Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1892-01-02

only powerless but are even afraid to
venture abroad. Shakespeare refers
to this superstition OF the Welsh peas
nntry In "Hamlet, p" where he puts the
following lines into the mouth Of Mar
cellua;
"sone say tn At ever 'gainst that reason comes
wherein our sayior's birth b celebrated.
The bird n dawnlng singc,h Nil nirtt long.
And then they say. 10 spint stirs Ahroah;
The nights are wholesome. then no planets
ttfite.
40 fairy takes. nor witch hath power TO
charm,
10 hallowed aud 80 gracious Is the time"
while Shakespeare ha. thus set forth
that portion OF the Welsh superstition
regarding Christmas, n Welsh folk.
poet Of some ability, In volume OF
folk ballads published In 1850, has
Illustrated In tho following lines the
peculiar dresd with which the peas
antry Of Wales regard the augmented
power Of fairies, witches and evil
spirits upon New Years owe:
"cn New Years Eve the pith along.
The milsmhid ahottcns with song
Her solitary way;
sho see. the fairies with their qucon,
Trip hand In hand the circled green,
Tho ear enchanting lay"
Among the Welsh people fairies are
known as rylwyth Teg, which
means the fair folk or family, anu they
are believed 10 be rampant and to
possess unusual power upon New
Years Eve. They are thought to have
\ great fondness for children, and woe
betide the fond mother who has IN any
way offended the y Tylwyih Teg during
the now dying year. Let her watch
well the cradle where her darling lies
sleeping, for II she fails to do 40 the
malicious fairies will come In her alb
scnoc, steal away her child aud sub.
stltute for II u "plentyn neuid" or
chRngeling, who though II may al lfst
be the exact counterpart Of tho stolen
babe, will soon alter into a frightful-
looking shrunken, pulling brat, not un-
frequently becoming idiotic. Any child
OF that description Ia always re-
gRrded In Wales us n New
YEARS. Eve changeling, aud such
| children do NOT usually live long.
There are said TO lie well authentlcst.
ed eases Of this kind having truDspirei
In Wales within the past twenty year..
| This belief In New YEARS Eve change.
llngs, however, n by no means confln-
ed 10 Wales. Martin Luther, the great
reformer, tells us In his "Colloquls
Menszlia" that while travelling In An
halt he saw one OF these chaugelings
who "would eat ms much M two
thresherr, would laugh and he joyful
when any evil happened In the house,
hut would cry and be very sad when
all went we'll" He then goes on 10
state that he Rdvised the prince to
/ throw II into the river MolJow. The
/ prince did not care 10 act upon the
suggestion, whereupon Luther ad-
mOnished the people 10 pray
| God 10 take the little devil away.
This advice being acted upon,
he records that Sin the second year si-
,erwsrd the changeling died" The
inference that the good people who, In
obedience 10 Luther's advice, prayed
Tor the removal Of the poor little inuo-
cent, aided their faith by works and
assisted IL out Of the world Ia which IL
had been 10 uncharitably received.
Many u the superstiiions Of the
Welsh peasantry with regard to New
Years Day TAX, the form Of om.ns or
suguries foretolling Joy or sorrow, pros
perity or disaster, during the coming
year. Thus II IL n popular belief among
this most interesting people that II q
lamp or candle be- taken out OF a house
on that day some member NJ the family
will die before the expiration Of the
new year; while 10 throw out dirty
wnter, ashes oranything whatever--no
matter how worthlors-is regarded as
certain to bring misfortune 10 the
entire household during the whole
OF that twelvemonth. II n young
wOmsn,s first caller on New Years
day be n dark complexionej, dark
haired man, instead Of one whose hair
aud skin are fair. II IL customary for
n young man 10 knock on New Year's
morning, Mt the house OF the Welsh
damsel with whom he IN smitten. IL
| II Ii she who opens, the swain " said
| to he her "nrst fpOot''--that is, the first
| 10 set foot at her home In the New
Year-and, as such, 10 entitled TO a
kiss. IL not unfrequently happens,
| however, that some withered old
maiden aunt, wrinkled grandmother,
/ OF other ancient beldame receives him,
aud then he Is her "nrst foot, J." and Ia
| in honor bound TO kiss her, let the duty
he ever 20 dlssgreeable.
A favorito superstition among the
| peasantry OF Wales IL that unless some
new article of clothing be- worn on
| New Years day, misfortune II sure to
follow throughout the entire year. They
| have an old folk rhyme on this sub.
lect, which runs NJ followss
Atbcw Years let your oihcs be new
or else be sure you Will u rue,
Everyone is iRmiliar With the legend
Of "Trip Van Wiukle" rs Introduced
toour literature 10y Washington Irving.
and has laughed and cried over thr
pathetic story 81 the big. hearted, iOii, K
my butchmrn who drinks with the
ghustly Hudrck Hudson and his
shadowy crew IN the Businesses of the
Catskills, sleeps Tor period OF time
which ho believes To he one night but
which il H. reality twenty years, and
VINO wanders uuwn tho mOuntaiu 10
lud all obi friends dead aud gone, hip
home broken up, his wife married,
Jain, his little daughter, grown out OF
his recollection, etc, his faithful dog
schneider smOng the missing. But
probably few are aware that there I,
scarcely country whose Ieoul,
do not relate this story In come form
and that the source from which lfviul
/ a a.. L. - IA a..