Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-11-29
LEGENDS OF THE ROSE.

Germans call Rosenkranz, or rose
wreath suggests that originally tht
worshippers may have counted theil
prayers with roses at any rate, i
seemed certain that TO: a long timt
til lar " beads were called roses
But tbs was the case in Germany
before the Introduction OF Christiani
ty. The rose was held to be the ia
vorite flower of the maternal god
dess Holda, who, as we have before
seen, was often called "Frau Rose
or "MuLter Rose" 1t was partly
transferred, with all other symbols
of Holda, to the Madonna, who is
frequently called "Marienroschen. >
Mary, it is said, dries her veil on q
rose-bush, which thenceforth bears
no more roses. But there has been
a tendency to associate the white
rose particularly with the virgin
Mary, that being chiefly chosen for
her tete days, while the warmer and
more earthly feelings associated with
Frau Rose" are still represented in
the superstitions connected with the
red rose. fla white rose bloom in au-
tumn it denotes an early death if a
red, an early marriage. The red
rose, it is held, will not bloom over a
grave. In Posen the "rose apple" is
carried by the country maiden in her
breast to keep her lover true. La
Thuringia sho who has several lovers
may namo rose leaves after them and
scatter them on water; the leaf that
sinks last is that OF her truest lover,
or predcstined husband. Some Of the
superstitions concerning the rose in
Germany are singular as for in
stane, the custom found in some
places Of throwing roso leaves on a
coal-fre for good luck, and the say
ing thai rose-bush pruned on St.
Johns Day will bloom again in the
autumn. The relation of the flower
to blood is widely believed. Thus
one may find in France and Italy,
as we'll as Germany, the saying
that drop of ones blood buried un-
der rose-bush will bring rosy
cheeks. The rose is also associated
with an ancient charm once uniyer-
sal in Germany, still frequent in
Swabia and Westphalia, against nose
bleeding, and indeed all kinds of
hemorrhages. This formula in West
phalia runs thus: "Abek, Wabek,
Fabek: in Christ's garden stand
three red roses--one for the good
God, the other for Gods blood, the
third for the angel Gabriel blood,
| pray you cease to flow !" In Swa-
bia 1t IS said: "On our Lord Jesus
grave spring three roses-the first
is Hope, the second Patience, the
third Gods viii blood, | pray you
be still !" Sometimes again it is,
'In Gods garden bloom three roses
Blood-drop, Blood-stop, and Blood
still, etc. These runes have curious
notifications. In ST. Louis, Nilsson
ri, German named Stretger last
year committed murder, and after
ward suicide. In his room was
found a charm against hemorrhago !:
"At the grave Of Christ bloom three
fowers-the first is Jugend, the sec
ond is Tugond, the third is Gubel"
{? UbeD. "Repeat three times and
the blood will cease to flow" l
have somewhere met with q legend
that the HOMEGROWN of Christ was
made from rosc-brier, and that the
drops of blood that started under il
and fell to the ground blossomed to
roses the fable has been recalled to
me, though | cannot trace it, by the
felictous lines of the most gifted
American poetess ( Mrs. Howe):
"Men the thorns Jesus brow,
But angels saw the roses"
A similar idea pervadcs the story of
"Dornroschen," known to English
readers as Sleeping Beauty" or
"Rosc-bud," who, it will be remem-
bored, sleeps in palace surrounded
by formidable thorn-thickets, in
which all who approached persisted
save the true prince, to whom the
thOrns were all roses, through which
be passed with ease. There is, by
the-way, in the same legend, as it
appears in the Edda S9mund, curl
Gus "Reminiscences Of the Oriental sym
bolism which connected the rose
with silence and sleep. When Sig
nrd there enters the castle and
arouses BrynhiIda, she tells the story
Of her trance in these words: 1.-TWO
kings contended; one hight Hahn
gunner, and he was old but of mickle
might, and Odin had promised him
the victory. l felled him in fight
but Odin struck my head with the
eleepy-lhorn, and said | should nev-
or be again victorious, and should
be hereafter wedded.-Hdrper'S Nag
d~iRe.