The Dickinson press., 1888-07-07
LORE OF THE HAIR.
SOME OF THE suPERsTITlONs EN-
TERTAINED IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

TERTAINED IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES.
The Hair Not to Bc Cut at Certain
Times-Combing to Bs Performed with
Caution-A Remedy for Dispase-Grcck
Custom.
The belief that tho hair, like tho nails,
must be cut ut certain times only and that it
Is unlucky to trim hair or beard at other
times, is very old. Pctronius says it must
not be done at sea, lest n storm ensue, and
forty blows were necessary to overcome the
evil effects of such n deed in Roman vessel.
l'ropertius says the same; and Juvenal says
the hair was only given us as a final offering
to the gods, and should not be cut at other
times. 1t was bad omen even to dream of
cutting the hair, rs it portendcd shipwreck.
In Calabria, at the present day, the hair,
like the nails, must not be cut on Tuesday,
"Wednesday or Friday. In England the old
rhyme says:
Friday cut and Sunday shorn
Better never had been born.
And in Devonshlrc, as i'll many places in our
own country, it must not be cut during tho
waning moon and Friday is an unlucky day
in Iceland, where it is said tho one who cuts
his hair then will die soon, and in Oldenburg,
where it is then cut, "for sorrow"
The sudden loss of tho hair, or a consider
able portion of it, is also regarded in many
places as unfortunate In England it is said
that loss of children, health or property will
ensue The attachment u the Chnaman for
his queue is well known. 1t is regarded us n
disgrace to have it cut off, as well as entail
ing bad luck upon tho owner This is the
more strange since it is Il mark of conquest
imposed upon tho Chinese 10y their Manchu
princes.
USE CAUTION WHEN CoMBING.
Combing is an net that sometimes must be
pursued with caution. In Scotland it was
thought that conbng it by c;lndeght, or
at nlghtat ALL would cause disastcrto to friends
Mt sea. Many fear to throw away their hair
when cut OIL or combed out. Ancient Greeks
offered it to the gods, and Japanese present
it as II thank Offering for preservation at sea.
Irish maidens of the last century hung their
hair up before tho shrine of st. Urbane, that
it might bc long and yellow. The Persian
Ncndad forbade the casting away of the
hair or nails us tho devils would then gain
Increased power. The lair must bo buried
in IL hole dug ten fingers deep, at Il distance
of ten PAGES from tho faithful, twenty-five
from fire, thirty from water and fifty from
the sacred brooms, and then three circles
drawn around it with metal knife, and
three, six OF nine prayers said.
In parts Of England it is thought imprudcnt
To throw away cuttings and combings of tho
lair, IL to leave it lying about. Some say if
birds get it and build nests Herewith, it will
be fatal to tho person from whose head tho
hair was cut. If the bird wero q inagpe, he
would dio in II year and IL day. Others say it
should not DO burned, but buried, us tho
owner will return for it at tho resurrection
day In Lancashire it is thrown into tho fire,
and if it burns up brightly it is sign of lon
lsevity, tho greater tho higher the flame, but
ii it snlodcrs and burns slowly it is sign of
death. In Belgium it is thought that witches
will gain possession Of hair carelcssly thrown
away, and thus acquire power over the
former posscssor of it. Tho Gauchos of
South America fear TO cast the hair to tho
winds, but put it carefully away in holes in u
wall.
AS A REMEDY FOR DISEASE.
Asa remedy for certain diseases, the hair
i, sometimes cut of, on tho hair itself used
brdcnally. In Dcvonshire England, if
you lave the ague, all you need do is to cut
oil some of Your hair ard convey the disease
to your next neighbor by turying these locks
under his door step. In Scotland, when a
child wasafiiictel with boils, it was formerly
a custom to cut off its hair und throw it in
the fire, and thus compel witches to come
and remove the disease. Irish peasants cut
of the hair from tho head of any one suf-
tering from scarlet fever, and convey the
disease to an ass by examining the HAIR down
its throat. In Hcrtfor,Ifhirc, to cure tho
a@ric, peg II lock of your hair into u young
onli tree, and wrench it from the head.
MiXc,l with mil parngs and cindcrs, the
hair was formerly used as n Scotch remedy
for epilepsy. and, mixed with nail cuttings
nna hair from the eyebrows, it was specific
for convulsions. The Arabs believe that the
smoke Of burning hair taken from Christ
ial5 head will cure any disease.
Tho hair is also used US charm in Ireland.
Wolnan's hair is cut Off, and locks of it made
INTO bracelets, rings etc, to be used as
charms. Perhaps the custom of obtaining a
lock of hair from any one for whom YOU
haze regard arose from such Il superstition.
Witches were said to desire a similar token
tor evil purposes.
Some instances of divnation by tho hair
have been given. In Wcstphala, when a
NAN first sees the new moon, if lie finds q
hair in his shoe under his foot it is thought
tn be an indication of a speedy marriage, and
the color Of his wife's hair will be the Same
IA, that found. The poet Gay records similar
notions in England. There was singular
custom in ancient Greece connected with tho
hair y bride must have her hair colnbed
With n spear that had belonged to some one
siain in battle, or that had been dyed with
the blood of some one slain thus. This would
asstirc her bringing forth brave sons.-F. S.
Eaosett in Globe-Democrat.