The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-13
ST, VALENTINE AND Hrs STORY.
Facts, Not Fancies, About the Patron
Saint of All the Lovers.
From the New York Mail and express.

L lOAL4 bA4C -NCH lOlh Mali anu Ia press
just what the popular idea of the per-
sonality of St. Valentine is would doubt
| less be a difficult question to answer.
| Probably he is vaguely regarded as in
| some way connected with the parentage
of Cupid or perhaps as a parsonage re-
| nowned for his model matrimonial career,
! and certain it is that he is widely sup
/ posed to have been in some way or the
| other so closely mixed up in the manage
ment of some famous love affair that he
! earned the distinction of being the pat
! ron saint of all those who fall victims to
the tender passion.
Now, the truth of the matter is that St.
/ Valentine is in no way which history or
/ tradition can bring to bear on the subject
| connected in the Sigh test degree with any
incident or episode which is even remotely
allied to love affair, and how his sanity
name ever came to be mixed up with the
| great annual feast of spoons is wrapped in
mystery and hidden in the fogs of the dis
tant past
HIS HISTORY.
What is known about him is this: He
was either a priest or a bishop of the
early Christian church at the time when
the Roman empire was reigned over by
Marcus AureliuS Claudius, who figures in
| Roman history as Claudius H. and he was
| such persistent preacher and was blessed
with such marvelously persuasive
| tongue that he convinced a remarkably
! large number of Pagan Romans to re-
| nounce their gods and join the new re-
| ligion.
The persecution of the Christians was
| favorite diversion with Marcus Azure
! Illus Claudius, and he was prolific creator
! of martyrs, so that when the priest or
| bishop Valentine did all he knew how to
! relieve the distress and sufferings among
| hig nnpanonfaA fol1prpo,.g 81
! grew wroth and ordered him into Gus
! tody, naming Calpurnius, the chief officer
! of the city government, as his responsible
! custodian, with orders that he be no
! longer permitted to preach the new gospel
and decry the gods of Rome.
Calpurnius in turn deputized his chief
| OF stan, one Asterids by name, to take
! immediate charge of Valentine and keep
him safely locked up, and in order to do
| so Asterius had him imprisoned in his
own house, probably in the cellar
HIS PERsIsTENoY.
| But that did not discourage Valentine,
| for, finding no one about but the slaves of
| Asterius he preached to them with all his
! fervor and promptly converted them to
| his way of regarding the hereafter and
| their duty to the Almighty. This so i'm
| pressed Asterius that he was disposed to
believe in the religion himself. but, being
! still skeptical, he told his prisoner that if
| he would restore the sight of his blind
| daughter and thus prove his divine teach
| ing, he could enroll Asterius among his
! converts and go free. Valentine bv
and not only did Asterius keep his
| promise, but he had all the members of
| his family and all his slaves baptized as
well.
This was, naturally, a great victory for
Valentine, and when the news spread
! Through Rome 1t created considerable of a
sensation. Inc emperor was furious and
! sent to the house of Asterius to have
! Valentine brought before him, but he had
been freed and had gone away 1t was
/ within a short time, however, that he was
| captured by the soldiers who were sent to
find him, and when they found him on the
tlaminian Way, not far from Rome, they
beat him. cruelty with clubs and ended
by chopping off his head.
That tragedy occurred either Feb
IA, 1863 A. D., or on the same day one year
| later, some authorities leaning to one date
and others to the other
And there is not another atom of evil
| dence regarding the life of ST. Valentine,
so 1t is not to be wondered at that the
modern world is mystitied as to why his
name and the day of his death should
| have become associated with the great
annual feast day Of lovers. 1t might be
added, however that st. Valentine is also
! the patron saint of epileptics.
A long time after his death st. Valen-
tine was canonized, and later still Pope
Julius |. built church in his honor near
the Ponte Molo, in Rome. Near it was
one Of the city gates, which was then
known as the Porta Valentino, but which
now is called the Porta del Popola. The
plucky saints body Is said. to be In the
Church of St PraXedis, in Rome. but it is
not complete, for his head furnishes one
of the choicest relics of another church in
the same city, that of St. Sebastian.
RIVALS.
/ But this the most important of the St.
Valentines, is by no means the only one of
! that name. There is the body Of one in a
! church at Baga and the head of the same
one at Ioro, on the DOuro land this fash
ion OF dividing the bodies of St Valen-
tines seems to point to their Importance
and there are others still in a church at
Annecy in the monastery Of Socuella-
mos, at Albacete, Spain. Nor do they ex-
haust the list, for Hamme in Belgium.
possesses the body of ST. Valentine pre-
I sented by Pope Gregory XIV. in 1923. and
the Jesuit fathers Of Client received one
( from Roman Catacomb in 1850 The
list of minor ST Valentines might be still
( further extended, but none of them would
throw the slightest light on the real
/ reason why the original St. Valentine
came TO be regarded as the patron saint
/ OF lovers. There is, Of course, a we'll
defined legend as to the beginning of the
/ custom Of giving valentines, but that is
] a IA HnNf