River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-02-13
English SuperstltiOns.

: has lately Decn making tour OF fuTa
England, writes of the superstitions Of
the hamlets as follows;
In most large rural parishes in Eng
land there is at least one small hamlet
mile or two distant from the main viii
/ lage. A few houses and cottages stand
loosely scattered about the fields, no two
of them together-so separated, indeed,
by hedges, meadows and copses, as hard
iy 10 be called even hamlet. The com.
, munication with the village is maintained
by long, winding, narrow lanei but
foot passengers follow a shorter path
across the fields, which in winter is sure
to be ankle deep in mud by the gate-ways
and stiles. The lane at the same time
is crossed by torrent, which may spread
out to thirty Yards wide in the hollow
shallow at the edges, but swift and deep
in the middle. If you wait a couple OF
hours it will subslde, as the farmers low
CT down the brook pull up their matches
to let the flood pass Ii you are IN a
hurry, you must climb up into the
doubemound beside the lane and force
your way along it between the thorns
and sloles till you reach the chaLnei
through which the current is rushing.
Across that an old tree trunk will prob
ably lie, and by grasping a bough as
handrail it is possible to get over. But
either way, by lane or footpath, you are
sure to get what the countey folk call
"watdhet." 50 that in winter the
hamlet is practically isolated; for even
in moderately good weather the
lane is an inch or two deep in finely
puddled adhesive mud. 1t was SO shad-
ed by elms and thick hedges that the
dirt requires length of time to dry,
while the passage of hundreds of sheep
tread and puddle it as only sheep can.
In summer the place is lovely; but then
the inhabitants are one and all busy in
the fields, and have little time for social
intercourse or for travel into the next
parish. 1t is ten to one if you knock at
cottage door you will find it locked
il, indeed, you get so far as that, pad
! lock being often on the gar ien-gate. Be
ing so isolated and apart from the cur
rent of modern life and manners, the
hamlet folks retain something of the old
! fashioned way of thinking. They do
not believe their own superstitions with
the implicit c.edence of yore, but they
have not quite forgotten them. | have
known women. for instance, who serious
ly asserted that such andsuch ar aged
person had magic book, which CON
tanned spells and enabled her to foresee
some kinds of coming events. The in
| fluence of the it1oon-so firm an article
of faith ambng their forefathersis not
altogether overlooked; and they watch
for the new moon carefully. If the cres-
cent slopes it will be wet weather.
But if the horns of the cres-
| cent touch, or nearly, vertical line IL
it stands upright--then it will be fine.
Something, too, must be allowed for the
degree of sharpness or definition OF the
crescent, which reveals the state of the
atmosphere. And the cottage astrologer
has a whole table of the quarters, aspects
and so on, and lays much stress upon the
day and the hour Of the change; indeed,
| it is a very complicated business to I'M
! derstand the moon. The belief In the
power of some persons to ''rule the plan
cts" is profound; so profound that neither
rhicule, argument nor authority will
shake it in the minds of
the hamlet girls, and it abides hy
them even when they are placed amid
/
When "in service" they buy dreambooks.
and consult fortune-tellers. To rule the
planets means to tell fortunes by the
stars. The Gypsies in passing through
the country choose the by ways and lanes;
they thus avoid the tolls, have a chance
of poaching, and find waste places to
camp in. though possibly something of
the true nomadic instinct may urge them
to leave the beaten tracks and wander
over lonely regions They camp near the
hamlet as they travel to and from the
great sheep-fairs which are held upon the
hills, and perhaps stay a few days; and
bV them to some extent the belief IN as
trology and palmistry is strengthened.
The carriers, who have to spend some
considerable time every day with theil
horses in the stable, still retain large
repertory of legendary ghost-lore. T9ey
know the exact spot in the lane where, al
certain hour OF the night, the white
specter of headless horse, rushing past
with incredible swiftness and without the
sound OF a hoof, brushes the very coat of
the traveller, aud Immediately disappears
in the darkness. Another lane is haunted
by white woman, whose specter crosses
| it in front of the spectator and then APP
pears behind him. II he turns bis head
and looks on one side in order to escape
the sight of the apparition, 1t instantly
crosses to that side. Indeed, no matter
to which direction he chances, the flick
erino figure floats before him till, max
ing run for if, he passes beyond the
limits of the haunted ground. Near by
the hollow, where the stream crosses the
lane, is another spirit, of an indefinite kind,
| that does not seem to take shape, but
alb Uses those who go past at the time when
A has power to feel mortal horror. A
| hack dog may be seen in at least two diff
| ferent places The wayfarer is suddenly
surprised to find a gigantic animal of the
deepest Jet trotting by his side, or he
sees dark shadow detach itself from the
| bushes and take the form OF a dog. The
black dog has perhaps more vitality and
survives in more localities than all the ap-
partitions that in the olden times were
sworn to by persons Of the highest verac-
ity. They NAV still be heard of in many
nook and corner. | have known PEG
| pie of the present day who were positive
that there really was something" weird
in the places where The dog was said to
appear. 1t is supposed that horses are
peculiarly liable to take fright and run
away, to shy, or stumble and break their
knees at a certain spot in the road. They
go very well till just at passing the fatal
spota sudden fear seizes them; sometimes
they bolt headlong, sometimes the,
stand stock still and SILVER; or throw
their rider by a rapid side movement
In the aay -time-lor this supernatural
effect is felt in broad day as we'll as a
night-the horse more frequently falls OF
stumbles as if checked by an invisible
force in the midst OF his career. This,
too, is living superstition, and some
persons will recount a whole string Of
accidents that have happened within a
few wards, till at last, such Is the force OF
iteration, the most incredulous admit it
TO be a series of remarkable condolences.
These last two. the black dog and the
dangerous place in the road, are believed
in BY people Of much higher grade
than carriers. Altogether, the vitality of
superstition in the country is very much
greater than is commonly suspected. 1t
Is now confined, as ii were, to the inner
life of the people; no one talks Of such
things openly, or only TO their friends;
and thus stranger might remark on the
total extinction of the belief in the super
natural. BUT much really remains.
The carriers have q story about horses