The Lambertville press. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1858-1???, 1861-02-13
41.OO A-YEAR
St. Valentines Day.

meas and sorrow sang: " Good NOR
row, tits 81. Valentines day" And
IS every fair reader knows, tomorrow
10 ths.day devoted by all lords and
loysUssto the sweetness of human af-
factions ard the union of the tender
est ties go
''The origin Of ST. Valentines day
ia smystery. 1t goes back to the
early years of Christian history, and
il lost in the gray dawn of civilization.
There are hundred legends in con-
nection with it, every one of which
contains sweet story of love, ro-
nance and humanity One authority
tells Us the original of st. Valentine
was Valentine, who flouriShed in Rome
Is pope or bishop, in the ninth
century. Valentine, it is said, on
this day established an annual GUS
tsms0f the poorer clergy drawing pa
irons by lots for the commenced year !;
and these patrons or benefactors were
called Valentines. After his death he
was caponized for a saint, and his
feast day kept on the fourteenth day
of February, which was thought to
be his birth day. He was beheaded un-
der Olaadius II, A. D. 27l. John
Gordon, in his Memoirs and Account
ofthe Popes, says that /" Valentine
vas too good a man to be a pope" "
and died forty days after his consecra-
ti6n or instalment, very suddenly
The Church CALENDARS, however, do
not entirely concur with this romantic
story, IS they very briefly tell us that
"st. valentine was priest of Rome,
who, after enduring cruel imprison-
ment. was beaten with clubs and then
beheaded by Claudius."
TIE oustom of sending Valentines,
SO much in vogue now, is one of very
ancient origin. We know that as
early IS the fifteenth century, it was a
very common custom in England.
The custom did not originate in En-
gland, but was copied by the laity
from the clergymen, in the days of
catholicism A great many authors
confidently trace the custom back for
more than a thousand years. We
have no doubt, however, that it is
even older than this We have an
opinion, that like many other customs
90 popular to-day among civilized men,
this is bat an analogy of an old Pa
gan observance, and that the Romans
under Trogan, and the Gauls under
Cesar, paid as much attention to the
interchange Of lovers missives as the
fair Anglo Saxons of the nineteenth
century. Ne are told, indeed that
at the festival of the Roman Luper-
calis. amongst other ceremonies, it was
usual to put the names of a number
ofyonng women into a box from which
they we're drawn by the men as chance
dfracted. The pastors Of the early
Christian Church, who endeavored to
eradicate the vestiges Of Pagan SUI
perstition, substituted the names of
particular saints in lieu of the women
sad ss the festival of the Lupercalia
used to take place about the middle of
Fsbrasry, they chose ST. Valentines
day for celebrating the new feast.
In England the costom is more
prevalent than here in America. The
truth is that in this country, mischie-
vnus wags use the privileges of the
occasion more for the purpose of sa-
tirixing their Eeighbors, or sewing
dissention among loving SWANS, than
Tor the legitimate purposes of personal
alteration. An English journal which
We End on our desk, speaking of Val
entinss and St. Valentines day, says
that many antiquarians have endeav-
ored in vain to unravel the mystery
of St. Valentines day. If discovered
it would likely enough be as unmean-
ing as the source from whence so many
of our old customs have sprung, anG
rot worth the labor wasted. Our an
cestors were pretty close observers of
Nature, and there is but little doubt
that. rs they noticed the birds which
psgin to pair at that period, when the
weather is favorable, SO natural an
occurrence might lead to youths and
maidens initiating the custom by Sc
leeting lovers, glad Of any amusement
AFTER the dark mid winter had passed,
and that Valentines day had no other
Origin. As far back as antiquarians
hsEs been enabled to trace this love
making day, they end it linked with
the mating Of birds.
The earliest Valentines were moth
ing mors than slips paper, on which
tie names of both sexes were written /;
fhsg we're placed apart, the men draw
ise frsm thsPils On which the women's
: ifSf stA sii3 = 8s1