The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1889-03-30
SIR PIGGY.
Notwithstanding His Lowly Sta
tion He Has History.
Curious Facts and Fancies About the
Humble Porker-The Important Figure
He Cuts i'm Legendary and His
toric Tradition.

We hear much in folklore and my
thology about the dog, the horse, the cat
and the BULL but the despised and un.
romantic pig also comes in for share
in the curious notions current among
ancients and modern folk.
1t almost caused war in Caledonia,
where Meleager surrendered to the
fair Atalante the head and hide OF the
immense boar killed by him-a deed
which cost him his lite at the hands OF
the jealous chieftains. Another boar,
the Erymanthian, became celebrated
from its capture, having been one of the
tasks of Hercules. In fact, the pig was
evidently in great esteem in Greece
and Rome, being thought as fit food for
the gods. The boar was sacred to Ar
tennis, the serv to Gaea and Demeter. In
Egypt, however, the pig was always dia-
bolical. On the monuments he is never
figured except in company with the
soul in its final boat-voyage to the
shadowy land. The boar was honored
by being selected as the form in which
Brahma appeared on earth in one of
his ten Avators. This latter word, it
is said, means "out of the boar" and
the boar is, moreover, said by Faber to
represent Noah and the Ark. In the
Welsh Triads there is a wonderful
story of the son of Dallueir, named
Heueven, which burrowed through
Wales. leaving here hen, there seed,
here pig, there stand of bees. Here
again mythologists tell us the ship is
meant and the pig, is therefore fully
installed as an ancient mariner. In our
day he crosses the wide ocean, but
mostly in bulk.
In the North of Europe the pig has
also a place in mythology and legendary
lore. Freyr, the great god of peace
and plenty, rode in chariot drawn by
'Gullin Bursti, boar whose "shining
brlstles" lighted up his way, and until
recently "hog of propitiation" was
frequently offered to Freyr on Christ
mas Eve, being finally replaced by
cake in the form of a pig. Part of this
was pulverized and mixed with the
seed-grain, which was then fed TO the
horses and even to the plowman, to in
sure good crop. In Denmark roast
pork was usually eaten for dinner on
Christmas.
An old legend says the hog Saeh-
rimnir is boiled every day in Valhaela
to feed the heroes, but he comes to life
again each evening, ready for the
sacrifice.
Tacitus says the Estigi, a German
tribe, worshiped the boar. The Slavs
are said also to have adored porcine
deity. The Chinese name one of the
signs of the zodiac after the pig.
But the animal is in other localities
in great disfavor. The Jews and Mo-
hammedans, as is well known. abhor
the flesh of the unclean animal. There
are other religious sects that follow
their example. The wise Sir Thomas
Browne tells us this dislike is all owing
to the fact that the hog is an emblem of
impurity. Folk lore gives more fan
ciful reason. A German tradition re-
lates that band of Jews approached
Jesus one day to test His powers. One
of their number was put under a tub,
and Christ was to guess what was
there. He said it was a pig. The
Jews laughed at Him, but was aston
ished when, upon lifting the tub, pig
ran out and joined herd near by.
From that time they will not touch
pork, for fear of devouring their friend
and associate.
The boar was in ancient Germany
diabolical animal. People still call
the whirlwind Sauzagl (sow's tail). In
a folklore tale the devil appears as a
grunting SOW. Freyr's hog is recalled
by one made by Broch, a dwarf, out of
gold, that could travel faster than any
horse by day or night, by sea or land,
and whose bristles shone like fire.
Welsh traditions assert that fairies
have herds of swine that have been
seen to spring into the air and fly
about. In other accounts, these un-
canny folk appear as swine.
When Jesus cast the devil out of
the demoniac, he is said to have en-
tered into herd of swine, that forth
with ran into the sea, where "Old
Nick" still abides, but he must have
freed the swine from their watery i'm
When the foreleg of
pig is carefully shaved II small hole
and six small rings are seen in the leg.
Tradition says the rings were made by
Satan's claws when he entered the |
herd of swine, and the hole was the
means OF his exit from their bodies.
The well-known sacrifice of the boar
at the Christmas feast is but the sur
vival of the ancient Scandinavian sac
rifice to Freyr at Yule tide. In Sweden
one OF the dancers in the Christmas
puts wisp of straw in his
mouth to represent the porker thus
killed OF yore.
Pigs were also sacrificed in Germany.
An ordinance of 1889 required every
farmer to bring hog to the count of
the manor as IL sacrifice, white one
being preferred. There is an old tradi-
tion in Grimsby. Eng, that each citi-
zen who claimed his free rights must
present to the Mayor each year boar's
head, and the lord OF the adjacent
manor kept a number of these animals
for the Mayor and citizens. In some
marta of Garmanv "a niu ic huriad In |