, one is at loss -to know why a piece of old iron should be so conspicuously hung up in -the houses of rich and poor alike. - -The horseshoe was always, also, the favorite emblem of the tavern and -inn, in all countries. Such signs as the "Three Horseshoes," once swung -in Boston streets. In Samuel Sewall's Diary we find the following -entry: "Sanctifie to me ye deth of old Mrs. Glover who kept the 3 -horseshoes, and who dyed ye last night." Sewall, who lived in the -immediate neighborhood, leaves us in the dark as to whether he mourned -most for Mrs. Glover or her exhilarating mixtures. - -Returning to its proper place in folk-lore, I myself have seen the -horseshoe nailed to the bowsprit of a vessel, over house and barn -doors, and even to bedsteads. In the country, its supposed virtues -continue to hold much of their old sway, while among sailors a belief -in them has suffered little, if any, loss since the day of Nelson -and of the _Victory_. On some very old country house, as old as the -witchcraft times, one can still see the shape of a horseshoe wrought in -the brickwork of the chimneys, as well as one nailed above the door, -thus cleverly closing every avenue against the entrance of witches. -But of all the odd caprices connected with the use of the horseshoe, -that related of Samuel Dexter, of Boston, must carry off the palm for -oddity. He, being dissatisfied with his minister, Dr. Codman, nailed a -horseshoe to his pew door, and then nailed up the pew itself. - -The origin of this remarkable superstition is involved in the obscurity -of past ages. It is usually attributed to the virtue of cold iron to -keep witches out, through their inability to step over it, and is -probably allied to that other superstition about the driving of iron -nails into the walls of Roman houses, with a like object. Beyond that -point its meaning grows more and more obscure. The conjunction, so -essential to perfect the charm, between iron in any form and the horse, -is said to have come from the magical properties attributed to the -animal by the ancients, in whose mythology the horse always plays an -important part. King Richard, on Bosworth field, offers his kingdom for -a horse, and Poor Richard, in his Almanac, tells us how a man lost his -life for want of a nail in his horse's shoe. Butler, from whose pen -figures of speech gush forth like water from a never-failing spring, -declares that evil spirits are chased away by dint - - "of sickle, horseshoe, hollow flint." - -In Gay's fable of "The Old Woman and her Cats," the alleged witch -laments that - - "Straws laid across my path retard; - The horseshoes nail'd each threshold's guard." - -Turning now from the merely passive to the active agency on the part of -the seeker after fortune's favors, we enter upon a no less marvellous, -but vastly more attractive, field. Here is something that is tried -every day:-- - -Of two persons breaking apart the wishing-bone of a chicken before -forming a wish, the one getting the longer piece is assured of the -fulfilment of his or her wish; the shorter piece bodes disappointment. - -Another way to test fickle fortune is to form a wish while a meteor -is falling; if one can do so the desire will be gratified. This -saying would be no bad symbol of the importance of seizing a golden -opportunity ere it has escaped us. As the immortal Shakespeare says:-- - - "There is a tide in the affairs of men - Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." - -If a load of hay goes by, make a wish on it and your wish will be -gratified, provided you instantly look another way. But the charm will -surely be broken if, like Lot's wife, you should look back. - -To see the new moon with the old in her arms, a much more common thing -by the way in this country than in England, is considered lucky; as -runs an old couplet:-- - - "Late, late yestreen, I saw the new moone - Wi' the auld moone in hir armes." - -Here is another instance wherein the auguries differ. An old sea-rhyme -founded on the same thing adds this prediction:-- - - "And if we gang to sea, master, - I fear we'll come to harm." - -It is also accounted good luck to see the new moon over the right -shoulder, especially if you instantly feel in your pocket and find -money there, as your luck thereby will be prodigiously increased, but -you must take care instantly to turn the money over in your pocket. - -Burglars are said to carry a piece of coal, or some other object, about -with them for luck. - -Upon getting out of bed in the morning, always put the right foot -foremost. Slightly altered, this injunction has been turned into the -familiar saying: "Put your best foot foremost." Dr. Johnson was so -particular about this rule, that if he happened to plant his left foot -on the threshold of a house, he would turn back, and reenter right foot -foremost. Similarly, one must always begin dressing the right foot -first. An exception occurs to us: in military tactics it is always the -left foot that goes foremost. - -Professional gamblers are firm believers in the element of luck, the -world over. According to their _dictum_, a youth who has never gambled -before, is sure to be lucky at his first essay at play. Finding a piece -of money or carrying a dice in the pocket also insures good fortune, -they say. - -To secure luck at cards or to change your luck, when it is going -against you, you must walk three times around your chair or else blow -upon the cards with your breath. Beyond reasonable doubt you will be a -winner. Not so very long ago, it was the custom for women to offer to -sit cross-legged in order to procure luck at cards for their friends. -I have seen players spit on their hands for the same purpose. Sitting -cross-legged, with the fingers interlaced, was formerly considered the -correct magical posture. - -The hair will grow better if cut on the waxing of the moon. This notion -is probably based on the symbolism of the moon's waxing and waning, as -associated with growing and declining nature. - -A Newfoundland fisherman to-day spits on the first piece of silver -given him for luck. In the Old Country this was also a common practice -among the lower class of hucksters, upon receiving the price of the -first goods sold on that day, which they call "hansell."[10] Boxers -often spit into their hands before engaging in a set-to, as also did -the schoolboys of my own age, who thought it a charm to prevent the -master's ferule from hurting them as much as it otherwise would, but -later found out their mistake. - -In some country districts the belief still holds that if a live frog -can be passed through a sick cow the animal will get well, but the frog -must be alive and kicking, or the charm will not work. - -Salt was formerly the first thing taken into a new house, in the belief -that the occupants would never want for bread in that house. - -"Happy is the corpse that the rain rains on." This is a sort of -corollary to the belief, that it is a fortunate sign if the sun shines -on a newly wedded couple. - -The long established custom of laying the head of the dead to the east -is probably a survival of the ancient sun-worship. It is traced back to -the Phoenicians. In Shakespeare's "Cymbeline" we find this reference to -it:-- - - "We must lay his head to the east: - My father hath reason for't." - -We are reminded that ropes are coiled, cranks turned, and eggs beaten -with the sun. One writer upon Folk-lore[11] remarks that passing the -bottle at table from right to left, instead of being merely proper -form, really comes from this ancient superstition. - -Telling the bees of a death in the family was formerly a quite general -practice, if indeed it has entirely died out. I know that it has been -practised in New England within my own recollection. It was the belief -that a failure to so inform the bees would lead to their dwindling away -and dying, according to some interpreters, or to their flying away, -according to others. The manner of proceeding was to knock with the -house-key three times against the hives, at the same time telling the -noisy inmates that their master or mistress, as the case might be, was -dead. One case is reported where an old man actually sung a psalm in -front of some hives. In New England the hives were sometimes draped in -black. The semi-sacred character with which antiquity invested this -wonderful little insect sufficiently accounts for the practice. Mr. -Whittier has some verses about it in "Home Ballads." Beating upon a pot -or kettle when bees are swarming comes from Virgil's injunction, in the -like case, to raise tinkling sounds. - -Laying a plate for a dead person was in pursuance of the belief that, -if it were omitted, one death in the family would speedily be followed -by another. - -The Passing Bell was originally instituted to drive away evil spirits, -as well as to bespeak the prayers of all good Christians for a soul -just leaving the body. Sitting up with a dead body originated in a like -purpose. The former custom is dimly reflected in the tolling of the -bell, the number of strokes indicating the age of the deceased. - -It is considered lucky to put on a garment wrong side out. I knew of -a sea-captain who, on rising late in the morning of the day he was to -sail, in his hurry, put on his drawers wrong side out. He said to his -wife, with a laugh, that he would wear them so for luck. The ship in -which he sailed was lost, with all on board, on the very same night; -and, as it turned out, the captain's mistake in putting on his clothes -proved the means of identifying his mutilated remains when they were -found on the beach the next morning. - -The trial to discover a witch, made use of by the circle of hysterical -young girls in the time of the lamentable witchcraft terror, was to -take a sieve and a pair of scissors or shears, stick the points of the -shears in the wood of the sieve, and let two of them hold it balanced -upright on the tips of their two fingers; then to ask St. Peter and St. -Paul if a certain person, naming the one suspected, was a witch. If the -right one was hit upon, the sieve would suddenly turn round. - -As usual, Butler has something to say of this charm:-- - - "Th' oracle of the sieve and shears - That turns as certain as the spheres." - -Another similar charm is that of the Bible and key. I do not learn of -its being practised of late, though it has been put to the trial since -I can remember, to discover a thief. It is done in this way. The key is -placed upon a certain chapter in the Bible, after which the sacred book -is shut and tightly fastened. Both are then hung to a nail. The name of -the suspected person is then repeated three times by some one present, -while another recites:-- - - "If it turns to thee, thou art the thief." - -Should the key have turned, the guilt is, of course, fixed upon the -real criminal. - -Perhaps the manner of proceeding in such cases will be made clearer by -the following relation of an actual test and its results, which took -place in England some thirty years ago, and was given to the world as -a curious instance of the degree of superstition then still existing -in many parts of Great Britain. The account goes on to say that: "At -the Cricklade Petty Sessions, in Wiltshire, a matron named Eliza Glass -made a statement which was briefly as follows: Her father had lost -or missed the sum of four pounds sterling, and suspicion, apparently -unfounded, fell upon herself and her husband. The theory was formed -that she had stolen a key, and thus her husband had obtained access to -the money. It was determined to test the matter by the 'Bible and key.' -The key was placed in the Bible on a particular place in Solomon's -Song, the book closed and tied, and suspended by a string passed -through the handle of the key, which protruded. One of the persons then -thought of the suspected individual, the edge of the book turned toward -the tester, and Mrs. Glass was adjudged guilty, or as she expressed -it, 'upset.' All this was in her absence. But she knew that she was -innocent, and when informed of her condemnation adopted tactics which -others, more astute than she, had used before her; she determined to -impeach the credibility of the witness. Taking a New Testament she put -the key on the words 'Blessed are the pure in heart,' and suspending -the book as before, she was acquitted. Troubled by the apparent -inconsistency of the Old and the New Testaments, she inquired of the -magistrates what was to be done. They dismissed her with the remark -that the bench could not interfere, and that, if innocent, she ought to -be satisfied with the approval of a good conscience." - -Thrusting a knife between the leaves of a Bible to obtain a name for a -child has not gone out of use even yet. - -The Wassail, or Loving Cup, is nothing but a relic of superstition, -like drinking of healths, which custom, though no longer an -indispensable ceremonial on state occasions, as it has been within the -century, lives yet in the spirit whenever two friends happen to pledge -each other in a social glass, silently or otherwise. The familiar -"Here's to you!" is neither more nor less than an invocation to good -luck. - -Throwing an old shoe is perhaps most intimately associated, in the -popular mind, with marriage ceremonies; but it is also found doing -duty in other matters concerning personal advantage or welfare,--as -when, for instance, a person was going out to transact business, it was -considered lucky to throw an old shoe after him. The same thing was -done when servants were seeking or entering upon situations. So far, -the meaning of the act is simple enough, the controlling idea being to -propitiate success. - -But if we should divest an old shoe of its assumed mystical property, -in the name of that superior wisdom which our cultured class is -supposed to possess, why would it not be as well, or even better, to -throw a new pair after the candidate for good fortune? But no, it must -be an _old_ shoe. And therein lies the whole philosophy of the matter. -Unless we shall conform to the strict letter of this antiquated custom, -there will be no luck about the house.[12] - -In Ben Jonson's "Masque of Gypsies," we find this joyous couplet:-- - - "Hurle after an old shoe, - I'll be merry whate'er I do." - -Much to the same purport is Tennyson's:-- - - "And wheresoe'er thou move, good luck - Shall throw her old shoe after." - -Apropos of beliefs affecting tradespeople of to-day, a newspaper -clipping notes the following curious custom prevailing among the street -pedlers and small storekeepers of New York, that has its origin with -the Russian Jews. In Baxter Street the clothing men and in Division -Street the milliners insist that a sale must be made before nine -o'clock on Monday morning. No matter what the price and regardless of -profit or loss, some piece of goods must be turned into coin by that -hour; otherwise the week will prove an unlucky one. - -On the other hand, there is a firm belief in some parts of New England -that if you pay a bill on Monday, you will pay out money all the rest -of the week. Hence, a very natural prejudice has arisen against paying -a bill on that day. - -Shipmasters are admittedly very superstitious folk. I once knew of a -ship being named for a certain well-known cotton mill, because the -said mill had always proved a lucky investment to its owners. Another -instance came to my knowledge where a master, himself part owner, -consulted a clairvoyant about naming his new ship. When the applicant -timidly suggested the name of _Pocahontas_, it was promptly rejected -with the remark: "She was nothing but an old Indian woman. What do you -want to name your vessel after her for? Call her the _Eagle Wing_." And -_Eagle Wing_ it was. - -By way of reenforcing beliefs of this particular kind, we find a -newspaper writer saying, it is supposed in all sincerity, as otherwise -his offence would be unpardonable: "Don't let us call any of the new -ships for Uncle Sam's navy after the state of Maine. For my part, -nothing would induce me to go aboard a new _Maine_ or a new _Portland_. -Like that watch of Captain Sigsbee, which has gone down into the ocean -three times, the last plunge being caused by the explosion of the -_Maine_, a superstitious person would prefer to be left at home." -Whether or not the navy bureau shall listen to this plea, and change -the name proposed for one of the new battle-ships, we fear that an -ineffaceable stigma will hereafter rest upon these two names in the -minds not alone of seafaring folk, but of the whole generation to whom -the twin horrors which these names recall are so familiar. - -Still speaking of ships, I suppose few people are aware that until -quite recently it was the custom, when a new ship was being built, to -put a piece of money, silver or gold, under the heel of each mast. This -custom at once recalls that traditional one of putting coins under the -corner-stone of a new building; but unlike that, the former act was in -full accord with the prevalent notion that it would bring good luck to -the vessel. - -I find that some people are strongly impressed with the idea that -the month or day on which they were born will prove to them a most -critical one throughout their whole lives. Indeed, many strange -coincidences of this sort have come to my notice. If a man has happened -to have a run of bad luck, he will often tell you that it is because -he was born under an unlucky star; if, on the other hand, he has been -unusually prosperous, it is commonly said of him that he was born to -good luck. So wags the world! - -As a fitting pendant to Jernegan's gold-from-sea-water scheme, Mrs. -Howe's bank, and Miller's syndicate, all fresh in the memory of -everyone, comes the "lucky-box" humbug and its humiliating exposure, -as I write. Upon the simple assurance that the possessor of this -marvellous box (which could be carried in the pocket) would become -instantly lucky, thousands were quickly sold, and the sale of more -thousands was only stopped by the prompt intervention of the law! - - - - -[Illustration] - -VI - -CHARMS AGAINST DISEASE - - "I'll do, I'll do, and I'll do."--_Shakespeare._ - - -Under this heading we shall first call attention to those plants having -the alleged power to cure disease or protect from evil influences. -But before doing so, we would suggest that the reader turn to his -standard or popular dictionary. He will there find the magical word -"abracadabra" defined as a charm against fevers. - -In former times, the young, unrolled fronds of the male fern were -supposed to guard the wearer against the Evil Eye or witchcraft; and -were not only worn by the credulous, but also given to the cattle as a -charm against being bewitched.[13] Moonwort fern had the reputation of -being able to undo any lock, bolt, or bar, or even to draw nails from -the shoe of any horse treading upon it; and mistletoe to be a sure cure -for the stone. - -The roots and flowers of violets are supposed to moderate anger, and -to comfort and strengthen the heart--hence the significant name of -heartsease. - -St.-John's-wort is still gathered in some parts of the Old Country on -the Eve of St. John the Baptist, and hung out over the windows and -doors, in accord with the ancient superstition that it would keep -out all evil spirits, and shield the inmates from storms and other -calamities. - -The belief associated with holly, now so generally used for Christmas -decoration, comes from Pliny, who writes that "the branches of this -tree defend houses from lightning, and men from witchcraft." The common -mullein was also held to have potency against hurts inflicted by wild -beasts, or any evil coming near; and, similarly, the mountain ash was -considered a protection against the Evil Eye, witches, and warlocks. -So, also, a sea-onion was often hung in the doorway, with a like object. - -Another charm said to be very efficacious, though the writer has not -tried it himself, yet having the sanction of age, is this: "Against a -woman's chatter, taste at night, fasting, the root of a radish; on that -day the chatter cannot harm thee." - -Many of the myths concerning plants still exist in a modified form -among us, although it is no doubt true that most people who decorate -their houses with evergreens and holly at Christmastide are ignorant of -the mysticism they so innocently perpetuate. Yet the Puritan fathers -of New England were as utterly opposed to the decorating of houses -of worship with "Christmas Greens," as to the observance of the day -itself. Could they but revisit the scenes of their earthly labors -during that season of unstinted festivity and good cheer, when man's -heart is so warmed through the medium of his stomach, how shocked they -would be to see - - "Gilt holly with its thorny pricks, - And yew and box, with berries small, - These deck the unused candlesticks, - And pictures hanging by the wall." - -Beyond a doubt, most of the long-standing beliefs, touching the -remedies for this or that ailment, belong to a time when the services -of a skilled physician or surgeon were not to be had for love or money, -or medical aid be instantly summoned to the sick man's bedside by -telephone. This was especially true of the sparsely settled parts of -the country, where every prudent housewife laid in a stock of roots and -herbs against sickness in the family. Some of what nowadays are called -"popular remedies," are found in Josselyn's "Rarities." Here are a few -of them:-- - -"The skin of a hawk is good to wear on the stomach for the pain and -coldness of it. Lameness (or rheumatic pains) may be cured by lying -on a bearskin. Seal oil being cast upon coals will bring women out -of their mother fits." The white cockle-shell was very good to stanch -blood. For a rattlesnake bite, "their hearts swallowed fresh, is a good -antidote against their Venom, and their liver (the Gall taken out) -bruised and applied to their Bitings is a present Remedy--" a clear -proof, it seems to us, that the theory of _similia similibus curantur_, -did not originate with Dr. Koch, or even with the justly eminent -Professor Pasteur. - -But even the wonderful advance made by medical science is powerless -to eradicate the superstitions concerning disease, which live and -thrive in spite of progress, like the noxious weeds that baffle all the -farmer's vigilance. Then, there is a considerable constituency who, -after making a trial of the regular school of medicine, to no avail, -naturally fall back upon the _flotsam_ and _jetsam_ of bygone times, -as a drowning man is said to grasp at a straw. As regards the former -statement it may be asserted, as of personal knowledge, that inherited -diseases, such as humors, scrofula, fits and the like, and even -birthmarks, in many parts of the country, are still looked upon and -talked about, not as a misfortune, but as a visitation upon the family -so afflicted. I once heard one of these unfortunates described as "that -fitty man." - -The advent of Sirius, or the dog-star, was formerly supposed to exert -an occult influence upon poor humanity. In that critical season all -people were advised to look carefully to their diet, to shun all -broiled, salted, and strong meats, and to drink small beer and such -other liquors as aids to digestion. - -As touching those natural objects having reputed curative properties -or virtues, perhaps the common horsechestnut is the most familiar, -for the widespread belief in its power to charm away the rheumatism. -Several gentlemen of my acquaintance habitually carry this magical -nut on their persons, and one was actually found in the pocket of a -drowned man while this chapter was being written. Yet I have known -those who preferred the potato. A gentleman to whom I happened to -mention the subject one day, to my profound surprise, immediately drew -forth a healthy-looking tuber of a large size, which he emphatically -asserted to be the only thing that had ever relieved a severe attack of -rheumatism. I have also known nutmegs to be perforated, and hung round -the neck, for a similar purpose. - -Wearing eel-skin garters is also more or less practised as a cure for -the same complaint. - -Putting sulphur in the shoes is also highly commended as a cure for -rheumatism. I have known the same thing done as a preventive against an -attack of grippe. - -Plain or galvanized iron finger rings are also worn for their supposed -property to cure the rheumatism. - -Another well-to-do business man gravely assured me that a nutmeg, -suspended round the neck by a string, was a sure cure for boils "--and -no mistake about it--" and strongly urged giving it a trial. - -Corns and warts likewise are cured by carrying a horsechestnut on the -person. Another way is to rub the wart with a copper coin, throwing -the coin away immediately after. The person picking it up transfers the -fungus to himself. Still another way is to first stick a pin in the -wart, then to go and stick the same pin into an apple tree, though in -England they say it must be an ash. The notion that such things were -"catching" seems to have suggested, in a way to be easily understood, -the theory of disease transference, to common folk. With this view a -puppy is sometimes put into the same bed with a sick child, in the -belief that the sickness will pass from the child to the puppy, while -both are asleep. A case, in which this remedy was tried, came to my -knowledge very recently. - -To return to the subject of warts, some countryfolk highly recommend -making the sign of the cross against the chimney-back with a piece of -chalk, asserting that, as soon as the mark is covered with soot, the -warts will go away. Others, equally skilled in this sort of cures, -contend that if you steal some beans, and secretly bury them in the -ground the disagreeable excrescences will leave you. Should all else -fail you must then sell your warts or corns to somebody. Who'll buy? -Who'll buy? - -Should you have a decayed tooth extracted, the molar must instantly be -thrown into the fire, or you will surely have a cat's tooth come in its -place. To dream of losing your teeth is, by many, considered a sure -sign of coming trouble. Jet, powdered and mixed with wine, was once -thought to be a sure remedy for the toothache. - -Wearing a caul is a sure protection against drowning. - -One must not kiss a cat; the doing so will expose one to catch some -disease. - -Hostlers and stable boys believe that it keeps horses healthy to have a -goat about the stable. - -A gold wedding-ring is believed to be a cure for sties. - -Wearing red yarn around the neck is esteemed a prevention against -nose-bleeding. - -Sticking your jack-knife into the head of the bed will prevent cramps. -Another way is to put both your slippers by your bedside, bottoms up, -before retiring for the night. Should you neglect this, the cramps will -surely return. The gentleman who gave me this receipt, said he got it -from his mother. The old way, as laid down in the books, was to lay out -your shoes in the form of a cross, before retiring. - -In some country districts, a heavy growth of foliage is considered a -certain forerunner of coming sickness. The blossoming of trees, in -autumn, also forebodes an epidemic of sickness. - -It is a matter of common knowledge, that tooth charmers continue to -carry on a more or less lucrative trade in the country towns. "What -did she do to you?" was asked of a countryman who had just paid a -visit to one of these cunning women, at the urgent solicitation of a -friend. "Do?" was the bewildered answer, "why, she didn't do nothing -at all, but just said over something to herself, and the pain was all -gone in a minute." This person, like a great many others, had a rooted -aversion to having a tooth "hauled," as he expressed it, and would have -suffered untold tortures from an aching tooth, rather than have gone -to a regular practitioner. One woman, in particular, whom I have in -mind, enjoys a wide reputation in the neighborhood where she practises -her healing art. She simply mutters some incantation, or spell, and -_presto_! the most excruciating pain is conjured away; so 'tis said. - -There is a very old belief touching the virtue of a halter, that -has done service in hanging a criminal, to charm away the headache. -Probably other powers are attributed to this barbarous instrument of -death, for it is said to be a fact, that the negroes of the southern -States will pay a great price for a piece of the hangman's noose, to be -kept in the house, as a charm. - -The madstone is claimed to be a certain remedy for the bite of rabid -dogs, snake bites and the like. The wonderful cures effected by one of -these magic stones, owned by a lady living in Mississippi (references -being given to quite a number of well-known people, who had either -tested the remarkable properties of this particular stone, or who had -personal knowledge of the facts), went the rounds of the newspapers -some years ago. Upon being applied to the wound or bite, the stone -adhered to it until the virus was absorbed. It then fell off, and after -being well cleaned, was again applied until it failed to hold. When -this took place, the patient was considered out of danger. With this -stone it was claimed that the bite of a mad dog could be cured at any -time before hydrophobia had set in. - -A similar case is reported from Virginia, with details that leave no -doubt of the honesty of the principals concerned. - -This was the famous Upperville madstone, which has been in the hands -of the Fred family for over one hundred and fifty years. As its name -indicates, the peculiar property of this stone is its apparent appetite -for the virus to be found in the wound made by the bite of any venomous -animal. This is the owner's story: - -"The stone was brought to Virginia in 1740 by Joshua Fred, who was a -well-to-do farmer in Warwickshire, England, and became an important -landowner in Fauquier County. By his wish his descendants had clung to -this stone as a priceless heirloom, and I am proud to say that their -use of it has always reflected credit upon the good, old-fashioned -hospitality and kindliness characteristic of Virginians. It was well -known all over the country that anybody might go to the Fred farm with -any unfortunate who had been bitten by a dog, and enjoy a certain -cure without any cost. For a hundred years none of the Freds would -permit any one who was cured in this way by the madstone to pay a -farthing, even for board or lodging or horse feed. In later years the -vicissitudes of peace and war having somewhat affected the fortunes of -various members of the family, it became the practice to allow visitors -who came to use the madstone to pay what they pleased for their -entertainment and for the care of their teams. Beyond this, however, no -charge whatever was made for scores of most remarkable cures. - -"A journal was kept by the various members of the family who had charge -of the madstone, in which was entered the name and age of every person -on whom it was used, and the character of the wound treated. The -entries in this book, made in the quaint handwriting of member after -member of the family, the most of whom have long since turned to dust -in their graves, are most interesting. - -"While the stone was in my possession I had occasion several times to -use it upon persons who were brought to me in great agony of mind over -wounds they had received from the bite of rabid dogs. The last case -occurred just a few days before the sale of the stone. A young boy was -brought to my house late at night, who had been bitten on the wrist. -The wound was an ugly one, and the father was in great distress of -mind for fear hydrophobia would set in. I placed the stone on the boy's -wrist at about ten o'clock and went to bed. The father stayed up and -took care of the boy. At two o'clock in the morning, he said, the stone -let go. The boy was then sound asleep. The father placed the stone, -as I had told him to do, in a glass of milk, on which, when I saw it -in the morning, there was a thick green scum. This seemed to be the -usual result in all such cases. The stone was never known to let go -until it had extracted all the poison, and, on being placed in a glass -of warm water or milk, discharged a greenish liquid. The stone itself -is perhaps an inch long by three-quarters wide, and is of a velvety, -grayish brown color. Years ago it was accidentally broken in two, and -the jeweller who placed a gold band around it to hold it together has -told me that the inside was a little darker than the outside and was -arranged in concentric layers."[14] - -As an antidote against the bite of a dog, you must procure some of the -hair of the dog that has bitten you. This has passed into a proverb -among habitual topers, with particular reference to taking another -"nip." - -There is also a more or less current belief, better grounded perhaps -than many others of a like nature, that a dog which has bitten a -person should not be killed until unmistakable symptoms of rabies have -appeared. - -Who does not remember the "blue-glass craze" of some fifteen years -ago, which spread like wildfire over the land, and as suddenly died -out? Whole communities went blue-glass mad. It was enough for some one -to have advanced the theory that the cerulean rays were a cure-all, -for everybody to accept it with as much confidence as if it had been -one of the demonstrated facts of science. Dealers in blue-glass were -about the only ones to benefit by the craze which infallibly suggests -its own moral, namely, that credulity has not wholly disappeared. Is -this doubted when hardly a day goes by in which some miraculous cure -is not heralded abroad by the newspapers? Sometimes it is performed -merely by the laying on of hands; and most often without the aid of -medicines. Indeed, within a few years, there has sprung up a new school -of healing, numbering its tens of thousands proselytes, which not only -sets all the best established principles and traditions of the old -schools at defiance, but also literally "throws physic to the dogs." - -The practice of dipping in the healing waters of the ocean as a -cure-all, or preventive of disease for the coming year, formerly -prevailed on the Maine coast, particularly at Old Orchard Beach and in -the immediate neighborhood, to a very great extent. In its nature and -inception the practice certainly more nearly approached the character -of those annual pilgrimages made to the famous shrines of the Old -World than anything which has come to my notice. Not to mince words, -it proceeded from the same superstitious idea, just how originating -no one can say. So, every year, on the anniversary of St. John the -Baptist's day, a curious assemblage of country-folk, for miles around, -moved by a common impulse, wended their way to the nearest beaches, -there to dip in the briny waters, believed to be invested with especial -healing powers on this day only, like the bargains advertised to draw -custom, and thereby be freed from all the ills which flesh is heir to. -On that sacramental day of days, one saw a long string of nondescript -wagons, loaded with old and young, moving along the sandy roads leading -down from their inland homes to the salt sea. Even the school children -thought that they, too, must dip, in imitation of their elders. For -some unknown reason, the day, which not only had the sanction of long -custom but also is hallowed by such venerated traditions, was given up -for the 26th, which is quite like any other day of the year. - -As all superstitious folk are generally the last to admit that they -are so, so in this instance the followers of this singular custom in -general either maintain a discreet silence on the subject, or refuse -to say more than that they go to the beach to bathe, on a fixed day, -and at no other time, because other folks do so. The custom undoubtedly -arose from a firm belief in the miraculous power of the waters to heal -the sick, make the weak strong and the lame to walk--on that day only. -That it is a most healthful one few will deny, and as cleanliness is -said to be next to godliness, an annual dip at Old Orchard is, at -least, one step toward the more spiritual condition. - -But it would be a mistake to suppose this singular custom to be an -article of religious faith. It simply illustrates the mental and moral -stamina of the period in which it flourished. For if founded in faith -alone, there is strong probability that it might have survived the -ridicule to which it has mostly, if not quite, succumbed. - -Whether it be merely a coincidence or not, it is fact that June 26th -is also the anniversary of the festival of St. Anne, to whose shrine -annual pilgrimages are made by the faithful in the northern parts of -the United States and in Canada for purposes quite similar to those -which once attracted a host of bathers to the Maine beaches, with the -difference that the Canadian shrine can show many visible tokens of its -marvellous curative powers, to be seen of all men. A visitor to the -little church of St. Anne, de Beaupre, remarks that "by far the most -conspicuous feature of the place was a towering trophy of crutches and -canes raised within the altar rail. These were of all sizes and shapes. -Two fresh additions rested against the rail, where they had been left -by their recovered owners." - -Apparently authentic accounts of miracles, performed at this venerated -shrine, appear from time to time in the Canadian newspapers. One of -these relates, as a matter of news, that "a young girl named Marie -Levesque, who had only walked with difficulty during the last two -years, with the aid of crutches, was radically cured. The second case -was that of a young Irish lad, who, on returning from the church to -the boat which was to take him to Quebec, suddenly threw away his -crutch, exclaiming to one of his companions as he did so, 'Oh! I forgot -to leave my crutch in the church.' 'But you will want it again,' was -the reply. 'No, not at all: I have no longer any use for it.' And with -that, he began walking about the deck, to all appearance as well as -ever." - -In addition to these cases, which come to us through reputable sources, -the _Quebec Gazette_ records the following: "A man named Renaud, who -accompanied the party from St. James' parish on Saturday, and who for -three years has had one side of his body completely paralyzed, was able -on Sunday to walk out of church leaning on the arm of his brother. A -farmer named Moulin, from Laprairie, who has been deaf for five years, -fell on the floor apparently senseless, just as the officiating priest -was pronouncing the benediction. He declared that when the priest -raised his hands he could feel a touch upon his ear, and at the same -moment, hearing the low tones of the Holy Father, fainted away from -excess of joy. He is said to have been in perfect possession of his -sense of hearing on his return home. Another man, who had lost his -sight through an attack of typhoid fever a year and a half ago, states -that immediately after crossing himself with the holy water he was well -able to see all that was going on. His name is Bruneau, and he is a -Lavaltrie farmer." - -The following cure for the croup was communicated to me by a very -respectable farmer now deceased. After talking of various remedies for -this dreaded scourge to young children, my informant observed that he -knew a sure cure for it. Said he: "Take a live chicken, cut it open and -take out the gizzard. Throw that into a basin of cold water and let it -stay there. I know, for I've seen it tried; but the chicken must be -alive after the operation." - -Of a like nature was the advice given to a poor country woman who was -dying of consumption, by one of those female charlatans who have so -legitimately replaced the fearsome witch doctors of the past. The -patient was told that if she would swallow a live frog daily it would -cure her. Poor creature! she had half the boys in the village catching -frogs for her, and kept them in a tub in the cellar, where they could -be handy. The treatment proved too heroic. She died. - -It is a fact that touching for the King's Evil has been practised -in New England as late as 1815, perhaps even later. By far the most -remarkable instance of the possession of this power that has been -recorded upon what seems like incontrovertible evidence, is that of -Lieutenant William Robbe of Peterborough, New Hampshire.[15] One -feature of his treatment, which no doubt served to draw many clients -to him, was the practice of giving to each afflicted person a piece -of silver. In fact, so many applied that the lieutenant was seriously -interrupted in his legitimate occupations. - -A Doctor Young, who in the account referred to is described as having -been an eminent practitioner for more than forty years in the town, is -said to have declared that infants afflicted with scrofulous diseases, -tumors and the like, too obstinate to yield to medical aid, did -unquestionably receive almost immediate relief from the healing hand of -Lieutenant Robbe. - -The wonderful healer continued to practise his semi-miraculous -treatment until he was no longer able to raise his hands, but even -then, so eager were the applicants, many of whom came from a distance, -not to be disappointed, that the feeble hands were lifted for him to -the sufferer's head. - -In "Supernaturalism in New England," Mr. Whittier speaks of one Austin, -a New Hampshire Quaker, who practised mental healing in his day. Those -who were unable to visit him were treated by letter. In truth, there is -no new thing under the sun. - - - - -[Illustration] - -VII - -OF FATE IN JEWELS - - -What are the supposed attributes of certain precious stones but another -form of superstition? According to the popular lore on this subject, -each gem has its peculiar virtue or virtues, with which the credulous -owner becomes forthwith invested. Authorities differ so much, however, -in regard to this mystical language that there cannot be said to be -any settled standard of meaning. If, therefore, we refer only to such -precious stones as have some superstition attached to them, we shall do -all that comes within the range of our present purpose. - -In "A Lover's Complaint," Shakespeare sets forth, as understood in his -day, "Each stone's dear nature, worth, and quality." - -We accept, therefore, without reserve, as a starting point his _dictum_ -that-- - - "paled pearls, and rubies set in blood" - -indicated two extremes of passion, namely, shrinking modesty and bold -desire. He then goes on to describe the other symbolical gems thus:-- - - "The diamond, why, 'twas beautiful and hard, - Whereto his invised properties did tend; - The deep green emerald in whose fresh regard - Weak sights their sickly radiance do amend; - The heaven-hued sapphire and the opal blend - With objects manifold." - -Those interested in the sale of gems have observed that most precious -stones have their brief day of popular favor, regardless of any -superstition connected with them. In other words, the popularity -of certain jewels chiefly depends upon the public taste, for the -time being. And the demand, therefore, fluctuates according as the -particular stone is fashionable or unfashionable. - -It would require a volume to give the subject fair treatment, so -long is the list, and so abundant the material. Hardly a week goes -by, however, in which some reference to the good or evil influence -of this or that gem is not set forth in the public press, supported, -too, by such an array of circumstantial evidence as to give color and -authenticity to the story. The opal and the moonstone are the gems most -often figuring in these tales. By turns the opal has borne a good and -bad reputation; by turns it has been as fashionable as its rare beauty -would seem of right to bespeak for it; and then again, owing to popular -caprice or the sudden revival of some antiquated superstition, it has -laid neglected in the jewellers' drawer for years. - -The notion that the opal brings misfortune to the wearer is -comparatively modern. Formerly, it was believed to possess great -virtues as a talisman. In Ben Jonson's "New Inn," Ferret says:-- - - "No fern seed in my pocket; nor an opal - Wrapt in bay-leaf, in my left fist, to charm - Thine eyes withal." - -In Jonson's and Shakespeare's time, the opal was justly prized for -its quick changes of color, exhibiting, as it does, almost all of the -hues of the rainbow in rapid succession. It is quaintly described in -an account of that day as "a precious stone of divers colors, wherein -appeareth the fiery shining of the carbuncle, the purple color of the -amethyst, and the green shew of the emerald, very strangely mixed." - -Quite naturally, dealers in gems have no patience with those -superstitions unfavorable to the sale of their wares, although they -show no particular dislike toward those of a different nature, if their -sales are thereby increased. So when a customer asks for something -synonymous with good luck, the obliging dealer usually offers him a -moonstone, and after a little chaffering the buyer departs, possessed -of a duly authenticated amulet, or charm. Agate is another stone -having, by common fame, the property of insuring long life, health, -and prosperity to the wearer. The present Emperor of Germany is said, -on good authority, to affect this stone. Now the ancient magician, who -sold charms and love-philters to love-lorn swains, did no more than -this, with the difference that he pretended to endow his nostrums with -their supernatural powers by his own arts. - -Indeed, the very word "charms" so innocently given to a bunch of -jingling objects dangling from the belt or watch-chain, is itself -indicative of a superstitious origin, to say the least. - -As an example of the change wrought by the tyrant fashion in the -supposed attributes of certain gems, the ruby was formerly considered -the correct thing for an engagement ring, but that stone is now almost -wholly superseded by the diamond for that highly interesting event; -though the ruby continues to be regarded as a valuable gift upon -other occasions, and if of a fine quality, is much more costly than a -diamond. Very possibly the familiar Biblical phrase, "for her price -is far above rubies," spoken of the truly virtuous woman in Proverbs, -may have suggested the peculiar fitness of this gem in a promise of -marriage. If so, we can only regret the substitution. - -Perhaps the most plausible explanation given for the present popularity -of the diamond--it must, however, be a _solitaire_ of the purest -water--is that, as the diamond is the most durable substance known, so -it is hoped that it may symbolize an enduring affection between the -contracting parties. Though in itself nothing but a symbol or sign, the -gift of an engagement ring is considered as evidence in a breach of -promise case, thus showing that the very ancient custom in use among -princes or noble personages of sending their signet-rings with messages -of high importance, to give credit to the messenger, lives on in the -spirit, if not in the actual letter, of the law, as applied to the -sacred pledge of fidelity to one's promise to wed. - -A very conscientious dealer once told me that if a young gentleman were -to ask his advice concerning an engagement ring, he should dissuade -the amorous youth from buying an emerald, on the ground that the young -lady might regard it as a bad omen, possibly on account of its color -which, as we have pointed out, is or was considered unlucky; but more -probably, we think, because the emerald is said to be the chosen symbol -of the "green-eyed monster," jealousy. An old jeweller readily confirms -the opinion that many young ladies would be unwilling to accept an -emerald at such a time; while still another adds that he never knew of -one being given as an engagement gift. The novelist Black makes use of -this superstition in his "Three Feathers," as something universally -admitted, "for how," he naively asks, "could any two people marry who -had engaged themselves with an emerald ring?" - -Doctors disagree, however, as to the actual properties of this -beautiful gem, as well as in other things, for we find one authority -saying that the emerald "discovers false witnesses, and ensures -happiness in love and domestic felicity." - -In justice, therefore, to this much abused stone, we must declare that -our research thus far fails to confirm the odium sought to be cast -upon it, in any particular; on the contrary, so far as we can find, -not one jot or tittle of superstition attached to the emerald so long -ago as when New England was settled. A learned writer of that time -describes it as "a precious stone, the greenest of all other; for which -it is very comfortable to the sight," and he adds, on the authority -of Albertus Magnus, that "some affirm them (emeralds) to be taken out -of Griffon's nests, who do keep this stone with great sedulity. It -is found by experience that if the emerald be good, it inclineth the -wearer to chastity." - -It is therefore highly improbable, to say the least, that this article -of superstitious faith came over in the _Mayflower_. - -The turquoise has long proved a puzzle to the most experienced dealers -in gems, on account of its singular property of changing color without -apparent cause. Ordinarily it is of a beautiful blue--about the color -of a robin's egg. This color sometimes changes to green, and again, -though unfrequently, to white. In relating his experience with this -stone to me, an old friend described his surprise as well as alarm at -having a very valuable specimen, which was "beautifully blue" when put -in the workman's hands to be set with diamonds, returned to him covered -with a white film, nearly concealing the original blue color. As the -turquoise itself was worth several hundred dollars, it really was a -rather serious matter. The erratic stone, however, was put away in the -safe. When the purchaser called for it on the following day, on its -being taken out of the box, it was found that the true color had partly -returned, one half of the stone being blue, and the other half white. -"And we even fancied" continued my informant, "that we could see the -color change as we watched it." - -This change of color in the turquoise gave rise to the belief that its -hue varied with the health of the wearer, it being blue when the wearer -was in good health and green or white in the case of ill-health, or as -put into verse:-- - - "A compassionate turquoise that doth tell - By looking pale the wearer is not well." - -As coral is again becoming quite fashionable, we recall that it was -once considered a sure protection against the Evil Eye, and is so -still in Italy, where the little coral charm shaped like the hand, -with the thumb and middle finger closed (a charm against witchcraft), -comes from. It is also a more or less general belief that coral or red -beads, worn round the neck, prevent nose-bleeding, on the principle, we -suppose, that like cures like. - -The carnelian, shaped in the form of a heart, was formerly much worn as -an amulet. - -The amethyst, as its Greek name implies, is considered an antidote to -intoxication. It has now a formidable rival in the gold-cure. There is -an anecdote of the first Napoleon which affirms that he took a valuable -amethyst from the crown in the coffin of Charlemagne. The stolen stone -later came into the possession of Napoleon III., who wore it as a seal -on his watch-guard. In his will he bequeathed the stone to his son as -a talisman. On making her escape from Paris, in 1870, the empress took -the historical stone with her. - -The carbuncle was formerly believed to guard the wearer against the -danger of breathing infectious air. It was also said to have the -property of shining in the dark, like a burning coal, thus investing -it, in the minds of the credulous, with supernatural power. This, be -it said, was an Old-World superstition, which is referred to in some -verses written by John Chalkhill (1649), describing a witch's cave:-- - - "Through which the carbuncle and diamond shine - Not set by art, but there by Nature sown - At the world's birth so star-like bright they shone." - -But strangely enough, our forefathers found a similar belief existing -among the Indians of New England, and what is more, these ignorant -savages were able to convince the more civilized Englishmen of the -truth of it. - -According to these Indians, on the loftiest mountain peak, suspended -from a crag overhanging a dismal lake, there was an enormous carbuncle, -which many declared they had seen blazing in the night like a live -coal; while by day it emitted blinding rays of light, dazzling to look -upon. No mortal could hope to lay hands upon this gem, which was under -the special guardianship of the genius of the mountain. - -So ran the legend. It is believed to have inspired the earliest -recorded journeys to the great White Mountains of New Hampshire, by -adventurous whites. A reference to Sullivan's "History of Maine" shows -that the story found full credence among certain of the ignorant -settlers even in his day; and Hawthorne's grewsome tale of "The Great -Carbuncle" is founded upon this weird legend, so vividly recalling -those of the Harz and the Caucasus. - -It is noticeable that, in the matter of superstitions concerning gems, -it is not the common people, but the wealthy who alone are able to -gratify their desires. Everybody has heard of the Rothschild pearls. -The Princess Louise of Lorne wears a ring of jet, as a preserver of -health. M. Zola carries a bit of coral as a talisman against all sorts -of perils by land or water; all of which goes to show that neither -wealth nor station is exempt from those secret influences which so -readily affect the poor and lowly. - - - - -[Illustration] - -VIII - -OF LOVE AND MARRIAGE - - "Now for good lucke, cast an old shoe after me."--_Heywood._ - - -The folk-lore of marriage is probably the most interesting feature of -the general subject, to the tender sex, at least, with whom indeed none -other, in the nature of things, could begin to hold so important a -place. In consequence, all favorable or unfavorable omens are carefully -treasured up in the memory, quite as much pains being taken to guard -against evil prognostics as to propitiate good fortune. - -Quite naturally, the young unmarried woman is possessed of a burning -desire to find out who her future husband is to be, what he is like, -whether he is rich or poor, short or tall, and if they twain are to -be happy in the married state or not. To this end the oracle is duly -consulted, either openly or secretly, after the best approved methods. - -One of the best known modes of divination is this: If, fortunately, you -find the pretty little lady-bird bug on your clothes, throw it up in -the air, repeating at the same time the invocation:-- - - "Fly away east and fly away west, - Show me where lives the one I love best." - -All charms of this nature are supposed to possess peculiar power if -tried on St. Valentine's day, Christmas Eve, or Hallowe'en. Curious -it is that on a day dedicated to All the Saints in the Calendar, evil -spirits, fairies, and the like are supposed to be holding a sort of -magic revel unchecked, or that they should be thought to be better -disposed to gratify the desires of inquisitive mortals on this day than -on another. At any rate, calendar or no calendar, St. Matrimony is the -patron saint of Hallowe'en. - -Among the many methods of divination employed, a favorite one was -to drop melted lead into a bowl of water, though any other sort of -vessel would do as well, and whatever form the lead might take would -signify the occupation of your future husband. Or to go out of doors -in the dark, with a ball of yarn, and unwind it until some one should -begin winding it at the unwound end. At this trial, the expected often -happened, as the enamored swain would seldom fail to be on the watch -for his sweetheart to appear. So also the white of an egg dropped in -water, and set in the sun, was supposed to take on the form of some -object, such as a ship under full sail, indicating that your husband -would be a sailor. - -Burning the nuts is perhaps the most popular mode of trying conclusions -with fate, as it certainly is the most mirth-provoking. On this -interesting occasion, lads and lassies arrange themselves in a circle -before a blazing wood fire, on the hearth. Nuts are produced. Each -person, after naming his or her nut, puts it upon the glowing coals, -with the unspoken invocation:-- - - "If he loves me, pop and fly, - If he hates me, live and die." - -The poet Gay turns this somewhat differently, but it is not our affair -to reconcile conflicting presages. He sings:-- - - "Two hazel nuts I threw into the flame, - And to each nut I gave a sweetheart's name, - This with the loudest bounce me sore amazed, - That in a flame of brightest color blazed: - As blazed the nut so may the passions grow, - For 'twas thy nut that did so brightly glow." - -A still different rendering is given by Burns. According to him each -questioner of the charm names two nuts, one for himself, one for his -sweetheart, presumably the mode practised in Scotland in his time:-- - - "Jean slips in twa wi' tentie e'e; - Wha 'twas, she wadna tell; - But this is Jock, an' this is me, - She says in to hersel': - He blaz'd o'er her, an' she owre him, - As they wad never mair part; - 'Till, fuff! he started up the lum, - An' Jean had e'en a sair heart - To see't that night." - -Popping corn sometimes takes the place of burning the nuts. The spoken -invocation is then "Pit, put, turn inside out!" - -There are also several methods of performing this act of divination -with apples. The one most practised in New England is this: First pare -an apple. If you succeed in removing the peel all in one piece, throw -it over your head, and should the charm work well, the peel will so -fall as to form the first letter of your future husband's name, or as -Gay poetically puts it:-- - - "I pare this pippin round and round again, - My shepherd's name to nourish on the plain: - I fling th' unbroken paring o'er my head, - Upon the grass a perfect L is read." - -When sleeping in a strange bed for the first time, name the four posts -for some of your male friends. The post that you first look at, upon -waking in the morning, bears the name of the one whom you will marry. -Care is usually taken to fall asleep on the right side of the bed. - -By walking down the cellar stairs backward, holding a mirror over -your head as you go, the face of the person whom you will marry will -presently appear in the mirror. - -The oracle of the daisy flower, so effectively made use of in Goethe's -"Faust," is of great antiquity, and is perhaps more often consulted by -blushing maidens than any other. When plucking away the snowy petals, -the fair questioner of fate should murmur low to herself the cabalistic -formula:-- - - "'He loves me, loves me not,' she said, - Bending low her dainty head - O'er the daisy's mystic spell. - 'He loves me, loves me not, he loves,' - She murmurs 'mid the golden groves - Of the corn-fields on the fell." - -As the last leaf falls, so goes the prophecy. - -If you put a four-leaved clover in your shoe before going out for a -walk, you will presently meet the one you are to marry. The same charm -is used to bring back an absent or wayward lover. Consequently there is -much looking for this bashful little plant at all of our matrimonial -resorts. The rhymed version runs in this wise:-- - - "A clover, a clover of two, - Put it in your right shoe; - The first young man you meet, - In field, street, or lane, - You'll get him, or one of his name." - -In some localities a bean-pod or a pea-pod put over the door acts as a -charm to bring the favored of fortune to lift the latch and walk in. -This is old. The poet Gay has it in rhyme thus:-- - - "As peascods once I pluck'd, I chanc'd to see - One that was closely filled with three times three; - Which when I cropp'd, I safely home convey'd, - And o'er the door the spell in secret laid:-- - The latch moved up, when who should first come in, - But in his proper person--Lubberkin!" - -Another mode of divination runs in this way: On going to bed the girl -eats two spoonfuls of salt. The salt causes her to dream that she is -dying of thirst; and whoever the young man may be that brings her a cup -of water, in her dream, is the one she will marry.[16] - -If after seeing a white horse you count a hundred, the first gentleman -you meet will be your future husband. - -So far as appearances go, at least, the custom of brewing love-philters -or love-potions, to forestall or force the natural inclinations, has -completely died out. From this source the astrologers, magicians, and -fortune-tellers of former times reaped a rich harvest. Many instances -of the use of this old custom occur in literature. Josselyn naively -relates the only one we can call to mind, coming near home to us. He -says: "I once took notice of a wanton woman's compounding the solid -roots of this plant (Satyrion) with wine, for an amorous cup, which -wrought the desired effect." - -Would that the hideous and barbarous custom of administering poisons -to gratify the cravings of hatred or the pangs of jealousy had become -equally obsolete! But alas! the "green-eyed monster" is "with us yet." - -It is a fact, well known to students of folk-lore, that those customs -or usages relating to marriage are not only among the oldest, but -have become too firmly intrenched in the popular mind to be easily -dislodged. Thus, the ceremony of Throwing the Shoe continues to hold -an honored place among marriage customs. In another place, it has been -referred to as sometimes employed in the common concerns of life. But -in the case of marriage, a somewhat deeper significance is attached to -it. It is but fair to say, however, that authorities differ widely as -to its origin, some referring it to the testimony of the Scriptures -(Deut. xxv.), where the loosing of a shoe from a man's foot by the -woman he has refused to marry, is made an act of solemn renunciation -in the presence of the elders. Thereafter, the obdurate one was to be -held up to the public scorn, and his house pointed at as "the house of -him that hath his shoe loosed." So again we read in Ruth of a man who -plucked off his shoe, and gave it to his kinsman, as an evidence to -the act of renunciation, touching the redeeming of land, and this, we -are there told, was then the manner in Israel. Hence, it has been very -plausibly suggested, especially by Mr. Thrupp, in "Notes and Queries," -that throwing an old shoe after a bride was at first a symbol of -renunciation of authority over her, by her father or guardian. However -that may be, it is certain that no marriage ceremony is considered -complete to-day without it, although there is danger of its being -brought into ridicule, and so into disrepute, by such nonsensical acts -as tying on old shoes to the bride's trunks, or to some part of her -carriage, as I have seen done here in New England, the original design -of the custom being lost sight of in the too evident purpose to make -the wedded pair as conspicuous as possible, and their start on life's -journey an occasion for the outbreak of ill-timed buffoonery. - -In "Primitive Marriage" Mr. McLennan thinks that throwing the shoe may -be a relic of the ancient custom, still kept up among certain Hindu -tribes, where the bride, either in fact or in appearance only, is -forcibly carried off by the groom and his friends, who are, in turn, -themselves hotly pursued and in good earnest pelted with all manner of -missiles, stones included, by the bride's kinsfolk and tribesmen. This -sham assault usually ends in the pursuers giving up the chase,--as, -indeed, was intended beforehand,--and is probably a survival of the -earliest of marriage customs, namely, that of stealing the bride, -as recorded in ancient history. But this explanation is chiefly -interesting as fixing the _status_ of woman in those primitive days, -when she was more like the slave of man than his equal. That relation -is now so far reversed, however, that it is now the man who has become -the humble suitor and declared servitor of womankind. So, at least, he -insists. Now and then, though quite rarely, the old barbaric custom is -recalled by the forcible abduction of some unwilling victim by her -rejected lover; but only in a few instances, so far as we know, has -a bride been kidnapped and held to ransom, in this country, before -being restored to her friends. The American Indians are known to have -practised this custom of stealing the bride, quite after the manner -described by Mr. McLennan as in vogue among the Hindus. - -Even royalty itself must bow to the behests of old custom, as well as -common mortals. When the Duke and Duchess of Albany left Windsor, while -they were still within the private grounds, the bridegroom's three -brothers and Princess Louise and Princess Beatrice ran across a part of -the lawn enclosed within a bend of the drive, each armed with a number -of old shoes, with which they pelted the "happy pair." The Duke of -Albany returned the fire from the carriage with the ammunition supplied -him by his friendly assailants, causing the heartiest laughter by a -well-directed shot at the Duke of Edinburgh. - -It was always reckoned a good omen if the sun shone on a couple when -coming out of church. Hence the saying: "Happy is the bride that the -sun shines on." - -Every one knows, if not from experience, at least by observation, what -self-consciousness dwells in a newly married pair--what pains they -take to appear like old married folk, and what awkward attempts they -make to assume the _degage_ air of ordinary travellers. As touching -this feature of the subject, I one day saw a carriage driven past me, -at which every one stopped to look, and stare in a way to attract -general attention, and after looking, gave a broad grin. The reason -was apparent. On the back of the carriage was hung a large placard, -labelled "Just Married." Several old shoes, besides some long streamers -of cheap cotton cloth, were dangling from the trunks behind. When the -carriage, thus decorated, drew up at the station, followed by a hooting -crowd of street urchins, it was greeted with roars of laughter by the -throng of idlers in waiting, while the unconscious cause of it all -first learned on alighting what a sensation they had so unwittingly -created. - -The custom of throwing rice over a bride, as an emblem of fruitfulness, -also is very old, though in England it was originally wheat that was -cast upon her head. The poet Herrick says to the bride, - - "While some repeat - Your praise and bless you sprinkling you with wheat." - -All the sentiment of this pretty and very significant custom is in -danger of being killed by excess on the part of the performers, who so -often overdo the matter as to render themselves supremely ridiculous, -and the bride very uncomfortable, to say the least. To scatter rice, as -if one were sowing it by the acre, when a handful would amply fulfil -all the requirements of the custom, is something as if an officiating -clergyman should pour a pailful of water on an infant's head, instead -of sprinkling it, at a baptism. - -It is not surprising that now and then cases arise where a newly -married couple try to escape from the shower prepared for them by -giving these over-zealous assistants the slip. A chase then begins -corresponding somewhat to that just related of ignorant barbarians; and -woe to the runaways if the pursuers should catch up with them! - -The custom of furnishing bride-cake at a wedding is said to be a token -of the firm union between man and wife, just as from immemorial time -breaking bread has been held to have a symbolic meaning. The custom is -centuries old. At first it was only a cake of wheat or barley. What it -is composed of now, no man can undertake to say. That it is conducive -to dreaming, or more probably to nightmare, few, we think, will care to -dispute. - -We learn that it was a former custom to cut the bride-cake into little -squares or dice, small enough to be passed through the wedding-ring. -A slice drawn through the ring thrice (some have it nine times), and -afterward put under the pillow, will make an unmarried man or woman -dream of his or her future wife or husband. This is another of those -old customs of which trial is so often made "just for the fun of the -thing, you know!" - -The _Charivari_, or mock serenade, is another custom still much -affected in many places, notably so in our rural districts, though to -our own mind "more honored in the breach than in the observance." The -averred object is to make "night hideous," and is usually completely -successful. In the wee sma' hours, while sleeping peacefully in their -beds, the newly wedded pair are suddenly awakened by a most infernal -din under their windows, caused by the blowing of tin horns, the -thumping of tin pans, ringing of cowbells, and like instruments of -torture. To get rid of his tormentors the bridegroom is expected to -hold an impromptu reception, or, in other words, "to treat the crowd," -which is more often the real object of this silly affair, to which we -fail to discover one redeeming feature. - -The custom of wearing the wedding ring upon the left hand originated, -so we are told, in the common belief that the left hand lay nearest to -the heart. - -As is well known, the Puritans tried to abolish the use of the ring in -marriage. According to Butler in "Hudibras":-- - - "Others were for abolishing - That tool of matrimony--a ring - With which the unsatisfied bridegroom - Is married only to a thumb." - -The times have indeed changed since in the early days of New England -no Puritan maiden would have been married with a ring for worlds. -When Edward Winslow was cited before the Lord's Commissioners of -Plantations, upon the complaint of Thomas Morton, he was asked among -other things about the marriage customs practised in the colony. He -answered frankly that the ceremony was performed by magistrates. -Morton, his accuser, declares that the people of New England held the -use of a ring in marriage to be "a relic of popery, a diabolical circle -for the Devell to daunce in." - -The first marriage in Plymouth Colony, that of the same Edward Winslow -to Susannah White, was performed by a magistrate, as being a civil -rather than a religious contract. From this time to 1680, marriages -were solemnized by a magistrate, or by persons specially appointed for -that purpose, who were restricted to particular towns or districts. -Governor Hutchinson, in his history of Massachusetts, says he believes -"there was no instance of marriage by a clergyman during their first -charter." If a minister happened to be present, he was desired to -pray. It is difficult to assign the reason why clergymen were excluded -from performing this ceremony. In new settlements, it must have been -solemnized by persons not always the most proper for that purpose, -considering of what importance it is to society, that a sense of this -ordinance, at least in some degree sacred, should be maintained and -preserved. - -The first marriage solemnized at Guilford, Connecticut, took place -in the minister's house. It is not learned whether he performed the -ceremony or not. The marriage feast consisted wholly of pork and beans. -As time wore on, marriages became occasions of much more ceremony than -they were fifty or sixty years ago. During the Revolutionary period, -and even later, the bride was visited daily for four successive weeks. - -A gold wedding-ring is accounted a sure cure for sties. - -If the youngest daughter of the family should be married before -her older sisters, they must all dance at her wedding in their -stockings-feet, if they wish to have husbands. - -It is strongly enjoined upon a bride, when being dressed for the -marriage ceremony, to wear,-- - - "Something old and something new, - Something borrowed and something blue, - And a four-leaved clover in her shoe." - -June is now at the height of popularity as the month of all months to -get married in, for no other reason that I can discover, than that it -is the month of roses, when beauty and plenty pervade the fair face of -nature. - -It is now the custom for the bride, if she is married at home, or on -returning there from church, to throw away her bouquet for the guests -to scramble for. The one getting the most flowers will be married -first, and so on. - -Giving wedding presents was not practised before the present -(nineteenth) century. - -One old marriage custom, though long since obsolete, may be -briefly alluded to here, not only for its singularity, but for its -suggestiveness touching a state of mind that would admit of such -tomfoolery. This was the so-called Smock-marriage, in which the bride -went through the ceremony standing only in her shift, thereby declaring -herself to be possessed of no more than she came into the world with. -On being duly recorded, the act exempted the husband from liability -for his wife's debts previously contracted. If she went through this -ridiculous performance in the presence of witnesses, and in the "King's -Highway," that is to say, the lawfully laid out public road, she -thereby cleared herself from any old indebtedness. As amazing as it may -seem, several such cases are recorded in New England, the formalities -observed differing somewhat in different localities. - -It is considered unlucky to get married before breakfast. - - "If you marry in Lent, - You will live to repent." - -May is considered an unlucky month to be married in. - - "Marry in May, - And you'll rue the day." - -To remove an engagement or wedding ring from the finger is also a bad -omen.[17] To lose either of them, or to have them broken on the finger, -also denotes misfortune. - -It is extremely unlucky for either the bride or groom to meet a -funeral when on their way to be married. - -It is an unlucky omen for the church clock to strike during the -performance of a marriage ceremony, as it is said to portend the death -of one of the contracting parties before the year is out. - - - - -[Illustration] - -IX - -OF EVIL OMENS - - "A woman's story at a winter's fire."--_Macbeth._ - - -We come now to those things considered as distinctly unlucky, and to be -avoided accordingly. How common is the peevish exclamation of "That's -just my luck!" Spilling the salt, picking up a pin with the point -toward you, crossing a knife and fork, or giving any one a knife or -other sharp instrument, are all deemed of sinister import now, as of -old. - -One must not kill a toad, which, though - - "ugly and venomous, - Wears yet a precious jewel in its head," - -or a grasshopper, possibly by reason of the veneration in which this -voracious little insect was held by the Athenians, whose favorite -symbol it was, although it is now outlawed, and a price set upon its -head as a pest, to be ruthlessly exterminated, by some of the Western -states. So, too, with the warning not to kill a spider, against which, -nevertheless, the housemaid's broom wages relentless war. If, on the -contrary, you do not kill the first snake seen in the spring, bad -luck will follow you all the year round. Be it ever so badly bruised, -however, the belief holds fast in the country that the reptile will not -die until sunset, or with the expiring day, - - "That like a wounded snake drags its slow length along." - -The peacock's feathers were supposed to be unlucky, from an old -tradition associating its gaudy colors with certain capital sins, -which these colors were held to symbolize. Nevertheless, this tall -and haughty feather has been much the fashion of late years as an -effective mantel ornament, showing how reckless some people can be -regarding the prophecy of evil. - -Getting married before breakfast is considered unlucky. It would be -quite as logical to say this of any other time of the day; hence -unlucky to get married at all, though it is not believed all married -people will cordially subscribe to this heresy. - -May is an unlucky month to be married in. So, also - - "If you marry in Lent - You will live to repent." - -Old Burton says, "Marriage and hanging go by destiny; matches are made -in heaven." - -Getting out of bed on the wrong side bodes ill luck for the rest of the -day. A common remark to a person showing ill-humor is, "I guess you got -out of the wrong side of the bed this morning." It has in fact become a -proverb. - -To begin dressing yourself by putting the stocking on the left foot -first would be trifling with fortune. I know a man who would not do -so on any account. It is also unlucky to put a right foot into a -left-hand shoe, or _vice versa_. These are necessary corollaries of the -"right-foot-foremost" superstition. - -According to that merry gentleman, Samuel Butler:-- - - "Augustus having b'oversight - Put on his left shoe for his right, - Had like to have been slain that day, - By soldiers mutining for their pay." - -Cutting the finger nails on the Sabbath is a bad omen. There is a set -of rhymed rules for the doing of even this trifling act. Apparently, -the Chinese know the omen, as they do not cut the nails at all. - -Of the harmless dragon-fly or devil's darning-needle, country girls say -that if one flies in your face it will sew up your eyes. - -In some localities I have heard it said that if two persons walking -together should be parted by a post, a tree, or a person, in their -path, something unlucky will surely result-- - - "Unless they straightway mutter, - 'Bread and butter, bread and butter.'" - -Low, the pirate, would not let his crew work on the Sabbath, not so -much, we suppose, from conscientious scruples, as for fear it would -bring him bad luck. The rest of the Decalogue did not seem to bother -him in the least. - -After having once started on an errand or a journey, it is unlucky -to go back, even if you have forgotten something of importance. -All persons afflicted with frequent lapses of memory should govern -themselves accordingly. This belief seems clearly grounded upon the -dreadful fate of Lot's wife. - -It was always held unlucky to break a piece of crockery, as a second -and a third piece shortly will be broken also. This is closely -associated with the belief respecting the number three, elsewhere -referred to. In New England it is commonly said that if you should -break something on Monday, bad luck will follow you all the rest of the -week. - -To stumble in going upstairs is also unlucky; perhaps to stumble at any -other time. Friar Lawrence says, in "Romeo and Juliet,"-- - - "They stumble that run fast." - -Two persons washing their hands in the same basin or in the same water -will quarrel unless the sign of the cross be made in the water. - -It is considered unlucky to take off a ring that was the gift of a -deceased person, an engagement, or a marriage ring. - -The term "hoodoo," almost unknown in the Northern United States a few -years ago, has gradually worked its way into the vernacular, until -it is in almost everybody's mouth. It is, perhaps, most lavishly -employed during the base-ball season, as everyone knows who reads -the newspapers, to describe something that has cast a spell upon the -players, so bringing about defeat. The term is then "hoodooing." The -hoodoo may be anything particularly ugly or repulsive seen on the way -to the game--a deformed old woman, a one-legged man, a lame horse, -or a blind beggar, for instance. Most players are said to give full -credit to the power of the hoodoo to bewitch them. Indeed, the term has -been quite widely taken up as the synonym for bad luck, or, rather, -the cause of it, even by the business world. If this is not, to all -intents, a belief in witchcraft, it certainly comes very close to what -passed for witchcraft two hundred years ago. - -This vagrant and ill-favored word "hoodoo" is, again, a corruption of -the voudoo of the ignorant blacks of the South, with whom, in fact, it -stands, as some say, for witchcraft, pure and simple, or, perhaps, the -Black Art, as practised in Africa; while others pronounce it to be a -religious rite only. More than this, the voudoo also is a mystic order, -into whose unholy mysteries the neophyte is inducted with much barbaric -ceremony. In the case of a white woman so initiated in Louisiana, -this consisted in the elect chanting a weird incantation, while the -novitiate, clad only in her shift, danced within a charmed circle -formed of beef bones and skeletons, toads' feet and spiders, with -camphor and kerosene oil sprinkled about it. All those present join in -the dance to the accompaniment of tom-toms and other rude instruments, -until physical exhaustion compels the dancers to stop. - -In its main features we find a certain resemblance between the voudoo -dance of the ignorant blacks and the ghost dance practised by some of -the wild Indians of the West, and by means of which they are wrought up -to the highest pitch of frenzy, so preparing the way for an outbreak, -such as occurred a few years ago with most lamentable results. - -While the sporting fraternity is notoriously addicted to the hoodoo -superstition, yet it is by no means confined to them alone. Not long -ago a statement went the rounds of the newspapers to the effect that -the superstitious wife of a certain well-known millionnaire had refused -to go on board of their palatial yacht because one of the crew had -been fatally injured by falling down a hatchway. In plain English, the -accident had hoodooed the ship. - -But the power of the hoodoo would seem not to be limited to human -beings, according to this statement, taken from the columns of a -reputable newspaper: "A meadow at Biddeford, Maine, is known as the -hoodoo lawn, for the reason that rain follows every time it is mowed, -before the grass can be cured. It is said that this has occurred for -twenty-five consecutive years." - -To break the spell of the hoodoo, it is as essential to have a mascot, -over which the malign influence can have no power, as to have an -antidote against poisons. Therefore most ball-players carry a mascot -with them. Sometimes it is a goat, or a dog, or again a black sheep, -that is gravely led thrice around the field before the play begins. - -It is not learned whether or not the different kinds of mascot have -ever been pitted against each other. Perhaps the effect would be -not unlike that described by Cicero in his treatise on divination. -He says there that Cato one day met a friend who seemed in a very -troubled frame of mind. On being asked what was the matter, the friend -replied: "Oh! my friend, I fear everything. This morning when I -awoke, I saw, shall I say it? a mouse gnawing my shoe." "Well," said -Cato, reassuringly, "calm yourself. The prodigy really would become -frightful if the shoe had been gnawing the mouse." - -Naval ships often carry a goat, or some other animal, as a mascot, in -deference to Jack's well-known belief in its peculiar efficacy; and in -naval parades the goat usually gravely marches in the procession, and -comes in for his share of the applause. Simple-minded Jack christens -his favorite gun after some favorite prize-fighter. And why not? since -the great Nelson, himself, carried a horseshoe nailed to his mast-head, -and since even some of our college foot-ball teams bring their mascots -upon the field just like other folk. - -The war with Spain could hardly fail of bringing to light some -notable examples of the superstitions of sailors concerning mascots. -The destruction of Admiral Cervera's fleet, off Santiago de Cuba, -by the American fleet, under command of Admiral Sampson, is freshly -remembered. One of the destroyed Spanish ships was named the _Colon_. -Twenty-six days after the battle, the tug-boat _Right Arm_ of the -Merritt-Chapman Wrecking Company visited the _Colon_, for the purpose -of raising the Spanish cruiser. The only living thing aboard was a -black and white cat. For nearly a month it had been the sole crew and -commander of the wrecked battle-ship. - -The crew of the _Right Arm_ took possession of the cat, adopted it as a -mascot and named it Tomas Cervera. But Cervera brought ill luck. When -Lieutenant Hobson raised the _Maria Teresa_ the rescued cat was placed -aboard her, to be brought to America. - -The _Maria Teresa_ never reached these shores, and when the vessel -grounded off the Bahamas the cat fell into the hands of the natives. He -was rescued the second time, and at last reached America, a passenger -on the United States repair ship _Vulcan_. - -It will be admitted that this cat did not belie that article of the -popular belief, which ascribes nine lives to his tribe. But poor Tomas -Cervera did not long survive the various hardships and perils to which -he had been subjected. He gave up the ghost shortly after all these -were happily ended. - -Speaking of ships and sailors, it is well known to all seafaring folk -that the reputation of a ship for being lucky, or unlucky, is all -important. And this reputation may begin at the very moment when she -leaves the stocks. Should she, unfortunately, stick on the ways, in -launching, a bad name is pretty sure to follow her during the remainder -of her career, and to be an important factor in her ability to ship a -crew. Even the practice of christening a ship with a bottle of wine is -neither more nor less than a survival of pagan superstition by which -the favor of the gods was invoked. - -The superstition regarding thirteen persons at the table also boasts a -remarkable vitality. Just when or how it originated is uncertain. It -has been surmised, however, that the Paschal Supper was the beginning -of this notion, for there were thirteen persons present then, and -what followed is not likely to be forgotten. It has, perhaps, been -the subject of greater ridicule than any other popular delusion, -probably from the fact of its touching convivial man in his most tender -part,--to wit, the stomach. In London some of the literary and other -lights even went to the trouble of forming a Thirteen Club for the -avowed purpose of breaking down the senseless notion that if thirteen -persons were to sit down to dinner together, one of them would die -within a twelvemonth. The motto of this club should have been, "All men -must die, therefore all men should dine." If the club's proceedings -showed no lack of invention and mother wit, we still should very much -doubt their efficacy toward achieving the avowed end and aim of the -club's existence, for surely such extravagances could have no other -effect than to raise a laugh. We reproduce an account of the affair for -the reader's amusement:-- - -"At the dinner of the club, above mentioned, there were thirteen -tables, a similar number of guests being seated at each table. The -serving of the meal was announced by the "shivering" of a mirror -placed on an easel, a ceremony performed by two cross-eyed waiters! -Having put on green neckties and placed a miniature skeleton in their -button-holes, the guests passed under a ladder into the dining room. -The tables were lighted with small lamps placed on plaster skulls; -skeletons were suspended from the candles, which were thirteen in -number on each table; the knives were crossed; the salt-stands were -in the shape of coffins, with headstones bearing the inscription, 'In -memory of many senseless superstitions, killed by the London Thirteen -Club, 1894.' The salt-spoons were shaped like a grave-digger's spade. - -"After the dinner was fairly started, the chairman asked the company -to spill salt with him, and later on he invited them to break -looking-glasses with him, all of which having been done, he presented -the chairmen of the different tables with a knife each, on condition -that nothing was given for them in return. An undertaker, clothed in a -variety costume, which would have done credit to a first-class music -hall, was then introduced 'to take orders,' but he was quickly shuffled -out of the room." - -These unbelieving jesters, who so audaciously defied the fatal omen, -did not seem to realize that a popular superstition is not to be -laughed out of existence in so summary a manner. Equally futile was the -attempt to put it to a scientific test, as, if tried by that means, it -appears that, of any group of thirteen persons, the chances are about -equal that one will die within the year. Therefore, the attempt to -break the spell by inviting a greater number of persons could have the -effect only of increasing, rather than diminishing, the probability of -the event so much dreaded.[18] - -It has been stated in the newspapers, from which I take it, that there -are many hotels in New York which contain no room numbered thirteen. -There are other hotels and office buildings wherein the rooms that are -so numbered cannot be leased except once in a great while. In large -hotels one custom is to letter the first thirteen rooms and call them -parlors. Another custom is simply to skip the unpopular number, and -call the thirteenth room "No. 14." A man who had just rented an office -which bears the objectionable number, in a down-town building, asserts -that though he has no superstitious dread of the number, he finds that -others will not transact business with him in that office. I also find -it stated as a fact that the new monster passenger steamship _Oceanic_ -has no cabin or seat at the table numbered thirteen. - -It was again instanced as a deathblow to a certain candidate's hopes -of a reelection to the United States Senate, that repeated ballotings -showed him to be just thirteen votes short of the required number. -From the same state, Pennsylvania, comes this highly significant -announcement in regard to a base-ball team: "Because the team left here -on a very rainy day, and on a train that pulled out from track No. -13, the superstitious local fans (_sic_) are in a sad state of mind -to-night, regarding the coincidence as an evil omen." Again the small -number of six, in the graduating class of a certain high school, was -gravely referred to as owing to there having originally been thirteen -in that class. - -At the same time there are exceptions which, however, the superstitious -may claim only go to prove the rule. For instance the Thirteen Colonies -did not prove so very unlucky a venture. - -As regards the superstitions of actors and actresses, the following -anecdote, though not new, probably as truly reflects the state of -mind existing among the profession to-day as it did when the incident -happened to which it refers. When the celebrated Madame Rachel -returned from Egypt in 1857, she asked Arsene Houssaye, within a year -thereafter, the question: "Do you recollect the dinner we had at the -house of Victor Hugo? There were thirteen of us,--Hugo and his wife, -you and your wife, Rebecca and I, Girardin and his wife, Gerard de -Nerval, Pradier, Alfred de Musset, Perree, of the _Siecle_, and the -Count d'Orsay, thirteen in all. Well, where are they to-day? Victor -Hugo and his wife are in Jersey, your wife is dead, Madame de Girardin -is dead, my sister Rebecca is dead, De Nerval, Pradier, Alfred de -Musset, and d'Orsay are dead. I say no more. There remain but Girardin -and you. Adieu, my friends. Never laugh at thirteen at a table." - -The world, however, especially that part of it represented by diners -out, goes on believing in the evil augury just the same. A dinner party -is recalled at which two of the invited guests were given seats at a -side table on account of that terrible bugbear "thirteen at table." -When mentioning the circumstance to a friend, he was reminded of an -occasion where an additional guest had been summoned in haste to break -the direful spell. - -Unquestionably, the newspapers might do much toward suppressing the -spread of superstition by refusing to print such accounts as this, -taken from a Boston daily paper, as probably nothing is read by a -certain class with greater avidity. It says "that engine No. 13 of -the Boston, Hoosac Tunnel & Western Railroad has, within three weeks, -killed no less than three men. The railway hands fear the locomotive, -and say that its number is unlucky." It is true, we understand, that -the standard number of a wrecked locomotive, that has been in a fatal -accident, is not unfrequently changed in deference to this feeling on -the part of the engine-men. - -It is held to be unlucky to pass underneath a ladder, an act which -indeed might be dangerous to life or limb should the ladder fall. But -it is even harder to understand the philosophy of the _dictum_ that to -meet a squinting woman denotes ill luck. - -The bird was formerly accounted an unlucky symbol, perhaps from -the fact that good fortune, like riches, is apt to take to itself -wings. The hooting of an owl, the croaking of a raven, the cry of a -whip-poor-will, and even the sight of a solitary magpie were always -associated with malignant influences or evil presages. Poe's raven -furnishes the theme for one of his best-known poems. And the swan was -long believed to sing her own death-song. Be that as it may, the fact -is well remembered that a ring, bearing the device of a bird upon it, -or any other object having the image of the feathered kind, was not -considered a suitable gift to a woman. That article of superstition, -like some others that could be mentioned, has vanished before the -resistless command of fashion, so completely indeed, that birds of -every known clime and plumage have since been considered the really -proper adornment for woman's headgear. - -There is, however, an odd superstition connected with the magpie, an -instance of which is found related by Lord Roberts, in "Forty-one Years -in India." We could not do better than give it in his own words: "On -the 15th July Major Cavagnari, who had been selected as the envoy and -plenipotentiary to the Amir of Kabul, arrived in Kuram. I, with some -fifty officers who were anxious to do honor to the envoy and see the -country beyond Kuram, marched with Cavagnari to within five miles of -the crest of Shutargardan pass, where we encamped, and my staff and -I dined that evening with the mission. After dinner I was asked to -propose the health of Cavagnari and those with him, but somehow I did -not feel equal to the task: I was so thoroughly depressed, and my -mind filled with such gloomy forebodings as to the fate of these fine -fellows, that I could not utter a word. - -"Early next morning the Sirdar, who had been deputed by the Amir to -receive the mission, came into camp, and soon we all started for the -top of the pass.... As we ascended, curiously enough, we came across -a solitary magpie, which I should not have noticed had not Cavagnari -pointed it out and begged me not to mention the fact of his having seen -it to his wife, as she would be sure to consider it an unlucky omen. - -"On descending to the (Afghan) camp, we were invited to partake of -dinner, served in the Oriental fashion on a carpet spread on the -ground. Everything was done most lavishly and gracefully. Nevertheless, -I could not feel happy as to the prospects of the mission, and my heart -sank as I wished Cavagnari good-by. When we had proceeded a few yards -in our different directions, we both turned round, retraced our steps, -shook hands once more, and parted forever." - -The sequel is told in the succeeding chapter. "Between one and two -o'clock on the morning of the 5th of September, I was awakened by my -wife telling me that a telegraph man had been wandering around the -house and calling for some time, but that no one had answered him. The -telegram told me that my worst fears had been only too fully realized." -Cavagnari and his party had been massacred by the Afghans. - -Again, there are certain things which may not be given to a male friend -(young, unmarried ministers excepted), such, for example, as a pair of -slippers, because the recipient will be sure, metaphorically speaking, -to walk away from the giver in them. - -There is also current in some parts of New England a belief that it is -unlucky to get one's life insured, or to make one's will, under the -delusion that doing either of these things will tend to shorten one's -life. This feeling comes of nothing less than a ridiculous fear of -facing even the remote probability involved in the act; and is of a -piece with the studied avoidance of the subject of death, or willing -allusion in any way, shape, or form to the dead, even of one's own kith -and kin, quite like that singular belief held by the Indians which -forbade any allusion to the dead whatsoever. - -Spilling the salt, as an omen of coming misfortune, is one of the -most widespread, as well as one of the most deeply rooted, of popular -delusions. It is said to be universal all over Asia, is found in -some parts of Africa, and is quite prevalent in Europe and America -to-day. Vain to deny it, the unhappy delinquent who is so awkward as -to spill salt at the table instantly finds all eyes turned upon him. -Worse still, the antidote once practised of flinging three pinches of -salt over the left shoulder is no longer admissible in good society. -Instantly every one present mentally recalls the omen. His host may -politely try to laugh it off, but all the same, a visible impression of -something unpleasant remains. - -Something was said in another place about the potency of the number -"three" to effect a charm either for good or for evil. Firemen and -railroad men are more or less given to the belief that if one fire or -one accident occurs, it will inevitably be followed by two more fires -or accidents. A headline in a Boston newspaper, now before me, reads, -"The same old three fires in succession," and then hypocritically -exclaims, "How the superstitious point to the recurrence!" - -The superstition about railroad accidents is by no means confined -to the trainmen, or other employees, but to some extent, at least, -is shared even by the higher officials, who point to their past -experiences in the management of these iron highways as fully -establishing, to their minds, certain conditions. One of these -gentlemen once said to me, after a bad accident on his road, "It is not -so much this one particular accident that we dread, as what is coming -after it." I also knew of a conductor who asked for a leave of absence -immediately after the occurrence of a shocking wreck on the line. - -Although periodically confronted with a long series of most momentous -events in the world's history that have happened on that day of the -week, the superstition in regard to Friday, as being an unlucky day, -has so far withstood every assault. It will not down. Whether it exists -to so great an extent as formerly may be questioned, but that it does -exist in full force, more especially among sailors, is certain. We have -it on good authority that this self-tormenting delusion grew out of the -fact that the Saviour was crucified on Friday, ever after stigmatized -as "hangman's day," and, therefore, set apart for the execution of -criminals, now as before time. - -It is not wholly improbable that some share of the odium resting upon -Friday may arise from the fact of its being so regularly observed as a -day of fasting, or at least _maigre_, by some religionists. - -In some old diaries are found entries like the following: "A vessel -lost going out of Portland against the advice of all; all on board, -twenty-seven, drowned." It is easy to understand how such an event -would leave an indelible impression upon the minds of a whole -generation. - -Notwithstanding the belief is openly scouted from the pulpit, and is -even boldly defied by a few unbelieving sea-captains, the fact remains -that there are very many sober-minded persons who could not be induced -on any account to begin a journey on Friday. There are others who will -not embark in any new enterprise, or begin a new piece of work on that -day; and still others who even go so far as to say that you must not -cut your nails on Friday. A man could be named who could not be tempted -to close a bargain on any other day of the week than Thursday. It is a -further fact, which all connected with operating railroads will readily -confirm, that Friday is always the day of least travel on their lines. -This circumstance alone seems conclusive as to the state of popular -feeling. Apparently a brand has been set upon the sixth day of the week -for all time. - -Numerous instances might be given to show that men of the strongest -intellect are as fallible in this respect as men of the lowest; but one -such will suffice. Lord Byron once refused to be introduced to a lady -because it was Friday; and on this same ill-starred day he would never -pay a visit. - - "See the moon through the glass, - You'll have trouble while it lasts." - -This warning couplet is still a household word in many parts of New -England. It has been observed that even those sceptical persons who -profess to put no faith in it whatever, generally take good care to -keep on the right side of the window-glass. As bearing upon this branch -of the general subject an incident is related by a reputable authority, -as having occurred at a party given, not many years ago, by a gentleman -holding a considerable station in life. It is therefore repeated here -word for word. - -"In the midst of a social chat, at the close of the day, a footman -rather briskly entered the drawing-room, and walked up to the back -of the chair of the hostess and whispered something in her ear; she -immediately closed her eyes and gave her hand to the man, and was -forthwith led by him from the room. The guests were rather astonished, -but after the lapse of a few moments the lady returned and resumed her -seat. - -"Her sudden departure having occasioned a rather uneasy pause in the -conversation, she felt it necessary to state the cause of her singular -conduct. She then told us that the New Harvest Moon had just made -its appearance, and it was her custom to give a crown to any of her -servants that first brought the information to her when that event -occurred; and that the reason why she closed her eyes, and was led by -the footman out of the room to the open air, was that she might avoid -the evil consequences that were sure to happen to her if she obtained -her first glimpse of the Harvest Moon through a pane of glass. This -lady was highly accomplished, and possessed remarkable sagacity upon -most subjects, but was nevertheless a slave to a groundless fear of -evil befalling her if she saw this particular New Moon in any other way -than in the open air." - -It is passing strange, however, that the gentle and beautiful Queen -of the Night should have been mostly associated with a malignant -influence. Juliet pleads with Romeo not to swear by the "inconstant -moon." The traditional witch gathers her simples only by the light of -the moon, as at no other time do they possess the same virtues to work -miraculous cures or potent spells. It is also an old belief that if a -person goes to sleep with the moonbeams shining full upon his uncovered -face, he will be moonstruck, or become an idiot. I well remember to -have seen the officer of the watch awaken a number of sleepers, who -had taken refuge on the deck of a vessel from the stifling heat below. -Milton speaks of - - "Moping melancholy - And moonstruck madness," - -which has become incorporated with the language under the significant -nickname of "luny." - -When we consider the already long list of material or immaterial -objects threatening us with dire misfortune, the wonder is how poor -humanity should have survived so many dangers ever impending over it -like the sword of Damocles. Really, we seem "walking between life and -death." The catalogue is, however, by no means exhausted. A picture, -particularly if it be a family portrait, falling down from the wall, -bodes a death in the family, or at least some great misfortune. This -incident, somewhat startling, it must be confessed, to weak nerves, has -been quite effectively used in fiction. - -Notwithstanding it is the national color of Ireland, green has the -name of being unlucky. More strange still is the statement made by -Mr. Parnell's biographer that the famous Irish leader could not bear -the sight of green. Queer notion this, in a son of the Emerald Isle! -Mr. Barry O'Brien goes on to say that Parnell "would not pass another -person on the stairs; was horror-stricken to find himself sitting with -three lighted candles; that the fall of a picture in a room made him -dejected for the entire afternoon; and that he would have nothing to -say to an important bill, drawn up by a colleague, because it happened -to contain thirteen clauses." It is added that the sight of green -banners, at the political meetings he addressed, often unnerved him. - -The singular actions of a pet cat have recently gained wide currency -and wider comment in connection with the ill-fated steamer Portland, -which went down with all on board, during the great gale of November -27, 1898. Not a soul was left to tell the tale. It was remarked that -puss came off the boat before the regular hour for sailing had arrived, -and though she had never before been known to miss a trip, she could -not be called or coaxed back on board, and the doomed craft therefore -sailed without her. As a matter of fact, it has been noticed that in -times of great disasters, like that just related, superstition that -has lain dormant for a time, always shows a new vigor, and finds a new -reason for being. - -In the course of my rambles along the New England coast, I found many -people holding to beliefs of one sort or another, who hotly resented -the mere suggestion that they were superstitious. The quaint and -curious delusions which have become ingrained in their lives from -generation to generation, they do not regard in that light. For one -thing they believe that if a dead body should remain in the house over -Sunday, there will be another death in the family before the year is -out. - -The ticking of the death-watch, once believed to forebode the -approaching dissolution of some member of the family, so terrifying -to our fathers and mothers, is now, fortunately, seldom heard or -little regarded. While the superstition did prevail, there was nothing -so calculated to strike terror to the very marrow of the appalled -listeners as the noise of this harmless little beetle, only a quarter -of an inch long, tapping away in the decaying woodwork of an ancient -wainscot. - -There is no end of legendary matter concerning clocks. Sometimes -nervous people have been frightened half out of their wits at hearing -a clock that had stopped, suddenly strike the hour. Clocks have been -known to stop, too, at the exact hour when a death took place in the -house. But even more startling was an instance, lately vouched for by -reputable witnesses, of a clock, of the coffin pattern, of course, from -which the works had been removed, playing this same grewsome trick. -The first case might be accounted for, rationally, by some fault in -the mechanism, or some rusty spring suddenly set in motion; but all -theories necessarily fail with clocks without works. Admonitions or -warnings are often associated with clocks, as has been noticed in -connection with marriage customs. And the mystical relation between -time and eternity is often brought to mind by the stopping of the watch -in a drowned person's pocket, or the relation of some curious legend -like the following, without comment or qualification, in a reputable -newspaper:-- - -"There is a curious legend about the old clock, which is to be -superseded by a new one, at Washington, Pennsylvania. It is stated that -about twenty years ago a person was hung in the courtyard. The clock, -which had always tolled out the hour regularly, stopped at the hour -of two o'clock, being the hour at which the drop fell that sent the -unfortunate into eternity. Since that time, many aver, the clock has -never struck again." - -So, also, the howling of a dog, either by day or by night, under a sick -person's window, is to this day held by the weak-minded to portend the -death of that person. Some writers think they have traced this belief -to the symbolism of ancient mythology, where the dog stands for the -howling night-wind, on which the souls of the dead rode to the banks of -the Styx, but this hypothesis seems quite far-fetched. - -The winding-sheet in the candle is another self-tormenting belief of -evil portent, now happily gone out with the candle. - -Then again, to pass from this subject, a single case of nosebleed often -excites the liveliest fears on the part of nervous people, on account -of a very old belief that it was a sure omen of a death taking place in -the family. Not long ago the following choice morsel met my eye while -reading in a book: "Our steward has this moment lost a drop of blood, -which involuntarily fell from his pug nose. 'There,' said he, 'I have -lost my mother--a good friend.'" - -Breaking a looking-glass denotes that a death will take place in the -family within the year. This mode of self-torture is supposed to derive -its origin from the great use formerly made of mirrors by magicians -and other obsolete impostors in carrying on their mystical trade. -Astrologers also made use of the looking-glass in practising the art -of divination or foretelling events, probably by means of some such -cunning contrivances as are now employed with startling effects by our -own "wizards" and "necromancers." Quite naturally the innocent glass -itself came to be looked upon by the ignorant with superstitious awe, -and the breaking of one as the sure forerunner of calamity. We do not -think, however, that this old superstition is by any means as widely -prevalent as it once was. - -It is pleasing to chronicle the total disappearance of that terrible -bugaboo, the Evil Eye, which so long kept our ancestors in a state -of nervous apprehension fearful to contemplate. It is now only -perpetuated by a saying. So with that other equally repulsive belief -in the efficacy of touching a dead body, as a means of convicting a -suspected murderer by the fresh bleeding from the wound. Both of these -superstitions were fully accepted by the first settlers of New England, -and perhaps also in other of the colonies. John Winthrop relates a very -harrowing case of infanticide, in which this monstrous test was put in -practice to convict the erring mother.[19] The superstition is said to -be of German origin. - -The following very curious piece of superstition is found in Colonel -May's Journal of his trip to the Ohio, early in the century. It seems -that a man had fallen into the river and was drowned before help could -reach him. The following method was employed to recover the body. First -they took the shirt which the drowned man had last worn, put a whole -loaf of good, new bread, weighing four pounds, into it, and tied it -up carefully into a bundle. The bundle was then taken in a boat to the -place where the man had fallen in, a line and tackle attached to it, -and then set afloat on the water. The rescuers said that the bread -would float until it should come directly over the body, when it would -sink and thus discover the location of the dead man. Unfortunately, the -line was not long enough, so that when the loaf filled with water and -sank, the tackle disappeared with it. - - - - -[Illustration] - -X - -OF HAUNTED HOUSES, PERSONS, AND PLACES - - "Three times all in the dead of night, - A bell was heard to ring."--_Tickell._ - - -Haunted houses have proved an insuperable stumbling-block to those -wiseacres who no sooner insist that superstition has died out than the -familiar headline in the daily paper, "A haunted house," stares them -full in the face. It is believed that many such houses stand tenantless -to-day because of the secret fear they inspire in the minds of the -timid or superstitious, who, quite naturally, shrink from living under -the same roof with disembodied spirits. It has already been noted that -M. Camille Flammarion is a firm believer in haunted houses. Here is -what he has to say upon that much debated subject:-- - -"There is no longer any room to doubt the fact that certain houses are -haunted. - -"I began the scientific studies of these questions on November 15, -1861, and I have continued it ever since. I have received more than -four thousand letters upon these questions from the learned men of -every land, and I am glad to be able to say that some of the most -interesting letters come from America." - -For every haunted house there must, of course, be an invisible intruder -who comes only in the small hours, when the effects of its unwelcome -presence would, of course, be most terrifying to weak nerves. But -it is to be remarked that we hear nothing nowadays of the old-time, -hair-raising, blood-curdling ghost whose coming forebode something -terrible about to happen, or who had some awful revelation to make. -That type of ghost has passed away. The modern ghost never makes set -speeches in a sepulchral voice or leaves a palpable smell of brimstone -behind. It comes rather in a spirit of mischief-making, shown in such -petty annoyances as setting the house bells ringing, overturning -articles of furniture, twitching the bedclothes from off a sleeping -person in the coldest of cold nights, putting out the lights, or -making a horrible racket, first in one room, then in another, as if it -revelled in pure wantonness of purpose. In short, there is no limit to -the ingenious deviltries perpetrated by this nocturnal disturber of -domestic peace and quiet. - -After two or three sleepless nights, followed by days of quaking -apprehension, the occupants usually move out, declaring that they would -not live in the house if it were given to them. And so it stands vacant -indefinitely, shunned by all to whom its evil reputation has become -known, a visible monument of active superstition. - -That all these things have happened as lately as in this year of -grace (1900) is too well known to be denied. And as most people would -desire to shun publicity in such a matter, there are probably very many -cases that never reach the public eye at all. One such is reported of -a family at Charlestown, Massachusetts, being disturbed by strange -noises, as of some one pounding on the walls or floors at all hours of -the night. Even the police, when summoned, failed to lay hands on the -invisible tormentor, who, like the ghost in Hamlet, was here, there, -and nowhere in a jiffy. - -One of the most singular cases that have come to my knowledge, perhaps -because the unaccountable disturbances happened in the daytime, whereas -they habitually occur only in the night-time, when churchyards are -supposed to yawn, was that of a haunted schoolhouse. This was downright -bravado. If we do not err, in this case a bell was repeatedly rung -during the regular sessions, by no visible agency, to the amazement -of both teachers and scholars. After a vain search for the cause, the -schoolhouse was shut up, and so remained for a considerable time, a -speechless but tangible witness to the general belief that the devil -was at the bottom of it all. - -Not many generations ago, when ghosts were perhaps more numerous than -at present, there were professional exorcists who could be hired to -clear the premises of ghosts or no pay; but this is now a lost art. As -Shakespeare says:-- - - "No exorciser harm thee! - Nor no witchcraft charm thee! - Ghost unlaid forbear thee!" - -While upon this interesting subject it may be instructive to know what -our ancestors sometimes suffered from similar visitations. We take the -following extract from Ben Franklin's _New England Courant_, of 1726:-- - -"They write from Plymouth, that an extraordinary event has lately -happened in that neighborhood, in which, some say, the Devil and the -man of the house are very much to blame. The man it seems, would now -and then in a frolic call upon the Devil to come down the chimney; -and some little time after the last invitation, the goodwife's pudding -turned black in the boiling, which she attributed to the Devil's -descending the chimney, and getting into the pot upon her husband's -repeated wishes for him. Great numbers of people have been to view the -pudding, and to inquire into the circumstances; and most of them agree -that so sudden a change must be produced by a preternatural power. -However, 'tis thought it will have this good effect upon the man, that -he will no more be so free with the Devil in his cups, lest his Satanic -Majesty should again unluckily tumble into the pot." - -But houses are by no means the only things subject to these astounding -visitations. Dark and secluded ponds, thick swamps, and barren -hillsides often bear that unsavory reputation to-day, it may be from -association with some weird tale or legend, or mayhap because such -places seldom fail, of themselves, to produce a certain effect upon -an active imagination. Let any such person, who has ever been lost -in some thick forest, recall his sensations upon first making the -unwelcome discovery. The solemn old woods then seem all alive with-- - - "The dim and shadowy armies of our unquiet dreams, - Their footsteps brush the dewy fern and print the shaded streams." - -As regards haunted ships, the following incident, taken down as -literally as I could transcribe it at the time, from the lips of a -seafaring friend, speaks for itself:-- - -"'Twas some dozen year ago, may be less, may be more--beats all how -time travels when you've turned the half-century post--I was aboard -of the old _Paul Pry_--queer name, now, warn't it? We was a lyin' in -Havana harbor, all snug, about a mile from shore. Well, the mate he -was on watch. In port, you know, ships always keep slack watch. Our'n -was light, nothin' in her, hold all swep' out clean that very day, -'cause we was to begin takin' in sugar and molasses in the mornin'. All -hands were off in the ship's boat visitin' another ship--all 'cept the -steward. The old man, he was ashore. - -"I'm slow, but you just hold your hosses. All to once't the mate -thought he heern somebody walkin' back'ards and for'ards plumb down in -the hold. He walked to the open hatch and called down, 'Who's there?' -No answer. He listened. No sound. Thinkin' it might possibly have -been the steward getting his firewood, the mate went for'ard to the -steward's room to see if it was so, and found him fast asleep in his -bunk. That settled it. Nobody aboard but them two. - -"The mate he said nothin' to nobody, but got a lantern and slipped -quietly down the ladder into the hold, determined to find out who was -skylarkin' there, for I tell you the mate he was a game one all the -time, and don't you b'leeve he warn't! - -"He hunted high and low, from the fore-peak to the run, but not a soul -was to be seen anywhere; but just as soon as he stood still he would -hear those myster'ous footsteps go trampin' fore and aft, fore and aft, -as plain as day, right by him, where he stood. - -"By this time the mate had got pretty well worked up, I want you to -know, so he just gin one kinder skeered look around him, and then -hustled himself off up that ladder just a leetle mite faster than he -came down, wonderin' to himself what it all could mean, and thinkin' -all sorts of things to once't. - -"Then he went and woke up the steward, and both on 'em went and -listened fust at one hatch, then at t'other, and sure enough that -consarned tramp, tramp, tramp, was a-goin' on agin just the same as -before. Then they pulled on the hatches. But, Lor' bless you, it warn't -no use. Them critters down below had the bulge on 'em every time. - -"The mate he said nothin' 'cept to the old man, who looked as black as -a new-painted deadeye with the lanyards unrove when he heerd it; but -somehow it leaked out among the crew before we sailed, and one or two -ran away and laid low till the ship was clean out of the harbor. - -"It was gen'lly b'leeved fore and aft that them there footsteps was -a warnin'. Hows'ever, the thing quieted down some in a day or two, so -nothin' more was heerd of the walkin' match down below; but on the -third day out, I think it was, we was struck by one of them northers, -and in spite of all we could do we was drove ashore on a reef off the -Bermudys, where the _Paul Pry_ brought up all standin', and there she -left her old bones. The wreckers they came and took off the crew, and -fetched 'em all safe into Nassau. Now if that ship warn't haunted, I -miss my guess. You can't most always tell about them things, I know; -but ef it was skylarkin', all I've got to say is, it was a purty neat -job, and don't you forget it." - -There are also places, as well as houses, which have the reputation -of being haunted, sometimes through the commission of a horrible -crime in that particular locality, sometimes through the survival of -some obscure local tradition. It matters not. Once give the place a -bad name, and local tradition preserves the memory of it for many -generations. Every schoolboy is familiar with the weird legend of -Nix's Mate, a submerged island at the entrance to Boston Harbor, -where pirates were formerly hung in chains. Appledore Island, on the -coast of New Hampshire, once had the name of being haunted by the -uneasy ghost of one of Captain Kidd's piratical crew. The face of the -spectre was said by those who had seen it, or who thought they had -seen it, to be dreadful to behold, and the neck to bear the livid -mark of the hangman's noose. Once, no islander could be found hardy -enough to venture himself on Appledore after dark. Indeed, such places -of fearsome reputation are found all over New England. For example, -there is the shrieking woman of Marblehead, a remarkable spook, who at -certain intervals of time could be heard uttering the most heartrending -cries for mercy to her inhuman murderers. Then, again, there is the -legend of Harry Main, reputed pirate and wrecker, who, by means of -false lights, decoyed simple mariners to destruction on the shoals of -Ipswich Bar, to which for his many crimes the wretch was doomed to be -chained down to the fatal spot to which he had lured his unsuspecting -victims.[20] - -Quite naturally these legends mostly cluster about the seacoast, -but now and then one is found in the interior. One corner of the -town of Chester, New Hampshire, lifts into view an eminence known as -Rattlesnake Hill, one rocky side of which is pierced entirely through, -thus forming a cavern of great notoriety in all the country round. This -cavern is known as the Devil's Den, and many were the frightful stories -told around winter firesides of the demons who, of yore, haunted it, -and who, all unseen of mortal eyes, there held their midnight orgies -within the gloomy recesses of the mountain. - -There are two entrances to this cavern, both leading to an interior, -subterranean chamber, whose vaulted roof is thickly studded with -pear-shaped protuberances that are said to shine and sparkle when the -flame of a torch sheds a ruddy glow upon them. According to popular -tradition the path leading to the cavern was always kept open, summer -and winter. Many years ago the poet Whittier put the legend into -verse:-- - - "'Tis said that this cave is an evil place-- - The chosen haunt of a fallen race-- - That the midnight traveller oft hath seen - A red flame tremble its jaws between, - And lighten and quiver the boughs among, - Like the fiery play of a serpent's tongue: - That sounds of fear from its chambers swell-- - The ghostly gibber,--the fiendish yell; - That bodiless hands at the entrance wave-- - And hence they have named it the Demon's Cave." - -The persistent life of such local traditions as these fully attests to -the belief of former generations of men in the active agency of the -Evil One in human affairs. And not only this, but this omnipresent -devil has actually left his mark, legibly stamped, in so many places, -and his name in so many others, that to doubt his actual presence were -not only unreasonable but ungenerous. Even his footprints are found -here and there, yet strange to say, few represent a cloven foot. The -sonorous names, Devil's Pulpit and Devil's Cartway, are found within -a few miles of each other on the coast of Maine. Moreover, do we not -know from a perusal of the testimony given at the celebrated witchcraft -trials, that the arch-fiend had been both seen and spoken with _in -propria persona_? - -It used to be a not uncommon threat with quick-tempered people to -say that if their wishes or expectations were not gratified to their -liking, they would "haunt you" when they died. I myself have often -heard this expression used either in jest or in earnest; and when used -it never failed to leave a disagreeable impression on the listener. - -It is not a great many years ago since an account was telegraphed all -over the country, and duly appeared in the daily newspapers, of an -honest citizen, a resident of one of the largest towns in Pennsylvania, -whose wife "while yet in good health, frequently admonished her -friends that she did not wish her body to be buried in a certain -wet graveyard. She threatened to 'speak to them' if her wish was not -granted, and went so far as to tell them how she would haunt them by -coming back in ghostly form. The wife died, and her body was buried -in the graveyard she had disliked. Now, strange as it may appear, her -husband alleges that, since the funeral took place, she has appeared at -his bedside several times each week, always looking at him, and always -making motions with her bony hands, as a mark of her displeasure. -The husband says he is unable to sleep, and also that he is sure the -strange midnight visitor is none other than his wife. He declares that -whatever other people may think of it, he himself firmly believes that -he has brought the enmity of the spirit upon himself and children by -their refusal to grant the wife's last request. The children's beds -are also visited by her, as they say, and as a consequence the family -is kept in constant alarm. One of the nearest neighbors has also seen -the 'spook' several times, and corroborates the family in every -particular. The terrified husband relates the facts himself, and it is -the responsibility of the man that warrants publishing his story of the -appearance of the spook. He gives the account of the strange happenings -in a straightforward manner, which impresses a person with its truth, -and he further says it is not imagination, a dream, or an attack of -nightmare, but that the spook always comes when he is wide awake. The -women and children of the neighborhood are in great terror, and the -people hardly venture out of doors after dark." - -Upon the heels of this experience comes the following telegram to the -Associated Press, thus disseminating, through its thousand channels, -superstition broadcast:-- - - ["Copyright, 1899, by The Associated Press.] - - "LONDON, March 4, 1899. Another link in the chain of illfortune - which has followed the famous Newstead Abbey was forged this - week. It seems that a curse rests on the abbey, and that the - eldest has never succeeded to the estate. - - "Byron sold it to Col. Wildman in 1808, who died childless. The - trustees sold it to Webb, the famous sportsman, whose eldest - son died this week. Byron had the skull which was reported to - have belonged to the ghost that haunted the abbey, and he used - it as a punch bowl. Webb buried the skull, hoping to lay the - ghost." - -As related to the general subject, it is too well known that certain -persons to-day profess the power of conversing with disembodied -spirits, to need more than a passing reference to this particular form -of belief, which some hold to as firmly as to an article of religious -faith, while others consider it a delusion or worse. Forty odd years -ago spirit rappings convulsed society from one end of the country to -the other. Spiritual seances were vehemently denounced from the pulpit, -and while fully reported also by the press, the mediums were charged -with being rank impostors, humbugs, and the like. Alleged exposure -followed exposure. Yet somehow the belief, such as it is, has contrived -to outlive ridicule, calumny, and persecution--the common lot of every -new and startling departure from the older beliefs--until to-day it has -acquired not only the right to live, but also that of calm discussion. - -Dr. Samuel Johnson once asked the pertinent question, "If moral evil -be consistent with the government of the Deity, why may not physical -evil be consistent with it?" The solemn declaration that the sins of -the fathers shall be visited upon the children unto the third and -fourth generations, sometimes recurs to us with startling force, more -especially when the awful anathema is brought so near home to us as it -is by the following veracious incident.[21] - -There is a certain well-known locality in Essex County, Massachusetts, -which has long borne the evil reputation of being haunted, owing to -the tradition that a cruel murder was committed there. According to -some of the old people from whom I had the story, strange sights and -sounds have been both seen and heard near the spot where the crime took -place. For instance, a child would be heard crying out most pitifully, -though nothing could be seen. One belated horseman positively declared -that when passing this accursed place he had seen a child's coffin -moving along the road, as he moved; and that the spectre followed him -almost into the town of Ipswich. It is said to be a fact that many of -the old folks were afraid to pass this place of dread after dark. - -As to the origin of the story, with its highly dramatic features, -accounts differ somewhat; but considerable pains have been taken to -arrive at the truth, since it is a matter of general notoriety in -the neighborhood referred to, although the actual facts may have no -relation whatever to the "skeleton in the closet" disclosed by the -story itself. - -The story goes back to colonial times, and chiefly has to do with the -two daughters of a family in good social standing. These young women -had for a serving-maid a negro slave, who was treated with marked -severity by her haughty mistresses. - -In time, the slave woman bore a child. Angered at the coming of the -luckless little waif, the cruel sisters resolved to put it out of the -way. One day the mother found it hid away in a hogshead of flax, in the -garret. Failing in this attempt, the sisters then took the child, stuck -pins into its veins, and tried to smother it between two feather beds. -When the infant was thought to be quite dead, the body was thrown into -a brook, under a nearby bridge which spanned it. Life, however, was -not quite extinct, so that the child's cries were heard by a passing -traveller, who rescued it, but it soon after bled to death from the -wounds inflicted upon it. - -Half crazed by this dastardly act, the forlorn mother then and there -called down the curse of God upon the inhuman sisters and their sons -to all future generations. - -This is substantially the legend. Now for the sequel. It is said to -be a fact that all the sons of the daughters of that family, and no -others, have ever since been afflicted with a strange and incurable -malady, the principal feature being a tendency to profuse bleeding -from the most trifling cuts or wounds. After some days have elapsed, a -mere scratch will begin to bleed copiously and so continue until the -sufferer has lost so much blood that in some cases it is said he has -bled to death. From this circumstance the persons so afflicted are -known by the name of "bleeders." - -Mr. Felt asserts that the family in which this singular hemorrhage -first appeared brought it with them from England; which, if true, would -summarily dispose of the legend; but his statement does not accord with -the story as told on the spot. It is here related as it was told to me. - -Reference was earlier made to the old-time, respectable ghost of our -fathers, who like the ghost in Hamlet, made his unwelcome appearance -only to subserve the ends of justice. This practical generation -hardly realizes, we think, how lately the ghost was accepted in that -character, or how trustworthy his evidence was deemed by the purveyors -of public intelligence. On turning over the files of the _New England -Weekly Journal_ of December 1, 1729, we came across the following ghost -story, here reproduced _verbatim_:-- - -"Last week, one belonging to Ipswich came to Boston and related that -some time since he was at Canso in Nova Scotia, and that on a certain -day there appeared to him an apparition in blood and wounds, and told -him that at such a time and place, mentioning both, he was barbarously -murdered by one, who was at Rhode Island, and desired him to go to the -said person and charge him with the said murder, and prosecute him -therefor, naming several circumstances relating to the murder; and -that since his arrival from Canso to Ipswich the said apparition had -appeared to him again, and urged him immediately to prosecute the said -affair. The abovesaid person having related the matter was advised and -encouraged to go to Rhode Island and engage therein, and he accordingly -set out for that place on Thursday last."[22] - -Dr. Timothy Dwight, in his "Travels," records, with approval, the -following singular superstition relative to the barberry, which is so -common in New England. "This bush," he remarks, "is, in New England, -generally believed to blast both wheat and rye. Its blossoms, which are -very numerous, and continue a considerable time, emit very copiously -a pungent effluvium believed to be so acrimonious as to injure -essentially both these kinds of grain. - -"In Southborough, a township in the county of Worcester, a Mr. Johnson -sowed with rye a field of new ground. At the south end of this field -also grew a single barberry bush. The grain was blasted throughout the -whole length of the field, on a narrow tract commencing at the bush -and proceeding directly in the course, and to the extent, to which the -blossoms were diffused by the wind." - -Certes, that was a most extraordinary belief held by the simple country -folk in a certain quiet corner of New England, that candles made of -the tallow obtained from a dead body, would, when lighted, render the -person carrying them invisible; and furthermore that a lighted candle -of this description, if placed within a bedroom, would effectually -prevent a sleeping person from waking until it should be extinguished. -This I had from the lips of a most intelligent and estimable lady, who -knew whereof she spoke. - -I confess that on hearing this statement I realized that I had now -found more than I was looking for. But incredible as it may seem at -first, all doubts were set at rest by the following article found -among some fragments of old superstition in a certain treatise on that -subject. Here is the article verbatim:-- - -"The Hand of Glory is a piece of foreign superstition common in France, -Germany, and Spain; and is a charm used by housebreakers and assassins. -It is the hand of a hanged man, holding a candle made of the fat of a -hanged man, virgin wax, and siasme of Lapland. It stupefies those to -whom it is presented, and renders them motionless, insomuch that they -could not stir, any more than if they were dead." - -I do not find any recent mention of the appearance of that ancient -bugbear known as the Will-o'-the-wisp, or magical Jack-o'-lantern, -associated with the unearthly light sometimes seen flitting about -ancient graveyards. Science has practically accounted for this natural -phenomenon to the general acceptance; but science has not yet been able -to do away with the instinctive dread with which the vicinity of a -graveyard is associated in most minds. I well remember how, when a lad, -I dreaded to pass a graveyard after dark. There was a sickly feeling -of something lurking among those ghostly looking tombstones. I looked -another way. I whistled, I looked behind me. Vain effort! I ran from -the spot as if all the ghosts my fears had conjured up were close at my -heels. - - - - -[Illustration] - -XI - -OF PRESENTIMENTS - - "Methinks I hear, methinks I see - Ghosts, goblins, fiends."--_Burton._ - - -We approach a still different class of evil omens, or such as are -believed by many to "cast their shadows before," in such a manner -as to prey upon the spirits, or show their visible effects in the -daily actions of men, usually well balanced, with a feeling akin -to respectful fear. Let other forms of superstition be never so -mirth-provoking, the reality of this one, at least to those of an -imaginative or highly impressible nature, is such that we are sobered -at once. What concerns such momentous events as life and death is -really no jesting matter. - -There may be, probably is, a scientific explanation for those fancies -that sometimes come over us, with a sinking feeling at the heart. Men -usually keep silent. Women more often give utterance to their feelings. -How many times have we heard this remark: "O dear, I feel as if -something was going to happen!" - -There is still another phase of the subject. Probably hundreds, -perhaps thousands, could be found, who, at some time or other, have -passed through some strange experience, which they are wholly unable -to account for on any rational theory or ground whatever. Perhaps it -has been to the inner man what the skeleton in the closet is to the -family home. Unfortunately, it is only in moments when men lay bare -their inmost thoughts to each other that these things, so valuable from -the standpoint of psychology, leak out. What is, then, the secret -power, which, in our waking hours, our sober consciousness, is able -to oppress our spirits like some hideous nightmare? In its nature it -seems most often a warning of coming evil or future event,--in fact, an -omen of which we obtain the knowledge by accident, or without design or -premeditation. Were it not for the fear of ridicule, we are persuaded -that a multitude of persons could testify to some very interesting -phenomena of this kind, drawn from their own experiences. - -There was a woman whom I knew very well, in a little seaport of Maine, -a respectable, middle-aged matron, who asserted that no one ever died -in that village unless she had a warning. Precisely what the nature of -that warning was she would never divulge; but it is nevertheless a fact -that she was often consulted by her neighbors when any one was taken -seriously ill, and that her oracular dictum received full and entire -credit among them. - -In that same little seaport the superstition is current that a sick -person will not die till ebb tide. As that goes out, so does the life. -This particular article of superstitious faith still holds in some -parts of England, we understand, and is made use of by Dickens in -"David Copperfield." - -The following incident came to my knowledge while I was in the near -neighborhood of the place where a recent shocking railroad accident -had happened. Naturally, it was the one topic of conversation, far and -near. The engine-man, an old and trusted servant of the company, went -down with his engine in the wreck. While being dug out from under his -engine, crushed and bleeding, the poor fellow said to his rescuers: -"Three times I've seen a man on the track at this very place, and three -times I've stopped my engine. I said this morning that I wouldn't go -over the road again; but couldn't get any one to take my place, and -here I am." - -That a sinister presentiment should cross one in moments of extreme -peril, may be easily conceived, but why it should occur, and does -occur, at times when no known danger threatens, or any mental or -physical condition would seem to warrant it, is not so easily -understood. Yet history is full of such examples, related, too, not of -the weaker sort, but of the strongest characters. Mr. Motley, in his -"John of Barneveld," gives a vivid picture of Henry IV. of France just -before his death. The great monarch was on the point of departure, -at the head of the best appointed army he had ever commanded, for -the war against Spain. "But he delayed for a few days to take part -in the public festivities in honor of the coronation of his queen. -These festivities he dreaded, and looked forward to them with gloomy -forebodings. He was haunted with fears that they involved his own -life, and that he should not survive them. He said many times to his -favorite minister, Sully: 'I know not how it is, but my heart tells me -that some misfortune is to befall me. I shall never go out of it.' He -had dreams, also, which assumed to him the force of revelations, that -he was to die in a carriage, and at the first magnificent festival he -gave. Sully asked him why he did not abandon the proposed festivities -at the coronation, and actually went to the queen to persuade her to -countermand them. But she refused in high indignation, being, as is -now supposed, in the conspiracy against his life. The result is well -known: the king was assassinated in his carriage by Ravaillac, as the -festivities were in progress." - -Every one remembers the curious incident in regard to Lord Thomas -Lyttleton's vision, as related in Boswell's "Johnson," predicting the -time of his death, and its exact fulfilment; and Johnson's solemn -comments thereon. "It is the most extraordinary thing that has happened -in my day. I heard it with my own ears from his uncle, Lord Westcote." -Lord Byron once observed that several remarkable things had happened on -his birthday, as they also had to Napoleon. Marie Antoinette, too, was -a firm believer in these presentiments. She thus declares herself in -language that now seems prophetic: "At my wedding something whispered -to me that I was signing my death warrant. At the last moment I would -have retreated if I could have done so." - -Our early New England historian, Winthrop, mentions a singular case of -presentiment of death, experienced by one Baker, of Salem. This man, on -going forth to his work, in the morning, told his wife he should never -see her more. He was killed by a stick of timber, falling upon him, -that same day. - -It is quite true that we do not attach nearly as much importance to -events happening a long time ago as to those occurring in our own -day; for one thing, perhaps, because they do not seem so easy of -verification; for another, because we choose to believe that they -merely reflect the ignorance of a past age. That there is really no -difference in the susceptibility of man to such premonitions, so -long as he shall be the creature of feeling, is proved by the most -irrefragable testimony. The poet Whittier, who took a peculiar delight -in the legendary tales of New England, has related one or two incidents -that came within his own knowledge, to this effect. "A very honest and -intelligent neighbor of mine," says the narrator, "once told me that -at the precise moment when his brother was drowned in the Merrimack -River, many miles distant, he felt a sudden and painful sensation--a -death-like chill upon the heart, such as he had never before -experienced. And," adds the poet, "I have heard many similar relations." - -The following, he says, "are the facts," relative to another incident -that happened in his vicinity. "In September, 1831, a worthy and highly -esteemed inhabitant of this town (Haverhill, Mass.) died suddenly on -the bridge over the Merrimack, by the bursting of a blood-vessel. -It was just at daybreak, when he was engaged with another person -in raising the draw of the bridge for the passage of a sloop. The -suddenness of the event, the excellent character of the deceased, -and above all, a vague rumor that some extraordinary disclosure was -to be made, drew together a large concourse at the funeral. After -the solemn services were concluded, Thomas, the brother of the dead -man--himself a most exemplary Christian--rose up and desired to relate -some particulars regarding his brother's death. He then stated--and his -manner was calm, solemn, impressive--that more than a month previous -to his death, his brother had told him that his feelings had been -painfully disturbed by seeing, at different times on the bridge, a -quantity of human blood; that sometimes while he was gazing upon it, -it suddenly disappeared, as if removed by an invisible hand; ... that -many times in the dusk of the evening, he had seen a vessel coming down -the river, which vanished just as it reached the draw; and that, at -the same time, he had heard a voice calling in a faint and lamentable -tone, 'I am dying!' and that the voice sounded like his own: that then -he knew the vision was for him, and that his hour of departure was at -hand. Thomas, moreover, stated that a few days before the melancholy -event took place, his brother, after assuring him that he would be -called upon to testify to the accounts which he had given of the vision -on the bridge, told him that he had actually seen the same vessel go up -the river whose spectral image he had seen in his vision, and that when -it returned the fatal fulfilment would take place." - -Though of still earlier date, the remarkable premonition of Rev. Samuel -Newman, of Rehoboth, will bear being repeated here. According to his -biographer, he not only felt a certain presage of the approach of -death, but seemed to triumph in the prospect of its being near. Yet -he was apparently in perfect health, and preached a sermon from Job -xiv. 14, "All the days of my appointed time will I wait till my change -come." In the afternoon of the following Lord's Day, he asked the -deacon to pray with him, saying he had not long to live. As soon as he -had finished his prayer he said the time was come when he must leave -the world; but his friends seeing no sign of approaching dissolution, -thought it was merely the effect of imagination. Immediately he turned -away, saying, "Angels, do your office!" and expired on the spot. - -Lord Roberts of Kandahar relates the following of himself: "My -intention, when I left Kabul, was to ride as far as the Khyber Pass; -but suddenly a presentiment, which I have never been able to explain -to myself, made me retrace my steps and hurry back toward Kabul--a -presentiment of coming trouble which I can only characterize as -instinctive. - -"The feeling was justified when, about halfway between Butkhak and -Kabul, I was met by Sir Donald Stewart and my chief of the staff, -who brought me the astounding news of the total defeat by Ayab -Khan of Brigadier-general Burrows's brigade at Malwand, and of -Lieutenant-general Primrose, with the remainder of his force, being -besieged at Kandahar."[23] - -Most people are familiar with the story told by President Lincoln to a -friend,--told too, in his own half-playful, half-pathetic way, as if to -minimize the effect upon that friend's mind. It is given in the words -of that friend:-- - -"It was just after my election in 1860, when the news had been coming -in thick and fast all day and there had been a great 'hurrah, boys,' -so that I was well tired out and went home to rest, throwing myself -down on a lounge in my chamber. Opposite where I lay was a bureau with -a swinging glass upon it (and here he got up and placed furniture -to illustrate the position), and looking in that glass I saw myself -reflected nearly at full length; but my face, I noticed, had _two_ -separate and distinct images, the tip of the nose of one being about -three inches from the tip of the other. I was a little bothered, -perhaps startled, and got up and looked in the glass, but the illusion -vanished. On lying down again, I saw it a second time, plainer if -possible, than before; and then I noticed that one of the faces was a -little paler--say, five shades--than the other, I got up, and the thing -melted away; and I went off, and in the excitement of the hour forgot -all about it--nearly, but not quite, for the thing would once in a -while come up and give me a little pang, as if something uncomfortable -had happened. When I went home again that night, I told my wife about -it, and a few days afterward I made the experiment again, when (with -a laugh), sure enough! the thing came again; but I never succeeded -in bringing the ghost back after that, though I once tried very -industriously to show it to my wife, who was somewhat worried about it. -She thought it was a 'sign' that I was to be elected to a second term -of office, and that the paleness of one of the faces was an omen that I -should not see life through the last term." - -These are by no means isolated cases. It is said that General Hancock, -who had faced the King of Terrors on too many battle-fields to fear -him, was pursued by a presentiment of this sort, only too soon to -be fully verified. While present as an honored guest at a dinner, -surrounded by his old comrades in arms, the general remarked to a -friend that he had come there with a premonition that it would be his -last visit, and that he had but a short time longer to live. In fact, -his lamented death occurred within a short time after. - -Instances of fatal presentiments before going into battle are familiar -to every veteran of our great Civil War. I have heard many of them -feelingly rehearsed by eye-witnesses. The same thing has occurred, -under precisely similar conditions, during the late war with Spain. But -here is a tale of that earlier conflict, as published broadcast to the -world, without question or qualification:-- - -"In a research for facts bearing upon psychology, Mrs. Bancroft (a -daughter-in-law of the historian) has brought to light a strange -story relating to either the record of odd 'spirit communications' or -coincidences. On July 2, 1863, the wives of Major Thomas Y. Brent -and Captain Eugene Barnes, two Confederate officers, were together -at a wedding in Fayette County, each wearing her bridal dress. While -dressing for the occasion Mrs. Brent's companion discovered a blood -spot upon the dress of the major's wife, which could not be accounted -for, and somewhat excitedly exclaimed, 'It is a bad omen!' Two days -after Mrs. Brent experienced a severe pain in the region of her -heart, although at the time in the best of health. This occurred at -the birthplace of her husband. Two days later she heard that, while -storming a Federal fortification, her husband was killed on July 4, -1863, as far as she could learn, at the identical time that she had -experienced the heart pain. The major was shot in the breast by a Minie -ball and instantly killed." - -There lies before me, as I write, the authoritative statement of an -army officer, a survivor of the terrible charge up San Juan Hill, -before Santiago de Cuba, to the effect that just before advancing to -the charge a brother officer had confided to him a conviction that -the speaker would be killed, entreating his friend to receive his last -messages for his relatives. In this case, too, the fatal premonition -was fully verified. The doomed man was shot while bravely storming the -Spanish stronghold. - -Still another story of this war has been widely published, so lately as -this chapter was begun. It has reference to the death of the bandmaster -of the United States ship _Lancaster_, then cruising in the South -Atlantic. Upon learning that the _Lancaster_ was to touch at Rio de -Janeiro the bandmaster requested his discharge, giving as his reason -that he had for years been under the presentiment that if he went to -that port he would die of yellow fever. A discharge was refused him. -The ship entered the harbor of Rio, and the bandmaster immediately took -to his bed with all the symptoms of yellow fever. The identity of the -malady soon established itself. He was taken to the plague hospital -on shore and there died. One of the bandsmen who kissed him as he was -being removed from the ship also died. The account goes on to say that -"these two are the only cases reported at Rio for months. The fever -has not spread, and no man besides the unfortunate bandsman caught the -fever, the health of the ship's crew remaining excellent." - -The number of persons who have testified to having seen the apparitions -or death wraiths of dying or deceased friends is already large, as -the records of various societies for psychical research bear witness. -These phenomena are not in their nature forewarnings of something that -is about to happen, but announcements of something that already has -happened. They therefore can have no relation to what was formerly -known as "second sight." - -In spite of all that our much-boasted civilization has done in the way -of freeing poor, fallible man from the thraldom of superstition, there -is indubitable evidence that a great many people still put faith in -direct revelations from the land of spirits. In the course of a quiet -chat one evening, where the subject was under discussion, one of the -company who had listened attentively, though silently all the while, -to all manner of theories, spiced with ridicule, abruptly asked how we -would account for the following incident which he went on to relate, -and I have here set down word for word:-- - -"My grandparents," he began, "had a son whom they thought all the world -of. From all accounts I guess Tom was about one of the likeliest young -fellows that could be scared up in a day's journey. Everybody said Tom -was bound to make his mark in the world, and at the time I speak of he -seemed in a fair way of doing it, too, for at one and twenty he was -first mate of the old _Argonaut_ which had just sailed for Calcutta. -This would make her tenth voyage. Well, as I am telling you, the very -day after the _Argonaut_ went to sea, a tremendous gale set in from the -eastward. It blew great guns. Actually, now, it seemed as if that gale -would never stop blowing. - -"As day after day went by, and the storm raged on without intermission, -you may judge if the hearts of those who had friends at sea in that -ship did not sink down and down with the passing hours. Of course, the -old folks could think of nothing else. - -"Let me see; it was a good bit ago. Ah, yes; it was on the third or -fourth night of the gale, I don't rightly remember which, and it don't -matter much, that grandfather and grandmother were sitting together, -as usual, in the old family sitting-room, he poring over the family -Bible as he was wont to do in such cases, she knitting and rocking, -or pretending to knit, but both full of the one ever present thought, -which each was trying so hard to hide from the other. - -"Dismally splashed the raindrops against the window-panes, mournfully -the wind whined in the chimney-top, while every now and then the fire -would spit and sputter angrily on the hearth, or flare up fitfully when -some big gust came roaring down the chimney to fan the embers into a -fiercer flame. Then there would be a lull, during which, like an echo -of the tempest, the dull and distant booming of the sea was borne to -the affrighted listener's ears. But nothing I could say would begin to -give you an idea of the great gale of 1817. - -"Well, the old folks sat there as stiff as two statues, listening to -every sound. When a big gust tore over the house and shook it till it -rocked again, gran'ther would steal a look at grandmother over his -specs, but say never a word. The old lady would give a start, let her -hands fall idly upon her lap, sit for a moment as if dazed, and then go -on with her knitting again as if her very life depended on it. - -"Unable at length to control her feelings, grandmother got up out of -her chair, with her work in her hand, went to the window, put aside the -curtain, and looked out. I say looked out, for of course all was so -pitch-dark outside that nothing could be seen, yet there she stood with -her white face pressed close to the wet panes, peering out into the -night, as if questioning the storm itself of the absent one. - -"All at once she drew back from the window with a low cry, saying in a -broken voice: 'My God, father, it's Tom in his coffin! They're bringing -him up here, to the house.' Then she covered her face with her hands, -to shut out the horrid sight. - -"'Set down 'Mandy!' sternly commanded the startled old man. 'Don't be -making a fool of yourself. Don't ye know tain't no sech a thing what -you're sayin'? Set down, I say, this minnit!' - -"But no one could ever convince grandmother that she had not actually -seen, with her own eyes, her dear boy Tom, the idol of her heart, lying -cold in death. To her indeed it was a revelation from the tomb, for the -ship in which Tom had sailed was never heard from." - - - - -[Illustration] - -XII - -THE DIVINING-ROD - - "One point must still be greatly dark, - The reason why they do it." - - -It is a matter of common knowledge that certain expert "finders," as -they are called, use a divining-rod for detecting underground springs -in New England; in Pennsylvania for the locating of oil springs; and in -the mineral regions of the Rockies for the discovery of hidden veins -of valuable ores. The Cornish miners, also, have long made use of the -divining-rod, or "dowsing-rod," as they call it, for a like purpose. A -further research, probably, might reveal a similar practice in other -countries; but for our purpose it is enough to present two of the most -intelligent in the world as giving it their sanction and support. - -Various implements are employed by the expert operator in his quest -for what lies hidden from mortal eyes; but the preferred agent is -usually a bough of witch-hazel, branching at one end like the tines -of a pitchfork.[24] Taking firm hold of each prong, with the palms of -the hands turned upward, the operator slowly walks around the locality -where it is desired to find water; and when he reaches the right spot, -_presto!_ the free end of the bough is bent downward toward the ground -as if by some invisible force, sometimes so strongly that the operator -is unable to overcome it by putting forth his whole strength. "Dig -here," he says, with positive assurance that water will be found not -far below the surface of the ground. - -On the face of it, this performance comes rather nearer to our idea of -a miracle than anything we can now call to mind. Certainly, Moses did -no more when he smote the rock of Scripture. Very possibly, former -generations of men may have associated the act with the operation of -sorcery or magic. An enlightened age, however, accepts neither of these -theories. We do not believe in miracles other than those recorded in -Scripture; and we have renounced magic and sorcery as too antiquated -for intelligent people to consider. Yet things are done every day -which would have passed for miracles with our forefathers, without -our knowing more than the bare fact that, by means of certain crude -agents, obtained from the earth itself, messages are sent from New York -to London under the Atlantic Ocean in a few minutes; that the most -remote parts of the habitable globe have been brought into practically -instantaneous communication, the one with the other; and that public -and private conveyances are moving about our thoroughfares without the -use of horses or steam. All these things looked to us like miracles, -at first, yet custom has brought us to regard them with no more wonder -than did the lighting of the first gas lamp the pedestrian of forty -odd years ago. Much as we know, there is probably yet much more that we -do not know. - -The methods employed in finding oil springs or "leads" of ore are very -similar to those made use of in discovering water. It is a fact that -some of the most productive wells in the oil regions were located in -this manner. It is a further fact, that from time to time, search for -buried treasure has been carried on in precisely the same way. Now some -astute critics have said that the divining-rod was a humbug, because -when they have tried it the mystic bough would not bend for them. It -is, however, doubtful if any humbug could have stood the test of so -many years without exposure, or what so many witnesses stand ready to -affirm the truth of be cavalierly thrust aside as a palpable imposture. - -Although I have never seen the operator at work, myself, I have often -talked with those who have, whose testimony was both direct and -explicit. Moreover, I do know of persons who continue to ply this -trade (for no more than this is claimed for it) in some parts of New -England to-day. Whether it should be classed among superstitions may be -an open question after all. - - - - -[Illustration] - -XIII - -WONDERS OF THE PHYSICAL UNIVERSE - - "The hag is astride - This night for a ride-- - The devil and she together."--_Herrick._ - - -All abnormal exhibitions of nature, or in fact any departure from the -regular order of things, such as great and unusual storms, earthquakes, -eclipses of the sun or moon, the appearance of a comet in the heavens, -or of a plague of flies, caterpillars, or locusts were once held to -be so many infallible signs of impending calamity. All of our early -historians give full and entire credit to the evil import of these -startling phenomena, which were invariably referred to the wrath of an -offended deity, only to be appeased by a special season of fasting and -prayer. Of course ample warrant exists for such belief in the Bible, -which was something no man dared question or gainsay in those primitive -days. For example, in his history of Philip's War, Increase Mather lays -down this, to our age, startling proposition. "It is," says the learned -divine, "a common observation, verified by the experience of many ages, -that _great and publick calamityes seldome come upon any place without -prodigious warnings to forerun and signify what is to be expected_." He -had just noted the appearance "in the aire," at Plymouth, of something -shaped in the perfect form of an Indian bow, which some of the -terror-stricken people looked upon as a "prodigious apparition." The -learned divine cleverly interpreted it as a favorable omen, however, -portending that the Lord would presently "break the bow and spear -asunder," thus calming their fears. - -This extract taken at random, fairly establishes the survival -of certain forms of superstition in the second generation of -colonists. The first, as has been said already, brought all of its -old superstitions with it. In short, every form of belief in the -supernatural, for which the fathers of New England have been so roundly -abused or ridiculed, may be distinctly traced back to the old country. - -Very much of the belief in the baleful influence of so-called -prodigies, with the possible exception of that ascribed to comets, or -"blazing stars," as they were called, has fortunately subsided in a -measure, for we shudder to think of a state of things so thoroughly -calculated to keep society continually on the rack. But in those -earlier times life and death had about equal terrors. Sin and sinners -were punished both here and hereafter; and, really, if we may credit -such writers as the Rev. William Hubbard and the Mather family, poor -New England was quite ripe, in their time, for the fate of Sodom and -Gomorrah. - -As regards comets, we risk little in saying that a great many very -sensible people still view their periodical appearance with fear and -trembling, and their departure with a feeling of unfeigned relief. It -is our unwilling tribute to the unfathomable and the unknown. And, -disguise it as we may, we breathe more freely when the dread visitant -has faded from our sight. In the language of Macbeth after seeing -Banquo's ghost,-- - - "Why, so: being gone, I am a man again." - -In truth, we know comets as yet only as the accredited agents of -destruction. It seems a natural question to ask, If order is nature's -first law, why are all these departures from it? Can they be without -fixed end, aim, or purpose? Why should the solid earth quake, the sea -overwhelm the land, mountains vomit forth flames, the tempest scatter -death and destruction abroad, the heavens suspend a winged and flaming -monster over us,-- - - "So horribly to shake our disposition, - With thoughts beyond the reaches of our souls"? - -There was still another form of belief, differing from the first -in ascribing supernatural functions to great natural phenomena. In -this sense, the storm did not descend in the majesty of its mighty -wrath to punish man's wickedness, but, like the roar of artillery -which announces the death of the monarch to his mourning people, was -coincident, in its coming, with the death of some great personage, -which it proclaimed with salvos of Olympus. Indeed, poets and -philosophers of keen insight have frequently recognized this sort of -curious sympathy in nature with most momentous movements in human -life. We are told that the dying hours of Cromwell and Napoleon were -signalized by storms of terrific violence, and Shakespeare describes -the earth and air as filled with omens before the murders of Julius -Caesar and of King Duncan. - -"As busy as the devil in a gale of wind," emphasizes by a robust, -sea-seasoned saying the notion current among sailors of how storms -arise. - -It was just now said that the belief in direct manifestations of the -divine wrath, through the medium of such calamitous visitations as -great droughts, earthquakes, eclipses, tidal waves, fatal epidemics, -and the like, had, in a measure, subsided. The statement should be -made, however, with certain qualification; for it is well remembered -that during a season of unexampled drought, in the far West, the people -were called together in their churches, and on a week-day, too, to pray -for rain, just as we are told that the Pilgrim Fathers did, on a like -occasion, two hundred and fifty odd years before. Prayers were kept up -without intermission during the day. And it is a further coincidence -that copious showers did set in within twenty-four hours or so. Even -the most sceptical took refuge in silence. - -From many different sources we have very detailed accounts of the -remarkable dark day of May 19, 1780, with the great fear that -phenomenon inspired in those who witnessed it, the general belief -being that the Day of Judgment was at hand.[25] In the presence of -this overshadowing terror, few retained their usual presence of mind -unshaken. One such instance is worth repeating here, if only for its -rarity. At that time the Connecticut legislature was in session. -The House of Representatives immediately adjourned. A like motion -was before the Council. The protest of Colonel Davenport has become -historical. Said he, "The Day of Judgment is either approaching or -it is not. If it is, I choose to be found doing my duty. I wish, -therefore, that candles may be lighted." - -Nearly fifty years later (September, 1825), a similar visitation, due -to extensive forest fires in New Brunswick, again created widespread -alarm, hardly quieted by the later knowledge of the atmospheric -conditions (an under stratum of fog and an upper stratum of smoke) -that were so plainly responsible for it. On the contrary, from what -we have been able to gather on the subject, it appears that where the -phenomenon was visible, people were quite as ill at ease as their -fathers were. - -Once again, under almost identical conditions, the same phenomenon -wrought exactly the same chaos in the minds of a very large number of -people in New England and New York. This has passed into history as -the Yellow Tuesday (September 6, 1881). On this occasion the brooding -darkness lasted all day. It was noticed that a fire built in the open -air burned with a spectral blue flame. Blue flowers were changed to a -crimson hue. By two in the afternoon one could not see to read without -a light. At a certain hotel in the White Mountains some of the servants -were so frightened that they refused to go to work, and fell to praying -instead. - -These examples at least afford data for a comparison of some little -interest, as to how any wide departure from nature's fixed laws has -affected the human mind at widely separated periods of time, all the -theories or demonstrations of science to the contrary notwithstanding. - -So much for the effects of what is a reality to be seen and felt by -all men. But now and again the mere haphazard predictions of some -self-constituted prophet of evil, if plausibly presented and steadily -insisted upon, find a multitude of credulous believers among us. It -is only a few years since a certain religious sect, notwithstanding -repeated failures in the past, with much consequent ridicule, again -ventured to fix a day for the second coming of Our Lord. Similarly -it falls within the recollection of most of us how a certain -self-constituted Canadian seer solemnly predicted the coming of a -monster tidal wave, which in its disastrous effects was to be another -Deluge. All the great Atlantic seaboard was to be buried in the rush of -mighty waters; all its great maritime cities swept away in a moment. -Fresher still in the recollection is the prediction that the end of -the world would surely come as the inevitable result of the shower of -meteors of November, 1899. - -It is a fact that many good and worthy but, alas! too credulous -people living along the New England coast, who believed themselves in -danger from the destroying tidal wave, were thrown into a state of -unspeakable agitation and alarm by this wicked prediction. Yet there -was absolutely nothing to warrant it except the unsupported declaration -of this one man, whom no one knew, and few had ever heard of. Yet some -really believed, more half believed, and some who openly ridiculed the -prediction apparently did so more to keep their courage up than from -actual unbelief. So easy it is to arouse the fears of a community, who -usually act first and reason afterward. I heard of one man who actually -packed all his household goods in a wagon, so as to be ready to start -off for higher ground upon the first signal of the approach of this -much-dreaded rush of waters. - - - - -[Illustration] - -XIV - -"SHIPS THAT PASS IN THE NIGHT" - - -"_Songe est toujours mensonge_," says a French proverb; "Dreams go -by contraries" says the English proverb,--that is, if you dream of -the dead you will hear from the living. Who shall decide, where the -collective wisdom of centuries is at such wide variance? - -To put faith in the supposed revelations of a disordered or overheated -brain seems, on the face of it, sheer absurdity, especially when we -ourselves may induce dreaming merely by overindulgence in eating or -drinking. Yet there are people who habitually dream when the brain is -in its normal condition. This brings the question down to its simplest -form, "What is a dream?" And there we halt. - -That there is no end of theories concerning the measure of credit that -should be given to dreams is readily accounted for. What nobody can -explain every one is at liberty to have his own peculiar notions of. -Perhaps the most curious thing about it is the proven fact that so many -different people should dream precisely the same thing from time to -time; so making it possible not only to classify and analyze dreams, -but even to lay down certain interpretations, to be accepted by a -multitude of believers. Of course it is easy to laugh at the incoherent -fancies that flit through the debatable region we inhabit while asleep, -but it is not so easy to explain why we laugh, or why we should dream -of persons or events long since passed from our memories, or of other -persons or events wholly unknown to us, either in the past or the -present. - -Without a doubt people dream just as much nowadays as they ever did. -That fact being admitted, the problem for us to consider is, whether -the belief in the prophetic character of dreams, held by so many -peoples for so many centuries, having the unequivocal sanction, too, -of Scripture authority, is really dying out, or continues to hold -its old dominion over the minds of poor, fallible mankind. In order -to determine this vexed question inquiry was made of several leading -booksellers with the following result: Thirty or forty years ago dream -books were as much a recognized feature of the book-selling trade as -any other sort of literary property; consequently, they were openly -exposed for sale in every bookstore, large or small. It now appears -that these yellow-covered oracles of fate are still in good demand, -mostly by servant girls and factory girls, and, though seldom found -in the best bookstores, may be readily had of most dealers in cheap -periodicals. This, certainly, would seem to be a gain in the direction -of education, though not of the masses. It also appears that, as in the -matter of "signs," the female sex is more susceptible to this sort of -superstition than is the male; but that by no means proves the sterner -sex to be wholly free from it. - -Some persons dream a great deal, others but seldom. Let one who is not -much addicted to the habit have a bad dream, a frightful dream, and -be he never so well poised, the phantasm can hardly fail of leaving a -disquieting, perhaps a lasting, effect. Seldom, indeed, can that person -shake off the feeling that the dream forbodes something of a sinister -nature. In vain he racks his brain for some interpretation that may set -his mind at rest, wholly forgetful of the trite adage that dreams go by -contraries. - -So often, indeed, do we hear the pregnant declaration, to wit: "Your -old men shall dream dreams, your young men see visions," that we have -adopted it as a striking rhetorical figure of wide application. In -Hamlet's celebrated soliloquy upon the immortality of the soul, the -melancholy Dane confesses to an overmastering fear of bad dreams. And -once again, as if wrung from the very anguish of his sinful heart, -Gloster cries out: "Oh, Catesby, I have had such horrid dreams!" And -Catesby expostulates, "Shadows, my lord, below the soldiers seeming." -But Gloster thrusts aside the rebuke as he impetuously exclaims: "Now -by my this day's hopes, shadows to-night have struck more terror to the -soul of Richard, than can the substance of ten thousand soldiers arm'd -all in proof." - -We find that our own immediate ancestors were fully as credulous in -regard to the importance of dreams, as affecting their lives and -fortunes, as the ancients appear to have been. But with them it is -true that Scripture warrant was accepted as all-sufficient. Just a few -examples will suffice. - -In the time of its disintegration, owing to the removal of some of -its members to Connecticut, the church of Dorchester, Massachusetts, -"did not reorganize on account of certain dreams and visions among the -congregation." - -Under a certain date, Samuel Sewall sets down the fact that he has had -disturbing dreams, which he, according to his wont, anxiously strives -to interpret--he, of all men!--a magistrate, a councillor, and a ruler -in the land. One dream was to the effect "that all my [his] children -were dead except Sarah, which did distress me sorely with reflections -on my omissions of duty towards them as well as breaking of the hopes I -had of them." - -Shifting now the scene to half a century later, we find in the "Diary -and Letters of Sarah Pierpont," wife of the celebrated theologian, -Jonathan Edwards, this letter, describing a singularly prophetic dream -relative to her grandson, then an infant, Aaron Burr:-- - - "STOCKBRIDGE, May 10, 1756. - - "DEAR BROTHER JAMES: Your letters always do us good, and your - last was one of your best. Have you heard of the birth of - Esther's second child, at Newark? It was born the sixth of - February last, and its parents have named him Aaron Burr, Jr., - after his father, the worthy President of the College. I trust - the little immortal will grow up to be a good and useful man. - But, somehow, a strange presentiment of evil has hung over my - mind of late, and I can hardly rid myself of the impression - that that child was born to see trouble. - - "You know I don't believe in dreams and visions; but lately I - had a sad night of broken sleep, in which the future career - of that boy seemed to pass before me. He first appeared as - a little child, just beginning to ascend a high hill. Not - long after he set out, the two guides who started with him - disappeared one after the other. He went on alone, and as the - road was open and plain, and as friends met him at every turn, - he got along very well. At times he took on the air and bearing - of a soldier, and then of a statesman, assuming to lead and - control others. As he neared the top of the hill, the way grew - more steep and difficult, and his companions became alienated - from him, refusing to help him or be led by him. Baffled in - his designs, and angered at his ill-success, he began to lay - about him with violence, leading some astray, and pulling down - others at every attempt to rise. Soon he himself began to - slip and slide down the rough and perilous sides of the hill; - now regaining his foothold for a little, then losing it again, - until at length he stumbled and fell headlong down, down, into - a black and yawning gulf at the base! - - "At this, I woke in distress, and was glad enough to find it - was only a dream. Now, you may make as much or as little of - this as you please. I think the disturbed state of our country, - along with my own indifferent health, must have occasioned it. - A letter from his mother, to-day, assures me that her little - Aaron is a lively, prattlesome fellow, filling his parents' - hearts with joy. - - "Your loving sister, - "SARAH." - -Though "only a dream," this vision of the night prefigured a sad -reality, for within two years both of the "guides" had gone, President -Burr in September, 1757, his wife in the same month of the next year, -1758. - -Passing now down to our own day, the Rev. Walter Colton, sometime -alcalde of Monterey, tells us, in his reminiscences of the gold -excitement of 1849, that he dreamed of finding gold at a certain spot, -had faith enough in his dream to seek for it in that place, and was -rewarded by finding it there. - -A mass of similar testimony might be adduced. One piece coming from a -brave soldier, who will not be accused of harboring womanish fears, -will bear repeating here. We again quote from that most interesting -volume, "Forty-one Years in India." Lord Roberts, its author, is -speaking of his father, then a man close upon seventy. - -"Shortly before his departure an incident occurred which I will relate -for the benefit of psychological students; they may perhaps be able -to explain it, I never could. My father had some time before issued -invitations for a dance which was to take place in two days' time,--on -Monday, the 17th October, 1853. On the Saturday morning he appeared -disturbed and unhappy, and during breakfast was despondent--very -different from his usual bright and cheery self. On my questioning him -as to the cause, he told me he had had an unpleasant dream--one which -he had dreamt several times before, and which had always been followed -by the death of a near relation. As the day advanced, in spite of my -efforts to cheer him, he became more and more depressed, and even -said he should like to put off the dance. I dissuaded him from taking -this step for the time being; but that night he had the same dream -again, and the next morning he insisted on the dance being postponed. -It seemed rather absurd to disappoint our friends on account of a -dream; there was, however, nothing for it but to carry out my father's -wishes, and intimation was accordingly sent to the invited guests. -The following morning the post brought news of the sudden death of a -half-sister at Lahore, with whom I had stayed on my way to Pashawar." - -A man is now living who ran away from the vessel in which he had -shipped as a sailor before the mast, in consequence of dreaming for -three nights in succession that the vessel would be lost. All the -circumstances were related to me, with much minuteness of detail, by -persons quite familiar with them at the time of their occurrence. The -vessel was, in fact, cast away, and every one on board drowned, on the -very night after she sailed; consequently the warning dream, by means -of which the deserter's life was saved, could hardly fail of leaving a -deep and lasting impression upon the minds of all who knew the facts. -The story has been told more at length elsewhere by the writer,[26] -as it came from the lips of a seafaring friend; and the hero of it is -still pointed out to sceptics as a living example of the fact that-- - - "Coming events cast their shadows before." - -Richard Mansfield, distinguished actor and playwright, has recently -related in an interview a most interesting incident in his own career, -which he declared himself wholly unable to account for. So much more -credit attaches to the testimony of persons if known to the public -even by name, that Mr. Mansfield's experience has special value here. -It is also a highly interesting fragment of autobiography. - -Mr. Mansfield goes on to say that after leading a most precarious -existence, in various ways, his discharge from Mr. D'Oyley Carte's -company brought on a crisis in his affairs. Reaching his poor lodgings -in London, he soon fell into desperate straits, being soon forced to -pawn what little he had for the means to keep body and soul together. -He declares that he did not know which way to turn, and that the most -gloomy forebodings overwhelmed him. We will now let him tell his own -story in his own way:-- - -"This was the condition of affairs when the strange happening to which -I have referred befell me. Retiring for the night in a perfectly -hopeless frame of mind, I fell into a troubled sleep and dreamed -dreams. Finally, toward morning, this apparent fantasy came to me. I -seemed in my disturbed sleep to hear a cab drive up to the door as if -in a great hurry. There was a knock, and in my dream I opened the door -and found D'Oyley Carte's yellow-haired secretary standing outside. He -exclaimed:-- - -"'Can you pack up and catch the train in ten minutes to rejoin the -company?' - -"'I can,' was the dreamland reply; there seemed to be a rushing about -while I swept a few things into my bag; then the cab door was slammed, -and we were off to the station. - -"This was all a dream," continued Mr. Mansfield; "but here is the -inexplicable denouement. The dream was so vivid and startling that I -immediately awoke with a strange, uncanny sensation, and sprang to my -feet. It was six o'clock, and only bare and gloomy surroundings met -my eye. On a chair rested my travelling bag, and through some impulse -which I could not explain at the time and cannot account for now I -picked it up and hurriedly swept into it the few articles that had -escaped the pawnshop. It did not take me long to complete my toilet, -and then I sat down to think. - -"Presently, when I had reached the extreme point of dejection, a cab -rattled up, there was a knock, and I opened the door. There stood -D'Oyley Carte's secretary, just as I saw him in my dreams. He seemed to -be in a great flurry, and cried out:-- - -"'Can you pack up and reach the station in ten minutes to rejoin the -company?' - -"'I can,' said I, calmly, pointing to my bag. 'It is all ready, for I -was expecting you.' - -"The man was a little startled by this seemingly strange remark, but -bundled me into the cab without further ado, and we hurried away to -the station exactly in accord with my dream. That was the beginning -of a long engagement, and, although I have known hard times since, it -was the turning-point in my career. I have already said that I have -no theories whatever in regard to the matter. I do not account for -it. It is enough for me to know that I dreamed certain things which -were presently realized in the exact order of the dream. Having no -superstitions, it is impossible to philosophize over the occurrence. -All I know is that everything happened just as I have stated it." - -Some of the hidden meanings attributed to dreams are elsewhere referred -to. As the subject has a literature of its own, we need mention only a -few of the more commonly accepted interpretations. Their name is legion. - -To dream of a white horse is a certain presage of a death in the family. - -To dream of a funeral is a sign that you will soon attend a wedding. - -To dream of losing one's teeth is ominous of some coming sorrow. - -To dream of a snake is a token that you have an enemy. - -Touching a dead body will prevent dreaming of it. - -The same dream, occurring three nights in succession, will surely come -to pass. - -A slice of wedding-cake put under the pillow will cause an unmarried -woman to dream of her future husband. - - - - -[Illustration] - -XV - -FORTUNE-TELLING, ASTROLOGY, AND PALMISTRY - - "I asked her of the way, which she informed me; - Then craved my charity, and bade me hasten - To save a sister."--_Otway._ - - -One noticeable thing about certain forms of superstition is their -general acceptance by the public at large, like certain moral evils, -which it is felt to be an almost hopeless task to do away with. Other -good, easy souls choose to ignore the presence of fortune-tellers, -astrologers, palmists among their daily haunts. As a matter of fact, -however, fortune-telling, astrology, and palmistry have become so fully -incorporated with the everyday life of all large communities as to -excite very little comment from the common run of us. - -It certainly would astonish some people if they knew to what an -extent these methods of hoodwinking the credulous, or weak-minded, -continue to flourish in our large cities, without the least attempt -at concealment or disguise. One need only look about him to see the -signs of these shrewd charlatans everywhere staring him in the face, or -run his eye over the columns of the daily papers to be convinced how -far superstition still lives and thrives in the chosen strongholds of -modern thought and modern scepticism. At fairs and social gatherings -fortune-telling and palmistry have come to be recognized features, -either as a means of raising funds for some highly deserving object, -of course, or for the sake of the amusement they afford, at the -expense of those well-meaning souls who do not know how to say no. To -be sure, it has come to be thoroughly understood that no benevolent -object whatsoever has a chance of succeeding nowadays without some sort -of nickel-in-the-slot attachment, by which the delusion of getting -something for your money is so clumsily kept up. - -At fairs, for instance, it is not necessary that the oracle of -fortune should speak. Time is saved and modern progress illustrated -and enforced by having printed cards ready at hand to be impartially -distributed to all applicants on the principle of first come, first -served. As the victim receives his card, he laughs nervously, fidgets -around a few minutes, goes aside into some quiet corner and furtively -reads, "Fortune will be more favorable to you in future than it has -been." - -Unwittingly, perhaps, yet none the less, has he paid his tribute to -superstition, thus thriftily turned to account. - -The penny-in-the-slot machines, so often seen in public places, tell -fortunes with mechanical precision, and in the main, impartially, -evident care being taken not to render the oracle unpopular by giving -out disagreeable or alarming predictions. True, they are just a -trifle ambiguous, but does not that feature exactly correspond with -the traditional idea of the ancient oracle, which was nothing if not -ambiguous? Here is a sample, "You will not become very rich, but be -assured you will never want for anything." - -Fortune-telling also is openly carried on at all popular summer -resorts, with considerable profit to the dealer in prophecies, who -is generally an Indian woman. She is much consulted by young women, -"just for the fun of the thing." Roving bands of gypsies continue to -do a more or less thriving business in the country towns. Character is -unfolded or the future foretold by the color of the eyes, the length or -breadth of the finger nails or of the eyebrows. - -Telling fortunes by means of tea grounds is often practised at social -gatherings. - - "For still, by some invisible tether - Scandal and tea are linked together." - -It is done in this way: When drinking off the tea, the grounds are made -to adhere to the sides of the tea-cup, by swiftly twirling it round and -round. The cup is then inverted, turned thrice and no more, after which -the spell is completed, and the mistress of the revels proceeds to tell -the fortunes of those present, with neatness and despatch. - -Time has worked certain marked changes in the method of practising -this equivocal trade. The modern fortune-teller no longer inhabits a -grewsome cavern, reached by a winding path among overhanging rocks, -and choked with dank weeds, or goes about muttering to herself in an -unknown tongue, or is clothed in rags. Far from it. She either occupies -luxurious apartments in the best business section, or in a genteel -up-town hotel, or dwells in a fashionable quarter of the town, and -dresses _a la mode_. Nor are her clients by any means exclusively drawn -from among the lowly and ignorant, as might be supposed, but more -often come from the middle class of society; and, though consultations -are had in a private manner, those who ply this trade do so without -fear or disguise. - -Of the thousand and one matters submitted to the dictum of -fortune-tellers, those relating to love affairs or money matters are -by much the most numerous. On this head just a few selections, taken -at hazard from the advertising columns of a morning newspaper, perhaps -will afford the best idea of the nature of the questions most commonly -addressed to these disposers and dispensers of fate. One reads, "Mrs -Blank: consult her on all business, domestic or love affairs. Unites -separated parties." A shrewd offer that! The next, who styles himself -"Doctor" is an astrologer. He invites you to send him your sex, with -date and hour of birth; or a full description. All matters, he naively -declares, are alike to him. For the trifling matter of one dollar he -promises "a full reading"--presumably of your horoscope. The next, a -trance and business medium, professes to be able to tell the "name of -future husband or wife, and all affairs of life." Still another, after -setting forth her own abilities in glowing colors, warns a trusting -public, after the manner of all quacks, to beware of imitators. - -As an indication to what extent these forms of superstition flourish, -it would be vastly interesting to know just how many persons there -are in the United States, for instance, who get their living by such -means. Enough, perhaps, has been said to open the eyes of even the -most sceptical on this point. We may add that the modern applicant for -foreknowledge is not satisfied with the obscure generalizations of the -ancient oracles. He or she demands a full and explicit answer, and will -be satisfied with nothing less. - -Moll Pitcher, of Lynn, who practised her art in the early part of the -century, was the most famous, as she was by far the most successful, -fortune-teller of her day. In fact, her reputation was world-wide, it -having been carried to every port and clime by the masters and sailors, -who never failed to consult her about the luck of the voyage. Her -supposed knowledge of the future was also much drawn upon by the highly -respectable owners themselves, who, however, possibly through deference -to some secret qualms, generally made their visits at night, sometimes -in disguise.[27] Indeed, stories little short of marvellous are told -of this cunning woman's skill at divination, or luck at guessing, -according as one may choose to look at the matter. Besides being the -subject of the poet Whittier's least-known verses, a long forgotten -play was written with Moll Pitcher as its heroine, after the manner of -Meg Merrilies, in Sir Walter Scott's "Guy Mannering." - -From the earliest to the latest times, the astrologers have always -claimed for their methods of divination the consideration due to -established principles or incontrovertible facts. The court astrologer -was once quite as much consulted as the court physician. Though fallen -from this high estate, and even placed under the ban of the law as a -vagabond and charlatan, the astrologer still continues to ply his trade -among us with more or less success; and, unless we greatly err, the -craft even has an organ, called not too appropriately, "The Sphinx," as -the Sphinx has never been known to speak, even in riddles. - -Palmistry is the name now given to fortune-telling by means of the -hand alone. Formerly there was no such distinction. After looking -her client over, the fortune-teller of other days always based her -predictions upon a careful scrutiny of the hand. Some careless -hit-or-miss reference to the past, at first, such as "you have seen -trouble," usually preceded the unravelling of the future. The disciples -of palmistry now claim for it something like what was earlier claimed -for phrenology and physiognomy. Every one knows that palmistry openly -thrives in all large communities as a means of livelihood. How many -practise it in private, no one can pretend to say, but the number is -certainly very large. It is a further fact that some surprising guesses -at character now and then occur, but we must hold to the opinion that -they are still only guesses, nothing more. - - - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] "L'Inconnu et les Problems Psychiques." - -[2] Wallington, "Historical Notices, Reign of Charles I." - -[3] Chap. 15, 32 v. - -[4] Candlemas Day (2 February) is observed as a festival day by the -Roman Catholics, and still holds a place in the calendar of the -Episcopal Church. It is kept in memory of the purification of the -Virgin, who presented the infant Jesus in the Temple. A number of -candles were lighted, it is said in memory of Simeon's song (Luke ii, -32), "A light to lighten the Gentiles." Hence the name of Candlemas. -Edward VI. forbade the practice of lighting the churches in 1548. - -[5] See the ominous import of this farther on. - -[6] The white and purple spiraea. - -[7] For the ill omens of nosebleed, see Chapter ix. - -[8] It was commonly believed that the haddock bore the mark of St. -Peter's thumb, ever since that saint took the tribute penny out of a -fish of that species. - -[9] It is deemed lucky to be born with a caul or membrane over the -face. In France _etre ne coiffee_ signifies that a person is extremely -fortunate. It is believed to be an infallible protection against -drowning, and under that idea is frequently advertised for sale in the -newspapers and purchased by seamen. If bought by lawyers they become -as eloquent as Demosthenes or Cicero, and thereby get a great deal of -practice.--FIELDING. - -[10] Edward Winslow makes use of this word in speaking of an Indian -who had been taken prisoner at Plymouth, and confined in the fort -newly built there. "So he was locked in a chain to a staple in the -court of guard and there kept. Thus was our fort handselled, this -being the first day, as I take it, that ever any watch was there -kept."--Winslow's "Relation." - -[11] Mr. Coxe. - -[12] More concerning throwing the shoe will be found under "Marriage." - -[13] Note the poetical reference in another chapter. - -[14] _Boston Transcript_, February 13, 1899. - -[15] In "Farmer and Moore's Collections," i., 136. - -[16] Another way, laid down by some authorities, was that any unmarried -woman fasting on Midsummer Eve, and at midnight laying a clean cloth -with bread, cheese, and ale, and sitting down as if going to eat--the -street door being left open--the person whom she is afterwards to marry -will come into the room and drink to her by bowing, afterwards fill the -glass, make another bow, and retire.--_Fielding._ - -[17] A reference to this is found in Cooper's "Spy." - -[18] Quetelet, on the calculation of probabilities. - -[19] May Martin was made to touch the face of her dead child (murdered -by her to prevent a discovery), the fresh blood came forth, "whereupon -she confessed." - -[20] For more about these places see "New England Legends." - -[21] Partly taken from Felt's "Annals of Ipswich," partly from the -relations of others. - -[22] The rule, as laid down by Cotton Mather in "More Wonders" was -this: "When there has been a murder committed, an apparition of the -slain party accusing of any man, altho' such apparitions have oftner -spoke true than false, is not enough to convict the man of that -murder; but yet it is a sufficient occasion for Magistrates to make a -particular inquiry," etc. - -[23] "Forty-one Years in India." - -[24] An apple bough also is made use of in some cases. - -[25] According to the prophecy in Joel ii, 10, and Matthew xxiv, 29, -then "shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light." - -[26] In "Nooks and Corners of the New England Coast." - -[27] For more about her, see "New England Legends and Folk-Lore." - - - - - * * * * * * - - - -Transcriber's note: - -Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant -preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed. - -Frequent use of dialect and archaic spelling retained. - -Simple typographical errors were corrected. 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