Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1895-03-23
MlsIlETOE TRADITIONS.
Time uonorcd Myths Of the Famous Plant.
Emblem of Love.

lbnt htohUEtu hlihS WI 'ht ihhis
Emblem of Love.
The ancient British Druids attached
much Importance To the plants, trees and
vines which they employed AS Christmas
decorations for their temples The mistlc
toe especially they invested with II pccul
inrly hallowcd and mystic character.
They regarded it rs an emblem of love
and believed that it typiflcd tho bcnciiccnt
feelings of their gods toward mankind.
IL Is doubtless to this old Drudical asso-
ciation of the mistlctur with love that tls
English custom, which still obtains Of
enforcing the forfeit Uf n kiss from any
woman wim is caught under Il branch of
1t mt Christmas time is traccablc.
In the old scandinavian mythology
there is told u characteristic fable of this
famous Christmas bough, the mistlctoc.
Baldcr, the god of poetry and cloqucnce
and the son of Odin and Frig.i, one day
told his mother that u dream had convnc-
cd him he should die by violence. To
avert this destiny Friga invoked ull the
powers of naturc-carth, air, fire, water,
plants and animals-and made them swear
to her an oath that they would not harm
her son, who then fearlcssly took his place
among The gods and in all their cOnhats
fought unharmcd amid n shower of ar
rows. But he had bitter enemy in the
person of god called Loki, who convinc-
ed that Badcrs life was protected by some
charm, resolved to fnthom it. Disgusting
himself as an old woman, ho visited Friga
and in the course of their conversation
casually asked how it was that her son
Baldcr invariably came forth unscathcd
from all the ficrccst battles of the gods.
Friga told him how she had invoked the
,f in nn1Ipr'S hp,nlf httt
added that she had neglected the mistlc-
toe, which she regarded ms too insi2nifi-
cant to harm him. Leaving her, Loki
straightway made from mistlctoe bough
an arrow, with which Baldcr was slain
by blind god called Hccla.
There is u superstition connected with
the mistlctoe that it is unlucky to fell an
oak on which it grows, and the author of
"Magna britannia" describes u great
wood belonging E, the archbishop of the
Hundred OF Croyland, said to have con-
sisted wholly of oaks, and among them
was one that bore mistletoe, which some
persons were SO hardy as TO cut down for
the gain Of selling it to the apothccaries
of London, leaving Il branch of it to sprout
out, but they proved unfortunate after it,
for one of them fell lame, and others lost
an eye. At length, in the year 1867, IA
certain man, Notwithstanding he was
warned against it upon the account of
what tho others had suffered, ndventured
to cut the tree down, and he soon after
broke his leg.
/ To fell oaks had long been considered
fatal, and such as believe it produce the
instance of the Earl of Winchclsea, who,
having fcllcd curious grove of oaks, soon
after found his countess dead in her bed
suddenly, and his eldest son, Lord Maid
stone, was presently killed by cannon
! ball.
A couple of centuries ago, and many
hundreds Of years previous, mistletoe was
regarded rs being medicine of much
value in cplcptic affections, but modern
science says that the gentlemen who prac-
ticcd medicine in those days were mis-
| taken.