The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1883-01-16
Charms Against tho ryvll Eye.

The supposed liability Of the innocent
multitude to the malevolence of the evil
eye caused the superstitious to have
recourse to many charms, incantations.
and ceremonies to avert till.consequences
and render the poisoned glance innoou-
ous; among which, as just recorded,
prayer and the use of saliva were con-.
spicuous. The wearing of coral
brooches, beads, and earrings is still
opular charm in Naples against the
| Vii eye. "ln Scotland" says Mr..
raham Dnlzeli, in his addenda, "a
thread tied about chlld's neck, or
rowan CROSS, (cross Of mountain ash),
-! believed to DO equally etlicnoious
IN preventing the influence Of evil spir-
it's, evil eyes, and other calamities. /"
In the Middle Ages M amulet, of Il
lozenge shape, marked with the mystic
letters A. B. II. a. G. A. ID. a. B. Il. A.
was worn in the bosom as a certain
specific. cross formed Of the wood
OF the elder tree, affixed to cowhouses
and stables. was supposed to protect
the cattle from all possible harm. A
branch Of the rowan trco was also in
great favor, and to hold up but branch
or twig i'll the presence OF all eye-biter
was sufficient to render her deadliest
wishes OF no avail. A four-lenved
shamrock, which is excessively rare,
and all the more highly priced for that
reason, WAS n sovereign antidote In
Pocock's travels i'll the cast lie says
that the Arabs of Egypt threw salt into
the fire as charm against the effects
OF an evil eye, or before loading their
camcls for journey through the desert,
concluding, rs the blue flame arises,
'hat every evil genius is banished.
lhe eJcction of saliva was also consid
red charm Of peculiar efficacy.
'iiny speaks of it rs q certain antldote
o ''fascinntion," as well as preserya-
tive from contagion, and in pugiiistio
encounters as certain to aggravate the
violence Of blow. "At tho present
day, ~ Of DID," says Mr.. DalzelI, "a
Greek mother, as ii commcmorating
tho words of Theocritus and Tibulus,
spits i'll her bosom to repel fascinating
glances directed toward horself, and,
dreading the gaze of the sterile on her
child, spits in it's face" But the most
common OF all the charms in use against
the evil oye is that very vulgar gesture
80 ~->ri~;.e- .h- .l.,,~,h IN thn ,ro..,
stretching out the fingers, and "twid-
ding" them with rapid motion for
few seconds, commonly practiccd by
London street boys, without the slight
est knowledge of its origin or meaning,
unl known in slang parlance as "taling
sight" The Slang Dictionary says
that 'to take sight" is vulgar action
employed by boys to denote incredu~
hty or contempt for authority; but the
real meaning in ancient times, forgotten
and wholly unsuspccted in our own,
was tn show contempt and defiance OF
the machinations of witchoraft, and to
render tho OWL cye powerless. This is
the action that SO offends the good
naturcd Pho Mono, not for itself, but an
a manifestation Of tho public opinion,
that he possesses, Independently Of his
will, Il power that he would be the last
to exercise dcsignedly. This vulgar
sign, modern Us 1T looks, IL as old as
Egyptian civilization, and was known.
as tracings upon the unearthed walls Of
Pompeii and Hcrculaneum nbundnntly
prove, to the street boys and other vul"
gal inhabitants Of those ancient cities.