The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-11-05

Observsnces Which Are Required to In
sure Personal safety-Oid Belief

Counties are the supers.itions which GOV
ern the daily life Of the Ron nsnian, and the
sl@ervances which are required TO insure his
safety IN the midst o. the mysterious dan
gers which surround him Neither on We'd
nesday nor Friday should he take bread or
use needle or scissors, nor should a bargain
be concluded on those days On Tuesday no
spinning should be done, and there is even
danger in washing the hands or combing tho
hair. MAY the spirit Of Tuesday evening
carry YOU OFF, is equivalent 20 saying "May
the devil take you'll" Neither should any
orc make the mistake Of supposi1g that on
the comparatively LUCKY days Of Monday
Thursday and Saturday he may safely do as
lie pleases. One may attend TO the house
hold wash on Thursday and spin on Satur-
day, but terrible consequences would ensue
should this order be reversed IL IL true
that Thu sday Is lucky day for marriages,
but it is most inauspicious for field labor.
The exact hour Of noon is always dan
gerous moment and so is midnight; 1t IS
safcr to be in tho house at these times Tie
night before Easter Sunday witches and de-
mons are about. and flames betray the site Of
hidden treasures. None but the most reck-
less PEASANT, however, would dare appropr-
ate the treasures thus revealed, for on that
night they cannot be taken without sin. n
whiIlwind shows that the dc-il is dancing
with a witch, and whoever comes near the
circle may be swept OFF 10 hcl. One should
neither point at the rainbow nor OF an ep-
proaching storm, and "if a house struck by
lightning begins to burn, it il not allowed to
C. Iaranua God Inc liz flp
fire, and it were rresumptuous for man to
dare meddlo with his work" Whoever turns
three sornersaults the first time he hears tho
thunder will be free from pains in the back
for the following year 1t is lucky TO meet
gypsy the first thing in the morning, and 1t
Is also lucky to meet a woman with lugiul
Of water, while an empty jug or pail is IN
lucky; therefore the Roumanian maiden
meeting you on the way back from the well
will display her trimming pitcher as she
passes, with pleased consciousness Of BRING
ing good luck, while the girl whose pitcher Is
empty will stink past shamefocedlJ, rs
though she had a crime 10 conceal
1t was an old Roumanian belief that ia the
building Of a large edifce it was absolutely
essential that living human being should
be built into the walls to give them stability.
There can be no doubt that this barbarous
custom was often Observed and the remnant
Of il is seen in tho practice which still pre-
walls Of walling into any large building tho
shadow Of living mcn. The shadow OF
some person, who must be unconscious q the
spell to be cast upon him. is measured with a
cord or strips of reed, and the measure IS in
TERED within the wall The victim is sure TO
pine and die within forty days. \ careless
passer near some building in process Of cree
ton may even now hear warning cry from
the bvstanders: "Beware lest they take thy
shadow II is not long since there were pro
fessional shadow traders whose business II
was 10 supply architects with the necessary
victims.-"The Land Beyond tho Forest"