The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1872-02-14
ST. VALENTINE.
Ifyou love me as I love yop,
No knife can cut our love IN two.

currence Of the ancient annual feasting
and trusting season Of St. Valentine.
When or why it was established has
never been clearly and definitely traced,
but it is an established fact that it first
received popular recognition and was
extensively observed under the ancient
Roman empire. 1t was under the
Christian Enperors Of Rome that the
peculiar observance OF the day and the
day itself was dedicated to St. Valen-
tine, and under that name it has been
since observed and known, and is so
generally accepted. Under that early
domination the dowerless and unmarried
girls of the realm vera POLITICALLY at
least, considered the wards Of the EN-.
peror, and on that day it was customary
for them to assemble and be provided
with husbands by lot under the super
vision OF the Emperor, and by him also
to be presented with dover. The day
was usually one Of great feastipg, merry
making and rejoicing, and ultimately
become characterized BY much
immortality apd debauchery. This dis
play of viciousness it became desirable
to check under the Christian sway OF
the empire; and as it was found that
the day upon which this ceremony an
nually took place was also about the
season Of the anniversary Of the martyr
dom OF st. Valentine, its annual OBJ
servance was by decree fixed for that
day. This impaired to the day some
what OF a religious character, and re-
strained almost wholly the intemper-
auce by which its celebration had been
formerly marked. In time it gradually
spread as a poetical custom among the
nations along the southern central
border OF Europe, and became popular
among the Franks and other semi
barbaric peoples. Thence it gradually
spread until it reached England, and
there the festival was grasped and
diligently observed. Amongthe Anglo
Saxons it became a season of Jocund
festivity, courtship and matchmaking,
and at last the most marked feature Of
the day was the idea OF the young men
and women either plighting their troths
in marriage, or as companions and
lovers for the intervening year, until the
next anniversary. Then they were at
liberty to renew the vow, il found
mutually agreeable.
A rather pretty and poetic fancy
and one that has undoubtedly much
foundation as a fact in natural history,
has been connected with the day, to the
effect that it is the pairing" day Of
song birds, and therefore peculiarly
appropriate for the romance and love
making which both sexes of the human
race attach to it. There ia very little
question OF the fact that if not on the
l4th of February, at least about that
time, or the middle Of the month, many
if not all the members OF the feathery
tribes select their mates for the ap-
preaching summer and breeding time
OF course the presumption is fair one
that the custom came to this country
England with "our ancestors" and it is
an equally safe proposition to assert
that if the day was not more generally
observed and enjoyed by them than by
their successors they might as well have
left this custom among other unprofta.
BILE things they left behind them. At
the present time, as is generally known,
the only feature Of observance ia the
sending Of the little billet dOHr which
have for some reason been called
valentines, to coveted beaux and bellies,
each paying the unique compliment to
the other Of striving to obscure the
source whence the tender missve ema-
mates, unless the valentine happens TO
be a very costly one, in which case the
sender is pretty sure to contrive some
method by which the recipient may d.
vine who the sender is. and estimate
the affection Of which it is the repre-
sentative accordingly. 1t also affords
the opportunity to malevolently dis
posed persons to crafty a petty spiteful
piquancy by transmitting very abusive
or sarcastic squibs, couplets and pic.
lures to parties who have at some time
incurred the jealousy, dislike or ridi'
Guile OF others. Still there is one re-
deeming feature about it, as it undoubt-
" aids 10 the diminution OF the national
debt by increasing the United States
revenues through the postal depart
ment. The custom, it is believed, will
have fallen off very much this year, as,
in fact, it has been gradually failing for
twenty years past. and will probably ere
many years 10 come be mere memory,
TO be extolled as bygone halcyon time.