The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1881-09-14
The Mistletoe Bough.

cob, the mistletoe bought o, the
mistletoe Dough" sang clear voice.
go, auntie what makes you sing that
doleful ditty? and what is mistletoe
bough anyhow ?" cried Tom Brown to
his Aunt Elsie.
"Well," said auntie, lone question at
a time. I sing it because l like it"
Tom shrugged his shoulders at his
aunt's old-fashioned taste, but pursued
his inquiry.
"The mistletoe, Tom, is a parasitic
plant, or one which can subsist only by
clinging to the stems and imbibing the
juices of stronger plants. 1t usually
grows on oak or black walnut trees, and
about Christmas has the most beautiful
white berries, looking very much like
pearls, and growing in clusters of ten or
twelve, which contrast beautifully with
its heavy green leaves. 1t is often gath
cred with the holly, which, you remem-
Der, has bright, scarlet berries, for decora-
ting houses at Christmas. 1t is not often
used in ornamenting churches, because of
superstitious feeling many people have,
that it was connected with the idolatrous
rites of the Druids."
80, auntie - said Tom, "tell me about
the Druids 1 am reading about the big
stones they left at Stonehenge, some Of
them twenty-five feet long, and ranged
round in a circle"
"Do you know what the circle meant,
Tom?"
"No, aunt, I do not. Do you?"
at is supposed to have been emblem
attic of the Deity-you know ring was
the symbol of eternity among many an
cient people, because it has neither be-
ginning nor end. Much of what we
know of the Druids we learn from julius
Caesar, who led the Roman legions into
Britain little more than fifty years be-
fore the coming of our Saviour. He re-
cords that the Druids were not only the
priests, but had entire charge of the
education of youth and large share of
authority over the magistrates, for, by
forbidding them the sacrifices, they were
cut off from all association with their
fellow-men. In many regards their gov
eminent seems to have been wise one,
but some of their practices were horrible,
particularly that of offering human sacri-
fees. 1t is even recorded that on some
occasions there were prepared colossi of
osier twigs-that is, immense baskets in
the shape of men-which were filled with
living men and then burned They gen
orally took criminals for these sacrifices,
such as murderers or robbers, because
they deemed their sacrifice more accept
able to the gods; but when the real Grim
inals were lacking, sometimes the in
nocent were made to suffer. The priests
are said to have dressed in very long
garments, and during their religious
services they always wore white sur
plice. They had gold ornament fast
ened round the neck, called a Druid s
egg and carried wand in the hand and
Ratchet in the belt, with which to cut
mistletoe, which was valued only when it
grew on the oak, so that much of that
found in the United States, where it
grows chiefly on the black walnut,
would have been useless to them. 1t was
doubted for long time if what we now
call mistletoe was indeed the plant so
distinguished by the Druids, for the rea-
son that for several hundred years it was
not found growing on the oak in England
but recently it has been found in the
West of England growing quite album
dainty on the sturdy oak. Oak leaves
were also used by the ancient Britons to
make chaplets to wear during their re-
ligious ceremonies, and the dense shade
of the grand tree they venerated as hav-
ing peculiar sanctity. Chris. at Work.