Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1880-06-18
Social Suuerstitioos,
PERVERTED BELIEFS THAT HAVE been
TRANsPLANTED FROM OVER THE SEAS.
From the New York Times.l

trEoiu tne new ioih iihe'-J
' Several correspondents of the Time
have written to ask for information coI
cerning the popular superstition reSnrc
ing 13 at table. 1t is very commonly bt
: lieved that the assembling of 13 person
n at table insures the death of one OF til
; party before the years end. Like man.
, other social superstitions, this foolish nc
! : ton has probably survived the s;rlng
{ delusions which existed In the world dur
ing the dark ages that intervered b"tweel
between the fourth century of the Chris
tian era and the revival of Christianity
1t is curious to observe how many Of tn
superstitions which exist in the minds o
Intelligent men are traceable to the ag'
when the Christian religion had become
, as completely mummery, even III man,
parts OF Europe, rs the letichism of thu
benightcd African. This may be cruml
of comfort to the ingenious gentlemen
who are now engaged in scattering to thu
winds, with great laughter and amuse
ment, what remains of the wreck o
Christianity. The birth, suifcrinss and
death of our Lord have furnished innu'
merable incidents on which mysterious
superstitions and sayings have been
founded. For example, III many parts OF
England, and in the New England States,
it is believed that the cattle knoel i'll then
stalls on Christmas eve, at midnight, i'll
remembrance of the nativity. Possibly
some of our readers remember how they
wero won't, in their childhood, under the
direction of ignorant and superstitious
servants, to 60 into the snow-bound barn,
by night. ito see the cattle Eneer on
! Christmas eve
Many of these perverted beliefs come
from over the seas. As our forefathers
brought with them the superstitlous no.
tions of Old England which we find trans
planted in the New England, SO later I'M
migrants have brought the superstitions
of other lands. The Cornish miners in
the Pacific States, for example, say that
they hear on Christmas eve, far down III
the depths of the mines, supernatural
voices singing Now well Now well y
One authority says that our Lord was
crucified on an ashen tree, wherefore, as
is known, snakes do show such a dread of
that tree that they may be driven from
their haunts by chips and slivers of the
ash But another equally learned au-
taority declares that lightning never
strikes the elder, for the reason that the
cross was made OF the wood Of that tree,
and therefore ii Is hallowcd Tor all time.
Nevertheless. ii is popularity believed
that the leaves II 1.-THE light quivcring
aspen shiver and shake because the tree
is in agony for the shameful death of the
Saviour wrought upon II in the time of
PLATE. And the belief that some one of
party Of - at table will die before the
year is ont is founded upon the remem-
brance of our Lord and his l. disciples
at table when the last supper was eaten.
A fanciful writer has defined supersti-
ton to be that which survives when Its
companions are dead, tho derivation be-
ing traced to the Latin word SuperSto
These who escaped from battle were
called sHperstitcs Thus, argues this III
genious person, superstition is that which
remains when real religion Is dead. Fear,
awe and worship are paid to religious i'm
pressions which remain in the mind when
right notions of the Deity no longer ex-
ist. 1t is notorious that the boldest ag-
nostic is rs susceptible TO the influence of
signs, omens and popular superstitions as
the humblest and most unlearned of |
Christians Indeed, We should expect to |
find that the man who has abolished God |
from his universe, and has burned his !
bridges behinl him as he advances into /
would naturally incline to |
the substitution of dumb unreasoning |
faith in an underlined and nebulous super
But there are multitudes of |
intelligent people who hesitate to sit at
table with party Of 13, although the OBJ
jector does not know whence the idle su-
perstition began. He has heard of in
stances of persons dying soon after being
pnc of IL at dinner-table. He does not
believe in the superstition. hut ho wouit I
rather be on the safe side, So he declines
to sit. How many people DO not like to
see the new moon over their left shoul-
der? How many fail to turn over in their
pockets the few coins which happen to be
therein when they see the new moon
through glass? Is not an uncommon
thing for sensible men and women to de-
fer beginning n piece of work, which
might have been begun Of a Saturday,
until some other day, on account of the
popular belief that work begun OF n
will never be finished.
The homes of New England and OF
New York and other States for that mat
ter are filled with signs and wonders,
omens and supersiitions. 1t is unlucky
to weigh newborn children they will
not thrive, and they may not live. When
children are first taken from the room in
which they were bora they must go up
stairs before they go down stairs other
wise they will ne'cr rise i'll the world.
Very likely some of oar readers have
seen nursc mount CHAIR with the baby
n her arms when there was no room in
he house higher than the baby's birth
,lu.n &c. ,ltninrilt -. tl,,
II this superstition, but il must have been
lerivcd from some pagan notion. The
popular saving i'll New England that
when Il girls peticoat is longer than her
gown her mother loves her less than her
ather need not be relcgated to the dark
lges. The breaking Of a looking glass
rs an omen of a death i'll the family is
sasily explicable 1t is the breaking Of
he image Of some one III the household
But why stranger should be expected
% arrive very soon after fork, pair of
scissors or other sharp pointed instru-
nent falls and sticks upwar! IN the floor
S not to be understood Yet multitudes
If women set their house to order when
inch warning comes TO them. 4
Strangers approach is also warned often
by the dropping of a di3h-clout on the
ioor Manifestiy, this came to be ac-
,epted as n sign because it would be NOR
Iifying for the stranger to come in before
the dish-clout could be taken NJ aud the
room made tidy.
Old wives by the sea-coast hold many
superstihons concerning the ''hollow-
and mysterious main" Thus
Dickens tells us that Barkis fingered iii
his dying until the turn of the tide, when,
the tide going out, Barkis went out with
it, In New England it is unluchy to kill
a pig i'll the wane OF the moon or ut the
ebbing Of the tide the pork will shrink
in the boiling. Water in the dinner-pot
evaporates more rapidly over the fire
when the tide is dead low" 1t is un-
lucky to eat fish from the head down
ward it drives away the fish from the
shores 70 tell the stage of the tide
without going to the beach, look in a eats
eyes the pupil of every intelligent cats
eye is elongated when the tide is at the
flood. Never count catch of fish until
the day work, or sport, is done. Other
wise, the sport is spoiled Similarly. the
Sea- side farmer never counts his lambs
until the season for their dropping is
over. But it is not alone i'll rural com
that men and women keep up
customs and rites founded on pagan su-
perstitions. Among the ancient Greeks
and Romans 1t was II common custom for
the bridegroom to give his bride, on the
night, considerable sum of
money. by way of purchase of her per
son. From this usage, no doubt, we
have derived the custom Of making we'd
ding presents, under which 80 many peO-
Pile groan. The ancient Saxons gavo II
betrothal ring, or other gift, which was
called "a wed, and from which we havo
derived very charming word. Fifth
avenue throws an old shoe nfter the de
parting bride. Is this because our stern
er forefathers ordained that the bride
groom should tap his new made wife on I
the head with his shoe as token of her .
to her lord?
CHURCH BELLs-Thcre is something .
beautiful i'll the church bells. Beautiful
and hopeful They talk TO high and low,